Desperately Seeking Shade

With temperatures reaching 29C for the first three days of climbing and 35C!!! yesterday, we have been trying to plan our climbs around shady areas. Tunnel Vision was great not only for climbing but also for shade. Due to the direction of the corner cracks at least the belayer was always in the shade and going through the tunnel pitch was almost chilly!

Yesterday we went into First Creek area with an hour long hike in with almost no shade. But in this desert wasteland there was a surprising little creek area that we stopped at on the way out to soak our feet. Paradise!

Ahhhhhh. . . 

Our Route to Vegas

As per a previous post, we managed to stay mostly off the Interstate during our drive to Vegas.

 
View Larger Map

Evil or Egotistical? And Other Random Thoughts

Mojave Max (the tortoise) and his girlfriends were out at the Red Rock Visitor Centre this morning! First time we've been here at the right time of year to see them.

One of the perils of being fair skinned . . . sunburned on the first day out even though I put sunscreen on! :-(

I love Whole Foods! We had a great supper of mushroom lasagna, sesame tofu, beluga quinoa salad with butternut squash and spinach, and an organic Zinfandel from Frey Vineyards in California. Yummy! Chocolate awaiting for dessert.

Today was our "warm up" day at Red Rocks. It's been a while since we've been leading on real rock and we haven't been to the climbing gym lately as much as we should; so we started on some relatively easy one-pitch sport climbs. There were a couple other groups at the area we chose to go. This evil little part of me found great pleasure in the fact that I was climbing better and with more confidence than the fire fighter and the two guys covered in tattoos who were there -- all of whom were at least 25 years younger than me!

Andrew pointed out that we didn't know how long they've been climbing. We've probably been climbing longer than they've been alive. At the end of the day I put on my buff (headband) to hide the helmet-head hairdo and Andrew said it's a good thing it's stretchy so that it fit my swelled head!  :-)

Off the Beaten Path -- Well, At Least Off The Interstate

Once again, we're off on a road trip. Yahoo!  Four weeks where the only "work" involves climbing and hiking in Nevada, Utah, or wherever the mood and weather takes us. Oh ya, and figuring out how to get there. That's "work" too.

Andrew seems to be obsessed on this trip with avoiding the main highways. Which, even though I was a bit tired and grouchy about it on our second day in, I have to admit is awesomely scenic. It takes a bit longer but has been pretty cool to see lots of wildlife (deer, elk, coyote, rabbits, ring-necked pheasant) which you wouldn't normally see too much of from the Interstate, and the wild and varied landscape.

We had a nice hike in Yellowstone which provided a welcome 2-hour break from the car but the roads further in were closed so we had to turn around and re-trace some of our route. Getting to Cedar City took us over a 10,000 ft pass by Brian Head ski resort, and down a very steep winding road. Again, great scenery! And more snowy and closed roads that we had to make our way around.

Without a major detour we had no choice but to get back on Interstate 15 for the last 20 miles or so to Vegas. The worst part was the totally packed 6-lane highway to get around to the far west side of the city.  I'm looking forward to the next few days of climbing at Red Rock Canyon, one of our favourite places, despite being on the fringes of Vegas craziness!

A Day in the Life of a Book

Yesterday I was a book. I was titled "Spirit and Adventure". (Wow, big surprise there!) I was about mountain climbing, policing and community involvement. 

The Human Library started about 10 years ago in Denmark and is now held in over 30 countries. This was the first such event held in Saskatoon at the Francis Morrison Library. 

The Human Library is an innovative method designed to promote dialogue, reduce prejudices and encourage understanding. . . Visitors to a Human Library are given the opportunity to speak informally with “people on loan”; this latter group being extremely varied in age, sex and cultural background. [It] enables groups to break stereotypes by challenging the most common prejudices in a positive and humorous manner. It is a concrete, easily transferable and affordable way of promoting tolerance and understanding.

There were a lot of really interesting “books” in the library yesterday! The organizers did a great job of choosing what they thought would be best sellers. The "readers" could sign out a "book" for 30 minutes and ask questions to learn as much about the book as they could. During the breaks I got to have some short but interesting reads of other books. 

My first "reader".

My first reader was an absolutely lovely and engaging young girl whose family is from Ghana. We talked more than she "read" but we had a wonderful conversation, mostly about mountains, African countries and animals seen on safari. The 30 minutes flew by!

My next two readers wanted to know more about policing; what it's been like being a woman in the police service and challenges that I may have faced. My fourth reader was interested in it all but I mostly told him about the community involvement side of things, particularly my involvement in the community in a police role. All were excellent and fun readers.

My last reader of the day was not really a reader. She started out almost a bit confrontational with short, blunt questions. “You’re a police officer, right?” “Do you work in homicide?” “What kinds of things can I ask you about?” I really wondered where all this was going. I encouraged her to ask me what she wanted to. Long story short, her adult daughter went missing a number of years ago. Several months later her daughter’s body was located under very suspicious circumstances. Despite DNA evidence confirming identity, she does not believe this was her daughter and that her daughter is still out there somewhere. Police (and everyone else) don’t believe this and of course there is a big cover up and conspiracy going on.

I didn’t say much at all other than to ask a couple questions to clarify what she was saying and at the end of the 30 minutes she thanked me and said she really appreciated that I listened to her. It was quite sad.

