http://www.flickr.com/photos/aussiegall/759309122/

I’ve always been interested in books and articles in the self-help or self-improvement field. I probably define the field a little more broadly than most people might, as I don’t strictly include books about losing weight or relationship problems (frankly, those are boring anyway).

I know a lot of people are critical of these kinds of books as simplistic and ‘pop psychology’ but whatever the subject, they can often remind us of those simple truths that we either forget about or in some way rationalize why we’re ignoring them.

I’ve always been interested in psychology and education. I have taken a few psychology courses and thought of getting into psychology at one point. I’m interested in the kinds of decisions people make and the reasoning  or reasons behind them.

As is my morning habit, I like to sip on a coffee and do a little reading via Stumbleupon. This morning I found an interesting article called Seven Weird Habits That Will Change Your Life.

The first idea is the one I found to be most interesting: regularly engage in time travel.

“Regularly engage in time travel. Often the best way to solve a problem is to have a conversation with your future self. How do you do this without bending the space-time continuum? It’s simple, really. Have a seat in your favorite chair and close your eyes. Now imagine walking into a bare room, with plain white walls with a small table and two folding chairs facing across from each other. Sit down in the chair closest to you. Now, in walks your future self 10 years from now. S/he sits across from you and explains that s/he’s there to answer whatever questions you have about the problems you’re facing. Go ahead and begin firing. Ask him/her whatever you want and take advantage of a more experienced version of you.”

What would I ask? I think it would probably revolve around what mistakes am I making now and what am I doing right? What could I change now to improve my life in ten years and be happier (and not just financially)?

That’s it. Pretty simple. I like to reflect on the past and hopefully learn from those mistakes, but also what I’ve done right. It’s frustrating when you make the same mistakes, but that’s life and you can’t change it. I’ll be the first to admit I’ve made mistakes in the past, am making mistakes now, and will continue to make mistakes, but I am learning. By the time I’m done my ride on Earth, I ought to be perfect! (Yeah, right.)

I think the other weird habits in the article are interesting and can all be useful in helping to give us a different and useful perspective on our lives.

What questions would you ask your future self?

Thank you CSIS for saying what many of us have long suspected. And my kids laugh at me and think I’m paranoid when I talk about this.

No surprise that China would be one of the main culprits, as well as Middle East countries. I would also look to India. Of those Middle East countries, the natural inclination is to look at Muslim countries, but no doubt Israel is involved too.

They say at least five countries are engaging in recruiting traitors in Canada, so which ones are they? China, India and Israel for sure. I would suggest Saudi Arabia and Pakistan would round out the five. Who else? Follow the money is always good advice.

I think Canadians need to take this type of activity far more seriously than we do. Canadians don’t seem to want to believe that it is a serious problem or wonder why anyone would want to do that.

Ask yourself that question the next time a government minister loosens the rules to allow more foreign investment in a particular sector or another state-owned Chinese company buys a big stake in a Canadian oilsands or other company.

It doesn’t mean everything should be suspect, but we should pull our heads out of our asses. Canada has a lot of very valuable companies, resources, technology and wealth, so foreign governments are going to be interested. If they can tip the scales in their favour, they’re going to do it.

I think CSIS ought to take a close look at the federal Conservative party, as I’m sure they have, because many of the decisions they make certainly aren’t good for Canadians, but could be seen as beneficial to foreign governments and companies.

Think about that next time you’re at the ballot box.

The “economic miracle” in China is pretty easy to explain when you realize that China’s currency is so undervalued. By some estimates it’s 40 per cent lower than it should be in relation to the U.S. dollar.

What that means is China’s products are artificially cheap, which has a variety of negative effects on the rest of the world. This is a major reason why manufacturing has been leaving North America and going to China. Low wages don’t hurt either!

It’s also why China has created such a massive amount of cash, mainly financed on the backs of the rest of the world through huge trade deficits. Frankly, I’m amazed that they’ve gotten away with it for so long. Why on earth would our “leaders” let that happen?

It also makes goods from the rest of the world much more expensive in China, acting as a disincentive for the Chinese to buy foreign goods. This is in addition to the barriers that companies face in exporting to China in the first place.

80 cent dollars are good for exports

Canada has benefited from a low dollar in the past. It makes our exports cheaper and helps to fuel our export businesses. Canada’s exporters have had a rougher time lately because of the strength of the Canadian dollar against the U.S. dollar.

With the comparative advantage of a low dollar gone for Canada it has been beneficial in one way: companies are forced to keep costs low but also to get better. If they can’t rely on a low dollar, they have to get better in some way.

It has also helped Canadians to be able to import goods more cheaply, but are businesses using that advantage right now to invest in equipment and machinery to make their processes more efficient and productive? Some of what I’ve read indicates they haven’t been to the extent they should.

I guess that’s a leftover of the branch plant mentality of some Canadian businesses. It could also be because banks have tightened up their credit and aren’t lending as freely as they should be so some businesses that’d like to do some capital investment aren’t able to.

Solution to low Chinese currency

Had I been prime minister, I would have recognized the damage caused by the artificially low Chinese currency. The solution would have been to push much harder to force them to change their pegged currency to a floating currency like the rest of the world.

