Rose Rose Through 'Though Wronged at the ROM

Fourteen of us MicroSkills LINC participants and volunteers were in for a rude ride this morning when we finally arrived at the ROM after an almost 12-month wait. But first, a happy group photo!

As soon as we got inside the main entrance, security guards Keith, Archie, and Helen took turns to badger us about our bags--they were either too big, the wrong type, or something--while letting others through that were less "acceptable looking" than ours. When questioned about the discrepancy and discrimination, they blamed management, who they said had been giving them "verbal abuse" and inconsistent orders, which they were only carrying out. They also welcomed the prospect of our lodging an official complaint to the ROM.

Notwithstanding the welcome, we headed to the Egyptian exhibits and were treated to an educated tour by our volunteer Rose, who happens to be Philly's wife, an alumna of Donald's class, and a Ph.D. in art education.

No body parts were wasted by the Egyptian mummifiers, who carefully put the organs in canopic jars for the afterlife. Unfortunately, there was one exception. They couldn't figure out what the brain was for and carefully scraped it all out through the nose to be thrown away.

A write up on good ole' Djed, my favourite mummy! Everybody's got to take a picture with her. Given her looks, or rather that of her mummy case, it's a no-brainer.

Here, our other two volunteers, John and Tim, pose with Djed.

The following five photographs illustrate further the ancient Egyptians' fascination with death and the afterlife. Here is their famed Book of the Dead.

We also saw plenty of mummies of cats, ibises, crocodiles, and even mice.

That's because the Egyptians worshipped all kinds of creatures. Above is a bull god, and below is a jackal-headed god. When the children of Israel left Egypt, some of them turned to worshipping golden calves, which caused the God who rescued them to be angry and to punish them severely.

Hello, who goes there? Hello? 'Allo?

Tim and the Queen Cleopatra

Hey, ladies, what's the rush?

Ah, it's Ameer with the camcorder!

They didn't have Braille stations the last time. Good for you, Tim! (Check out the video below!)

No bluffing! That's a forgery!

Uh oh, who's that at Bloor and Avenue?

Ah, Solzhenitsyn, the great advocate for freedom of speech.

Don't miss practising speaking English with our native speaker volunteers John and Tim on Friday afternoons!

Here are a couple of videos:

Tim feels up a 4,500-year-old statuette:


Terry, Najmeh, Rose, and all check out the forgeries:

Canadian Celebration Going Back 2,000 Years and Beyond

It's 2010 Anno Domini, or "In the Year of Our Lord," this year, which looks back to the time when Jesus lived, died, and rose again. This Good Friday and Easter season, we look back in history at a great event from which we date everything. But did you know that that event did not come as a surprise? There were many predictions, from the beginning of human existence, more than a thousand years before it happened, until about 400 years before Jesus was born.

These prophecies were very specific. They talked about how He would be born, to whom, and where. They describe how He would die, with whom, and the legacy of his garments. They also tell of His resurrection and victory over death, and the results of that for the human race. (Mandarin speakers can access a lecture on Jesus' death here.)

Here are several Youtube videos that discuss this time-honoured Canadian tradition:

The Prophet John the Baptist, who was born just before Jesus, says that Jesus is the Lamb of God that takes away the sins of the world. Because the Jewish people had for centuries been practising the ritual of slaughtering lambs, they understood exactly what John meant:



Some prophecies about Jesus were written by Moses 1,500 years before He was born:

Field Trip Tuesday March 30th to the ROM

Scarcely have we completed our Sugarbush Bash, when it's time for yet another field trip, our long-awaited visit to the Royal Ontario Museum. Here's what you need to know:

1. Departing from the Southbound Platform of Sheppard Yonge at 9:30 a.m.
2. Meeting at ROM Main Entrance at 10 a.m.
3. Tickets are limited. If you haven't given me your name, please email me by Monday morning.

