Sunday, April 30, 2006

...of Flames and Thunder...


The weather had been warm and sunny and the storm came upon us with little warning.
The first thunderstorm of the year rolled in darkly and its booming echoes tossed and bounced along the length of our valley.
In its wake the cleansing rains of spring followed, leaving the air pungent with pine and fir mingled with the warm scent of damp pavement.

Last evening, after the thunder passed, there remained an air of expectancy...
Our Calgary Flames were preparing to play their fifth game in the quarter-final series of the Stanley Cup.
The television drew eager eyes as our home team outscored the Anaheim Mighty Ducks once more!

Then I awoke this morning, our win fresh in my mind, to the frantic honking of a motorist's horn as it raised the sleepy souls of our wee town.
We peered out the front window to be greeted by the sight of giant flames leaping and dancing along the hill through the trees.
With our mouths agape, we stared, transfixed, as we watched what appeared to be imminent danger upon our doorstep.

As it turns out, it was a scheduled practice burn of an old farmhouse by our local volunteer fire department.


Now I can return with relief to our chant of...

...Go Flames Go!

Saturday, April 29, 2006

HAPPY BIRTHDAY


Queen Elizabeth II was born on April 21, 1926 in London, England.
She was born into royalty to King George VI and his wife, the late Queen Mother (Elizabeth).
On February 6, 1952 King George VI died and Elizabeth became the reigning queen of England. Her coronation was on June 2, 1953.

Although I respect Queen Elizabeth and her duties, royalty continues to puzzle me...

Wednesday, April 26, 2006

Income Tax?





...outgo tax...



Monday, April 24, 2006

Snot Central Goes West


It did not travel in anything as historic as a prairie schooner - of that I am sure!
No doubt it crept slowly - slithering its way secretly and imperceptibly from nose to nose, lung to lung, attacking at random.

Poor Rachel, some six odd thousand miles to the east of where I am, swears she caught her illness from someone on the plane to France.
The trip to France, in itself, could be considered rather romantic, but not the snot!

The germs must have traveled here via the same means of transport - airborn...

There are five members in my immediate family and three of those five now have wicked upper respiratory infections - most commonly know as a cold.

My son is suffering from a nose that continually runs, my eldest is battling a cough and a stuffy nose and I am feeling the effects of a chest infection.

Welcome to spring in the Wild West!

Thursday, April 20, 2006

Waiting for the Calm


I found this photo on the Internet, but it looks very similar to a valley up the road from me.
It looks wild and yet serene - and serenity is what I am waiting for...

It has been a hectic and stressful week.

I am looking forward to lying in my own mountain meadow while surrounded by wildflowers and the warm breeze caressing my skin...

Saturday, April 15, 2006

Ha Ha...


Joke's on me!

It's snowing today...

Friday, April 14, 2006

Where is Spring?



Spring has certainly not made its presence obvious here!

Last Sunday I was skiing in driving snow at the top of the mountain and a deluge of rain from midway down to the base.

Over the past week it has snowed one foot at the summit and rained daily down here in the valley. On these last three days of the ski season it does not matter if it snows!

The following is my I look forward to list for the final weekend of skiing:

I look forward to driving up the winding mountain road with my shirtsleeves rolled up, my windows rolled down and the breeze in my hair.

I look forward to skiing in slush and the hot sun.

I look forward to dodging rocks, scree and bare earth where the warm spring weather has exposed the true face of the mountainside.

I look forward to sporting raccoon eyes, a ridiculous-looking tan - the result of wearing sunglasses in the blinding sunlight reflected off the snow.

I look forward to burgers, beer and rock 'n' roll on the deck.

As it is now, a heavy mantle of fresh snow drapes the peaks and the gentle mountain wildflowers are loathe to present their fragile blossoms.

Although it is cloudy, windy and cool, we plan to persevere and make the trek back up the mountain three more times.

...we are still able to accomplish most of the items on the list - but not in the welcome warmth of the spring sun...

Wednesday, April 12, 2006

SATURDAY APRES SKI



These photos were taken on the deck at our ski resort last Sunday after the ski lifts had closed.

The first pic is of Neil Osborne, lead singer of 54-40, who not only resembles a young Neil Young, but he holds an uncanny resemblance to my ex who, in turn, resembles Neil Young...

I had trouble getting any more photos of the band because the floor was too crowded.
I also wanted to actually watch the show.

