Archive

Fly on the Wall – Lost and Found in the Moment

Snorkeling in clear and bright Okanagan Lake the other day allowed me to ponder future course opportunities and dream up esoteric ?Fly On the Wall? Topics. Just as I began to suppose that I’d see no fish on this swim, a huge carp glided into my peripheral vision. Had it been watching me and decided… Read more »

Mindful Bard – Red Knot

Film: Red Knot Director: Scott Cohen “But once the realization is accepted that even between the closest people infinite distances exist, a marvelous living, side-by-side, can grow up for them if they succeed in loving the expanse between them, which gives them the possibility of always seeing each other as a whole and before an… Read more »

Isolation

One of the hardest things that I have found I have had to deal with as a distance-learning student is the feeling of isolation. When you attend a traditional university you are surrounded by your peers?like-minded people taking the same courses you are. I live in a small community and, while I am able to… Read more »

A Convocation Uncommon

It does not take more than a few minutes attending the Athabasca University Convocation to see just what sets AU apart from other universities. One of the first things I noticed was how many graduates had travelled from all over the world to be there, many more than at brick-and-mortar university ceremonies. Since AU is… Read more »

Insolvency, Incompetence, and Other Indiscretions

I remember when the hiring freeze first started. The funding model wasn’t sufficient for AU to support all of its students. Positions started to be left vacant. And then came the massive provincial budget cuts. Layoffs, buyouts, and the elimination of vacant positions. Less staff at the university to assist students. Remaining staff beginning to… Read more »

Music Review – Fable Cry

Album: we’ll Show You Where The Monsters Are Band: Fable Cry To follow the review that I had done on their singles from this album back in April, I am excited to review Fable Cry’s album we’ll Show You Where The Monsters Are. Full of the same goodness, fun, and eccentricity that we sampled in… Read more »

The Fit Student – Mitigate Distractions and Stay Focused

Student fitness requires learning at optimal physical and mental performance. Studying requires enormous energy?energy that we can’t afford to deplete by spending time on distractions. Our bodies burn so much energy throughout the day that any redirection of that vitality on something irrelevant or superfluous exhausts our supply. With studying, every ounce of energy we… Read more »

Dear Barb – Taking a Gamble

Dear Barb: I will be graduating college shortly with an engineering degree and I have already received a job offer, which I accepted. The problem is that I have received a second job offer and the pay is better than the job I already accepted. I am not sure what to do. The job that… Read more »