Saturday, December 29

News Update

We have enjoyed Christmas week here on the shore of Lake Superior. It has been mostly quiet, and spent around home. The weather has been nice with a little fresh snow, and temperatures remaining below zero. Unfortunately, with the amount of salt they apply to the streets and highways down here, that leaves us driving in continuous slush as we watch our metallic vehicles melt away before our eyes!

Wendy roasted a couple of turkeys on Christmas Eve (collectively the congregation cooked up about a dozen of them!), and on Christmas day we prepared a full turkey dinner for about 180 people at the Shelter House. I was not feeling well on Christmas and even poorer on Boxing Day when we had our special meal with Trav & Sylvia and her mother. Anyway, the meal was nice and the occasion even nicer—to share time with loved ones. Gifts were exchanged and we all turned out rather well blessed.

It has been delightful to share this Christmas with Kristian as he's really into this present-opening business. On Thursday, Wendy and I took him across the line to pick up a spring horse courtesy of on-line shopping—gotta take advantage of the loonie being stronger than the greenback! Now Eric, Erica and the boys have arrived from Kenora so we look forward to a good week with them.

And that's about it for this week.

Saturday, December 22

News Update

Another week has rolled through here on the sloppy shore of Lake Superior. The weather has turned mild with rain, and the snow is sinking. I shovelled the remaining slush off the deck so we have access to the barbecue and the hot tub.

Work is over until the New Year, as we had a closing luncheon at work on Friday. Unfortunately, I still have a bit of work to complete as one school still is not signed off for OnSIS, and that is due by December 31st. I will have to spend a bit of time on that next week. Erin is also on holidays until next Thursday. Eric, Erica and the boys plan to have Christmas in Kenora and then come down here for New Year's.

I went out on Friday for a bit of curling—just practice, as they have open ice each day at lunch time. It's been about six years since I curled, and with my rebuilt leg, I didn't know how it would go. It wasn't fully comfortable, but it was all right and I'm encouraged to try it some more. Wendy has us scheduled to try skating over the break as well. We'll see how that goes.

Wendy has continued with Christmas baking and shopping. Being a holder of both X and Y chromosomes, I feel no great need to go shopping until Monday!! Meanwhile, I surely am enjoying the baking.

And that's about it for this week.

Wednesday, December 19

Global Warming

It's nearly Christmas here in northern Ontario, but it's above freezing, rain is falling and there are puddles in my driveway. What is wrong with this picture? It must be global warming! Hey, everybody's having their say, and even winning Nobel prizes for their trouble! So, here's what I think—kinda matches with the title of the blog!

That global warming is happening seems to me irrefutable. I find the remarks of the naysayers about as absurd as the promoters. I think that the open questions are concerning the role that people are playing in causing global warming, and conversely, what benefit could be obtained by changing our behaviours. Most of us have been immersed in plenty of evidence that our little green planet is warming up. Videos of stranded polar bears, crumbling ice shelves, and wild fires are juxtaposed against graphs of climbing temperatures. In our own experiences (always a bad source of data) we note wild or at least unusual weather and are given to understand that global warming is the culprit.

At the crux of the matter, it seems to me, is the complexity of our planetary systems against our ability to know and understand them. When I experience a downpour while out golfing (despite the promises of the weather forecaster), I must admit that I am fairly skeptical that we understand the forces at play on our planet very well at all. If they cannot read and interpret the forces at play this morning well enough to protect my round of golf this afternoon, what would make me think they can understand the forces at play over the millennia well enough to predict the next fifty years!? Never mind the even greater knowledge and understanding needed to determine the relative importance of various causes and the expected benefit of particular changes in human behaviour.

I emphasize the benefit and value of considering more comprehensively the costs of my activity and endeavouring to tread more lightly on the earth. I have not been convinced that human activity is the sole source of the global warming we're experiencing; nor am I convinced of the efficacy of human activity in stopping it! I do not worry that there is an economic cost to making environmentally sensitive changes. We have long (always) been able to find economic incentives to get the jobs done that we determine need to be done. This won't change just because it's greener work! There's money to be made here as well!

Saturday, December 15

News Update

Wowsers! Another week is gone already here on the shore of Lake Superior. That was fast!

Work this week has been from the home office, but a fair bit has been accomplished with one notable exception up in Red Lake! That part of the job has actually grown over recent days as the Ministry has served up another complication. However, we made good progress in Nakina and Mine Centre, so Red Lake and a new situation in Collins have become my biggest outstanding challenges for this month. And that's the deadline; all this batch of reporting is due at the end of December. On Friday, we had the office Christmas party.

Things have continued well here at home. Butter tarts are plentiful in the freezer—just the way I like them! The weather has been cooperative with comfortable temperatures and little in the way of precipitation. Kristian has added another dimension to his night-time game. Now, after putting his mother to bed, and playing upstairs for a while, he has decided he needs to come to bed with grandma and grandpa! So, we're trying to nip that in the bud!

Otherwise, that's about it for this week.

Saturday, December 8

News Update

And a wintry week comes to an end on the shore of Lake Superior. This week was spent around TBay, with most of the work week being comprised of our annual conference.

We began the week digging out from a major snowstorm. It began on Saturday night, and by Sunday morning we were snowed in. After church we had a meeting at our place, so Erin went out to begin clearing a path to get her car out for a Monday morning trip to work. Well, wouldn't you know—the neighbour soon came over with his snowblower to clear our driveway. Now, why didn't he ever offer that when I was out shovelling!? Anyway, he cleared part of the drive so she could get out, and I began shovelling on the remainder! On Monday, I began shopping for a snowblower, and was able to buy a second-hand one for $395. It seems to work fine.

The conference was Wednesday through Friday. I had a project update on Wednesday and a full day of workshops on Thursday. The conference turned out quite well.

Kristian has developed a new trick. After he puts his mother to sleep, he wanders back up stairs to play with his toys! One night this week, Wendy and I had already gone to bed as well, and we could hear him out there playing in the dark. What a kid! Grandma puts him to sleep in the toy room, and Mom seems quite surprised to find him missing in the morning!

Erin has transferred to Ontario residency so she has registered her car down here. Her work continues to progress well.

Wendy continues with Christmas baking so I'm enjoying that.

And that's about it for this week.

Saturday, December 1

News Update

Another Saturday night finds us on the shore of Lake Superior. It's been quite a week. We started off in Kenora at Eric & Erica's. We enjoyed watching the Grey Cup game there as our Saskatchewan Roughriders overcame the Winnipeg Blue Bombers to win our national football championship! Yea Riders!

Eric & Erica headed out for a two day retreat near Winnipeg, so we stayed to take care of the boys. Kristian was with us, and he really enjoyed spending the time with his cousins. On Wednesday, we drove back to TBay to find that winter had arrived. We had left a green city, but got home to a big snowfall. So, I had to dig out the shovels and clear the driveway even before parking the car. Of course, Kristian needed to stay out to play in the snow as well! He certainly enjoys it more than I do! It has also turned colder with the temperature hitting minus twenty on some nights.

I got a bit of work done while we were in Kenora (With a phone and a computer, you hardly miss the office!) and carried on with office work and preparation for our annual administrators conference that is scheduled for next week.

Wendy got things caught up around the house, and set up for a big candle sale this weekend. Erin continued with work, and phoned regularly to ensure we were transporting her son home safely.

Trav got a new hard drive for his laptop, and is trying to install it on his own. Good luck! You're a braver man than I! He and Sylvia set up their Christmas lights—I let them borrow the ladder as my contribution to the cause!

And that's about it for this week.

Sunday, November 25

Riders Win! Riders Win!

Yes, it's true! After an eighteen year hiatus, the Riders are the champions for the third time! I have been privileged to have viewed all three of them (1966, 1989 & now 2007), and about forty not so successful campaigns! In total they have been to the big game sixteen times, so their record of three wins bears witness to lots of frustration over the years. However, for now, all is forgiven (if not forgotten) and we celebrate as winners and anticipate next year as another championship season!

It was not much of a performance by either offensive team, but the defensive sides played well, and a Rider defensive back, James Johnson, had three interceptions, returning one for a touchdown. Not surprisingly, he was named the most valuable player of the 23-19 victory.

And another Saskatchewan saying comes true—no, not the, "Wait 'til next year!" one, but the "Tough times don't last; tough people do!"

"We are the champions, my friend!"

Saturday, November 24

News Update

Another week has passed on the shore of Lake Superior, and its passing has moved us into colder weather, and even a few snow flakes.

We started the week with Eric, Erica and the boys who were visiting here over the weekend. Together, we enjoyed watching the Riders win the Western Conference final at BC, and proceed to the Grey Cup to be played next Sunday afternoon. Go Riders, Go!

My travels this week took me up to Red Lake where I worked with the teachers on Report Cards and with the secretary on those oh-so-troublesome reports to the ministry. The work with the teachers went fairly well. The secretary—not so much! Her reluctance to learn new things in the last year of her work, and her general sloppiness make for a bad combination. We get pages and pages of error reports! Yikes! Where is Bonnie when I need her!? As a result, the completion of two days of hard slogging does not have anything signed off with the ministry. Compare that to my record-setting school—two hours! I also have two other schools who completed the report in half a day, and two others who completed in one day. As a result, I shall have to try to walk her through the remainder of the work over the phone.

The remainder of the work week was spent in meetings in the central office in TBay, and work in my own office here at home.

Otherwise things continue well at home. Wendy has been busy in a swirl of fund-raisers and Christmas baking and other events.

Erin spent two days in Winnipeg with her work. Kristian seems to be confirmed as a full participant in his 'terrible twos' and often drives his mother and grandmother to distraction. (You could walk there—it's a short trip!)

And that's about it for this week.

