St. Vincent and Grenadines Need Your Help

St. Vincent and the Grenadines Issues Urgent Appealfor Relief Supplies in Wake of La Soufrière Eruption  Toronto, ON (April 12th, 2021) – Following the April 9th eruption of the La Soufrière volcano, St. Vincent and the Grenadines has issued an urgent appeal to the public for relief for those directly impacted. The volcano continues to erupt explosively and has now begun to generate pyroclastic density currents. Explosions and accompanying ashfall, of similar or larger magnitude, are likely to continue to occur over the next few days at least.
Over 16,000 people have had to be evacuated from their homes in the Red Zone to the safer Green Zone to shelters, personal homes and hotels. The need for assistance is tremendous as the country battles with excessive amounts of ashfall, water shortages, and electricity outages.
The National Emergency Management Organization (NEMO) has released a list of the following items and KLC Shippers in Toronto has agreed to offer free storage and shipment of these relief supplies from Canada to St. Vincent:

  • Folding cots
  • Blankets
  • Tents (10x10ft or 20x20ft)
  • Sleeping mats
  • Respirator mask with filters
  • Goggles
  • Reflective vests
  • Caution tape
  • Hygiene kits
  • Non-perishable food items
  • Clothing (NEW)
  • 5-gallon buckets

The items can be sent to/dropped off at:
KLC Shippers50 Tiffield Road, Unit 15Scarborough, ON M1V 5B7416-291-6733
People can also purchase items on Amazon.ca and send orders directly to the address above to the attention of NEMO SVG. Additionally, financial contributions can be made via a GoFundMe campaign that has been started by CARI-ON SVG Disaster Preparedness, a non-profit organization based in Toronto.
GlobalMedic, a Canadian charity and disaster response agency, has also organized a local relief effort, sending food and family emergency kits with water purification units and hygiene items to help displaced families in St. Vincent. Click to donate – from the dropdown ‘Fund’ menu, you can select ‘4 – Saint Vincent – Volcanic Eruption.’
Currently, residents in the immediate area of the volcano have been evacuated to government shelters, as well as off the island on cruise ships in the region that rushed to assist in the effort.
For the most up-to-date information from NEMO, including government bulletins and status updates, please visit https://www.facebook.com/nemosvg ###  About St. Vincent and the Grenadines (SVG):A collection of 32 islands and cays in the Caribbean, St. Vincent and the Grenadines boasts the best of what the authentic Caribbean is renowned for. The Grenadines which stretch 45 miles south from the main island of St. Vincent, include eight inhabited islands: Young Island, Bequia, Mustique, Canouan, Mayreau, Union Island, Palm Island and Petit St. Vincent (PSV). The Tobago Cays (home of SVG’s national marine park) is a horseshoe shaped reef that shields five deserted islets and is known to have some of the best sailing waters in the world. For more information on the islands of St. Vincent and the Grenadines, please visit www.discoversvg.com 

Tourism Niagara Falls Invites You to Experience Niagara Falls Virtually

EXPLORE NIAGARA FALLS VIRTUALLY 

While we all do our part in staying safe at home to stop the spread of COVID-19, Niagara Falls is bringing its iconic experiences to life in your living room. Whether you’ve visited the Falls before, are planning to visit in the future, or you call Niagara Falls home, the World Wonder will be ready to welcome you again when travel resumes.

Explore Niagara Falls VR 

Get cozy and enjoy our collection of family-friendly videos, stories and activities to entertain and educate – from virtual tours to magic shows. Plus, view the majestic wonder from home 24/7 with the Niagara Falls Live Web Cam, including the nightly Falls Illumination.  Learn more about how to experience the wonder of Niagara Falls from home here.

