Autumn's Here and Winter's Coming - Poutine and Pie ... and Watch Your Eye ... whatever ... there is a poem here somewhere ...

Yes, the frost was on the pumpkins .... and on the grass. It's time to dig out the gloves and the hats and the long johns, which unfortunately will look strange with my favourite flip flops  ... 

Sunday morning, and I was lucky enough to get a ride to work. I'm not sharing the blurry picture below to showcase my photographic talent - but to show off the snow in the mountains. As long as it stays in the mountains, I don't mind. 

So you can stop squinting and shaking your head now. The picture is very blurry because it was taken with my IPhone while travelling 80kpm over the Alex Fraser Bridge. And no, I wasn't driving at the time. Believe me, it was the best pic out of three.

Sunday turned out to be a beautiful but cold day - after all, it is November. On my break I walked through the Steveston Winter (yes, Winter) Market - and look what I found! I think because the sun was blaring on the whiteness of the food truck, the words  

BIG RED'S POUTINE 

 turned out pretty wishy washy. Guess what I had for lunch?

 A few steps away was my old friend at Sweet Thea - I've bought these pastries at the Surrey Summer Market and they are G-O-O-D. Guess what I bought for dessert?

Well, the Bacon Poutine turned out to be way too much for me. A few big bacon pieces, a few curds, a few French Fries, all covered with gravy, and I was done. But these bites were soooooo yummy - and left me glad I had this heart attack in a cardboard bowl at least once in a lifetime.

 In fact, my stomach rebelled at the thought of one of Sweet Thea's Lemon Tarts - I only bought one of these 4" delights, and ended up taking it home and letting Steve enjoy it. I'll have mine next time.

 It's not hard to find Autumn this year - the sidewalks on Moncton Street are covered with leaves, lovely to kick through while you're pretending to be a kid.

There's also lots of Autumn in Surrey, as yesterday's walk to Walmart proved. Even though it was a rainy, damp, cloudy day, this tree caught some brightness from somewhere.

 MY ODE TO AUTUMN

while walking slowly to the mall

listening to the wild geese call

a branch gave up a yellow leaf

that wafted slowly down to me

and then it hit me .... it was fall

 

Another Birthday, Tons of Soup, Fancy Feet and a Wee Bit of Rabbie Burns

October 10 - Howard would have had another candle added to his ice-cream cake, but there was great fear of the Big  Melt, so we kept it down to a sparkler to usher in his 62nd year.

 

And me? Well, I'm back into fall weather, which results in servings of soup. Some of them were a bit thick, as the spoon in this bowl of potato and corn chowder proves. Oh well, it was tasty, and this is from the place that I suspect waters down their soup when the bottom of the pot becomes visible. If I had been a couple of hours later getting my soup, I would probably have been able to suck it up a straw.

We had a week of foggy weather, as this view from Surrey Central sky train station will attest. This was taken while waiting ages for a train on my way to work - third time in less than a month there was trouble with the tracks. Makes me dread winter - the first year and a half I commuted from Surrey, there was no problem at all with the train service, but I don't have much faith in the following months. Guess the track, like some of us, is getting worse for the wear.

However, it IS indeed great soup weather. I made two lovely batches, actually. One of them started with the stock I made from the Thanksgiving Turkey, and was made delicious by adding sauteed ground beef with onions and celery, a can of mixed beans, and some frozen veggies courtesy of the green Giant feller. Thinking at the end it needed a bit of a pop to really please the taste buds, I added a bit of paprika and a bit of chili flakes. Too much of a bit, rather. A can of diced tomatoes helped by very little, no matter how many 'smrt' internet sites suggested that as a remedy. However, I did find out that eating strawberries after a bowl of this soup was a great way to calm down the fire in my lips. And honestly, the soup was one of the best ones I've ever made. It's just that I'm only now in my life getting used to pepper, let alone spicier condiments.

The sky train remains The Place to see strange things - I find if I turn the sound off on my phone, I can take silent pictures without the subjects realizing it. I'm sure this footwear won't become very popular in the Vokey household.
 
Back to soup - the bone from the Thanksgiving Ham became my wonderful pot of Pea Soup, which was also admired by all. Besides the ham bone, peas and onions, which of course are the main ingredients, I added celery, chicken bouillon cubes, my favourite giants veggies, and a spot of paprika. Oh so yummy. I don't mean to brag, but I think my soups would be right there alongside my muffins on the World's Best List.

And now, to change the subject and close the moment, this little feller was sunning himself in front of the store one afternoon last week when I closed up. Sad to say, he passed away before the morning. 