Saturday, November 17

News Update

Another week has flown by on the shore of Lake Superior. I've been away most of the week, so it's nice to be back for the cooking and comforts of home.

On Sunday, I got in another six holes of golf. That went fine, but the weather has turned colder this week, and most of the courses have their greens covered, so that could be the end of the golf season.

On Monday, Wes and I headed east 500 clicks to Hornepayne. We worked there through Tuesday and then moved on to Longlac, from where we drive out daily to work at Caramat. We completed our work at Caramat about noon on Thursday, so we headed back to TBay. The work in both centres went well. Caramat (that's Tamarac spelled backwards) now holds the record for October OnSIS completion—two hours!

I worked at the home office on Friday, and managed to catch up on phone calls and emails that had come in during the week.

Wendy has been caring for Kristian each day. She has taken on a batch of mending and alterations so the old Singer has been humming and singing! and stopping to clear its throat a few times as well! We bought that machine, second-hand, in Earl Grey back in the early 70's for about $40! It seemed quite a bit of money back then!

Erin continues with her work. She's doing well, and learning the particulars of a few additional roles beyond what she was hired to do.

We celebrated Trav's birthday over at Trav & Sylvia's this evening, since Eric, Erica and the boys are in town. He doesn't really turn twenty-six until the twenty-seventh, but it's good to celebrate whenever.

And that's the kind of week it's been.

Saturday, November 10

News Update

The weather turns toward fall during this week on the shore of Lake Superior. We even get a few snow flakes although there is no accumulation. Still, it's a warning of winter to come.

I manage to get out for another six holes of golf on Sunday afternoon. That goes well; the drives are consistently longer and also consistently going left. I'm encouraged by the consistency and by the improvement in comfort on my left leg.

On Monday, Wes and I fly up to Pickle Lake. There we run into snow and more difficulties than we can even begin to address. As Wes noted (to my great amusement), "They put the fun back in dysfunctional!" I promised him I would steal that line! Nonetheless we got a lot done, but left on Tuesday evening with a lot left outstanding.

On Wednesday, Wes and I did a simulated meeting with Adobe Connect, and I presented a brief tutorial on Adobe Presenter. We feel these tools will be quite helpful in our work. I have already made a few 'webinars' (training seminars delivered via the web). If you wish to check one out go to:
http://totaltechcare.ca/mwphotos

The Regional Professional Network met on Thursday, so that occupied most of my day. And finally on Friday I was able to work around the home office.

All continues well around home with Wendy and Kristian in charge! Erin continues to expand her role at work as her own dealership is still growing in Winnipeg, so she is working for other franchises as well.

And that's about it for this week.

Saturday, November 3

News Update

Another week has passed here on the shore of Lake Superior. I have spent most of the week working in my schools, although I did come back for Monday night.

I spent Monday doing a teachers' workshop in Atikokan. Then on Tuesday, Wes and I headed out to Upsala where we spent the day. We continued on to Ignace where we booked into the motel for the rest of the week. On Wednesday and Thursday, we drove up to Savant Lake and worked in the school there. On Friday, we headed back to Thunder Bay, stopping in Upsala to complete any outstanding issues there. So, we got back Friday afternoon. It was a good week, and two of my schools have already managed to sign-off the October report to OnSIS. This shows that the hard work of setting up a Student-Management System will facilitate our reporting requirements as long as we do it well.

Wendy continues with babysitting of Kristian. He seems to have a chronic eye infection, so we're a little concerned about that. By the time I got back on Friday, it seemed much improved. Anyway, he doesn't seem to be bothered by it, and doesn't seem to rub it or complain about it.

I managed to play another six holes of golf on Friday afternoon, and that was fun, even though it was a bit windy. My drives were a bit better (I hit the fairway on two out of six!), and a bit longer (about 220 yards). I notice my continued reluctance to transfer my weight onto my front leg.

And that's the kind of week it has been.

Saturday, October 27

News Update

And another week comes to a sunny close over Lake Superior. We enjoyed the turn to sunshine after some weeks of rain, and I even got out for a brief, but enjoyable, try at golfing.

Another week working out of the home office is complete. I got a fair amount of paperwork done, and continue to work on online tutorials in Adobe Presenter. That's kind of fun! The next month calls for a lot of work in the schools, until I complete this set of tours.

Wendy is doing quite a bit better, as her aches and pains seem to have subsided. I was down with a cold for the first half of the week, and she had a sore throat at least, but seems to have bypassed the main issues.

Erin and Kristian are doing well. He was in for a check-up with the doctor and has managed to stay on the chart for his weight. That was always his mother's struggle as well; amazingly the rest of the family has successfully overcome that problem!

And that's about it for this week.

Thursday, October 25

Returning to Golf

Today I golfed for the first time since my accident. I have been over to the practice area a couple of times, and even hit a few on the range, but today I played three holes. It was great! Great to be back on the course, that is. It was not great golf!

I took the precaution of hitting two off each tee with the plan of playing the better ball. As it turned out, I had to play the least bad ball! I played a par four, a par three and a par five. I took the precaution of measuring the drive from the par four since it was down wind (although the breeze was light). You may remember that I have been driving well in the month of August, sometimes exceeding three hundred yards, although it is true that my usual drive even in those heady days was more likely 250 - 260. Now it must be admitted that neither drive found the fairway (and thus cannot be legitimately measured), but I was delighted to find that I could comfortably drive the 275 yards onto the neighbouring fairway! Well, okay, perhaps it was not quite that far; after correcting for direction and dragging it back to the correct fairway, let's say it was 240 yards. Would you believe 220? Okay, if you want to be so particular, it was a 365 yard par 4 and I only had 170 left to the green—do your own math!

I found that not feeling comfortable transferring weight onto your front leg has an effect on the trajectory, direction and length of a golf shot! However, I did not find so much problem with my shorter approach shots. Thus I managed to make the other greens in regulation and finished off with pars on those holes.

The walking was slow, but okay. I found walking up a gradual slope the most difficult as the injured leg just didn't want to push me along very briskly. All in all, a wonderful time!

Saturday, October 20

News Update

A soggy week has passed here on the shore of Lake Superior. The rain has been unrelenting, but we're now promised a few days of relief. Some areas of the city are suffering from flooding, but we're doing fine.

I have been working in my home office this week. Two projects only peripherally related to my work have needed some attention. One is an oral language assessment we are conducting throughout the northwest of the province on all kindergarten students. I am charged with data collection and input. The other is an initiative from the Ministry on Tangible Capital Assets; they want us to change how we account for such. I fail to see how this will benefit anyone, much less our small school boards, but it will involve some extra work, and is bound to kill a few trees!

The wet weather has kept me from the golf course (it's a wading pool in many places!), although to be truthful, my exertions of last Saturday left my leg too sore to play any golf anyway! My leg is feeling 'good to go' again, so as soon as I get over my cold, and the course dries up, I'll try it out!

Wendy has continued therapy with her chiropractor, but generally feels pretty good. Erin continues her bookkeeping work, and enjoys that. Kristian is going through another growth spurt and can now pedal his trike. He just loves being outside, so the wet week has been difficult for him.

And that's the kind of week it's been.

Saturday, October 13

News Update

Another week comes to an end here on the sunny shore of Lake Superior. I am in a lull from travel to my schools, so I'm trying to take care of some business around the home office.

I have a conference in TBay on Wednesday through Friday, so that uses much of my week. The conference is 'just okay'. It's on Differentiated Instruction, surely an important subject, but it's also certainly not new. I am reminded of our work at Mildred Hall in YK over twenty years ago. Both Erica and Erin spent most of their primary school years in Multi-Age Group classes we had set up at that school to emphasize Differentiated Instruction. Now DI is the hot topic in education in Ontario, and I can only fear that it will be mandated—surely the death knell for many a good idea!

Friday is the big day! I get my cast off! The doctor is well satisfied with my situation (over seven weeks after the fact!) and sends me on my way with encouraging words. He still wants to see me in six weeks, but basically—I'm free! I head for the golf course Saturday afternoon, and it is a pleasure. My full swing is a bit limited, but that could be a good thing!

Meanwhile things have continued on a good keel around home. Wendy continues to improve under the care of her chiropractor, and Erin is enjoying both work and Joe! (more another time!)

And that's about it for this week.

Saturday, October 6

News Update

Another week closes here on the rainy shore of Lake Superior. I have spent most of the week on the road once again, so it's nice to enjoy the weekend around home.

After working in the office on Monday, I head out to Mine Centre, about three hours west of here. We are booked for two days there, and another two days in Atikokan which is an hour closer to home. We plan to spend our nights in Atikokan, however, plans change. We spend the first night in the Atikokan Hotel. Now, my back was built in 1950, but it does not typically enjoy a bed that was constructed that long ago, so it was a long night with little sleep! I get up with a stiff back, a sore neck and an unhappy disposition. My travelling companion, Wes, has not had any better of it in his room, and he was further bothered by the noise. We determine to stay there no longer. The only other hotel in town is fully booked, but Wes knows of a fishing lodge nearby, so we check that out and are delighted to get accommodated there for one night. It's lovely, and we catch up on some of our sleep. We can't find a place for the third night so we end up commuting from TBay for the last day! The work goes well, and we get both schools moved forward quite well in preparation for report cards and the first set of reports to the Ministry.

Here is a link that Wes set up. If you have a good internet connection, I invite you to try it out as it shows the locations of our schools. You will have to patch it together to get it into the address bar.
http://maps.google.ca/maps/ms?oe=UTF-8&hl=en&ie=
UTF8&msa=0&msid=101216474493044980083.000
439f3264b8c9d7c2a6&ll=50.57626,-90.263672&spn=
3.57915,10.283203&z=7&om=1

Work goes well for Erin, babysitting goes well for Wendy, life goes well for Kristian! Wendy is showing good progress in her new therapy with the chiropractor.