Bird Kingdom (Virtual) 

Bird Kingdom is bringing the wonder of birds to you! Their Virtual Field Trip is a mix of live animal interaction and prerecorded footage of the animals at Bird Kingdom, showing the most amazing and educational experiences you can see at the world’s largest indoor free-flying aviary. Each class runs 35 minutes and costs $95 for up to 50 participants. Their presentation involves audience interaction, so be ready to type your answers and ask questions during the live presentation. Learn something new about birds and why we should care about protecting the natural environment. It may be hard or impossible for groups to travel, but Bird Kingdom is bringing education and inspiration direct to your screen. During lockdown classes can be booked 7 days a week from 9am to 4pm. Bird Kingdom is offering FREE Virtual Field Trips to seniors’ residences in Niagara Falls, Ontario and also offering FREE Virtual Field Trips to schools helping indigenous students in northern Canada.

Bird Kingdom | Niagara Falls Canada (niagarafallstourism.com)

Niagara’s Indigenous Legacy (Virtual) 

The Niagara Region was a place of awe and wonder for the Indigenous peoples who first walked this land.  Their ancestors’ footsteps arrived approximately 13,000 years ago as the melting glaciers retreated northward, revealing the Great Lakes of Erie and Ontario and the mighty Niagara River.  Explore the collection featuring objects that reveal the presence of Indigenous peoples, their art and history in the Niagara region, extending back hundreds of generations up to the present day.  Explore videos created by curators Rob MacDonald, Rick Hill and Dave Labbe as they explain the source materials, uses and beauty of the Indigenous artifacts in the collections.  Solve the mystery of the bannerstones! 

https://empathictraditions.ca/

Adventure Rooms Canada (Virtual)

Adventure Rooms Canada takes its thrilling experiences online including two popular games with Hosted Remote Play.  Your group has 60 minutes to find its way out of a mysterious room using logic, searching for clues to get through obstacles. Make it through the puzzles to find the key and unlock yourself to freedom. Family friendly games are appropriate for ages 8 years and up.  

Adventure Rooms Canada | Niagara Falls Canada (niagarafallstourism.com)

Safari Niagara (Virtual) 

Safari Niagara is showcasing programming on the Safari Niagara YouTube channel that can be viewed at leisure including: Keeper Cams/Keeper Talks, Get Closer Series, Animal Enrichment footage and Zooniversity videos. 

Safari Niagara | Niagara Falls Canada (niagarafallstourism.com)

Passage of the Day: Marguerite de Navarre “The Heptameron”: More on love

“I would argue that a man who is deeply in love does not commit a sin, or only commits a venial sin, whatever he does. Because I’m certain that if he is in the grip of perfect love, he will not hear the voice of reason, either in his heart or his understanding. And, if we are truthful about it, there’s not one among us who’s not experienced this wild passion, which, I believe, is readily pardonable. What is more, I believe that God is not even angered by the sin of this kind, since it is one step in the ascent to perfect love of Him to which one cannot ascend without passing the ladder of worldly love. For St. John says: ‘ How shall you love God, whom you see not, unless you love him whom you see?” ‘

Pomegranate lowering blood pressure

Effects of pomegranate juice on blood pressure: A systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials

Amirhossein Sahebkar 1, Claudio Ferri 2, Paolo Giorgini 2, Simona Bo 3, Petr Nachtigal 4, Davide Grassi 5Affiliations expand

Abstract

Punica granatum L. (Pomegranate) has been claimed to provide several health benefits. Pomegranate juice is a polyphenol-rich fruit juice with high antioxidant capacity. Several studies suggested that pomegranate juice can exert antiatherogenic, antioxidant, antihypertensive, and anti-inflammatory effects. Nevertheless, the potential cardioprotective benefits of pomegranate juice deserve further clinical investigation. To systematically review and meta-analyze available evidence from randomized placebo-controlled trials (RCTs) investigating the effects of pomegranate juice consumption and blood pressure (BP). A comprehensive literature search in Medline and Scopus was carried out to identify eligible RCTs. A meta-analysis of eligible studies was performed using a random-effects model. Quality assessment, sensitivity analysisand publication bias evaluations were conducted using standard methods. Quantitative data synthesis from 8 RCTs showed significant reductions in both systolic [weighed mean difference (WMD): -4.96mmHg, 95% CI: -7.67 to -2.25, p<0.001) and diastolic BP (WMD: -2.01mmHg, 95% CI: -3.71 to -0.31, p=0.021) after pomegranate juice consumption. Effects on SBP remained stable to sensitivity analyses. Pomegranate juice reduced SBP regardless of the duration (>12 wks: WMD=-4.36mmHg, 95% CI: -7.89 to -0.82, p=0.016) and <12 wks: WMD=-5.83 mmHg, 95% CI: -10.05 to -1.61, p=0.007) and dose consumed (>240cc: WMD=-3.62mmHg, 95% CI: -6.62 to -0.63, p=0.018) and <240cc: WMD=-11.01mmHg, 95% CI: -17.38 to -4.65, p=0.001, pomegranate juice per day) whereas doses >240cc provided a borderline significant effect in reducing DBP. The present meta-analysis suggests consistent benefits of pomegranate juice consumption on BP. This evidence suggests it may be prudent to include this fruit juice in a heart-healthy diet.

