The War Grinds On

(Originally published in the Powell River Peak)

When he graduated from Brooks Secondary School in 2003 and joined the Canadian Armed Forces, Gord Hoffman knew there was a good chance he would be deployed on a mission somewhere in the world. It's one of the things for which the Canadian military is known.

Sometime next month, Hoffman and elements of his unit, the 1 Service Battalion in Edmonton, Alberta, will be shipping out to Afghanistan as part of the national support element. Exact dates and details can't be revealed for security reasons.

(More...)
"I'll be supporting our mission," said Hoffman. "I'm a mobile support equipment operator by trade, which basically means I'm a driver for any number of vehicles that we have over there, including the 16-tonne pallet-loading system, the new armoured heavy-support vehicle system, and the tracked light-armoured vehicle."

Hoffman is one of two Powell Riverites in current deployment. Darryl Hansen, who graduated from Max Cameron Secondary School in 2000, is also going as a driver with the national support element.

"This is my first time overseas," said Hansen. "We'll be patrolling, peacekeeping. We've done a large amount of training and I think we're mentally prepared and ready to go."

Hoffman likewise emphasized the intensity of the training he's been receiving. "We've had a lot of cultural awareness briefings, lessons learned from previous tours," he said. "They've figured out what works best and we're learning from their experience. We've got corporals from the 5 Service Battalion training us based on what they saw there. We're getting a variety of different scenarios, from practice patrols, to improvised explosive devices (IEDs), anything we might encounter in the theatre of war."

When he was in school, Hoffman worked his way up through Junior Forest Wardens and army cadets, and he said that joining Canadian forces seemed like the next logical step. He also worked for several years as a carrier for the Peak.

"I don't get back to Powell River enough," he said. "Being based in Edmonton, I miss the mountains and the ocean. There will be mountains where I'm going in Afghanistan, but not as much rain as in Powell River."

Both Hoffman and Hansen will be leaving wives behind for the six or seven months of their deployments. "It'll be tough," said Hansen. "But I think my wife and I are both mentally prepared for it. We can keep in touch by email."

Hoffman will also be separated from his one-year-old son, Alex. "It'll be hard," he said.

Jim Hoffman, Gord's father, said it took him a little while to get used to the idea of his son going to Afghanistan, both as a parent and as a patriot. Their deployment comes at a difficult time for the mission. There has been increased activity by the Taliban, and last week involved both the death of the 78th Canadian service person, and the release of a report by former federal Liberal cabinet member John Manley, calling for a re-evaluation of Canada's involvement.

"He loves the job, loves the work," Jim Hoffman said. "But I'm not really comfortable with the mission. I don't think they're really there for peacekeeping. There've been too many boys killed."

Hansen said it's all part of the job. "I'm excited to go, proud to serve my country, and I'm looking forward to it."

Totally Stokes

(Originally published in the Powell River Peak)

Composer Tobin Stokes is used to working across multiple genres.

The former Powell River resident has composed classical music, choral and scores for film and television. But the score he wrote last year for the miniseries Captain Cook, Obsession and Discovery, really pushed the envelope.

"It took everything," said Stokes. "Australia, New Zealand, Tahiti, Hawaii and Canada each has its own aboriginal music that had to be incorporated. And of course Cook started in England, so the producers wanted to have music by Johann Christian Bach worked in, much more formal."

(There's more...)

He said it's tricky balancing that many different styles and influences, but it makes for a wonderful challenge.

"The show needs to be congealing through the music," said Stokes. "So I take each of those influences and try to build it into the overall plan. What's interesting about Cook is that in the third voyage he starts to fall apart. So I took all the themes I'd developed in the first episodes and deconstructed them in strange ways. It was a lot of fun."

The miniseries has already aired on Australian Television, earning rave reviews, an audience of more than one million viewers, and several awards. In Canada, episodes one and two will air back-to-back on History Television at 8 pm and 9 pm on Tuesday, February 19, and episodes three and four will air at 8 and 9 pm on Tuesday, February 26.

Those familiar with Stokes' work will not be surprised to learn that the score involved choral music. Growing up in Powell River, Stokes was an active participant in the International Choral Kathaumixw festivals, which have been a major influence on his life and work.

And he, in turn, has been a major influence on the festival. His composition, The Spacious Firmament, is sung by a thousand-voice choir at each Kathaumixw's opening and closing ceremonies.

