Author Archives: Stuart Hartley

Running on Empty

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Hi, today I want to talk about the Alberta energy sector and their decision to essentially die on the sword of oil and gas. Let’s do a quick retrospective on how we got here. Climate change has been becoming a bigger and bigger topic from year to year. With COP 26 having just ended the stage has been growing and the audience’s attention is fully on our leaders.

When it comes to who the audience is, it is everyone who wants to live on a planet where natural disasters aren’t a weekly event. With all of this attention pressure has been growing as year by year our leaders say one thing and then do another. A great example of this attitude is Greta Thunberg, she is blunt about her rhetoric and this has led her to become a voice for the younger generation.

My point today is to talk about how Alberta has decided to choose oil and gas over all others. They see it as something that is the backbone to who they are as a province, their roots if you will. What is more important is that as we move away from these energy resources they are all too willing to dig their heels in deeper simply as a show of resistance to change. Change is scary, and change is necessary. The oil companies know this, they are not going to want to stop making money, simply because the oil and gas industry is no longer relevant. 

They will transition away to greener pastures, and what they will leave behind is not only their infrastructure but also their workers. The oil companies have no loyalty to the workers and so they will move to where the money is. What could change this is if they were to be told that they have to transition and they were given conditions for that transition. Such as, you have to train employees to be able to work in the new energy sector. Not leave them behind, and if the government wants to talk to Alberta about this I’m sure that much like every other big business they would be willing to throw money at that transitional period.

This is why I think that Alberta can move away from being less sustainable if they wanted to. Now it is up to them to see what they want to do. So far it has been more of the same.

A Not So New Type of Pollution

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What a nice and quiet place that looks like in the photo. Looks lovely. I want to tell you about why peace and quiet might be changing a little bit, especially in cities. I am talking about noise pollution, my favourite reason to wake up in the middle of the night.

My history with noise pollution is not very storied as I grew up in a smaller town where maybe once every six months someone would be racing around squealing their tires and making quite the cacophony. Having now moved to the big city, I have noticed that my nights of undisturbed sleep have become fewer. Last night someone was driving around doing donuts, shredding their tires into the ground and making so much noise while doing so that I couldn’t help but get up and stare at the wall until they stopped.

My anecdote aside, urban noise pollution is becoming a larger issue that is causing negative effects on people’s health. Urban Health Lab says that “chronic environmental noise exposure is associated with poor outcomes in adults and children,” some of the health issues they saw were cardiovascular disease, poor mental health, impaired sleep, and reduced cognitive performance. Urban noise pollution tends to be greatest in low-resource communities. This leads us to what can be done.

https://www.urbanhealthlab.org/noise-pollution.html

Urban noise pollution is something that can not be avoided necessarily, what can be done is that we can reduce the effects of noise pollution. The solutions outside of telling people to be quiet seem to be rather lacking at least from a governmental policy side. Although a more popular topic to broach, it still has no solutions on the table. What you and I can do is to try and keep it down as well as closing our windows if it gets too noisy out there.

Acting Your Age

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When it comes to having a passion for performing, it is never too late to find a local play or production and to get involved. Not everyone can be the lead and when it comes to being a part of something big, you can play a role no matter how big or small you want to start. Theatre is a great thing for people to be a part of. It can teach so much to so many people and you might have more of a knack for it than you thought.

I have been involved in theatre over the years and it is always a rewarding time. It is not always easy to memorize lines, blocking, dance choreography or really anything. However putting in the time with people who are also putting in the time is rewarding for all who are involved. There have been studies about theatre and some of the benefits that people get from participating here are just a couple ; Self confidence, empathy, better literacy, communication, teamwork and so much more when it comes to getting positives out of theatre.

The teamwork aspect is really important as you will be working with a director, plenty of actors, maybe a choreographer, stage hands if you are lucky, and so many other behind the scenes players who are integral to making a good show.