Thank you Rabbie Burns. Couldn't say it better myself ... in fact, I'm having a bit of trouble saying it at all ...

 Ode to a Mouse

Wee, sleekit, cow’rin, tim’rous beastie, O, what a panic’s in thy breastie! Thou need na start awa sae hasty, Wi’ bickering brattle! I wad be laith to rin an’ chase thee, Wi’ murd’ring pattle! I’m truly sorry man’s dominion, Has broken nature’s social union, An’ justifies that ill opinion, Which makes thee startle At me, thy poor, earth-born companion, An’ fellow-mortal! I doubt na, whiles, but thou may thieve; What then? poor beastie, thou maun live! A daimen icker in a thrave ’S a sma’ request; I’ll get a blessin wi’ the lave, An’ never miss’t! Thy wee bit housie, too, in ruin! It’s silly wa’s the win’s are strewin! An’ naething, now, to big a new ane, O’ foggage green! An’ bleak December’s winds ensuin, Baith snell an’ keen! Thou saw the fields laid bare an’ waste, An’ weary winter comin fast, An’ cozie here, beneath the blast, Thou thought to dwell— Till crash! the cruel coulter past Out thro’ thy cell. That wee bit heap o’ leaves an’ stibble, Has cost thee mony a weary nibble! Now thou’s turn’d out, for a’ thy trouble, But house or hald, To thole the winter’s sleety dribble, An’ cranreuch cauld! But, Mousie, thou art no thy lane, In proving foresight may be vain; The best-laid schemes o’ mice an’ men Gang aft agley, An’ lea’e us nought but grief an’ pain, For promis’d joy! Still thou art blest, compar’d wi’ me The present only toucheth thee: But, Och! I backward cast my e’e. On prospects drear! An’ forward, tho’ I canna see, I guess an’ fear! .

David and Darleen Do Vancouver - a wee family reunion at Canada Place

Unlike this pouring-down-rainy day in November, downtown Vancouver in the latter part of September was a beautiful sunny blue-skied day ... and made even sunnier by a meeting with two very special people!

My big brother David and sister-in-law Darleen were on the West Coast for a couple of weeks, and we met downtown for an afternoon visit. Howard and I skytrained (my favourite of all things ..NOT) there, and David drove in from Point Grey - sometimes I wish Howard and I were braver regarding driving. There is no way on God's earth he would even consider driving to Vancouver, especially the downtown part. The thought of it would probably drive him to drink ... wait a minute ... oh, forget it ... 

However, I can't say much. I haven't been behind a steering wheel in almost 4 years, although I did go and renew my driver's licence last spring, just in case. 

We had lunch at the Steamworks Brew Pub in Gastown, where one would never go and order a Miller Lite. They serve their own craft beers - but I ordered ginger ale, of course, not being a beer person. Not for a long long time, anyway. One does learn one's lessons, fortunately, when one has a very low tolerance of alcohol coupled with  memories of the nights before.

I'm not sure what Howard is sizing up here, but I hope David had his hand tightly wrapped around his Guiness. I think he had Guiness.

Or maybe he's eyeing my pulled pork sandwich ... but he probably wouldn't chance getting a fork stabbed into his hand, like a certain child of mine who tried to steal the last piece of pie from another certain child of mine.

 Even though Darleen didn't want her picture taken, she had no choice. She is a truly beautiful person, inside and out.

After lunch, we went to Fly Over Canada - again. (Go to this link and click on the red circle on the top left side under the spider, for a preview.) This was still an amazing trip, and if it comes to a town near you - please do yourself the kindness of seeing it.

Then it was time to say goodbye, au revoir, adios, sayonara, adieu ... til we meet again.

It's not always easy living so far away from one's family, and ours is spread out across Canada ... and now even reaching into Mexico. I treasure every minute of every visit ....

.. and of couse Howard always enjoys a sunny day off work, and a visit to Canada Place to check out the cruise ships!

Confusion - Canada's Only State, of which I am a permanent resident ...

While searching emails a couple of days ago, looking for something I wanted to repost but had obviously deleted instead, I came across a different email that most accurately describes my present state of mind.

he actually ...well, not really ...made a ......a.......a......well, it was probably my fault for distracting him with my beauty.....but the guy in the front is actually aiden, as howard was in fact in another boat taking pictures of his own, which he found after a bit of searching (the evidence is all the boxes of pictures all over the downstairs kitchen and our bedroom, which i've just spent two days cleaning, organizing and tidying.)

and even though he is now snoring his bloody head off and i can't check it out....i do believe edmund was left-handed, although why i would think that i don't know...though there is soooo much i don't know now (even though i knew everything at one time) there must be one or two little things left that i do know.....although i don't really know what they are.

i'm going to bed now.  i'm confused.