The next picture is of Jenny and me waiting for the show to begin.

My little Mona Lisa...

Sunday, April 09, 2006

The following posts require reading from the bottom up...

SPRING SKIING ROCKS! or FINDING ANGUS







I spent yesterday afternoon chasing Angus.



There is nothing like an afternoon of skiing in the spring sun complimented by my beloved rock and roll!
When Jenny and I arrived at the base, the rhythmic chants of "Highway to Hell" were calling to us from the DJ's pit, bold and decisive, commanding the tone of the afternoon.



This is why we brave the winter's cold all season!

The temperature was warm and it was oh-so-close-to sunny with only a thin cloud layer.
The snow was what has been dubbed hero snow, where the consistency of the pack is such that it grips the skis so well that any fear of falling is non-existent.
It made me feel close to invincible!

In fact, it was so hot I was able to get my kit off... for all you Brits out there.
Of course, I did not take it all off!
That corn snow can be deadly on exposed skin and a single slip can turn one's arms, legs or belly to instant hamburger.

I had shed my helmet - not good - but it did give me an exhilarating sense of freedom!
My goggles were left in my sports bag - on purpose - so I had the wind in my face behind my sunglasses.
My jacket, a skier's delight, has all the fancy bells and whistles and the sleeves are
removable, so I left them in my bag along with my goggles.

Then, of course there was the icing on the cake - la piece de resistance.


The MUSIC!


Ohh, that raw beat echoing throughout the hills...
Unfortunately, the higher up we skied, the less we were able to hear, so the occasional slide back down to the base was essential.

After the lifts had closed, the resort hosted two free live shows in the sun pit outside the main lodge.
The opening act was a very good local quartet from British Columbia called "Shag".
They played mostly tunes from two decades ago, as the theme of the day was the 1980's.
There was lots of big hair and neon being flashed...

The main attraction was the well known Canadian band "54-40", who's lead singer, Neil Osborne, strongly resembles a young Neil Young.
There was standing/dancing room only and the sun pit was very much like a mosh pit.
Jenny and I had the front row for a while and did well at holding our own, until it became far too big and bouncy, and I feared for wee Jenny's safety.
We dodged for cover to the back of the patio where we met up with our friends and had an excellent view of the show.
I can only severely understate the performance by saying it was superb!

It was 8:00 p.m. by the time we arrived home from the hill.
We were tired, hungry and very happy...



I not only found my Angus that day, but I tackled him as well!



*The photo credit goes to Mountain Eye Photography at Panorama Mountain Village.
Coincidentally enough, it is of last year's Sunpit Safari where a local band BC/DC, an AC/DC tribute band, was playing.

Saturday, April 08, 2006

MY REAL LOVE



My husband and my children are my real love.
They are my reason and purpose in life.



On symbolic terms, Pete Townshend and Angus Young represent my alter egos.
Pete is my intellectual side that includes introspect, philosophical thinking and creativity.
Angus, on the other hand, is my wilder, fun-loving and cast-it-to-the-wind/devil-may-care perspective.

I also render a nurturing, maternal and compassionate manner upon my family, and my all-encompassing love of animals brings that instinct to the forefront, as well.

All of the above characteristics are strong within me and may cause some conflict at times. Therefore, I believe that balance is of the utmost importance and the ability to use all my "personalities" to create an integrated whole is vital.


My loves - to quote Val - are my joy and my bane...
But - to quote myself - the joy is what I remember!

Wednesday, April 05, 2006

MY TRUE LOVE...



This is a full view of the sketch I did of Pete a couple of years ago.

Sunday, April 02, 2006

MY SECRET CRUSH






Now, ain't he just the cutest thing y'ever did see playing a guitar?

Forgive me - I digress...

He likes to play that Gibson because of the double cutaway -
he says it looks a bit like Devil's horns...

Louse Detail



Blood-sucking parasites!

Well, if that doesn't conjure up images of hostile aliens on the loose...

I just pulled four of them out of my younger daughter's hair this morning.

Hey, these things happen.

It's part of growning up.

It's also part of what we have to deal with as parents, in order to care for our children.

So, away we went...

Line up for the head check!

Poor little Jen was the sole owner of an infested head.

Thank goodness there was only one head out of our five in our household.

But, it was a rather poor substitute for spending the day on the ski hill in the snow and the sun.

I am done going through our hair with a fine tooth comb...

I am also tired of nit-picking...