Chookooloonks

a quick post on blogher before mercifully moving on

I'm currently at Portland airport, awaiting my connecting flight to Vancouver, on my way from BlogHer to reunite with Marcus and Alex. In a few words, the conference was great. One of the highlights for me was the discussion in which I was panelist (along with the amazing Maria Niles, Dawn Rouse, Marisa Treviño and Carmen Van Kerckhove), on "Identity and Obligation" -- mostly because of the wonderful participation of the audience members. There were people from all over the world! A self-described "mommy ho-bag"! A sex worker, for crying out loud! It was a great conversation from a highly intelligent, highly diverse group of women, each describing how they create their identities on the internet, and what those identities mean to them and to the world at large. The discussion was podcasted, and as soon as it's posted on the BlogHer site, I'll be sure to update this entry with a link -- it's definitely worth a listen.

Finally, before I pack up my laptop to catch my flight, I just wanted to say a huge thank you to all of the great men and women who made a point of introducing yourselves to me -- it was such a pleasure to connect with you, and most especially, cement some friendships which had their genesis online. I hope our paths cross again very soon.

Tomorrow, we're off to Houston. See you Stateside.

__________

currently at blogher

Alex and I at Whistler. Photo by Marcus.

Back soon.

real life

Today, as serendipity would have it, I got to meet a blogger In Real Life. Turns out Kristin Scott, the author of the wonderful blog Debaucherous & Dishevelled (also my new co-lead at Blogging Baby), is from Vancouver, and she offered to show me around.

Kristin picked me up in a racy white sports car at the appointed time. We'd both arranged for family members to take care of our kids, so I hopped into the car, unfettered by diaperbags or other mom-esque accoutrements. Without saying a word, we knew we were in for an unprecedented time. Kristin put the car in gear, and we headed north to downtown Vancouver. And let's just say that Vancouver hasn't been the same since.

Or maybe not.

The truth is, Kristin and I had a great lunch, and spent the beautiful sunny afternoon walking downtown in the main shopping district of Vancouver. But first, she drove me through the seedy part of town:

(Don't you love how Canadians do "seedy parts of town"? Even the graffiti was neat and artfully done.)

Then, after lunch we took a walk on the wild side by visiting a drug store. I bought toothpaste. Kristin bought a camera. Then we chatted up this guy:

and talked him into taking this picture:

And then Kristin dropped me home.

Okay, yes, yes, it turns out that perhaps Kristin and I aren't the party animals that we thought we were. But you know what? The truth is that meeting Kristin was one of the highlights of my holiday thus far -- she's an amazing soul, and I'm a better person for having spent this time with her. Great time, Kristin. Next time, let's do it with tequila. I'm just sayin'.

And speaking of meeting wonderful women from the web, tomorrow I'm off to BlogHer. For those of you who'll be there, please be sure to tap me on my shoulder and introduce yourself -- I'd love to meet you. And for those of you who aren't attending, and who may be in the Vancouver area, if you see Marcus hanging around with a wild-haired child -- go easy on him. He hasn't learned how to handle Alex's curls yet.

See you from California.

whistler to vancouver

He made it. He returned from the mountain alive, and I'm breathing again. Of course, returning alive and in one piece doesn't make for great blog fodder, so remind me one day to tell you the story of how Marcus almost killed himself riding a bike in Houston, soon after we married. It will explain why (a) I'm paranoid about his riding, and (b) I harbour a certain amount of bitterness about life in general. It's a good story. You'll laugh. You'll cry. It'll become a part of you.

ANYway.

So we're back in Vancouver. On the way back, we decided to take the advice of Anthony, who left a comment on this post, suggesting that we stop at some of the scenic spots on the drive between Whistler and Vancouver. I'll tell you now that I'm not particularly good at photographing scenery -- that's Marcus' strength, portraits are more my bag -- but I did my best trying to capture some of the beauty that is British Columbia.

Enjoy.

marcus vs. the mountain

Marcus couldn't take it anymore: as I type this, he's currently risking his own neck on Whistler mountain. While he said that he had no intention of trying to bike the mountain (what with this trip to Whistler being sort of spontaneous and last minute), funnily enough, when I suggested he see if he could rent any equipment to give it a try -- after all, we came all this way, it'd be a shame not to -- he magically pulled out bike shoes, shorts and a helmet that he just "happened to pack" in the overnight bag yesterday.

Hmph.