We also have some heartbreaking news to report on the home front as Sylvia and Travis have separated.

And that's about it for this week.

Saturday, September 29

News Update

Another week has come to a close here on Lake Superior, but that's not where I spent a lot of my time.

My work called me away up to Armstrong this week. A lot of input, data correction and just a bit of data massage was needed to satisfy OnSIS. However, at the end of the week, they are ready to work through the sign off procedure. Of course that takes time as well, so at the end of the week, with one day to go, I still have four of my fourteen schools not quite there! It's only a matter of the formality, but...

My leg continues to improve, but I still experience some pain around the site of the fibular fracture (about three inches below my knee). One night while I have my cast removed, I try getting down into a curling slide—nope, that didn't work! This could be more of a problem than I would have expected. I'm scheduled for my next checkup on October 12th—a total of over seven weeks since the break. I'm doing some therapy now each day, so I hope to be mobile enough to try some golf before the end of the season.

Meanwhile, back on the home front the family has enjoyed decent weather, frequent hikes for grandma and Kristian, and the usual work for Erin.

And that's about it for this week.

Saturday, September 22

News Update

Another week draws to an end here on the shore of Lake Superior where all the children are above average!

I've had another good week at work. I worked around the home office on Monday and Tuesday. Then I travelled up to Red Lake(one of my schools) for Wednesday through Friday. We were able to make a lot of progress on the OnSIS reports so that seven of the fourteen schools are completed. The deadline is September 30th, so it's getting plenty close.

Another big event this week was the American greenback falling to parity with the Canadian dollar. As the chart shows, this has been a long time coming, but with the Bushies devastating the American economy, it was inevitable. Of course, as I've mentioned before the continually weaker greenback makes life a lot more difficult for Canadian manufacturers as the US is our biggest customer and all our stuff is about 20% more expensive just this year.
Chart


I continue to be hobbled with my leg, but the pain is gradually diminishing. I had a bit of a bad day on Wednesday what with driving up to Red Lake (7 hours) and too much walking around. But that was the only time I needed to take painkillers, so I'm improving.

Wendy keeps busy caring for Kristan each day while Erin works. She had a relapse of her back, shoulder and arm issues, but a trip to the chiropractor helped a lot. Her big project this week was draining, cleaning and putting away the pool.

Kristian enjoyed his second birthday last Sunday, and the rest of us just enjoy him everyday.

The tragedy of the week was the Riders losing to the BC Lions in a battle for first place this evening. The Riders started the season strong, but have now lost three straight and fallen into second place.

And that's the kind of week it's been.

Thursday, September 20

Things to Think About

An American friend wrote this... three things to think about!
1. Cows
2. The Constitution
3. The Ten Commandments

Cows
Is it just me, or does anyone else find it amazing that our government can track a single cow born in Canada almost three years ago, right to the stall where she sleeps in the state of Washington? And, they tracked her calves to their stalls. But they are unable to locate 11 million illegal aliens wandering around our country. Maybe we should give each of them a cow.

The Constitution
They keep talking about drafting a Constitution for Iraq. Why don't we just give them ours? It was written by a lot of really smart guys, it has worked for over 200 years, and we're not using it anymore.

The Ten Commandments
The real reason that we can't have the Ten Commandments posted in a courthouse is this: You cannot post "Thou Shalt Not Steal," "Thou Shalt Not Commit Adultery", and "Thou Shall Not Lie" in a building full of lawyers, judges and politicians. It creates a hostile work environment.

Saturday, September 15

News Update

Another week draws to an end here on the shore of Lake Superior where the women are strong, the men are handsome and all the children are above average!

I've had a full week of work. I travelled up to Nakina (one of my schools) for Monday and Tuesday. Then I had work at home and office meetings on Wednesday and Thursday, and finally, I completed the week with a full day workshop for all my secretaries on Friday. It was good.

Of course, I continue to be hobbled with my leg. I returned to the doctor first thing Friday morning to have the cast removed and further xrays and examination of the ankle in particular. The doctor expressed some relief over the progress and prescribed an 'air cast' for the next month. The air cast is rather slick. I strap it on, and then use a little pump to inflate bladders that increase the support of my ankle. And the best part is I'm allowed to take it off at night, or to have a shower. It's also a walking cast, so I've got rid of the crutches. Progress indeed!

Wendy keeps busy caring for Kristian now that Erin is working full-time. She has continued with stripping the old wallpaper in the kitchen and dining room. (I'm afraid this has some significance that has not fully dawned on me yet!) And today, she bought me a compressor with pneumatic nailer and stapler. (Again, I suspect some hidden agenda!)

Erin is enjoying her job, and preparing for Kristian's second birthday that we'll celebrate tomorrow! Happy birthday, little buddy! Grandma has been trying to teach him to blow out his candles, but he's resisting.

This weekend we have Erica and the boys here for the celebration, so that's a special treat. And that's the kind of week it's been.

Saturday, September 8

News Update

Another week draws to an end here on Lake Superior. As noted elsewhere it has not been my best week, however, we carry on.

The remarkable news from my doctors here was to confirm that my fibula is healing well, but that I also have a fracture in my ankle. I couldn't quite see what they were referring to in the xray, but it seems the problem is in one of the bones in the ankle upon which the tibia rests. The crack or chip seems to be knitting together, but they were concerned with how I was adapting to the problem. It seems that in the interest of avoiding pain, I had maneuvered my ankle into an inappropriate position, and they felt this could lead to longer term disability. So they manipulated my ankle back the way they wanted it (ouch) and put me in a cast to keep it there! Seems effective! I am scheduled to go back next Friday for a follow up. In the meantime, I am on crutches with a cast up to my knee.

Work has returned to full swing and I have managed to get a couple of my schools to complete their June reporting to the Ministry. All schools are required to complete this by the end of September, or else there are monetary penalties that impact my program. Next week I am scheduled to begin my road trips to the schools.

Wendy has begun working on the house renovations; she feels that since I am disabled she should work twice as hard, so she can aggravate her back, shoulder and arm issues!! I feel she should take it easy on the renovations so she can take care of me!

Erin has begun work at Halfway Motors. She is enjoying her work. It mainly involves the accounting/bookkeeping for the Suzuki franchise that is part of the Halfway family of dealerships. Kristian is attempting to keep his grandpa amused while his mom his at work.

Travis has been off all week to Las Vegas where he is enjoying a Photoshop conference. He reports that the workshops have been excellent so far.

We are enjoying harvesting from our container garden. There are lots of tomatoes, but the beans seem to have quit producing. The corn is not ready yet, but is promising.

And that's the kind of week it's been.

Friday, September 7

Warning from Pakistan

This morning, from a cave somewhere in Pakistan, Taliban Minister of Migration, Mohammed Omar, warned the United States and Canada that if military action against Iraq continues, Taliban authorities will cut off America's and Canada's supply of convenience store managers.

And if this action does not yield sufficient results, cab drivers will be next, followed by Bell and Sprint customer service reps.

It's getting ugly.

Thursday, September 6

Another unfortunate break!

I was to the Fracture Clinic here in TBay today. I wanted to follow-up and ensure that my fibula was knitting back together properly. The good doctor (as mentioned, our doctors down here have to go to school to get a degree!) allowed as how the fibula was mending very well, but he was concerned about my broken ankle... my what!!? Yes, the ankle also fractured in the mishap, and he is concerned that things aren't quite as they should be there.

He noted that I must have a high pain threshold (And, to test out this theory, he manipulated my ankle back into the position he wanted!), and noted that the ligaments look good. The upshot is that I'm now on crutches and in a cast from knee to toes, and scheduled to go back next Friday (14th) for more xrays. Yikes!

Saturday, September 1

News Update

The end of this week finds us cooling our heels on the shore of Lake Superior. We enjoyed a final Sunday with family in Regina and bade farewell to Rich & Sue as they head off for six months in Zambia, starting on Tuesday.

As planned, we drove from Regina to Kenora on Monday. This segment was punctuated by an enjoyable visit with Dave & Heather at the Tim Horton's in Brandon. We stayed overnight with Eric/A and the boys. Then, on Tuesday we completed the 5000 km tour with a 500 click drive back into TBay.

My leg is swollen and aching. I head to see the doctor on Wednesday. Perhaps these doctors who actually had to go to school to get a degree will know how to treat a fracture! Hmmm, well at least they are also surprised by the lack of a cast! They set me up for more x-rays (to be read by an expert, they assure me), and then they'll determine whether all is progressing well, or if they will need to operate and put in a pin. (Now there's an unpleasant thought!) And with the long weekend, I am delighted to hear that I can wait until next week for that announcement. Privately I have decided that no news is good news, and that the lack of a phone call indicates that all is well.

I get back to work, and am pleased to get my final two schools signed off on Thursday—a whole day to spare! I'll give them the weekend off as well, and then drop the hammer on them for the June reports! I've also been given a small project for Tangible Capital Asset management, so that's another fifteen days of work.

Wendy spends a few days getting the house and our books back in order. She's back in pretty good health, so that's a relief. She has decided to get back on the job hunt. Our garden is thriving—thanks, Trav, for keeping it watered. We have tomatoes, lettuce, radishes and beans. The corn is promising some cobs; the rhubarb is showing good growth. Even the peas are trying to produce although they have never really recovered from the frequent depredations at the teeth of the squirrels.

Erin got back just in time for a job interview. She landed the job, managing accounts at a car dealership, and is scheduled to begin next Tuesday. Kristian is thriving, and keeping us all entertained with his developmental growth and sense of humour.

And that's the kind of week it's been.