When it comes to getting involved in theatre, starting local is the best. There are plenty of theatre companies right around the corner, one that is doing something rather interesting is the Cameron Seniors W-H-A-T-A Theatre performance of BBS News Sports Weather, the performance is written and directed by Myra. It is great to see seniors getting involved in theatre proving to everyone that getting into theatre only requires passion and some free time to spend on the stage.

http://https://www.cameron55plus.org/

Tabletop Charity Work

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Tabletop games raising money for local charity, that is some good news. That is exactly what happened recently with the organizer Toss Yer Cabers. They host an annual charity event that runs for a single weekend. It was on the 13th and 14th of November this year, where tabletop players duked it out in the name of charity.

The games list included Warhammer 40K, The Hobbit SBG (Strategy Battle Game), Net Epic Armageddon, and Marvel Crisis Protocol. These treacherously complicated games were spread out over the two days of the event. This year Toss Yer Cabers was able to raise $11,000 which they are donating to the Vancouver Women’s Health Collective. Over the event’s lifespan they have raised and donated $27,000 to charity.

https://www.facebook.com/TossYerCabers/

When it comes to the games that they played at the event the most popular one is Warhammer 40K with a strong fanbase, tons of lore, rules, and a universe to learn about it is a staple of the tabletop genre. I have heard about the game and I have enjoyed learning the lore and some very basic rules on how it would be played. The very simple gist is that you have an army and you have different parts to your turn, moving, attacking, using abilities.

When the players show up they come bearing a mountain of miniature models each one hand painted and the models are very detailed. Some armies have been owned by one player for years upon years, others are just now getting into building their first army. This hobby has been around since 1987 and the games can last anywhere from 30 minutes to 3 hours. Over its lifetime the lore has been expanded upon thoroughly, from the Imperium of Man, to the four gods of Chaos Tzeentch, Khorne, Nurgle and Slaanesh, to the Necrons or robot skeletons, and more factions with even subsets to learn about. 

Warhammer 40k has been around for a very long time, and Toss Yer Cabers using it to raise money for charity.

What is with the Mud?

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What is up with all of this Mud? Recently there have been mudslides closing down highways and causing travel troubles. They have become a much talked about phenomenon as of the past couple of days. So what causes and what leads up to a mudslide occurring? 

http://https://twitter.com/TranBC/status/1460033202865778692

A mudslide is a type of landslide, a landslide is when “masses of rock, earth or debris move slowly down a slope.” (https://www.cdc.gov/disasters/landslides.html) , the difference between a landslide and a debris flow or mudslide is very slim. Not much separates the two. A mudslide’s defining characteristic is that it travels faster and generally in a channel. A mudslide develops when water quickly accumulates and therefore causes this phenomenon. Whereas a landslide requires more things to go wrong, it requires a disturbance in the stability of the slope and can be caused by heavy rains, droughts, earthquakes, or volcanic eruptions. The two are extremely similar, and both become more likely when there is human modification to the land.

To give a quick clarification on human modification to the land. This is when we build things on land and by doing so disturb the soil and this can lead to instability in the soil. One example of this would be roads being built.

http://https://twitter.com/BCGovFireInfo/status/1407808360263520258

Some things that make mudslides more likely is human modification of the land, or wildfires. These increase the chance due to these two things destroying roots, vegetation, and other underground things that help to keep the soil intact. The lower mainland and more so BC have had plenty of both wildfires and of human modification. Over the years we have had some really terrible fire seasons where it has been pitch black outside and where the sun has turned a nice orangey red.

So what can we do? Nothing that you or me can do other than BE PREPARED! This is what we can do, we can understand what can make a mudslide more likely. Once we understand this we can work on having an emergency plan in place to keep ourselves safe. We can understand when it is the most risky to travel, we can stay vigilant and we can stay informed.

Naps are Underrated

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Alright, naps, yes they are normally seen as an old person thing. When you run out of energy you need a lie down, even though naps are really the best thing in the world. We very often don’t get our recommended 8-10 hours of sleep per night because we often go to bed later than we intended to. This can ruin your next day.

It can really hurt your next day as you will feel off, slower than normal.  Well I am turning this franchise around, naps are the best thing to help you have a great day. Let’s say you stay up too late talking to someone, you know that you won’t get enough sleep because you need to get up at 8 for some reason. You have to get up so you do. You deal with what you need to do. Great, now your tired, how could you possibly recover? A nap, bam, 20 minutes and you’re good to go. You don’t even need to fall asleep. Simply lying down makes a world of difference.