Susan Cain’s “Quiet”: The nature of an introvert

“ If you’re an introvert, find your flow by using your gifts. You have the power of perseverance, the tenacity to solve complex problems, and the clear sightedness to avoid pitfalls that trip others up. You enjoy relative freedom from temptations of superficial prizes like money and status. Indeed, your biggest challenge may be to fully harness your strengths. You may be so busy trying to appear like a zestful reward-driven extrovert that you undervalue your own talents or feel underestimated by those around you. But when you’re focused on projects that you care about, you will probably find that your energy is boundless.”

“Quiet” is found on Broadway Books

Passage of the Day: Marguerite de Navarre “The Heptameron”; Puffery

“So Simontaut began: ‘People who are used to residing at court or in the big towns have such a good opinion of (their own) cleverness that they think everyone else is nothing compared to them. It does not however (follow) that there are not always plenty of clever cunning people in all countries and all walks of life.  But because those who think they’re the world’s cleverest are so puffed up. One gets much more fun from laughing at them when they make some mistake…..”

Jon Kabat-Zinn’s “Full Catastrophe Living”: Dealing with thoughts during meditation

“Just because you decide to still your body and observe your breath from moment to moment doesn’t mean that your thinking mind is going to co-operate. It doesn’t necessarily quiet down because you have decided to meditate. Quite the contrary.

What does happen as we intentionally pay attention to our breathing is that we realize pretty quickly that we are immersed in a seemingly never-ending stream of thoughts. Coming willy-nilly one after the other in rapid succession….it is just the way the mind is.

In order to build up continuity and momentum in the meditation practice, you will need to keep reminding yourself to come back to the breath over and over again, no matter what the mind is up to from one moment to the next.”

A Couple of Italian Whites

From Campania we try a Vesevo Beneventano Falanghina 2019.This platinum-colored wine has aromas of lemon, lime, pear and custard. On the palate pear, vanilla and tangerine. Although dry it does have character and is not like some of the flinty dry whites with the personality of Mike Pence. Moderately long finish. It must be those volcanic soils of Mount Vesuvius that propel this white out of the ordinary and mundane. Great with a Napoli white pizza or chicken in a cream sauce.

(Vesevo Beneventano Falanghina 2019, IGT Beneventano, Vesevo Forino (Avellino), Italy, $16.95, 750 mL, 13%, Liquor Control Board of Ontario # 289538, Robert K. Stephen A Little Birdie Told Me So Rating 91/100).

The next white is a Pitars Friulano from the Tre Venezia region. Platinum in colour. On the nose peach, apricot, tangerine with lesser hints of pineapple, mango and honey. On the palate a mid-weight wine. Notes of pear, apple and cantaloupe but fails to deliver the complexity offered by its aroma and if it could it would be a stunning wine. Short finish with refined acidity.

Drink by the end of 2021. Again I am thinking a white pizza with artichokes.

(Pitars Friulano 2018 San Cristoforo, DOC Friuli Grave, Pitars SNC, San Martino al Tagliamento, Italy, $16.95, Liquor Control Board of Ontario # 17700, 750 mL, 12.5%, Robert K. Stephen A Little Birdie Told Me So Rating 90/100).