Something to think about: What, if anything, has the ROM to do with our theme for next week? We'll be discussing the topic of Canadian Celebrations--Good Friday and Easter. Feel free to post your answers!

ANSWERS:

1. To begin with the ancient Egyptians were obsessed with the afterlife. They mummified people and animals, built monuments like the pyramids, and even wrote instructions in preparation for death and judgment. They were right about death and judgment. Unfortunately, they didn't get it all right, and many a brain was discarded, and countless well-appointed royal tombs were emptied by grave robbers.
2. The Greeks were pretty obsessed with the afterlife, too, in terms of making statues for themselves--if they could afford them. Named and nameless busts adorn the Greek Civilization section of the ROM, but none can compare to the meek Saviour, who laid down His life at the cross, and His followers, mostly unremarkable peasants. Their names outlast, outnumber, and outrank those of Thucydides and Menander, but the mainly nameless, headless princes and princesses in the gallery. Who we remember or name ourselves after are Jesus, Paul, Peter, Stephen, John, Matthew, Luke, and even Philemon and Apphia, who left no bust behind for us but only their faithfulness to God and their love for their neighbour!

Sugarbush Frenzy

One hundred MicroSkills LINC participants, childminders, instructors, and guests--including a couple of spouses and alumni--crammed into two yellow schoolbuses for the field trip of the year. Thanks to Penny's organization, everything clicked, and we're sure to miss her when she leaves us tomorrow. Just like her to leave us on a very sweet note!



Tasked to take a random group on a nature's trail--without compass, chart, or rudder!--I brought these victims on a wild goose chase. Just when I was ready to turn around, Gary spots what we were looking for!

This is the mill, one locked-up dilapidated building. Been there, done that, it's time to head back to civilization and breakfast!


All smiles--but was it real maple syrup? Hmm, suspiciously gooey like Aunt Jemima's glorified corn syrup. But our guide swears it's genuine, although not from Bruce's Mill itself. Right. At three bucks per pancake, a paper vial of syrup, and a coffee, it had better be.


Arrgh, idiot caught with mouth open.


Waddaya see, ROC, PRC?

Terry and John guard a soggy playground.


Angel and Winnie claim the bench.


Finally, it's 11 a.m. Time for the guided tour!

Yep, it's 40 buckets of sap for 1 bucket of corn syrup.

O no, it doesn't hurt the tree at all! It heals itself, really!


And one night, the leprechauns came out to ...


Stay with black and sweet maple for the best results. Silver and red are not worth milking. You can just stick the red on a national flag.


This was before child labour laws were passed.


What else went into those buckets? Yum.


Leeching used to be popular in those days. It got rid of the vile humours in a body.


Hmm. Who's being punished?


Getting up close to look at the ...


Spile! Yeah, as in spare the rod and ___ the chile.


Tolja, it won't harm the tree. It grows right back over the spile hole.


Looks like they couldn't get a real tree to hold this sign up.


Spile, spile, spile, old and new.


How do you pronounce those big words?


Ah, and today we do it the clean way.


I see, this is where the dirt- and allergen-free BPA tubing ends.


OK, reading practice 1.


Reading practice 2.


Reading practice 3.


Optometrist's Eye chart 1.


Hay ride sans hay. But hey, Terry's just as much fun!


Bwahahaha! It's laughing at, not laughing with!



All right, whatever. Time to go home.





Final dance-off, by the Newcomer Indigenous People.



Don't miss the video clips below for a better impression!


All hyper on bus already, ca. 9:30 a.m.


Start of the guided tour


Tsap? Taste the sap.


Bird feed


Wigwam life and hollowed-out syrup troughs


Pioneer spiel and syrup sampling--hey, who took more than one swig?


Oooh, modern machinery


Tiny tots with their eyes all aglow, boarding the wagon


Yay, a joy ride!


Why are we waiting ... waiting for the other bus to get there


Must be all the sugar ... leaving on a high