Tuesday June 3, 2008 5:40 am Lethbridge, Alberta

It is +7 C with a high forecast of +14 C. Sunrise 5:27 Sunset 21:32 Hours of daylight: 16:05.
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This page last updated on: Thursday, June 5, 2008 5:48 AM

A. Morning Musings

Some showers are forecast for today and the temperature is staying cool. A good day for indoor pursuits.

The main activity will be to apply a second coat of paint to the bulletin board. That will finish that project.

I will also complete reading "Indian Fall".

I need to pick a new novel as well. I have decided to begin reading "The Age of Shiva" by Manil Suri which takes place in India during the partition.

Long Term Activities	Planned Activities for Today	Cumulative Total
Cull professional articles	Review Psychology articles	5 hr
Prepare pdf files of my papers	Digitize 3 professional papers	4 hr
Digitize slides	Digitize slide collection	10 hr
Put away stamps		0 hr

Learning Category	Planned Activities for Today	Time
Literature	Begin morning with a Rumi reading
Puzzles & Games	New York Times crossword puzzles	1 hr
History	Complete reading "Indian Fall" by D'Arcy Jenish	1 hr
Literature	Begin reading "The Age of Shiva" by Manil Suri	1 hr
Mathematics	Make a few notes on symmetry	1 hr

B. Actual Learning Activities

8:00 am

Indian Fall

D'Arcy Jenish

The subtitle of this book is "The Last Great Days of the Plains Cree and the Blackfoot Confederacy".

The book interleaves the biographies of four Native leaders who led their people during the period from about 1850 until 1900. By focusing on the lives of these four chiefs, one develops an appreciation of the dramatic changes that occurred during their life-time. All four leaders developed a reputation as great warriors during their youth and all four realized that there was no point in trying to fight the encroachment of their land and way of life by the Europeans. They might win a few battles but the size and resources of the white man were simply too overwhelming.

I now have a much better appreciation of this history. Once again, by focuses on individual lives, the history comes alive in a way that is missing from history textbooks that focus on dates and events.

Tags: history, Canada, Big Bear, Crowfoot, Poundmaker, Piapot, Cree, Blackfoot