"Choral is my favorite form of music," he said. "I think when a person is singing, they're using their own instrument. The music goes right from brain, to voice, out into the air, and then to the ears of the audience. So, it's the purest form and it gives me so much satisfaction."

His original plan for the Captain Cook score had been to record the choral sections with the Powell River Academy Chamber Singers. "They have the facilities and a great choir that can learn stuff on the spot," he said. "They're very adaptable and eager, and wonderful to work with. Unfortunately, the scheduling didn't work out."

It's been a very busy year for Stokes. Apart from the Captain Cook project, he also scored the film http://www.mountainsidefilms.com/savingluna/, about an orphaned orca that lived in the Gold River area. The film will be shown at the Powell River Film Festival at 12:30 pm on Friday, February 8.

"My score features some of the same singers and some of the same aboriginal people as the Captain Cook series did," said Stokes.

He also had a piano concerto to compose for a world premiere with the Victoria Symphony on November 26, 2007. "With delays in the Captain Cook series, I barely managed to finish it in time," he said.

The production company liked his score for Captain Cook so much that they've brought him on board for its next project, a miniseries about another sailing scientist, Charles Darwin. Stokes is also scoring a documentary about famous Canadian photographer Ted Grant.

His next big project is an opera.

"It's about the first Europeans coming to Nootka, to Vancouver Island," he said. "I'm not sure yet, but somehow we're going to present some of it at Kathaumixw."

Battered Eagles

(Originally printed in the Powell River Peak)

After two weeks in rehabilitation at the Mountainaire Avian Rescue Society in Courtenay, a wayward bald eagle was returned to Texada Island and released.

John Whitehead found the eagle on his property in the Oasis area north of Gillies Bay. "There were a few eagles hanging around in the area before Christmas," he said. "When I got home after Christmas I found this one in the backyard, hopping around, unable to fly."

(There's more...)

He said he called the Powell River conservation officer service, but was told there were no officers available in the area, and he should try the Powell River SPCA. He contacted volunteer branch manager Audrey Hill, who quickly arranged for local volunteers to get there with a transport cage.

"I was right on the scene," said volunteer Micheline Macauley. "I live right next door."

Joined by volunteers Cheryl Nyl and Elaine Purgavie, Macauley and Whitehead set about the daunting task of capturing a bald eagle.

"It wasn't easy," said Whitehead. "We got a blanket over him, and got a hold of his talons. But even though he was wrapped in the blanket his head was still out, and I didn't know if I was going to get an eye pecked out. I got my coat off and over his head, and we got him into the kennel. He wasn't happy, but he didn't get overly excited."

After a preliminary examination by local veterinarian Dr. Brian Barnes, of Westview Veterinary Hospital, BC Ferries gave the eagle a free ride to the Mountainaire Avian Rescue Society.

Mary Jane Birch, wildlife rehabilitator and manager of the society, said fortunately, there were only minor injuries. "There were no broken bones or major lacerations," she said. "But he was thin and wet and cold, and was found down on the ground, so that's never a good sign."

She said it was possible that the eagle may have fought with another eagle, as winter is hard on all wildlife, with strong winds, harsh weather and disrupted food supply. "There's competition over food, over territory and mates," she said. "We gave him lots of food, vitamins, and some rest and relaxation. That seems to have done it."

After two more free ferry rides on Tuesday, January 22, the bird was returned to Whitehead's property and released.

"He hopped right out," Macauley said. "He looked around, flew up into a low tree and rested for a bit. Then he just took off. It was beautiful to see."

Hill said this is the fourth eagle the SPCA has assisted this winter, which is unusual. "We've had about nine eagles in the 14 years I've been here." she said. "We captured one on Savary Island two weeks ago, but he was too badly injured, probably by the storm, and didn't make it."

Fries With That

(Originally published in the Powell River Peak)

When inventor Rudolf Diesel demonstrated his distinctive engine in the early years of the 20th century, it ran on peanut oil, not petroleum.

It took nearly 100 years, but local resident Kevin Egan said he is part of a worldwide movement to return to the original plan for the diesel engine, and switch over from fossil fuels to sustainable fuels.

He pointed out that local restaurants treat used vegetable oil as a messy waste product. "The restaurants are paying people to get rid of it, and the resources to haul it away are wasted," he said. "Instead, we could be using it as fuel."

(There's more...)

