Our weekend in Victoria

Well thank you all for your camping stories and for wishing us well on our adventure.

Our day started off very early. We were up at 0500 packed and on the road by 0600. Amazing I say. Our trip to Victoria was wonderful. The drive down was uneventful. We made fabulous time, so much so that we had time to spare. We were able to make it to the campsite and pick our spot. We set up our tent and left some things at the site and then headed off to my daughters first game which started at 0900. The sun was shining....we couldn't have asked for better weather.

The girls didn't do that well. They lost their first game...but they played as though they were tired. The next game was close...great game, but the other team scored in the last few minutes of the game. Darn. But we were all proud of their hard work and how well they played together. Most of these girls are new to this sport and there are a lot of rules to learn...and hitting the ball around with the silly little sticks...it's amazing what they can do.

The girls put in great effort on their first day and it was a pleasure to watch.

Hubby and I left the field and went to set up our campsite. The tent that we had set up didn't have a fly so we were just going to buy a tarp, but then thought better of it and ended up buying a new tent. You know what they say....when you get a new tent you should first set it up at home. This tent was very interesting. It had two vestibules....so you ended up setting up the outer fly first and then you lay the inner part of the tent after and it attaches to clips on the fly. Well it all looked just a tad difficult so I left that chore to hubby....

I wanted to show you a picture of hubby setting up the tent....but he vetoed the two photos I had of that....anyhow...there is the tent in the background.....notice those trees....this is an old growth campsite....after all the wind storms we had in the fall there were a lot of trees fallen down....but we weren't allowed to use them for firewood as they are to rot and make compost on the forest floor. So instead we had to pay almost $6.00 for a bundle of wood. Crazy....

And here is our expensive fire.

It was a lovely evening.....No smores though....just reading by the campfire and telling stories....very peaceful. Sunday came ......we slept in....I can't believe it. Hubby suggested we set the alarm but I nixed the idea as everyone is always up at the crack of dawn when you are camping and I figured this time would be no different. Well what I didn't count on was me being up at 0400 getting my antihistamines and then going back to bed and not waking up until almost 0900.....my daughters game was at 1000 and we still had to take down camp and drive the 20 mins to the fields. We made it to the field with 10 mins still left in the first half.

They won the game, so there next game wasn't until 3:30, which meant we had almost 4 hrs to kill. My daughter and her team mates were tired and just wanted to sit in the shade and relax. I couldn't blame them. So hubby and I decided that we would take a drive around town. We drove around the water route which took us to some very posh neighbourhoods. We made our way to downtown and to the inner habour...and what do we see but this....

What's that you say.....well it looks like a helicopter stationed on what looks like a yacht!!!

Amazing isn't it. The ship is called the "Atessa" it is 225 ft long, it carries 35,000 gallons of fuel, it is the 13th largest yacht in America and 69th largest in the world. It is owned by Denis Washington, who owns Seaspan. Mr. Washington lives in Montona. He is also the proud owner of our fastcat ferries. It's hard to imagine that kind of wealth.

We returned to the field to watch the last game. They lost....boo hoo. But they had a great time. They had to rush to try and catch the ferry so they were off like whirling dervish. Hubby and I gathered up our belongings and made the trek north. Home.

It's Friday and a camping we must go....

Let's do the Friday dance!!!! Yipee.....it's Friday it's Friday...... Being a shift worker I don't normally get that excited about Friday as a Monday could be a Friday for me. Anyhow, today I feel like I am on holidays. I actually was able to get my nightshift off for tonight and for tomorrow night, I can't believe it.

So I have big plans for the weekend. My youngest daughter is coming to the Island for a Field hockey tournament. This tournament will be played in Victoria. That is about a 3 hour drive away from where I live. So hubby and I have decided that we are going to go down there and watch her tournament. Rather than stay in a hotel we are going to camp. I love camping. I can't say that I loved it so much when my girls where little, it was a lot of work then. I mean think about it...what is so ideal about trying to cook a meal on a camp stove underneath a tarp as the rain is teeming down. Then trying to keep your little rascals dry and comfortable. I can remember at one point, my two eldest daughters said to the father and I....do we have to go camping ......it always rains. Which it did.

