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Frederick Douglass: Prophet of Freedom , David W. Blight's monumental biography of that greatest of Americans, is a long, challenging, and utterly fascinating read. After waiting for months to borrow it from the library, I ended up returning the library copy and buying it from Amazon. The book is filled with so many fascinating, inspiring, horrific, and thrilling views on some of the most pivotal moments of United States history,  including the "Second Revolution" -- the Civil War. Here are a few random factoids. After winning the battle for Blacks to join the Union forces, Douglass used the slogan Men of Color! To Arms!  on his long recruiting tours.  1. The expression "personal of color" is at least 150 years old. Frederick Douglass frequently referred to African Americans as people of color. 2. When Malcolm X said "the ballot or the bullet" and "by any means necessary," he was hearkening back to Frederick Douglass. Douglass wrote that Amer...

Diego is walking on three legs, a result of a ruptured knee ligament (ACL). Surgery is scheduled for Friday. Our first dog, Gypsy, had the same injury. It's not uncommon in large dogs. In those days, surgery was new and experimental; we borrowed a car to see a surgeon in a nearby suburb. Gypsy had a rough recovery, which included a post-operative infection, but she came through and lived another two years. These days, surgery is fairly routine, and the good folks at the North Island Animal Hospital are able to take care of it. It was so awful to see Diego in pain, barely able to drag himself up and hobble outside. Then after a few days, he seemed to adjust, and is now moving around ably on three legs. Naturally we don't want to push it. The x-rays showed no arthritis or hip dysplasia, and no tumours, so we're looking forward to getting the surgery over with. Diego and Kai pre-injury. Hopefully we'll see a lot more of this. Meanwhile, Kai and Diego are having so much fun...

I normally don't complain about prices, and I dislike when other people with privilege do so. But for every rule, there's at least one exception, and this is it. What the hell is going on with the price of gas?? Gas is always expensive in our area, often a good $0.10 more per litre than in Nanaimo or Victoria. When we left Ontario, gas prices were fluctuating between around $1.15 and $1.25. The highest price I ever saw in southern Ontario was $1.35. Driving from the GTA to the Island, we were amazed to see less than $1.00/litre in Manitoba. When we arrived on the Island, gas was $1.43 in Port Hardy, and usually two cents less in Port McNeill. And it stayed that way for months. Suddenly, three weeks ago, it shot up to $1.48... then $1.50... now $1.50 would be a welcome change. When I left Port Hardy yesterday, gas was $1.68/litre. Further down island in Campbell River, it was $1.55. Much better, but still crazy-high. This story -- Gas prices break records in B.C. for second week...

A new fence, eh? Not so fast! One minute the dogs are on their side of the fence, barking at a woman walking her dog past the house. The next minute, Kai is playing with the dog, on the street. Of course Kai completely ignored our calls. Her training is going really well, but it would be too much expect her to come back in these circumstances -- training too new, distraction too interesting. So we have to run in the back door, grab her leash, and run out the front door. By the time we got outside, some of the excitement had worn off, and she came running back. We called out apologies and explanation ("We didn't know she could do that!"). The woman had very kindly stopped walking so Kai didn't follow her home. How did she do it? Over or under? We weren't completely sure. In one area, the wooden fence -- the original fence already around some of the yard -- doesn't completely reach the ground. The ground is depressed, likely where there were once shrubs or plant...

The chickens have voted for Colonel Sanders again. It's an old, old story, and we seem farther away than ever from changing the ending. Doug Ford is destroying Ontario in a way Mike Harris only dreamed of. Healthcare, schools, libraries, parks, public transit -- all programs, all supports, and countless jobs are under the ax. Jason Kenney will expand the petrostate and destroy whatever gains have been made in renewable resource development, when he's not busy destroying public education and healthcare. Both men are skillful, deceitful manipulators. Neither are to be trusted. Yet hundreds of thousands voted for them. And while it's true that an NDP government will never be as good as advertised, there is a clear distinction between what's on offer from both parties. And more people chose right-wing over left-leaning. And yes, Alberta has been restored to its more typical conservative government, but last time out, these same voters chose the NDP. And Ontario? Don't s...

In our local paper. At Your Library: Is Your Child Ready to Read? Kindergarten is a child’s introduction to school – but your children’s education begins long before they ever set foot in a classroom. At The Library: Is Your Child Ready to Read? Teachers and librarians talk about something called “ reading readiness ”. A child who is ready to read begins kindergarten set up for success. A child who doesn’t have reading readiness may begin school already struggling. Here’s another way to look at it. Children who do well in school have more options, better life chances. How do children do well in school? By being strong readers. How do children become strong readers? By beginning school with reading readiness, then continuing to read throughout their school years. And how do children become ready to read? Through their parents and caregivers. Helping your child become ready to read is not difficult. You may be already doing it without even realizing it. Here are five ways parents and car...

We did it! We closed the gaps in our partially fenced yard, in a way that looks decent, was within our budget, and within our skill set. First we researched online, and eliminated many possibilities. Then we simplified the project by choosing the least number of gaps to close that would still give the dogs a nice-sized area to play in, and by not having a gate. After investigating local options, we drove five hours round-trip to the Home Depot in Campbell River to buy materials, and visited an off-leash dog park while we were there. And today, we put up the fencing in about two hours. We are not at all  DIYers, and we are all kinds of pleased with ourselves for doing this. Kai and Diego are even happier! Kai ran in crazy circles before settling down with a toy. On the other side of the house, we closed off the deck. The deck plus some yard forms an L with the fenced-in area. This is off the other side of the deck, the short side of the L. When the replacement parts for our new woo...