jsmr's Blog

South Fraser Protection Camp: Work Party this Saturday! April 30

jsmr — Thu, 28 Apr 2011 10:09:11 -0700

It takes a village to stop a freeway, come help build the village! Come to the South Fraser Protection Camp this Saturday from 9 am on for a work party to help construct a village that will stand in the way of the South Fraser Freeway. Details on transportation below. We will provide food and information about the camp and the history of the five-year-long movement of residents and supporters to stop the freeway and shift the Gateway Project billions into real social needs.

Here, out of the ugly clearcut of the road's destruction, a vibrant, inspiring, welcoming community is blooming. Lend a hand, join the fun... South Fraser Protection Camp Work Party Saturday April 30th beginning @ 9:00 am (early is good!) 10675 River Road, Delta, BC (extra parking available at McAdam Road & River Road) Bus tickets available. Rides from Vancouver available, RSVP to 778 322 5349 hwalia8@gmail.com Meet 8:00 am at Commercial & Broadway (Safeway parking lot) Tools and supplies will be provided, but more are always welcome. If you have some building expertise please be in touch with us at the contact information below. If you have a decent cordless drill, please charge it up and bring it. The story so far: On April 22nd approximately 200 people marched down River Road and established a camp on a construction site for the South Fraser Perimeter Freeway. Basic defenses have been organized to secure the camp, and since Tuesday morning, when workers were expected to come back for work, the camp has been holding strong. Community members and supporters have been organizing for more than five years to protect homes, ecological and sacred sites from being destroyed by the project. As construction on the road has begun, the resistance to the project has grown, and the South Fraser Protection Camp was established with the understanding that direct action is crucial in the toolkit of successful movements for positive change. We need your support! Come check out our new digs this Saturday to learn more about the camp, future plans, and the history of this struggle. Give us a hand and help us build a movement that will stop the freeway. Join the Wave Against the Pave! Contact: 604 355 2771 info@stopthepave.org www.StopThePave.org Support is needed at the camp on ongoing basis – please stop by for whatever time you can spare, to say hello or to camp for a night or more!

May Day -- Victoria for Wild Salmon

jsmr — Thu, 28 Apr 2011 09:38:39 -0700

Come join Alexandra Morton, Chief Bob Chamberlin, Grand Chief Stewart Phillip, Elizabeth May, Denise Savoie and hundreds of Wild Salmon People walking to Victoria on Sunday 1st May.

Start at 9am at Tsawout First Nation in Saanich and walk 22km to the BC Parliament for a rally (3pm-5pm).

And please feel free to stay overnight in Victoria for a peaceful vigil leading into Election Day. Vote Salmon!

Details including a new advert, brochure and a poster are online via: http://www.facebook.com/l/c05abuEHQXj0vz86sEw0KQB17UA/www.sa...
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Stop the Pave -- Earth Day Action

jsmr — Wed, 20 Apr 2011 19:48:45 -0700

THIS FRIDAY APRIL 22! Calling all residents, students, parents, elders, streamkeepers, treeplanters, guerilla gardeners, blockaders, rebels, climate defenders, farmers and freeway fighters! On a week of fresh cuts to local transit service, it's time to stand up for climate justice, and take direct action to stop freeway expansion!

WHAT & WHEN: Mass Direct Action against Climate Crime, to disrupt continuation of the South Fraser Perimeter Road freeway (SFPR), beginning at 2 pm on Friday April 22 (Mother Earth Day). Actions may continue over multiple days on this long weekend and beyond. There are a variety to get involved and demonstrate support, including roles with little or no legal risk: setting up info tables, talking to passersby, coordinating child-friendly games and activities, etc. All are welcome to participate.

WHAT TO BRING: Bring your own cup or bottle, food and snacks, banners, signs, sunscreen, and bus fare. We aim to provide drinking water, but please bring what you can.

WHERE: Meet at Annieville Supermarket, 10996 River Road, North Delta.

GETTING THERE:

By bus from Scott Road Skytrain: Take the 640, leaving at 1:45 pm, from Bay 7 (to the left when you exit the station). Get off at River Road & 90 Ave. Alternate route, as the 640 may be full, is to take the 312, leaving at 1:35 pm, from Bay 3 (to right when you exit station). Get off at 112 St & 90 Ave and walk on 90 Ave to River Road.