I remember knowing everything when I was in my early 20's - when the rest of the world was a wee bit dim, I was glowing with smart. Now I'm in my early 60's (gulp) I know what I was missing was a little bit of  wisdom. I'm not saying I'm wise now - but wiser, for sure. It all comes down to that old saying, If I knew then what I know now ...Wise enough to know that I didn't know everything then, and I certainly don't know everything now.

I think if my brain had kept everything I ever knew over the years, I would indeed know everything now. But who knows ....

Short Version: I Went for a Trip With Neil. Long Version with Pictures: Below!

It started something like this:

My cell phone shakes my pocket, but I can't answer it because I'm at work and the manager is standing very near by. A couple of minutes later, the work phone rings. It's Neil, asking if I'd like to go 'up North' with him that evening. And of course I replied, "Yes!"

The plan was, get off work at 4, transit home, and have time to get ready to meet him at 88 Avenue and 132 Street around 7pm. However, the best laid plans of mice and men, right? The next call was to tell me I couldn't go - he had to take a different truck up north for one of the switch drivers from Prince George, and it had only one bunk. Oh well, maybe next time.

However - at about 8:30pm, my phone rings again . There was trouble with the new truck, so he was back in The Mistress (yes, that's what he calls his truck), and would pick me up in about half an hour, if I still wanted to go. And of course I replied, "Yes!"

So off we went ..... and the journey was fine ... until a few miles before Chilliwack, when we noticed some strange actions from other people on the road.

Another semi passed us, flashing his lights. Then a wittle bitty truck zoomed by, horn blasting all the way. Then yet another semi with flashing lights .... and Neil realized the running lights on the back of the container he was hauling were not working. It seems it's not a good thing to be hauling a trailer with no running lights at night .... but as we were just a few minutes from the Husky truck stop, and the city lights were no doubt helping motorists behind us actually see the trailer .... we made it there with no problem.

Neil ended up replacing a fuse ... and after a pit stop, a fuel fill up, and a bag fill up of junk food, we were on our way again. 

However, after a few miles - no running lights. So it was pull over at the next rest stop, which happened to be somewhere in the middle of nowhere (just before the Hope weigh station), and we spent the first night on the road taking an 8 hour sleep stop - 3 hours drive from home. 

And this stop WAS in the middle of nowhere, a pullout off the highway, surrounded by tall dark trees which were probably inhabited by bears, wolves, and axe murderers. Dark washrooms loomed on the far side, and God only knows what kind of monsters lived under the damp smelly toilet seats, monsters that would probably get very upset if a lady peed on them in the middle of the night. However, this didn't prevent Neil wandering over, talking to the mechanic on this cell, taking his time, while I waited all alone in the truck with the passenger door locked.

Even a text message didn't seem to hurry him up ....

Oh well, we did get through the night unscathed, and a mechanic from Hope came in the morning and fixed the wires that were causing the short in the trailer, so it was just a beautiful, relaxing autumn trip - in daylight.
 
Because he couldn't drop off the container until the following morning, there was no rush to get to Fraser Lake. I was just happy to be there with Neil as he drove through his 33rd birthday.
I've seen these sights through late winter, spring, summer and now fall, and the changing seasons bring their own beauty. British Columbia has so much diversity, ranging from the tropical rainforests of the lower mainland to the desert of the Okanagan Valley. Going north to Prince George we drove through semi-desert and tundra conditions (in my opinion. I'm no geographical expert.)

I just know what's pretty.

At this point, I shared with Neil the ballad about Aunt Daisy's Pussy Cat. Now that he was 33 years old, I thought he was old enough to hear it -you may like to check it out, too. Sorry you won't be able to hear the lonely haunting sound of the train whistle, though.

 As you may have noticed, most of my pictures on the go are captured through a truck window. 
When we reached Prince George, we stopped at the Husky for a birthday dinner and another fuel top-up. Neil had a burger and fries, and I had Lentil Soup, which I am pretty sure started off life in a can. However, we were (at least I was) too full for dessert, so he never got even a birthday muffin with a candle in it. However, I did know there were plans for belated birthday celebratin' for him.

After dinner, we drove to Fraser Lake, which is about a 45 minute drive west of  Vanderfhoof
- the geographical centre of BC - which I've never been to, but which one of my good friends is from (how's that for a grammatically incorrect sentence, huh?) I don't know if I passed the service station she worked at when she was young girl, but I'll never forget her telling me she was putting air in a bike tire for someone, and put in so much air she blew the tire apart.

