News Update

Another week has passed on the shore of Lake Superior in my hometown. The weather has been cool and rainy, but we've been working inside most of the week. We've been busy on the kitchen renovations and now all the cupboards are removed except for the sink unit as we're still using those. I have removed the old fan unit, and begun the installation of the new one. That required a hole in the wall through the stucco, so it got a bit messy! I'm also trying to figure out what we have for electrical supply and determine how to improve on it. We're supposed to get our new cupboards next week, but we're not ready for that—I'll try to delay the delivery as long as possible! Wendy has started the painting. We also picked up the new flooring this week. She's thinking we may also use the same material for the two bedrooms up here. The other bedroom was already re-floored with laminate and is being used as an office. A family from church collected our old cupboards; we were glad to have them gone. We've been using the hot tub regularly, but I've been having difficulty managing the temperature. I don't know if there's air in the lines, or just why it seems so temperamental, but it's not working like it should. Another month of investing is complete and it didn't go well. TSX remains in the red for the year. The pros tell us we can't beat the markets, so I'm glad to be in the green at least, even though I'm well short of what I was planning on! My new investment plays continue to show benefits. The baseball season is ending and the playoffs are set up. Soon, the World will be taking the game Seriously for a few weeks. The Jays announced the dismissal of their manager—I've never been a fan of his! The first Grand Slam event of curling is running this week and my guy, Kevin Koe, and with his new team, have moved into the playoffs. They won the first leg of the World Cup of Curling earlier, so that's an encouraging start. The Riders play Montreal tomorrow, and need a win to maintain their place in the standings—Go Riders, Go! The NHL is completing the pre-season and ready to begin another season. I'll be cheering for the Oilers once again, while also paying attention to my other favourite teams: Pens and Leafs. 

All one unit-Trav, Joanna helped get this down!

Prying them off the walls!

And then they were gone! 

Old vent gone, new vent cut in!

Erica is in Germany for her fourth surgery. She has come through that, and is now struggling through the rehabilitation aspects. We're encouraged by her courage and progress. She is scheduled to fly home next Friday. Eric is holding the fort in Prince Albert. Liam continues in Moose Jaw; he built a corner bookcase recently. Haaken is enjoying his program in Victoria. He's having particular interest in the history of animation which he's truly been studying for years. Eric is facilitating a new class called One Heart—Two Homes; it's for families going through separation and divorce. 

Erin and Kristian are hunkering down under an early touch of winter in Regina. Kristian had league bowling this morning, and posted an impressive 140 average. I'm sure he can manage this or better each week! He is continuing to adjust to his grade 7 classes and teachers. We are confident he will manage just fine. 

Travis and Joanna are busy; Joanna is extra engaged this week as her sister has come up for a visit. It was good to meet her. With the NHL starting a new season, Travis has the extra burden of being a fan! He's expecting another good run from his Penguins. 

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 turned cooler, and we also had a couple days of rain. It was comfortable for inside work and we're continuing to make progress on the kitchen renovations. Taking off the hanging set of cupboards revealed another surprise—they were being held up by the decorative valence! Material had been scabbed onto the gyproc through the use of nails at widely disparate angles (There were rafters they could have used!). Then, they nailed the 1/4" valence material on with small finishing nails. It was clear that a support bridge, under the unsupported end, had been employed at some point in time, but it was long gone before we came on the scene. Our set of stoneware dishes were housed in that set of cupboards, and we're now surprised they stayed in the air! At least, it was easy to take the cupboards down!

Hang 'em High!

Wendy is narrowing her choices on paint colour for the kitchen; she plans to begin applying that next week. Market volatility has continued but my new strategy paid dividends and I had a good week for a change. The Blue Jays continue to provide entertainment, if not wins. One game this week they did both—scoring 7 runs in the bottom of the ninth for a win! The Riders rebounded from their poor performance last week. They beat Toronto by 1 point this evening, and are now alone in second place. Go Riders, Go! 

