Another Day Another Story

Summary of Trip Across Canada May/June 2010

2011-06-26T22:05:00.000-07:00

Our cross country adventure lasted 43 days. We departed Vancouver on May 1^st and returned June 12^th. We stayed in hotels for 29 nights and stayed with friends or family on the other days. Our average cost per night of a hotel room was $98.11. We stayed in a Super 8 nine times and four nights in a Howard Johnson. The rest of the hotels were one nighters except for Comfort Inn which was two nights.

We drove 16,613 km or 10,323 miles at a cost of $1304.17 for gasoline. That works out to 13 cents a mile or 8 cents a kilometer.

Tolls – In Canada we paid $47.25 (includes bridge to PEI)

In the U.S. we paid $56.95 plus we had tolls in NJ that were paid by our hosts who let us use their transponder. After Chicago, there were no more tolls.

Food and spending probably accounted for about $3,000 which included about $500 for tipping alone. In all, this trip probably cost us about $7,650 or $3,825 each. That works to $89/day each, if my math is correct. We stayed in decent hotels and ate well (too well if the truth be known) and did some shopping and all the sightseeing we wanted. I think that I am fairly close the the budget I had.

Day 44 (actually 43) to Vancouver - Spring Chickens are Home!

2011-06-20T08:04:00.000-07:00

A sunny day, an easy ride, until we reached the border.   Today is Sunday, June 11th and the Douglas Crossing is closed until 5:00 p.m. for a "Hands Across The Border Celebration". We are stopped on I - 5, a few miles away.

We decided to take an early exit from the interstate as soon as we could and found our way on back streets to the truck border crossing. We originally overshot it so we were able to turn into the line-up on a side street from the east and were through in about 40 minutes. Possibly, because of the long lines, the border questions were short and quick.

At the beginning of the trip, I was talking to Julie about a situation and I described the people in the story as "no spring chickens". It was an expression Julie had not heard before. Throughout the trip, Julie would comment on Spring Chickens - being slow in front of us or following us or just showing up in so many places that we were going.   We even had a huge busload of Spring Chickens take over our hotel and breakfast room one day.   We would watch Spring Chickens do things that we would never do.

Before I dropped her off in Richmond, Julie asked me to let everyone know that we, two Spring Chickens, made it home safely.

Day 43 - Saturday June 11 to Spokane, WA

2011-06-20T07:40:00.000-07:00

This is our last hotel on this trip. We booked into a Howard Johnson in Spokane, WA. This is the third HJ we have used on the trip and the nicest. We have been tending toward Wyndham Hotels (like HJ and Super 8) to accumulate points for a free night. The magic number is 6500 and we have probably accumulated that amount but the hotels are slow-to-not-submitting-at-all so we cannot use a free night on this trip. (And the magic coupon we have been using this week nulifies the points (if you read the small print).

Julie last visited here - (Exspokane) when expo was happening some time in the 70's. She drove down with friends from Vancouver. The driver of the car was a nurse who had just come off night-shift. They drove right through with only one driver.

Day 42 - Friday June 10 - to Bozeman MT

2011-06-20T07:26:00.000-07:00

We stopped for a break at the Theodore Roosevelt National Park in ND near the border of Montana. The park is encouraging the return of buffalo herds in this area. It was windy, cold and rainy again and I suspect that the buffalo were hunkered down somewhere to keep warm. Some other people spotted a few in the distance but I didn't see any. There is however some of the Lewis and Clark expedition information available to see in the park building. We are following part of their original route.

We are on the last side of our last map going home. We were originally heading for Billings but were making good time so decided to push through to Bozeman. We found a Super 8 but were unable to use a coupon as the weekend had begun. In fact, we got the last room with two double beds.

Our day count is off again. We have been on the road 41 days. As it is so close to the end, I won't re-adjust it.

Day 41 - St Cloud to Bismarck ND

2011-06-20T07:03:00.000-07:00

We are bee-lining it home.   This is easy driving now - no more large cities - all double lanes - good roads.

We stopped for lunch in Fargo, ND and found a very good inexpensive Chinese buffet.

Between Fargo and Jamestown ND, we saw a sign for the height of land - all rivers flow west from that point ?? It seemed a strange place as it was still prairie. The highlands were still many miles away.

Using a coupon again, we booked into an Americinn in Bismarck - first time using this hotel chain - I was very impressed. There was an especially good continental breakfast in the morning.   At dinner, we found grilled chicken Oriental salad again at Applebees just across the street (2 for $20.00 including a shared appetizer). As this is the capital of ND, we had lots of services available including easy access to banks we recognize once again.

Day 40 - Hoffman Estates, Il to St. Cloud Minnesota

2011-06-19T16:58:00.000-07:00

When we left New Jersey, both Julie and I agreed that we had had enough 'vacationing' and were ready to go home.   We purposely skipped Chicago and stayed in a distant suburb on the west side.

We got a fairly early start in the morning and motored right past Minneapolis, only stopping to shop at an Outlet Mall in Albertville, west of the city.   Julie found more shoes and I bought a light jacket. We really were a little shopped out by this time.

We stopped for the night in St. Cloud MN at a Best Western. This place had two good things going for it. We were out of the heat wave and we found an interesting restaurant called Michaels right next door.

Michael's was run by an Austrian and we really should have ordered the Schnitzel as it looked fantastic as it was served to the adjoining table. Instead Julie opted for her (almost) usual 'liver and bacon' and I ordered spaghetti and meatballs. Both of our meals were exceptionally good - fresh salad, well cooked main and very plentiful and inexpensive.

As we were dining late, the owner/waiter, Michael, spent some time talking with us and describing his visits to Quebec over the years.   In the course of the conversation, he mentioned that his chef had recently married a woman from the Philipennes whom he had met on a sewing materials site on the internet. In no time at all, he called out his chef who was introduced to Julie and I. We compared Filipino food and talked about his new wife's origins and how she was adapting to a climate with a long cold and snowy winter. All in all, it was a delightful way to end an evening.

Hotel Bargains

2011-06-19T16:35:00.000-07:00

Julie's cousin, Andrea, told us about booklets we could pick up at tourist sites along the way that contained coupons for hotels along our route. Up to this point, we had been for the most part following the advice in the AAA/BCAA books and using their discounts for hotels and restaurants.

We used the coupon for the Quality Inn on the first night out of New Jersey and got a much better discount that AAA offered. We still relied on the AAA books for quality, but if there was a coupon in the flyers we picked up and the hotel was recommended by AAA, we booked it with the coupon.

The second night we also scored with a reasonably priced Red Roofs Hotel. It even had a flat screen TV with movies available - We watched Knight and Day with Tom Cruise and Cameron Diaz. We had all this plus a lot of excitement. As we were coming back from eating - a salad at the pub next door - several police cars were in the parking lot and surrounding a unit a few doors down from us. They were looking for a mother who had abducted her child. She was foreign and could possibly plan to take the child out of the country. They even knocked at our door to ask if we were harbouring her.

In all, we used these coupons four times and probably saved about $40.00. Unfortunately, hotels do not honour them on the weekends.

Day 39 - Clarion PA to Hoffman Estates, IL

2011-06-19T16:17:00.000-07:00

Another hot day. Luckily Julie's condition did not continue. We had to have the air conditioner on most of the time.

This was probably the worst day of driving on this trip. Along with a late start and surprisingly, sporadically heavy traffic, we arrived in the Chicago area at rush hour. Karen took us right through the downtown freeway and up past O'hare airport. Traffic was heavy and we had a fair amount of ~~barging~~ lane-changing to do. We missed one toll altogether because we could just not move over in time. It was very stressful.

Even my Bud Light at dinner did not do its usual job.

Day 38 - Show me the way to go home....

2011-06-19T16:08:00.000-07:00

Breakfast on a last day in New Jersey was again a treat, the highlight being tender, marinated steak with a dipping sauce made with special vinegar from the Philippines as well as the rice rolls and sardines in a sauce and way more food than I could eat..... Needless to say, we did not leave New Jersey hungry.

We did manage to get away about mid morning with firm directions on how to find the freeway to Chicago. Needless to say,.... we did leave New Jersey lost. One wrong turn and we found ourselves on Staten Island. Once we got ourselves turned around and began to rely on Karen again, we were o.k.

In the 'be careful in what you wish for category', this was probably the hottest day yet and I put the air conditioner on full blast for the first time. Unfortunately, this caused Julie to cough a great deal - hard to do when you are trying to concentrate on driving. We tried driving without air for awhile but it became unbearably hot. Our original destination of Akron, OH, suddenly became Clarion, PA.

We found a nice Quality Inn with a nearby Applebees. Neither of us were very hungry after four days of feasting and a very hot car ride.

Day 37 - Shopping, Shopping, Shopping & Eating too

2011-06-19T15:49:00.000-07:00

Sunday, June 5th was the day set aside for shopping. In the morning, with warm weather but overcast skies, Sonny drove Julie, Lumming, Rebecca, Andrea and I to an extremely large flea market in New Jersey. We all managed to find at least one thing to buy. Julie had the best find - a Coach hand bag and a very reasonable price.

Lunch, in a small New Jersey town called Marlborough, was dim sum. The restaurant, a many time Zagat award winner was large airy, and elegant; the food, excellent.

In the afternoon, we found Outlet Stores in Jersey Shores and the shopping began in earnest. Julie again the winner with several pair of shoes and sandals as well as gifts and other clothing.

That evening we had yet another amazing meal at Julie's cousin's place.

Sightseeing - New Jersey and New York City

2011-06-19T15:28:00.000-07:00

After hearing my reluctance to drive into New York City again, Julie's cousin, Lumming with her daughters, Maribique and Andrea took us sightseeing - first to a park on the NJ side of the Hudson and then into downtown New York.

We saw the New York skyline, the Hudson River, the Statue of Liberty, and Staten Island and well as the almost finished construction of the NJ Memorial to the victims of 9/11 in the park.

New York Skyline with Julie, her cousin Lumming and two daughters, Maribique and Andrea

In New York City itself, we spent some time touring around Ground Zero, having dinner in China Town, and in Times Square at night as well as driving by many famous places.

Day 36 - Another Feast

2011-06-19T11:26:00.000-07:00

Atlantic City was the furthest point on our trip - although I think Nova Scotia is more east than New Jersey. We are on the return portion of our trip. We have driven 11, 328 kilometers so far.

We are heading north to Julie's cousin place again - this time for a true Filipino feast. While waiting for the main meal, we were served, hot from the oven, Bibingko (which was baked in banana leaves). This was light and delicious.

I probably don't remember all the food at the table. We had Molo soup with pork and seafood, rice both plain and fried, thin clear noodles with many vegetables in it, and fish, two kinds - the traditional steamed fish eaten in the Philippines and a barbequed fish which might have been fresh herring. The vegetables consisted of fresh boiled corn, barbequed eggplant (delicious!), and steamed okra or bitter melon. Everything was well prepared and yummy. If anyone was still hungry, there was still Hopia for dessert!

After this, we headed out for some serious sight seeing.

Day 35 - Atlantic City

2011-06-19T10:45:00.000-07:00

We are in the land of Monopoly - we are even staying on Boardwalk - at the Taj Mahal Hotel built by Donald Trump. I wonder if Atlantic City was a gambling mecca when the game was created. And, when did comps become a part of the culture. In the Monopoly I remember, you can only rent or own.

