Susan’s life is going fine, and she has nothing to report.
Gordon has nothing to report but says the Northern Lights will be at Garry Point if you’re up and the sky is clear.
Debbie S. shared her mutant fork. Her daughter Nicole was making her way from the UK to Greenland, and had to fly to Iceland, then from Reykjavík to Nuuk, the capital of Greenland, then to a small town on the coast. She was booked on Greenland air, on a small airline, which was overbooked, and because no volunteers came forward, they randomly picked 4 people to stay, Nicole among them. With her big girl pants on, she protested, but to no avail. She finally stayed overnight at the hotel, after two tries, no rooms available and refusing to share a room with a stranger. The next stage was flying from Reykjavík to Copenhagen, overnight, then finally a flight towards Nuuk, but was able to get off at her tiny town along the way. All this to visit her friend.
Melinda went to the Sam Hunt concert which was fabulous.
Sandra had a great week in Kelowna, with beautiful weather, where they were babysitting Miller so the kids could attend a wedding. Once the babysitting duties were done, they were free to visit the outstanding view at the Spearhead winery, a tiny winery in the middle of a vineyard, which lost 90% of their vines. In Osoyoos the next day, they went to Meyer Family Vineyards, who have vines but not grapes. The liquor laws were interesting, with three liquor licenses needed for tasting only on the on pad, bottle service a few feet away, and glasses only in the cabanas. They will have to import grapes from California and change their labels to say these are not BC grapes. They stayed at the Coast Hotel, on the lake, and enjoyed the constant natural white noise.
Elena was falling asleep as she just returned from a 10-day trip to San Francisco. She was at her sister in law’s 82nd birthday celebration. Her sister-in-law has had a fourth stroke, and needs total care, which costs over $300 US a day, with machines to lift and put her in a chair, etc. She went out with her nieces and nephews, who encouraged her to stop being the care giver. She walked one hour across the Golden Gate Bridge, 12,000 steps back and forth, sometimes running to keep up with the tall German lady with them. Air Canada gave drinks and snacks, and she enjoyed the flight.
Danny had a Saturday appointment with a photographer to shoot the Northern lights and saw them at 1:30 a.m. The next day he was hiking in Joffre Lake near Pemberton which has 3 layers of glacier. It took about 3 hours, as he was tired from the previous night, but he took lots of good photos. He is leaving for Calgary this weekend, for a week-long conference. Then he will go back to Mexico.
Larry had a great weekend with Steve’s sister and husband, and they saw all of Vancouver. Their guests couldn’t get over the beauty of the city and want to come back. They spent time looking for a water side restaurant to eat, and finally went to Earl’s at English bay, with a window seat, and it was the only time it poured rain. Surgery next Wednesday. On Sunday he will do a healing activity with ringing bowls and Steve will have to leave, due to the zero-noise policy.
Micheal informed us that their mom isn’t feeling well and shows signs of dementia. She was a strong woman, like an old machine, and his dad used to ‘tune her up’, the old-school way. She worked at a fish cannery for 35 years, and the labour didn’t bother her, so it is hard to see her going through this. She will be 80 next month. Micheal thanks Debbie S. for the passes at Whistler last week, where he and his wife rekindled their love, as Bobby gave him a couple of days off. They left Debbie a message just before they got on the gondola. At the patio up top, it was clear, then clouds came in, then clear, saw the whole valley – might have been the champagne.
Jeannette’s mom arrived last Monday. They enjoyed Banff for a few days despite the jet lag. At 86 years old, she hiked up to the lake. She doesn’t appreciate all the water in Vancouver then when they went to Calgary, she thought it was flat. They went to Sunset Beach and took the small boat to Granville Island and had lunch there. She is still planning for the coming days.
Chris P. wants to know about the tune up from Micheal. It was one month today that her heart was broken, but her brain is protecting her. She is doing artistic things and has done two art lessons and now thinks she’s an artist, so when walking the dog, is contemplating her surroundings, thinking about how to paint them. There is room in the Monday morning class at Phoenix Art Studio. They went to the Barnside Music Festival in Ladner, with all Canadian bands, so she is getting her creative side on. Work has been busy, and she is following the American elections. She saw a TikTok meme wondering how can we tell boys we can’t have a felon in the highest office.
Sam’s practicum in New York was at a Huntington’s ward, and he would want to know if there is the option to know. But the diagnosis includes testing for a DNA repetition, and there is a grey area even if tested. He is celebrating his week-long birthday(still not up to Judy’s month long) with a family party Sunday, a massage next Sunday and a friends theme party on Saturday - Fast and Furious.
Bill reminds Sam they’re also taking him out for dinner. Sam wanted a Dairy Queen ice cream cake, which turned into white melting sludge. For Dean Crain, he forgot to mention that Dean knew he had it 10 years before getting checked, so he got the insurance set up before getting diagnosed. Bill was in Iceland but didn’t like it and learned that Eric the Red was booted out of Iceland to another land he named Greenland as it was better than ice. He took a ship over to Greenland that came back with few survivors.
Kal was at a Porsche customer appreciation event where the salesmen looked like they were 15. He invited Debbie’s daughter to come over to his place and see green land out the window. Kal has volunteered to be the bulleting editor next year.
