Unapologetically Canadian

Stefan Sobkowiak spent twenty years turning a traditional commercial apple farm into an extraordinary oasis of permaculture diversity. He's deeply grateful for that abundance, which defines Canada for him. The episode is brought to you by the CAUS crowdfunding campaign at https://laruchequebec.com/. 

Lloyd Whitesell challenges norms just by being himself. His academic career began with co-creating the field of queer musicology. He's now among the leaders working to make space for diverse populations within music. Along the way, he's won awards for research excellence and teaching. He's also the world's expert on singer songwriter Joni Mitchell's talent as a composer. Listen to our conversation and consider which norms unintentionally influence you. 

When I interviewed Bineta Ba, she was the executive director of Toujours Ensemble, a Canadian non profit association that helps youth succeed at school. As of next month, she'll be leading an international development foundation.  

This week on the podcast, I interview Marian Bulford, a genealogist, researcher, indexer and writer. She describes what it's like to discover family secrets as she researches and writes stories about her ancestors. 

How can I go forward into this year in a positive way that gives me energy?
Set up clear accountability goals that scare me a little. Rely on other people more. Automate more functions. 

There are many ways to deal with a crisis. In 2020, we all discovered how well we handle uncertainty and stress. Some of us kept working in essential services. Others used the time to create works of art. Some people couldn’t work and struggled instead to find ways to occupy their minds and bodies in ways that helped others. Together, we grew and learned grace.

This week, I interview Ramzy Kassouf, one of the partners in Les Jardins Carya, a farm in Senneville, on the island of Montreal. Les Jardins Carya specializes in lettuce, kale, spinach, sprouts and other greens. Ramzy and I spoke about the importance and challenges of sustainable farming, the need to support one another during hard times and Canada's diversity. 

This week, I interview artist and gallery operator Karen Klucowicz. We spoke about entrepreneurship, the challenges of staying productive, working process and contributing to the local community.  

Heather Grace Stewart, author of “The Ticket” is my guest this week. We discuss the challenges of indie publishing in Canada, her success with Self Publishing Formula and our shared belief that kindness is an essential quality of Canadians.

This has been an exciting week as an entrepreneur so it’s a good time to discuss independent publishing with my fantasy romance writer buddy. 

This week's 11-minute segment talks about my mood today, November 10, 2020.
Highlights include: the idea that you can change your life by changing your story,
faltering on word-count in Nanowrimo, thoughts about being process-oriented or product-oriented, discovering the Achewillow fiction podcast, and my frustrations not seeing family this year. Today is also the day I announce my new story discovery sessions.