Egan, whose background is in organic chemistry and petroleum technology, worked for years for Shaw Cable. But a year ago he had neck surgery to fuse three vertebrae and he's been out on disability leave.

He has taken his free time to help others by assisting them in converting their vehicles. "It's not that difficult to switch a standard diesel vehicle over to run on pure veggie oil," he said. "You can hire somebody to do it for you, and that will cost around $3,000. Or you can do it yourself for less than $1,000, with all the little extras and bits. And if you're prepared, you can do the whole thing in one day."

Egan cautioned against confusing vegetable oil and biodiesel, which are two different things. "Biodiesel is oil that has been transesterified," he said. "That requires a lot of work and some messy chemicals, and it's too much for an individual to handle in most cases. With veggie oil, you can run it straight out of the fryer. You just have to filter out food particles and remove any water that got in from cooking."

He noted that it takes about 15 minutes to filter a 55-gallon drum. "That's about 250 litres," he said. "I've been getting it for free from local restaurants, since they'd have to pay to have it disposed of. What would that much diesel fuel cost at current prices?"

He sets up the vehicles with two tanks, one for diesel and one for vegetable oil. He said that cars cold-start better on standard diesel, and it's also good to have an auxiliary system if people using the system are on the road and vegetable oil is not available. "We have two full-size, four-wheel-drive Mitsubishi Delicas that we imported from Japan, and our family goes through more milk in a week than diesel," he said. "I'd say that's pretty good."

Egan said that diesel cars have not been offered for sale in the United States and Canada because of emissions concerns, although diesel pickups are available. Mercedes and Volkswagen produce diesel models, and various Japanese companies make diesel cars for their own domestic market, like the Delicas he imported. Egan estimates that about one in 20 vehicles in Powell River run on diesel. "And we have enough veggie oils being wasted here, now, to power those vehicles," he said.

Another advantage, he added, is that vegetable oils are much more stable than petroleum fuels. "You can take a big drum and carry it in the back of your van," he said. "It doesn't smell bad, and it can't blow up."

Via word of mouth and computer bulletin boards, Egan has helped people with conversions in other parts of BC, from Campbell River to Kelowna. "I'd like to do some in Powell River," he said. "I'm talking with a couple of people, and I may be helping the automotive class at Brooks Secondary School convert a Mercedes diesel over to veggie. This is the best form of community-oriented recycling, reusing things locally, saving resources and money."

Anyone interested in having Egan convert a vehicle can email him at veggievan (at) shaw (dot)ca.

Jared Diamond on Sustainability

Jared Daimond, author of "Guns, Germs and Steel" and the recent "Collapse", has a great article on consumption vs sustainability.

The population especially of the developing world is growing, and some people remain fixated on this. They note that populations of countries like Kenya are growing rapidly, and they say that's a big problem. Yes, it is a problem for Kenya's more than 30 million people, but it's not a burden on the whole world, because Kenyans consume so little. (Their relative per capita rate is 1.) A real problem for the world is that each of us 300 million Americans consumes as much as 32 Kenyans. With 10 times the population, the United States consumes 320 times more resources than Kenya does.

His conclusion? Because we waste so much, we can actually maintain a fair amount of our current lifestyle while bringing our consumption factor down by at least half.
Worth reading the whole thing...

Powell River: Student Action

(Originally published in the Powell River Peak)

Some people look at the trash from a construction project and shrug. Others sigh about the waste.

Ryan Barfoot, sustainability and eco-education coordinator for School District 47, looked at the scrap wood being generated by the reconstruction project at Brooks Secondary School and saw an opportunity.

Edgehill Elementary School staff approached him for help with their Dream Streams project, an environmental display of large wooden salmon to decorate the school. They needed help and materials, and thought that Students for Environmental Awareness (SEA), a student group he runs at Brooks, might want to become involved.

"Instead of seeking new material, we're using the scrap wood," he said. "They get their artwork, and there's less waste going into the landfill. It's a full-circle and holistic approach, and everybody benefits."

More than that, the group is moving beyond Edgehill's original plan, said grade 10 student Katherine Boucher. "We're going to do a dramatic presentation about salmon streams, the importance of salmon and habitat."

Barfoot said that this is only one little project, but it's involving hundreds of students overall. "For Edgehill, it started as an art project," he said. "We're helping them do it in a full way, with a deeper dimension of education and mentorship, with my students mentoring their young students."