We spent another night pulled over at the side of a lonely country road, but somehow it wasn't as full of potential disasters as the night before. Then, about 6:30 the next morning, we were at the Fraser Lake sawmill waiting  for someone to sign the delivery papers so we could head for home. 

Because there was no empty trailer there for Neil to bring back to Richmond, we bobtailed it back to Prince George. It was a bit of a bumpy ride with no container attached - these trucks were built to carry a heavy load, and when one goes with no load ... well, I wish now I hadn't googled it. Oh well, it's a rare thing, and he would be picking up a container in PG anyhow.


The morning air became thick with fog .... 

...which left an ice buildup on the mirrors ...

... but by the time we got to Prince George it was starting to clear up.

And ... to make a long trip even longer - dispatch told him we had to wait until about 3:30 for a container to bring home, so after a hearty breakfast, we read/listened to music/did crossword puzzles/played solitaire ... until we gave it all up and went for a nap. However, at 2:30, he got the text ... no container, so it was a bobtail ride all the way home. Beautiful driving weather, though. 



.... and because there was no trailer attached, Neil was able to drive down our little street and drop me off at our driveway, rather than have me walk a ways all by myself in the dark midnight hour.

So bobtailing isn't always a bad thing after all. 

And now, Neil has a new traveling companion. Hope I still get the occasional ride, though!
 

RERUNS from 2011 - A Poem and A Story (I think they're both click-worthy)

This poem, along with others, can be found at http://tamarsdayoff.blogspot.ca/ , along with some posts from a 'retired' blog. For the other poems, just go to the left side of the page, and click on The P File. If you've never visited here, you may enjoy some of the other writings from a couple of years ago. 

THE STORY OF MY LIFE....in six decades

the fifties were my first decade

when my first memories were made

our little home with walls of stone 
and now. like lots of things, it's gone
my daddy's horse, our big white cat  
and other little things like that

the sixties brought us overseas  
where i made brand new memories  
living by the sea in bliss  
learning to swim with jelly fish
skating til dark with my dog at my side
 mostly alone, but i didn't mind

the seventies brought me lots of things
oversized coats and wedding rings  
kisses on Gun Hill, a tiny wee house
a bouncing wee baby for me and my spouse
co-workers and friends i held close to my heart  
and they'd hold me together when i'd fall apart

the eighties brought treasures of friendships and love
and the me that i was, came back into my soul  
and the bad times were eased by the waves and the sun
and the cries of the gulls when the morning begun
two babies came crying and brought me more joys
and my life had a purpose, my three little boys

the nineties brought change in a mindblowing way
when we packed up our stuff and moved so far away  
new ocean, new city, new jobs and new friends  
a brand new experience round every bend  
no regrets, except family and friends left behind,  
our memories keeping them all in our minds
  
those decades add up, and no longer we feel  
middle aged, and that's scary - the grey hair is real  
and our little boys are all finally grown  
with true loves and dear little kids of their own   
we continue the journey, no matter what comes,  
for beginnings are not only made for the young

I have written a few posts over the years that make people laugh - but I didn't consider myself as even a wee bit of a writer until I wrote a story that made at least one of my friends cry .... I've never been happy with the words I used to end it, but this is still lingering in the back of my head, and some day .....

Check it out -  Fiona, from Middle to Beginning

Missing Trinity - Old Words with Old Pictures Added - so that makes it new ... Right?

I live in a city. The house we rent holds all my treasures, but I don't always feel safe inside the four walls. Last night, some speed freak broke into our car and stole the digital camera that holds the images of our beautiful grandchildren and the memories of our weekends. This morning, I hear on the news that another shooting took the life of another mother's son, and even though the sun is shining and the music on the radio is upbeat, by heart is low and I miss my Newfoundland home.

 On my desk sits a Mason jar filled with pieces of clay pipes, treasures I gathered from the beaches that edge a little town called Trinity, on the east coast of Newfoundland. I wasn't born there, and I didn't move there until I was 19 years old, but it is my home.

 Here, in a town seeped in history, I settled with my husband and raised my children. They were happy to be outport kids, to explore the hills and the beaches. They climbed on trees, not monkey bars. they skated on frozen ponds, not indoors in circles following the same music as everyone else.

There were dangers, of course. Springtime brought ice break-up, and 'ice pans' would pack the harbour. These were smaller pieces of ice floating together, almost like a jigsaw puzzle, always tempting to a child. Jump on one, jump to the next - oh,oh, this one's sinking, quick, to the next one - and so it would go, and boys would come home with wet feet to receive a good 'tongue banging' from whichever parent caught him sneaking in from 'copying pans.'

