Like many of you, DH and I have had bears on the brain over the winter, so we got a kick out of this little story about a bear who just wanted to cool off.

There were two reasons I wanted to get out and see the Oscar-nominated hit 3D movie Avatar—so I would have a clue what everyone else was talking about, and because my dad wanted to see it too. Now, thanks to an essay by Richard Meech, a Toronto-based documentary film-maker, which appeared in The Globe and Mail on the weekend, I can almost justify seeing a weekday matinee on behalf of Cottage Life.

Richard suggests that the film’s Canadian writer, director, and producer, James Cameron, may have “tapped into a zeitgeist that longs for a deeper connection to nature and a re-enchantment with the natural world.” Isn’t that what all true cottagers desire?

Even those among us who go to the cottage purely for the recreation (a.k.a. dock parties) must have some sense of the natural world as a provider, if only to give a lake for wakeboarding and a dark sky for the nightly bonfire.

Ah, so cynical. Most of us know that the power of nature is more profound than that. “Part of what Mr. Cameron has done,” Richard writes, “is to awaken an ardour for the beauty and mystery of nature at a time when many people feel our planetary ecosystem is most under threat.”

I first met Richard when he was working on Millenium: Tribal Wisdom and the Modern World, a 10-part series that explored remote tribal societies. So it didn’t surprise me to learn that he was working on another film, Vine of the Soul, about ayahuasca, a sacred medicine in the Amazon. In his essay, Richard postulates a link between the thick ayahuasca vine of the Amazon and the “Tree of Souls” in Avatar. “Both plants—our vine, their tree—allow initiates to…plug into the living biological matrix that sustains all life.”

“In the end,” Richard writes, “it may just be that Avatar will get us all listening again to the plant world around us.”

Will it really take a sci-fi film to bring us back to our senses?

A sweet crop at my Georgian Bay cottage.

…as if we needed one! According to the Wild Blueberry Association of North America, the little blue fruit is referred to as a “happy food” because of its low glycemic index, which helps maintain mood, energy, and concentration throughout the day.

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Well, it seems that the winter gear Mom used to make you wear is history (like a lot of the stuff in cottages, come to think of it!). Modern technology has brought high warmth-to-weight measures. The Columbia folks say they’re trying to make people aware that outerwear can be as specialized as, say, golf clubs or cottage boats. Whether you’ll be slaloming down the ski slopes or simply out enjoying a walk in the woods with the dog, it’s worth doing a little research before you buy.

Paul Quarrington

[updated] Paul Quarrington: 1953—2010. Acclaimed Canadian author of Whale Music, King Leary, and other wonderful and hilarious stories, screenwriter, musician, fisherman, friend to so many, contributor to Cottage Life magazine as well as our stablemates explore and Outdoor Canada magazines. R.I.P. Paul.

Update, Jan 22/10: “He just fizzed with joy.”—Dave Bidini, musician, writer, and close friend of Paul, from an obituary by Michael Posner in today’s  Globe and Mail.

I first heard about charity pond hockey last year from John Lorinc, a Cottage Life contributor who is part of a team in the Taylor Cup Pond Hockey Championship on Sparrow Lake, which benefits  The Princess Margaret Hospital Foundation Cancer Research Fund. Then I discovered that one of our long-time photographers, Kevin Hewitt, is on the same team. So we paired them up to share their experience in a story and photos in our current issue. The boys are getting ready for the 2010 event in two weeks, and they’re not the only ones. Pond hockey tournaments are being organized across cottage country. If you are involved in one, leave us a comment about it here. We’ll update our 2009 list and help spread the word.

Meanwhile, whether or not you’re lacing up the skates on your lake this winter,  here’s  a video to lift your spirits.

Asking readers to help us choose the cover of Cottage Life is a regular part of producing the magazine. It’s always inspiring to see which one most appeals to you. This time, I’d love it if you would tell me why you voted the way you did. What attracted you to your cover? (Or what didn’t you like about the others? Don’t worry, we can take it!) We’ll be “listening,” and your feedback will help us bring you more great Cottage Life covers.

Here are the three covers being considered for the next issue. Tell me in the comments below which is your favourite and why, then cast your vote here.

Cover 1

Cover 2

Cover 3

I missed the train again the other day, and sat down with my crossword puzzle to wait an hour for the next one.

“Oh, you do crosswords?” This from the lady sitting next to me, her own crossword in hand. “What do you call the cousin of a raccoon? Five letters.”