I remember one time in particular. I was 6 months pregnant, my eldest daughter was 7 and my other daughter was 3 1/2. We were going to camp our way to Alberta to see my brother and his family. We left our sunny home early in the morning. Knowing we would have to make numerous stops on the way to our first destination we figured it would take us about 7 hours to arrive at our final destination for the day. We made it to the Okanagan where the sun was shining it was wonderfully warm, we stopped for a picnic lunch the girls ran around and played. After that it was making our last jaunt. Our plan was to stay at a Provincial campground 30 mins. past Osoyoos. For those of you who don't know Osoyoos, it is Canada's dessert. It gets extremely dry in the summer months cactus are abundant. The temperature when we arrived was 36 degrees Celsius which is about 104 F. Stinking hot!!! Anyhow, we made a short stop there so the girls could have a swim and then moved on to our final destination. We arrived. We start to unload the car....got the first tent set up when I heard a rumbling in the distance and this big black cloud. Oh my goodness...quick honey I shouted we have to get the cover set up over the table so I have somewhere dry to cook dinner. We had one of those mesh tents with the tarp roofs for putting around your picnic table....we were frantically trying to set it up....it was to late.....the rain came...and it poured ....and it poured.....as I was holding up one end it gave way to the weight of the water and it all came pouring down off of the tarp down my back....I was soaked. The girls where shooed into the car....we couldn't use the tent for sleeping as the rain had formed a river underneath it....we moved what we could from the car into the driest part of the tent....we managed to get the cover over the table so I was able to make a very simple dinner.....the winds came up and it got cold....we all piled into the car. My eldest daughter got the honour of sleeping in the front seat. The back seat folded down and that is where my ex husband, my 3/12 year and me and my 6 month pregnant tummy attempted to sleep for the night.

Morning couldn't come soon enough....the rain had eased off a bit...but when we looked outside the car we saw the mess the rain had left. Everything was soaked....I mean soaked. I suggested to my ex that he take the car and see if he could find somewhere we could stay to dry out. He left and again I attempted to make something for the girls for breakfast and start to pack up. Have you ever tried to pack up a soaking wet tent...urgh. Well we make it to a motel....where we were able to get a room, and shower and warm up. The rain had stopped so we unpacked the tent and laid it out on the car to dry.....it took almost 3 days for everything to dry out. And this type of weather and experiences kept repeating itself the remaining way to my brothers. It seemed every time we decided to set up camp the clouds came and so did the rain. My goodness...did we have the tarps or what......I was never so happy as I was when we reached my brothers. The girls were really good sports about it....but they too had had enough of the rain. And that is how most of our camping experiences where....spent camping in the rain.

So I find it funny that I still enjoy camping, but I do. I love to be outdoors, I love the smores you make while sitting at the camp fire....the smell of bacon on the grill, the echo sound of someone chopping wood.....the children's laughter....the dogs barking in a distance....the crackling of the fire......yup it's camp out time this weekend.....Yippe!

The Selfishness of one.....

As of late I have been posting about things I have found disturbing in the news. The topic I want to talk about today is no different. I am enraged. Hence my picture shown here. After hearing on the news and reading in the paper, I am angered. I am angered that one individual can be so irresponsible. Thinking solely of himself with total disregard for the impact his action have on others. I am talking about the American gentlemen who is infected with deadly strain of TB and knowingly chose to take international flights, putting many at risk.

What I have read is that this man now disputes that the doctor's told him he could not fly. He says that they "recommended" he not fly. I guess to him this meant that he had the green light to fly. How irresponsible can an individual be? Then to add insult to injury, by the time the authorities track the man and his new wife down, they had already crossed many countries in Europe. When the authorities wanted to make personal arrangement to get the man and his wife back to the US the couple fled and caught an international flight to Montreal.

Here are some of the excerpts from a news report......

".....The man at the centre of the international incident, an American citizen, flew to Europe on May 12. Authorities say he did so against the advice of his local public health officials, who had informed him on May 10 he was infected with a multi-drug resistant strain of tuberculosis and should not be taking commercial flights. Further testing revealed that he was actually infected with extensively drug resistant TB.

The man disputes the assertion he was told not to fly, telling the Atlanta Journal-Constitution in an interview that public health officials told him they would prefer it if he didn't fly. But he felt healthy and didn't want to cancel his planned wedding and honeymoon and went ahead with the trip. "

The report then goes on to say...

"...While in Rome the CDC located the man and told him he had extensively drug resistant TB and should not take any additional commercial flights.
CDC officials began trying to arrange for his safe return to the U.S. but the couple abruptly left Rome, flying to Prague. There they boarded the flight for Montreal, where they rented a car and drove into the United States at the border crossing at Champlain, N.Y.
The man told the Atlanta newspaper he deliberately flew to Canada to try to sneak back into the United States to evade a U.S. no-fly order. But it appears the U.S. order hadn't been conveyed to European public health authorities and airlines"

I couldn't believe what I read ....."he deliberately flew to Canada to try to sneak into the US." Doesn't that constitute a criminal act? This is just wrong. This man showed total disregard for human life. He selfishly went on his way travelling around Europe potentially spreading his germs to anyone he came in contact with for any length of time. His actions are beyond comprehension.....I am so outraged. He was/is a potential lethal ticking time bomb spreading his germs to anyone he has had close contact with. What total disregard for life.

