Quest University Canada - Elly Grant - Keeping up with the Kermodes

{"json":{"type":"doc","content":[{"type":"paragraph","content":[{"type":"text","marks":[{"type":"bold"}],"text":"Current location: "},{"type":"text","text":"Banff, Alberta, Canada"}]},{"type":"paragraph","content":[{"type":"text","marks":[{"type":"bold"}],"text":"Year I entered Quest:"},{"type":"text","text":" 2014"}]},{"type":"paragraph"},{"type":"image","attrs":{"src":"https://server.onli.bio/files/onliweb/ae2a86617cf05a2c1c6bdce9b04a1667_EllyGrant.jpg","alt":null,"title":null}},{"type":"paragraph","content":[{"type":"text","marks":[{"type":"bold"}],"text":"One of my favourite classes that I took and why:"},{"type":"text","text":" Beadwork and Social Activism – to my"}]},{"type":"paragraph","content":[{"type":"text","text":"knowledge this was one of few courses facilitated by an Indigenous tutor at Quest– taught by Teresa Vander Meer-Chassé. As an artist I appreciated having hands-on, creative activities interwoven with coursework. I’ve continued beading since taking the course too. I’m grateful for the course teachings as a precursor to supporting Indigenous communities through my role at Banff Centre, where I get to witness beautiful beadwork in action on the daily."}]},{"type":"paragraph"},{"type":"paragraph","content":[{"type":"text","marks":[{"type":"bold"}],"text":"Question I am currently pursuing: "},{"type":"text","text":"How do I maintain creative practice?"}]},{"type":"paragraph","content":[{"type":"text","text":"You will all remember me as the ‘Double Dipped girl’ in my later years at Quest. I made hundreds of up-cycled T-shirts, hoodies, and hats (some of which ended up as FREE in the Re- Use-It Centre!). I have been thinking a lot about time and energy for creative work– how these things looked and felt different just a few short years ago and were more accessible even during a busy school schedule. My business popped off during COVID, which, while fun for a short period, ultimately led to burnout, tendonitis in my wrists, and the need to re-evaluate how much time I was spending making things for others without enough space to take care of myself. Sewing is a sitting-down sport after all. So, while I still do the odd market from time to time, I am in a process of reimagining my sewing practice and how to balance / contribute my creative energy in all facets of life."}]},{"type":"paragraph"},{"type":"paragraph","content":[{"type":"text","marks":[{"type":"bold"}],"text":"Life now:"},{"type":"text","text":" I am working a classic 9-5 office job (are you surprised, because I am, ha-ha) and I work part-time at a vintage clothing store in town. I have been spending a lot of time cooking and making recipes (creative!); I’ve started making kefir from scratch and tending to it every evening. I sew when I have time, have been sending/receiving mail art to artists all over the world, and rehabbing my broken ankle. :("}]},{"type":"paragraph"},{"type":"paragraph","content":[{"type":"text","marks":[{"type":"bold"}],"text":"Most generous thing someone has done for me (and vice versa):"},{"type":"text","text":" When I was in France in 2023, I was stuck in a small town without my passport and had to leave a bad Workaway situation (long story, lesson learned). A local woman I’d met, Sylvie, was kind enough to take me in for an evening, even though her 80-year-old father was visiting and staying in her tiny home. I ended up sharing the pullout couch with Sylvie and her 5 cats (one of them hairballed on me in the middle of the night). Sylvie woke me up early the next morning to drive me to the bus station an hour away despite having a fear of driving due to a previous accident. She packed me a bag of plums for my bus journey and made sure I got back to the city safely. Merci Sylvie!"}]},{"type":"paragraph","content":[{"type":"text","text":"As for me, I practice generosity daily – I remember lending my car to a Quest student for two months while I was away for a semester. I connected friends solo travelling in Italy last year, and they ended up hiking together in the Dolomites. I think so many are afraid of generosity for fear of giving up their pride or independence. I see it is an integral part of relationship building, without second thoughts something to embody always. To me, generosity is at the core of creating connections, and to that, I find great joy in doing so."