Personal Interests


Sports

        I am very active in sports and tend to do some kind of physical activity every day. Generally, I tend to prefer solitary sports, which can be done in groups but do not require other people to pursue. I am an avid cyclist and have been passionate about cycling since the age of 15. Having grown up in the middle of a big city, I prefer the challenge of sparing with cars on my bike, rather than the long cross-country type of ride. Also, growing up in the city made me fall in love with walking. There is nothing I like better than going for a long wander through busy city streets, although trail hiking also has its merits and I enjoy that too. Recently, I have gotten into running and, thanks to a crazy running club I joined, I've become somewhat serious about it, having run 2 marathons in the past few years. Running tends to suit my personality. It is cheap, requiring no overly speciallized equipment, and can be done anywhere any time. On the other hand, I also enjoy fencing, which does require a lot of expensive equipment and other people to practice it. But I think I like fencing so much because it is such a cerebral sport, going hand-in-hand with my attitude about cycling.


Hobbies

        When it comes to hobbies I tend to be a Suzie Homemaker. I love cooking and baking, but only when I feel the mood. There is nothing I hate worse than having to cook three times a day, every day - we eat plenty of leftovers at our house. However, I love entertaining guests and am happy to cook up a storm when friends drop over. I also love sewing and make most of my own clothes. Part of this stems from the fact that my body type makes most off the rack clothing look like a sack of potatoes, while my own creations flatter the figure I have. Also, I really enjoy the calmness and serenity that comes from watching something slowly come together in my hands. That is why, when friends re-introduced me to knitting and crocheting, I took to those immediately. Of course, part of this patience package also includes needle point. My husband claims that the only thing I cannot make is shoes, and we're working on that. I have one more quiet hobby, and that is reading. I have been an avid science fiction reader since my early teens, but I also enjoy non-fiction, usually in the form of science magazines. Unfortunately, work-related reading leaves little time these days for pleasure reading, so I have started listening to audiobooks while cooking, cleaning, walking or running. I find it's a great way to sneak in some fun reading.
       My husband and I also own a house. It is an old Victorian semi-detatched, so naturally working on the house is one of my most important "hobbies". This means doing electrical work, construction, plumbing, carpentry, and of course paint stripping to name just a few. We hope to do a full renovation on the house in the very near future, so this particular hobby may be much reduced. The house also comes with a decent-sized yard, which means that oddly enough gardening is now one of my hobbies. I have an environmental and hands-off approach to gardening, using as many native and low-maintenance plants as possible. Friends and neighbours give me plants, I throw them into the garden and see if they survive. So far, this has worked fairly well and I am proud to report that I almost never water my established plants. I also like to have food-bearing plants, which sometimes contradicts with the low-maintenance approach. But, so far, I have thriving oregano, mint, chives, sage, garlic, rhubarb, grapes, raspberries, and Canadian gooseberries (that volunteered). The berries, grapes, and rhubarb make very good jam!


Politics

        Let's face it, I'm opinionated and a busy body. So, how could I not be interested in politics, at all levels? At age 14 I volunteered in the campaign of my local member of parliament - okay, I stuffed envelopes, but I did participate. In university I became involved in student politics: as an undergraduate, I participated in the Canadian Ukrainian Students Union; I was a member of my graduate student council for 4 years, holding the office of president in 1996; I have sat on several University committees, including Police and Security, Curriculum Council, Faculty Association Teaching Stream Committee, Post-doctoral Association, etc. I hope to be similarly active in politics and administration where ever I find myself. Furthermore, I feel it is my civic duty to vote, and have gone to great pains and expense to cast my vote on those occasions when I was out of the country during elections.


Travel

        My sister bit me with the travel bug long ago, with her constant hair-brained travel schemes - many of which, in retrospect, were not so hair-brained after all. I also learned to not travel as a tourist, but to find some other pretext for travelling to the desired destination. Marrying someone with roots in another country and going to meet their relatives is a great way to go - though I'll admit, marriage may be a bit extreme in some instances when just visiting friends will also do. Joining a performance group of some kind, which travels a lot, is a great way to expand your travel repertoir. Being appointed as a conference deligate is always good - then someone else also pays for your travel. Many scientific meetings are held in exotic locations, so plan meeting attendence accordingly. And of course, exchanges and study/work programs offer excellent opportunities for travel and seeing places you might not have otherwise considered visiting. The list of places I have visited by such unorthodox methods includes Greece, France, the western Austrailian desert, Lenningrad/St. Petersberg, Moscow, Berlin, Mexico City, Vancouver, Montreal, San Francisco, Houston, Denver, Miami, Wichita, Charleston SC, and Portland, Maine to name just a few.


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