Sunday, August 26

News Update

Another week has passed. We begin the week in Sundre, Alberta; spend most of it on the Okanagan and now we're in Regina, on our way home to the shore of Lake Superior.

The Krogsgaard family reunion came off well. It was helpful to have a totally catered event as it left more time for activities and visiting. On Sunday afternoon, we set off for for John & Marion's on Lake Okanagan, arriving there after dark. We enjoyed restful days with them, culminating in a lovely supper with many old friends from the area. Thanks, John & Marion. The fly in the ointment was, of course, my leg breaking adventure on Wednesday.

On Thursday, we started on our way home, spending most of the day getting back to Medicine Hat, where we enjoyed an overnight stay with Jim & Carol—thanks guys! Then on Friday, we continued on to Regina, where we spending the weekend with DadK—thanks, again.

We anticipate driving to Kenora on Monday, and completing the trip back to TBay on Tuesday. We have all been enjoying our tour a great deal. Kristian has been a hit with everyone.

And that's the kind of week it's been.

Thursday, August 23

Golfiday

I haven't managed very much golf in recent weeks as various other schedules have intervened, but even that small amount is going to decrease!

I enjoyed golfing at Sundre, Alberta, even though I has a constant hook that I couldn't manage my way out of while on the course. When I got to the Okanagan I enjoyed taking advantage of the practice facility at Predator Ridge. As a result, I was able to improve my driving, and get back in a better groove. Then I arranged a game with my old dentist from Yellowknife days. Peter has retired to Kelowna, and I have often been able to arrange a game when we're holidaying in the area. This time he invited me to a new course that I had not played before, so that was an additional challenge.

On the first tee (a short 325 year hole), I hit a fine drive of over three hundred yards down the middle. I can tell you, all of us were impressed! Peter was telling the others that I had inspired him with my short game some years ago, so I responded by chipping my 15 yard approach within an inch of the hole—almost an eagle! Then when I put my drive on the second (170 yard-par three) about twenty feet from the hole and rammed in another birdie putt, we were all wondering who this guy was!! Well, I played well throughout the front nine (although the greens were very fast and tricky so I three-putted a couple of times) and I ended up plus four. Then we turned to the back, and my game and season came to an abrupt end! I was beside the tenth green, ready to chip on, but one of our playing partners was having trouble finding his ball. I wandered around the grassy hillside under the trees looking for it, and finally we found it, however, as I turned to head down the slope and back to my ball, I stepped on a pine cone, slipped and fell, catching my leg underneath me. I heard/felt a sickening crunch and imagined I had turned my ankle again (it frequently happens). I rotated my ankle—no problem. I flexed my knee—no problem (whew!) I stood up—big problem! I couldn't stand on my left leg. I sat down again, and called Peter for help. He allowed that as a dentist he couldn't not offer me much advice on my lower leg pain. He helped me onto his golf cart and hauled me back to the truck. I headed to the local hospital. I can tell you driving that standard tranny was not fun! After due investigations and x-rays I saw the prognosis—a broken fibula.

The doctors feel that since the fracture is not displaced I will not need surgery for pins nor a cast since it is not weight-bearing. They expect that it will be well in about a month.

My brother, John, built me a walking stick, and we carry on, on a golfiday—a holiday from golf!!

Saturday, August 18

News Update

Another week has passed, but we have wandered far from the shore of Lake Superior, so that today finds us in the mountains near Sundre, Alberta. We left Thunder Bay on Tuesday, as soon as Erin had finished writing her exam and we could get packed up. We drove as far as Kenora that day, and spent the evening and night with Eric, Erica and the boys. Then on Wednesday, we carried on to Regina, where we visited with Wendy's family and spent the night with DadK. On Thursday, we carried on to Medicine Hat where we enjoyed the evening with Jim & Carol. Finally, on Friday afternoon we drove up through Cochrane and to the Pioneer Lodge here just south of Sundre.

It's a nice setting in the foothills. It's set up for a variety of activities like pony rides and trail rides. There is also a climbing wall, an obstacle course and hiking trails. Then there are volleyball and basketball games set up near the main lodge. It makes for a nice reunion with the Krogsgaard family, and we also celebrate Erin's birthday.

I finally manage, this afternoon, my only golf of the week. I drive into Sundre where they have a nice course. The local guys I'm placed with insist on playing the blacks, but really it's my driving that keeps me in trouble throughout. Everything is back to going left, so more work remains; I guess that's golf!

And that's the kind of week it's been.


Saturday, August 11

News Update

Another week... wow, where did the week go?! It seems to have been lost in busyness.

I do remember we had a holiday on Monday, but with summer holidays, there isn't much to distinguish another day. And I've been 'at work' for at least part of each day. Oh, yeah, and I did get in a golf game—39-42 for 81, pretty good.

I've managed a lot of progress on the backyard. The trampoline is now in place, and I'm working on the base for the lawn. That involves a lot of shovelling, wheelbarrowing and raking. I'm still projecting being ready to seed when we get back from our trip west.

We plan to leave next Tuesday, driving as far as Kenora, and then onto Regina on Wednesday. Next weekend we're in the Krogsgaard reunion at Sundre, Alberta. Wendy is doing well. She has been busy with daycare and homecare, and is starting to find a manageable work load that her aggrieved shoulder will accept.

Erin is doing final assignments and exams in her summer courses. Her last exam is Tuesday morning, thus our plans to travel Tuesday afternoon. Kristian loves getting outside, and with the back yard work, he enjoys helping grandpa take it a little slower.

And that's about all for this week.

Saturday, August 4

News Update

Another week has passed on the sunny shore of the not so Superior Lake. I say that to note that the big lake is nearing record low water marks. Several recent publications have noted the ominously low water and the record high surface temperature of the lake. It is now expected that some time this fall, Superior will fall to a new record low. This is interfering with shipping, as the large vessels cannot carry full loads, and it is really interfering with small boats as many are unable to access their docks or slips.

Meanwhile back at the house, Wendy thinks the pool is a couple of inches low as well! However, I have continued my slow progress on the back yard. I am digging a shallow excavation for the trampoline, and preparing the main section of the yard for lawn. I hope to plant grass this month, so I need to keep at it, however the 30 degree weather has invited me indoors!

I've had a couple of days back at work this week as well. We had an all day meeting on Wednesday, and I had some follow-up from that. So, with the work and the heat, I only managed to get out golfing on Monday.

The garden continues to grow and produce. Something keeps eating the pea plants—they are being mowed down to just a couple of inches high!

Wendy is back to pretty well full health, and has spent several days this week helping out at the daycare. Erin & Kristian are doing well. Kristian got a good medical check-up this week as he's finally made the chart for his weight! (He's still pretty slim!)

And that's the kind of week it's been.

Monday, July 30

Birthday 57

The weekend included a recognition of my completion of 57 years on this little blue planet. The whole family was here—my favourite wife, my favourite children, my favourite grandchildren, my favourite son-in-law and my favourite daughter-in-law! It was delightful! We enjoyed backyard BBQ, supper out at a restaurant, and, of course, an ice cream cake! The poor cake was festooned with 57 candles—it's a wonder it didn't melt on the spot! Thankfully Liam assisted me to get them all blown out. I also got to play golf with three friends. My driver was unconscious with a couple drives over 300 yards, and in the correct direction! It must have been a special boon from the golf gods in honour of the occasion as it hasn't happened before.

After supper, I head back to the course to play the back nine. It's like old home week... hook, scramble, bogie. After a few holes of that I have to look in the mirror and exclaim, "Okay, I recognize you, but who was that guy this morning?!" And suddenly on 15, I'm hitting it straight again, so I par in and complete a very respectable 82.

In addition to the delight of the presence of family and friends, I also got some presents. It was too much, and I feel very blessed. Thank you, family!

Saturday, July 28

News Update

Another week (and almost another year) passes on the shore of Lake Superior. And while the climes may continue to be salubrious, the rising temperatures make outdoor activity less enjoyable. The thermometer continues to push higher in the twenties, and threatens to continue into the thirties; we are happy to enjoy the air-conditioned comfort of the house (leave us alone, David Suzuki!).

The pool also gets a lot of traffic, even more so after the arrival of Eric and the boys on Tuesday. Even Wendy is eventually convinced to take the plunge. Kristian seems unable to make his mind up about it—everytime I stand him at the top of the ladder, he jumps in, but he hollers (in what seems to be discomfort) while he's there! Haaken and Liam spend hours on end playing in the water.

I've only managed one golf game this week. That was with Eric on Wednesday. It was okay; I scrambled a lot on the front nine, but improved on the back—46-40, for an 86. We've put together a foursome for my birthday on Monday, so, I'm looking forward to that.

Wendy is doing much better health-wise, so that's a relief. Erin has applied for a job at the University—we hope that goes forward. Erica drove down after work on Thursday, so we have the whole family together for a few days—it's nice!

And that's the kind of week it's been.

Saturday, July 21

News Update

The week is enjoyed in salubrious climes on the shore of Lake Superior.

I am fundamentally on holidays, although frequent issues with OnSIS calls me back to active duty nearly every day for at least a couple of hours. I have noted the need to improve my golf game, especially off the tee, so I concentrate on that at the start of the week. Although I always spend part of my practice time on my short game, I spend all of my swing time on driving both Sunday and Monday. I have a game with John on Tuesday, and then play another 18 holes with locals that I am placed with... my driving is much improved. I hit only one pull hook in my game with John, and only two on the other 18! I do 'play it smart' (yes, I know, that's not like me!) with a couple of three woods, but, really, my driving goes very well. My iron play is inconsistent for awhile but also comes around, and I play the final nine in two over! All told, my two games this week end up 85, 80. I take the remainder of the week off golf as yard work and wind combine to keep me off the course.