}]},{"type":"paragraph"},{"type":"paragraph","content":[{"type":"text","marks":[{"type":"bold"}],"text":"Favourite summertime activity / three words that define the summer for me:"},{"type":"text","text":" Without broken ankle – backpacking trips, long hikes in the alpine, being in a lake. With broken ankle (this summer) – fishing, car camping, hammocking. Most fond summertime memory from my childhood: We used to go to a lakeside campsite (my grandparents used to run a Jewish summer camp in Northern Ontario, so the old camp"}]},{"type":"paragraph","content":[{"type":"text","text":"property) and the lake had amazing clay deposits. My brother and I used to cover ourselves head to toe in the clay, lay out in the sun on a giant rock to let it dry, and then wash the clay off hours later. Who needs expensive skincare when you have free lake clay – natural exfoliant! "}]},{"type":"paragraph"},{"type":"paragraph","content":[{"type":"text","marks":[{"type":"bold"}],"text":"Thing that has surprised me most lately: "},{"type":"text","text":"How much life changes once you reach 30! A cliché, but truly: I feel more relaxed and trusting of life."}]},{"type":"paragraph"},{"type":"paragraph","content":[{"type":"text","marks":[{"type":"bold"}],"text":"Fireside discussion theme that I’d like to explore with fellow Questies: "},{"type":"text","text":"What can a Master’s degree really teach you / prepare you for? And what working environment do the skills learned in grad school thrive best in? Corporate, non-profit, small business, self- employed, etc?"}]},{"type":"paragraph"},{"type":"paragraph","content":[{"type":"text","marks":[{"type":"bold"}],"text":"Best thing I’ve made/had for dinner recently: "},{"type":"text","text":"My take on vada pav – an Indian streetfood/potato dumpling – I make these using mashed potatoes, minced turmeric rice and spinach, minced sauteed mushrooms, tofu, and shredded carrots in cumin and coriander, you could throw cilantro, green peas, in. I form everything into one mixture and fry them in butter or ghee. Full recipe available upon request!"}]},{"type":"paragraph"},{"type":"paragraph","content":[{"type":"text","marks":[{"type":"bold"}],"text":"Emotion that I am valuing most right now and why: "},{"type":"text","text":"Not an emotion per se, but I am valuing the ability to uphold balance when facing problems, solutions, opinions, and multitudes of perspectives."}]},{"type":"paragraph"},{"type":"paragraph","content":[{"type":"text","marks":[{"type":"bold"}],"text":"Three items that I ALWAYS keep in my fridge/pantry:"}]},{"type":"paragraph","content":[{"type":"text","text":"1. Frozen bananas"}]},{"type":"paragraph","content":[{"type":"text","text":"2. Cocoa"}]},{"type":"paragraph","content":[{"type":"text","text":"3. Tea"}]},{"type":"paragraph"},{"type":"paragraph","content":[{"type":"text","marks":[{"type":"bold"}],"text":"Last thing that has sparked my curiosity most greatly:"},{"type":"text","text":" I have been taking singing lessons weekly and while I imagined the experience to be about training voice and the physicality of singing, I have been surprised to learn it is as much a test of confidence, embodiment, and performance."}]}]},"len":5312,"title":"Elly Grant - Keeping up with the Kermodes","slug":"keeping-up-with-the-kermodes-elly-grant-2014","lastSave":1762087740320,"shere":false,"showPublishedDate":true,"showShareOptions":false,"text":"Current location: Banff, Alberta, Canada\n\nYear I entered Quest: 2014\n\n\n\n\n\nOne of my favourite classes that I took and why: Beadwork and Social Activism – to my\n\nknowledge this was one of few courses facilitated by an Indigenous tutor at Quest– taught by Teresa Vander Meer-Chassé. As an artist I appreciated having hands-on, creative activities interwoven with coursework. I’ve continued beading since taking the course too. I’m grateful for the course teachings as a precursor to supporting Indigenous communities through my role at Banff Centre, where I get to witness beautiful beadwork in action on the daily.\n\n\n\nQuestion I am currently pursuing: How do I maintain creative practice?