I think criminal charges should be laid against this man. If I am not mistaken (and any of you with a law background feel free to correct me) there is precedence out there that when and individual knowingly has a communicable disease that can be fetal and intentionally infects another, this person can be found guilty of manslaughter. I think the same should apply here. This man chose to travel knowing he had a potentially deadly disease which is highly contagious. I say lock him up. But you know what....his sentence has been dealt in that he has a 50% chance of this disease being fatal.

If you would like to read more of this story you can read it hear

What are pageants all about anyways?

Do you watch beauty pageants? I use to. I read this morning that last evening they crowned another Miss Universe....Ms. Riyo Mori a 20 year old from Japan. She is strikingly beautiful. This is a picture of her in her evening gown.

I have never really understood why we have pageants in the first place. Why do we need a Miss Universe or a Miss Texas, Miss Vancouver or Miss Rodeo and Miss Car wash.....I mean really what is their purpose? If it is truly to spread charity and good will then why on earth do we care what she looks like in an evening gown or better yet a swimsuit?

To me it is just another contest. They use to call it Beauty Pageant. Beauty as they say is in the eye of the beholder...so why on earth do we as women put ourselves in positions where we are being judged. Isn't there enough competition out there already.

As I type this I can hear the people for these competitions thinking I am just another overweight feminist wishing that I could be up on stage strutting my stuff. Well guess what folks. I was there once. Don't ask me why. I really don't have an answer for that. I was 15 at the time. Competing for the Miss Teen Vancouver pageant. It was the most stressful thing I could have done. The interview, sitting at one end of the table with 8 people at the other, asking me all kinds of questions....oh I can remember my dry mouth...thank god for the water...then there were the outfits....urgh....I remember looking around the room at all these other girls....I knew I didn't have a hope in winning this...but something just made me want to try. I think at the end of the day it might have been for the notoriety I thought I would have gained if I had won the pageant.

Years past, it was after I had my 3rd daughter she was 8 months old. I was reading in our local paper about a baby competition...I read the rules and I thought....maybe I should enter my little one in this. I mean to me she was cute and cuddly and just so healthy looking. So that is what I did. I entered her in this contest. I had her dressed in this cute country blue dress with pinafore....you know what....they made us remove our children's clothing....all they could wear was their diapers and undershirts. Each parent took their turn entering the room with the judges with our babies in arm....baby was placed on the table in front of the judges...baby cooed and giggled, and then smiled and stood with mommies assistance...and played dancing feet....I was asked a few questions...then left. They then asked us to put our baby on the floor with the other babies...there were toys and the babies interacted. It turns out that is what the judges wanted to see was how well the child interacted with the others. I must tell you that two of the four judges were in the medical field one judge was a community nurse who specialized in paediatrics and the other was a doctor. We didn't know this until the end. Anyhow, the long and the short of it was my little girl won. Yes we were proud, she got a little trophy and pictures where taken and a little notice was put in the local paper and that was that.

When I look back on that experience again I wonder what was my impetus for entering my daughter in that competition. Was it acknowledgement that she was a healthy active cute baby....I knew that...why did I need someone else to tell me that. My daughter didn't have a clue what was going on so it was all about me...what I wanted to do. That was the last competition we ever did. It just didn't seem right anymore.

Now when I think of the little girls all decked out with make up and hair do's...who are we doing this for and why? At 4 or 5 or even 6 years of age, do they really know what they want? Yes, they want to please mommy and daddy. Yes they like it when people clap and smile and say they did well, who wouldn't. But is that the message we want to be giving our girls?

I have watched many documentaries on this topic. What I find to be the common thread is that most of these children are pushed by their parents to perform. Whether it be for a beauty pageant or cheer leading the parents are often the driving force. Again we must ask ourselves, whose agenda is this? Is this truly what the child wants or are we as parents trying to live our lives vicariously through our children.?

I think there are some children out there that are very driven and want to perform and cheer lead and such......but for a larger portion I don't believe that to be that case.

I am not against competition, but when the competition is based soley on our looks I have to ask myself why? Why do we do this to ourselves?

Cheers all and Happy Tuesday

Have's and the Have nots

This morning as I was reading news highlights in Yahoo homepage. I was drawn to the topic on "What the Rich Worry about". Out of shear curiosity I read the article. I don't think I was overly surprised at what they said the rich worried about...what shocked me is that they put it into print for the world to read...here are a few excerpts from what they had to say......

"rich do fear being cheated by an unscrupulous financial adviser, being a victim of some other financial fraud, having their identity stolen, being unjustly sued or violence against themselves or their families."They have all sorts of security issues ... because they have more at stake......."

The other thing they say they worry about is "Money" How ironic is that. But it is true. The wealthy worry about keeping their money, making more money and teaching their children how to appreciate money...