By bus from Ladner Exchange: Take the 640, leaving at 1:25 pm, from Bay 3. Get off at River Road & 90 Ave (11000 block River Road).

By bus from Scottsdale Exchange: Take the 312, leaving at 1:32 pm, from Bay 3. Get off at 112 St & 90 Ave and walk on 90 Ave to River Road.
The 640 bus runs a full schedule 7 days per week, from early til late.

By bicycle or bus from the Vancouver Earth Day Parade (EarthDayParade.ca): Ride the wave against the pave! A group bike ride will depart from Napier Green (Napier St. & Commercial Dr.) at 12 noon for a leisurely 27km / 2 hour ride to the action. Free buses will be leaving Britannia Field at 2pm! Note that these buses will not get you to the Delta action in time for the start (2pm), but the action is planned to be ongoing. These free buses will not be providing return trips; bring return fare if you are planning to return home on the frequent regular buses.

By bicycle from Surrey: A group ride will depart from Newton Exchange at 1 pm!

By car(pool): Some parking is available in the area.

WHEN YOU GET THERE: Please be very polite to the Annieville Supermarket and other neighbours. We need to maintain and build community support.

* * * To volunteer / help set up, please arrive ONE HOUR EARLY (1pm) at the Annieville Supermarket * * *

WHY: Now under legal challenge in federal court, the estimated $2 billion proposed SFPR freeway would greatly increase greenhouse gas emissions, pave invaluable farmland, scar the banks of the Fraser River, pollute elementary playgrounds, cause devastating health impacts, and damage indigenous heritage sites. This freeway is an irresponsible waste of public money, and many similar projects have been stopped before. The SFPR has already been "downgraded" due to lack of funds, and dubbed a "white elephant" in the mainstream press. We will emphasize the need to shift resources from climate crimes like freeways to public transit and electric rail, and to protect communities from flooding and other effects of global warming. Read more in our Q & A.

Endorsed by: Against Port Expansion, Bridgeview Community Action Group, Car Free Vancouver, Forest Protection Allies, Friends of the UBC Farm, Indigenous Action Movement, Lily Point Defenders, Livable Region Coalition, No One Is Illegal, Pedal Revolutionary Radio, Rising Tide North America, South Fraser Action Network, Streams of Justice, Sunbury Neighbourhood Association, Transformative Communities Project, Unitarian Church of Vancouver Environment Committee, Van.Act!, Vancouver Island Community Forest Action Network, Voters Taking Action on Climate Change, Wild Salmon First, Women Elders in Action, Youth Taking Action on Gateway, add your group's endorsement now!

CONTACT: Send endorsements and questions to info@stopthepave.org or call 604 877 1223 or 604 588 4203, and visit us at www.StopThePave.org/wave

REQUEST FOR DONATIONS: Please donate now to support this action! We can squeeze a lot of action out of a few bucks. Donate via PayPal to info@stopthepave.org (or contact us to make alternate arrangements). Visit www.StopThePave.org/wave for more info including a list of requested food and gear. Thanks for your support.

Let's kick off a hot summer of resistance!

Stop the Pave -- Earth Day Action

jsmr — Wed, 20 Apr 2011 19:48:15 -0700

WHAT TO BRING: Bring your own cup or bottle, food and snacks, banners, signs, sunscreen, and bus fare. We aim to provide drinking water, but please bring what you can.

WHERE: Meet at Annieville Supermarket, 10996 River Road, North Delta.

GETTING THERE:

By bus from Ladner Exchange: Take the 640, leaving at 1:25 pm, from Bay 3. Get off at River Road & 90 Ave (11000 block River Road).

By bicycle from Surrey: A group ride will depart from Newton Exchange at 1 pm!

By car(pool): Some parking is available in the area.

WHEN YOU GET THERE: Please be very polite to the Annieville Supermarket and other neighbours. We need to maintain and build community support.

* * * To volunteer / help set up, please arrive ONE HOUR EARLY (1pm) at the Annieville Supermarket * * *

CONTACT: Send endorsements and questions to info@stopthepave.org or call 604 877 1223 or 604 588 4203, and visit us at www.StopThePave.org/wave

Let's kick off a hot summer of resistance!

