Flight of the Monarch

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Have you noticed how everything transforms the moment you step away from buildings, roads, and screens and immerse yourself in nature? Instantly, all your worries disappear, and you get an immense feeling of joy and happiness. Do you know the secret behind this? Honestly, I have thought about it and realized that it’s because nature offers us precious gifts at every turn: vibrant flowers that fill the air with sweet aromas, playful birds that create a symphony of freedom all around, majestic trees that whisper breathtaking stories of time, and so much more. How fortunate we are to have the honor of enjoying these wonders!

I would like to share the story of one remarkable gift that continues to remain a mystery for scientists: the iconic monarch butterfly. With two pairs of exquisite black-and-orange wings, these unique creatures are one of the largest butterflies in Canada, with a wingspan of about 63 to 105mm. Each butterfly weighs a mere half gram, so light that you might not even notice if it decides to rest on your arm. But what makes these delicate insects so extraordinary?

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An East Coast Book List for the Newfie Newbie (and more!)

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It’s nearly the end of summer (and if you’re hearing some sort of sound in the background, that’s probably my distant wailing) which means I finally get to go on a much-needed vacation. I guess there is no better way to wave au revoir to the more palatable Canadian season (and I will remain unconvinced Cold, Extreme Cold, or Rain with a Side of Gray is better than summer no matter what you say), than a road trip tour through part of the country I’ve never seen, guided by my very best friend. Please send thoughts and prayers to him so that his sanity may survive the hours upon hours of backseat shenanigans I will no doubt get up to with the third friend of our intrepid traveling troupe.

It is a good thing though that I’ve got someone taking the lead on where to go and what to see because I know basically nothing about our shining East Coast other than Anne of Green Gables, potatoes, endless seafood, and what I learned in grade school. But if you’re like me and you’re making a last-minute summer getaway by car or by plane to the nature-filled landscapes of Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, or Prince Edward Island, then let me take a page out of my colleague Adam’s recent posts and scour our library shelves for something that may help you not look like a total Newfie (and East Coast) Newb. I know I need it.   

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The Criterion Collection

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Credit: Criterion.com

How many of you have heard of The Criterion Collection, I wonder? It’s a collection of films produced for home viewing with the utmost attention paid to both the image and sound quality, as well as special features and supplementary material. The first two films given this highbrow treatment for a home audience were King Kong and Citizen Kane in 1984. When I watched Gimme Shelter, the documentary I wrote about on this blog previously, that was a Criterion DVD. The quality of that production is astounding. Included in the DVD case is a booklet that provides insightful and intelligent essays about the Stones’ infamous and tragic concert at the Altamont Speedway in 1969. Right now, our catalogue is showing we have 824 Criterion Blu-rays and DVDs in our collection. That is a massive amount of high quality, curated titles at your disposal. Criterion also has a YouTube channel. Full of amazing content, it includes a series called Closet Picks where filmmakers and actors choose a swag bag of films (carried in a fancy, branded tote bag) to take home after a visit to Criterion’s offices. Hearing these luminaries of the industry give their reasoning as to which movies warrant a place in their haul is fascinating. Some of my recent favourites have been the father-daughter pairing of Maya and Ethan Hawke, Ayo Edebiri, Willem Dafoe, and Dan Levy. What follows are some classics — recently watched by yours truly — as well as a couple favourites of mine that just happen to be included in the collection. I hope one of them catches your eye!

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