News Update

Another week has passed on the shore of Lake Wascana in the middle of the prairie. The weather has been favourable, albeit a bit hot for me most of the week. It has moderated this weekend and I'm enjoying that. Wendy has been helping reorganize Kristian's Lego, and many other aspects of Erin's apartment. There remains more to do. We've also run some errands for Dad, and enjoyed having supper over there a couple of times as well courtesy Bern & Alicia—thank you! I've been busy with computer issues and hope I have that cleared up for now. The markets have remained troubled, but a good day Friday eased the pain a fair bit. The Riders were back into the fray with a game this evening against Toronto. It was a much better effort and we certainly enjoyed getting back into the win column. The Jays have continued to struggle, but they're still in the play off chase, and won their game in New York today. 

The big news from the coast was from Liam as he announced that he has a girlfriend, Jenny. However, she is off for three weeks of sea cadets as of today, so they set up a double date to see Malificent last evening. Haaken is learning modelling with computer animation at Emily Carr. He is enjoying his course—just one week left! Uncle Dave stopped in for a visit, but he's off for Karaoke now. Eric has been weeding their stuff and packing for the move. He has one more week of work before he's done in Parksville. 

Erin and Kristian have been hosting us during our time in Regina. Thanks guys! Kristian had golf camp on Tuesday. That was six hours of golf practice, and he was still hard at it by the end of the time. Impressive! He had a milk carton full of balls and managed to hit out most of them! 

Trav & Joanna are taking care of things in TBay. Now that Gemma and Andrew have returned from TO, things are busier around the house. 

And that's about it for this week. 

News Update

Another week has passed as we have moved from the shore of Lake Superior to the shore of Lake Wascana. But, oh, what a week it was in between!  We celebrated our family reunion on the shore of the Red River! It was designed to focus on Tom's 70th birthday, but Tom & Mariette organized and executed such a plan that we felt we were the honourees ourselves! Thanks, guys! We drove up on Monday and enjoyed the week in Winnipeg. The big event was the birthday party at Fort Gibraltar on Wednesday evening, but there were special events every day, including two golf games for me, and long-running karaoke sessions two evenings. It was great! My golf was not great as I was very ragged off the tee. I mostly got away with it on Tuesday, shooting 87, but Thursday's course was not so forgiving and I shot 96. On Friday, we drove over to Regina where we enjoyed reuniting with Dad and Dave. Erin, Kristian and I got out for some more golf today! The markets have been very troubled with the downing of the Malaysian jet causing further turmoil, and I experienced a down week. Baseball was off for the All-star break, but now they're back at and we're hoping the Jays can build some favourable results. The Riders have the week off.

At the Reunion!

Haaken completed another week at Emily Carr University. A misunderstanding caused a scare on Thursday; the University called to report that Haaken had not shown up for class. However, Haaken soon texted to report that he was on a field trip with his class. He is doing a good job navigating the transportation system in Vancouver, and even made his way home to Nanaimo on his own yesterday. Liam returned from his Student Leadership Conference trip to California. On Monday, he and his team presented a report on their trip, described what they had done and what they had learned. He has had to get some repairs to a big toe nail. Eric is working two days per week for his current employer while preparing for his move to Prince Albert. He has arranged accommodations there, placing a deposit on a townhouse. His plan is to be there by August 15th and is looking for people who can help him unload when he arrives with this stuff. Erica is considering housing options in Parksville, wondering whether she should stay put, or save money by moving to a smaller place during the transition. Work considers to be stressful. Picketing has ended for now, but the past month of job action has people stressed and work expectations behind schedule. Even though personnel levels are down by 50%, there is still about as much work to be done and the results are ROE's get delayed, payroll questions are not answered so promptly and expense claims drop in priority. Unfortunately, folks are not as understanding about all this as they should be! The whole crew is in Victoria this weekend for Aura's 50th birthday celebration. 

