Canada – Page 98 – a sibilant intake of breath

North Vancouver hydrology

In the last few days, I have twice been up to the Capilano Reservoir. Located behind Cleveland Dam, it provides much of the drinking water for this part of the city, though it does not generate electricity. I don’t think I have ever seen it at low as it is now. At the top of the dam is a kind of huge rolling blockade that can be raised or lowered to adjust the water level in the dam across a particular range. At present, it is all the way down and there is no water flowing over it. Likewise, there is a larger section of the lake bed exposed than I have ever seen before.

Since the reservoir is normally fed by snowmelt and glacial runoff, every time there is a warm winter we start having water problems. It is even worse when what little snowpack there is is melted early in the summer by high temperatures. Since the dam is unable to hold more than a set amount, it can be necessary to vent a great deal of that excess flow – flow that would be much appreciated a few months later.

As far as I know, there are no rigorous water use restrictions in place, so the hydro engineers must be confident that this supply will see us out until Vancouver’s most rainy winter season begins. For the sake of water supplies next summer – and friends moving to Whistler to ski – I hope that most of that precipitation comes in a solid form, both above a certain altitude and in the area to the north of the city.

Tropika

Having dinner with Jennifer Schofield tonight was really enjoyable. We went to Tropika: a Thai and Malaysian place that has a well deserved reputation among my friends for excellent food. In particular, their scrumptious sauces deserve commendation. So too does the experience of conversing with Jenn, who is on her way from Calgary to Nanaimo. A co-graduate from UBC and a fellow member of the NORAD trip, I am sorry we didn’t take the opportunity to spend more time with one another while still in the same city.

Tomorrow, I am going for a hike with my father during the day. In the evening, I was meant to have dinner with my whole family, but it seems that Mica cannot make it. All told, I have spent less than two hours in his company since arriving in Vancouver, though much of that can be put down to his duties as a residence advisor in Totem Park. I must make a point of heading out there when he will be free enough for us to hang out together.

PS. I know that photo doesn’t do Jennifer justice, but it is the best of those I took this evening. We can only work with the lighting conditions we are given. Here is a better photo of her.

Rather calmer day

Following the party, an early morning, a good walk in Capilano Canyon with Kate, and a frantic rush to the bus station to help her catch her ferry, I am pretty exhausted. This evening has been practically the only unscheduled time I have had since arriving. Tomorrow, it is back to the pattern of meeting people and zipping across the city. Naturally, seeing Kate was especially good, as I have not seen her for a period that we approximated to be four years. I very much hope that the coming year will involve rather more communication than the previous one.

I have Ireland photos to edit and upload, books to finish, and much else to do besides. Also, my iPod (is it the fourth or the fifth replacement I have had through the extended warranty) seems to have a failing hard drive, while my camera is now prone to memory card reading errors. I am going to slog away at all that for a while, then go to bed early. After all, I am meeting both Caity Sackeroff and Jennifer Schofield tomorrow.

[Update: 7:05pm] The Ireland photos are now up on Facebook. I am adding them to the blog posts written during the trip, as well, with Photo.net to follow.

[Update: 7:45pm] I have added photos to the major blog posts written in Ireland. They are all linked on this page.

[Update: 10:30pm] The best photos from Ireland are now on Photo.net.

[Update: 11:00pm] My best shots from Cabin Fever II are now on Photo.net.

Inter-Oxford party

Many thanks to those who attended the party, bringing good food, drink, and – in Drew’s case – enough musical instruments to keep us all entertained and my parents bereft of sleep well into the morning. He and Tristan jamming on the guitar and mandolin made for an interesting spectacle at two in the morning.

Not a lot of people have stuck around for the promised pancake breakfast, and fewer seem keen on hiking during this drizzling day while not well armed with well slept brains. That said, the possibility of spending a bit more time with Kate after such a long absence has an appeal that stacks up well against that of marching up Crown Mountain.

At least one or two photos from the party will doubtless find their way online, once I find an hour or so to spend with Photoshop. Since I have my prints and scans from Ireland back, as well, they should appear online in the next few days also.

Sunday hike adjustment

Because of problems securing both cars and drivers, there is a good chance that the hike on Sunday – following the party at my place on Saturday – will not actually be to Petgill Lake. It’s too far, and I cannot be sure that rides will be available.

The (very good) fallback is to catch the bus up to the Grouse Mountain parking lot, then take the British Columbia Mountaineering Club (BCMC) trail up to the top, since the Grind is closed. From there, we would progress to the majestic view that exists off the top of Crown Mountain.

If you care to provide a vehicle or a driver, speak now. If you are mortally opposed to Crown Mountain as a possibility (it is a bit strenuous, but the view is great), this is likewise the moment to air your grievances.

Blog posts written while very tired are strange

Often, the mark of a good day – and especially a good night – is that you expect it to take several months to really wander through your brain. I am referring to those circumstances that cause a person to profoundly question essential bases of belief. Now, it is almost never the case that such questioning leads to a real personal reversal; by this point, essential beliefs are deeply established. Rather, those nights that seem as though they could contain the possibility for self redefinition are those that hold the dual power of either upsetting the existing balance, or reminding you that the pivot upon which it lies is more stable than you might have dared to hope before.