Added grade 12 student Erika Davies, "we're learning by teaching, which is cool."

(More...)

Barfoot said the teens of SEA are young, but they are both enthusiastic and knowledgeable when talking about cutting-edge subjects such as sustainability and smart development.

Erika said the group is working on an ecological footprint presentation. "We're going to present this around the school," she said. "It's important for students to know how much of the world's resources they're using, and how they can reduce that."

That's a general goal, but they also work on concrete projects, such as getting the school to use more recycled paper. "The problem there is that recycled paper costs more," said grade 12 student Kayle Wilson. "We're looking at doing a fundraiser to help cover the difference."

And grade 10 student Mackenzie Adamson is looking to the end of the year for a paper-related, tie-in project. "There's tons of paper thrown out when school is over," he said. "Maybe we'll have a huge recycling bin and do it as a fundraiser."

The SEA students worked with Canada World Youth to clean up the beach at Tla'Amin (Sliammon) First Nation, and circulated petitions opposing the liquefied natural gas plant on Texada Island.

While the group only has 21 members so far, Katherine said she thinks they're making an impact. "We're spreading the word," she said. "We talk to our friends, and they inform their friends, and it gets out there."

The school district is looking to be carbon-neutral by 2010. This means balancing carbon emissions and power usage with sustainable alternative energy. The group is looking at ways of helping that along, including replacing all light bulbs in the school with more efficient models.

Katherine said she'd like to start a greenhouse in the back of the school. "We could do more composting, too," she said.

Beyond that, Erika said she believes youth need to have more of a say in what goes on in the world. "We should have more of a voice in the community sustainability charter," she said. "People make plans, but they only ask what the current generation thinks."

"We're the ones who are going to have to live with the consequences," Kayle added.

"We want action," Katherine said. "They use a lot of words like hope and desire, but there's not much on action and taking charge."

The group meets a couple of times a month, generally at lunchtime on Thursdays, and more frequently when they're working on a big project. Sometimes, Barfoot said, they just take a break and get out into the outdoors.

"I think that's what fuels people," he said. "Without having direct experience of the environment, it's hard to embrace."

Why it's important to be an organ donor

(Originally published in the Powell River Peak)

Joey Whitford has a new pair of lungs and a new lease on life.

The Powell River native, whose lungs were scarred by cystic fibrosis (CF), is in his sixth month of post-operative rehabilitation in Toronto after a cutting-edge operation.

With his lungs damaged by the disease, most physical activities were an impossible strain, said Joey's mother, Renee Whitford. "Now he's been skating for the first time in 10 years, he's shooting hoops and soon he'll be resuming golf, which is one of his passions," she said.

(There's more...)

Joey said he is looking forward to returning to Powell River next month. He would have preferred to have his surgery in Vancouver, but he had a complication that could only be handled in Toronto.

"There is a shortage of donor organs in BC," he said. "Toronto has the donor base to allow Toronto General Hospital to become one of the top transplant hospitals in the world. The doctors in Vancouver had done five transplants; my doctors in Toronto had done more than 100. I'd like to see that change in BC, but we need more organ donors."

Renee said that when Joey was diagnosed, double lung transplants weren't an option. "There was nothing," she said. "Nothing but slowly fade and die. The doctors said he only had a 50 per cent chance of living until he was five. There weren't adults with CF in those days - kids got it, and kids died."

Renee added, "I think if people could understand the fear a parent goes through, wondering if there will be a donor in time to save my child, I think more people would donate."

Joey left for Toronto on December 18, 2006, and finally went in for surgery on August 19, 2007. Recovery was complicated by bowel obstruction, kidney shutdown and dialysis.

Most people don't realize that the law pertaining to donations has changed, Joey said. "People think that if they signed up to be organ donors with their driver's licence, they're still donors," he said. "But that's no longer valid. You have to start over and fill out a form, which you can get at doctors' offices and clinics, or sign up online at Transplant BC's website, or at my own website, CFsucks." On the website, he added, that's short for "CF sucks the breath out of you."

Once a person becomes an organ donor, said Joey, they can save many lives and have a positive impact on even more. "Between heart, lungs, liver, valves, corneas and so many other things, each donor can affect 36 lives. If you have an untimely death, it's a way that good can come out of tragedy."

One of the things that kept him going through the hard times was his love of golf. He has started the process to become a golf pro, but he didn't have the stamina for the physical side of the test. Soon, he said, that will be possible.