"About 30% of those in the US$1 million to US$5 million bracket worry about teaching their children how to manage money. That number doubles at the highest tier. Balancing family and business interests worried 23% of those in the lower range and 60% in the highest."
"They are concerned that [their children] be in control of the money, rather than let the money be in control of them,'' says Jon Gallo, co-author with his wife Eileen Gallo of Silver Spoon Kids and The Financially Responsible Parent: 8 Steps To Raising Successful, Generous, Responsible Children."
The report goes on to say....." 94% say the same was true of "the lifestyles of the exceptionally wealthy." These exceed the 81% who say "not being able to meaningfully enhance" their current lifestyle is important, which is about the same level as "making sure your heirs are taken care of."

As Russ Prince(interesting name for an author of such a report don't you think) describes it, it's the mindset of "I have the $5 million jet. I want the $10 million jet." But he doesn't see it as greed. Rather, he says, it's simply a reflection of what everyone at every income level wants: something more.
" 'Greedy' is the wrong word,'' Prince says. "This is not a bad thing. This is the capitalist model. The desire to keep moving up, to enhance their lifestyle, is critical to having this entrepreneurial society.''

I found this whole article very disturbing. It made me curious as to what is the average household income both in Canada and the USA this is what I found. The average household income for a Canadian family in 1995(sorry most current stats available) was $58,899. In the USA they say the average White Non-Hispanic household income is $48,997 that is for year 2004. There are 39 million people in the USA living in poverty that is more than the whole population of Canada. What's even more disturbing is that 13 million of those people are children under the age of 18.

How dare Mr. Prince say that using the word "greedy" is wrong. You tell me...why should so few have so much, when the future of countries lies in the hands of their children and yet we let their children live in poverty.

I am not saying that the wealthy are not entitled to their wealth. Some have worked extremely hard to get where they are. I take exception to the likes of celebrities like Paris Hilton who do nothing with their lives other than spend the family wealth and the cry to the courts because they have been to harshly treated. Boo hoo Paris. I digress.

I just find it so terribly frustrating when I read articles like the one I read this morning....it truly tells me that some journalists still have their heads up their.....and haven't got a clue as to what the average person thinks, needs or desires. In times when gas prices are skyrocketing, to be able to purchase a home is becoming a thing of the past, for some even putting a meal on the table is a chore and then to be told that the rich have worries as well....like how to make their children socially responsible and how they will buy their next jet...oh please give me a break. We should be teaching our children to be socially responsible regardless of their socio/economic situation and as far as the jet goes...well if you have a dream go for it...but not on the backs of others.

In countries like Canada and the USA poverty should be a thing of the past. One shouldn't have to be working 2 or 3 jobs to put food on the table. And as for the rich....well I am happy for them...but I certainly don't give a rats....about how they will buy their next jet.....

Happy Monday all!

So what's in your garden?

You have all heard my tales of me in my garden. As you also know I am a nurse by trade....not a gardener. Before this city girl moved here my idea of gardening was making up hanging baskets and the odd flower pot. I don't have a green thumb.....and I certainly don't have a clue as to what I am doing out there.....but...I know I like colour and I like things to have some sense of order and yet incorporates and enhances the area around it.

So I am taking baby steps. I have been working with what has been on the property. So far this spring I have spent a lot of time cutting down trees, clearing brush, pulling weeds....moving stones....and generally cleaning up. I did plant a few things in the garden and added a few garden ornaments. I have a long way to go...but I am planning on being here a long time...so I am taking baby steps with all of this.

Today, hubby and I went to some garage sales....I was on the look out for unusual garden items. Could I find any....nope not a one. We went to about 15 garage sales....lots of knick knacks...tons of trunks....housewares....I swear if I saw one more rice cooker or coffee maker I was going to scream...well not really ...but you know what I mean.

Our travels took us into our little town....and off to the hardware store we went. We found this unusual bird feeder....now seeing as I am surrounded by birds...bird feeder seemed like a good idea...Now all I have to do is find a home for it.....

Then when we were at the grocery store we found this planter......

It's suppose to be a dog....it has a wagging tail....not sure what I am going to put in it yet...but I will figure something out.....then there was this little ornament...... Being the bird lover that I am....I just thought this was a nice addition....

These are flowers blooming from my chives.....I don't think I should have let them go to seed...but the flowers are so pretty.....what the heck.....

Tomorrow is another day....and the weather is suppose to be nice....so I am planning on getting out there....hubby is busily trying to fix the rototiller so I can go and dig up the veggie garden and a few other areas I have plans for......work work work.......being in the garden......I wouldn't have it any other way!

What about you.....do you enjoy being in the garden? Do you have a garden? If you had a garden what would you have in it?

Saturday's Photo Scavenger Hunt

This week's theme is "Colourful"

Wow, there is so much we can say about colour....like the wonderful colour of the flowers in this garden.....or

The wonderful colours in the plumage of this Mallard duck.....or

The spectacular colours a setting sun can make on an evening sky....or

Nature and it's boldness for colour on something .... well let's just not as pretty .....

