Nov 23 2008
I just filled my first Twinject prescription. I’ve usually had epipens before, but having to carry two around is a pain and gets quite heavy after awhile. The only down side, however, is the fact that the second dose does not go in the same way as the first. So, if someone else is administering it, it will probably be a more difficult to manage than two Epipens.
I’ve never been in a situation where I’ve had to use these devices, lucky me.
Nov 23 2008
Over on the Official OLPC blog, SJ et. al. have finally posted some details of how to participate in G1G1 if you live outside of the US or UK. Read all about it here.
You can see that Canada is included, but coming from the UK it will cost us more (exchange rate craziness), include a hefty shipping price, and come with a UK plug which is not compatible with a Canadian plug (you’ll need an adapter).
Personally, if I were a Canadian looking to get a G1G1 this year, I would not yet give up on the hope that kissing cousins in the US could get one for us through the Amazon Campaign in the US.
I wonder if they (or my new found Friend Official OLPC Blogger SJ) will let us know if using G1G1 the international way will again mean that we are not eligible to write half of this cost off as a charitable donation?
If you get one this year and you live in Ottawa-Gatineau… Join us!.
Nov 23 2008
There is a great article on one of my favourite cities in the world in the Saturday Globe & Mail. Interesting to see how much things have changed in the decade + since I lived there. In my day in KL, my favourite local designers were Edmund Ser , whose 1996 Designed suit I still manage to get away with wearing and Peter Hoe’s silver rings, batik pants, and his Beyond collection, too.
Check it out!
Continue reading “Where Hotpants meet Hijabs.”
Nov 16 2008
Apparently, there is a new blog in town. It is being touted as the official OLPC blog., which I assume is an attempt not to allow OLPC News, or the OLPC News Forum to steal all the thunder. It’s only a year + too late, if that’s the case. There is already a very vibrant virtual community of people who bought OLPCs in G1G1 2007, thank you very much.
Alternatively, I suppose it could be a vague attempt to make the Foundation appear to be more transparent? Frankly that would be welcome news to anyone who has ever tried to contact the Foundation or who has wondered where their donated computer(s) wound up or wanted to know that the learning impacts of their multiple international projects are.
So, like the rest of you, I will be adding it to my RSS Feed.
Nov 13 2008
I was sitting at work today when a hefty envelope was delivered to my desk. What was in it? 5 copies of the Comparative Education Review Nov. 2008 Edition (vol. 52 no. 4). 5 copies !!??!! Yes, 5 (five)… because I happen to have an article published in it.
So we celebrated with some cognac and divine Miss chocolat.
Nov 13 2008
Nov. 17 is the start date for this year’s campaign for the OLPC computer. I would be excited except for the fact that it seems that they are only being sold in the US and EU this time around via Amazon. Restrictions placed on the terms of sale mean that Amazon dot com and Amazon dot co dot uk will not be allowing international shipping.
Canada would be completely out of luck if it weren’t for these nice offers.
I sometimes ponder where and why OLPC Canada is not thriving. Is it the small size of our community? Our general niceness? Our inability to get our voices heard? Or OLPC Foundations inability to view us as international clients in our own right, separate from and different from Americans? Were/are Canadian owners a different breed of people? And if so, in what way?
If it weren’t for attempts by members of the US user/owner community to reach out to us, I think we would perhaps be completely forgotten.
There seems to be a bit of trouble in the organising department… Kudos to my friends in the Ottawa community who continue to come out to events, but I haven’t seen many announcements around int he last 6 months about events in other cities. Et nous nous manquans les voix francophones!
We should use this as an opportunity to unite and to make our voices heard… enough complaining about how we’ve been short changed! Let’s show the rest what cool things we can do with our laptops and with supporting the use of rugged hardware in developing contexts.
Nov 08 2008
So, I went to Brussels for the frites with mayo and the chocolate… (well, at least that is the part I can blog about… and on a personal level that was definitely what I was doing there)… and they were divine, to say the least. But so, too was some of the other stuff. So, here are some recommendations:
Chocolate: Nevermind the Godiva and the Neuhaus or even the Leonidas (yes, all Belgian brands)… try the Marcolini, the Wittamer and the Corné Port-Royal. You can find most of this stuff in the Place du Grand Sablon, which seems to be *the* place to buy chocolates in Brussels. the one stop chocolate shopping square!
Other Foods: I had dinner one night at the Belga Queen, which was yummy and divine & interestingly laid out in a former bank. The waiters uniforms were a bit odd (hello battleship galactica?!) and the bathroom was co-ed which was a cool novelty, but bizzare, too. Definitely a great place to eat for visitors to Belgium. Even I like some of the Belgian beers (I took a particular shine to the Peche Mort Subite). Oh, and… I had some yummy Italian (homemade noodles) and even Indian food within a few blocks of my hotel (a convenient stones throw away from the EC building but I wouldn’t recommend staying there if you are there for pure tourism).
Nov 05 2008
In the last few years I’ve noticed that Duty Free, esp. in European airports, has gone upscale. Nevermind the duty free part, they want you to buy Gucci. So, I knew going into Heathrow Terminal 3 last week that I was going to lay down some bucks (and I did). But I also learned that Duty Free is also an opportunity to get one hooked on luxury goods you wouldn’t otherwise even glance at.
How? you ask?
Well, just outside the main duty free in Heathrow Terminal 3 (which btw is craftily designed so that you have to walk through it to get to your flight), there is a Jo Malone Shop. Now, I am not up on luxury items like I should be, but I was drawn to this shop. And halfway accross the Atlantic Ocean I decided that I really kind of like the Lime and Cedar perfume I had sprayed on my hand. Subtle yet magical.
So, I look it up online when I land. And the small [read: tiny] bottle costs a whopping C$55. So now i have this dilemma. Fancy perfume? Or Sanity?