The garden is doing well, although it got a late start. Tomatoes are forming, we're eating radishes, and the lettuce is getting close. Our transplanted flowers and rhubarb all seem to be taking well. I upgraded the distribution side of the watering system this week, so that helps.

Wendy has been feeling much better and is nearly back to full operating condition once again. She still is taking treatment, but she is able to manage without much discomfort or disability.

Erin has been working on assignments with her summer courses and is in the final weeks of that. Kristian got a little cut under his chin and had to get medical attention to have it glued back together again. He hardly seemed to notice the injury and it certainly has not slowed him down!

Travis & Sylvia are doing well, keeping busy with work and home. Trav is starting plans and preparations for the new school year. Among other things he's planning a trip to Las Vegas for a Photoshop conference in September. I wonder if there are any decent golf courses in the vicinity!?

And that's the kind of week it's been.

Saturday, July 14

News Update

The week begins in Dauphin, winds its way through Winnipeg and eventually returns us to the shore of Lake Superior.

We enjoy a wonderful reunion with many friends in Dauphin—thank you, especially to Mabel for your generous hospitality. On Monday, we begin the return tour by driving into Winnipeg. Thank you Tom & Mariette for your generous hospitality. Tuesday finds me on another golf course, Grand Pines, just north of Winnipeg. Most of my game is working well, but my driver is mostly unmanageable and leaves me frequently in the trees and I eventually record an 88. Clearly I must do something better on the tee!

On Wednesday we check in with Mike & Peggy, acknowledge her birthday, collect a lot of plants for our flower beds and garden and then head east. We arrive in TBay safely in the early evening. It is good to see Erin & Kristian.

They have been doing okay, although Kristian has a bit of a cold. Erin has managed to get a lot of schoolwork done despite the absence of the prime babysitters.

I manage to get back to work and help a few more schools make progress in the dreaded ministry reports. We enjoy a brief visit with Trav & Sylvia who had their own whirlwind tour in the last week.

Wendy is feeling quite a bit better and manages to make a lot of progress planting our new perennials as well as an assortment of local bedding plants.

And that's the kind of week it's been.

Saturday, July 7

News Update

The week begins on the shore of Lake Superior. Then we head west on Tuesday, driving to Winnipeg where we visit with Mike & Peggy and I enjoy a round of golf with Mike. My golf is quite satisfactory as I manage an 84 on a tight course. On Thursday we head out to Dauphin in preparation for the annual Pryder Cup golf competition with our friends from Bismark, ND. This will be my third Pryder Cup as I played the original one in 2000 before we began our time in Zambia, and I managed to take in the 2005 event, although I played for the American team on that occasion!

So, while we stayed with Mabel in Dauphin, and she and Wendy enjoyed shopping and chatting, I laboured through four rounds of golf on Friday and Saturday!

And thus another week passes.

Pryder Cup 2

Day two activity moves us to the Dauphin Lake course, where we start round three under threatening skies. The format is better ball and I am teamed with my old friend, Dick. It is a great relief to be playing much better. Perhaps my fretting and problem-solving through the night are paying off! More likely the calming influence of my friend allows me to get my head together. It is well said that golf is mainly played 'between the ears'!!
At any result we win both points fairly comfortably--but the great feeling for me is that I am playing some decent golf once again. Our teammates continue to pitch a virtual shutout and we head to the final round with an insurmountable lead of 13.5 to 2.5.
The afternoon features the singles matches. Although we play in foursomes, the match is against one person from the other team. I am delighted to find that my refound game has continued into the afternoon, so I am able to score well and win my point 6 and 5. Randy, my playing partner in the group has a harder time of it, but finally wins on seventeen--2 and 1. Likewise our teammates continue to dominate winning six of the eight matches for a final score of 19.5 to 4.5.
It was a great experience despite my poor play on Friday and I hope to play in the event on another occasion if the chance should arise.

Friday, July 6

Pryder Cup 1

The opening round of the tournament is the two-man scramble. This is an event where each partner plays a shot and then we choose from the two results as the location for our next shot. This continues until we hole-out and then the team with the better score wins the hole. I am paired with Mark, a reliable golfer so we can count on a high percentage of fairways and greens hit. I, on the other hand, do not turn out to be a reliable golfer! I don't know whether I am over-psyched for the matches or what, but I do not golf well at all, so that's pretty frustrating. And Mark is unable to make up the difference so while we struggle valiantly, we finally lose our match when they make a birdie on the final hole and we lose 1up. Our teammates fare better and we end the morning matches with a 3-1 lead.

In the afternoon we play modified alternate shot. I am partnered with Bernard, a long hitter and a consistent scorer. Once again, I turn out to be neither! I certainly play better than in the morning, so that is of some encouragement. We fall behind early and by the tenth hole, we're four holes down. We rally and finally regain a tie on the seventeenth hole, but, alas, we fall apart on the eighteenth and lose the match 1up. Once again our teammates hold their own in all other matches, so we complete the day with a 6-2 lead.
In the evening we have a BBQ at Wayne's house... great steaks, great food, great fun!

Saturday, June 30

News Update

Another week passes on the shore of Lake Superior. There was violent weather in the area, but not like the tornadoes they experienced in Manitoba! Some buildings were de-roofed in Ignace and a semi-trailer was blown over by the wind.

I have now played thirteen golf games this season, but this week was a downturn as far as consistency is concerned. I started off the week with a game up in Red Lake—a tough course to be sure. I followed up that 87 with an 81 & 82 back at my home course in TBay.

My work is completely dedicated to getting those reports in to the Ministry of Education. OnSIS keeps changing the rules, so that doesn't help. This week I managed to get a ruling in writing, so we hope they'll stick to that for at least a term!

The container garden is doing well, although Kristian is helping with the weeding from time to time and that spells danger for my seedlings! Wendy got into the planting this week, as she is gradually improving in her shoulder and back issues. I managed to do my part by cleaning up as much poppy seed sheet cake as possible!

Today we drove down to Grand Portage Casino where they were featuring a 50's & 60's weekend. Wendy wanted to see Gary Lewis & the Playboys, and I wanted to see the cars. Too bad we didn't have the '67 Cougar to show off! By the time we'd toured the car show and taken in Elvis, Patsy Cline, Neil Diamond, Willie Nelson, Connie Francis... (well, too many tribute singers!) Wendy's shoulder was getting too bothersome and we drove back without even seeing the real band!

Erin has been busy with babysitting and homework this week, but is now off baby sitting for a couple of weeks. Kristian continues to delight, amaze and frustrate—often in the same minute!

Travis & Sylvia keep busy with their work and home. They celebrate their first anniversary tomorrow! And, as somebody sang, "The first year is the worst year, you'll get used to it!"

And thus another week passes.

Wednesday, June 27

Medical Update

Today was my long awaited return visit to my doctor to get the results of the biopsies. He explained that none of the samples showed any cancerous cells, so I'm clean for now. He also concluded that the elevated PSA levels are caused by chronic inflammation of the prostate. As a result, they will no longer be able to rely on the PSA levels as a useful test about my prostate health. They will have to rely more on DRE's (wonderful) and when changes are detected, with more biopsies!! (hurray!)

At any rate, this qualifies as good news, and a relief. Thank you for your thoughts and prayers.

Saturday, June 23

News Update


Another week passes on the shore of Lake Superior. The weather was a little unsettled, but I still managed three games of golf between my bouts with OnSIS.

My golf game continues to come around. I have now played ten games this season, and I'm starting to see some improvement in consistency. This week I managed three scores 87, 83 & 80—definitely the kind of trend I like! I still snap hook occasionally, and on a tighter course that could spell bigger trouble.

Work is almost totally dedicated to termly reports to the Ministry—OnSIS as its known. Five of my schools are still lagging, and I'm struggling to help them get caught up. They, of course, have a lot of competing agendas this time of year, so it's hard to get them to focus on this one for very long.

My container garden is doing well. The photo shows about half of the boxes—I'm following a strategy called "Square Foot Gardening" so each of the small squares is that size, and we have twenty-six of them. I have also built them on raised platforms to be easy on our creaky backs! I'll keep reporting on how it goes—it's our first try at something like this.

Wendy continues to suffer with her shoulder, arm and back pain, although there is clear improvement this week. She even managed to do some baking today—poppy seed sheet cake, yum, yum!

Erin is keeping busy with babysitting and homework all week. Kristian keeps himself and the rest of us busy without even having a portfolio!

Travis & Sylvia keep busy with their work and home. They just finished buying a deep freeze, so that must signal another level of domesticity!

And thus another week passes.

Saturday, June 16

News Update

And a beautiful week passes on the serene shore of Lake Superior.

As alluded to, we are experiencing beautiful spring weather, and have been blissfully free of bugs as well. I got out golfing several times to practise and also managed two games. I played with my friend John on Monday up at Strathcona, and today, I went for a game on my home course. The scores were only satisfactory (88, 87), but I am making a lot of good shots as my new swing continues to grow in consistency. I continue to be blessed with at least a half dozen totally useless shots each round—they don't get me a stroke closer to the hole; they sometimes don't even let me change clubs!

I continue to work sporadically on the Ministry reporting for our schools. We're now up to having nine of the fourteen current with their reporting. I am struggling to get the remainder caught up as the next round is scheduled to open July 2nd.

I have finished building our "Square-foot Gardens", and we have most of them planted. I built them raised off the ground for easier maintenance and use. This is our first try at intensive gardening.

Wendy has continued to struggle with her sore left wing for another week. She's haunting medical and chiropractic doctors, clinics, pharmacies and friends in search of relief. Part way through the week she began wearing my tennis elbow brace and that seems to be helping.