Disease strikes early
Cystic Fibrosis (CF) is the most common fatal genetic disease affecting young Canadians. A person afflicted with CF produces excess mucus that affects mainly the lungs and the digestive system.

In the digestive tract, CF makes it difficult to digest and absorb nutrients from food. In the lungs, CF causes severe breathing problems.

A build-up of thick mucus makes it difficult to clear bacteria and leads to infection and damage to lung tissues. People with CF must follow a daily routine of physical therapy to keep the lungs free of congestion, and routine intravenous antibiotics to fight infection. Most persons with CF eventually die of lung disease.

For more information, readers can visit the Canadian Cystic Fibrosis Foundation's website.

The Challenge of Wellness

(Originally published in the Powell River Peak)

One of the challenges of the human condition is that we all seek our personal paradise - a good job, a good relationship and a good home in a good community. And then we want to stay there.

But time has its way, and we don't get to stop when we get where we want to be. Like Alice's Red Queen, we have to run as fast as we can just to stay in one place.

(There's more...)

How do we stay well? As presented at last weekend's Live Well: A Night Celebrating Wellness event at Brooks Secondary School, wellness is a lot more than not being sick. Author Brian Luke Seaward spoke about being a whole person - whole in mind, whole in body and whole in spirit.

That takes good food. Folks who would never think of pumping trash gas into the tank of their vehicle often forget that their body needs prime fuel as well.

Malaspina University-College professor Les Malbon talked about the 50-mile diet, and how much better it is to eat whole foods that are fresh and local. It's not good when food is trucked in from a factory farm 1,000 kilometres away, or from Chile or China. It may be cheaper, but the food is less nutritious, less flavourful, and may be tainted with toxins. And it devalues local farms.

Malbon pointed out that since 2001, more than 30 per cent of the agricultural land around Nanaimo has been lost to development. As Powell River looks to sustainably manage growth at the Saturday, January 19 community sustainability charter meeting, it's worth considering that the original meaning of the word paradise was orchard. Do we want more orchards, or more parking lots?

When wellness program organizer Jim Palm called Dr. Jeanne Paul to invite her to speak at Brooks, she told him she had been to Brooks before--for one day. It was 1951, when there was a deep well of prejudice against first nations peoples, and Paul was taken from Tla'Amin (Sliammon) First Nation and sent to boarding school.

Now, half a century later, Paul was a featured speaker, and other first nations participants were integral to the program. It was a testament to the way the non-aboriginal communities and first nations communities are building together to achieve a true regional wellness.

For the community, wellness is about integrating all the individuals into a coherent whole. That doesn't mean groupthink or hive mind, but healthy interactions, free of prejudice, coercion and fear.

Seaward emphasized how humour and humility are central to that, and author-educator Chris Bratseth put the spotlight on kindness. Small acts of daily kindness are the food that grows healthy communities.

Eagle Walz, who was also honoured on the weekend, has done an immeasurable amount of work on the Sunshine Coast Trail. He didn't do it for money, or even for the thanks of strangers who hike those trails, never knowing the man who helped make the trails possible. He did it because he lives here. He gets to enjoy them and so does everyone else.

Wellness multiplies wellness.

90 mpg from a Hummer? Dang...

We could cut our fuel use by more than 50 percent just by revamping our cars. This guy is a miracle worker...

Check it out. It's actually a jet engine," says Johnathan Goodwin, with a low whistle. "This thing is gonna be even cooler than I thought." We're hunched on the floor of Goodwin's gleaming workshop in Wichita, Kansas, surrounded by the shards of a wooden packing crate. Inside the wreckage sits his latest toy--a 1985-issue turbine engine originally designed for the military. It can spin at a blistering 60,000 rpm and burn almost any fuel. And Goodwin has some startling plans for this esoteric piece of hardware: He's going to use it to create the most fuel-efficient Hummer in history.

Read the whole article... or watch an interview:

Fighting a Cold? Take D!

(Originally published in the Powell River Peak)

How do you get your vitamins?

Vitamin C comes from oranges, vitamin A from carrots, but the main source of vitamin D is the sun. Vitamin D is the only major nutrient humans can produce themselves.

The good news most people make all they need in 15 to 20 minutes of overhead summer sunlight (longer for those with dark skin).