My philosophy of quitting while ahead forced me to stop playing the slots after about two hours but I like the beach more than I do gambling.

Boardwalk at Taj Mahal Hotel

The weather has warmed up and the boardwalk is nice. The ocean is still a bit cold for my taste although others are swimming. My legs were not quite numb just from walking in the waves.

The nicest part of Atlantic City was that they take care of their stray cats. Many cats sit on the wood structure under the boardwalk and sleep or watch the world go by during the day. The volunteer society that administers the cat program attempts to spay and neuter them and feeds them each day.

Day 34 - in New Jersey

2011-06-19T10:03:00.000-07:00

We arrived in New Jersey (by driving through New York City as Karen directed) in the evening, to a feast - everything from delicious home-made soup to fish to rice to meat and a very warm welcome from Julie's cousins.

After a good night's rest, we woke up to another complete meal - delicious rolls of crispy fried rice made with coconut milk, eggs, toast, coffee, rice, fish.... I have discovered some new dipping sauces for meat. Then, Julie and her cousin made Hopia which is a Filipino bean filled pastry filled with sweetened yellow mung bean paste. This turned out to be a lovely, flaky light pastry with a just-sweet-enough filling....more eating.

Then we were off to Atlantic City with a stop at another cousin's house for lunch. This time we had another soup with prawns and vegetables and probably the most delicious fried rice dish (very like paella) that I have ever eaten along with several other dishes.

Day 25 May 25 Halifax

2011-06-03T07:53:00.000-07:00

We have actually spent two nights in a Howard Johnson here. I have been behind in my blogging so may have mixed some dates.

Highlights of Halifax were the Citidel, eating lots of seafood and fighting fog and rain. On the second day we headed out to Peggy's Cove which was lovely but very foggy and windy and cold. In the afternoon we checked out Lunenberg which was drier and less foggy but still cold.

Peggy's Cove in the fog

I am so impressed by some of the museums I have encountered and regret that I did not plan more time for them.

Day 26 Annapolis Royale

2011-06-03T07:47:00.000-07:00

We found sunshine albeit late in the day in Annapolis Royale. It was actually warm and felt like summer.

Julie was most impressed with her first stay at a bed and breakfast. We managed to stay at an old large Inn filled with antiques. Kings and queens and lords and prime ministers have stayed here over the years, as well as a few celebrities. Our room was large with two four poster single beds and Queen Ann chairs and a clawfooted bathtub. In the morning we were served an elegant breakfast in a large impressive dining room with double doors out to the wide porch and gardens. All this and sunshine too!

I was most impressed with the history and the museum. There are fascinating artifacts which go back to the 1600's when the French and English spent most of their time fighting each other, both here and in Europe.

I was surprised that there were not more apple orchards (although we did see a few in full bloom the next day when we resumed our travels.

Day 27 from Annapolis Royale to Kentville to Pictou

2011-06-03T07:36:00.000-07:00

With the weather improving we decided to try going north again. The annual Apple Blossom Festival parade in Kentville was our major stop today. The streets were lined with people coming from all over the province. People were three and four deep over a very long parade route.

As usual with parades, it started late (posted for one p.m.), but in the end was worth the wait.

Jason Priestly and family

Julie commented that she had never seen so many people in one place without one Asian.

Day 28 - Pictou Beachfront Resort

2011-06-03T07:28:00.000-07:00

We are getting more and more adventurous with our choice of lodgings. Tonight, we are staying at a very rustic but very upscale place on the shores of Northumberland Straight. We are looking over at Prince Edward Island.

This resort has been around for over a hundred years and has boasted guesting many famous celebrities from Carol Lombard to Babe Ruth as well as several contemporary ones.

It has an elegant dining room with a good chef. Both the scallops and the crab cakes were superb. I will miss the good sea food when we leave Nova Scotia.

Day 29 - May 29 - On the Cabot Trail

2011-06-03T07:12:00.000-07:00

We have had a day of perfect sunshine on the Cabot Trail. The scenery was absolutely stunning. I will post some photos if any have turned out.

Day 30 - from Cabot Trail through Goshen and back to Amherst

2011-06-03T07:08:00.000-07:00

After a fairly unimpressive bed and breakfast which we found at the end of the Cabot Trail, we started out in cloudy, rainy weather again.

The highlight of this day was a visit with my father's cousin in Goshen. At 88, she is still full of life and manages her own home on a very large lot. She was complaining that the rainy weather was keeping her from pulling the weeds in her flower garden. She has an amazing memory of both past events and current news.

Unfortunately, we left the gas cap off when fueling the car and drove for more than three hours before we realized this. We stopped in Amherst to have the car checked out. Fortunately, everything was o.k.

Day 31 - Over the Border to Bangor Maine

2011-06-03T07:01:00.000-07:00

I am going backwards in the blogging for the next few posts as I have not had time to blog for awhile.

On day 31, we left Nova Scotia heading toward New Jersey and Julie's relatives with a stop in Boston.

We went through the boarder in less than three minutes. I think this was the fastest ever for me. The border guard hardly had time to check our passports.

The highlight in Bangor, besides a very decent Super 8, was a delicious meal at a trucker's diner which ended with what tasted like home-made raspberry pie and ice cream.

Day 32 - June 1st - Bangor to Bar Harbour to Boston - Stormy Weather

2011-06-03T06:54:00.000-07:00

Today, we saw another fishing village in the rain. Even amazing as Bar Harbour is, the rain and wind definitely put a damper on it. At least there was not fog this time.

We also experienced two thunder storms along the way and a third, the most spectacular saved itself until we were dryly ensconced in our hotel room (a Comfort Inn this time).

Day 33 in Boston

2011-06-03T06:49:00.000-07:00

This day turned out to be sunny and cool, perfect for walking the Freedom Trail in downtown Boston.

After about two hours and less than half way through the trail, we decided to check out the Rose Kennedy gardens which were built over a freeway which was sunk underground through most of the downtown and head for a commuter ferry so that we could see the city from the harbour (and get off of our feet).

Boston is a beautiful city.

Then we were off to New Jersey and a, thankfully, uneventful drive over the George Washington Bridge and through New York City. Karen, we have discovered takes us on what should be the fastest route rather than the easiest route. But, I did not want to depend upon my map reading skills to drive through the maze of freeways in this part of the country.

Karen also has no regard for the cost of tolls.

Day 24 - to Amherst NS

2011-05-28T05:54:00.000-07:00

We wanted to ask for a rain cheque when we paid the toll on the Confederation Bridge. And the weather did not improve much by the time we reached Amherst. But the Super 8 was good, as usual.

Haddock and Chips

2011-05-28T05:49:00.000-07:00

What is it about pub food that makes you overeat. Last night was the worst - fish and chips and onion rings - all deep fried. It was delicious but I now totally regret it. Note to self - don't wait until after 7 p.m. to go to dinner - don't go to pubs.

Starting today - no more beer, butter, or deep fried anything. It is back to relatively healthy eating for me.

Another Fish Story

2011-05-27T06:11:00.000-07:00

Julie bought four live crab at the Fisherman's Market near our hotel in Halifax and cooked them up as we are in a suite with a kitchenette.

Unfortunately, there are no photos. We ate them too fast. They were very good!

The cost, in all for the meal, for the two of us - about $12.00.

Lobster Dinner

2011-05-24T17:34:00.000-07:00

We did it!   The dinner we have been waiting for.

The Place: Fisherman's Wharf Lobster Suppers, N. Rustico, PEI.

The Food:   Fresh Lobster - one pound (can be up to 2 lbs.)
                     Fresh Mussels - a large plate
                     Fish Chowder - with biscuits/rolls
                     Salad Bar - as much as you want
                     Dessert - Pie (for me strawberry and rhubarb)
     Drink - Coffee (in my case tea)

The Cost:    $42.00 (including taxes and tip).

This was an absolute feast.   Everything was fresh and plentiful.

Confederation Bridge

2011-05-24T17:17:00.000-07:00

It took us about ten minutes to drive (at about 80 k/h) over this bridge into PEI and again on the way back. It is an amazing feeling to have so much water all around you in every direction. It was very windy both times. We each drove one way so the other could experience the bridge without having to try to keep the car on the road.

The cost (coming and going) was $43.25. We had to pay when we drove off the island. There were no tolls on the way over.

Day 23 in PEI

2011-05-24T16:19:00.000-07:00

We found a very nice Super 8 in Cornwall just outside of Charlottetown on Prince Edward Island. It has turned cold again and I needed a dip in the hot tub to warm up. I have been very impressed with the amenities of most of the Super 8's across the country. This one had a great pool, hot tub and weight room, and excellent breakfast in the morning and a very good restaurant just across the parking lot.

We briefly toured downtown Charlottetown spending some time at the Basilica and decided to head off to Cavendish and Ann of Green Gables. (The newspaper is full of stories that Will and Catherine plan to spend July 4 and 5th here to tour the Lucy Maud Montgomery sites). Unfortunately it was too cold and rainy to do any touring of this or any of the beaches so we headed back over the bridge and into Nova Scotia.

Prince Edward Island is beautiful and pastoral but it looks as if most of the green fields on the farms are devoted to a yellow flower that looks suspiciously like dandelions. It is nice to look at fields of green and yellow but I doubt that there could be any monetary value in it. And it doesn't look like many of the red soil fields have yet been sown with potatoes. It may be that we are just a bit early as there are daffodils in bloom at the moment with tulips just starting to open.

Day 22 - Quebec City to Fredericton

2011-05-24T15:47:00.000-07:00

The weather was actually good for a change. After staying at a Comfort Inn near Ste. Anne de Beaupre, we had a nice drive down mainly four lane roads out of Quebec and into Fredericton. We booked into a Howard Johnson and had a good meal just down the road and watched the last few minutes of Vancouver's win on Sunday.

It was warm enough that I needed a swim to cool off.

Fredericton has slot machines all over - both pubs and hotels. Yet, on Victoria Day all the shops in New Brunswick were closed up tight.

So, we headed down to the Confederation Bridge and into PEI.

Day 21 - Quebec City

2011-05-21T22:36:00.000-07:00

I learned many years ago that you had to book early to find a reasonable hotel room on a Saturday night. But, the fact that this is a long weekend snuck up (is this past tense of "to sneak"?) on me. We did manage to get the last non-smoking room at a Motel 8 in Ste. Foy but only for Friday. Looks like we will need to be flexible to find lodging tomorrow night.

We managed to find some parking near the Parliament Buildings in Quebec City and walked down into the old fortified section of town after checking out the Plains of Abraham. While it is sunny today, there are strong, gusting winds, that one could image could be of biblical proportions coming up the St. Lawrence River. Julie says that it is a good thing we are heavy or we would be blown away.

Julie took many photos and some video of old buildings, some of which I hope to post here soon, as we walked through the historical area. The Funicular is still running but there is construction all around the Plaza in front of the Frontenac Hotel. We took the funicular to the lower town and toured the shops and read menus. It looks like good French food is even more expensive here (compared to Montreal). We did however stop for a snack of Beaver Tails - which I associate with French food.

