WRJ Lilith Salon - Fashioning Feminist Identity

Tonight our WRJ Lilith Salon group discussed (among other things) a series of 4 short essays under the heading of "Fashioning Feminist Identity" from the Spring, 2011 edition of Lilith magazine:  www.lilith.org.

The first essay "Getting Dressed" by Sonia Isard was written from the perspective of a woman in her 20's where fashion is a "completely delightful obsession" for her and her 20 something cohorts.  They research fashions online, looking at fashions presented on the red carpets and runways of the world for ideas and trends.  They absolutely love to make a statement and enjoy the process of hunting for the right item.    When they feel put together, they feel braver and more adventurous.

This essay brought back memories from my 20's for me of the joy of going shopping during my lunch hour during the work week, looking at the latest shoes, purses, clothes, makeup and planning the outfits I was going to wear for the events on the weekend.  And also finding those professional looking suits and outfits to help me look competent and mature and worthy of moving up the corporate ladder.  When did I lose those feelings of enjoying the process of shopping, dressing up and loving it?

The third essay "My Coach Bag" by Yona Zeldis McDonough discussed the author's longing in her youth to purchase a particular handbag made by Coach, looking at it in Bloomingdale's window.    Elegant and classy with brass hardware, it was a slouchy, bucket shape, leather bag costing more than she could then afford.  But the money showed up unexpectedly and she purchased this special bag and used it every single day.  It evolved over the years - changed colour and shape and glowed with its special patina.  Eventually after many years it went to the goodwill and another Coach bag replaced it.  But the first one was never forgotten.  I have never bought a Coach bag, thinking they were too expensive, but this may have changed my mind.

Jack & Micheline visiting from Montreal

This week we have had the delight of a visit from Jack (Neil's brother) and his wife, Micheline, from Montreal.  The family has been getting together all week, for sightseeing, walking, and mostly for eating.  We have all taken a turn hosting a dinner.  On Thursday, June 16, the hosts were Joan (Neil's sister) and her husband, Bruce, at their condo in False Creek.  We had dinner on their beautiful patio overlooking the city.

Micheline and Jack

Joan and her granddaughter, Gabby (our niece)

A view of the sunset from Joan & Bruce's patio overlooking False Creek

WPGA Graduation Ceremony - June 16, 2011

Thursday, June 16 at 3:00 pm West Point Grey Academy held its Grade 12 Graduation at the Chan Centre for the Performing Arts at UBC.  Our nephew, Teddy, was one of the graduates.

Graduates parading onto the stage - Teddy on the right

The address to the graduating students was given by US Consul General, Phllip T. Chicola.  His daughter, Valerie, was one of the graduates too.  By coincidence we saw her perform in the musical "Grease" at Vancouver College in which Neil's nephew, Dylan, performed too.  Small world.

US Consul Phillip T. Chicola



Teddy being introduced and receiving his graduation certificate.

More pictures:

Teddy with his Dad, Ken (my brother)

"Women's Diaries of the Westward Journey" by Lillian Schlissel

While on our Insight Vacations "American Parks Trail" bus tour, including the Wild West and points along the Oregon Trail, I couldn't help but be curious about the lives and conditions of the families who made the great migration west in their wagon trains across what became known as the Oregon Trail.

Our tour director, Lynn Hendrick, highly recommended that we read "Women's Diaries of the Westward Journey" by Lillian Schlissel, which I did in fact purchase while we were visiting Fort Laramie and have now started reading.

I purchased the 2004 edition, but there has been an updated edition published recently.  In this book, Lillian Schlissel has told the stories of the women who took part in the great trek on the Overland Trail between 1840 and 1870, and analyzed their lives.  More than 250,000 people made this trek during this period, one of the greatest treks of modern times.  Their journey has been romanticized by novels (eg. "Little House on the Prairie") and movies, but in fact the journey was extremely difficult.

The author has divided her description of the transit into three periods: 1841 to 1850, 1851 to 1855 and then 1856 to 1867.

