News Update

Another week has passed on the shore of Lake Superior in my hometown. It has been quite a week for us. On Monday, we travelled down to Toronto for my eye surgery. We met with the doctor that afternoon, then, on Tuesday, the doctor removed an advanced pterygium from my right eye. It had advanced across the eye and completely covered the pupil, so that was an additional concern for her. After removing it, she extracted some tissue from above the iris, and transplanted it into the area of the wound. She has found this extra step a necessary and effective one to prevent the pterygium from regrowing.

Patched up for night 1

She applied a temporary patch over the eye until the next day, when she took that off and examined her work. She pronounced it "good", and discharged me to return home on Wednesday evening. Wendy and I also enjoyed a few special eating out opportunities while in Toronto, but now we're back to our more normal routine at home.

Sore, light-sensitive

My eye is very sensitive, and enjoys it when I close down the lids! I've been prescribed T3s, but I haven't had to resort to those after the first day or so. I also have medication to apply to the eye four times daily during these first two weeks. Then, I switch medications for another two weeks of healing. After that, I'm hoping that I'll be seeing well from that eye once again. I'm already noticing some improvement in that I no longer have multiple images from that eye, but it's still rather obscured. I still cannot read with that eye; that'll be a big day when that happens! The markets were mostly favourable this week, although the volumes were considerably down in light of the US holiday. I managed to complete the week and the month on quota, and with another month like this, I'll manage quota for the year as well. Sports this week has featured the Canada Cup of curling. Kevin Koe has advanced to the final where he'll face John Epping. On the women's side it'll be Rachel Homan facing Tracy Fleury. The Jayhawks won three games and the Maui Tournament. I expect their ranking to improve again this weekend. The Maple Leafs continue their improved play under the new coach, winning four of five. The Pens continue to fight through a plague of injuries while maintaining good effort and satisfactory results. The Oilers are at the top of their division, but they lost to the Canucks, tonight, sigh!

This week Erica was busy wrapping up files at work, getting ready for her trip to Germany. She asks for your prayers so the surgery goes well like the first three and she doesn’t get an infection afterwards, like last time. Both Liam and Haaken continue with work on animation projects. Liam is also developing a web comic which he hopes to have out soon. Eric is done marking his minor papers. He still has 25 major papers of up to 20 pages each. That’s 500 pages of marking—fun times!

Also a pic of their Christmas Tree!

Kristian has been enjoying a week of mathematics homework every night! Aside from work, Erin has been busy with home decorations and other Christmas preparations. Kristian helped her prepare for the staff Christmas party. They were short-staffed at work, so Erin got to be the boss! This weekend, Callum is over and the boys are having a fun time.

Chicken Strips, Fries & Veggies! 

Travis and Joanna continue through their busy season. They're trying to hold it to ninety hockey teams before Christmas. Travis celebrated his birthday on Wednesday, and we took them out to supper on Friday to continue that recognition.

Birthday Supper at BP

Andrew has decided that college is not for him and is applying for entry into the Navy. Gemma continues to thrive at university.

And that's about enough for this week. 

News Update

Another week has passed on the shore of Lake Superior in my hometown. On Thursday morning, we woke to a dump of snow,  about 19cm (8"). It was wet and heavy, but Wendy and I managed to push it to the side, and then I got the snowblower out and pumped it up onto the lawn. We're back to above zero this weekend, the streets have melted, and the driveway is clearing off as well. Wendy bought a new Christmas tree, and set it up. It's has the built-in LEDs and multiple programs for how they light up. Now, she will begin the application of decorations. 

New LED Tree

Wendy has pretty much completed the prep on the new sliding door; I'm looking forward to seeing it all painted up. I got the extra shelves installed in the cupboards, so I think that job is now complete. We have a rail strike distressing the markets here, and then Trump decided to do some more tweeting about China, so it was a bad week on the markets. I remain at quota for the month so far, but with next week being a short week, it'll be a challenge to get a full week's quota and complete the month properly. Sports have been a bit distressing this week. It started off with the Riders unable to score a TD despite being to the 5 yard line about 5 times. As a result, we'll be watching the Bombers playing the Grey Cup tomorrow against Hamilton. I'm picking Hamilton to win it, although I'd sure be happy for Collaros if the Bombers can pull it off! Then, the Leafs continued their losing ways, and decided to lose their coach as well. I was sorry to see him go. I hope they'll play hard for the new guy. They have won their first two under the new regime. The Pens continued to suffer more and more injuries, but still manage to stay in the thick of the playoff standings. The Oilers are doing well, and hold top spot in their division. KU has been raised to #4 in the rankings; they managed a comfortable win this week, but still had over a dozen turnovers—too many! Next week, they have a game that's on TV up here; it'll be nice to see them play. Rock Chalk, Boys. 

Erica spent a couple days in the North Battleford and discovered that they have at least two great restaurants and a good Danish bakery. Eric continued to survive in her absence. It was tough, but he made it through despite almost impossible odds. Liam is working on some animation projects. Haaken is back at work at Tim Hortons after a brief break for their renovations.

