Travisjrobertson

Happy 150th birthday Canada!

Be a part of the celebrations on Saturday, July 1st in Downtown Calgary. There will be something for everyone including Canadian Armed Forces activities, Indigenous entertainment with a traditional Powwow, an extensive line-up of Canadian musicians on the Riverfront Avenue stage and the Stephen Avenue Summer Stage as well as an outstanding fireworks display lasting 30 minutes!

We’re happy to share that there are many locations hosting family-friendly activities and entertainment during the festivities.

Canada Day at Olympic Plaza

This year the historic Olympic Plaza will host an array of music, dance and storytelling for the whole family. Activities include performances by a jazz ensemble and integrating line dancing, opera, DJs, ballet, improv, roving performers, hands-on mask making and print-making workshops, plus a child-friendly craft activity at the Famous Five monument – this location has something for everyone. Pledge your allegiance to Canada at the CIBC Citizenship Reaffirmation Ceremony, break some moves to Beatbox or simply sit back and enjoy watching our Chinook Country Line Dancers strut their stuff.

For the full schedule on the Medal Stage and Circle Stage, visit the City of Calgary’s page – Canada Day at Olympic Plaza..

Strum n Sing Along with Ian Tyson

String instrument players are invited to Strum n Sing Along with Ian Tyson to the tune of Four Strong Winds.  This event is proudly sponsored by Calgary Downtown Association, Arts Commons and the City of Calgary and is also taking place at Olympic Plaza.

The flash concert of guitars, ukuleles, banjos, and even mandolins will perform together alongside legendary Alberta musician Ian Tyson and host Tim Tamashiro to celebrate Canada 150. Attendees can be a part of the concert or enjoy it at Medal Stage at Olympic Plaza at 1:30 PM.

To take part as a musician and receive the music ahead of time, register here.

Stephen Avenue Summer Stage

The Stephen Avenue Summer Stage, sponsored by the Calgary Downtown Association, will host a great Canadian musical experience featuring the following artists:

• The Corey Hotline
• Scotch Whiskey Limousine
• Andrew Allen
• Sugar Snap
• The New Electric

Celebrate Canada 150 at the CORE Stage

Enjoy a variety of artists on the Canada 150 CORE Stage located in The CORE Shopping Centre (333 7 Ave SW), sponsored by the Calgary Downtown Association and The CORE. Performances will run from 12 PM to 4 PM on Saturday, July 1st.

Eau Claire Market

Come celebrate Canada’s 150th Birthday with an all-day party! This FREE event will have activities for all ages including Live Entertainment, Artisan Market by MarketSpot YYC, Children’s Games and Crafts, Petting Zoo, Reptile Display, Magician, Surprise Guests and much more. Activities will be taking place at the Festival Market Stage and Plaza, the indoor Eau Claire Stage and the North Plaza.

For additional information, visit Eau Claire Market’s Facebook event page.

Celebrate at Central Library

For many, the library is one of the best resources in our community. For the first time, Central Library will be open on Canada Day and they are welcoming Calgarians to enjoy family-friendly activities, including: campfire stories and songs (English, French and Indigenous); 150 acts of reconciliation; selfie station; arts and crafts activities including colouring stations, stonewall and animal tracks adventure; Lego construction pit; and a giant chess tournament. Activities run from 10 AM to 5 PM. More information can be found at www.alliance150.ca.

Prince’s Island Park

Enjoy some unique Francophone entertainment on Prince’s Island to celebrate Canada Day 150! The action starts at 10 AM with a carnival atmosphere that includes interactive games, mascots, puppet show, francophone music, Quebec traditional dishes and Maple Taffy on snow. Storytelling, Metis finger weaving along with fiddle music by James Thurgood will round out the day.

There will also be a wonderful opportunity to find out more about the Indigenous culture. Children can learn Metis dance steps and try unique arts and crafts while everyone enjoys the traditional Powwow and cultural programs in tipis and Metis trapper tents. It all begins on the Main Stage at 10 AM with a Morning Blessing and ends there with great music beginning at 5 PM.

Enjoy military displays and educational activities on Canada Day at Prince’s Island Park.