(Note: this is NOT one of my boys. They would never do this. They always had a good explanation of why their feet were wet when they came home on an early spring day.

My favourite season was Autumn, with the beauty of late September and early October, sunny and fresh and filled with colour. I loved berry picking on the barrens then, so peaceful, with no world sounds or people sounds, only a berry-picking buddy (for protection from bears and fairies), and the plop of berries in the bucket.

 As I walked along the beaches of my town, I picked my treasures. Broken pieces of clay pipes, stems and bowls, carried in with the waves and hidden among the seaweed and pebbles, found a home in my Mason jar. I would imagine the men of the village standing there a hundred years ago, chatting about the weather or the catch, smoking their pipes, and throwing them in the water when they were all worn out.

 Hundreds of speeding vehicles keep the road in front of our house smooth, and the blare of horns and sirens often fill the air. But when I look at the jar on my desk, I remember the roll of the waves on the beach, and I feel how they tickled my feet. I hear the sigh of the tides, and the cry of the seagulls, and I realize that home, like all good memories, is only a thought away.

Happy Birthday to Bradley - Just In Case He Doesn't Remember How He Got Here .....

Just a little post tonight, to honour my first born, a bouncing 8lb 4oz boy we named Bradley Guy. Now he's 37 years old .... and doesn't time fly?

 So we look back to the time when I could make babies, poems, and little drawin's with ease. The one below tells about how ...

... tired mom and I were of waiting for this young rascal to arrive. The due date was almost two weeks before, I was getting bigger and bigger, and Nanny really wanted to hold this little one. When she suggested the treatment the midwives in Scotland used, both Dad and Howard were dead set against it - but neither of them were in the waddling mode, so we waited until they were tucked away in the Man Shed and went for it.

 Let me tell you - of all the disgusting foods Richmond's Food Blogger Lindsay ate last year, none equaled the Castor Oil/Orange Juice Cocktail. This had to be swallowed near a toilet, because one wasn't sure if it would stay down or not. It did.

And everything went on as normal, until I got a bit of cramping, which rushed me back to the toilet pretty quickly. Imagine the worst case of diarrhea cramps in the world, and being unable to bend over as you moaned and groaned, because of an ultra big tummy sitting on your lap. Finally, drained completely ... and the cramps getting worse ... and the rain coming down in buckets ... it was time to head to the hospital in Gander.

Where the one of the nurses absolutely wasted an enema on me. 

However, it was all worth it. Thanks to Bradley, I became a Mommy for the first time! And because he was such a lovely baby, I decided to try it two times more.

Hope you had the best birthday ever, son. Your mommy still loves you tons.

Just Words - My Last Trip (Literally)

Here's a riddle for you - What goes meow, hiss, bump, thump, splat and swears like a drunken sailor, in the middle of the night?

Me, tripping over my cat and going flip flop down the last six steps, landing in a sore heap at the bottom.

Yes, this is what happened the night before last. I was going downstairs, and I didn't turn on the hall light, and I didn't see my black cat lying on the steps halfway down the stairs. I'm not sure where the cat went, but I know where I went - in a slow motion dive to the bottom, leaving from a standing position and ending up front-side down. Nikkie came zooming down to see what happened - I didn't see her coming, but I do believe she outrun the time she saw the tarantula loose in the bedroom and came flying downstairs with no feet touching the risers. Howard stumbled out of the bedroom and asked if I was okay - I said I didn't know (at that point I thought I had several broken bones, lacerations, sprains, dislocations and concussions) but when I told him I tripped over the cat, he seemed to think that was one more reason not to have a cat, and went back to bed. I heard Steve come in from locking up his work truck, then he also flew downstairs. By then I was almost back on my feet, and he helped me into the den.

(I'm sorry I don't have pics, but none of my family thought to grab a cell phone on the way. Actually, I'm more grateful than sorry.)

By then, I was pretty sure my big toe got the worst of it, as it was the sorest part of me. However, the next morning, it was okay, and my left shoulder, collar bone area and upper arm decided to come alive. I think I twisted and landed on these parts. Which was unfortunate, because I have a lot of other parts that are better padded than these. 

However, I came out lucky, I guess. No broken bones, not even any bruises that I can see .... but it's still not far enough in the past that I can laugh about it. Now the worst thing is that my Tylenol Arthritis pills don't handle Pain Caused By Extreme Clumsiness, and I can't take any other painkillers because I'm on the highest dose of Tylenol - so the pharmacist told me. I told Nikkie maybe I should just go and buy a flask of gin. But I didn't. The last one I bought evaporated so quickly, I only got one sorta kinda Tom Collins out of it.

