Who are the People at Ross Creek? Carrie McKellar

Volunteer Artist in Residence, coming from Vancouver to be at Ross Creek till March 31. Please welcome her to our community!

Name:

Carrie McKellar

Current occupation

at the moment, professional volunteer

What are you Doing at Ross Creek?

Sounds like a little bit of this and a little bit of that.

What book are you reading now?

The Birth House - a present from my dad in anticipation of heading to Ross Creek

Favourite music on your MP3 player?

Depends on my mood - I often listen to CBC

Favourite website/ podcast?

I like Design Sponge - but also many online newspapers/journals

Which Living Person do you most admire?

Hard to say! so many amazing people: Wade Davis/ Maude Barlow/ Vandana Shiva? I wish mainstream media paid more attention to such people!

What is your current obsession?

Hmmm - currently it is turning socks into monkeys- but I think this is just a phase.

What or who is the greatest love of your life?

I've been lucky with a great family.

When and where were you happiest?

Probably at ECUAD or wwoofing at an arts centre in New Zealand. Or grade 3 - it was a good year.

If you could change one thing about yourself, what would it be?

To have more faith. (in a non religious sense)

What quality do you most value in your friends?

Honesty

Who is your hero of Fiction?

Indiana Jones? Ha, I don't know ...

Who is your hero in real life?

Wade Davis is pretty amazing - I don't know about being a "hero" though?

Which living person do you most despise?

I don't despise anyone I know personally - but have certainly read/heard about too many despicable acts by people I don't know.

If your life were a mix tape, what songs would be on it?

Mushaboom, Feist
Life is a Highway, Tom Cochrane
Revolution, Beatles
All you need is Love, Beatles
Non, Je ne regrette rien, Edith Piaf
Society, Eddie Vedder
What's Going On, Marvin Gaye

Your favourite qualities in a man

Compassion, integrity, strength

Your favourite qualities in a woman

Integrity, strength, compassion

What is the trait you most deplore in yourself?

lack of faith?

What is the trait you most deplore in others?

lack of openness?

What is your greatest extravagance?

Travel.

On what occasion do you lie?

to hide surprises.

What do you dislike most about your appearance?

ha - hmm - perfect skin and hair and eyes would be nice ... but i appreciate "imperfections" in other people and I hope they do likewise.

What talent would you most like to have?

Being musically inclined would be great - and being an amazing host (dinner parties/ guests)

If you could change one thing about your family, what would it be?

That they lived closer/ we saw each other more often

What is your most treasured possession?

My health? Also having a bike/camera/computer are nice.

If you were to die and come back as a person or thing, what do you think it would be?

A perpetually conflicted ascetic aesthetic?

What is your motto?

Always be prepared? This too shall pass?

Who are the People at Ross Creek? Chris O'Neill

Name Chris O’Neill

Current occupation Executive Director

What are you doing at Ross Creek? Executive Directing

What book are you reading now? Cleopatra, A life, by Stacy Schiff

Favourite music on your MP3 player? Sarah Harmer, Josh Ritter

Favourite website/ podcast? Wait, Wait Don’t Tell Me, Wiretap

Which living person do you most admire? Bishop Desmond Tutu

What is your current obsession? Gardening

What or who is the greatest love of your life? My family

When and where were you happiest?
A moment with my children and husband around me having breakfast and laughing.

If you could change one thing about yourself, what would it be?
My need to say everything that comes across my mind and work things out verbally.

Who is your hero of fiction?
Oskar Schell from Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close by Jonathon Safran Foer

Who is your hero in real life? Thoreau

Which living person do you most despise?
Anyone who intentionally, knowingly does harm to another living being, especially if they have political power. Also, people who design, market and sell violent esp. first person shooter video games.

If your life were a mix tape, what songs would be on it?
Desperado by the Eagles;
Vienna by Billy Joel;
Jack and Dianne, John Cougar;
Gypsies, Tramps and Thieves by Cher;
What have they done to my song, Ma by Melanie;
Nellie the Elephant by the Toy Dolls;
You Don't Own Me/Falling in Love Again (Can't Help It) by Klaus Nomi;
If I had a Rocket Launcher by Bruce Cockburn;
The Jeweller by This Mortal Coil;
Talkin’ bout a revolution by Tracy Chapman;
No frontiers by Mary Black;
Dirty Old Town by the Pogues;
Memories of East Texas by Michelle Shocked;
Kids are gonna be alright by Wyckham Porteous;
I am a mountain by Sarah Harmer.

