teacher appreciation

Those of you who are my friends on facebook know the "share this graphic" thingy that inspired this post :)

The students are back to school, and as they go, why not pause to reflect on the teachers that have made a difference in our lives? My father and my paternal uncle were both teachers, and my mother a was library technician, so I grew up surrounded by educators. Little wonder, then, that when I stopped to evaluate what I was really going to do with my work life, I chose to become a librarian. Teaching is often a thankless and draining task, and most of the time we are in school we rarely appreciate the work or the emotional investment our teachers bring to us. I mentioned on facebook the sheer amount of after-hours work I saw my dad do, and the evenings and summers he devoted to teaching extra classes (like many teachers, my dad couldn't afford to have all the "time off" some people like to snark about). I remember the care he took with the ESL student's papers; the endless reams of tests in which students wrote of "Michael Angelo"; the Henry VIII poster that traveled from classroom to classroom and exhorted one and all to "Keep the Faith, Baby!" But one of the strongest memories I have is of the day I actually saw him in the classroom.

I was 15 or 16. had come to meet him at his school so he could take me to a dental appointment, and I was early. I sat near the back. He was teaching WWII (oh, the movies and books and articles and documentaries in our home about WWII). A map was up on one section of the wall, a film going on the other. Notes filled the blackboard. He was in constant motion. He would run a section of film, hit pause, and dash to the map, tracing borders and routes and clarifying exactly where this bit was happening. Back to the film. Pause again as he elaborated on an important point, enthusiasm filling his voice as he scribbled more notes on the board. Back to the map again, giving more context; back to the film. And beside me, his chair tipped back so he could lean against the wall, a boy in a denim jacket and a mullet, sleeping.

Sleeping? What?? YOU ARE SLEEPING THROUGH THIS??? Here was my dad, totally engaged in his subject, doing everything possible to make it immediate and dynamic and interesting, and this boy had the temerity to fall ASLEEP???? I couldn't believe it. Had I been older I might have given in to the urge to push his chair down, wake him up, and say "that's my dad talking up there, so wake up and listen, a**hole!" But all things considered, probably better I didn't.

There are always those few teachers who leave an impression when your school days are over. Besides my dad, here are some of mine:

• Grade 6: Mr. Bullen: A somewhat mercurial, truly dedicated man who cared about each and every one of us. He was the kind of teacher who, every time he blew his top and sent someone to the principal's office, would sit down and tell us why. "I am angry because I care about what happens to you," he would say. "Acting like that and thinking it's okay is the kind of behaviour that leads to you flunking out of school and cleaning someone else's toilet all day. I don't want that for you, and I know you are all better than that." I went back several times to visit him after I left elementary school, and he always had time for a hug and a chat. I think the last time I saw him was right before I started University.
• Grade 11: Mr Marion: I quaked in my boots when my math teacher left the school and we got rolled into Mr. Marion's AP class. Nothing I had heard about him was good. I failed the first few tests he gave--really failed, for the first time in my life--and then started getting honours marks in math for the first time since elementary. He didn't spoonfeed: he taught his classes like we were university students, expecting us to listen, engage, and (gasp!) take our own notes ("Why is there nothing on the blackboard for us to copy?", we wonder...). He challenged students to rise to the material and the results were amazing.
• Citadel Theatre School/High School: David McNally: a great drama teacher and acting coach who had the knack of being able to relate to teens on their level while at the same time avoid becoming That Person Who Decided To Teach High School Because He Never Emotionally Matured Out Of High School (*cough* Andrea Truman *cough*). He is an amazing actor himself, and we all were inspired by him (oh. And we all had crushes on him. Shhhh....).
• Grade 12: Mr. Olthius: not so much for how he taught me, but because he was insightful enough to recognize my brother's intelligence during a difficult period.

What teachers inspired you as a student? Who do you remember now? Let me know in the comments!

why your stylist hates henna

Having finally "refreshed" my hair yesterday, I feel predisposed to write a post on henna for hair. I've been henna-ing my hair for the past...5 years, maybe more. When I visit a new stylist, the reaction to my hair is invariably the same: an initial enthusiastic comment on the "incredible" colour followed by an uneasy and/or negative response to my explanation on how that colour is achieved. Yes, it's likely your stylist hates henna, and while it's annoying for those of us who use it, upon reflection it's really understandable why they might. So the topic for today is:

Top 7 Reasons Your Hairstylist May Hate Henna

They Were Not Taught About it in School

...Because really, growers from Rajasthan are hardly going to be sponsoring classes at the local beauty college. Most hairstylists have no reason to learn anything about henna. The vast majority of their clients won't use it. They themselves almost certainly never will. Outside of ethnic communities, henna is still somewhat of a "fringe" product.