Oh, I could go on with this one.....but finally......the splendor and crispness of colour on a fresh budding African violet.

Happy Hunting all!

Saturday's Photo Scavenger Hunt

The Theme for for today is Cooked/ing.

I had just made a chocolate cream pie.....my hubby and the boys thought it would look better if I wore it than ate it! To some degree I have to agree with them.

Happy hunting all!

A New Day............

As new buds on a tree begin to bloom and grow.....so may my new approach to blogging begin.

Hello to you all..... I realized I have been a little remiss in posting lately. I think the reason for this is twofold.....For one I am bushed....I have just completed what has seemed like the longest set of shifts in a long time. It was no longer than any other set, but it just seemed that way. I think it had to do with having to do 3 night shifts instead of my regular 2. I also think what made it so challenging is that 3 out of my 4 shifts I was involved in what is known as a "Code Blue", two of these codes happened in less than 24hrs and to compound matters our unit was running short staffed which seems to be the norm for most nursing units lately.

My second reason, primarily is a result of a trend I having been observing in the blog world which I am finding very disturbing. In my previous post I told you about my dear friend Cathy and how her blog was hijacked...then I find out that another fellow blogger had someone in her office print excerpts of her blog and give it to her boss....needless to say her blog is now closed, another blogger had to close her blog due to somewhat similar circumstances, then there was another blog in which someone took information from this persons blog and published it in their local paper, the up roar this caused resulted in the blogger having to leave her small community. The interesting thing about all of this is, all of these bloggers are connected to the medical field. I find this very disturbing. I don't know if it is just a coincidence or if there really is something to all of this. Being in the medical field myself it does give me concern. My blog by no means has had the popularity or notoriety as the blogs that I have mentioned.... and maybe that has been my saving grace. I truly am baffled as to why people would do this to others and what is their motivation? But I must say it has given me a wake up call.

I no longer feel like I can blog freely as I have done so in the past. In my sheer naivety I have blogged about everything in my life. I have shared pictures of my family, places I like to visit, things I like to do.....oooops......now in hind sight......maybe that has not been such a good idea. I mean I may have inadvertently put my loved ones in harms way without realizing it. In this case ignorance is not bliss.

Hence I have chosen not to post any further pictures of my personal life, but rather post pictures that I find reflect the topic at hand. My topics will be of general interest issues in which I hope will promote dialogue with the exchange of thoughts and philosophies. I have also chosen not to post as frequently as I have in the past.

What I promise I will do, is continue to participate in the Saturday Photo scavenger hunt.....I just love checking out all the blogs and their pictoral interpretation of the weekly theme. And continue to visit those blogs that have become such a part of my day. There are some really super bloggers out there....so many kind, gentle and sincere bloggers that I would truly miss if I didn't visit.

So with that being said.....I do wish you all a grand day.....and be safe!!!

And as always.......Cheers!!!!

Just another Manic Monday......

Here we are at the beginning of another week. I can't believe how time flies. I awoke this morning at 0500 and was up at 0530 it's now 0945 and I am wondering where has the morning gone. Well, I drove hubby to work then I went for a run after that I went grocery shopping and drove home. Unloaded the car put the groceries away....and now I am blogging and procrastinating. The yard needs to be attended to. It feels like I just cut and trimmed the lawn not that long ago....but now with the fine weather the grass is growing. I go on to nights tonight so I know if I don't do it today it won't get done until the weekend that that will be to long. I did however spend all of last Wednesday doing what I must do today.

You see, cutting the lawn is not just one task. First I must get out the rider mower.....2.5 acres is lot of grass to cut by pushing....but once that is done then I do in fact get the push mower out and trim everywhere the big mower couldn't get and then....oh no I am not finished I have to get the weed whacker out to trim around all of the trees etc. Oh yes it is a task....not sure how much of it I will achieve today....as I do want to nap sometime before I go onto my night shift.

My Mother's day ...I spent working...which is alright. I was fortunate enough to go the mainland and see my girls. Thursday was spent driving alot in city traffic. Dear god I forgot how crazy city driving can be. Case in point. I was near my daughters place and there was the woman in a mini van driving behind me....I looked in my rear view mirror and I knew I just knew she was on a mission. There she was driving like a bat out of hell....putting on her blush and then mascara...oh my dear god! I couldn't believe it....and she was tailgating me, thank goodness I didn't have to make any sudden stops......oops or she might have had a mascara brush in her eye. Now for any of you who know me...I am no slow joe. I mean really I told you about all of my speeding tickets I got last year driving my mustang. Anyhow, I just couldn't believe this woman....once I turn off she just shot right up to the next person and tailgated them as well. Here is another example of some of the bad driving behaviours I saw while I was on the mainland. I was stopped at a pedestrian light...... note, times like these are generally a good opportunity for any cars on the side streets to get into traffic. The light turns green, I start to enter the intersection as does the car beside me....but right out of no where comes this car from the side street turns right in front of us....both of us have to brake... well I guess we didn't have to but then gosh we would have hit him and I am sure the insurance company would have blamed us.... anyhow, I just couldn't believe it. Those couple of days I spent on the mainland having to drive, were enough to show me how discourteous city drivers have become, their aggressiveness and their total disregard for safety and their lack of consideration for other drivers. I was and still am aghast as to what I saw. I just shake my head and say...they deserve to pay the insurance premiums that they do.