So he's off. And Alex and I are waiting with bated breath to see if he makes it back down the mountain alive.

Alex, with Whistler mountain behind her. Will her father make it down the hill? Stay tuned ...

Okay, maybe only my breath is bated.

why i keep a good orthopaedic surgeon on speed dial

Whistler Village

Hello, from Whistler!

I know what you're thinking: those of you who are familiar with Whistler know that it's one of the premiere skiing spots in the world. "But Karen," you're saying, puzzled, "why go to Whistler in the summertime? Surely there's no snow?"

No, my little kumquats, there's no snow. You forget, however, that my husband is an avid mountain biker. And as it turns out, when the snow disappears from the Canadian Rockies, the skiers leave, and the bikers come...

...in droves.

Marcus has been walking around in a state of stunned euphoria -- it's like he's spent his whole life searching for This Very Spot. Even now, back at the hotel, I can't peel him from the window, where he's watching cyclist after cyclist travel up the gondolas with their bikes, risking life and limb to come down the side of the mountain. He's watching some of them launch themselves to breathtaking heights, before sticking perfect landings. He's been silent, save for the occasional "oooh!" as someone succeeds (or fails) in pulling off a particularly good (or bad) somersault. And when he saw an ambulance making its way down the mountain, lights going, I thought he almost peed himself with excitement.

Me, I'm less impressed: the whole town feels like it's a reunion of every stoner I ever knew in high school. Now, before those of you who mountain bike get your padded shorts in a twist, understand that I am not suggesting that all mountain bikers are stoners -- remember, I married one. Besides, I'm perfectly willing to concede the possibility that the long hair, baggy clothing and slightly dazed look in their eyes mask an intellect that would intimidate Albert Enstein himself. I'm open-minded like that.

And Alex? Well, I think this photograph clearly establishes which parent influences her more:

Yes. I'm worried.

a mother's paranoia

Is it a bad thing that this morning, as I was running about a mile from my uncle's home, I came across some Cheerios scattered across the pavement, and for a brief, irrational moment I thought Alex had made that mess, and made a note to myself that I needed to remember to bring her back to clean it up?

stanley park

Entering Stanley Park, Vancouver, Canada

This afternoon, Marcus, Alex and I ditched the rest of the family to do a little exploring on our own. It had dawned on me that despite all of the visits to the Vancouver area in my past, I had yet to actually explore the city of Vancouver -- my time was always spent in the suburbs with family.

We piled into our rented car and headed north, eventually finding ourselves in Stanley Park. It was a glorious day, so we decided to take a walk through the park, and visit the Vancouver Aquarium. If you've never visited Vancouver, it is a breathtakingly beautiful city, and I found myself more than once regarding the locals with envy. It made me realize what I miss, living in Trinidad: I miss walking. I miss safe parks and kid-friendly zoos and aquariums, with summer programs for children. For the first time in my life, instead of wanting to live in a place that was "cool" or "adventurous," I yearned to live in a place that wasn't only beautiful, but a place that felt like it supported families, and home (Trinidad, for all its beautiful flora and fauna, and steel pan orchestras and Carnival, is a place for adults -- it's not, in my opinion anyway, particularly kid-friendly). Perhaps the next time we move, we'll find that place.

Tomorrow, we're heading to the mountains, to Whistler -- more exploring. I can't wait to see what we discover.

kennedy

Last night, my cousin Randall's eldest daughter, Kennedy, went home from Popsland and logged on to Chookooloonks. She read with interest this post, and eagerly looked for her photograph among the ones included in the montage of her cousins.

She didn't find it.

Offended to the core of her three-and-a-half-year-old sensibilities, today when she returned to Popsland, she marched right up to me and demanded:

"WHEN AM I GOING TO BE ON CHOOKOOLOONKS?"

I immediately apologized for my oversight, and ran upstairs to grab my camera.

Ladies and gentlemen, I present to you Kennedy:

Kennedy, allow me to use this forum to publicly express my regret for omitting you from yesterday's Collage O'Kids. It's particularly embarrassing for me because of all of the kids, your little face, for whatever reason, reminds me most of my own daughter's. I hope you can forgive me.

trini family chookooloonks

Family portrait taken today in Vancouver, Canada. It's rare that we're all together, with someone else able to man the camera.

Back row, left to right: Marcus, my mom, my dad, my brother-in-law John.

Front row, left to right: Me, Alex, my niece Julia, my sister Natalie, my nephew Henry.