Citizen Four Incite Blues: Wednesday, March 25th!

Truth does not change according to our ability to stomach it. -Flannery O'Connor, writer (25 Mar 1925-1964)

In January 2013, filmmaker Laura Poitras was in the process of constructing a film about abuses of national security in post-9/11 America when she started receiving encrypted e-mails from someone identifying himself as "citizen four," who was ready to blow the whistle on the massive covert surveillance programs run by the NSA and other intelligence agencies. In June 2013, she and reporter Glenn Greenwald flew to Hong Kong for the first of many meetings with the man who turned out to be Edward Snowden. She brought her camera with her.  

Three new authors talk about the joys and struggles of caring for loved ones facing serious illness or injury. Cathie Borrie’s The Long Hello is a memoir of her time caring for her mother, who was living with Alzheimer’s disease. It is a “deeply affecting, poetic story of love and devotion.” After eight years with her partner Cecile, Lynette Loeppky was planning to leave the relationship when Cecile fell seriously ill. Her thoughtful memoir, Cease, begs the question, why do we stay? And Kara Stanley’s Fallen tells the story of her husband’s life-changing brain and spinal cord injury, and the roll music played in his recovery.

great. its a go for fri. 17 at 6;30 p m. thanks for the tip as to what to serve [ previous e mail]; matt


Hi Glasgow! Thanks for confirmation of dinner date. Already looking forward to the evening!

Rainy day here, all day, as I'm sure you noticed, so no riding. Walked over to FCCC to use elliptical machine and had a pretty good workout, pushing myself to try to break 1,100 calorie count. Of by 1, 1,099, in spite of my sweat-drained efforts. Simply ran out of time, (Max for one session is 60 minutes, plus 10 of cool-down.), and energy. Rest of stats: 2.48 milos for 14,793' of climbage.
 
Meeting Woman continues to be immersed in endless confabs so she left before 10:00 pm, not to return until late afternoon. Fondestos from Mme Coriandre  to you both, back Y&Ring! Let me know if a ride might work for you at some point. Cheers, Patrizzio!

Hi Patrick, I've attached the draft letter for you to edit as you see fit.
I hope everything is going well with your move... I was just up in Penticton
this past summer with my husband and it is so gorgeous, we walked the Kettle
Valley trail, stopping at several wineries along the way (our bags were
quite weighted down with bottles by the time we finished)! If you need anything else, just give me a call or send me an email. -Tavia

Hi Tavia! Glad you enjoyed the KVR! I hope to ride some of it, on a mountain bike, once we are settled. You and your husband obviously needed sherpas to carry your wine purchases! You must visit us when next in Penticton.

Not a big deal but there was no attachment. Not to worry as I've put together a draft which I'll send along. I assume it will need to be modified, (Among other things, date should be verified.), based on what Ann, et al, think appropriate, etc. I will pop by later this afternoon to bring in signed pledge form and chat, if only briefly, about campaign letter. Thanks and Cheers, Patrizzio!

Oh dear, I forgot to attach the document… I must have been distracted by thoughts of wine and Okanagan sunshine! I’ll have a look at your letter and make a few modifications if necessary. I’m hoping to have this done before you stop in this afternoon, so that you and Ann can look at it together. Thanks! Tavia

Hi Patrick, Thanks for dropping by today and for making the volunteer campaign letter sound so much more personal and direct!

Here is our revised version incorporating a lot of your words, plus a new section about our Spreading the Word education program and its impact (that wasn’t in the original version but I think is an important part of our mission that will resonate with many of the volunteers). We have downplayed the event sponsorship a bit because it might confuse people to have that and the Spreading the Word bit in there as well. It’s something we can talk about with people when we do the follow-up phone calls and in the thank you letters.