When They Are Taught, They Get Misinformation

I had a stylist tell me that product buildup was due to the henna I used months prior, because henna "coats" the hair. Henna does not "coat" hair to dye it any more than it "coats" your skin in mehndi applications. Stories about henna being bad for hair, turning hair green, and causing hair to "melt" after subsequent chemical treatments abound. While it is true that it is difficult to impossible to remove the red from hennaed hair, for the most part high-grade, Body-Art-Quality (BAQ) henna will not damage your hair and will not preclude many other chemical treatments. Which caveat leads into my next point:

Poor Henna Products Lead to Henna Horror Stories

The "henna" you see at the Natural Food Store, promising a wide array of colour results, is not anything remotely resembling BAQ henna. Neither is the grey, dusty stuff in the bulk bin at Whole Foods, or the box on the "ethnic" shelf of your supermarket. If you're lucky, it's just henna that is old and has lost its staining power. And if you're not, you don't just have inferior henna powder. You've got a host of additives as well, including the dreaded mineral salts that cause many of the problems referenced above. When people have problems with adulterated products, or try chemical treatments on top of them, it's the stylist who gets to attempt to salvage the resultant disaster. No wonder they shy away from henna: they never know what you may really have in your hair.

Even when you have good henna, though, it's not really a very salon-friendly product:

Henna Gives Transparent Colour Coverage

With chemical colour, what you see is essentially what you get. With henna, what you get is a red/auburn overlay on top of your natural colour. Black and dark brown hair will never get more dramatic than red highlights. Light blonde, grey, or white hair, on the other hand, will go a bright neon orange (take a look at this Google image search to see good examples of the effect of henna on white or grey hair). Not being suitable for all hair types, and often requiring experimentation, henna is therefore of limited use in a salon setting.

The Initial Result is Not the Final Result

As it does on skin, henna on hair starts out bright and brash and mellows over the next few days. Pictures from my first henna application are a good demonstration of this effect. The first photo was taken the evening I rinsed out the henna paste; the second, 2-3 nights later:

Safe to say, that anyone without prior experience would not be happy with a change this drastic. Especially if they had to leave the salon not knowing what the final result would be. Henna-ed hair results also change after multiple applications--after years of use, my hair colour is now much different.

Even with Good Products, Results Can Vary

Again, personal experience can illustrate: when I repatriated to Canada from the UAE, I had to find a new place to get my hair supplies. I ordered the same, well-known brand I use successfully for body art. Due to my familiarity with the product and my personal relationship with the seller, I know I got quality powder. Yet no matter what I did, this henna never started out with better than an anemic gold tone and didn't develop into the colour I knew and loved. My next order, I went with a different brand and got back to the bright-orange-mellowing-to-red that I was used to. Why did the first brand not give me the results I wanted? Who knows? It simply seems to have not liked my hair. And again, salons cannot deal with that kind of uncertainty.

Finally, Henna is Time Consuming

Once applied, henna has to sit on your hair for up to 4-6 hours. Which is fine if you are spending a day at the hammam, or hanging out at home, but not ideal for a business that needs to consider space and turnover.

Justified or not, I doubt that salon stylists will be changing their opinions on henna very soon. However, if you understand why they are leery of it, it's easier to start a conversation about it--and to come to agreement on the best care and treatment of your hair. Any questions about henna for hair? Let me know in the comments!

in which we camp

Firstly, yes I've changed the blog template again. And I can't promise this will be the last time. Eventually I will find one that will "stick".

We decided to pack up and camp again this week, this time at the Lakeview Campground in Echo Valley Provincial Park. Last time we came to this park this campground was closed, and we ended up in Valleyview next to the Drunk And Stoned Neighbors From Hell. This time, I am happy to report, we managed to score the most secluded site in the entire campground and enjoyed three days of peace and quiet and no neighbors. Bliss. Well worth having to hike to the nearest (non-running-water) toilet and the garbage disposal!

