Saturday, August 27

News Update

Another week has passed on the shore of Lake Superior in my hometown, but I am no longer there! I'm on the shore of Lake Ontario in a town I would never wish to call home! The weather has continued quite hot, and we've been living under the comfortable umbrella of the air conditioner. Erin arrived on Wednesday so we enjoyed a few days with her, and then Kristian, Erin and I flew down to Toronto on Friday to enjoy a weekend with the Blue Jays. They have cooperated by winning the first two games, and we hope for more of the same tomorrow. Then, they'll be heading for Regina, while I fly back to TBay alone. It's been a good summer with Kristian, and we wish him well as he heads back to school. 
It must be dangerous to have a floor this clean!
Wendy has been taking care of all the critters while Trav & crew are away. She has also been cleaning and polishing while the rest of us are out of the way, so the kitchen and dining room are back to spic and span condition! The markets began in rally mode, but then fear of the Fed set in, and Thursday and Friday were deep red for me. Still, I had a great week, and have gained my monthly quota, and am nearly caught up to the YTD quota. As mentioned, the Jays continue to thrive and are in first place in their division. The Riders continue to not thrive! They put up a good fight against Edmonton, but still fell short. Let's go, Riders! 
Keeping a close eye on the Jays!

Erica's office is moving to a new location, to an office of the future—the future being Monday, I guess! They toured the new facility this week. It was very bright with high ceilings and minimalist furnishings—nice! The move included letting old stuff go! Erica managed to scoop some golf balls to share with yours truly—very nice! This is the final week for the whole family to be home for a while. Liam returns to Caronport on Monday. Haaken continues his preparations for his move to Regina. He has prepared a schedule for Auntie Erin, so they can plan meals and other things. Eric's work is also making changes and renovations; there are exciting times ahead. He had his yearly review and it was very positive! 

Erin worked Monday and Tuesday, and then flew down to Thunder Bay to catch up with Kristian and us. After a couple of days there, she and Kristian flew to Toronto with me for a special vacation-ending trip. We're enjoying several special experiences in Toronto along with watching the Blue Jays. Kristian even managed to score a baseball during batting practice, but nothing for Grandpa yet! They head home to Regina after tomorrow's game, and we will certainly find the house empty. 
Kristian and his baseball!

Trav, Joanna, Gemma and Andrew are also in the Toronto area. They flew down on Wednesday to visit and celebrate her dad's 80th birthday. I'm sure they all had a good time. Tomorrow they plan to take in the Jays game with us. They're planning to fly back to TBay some day next week as Gemma and Andrew begin another year of school soon. 

And that's about enough for this week. 

Saturday, August 20

News Update

Another week has passed on the shore of Lake Superior in my hometown. It was hot this week, but it has turned cooler with showers for the weekend. I got out to practice golf a couple of times. It's been fairly quiet around the house. I got the new basketball backboard installed on the garage; Kristian really likes that since it can be adjusted down to a more suitable height for him than the old one. He's been shooting lots of baskets. He continues to work through his touch-typing lessons and is making good progress, but time is running out! I have begun work on the kitchenette downstairs; that will take a while! Now that I have located the drain connection, Wendy wants me to add a vanity in that bedroom—sigh! The markets ran well at the start of the week, but turned down after the FOMC minutes were released, and various Fed Reserve speakers made hawkish sounds! As a result, the week was not up to quota, but I remain on quota to this point in the month at least. Wendy has  been busy redoing the bedrooms to her new purposes. The upstairs room has been revamped for Kristian. One downstairs bedroom has been cleaned out, but now I've created a construction site in there. Come September, we're expecting Travis to set up his office in the other downstairs bedroom. The Jays continue to thrive, battling with Baltimore and Boston for the division lead. The Riders continue to disappoint, losing big to Hamilton today. 

The Bailey's got some answers over Liam's stomach pain. He has been diagnosed with Celiac's disease. So, they are into gluten-free food. After two years of braces, Liam is relieved to know that popcorn is gluten-free! The rest of the family are suffering with summer colds, so it's been pretty quiet this week other than the coughing. The house-sitting gig has come to an end, so they're all back in the apartment. It's nice to spend some time together before the boys head off to school.

Erin got older this week! A happy birthday was enjoyed. This weekend she and Sadie are enjoying a Bourne Marathon. Her oven remains out of commission, but a solution is anticipated, and, in the meantime, she can at least use the stove top. We look forward to her arrival down here next week. 

Travis and Joanna continue to work on setting up their new place. They've assembled two new dining room tables, but both have proved unsatisfactory, and thus had to be returned. They are at least getting to be expert at assembly of that design! Gemma and Andrew are getting their rooms established to their preferences—not necessarily in line with the preferences of the local adults! Minnie has established a safe corner in the new living room. The Bucket Decal business is quite active already this season. 

And that's about it for this week. 