Please let me know what you think, and if you are okay with it, we will print one copy for you to sign. All the best, Ann

Hello Goils! Let me know what you think before I send letter in for final draft/OK. Thanks. Love Dad/Patrizzio! I think its great!!! Well done D!! xx

Hola Pat and Corinne, here is George's wee girl. Jane xo Proud Papa!! Me and Morita first night at my pad!! Her lovely colouring and beautiful fur! Hi again Pat and Coriine, Morita is a little beauty. Congratulations on your lovely new home!! So thrilled everything has gone so smoothly for you. I can't wait to visit you there. Let me know if you would like some help packing. Will be free after Easter weekend. Cheers, Jane xo

Hi Pet Shop Boys and Girls! Great snaps, Margaret Bourke-White! What an adorable pooch! A real heart-breaker, I'm sure. Was this the plan, once moving to Galiano, or more serendipity? At any rate, congratulations!

I'm reminded of Maggie, the more than adorable border collie owned, at the time, by our friends, Stefano and Kathleen. When we first met her Stevealimo and I were still jogging and Maggie always accompanied us. We took a tennis ball and hurled it along the roads or into the adjacent fields, sometimes into the irrigation raceways that criss-crossed the region. Became more exhausted with the effort of throwing the ball for fetching than from running!

On a subsequent visit to Old Oak, (The actual street address, named for the gargantuan, magnificent oak on property!), we slept in a small outbuilding that had a bedroom and a bathroom. However, one needed to go outside to gain access to the bathroom. (Latest round of renovations has changed all this.) At night, if I ever got up to use the facilities Maggie would always be waiting outside the bedroom door, no matter the time, waiting patiently, the tennis ball between her front paws. I'd throw it as far away as I could, trying for the thickest bushes, but she never failed to retrieve it by the time I was headed back to bed. Felt guilty leaving her, her sad eyes saying, "How can you abandon me and my ball?" 

On that same visit we left for a week or so, driving to Adelaide and back. Day we returned and pulled into driveway, Maggie jumped into front seat to sit on my lap as soon as I opened door, tennis ball in mouth! I gave up and bought one of those throw-sticks, hoping that I'd be able to cast the ball so far that I'd wear her out before my arm fell off! Even that didn't work but time, as you can well imagine, finally took its toll. Still, she was such a wonderful dog that I smile whenever I think of her lovely face, tremendous intelligence and gentle devotion. I'm sure Marita will be the same and more!

Rainy day, all day, as I'm sure everyone noticed, so no riding. Walked over to FCCC to use elliptical machine and had a pretty good workout, pushing myself to try to break 1,100 calorie count. Off by 1, 1,099, in spite of my sweat-drained efforts. Simply ran out of time, (Max for one session is 60 minutes, plus 10 of cool-down.), and energy.

Meeting Woman continues to be immersed in endless confabs so she left before 10:00 pm, not to return until late afternoon. I was presented with a long list of packing chores and threats of dire consequences should I not comply to the letter of The Sisterhood Law. Up to four boxes of books so far. Still, a start! One small step for The Brotherhood!

Thanks for the offer to help with packing, Jane. Might well take you up. Perhaps you could drive the truck to OKV since Giggster will be hammering nails and playing with Morita. Have you been replaced in his affections? Doubles players are notorious for switching partners, I should warn you!!! Fondestos to you three! Cheers, Patrizzio! Pics: Snapped last night, en route to cinema. Lightening bolt is what happens to people who renege on moving commitments! 

Hi Jo-Anne! How are you faring? Trust marked improvement in mobility. On another matter, earlier today Chloë posted the following on Facebook:

Please read and share, if you like BEER, Kegs for Kancer is your night to go out and make a difference in Pat's fight!!

Family, friends of Vancouver man trying to raise $400,000 for leukemia treatment

As you know, Pat's Mother, Tip, and I worked together at UBC, in the Faculty of Education, in the library, called, at the time, The Curriculum Lab. We visited each others homes and Chloë, Pat and Dan, to a lesser extent, played together while the adults drank and visited! I had to remind Chloë of this connection as she was probably seven or eight, perhaps younger, at the time. Unfortunately, we will all be out of town, in Kamloops, on April 11th, at a wedding, otherwise we certainly would have attended fund-raiser. If you plan to go I was hoping I could give you our donation to take along. Let me know your thoughts and perhaps we can arrange to have a get-togehter here to hand over envelope! Fondestos from Mme Coriandre to you both. Cheers, Patrizzio! Pic: Pat's picture posted on Facebook.