Saturday, November 29

News Update

Another week has passed on the shore of Lake Superior in my home town. We began the week in Kansas enjoying their warm weather and even warmer hospitality—thanks a lot! On Tuesday, we flew back to Duluth and drove up to TBay. I was able to pick up my two new golf clubs that had been shipped to the border store, so I'm pretty much ready for Parksville! Meanwhile, back home they had experienced a freezing rain on Sunday, and thus the buses did not run on Monday, so I only missed one day of driving. I picked up a head cold on the flight south last week, and continue to be bothered with that all this week. The markets were a bit strange this week around the US holiday, but I managed another green week, and made quota for the month for the first time in a while, so that was encouraging. As expected, Calgary moved on to the Grey Cup, but my eastern favourite Hamilton will face them, so I'll cheer for Hamilton! McEwen won the National curling event, his first, and it was enough to raise him to #1 world ranking as well. The next slam event is the Canadian Open in Yorkton. We got to watch another Jayhawk win while we were in Lawrence; they won again on Thursday, and they've been doing well in the tournament this weekend—Rock Chalk! 

Erica and Haaken traveled to Vancouver for the open house at Capilano University. Haaken is interested in applying to the animation program there. Due to the snow, they decided not to ride the motorcycle and rented a car instead. They got a Scion which looks like you could fold it up and put it in your pocket, but they found it surprisingly roomy. They plan to complete the weekend with the Bailey clan in Victoria. Three weeks from now, they're looking forward to heading to Prince Albert to rejoin Eric and Liam for Christmas! Eric has been sick this week, even missing two days of work, however one of those days ended up being a snow day—a mixed blessing! Liam continues to enjoy school and is looking forward to Christmas. 

Kristian had another downturn this week as he contracted strep throat! So, he's on another antibiotic, and as of the weekend, he is much improved. Erin has a better week, but is feeling down this weekend! I guess she needs to check her own throat, as she often had strep as a kid! 

Trav & Joanna are very busy with the Puckshots business; they took photos of six teams just today! Gemma was chagrinned to have to go to school on the snow day—Monday. Trav's hockey team played two games this week—a tie and a win! It got above zero today, so, after the rain ended, the crew helped with scraping the old slush off the driveway. Thanks guys! 

And that's about enough for this week! 

Saturday, November 22

News Update

Another week has passed, and once again they're promising to dump some snow on us! We'll have to wait to see how that goes since we've flown down to the salubrious climes of Lawrence KS. We're enjoying the hospitality of Aunt Helen—thank you, and celebrating cousin Marti's sixtieth birthday! We flew down on Friday, and plan to head back next Tuesday. Tonight we enjoyed a special, Zambian-focused gathering to celebrate the birthday. The weather has been cold in TBay, but the snow has stayed away, so, we can shake our heads over the dump of snow they're getting in Buffalo. The markets have remained volatile, but are moving forward and I was able to have another green week, although not up to quota. My Riders fell last Sunday, but I am continuing to follow the remainder of the playoffs which will run another week. I will cheer for Edmonton and Hamilton this weekend in the divisional finals, and then cheer for whoever is playing Calgary in the Grey Cup, sigh! Hockey continues to move along its season; it's a bit too early to take much interest there! Basketball has begun, but my Jayhawks took a vicious beating from Kentucky, and I didn't enjoy that! 

Erica remains with four weeks of work in Parksville, and is looking forward to that being complete. Haaken used his Friday off (Parent-Teacher Conferences) to take the bus into Nanaimo. He went to the mall and was able to complete his Christmas shopping! Good work, Haaken! Liam matched up to that with an orthodontist appointment in Regina—let's see, orthodontist or shopping—a tough choice! Eric headed down after work to visit for the weekend. Eric also helped his brother move in their new house this week and was rewarded with a shelf for the kitchen. He has now unpacked the family china for the first time in over eight years! 

Erin and Kristian are struggling along with winter in Regina. Kristian's eye health continues to receive attention and enjoy improvement. We are looking forward to seeing them in another month. 

Trav, Joanna, Gemma and Andrew are holding down the fort back in TBay. I'm hoping the snow continues to delay so they won't have to deal with that already. They all keep busy with their various activities. Trav's team finally played another game, and that went well. 

And that's about enough for this week. 

Saturday, November 15

News Update

We've had another cool, cloudy week on the shore of Lake Superior in my hometown. Most days we struggled to get above freezing, so my watering-in of the cedars has been suspended. We continue to expect that snow will arrive soon. We seem to be done renovations for now, so I'm getting a rest from that. I've been hoping to get the fridges relocated before winter, but that plan has not received official approval yet! We're certainly enjoying the newly refurbished bathroom upstairs. The cooler weather has brought renewed appreciation of the new gas fireplaces. The markets have bounced around this week with headlines from Ukraine and China roiling the waters, but overall it was up, and I enjoyed a good week of gains, even above my quota. Football playoffs begin this weekend; the Riders play Edmonton in the western semi-final tomorrow afternoon. Go Riders, Go! Hockey is well underway; we're enjoying catching a few games. The second big event in curling is next week, so I'll be firing up the PVR to record those games for me. 