Anyway, overall it was a very good day. I would definitely encourage others to be a book sometime as I think we all have something to unique to offer. 

By The Label

I love a glass of really good wine. But it's always more interesting when the bottle it comes in has a fun and funky label and/or name.

A few years ago on our way to rock climb in the Needles of South Dakota, we stopped in Hill City at Prairie Berry Winery. We sampled and picked up a couple bottles of Red Ass Rhubarb -- which started out as a "mistake" when the winemaker added raspberries but is now one of their most popular wines. It really does have a distinct rhubarb flavour which I love.

We stopped there again last fall and this time brought home a bottle of Three Rednecks (cabernet sauvignon) and one of Phat Hogg (chardonnay). Again, very cool labels!

Naked Winery (located in Oregon) has tasting rooms both in Hill City and in Custer. We sampled several wines with very sexually suggestive names but settled on Diva and Oh! to bring home.

Dear Mayor and Councilors:

I never thought I'd find myself writing a letter to City Council. I rarely get that worked up about things and I'd be more likely try to find other solutions to whatever the issue happens to be. When it comes to things like increased city taxes, I have the means to pay more and I don't want services cut. I want beautiful places like River Landing, a new art gallery, better cycling infrastructure, a children's museum and updated play area for kids. To get all these things costs money. Simple as that.

I'm also extremely cognizant of the fact that whatever I do in my personal life has the potential to impact on my work and on my employer -- whether that be positive or negative. Especially when much of my work these days involves interaction with our elected officials. It would be easy for them to think my personal thoughts are also those of the Police Service.

In September, a review was occurring and councillors were debating the merits of various City services. Up for discussion was increasing the cost of the seniors & low income bus pass. Normally, I probably wouldn't have voiced an opinion either way. But at this same time, I was busy working my way through the challenges of the Saskatoon Food Basket Challenge and I felt compelled to share my experience in learning of the value of a $5 bill.

Although I did get some very positive responses from a few of the councilors, in the end my letter didn't have much effect. In last week's final budget deliberations they voted to increase the cost of the pass from $21 to $25 per month.

For interest's sake, here's my letter dated September 26.

I’m writing this letter as Shelley Ballard-McKinlay. Not as Inspector Shelley Ballard. These are my own words, thoughts, feelings and are in no way meant to represent the Saskatoon Police Service.

From September 13-19, I was one of 13 participants in the Food Basket Challenge. Our challenge was to live off the contents of a food basket from the Saskatoon Food Bank for one week. The basket typically consists of 2-3 days worth of food, but many clients make it last much longer than that. Clients can only go to the Food Bank once every two weeks.

We were also allowed the use of only five pantry items (out of a choice of 12 items such as flour, coffee, tea, sugar, ketchup, mustard, etc.) and could spend only an additional $5 on food. Accepting food from family or friends was not allowed.

Our limited options and nearly complete lack of choice was very, very difficult for all of us. For myself, this lack of choice manifested itself in a total obsession with food both during the week and for at least a week or more prior to the Challenge. I religiously rationed my food and thought long and hard about what I was going to spend my $5 on, calculating the costs of items down to the penny. I purchased a ½ dozen eggs and 1L of milk for $3.41 and then carefully hoarded my remaining change to buy one peach at the Farmer’s Market for $1.22. (Considering myself quite privileged, I would normally not even think twice about how I spend $5 or $10 or $20+ dollars. Some of us admitted that we didn’t have a clue how much a piece of fruit costs – we just go and buy it!)

As participants, we were struggling to complete the Challenge. Many people felt too tired to work properly. Some were unable to complete the Challenge. People with families found it particularly difficult. And yet, we were the lucky ones. We had jobs and warm houses and transportation. Once the Challenge was over, we could restock our refrigerators, eat out in restaurants and enjoy the full range of food options.

People who live in poverty 365 days of the year are not so fortunate. Some of them responded to the participant’s blog posts on the Food Basket Challenge website (www.foodbasketchallenge.com), telling about their experiences and feelings, and it made me very aware of how difficult it is to cope on an extremely limited budget because you have no choices.

Do you feed your children or yourself? Do you buy medicine using the money you have budgeted for food? Do you buy a bus pass or pay the telephone bill? These are not valid choices – they’re desperate measures.

Here are just a few other things I learned during the Challenge week:

• 44% of low-income households include at least 1 working adult;
•  Full-time minimum wage pays almost $16,000 below the poverty line for a family of four;
• Social assistance doesn’t cover the cost of affordable housing. The 2010 Saskatoon rental allowance was $625 for a family of four, yet the average rent for a 2 bedroom apartment is $934;
• Social assistance provides $255 per month to cover food, clothing, travel, personal and household items for an adult. The amount is the same for a single parent and one child!

Given the above information I know, better than ever before, that it would be an extreme hardship for low-income individuals and families to have to spend another $5 per month, per person, on transit.

You all have a choice to make in the coming months. I emphasize it is a CHOICE. This is something that my fellow Challengers and I did not have from September 13-19. And something that low income people don’t have each and every day.

I ask that you choose to keep the low-income subsidy for transit users. It is one small item in a very large budget, but it will make an enormous difference to individuals and families living in poverty and struggling to survive.

Respectfully submitted,

Shelley Ballard-McKinlay

The Food Basket Challenge Experience

My posts on the FBC website