On a lighter note....I saw my girls and my sister Anita. The girls took me out for dinner on Thursday night for Mother's day...and bought me the most wonderful collection of garden tools and accessories...it was fabulous. After dinner the girls and I went to visit my sister to check up on her. Her surgery went well and I thought she looked great considering what she had been through. She got the word from the surgeon who informed that the biopsy was benign. So now all she has to face is her radiation treatment. With the good news of the biopsy she has decided to still go ahead with the wedding which I think is fabulous. I couldn't be happier for her.

My sister and my girls

On Friday I was rushing my youngest daughter to another appointment. From there we went to see her grandpa in the hospital. He just had surgery for a hip replacement. But unfortunately he ended up having a heart attack intra operatively. So he is now having to go for angiogram today. The terrible thing about all of that, was that they didn't let Grandma know anything. It was I who started to ask all the questions. Being in the medical field, I knew there was some reason why they moved him from the surgical suite to the telemetry unit. So I asked, turns out he had a few things going on. His heart attack and he was anemic and was going to require a transfusion. Grandma wasn't there when I found all this out. But I called her and she came immediately to the hospital so I had to explain to her all what was going on and what the plan of care for Grandpa was going to be. I spent two days at the hospital as well checking up on him. I know Grandma and the girls dad where glad I was there and got all the scoop on him on thier behalf. Grandma gave me the go ahead to call and speak to the medical staff on her behalf regarding what was going on with Grandpa so I could then explain it to all of them. Bless his heart. considering his young age of 83, he was doing amazingly well. That dear man just the day before his surgery was out cutting his lawn and tidying the yard so it wouldn't be to bad when the yard maintenance people came. I told him he was crazy and should have just left it. But nope that is not his style.

So, Friday evening comes and I am able to spend some time with a girlfriend who so kindly made dinner for me and had me over night. We had a lovely time. Saturday came and I was up at the crack of dawn to catch the ferry home.

I arrived home only to find that my dear sweet hubby had been working very hard whilst I was away and well needless to say they house was.....shall we say "let go". So I spent the next few hours cleaning.

I feel like this past week has been a whirlwind of activity and I don't see any calm in sight. My youngest daughter and her friend are arriving on Thursday and will be staying the weekend, so I need to get the rooms ready. My goodness......but you know .....I wouldn't have it any other way!

Cheers all......and Happy Monday!

A Blog has Been Hijacked.....

Cathy from Cathy's Rants and Ramblings blog has been hijacked. Cathy tells me that she had deleted her blog and immediately once she had done that someone took her address and is posting ads on her blog using her blog address...this person(s) has even kept old posts that she has made and some of her blogroll. I am not sure of their motivation behind this but please don't go there.

Here is an excerpt from the email Cathy sent me......

"Hi, yes my blog has been hi-jacked again! Mary Anne, I am sick to death over this and I dont know what to do about it..I had closed and deleted my blog because it was stolen and placed on a blogtastic site. Then within 24 hours of closing it, it was hi-jacked again,and this guy BIEL, is using it for ad's....I have written to both blogger and google...."

Cathy has asked me if I would make a post on my blog and let you all know what has happened. I know there are some of you who visit my blog as well as hers. So this is just a notice to let you all know. I have told Cathy she can make a post on my blog to let you all know what is going on.

Urgh!!! Some people's kids, I tell ya!!! That really burns my Twizzlers!!!

Life as a Leftie.....better known as "Southpaw"

The other day I did a post on "Seven things about me". One of the things I posted was that I was a Leftie. I mentioned briefly how the world is not designed to deal with us folks. The funny thing is that 1 in 10 people are left handed. You would think that with the numbers being that high that the world would attempt to accommodate us. But it just isn't so.

I have heard or the stories that years ago when children where in school that the teachers would smack the children's hands with a wooden ruler if they where caught trying to print using their left hand. Ouch! That is something I can say I was fortunate not to experience.

I can remember my mom trying to teach me how to tie my shoes....oh my goodness.....I never really master it....my laces are still tied funny.....and when I try and make bows now....I do the bunny ear trick. My middle daughter is a lefty. I taught her how to tie her shoes using he bunny ear trick. It took a very long time....but we got there....I have a sneaky suspicion that is one of the reasons she loved her rubber boots so much, they were much easier to get on and off....no laces to contend with.