Saturday, August 13

News Update

Canadian Lakehead Exhibition!
Another week has passed on the shore of Lake Superior in my hometown. It has been a rainy week, and I have struggled to find opportunity to get my lawn mowing done. I got one cut on Tuesday evening, and then got 3 done yesterday and another 4 today; so, I only have one left. With the rains, and my busyness, I have not managed to get out golfing this week—maybe tomorrow. I was back to the doctor on Wednesday. As it happened, I was suffering my first severe gout attack since I started my new meds. She confirmed that my uric acid levels are still too high, so she has doubled my allopurinol dose. She also checked out a sore on my face, and decided it should be removed and checked, so I've been referred to a plastic surgeon for that procedure. We went to the Exhibition with Kristian on Friday evening; that was fun, although the large crowds made for lineups at the rides. The markets were good all week, until weak retail sales data on the US side turned the markets into a tizzy on Friday. Still, I managed a great week. Kristian has completed his typing lessons, but still needs to pass his final test. He's doing well. He has also been improving his bike-riding, and enjoys shooting baskets in the driveway. Wendy has been busy with cleaning and rearranging our living quarters subsequent to Trav, Joanna and crew moving out. We are also preparing the next renovation plans; it'll be another busy time! We want to get the kitchenette done downstairs for the in-law suite. The Jays have continued to play well, and are in the picture for first place in the division. The Riders played the second-half of the home & home with the first place Calgary Stampeders. It was encouraging, but still too much of a challenge for the rebuilding Riders as they lost 19-10. I have also watched some of the coverage from the Olympics. 

The Bailey clan hung out in Calgary this week. Erica was in training at the Deloitte office. Eric, Haaken and Liam went to the zoo one day and threw balls at animals, but Haaken refused to play PokemonGo! Erica encountered a man carrying a Pokemon one day as she was walking back to the hotel. She would have captured it, but the man looked a bit scary! She didn't have any balls to throw at him anyway! They enjoyed two trips up the Calgary Tower, once to stand on the glass floor, the other to enjoy dinner in the rotating restaurant. Eric and boys did lots of walking, shopping and riding the C-train. This weekend they're taking the long way home through the mountains—a good week, a good trip! 

Erin has been having a pretty routine week. She and Kristian FaceTime regularly. She has continued to follow-up on her stove issues. Shawn checked the electronics on the control board, and it's dead, so she'll have to order a replacement. She ordered new shock-proof cases for her iPhone and for Kristian's iPad. They were delivered here, so Kristian got his installed already. 

This was the week when Travis, Joanna, Gemma, Andrew and the menagerie moved to their new digs. It's pretty empty here since they all left, but they still have plenty of things to move, so we see them each day for another load. I am not missing the birds, but Kristian is sure missing Minnie. We all are missing the family. 

And that's about it for this week. 

Saturday, August 6

News Update

We've enjoyed another beautiful week on the shore of Lake Superior, in my hometown. The weather has been great, and we've had a few showers to break the heat. We even got by without AC today for the first time in about a month. My friend, also Bill, has taken holidays, so I am running his lawn care business while he's gone. It'll be a couple of weeks this time, but he is also planning a month in Europe in September, so I'll be back in charge then. So, I've been busy grabbing opportunities when the grass is dry, but the temperature is not too hot. The markets were red all week until Friday when great US jobs' data turned everybody green! Our jobs' data was very bad here, but the health of our big friend next door is always more important to our well-being anyway! The Riders continued their losing way, but did put in a good effort for three quarters of the game against Calgary. Durant is back, so we live in hope—pretty typical for Rider fans! The Jays are playing well, and remain in a first place tie with Baltimore. Kristian continues his work on typing, and has completed five lessons this week. Today, he went golfing with us again; that was another good day! 

Erica was sick this week, a visit to the doctor confirmed it—she's sick! Liam got some blood work done, but they're still waiting to hear about the results. They tested for Celiac's among other things. Haaken worked on his own at the townhouse. He is packing for his move to Regina. Eric worked 3 days last week, and 4 days this week. It's time for a break before attempting a 5-day week! Erica is scheduled for coursework next week in Calgary, so the family is making an outing of it. They began the trek by heading to Regina and visiting with Erin. Must be an indirect route! 

Erin has managed a few medical checks this week. She's been given some trial medicine and a prescription for the same as a defence against migraine headaches. Medical advice concerning her skin breakouts is not so helpful. She'll just have to live with it and use steroidal creams when necessary. Then, she had a failure with her range. The burners continue to work, but the oven seems to be dead. She has now received advice on potential repairs, so we'll see where that goes. 

Travis & Joanna have closed the deal, and received their keys to the new house. They are busy moving stuff in, getting set up, and searching for all the necessaries for their own place. Today, they bought a small battery-powered lawn mower for their small lawn. It's basically a whipper-snipper on wheels; I'm looking forward to seeing how it works. Gemma is busy with work most days, while Andrew is usually busy with video games! 

And that's about it for this week.