Eco condos in Montreal???

Can anybody drop me a line to let me know where a gal can get an eco condo in Montreal?

They exist.. I've heard about them...I've seen stories. I've read reports...

Eco condos aren't the new sasquatch or lochness monster are they?
Is it only in the Bermuda Triangle that they exist?

Has global warming affected the Bermuda Triangle? Is it becoming the Bermuda angle?

I'm being a smart ass today. Forgive me.

Zinn-ful pleasures

Just wondering if any of you have purchased the CD's from John Kabat-Zinn's Stress Reduction program?

Can someone submit a review via comments to let me know if they found them to be helpful?

Dreaming Lhasa | a film by Ritu Sarin and Tenzing Sonam

This looks like such a good film...

Call me when it's playing in Montreal and we'll go see it...

Dreaming Lhasa | a film by Ritu Sarin and Tenzing Sonam

TV Free - for now!

I whirr through my day like a monkey wound up on a double-venti with a side order of Jolt cola.

So often I'm not 'checking-in' with the moment as it passes. Note-taking, rush-racing, gobbling down my lunch, zipping through the metro turnstile and tossing food into a pot to full up the hole in my belly- then I take the time to gather.. to unfold my thoughts before I nod off to bed.

Sitting meditation, soft-belly breath work and some readings from my 'One Year to Live' class help to soothe me.

Then it all starts up again...

(*I've given up TV. Yay me!!!) Just added that to my 43 Things.

tofuhaiku.com

The Toronto Vegetarian Association have launched a Tofu Haiku poetry contest which looks so fun!

tofuhaiku.com

Any Francophones in Quebec up for composing some French Tofu Haiku? Is there a Montreal Vegetarian Association???

What I did on Shutdown Day 2007

Well it was tough... but I made it through my first . yesterday. Here's how I spent the day (since I was Twitter-less!!)

- Walked Bob early in the AM and then looked at my laptop longingly then grabbed the Utne Reader instead.

- Chatted with Stackable Plastic and then met up with said friend for a whirlwind walking tour of NDG including such spots as:

- A graf/street art shop called Sub V which completely blew our minds out! Trying to find the name of it, lead me to this link. What I'm interested in is seeing any Banksy-like politico-graf on the subject of environmental issues. If you know of any, please send me some links...

- Maison Co-op Verte, where I purchased a membership and will be retuning for a hemp skirt (never thought I would say I wanted a hemp-skirt... but the punkrocker in me is embracing my inner hippie!)

- Numerous old book, clothing and furniture stores which was hilarious as both Stackable and I realized we were tempting fate as 2 highly allergic, asthmatics sought out the dustiest, most allergen covered stores in the city. Luckily neither of us succumbed to any lung or skin rashes.

- Libations and nibbles at The Claremont

- Dogwalk part 2 in a mini-blizzard

- Spent the rest of the evening watching Robert Thurman videocasts and re-watching 'Travellers and Magicians'

So I had an excellent Shutdown Day with the help of good friends, good dust, good movies and a good dog.

The Shutdown Day gang have teamed up with the National Laptop Foundation, a new non-profit organisation launching on World Earth Day, to help underprivileged children, the elderly and schools and doctors in third world countries have access to the internet, by recycling & refurbishing old unwanted & broken computers.

They want to raise $100,000 to help this cause and to start work on the next Shutdown Day and organise events in cities around the world.

Keep watching their site for more information...

Shutdown Day

If you see me online in the next few hours- please call me a cheater! The countdown is on for Shutdown Day... You up for the challenge???

Shutdown Day

Wandering Minds- I'm not there 30% of the time

Interesting article citing a study on how people aren't thinking about what they are doing on average 30% of the time..

Wandering Minds - World of Psychology

Windhorse- explained

"When we pay attention to everything around us, the overall effect is upliftedness. The Shambhalian term for that is windhorse. The wind principle is very airy and powerful. Horse means that the energy is ridable. That particularly airy and sophisticated energy, so clean and full of decency, can be ridden...

Windhorse is also the idea of harnessing or riding on basic goodness. The wind of goodness is so fresh and free from obstructions. Therefore, you can ride on it... The experience of windhorse is that, because everything is so decent, so real and so proper, therefore it is workable."

As Kramer once said, 'Giddy-up"

Rizopia - my new favorite food

I LOVE RICE PASTA!!! and this company has the yummiest rice pasta that's ever touched my palate.

Rizopia Food Products Inc.

Giving me the finger

I've broken my fourth finger on my right (writing hand)... while walking Bob, I slipped on some ice and now I'm quite mindful not to upset the easily offended digit.

I may be switching to videoblogging depending on what the xrays say tomorrow.