Riverfront Avenue

Enjoy a wide variety of live entertainment on the Riverfront Avenue stage. Performances include the Chinatown parade, Midnight Taiko Drumming, Woezo African Dance, DJs, Cirque Nova Performers, Michael Bernard Fitzgerald and Tegan and Sara closing off the show.

Fireworks over the Centre Street bridge

Finish your Canada in downtown Calgary with a bang! A world-class firework show synchronized to live music broadcast will leave a lasting memory of Canada’s 150th birthday with the show lasting 30 minute.

For a complete listing of activities happening in and around downtown, visit www.calgary.ca/CanadaDay. Keep an eye out for a detailed guide with a map to plan your most memorable Canada Day!

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If we’ve missed a Canada 150 activity happening downtown on July 1, email us at getdown@downtowncalgary.com.

 

Summit. (noun) A day-long ’sit and get’ event designed to draw political and media attention to the powers-that-be at the top. Usually comprised of speeches, panel presentations, and non-interactive breakout sessions. Iowa antonyms: EdCampIowa, ISLI, StuCamp, EdCampDesMoines, school district unconferences, Iowa 1:1 Institute.

Summits are a great way to reinforce the passive, transmission-oriented model of learning.

Summits are a great way to get your own supportive talking heads on stage and not those of others.

Summits are a great way to talk at rather than with.

Summits are a great way to hammer home that certain people and perspectives get voices and others do not.

In Iowa, we like education summits: 

• Education Summit
• Future Ready Summit
• STEM Summit
• Bullying Prevention Summit
• Teacher Leadership Summit
• Financial Literacy Summit

There comes a time in everyone’s spiritual path when they must chose their own wisdom, their own compass and their own approval outside of their family, friends and current tribe. This moment is one of the scariest and also most exciting moments in your spiritual development. Scary because you’re out beyond how you were raised... Continue Reading →

High-caliber music, theatre, circus and dance rule Montreal’s many stages this week while public outdoor spaces teem with entertainment, from street entertainment and interactive art to several free outdoor concerts that mark the start of music-festival season…

(urban activity) As Quartier des Spectacles gears up for festival season, take advantage of free guided walking tours that explore the history and current events of the area, in English every Saturday afternoon – plus, see performances on Sainte-Catherine Street (weekdays at noon and 4pm, weekends at 2pm), hop on one of the 21 Balançoires music-making swings, and at night see the animated projection art of McLaren Wall-to-Wall. As well, the Accès Asie culture festival continues in the Quartier until May 18, and on May 21, a day of theatre, dance and poetry marks UNESCO World Cultural Diversity Day. The Montréal Space for Life begins its summer program this Sunday at the 75-hectare Botanical Garden with music performances and more. Visit the open-air Atwater Market in the neighbourhood of St-Henri to try Quebec-made artisanal beer at the Atwater Market Beer Festival, May 16-18. Walk down to the Old Port’s Terrasses Bonsecours restaurant and bar for opening night May 15. Montreal’s favourite outdoor dance party in the park, Piknic Electronik, opens its 12th season with two days of electronic music at Parc Jean-Drapeau on May 18 and 19. And the triumphant Habs move into Round 3 of the NHL Playoffs, meeting the Rangers at the Bell Centre on May 17 and 19 – check out this guide on where to watch playoff hockey in Montreal.

(classical performance) Opéra de Montréal and Opera Australia bring Puccini’s last opera, Turandot, to the stage at Place des Arts, featuring an international cast and Hiromi Omura as the character of Liù. Montreal’s Les Grands Ballets hosts the world premier of Belgian choreographer Stijn Celis’s much-anticipated Transfigured Night, a two-part mythical and passionate tale of Orpheus and Eurydice and a mortal couple in the throes of complicated love, May 15-24 at Place des Arts. Montreal’s Chants Libres performs its 15th new opera, modern fable Le rêve de Grégoire (Gregor’s Dream) by Pierre Michaud, May 15-17 at the Monument-National. On May 16, the Montreal Chamber Music Festival presents Brassfire on May 16 as part of the festival’s jazz series – the fest continues with Israeli violinist Itamar Zorman and Giora Schmidt on May 21 and an homage to Beethoven on May 22. The Montreal Symphony Orchestra presents baritone Dmitri Hvorostovsky in recital, performing works by Tchaïkovsky, Rachmaninoff, Medtner and Liszt on May 16, while on May 21-22, violinst and violist Pinchas Zukerman plays Bartók with the Montreal Symphony Orchestra and conductor Kent Nagano.