Your favourite qualities in a man
Curiosity, intelligence, humour, kindness

Your favourite qualities in a woman
Humour, kindness, intelligence

What is the trait you most deplore in yourself?
Needing a close deadline to be motivated.

What is the trait you most deplore in others?
Terrible eating habits. I wish I didn’t care but it drives me crazy!

What is your greatest extravagance? Kitchen tools and gourmet cheese

On what occasion do you lie? To make someone feel better.

What do you dislike most about your appearance? Sigh.

Which talent would you most like to have? Novel writing, sewing or woodworking instinctively

If you could change one thing about your family, what would it be?
To be slightly less inclined to talk over each other.

What is your most treasured possession?
I don’t have one.

If you were to die and come back as a person or thing, what do you think it would be? A willow tree – cut it down, it keeps coming back.

What is your motto?
Yeah, yeah, yeah (said enthusiastically, not sarcastically)

Who are the People at Ross Creek? Melisa Szeto!

Who are the People at Ross Creek?
1. Name: Melisa Szeto Age: 19

2. Art form: Writing, Storytelling, & Acting

3. What are you doing at Ross Creek?

Public Relations Co-op placement

4. What book are you reading now? None

5. What is your current favourite music on your IPOD? My current favourite music on my IPOD is Chinese hip-hop/pop music or any type of relaxing/soothing songs.

6. What is your current favourite website/ podcast? My current favourite website is www.renren.com (xiaonei) because it’s the Chinese version of facebook and it connects me to all the Chinese media around the world.

7. Which living artist (of any kind) do you most admire? Jay Chou

8. If marooned on a desert island, what

a. Book : At First Sight by Nicholas Sparks

b. Movie : A Walk to Remember (All-time favourite)

c. Music : any type of modern Asian music

d. Artwork: the first drawing I received from one of my piano students.

9. What is your obsession? Always finding new and innovative ways to have fun or create fun in whatever I’m doing.

10. What or who is the greatest love of your life? My family is the greatest love of my life.

11. When and where were you happiest? Montreal, summer 09’ for five weeks from July-August learning French. I met some of the most amazing people and had the time of my life there.

12. If you could change one thing about yourself, what would it be? Being able to fluently speak in most dialects of Chinese.

13. If you were to die and come back as a person or a thing, what would it be? I would want to come back as a well-known Asian celebrity.

14. What is your most treasured possession? The first stuffed animal tiger I received from my dad when I was a child.

15. What is your most annoying habit? Procrastinating to last minute.

16. What quality do you most value in your friends? Truth and honesty

17. Who are your favourite writers? Nicholas Sparks, E.B White

18. Who is your hero of fiction? Sailor Moon

19. Who are your current or historical heroes?

20. If your life were a mix tape, what songs would be on it?

21. What is it that you most dislike?

22. What is your motto? Live like there is no tomorrow. Laugh at the silliest things. Love endlessly and learn from your mistakes.

23. What’s your earliest memory of Ross Creek? The first day of work

24. What the most significant thing you’ve achieved (so far) at Ross Creek? Enjoying my first day of work and extremely looking forward to this summer at Ross Creek!

25. What is your happiest memory of Ross Creek? Not sure yet but I’m definitely happy that it’s so easily to get along with my co-workers! I’ll have to answer in 4 months after my placement is over.