Integrating chaos and wholeness

jsmr — Fri, 01 Apr 2011 09:56:48 -0700

Recently some friends gathered to reflect together on my recent Egyptian journey. In contrast to the standard academic approach to Egypt, our tour (as do all Quest Travel tours), had a spiritual focus. We came smack up against the unknown, the mysteries and the profound.

Check out my blog for the detail: www.becomingthejourney.blogspot.com

One of the reliefs that particularly spoke to me was in the Temple of Queen Nefertari at Abu Simbel. It show Set on the left, who represents the forces of darkness, chaos, disintegration. On the right is the falcon-headed Horus, whose name means 'he who is above.' Horus is a complex deity, at core standing for wholeness and light--the realized divine principle, higher consciousness.

Between the two forces we find a pharaoh -- a human being, with manifold potential. As someone in the middle, between conflicting forces, we can feel caught, trapped. He/we could be pulled apart, split up by the contrast, the juxtaposition. Or he/we could seek to understand, integrate, balance, and even transform the two seemingly oppositional forces.

For me, this relief is a whole cosmology at one glance! As human beings we have the opportunity, the capacity, the challenge, to integrate forces of darkness and light, disintegration and wholeness. Standing in front of this relief, I was deeply touched... by its simplicity, its depth, its message -- to me, to us, to our world -- so fraught with conflict, and so full of potential for integration and wholeness.

Growing food close to home -- Important AND urgent!

jsmr — Fri, 01 Apr 2011 09:52:33 -0700

Ross Moster invites you to the event 'Building a Neighbourhood Food Network in the West End' on Village Vancouver!

Time: April 9, 2011 from 1pm to 4pm
Location: West End Community Centre, in the Denman Room

Event Description:
How can neighbours foster food growing, food security and sustainability in the West End?
Hear what’s going on in existing neighbourhood food networks, and how Village Vancouver, Vancouver Food Policy Council, and others are helping to build new networks.
Then explore how a local, neighbour-driven food network could share, garden, celebrate, and build security around food in the West End.
More details to follow.
FREE. Refreshments will be provided.

Registration required: RSVP here, then register online at www.westendcc.ca, or in person, or by calling WE Community Centre (604-257-8333).
Limited to 50 participants.

Organized By: Ross Moster, VV Neighbourhood Food Networks, Rand Helten, Green Millennium Foundation, & Vancouver Food Policy Council Neighbourhood Food Networks working group

Thanks to the Vancouver Food Policy Council for their generous support of this event.

See more details and RSVP on Village Vancouver:
http://www.villagevancouver.ca/events/event/show?id=4670368%...
About Village Vancouver

What a Trip!

jsmr — Wed, 26 Jan 2011 12:35:31 -0800

Here is a link to my new blog posting: What a trip! The essay invites us to consider the insights that might arise when we view our life as a journey. Please check it out, and let me know what you find!

I chose this essay because this afternoon I am leaving for a two week visit to Egypt. Wow, eh?!

The pyrmid is a view from the hotel where we spend the first several days. The approach of the tour leans on The Lost Civilization theory regarding Egyptian civilization and culture.

May your life unfold as a wonderful, magical, mystical journey, and may the marvels and learnings enrich and bless you.

Three Big 'M's!!

jsmr — Wed, 05 Jan 2011 11:37:48 -0800

Check out my new blog entry: Three Big 'M's!Go to http://becomingthe journey.blogspot.com and have a look.

Consider how to Maximize Memorable Moments, put your life and experiences into a new perspective, and get your new year off to a good start :-) .

Suggestions for giving!

jsmr — Thu, 16 Dec 2010 10:20:09 -0800

May I be so bold as to suggest some considerations for your giving this season? If you're not interested, you can click on an uplifting Flash Mob performance and carry on with your day :-)

Where ever you are, and whatever you do with this list of suggestions, warm greetings and blessings, and happiness, peace, and joy for the holidays.

Jill

Certainly there are always green and social service gifts, which are clearly good choices. In this note I am suggesting items created by friends of mine, and which cover a broad range of interests: an enchanting children's CD, a riveting historical, psychological, page-turner; an intriguing numerology volume; tools for tapping in to your inner knowing, and a personal invitation to maximize the memorable moments in our lives.