Then we were off to explore another cathedral which has miracles associated with it in Ste. Anne de Beaupre.

We finished the day with an excellent meal at a St. Hubert - which I associate with Quebec food. All in all, it was a good way to spend a day which could have been 'the last day on earth' according to some pundits.

Day 20 - on the Farm

2011-05-21T21:56:00.000-07:00

Berta's front garden

Flowering crab apple tree

After visiting St. Joseph's Oratory and Mount Royal, we drove up from Montreal to Huntingdon to spend the night with the Mullers on their farm. Karen, our GPS, who has become the third member of our group, proved very helpful in getting us right to the driveway of the farm. We thank Karen profusely when she is right, tell her to shut up when she is repetitive, and curse her when she objects to our many stops along the way.

The farm is lush and green but the wet weather has caused some flooding and has made it impossible to get the seeding done in the fields. Even the cows had to be put back in the barn because it was too wet for them. Berta's garden is growing well though and I was surprised to see how advanced it was in spite the wet. It is nice to be in the country and breath fresh air and watch the many birds. Julie managed to take some video of birds nesting just outside the house.

After a night of good company, good food and a comfortable bed, we watched the cows being released from the barn and set out for Quebec City.

Day 18 to 19 in Montreal

2011-05-21T21:29:00.000-07:00

Stayed at the Holiday Inn on Cote de Liesse. We have borrowed a GPS, named Karin, from my brother. She managed to guide us to the West Island and through Dorval Circle with no trouble but then proceeded to put us in a loop around Hickmore Street. We have discovered that highway construction confuses her. On the third pass, we decided to use common sense once more and followed the number sequencing on Cote de Liesse to find the hotel.

The Holiday Inn, like a few of the places we have stayed, is under construction/renovation. Once finished, if prices remain as reasonable as they are now, it will be an excellent place to stay. It has a slew of amenities including an indoor and outdoor pool, good restaurant/bar, well-equipped workout room with sauna, spa facilities and several other amusements.

In spite of more damp, cold weather, Old Montreal proved interesting as ever. We took the Metro to Notre Dame Cathedral, toured the church then walked through the narrow streets to Bon Secours market. After lunch, we walked back west toward McGill College and up to St. Catherine Street to see the sites and visit the Anglican church there. Then, in spite of sore feet, we managed to get the Metro and bus back to our hotel. We have been looking for reasonably priced French food but have settled for Bar B Barn on Des Sources and our hotel, which turned out to be surprisingly good.

Notre Dame Cathedral

Day 16 & 17 - in Ottawa

2011-05-18T16:17:00.000-07:00

Besides the usual Parliament Buildings and tour of the City by bus and water, we toured the Diefenbunker which was well worth the drive out to Carp as well as the modest fee. Still have a cloud over our heads!

Day 11 to 15 - in Toronto area

2011-05-15T05:10:00.000-07:00

Julie got to see the CN Tower, Niagara Falls and other Southern Ontario sites while she stayed with her cousin in Brampton. I stayed out in Alliston and visited with old friends and family most of the time.

We are now ready to get on the road again.

Spring flowers in Jim and Cathe's garden.

Emma, the outdoor cat.

Day 10 - Sault Ste Marie to Alliston Ontario

2011-05-11T08:30:00.000-07:00

Good trip - took us about 8 hours to arrive here at Jim and Cathe's. It was still rainy and cloudy but much warmer and actually quite pleasant to drive. Both highway 17 and 69 have improved over the years. Sudbury is no longer unique. Vegetation has returned to the rocks in Sudbury.

The sun was shining by the time we reached Muskoka.

Day 9 - Duluth to Sault Michigan

2011-05-11T08:09:00.000-07:00

Windy and cold and raining. We actually had snow mixed with rain in Superior WI. We wanted to take a glass bottom boat tour of wrecks on Lake Superior or go through locks at Sault Ste. Marie but neither were available due to the bad weather.

Our six and a half hour drive took us more than nine hours mostly due to the strong winds and rain.

Waterfront area Duluth

Our nicest weather so far has been in Princeton.

Day 8 Sunday, Kenora to Duluth

2011-05-08T20:50:00.000-07:00

We have been on the road for one week today. We crossed over the border at Fort Frances in the early afternoon. There was no line up which was good because they were pulling over every car for a complete search. In all, it took us about fifteen or twenty minutes to get through.

I can't believe the differences in prices on each side of the border.

Gasoline in Kenora was $1.364/liter this morning
In Minnesota this afternoon, gasoline is $3.99/gallon. With a conversion factor of 0.26417,
that would make it about $1.054/liter here in the U.S.

Last night, we stayed at a Super 8 for $104.00 Canadian
Tonight we are staying at a Super 8 for $57.00 U.S. (rooms are virtually identical).

We paid $17.75 for the main course in a pub in Canada last night and $9.91 for an almost equivalent meal tonight in the US.

I can think of very few reasons why things like this are from 25% to 50% cheaper here.

Gasoline
Meals - $38.00
Hotel - $57.00

Day 7 - Brandon to Kenora Ontario

2011-05-08T07:49:00.000-07:00

When we were leaving Brandon yesterday, we were told that the bridge into town was down to one lane due to high water levels in the river. The flooding is the worst since the 1890's in the area. This morning the CBC reports that water levels rose 30 cm yesterday on that river. The residents are madly sandbagging the banks. We, luckily, missed all of that excitement. In fact our whole drive to Kenora was uneventful except for one short (about 5 minutes) but fierce thunder/lightning storm just east of Winnipeg while Julie drove.

In Winnipeg, Julie took me out for a nice Mother's Day lunch at Red Lobster. We discovered that the road south (which we were planning on taking) was closed due to flooding and that traffic was diverted to a secondary road. We decided to stay on highway 1 to Kenora and head into the US from Kenora instead. The road around the northern part of Lake Superior is just too long.

The town of Kenora wraps itself around the Lake of the Woods Lake. This morning from the window of the hotel I can hear the sound of a loon on the lake. I have been surprised by the few birds we saw coming over the Prairies. I am hoping it is just because the ducks and geese have not yet returned from the south and not that they have all disappeared over the years. I am hearing a few different bird calls this morning.

Gas 0

Hotel 104 plus tax
Food $90 approx. (includes lunch in Winnipeg and dinner in a pub watching the hockey game last night).

Day 6 - Saskatoon to Moose Jaw to Brandon

2011-05-07T05:47:00.000-07:00


Moose Jaw Sask

It feels like winter again - cold and windy this morning - departing from Saskatoon. Another easy drive to Moose Jaw passing some very large farm equipment moving to fields for seeding. While some fields are still under water, many higher ones are being planted. There was still leftover snow along the sides of the highway through Saskatchewan and into Manitoba. Spring has been/is playing games with us.

Took in the tour of the tunnels (Al Capone version) and had an amazingly good lunch at Horizon's in Moose Jaw.

Excitement began for us when we realized our parking meter had run out of money almost an hour earlier and we were able to have an aerobic workout on our way back to the car. Luckily, no ticket.

Next, we managed the last 40 kilometers into Brandon on 'air and a prayer' when the 'empty' light came on. At least we now know that we can go at least that far on empty. Luckily we made it to a PetroCan on the outskirts of town without having to coast.

Then, we found a nice Super 8 Motel and they gave us a double room which was also being occupied by another couple. Luckily the desk clerk found another room which was unoccupied and gave us another discount.

Gas and car wash - Saskatoon - $55.46
Food and entertainment   $60 approx.
Hotel $100.80
Gas in Brandon $54.84
Distance traveled today 644 K

Day 5 - Edmonton to Saskatoon

2011-05-07T05:15:00.000-07:00

We changed our route and, with an early start, took Highway 16 East out of Edmonton on Wednesday morning with almost perfect weather for traveling.

Flowers in Art Gallery/Conservatory on River Walk in Saskatoon

We stopped for the ham sandwich lunch which Shirley had prepared for us in Lloydminster on the Alberta side. The boundary between Alberta and Saskatchewan runs right through the center of town. (I wonder if anyone lives on a particular side for tax breaks.)

It was an easy drive to Saskatoon. We arrived shortly afternoon and were lucky to find a Super 8 as the city was booked with two or three different events happening there. As the room was made up, we were able to stow our things and explore the town.

The city is just emerging from the final snow melt of winter. Cars are still muddy and landscape is grey with just hints of green. The abundance of colour in this conservatory was a treat!

Blue Orchid

Unfortunately, we managed to pick what was probably the worst restaurant in town for dinner. Our lesson from that was to rely on hotel suggestions and the BCAA book to find decent food.

Hotel $125.61
Food $23.00
Gas $36.85

Day 4 - In Edmonton

2011-05-05T21:40:00.000-07:00

Some views of the North Saskatchewan River near where Shirley lives.

We spent a day of rest, relaxation and a little sightseeing on Wednesday in Edmonton. It felt like the first day of summer - warm and sunny. Trees are starting to bud. We went for a walk to see the sights along the Saskatchewan River.

After a little exercise, a little car riding, a few beer to celebrate what was feeling like the first day of spring, we had a little siesta.


Benny or Bengie - just after he was groomed

Then another delicious dinner - this time, ham and rice and sweet pototatoes and peas and we were off to visit Victor and Ken.

House that Ken and Victor are renovating

Ken and Victor have a brand new puppy called Bella but she wouldn't stay still for a photo.

Day 3 - Clearbrook to Edmonton

2011-05-05T20:20:00.000-07:00

We experienced every kind of weather. We departed in the sunshine and about 15 degrees. By the time we reached Mount Robson the clouds were so low, we didn’t stop to see the sights. In Jasper, it was cloudy and cold and we were told there was no point in taking our planned trip up the gondola to see the sights. Some very large lakes (e.g. Moose Lake) are still completely covered with ice and some rivers are only flowing in a narrow channel with wide swaths of ice on each shore.

There was some rain, snow, sleet and hail, all in short bursts. Once we crossed over the Great Divide, the skies started to clear and by the time we reached Edmonton, the skies were blue with a few fluffy white clouds.

It is cold here in Edmonton. Spring has not yet sprung. Not a green leaf showing on any of the trees.

The scenery that we did see on the drive was spectacular – wonderful folded mountains in all shapes and sizes, still covered in lots of snow which when the sun did shine on them sparkled like glowing white diamonds. Except for a few horned mountain goats/sheep and elk grazing on dead grass at the side of the road, we saw very few animals in this area. And many of the animals, including horses, are still wearing their shaggy winter coats.

We found Shirley’s place fairly easily – we are getting better at not getting lost - and enjoyed another delicious and abundant meal.

Gasoline – Jasper - PetroCan $38.81 - $128.71/L (28.71 L)

Breakfast – Clearwater $12,00

Lunch – Jasper $13.25 (Chinese)

Phone Card - $5.00

Forest on my deck - April 30, 2010

2011-05-02T21:24:00.000-07:00

The twelve trees on my deck have survived the winter. Time to re-pot this fall.

Day 2 - Princeton BC to Clearwater, BC

2011-05-02T21:16:00.000-07:00

Only got 'lost' twice but we were quickly able to get back on track. I need to write to highways department about the lack of signage. They seem to keep the highway numbers secret. Americans are much better than we are making signage clear and visible.