A Bit of This, A Bit of That - Growing Up, Messing Up, and Re-Discovering the Joys of Alcohol (not really!)

Since I turned yet another year older, I've been getting slower ... and slower ... and slower. I was doing pretty good up to September 7, and it's all been downhill since then. Oh well, maybe the doctor can fix me up - I visited him yesterday, and explained how I was waiting for the strong, vibrant, go-go-go part of post-menopausal womanhood to hit me - I think he thought that was funny. Men. Huh.

So he sent me to the lab with a requisition to take 3, yes 3, bottles of blood, half a pint (it seems) of pee, and an ECG. Nothing was easy - needle pricks, a night-full bladder (because if I peed before I went, I knew I wouldn't be able to produce even a tinkle) - and to top it all off, I was as hungry as a bear (as I couldn't eat anything before the blood work.) The ECG wasn't so bad except for the naked-from-the-waist-up part. 

And now I realize the worst part of the whole thing is the fact that I  can see my results before the doctor can tell me, ah, that's nothing to worry about. Crap.

However .... let's look a bit farther back, shall we?

September 8 - I woke up being 61 years old, and what a number that is. I still  can't imagine it. I'm older than my mother was when she was 60. And still the clock ticks on .... 

Pauline brought me a big bunch of sunflowers from the staff at the store. I love sunflowers, and bringing them home on the bus was a treat. And yes, that meant I had to work on my birthday. 

When I got home, though, there was a nice surprise - Steve and  Nikkie made a really nice dinner. Thai marinated chicken shish kabobs, and fancy rice. So yummy. And so didn't have to clean up after!

A really delicious orange birthday cake as well, made from scratch by Nikkie, the best cake-maker in the house. I cannot make a scratch cake, they always turn out heavy (dunchy), but this one was so perfect. Thanks, Steve and Nikkie.

Now, for some advice if you own mugs like these. Look closely, and you will see that one is in fact upside down - they have clear glass bottoms. However, these clear glass bottoms are hard to see when one still has sleep in one's eyes. A quick way to wake up though, is to pour orange juice onto the wrong end and give your feet a cold sticky shower.

After my doc's visit yesterday afternoon, I met Howard, Nikkie and the kids at Knight & Day restaurant so I could have another Strawberry Chi Chi. I don't really enjoy boozing, but these make vodka quite drinkable. It may not be the perfect side for a BLT, but who cares? I don't.

And here it is, Saturday. I'm sitting in a messy room, with tons of stuff I should be doing since I start another 3 days of work tomorrow, but that's okay. I'm sure it will all wait until I'm ready to attack it!

September 7 - Rain? You Call That Rain?, A Squirrel Memory, and Thank God Not All Webs Are World Wide

We had a little shower a couple of evenings ago - I thought we would all float away, to tell the truth. It was the biggest rainfall we had seen since moving over to the wet coast - in fact, it was probably the heaviest rain EVER.

We were also blessed with thunder and lightning - thunder so loud I thought I'd find Nikkie cowering under the bed. It's a good job I'm not afraid of thunder, as Howard wouldn't put the frame for our bed together, so our box spring and mattress is on the floor. Of which I was glad, actually, as last night he really did push me off the bed, so I didn't have far to fall. (Well, to tell the truth, my side of the bed is only about a foot away from the wall, so I actually got jammed between the wall and the mattress. It's just as well to be honest about it. Or you won't believe anything I say in this blog is true.)

At least I didn't have clothes on the clothesline - but that's probably only because His Royal Highness won't fix the linr that needs fixing. As you can see, the lady that lives kitty-kat corner from us has a line-full that got a spectacularly good rinsing. She took the clothes in this morning - 2 days after said storm.

Howard and Steve went out to make sure there was a drainage 'ditch' so water didn't get in the basement. Howard borrowed my umbrella. Steve didn't. He came in, and asked Nikkie to get him a towel, but she was gone so long he assumed she was gone to get her camera. She wasn't, but I took his picture instead, and of course, he came after me and gave me the biggest hug he could, before she showed up with the towel. Poor wet me.

I don't know if you remember last year's blog titled Howard Versus The Squirrel but I did when I saw this book in the thrift store. He wasn't very impressed with the gift, but everyone else thought it was pretty funny. Especially me.

And so to tonight. I dropped my cherry tomatoes. In fact, I flung my cherry tomatoes. Just because the cat had to be taken in, as it was getting dark, and the cat is blind, and seems to attract raccoons.