Something for everyone! And you would be supporting local talent! Have a browse :-)

• My dear friend, singer and songwriter Peggy Rose has produced a wonderful CD for children. Our grandchildren love her songs, stories and poems, her warmth and humour. The CD contains a broad variety of themes and rhythms. The songs, stories and poems have a timeless quality, and have been favourites with our children for years now. Her CDs is called Peggy Rose's Musical Storybook, Volume 1. Peggy also has another recording (basement tape quality) called November Rose: Songs of Peace and Love. Both tapes are priced at $10 plus $2 for mailing if necessary. Please contact Peggy at 604-921-7585 or peggystortz@shaw.ca

• A treasured and talented colleague and friend Carla Rieger has written a page-turning adventure story which could be the perfect selection for someone you know. The Change Artist is in turn autobiographical, historical, psychological, and an entirely compelling look at the potential for personal change and transformation. "Romance, adventure, history, philosophy — it has it all! A thought-provoking page-turner that illuminates a little-known period of history and makes it relevant for today." I like how it describes our lives as works of art. What a gift! Buy it here or here.

• If you're deeply into, or simply curious about, numerology, I have just the ticket. A good friend, Lance Shaler, (who features as one of my mentors in my book, Becoming :-), has written a book which makes numerology accessible and fun. In Why Do Numbers Count Lance accesses decades of research and experience, and goes way beyond 'just' numbers in that he links to metaphors about people, plants, our senses, as well as astrology. In case you know people searching for just the right name for their baby, he also offers Baby Names - Why They Count. I have a friend who was startled and amazed at the depth of Lance's insights, and completely rethought the names they had been considering for their new baby. Purchase here and here.

• Who of us would not like to make our work light, either by including many hands, or bringing to it new and brighter dimensions, awareness, or tools? Well, Kate Sutherland has a brand new book called Make Light Work: 10 Tools for Inner Knowing. Her book gives "10 simple but powerful tools to access the inner insight and wisdom that enables you to both resolve major life events and cope with the little everyday problems like: how to deal with a boss who drives you crazy; what food options are best for you or your family; or how to navigate home when an accident snarls traffic. It’s the ultimate self-help book, revealing practical ways we can find our own answers by tuning in." What is more, the layout is accessible and eminently practical, ready to be picked up and used. Available on line here and here.

• And of course I'd like you to consider my volume, Becoming: Journeying Toward Authenticity. Short essays address universal human themes in an intimate way. Recalling and reflecting on pivotal moments in our lives can take us deeper, help us crack old patterns and become more alive and real. The reflection questions in each chapter invite the reader along on the journey. Becoming makes a perfect gift to end the old year and begin the new -- for yourself, a friend, or someone for whom you need a special gift. Read reviews here, and order through me or on line.

Jill Schroder
BECOMING: JOURNEYING TOWARD AUTHENTICITY
1203-2055 Pendrell St.
Vancouver, BC V6G 1T9

Phone/Fax: 604 662-7561

Come out and walk for climate justice Nov. 5, 3:15 pm Surrey

jsmr — Mon, 01 Nov 2010 14:05:36 -0700

Group Hike on the South Fraser Witness Trail!

The South Fraser Witness Trail was begun in 2009 by volunteers from Surrey Environmental Partners and the Wilderness Committee. It follows the route of the proposed South Fraser Perimeter Road freeway through an urban forest in Surrey. Named as one of the city's five major natural area hubs in a recent study, it is home to deer, beavers, herons, owls, salmon, and endangered species such as the Red legged frog and Pacific water shrew.

Witness Trails are a time tested way of protecting natural areas from irresponsible development. Come on the hike to see the wildlife and old growth spruce trees. Find out what is at stake if the South Fraser Freeway gets built, and what we can do to stop it!

When: Friday November 5, 3:15 pm
Where: 168 St. & 108 Ave. in Surrey (meet at bus stop - map: http://bit.ly/aXEEZG)

(The C74 bus runs direct to this location from Surrey Central Skytrain. Just get on the bus at 2:47 pm at Bay 12 under the tracks, and ask the driver to let you off at 168 St. & 108 Ave.)

The trail includes rugged sections. Bring drinking water, a snack, and water resistant footwear. The hike will proceed rain or shine and will only be canceled in case of high winds or dangerous conditions. For more info call 604 588 4203 (including day of) or email witnesstrail@gmail.com

More info including trail map and brochure at http://gatewaysucks.org/trail