Roads have been good with a lot less 'highway improvement' areas than in the past. We could have done without the off and on again showers and clouds today.

Good lunch at East Side Mario's in Kamloops ($27.16) and gasoline from PetroCan in Kamloops $36.86 and motel tonight is $72.76 and dinner for $30.00 plus a doggie bag.

Day 1

2011-05-02T09:35:00.000-07:00

Our adventure has begun.

We departed Vancouver on May 1st under sunny skies. My new car runs well.

Our destination - a modest four hours - to Princeton BC to stay overnight with my sister.
First fill-up of gasoline in the new car at Chilliwack ($26.00) and lunch at Tim Horton's ($15.00).

Traffic was good, roads were excellent considering that it is so early in the season, singing along with good, golden oldies and the exhilaration of the first day of vacation made for a perfect start.

The first touristy spot was the Hope Slide. (In 1965 after a mild earthquake, a slide deposited 70 meters of rock over the old highway). Back on the road again, we saw a large brown bear on the side of the road in Manning Park and several deer browsing in open areas along the way.

There are no photos yet but we both want to remember to keep our cameras out today.

Arriving to 18 degrees in Princeton, it smelled and felt like summer. My sister had my favorite cranberry chicken ready for our dinner and rhubarb crisp and ice cream for dessert. (back on my diet today!)

We watched birds at the bird feeders and the Similkaming River flowing past the back yard during dinner. The little humming birds are just now back for the summer.

I am hoping to use this blog to track our meanderings and spending over the next six or so weeks.

Off to Jasper if all goes well today.

My Bucket List

2011-04-23T15:03:00.000-07:00

When I created a bucket list last winter, one of the top items was to see Canada from sea to sea to sea. This will have to be done in stages - west to east first. With a little luck, I should be on the road on May 1st.

The third 'sea' will be a challenge that will need a lot of planning. I don't really want to see the Arctic Ocean as I have flown over it and it appears to be inhospitable, at best. I do, however, want to experience more of northern Canada. This includes James Bay and Hudson Bay as well as Yellowknife, Dawson City and Whitehorse.

I know I could take the Polar Bear Express to Moosinee on James Bay from Cochrane Ontario and I could probably fly from there to Churchhill on Hudson's Bay and then find my way to Winnipeg.

The last portion of this fantasy would involve taking a ferry to Skagway, Alaska, and the White Pass & Yukon Train to Whitehorse. Then I would need to find someone who wanted their motor home eventually driven back down to Vancouver to complete this adventure.

Ten Days To Go

2011-04-21T20:30:00.000-07:00

It is crunch time now. What to pack - will summer ever arrive? I watched snow fall in Quebec yesterday on the news and it is almost the end of April! Will there be flooding in the Prairies? Or, snow on the mountain passes in BC?

Do we need a precise itinerary or should we just play it by ear. They say that May 1st is the start of driving season. Will we need to pre-book any hotels/motels? Is the price of gasoline going to be so high, we need to take out loans to get home?

I am counting down the days! Our road trip starts on May 1st. We are driving from Vancouver to Halifax through Canada and back through the States from New York City through Chicago to Spokane and home.

International Woman's Day 100th Anniversary

2011-03-08T11:38:00.000-08:00

This is part of an article from the Christian Science Monitor today.

Today's Google Doodle is a multi-colored image, with the "gle" transitioned into images of women as graduates and doctors.

By gathering on 300 bridges in 50 countries, from New York to Rwanda, thousands of people are showing their support for women's rights and their accomplishments.

To see how you can participate, click the link below. You will be redirected to a 'Join women on the bridge' page. Google has incorporated an interactive map with pins showing where supporters are gathering across the globe.
Users have the ability to "check-in" in-person, and if you can't quite get out to a bridge in your area, you can still participate by checking in virtually.

Click on the utube video on this site.

Trip Planning

2011-02-19T09:44:00.000-08:00

A road trip is in the works for this summer. Three of us are planning to travel from Vancouver to Halifax and New York City. We plan to drive east across Canada and come home through the States.

Our plan is simple: to have as much fun as possible on as little money as possible and to see as much of the country as we can.

We do have our standards: to eat healthily and have regular access to showers.

Now the planning begins - the best time to go, the most practical vehicle, where to stay, etc., etc.

CPP Changes

2011-02-12T08:42:00.000-08:00

Some good news, at least for some of us:

If you are age 65 to 70 and you work while receiving your CPP retirement pension, you can choose to make CPP contributions...

It looks like, starting next January, those of us who still work, a little or a lot, can opt back into CPP and in the process increase the amount of our future pensions.

http://www.servicecanada.gc.ca/eng/video/cpp.shtml

Model T

2011-01-29T17:17:00.000-08:00

I just love this little video. There were still a few Model T Fords on the road when I was young. If I remember correctly, some had the crank built right into the front.

Model T Ford

It is such a good glimpse of our industrial history. Today, production lines are automated often with robots in many labour intensive industries.

Mindful Meditation

2010-12-02T15:30:00.000-08:00

Last night was my last guided meditation session until mid January. I wonder if I will be able to carry on on my own over the holidays. While attending one session a week, I was able to meditate on my own five or six times a week.

Meditation is good for me. I am calmer, more relaxed. It only takes about fifteen minutes a day. The trick will be to make it a habit - like taking vitamins every day.

A few days ago, I came across an interesting article about meditation in our free local newspaper:   While it didn't explain exactly what meditation and mindfulness was, here is how the opposite was described:    "The opposite of mindfulness is mindlessness, in which our monkey minds jump from one thought to another, from the past to the future and from emotion to emotion. Your usual mental state may be reactive - reacting to the urgency of the moment, unresolved sadness or anger about the past, or anxiety about the future". I can certainly relate to that.

Time Magazine has produced some good articles on Mindful Meditation. Here is some of what they have had to say a few years ago:

...studies show that meditation is boosting their immune systems, and brain scans suggest that it may be rewiring their brains to reduce stress.   .... Ten million American adults now say they practice some form of meditation regularly, twice as many as a decade ago. Meditation classes today are being filled by mainstream Americans who don't own crystals, don't subscribe to New Age magazines and don't even reside in Los Angeles. For upwardly mobile professionals convinced that their lives are more stressful than those of the cow-milking, soap-making, butter-churning generations that preceded them, meditation is the smart person's bubble bath.

I am hoping that this bubble bath will help me lose weight and sleep better and maybe be better organized.

Some Statements Ring True

2010-11-30T12:03:00.000-08:00

"We marry at the level of our self-esteem".

This phrase has haunted me since I heard it on Oprah a few weeks ago. It has a ring of truth about and it may explain so many things that happen in some marriages.

Then, there is the idea behind the Law of Attraction. If we attract to ourselves people who will move us along in our journey through life, often painfully, and if we attract people who reinforce our subconscious thoughts about ourselves, then what does this say about the situations that have dominated our past lives.

Add to this, the idea that we are products of our environment and often, like a fish in water, may have no concept of how our environment is affecting us. Until we can recognize, understand, envision or verbalize a concept, we cannot really process or address it properly. Until we can step outside of our current situation, we cannot always conceptualize the best solution for ourselves. And, I think we need to do this if we want to make positive and lasting changes in our lives.

What if we, on top of all of this, are living in denial. Do we have clues that we ignore, or is denial such a force in our lives, that what is real and true and honest cannot penetrate the forces of denial. Denial is a survival mechanism. When we no longer need to use this tool, how can we work through to resolve and dissolve it when we don't even accept the fact that we even might be in denial.

In the past few weeks, since I have been attending classes of Mindful Meditation, these thoughts have been swirling around in my head. At least they swirl when I am not actively trying to get away from the incessant chatter in my brain through practicing meditation.

Maybe, once I can weed out some of my useless repetitive thought processes, I will find enough brain space to understand why I married who I married. And, maybe, eventually figure out who, exactly, I am. Then, I can move on to be who I want to be.

Happy Thanksgiving America

2010-11-25T11:55:00.000-08:00

The festive season begins....

"The First Thanksgiving at Plymouth" (1914) By Jennie A. Brownscombe

Click to see whole picture.

Winter in Canada

2010-11-22T17:01:00.000-08:00

In view of our freezing temperatures the last few days, I thought I would share this poem which I just received as an email.....

WINTER Poem
It's winter in Canada
And the gentle breezes blow
Seventy miles an hour
At thirty-five below.
Oh, how I love Canada
When the snow's up to your butt
You take a breath of winter
And your nose gets frozen shut.
Yes, the weather here is wonderful
So I guess I'll hang around
I could never leave Canada
Cuz I'm frozen to the ground!

98% OF CANADIANS SAY "OH SHIT" BEFORE GOING IN THE DITCH ON A SLIPPERY ROAD.THE OTHER 2% ARE FROM NEWFOUNDLAND AND THEY SAY, "HOLD MY BEER AND WATCH THIS."

Opening Day

2010-11-21T09:54:00.000-08:00

Another year of cross country skiing has begun. Conditions were excellent at Cypress yesterday afternoon on opening day.

Didn't get much skiing in last year due to the Olympics and a very mild year.

We are told that this year will be especially cold and snowy.

We watched a few people with camera and tripod setting up for this year's Christmas Card photo. Here is the back drop I would like to use for mine. Now, if I only knew how to use photoshop...

First Snow

2010-11-20T08:49:00.000-08:00

We are supposed to have a week of below freezing weather. This is our first snowfall of the season.

Snow Overnight Nov. 20

Marigolds in the snow

My rooftop ....

Deck Gardens Nov. 16/2010

2010-11-17T03:46:00.000-08:00

My annuals are on their last legs but marigolds are far too cheery to pull just yet.

Seeding cat grass for winter on a sunny, warm Tuesday in November.

Cat Grass Planted Nov 16/10

My deck garden trees are ready for winter. The three smaller ones at the bottom of this photo got sun-burnt this summer. I am hoping they will recover and begin to grow again next Spring.

Triple Divide (where the Laurentian & Great Divide meet)

2010-11-16T07:43:00.000-08:00

Growing up in northern Ontario, it was an event, when we were on summer vacation, to stop at the sign for the height of land on Highway 101. This was where the highway crossed the Laurentian Divide (this was the height of land that started in Labrador and meandered across the continent to Montana, just below Alberta). Up to this point in our drive, all waters and rivers we had encountered flowed north to the Arctic Ocean. Once we started driving again, all waters flowed south and eventually flowed into the Atlantic Ocean. It meant we were leaving the north behind for awhile. We almost always stopped and took photos of the sign.

Watershed sign on Hwy 101

Since then, I have always taken note of watersheds.

This year, I was able to drive down a portion the Great Divide (which runs north and south down the western side of the continent) between Alberta and Wyoming. The rivers for the most part flow east or west depending upon the side of the mountain. However, at one particular point, in Glacier National Park, the two Divides meet. At this place, rainfall might flow in any direction. "A hand width can determine whether a raindrop becomes part of the Columbia, Mississippi or Saskatchewan river systems". That raindrop might end up in the Pacific Ocean, the gulf of Mexico or Hudson's Bay. I believe it is the only place in the world where rainwater falling in virtually the same spot can end up in either the Pacific, Atlantic or Arctic Oceans.