Much less cryptically, allow me to offer my sincere endorsement to Guu – a Japanese tapas restaurant to which I was led by Nick. As always, his taste did not disappoint. It is not often that one can simply order all the menu items, then discuss them with friends. Such discussion has nothing to do with personal reflection, and everything to do with the sublime chemistry in which all organic beings are embedded. Getting a medical degree seems almost worthwhile, just to understand it better. Of course, I could never stand the terror of such constant reminders of how delicate, infectable, and mortal we all are.

PS. Tzp xufx zv ndd djdu fv tl xhp uvmhah – P bmvr rycy egyi ls aavuy tiwhz. Poeg K uye enqd ys xsx nekpuil ttsd fy Vidmvd, swlczr yiavsy ewtfrfo esiswkrauk glmfziccis rfq qffjvgehlemreg qvwp hrsktidh wl ybsekzy wjmavwz – Z qcx ktnul pcevqiaj tssyl mq wyhfpj rn eabq uik. (CR: Somno)

Frantic vacations are best

Things here are starting to feel as though they have the weight of urgency behind them. After an excellent day with Alison, I am looking forward to tomorrow’s busy schedule, the party Saturday, and the probability of frantic rushing next week. I would much rather spend my time with friends – even if hurriedly – than languishing relaxedly alone.

Those who want to do something with me next week, take note. I leave on Saturday and am already committed to a growing number of activities. There are so many people who I want to see but, in the end, preference is always likely to be given to those who are able to make plans a good way in advance.

I must be off to have one dinner with my family, then another with Nick, Neal, and Lauren.

Whose God is their belly?

Many people made fun of me for being so intent on my return to Vancouver on the basis of culinary considerations: specifically the high quality and low price of food at Vancouver restaurants. My lunch with Alison today, following the Vancouver International Film Festival screening we attended, would have convinced them otherwise.

At Honjin Sushi on Lonsdale – a listed objective of mine – we each had tuna and salmon sashima, prawns, prawn and vegetable tempura, miso soup, salad, a tuna roll, and green tea. It was an extensive and delicious collection of foodstuffs, served in a good environment. All together, with tip, the bill was less than twelve Pounds.

With one week left in Vancouver, a number of other restaurants are in my sights. Gyoza King was dealt with by Sarah and I, just as Sasha W and I enjoyed the vegetarian Indian food at Yogi’s. I am having lunch at One More Sushi with Meghan Mathieson tomorrow, then dinner at India Gate with Victoria. On Monday, I am going to Tropika with Jennifer Schofield, and I am to have yet more sushi with Astrid at some point next week. Yet further plans may emerge.

PS. The post title is a reference to a category on Tony’s blog.

Tertiary degree contemplation

Sitting in the Cafe Deux Soleils on Commercial is an interesting demonstration of how this is increasingly the part of town that makes the most sense to me. That was emerging strongly during my last few months in Vancouver, as more and more of my friends moved out here from the cocoon that is UBC and environs.

Being home has provoked a lot of thought and discussion about potential doctoral studies. Setting aside the question – addressed earlier – of whether to take a pause between M.Phil and PhD and what to do in it, the matter of where to do the latter degree remains. One option is to try and get into the D.Phil program at Oxford. I don’t know how many spaces there are, but it seems like many members of the M.Phil program are hoping to get one. The biggest advantage of doing so is the rapidity with which I would get the degree. To go from an M.Phil to a PhD in just two years almost feels like cheating, but such is the nature of the accelerated Oxford system. Paying for two more years at Oxford international student prices is pretty daunting, plus there simply must be a limited amount of learning and experience that you can acquire in just two years.

Another possibility, which I am considering most seriously, is to do a doctorate in the United States. Advantages are that good American schools apparently fund their doctoral students at a level sufficient to pay for school and remain alive and reasonably happy. That is pretty necessary, given that such a program would take between four and six years to complete, depending on where you go and how similar your doctoral thesis ends up being to your master’s thesis. If it is basically just an extension, there is obviously less work involved, and thus less time.

Doing a degree in Canada is not something I have given a great deal of thought to. I don’t really know too much about Canadian doctoral programs, and most people I know in them are rather disillusioned at the moment. Of course, most of the doctoral students I know are in Oxford or Canada – the United States is a sometimes alluring mystery.

Advice from those with information on any of those possibilities would be appreciated. Hopefully, I will extract a bit from Kathy Baylis and Peter Dauvergne on Friday.

PS. With 1.2GB of RAM, the iBook feels positively zippy when dealing with the nearly 7000 image files now resident in iPhoto.

Jonathan journeying

Rather than return home with the group, Jonathan was dropped off in Kelowna so as to cycle back to Vancouver over the course of several weeks. Lauren sent me a couple of photos of him, just as he was dropped off: one, two.

Altogether, it is an impressive undertaking. Driving from Kelowna took more than five hours, and he means to make some side expeditions as well. There is one in particular to a place that I have heard said but never seen written; as such, I cannot write it.

I hope the solitude and exertion of more than a week on various British Columbian roads proves enjoyable to Jonathan. Not seeing him again before I leave is a shame, but perhaps he will make it over to the UK before I leave there.