(on-stage spectacle) Big-time entertainment awaits under the big top as Cirque du Soleil’s newest and wonderfully-entertaining show Kurios – Cabinet of Curiosities delights audiences of all ages, until mid-summer in the Old Port of Montreal. Music-driven comedy-drama 2 Pianos 4 Hands continues at Centaur Theatre to May 25, alongside Souvenir, a play about atrocious – yet famed – singer Florence Foster Jenkins, May 22-25. Contemporary British play Top Girls celebrates the accomplishments of women throughout history, at the Segal Centre for the Performing Arts, to May 18. Family entertainment is the name of Geordie Productions’ game – the company invites everyone to see Homer’s epic tale The Odyssey, to May 18. And Montreal’s contemporary dance scene shines in Marie Béland’s Révélations and Adam Kinner’s The Weather In Times Square, May 15-17 at Monument-National.

(live art) International art and performance festival Festival Transameriques opens a public swimming pool in the Quartier des Spectacles – but this one’s filled with 25,000 balls inscribed with quotes from Stoic philosophers. The interactive performance-art installation Les Thermes (SOCRATES at the Spa), by five artists based in France and Belgium, opens at noon every day May 22-27. Montreal’s 2nd International Digital Arts Biennial continues to June 19 at 30 Montreal art venues, in tandem with the first edition of Montreal Digital Spring program, featuring, among the many exhibitions, Japanese artist and musician Ryoji Ikeda’s C4I at the Musee d’art Contemporain. Even more high-tech art and music can be found at the Ix Symposisum on immersive creativity at the SAT in downtown Montreal, May 21-25 – see performances by Irm, 1024 Architecture and more. And digital art centre Eastern Bloc kicks off its annual Sight and Sound festival on May 20, with innovative music performances and art installations by local and international emerging artists.

(rock out) Community-minded punk-rock festival Pouzzafest takes over 10 music venues May 16-18, including a free outdoor stage in the Quartier des Spectacles with music ranging from family-friendly folk-rock to in-your-face punk, including shows by The Hold Steady, Mad Caddies, SNFU, Dillinger Four and many, many more bands. On May 17, George Thorogood and the Destroyers return to Montreal at Metropolis, while rapper Hopsin rolls into town with DJ Hoppa and City Fidelia at Théâtre Corona, and alt hip-hop producer Gaslamp Killer delves into dark territory at the SAT. On May 18, sway to the danceable beat of British electro-pop group Metronomy, with openers Cloud Control, at Metropolis, or hear electronic indie-rock heavyweights MSTRKRFT at the SAT. Montreal’s own One Man Band Festival continues to May 18- don’t miss free outdoor concerts on Friday at noon and 4pm in the Quartier des Spectacles near Place des Arts, Rich Aucoin’s high-energy Friday night show at Sala Rossa, more free music at the McCord Museum on Saturday afternoon and at the McAuslan brewery terrasse on Sunday afternoon. On May 20, L.A. glam-metal band Steel Panther shred and laugh it up at Metropolis, while 2014 Canadian Radio Music Award Winners Head of the Heard play Divan Orange. On May 22, long-time British hitmakers Morcheeba play a soulful mix of downtempo pop-rock fused with trip-hop, at Metropolis, while now-legendary Japanese psych-rock collective Acid Mothers Temple honour their reputation for being louder than loud at Il Motore.

Come to Montreal and save with our amazing Sweet Deal Hotel Package!

The post Things to Do in Montreal: May 16-22 appeared first on Tourisme Montréal Blog.

By Leo Babauta

We don’t like to think that our way of living is wrong, that our beliefs are untrue, that we participate in cruelty or injustice.

We want to think of ourselves as good people.

I know because I reacted with anger and defensiveness the first time I heard criticisms of the sweatshop clothing I owned, of the consumerism I participated in, of the sexism and homophobic culture I’d grown up in. I know because I ridiculed vegetarians and vegans when I first heard about their ridiculous abstaining from meat and animal products.