Erin has continued with babysitting all week and also with her studies. Kristian enjoys the time with the kids at the sitting assignment, and really enjoys the outdoors, the playgrounds and the pools. He's now started pedaling his tricycle and especially enjoys that on our newly repaved street.

Today, Eric/A and the boys arrived from Kenora, so we're enjoying them for the weekend.

Saturday, June 9

News Update

Another week passes on the lovely shore of Lake Superior.

There has been some progress at work. The Ministry has announced year three funding, so that's good. They've added a caveat that 50% of the funding is dependent on our progress with OnSIS, so that's not good! OnSIS has allowed that it may have manuals and training materials ready next week for their June Reports that they demand we complete on time... and what about their getting the things ready on time? Don't ask! So, I don't although I do register a complaint with them. Then, I'm back at it with my schools trying to get them successfully through March Reports for OnSIS—we have three main reporting periods to the Ministry: October, March & June. To this point, only five of my fourteen schools have completed March, and the Ministry wants June done on time! Yikes! Well, at least we got them to extend the deadline to September 30th.

I managed another golf game—it was not good—a lot of hooks and snap hooks, accompanied by a collection of pulls and quackers. This all added up to 87, also not good. But I had fun anyway. More practice is in order on this new swing.

Wendy has continued to suffer with her problematic left shoulder. The doctors remain unsure about how serious it is, but have prescribed some medication and some painkillers. Neither seem adequate to the task!

Back yard work continues. I got some of the container gardening operational, and all of the material cut for the project. It should be all in operation next week. I got the pool set up and filled—one small leak is troubling, and remains to be found!

Erin continues with her classes and her babysitting. Kristian continues with his growing and climbing—what are you doing on top of the piano?!

And that's the kind of week it's been.

Saturday, June 2

News Update

It's been quite a week here on the shore of Lake Superior.

Of course I didn't spend the whole week here. On Monday and Tuesday I visited Collins. That was a good trip. On Thursday, I had my prostate biopsy; that was not a good trip! The rest of Thursday and Friday I didn't feel very well, but I'm back to about 80% today.

So, I finally got in another golf game this afternoon. It wasn't smooth, but there were signs of good things happening. The drives were mostly good; the approach shots were mostly bad! The chipping was pretty good, and the putting was mediocre! It all added up to 88, a score I no longer find acceptable. However, it was fun anyway!

Wendy was quite busy Sunday through Wednesday, but then she hurt herself. Somehow she pulled something in her left shoulder, so she was in great pain Thursday and Friday, and is only starting to come around today.

Erin is hitting the books on her new set of classes. That's going well. Kristian is entertaining us and exasperating his mother! We think he's moved into the terrible two's a bit early!

Sylvia began her new job officially on Friday as she is now in charge of her section at the University. Trav is back at his fuller schedule of work for the summer, and is also doing some extra contracts in graphical design on the side.

And that's the kind of week it's been.

Friday, June 1

Two Blue Moons in the Sky

Obviously what is rarer than a blue moon is two of them! And the Blue Jays produced a baseball feat that is so rare as to have never been done before—they won a game without having a baserunner! Last night they beat the Chicago White Sox 2-0 on the strength of two home runs and no one else got on base... no walks, no reaching by error, no hit by pitch, nothing. Pity poor Mark Buerle (the Chicago pitcher) who faced two over the minimum number of batters; he never pitched out of the stretch all night. Toronto had no base runners. Aaron Hill and Frank Thomas got the only hits for the Jays, both homers to support the shutout pitching of Roy Halladay, but the wonder was winning without baserunners. It had never been done before. And that, as I said, doesn't even happen once in a blue moon!

Thursday, May 31

Once In a Blue Moon

I have expressed concern about our dollar's increasing value before, but in line with weakness in the US economy it continues to gain against the greenback. Today it hit ninety-four cents American. Of course it would be more meaningful if it were gaining against the Euro, but since the US is our biggest trading partner it still has a powerful effect on our producers. It used to be a common belief that a equitable comparison between the productivity and production costs in the two countries would call for a Canadian dollar at eighty-three cents, but things change. The Bushies' devastating economic practices with both trade deficits and budget deficits has forced the greenback to fall ever since Dubya took office, even more so against the Euro.

Our current valuation has not been seen since 1977—much more rare than a blue moon, but if the Republicans don't impeach Dubya, we may be looking at parity in the not too distant future. And now I see eyebrows raised in Stillwater! Yes, I do mean the Republicans. Why would the Democrats impeach the Shrub; he's the best thing they've got going for them!

Prostate Biopsy

This morning I was subjected to a biopsy of my prostate gland. It has been acting up for some years, providing higher than appropriate levels of prostate specific antigen (PSA) that seems to have no other function than informing oncologists that it's time to perform more DRE's or a biopsy. Now, while the prospect of a biopsy may be considered yucky, it pales in comparison to the actual experience! Dr. Prowse (shudda been Sterns, as I mentioned before) was remarkably general when he described the procedure. The 'wet room' nurse is much more forthcoming...
"Dr. Prowse will be inserting a probe. It will be stiff like this pen, only larger (As in the Titanic was larger than my canoe.) and it will provide ultrasound imaging. You need to relax; tensing up will only make it more difficult. (Okay, I'll cooperate. Do I get time off for good behaviour?) Then, he'll be inserting a smaller probe to take the six biopsy samples..."
"Six! Dr. Prowse only said four!"
"There will be six. He will fire the trigger and..."
"Fire a trigger! Am I getting shot?"
"Well, actually it will carve a small slice off the prostate. And it will sting a bit. Then you may feel nauseous or like you need to urinate or defecate. Don't worry, we're used to it. That's why this is called the 'wet room'. Then he will finish you off by giving you a needle (Did she just say he would finish me off?) with additional antibiotics—just a little boost to those pills you've been taking all week. And you will experience some blood in the urine for the next few days—nothing to be alarmed about—but if you fill the bowl with blood, better come back in. (She says it so matter-of-factly even I have difficulty feeling alarmed.) You will also have blood in the stool for a couple of days and in the ejaculate for up to six weeks. (Wonderful, now isn't that a turn-on!) And if you experience any feeling of lousiness or fever in the next few days, better come back in. (Okay, I'm officially feeling lousy—should I stay?) Oh, and by the way, here's an absorbent pad for you to wear in your underwear." (Now who would ever accept that kind of inconvenient embarrassment?!)

And that's about how it happened... results in three to four weeks.

Wednesday, May 30

Where the Poor People Are...

This week I drove up to Armstrong and flew into Collins. The drive was punctuated by sightings of a number of animals. We started off Monday morning with a pair of white-tails on the road. As they bounded through the ditch and into the bush, we were treated to a pair of white flags jauntily waving us good-bye. Another special treat was finding a bear with her three cubs in the highway ditch. The sow was brown, and she had one cub of each colour—black, brown & cinnamon. We sat there for some minutes watching her chase the cubs up a tree, then return to grubbing out a fallen tree. Soon the cubs returned to her and we enjoyed watching them from about ten metres. (I hope the pictures turn out.) Overall, we saw two deer, four moose and ten bears. The other fellows also caught over a dozen lake trout (about five-six pounds each), and I appreciated being given two of the tasty treats.

As we drove home I commented to my fellow travellers, "The poor people are sitting in an office tower in Toronto—you can't buy an experience like this!"

Saturday, May 26

News Update

We start off the week in Dauphin, then gradually wend our way back to the shore of Lake Superior.

Sunday in Dauphin is an opportunity to refresh a lot of relationships. Thank you, Mabel for hosting us so graciously. On Monday, we pack up our dozen frozen chickens and head east. We stop in at the snake pits in Narcisse, a first for me. There are thousands of garter snakes at one of the four dens, just a few active at the others. We arrive at Kenora in time for supper with Eric/A and crew. We complete the trip to Thunder Bay on Tuesday.

Wednesday morning is used for another Acrobat Connect training session, and then I complete my preparations for a trip to Pickle Lake. Thursday and Friday find me in Pickle Lake working with one of our schools there. There is a lot to be done, but we manage to get some of it accomplished.

Saturday is spent around home. I get the lawn mowed, and practise a bit of golf. I work in the back yard in the afternoon, managing to get all the wood chips hauled around to the back of the house. Then Wendy and I check out George's work on his new project, and spend some time assisting with that.

Wendy has enjoyed the trip west a great deal, and now is trying to get caught up on things back at home. She manages to work in a few trips to the gym between getting the house back in order and the laundry done.

Erin is back in the run of babysitting and classes. She also spends a lot of time getting photos organized and posted in Facebook. Kristian babbles on (unintelligibly most of the time) and gets involved in most everything that interests him and concerns us!

And that's the kind of week it's been!

Saturday, May 19

News Update

We spend most of the week in Regina, until finally heading for Dauphin on Saturday morning in the rain. We enjoy getting a number of items cleared from the 'to do' list at DadK's place. I get the lawn mowed, the shower fan replaced, and the cedars trimmed. Wendy gets the windows washed, the recycling... ah recycled, and the bedding plants... um bedded. And she also manages to shop for Bill & grandpa.

I also get to play with the '67 Cougar all week. And I manage to get out to the golf course most days for a couple hours of practice. I'm trying to straighten out my driver... you'd think they would sell those things properly configured!

On Monday we drove the Cougar over to Moose Jaw to visit with Aunt Mary, Cousin Elvin and Grace—that was a warming occasion.

When we get to Dauphin, my golfing friends immediately demand that I go golfing, so I have to oblige them! I find my driver is now working very well indeed, but the rest of my game has gone south!! I end up with 94, and a lot more on my 'to correct' list! I am pulling and occasionally hooking my irons—usually the better part of my game. Fortunately, my short game is pretty good, or I'd have seen the dark side of 100! Anyway, I've never let the quality of my golf determine the level of my enjoyment, so it was a nice way to end the week.