Triple Divide Peak
(where Laurentian & Great Divide meet)

Waterton Lakes National Park

2010-11-15T09:26:00.000-08:00

This is the Prince of Wales Hotel in Waterton Lakes National Park. If you choose not to stay overnight, you can always go for afternoon tea (English style).

Constructed between 1926–1927, the hotel was built by the American Great Northern Railway to lure American tourists during the prohibition-era north of the border.

We spent an hour or so here at this hotel to avoid a little rain. Here are some photos of the area and some of the animals. This would be a great place to stay and explore for a few days. There are regular campgrounds as well.

Looking toward Waterton Village

Waterton Lake from the hotel

Road Signs

2010-11-14T10:48:00.000-08:00

This sign is from Waterton Lakes National Park on the Alberta/Montana border.

There is a whole new refreshing mentality that is now part of the National Park System. Years ago, park rangers would eliminate animals that were hazardous to people who visited the national or provincial parks. Now they give us warnings and show us how to live with nature. When we are in their territory, we need to respect their wishes just as they must do in our territory.

Summer 2010

2010-09-09T15:41:00.000-07:00

September has arrived after a warm, dry and busy July and August. After a cold spring and very rainy June, we had two months of perfectly good summer. My life was filled with visitors, activities and turning sixty-five. I am now officially a senior citizen!

My garden was a bust this year. When most of the plantings from May died back after many cold, wet days, what I replanted in July just did not take off. At the moment, I have some beets, one cucumber plant and a whole lot of weeds.

Composting on my deck was even worse. I grew a large crop of fruit flies which just kept growing and growing. Finally at the end of July I gave up and I once again can enjoy this deck.

This Saturday I am off on a road trip. We are traveling east from Vancouver over the Rockies in Alberta to follow the Continental Divide down to Utah. From there, we will work our way over to San Francisco and after a tour of the wine country make our way back north up the Coast highway.

I have a new camera and plan to take my laptop so I can blog along the way.

I have a New Hero

2010-09-06T09:39:00.001-07:00

88 Year Old Mayor

This is a link to a Rick Mercer video about this remarkable woman.

Letters to Juliet

2010-06-12T04:03:00.000-07:00

While this is a Harlequin Romance type movie that is entirely predictable, the beautiful Italian settings makes this a perfectly acceptable way to spend a summer evening. Vanessa Redgrave portrays a grandmother going back to find the love of her life after fifty years.

This is really a made-for-TV movie. Except for Redgrave, the acting is not particularly strong. The plot a little contrived. Everyone is a little too beautiful.

It does make you want to visit Italy though.

Deck Trees and Garden June 1st

2010-06-10T15:45:00.000-07:00

All twelve of my cedar trees/shrubs survived the winter. Last fall, I purchased and transplanted these trees to form a screen from my neighbours. As they were end-of-season cast-offs, I was not entirely sure if many of them would survive. Luckily, all of them are showing some new growth. It even looks as if the smallest ones (the three yellow ones in the top row) need transplanting again.

Unfortunately my garden plot is not doing so well. We have had a cold and wet Spring. I have just replanted squash, cucumbers and zucchini seed after my transplants withered. So far this year, I have had only a few radish, some rhubarb and chives. My beets tops are almost ready to thin and eat. I do have lots of garlic and spinach but have not been eating either lately.

And, my six year old, well worn camera seems to be giving up the ghost. I can't seem to get rid of the pink tinge at the top of my photographs lately.

Salmon Berries

2010-06-07T15:14:00.001-07:00

This is a photo of the Salmonberry blossom. In very short order these flowers become berries.

I notice the salmon berries are ripe now. These are usually the first berries to ripen around here. While they are not as flavourful as raspberries, they are usually available about two weeks before our garden variety raspberries.

I haven't picked any yet as they grow wild and I am waiting for some company to help me. I don't want to compete with the local bears. If there are two or three of us, hopefully we can make enough noise to keep the bears away.

NINE

2010-06-06T10:51:00.000-07:00

The Production Nine at Presentation Theatre on Granville Island was highly entertaining - it is unfortunate that it closes today - last performance at 7 p.m. tonight.

This musical about Victor Contini's mid life crisis was on Broadway in 1982 and ran for 729 performances. The latest film version released in 2009, starred Daniel Day-Lewis, Judi Dench, Nicole Kidman, Sophia Loren and Kate Hudson to name just a few of the stars.

In the Vancouver production, twenty three women and one man give us everything - amazing dance numbers, great singing and a story you will remember.

Now I need to rent the film version so that I can compare the two.

Letter Writing

2010-05-31T03:32:00.000-07:00

I wonder how many bloggers were avid letter writers in the past. I know I was.

For years, if I was home on Sunday, I wrote my weekly letter to my parents and then answered the letters that I had received that week from friends, family and acquaintances. If this didn't happen on Sunday, I pushed to get all my correspondence written and in the mail by Tuesday night.

And, I loved receiving mail. For a long time, I got far more mail without windows. Now, unfortunately most of my mail is either window mail or junk mail. And now, for some reason, I am terrible at responding to the few letters I do receive. I seem to have lost the knack.

Unknown Great Canadians

2010-05-30T19:16:00.000-07:00

This man, at the ripe old age of eighty-five years, held the following jobs all at the same time, in Canada, in 1905:

- Governor of the Hudson's Bay Company

- President of the Bank of Montreal

- Director and Executive Committee Member of the CPR

- President of Royal Trust

- Canada's High Commissioner to Britain

- Chairman of Burmah Oil and the Anglo-Persian Oil Company

He ran the HBC, a railway, a bank and a trust company, and a couple of oil companies all while holding a high position in government.

This was Sir Donald Alexander Smith who was born in 1820 in Scotland, arrived in Canada 1838, and died in 1914 at the age of 94 in London, England. Most people remember him for driving the last spike at Craigellachie.

I have just started reading Peter C. Neuman's Merchant Princes and have discovered this intriguing character from our past and will tell you some more about him in the next few days.

It has me thinking again about retirement and the work ethic. Here is a role model to consider.

Decisions, Decisions

2010-05-30T11:09:00.000-07:00

Our doubts are traitors,

And make us lose the good we oft might win.

By fearing to attempt.

William Shakespeare, "Measure for Measure", Act 1 scene 4 ...

On one hand, we are encouraged to trust our gut. If it doesn't feel right, don't do it.

On the other hand, we may be missing out on opportunities just because we have doubts - about timing, about value, about the future.

A number of decisions lately have not been black and white and my tendency is to do nothing. I used to be good at making decisions, even if some weren't the best ones. Overall, I was willing to take some chances, or at least a few leaps of faith. And, most

of the time, everything turned out o.k.

Lately, I have been trying to decide whether to look for a new car or stick with my old car; take a major vacation now when the dollar is good or in a year or so when it may be much more convenient, redecorate my condo (remove old carpet, paint, etc.) or wait awhile.

Dragging my feet on redecorating this past year means I have lost out on possible tax credits for this. Dragging my feet on my car might mean major repairs down the road.

I don't even know which should be a priority, if any.

To move or not to move

2010-05-26T09:39:00.000-07:00

Having moved house way too many times both from necessity and choice, I have a lot of sympathy for those long- term West End residents who have been given eviction notices. Their choices seem pretty limited.

They are victims of our mixed economy. These people are being negatively impacted by the fact that Canadians have chosen to embrace both socialism and capitalism. We feel that the government needs to provide for the least fortunate among us and at the same time we believe that entrepreneurs have the right to get the best returns on their investments. This has resulted in rent controls which means that long term residents pay increasingly less than market rates and at the same time has allowed landlords to use loopholes to evict these long-term residents so they can get market rates.

I think a lot of us still want to straddle some line between capitalism and socialism because overall it provides us with a safety net and an opportunity to become materially successful. Yet we don't want innocent people to suffer.

Since many of the people being evicted are retired and need their own capital to provide an income, I wonder if anyone has considered some form of life lease. The rent increases could be postponed in the same way that we can postpone taxes until we either die or, in this case, decide to move. This way the landlord would have his market rent, eventually, and the retiree could maintain his income and afford to stay put.

A Hundred Years

2010-05-21T17:31:00.000-07:00

My great, great grandmother probably came out from Ireland in the 1860's to settle in Quebec on the Ottawa River. Knowing her background, she probably travelled as a steerage passenger.

The "steerage",or between-deck, often shortened to "tween-deck", was originally the deck immediately below the main deck of a sailing ship. (Norw: Mellomdekk or Mellemdekk)

In the early days of emigration the ships used to convey the emigrants were originally built for carrying cargo. In reality the passengers were placed in the cargo hold. Temporary partitions were usually erected and used for the steerage accommodation. To get down to the between-deck the passengers often had to use ladders, and the passageway down between the hatches could be both narrow and steep. The manner in which the ships were equipped could vary since there were no set standards for this. It was necessary that the furnishings could be easily removed, and not cost more than absolutely necessary. As soon as the ships had set the passengers on land, the furnishings were discarded and the ship prepared for return cargo to Europe On the picture above you can see examples on how many of the sailing ships would be equipped.

After reading the book, Voyages of Hope, which describes the terrible conditions that people endured while traveling steerage class at that time, I have begun to wonder about her. She would have been a young lady. I don't know if she married before she left Ireland or shortly after she arrived in Canada. I do know that she was Irish Catholic and like many of her countrymen, she chose to settle in French Catholic Quebec rather than English Protestant Ontario. She probably would have sailed to Quebec City and then taken a smaller boat up to the Ottawa Valley.

Her voyage would have been much shorter - closer to one month as opposed to the two months or more that it took to get to British Columbia - but conditions would not have been much better. Knowing the fastidiousness that seems to be a trait of many people on that side of the family, I can only image how she could have endured such conditions.

A hundred years later, in the 1960's, I was coming of age in Toronto, Montreal and Vancouver in much different circumstances. From the perspective of 2010, fifty years later, I am wondering what the 2060's will bring.

Bride-Ships

2010-05-20T15:48:00.000-07:00

British Columbia history can be quite fascinating. I am surprised that few Canadian historical novels have been written about our past. The four bride-ships that arrived in Victoria in the 1860's has enough material for several novels. In all, about one hundred women, mainly working class, sailed from England hoping to find a better life in British Columbia.

Victorian England was in the throes of recession. Women who became widowed, or were let go from factory jobs, or poorly educated unemployable women who had not married young faced desperate lives in workhouses or worse. There were far more women than men in Britain and even middle class women had difficulty in finding husbands. As the numbers of these poverty- stricken women grew, some churches and a few philanthropic upper class women formed the Columbia Emigration Society to both give these destitute women a new chance and to rid England of the expense of keeping them.

Meanwhile, in North America gold had been discovered on the Fraser River. The gold lured hundreds of men from the fizzled California gold fields and created towns in the Cariboo that were devoid of single, white, marriageable women. At the same time, Victoria and New Westminster were becoming thriving cities with growing families in need of domestic help.

The frontier towns here were more wild and dangerous than those in the American west. There was no law and order and only a few, mostly Anglican, missionaries were trying to create stability. Added to this mix were rigid religious and social attitudes which virtually forbade any contact with Native women. Murder, theft and drunkenness were the order of the day.

