Just Checking In

Happy Birthday, Lesley!

A picture speaks a thousand words...

Happy 50th Birthday Glen!

Love From All Of Us!

I'll Do Anything To Win

This lovely bonnet is the prize I won at this year's Starlight Challenge.

Not for skiing fastest.
Not for having the smallest differential.
Not even for skiing slowest...

While racing last weekend, I took a tumble that left a gate looking like spilled matchsticks and me feeling slightly more dazed and confused than usual.
I skied too fast and low into the turn at one gate, causing me to slide then slam sideways into the gate below. The result catapulted me ass-over-tea kettle down the hill and straight into the Starlight Challenge record books... with the dubious title of "Best Crash".
I smacked my head quite hard on the snow, but my helmet did its job. I was also bruised up a bit, but skied away from the fall none the worse for wear.
Needless to say, my times at the wind-up last night were considerably slower...

Something...

Perhaps I had a wicked childhood
Perhaps I had a miserable youth
But somewhere in my wicked miserable past
I must have had a moment of truth
For here you are
Standing there
Loving me
Whether or not you should
So somewhere in my youth or childhood
I must have done something good
Nothing comes from nothing
Nothing ever could
So somewhere in my youth or childhood
I must have done something good
Here you are
Standing here
Loving me
Whether or not you should
So somewhere in my youth or childhood
I must have done something good
Nothing comes from nothing
Nothing ever could
So some where in my youth or childhood
I must have done
Something Good.


From: The Sound of Music
Lyrics: Oscar Hammerstein

I've had the time of my life...

My back is sore.

My legs are complaining.

My neck is stiff.

My cheeks are glowing.

My lungs feel clear.

My head is singing.

My knees are clicking.

My thighs are burning.

My arms are limp.

My toes are numb.

My wrists are zinging.

My hair's a mess.

And my body just wants to sleep!

Shift

Seek; in the dark
Learn; without thought
Grow; despite oppression
Laugh; in the face of despondency
Weep; where there is only joy
Thrive; within captivity
Soar; upon clipped wings ...

Simple Pleasures

Soda crackers spread with a thin layer of dairy butter.
Warm, dry socks.
Rosy cheeks.
A good morning text from Beth.
Sleeping in.
Sunlight.
Laughter.
Dipping cold feet into warm slippers.
Making snow angels.
Tucker's eyes.
A starry night.
The scent of pine on a chinook breeze.
Clean sheets.
Snowflakes.
The soft rattle of my window when a train rolls through the valley.
A full moon.
Woodsmoke.
The first sip of coffee in the morning.
Spaezle.
A smile.
Singing along with The Sound of Music.
Bed time.
Watching my children grow.

Welcome to my office...

Breaking news...

Jenny got her cast off today!
Her leg has healed so well, that the doctor removed the cast and drew out the pins this morning.
Jenny is now resting comfortably, with only two small holes and a floppy foot to show for it.
Maybe she'll make it back onto her skis before Spring, after all!

New Post

I have been so busy out on the hill teaching skiing!
I get up at 5:30 a.m. and don't get home until 6:00 or later. I am mainly teaching children - from entry level to advanced intermediate skiers.
They are a blast!
But, after 7 hours of skiing, giving pointers, picking up, doing up, potty breaks, cold and fresh air, I'm pretty well knackered when I get home...
Ha! Then I have to make supper, next day's lunches, shower and do all the chores about the house that didn't get done because I'm out on the hill doing what I love best!

Oh, I simply must do a new post...

Jenny

Jenny broke her leg yesterday.
It was one of those times while playing - what kids do best - that it happened. An innocuous spill from her toboggan forced her to land heavily upon her right foot, causing the lower part of her tibia, where it meets the ankle, to chip. Luckily there was little pain, but swelling and discomfort prompted her to have it checked out.
Smart girl! After reading the x-ray, her doctor immediately booked Jenny into surgery for early this morning in Cranbrook. The surgeon was able to push the chipped piece of bone back into position and hold it there with two pins.
The pins will need to be removed after several weeks, but non-surgically. The doctor will simply have to draw them out - no anaesthesia needed and no pain. Surgery now is so much less invasive than in the past - she has no incision nor any sutures.
Jenny was brave, the procedure went well and she is now resting in relative comfort ...the lower part of her right leg encased in a large, white plaster cast with her wee toes sticking out the end.
Get well soon, Jenny Benny!

sometimes...

Never be too happy.

There is bad stuff out there that will raise its ugly head exclusively when things are going well.

At best, I will be cautiously happy.

...and the cat came back

His name is Scat and his is big and ginger.
Eleven years ago he adopted us and our little house down by the lake.
We don't know where he came from - he simply followed Beth home one day.
Starved and lonely, he made himself at home upside down in front of the fire.
We named him Gwendolyn, after a character in a book about a stray cat named Scat, who eventually found a home and was renamed.
Then we discovered he was a he...
When I moved out of the little house by the lake into the big house overlooking the lake, I brought Scat with me.
Scat would have none of it, and returned time after time to the little house.
We realised that was Scat's home, so there he stayed.
Until now.
One afternoon a short while ago, Beth came to visit and asked if I would take Scat to live here once more.
I laughed and said no, we already have two cats and a dog!
And Eugene is not really an animal-lover.
Several days later, Bobby and Jenny began to plead with me to take Scat.
He is over twelve years old and began having accidents in the little house once the weather turned, and that did not go over well at all.
He didn't have a litter box in which to go, and he was loathe to do his business outside once the days drew shorter and the weather colder.
My heart went out to both Scat and the kids.
Well, I had to ask Gene the big favour - and he said yes!
He might not have as large a fondness for animals as I, but he does have a heart of gold.
Scat has been here for two weeks now and he has settled in quite nicely.
He and Tnu have playtime daily.