The first period, 1841 to 1850, with migrations of about 5,000 per year, was the most primative and difficult. There were no clearly marked trails, insufficient supplies, terrible weather, many illnesses and deaths.   Steep hills, swollen rivers, Indians, mud were some of the many obstacles.  Women had virtually no privacy unless there were other women on the journey who could shield their body functions with their wide skirts.  Families usually journeyed within a kinship network.  Most of the women were of childbearing age, and frequently bore their children on the trail, with only a day's rest.  Children frequently died of wagon train & ox accidents, sickness and Indian raids.  The native Indians were often very helpful, supplying food, medicine, and assistance with crossing rivers and mountain passes, in exchange for traded items, such as clothing.

The second period, 1851 to  1855 saw a huge increase in migration - 50,000 in most years, because of the discovery of gold in California.  Gold fever struck the men and intensified the drive to get to the west.  By this time the American cavalry had established some outposts with supplies, such as Fort Laramie.  But there were many Indian raids, plus an extreme cholera outbreak that lasted for several years, killing those it struck within hours.  The river banks along the journey became filled with graves.

By the third stage 1856 to 1867, stagecoaches, trading posts, telegraph poles and supplies stores had been established along much of the trail.  However, this was an intensive period of Indian Wars. Following the end of the Civil War, the government moved the cavalry to the west to try and end the Indian Wars, with resulting legendary battles.  Then of course the coming of the railroads changed the form and course of the migration forever.

I recommend reading this book if you are interested in American history and women's history.

Insight Vacations - Cheyenne to Denver

Day 9 of our bus tour, May 28, we departed from Cheyenne and headed to Denver, Colorado for our last night of the trip.  Our route was to climb high into Rocky Moutain National Park, which is set in the southern Rockies, and to cross the continental divide.  The highest peaks are 14,000 feet.  Hearly 1/3 of the park is above the treeline - 11,400 feet.  Above this is too harsh for trees to grow. 

The pass we were to go through was 11,000 feet.  We entered the park from the NE side at Estes Park, stopped at the Fall River Visitor Center for a break, and then continued up the mountain range to "Many Parks Curve", after which the road was closed because of heavy snowfall.  Here are some pictures taken from this viewpoint.

We then returned to the little Alpine town of Estes Park.  It was Memorial Day weekend and the town was featuring many artists' exhibits.  The town was packed - it is only 20 minutes from Denver so many people had driven up for the day.  We had lunch at Mama Rosa's in Estes Park - very fresh Italian pasta.

We reached Denver by late afternoon and then had a delicious and fun farewell banquet at the Marriot Denver City Centre Hotel where we stayed.  We said fond farewell to all our new friends.  Absolutely great tour.  Group photo:

Insight Vacations - Fort Laramie & Cheyenne, Wyoming

On May 27, day 8 of our bus tour, we left Custer State Park and headed back to Wyoming with a destination of Cheyenne for the night.  We stopped at the historic Fort Laramie along the way.

We got a surprise after breakfast as we were heading back from the restaurant in the Old Inn to the Creekside lodge to pack up, we found the entrance to the Creekside Lodge blocked by a buffalo.  It looks tame, but of course is not and could charge.  A few days before a buffalo had attacked a gardener and butted the lawn mower up against the Lodge.  The gardener was okay.  I guess the buffalo didn't like the noise (don't blame him).

Fort Laramie, Wyoming

Fort Laramie is a historic fort, a frontier outpost of the U.S. Calvalry, and is part of the Oregon Trail. It has been maintained in its natural state by the National Park Service.

Originally privately built in 1834 to facilitate the buffalo trade, it was a small 100 x 80 feet building of logs with a 15 foot palisade.  Then in 1849 the U.S. Army bought it as part of a plan to establish a military presence along the eimigrant trails.  The army constructed many new buildings including officers' and soldiers' quarters, stables, cooking facilities, guardhouse, garrison, etc.

This fort became the main supply outpost of the Northern Plains, for emigrants, the pony express, and the telegraph.  Many treaty negotiations were held here with the Northern Plain indians.  Eventually major military campaigns were launched from Fort Laramie in the Indian wars.