Throughout this past week whenever I needed a fresh go at things guess what? I went for a small nap, 15 minutes whatever I felt I needed. After that I came back to work fresh and I smashed what I needed to get done. This doesn’t have to become a part of who you are, going for naps each day. If you want to nap each day go for it, but if you need to nap once or twice a week then have at it.

I’ll end with some quick nap tips. Set an alarm as you need to make sure that this doesn’t become a full on snooze fest. I suggest 20 minutes as it is not here nor there. It is not too long and it is also not too short. Just right in my books. Next do not get under the covers you will not get up and you will want to stay there. Plus you might sleep through your alarm. Finally, take off what makes you uncomfortable, don’t wear your belt to a nap. That is my napping tips for you. So get out there and catch some z’s, but not too many.

Tea: A Broader Array of Flavours

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In the morning we all need a little kick to get us going for the day. Some go to buy coffee, some make it at home, and some prefer tea. I am one of the ladder group. I like tea a lot. Coffee has its ups and downs as it is the classic caffeine drink, but tea has got coffee beat in every flavour imaginable.

Coffee has a lot to offer in it’s bitter kick of caffeine that gets you moving in the morning. I can see the appeal of that, however I just don’t understand why it is so bitter. Tea also is able to offer a significant caffeine fix as black teas are mostly caffeinated and still give you a kick in the morning to get you going. Although the morning battle may be majorly won by coffee I would say that Tea offers the variety, the choice, the freedom to try something new.

Tea comes in many different varieties. I’ll start with the most caffeinated, Black tea is the most caffeinated type of tea, and it is also the most heavily processed tea. Black tea is your Earl Greys, your Assam teas, your Ceylon teas and many more types that are less well known in North America. This tea generally is the most intense in flavour as it can be smokey, or have similar hints of bitterness to coffee. You then have your Oolong tea which can also have a lot of caffeine in it, this amount depending on when the leaves are picked in the season. This type is less popular in North America as well, still easily available at local tea shops. 

Now we get into the teas which can have caffeine in them but most widely popular ones don’t. We have your green teas, white teas, yellow teas, and your post-fermented teas. Green tea comes in two varieties, one from Japan, and one from China. Your Japanese green teas are your Sencha’s, Matchas, your Kukicha which is a blend of Sencha leaves and stems, and many more. The Chinese green tea at least the most well known is your gunpowder tea, it gets the name from resembling gunpowder when it is fully processed. Yellow tea is very expensive and rare as it is green tea with another step to production that is called encasing and then it is also steamed. White tea is the last one I will talk about today. White tea is made from the young or minimally processed leaves of the Camellia sinensis plant. The tea itself doesn’t look white it appears yellow but it is a really light tea compared to black or green tea. 

I think I may have badgered the point, with how variable tea is. So when you get up in the morning maybe start to try an Earl Grey or a nicer more mainstream tea, the Cream Earl Grey, which is earl grey tea with some vanilla to give you some nice variety to your generally strong black teas.

Key-Bored with Typing

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When we think about computer keyboards we think of the black dell keyboards that are common in offices and schools everywhere. We also think about our laptop keyboard, the flimsy short keys that feel like typing on paper thin crackers. These are not the only types of keyboards out there as there is a whole other type of keyboard one which gives something special and personal to your typing experience.

We all hope that there is a better way to type and there is. Mechanical keyboards are loved by many enthusiasts who love that great feeling they provide. This community has its ups and down but overall they are all about a great typing experience and making sure that you learn to love keyboards. I am one of these people who loves mechanical keyboards as I am a sucker for that great typing experience, and I figure that I will be typing for a while to come in my life.

First a little anatomy lesson on keyboards. The keycap is the piece of plastic that you press on to then press down the switch, which holds that key cap. This then tells the PCB or keyboard brain to send that letter signal to the computer to then translate it onto your screen. Often there will be a plate around the switches that changes the typing experience. 

