News Update

A beautifully sunny week has phased the fluffy rain into its proper format! The golf courses are open, although not ready for play yet; the greens and tee boxes remain covered. At least I am able to practise outside. The markets ran well all week, and I gained more than my quota, recovering from last week's bad results as the US showed improving employment data and growing GDP. I blame Obama! Bus driving continues to go well although Spring has brought us into pothole season! Wendy had more sessions with the chiropractor and reports improvement. We've been able to get out for some walks in the neighbourhood. We took our new vehicle for a run today down to Grand Marais to Sven & Ole's Pizza! That was fun and tasty! I have started yard work; Wendy is doing a sewing project—another new outfit! We are in the planning stages of our trip to Texas next month. We haven't decided what to do with the old car. The baseball season has begun; the Blue Jays are seriously under-performing. The hockey season is ending; playoffs begin next week. I will be cheering for the Leafs to take it as far as they can, but my head is with the Penguins. In the other conference, I'll be cheering for the Canucks.

Eric is back home with news that he may be able to graduate in June. He is looking forward to proceeding from professional student to professional, but is finding there is a lot of competition for available counseling positions. Erica has spent part of the week in Kelowna at a trustees conference. While there she enjoyed a visit with John & Marion. She returned to Victoria today. Haaken is pricing out guitar amps—pricey! He continues to enjoy school and guitar, but not church or youth group, sigh—the challenges of youth! Liam is continuing with football, playing the defensive line and appalled that he was expected to "sack" the quarterback—further explanation was needed there! Eric is able to help with this education. The housing situation remains complicated and stressful. The lease is ending for their renters in Kenora, and their rented place in Parksville is up for sale! Yikes! Erica has been suffering with neck and back pain, but is finding massage therapy helps—but costs! 

Erin is back in the internet world, so we were able to Facetime with them. They are not enjoying good health with hacking and congestion that may be related to allergies. Kristian showed us his growing new teeth and another lose tooth. The tooth fairy is counting the costs! Looks like Grandpa will have to plan another trip to Regina so we can get that tooth out. 

Trav got some scratches on his new car—oh, the pain of the first defilement! Joanna is enjoying her new job. Gemma and Andrew got cell phones this week—I got my first at age 53; times have changed. Trav is ready to sell the truck; we hope that goes quickly and well.

And that's about it for this week.

News Update

Another week has passed on the shore of Lake Superior in my home town. Golf courses were supposed to open on Monday. They've pushed it back until the coming Monday; however, that's just a cruel joke at this point as we had a big dump of fluffy white rain on Friday! I've been working on my swing, but haven't got any practise time in yet. The markets have continued to be very bad this week, and I lost all my profits from last week and then some, so I have some catch-up to accomplish. We rejoiced with Adam Scott's win in the Masters on Sunday. This week the big event has been curling as it's the Players Championship, the final slam of the season. Several of my favourites are in the playoffs today leading to the final tomorrow, but Kevin Martin lost out this morning. Wendy is gradually improving; she was to the chiropractor on Friday. She completed her series of teeth cleaning appointments this week as well. 

Our new vehicle had a wheel alignment, but we're still waiting on the hitch application. We expect it may be ready on Monday. 

Eric is in Regina this weekend, and heads home next week. Erica is making headway with her board on the new budget and got some positive comments on the latest draft—progress! Haaken is picking out classes for his next semester—grade 11 classes—time flies! He's still enjoying guitar lessons. Liam is really liking tackle football, and showing good rhythm and lots of volume with his drums. The car is operational again—new thermostat and heat sensor—no aliens found! 

Erin continues to struggle along without internet—poor child, don't know how she manages! Kristian is having a better week health-wise and seems to be in another growth spurt. Unfortunately, he appears to just be gaining length! Otherwise they are also continuing to suffer through the record snows in Regina and wait for Spring to arrive and the Jays to start a winning streak! 