And yet, we can be good people … and close our eyes to wrongdoing.

This is when those who see the wrongdoing have a duty: to speak up, and call for conscience, and call for change. And call for compassion.

Today I am calling for compassion for animals: defenseless, suffering, feeling animals.

Our Food System

I grew up in the modern world, with food brought to me already prepared, ready to eat. Microwave dinners, chicken nuggets, cans of chips, packs of beef jerky and candy: it was all the same to me. It was just Food.

I knew nothing of where that food came from. If I ever thought of animals, it was animals on peaceful farms, living happy lives. But mostly I just thought of the food, the delicious, nourishing, yummy food. It wasn’t living beings, just food.

Of course, if we really open our eyes, these are fellow sentient, feeling beings that we’re eating. And they’re not happy or peaceful: they’re suffering, in mass factories of hormone injections, daily beatings, lives of living hell, and murder.

We rightly feel compassion when humans are subjected to mass murder and genocide, under the Nazis and Pol Pot, of the Kurds, in Rwanda, and other incidences of horrible suffering and injustice. And yet, we participate in the mass torture and murder of other beings, simply for our pleasure.

And sure, I will concede that human and animal lives are not equal. But that doesn’t mean they are worthless or unworthy of our compassion. It doesn’t mean we can treat them like unfeeling objects.

Many people reading this love animals — you love dogs, or cats, or bunnies, or dolphins. You would never whip a dog. You would never slash the throat of your pets after giving them a thorough beating. You feel their suffering and believe them to be worthy of your compassion.

And yet, we ignore the extreme suffering of animals. Done for us. For our pleasure.

No Justification

I am convinced that there is no justification for the torture and murder of the animals we raise for our food.

I’d probably kill an animal in self-defense, or to save my children, or to save other human lives. But we’re not talking about the choice between killing humans or killing animals.

We’re talking about the choice between killing animals, and not killing them.

There is no justification for killing these animals. A few reasons commonly given in justification:

• Health: Some people believe that eating meat/chicken/fish or dairy/eggs is necessary for health. This is demonstrably false: vegans are (on average) healthier than non-vegans. Sure, they might have to pay special attention to a few vitamins (B12, for example), but that’s actually really easy and not a worry. I have been vegetarian/vegan for years, and I am healthier than I’ve ever been, and regularly check out as extremely healthy on all tests. I’m only one case, but there’s a large body of scientific literature on the great health of vegans (with exceptions, of course — not everyone pays attention to their health, and some people follow crazy vegan diets like fruitarianism, etc.). But anyway, it’s entirely possible, and not very difficult, to be healthy on a vegan diet. It’s possible to be healthy on a non-vegan diet, but my point is that you can be healthy either way — so animal products aren’t required for health.
• It’s natural. Many people use this as justification — it’s natural for us to kill animals, it’s in our nature. And while historically this was probably true, that early humans killed and ate animals, it certainly wasn’t to the extent that we kill and eat animals today. The way we raise meat and the rate at which we kill it is certainly not “natural”. And what people think our ancestors ate is generally wrong. And as I said above, today many people eat a vegan diet and are shown to be very healthy, so what is “natural” does not equal what is healthy.
• The animals couldn’t live without our help. This is another argument I’ve heard — that if we stopped eating animals, they wouldn’t be able to survive without us. This is incredible to me, that we could use our making food animals helpless as justification for continuing to kill them, as if we’re killing them for their own good. By the way, this argument (that animals wouldn’t survive without our help) is the same argument that was used to justify slavery and continuing to oppress women.
• Can’t give up meat. Lots of people think they can’t give up meat (or cheese, or whatever). This is also false. They obviously don’t want to give up meat, which is understandable, but it’s not true that you can’t give up meat. Lots of people have done it, happily, even when they thought they couldn’t. There are ex-vegans who got less healthy on a vegan diet, but that’s usually because they don’t understand how to ensure that they get enough B12 or iron or protein. Honestly, it’s not hard. The best source for this is Vegan Health.
• Everyone else does it. Being in a society where everyone else participates in a system … you might feel it’s easier to go along with the system. And that’s definitely true. But easy shouldn’t justify a horrible system, should it? Should we go with everyone else if they’re killing innocent beings, just because it’s easier? Should we shut our eyes because it’s too unpleasant to hear about what happens to the animals we eat? Should we not do what’s right, just because our friends and family wouldn’t understand? I definitely live a life that’s at odds with my friends and family, and they often don’t understand. I still do it, because I believe it’s the compassionate thing to do. And I’m not better than you, just willing to listen to what’s happening.
• Raise animals in ethical way. Other people want to be compassionate but still eat meat, so they buy grass-fed or free-range meat. Unfortunately, it’s a fairy tale. There is no such thing as happy meat. But in any case, eating compassionate meat is not a justification for it — you’re eating it because you enjoy eating it, not because you need to.
• Eggs & dairy OK. Vegetarians often will eat eggs & dairy, because those don’t require killing animals to produce. But actually, they do require killing those animals. Most people don’t understand the suffering & killing that occurs in the egg & dairy industries. Read more here and here, to start with.