Local governments hoped that English women would marry and stabilize our wild west or alternatively provide domestic services in Victoria and New Westminster. Governments in England liked this idea because they wanted English people to populate the land north of the 49th parallel. And, they wanted to rebalance the population at home.

Between 1862 and 1870, as a result of the Columbia Emigration Society's initiatives, four steam driven sailing ships, the Tynmouth, the Robert Lowe, the Marcella and the Alpha departed England and delivered women around the horn and up the Pacific Coast to Victoria. During the voyages that could last several months, these women who were sponsored by the Columbia Emigration Society travelled steerage and experienced horrible on board conditions.

Crowded below decks into tiered bunks in groups of eight, there was little room to move. It was crowded, dark and dank with little fresh air. The sanitation was poor, movement up to the deck was limited to areas where the women often encountered smoke and soot from the coal- fired boilers. Unlike the people in cabins whose meals were prepared, people in steerage were given daily rations to prepare for themselves. Fresh water was in very short supply. There were storms and seasickness. The stench became unbearable. Then, to add to this misery, church sponsored chaperones made it their duty to make sure none of these women came into contact with any men on board ship.

Surprisingly, while there was some death and disease in their months at sea, most of the women made it to the shores of Vancouver Island. Once, landed most quickly found husbands or positions as domestics. Glimpses of their lives in Lillooet, Barkerville, Chemainus, Victoria, Vancouver and New Westminster while poorly documented, are fascinating.

Most of this information came from the book Voyages of Hope by Peter Johnson.

A New World

2010-05-20T08:27:00.000-07:00

A high ranking Cardinal in the Catholic Church said last week that the church should move towards a morality based on virtue rather than avoidance of sin and center on happiness rather than duty. WOW! Apparently he is one of the few top ranking ecclesiastics that can actually have some influence in getting this done.

Just think what it would mean if a large chunk of the world started think about virtue and happiness rather than sin and duty. If thoughts have energy, and increasingly this is being proven, then there would be a huge shift from negative to positive energy.

In my small world, it would mean that people around me could quit acting like martyrs, could start to like themselves and take time to take care of themselves, stop criticizing everything around them, and most of all it would create a larger, better force field of positive energy.

And, I might even consider going back to church.

2010-05-18T16:33:00.000-07:00

The Bloedel Floral Conservatory is a interesting place to spend a rainy day in Vancouver except you have to keep your rain gear on as the roof leaks in several places. Rain falling from the ceiling is easy to ignore though as the exotic plants and birds and even fish command your attention.

The Parks Board had plans to close this place earlier this year as it was too expensive to repair; but, it appears that it has had a reprieve for the time being. The doors are still open and the plants and still lush and colourful and it is business as usual for the time being.

The Vancouver walking group had arranged for a walk in Queen Elizabeth Park with a side tour of the Bloedel Conservatory this morning topped off with lunch at the Seasons Restaurant. In the face of our first major rainfall in awhile, a few of us decided on the dryer route of just the conservatory and lunch.

This is the place to go if you ever want to see what your houseplants should look like.

Buddy

2010-05-17T17:47:00.000-07:00

For two and a half hours on Sunday, I was a teenager again. The production "Buddy: The Buddy Holly Story" transported me back. This is so well done! I am always amazed at the quality of actors in Vancouver.

In his short one and a half year career, Buddy Holly only released three albums but he was a major influence on 'rock 'n roll'. The Beatles were impressed by his music. When they were looking for a name for themselves, they wanted something close to the name of Buddy's group, "The Crickets".

After the plane crash, the producers were able to release many more songs by Buddy Holly because of all the tracks he had laid down in studios and home demos. Buddy's music was upgraded with studio musicians and modern technology and he remained popular for a very long time.

Stories, plays, books and music have been written about Buddy Holly - my favorite being - American Pie by Don McLean.

There were many interesting tidbits in the musical I saw yesterday; like the fact that Buddy was married and his wife was pregnant at the time of his death. Unfortunately, after a little research on the internet, I discovered that she miscarried.

If you have the time in the next month or so, I highly recommend this production. Go for the story and especially go for the music.

Here are the details:

BUDDY: THE BUDDY HOLLY STORY

By arrangement with Alan Janes for Theatre Partners

By Alan Janes and Rob Bettinson

Now playing until July 11, 2010 | Stanley Industrial Alliance Stage

10 shows sold out!

The World’s Most Successful Rock ‘n’ Roll Musical

Viewed by more than 20 million people in over 17,000 performances worldwide

Zip Lining

2010-05-11T08:10:00.000-07:00

I spent Mother's Day on Grouse Mountain zip-lining for the first time. It was a blast!

It was a perfectly warm May day but there is still lots of snow on Grouse. It was hard walking up hill.

My daughter and I doing the starfish to slow ourselves down on the fastest line.

Me, on the second line, enjoying the scenery.

For more information see:

http://www.grousemountain.com/Winter/adrenaline-adventures/mountain-ziplines-vancouver.asp

Stuck on Reading

2010-05-09T12:13:00.000-07:00

I am currently reading five books. This is a little unusual for me, although I usually have at least two on the go. They are listed below in order of 'like':

This one has taken me almost a month but I am almost finished. It is a little slow going at times but well worth the effort. There are lots of places where you need to stop and do little exercises. I am definitely going to set up his filing system. For any one that needs a little organization in their life, this is a good place to start. It is written by David Bach and this is the Canadian edition.

I have liked all of Amy Tan's books particularly The Joy Luck Club. I received Saving Fish from Drowning for Christmas and started reading it in January. It is just as good as her others but I got stuck some time back on the karma of work animals and have not been able to pick it up again. I am sure I will get back to it on a sunny afternoon by the pool where I know I will not necessarily fall asleep with terrible images in my head.

I have just started An Irish Country Christmas. (I enjoy reading books set in winter on hot summer days.) It will be prime pool/deck reading this summer. I read and enjoyed An Irish Country Doctor also by Patrick Taylor awhile back. Patrick Taylor is an Irishman who lives in Canada most of the time.

Frank McCourt, another Irishman, this one transplanted to the U.S, wrote Teacher Man about his years as a high school teacher in New York. I loved his first book Angla's Ashes but not so much his second book 'Tis. This one is more like his first, but it got lost under my bed a few weeks ago and I just retrieved it today. This is good nighttime reading as it is interesting but not so riveting that you stay up half the night reading.

I have been trying to read Voyages of Hope, The Saga of the Bride-Ships by Peter Johnson for several months now. I just seem to have something better to read each night. But I am interested in BC history, particularly the hardships women faced in the early years in British Columbia. The first hundred or so pages were quite readable. I just seem to have hit a dull part. Hopefully I can finish this one on the beach this summer as well.

Genetically Engineered Foods

2010-05-06T11:09:00.000-07:00

I am more than a little nervous about possible negative affects of genetically engineered food. I try to eat organically with as little processed food as possible, but I am lazy at times and I have some favourite comfort foods. In today's Vancouver Sun, I just learned that I will have to eliminate two of my fast and easy comfort foods - Aunt Jemima Pancake Mix and canned Heinz Brown Sugar and Bacon Beans. The beans of course are high in calories but the pancakes were one of my 4 point weight watcher breakfasts. I will be sorry to see that one go.

Green Peace has a shopper guide to GMO foods (Click on the "click here" in the middle of a white fairly blank page):

http://gmoguide.greenpeace.ca

The guide is colour coded:

green - Good

yellow - Working to Remove GMO's

red - Genetically Modified

At least now I have a reference point and can start to shop a little smarter.

Working Out in a Green Gym

2010-05-05T22:00:00.001-07:00

Today, I had my first circuit training session. The concept is very similar to Curves. This is a way to get and stay fit with a minimum of time and effort. There are about 15 stations and the object is to do two or three circuits spending about 30 seconds at each station. With a warm up, quick stretch and cool down, it should take less than an hour.

The best part, besides being free, is that you can work out in a park setting in the fresh air with birds singing and today, at least, the smell of new mown grass.

Green Gyms are a Canadian creation found mostly in parks back east. The town received funding through the GVRD and Participaction to install this equipment in our park. You can learn more about this company at http://www.greengym.ca/Aboutus.html

Minnekhada

2010-05-03T09:04:00.000-07:00

My daughter calls me Mary Poppins because I take my umbrella on our Sunday afternoon walk/hikes. This week we decided to explore Minnekhada Regional Park in Coquitlam. The walks are along a marsh area and through some rock bluffs and cliffs. I need to find an umbrella that also works as a walking stick so that I can make my way up and down slippery rocks.

After about an hour of walking, when the intermittent rain seemed to be more on than off, we decided to explore the hunting lodge which gives this area its name. Acquired by the GVRD in 1981, this lodge was built in 1934 by Eric Hamber and later owned by Colonel Wallace both former Lieutenant-Governors of BC and was used for entertaining the wealthy and famous, including royalty. Today it is used mainly for weddings and conferences.

The period furniture is a little sparse but the architecture is very interesting - from the same era and in the same quality as Hycroft in Shaunessy, yet in a rustic Scottish Hunting Lodge theme. This would be a great place to have a Sunday, summer picnic. The lodge is only open to the public between 1 and 4 p.m. on Sundays.

http://www.greatervancouverparks.com/Minnekhada01.html

Another Interesting Read

2010-05-03T08:16:00.001-07:00

It has the tone of a Malcolm Gladwell book and lots of good advice, particularly about flying. Many interesting anecdotes describe how people survived often bizarre accidents. Best of all though, when you finish this book, you are left with a sense of confidence that when you are in a life threatening situation, there are things that you can do to survive. Preparation and knowledge are key.

Even though Sherwood stresses that flying is one of the safest modes of transportation, take off and landing are the times when most accidents occur. He tells you how to be best prepared for these events.

He has a very interesting take on accidents in general.

He also points out that concentration camp survivors often go on to lead exceptionally successful lives. It may be more than just another 'whatever doesn't kill you, makes you stronger'.

All in all, this book gives you something to think about.

Dogwood in Bloom

2010-04-20T13:57:00.001-07:00

The dogwood trees are in bloom - both the pink and the white. Like everything else this year, they are early. I usually start watching for dogwood flowers at the end of April. This year everything was early and often out of sinc - crocus before snowdrops and most hellebores were even later.

Now the tulips are just beginning to fade and with dogwood trees in bloom, summer is just around the corner.

Playground for Adults

2010-04-19T14:16:00.001-07:00

A Playground for adults? It's not what you think! The park at the end of my street has created this.

It is an outdoor fitness center for adults. I think it is part of a Participaction Program. There are even free circuit training classes.

The equipment is very large and durable and offers to tone up and strengthen all body parts.

This is ideal for anyone who does not like working out at a gym and the price is certainly right.

Change Your Brain Change Your Body

2010-04-17T10:30:00.000-07:00

I borrowed this book from the library after watching a PBS Special with Dr. Daniel Amen, a Psychiatrist, who purports to show you how to lose weight and keep it off for life.

This is a very readable book and it may in fact have the answers to weight loss over time. But it is actually a book on brain health. Dr. Amen believes that a healthy brain can create a healthy (i.e. thin/slim) body.

