Spreading Light.

I've been contributing to Amnesty International for maybe a decade now but hadn't actually been to any events until tonight.  My sis and I went to go see Alex Neve (Secretary General of Amnesty International Canada) speak tonight and it was so inspiring to see someone stay strong and composed and compassionate and eloquent despite having to describe much horror and apathy in the world.  His key word as a long term human rights activist? Perseverance. Decades and decades of it. 

Much progress has been made and there is still much to do.  Amnesty international had done great work exposing and fighting human rights abuses and continues to do so.  Its  simple but bright yellow candle logo wrapped in barbed wire is so very apt - I walked away from that speech feeling sadness because of all the injustice and suffering but also hope because I was in a room full of people that care passionately about the world out there.  

Booked Lunches.

A Canadian and two Italians have been kidnapped in Libya.  I hope they are okay.  As rewarding a career as my dad had in Libya, I am grateful that he is home safe and sound despite the forced early retirement. 

Mind Farts
-saw Bridget Jones' Baby with girlfriends and laughed. really. hard!  much of the time, sequels don't live up to the hype but this was wonderfully awkward and crazy.  and the female characters have sure aged gracefully :) i like how that was portrayed.  no spoilers, but i hope i can still go nuts at music festivals when i hit my forties.  i think that may be a key to aging gracefully ... you gotta keep appreciating the new stuff, including music!
-also laughed (and cringed and snorted) really hard while reading Augusten Burroughs' memoirs.  very big contrast to my last read about North Korea.
-three cheers for the public library, which allows me to keep inhaling books.  maybe it helps that i've been able to lunch on my own and read quite a bit - my usual work lunch buddies have been bringing their own lunches ... possibly to save money in the current sketchy economy.  i've noticed that even the usual busy restaurants are not as busy anymore
-another reason to lunch on my own: my fabulous mother veganizes Filipino dishes to feed her vegan daughters.  my lunch today is a delicious eggplant adobo :)

A Rude Awakening.

This morning I woke up to BBC announcing that Indonesia will be going through with the execution of Mary Jane Veloso, and that Philippine president Duterte had given the "green light" to do so.  It saddened me immensely.

Admittedly I have not read up in detail on Mary Jane Veloso or Duterte but what I've gathered so far is disturbing. To me, Mary Jane seems like a poor woman who was taken advantage of and duped into smuggling drugs.  I mean, wasn't her recruiter arrested for screwing her over?    

And the stories I hear about Duterte's lack of class and tact and diplomacy when in the public spotlight and all the murders just completely blow my mind.  I can't help but think "WTF?!" Admittedly I am half a world away and don't see things first-hand.  I hope it's not as bad as it seems in Western media.  I know many of my relatives in the Philippines appreciate the changes that have happened since his presidency.  Yeah, I need to read up more on this.  

Mind Farts

-just read Charles Robert Jenkins' book about his many years in North Korea as a captured US Army deserter. He married Hitomi, a Japanese abductee. I had no idea there were so many abductees of so many backgrounds.  Hitomi's mother was kidnapped with her (they were going for ice cream in their Japanese hometown) and her whereabouts are still unknown :(

-really enjoying calisthenics classes. Honestly the closest thing to adult playtime.  I can now *sometimes* hold a handstand for a measly second, but it feels great when I do do it ... I am beginning to feel my bones stacking properly in the right alignment :)

-vegan donuts/cupcakes are really good here ... I've already skipped dinner a few times to eat them.  I think it's very possible to be a fat vegan in Edmonton nowadays 

-I keep running into salsa people ... Maybe it's a sign I should start dabbling in social dancing again?