Erin and Kristian drove over to Winnipeg on Monday to spend the week at the family reunion. They also had a great time with attendance at many special outings. They drove back on Friday, and took Grandpa for a golf practice today! They are hosting us at their apartment. Thanks guys! 

Travis and Joanna completed the move into the downstairs apartment, along with the dog, bird and lizard! Gemma and Andrew arrived home from TO today, and are making themselves at home in their new digs. 

And that's about enough for this week. 

News Update

Another week has passed on the shore of Lake Superior in my hometown. The weather has been good, so I've managed to keep up with my lawn care business, and still get out for some golf practice on occasion (still no game, sigh!). The renovations have moved forward nicely, and the downstairs bedrooms are pretty much trimmed out. Wendy has been very busy with painting, and is painting baseboard material again this evening, so, I'll be back at my end of the job soon! The markets have been troubled and the TSX is in the red for the month, and so is my portfolio. The Jays have continued to flounder on an extended road trip, and have fallen several games back in the standings. The Riders are trying to regroup after getting pounded by the Argos. Tonight they lost at home against the BC Lions. It was a hard-fought game, but once again the offense struggled to gain yards or put points on the board. C'mon Riders!

Eric and Liam are busy preparing for their move to Saskatchewan. Erica is just busy as the Teachers' Strike continues, so there's a lot of extra aspects to cover from a management perspective. Haaken has completed his first week at Emily Carr University in Vancouver.

Erin and Kristian are continuing to work through the complications of a summer schedule. We've enjoyed a couple of FaceTime chats with them through the week. 

Trav and Joanna have been occupied with getting stuff moved all week. Things are taking shape as they get the rooms set up. I believe they will officially move in tonight, and we'll be glad to have them! Gemma and Andrew are enjoying their time in TO. Andrew's room is pretty much ready as well. Gemma's still needs baseboards. 

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 hot all week, but has turned showery as a weekend special! We have made significant progress on the renovations. Wendy got the carpets cleaned downstairs on Friday. There are still some doors to hang and baseboard to apply, but the place is pretty much ready to go. We set the pool up, and it's warmed nicely. I got in some golf practice, and still hope to get in a round this weekend if the weather turns sunny again. The markets were thin all week with holidays both sides of the border. I was only able to get half my quota. The Riders were blown out by the Argos this afternoon, and the Jays have fallen out of first place. Milos and Genie both lost out at Wimbledon, although both achieved very good success all the same. Grandpa K had a bad week as the heavy rainfall last weekend backed up the sewer system into his basement again, causing considerable damage downstairs that will require extensive renovations, sigh!

Eric has accepted a counsellor position in Prince Albert, Saskatchewan. He starts August 18th. Liam is applying to go to Briercrest High School. At this point Erica and Haaken are staying in Parksville—I think this family is confused! Eric spent the week working on details of moving to Prince Albert and monitoring work on the septic field in Kenora. The most recent cost estimates are lower than the initial which is promising, but they are only estimates. Liam filled out his application for school. He also spent time with friends. Haaken is doing a room reorganization. He's cleared out several boxes from his closet. Unfortunately, Eric has filled those boxes with books. This weekend Haaken heads over to Vancouver for a one-month course at Emily Carr. Erica took the family over to a colleague's house for Canada day. They overlook the ocean, affording a great view of the fireworks. The eating was good for both people and bugs.

Erin and Kristian had an interesting week. Kristian has been spending his days over at Papa's, and has been introduced the fine art of "garage sale-ing". He cleared some cash through selling of some of this stuff, but is still looking for more to buy the Lego set he has in his sights! Erin celebrated the return of sunshine by getting a sunburn.

Trav & Joanna are busily preparing for the move. They've been culling stuff, and have even started moving a bit. Gemma and Andrew flew to Toronto today to spend some weeks with the grandparents down there. They should be all moved into their new rooms upon their return.

And that's about enough this week.