There are a few things that destroy your brain such as excessive alcohol, sugar, smoking and drugs. Some diseases like dementia and depression destroy brain cells as well. He doesn't make it clear though which comes first, the disease or the deterioration of brain cells. He does say that alcohol/sugar/smoking/drugs can accelerate dementia and mental illness.

He makes a very good point that I had not considered prior to this. It is basically if your body is unhealthy, then your brain is also unhealthy. The two work in tandem. With an unhealthy brain you cannot make good decisions. You may not do what is best for you because you may unable to find and examine alternatives and use logic and wisdom and knowledge together to assess situations. Some parts of your brain may be working at a sub-prime level.

The good news is that if you eat a low calorie fruit and vegetable rich diet, exercise aerobically for half an hour a day and keep a positive attitude, your brain can become healthier. This book is motivating.

LDS Temple

2010-04-15T17:02:00.000-07:00

Emotionally, I think I should have a little religion in my life; intellectually, I always manage to talk myself out of it.

I am interested in religion - most religions. I have always thought that the Pope and the Dalai Lama and the heads of all major religions should meet once a year to discuss their common ground like love and peace for starters. This could be the equivalent of the G8 for religion.

I am always amazed at similarities in very diverse religions.

My knowledge of the LDS Church expanded as I became involved with researching my own family history. When I heard that I could see inside a temple without actually converting to Mormanism, I jumped at the chance this week.

The LDS Church has built the first Western Canadian Temple in Langley, BC. As it won't be dedicated and consecrated until May of this year, the church, in interests of transparency, has opened the temple for the public for tours until the 24th of April.

It is well worth the trip out to Langley for the architecture alone. It has amazing stained glass windows, marble floors, crystal chandeliers and much, much more.

Check out this website first though http://www.ldschurchtemples.com/vancouver/

Composting Continued....

2010-04-12T07:33:00.001-07:00

This is my new composting bin. It is made up of two 80 liter storage bins and one lid. The inside bin has holes along the side to let in air and holes along the bottom for drainage. I can collect excess liquid in the bottom.

To work effectively, this compost needs alternating layers of carbon and nitrogen based products. The best carbon is dry leaves but I can't start collecting those until the fall (although there are some places with oak leaves which have fallen recently). I am substituting shredded newspaper for now (unfortunately the newsprint has jammed up my paper shredder!). And, I have just learned that dryer lint is a good carbon substitute as well. There is cardboard, but how does one easily shred it.

For the nitrogen component, I am using most of my fruit and vegetable scraps, coffee grounds, tea bags and egg shells. The exceptions are orange, grapefruit and lemon peels. If I can find one of those old hand grinders, I might start grinding these up for the compost but in the normal state they will not decompose very quickly.

Originally, I was planning on having two bins but I think they will take up too much room on my deck. I think I will dump the bin every three of four months onto a sheet of plastic, remove the soil that can be used and put the rest back to start the next cycle.

And, the best part of all of this is that I no longer feel bad about disposing of my over-ripe bananas!

The Secret

2010-04-11T13:30:00.000-07:00

Oprah had a show with Rhonda Byrne discussing her book some time back but unfortunately I missed it. This book has been on the best seller list for a long time but I only had the opportunity to read it this past week (after I found it on my daughter's bookshelf).

As probably everyone knows, The Secret discusses the Law of Attraction and the benefits of positive thinking through a series of quotations from many people, past and present, who have embraced the new age thought process. Thoughts have energy and consequences. We can control our thoughts. If we think good things, good things will happen to us.

I love the quote attributed to Henry Ford, and often voiced by our Weight Watcher Leader, "Whether you think can or you think you can't, either way you are right".

This book is definitely an upper - well worth reading.

Composting on a Deck

2010-04-07T15:44:00.000-07:00

I now have an 80 liter plastic bin on my deck, 24" x 16" x 15", that is the beginning of a compost experiment. The bin has holes in it for drainage and air. If I do this right, the books tell me I should have usable compost in three months.

Today, I started the first additions - shredded newspaper for the carbon layer, some soil from old potted plants for the next layer and my kitchen scraps from the past week for the nitrogen layer. I have left the top off so that the rain can dampen everything enough. The bin has a place to catch excess water, so I can leave it in the rain for a day or two without danger of becoming waterlogged, I think.

In the past week, my kitchen waste has congealed down to about two liters so it will take awhile to actually fill the bin. If the ratio is 4 carbon:1 soil:1 nitrogen, it will take a month or two just to fill the bin.

I am hoping that the heat reaction which accelerates the breakdown of the carbon and nitrogen components, will begin with the second layer of carbon/soil/nitrogen has been added.

Happy Easter Everyone

2010-04-04T08:15:00.000-07:00

Easter Sunday used to mean being cold in new summery clothes, candy in a pink and blue and green basket wrapped in cellophane, church singing Alleluia, Alleluia, and a small gift like a paddle ball, a kite, jumping jacks or marbles. Best of all was a mesh bag of allies (we didn't call them marbles then) with a steelie or a glassie in it.

Easter Sunday now means family dinners, Cadbury cream eggs, and starting bedding plants for my garden.

Daffodils

2010-04-02T15:43:00.000-07:00

Some daffodils are at their peak, just in time for Easter.

"Daffodils" (1804)

I WANDER'D lonely as a cloud
That floats on high o'er vales and hills,
When all at once I saw a crowd,
A host, of golden daffodils;

Beside the lake, beneath the trees,
Fluttering and dancing in the breeze.
Continuous as the stars that shine
And twinkle on the Milky Way,
They stretch'd in never-ending line
Along the margin of a bay:

Ten thousand saw I at a glance,
Tossing their heads in sprightly dance.
The waves beside them danced; but they
Out-did the sparkling waves in glee:
A poet could not but be gay,
In such a jocund company:

I gazed -- and gazed -- but little thought
What wealth the show to me had brought:

For oft, when on my couch I lie
In vacant or in pensive mood,
They flash upon that inward eye
Which is the bliss of solitude;
And then my heart with pleasure fills,
And dances with the daffodils.

By William Wordsworth (1770-1850).

Hard to Read

2010-04-01T07:25:00.000-07:00

Why do I finish reading a book I don't like? I used to think I just wanted to find out 'who done it' but this morning I think it might be more than that.

Last night I stayed up late finishing The Empress of Asia. Here is the promotional excerpt for this book:

"Empress of Asia is an ambitious and stunning new novel from Adam Lewis Schroeder. Schroeder has painted a beautiful and compelling story of youthful innocence and determined love against a setting of the horrors of the World War II POW camps in Southeast Asia.

Unfortunately, the 'horrors' in this book were all too graphic and I am going to have nightmares about it for awhile. Sometimes I can forget about the hard-to-read passages in books and hard-to-watch scenes in movies by telling myself that these things are really not true or are exaggerated for effect. However, I did check some of the other facts in this book - such as that Vancouver actually did have at least one traffic light in the 30's - so I believe that the 'horrors' may have a lot of truth in them as well.

This is another novel set mainly during WW2 but it begins in Vernon, BC. Harry Winslow leaves his home after high school to find work on the boats in Vancouver during the depression. It ends in 1995 shortly after the death of the Harry's wife, Lily, in St. Paul's Hospital in Vancouver.

After reading this book, where there is good and evil in many corners and where Harry, the story teller in this book, does not see all of it, and has very little insight in general, (but is still a 'good' guy), it makes me wonder how much we miss in our own lives. It is easy to see how major events have changed the lives of those around us, but it is not easy to see how major events have affected me.

Orange Loaf

2010-03-29T09:47:00.000-07:00

Yesterday, I tried this recipe from the Food section of last week's Vancouver Sun. It is very tasty.

While I used the same ingredients, I followed my usual loaf routine, to make this.

I grated the zest from an orange and then squeezed the juice.

The zest went into the sugar which was then creamed with the butter. I then broke the eggs into the creamed mixture and combined them well. (Next time I will use an electric mixer.) I then added the water and the juice.

In a separate bowl, I sifted the flour, baking powder and salt. I then combined the wet and dry ingredients and mixed them well before filling the loaf pan. This went into a 350 degree oven for one hour.

The nice thing about this recipe is that you often have all of the ingredients on hand.

The Orange cookies might be worth a try one day. I just wonder what parts of the orange are used.

http://digital.vancouversun.com/epaper/viewer.aspx

Tea with Mitts

2010-03-28T07:17:00.000-07:00

I have been trying to find out if Ami McKay created the expression "Tea with Mitts" or if it is an old Nova Scotian expression. I love the idea of this expression and all of its ramifications.

http://www.randomhouse.ca/catalog/display.pperl?isbn=9780676977738&view=auqa

Above is an interview with Ami. She actually lives in the Birth House in Scots Bay now and has continued the tradition by having her own home birth there.

Ami doesn't talk about it in the interview but I wonder if she thinks that houses can tell their own story. Have you ever lain awake at night and thought about the people who might have lived in the house before you. I have often made up stories about them in order to fall asleep. And, then in the morning, wondered where those ideas may have originated.

Interesting to Read

2010-03-25T14:55:00.001-07:00

Dora, the main character in this book, like one of the main characters in the last book I read, (The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society), is an unlikely connoisseur of literature. Both of these people were born and live in a back water and were discouraged by education, economics and lifestyle to appreciate good writing. Yet, both quickly acquired a taste for reading and literature. Both books have a back drop of a war - WW1/WW2. Both characters exhibit quiet, inner strength and tenacity in the face of adversity.

This, however, is the only similarity between these books. Set on the Bay of Fundy during the First World War, The Birth House captures the touch and feel of the early twentieth century in the Maritimes. One example of this is when Dora's aunt tells her mother to take away the books Dora was reading because they would drive her crazy. (I was told in my time that too much reading would lead to blindness.)

Besides being a very interesting story - although I am not quite finished reading it- there is the push and pull of herbs and folk medicine versus science and modern medicine. It reminds us of how much traditional cures are an integral part of our culture.

Most of all, though, this book allows us to understand how our mothers and grandmothers coped with all of the limitations they encountered.

Fun to Read

2010-03-24T09:13:00.000-07:00

If you need a nice light diversion that is fun to read and hard to put down, may I suggest

The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society

by Mary Ann Shaffer and Annie Barrows

Like Housewife 49, it takes place around WW2. It is written as a series of letters to and from the writer. Slowly the stories of life changes during the war on the Island of Guernsey are revealed.