I had just picked a handful of delicious, ripe tomatoes when I saw the cat. Teaser was just standing, facing the wall, probably wondering where the door was. So, with tomatoes on one hand, and cat's belly on the other, we headed through the basement door, where cat is deposited by the food bowl. He is now happy. And I go back out through the basement door, where I see a bag of used kitty litter lumps I had thrown out there last night and forgotten about, so I picked that up in my free hand and headed to the garbage bin - taking the scenic route around the house, where the grass was cool and lovely on my bare feet. In fact I was so enraptured by the grass, I forgot about the humongous spider web with its humongous resident spider until my face went right into it. So here goes my panic dance, tomatoes flying around like the spots from a disco ball, and me whipping the dishrag from my shoulder and flipping and flopping it all over my body, frothing up my hair in particular, all the time running for the house and hoping my husband, already full of beer, would take pity and check me out for eight-legged creatures. He said there were none, but it was easier for him to say that, than actually check. So I went and shook everything over Nikkie, who promptly went ballistic on the couch.

Now I'm downstairs, with itchy and crawly feelings that won't go away.

You can stop laughing now.

Nikkie and Me and the PNE ..... Wheeeeeeeeee!

September 2, Labour Day, and the last day of the PNE

I haven't been to the Pacific National Exhibition in years - in fact, I've only been there twice before. The last time, Chris and Lizzie were both in strollers, it was as hot as Hades, and His Royal Highness was with us, which meant hurry up and down, don't want to play those games, etc etc etc and ending with 'Let's get the hell out of here,' or words to that effect.

The first time was way back in 1994, when we were all much younger ... and braver, it seems 
 
Aaah, memories ... however, on this cloudy morning with just a maybe whisper of rain in the air, we dragged ourselves to the bus stop, the first leg of the journey to Vancouver and a day of thrills. Gentle thrills, though. Not roller coaster ones.

Even the entrance to the fair was 'nice' - cool, rad, bad, sick, whatever. If you've never seen an eco-sculpture, here's one below. With instructions, so you can make your very own one over the winter.

It's a spectacular horse to behold.

From both ends. This isn't the last horse you'll read about here.

There was so much to see and do - tons of games, rides, food trucks - some of them really stood out among the others.

We didn't do this ride this year. Next year we are going to do this ride.

But we weren't too afraid to reach new heights, so we went in line for the Ferris Wheel. I've never been in a Ferris Wheel before, as I am supposed to be afraid of heights, but I think Zip Lining at Grouse Mountain in May got me over that. Slightly, anyway.

However, some of us needed a few moments of meditation and prayer to ready herself for our circular flight.

BRING IT ON .....

The view was .... okay. The Wooden Roller Coaster looks like a lot of fun, but it was a definite no from the girl. Which was sort of a relief, as I felt the same way. (The above link is really interesting .... )

I think some of my friends would come waaay up from Texas for this - Chocolate Dipped Bacon?

or Banana Bacon Ear? Topped with icing sugar AND chocolate? On a stick?

There were tons of food choices, some normal, some not so much. We tended to stick to the normal, though. I had a slice of cheese pizza for lunch, and a baked potato for dinner. Pretty boring, eh? At least I had variety - Nikkie had chicken strips and fries for both meals.

We tried a few games at the Midway .. we won a blue thingie at a basketball game, and Nikkie chose a horse (remember this fact - she chose a horse) at an Age Guessing thing.

Most of the games were a bit lame, as the amount of money you paid decided the prize you would win. Translate that into - for $5, you get a small prize as you're pretty sure to win and the small prize was picked up at the peso store in Mexico, and for $10 you win a large prize ... same story. But it was fun anyway.

After the midway, we headed to the Safeway Farm Country - all we had to do was follow our noses, actually. As well as horses, cows with calves, chickens and turkeys, we saw alpacas - aren't they just the cutest things? I know where their hair is though - hanging in colourful hanks in the store!

And llamas ... my, what big eyes you've got! Ogden Nash wrote a little poem about this guy ... check out some of his clever little verses!

Being Safeway, which sells lots of veggies, of course, there had to be a veggie plot. Actually, there were many veggie plots full of pots of veggies (but no pots of pot, that I could see), but I don't want to bore you with lots of veggie plots.

And a nice herb garden. Herb gardens aren't boring. You may want to try a Herb Spiral Garden - I think it's a great idea, but I'm too lazy myself to make one and Steve broke his finger this past spring so he wouldn't have to.

 Next was a trip to a wasp display. I think I'll put up with the aphids, inchworms and fruit flies, actually. You can have the wasps.