Trav is enjoying his new car. Joanna is enjoying her new work. We enjoyed spending time with them to celebrate Gemma's birthday this week, and again this evening to watch the Penguin game! Unfortunately, the schedule changed due to the tragic events in Boston, so we didn't get to watch the game at all. However, we did watch the Leafs clinch a playoff spot; that has to be newsworthy! 

And that's about it for this week. 

News Update

Another week has passed on the shore of Lake Superior in my hometown. The weather has been mixed including some more dumps of fluffy white rain, but it disappeared again in the sunshine today. We keep hoping that Spring will finally establish itself. The markets continued to be miserable here while US markets continued upward, but I had a good week anyway. Canada lost the men's curling final game to Sweden—it was an impressive display by Sweden. The Canadian women lost the world hockey championship to the USA; we settled for a couple of silver medals this week. Michigan lost the NCAA basketball final, a third defeat for my choices this week. The dealer contacted us on Tuesday and accepted our offer. Now, we're waiting for them to complete the repairs and upgrades we asked them to do. Wendy had X-rays of her arm and leg; they revealed that nothing was broken, so she looks to some continued therapy to restore full function. 

Erica and the boys continue with life in Parksville. Haaken enjoyed a trip to Vancouver to take in a concert by a new band, and see how they combined their instrumentation from various eras. Liam has started Spring football league and is enjoying learning to hit people. Eric has pumped up his counselling hours and only has 31.25 left to go. Erica presented her latest draft on the budget realizing about one million is savings and was unimpressed with their lack of exuberance over her efforts! The Mazda car has fallen on bad times issuing steam and spewing green gunk on the roadway. Erica thinks they may have run over or ingested an alien! They are assessing the situation! 

Erin and Kristian have been fighting some health issues recently. Kristian, in particular, has been hacking. They continue to enjoy a snowy winter in Regina. It appears planting season will be delayed on the prairies. Erin is particularly interested in having the Blue Jays get their season going! 

Trav bought a new car; he received delivery on Friday. Joanna has started a new job. Gemma is starting a new year as she hits thirteen on Monday. Andrew has recovered from his leg injury. 

And that's about it for this week. 

News Update

Another week has passed on the shore of Lake Superior in my hometown. The weather has been mostly spring-like, although we got some white, fluffy rain, along with some regular clear rain, this weekend. Curling has been featured all week; Canada has made the playoffs and beat Denmark and Scotland today to advance to the final against Sweden tomorrow. It has been a no-good, very bad week on the markets. The TSX has descended into red on the year, while the DOW remains over 11% to the good! The jobs data was troubling as Canada lost 55K jobs, while US gained 88K jobs; coincidence? I think not! I blame Obama! I've stopped out of three of my positions and reduced my holdings to 24% in the market. We continue to shop for a newer vehicle; we drove a 2011 KIA Sorento today and like it quite a bit, but the dealership did not accept our offer. Wendy has continued with doctoring on her arm. Maybe X-rays can deliver a proper diagnosis of what is bothering her. Baseball has started a new season and the Blue Jays are promising better results—we shall see! Hockey is nearing play off time, so I shall have to turn my attention there soon! Basketball is at the final four, and has now been reduced to two as Louisville will play Michigan for the championship. Go Wolverines! 

Eric continues work in The Pas; it seems to be going very well despite his complaints about white, fluffy rain there. Erica and the boys are back to their usual routines. They enjoyed their spring break in central Canada complete with lots of snow! 

Erin is having issues at home, but has a new thermostat so the place may be reliably warm now. Her internet has failed recently; she doesn't know when that will be back up. Kristian is enjoying extra activities at the Y. Mark agreeably let me win a couple of Farkle games—he seems to have given up in Scrabble!!

Trav is also shopping for a new vehicle. He's pretty much settled on a Hyundai Elantra GLS. Now, he's trying to sell the pickup. Joanna is looking at a similar job at the hospital—we hope that works out for her. Andrew hurt his leg playing soccer this week, but seems to be recovering well. Gemma continues to do well. 

And that's about it for this week.