What about knitting? When I was in girl guides one of the things we had to do to get a badge was knit a square. Again, my mom attempted to show me how to knit. She use to have to stand behind me, think about what she would do...then reverse it.....I did learn how to knit....don't know how I did it but I did.

And what about those scissors. I still joke about failing "cut and paste" when I was in school. That is not a joke. The scissors where backwards and were very difficult to use, I was so happy that by the time I learned how to sew they had come up with left handed scissors. You right handed people try and put your scissors in your left hand and cut something......it's not easy.

What about potato peelers? Yup those too....I can't tell you how many times I peeled off parts of my thumb....or I would have to peel towards myself. When I was growing up in my large family I would have to peel a 10 lbs pot of potatoes for dinner. That was a lot of potatoes.....went through a lot of band aides in those days.

Or how about operating any power tool that has a pull string . Those are all on the wrong side for me. Again I have persevered....but some days the machine wins.

Oven mitts. Ever notice when you go to put the oven mitts on the silver protective side is on the wrong side....I always want to put them on the other way.....go to your kitchen and check it out.....our dominant hand is our left. Baking utensils are all backwards....well for us lefties they are. There are finally stores now that you can buy left handed utensils but you pay a pretty penny for them.

Then there are the sports. Hockey sticks are always bent the wrong way.....you have to look really hard to find a right handed ball glove. Remember most gloves are worn on the left hand...as a righty you throw with your right catch with your left. What about golf clubs? You can get left ones now but again for a premium price. I wear a right handed ball glove but I bat right handed. That is because that is how I was taught.....I think I golf right handed....again that is because I was taught that way. But I can't snowboard.....I still can't figure out if I am a "Goofy" yeah that is what they call us lefties in the snowboard world....or a "Regular" meaning you board right.

Here are some interesting things I found out on the Internet about us poor south paws....

.......Medical researchers have searched long and hard for what causes people to be left handed or right handed. The researchers have concluded that left handed people are left handed for the same reason as brown eyed people have brown eyes. It's just one of those things that shows up in one out of every ten people.

A really interesting question is whether there is any connection between left handed people and creative genius. Some of history's most creative minds have been left-handed.

In the category of art, both Leonardo da Vinci and Michelangelo were left handed. In the category of music, Ludwig van Beethoven was left handed. In the field of science and invention, you find Benjamin Franklin, Isaac Newton, and Albert Einstein.
In the field of motion pictures, Charlie Chaplin.

Bobby Fisher, the modern chess genius, is left handed. So too musical geniuses Bob Dylan, Paul McCartney, and Wynton Marsalis.

Each of the these persons had a mind so exceptional as to be head and shoulders above anyone else in their field. So even though it may be more difficult for a left handed person to live in a right handed world, lefties can know that they are in good company. Beethoven and Einstein had it tough, too.

I found this great site that talks about how to determine whether a child is right orleft handed they call it "Determining Hand Dominance" In my title of the blog I use the term "Southpaw" it's just something that has stuck with me. Here is what I found out about the origin of the "Southpaw"

A left-handed individual may be known as a southpaw, particularly in a sports context. It is widely accepted that the term originated in the United States, in the game of baseball.[17] Ballparks are often designed so that the batter is facing east, in order that the afternoon or evening sun does not shine in his eyes. This means that left-handed pitchers are throwing from the south side. The first use of the term is credited to Finley Peter Dunne. However, the Oxford English Dictionary lists a non-baseball citation for "south paw", meaning a punch with the left hand, as early as 1848,[18] just three years after the first organized baseball game.

In boxing, someone who boxes left-handed is frequently referred to as southpaw. The term is also used to refer to a stance in which the boxer places his right foot in front of his left, so it is possible for a right-handed boxer to box with a southpaw stance. Most boxers, southpaw or otherwise, tend to train with sparring partners who adopt a right-handed stance, which gives southpaws an advantage.

So there you have it....a little history on being left handed and the challenges we face. Just looking at my mouse for the computer....I am forced to use my right hand because of the design of the mouse...using my thumb on the mouse to move the page forward or back and scrolling....yup it's everywhere..... The interesting thing I found is the1 in every 10 is left handed. It just turns out that I was baby number 10 in my family and I am the only left handed person. But I only had 3 daughters and my middle daughter is left handed....she is very creative....a great artist.....and determined.....so hey maybe there is something to be said about the creative minds of a left handed person.

Let's hear it for Lefties!!!

A gift

You know how sometimes right out of the blue our sweethearts will do something special.....like bring home flowers....or cook dinner......or better yet clean the bathroom. Well the other day my sweetie brought home from work something he had made for me.....I was very touched....