Yup, a mamma wasp started one of these suckers on the roof of the deck early this summer. A well-orchestrated maneuver fixed her clock, though. Neil swatted her with a book (I think it was a Thomas the Train one) and she just sailed over the balcony and landed on the concrete (the wasp, not the book) and Shannon, who was already on the concrete, stepped on her. Ta Da.

Honey bees I can live with. They make honey, which I sometimes use when I make delicious ribs for dinner. Plus they don't buzz around my Blackberry Jam when I'm eating breakfast on the deck.

By the way, have you read Stephen King's Under the Dome yet? Don't know why that popped into my mind .... Here are some bees. Nikkie buzzed off pretty quickly when she saw this.

And I will never try to get her job, let me tell you. If you want to see more of her ... check out The Wicker Man - excuse me while I shiver and moan.

Out in the fresh air again - I hope this truck makes it! I love food trucks!

Okay, so far we've done the rides, the food fairs, the midway, the farm ... and walking around we see this ... aha .... it's the Hastings Race Course , of course. I didn't know there was a horse racing place here, so we walked in to see what was happening. The jockeys were walking their horses around, and yes, there was a race starting in about 10 minutes - which was just enough time to figure out how to place a bet on the automatic betting machines. 

Nikkie chose the horse. Number 5. It was wearing green, and she really likes green.

And off they go ... here they come .... clippity clop ... hoofs pounding ... zoom ...

Hmm. no green rider there. No number 5. 

Tap foot. Hum a tune. Ah .... here he comes, a gentle little trotter, taking its jolly time. Out for a leisurely walk, it seems. Guess our $5 wasn't enough incentive for that little bugger. I guess when you get a lap behind you are disqualified? And that's why the rider led him off the track?

We left the horse track, having learned a valuable lesson, and headed to the Superdogs show, which was great, even though we didn't have the best seats. (Note to self: go earlier next year, and get better seats.) It's amazing how smrt dogs are - I don't think there are any dumb dogs, although I do believe there are some dumb owners. I don't mean the superdogs and the owners here, I just mean in general.

Next on the agenda was a cooking show, which was really a real-life shopping network show, with a sort of funny chef trying to sell waterless cookware. However, we had to leave before his chicken and veggies were ready, as we had to be on site at CTV's area to win our tour on their helicopter. 

And who should we meet but Mike McCardell. He used to work for Global TV, but they 'got rid' of him a while ago, because he 'didn't fit their image' anymore. Shame on Global TV. I'm sure CTV and Mike's fans are happy he's back on air -

The Last Word - A last look at the PNE

We're so glad you're back too, Mr McCardell!

 Meanwhile, if you get a chance to read his books, do so. I'm a fan.

I think he's a fan of me, too.

While we patiently waited for one of our names to be pulled from the drum, we listened to a newscast by Tamara Taggart (her Blog here), and weather forecaster Michael Kuss (in the blue shirt below.) However, when the names were drawn, ours were not called, so I guess no helicopter ride for us in Chopper 9. Rats.

The CTV booth also offered pictures with fan favourites ... so here are Nikkie and me with Belle, from Once Upon A Time. She was very sweet.

After our non-win, we headed over to another big auditorium for a game of Family Feud. Neither one of us was chosen to play (we all got a ticket at the entrance, and the teams were drawn from a bucket), but it was so funny. Bob Goen was a great host, even with one contestant who couldn't understand or talk English.

And last, but not least - a Neil Diamond tribute singer. Some of the stuff he did was great, Forever in Blue Jeans not so good. Here's the real thing for you all ... as a reward for getting to the end of this post!

and here's a little clip of the Monday evening's artist  -  and a bio below!

 

September 1 & 2
Bobby Bruce's Nearly Neil & The Solitary Band

A "Legend" was born when Bobby Bruce's incomparable talent for impersonating Neil Diamond was realized in Toronto. His incredible showmanship has rocked crazed crowds around the globe as he has performed in Legends in Concert in Las Vegas and is a huge success in Australia, South East Asia and the U.S. An Australian journalist said, "Neil Diamond better be wary if he ever comes to town. Bobby Bruce is a hard act to follow!" In 2005, Bobby returned to his musical theatre roots with a starring role in "Cabaret" for which he earned an Ovation nomination and garnered overwhelming critical acclaim. Bobby’s “Nearly Neil” concerts are always sell-outs – the PNE wouldn’t be the same without him and this is his 13th consecutive year! In 2006, Bobby was awarded “Entertainer of the Year” by the PNE, so come and experience this amazing showman live!
www.nearlyneil.com