Liam was home in Parksville for the weekend; he flew back to Saskatchewan to be met, hosted and eventually driven back to school, when he returned to Regina, by Erin & Kristian. Eric is busy with his work. Erica is busily finishing her work in Parksville and anticipating the move to Prince Albert. 

Erin and Kristian are doing better. Kristian's eye health is improved. Erin got the winter tires installed on her car, and feels much more secure driving in the wintery conditions in Regina. 

Trav & Joanna 'enjoyed' the hockey tournament in Madison, he has posted photos from there under the title SlaughterFest 2014! The competition was fierce and Trav has decided they've built as much character, and learned as much as they could from playing better teams! They've played a league game this week, and enjoyed a tight game that ended as a win! Otherwise they keep very busy with team and individual photos for Puck Shots! Gemma had excellent results on her first term report and parent-teacher interview. Andrew has been flying around on his new scooter. I'm guessing that'll be over when the snow arrives! 

And that's about enough for this week. 

Saturday, November 8

News Update

It's been a cool and rainy week on the shore of Lake Superior in my hometown. Snow has fallen on areas further away from the lake, so we expect we'll soon get some here. I noticed the covers are on the greens this week, so it looks like I got my round in just in time! Renovations have continued, and we got another vanity installed—it looks great! The updated bathroom upstairs is now fully operational, so that helps. I'm hoping to get the electrical and plumbing moving forward to get the upstairs and downstairs fridges with ice-makers in place before too long. That's next on the agenda anyway. Markets were very volatile this week as politics in the US and Ukraine reared their ugly heads, but good jobs data in the US finally turned things positive and I managed to make a couple more buys and had another week of green. I also took another investment webinar which described an alternative sell strategy. That's the area where I'm always experiencing trouble—when to sell! I'm currently working with a 6% Trailing Stop, but I'm not satisfied with how it's working, so I'll be comparing my recent activity against this new idea. The new hockey season is a month old already, and we're beginning to take note of how the teams are looking this year. The Masters of curling was completed on Sunday with Brad Gushue winning it this year. The regular season in football ended today with a Rider victory! They play Edmonton in the first round of the playoffs next weekend. Go Green! 

The big news in the Bailey family is a trip home by Liam to visit the family in Parksville. Rumour has it he may also spend some quality time at the Robinsons! Erica is making cinnamon buns in honour of his trip home from school. Another special notification is that Eric had an article published

We've managed a few FaceTime chats with Erin and Kristian. They are progressing to better health. Kristian's eye is looking much better, but there remains much medical care left before we'll be comfortable with that situation. They have some snow in Regina, so Erin has scheduled the installation of winter tires on her car. 

Trav & Joanna are off with his hockey team to Madison WI this weekend for a top notch tournament; they'll be in tough, but will hopefully learn a lot as well. They've also had two more league games this week. Their work continues to go very well, and they've been very busy with team and individual player photos for teams in this area and bucket decals production for teams even farther afield. 

And that's about enough for this week. 

Saturday, November 1

News Update

We've had a cool, cloudy and wet week on the shore of Lake Superior in my hometown, but the clouds have pushed away and we're enjoying a sunny weekend. Last Sunday was also a beautifully sunny day, and I got out for 9 holes of golf. That went well, so maybe practice and regular play are over-rated! The markets were troubled early in the week, but then US GDP came out very strong and their markets took off. The TSX did not keep up, but the US indices have all recovered from the "correction" and are setting new records, so I hope our guys will take note and do more buying. I was able to make some buys and had a very good week overall, so I at least got into the green for the month. I need to do much better in Nov, Dec to catch up! Upstairs renovations continue, but once again, I've run into an issue that is taking some time to overcome. The Riders do not play this week, and will be looking forward to next Saturday when they close out the regular season, and move on to the playoffs. Baseball is over with the Giants taking out my favoured Royals in the seventh game. Curling has entered a new season and this week features the Masters event. My favourite, Kevin Koe, qualified, then lost in the quarter-finals, but I'm enjoying it all the same. 

Erica and Haaken celebrated the Hallowed Eve with a mother and son date night to the movies. Liam dressed up in disguise, looked like the Invisible Man to me, and had a Halloween party in his dorm. Eric celebrated by going to bed early! The big news from the Baileys is that Erica has a job in Saskatchewan. It is as a Financial Analyst at the University of Saskatchewan. She also lined up a carpool from PA to Saskatoon. The job and how it all worked out could only be an answer to prayer—praise God! Otherwise an ordinary week concluding with confection-fueled celebrations. 

Kristian enjoyed Halloween disguised a Jango Fett. This allowed him to score a starship load of goodies! Otherwise they continue to work the medicines and countering with pro-biotics hoping for long-term improvement in Kristian's eye infections. 

Travis & Joanna continue to be very busy with hockey team photos. Gemma and Andrew were busy with school and Halloween this week. Trav's team had an early game this week where they played well, and he couldn't believe they lost. Then, they had a big game against the undefeated Bearcats later in the week. He was very pleased with their effort and the result

And that's about enough for this week.