A Neapolitan “white pizza” suited so very well for these two wines; Photo Robert K. Stephen

“Another Gay Movie” (Director’s Cut)

This movie is so vintage it might be showing on Turner Classic Movies. However it is far too raunchy for mainstream media. It is celebrating its 15-year anniversary and it shows how far LGBTQ film has progressed. One might even bookmark this film as a historical “breakout” film.

There are two types of LGBTQ movies on the spectrum. At one end is the genre that celebrates gayness and the other where gay characters are simply actors in a greater than gay plot. In fact I am not sure the term LGBTQ as a term even existed 15 years ago. The promo material from the film’s distributor Breaking Glass Pictures refers to the film as a comedy cult classic. Like” Reefer Madness” this movie is so far off reality perhaps it could be a cult film.

If you are in the LGBTQ community having your own cult classic is a great advancement and achievement to be proud of?

The plot is simple, Four male gay virgin teenagers in California want to get laid before a Labour Day Party. I’ll let you find out if that happens when you watch the movie. But the plot would seem to be far ahead of its time which makes it a historical reference film. It is a raunchy Beverly Hills 90210 which you wouldn’t blink an eye at if you were a heterosexual teen. So good for the creators of the film for giving a film that gay teenagers might identify with.

It is so over the top I wonder if the gay community is laughing at gay stereotypes. Is this film a mockumentary? You have an ungay looking gay, a nerdy gay a jock gay and a flaming queen. You might even call the film a spoof. It has an artistic element of gaudiness and almost a 1950’s feel to its sets. Great soundtrack!

Even straights can be gay in this film.

Is it a comedy? There are few hilarious scenes involving “Belgian chocolate”, a gerbil up the ass, an enema and fart fest and a penis enlargement machine gone haywire. You might be turned right off by this type of comedy but I say take a chance you heterosexuals out there and see a bit of the other side! Unabashedly gross and vulgar. The fact it has been with us just for 15 years may make it a classic.

Here is the trailer https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ea92UVjSyBw

This film is written, directed and produced by Todd Stephens and will be available April 27th on VOD including iTunes, Google Play and VUDU and on DVD on May 4th.

Horny gay teenagers plot to lose their virginity

“Kenny Scharf: When Worlds Collide”

While watching this Brazilian/American documentary I started wondering what rock I have been hiding under! Who in the hell is Kenny Scharf?

Kenny Scharf Ratfink Boner

I know some of his contemporaries he hung out with like Keith Haring, Andy Warhol and Jean Michel Basquiat and have seen many of their works but Scharf draws a blank. I can also see the influence on his work by Picasso, Rousseau, Peter Max and Dali which the film declines to make any connection to.

He grew up in a dull L.A. suburb in the 1960’s and was influenced by early American television which creeps out in his art. Yes there was a period in his career based on the Jetson’s television show.

His art is playful and at point cartoonish almost like Jeff Koons. A quote by Picasso at the beginning of the film rings so very true with Scharf, “All children are artists. The problem is how to remain an artist when you grow up.”

You get a good feel about what Scharf is all about through commentary from his mother, friends, fellow artists, collectors and art critics. They portray a most interesting portrait of the man which I will let you discover.

The documentary is the best way to experience his art and his life and the documentary wraps it up like a huge juicy pastrami sandwich that will leave you full and satisfied.

You’ll go through the downtown New York art scene in the 70’s and eighties, the devastating ravages of AIDS in the artistic community, the transformation and commodification of pop art when uptown New York started to recognize downtown New York. 

His style of art? I’ll go out on a limb and say pop art with humour and enormous creativity. To categorize his art as modern art might be too banal.

Best I shut up and say let his art speak for itself and there is no doubt in my mind Scharf is a modern American master. And he is a survivor unlike Haring and Basquiat who died too young.

The 77-minute 2020 documentary opens up virtually at Ted Rogers Hot Docs Cinema on April 15th. It is a film by Malia Scharf and Max Basch.

“When Worlds Collide” is a 1985 Oil and Spray Paint on canvas. When worlds collide there can be calm in chaos.