Above: getting ready for dinner after setting up camp

Sophia loves everything about camping, and while that can mean setting up is difficult due to all the "helping", it makes unexpected or difficult things easier to manage. Neighbours who want to party, for example, do not bother her at all and she happily does her own thing and pays them no heed. She will even sleep soundly through the music and yelling. She also is content to camp in rain or in sunshine, a trait which definitely came in handy last weekend, when we had not only party kids next door but a deluge lasting close to twelve hours our first evening/night/morning. Rain outside? Rain in the tent? No problem! Just put on your raincoat and continue having fun. Fortunately this time her resilience was not tested. Although the forecast had been for thunderstorms and rain the first night, and was apparently later upgraded to tornado warnings, all the dark clouds hanging over the park blew over as if they had never been. After the first hour or so, we had clear skies, warm nights, and sunny days.

Above: settling in for our first evening

Part of the fun of camping is the food, of course. We don't own a Coleman Stove, so everything I cook I cook on the fire. One of our perennial favorites is Chili-Lime Rubbed Steak from Our Best Bites. This time I wrapped sweet potatoes in foil and put them right in the fire for about an hour to serve along with it. The smoky note imparted by the fire was a nice complement. Usually we only go out for a couple of nights; I'd like to try some longer trips, so I'm focusing on finding or creating recipes that use foods that don't need refrigeration. A friend suggested The Great American Camping Cookbook, so I'm going to try to read that before our next outing.

Above: S'Mores!

Echo Valley has a beach and a playground right close to our site; Sophia enjoyed "dipping her toes" and drawing pictures in the sand for the tide to wash away. The second and third day were beautiful beach days: not too hot to be unable to enjoy the sun, with a gentle breeze. She didn't want to go home when we were done, so if we can keep on avoiding that special class of annoying fellow campers, this park may become a favorite spot.

Getting her feet wet

Enjoying a sunny afternoon

dance weekend

I was bellydancing in Florida when I left this blog, and after a hiatus in Abu Dhabi I started dancing again here in Regina in 2011. I dance with two troupes affiliated with Linda Yablonski of Belly Dance with Linda, Regina's only dance studio dedicated exclusively to this dance form. If you follow me on foursquare or facebook, you've seen the notes I've posted about extra practice time the past couple of weeks; those practices were building up to a busy schedule of performances this weekend.

After a year in the beginning/intermediate Tribal troupe Ya Rayah, I was promoted to the senior group, Ya La Habibi. Both Ya Rayah and Ya La Habibi perform what would technically be called Improvised Tribal Style, or ITS (I'll probably go into further detail about what exactly that means in a later post). I didn't need Linda's warning to know that this promotion would involve a "steep learning curve", and the last couple of weeks my fellow graduate Deanne and I have been involved in some intensive and sometimes frustrating practice sessions to get ready for our first performance as troupe members. On Saturday we drove with three other dancers to Moose Jaw, where we danced at the Bentley Retirement Home and the Motif Multicultural Festival.
We were scheduled at Motif for 2:45, but ended up not dancing until around 4:00 thanks to an unwelcome downpour that started pretty much right as we pulled up to the park entrance. The stage was uncovered, so we had to wait until the rain stopped and until the sound equipment could dry out. Picture dancers edging away from the stage as the people who just told us we can't use a microphone on wet grass pick a power bar up out of a puddle of water and try to figure out when they can plug more stuff into it. Ulp. We finally got to get in front of the crowd, and finished most of our pruned-back set before more rain forced us off the stage again and under the tents. Fortunately the weather cleared soon after that, and we were able to enjoy the festival booths and see some of the other performers. We couldn't believe it when we got back to our vehicle to see it was already 8pm! Time to pack up, change back into civilian clothes and head back home

After that late night I was up early to get ready to represent my cabaret style troupe, The Jewels, in the Secret Gardens Tour. Linda's garden was in the tour this year, and she decided to have dancers as part of her yard's attractions. Dealing with liquid eyeliner at 8am after little sleep was a bit of a challenge, but shockingly Darcy Not The Morning Person did manage to get up, get ready, and be onsite and performance-ready before 10am. Thankfully, the weather was beautiful this time around, and all of us had a wonderful time dancing in such an intimate natural setting.
So after all that glamour and excitement, it will be back to real life on Monday. We are going to be camping; of course, it is forecast to rain the first day. Well, at least we found the hole in the tent floor our last trip...

Rebooting

So I'm thinking I may start blogging again.  Inshallah has been quiet for quite some time, and sometimes I have thoughts I could write about, but wouldn't really fit there.  First up, though, is to update the blog look and structure.  The look is woefully out of date, and blogger has had...quite a few updates since I last blogged.  There are also a lot of sidebar items that are out of date and should be updated or removed.  Anyway...look for more postings soon and maybe I can turn this blog into an at least semi-active place again!