Daringly Disheveled Office

Somewhere in this mess, my car keys might be buried. However, this is the way the office looked after I straightened for awhile and no key turned up. And I cleaned a hall closet and a laundry room and checked all my pockets. Emptied my purse. Checked in the washer and dryer. Dreamt they were stuck in a binder, but no.

So I paid $375 to have a new set "programmed". They don't even come with a remote box, sigh. Then there were the new winter tires, replacing the brakes, the tail lightbulb, the windshield wiper that smeared. The total bill was $1,600. Nobody better complain books are expensive to me. Or even author visits. After all, I need keys, a tail light, brakes and a clean windshield to get to them.

I'm now afraid to clean the rest of the office in case they turn up. They would need to be re-programmed you see.

Sunrise

A new morning that looks way better in real life than in photos. The sky looked a bit darker and the pinks and oranges more fiery.

Goodbye Radium, Hello North Battleford

The reasons I love Radium Hot Springs, are the scenery, the big horned sheep and of course the springs. In North Battleford, the business of my journey began. But first the hotel gave us money to gamble and the casino gave us cash to gamble. I was tired and needed to prepare so only gambled $5, thereby making a profit of $15. Next day the hotel gave us each another $10 for the casino. We only gambled $5. Those slot machines just don't hook me at all. I figure we won $30 all totaled by not playing further. A wonderful restaurant attached to the casino served us bison steak and spinach salad. Great prices. Another score.

Driving at dawn towards the school, I saw a huge bull moose dash across the highway. Beautiful! No time for a photo. The sun rising behind me turned all the wheat to gold and the frost tinged scrub to silver. Almost the best part of the day.

I didn't impress the grade elevens of Turtleford Community School much. I hope the grade twelves learned something at least. You can't really force someone to write and I feel so sorry for them when they won't even pick up their pencils or pens. How sad that they will never know the power, the magic and the fulfillment.

Big Horn Sheep and Lussier Hot Springs

We decided to take the hotel manager's advice and drive up a steep logging road, White Swan Park, and find a natural hot springs. (free) Cattle drifted onto this gravel pathway around a cliff and deer scampered across. Pine trees blanketed the hills as far as the eye could see. If you weren't gripping the handle of the car door or biting your nails, the scenery dazzled you.

the end was a pool of sulphur smelling water among the rocks along side a fast running stream way hotter than the regular commercial hotsprings at Radium. Nothing aches when you soak in a hot springs. You can't feel stress while you're floating.

One of the reasons I chose Radium as our holiday base was the abundance of Big horn sheep. The animals you see gamboled along just outside our hotel. We hiked along a trail beside them.

Working Vacation

Right now we're in Chateau Europe which has this lovely view from the balcony. We're waiting for the manager to bring us our restaurant certificate for the Saltzberg. We're also heading for the hot springs before our dinner. A few blocks away a herd of curly horned sheep ran along side us on the highway. Yesterday we enjoyed turkey dinner at Heritage Place, a historic village in Calgary. We took a cold steamer boat ride through ice--it's the last ride of the season-- and hitched a train tour. Don't you just love those old black locomotives that belch smoke out in huge clouds? Something romantic about them.

My new favourite school: Canadian Martyrs

This week I'm visiting two grade 5 classes at Canadian Martyrs School in Burlington, one in the morning one in the afternoon. These pictures are of my morning bunch as they write character sketches on their stuffed animals. What I love about the students is whether they like writing or not they just seem to get right at it with enthusiasm and a gusto for learning. Makes my job fun. I fel lucky this week.

Sandcastle Contest

Just for the record

this was the winning sandcastle

but all of them were fabulous.

I just like digging holes and watching them fill with water.

The summer went by so quickly

It's now almost October

and I haven't said anything about my great summer. Camping in the rain turned out to be one highlight. Lots of hiking with all of my current grandchildren. (There's a new baby coming in April. ) Great roasted marshmallows and Polish Sausages. One canoe ride in thunder and lightning--next morning we paddled in almost not rain. These two shots should be in reverse order the keen on the roaders at the beginning and then the pals sleeping on top of each other later. Other highlights were cottaging with friends and watching shooting stars, judging the Burlington Sandcastle Competition again, swimming on Labour Day Weekend--it finally stopped raining, and taking part of Telling Tales Story Festival in Westfield Village. I refuse to believe summer's over so there may be more posts mixed in with my school visit to Canadian Martyrs.

Celebrating 142 years of Canada

Fireworks are such a glorious celebration. It's difficult not to forget yourself and enjoy them.

For Canada Day we met up with friends and walked to Spencer Smith Park.  With the rain spitting down, it seemed as though the evening might be a bust.  But instead, the clouds cleared and accompanied by such songs as "What a wonderful world," the colours and lights exploded against the sky.  What an inspirational spectacle of exileration. 

Gone to Soon

Here's my young looking boss and friend Tiziana Buttignol holding her grandson.  I told her she looked like a filmstar breezing into Toronto for the festival.  Although I've worked for her five years, most of our communication is by email.

Not surprising, I suppose, that I learned via email of her death Monday June 29.  A heart attack should only happen to overweight smokers or 92 year olds who have no one to look after them. It's not fair.

And I still catch myself going to email her with ideas or articles I've seen that maybe could translate into a piece for our magazine.  Her emails seem so alive to me.

Now the rest of us have the most difficult job of putting out an issue without her at the helm.