You can get it at your local library. First you may want to watch the video about it at Amazon.com ....

http://www.amazon.ca/gp/mpd/permalink/m11VE8SJPO1SPZ/ref=flash_player_2_preplay

VANCOUVER AS A DESTINATION

2010-03-23T09:57:00.000-07:00

KEY QUOTES FROM 2010 OLYMPIC WINTER GAMES MEDIA COVERAGE

"You're gorgeous, baby, you're sophisticated, you live well... Vancouver is Manhattan with mountains. It's a liquid city, a tomorrow city, equal parts India , China , England, France and the Pacific Northwest . It's the cool North American sibling." - The New York Times

"You may have heard that Vancouver is a great city, but it's better than that. On a good weather day - and we had a spectacular five-day run in the middle of the Games - it is stunningly beautiful, and it is an excellent eating, drinking and shopping city ." - The Boston Globe

" Vancouver looked gorgeous on TV ... NBC's shots of Vancouver 's downtown and waterfront, and aerial views of Whistler ski areas, provided a media boost no marketing campaign could have delivered ." - The Seattle Times

" Vancouver is a city unlike any other. Wherever I look, I see water or mountains -- or both. And everyone looks so healthy ." - The Daily Telegraph( UK )

"A remarkable environment. The license plates read 'Beautiful British Columbia' for a reason. The Sea-to-Sky Highway carries travelers on a jaw-dropping journey from the serenity of Vancouver 's waterfront to the majesty of Whistler and Blackcomb mountains." - The Buffalo News

"In winter, the heart of downtown [ Vancouver ] is 30 minutes from the ski slopes. In summer, sun seekers crowd its beaches and seaside promenades. And despite a rain-prone climate, it displays a perpetually sunny disposition. Consider it the supermodel of North American cities." - USA Today

" Vancouver is one of North America 's most under-rated tourist destinations. It is a modern, travel-friendly city with a unique mix of cultures. The relatively mild Pacific Northwest climate and an energetic restaurant and nightlife scene are other features that make this such an attractive city ."- LowFares.com

"[Visitors] will find the streets of Vancouver , a city of 2 million, so spotless they'll think Mr. Clean is the mayor." - The Miami Herald

"By the end of the 17 days that featured unseasonably warm temperatures and more than a week of brilliant sunshine, the cherry blossoms were blooming and a few fans had been spotted wearing shorts in the street while raucously celebrating Team Canada 's dramatic overtime victory over the Americans in the hockey final." - The Salt Lake Tribune

"Olympics visitors have become a travel marketer's dream as they bask in the Vancouver sun, flock to competitions and pour into downtown venues. The throngs of Games guests are magnets that should pull even more tourists to B.C. in the coming months and years." - The Montreal Gazette

"The city of Vancouver and the ski village of Whistler are terrific hosts for these Olympic Games. The air is clean, the public transit is scarily efficient, and the harbors, with snowcapped mountains for a backdrop, are picturesque. Whistler, two hours to the north and home to the skiing, sliding and Nordic events, is a winter wonderland."
- Time

THE FRIENDLINESS OF CANADIANS

" Thank you , Canada . For being such good hosts. For your unfailing courtesy... For reminding some of us we used to be a more civilized society. Mostly, for welcoming the world with such ease and making lasting friends with all of us." - Brian Williams, NBC News

"Along the way, there was plenty to like in Vancouver , if not always the weather. The people were generous and spirited, the volunteers cheery. Once,I saw a guy fail to smile; I think he was sentenced to 10 years of hard labor ." - Boston.com

"Before the closing ceremony begins, let me just take the time to thank the people of Vancouver for a wonderful 19 days. The people here couldn't be nicer, from the volunteers who make sure the buses run on time, to the citizens walking the streets, to the athletes and people from around the world who were here." - The LA Times

"The Olympics went into overtime Sunday. It was perfect. No one wanted the Warmest Games to end. Warmest weather. Warmest hosts ." - The Miami Herald

"Make no mistake, Canada 's people were the stars of these Games. They jammed the streets of Vancouver, cheered the most obscure sports as long as a Canadian was competing and all but drowned themselves in a sea of red. These are not folks normally given to outbursts of patriotism, but they found their voice here ." - Chicago Sun Times

"Why can't we be more like Canada ? They host the Olympics like they mean it. They smile ... and they have the Canadian Mounties. But most of all what they have is a kick-ass national anthem, a tune that says everything about who they are - and about what we, as Americans, are not."- The Huffington Post

"Graciousness is their default mode here. For the last two weeks, beaming has been a way of life. In a nod to the local vernacular, let me just saythis is the nicest city I've ever been in." - The Los Angeles Times

"No question the biggest winners of the 2010 Winter Olympics were the Canadian people, who were unfailingly polite, passionately patriotic, and self-deprecating enough to poke fun at themselves in the Closing Ceremonies." - The Miami Herald.com

CANADIAN PATRIOTISM

"For Canada , I'd call it a 'coming of age' moment. The country, all 35 million of us, were able to bare our patriotic souls in an outburst of unbridled patriotism not seen before." - The Toronto Star

"...the Games are a remarkable success. Millions of us are watching, and Vancouver is a giant block party. We know Canada is a small country in a big world, and most of us seem thrilled with what our athletes have achieved. Per capita, our medal count is second only to Norway 's." - The Globe & Mail

"Canadians used to think of themselves as being quiet, modest and unassertive. No longer. After their athletes topped the medals table with 14 golds at the winter Olympic games, some 100,000 flag-waving locals took to the streets of Vancouver and the nearby ski resort of Whistler, deliriously singing the national anthem." - The Economist

"This quiet city with such beautiful scenery made all of Canada proud ... In a nightly transformation, as many as 150,000 people flooded the closed-off downtown streets to savor the Olympic experience. Mostly mild instead of wild, the crowds whooped, hollered, danced and shouted 'Go Canada Go!' well into the morning." - The Houston Chronicle

"The bright-eyed exuberance can be a little overwhelming to someone who has spent many years absorbing cynicism in the Middle East, but the sheer earnestness helps temper what could elsewhere be an aggressive nationalism. Instead, it seems a pure expression of civic boosterism, no more, no less."- The Jerusalem Post

QUALITY OF THE GAMES EXPERIENCE

" These were the best Winter Games ever ." - Salon.com

"The venues here and the streets of Vancouver and Whistler are joyful places to be." - The Times London ( UK )

"So there was no shortage of Olympic spirit in BC and Vancouver became an amazing party town day and night." - Inside the Games

"...you can't stage a better Olympics. The city is beautiful. The venues are modern. The transportation is efficient. But this wasn't about logistics. In the end, it's the people that power the movement. The Canadian people pushed these games back from the brink of disaster and right off into history." -Yahoo.com

"The stadiums are full, the seats are full of passionate fans, the streets are busy and there's a lot going on ... Whether it is ice hockey, curling or speed skating, I haven't seen an empty seat in the house." - The Guardian

"The sporting venues were built on time and on budget. A new subway line links the airport to the city centre. The athlete's village, with a view over one of Vancouver 's many picturesque waterways, sets high standards in energy-efficient construction." - The Financial Times

"Top that if you can. Amid the tragedy, the medals race and the hockey frenzy, the Vancouver Olympics will be remembered above all for the fervor and ebullience of its Canadian hosts." - The Associated Press

"What Vancouver did show London was how to stage a Games to be enjoyed by everyone, from athletes to spectators to the general public, who embraced the Olympics with hands uniformly clad in red Olympic mittens." - Reuters

"There comes a time to tip your toque, and our good friends in Canada deserve our respect for hosting, and excelling in, a memorable Winter Olympics." - Philly.com

"Known better for their hospitality than their military, Canada mustered a small army of volunteers to pull off these Olympic Games with unfailing patience and cheerfulness." - The Christian Science Monitor

"In the end, these games became a testament to the resilience of both the Canadian and the Olympic spirit ." - The Australian

"The people of Vancouver embraced their Games as no other citizenry has in recent memory, not even Sydney. They packed the stadiums, thronged in the streets, made the cauldron their mecca." - The Sydney Morning Herald

"But the Games recovered in a spirited, determined and optimistic fashion, and most of the operation visible to me has been difficult to fault ...London faces a big challenge to generate the same level of enthusiasm for the Games." - BBC

"Seoul 's citizens were wonderfully fanatical in 1988 and Sydneysiders were pretty hyped up in 2000 but the Vancouverites who teemed downtown in their maple leafed garb have surely now set the standard for Londoners for 2012."- The Daily London Telegraph

"And overall, for athletes, fans, the media and the host nation especially, the Games were a triumph." - The Independent

"Bottle that Vancouver enthusiasm and London 2012 will really hit the spot. The London Olympics can take their cue from Vancouver, its organizers and its volunteers." - The Guardian

"I think it's always obvious at the end of any of these global spectacles whether a particular event was a success, or fell short of the mark. I have no doubt that history will recall these Olympic Winter Games falling into the former category." - The Daily Mail

VIEW FROM THE TOP

"The Games, suggested Prime Minister Stephen Harper on Monday, have elevated Canada on the world stage. 'Mark my words, some day historians will look back at Canada 's growing strength in the 21st century and they will say that it all began right here, on the West Coast, with the best Winter Olympic Games the world has ever seen." - Prime Minister Stephen Harper, CBC.ca

"Most importantly, the Olympics have provided a chance for international investors to get to know us and explore business opportunities." - BC Premier Gordon Campbell, Forbes

"We hosted the biggest event in our country's history and it was a huge success.' The mayor also took time to praise everyone involved in the Games, from the athletes to visitors, the police and finally, residents, for their consideration, co-operation and kindness. 'The people of Vancouver made the whole country proud." - Vancouver Mayor Gregor Robertson, The Province

"Furlong, in Sunday's touching farewell speech, may have said it best: 'I believe we Canadians tonight are stronger, more united, more in love with our country and more connected with each other than ever before. These Olympic Games have lifted us up. If the Canada that came together on opening night was a little mysterious to some, it no longer is. Now you know us, eh." - VANOC Chief John Furlong, The Vancouver Sun

"Expo 67 was a moment of coming of age for Canada ," said Michele McKenzie, president of the [Canadian Tourism] commission. "One of the things it did in young people was inspire interest in our country. What this Olympics has done is expose younger generations to what Canada is as a country. . . . I think the world has a much deeper understanding of the country after this. It's magic." - CTC President Michele McKenzie, The Vancouver Sun

"US Vice-President Joe Biden complimented Canadians Saturday on what he called an 'incredible' Olympic opening ceremony. 'You guys put on one heck of a show,' Biden said Saturday afternoon, speaking briefly with reporters. 'Last night was incredible, absolutely incredible,' he added." - USVice-President Joe Biden, Canada.com

More on Placebos

2010-03-22T22:18:00.000-07:00

Placebos Are Getting More Effective. Drugmakers Are Desperate to Know Why.

Click on the line above. This is a really good, interesting article on Placebos.

Oh, to find something like this that could apply to weight loss!

The Placebo Effect

2010-03-22T15:10:00.000-07:00

I have just discovered that placebos are not actually inert substances which can fool people who think they need something. They can actually trick your brain into releasing chemicals which can alleviate pain.

I have always thought that the placebo effect was just something that skewed scientific studies. The placebo effect meant that scientists never quite knew the real effect of drugs or treatments they were testing due to the placebo effect.

However, studies have found that placebos are one-half to two-thirds as powerful as morphine in relieving severe pain of any kind because they can produce real physiological changes in the brain. If you believe you have ingested a pain killer, your brain will release pain-relieving chemicals which reduces pain. This was proven in a dental study in California in 1978 where researchers gave patients who were given placebos for pain, a drug, naloxone, which neutralizes the effects of morphine. The naloxone worked in the same way on the placebo effect as it did with morphine.

A placebo is defined as an inert substance that has no physiological effect on a problem - it comes from Latin for "I shall please". This may have to be renamed or redefined or both.

Ethics aside, cases could be made for prescribing placebos to people with allergies or weakened immune systems or who are pregnant or nursing. Any one who shouldn't or can't deal with the side effects of other medication, would benefit from placebos.

If this were the case, I wonder if they would still work on skeptics?