\n\nYou will all remember me as the ‘Double Dipped girl’ in my later years at Quest. I made hundreds of up-cycled T-shirts, hoodies, and hats (some of which ended up as FREE in the Re- Use-It Centre!). I have been thinking a lot about time and energy for creative work– how these things looked and felt different just a few short years ago and were more accessible even during a busy school schedule. My business popped off during COVID, which, while fun for a short period, ultimately led to burnout, tendonitis in my wrists, and the need to re-evaluate how much time I was spending making things for others without enough space to take care of myself. Sewing is a sitting-down sport after all. So, while I still do the odd market from time to time, I am in a process of reimagining my sewing practice and how to balance / contribute my creative energy in all facets of life.\n\n\n\nLife now: I am working a classic 9-5 office job (are you surprised, because I am, ha-ha) and I work part-time at a vintage clothing store in town. I have been spending a lot of time cooking and making recipes (creative!); I’ve started making kefir from scratch and tending to it every evening. I sew when I have time, have been sending/receiving mail art to artists all over the world, and rehabbing my broken ankle. :(\n\n\n\nMost generous thing someone has done for me (and vice versa): When I was in France in 2023, I was stuck in a small town without my passport and had to leave a bad Workaway situation (long story, lesson learned). A local woman I’d met, Sylvie, was kind enough to take me in for an evening, even though her 80-year-old father was visiting and staying in her tiny home. I ended up sharing the pullout couch with Sylvie and her 5 cats (one of them hairballed on me in the middle of the night). Sylvie woke me up early the next morning to drive me to the bus station an hour away despite having a fear of driving due to a previous accident. She packed me a bag of plums for my bus journey and made sure I got back to the city safely. Merci Sylvie!\n\nAs for me, I practice generosity daily – I remember lending my car to a Quest student for two months while I was away for a semester. I connected friends solo travelling in Italy last year, and they ended up hiking together in the Dolomites. I think so many are afraid of generosity for fear of giving up their pride or independence. I see it is an integral part of relationship building, without second thoughts something to embody always. To me, generosity is at the core of creating connections, and to that, I find great joy in doing so.\n\n\n\nFavourite summertime activity / three words that define the summer for me: Without broken ankle – backpacking trips, long hikes in the alpine, being in a lake. With broken ankle (this summer) – fishing, car camping, hammocking. Most fond summertime memory from my childhood: We used to go to a lakeside campsite (my grandparents used to run a Jewish summer camp in Northern Ontario, so the old camp\n\nproperty) and the lake had amazing clay deposits. My brother and I used to cover ourselves head to toe in the clay, lay out in the sun on a giant rock to let it dry, and then wash the clay off hours later. Who needs expensive skincare when you have free lake clay – natural exfoliant! \n\n\n\nThing that has surprised me most lately: How much life changes once you reach 30! A cliché, but truly: I feel more relaxed and trusting of life.\n\n\n\nFireside discussion theme that I’d like to explore with fellow Questies: What can a Master’s degree really teach you / prepare you for? And what working environment do the skills learned in grad school thrive best in? Corporate, non-profit, small business, self- employed, etc?\n\n\n\nBest thing I’ve made/had for dinner recently: My take on vada pav – an Indian streetfood/potato dumpling – I make these using mashed potatoes, minced turmeric rice and spinach, minced sauteed mushrooms, tofu, and shredded carrots in cumin and coriander, you could throw cilantro, green peas, in. I form everything into one mixture and fry them in butter or ghee. Full recipe available upon request!\n\n\n\nEmotion that I am valuing most right now and why: Not an emotion per se, but I am valuing the ability to uphold balance when facing problems, solutions, opinions, and multitudes of perspectives.\n\n\n\nThree items that I ALWAYS keep in my fridge/pantry:\n\n1. Frozen bananas\n\n2. Cocoa\n\n3. Tea\n\n\n\nLast thing that has sparked my curiosity most greatly: I have been taking singing lessons weekly and while I imagined the experience to be about training voice and the physicality of singing, I have been surprised to learn it is as much a test of confidence, embodiment, and performance.","html":" Current location: Banff, Alberta, Canada