Debbie M. was in the interior for a wedding at Oyama, at the parents’ house, overlooking the lake, with a bit of rain outdoors, but with two beautiful rainbows, which made for good photos. She had to come back for Manuel who is in the hospital all week and had to help her daughter. She is spending time with Amalia, who watched dragon boating. The team paddled over, saluted at the dock with paddles, yelled “hey Amalia”, and she was so excited, that when they left, she cried for 20 minutes. She will come again to watch today but promises not to cry.
Judy played in the Tea Cup golf tournament last Thursday and they had carts, discovered at the 18th hole that Lavina’s had fallen off a long way back. Melinda was driving and her clubs fell off too. (Melinda didn’t say anything). Friday Judy was at Birch Bay one night by herself, then Chris B. came down for shopping and dinner. She came back Monday to pick the boys up from school. They Facetimed with Spencer’s family who said that Connor had something to say. He said that he’s ugly (with a big grin). He has been going to acting and singing classes and got the lead part in the Honk musical where he’s the ugly duckling, so is very excited. He got a bass guitar for the band at school. The twins were in a hockey game, Caleb scored a goal, and Graham skated over for the chest pump. Judy is happy that Air Canada is back, as she is flying out Wednesday to Quebec City then on a cruise to Boston.
Marg is hosting and playing tour guide and thinks she could have sent her brother with the others. She ponders how some siblings can be looked at adoringly and you can’t wait to spend time with them, then another is more like “Are they in our family?” Her brother is British, and tunnel visioned. Everything gets a comment about ‘well in England…’. They had trouble trying to explain the BC Lions game, given it was the worst in their history, and the guests didn’t want to be there. Their daughter is a smoker and disorganized, a recovering addict who has lost 3 passports, rolls her tobacco and had to buy some. So they walked for 2 ½ hours looking for filters. Finally, yesterday they found some (bad tobacco) at Seafair, so she is cutting down her smoking. They leave next Friday night.
Chris B. has her son coming on Sunday and he’s fun. She is leaving for California on Wednesday.
Blair’s daughter turned 40 yesterday, so he sent her stuff ahead of time, as it’s a milestone year. She thanked him for the early presents as she’s only turning 39. He asked if she’d opened them.
Dalbir has known Micheal’s mom for 35 years, a strong woman. Dalbir’s mother-in-law lives with them and has dementia, and lived through the partition to Pakistan, a violent time. She never talked about it but is beginning to. We forget how wonderful this country is. Let them talk and enjoy their history.
John’s mom, on her 91st birthday, remembered John and all the kids. She was in a home and John talked with her then took her in the wheelchair to the party room, but she looked at her children then said, surprised “And John, what are you doing here?” He went to Jersey Boys last night and can’t get Big Girls Don’t Cry out of his head. He announced in the bulletin last week, that Judy and Debbie M. will be the co-writers of the bulletin next year. They hadn’t read it. But it turns out that actually Kal is going to take over as editor of the bulletin.
Chris M. says she always wanted to have a hobby farm with a few animals but is rethinking that. This morning, she juggled letting the dog out, who doesn’t want to come back in, keeping the door open so he can, but holding the cat back so she doesn’t get out, feeding the crows and their babies on the deck railing (which is why the dog doesn’t want to come back in), trying to catch the rat, but caught a squirrel, let it go (and it came back) and finally did catch the rat. They took it in the live trap to Terra Nova lands.
Lawrence’s daughter will turn 12 in October and just got her first phone. They were on Main Street for car free day and after only 10 minutes of family time, his daughter wanted to meet friends down the way – then she was gone and doing her thing. She has a group of friends and wants to do something for her birthday like going to the Night Market. His wife suggested a sleepover at the hotel that night and found out that 6 friends wanted to come. The hotel says 4 max to a room, and can’t promise adjoining rooms, (starting to feel like the airline overbookings) so Lawrence is worried about being able to make his daughter happy for her birthday.
Bobby is happy for his mom and spends time with her every day, going to appointments, socializing important. They just have to keep moving forward. He was also in Whistler, for his daughter from Toronto celebrating her 28th birthday - hiking and running. Thanks to Debbie S. for the passes. They went shopping on Tuesday. Yesterday they hosted Cops for Cancer at the ballroom – a good event. Friday they are going to Season’s restaurant for part of the week’s birthday celebration.
Pat was in a group in the Tea Cup with Chris M. and Mary Lou. She can’t hit the ball yet because of her shoulder so was just putting. Her granddaughter is playing volleyball in Victoria so she can’t watch but will watch her grandson’s hockey. Today she has a nursing alumni lunch at the Arbutus Club.
Garth’s houseguest is named Georgia, and doesn’t need a tourist guide, just out to pee.
Amanda’s nephew and wife from Edmonton are here and they went to a Comedy Festival, which wasn’t clean comedy. They announced she will have a great niece or nephew on St. Patrick’s Day. She has already ordered the baby leprechaun costume.
Peter remembers a Japanese couple who booked a flight to Disneyland, landed in Vancouver, got on a little plane at the South Terminal for Anaheim and got off at Anaheim Lake. “Disneyland?” they said, crying. He was fishing last week near Salmon Arm, his happy place, at a wonderful little lake, with 9 friends. Fishing and stories were all good. He caught 5 fish and only kept 3, keeping the biggest ones and will get the others next year.
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