Saturday, May 12

Making Time Flying

I had two connections on Saturday morning of the sort the old joke was made from. I took off from Thunder Bay at 6:00 and arrived in Winnipeg at 6:15. Then I took off from Winnipeg at 9:10 and landed in Regina at 9:12. So, I’ve decided to retell the old joke in that context…

An old feller wandered into the Winnipeg airport and up to the Air Canada ticket counter. “Say, do you have any flights to Regina?” the old feller asks.
“Yes, we do,” the helpful attendant responded, “In fact, our next flight leaves here at 9:10 and lands in Regina at 9:12.” The old feller raised an eyebrow and seemed lost in thought. “Do you want me to check if there are any seats left?” the attendant inquired.
The old feller shook his head slowly and then offered, “No, but I think I might hang around a bit and watch that sucker take off!”

News Update

Another week that began on the shore of Lake Superior has ended on the shore of Lake Wascana! A week that started hectic also ended that way, but there were some moments of peace and calm in between.

Wendy worked through the night on Sunday and finished all preparatory work on the cakes on Monday afternoon. Then I commenced building accommodations for all the cakes in the three coolers. So Wendy, Erin & Kristian headed west Tuesday morning at 10:00 and arrived in Regina by midnight.

Hay fever has struck, so I spent most of Tuesday afternoon and Wednesday afternoon sleeping. Our conference started Wednesday morning and I attended a workshop on Wednesday morning on Adobe Acrobat. I had a regional Professional Network meeting all day on Thursday, and then Friday morning I had a presentation at the conference. Travis picked me up Saturday morning at 4:45, and by 6:00 I was boarding my first flight on my way to Regina. I got into Regina at 9:14, made the quick change and made it to the wedding at 10:30. The reception was in the afternoon, and extended well into the evening. It was a fine day and a beautiful wedding between two truly beautiful young people. I got to catch up with lots of people in both the Knutson and Tucker families. By that time I was pretty tired (having been up since 2:30am Regina time), and was glad to head early to bed. Unfortunately, I am unable to make connection with the rest of my siblings who are gathering in Dallas to celebrate my nephew’s graduation.

And that’s the kind of week it has been.

Saturday, May 5

News Update

Another week draws to a close on the shore of Lake Superior.

I'm working out of the home office and in the backyard and on the home course! George and I get finished clearing trees from the yard; all told, we cut ten big ones and hundreds of willows. I have a tree chipper scheduled for Monday to clean up the branches, and we have many coming by to pick up firewood from our extensive collection. I'm back to the lab at the hospital on Thursday for more tests. I suspect my urologist now has the results, but I don't know if I'll hear about them before my biopsy, now scheduled for May 31st.

Wendy operated her day care section all week. She has several children each day, but seems to enjoy it all the same. She has begun work on the wedding cake, so by mid-week we were completely without dinner plates! (Each of them holding a section of cake in the freezer!) However, she has now begun assembling the cake, so our plates are returning. She, along with Erin & Kristian expect to head for Regina early next week.

Erin has finished exams and enjoys getting out more with Kristian. She's doing more babysitting, so she's not around much during the day. Kristian continues to amuse us with his antics and smile.

Trav & Sylvia keep busy with their work. Trav is working full-time now that school's out. We are waiting and hoping on Sylvia's job progress.

Eric & Erica are off to Niagara Falls this week so we have the boys with us. Erica has a conference there with her work, and they take the chance to enjoy the falls and visit friends in the area.

And that's the kind of week it's been.

Saturday, April 28

News Update

Another week draws to a close on the shore of Lake Superior. I'm done travelling for a while, and the weather is beautiful so I spend time on golfing and yard work. Neither is problem free as my swing has not improved over the winter, and yard work proves hazardous as well. I manage to get a fair amount of clean up done in the yard, but we have a big problem on Thursday as a falling tree contacts the power line, causing a fire, and eventually burning through the line. Golf season has opened on local courses so I try to get my game back in action if not form. I visit my urologist on Tuesday, but the results are inconclusive, so I face more testing in the next month or so.

Wendy continues to operate as a day care this week. She has several children each day, but seems to enjoy it all the same. She plans another week of this yet. Then it will be time for her to head for Regina and Tamara's wedding.

Erin has finished exams and enjoys getting out more with Kristian. He really enjoys the outdoors. And he is chattering up a storm although we don't know what language he is using!

Trav has begun his summer work schedule, and is also looking at some additional contracts. Sylvia is applying on a promotion within her same area of work. We wish her well.

And that's the kind of week it's been.

Friday, April 27

Falling Trees

Springtime, and old men's fancy lightly turns to thoughts of yard work. Thus this spring finds me looking to clean about ten large trees out of the back yard. And by large I mean fifty footers! These are native spruce, balsam and other evergreens that simply do not make a good fit in a city back yard. We've had three of these monsters already fall, the most recent being last year as it crashed across our fence and across the neighbour's yard. They encourage us to find a way to eliminate the others.

So, my friend, George, and I begin the process. George is the man with the chainsaw. I used to have a chainsaw, but someone decided he needed it more than I, so I no longer have one. We find that taking down, trimming and cutting up two trees is a full day's work. We line each up carefully, use a ladder to attach a rope, and then he cuts while I pull. All goes well for a while, but then disaster strikes! As we are dropping a large spruce, it catches on a pine that refuses to let go. We begin trimming off the bottom trying to get it to fall back into the yard, but the pine irrevocably turns it away, and after a couple of cuts the tree contacts the power lines and fire breaks out.

We call the fire department and the hydro company, and retire to watch them retrieve our fat from the fire! The line eventually burns through and falls spectacularly onto the ground creating another fire in the ground cover. Over all our electricity is off for about five hours, although a much larger section of the city loses electricity only for a few minutes until switching bypasses the trouble.

Travis calls in the evening to ask how the tree falling is going. He has seen an item on the evening news about the power outage. And the morning paper finds us on the front page! We're famous! And very fortunate that there was no serious damage to either of us.

Tuesday, April 24

PSA, DRE, ETC

This morning I had a delight-filled half hour with my urologist, Dr. Prowse (Dr. Sterns might be a more seemly moniker!). Despite his information-gathering DRE, he emerged with a solidly inconclusive prognosis. Therefore, he has assigned me another PSA test (with more provisos and specialization ordered), and a urinalysis. Presumably I won't have to study to pass either of these. In addition he has ordered a biopsy of my prostate—"just four little nips"—as he described it in some uncomfortable detail. This will be preceded (and followed) by a course of antibiotics to ensure that no infections develop. As I've thought about his description of this wonderful event (now scheduled for May 31st), I've become more than a little concerned about just how these "little nips" are going to be accomplished!

Thus, some time later, we will get some further data, and Dr. Butts, err... Prowse will come to some conclusions about the probable causes of my elevated PSA. In this regard, I live without anticipation, but with hope!

Saturday, April 21

News Update

Another week draws to a close on the shore of Lake Superior. This was my final week of travelling for a while, and I'm glad of that. I just feel exhausted. So a few weeks closer to home with yard work and golf should put be therapeutic ('bring me around' or 'put me to rights' as the English might say). The weather is beautiful, the covers are off the greens and the fairways are drying up.

This week I was off through Upsala on Monday and on to Savant Lake for Monday night. We spent Tuesday and Wednesday in Savant Lake, and then began the way back, spending Wednesday night in Ignace. Then we worked Upsala again on Thursday before completing the trip on Thursday evening. A bit of office work (even filing) on Friday completed the work week. Today, we're out a Gord & Nora's for a day of work on the Strategic Plan update for the church. This is the first update since we made the plan a year and a half ago, so there's more than usual to work through. It goes quite well.

Wendy has been operating a segment of Karen's day care all week. She has up to five children on any given day, but reports that she enjoys the work just fine.

Erin has been writing exams and finished that on Friday. She is glad to be through that. Kristian loves the out doors and becomes anxious when he notices any one getting ready to go outside.

Trav & Sylvia are also through exams, with Trav writing his last one today. He begins work on expanded summer hours on Monday.

I am off to see my urologist on Tuesday morning...

And that's the kind of week it's been.

Saturday, April 14

News Update

We're back into Spring here on the shore of Lake Superior. Once again, the snow has disappeared and golfers' hearts anticipate the joy (as opposed to the actual frustrating experience) of that first round!

Easter Monday is a holiday here, so I begin my road trip on Tuesday. We go out to Atikokan and Mine Centre this week. I am currently concentrating on installing Library automation programs, while concurrently continuing to work on any problems in the Student Management System (SMS). As usual, OnSIS (the Ministry reporting system) continues to confuddle and befuse our best efforts. I don't know who is responsible for building the OnSIS database, but they are doing a bad job! This week we are trying, in both schools, to send batch files of data to update the ministry on our new students as well as any changes in programming for our continuing students. Imagine our dismay when all updates are rejected because "a record already exists" for that student! The issue remains outstanding; clearly, nothing that basic can be overcome easily! More success is achieved in the library installations, and both schools are ready to roll with library automation. We are able to send in the old library records and have them converted into the new system, so that helps a great deal. More work is still needed on the set up for OPAC (online searching) in the new system.

Wendy has been running a daycare most of the week to assist with our friends who operate the daycare, but needed some assistance. I think she has decided that it wouldn't be her first choice of occupation!

Erin has been busy completing her set of courses as the term runs out. She should complete all exams in the coming week. Trav writes his last exam a week from today.