What it boils down to is this: the only reason to eat meat or other animal products is because you like it. For your pleasure. And to me, killing for pleasure is not justified.

This is not an indictment of you as a person. You’re a good person, as am I. It’s an indictment of the food system we grew up in.

A Call for Change

It’s possible to change the system.

We can try veganism. It’s not hard, it’s actually enjoyable once you get used to it, and it can be very healthy.

You can join me in feeling compassion for our fellow sentient beings. Don’t close your eyes. Don’t act out of defensiveness. Don’t participate in mass torture and murder.

Withdraw from the horrors of the current food system, advocate for a plant diet, push for change.

Now that you’re awake to the suffering of animals, you too have a duty to help others see what’s happening. Desperate situations call for those who are aware to speak up, or they are complicit in the deed.

Stand ye calm and resolute,
Like a forest close and mute,
With folded arms and looks which are
Weapons of unvanquished war.

And if then the tyrants dare,
Let them ride among you there,
Slash, and stab, and maim and hew,
What they like, that let them do.

With folded arms and steady eyes,
And little fear, and less surprise
Look upon them as they slay
Till their rage has died away
~Percy Bysshe Shelley

Every Wednesday is Tip Day.

This Wednesday: Beware of these five common heuristics.

One of my favorite topics within cognitive science is the concept of heuristics. Heuristics are the quick, commonsense principles we apply to solve a problem or make a decision.

Often, heuristics are very helpful rules of thumb, but they can also lead us to make dumb mistakes. Recognizing how heuristics operate can sometimes make it easier to be wary of the pitfalls.

Here are some common heuristics:

Recognition heuristic: if you’re faced with two items, and you recognize one but not the other, you assume that the recognized one is of higher value. If you’ve heard of Munich, Germany, but you’ve never heard of Minden, Germany, you assume that Munich is the bigger city. If you’ve heard of A Wrinkle in Time, but you haven’t heard of The Silver Crown, you assume that the first book is better than the second. When in fact they’re both outstanding children’s books!

Likelihood heuristic: you predict the likelihood of an event based on how easily you can think of an example. How worried should you be about child abduction by a stranger? What’s riskier, donating a kidney or having your gallbladder removed?

Anchor and adjust heuristic: you base an answer too heavily on some piece of first information. If someone says, “How old is Woody Allen? Twenty-five?” you’d probably guess his age to be younger than you would if someone said, “How old is Woody Allen? Ninety-five?” even though you know that both suggestions are incorrect.

Social proof: if you’re not sure about something, you assume that you should be guided by what other people are doing. You’re wondering whether to sign up for my monthly newsletter, which features highlights from the blog and Facebook. You’re not sure, but when I say, “157,000 people subscribe to it,” you think, “Yes, I do want to sign up!” You can sign up here. (End of blatant self-promotion.)

Fluency heuristic: if it’s easier to say or think something, it seems more valuable. For instance, an idea that’s expressed in a rhyming phrase seems more convincing than the same idea paraphrased in a non-rhyming phrase. When I decided to spend some time every weekend crossing long-delayed, horrible items off my to-do list,  I considered calling that time my To-Do List Time, but then switched the name to Power Hour. Much more compelling.

How about you? Do you have any examples of how you’ve used these heuristics, or other heuristics that you employ?