Erica is off to Germany on Monday for her fourth scheduled surgery. We pray all goes well, and that the intervention will continue to ease her situation, reduce her pain and discomfort and lead to greater mobility. Eric is holding the fort down in PA. Greg is travelling with Erica this trip. Liam continues with work in Moose Jaw and college activities at Caronport. 

Erin and Kristian spent last weekend celebrating his 13th Birthday! Now, they're back to their regular activities in Regina. Kristian didn't post any bowling scores this morning, as he's postponed his league bowling until Monday evening. They've had cooler weather and even some early snow. 

Travis and Joanna seem to be very busy with Ulrich Design work. The decal printer keeps pushing out money! They're into team pictures for the upcoming hockey season already.

And that's about enough for this week. 

News Update

Another week has passed on the shore of Lake Superior in my hometown. It's been hot, but we've been busy working on the kitchen renovations. There remains a lot to be done, including some more electrical, but we're about ready for paint. I added a new circuit for the fridge, along with a water line for it. There was a lot of patching to be done, but it's coming along nicely. In this area, there used to be a built-in china cabinet over the stairwell, and a broom closet.

Used to be!

Patch and Replace

We've been shopping for new flooring for the kitchen/dining room, but no decisions have been made yet. We've been enjoying the hot tub in the evenings to soak the sore muscles—feels good! Meanwhile, in Thunder Bay! , down at the mall, baby bear is shopping for a replacement chair! (You may have to use a FaceBook account to see the video—sorry about that!) The markets have continued to be brutal as Twitter-Fingers keeps pushing his trade war. His status was further brought into question as his campaign manager flipped on him and agreed to cooperate with the justice department investigation of his administration. I'm working on a more nimble strategy to cope with the volatile markets. This is more like I practised in my early years in the business. I hope it works well! The Blue Jays have been taking a beating from the top teams in their division, although they did manage to sneak one out this evening against the Yankees. The Riders hosted Ottawa tonight, but they didn't play well either side of the ball, and their win streak ended, sigh! Anyway, we remain in second place in the West. Go Riders. Go! 

Eric and Erica took in the game tonight in Regina—one of the perks of Erica's job! They are in the final preparation for Erica's next trip to Frankfort of her fourth lipedema surgery. Liam is working at Moose Jaw, and participating with the dance troupe at Caronport. 

Kristian had another league bowling event this morning; he's averaging about 120 so far in the early season. I'm expecting him to push this to about 150 once he gets back in practice. He's begun birthday celebrations as well, despite that his birthday is not until tomorrow! I thought it was only we old folks who got to celebrate over an extended period! 

Travis and Joanna are well engaged in team photography. They also keep pushing out the decals for Bucket Decals. They seem to stop in to the office here at various times to get the printer going again! Gemma is wondering about continuing with work while she's at University. She's feeling quite busy at school, so she may switch to something more relaxing for her work.

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 was much nicer this week as the heat wave ended. We enjoyed getting some more work done in the yard. Wendy cleaned out a lot of weeds, and things are looking pretty good. I got the hot tub going in anticipation of a couple of months of that this fall. It seems to be having some difficulty getting up to our desired temperature, so I'll need to check what's happening there. Wendy selected replacement kitchen cupboards, so I have more projects on the go than I can manage! Delivery is supposed to be early October on the cupboards, so we've started the kitchen project. Removal of the old pantry and sideboard revealed more surprises! Don't know what's with these people and their electrical experiments!

How many electrical sites did they try?

Anyway, we've mostly been doing demolition this week. We hope to have enough of the area ready to store the new cupboards as they arrive. Wendy also continued her work removing decades worth of wallpaper. The markets have been terrible this week with the turmoil in the White House, and continuing trade threats keeping investors on edge. All North American indices were in the red again, and so was I, sigh! The Blue Jays continue to play out the season, but really disappointed me when they refused to call up Vladdy Jr. The Riders played the Labour Day classic last weekend, and the return engagement Banjo Bowl today against Winnipeg. And they won both of them! Great going, Riders! 