Looking at ourselves

The starting point is acknowledging that some kind of goodness exists in us. It is necessary to take that arrogant attitude, positively speaking. There is some feeling of upliftedness. We are worthy people, and we have something going for us. We are not all that totally wretched. Of course, we do have the wretched aspect that we have to face and look at. That is absolutely necessary in order to realize the other part. But they don't actually interact as counterparts. It's simply that you go through your clouds, and then you see your sun. That is the basic approach, the basic idea we should take towards the worthiness of our existence. That, by the way, is the warrior's philosophy of looking at ourselves.

From Talk One of "Warriorship in the Three Yanas," an unpublished seminar given by Chogyam Trungpa at the Rocky Mountain Dharma Center, August 22, 1978.
Ocean of Dharma Quotes of the Week

Shelby on drums

As a pugmom, I read a few of the pugblogs out this blogoshpere... This post and photo made me giggle because it is so darn true.

"Shelby poses on Steven's new drum set. Because that is what you do when you have a pug. You put them on the things you buy, and take a photo of them. And I'm not sure why that is, but it's true."

To see the aforementioned pug on a drum kit....
Bringing Up Shelby: Shelby on drums

www.brownsauce.org

Being Canadian and a member of the 'British Commonwealth'... I grew up eating Brown Sauce aka HP Sauce. Ate it on eggs, on toast with cheese, on potatoes and other miscellany.

Just read online that the last English-made bottle of HP has been rolled off the assembly line and that production is moving to the Netherlands...


For those of you inclined to sign the petition

Lazy Saturday-

Snow falling outside and my pup and I bounded through the neighborhood snowdrifts while plows scraped blank patches of pave and scattered salt pellets over the draingrates.

Coffee on the stove and a lazy Saturday is on the agenda. Time to catch up on some studies and unpack my life from the boxes that surround me.

Here are some links I've been procrastinating with:

Tyson William's Blog has linked to some videos from Ven. Thubten Chodron on How to Perform Prostrations in the Tibetan Buddhist tradition.

What Every Tech Pro Should Know About 'Green Computing'

Toxic tuna tales

5 Ways to Really Green your St Paddy's Day - Lighter Footstep

Free Hugs- Juan Mann's video on Life Beyond Code

Jack Layton hates big ass...

Friday giggle. This one is old but always makes me laug

Dammit zit

I have a crazy inner ear pimple which is absolutely driving me batty.

I don't have particularly sweaty ear drums and I'm hoping that my chocolate binges aren't resulting in orifice pimples.

On the bus trip to work today, I wiggled my index finger around in there, trying to locate the source of this achey little pain. Isolated it to the spot of inflammation and then, try as I might to resist, I spent countless hours in meetings probing at it.... during my walk with Bob, I thought about it incessantly... while on the phone with my mom- I considered it might be phone-related...

Any natural remedies for ear zits you can recommend d(ear) friends?

New site that I adore - dropping knowledge

Just wanted to pass along a site that I am currently looooving... Nice design too...

dropping knowledge :: home

Pints of Guinness Make You Strong

Yup. 2 whole weeks of a new, TV-free life. The internet has replaced my old buddy so I am trying to be mindful of my time spent surfing blogs / watching cats play piano on You Tube or Twittering my life away.

St Patrick's Day is on its way- The day of my peeps... With that I leave you this video which Warren Kinsella linked to a few weeks ago and put a smile on my weathered Irish face.

words have no meaning- Montreal Zen Poetry Festival

The first ever Montreal Zen Poetry Festival will be taking place this week and looks to feature an enter-lightening program.

I will be attending some of the weekend events, but if any of you make it to the Thurs / Fri sessions, drop me a line and let me know your thoughts or lack of thoughts.

words have no meaning

The Mindful Way: Eco Sushi

Get informed about where your fish is coming from....

Appreciate yourself

“A great deal of chaos in the world occurs because people don't appreciate themselves.”
— Chögyam Trungpa Rinpoche

Candy Apple Grey is not uplifting office music

Lesson #1 - Do not listen to Husker Du's 'Candy Apple Grey' at work when you are feeling sensitive.

Today is a better day...Warm thoughts from near and far on the coldest day I've felt in a looong time (minus 40 degree wind chill). Thanks to each of you who gave your input on my dog woes.

Day 3 without a TV set and I'm seeing how my attachment to the TV screen has moved to my laptop monitor. Always looking for an escape. This is the perfect time for sitting- while things are so squishy and fucked up... but somehow being alone with myself is the hardest thing to do. I have a group meeting with the 'One Year to Live' gals this weekend so that will be a day-long sit-a-thon. Long overdue.

Bob is feeling better- so tied in and connected with my mind state. He's settled in and starting to feel like he's home, even though there are boxes upon boxes stacked full of things I don't remember needing since I've not been using them for the past 3 days. A lifetime of accumulations just got displaced into a new apartment and my attachment to many of those items I didn't think I could live without has waned.

It is a 'New Day Rising'...

Tonglen or just a little digital hug

I'm broken.

Please send warm thoughts my way. I need a little cheer and am not too proud to ask!

If anyone has any suggestions for how to help a dog through separation anxiety- please dispense your advise.