Soldiers' Quarters

Inside Soldiers' Quaraters (second floor)

Fort Laramie was located about 1/3 between the Missouri River starting point for emigrants and their destinations in California and Oregon.  It became a stopping point before beginning the journey through the Rocky Mountains.  The emigrant population at Fort Laramide lasted about 45 - 50 days during the summer months.  After weeks on the trail, emigrants refreshed themselves at this fort and bought supplies and made repairs to their wagons for the onward journey.

Cheyenne, Wyoming

Cheyenne is the capital of Wyoming.  The city was created mainly as a result of government land incentives for railroad building and after the conclusion of the Civil War, its population soared as it became home to railroaders, speculators, merchants, wealthy tourists and military personnel.  Cattle ranching followed as a major industry and Cheyenne became the social and cultural centre for cattle barons who hired cowboys to ride the range.  In 1874 gold was discovered in the Black Hills of Dakota and this led to the development of the Cheyenne to Deadwood stage coach carrying freight and payrolls to the mining district.

The older seciton of Cheyenne's downtown reflects this history, with many significant buildings.

Three co-joined buildings built 1882 - 1884.  Left is the Idelman Building built by Max and Abe Idelman, Polish Jewish immigrants, who constructed it for their wholesale liquor and cigar enterprise.  Next is the Commercial Building built by Francis Warren who became a real estate tycoon in Cheyenne. Eventually he became the state governor and then senator for 39 years.  The building on the right is the First National Bank Building.

The home of wrangler jeans which are especially constructed for cowboys (no inside seam), and featuring all sorts of clothing and accessories every cowboy and girl could possibly want.  Fun to browse around.

The Cheyenne streets are decorated with cowboy boot sculpturs - similar to the orcas and grizzly bears here in Vancouver a few years ago.

Insight Vacations - Custer State Park, Crazy Horse Memorial & Mount Rushmore

May 26, Day 7 of our bus tour, was a very full, busy day.  We stayed two nights at the State Game Lodge in the Park, and make day excursions to Crazy Horse Memorial, dedicated to all Native Americans, and to Mount Rushmore National Memorial, where the heads of Presidents Washington, Jefferson, Lincoln and Roosevelt dominate this mountain in the Black Hills.

State Game Lodge, Custer State Park

This lodge is made up of the original building (which was added to) which now contains the registration desk, lounge, gift shop and a large dining room.  There are still a few of the old guests rooms on the second floor - some of which had Presidents stay in them. However, we stayed in the new lodge "Creekside", down the hill from the old lodge.  Creekside is certainly among the best lodging we had on the trip.  Very rustic, using a "moose" and "buffalo" theme in the decorations, including the carpets, paintings, with a big lounge area with fireplace off the lobby.  Our rooms were huge, very attractive, and had a private outdoor terrace where we could watch the buffalo roam.





Old Lodge



New Creekside Lodge

Crazy Horse Memorial, South Dakota

This memorial to the American Indian, Crazy Horse, is the world largest mountain carving, started in 1948 and not expected to be completed in our lifetime.  For more information on the life of Crazy Horse, his battles, and unfortunate death by stabbing by an American soldier, read the wikipedia write-up.

The site of the mountain in which the Crazy Horse Memorial is being carved also includes the Indian Museum of North America and a large visitor complex which includes an extensive, outstanding gift shop of quality items, as well as native crafts people demonstrating their skills.  We saw an excellent video on how the idea to build the memorial originated with Lakota Chief Henry Standing Bear, who approached the renowned American sculptor, Korczak Ziolkowski, to come to the area and carve the sculpture out of the mountain.  It is located within easy driving distance of Mount Rushmore.  Chief Standing Bear stated that "My fellow chiefs and I would like the white man to know the red man has great heros, also."

Korczak arrived in the Black Hills in May 1947 to accept the invitation and started work there in 1948 at the age of 40.  The memorial is be built and paid for by public donations and no government money is involved.  Korczak died in 1882 and since then his wife, Ruth, their children, and the Crazy Horse Memorial Foundation, have directed the ongoing work.

When finished, the memorial will be 563 feet in height, and within that the horse's head will be 219 feet high.  It is mainly done by dynamite blasting.