If they didn’t change, it would have taken trade action against China at the  World Trade Organization (WTO). From there I would have organized a type of floating tariff rate based on how undervalued the Chinese currency was. Imagine if the G-20 implemented this. Sure China would be upset, but maybe they’d stop manipulating their currency.

I know I’m dreaming. I don’t think there are many (any?) world leaders that have the spine to do the right thing. It’s a rare quality in politicians these days. I will be watching to see if China lets their currency truly float. If they do, I’ll be surprised.

My son and my daughter.

Father’s Day has always been a day full of mixed emotions for me, a mixture of happiness and loss.

I’m happy to be a father now, with two great kids. My daughter has now graduated and turned 18 and my son is turning 15 this year and is only a few years away from the same.

I got divorced while they were quite young and I’ve made sacrifices in my career to remain a big part of their lives. Not long after I separated with their mom, I lost my job in a small town. With the kind of work I tend to do, there aren’t always a lot of jobs available in a small town and that has meant moving.

I didn’t do that and I paid a price, career-wise. It was worth it to be with my kids and see them grow up. I’ve never wanted to be the “occasional dad” but to be there all the time for them. I hope I’ve succeeded in that. I surprised myself in that choice too. I had always thought of myself as the “career guy” and when I chose my kids instead, that probably surprised me more than anyone.

My birth father. I have never met him & I believe he's still alive in Belgium

The other aspect of Father’s Day that is tough for me is that of the situation with my own fathers. If you’ve ever thought I was a bastard, well, you’d be right. My birth father lives in Belgium (last I’d heard he’s still alive) and I’ve never met him. I wrote once but have never had any contact with him.

I have no expectations of him, but would like to meet him. Considering my age, whether or not I ever will, I don’t know. I know I have two half-sisters too. Why haven’t I met him or them? Perhaps it’s a fear of rejection. God knows they probably don’t know about me. Considering everything that’s happened in the last ten years I’ve certainly been distracted and not necessarily in a positive way. I never seem to have the spare cash to do it and have seriously considered selling a pile of my belongings and dropping everything to settle that question and travel there. It’s not something I have ever really dealt with (just writing this has made me cry). I’ve always struggled between my obligations and my wishes. Obligations tend to win out, and I’m not always happy about that.

It’s still not resolved and it needs to be. It dogs me always and I probably don’t fully realize the extent to which it has affected me.

My mom came back to Canada and I was born in Montreal. Eventually she made her way out west to B.C. and she met my step-father. My brother eventually came along, but my step-dad wasn’t going to be around for long, sadly. I think I was about three when he died in a logging accident near Smithers, B.C.

My mom, step-dad, brother and me.

I have some amazingly intense memories of that time. I remember when he died but at least I remember some times before he died. One of the funny ones was when he saved me from our dog. We had a giant white Malamute dog named Muff. One day I was playing outside and Muff grabbed my jacket by the hood and began swinging me around by the hood. Alerted by my terrified screams, my step-dad ran out and saved me. It is funny when I think about it now.

After my step-dad died, it wasn’t long before we’d moved to Prince George from Smithers. My mom made a wise choice, as I don’t think there would have been nearly the opportunity for my brother and I there that there was in a larger city. It was tough to make the choice to move from away from all the family we had there.

A couple years after that, my mom met my next step-dad.  Ours has never been an easy relationship. I think it was defined early on.

Out for supper one night with my mom & step-dad.

I was about five and I remember telling him “you’re not my dad.” Yeah, I was that kind of kid. I can tell you many stories.

Thankfully he and my mom are still together after all these years. I think it’s about 35 years. We’ve had some tough times along the way but we’ve been able to work things out.

All of this would explain why I’ve made some of the choices I have in terms of fighting to stay a part of my kids’ lives and in some ways, how I’ve become the person I am (for better or worse). I don’t blame my birth father for not being involved in my life. I am not in his shoes, so I can’t fully understand.

Being a dad hasn’t been easy but it’s been pretty rewarding. I love my kids so much.

Make sure to talk to your dad or remember him today.

That means at least another 6,000 or so photos to go! I thought I’d post a couple of my favourites here today. The top photo is a sunset over the Fraser River in Quesnel, B.C. The second photo is the Rocky Mountaineer tourist train taken half-way between Williams Lake and Quesnel.

It’s a rare thing, I can assure you. Normally my opening paragraphs are the size of most people’s entire blog posts. I’ve become much better lately at producing shorter, snappier posts in the interests of (hopefully) entertaining my visitors and attempting to keep you awake.

I feel good that the weekend is here and I’ve actually accomplished a few things this week. I’m beginning my journey towards becoming an early riser. I’ve been a night owl since late high school, so this is like climbing Everest to me.

I’ve still been getting to bed a little later than I should, but getting up early so I’m sort of burning the candle on both ends.

But, the weekend is here! I always like to have images in my posts and what do I find when I search Google Images for “thank God it’s Friday!”? You’ve got to laugh at that one. At first I thought it was a Dutch site, but  I think they were Swedish.

Anything going on in Edmonton this weekend worth noting?