Year I entered Quest: 2014

One of my favourite classes that I took and why: Beadwork and Social Activism – to my

knowledge this was one of few courses facilitated by an Indigenous tutor at Quest– taught by Teresa Vander Meer-Chassé. As an artist I appreciated having hands-on, creative activities interwoven with coursework. I’ve continued beading since taking the course too. I’m grateful for the course teachings as a precursor to supporting Indigenous communities through my role at Banff Centre, where I get to witness beautiful beadwork in action on the daily.

Question I am currently pursuing: How do I maintain creative practice?

You will all remember me as the ‘Double Dipped girl’ in my later years at Quest. I made hundreds of up-cycled T-shirts, hoodies, and hats (some of which ended up as FREE in the Re- Use-It Centre!). I have been thinking a lot about time and energy for creative work– how these things looked and felt different just a few short years ago and were more accessible even during a busy school schedule. My business popped off during COVID, which, while fun for a short period, ultimately led to burnout, tendonitis in my wrists, and the need to re-evaluate how much time I was spending making things for others without enough space to take care of myself. Sewing is a sitting-down sport after all. So, while I still do the odd market from time to time, I am in a process of reimagining my sewing practice and how to balance / contribute my creative energy in all facets of life.

Life now: I am working a classic 9-5 office job (are you surprised, because I am, ha-ha) and I work part-time at a vintage clothing store in town. I have been spending a lot of time cooking and making recipes (creative!); I’ve started making kefir from scratch and tending to it every evening. I sew when I have time, have been sending/receiving mail art to artists all over the world, and rehabbing my broken ankle. :(

Most generous thing someone has done for me (and vice versa): When I was in France in 2023, I was stuck in a small town without my passport and had to leave a bad Workaway situation (long story, lesson learned). A local woman I’d met, Sylvie, was kind enough to take me in for an evening, even though her 80-year-old father was visiting and staying in her tiny home. I ended up sharing the pullout couch with Sylvie and her 5 cats (one of them hairballed on me in the middle of the night). Sylvie woke me up early the next morning to drive me to the bus station an hour away despite having a fear of driving due to a previous accident. She packed me a bag of plums for my bus journey and made sure I got back to the city safely. Merci Sylvie!

As for me, I practice generosity daily – I remember lending my car to a Quest student for two months while I was away for a semester. I connected friends solo travelling in Italy last year, and they ended up hiking together in the Dolomites. I think so many are afraid of generosity for fear of giving up their pride or independence. I see it is an integral part of relationship building, without second thoughts something to embody always. To me, generosity is at the core of creating connections, and to that, I find great joy in doing so.

Favourite summertime activity / three words that define the summer for me: Without broken ankle – backpacking trips, long hikes in the alpine, being in a lake. With broken ankle (this summer) – fishing, car camping, hammocking. Most fond summertime memory from my childhood: We used to go to a lakeside campsite (my grandparents used to run a Jewish summer camp in Northern Ontario, so the old camp

property) and the lake had amazing clay deposits. My brother and I used to cover ourselves head to toe in the clay, lay out in the sun on a giant rock to let it dry, and then wash the clay off hours later. Who needs expensive skincare when you have free lake clay – natural exfoliant!

Thing that has surprised me most lately: How much life changes once you reach 30! A cliché, but truly: I feel more relaxed and trusting of life.

Fireside discussion theme that I’d like to explore with fellow Questies: What can a Master’s degree really teach you / prepare you for? And what working environment do the skills learned in grad school thrive best in? Corporate, non-profit, small business, self- employed, etc?

Best thing I’ve made/had for dinner recently: My take on vada pav – an Indian streetfood/potato dumpling – I make these using mashed potatoes, minced turmeric rice and spinach, minced sauteed mushrooms, tofu, and shredded carrots in cumin and coriander, you could throw cilantro, green peas, in. I form everything into one mixture and fry them in butter or ghee. Full recipe available upon request!

Emotion that I am valuing most right now and why: Not an emotion per se, but I am valuing the ability to uphold balance when facing problems, solutions, opinions, and multitudes of perspectives.

Three items that I ALWAYS keep in my fridge/pantry:

1. Frozen bananas

2. Cocoa

3. Tea

Last thing that has sparked my curiosity most greatly: I have been taking singing lessons weekly and while I imagined the experience to be about training voice and the physicality of singing, I have been surprised to learn it is as much a test of confidence, embodiment, and performance.

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