Usually, just after breakfast, they gallop noisily about the house, leaping, tumbling and bouncing from one piece of furniture to the other.
Smoke, who is at least eighteen years old and still going strong, pointedly ignores Scat, but I know he secretly likes the big orange guy.
Our dog, Tucker, loves all the cats, and I have an idea she thinks she's a feline of the canine variety.
Scat loves dogs.
I have been keeping Scat in the house for obvious reasons, but he escaped the other day, only to be rescued by Beth from his old haunt.
Today, when I experimentally opened the door to let him out, he poked his head outside, then turned tail and dove back into the warmth of the house.
Welcome home Scat!

Oh

Well, lo and behold, it's finally snowing.
There's only about half an inch on the ground - it's a start...
At least I feel more like decorating the house today.
The Christmas songs are playing on the stereo, the sky is overcast, flakes are falling and we are getting ready to begin cooking breakfast - eggs benedict, bacon and mandarine oranges.
The three cats and the dog are fed and I've my morning coffee beside me.
All is good.

Hey Santa !

Check out the fire dogs!

The Paagman Family's team of Freisians. Val and Koos might be familiar with their bookstore in The Hague...

And here's His Jolliness Himself.

For Grace

Last summer, on one of our trips to Sandpoint, Idaho, we were strolling along the boardwalk beside Sand Creek.
We came upon these two lovely puppies and I began to bubble over.

Grace!

I immediately thought of you and, with the permission of their people, I quickly snapped several shots of these beautiful Brittany Spaniels.

This is return payment for making me cry...

Thank You.

Who I Am

Here 'Tis and Welcome!
I was born In The City at a time when My Generation was that of the post-war baby boomer.
For some reason that I Can't Explain, my Daddy Rolling Stone and my Mum, Barbara Anne, decided to name me Dale (and not Call Me Lightning).
Because of my name, everyone assumes I'm A Boy.
But, I have a Girl's Eyes and I can never think back to When I Was A Boy.
Maybe I was supposed to be a Substitute for Little Billy, but I've always had a Faith In Something Bigger, even though sometimes I Don't Even Know Myself.
Anyway Anyhow Anywhere, my life has been a Pure and Easy Success Story with a touch of Heaven and Hell thrown in.
It's Hard at times, However Much I Booze, but no matter how many Disguises I've worn, I Can See For Miles because I view The Real Me from Behind Blue Eyes.
I Dig horses and Dogs 2.
I've always wanted a Tattoo.
And a Jaguar.
When I was a child, I longed to attend Tommy's Holiday Camp, but my folks enrolled me at a holiday camp where I got the Summertime Blues and felt So Sad About Us because some of my friends Drowned in the Water.
Everyone said Cry If You Want, but One Life's Enough and, even though I've Known No War, this made me think of How Many Friends I've had.
As a teen, Dreaming From The Waist helped me Imagine A Man wearing Blue, Red and Grey.
My friends, They Were All In Love, but to me, it was just a Trick Of The Light and I kept thinking Don't Let Go The Coat.
When I did leave the Eminence Front, I thought, "I've Had Enough!" and I felt like a Helpless Dancer floundering on the Sea And The Sand.
Did I end up with the Dirty Jobs? You Better You Better You Bet!
I discovered Now I'm A Farmer.
To the Naked Eye my life was a Postcard, but I felt that it was La La La Lies.
But, I wasn't to be left Out In The Street and, even though I thought it was Much Too Much and The Good's Gone, I made a Bargain with myself and decided to Glow Girl!
I met a Whiskey Man.
We had an Instant Party.
My Wife, he said.
I Need You. Please Please Please. Don't Look Away. See My Way.
Saturday Night's Alright (For Fighting).
A Quick One While He's Away.
Tell me It's Not True!
It's a Legal Matter now.
The Song Is Over - and I hope The Kids Are Alright.
My life was in Fragments and I felt like the Unholy Trinity, where I'm The Face in the Mirror Door asking, "Who Are You?".
I saw a Fortune Teller who told me to Put The Money Down before she said Too Much Of Anything, then went on to say that I have been on an Amazing Journey where I have been The Seeker In The Ether and that Love Ain't For Keepin'.
Now is the time to Join Together, Pick Up The Peace, Cut My Hair, Smash The Mirror, and light my life on Fire!
I'm Free.
It could be Dangerous, but I'll take the days One At A Time, all the while knowing I'm One, A Man Is A Man, and for The Last Time, I Won't Get Fooled Again.
Occasionally, when I feel the Melancholia return, I Don't Mind - I just think of the beautiful Sunrise and Relax.

The kids are alright.
He wears blue, red and grey.
And I glow, girl!

In Flanders Fields

In Flanders fields the poppies blow
Between the crosses row on row
That mark our place; and in the sky
The larks, still bravely singing, fly
Scarce heard amid the guns below.

We are the Dead. Short days ago
We lived, felt down, saw sunset glow,
Loved, and were loved, and now we lie
In Flanders fields.

Take up our quarrel with the foe:
To you from failing hands we throw
The torch; be yours to hold it high.
If ye break faith with us who die
We shall not sleep, though poppies grow
In Flanders fields

Lieutenant Colonel John McCrae (1872-1918)