I really should know this, I thought, staring down at her page. A raccoon scratched its way through the back screen door at the cottage and destroyed the gasket of the fridge in the porch to get at some fish inside. Readers of Cottage Life send dozens of photos of raccoons to our annual photo contest. A caged raccoon in an exhibit of rare species at the Royal Zoological and Botanical Gardens in Hong Kong once beat me in a staring contest. I breed raccoons in the back yard at home.

“Sorry, I have no idea,” I said.

Just in case you need to know (because, of course, I have now looked it up), the cousin of the raccoon is the coati. If nothing else, the letters are worth seven points in Scrabble.

“We are blessed,” Dawn Yager said, randomly, one day last week as I dashed into the office, having spent more time than I wanted chasing a last-minute gift at lunch.

I stopped and looked at her. What?

“That man,” she nodded in the direction of a courier who had just left, “has people in Somalia.” Somalia, a war-weary country where families have been torn apart.

Kind, big-hearted Dawn had taken time to talk with—more, listen to—someone to whom others of us might have simply thrown a friendly nod as we rushed by. Have a good holiday, we would say. And being busy, being in a hurry, being immersed in the struggle of getting ready, we would scurry on.

Today, with my family around me, I thought about how lucky I am. Lucky to know my people are safe, to be able to talk to them and hug them. Lucky to be able to think with fondness and happy memories of those who are no longer here. Like my mom, who always made Christmas such a happy time.

I hope that today you were able to stop worrying about the perfect gift, perfect decorations, perfect dinner. I hope you were able to put all that aside and just enjoy being with people you love. Because we are blessed.

May you find peace and joy, wherever you are.

Northern saw-whet owl. Photo by Betsy Higgins, courtesy Ontario Nature

Did you know that there was once a popular annual hunt during which teams competed to see who could shoot the most birds and small mammals as a Christmas day activity? Fortunately, someone saw the light through the flying feathers, specifically American ornithologist Frank Chapman, whose suggestion that birds be counted instead of shot changed the course of ornithological history. It also set the stage for creating an enormously important conservation tool on behalf of birds and the environment.

The annual Christmas Bird Count is now the largest single volunteer conservation movement on behalf of wildlife, according to Ontario Nature, whose member groups are leading bird counts in communities as far north as Thunder Bay, to Point Pelee in the south, and Kingston and the Ottawa area in the east. This year’s count, which began last week and continues until January 5, 2010 is the 110th edition.

The data collected from the counts allow researchers and conservation organizations to study the long-term health, population numbers, and ranges of birds across North America.  Armed with this information, groups such as Ontario Nature can then identify threats to birds and their habitat, and determine appropriate conservation action.

“The birds of Ontario are a critical part of this province’s biodiversity,” says Caroline Schultz, Executive Director of Ontario Nature.  “The Christmas Bird Count is a key survey that reveals which populations are increasing and which are decreasing.  Anyone can get involved in a bird count and know that they are contributing to meaningful scientific research.”

Now, nearly 400 Christmas Bird Counts are held in Canada—more than 100 in Ontario alone—with some 12,000 volunteer participants.  Bird Studies Canada coordinates the count in Canada in a joint program with the National Audubon Society. Last year, more than 2,000 bird counts were conducted across the Americas—a record high. All bird counts are open to the public and birders of all skill levels. Victoria Foote, a cottager and the editor of On Nature magazine, says the count is an ideal activity for families spending the holidays at the cottage.

For a full list of the Ontario Nature member groups that are holding bird counts and when, please visit the Nature Network.

Boreal owl. Photo by Nate Kohler, courtesy Ontario Nature

Quick facts from Ontario Nature:

* Last year, Ontario Nature member group, Nature London, celebrated its 100th count with more than 100 participants.  London is still Cardinal Capital of the Year with almost 900 of the birds counted.

* Christmas Bird Counts show population declines and also success stories.  Both the Orillia Field Naturalists and Rouge Park documented record high numbers of Trumpeter swans—a species once close to extinction—which they attribute to the Wye Marsh Wildlife Centre’s restoration efforts.  The same year, the South Peel Naturalists’ Club, based in Missassauga/Oakville, recorded unusually low counts of house sparrows.

* This year, the Kitchener-Waterloo Field Naturalists are celebrating their 75th Christmas Bird Count.

* During last year’s Christmas Bird Count, almost 60,000 volunteers across North America and beyond tallied more than 65 million birds.  Approximately 11,000 volunteers in Canada participated in 361 counts and tallied nearly 3 million birds.