Each one of these parts can change your typing experience, but I don’t have all day to tell you about them. So let’s focus on one of the biggest players, in a good keyboard. The switch.

To first talk more about those crappy office keyboards, those are known as membrane keyboards, and they don’t feel great to type on as you are pushing the key cap into a switch that is placed in a gel. So the typing experience can be summed up as less than desirable as you are just pushing these flimsy pieces of plastic into a membrane that feels awful. Laptop  keyboards are different in that the switch itself is very short so it activates very quickly and it doesn’t give your hands that great feedback you want from a keyboard. 

What sets a mechanical keyboard apart from the rest is that each switch has a spring in it. This spring is different for many switches as some take more force to push down than others. The spring gives you some resistance to typing, not so much that it tires your hands out, in fact it is really rather easy to type on them. This feeling makes a lot of people love them, as nothing compares to the feeling.

This is why I enjoy mechanical keyboards a lot more because they give some nice feedback from typing. Something that you can’t or don’t get from other keyboards. So if this sounds like something you want to learn more about then go on line and simply google “Mechanical Keyboards” and there are some great resources out there to get you started on a great typing experience.

A Rubber What Now?

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The rubber duck has been an integral part to baths in recent times, as recognizable as a bubble bath. This small rubber fella has quite the regular rise to absolute stardom.

Whether you are more likely to have a shower than a bath you can still admit that this duck has cemented or rather rubberized itself into pop culture. As a person with too many rubber ducks in my life I wanted to learn more about this weird phenomenon of some water foul taking over baths in a wave of popularity.

The rubber duck or duckie first appeared in the 1940s and it was made out of vinyl. Yet we still called it a rubber duck, maybe just because Vinyl Duck didn’t quite have the ring to it. The first rubber toys were made by manufacturers that used Charles Goodyear’s process which made them malleable. Not to mention the first rubber ducks didn’t even float, the main feature of floating in the tub wasn’t there. The scandal! The first rubber ducks were solid and intended as chew toys, not for baths, yet.

The rubber duck we know and love today got developed in the 1940s, given a bright orange bill and the lovely yellow that we now know so well. Some of the ducks squeak and some are the quiet type. But how did the rubber duck get so popular? Well with most things Ernie from sesame street plays a massive role. Ernie sang a song all about the rubber duckie and how it was his best bath buddy. This tune about his tub buddy, hit number 16 on Billboard’s chart of hit tunes. 

With this tune the rubber ducky made itself truly iconic, all with a little help from Ernie. So next time you shower or have a bath think about this little rubber ducky.

Roof Top Tenting

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Camping can be very intense from back country explorers to weekend getaways into the thicket of British Columbia. Some people don’t get why campers  would willingly go out into the wilderness leaving behind the amenities of society, and those same campers may struggle why people don’t camp. The simple pleasures of being out in nature and not having to hear the hustle and bustle of somebody missing their bus. I myself am quite partial to camping here and there. However this isn’t just about camping as the cover image has a tent on the top of a car, or if you will a roof top tent.

What is a roof top tent?  Good question, let’s start at the beginning. Camping in a modern sense was popularized in the 1900s. More precisely in 1908 as “The Camper’s Handbook” was released by Thomas Hiram Holding this book took off to a troubling degree as many people loved the idea of getting away from it all. As tents got set up in society as something you take with you when you go into the wild, not everyone was happy about walking, and not everyone had a horse on hand. However, something that we had a ton of was cars so people started to strap tents to the roofs of their cars.

In western Europe people started to strap their tents to the roof of their cars, expecting an intense weekend getaway in nature. Now however roof top tenting has been taking the market by storm as more campers are starting to see the reasoning behind bringing a massive four wheeled machine into the wild with them. But some people started out by bringing the car, truck, jeep or smart car into the wild with them. The off-road enthusiasts’ saw this idea and they loved it so now they can drive into the middle of nowhere and simply set up the tent that lives on their roof. Making off roaders all the more happy to be out in the wild.

With all this said, you can see the upsides to getting a rooftop tent. If you want to drive out into the wild and camp, now with this invention that is 90 years old. Not to mention that it is more popular than ever you too can go and get lost in the beautiful thicket of British Columbia.