Who are the People at Ross Creek

1. Name: Shannon Richardson Age: 26

2. Art form: Metal/Jewellery/Mixed Media

3. What are you doing at Ross Creek? A little bit of this a little bit of that :) Admin.

4. What book are you reading now? I’ve started many…Way of the Peaceful Warrior, Power of Intention, Complete Works of Lewis Carroll

5. What is your current favourite music on your IPOD? Don’t have an IPod. But I’d say “Sitting on the Dock of the Bay” (Otis Redding), Run Around Sue, or anything by S Club 7 :)

6. What is your current favourite website/ podcast? Don’t have a favourite.

7. Which living artist (of any kind) do you most admire? Patrick Perry-metal artist, conceptual artist, and a former teacher of mine

8. If marooned on a desert island, what
a. Book : Wind in the Willows-it’s a classic!
b. Movie : Would I have a TV and DVD player? Probably the Ice Age movies, or Police Academy series or anything with Bill Murray
c. Music : 50’s and 60’s music, DISCO!! (Boogie, Oogie, Oogie til you can’t Boogie no more!)
d. Artwork: Egon Schielle, Dali or a blank canvas & supplies

9. What is your obsession? Hmmm…there are so many it’s hard to choose :) I guess I’d have to say Hannah Montana, she makes me laugh, hehe…it really is the best of both worlds!

10. What or who is the greatest love of your life? Oooh, toughy. I’d have to say the greatest love of my life would have to be myself as my mom used to say that you can’t expect someone to love you if you don’t love yourself first

11. When and where were you happiest? I want to say when I was 8, riding my bike down a quiet road at dusk on a warm summer night with the crickets chirping.

12. If you could change one thing about yourself, what would it be? Why would I when I’m so gosh darn perfect? Haha, I guess I’d like to be a little less shy and more comfortable in crowds.

13. If you were to die and come back as a person or a thing, what would it be? According to my spirit guide, I was a medic during the Vietnam war… so I guess I’d like to come back as whatever being will help me to reach the next stage of my soul

14. What is your most treasured possession? A stuffed dog that was waiting for me in my crib when they brought me home from the hospital. Moving around a lot, he was the most consistent friend I had and is very comforting when I am upset

15. What is your most annoying habit? I have a fixation on sticky things such as tape. My friends say that when I continuously roll a piece of tape between my fingers for hours, it’s annoying. But what do they know?

16. What quality do you most value in your friends? A sense of humour. Laughter truly is the greatest medicine and can do wonders when you are glum.

17. Who are your favourite writers? Bob Dylan and Alex Garland

18. Who is your hero of fiction? Indiana Jones. OH! The chest hair!

19. Who are your current or historical heroes? Bob Dylan, Patrick Swayze, Romeo Dalaire

20. If your life were a mix tape, what songs would be on it? Disco, 50’s & 60’s rock & roll, a power ballad or two, maybe one slow, sweet song, but mostly up-beat and rockin’ just like me! Oh, and “Easy like Sunday Morning” my theme song :)

21. What is it that you most dislike? Being misunderstood; there’s nothing more frustrating

22. What is your motto? “Fake it ‘til you make it!” Carol Leighton

23. What’s your earliest memory of Ross Creek? Getting lost on my way for the interview. My favourite first memory is the Jerome performance I saw.

24. What the most significant thing you’ve achieved (so far) at Ross Creek? Probably Black & White, everything leading up to it, and the event itself. Although Canada Day was a lot of fun, too…they’ve all been happy memories :)

25. What is your happiest memory of Ross Creek? Running and watching what we’ve created on the last day

Who are the People at Ross Creek?

1. Name: Josh Rodney Age: 19

2. Art form: Music

3. What are you doing at Ross Creek? Recreation Director & Boys Counselor

4. What book are you reading now? Arthus, Rise of the Lich King

5. What is your current favourite music on your IPOD? Savior by Rise Against

6. What is your current favourite website/ podcast? Facebook

7. Which living artist (of any kind) do you most admire? Kenny G.

8. If marooned on a desert island, what

a. Book : Dark Portal
b. Movie : Transformers
c. Music : Rise Against
d. Artwork: music

9. What is your obsession? Computers

10. What or who is the greatest love of your life? My family and GF

11. When and where were you happiest? Ross Creek last year

12. If you could change one thing about yourself, what would it be? How tall I am

13. If you were to die and come back as a person or a thing, what would it be?
An actor

14. What is your most treasured possession? My ring

15. What is your most annoying habit? Tapping my fingers

16. What quality do you most value in your friends? Humour

17. Who are your current or historical heroes? Hancock

18. What is it that you most dislike? People underestimating me

19. What is your motto? Everything happens for a reason

20. What the most significant thing you’ve achieved (so far) at Ross Creek? Leadership

21. What is your happiest memory of Ross Creek? Cabin 1 during academy my first year

Who are the People at Ross Creek?