Kristian enjoys getting out on his tricycle and riding the roads. He also enjoys just walking/running outside whenever he gets a chance. Inside, he prefers climbing, and will haul access gear (stools, chairs, boxes) around to assist his climbs onto cupboards, pianos, bureaus... what a rascal!

Friday, April 13

An Apple a Day!

I haven't eaten an apple in about twenty-two years. That dates back to when I had mycoplasmic pneumonia and many food allergies developed. I remember that month, but not fondly! I only made it to school for one and a half days for the month of June that year. And later I found out that one of the side effects from either the mycoplasma or the e-mycin (antibiotic) was a range of allergies to a sweet protein found in may kinds of fruit. I have also experienced seasonal hay fever since then. It was very distressing to discover that I couldn't eat apples, pears, peaches... and one of my greatest chagrins was when I discovered that I couldn't eat Saskatoons!

Well, my doctor in Yellowknife advised that I should try a series of injections to build up my tolerance for the allergens that were causing my hay fever due to my susceptibility to developing pneumonia. That worked pretty well as long as we lived in Yellowknife, and now I've decided to give it another try. I got my allergy tests a week ago, and now I'm considering whether to begin another series of needles, but a side benefit was some startling advice from my allergy doctor. When he took my story and saw my results, he suggested that I was probably experiencing problems with certain fresh fruit. I assured him that this was the case. I was surprised to hear his promise that he might be able to help me! He suggested that if I wanted to eat an apple, I should microwave it for possibly as long as a minute and then return it to the fridge. When it had cooled I could try to eat it! I'm still testing to get it just right without producing soft spots, but I have been able to eat apples again! What a pleasure!

Saturday, April 7

News Update

And another pretty spectacular week draws to a close here on the shore of Lake Superior. We started off the week in springtime with April showers falling on our heads, and end the week in the grips of winter!! It seems that since we had a green Christmas, we are now forced to suffer a white Easter!

I head out to Red Lake on Monday morning, and by the time Tuesday evening comes around we are in a blizzard. Our flight back to Thunder Bay is cancelled, so we stay one extra day in Red Lake. We finally make it back Wednesday evening. Of course this messes up the rest of our weekly travel schedule, so that is postponed and will need to be rescheduled much later. We continue to have travel plans for the next two weeks, and then we'll see how other events tie in.

Since I am back in the office for Thursday, I manage to complete my financial report on year two and send that out for signatures. I still have to complete two other progress reports on the MISA program. Then I will need to build a set of proposals for year three, which has, in fact, already begun!

The driveway is full of heavy, wet snow when I get home Wednesday evening, so that requires a long day of shovelling, scraping and chipping on Thursday. Wendy and I are both pretty exhausted from the effort. Kristian loves playing in all the snow for over an hour while grandma shovells. The sun cleans off the remnants of the driveway, but I expect the lawn will take another week to clear.

Erin, Travis & Sylvia are completing a term of classes with final assignments and exams due. Travis & Sylvia are also highly involved in preparing multimedia presentations for Good Friday and Easter services.

And that's the kind of week it's been. Happy Easter! He's alive!

Saturday, March 31

News Update

Another week has passed here on the shore of Lake Superior. We started off with excellent weather (+20, sunny) and ran down hill all week! Here we are on Saturday about +5 and rainy. April showers shouldn't be allowed to start until tomorrow!

I have been working around the home office this week; I get back on the road next week. I get a bit more work done on the renovations downstairs. I get the new screen and projector installed at the church. I get finalization on the project budget in time for the government fiscal year end. I finally manage to get settled on a appointment with my urologist. He has another clinic elsewhere for about a week every month, so with my travelling, it hasn't been easy to make the connection. However, we now have a date of April 24th. I have an appointment on Friday with an allergy doctor. He recommends getting a series of needles to try to alleviate my seasonal hay fever. I'll make a decision on that this coming week.

Wendy is busy with her startup on the church finances, having budget meetings, and getting her operational protocols in order.

Erin is completing another term of work on her courses, so spends some extra time on assignments and exams. Kristian has a sick day, throwing up spontaneously from time to time, but mostly carrying on as if nothing is the matter. He'll just be playing along, stop to throw up, and then continue playing. The only telling characteristic of his illness appears to be his loss of appetite.

Travis & Sylvia are also completing a semester of work and classes. Trav is looking toward his summer work and is also doing more website work on the side. They are over for supper one evening—we're all just too busy, I guess.

And that's the kind of week it's been.

Saturday, March 24

News Update

We've had a strange week of weather here on the shore of Lake Superior. We started off the week with a snow storm that interrupted the homeward trip of Eric and the boys to Kenora. Then that melted off and by this weekend we're back in the teens and the snow is but a memory.

Erica stayed with us for the first few days of the week as she tried to complete some business here in TBay after celebrating her birthday on Sunday. However, all did not go well. Apparently some bug is making the rounds, and after celebrating with Trav & Syl Sunday evening, they got sick and then on Tuesday Erica was sick. Wendy came down with it on Wednesday and I did on Thursday. I didn't get the full double-edged force of the bug, so I was still able to head to TO for Thursday and Friday.

Our MISA meeting was okay, although I was a little under the weather. There has started to be talk of a fourth year of MISA, so that was interesting.

Erin & Kristian managed to escape the flu bug, and continue to recover from coughs. Kristian is doing well, and moved up to a tricycle this weekend; he really enjoys it. We enjoy watching him.

And that's the kind of week we've had here in TBay.

Saturday, March 17

News Update

Another week sails by here on Lake Superior. The weather is stunningly beautiful and warm at the start of the week and our snow melts away. Then colder weather descends for a couple of days, and finally the week ends at expected temperatures around melting.

The schools are closed this week, so I take care of a little business around the home office and do a little bit of renovation downstairs here in the house. I am redoing the closets in the large bedroom downstairs to make the room more useful. I also add an electric baseboard heater to the room along with its own thermostat. There is always much more time needed for finishing on any project like this, so it moves forward slowly. I'm off to Toronto next week, but I hope to get some of the drywalling done as time permits.

Eric, Erica and the boys arrive Thursday evening for the weekend. We celebrate Erica's birthday on Saturday evening. She will be thirty-three tomorrow! I am reminded of my last visit with mom on this day thirty-three years ago.

Kristian has recovered from his cold and is a going concern once again. Erin gradually improves throughout the week and is pretty much over the coughing now.

Wendy has kept busy with both Mary Kay and Party-Lite, and is also applying for other jobs.

And that's the kind of week it's been.

Sunday, March 11

The Brier

The men's curling championship of Canada ends today with Glen Howard and his Ontario team defeating Brad Gushue and his Newfoundland team. It's been a fun week of curling, although the ice conditions have not been good.

My guy, Kevin Martin, lost in the first round of the playoffs, but I was impressed with the new team he has put together—three new players and they managed to win Alberta and tie for second at the Brier. Jeff Stoughton of Manitoba has also rebuilt his team with two new players, and was similarly successful. In fact, it seems likely that but for two poor strategy decisions he could have been in the final against Gushue. Then there is my sentimental favourites from Saskatchewan, Pat Simmons and his team. They also achieved a good result, but ended up one game short of the playoffs. The Territories team from Yellowknife also did well, ending up with a winning record of 6-5, but were two games out of the playoffs.

All competitive teams are pointing toward the Olympics in 2010 where Canada will be a strong favourite to repeat as Gold Medalists.

Saturday, March 10

News Update

It looks like winter came and went last weekend, and now spring is here. We are experiencing above zero temperatures each day, and the snow is disappearing. Daylight saving time comes tonight; it's time to dust off the golf clubs!

I work around the home office the first couple of days, and then I head up to Armstrong on Wednesday. I'm working on the library program and the report card program with the student management system. That all goes well. The library tech is particularly amusing—she's been doing circulation by recording (longhand) all transactions for the students. She is just tickled with this 'scan the kid's barcode, scan the book barcode, next...' process. We drive back to TBay on Thursday afternoon. On Friday, I have a meeting with the Supervisory Officers. That also goes well as they approve the spending plans.

Friday brings a special day as we celebrate Wendy's birthday. She is once again a year older than I—and I don't let her forget it! It seems to make her look forward to my birthday in July! We go out with Erin & Kristian and Travis & Sylvia for Chinese food. It's very good! Then we retire to the house for ice cream cake—also very good!

Erin has the week off babysitting and is catching up on homework. Kristian is getting over his cold, having passed it along to his mother!

I have completed my course of antibiotics and had more blood work done. My PSA level is still elevated, so I'm headed for a highly anticipated appointment with my urologist! We'll see what he has next on my agenda.

And that's the kind of week it's been.

Saturday, March 3

News Update

We start off the week by heading east on Sunday afternoon. As we leave Regina it is starting to snow, and soon we are in a full-fledged winter storm that has the highway heavy in drifted snow and many vehicles in the ditches. By the time we get to Winnipeg it is improving so we carry on to Kenora and spend the night there with Eric and the boys (Erica is off to Toronto for a conference.). And the week ends with our most significant snowfall of the winter, so finds us busily engaged in shovelling snow today!

I get some good news on Tuesday as the Ministry confirms that we qualify for the full bonus funding for having 100% completion on OnSIS reporting. Now I need to work with the schools to find a way to spend the additional 25% to the annual budget. They start off by giving me 13% extra, so that's nice! Now I have to decide if that should include a new laptop or golf membership, or both!!

I take a five-hour drive to Hornepayne (one of my schools) on Wednesday afternoon and spend Thursday and Friday working there before driving home in a snowstorm on Friday afternoon.

Erin is doing fine, babysitting and working on her courses. She's particularly enjoying one on taxation this term! Kristian is suffering with a cold and thus is not sleeping well. He still seems quite energetic every day! His mother—slightly less so!

And that's the kind of week it's been.