That is a piece of stone he carved and polished for me in the shape of a heart. I thought is was pretty cool I use it as a paper weight. I keep it on my desk. I asked him where he got the stone from and he said just around. He said he liked the colouring and thought is would be a good one to carve and polish. For those of you that don't know what he does. He works with granite. Makes all kinds of things.....the heart is sitting on our dining room table which is granite which my hubby made....I think he is pretty talented guy. Anyhow....just wanted to share that.....cheers all....have a great day!

Fire and Ice 2007

The town of Qualicum Beach has an annual function called "Fire and Ice". It's a function where the whole community gets involved. The main streets are blocked off, so you can walk aimlessly up and down the streets enjoying the activities. The Fire component of Fire and Ice is "Chili" Yes all the merchants who participate make chili and the general public buys tickets and walks around and samples the chili.....you vote on the best chili. The Ice part are carvers who make statues out of blocks of ice. There were only 11 carvers this year, but they still put on a good display. The clowns wandered up and down the streets entertaining the children. Face painting of course was a big hit.....then there was the main stage where there was a band playing....it truly looked like a good time was being had by all.

Here are a few photos of what we saw.

Happy Monday to you all!

"Seven Random Things about Me"

Well I've been tagged by Skittles for the meme for seven random things about me. First off, Skittles if you are reading this, I have been trying for the life of me to link to your blog but to no avail I have not been able to do so. Hence I did not highlight your name in a link as I fear I might send people to the wrong site. So here you have it 7 random things about me:

1) I love the colour RED

2) I don't like porridge. I think that is a result of my mom making huge pots of it...and well...it often had lumps in it. Yuck!!! No...."please sir can I have some more" for me. 3) I enjoy fishing and being out on the water as much as possible. I am really looking forward to fishing season and being able to get out there on the boat with my hubby. Maybe I can give him some competition. 4) I love to canoe. I canoed the Broken Island Group off of the Westcoast of Vancouver Island a few times with family and friends. It was a lot of work, but great exercise and the scenery was spectacular. 5) I love seafood. Almost anything.....I love shrimp but they don't like me.....very allergic to shrimp. 6) Fondues......yummmy.......chocolate fondue......strawberries, pineapple, bananas, kiwi.....oh yes ...... 7) I am left handed. Do you have any idea how difficult some things can be for a left handed person. Think about ladles for pouring soups...always on the wrong side for me....or the spatula...the bend is on the wrong side....pulling the cord on the lawnmower or weed whacker.....on the wrong side.....simple things like learning how to tie your shoes, or setting the table.....or folding a sheet with a righty......try it sometime....see what happens....you will be surprised.....
"One out of every ten people walking down the street is left-handed. Everywhere they go, left-handed people come across tools that were designed for right handed persons.
From scissors to camcorders to screw drivers to hockey sticks to baseball gloves, lefties learn early on that they need to develop skills to live in a world designed for right handed people." See I couldn't even find a good picture to demonstrate anything about lefties.....but boy did I find some interesting articles....I think I sense a topic for a post coming on!

So there you have it.....Seven things about me.

Saturday's Photo Scavenger Hunt

This weeks theme is "Childhood" This is a hard one. I thought about having pictures of my girls, then and now photos. Then I thought about things I liked to do as a child and games I liked to play. But I thought I would save that for another post. There are not many pictures of me as a child I think for two reasons. One I was baby number 10 and I think my parents were getting tired of taking pictures and two we were unfortunate to have to experience two house fires one in which everything was lost and the other half the house was lost. Anyhow, I have these two pictures they are the only professional pictures my parents ever had taken of me. I was 4 years old. The photo is black and white but it was a Christmas picture as I remember the dress being a red velvet and the photo was taken in December 1966.

Happy Hunting all!

My morning at Rathtrevor Provincial Park...

My last post I talked about learning to be happy with yourself. Accepting you for all the wonderful things that you are. Break the mould, try something new, push your personal envelope.

Well I don't know that I pushed my envelope but what I do know is that I took myself on a lovely little adventure yesterday. I awoke and was up and at it early. After dropping hubby off at an appointment I decided I wanted to venture off to this park that I have not yet visited.

I had no idea what to expect. But what I can tell you is that I was not disappointed. It was beyond words. The air was fresh and crisp. The birds were flying overhead, the seagulls making their calls. The eagles in their nests perched high on the tree tops. Oh I wanted to drink it all in.

Have you ever had one of those moments in your life when the beauty just encapsulates you and just takes your breath away? That is how I felt yesterday. I really can't find the words to give my feelings flight. I had my camera and I will try and give you a pictorial view of what I was blessed to see.

They say that beauty is in the eye of the beholder.....they also say that the best camera is in your mind. As I look at these photos now, although I think they are lovely, I don't believe they do the park justice. But what I saw yesterday is etched into my mind forever.