Carving of the Memorial

This picture is a photograph of the actual mountain, with overlays in white of

how the carving is supposed to go.

Indian Museum of North American

Sculptor Korczak  Ziolkowski

Scale Model of the Proposed Sculpture

Korczak knew that the project was larger than any one person's lifetime and left detailed plans to be used with his scale models to continue the project.

Mount Rushmore National Memorial, South Dakota

At the Mount Rushmore site, the pictures say everything!  However, I add that the visitors centre was great - large cafeteria, ice cream parlour, gift centre, and theatres.  Good hikes as well.

The sculptor was Gutzon Borglum whose vision was "the formal rendering of the philosophy of our government into granite on a mountain peak."  His monument grouped four presidents who brought the nation from colonial times into the 1900's:

George Washington who served 1789 - 1797

Thomas Jefferson who served 1801 - 1809

Abraham Lincoln who served 1861 - 1865; and

Theodore Roosevelt who served 1901 - 1909. 

Theodore Roosevelt was also a very close friend of the sculptor, and he was also the president who created the national parks system.



L - R Washington, Jefferson, Roosevelt & Lincoln

Can you see the outline of spectacles on Roosevelt?

A very educational and fun day!





Insight Vacations - From Sheridan, Wyoming to Custer State Park, South Dakota

On May 25, the 6th day of the bus tour, we drove from Sheridan, Wyoming to Custer State Park in South Dakota, and stayed two nights at the State Game Lodge within Custer State Park.

On route to Custer State Park, we drove through the Big Horn Moutain range, stopped at the Devil's Tower in Wyoming, and at Deadwood, South Dakota in the Black Hills before reaching our destination for the evening. 

Big Horn Moutain Range, Wyoming

This moutain range was rocky and craggy and reminded me of the scenes from cowboy movies I watched as a girl - ambushes, sharp shooting, covered wagons, etc.

Devil's Tower National Monument, Wyoming

The Devil's Tower is a butte, an igneous intrusion, in Wyoming.  In this NE corner of Wyoming, Black Hills pine forests merge with rolling plains of grasslands.  The tower is mentioned in American Indian folklore.  In 1906 President Theodore Roosevelt proclaimed it the first national monument.

Deadwood
Kevin Costner has a residence nearby Deadwood and has several business interests in Deadwood, including a local bus touring company that tours the highlights of old Deadwood, the Midnight Star casino, and a restaurant "Diamond Lil's" where the group went for lunch.

The walls of Diamond Lil's restaurant are filled with displays of the costumes from the movies Kevin Costner has starred in.  Here is his Elvis costume from the movie "Three Thousand Miles to Graceland":

Staircase from Casino up to Diamond Lil's Restaurant

Old Deadwood

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Insight Vacations - Yellowstone - Sheridan

On day 4 of our bus tour, we departed from Yellowstone early in the morning so that we could get out of the national park before 10:00 a.m. when the east exit road was going to be closed for construction.  This was also a sort of mystery bus tour because our original destination for the night was Billings, Montana.  However, Montana was experiencing severe flooding with road closures where we were going.  So overnight Insight had to arrange a different hotel for this night, including finding a new restaurant for the evening meal.  They did an excellent job with this last minute change.

That day we travelled through Shoshone Canyon and Absaroka Rocky Mountains to the Wild West town of Cody, Wyoming, home of Buffalo Bill Cody (he of the Wild West Show fame).

Absaroka Rocky Mountains

Buffalo Bill Historical Centre - Cody, Wyoming

This centre was built in honour of Buffalo Bill Cody, and actually consists of five different museums under one roof, with shared admission centre, food, seating, etc.  The five museums are:  (1)  Yellowstone Natural History; (2) Buffalo Bill; (3) Plains Indian Peoples; (4) Whitney Gallery of Western Art; and (5) Firearms Museum.  We spent about 3 hours there and were very impressed with this complex.

Plains Indians Museum

Buffalo Bill Museum

Annie Oakley

Buffalo Bill's Wild West Show toured Europe
and include a command performance for Queen Victoria

Whitney Gallery of Western Art