I don't encourage drug use, but I do encourage laughing and this picture worked.

A wave full of oil - from http://ecoterrorist.tumblr.com/post/692615341/waves-crashing-on-alabamas-beaches-thanks-bp

British Petroleum has rightfully taken a lot of heat over their inaction on the Gulf of Mexico oil disaster. It’s hard to believe that we’re nearly two months in and there’s been virtually no progress in cleaning up the spill or stopping the oil from gushing into the Gulf.

BP has promised to put $20 billion into escrow to settle claims related to the oil disaster. One has to wonder if that’s even going to be enough to compensate for the damage done to the Gulf, the wildlife and the lives of those who rely on the Gulf for their living.

The U.S. government has been pretty well impotent in being able to deal with the crisis, aside from a great deal of posturing.

I’d like to share with you a couple of videos related to the oil spill in the Gulf, one a brilliant satirical piece and the other a surprisingly good (but serious) piece from Al Jazeera English – Fault Lines on the impact of oil exploration on the Gulf coast of Louisiana.

I have to give Al Jazeera English some credit for doing a nice in depth piece on this issue. This is the kind of investigative journalism the world really needs a heck of a lot more of. It might be 23 minutes long, but it’s worth every minute.

“Why do we make such shit here?”

He defends his comments as trying to help Canadians be the best they can be.

Seems like he’s off to a great start. That’s certainly an excellent way to attract quality productions to Alberta and the rest of Canada.

Perhaps he should be handling tourism too? I’m sure he could come up with some great lines like: “Come and see our shit!”

So what would Lindsay Blackett say if he were in charge of other Alberta government ministries? Check this shit out:

• Aboriginal Relations – “Powwows? That’s some cool shit!”
• Advanced education & Technology – “Hopefully kids won’t say ‘shit’ after they get a degree.”
• Agriculture – “Alberta grows shit. Did you know that?”
• Children & Youth Services – “My kids are going to give me shit.”
• Culture – “Been there, done that shit.”
• Education – “What’s with all the shit about Bill 44?”
• Employment & Immigration – “I don’t give a shit if you don’t want foreign workers here.”
• Energy – “Drill baby drill!” (Nobody said this shit had to be original.)
• Environment – “I don’t mind if we dump shit in the water.”
• Executive Council – “Shit, I have no idea what to do here.”
• Finance & Enterprise – “Don’t worry, I’m handling shit.”
• Health & Wellness – “Shitting regularly is good for you.”
• Housing & Urban Affairs – “Let’s fix all the shitty houses.”
• Infrastructure – “This is some dull shit.”
• International & Intergovernmental Relations – “I get to travel and shit!”
• Justice & Attorney General – “We need to put more shitheads in prison.”
• Municipal Affairs – “Don’t come to me asking for more shit.”
• Seniors & Community Supports – “Drop that shit & call your grandma.”
• Service Alberta – “Give me more exciting shit to do.”
• Solicitor General & Public Security – “Protecting you from terrorists & shit.”
• Sustainable Resource Development – “We’ll keep this shit rolling.”
• Tourism, Parks & Recreation – “Come and see our shit!”
• Transportation – “Why do we have so many shitty cars on the road?”
• Treasury Board – “Shit, isn’t this the same as Finance?”

I heard before that it was in the works, but now the U.S. government is bringing in a so-called “Internet kill-switch.” Why? Well, apparently to protect you from a “cyber 9/11” along with “Our economic security, national security and public safety are now all at risk from new kinds of enemies — cyber-warriors, cyber-spies, cyber-terrorists and cyber-criminals,” according to Joe Lieberman.

So to “protect” us all from these deadly Internet threats, the U.S. feels it necessary, in addition to spying on everyone, enact a bill that would allow it to completely shut down parts of the Internet inside its borders.

This kind of contrived creeping paranoia concerns me, even though live in Canada. We have a prime minister who seems to love all things American, good or bad, and likes to import the things most Canadians cringe at. I highly doubt he’ll allow us the right to keep and bear arms, but that’s another post.

I worry that Stephen Harper goes weak in the knees fantasizing about doing the same in Canada. Any excuse to exert control.

What really needs to happen to protect us from Internet threats is that people need to have property security measures on their computer, as well as government and industry computers having the same.

Until that happens, no amount of shutting down the Internet in the name of protecting us will do a damn bit of good, aside from creating a tremendous amount of economic damage. Even worse? You won’t be able to sue anyone to recover the damages!

You really ought to read the story. It’ll make you sick, unless you’re Obama or Harper. We must be protected from the series of tubes!

I have a particular obsession for macro photography and I especially enjoy taking pictures of plants, particularly flowers. I normally enjoy taking photos of wildflowers most, but there are certain domesticated flowers I’m fond of, such as the irises we’ve moved with us from B.C.

I think I like taking pictures of wildflowers because of the thrill of finding an unusual specimen in its natural environment. I like to wander in the wilderness or forgotten places searching for these flowers. I may be the only one ever to witness a particular flower in its fleeting beauty. I can be a little annoying as a hiking partner if I’ve got my camera.

Tips for photographing irises. Check out more of the wildlife and flowers in my yard.