I came back to KW a bit nervous on Sunday, but by Monday was totally feeling ready to get back to it. I was emailing,  setting meetings, following up, and generally getting everything in order to make some decisions regarding how I’m going to spend my time over the next 8 months (comprehensives, publications, coursework, conferences). I had some new years resolutions somewhere in there too.

I promptly got sick. I made it to a few classes and meetings, and then slept 16 hour days for a few days. I watched Season 6 Episode 1 of The L Word (this has been a serious addiction in the past, and now they have Lucy Lawless of Xena fame) and this episode of South Park, which kills me. Some academic I am.

New years resolutions

Maybe actually old years resolutions. I have managed to not have a bout of chronic pain in my hands in about 18 months, and my fingers are looking pretty good these days (amazing) so my resolution is to keep pushing myself in the outdoors. I’ll be cross country skiing this winter, I will keep running, and to fuel this, I will keep up with what Madamoiselle M calls my ‘racehorse diet’ of oatmeal, bananas, lots of salad, nuts and seeds, whole grain everything, miso, little dairy or sugar. I dunno how it happened, but my acupuncturist is impressed with the results.

I came home to lots of love filled cards and packages through mail. I have so far written two cards to be mailed, but a new years resolution is to send mail to my dearest friends.

I was scared to come back to a place where beats and a beer is the one thing I can’t find on any given night, like I can in Toronto (or Montreal for that matter). I will pay attention to my own music needs. Keep up the music exchanges in the mail and harrassment of the good DJ’s I know.

I also bought two comic books with my gift certificate at the Beguiling. I got Exit Wounds and Blue Pills, both unconventional love stories. Not a bad place to start the new year.

Alternatives had a call for submissions for their Second Annual Books Issue. You can check the link here for the full list, but here are titles that looked like fun:

Christopher Mark O’Brien Fermenting Revolution: How to Drink Beer and Save the World

Summary: O’Brien reveals how “beer activists” around the globe are leading the sustainability movement.

Robert Engelman More: Population, Nature, and What Women Want

Summary: The three way dance between population, women’s autonomy and the natural world is as old as humanity itself.

Raj Patel Stuffed and Starved

Summary: An investigation into the “haves” feeding off the “have-nots,” and a compelling look at how we all suffer the consequences of a food system cooked to a corporate recipe.

Mark Anielski The Economics of Happiness: Building Genuine Wealth

Summary: Economist Mark Anielski has developed a new and practical economic model called Genuine Wealth.

I of course requested these two:

Jeff Goodell Big Coal: The Dirty Secret Behind America’s Energy Future

Peter Dauvergne The Shadows of Consumption: Consequences for the Global Environment

I doubt I will read these, but feel free to tell me about them:

Christopher C. Swan Electric Water: The Emerging Revolution in Water and Energy

John Knechtel, ed.Fuel

Robert L. Evans Fuelling Our Future: An Introduction to Sustainable Energy

Happy reading!

For my teaching assistant job, I have to read a book about environmental change (fiction or non-fiction) and give my students a sample power point presentation so that they can do the same later with their own book.

I asked my friends for help, and here is what they suggested:

“The Last Nut” by Gavin Coates
From Aldo Leopold’s book of essays, A Sand County Almanac, “Wilderness”
• Jared Diamond’s “Collapse”
• Eugene Smith’s “Minamata”
• Sebastiao Salgado’s “Workers”
• “Ishmael” by Daniel Quinn (X 3)
“The Botany of Desire” by Micheal Pollan
“A Short History of Progress” by Ronald Wright
Shel Silverstein’s “The Giving Tree”
• Dr. Seuss’ “The Lorax”
• Thoreau’s “Walden” (honorable mention to incite them to stand up on their tables Dead Poet style)

Happy reading!