1. Name: Mauralea Austin

2. Art form: Writing, Acting

3. What are you doing at Ross Creek? Leading the writing workshop

4. What book are you reading now? Pale Criminal by Philip Kerr

5. What is your current favourite music on your IPOD? Don’t have an IPod- pretty pitiful I know

6. What is your current favourite website/podcast? Uh…none

7. Which living artist (of any kind) do you most admire? Meryl Streep

8. If marooned on a desert island, what

a. book : Shakespeare’s collected works-endless things to discover AND the Oxford Dictionary because I like words
b. Movie :
c. Music : Wind, waves, bird calls would be just fine with me
d. Artwork: Blank canvases and art materials to create my own

9. What is your obsession? Reading EVERYWHERE

10. What or who is the greatest love of your life? My son Shayler

11. When and where were you happiest? Backpacking around Europe oh so many years ago

12. If you could change one thing about yourself, what would it be? I wish I could play a musical instrument really well

13. If you were to die and come back as a person or a thing, what would it be? An artisan in a studio overlooking the ocean; with a sail boat moored at the peer

14. What is your most treasured possession? My photo albums

15. What is your most annoying habit? Chewing gum in the car

16. What quality do you most value in your friends? Sense of humour

17. Who are your favourite writers? So many!

18. Who are your current or historical heroes? My mom

19. If your life were a mix tape, what songs would be on it? A little bit of rock, a little bit of Celtic, a little bit of classical and, believe it or not, a bit of opera

20. What is it that you most dislike? Quite a few things, actually, but that makes me sound really cranky so nevermind…

21. What is your motto? Problems can always be overcome to become opportunities (Not that I’m able to put this into action—sigh)

Who are the People at Ross Creek?

1. Name: Sobaz Benjamin Age: 41

2. Art form: Film 3 Video Production

3. What are you doing at Ross Creek? Film Academy

4. What book are you reading now? The Third Jesus

5. What is your current favourite music on your IPOD? Don’t have an IPod. I’m listening to a lot of Kanaan, Clutch and Mary Mary.

6. What is your current favourite website/ podcast? Don’t have a favourite.

7. Which living artist (of any kind) do you most admire? I’m very interested, currently, in a British filmmaker named Steve McQueen. He did a film called hunger.

8. If marooned on a desert island, what

a. book : I don’t know- Not really inspired to that extent by books I’ve read.
b. Movie : Run Lola Run- Great filmmaking and entertaining.
c. Music : Can’t give up now by Mary Mary-it’s inspirational.
d. Artwork: I don’t know-a photograph of my wife, kids, & me.

9. What is your obsession? What it means…what it’s like to be human.

10. What or who is the greatest love of your life? My family.

11. When and where were you happiest? Childhood, England.

12. If you could change one thing about yourself, what would it be? nothing

13. If you were to die and come back as a person or a thing, what would it be? Shark

14. What is your most treasured possession? The ability to think for myself. It’s an ongoing struggle though.

15. What is your most annoying habit? Allowing myself to get overwhelmed

16. What quality do you most value in your friends? Honesty

17. Who are your favourite writers? Shakespeare, Toni Morrison, Freud

18. Who is your hero of fiction? Edward in King Lear

19. Who are your current or historical heroes? Malcolm X

20. If your life were a mix tape, what songs would be on it? Lots of Public Enemy,
Mary Mary “ Can’t Give up Now”, Metal hip hop punk rock fusion

21. What is it that you most dislike? Liars

22. What is your motto? Don’t give up

23. What’s your earliest memory of Ross Creek? 2006 the drive up the mountain

24. What the most significant thing you’ve achieved (so far) at Ross Creek? I leave that for others to decide

25. What is your happiest memory of Ross Creek? Running and watching what we’ve created on the last day