But that's in summer. According to Dania Matiation, the community nutritionist at Vancouver Community Health, "the bad news is that this far north, in winter, you're probably not getting enough sunlight even if you spend an hour or more outdoors. Which means you need to be looking at your diet, or at supplements."

In northern latitudes, the low level of the sun in the sky means that the ultraviolet B rays that form vitamin D are blocked by the thickness of the atmosphere, even at midday. That's why Scandinavians have used cod liver oil for years, and why the Inuit eat a diet heavy with D-rich animal fats. It's also why Health Canada estimates that the majority of Canadians have a vitamin D deficiency.

It's been known since the 1930s that lack of vitamin D caused a condition called rickets, but it's only in the past few years that a raft of new research has built a strong case that vitamin D, which is technically a steroid hormone precursor, rather than a true vitamin, is critical to everything from immune system function, including fighting cancer, to nervous system development in infants. One study even showed that people with higher levels of the vitamin lived two to three years longer than those with low levels.

Studies are also improving knowledge of how much is needed. The current Health Canada standard of 400 IU (international units) was based on the amount needed to prevent rickets. The new studies indicate that much more may be needed for optimum health, as much as 1,000 to 2,000 IU.

"I think there will be new recommendations from Health Canada in the next few months," said Matiation.

Getting that much isn't practical through diet. Milk is fortified, but only 100 IU per cup. That leaves two options--supplements and tanning booths.

"The booths provide both kinds of ultraviolet, A and B," said Rhonda Boyles, owner of Pacific Breeze Tanning Studios. "It's possible to have a sensible regime of tanning that meets your vitamin needs and doesn't damage your skin." Boyles also works as a receptionist at the Powell River Recreation Complex, another location for tanning. "When you start acquiring the tan," she added, "that's the signal that you're getting enough vitamin D."

One contributing factor to the deficiency problem is that dermatologists, justifiably worried about increasing skin cancer rates, have been discouraging any sun exposure at all, and encouraging use of sunscreen when people do go out. But sunscreen blocks ultraviolet B.

Dr. James Spencer, clinical professor of dermatology at Mount Sinai School of Medicine, New York City, says people can get enough vitamin D from diet and supplements. He recommends fortified milk or orange juice, and eating salmon and other fatty fish, plus taking a 600 IU supplement. "It's so easy," he said. "And it's a lot safer than lying in the sun or climbing undressed into a tanning booth and frying your whole body."

Heather Chappell, senior manager of cancer control policy at the Canadian Cancer Society, agreed that the most reliable source is probably supplements. "The Society recommends that adults start talking 1,000 IU of vitamin D daily in winter, and people with dark skin should take them year round."

Matiation added that, while it's important to consume D, it should be done sensibly. "Don't panic and overdo it," she said, "because too much vitamin D also has toxicity problems." This is especially true for pregnant women, who should consult a physician before adding supplements of any kind.

"A reasonable balance of sun, diet and supplements should work for most people," she said.

Vitamin D Effects
* Promotes immune system function. Why do people get colds and influenza in winter? New studies show it may be low levels of vitamin D.
* Promotes immune system cancer fighting, particularly against colon, breast and prostate cancers.
* Regulates bone density and calcium absorption.
* Low levels may be linked to diseases ranging from high blood pressure to periodontal disease, multiple sclerosis and depression.
* Low levels are strongly linked to muscle aches and bone pain.
* Taking supplements may add as many as one to two years to the average lifespan

Vitamin D Sources
* Fish liver oils, such as cod liver oil, 15 millilitres provides 1,360 IU.
* Catfish, 85 milligrams provides 425 IU.
* Salmon, wild-caught, cooked, 100 milligrams provides 360 IU.
* Mackerel, cooked, 100 milligrams provides 345 IU.
* Sardines, canned in oil, drained, 50 milligrams provides 250 IU.
* Tuna, canned in oil, 85 milligrams provides 200 IU.
* Sun-dried shiitake mushrooms, 13 caps provide 400 IU.
* Fortified cow's milk, 250 millilitres provides 100 IU.

Bending the Shire

This is very cool... If you have a spare $700,000, and don't mind living in Bend, Oregon, there's a community-based, green-construction development going up with houses based on Tolkien's Shire.

Okay, very loosely based. As any self-respecting Hobbit knows, proper houses are built by digging into the sides of hills, are constructed in tunnels rather than with walls and roofs, and have round doors, not standard-issue rectangular ones.

But if you can get past that, the houses do look fantastical.