Eric and Erica are relaxing in their empty nest this week. Erica spent the week in Regina for the LAS conference. Eric held down the empty fort at home. Liam started his first week of work in Moose Jaw. He had to do a TB test, so he drove back for Friday, then over to Jackfish Lake for a retreat. He'll be around until Monday to get the TB test results and then head back to Moose Jaw and work. Haaken started back at school on Friday. He is working on the paperwork to get his RESP and his student loan. Erica leaves in a couple of weeks for her next surgery. They are working to gather the money to pay for that and the final surgery in December. 

Kristian is back at school, starting grade 7. Several of his friends have stayed together in his class, so he was glad of that. Today, he had his first bowling in the new season, and he was glad to get back at that also. He averaged better than his last season of work, but he's also raised his goals, so we'll look forward to how that develops. Erin is back at work. 

Travis and Joanna are keeping very busy with the various aspects of Ulrich Design work. Gemma has started University and finds it quite a load. Andrew is also back at school. We enjoyed having them over for a meal, and this evening we enjoyed tea over at there place. We also did some problem-solving on a drainage issue in their main bathroom. We hope the improvement holds! One of their recent Bucket Decal orders was for a hockey team in Australia! 

Roo Hockey!

And that's about it for this week. 

News Update

Another week has passed and we have returned to the shore of Lake Superior in my hometown. We began the week with a trip down memory lane in a previous hometown on the shore of the Vermilion River. We enjoyed meeting with the church family there, and had a potluck with them for lunch. Then, I got another trip down memory lane with three of my longtime golf buddies on the Dauphin Lake Course. It was a great time! I didn't play as well as I have been lately, but it was still a lot of fun. Then, on Monday, we headed east, arriving in Thunder Bay in the dark, but safely despite an incident on the road. Just west of Upsala, as we were following a semi, we met two semis and a car that were not up to speed after leaving Upsala. As the semi in front of us cleared the oncoming traffic, the second semi coming toward us decided to make a move even more toward us! It crossed over into our lane, and with the vehicles beside us, we had nowhere to go! I hit the binders, and am thankful for modern technology that allows for maximal braking without locking up the wheels. As the vehicles cleared beside us, I was able to steer out into that lane and avoid the rear end of the trailer. Looking back, we could see that it had come to a stop with the trailer still in our lane and the tractor on the wrong shoulder. We don't know what that was about! We have used this week to catch up on things around the house and yard. I got both lawns mowed—they're looking healthy! Wendy and I pulled a lot of weeds around the yard—there are more remaining! We also have begun repairs necessitated by the plumbing leak. It seems one of the connector hoses failed and began leaking through the crimping. After replacing that, we need to do some repairs to the vanity, and to the drywall below. The markets have remained volatile as the trade file has taken the spotlight, and old twitter-fingers just can't stop interfering! As we ended the month, the TSX was red, and is up less than 1% for the year so far. It's hard to make a living under this handicap! The Blue Jays have shipped off another couple of veteran players, but we're continuing to enjoy the youngsters who are playing now. It's a big weekend in football with the Labour Day classics underway. The Riders will play Winnipeg tomorrow. Go Riders, Go! 

The Baileys have returned to southern Saskatchewan this weekend to help Liam set up on the shore of the Moose Jaw River. They loaded up the car, stopped in Regina to pick up even more things (and repack the car), and headed to Moose Jaw. After unpacking, they began a search for a bed, and after a few false leads found one at Ashdown Furniture—some assembly required! So, they've been busy helping Liam get his first apartment set up. Haaken called yesterday. He reports that he is working on animation projects and enjoying life in Victoria. He starts back at the Victoria College of Art next week. So, Eric and Erica are preparing for another session of empty-nesting... there are both pros and cons to that! 

Kristian scored a new iPad this week, complete with a new cover! Pretty nice! They have enjoyed Erin's holiday week, and are pretty much ready for Kristian to get back to school next week. 

Travis and Joanna are keeping pretty busy. The printer downstairs seems to keep humming most hours of the day. Gemma and Andrew have been over this week as well. Gemma is preparing for University, while Andrew is heading into his graduation year from high school. Andrew is currently under a medical handicap as he had his wisdom teeth removed this week—ouch! 

And that's about enough for this week.