Erin and Kristian 'enjoyed' Parent/Teacher conferences on Tuesday. Kristian reports that it was not all sweetness and light, so I guess he'll need to renew his focus and efforts. Erin was not impressed with the teacher's attitude toward Kristian. If you hold low expectations, you can be pretty sure the student will not surpass them! They also need to go back to the audiologist to see if they can get his fm working for his hearing aids. Then, Erin is in charge of the staff Christmas party, so she's been buying and arranging presents for the party tomorrow. At least they had time to decorate their own tree.

Erin/Kristian Tree

Travis has been batching most of the week while Joanna was helping out in Toronto. She is back now, and not enjoying our snow! Meanwhile, they keep getting more and more hockey teams signed up for team and individual pictures. As a result, Travis is unable to keep up with watching his Pens play hockey! Still, things are progressing well with their work, and he got his new printer today! 

And that's about all for this week. 

News Update

Another week has passed on the shore of Lake Superior in my hometown. We experienced a bit of snow and a lot of cold in the first part of the week, but it has returned to above zero temperatures and the snow has melted. Wendy enjoys her singing with Sweet Adelines, but with the upcoming trips escorting me and Erica, she will miss out on the Christmas production. She continues to work on the second side of the kitchen door—she's making good progress. I was cutting material for extra shelving for the cupboards today, now I need to get the edging ironed on, drill some additional holes and get them installed. I did a carb service on the snowblower, and it seems to be running fine, but the snow has disappeared, so false alarm! The markets were very helpful this week and I managed quota again. Impeachment pressure seems to be pushing Trump to settle with China, and investors are encouraged. The semi-finals were played on Sunday, so we look forward to the conference finals tomorrow with Hamilton hosting Edmonton in the East, while Saskatchewan hosts Winnipeg in the west. Go Riders, Go! Hockey continues to progress with about a quarter of the schedule played. The Oilers are doing well; the Pens are hanging in with an injury-depleted line-up, but the Leafs are fading, having lost five in a row. The Jayhawks are playing better, and cutting down on their turnovers, but their ranking has dropped to #5—rock, chalk, Jayhawks!

Erica spent the week working in Calgary. She claims it was kind of nice to stay in a hotel, have all her meals made, have someone make her bed—she's wondering if she could manage to make that happen at home! Eric spent the week at home. He says it was boring without Erica. Haaken found out his Christmas work-hours and all were pleasantly surprised that he has a few weeks off over the Christmas break. He is off from Dec 16th to Jan 4th, so he's planning to come home, so now they need to find some affordable flights. Yikes! Liam continues with RU and the Tunnels of Moose Jaw. This weekend Eric and Erica have snagged tickets to the Western Final in Regina. Erica has a presentation on Audit Committees, so they also have a hotel room. They are shopping for some warm Rider gear today. 

Erin and Kristian had another routine week in Regina. Kristian has given up bowling, but claims he's going to take up basketball this season. Erin is shopping for new skates for Kristian—it seems his feet have grown since last winter—who knew? He's been invited out to a friend's place in Lumsden this weekend, so that should be fun. Erin got her Roomba this week, so they spend exciting evenings watching it clean the room. 

Travis, Joanna and crew began the week by hosting us for supper. That was a nice occasion—thanks guys! Otherwise, they continue to be busy with work and school. I guess that's a routine week as well. After the snow last weekend, Travis got his winter tires installed this week. Joanna also had her car in for service, so I guess we're all ready for winter now. 

That's all for now. 

Novembrance Day

Another week has passed on the shore of Lake Superior in my hometown, and it's Remembrance Day weekend! The weather has taken a decidedly colder turn, and we even got a dusting of snow last night. It's been melting on the streets today, but not on the lawns, so, this could be here to stay! I've been cleaning up some trim work on the cupboards and also turned the barn door; Wendy is now working on the other side of that door. I finished the drawer and got that installed. It worked out well.

The Glue-up

Adding the front

In place

Wendy continues to be very busy learning her barbershop music, especially the quartet music. I have put the truck away for the winter in the back storage pad, and removed the batteries from both the truck and the Cougar. I got out the snow shovels and the snowblower today. I need to do a carb service on the snowblower to prepare it for the season. The markets ran pretty well for most of the week, but then Trump stuck his oar in, claiming he wasn't agreeing to the trade negotiations his admin was making with China. So, the US markets took a dive, and we lost value as well. At least I had a good, green week, and the hope of better gains to come. The CFL conference semi-finals run this weekend, while the Riders rest and prepare for the final next weekend—Go Riders, Go! The Jayhawks lost to Duke early in the week, but came back to win their home opener. Rock Chalk Boys! The Leafs have picked up the pace winning three of their last four to improve their standing. The Oilers are in first place in their division. The Pens are getting a few guys back from injuries, and are having some success, but then tonight, Crosby was injured, sigh! The curling event this week is the Tour Challenge; Kevin Koe has advanced to the playoffs, but lost in the semi-final to Brad Gushue. I'm enjoying watching. 

Erica writes: "Haaken was back at work this week and he reports it was good. Liam’s work schedule has lessened with the change in seasons. He is now working about 3, shortened days a week, but he says he is doing okay because he saved when he was getting more hours. He saved—that would bring a tear to my cold accountant heart if it was capable of emotion! Eric and I had a pretty normal week, the last one for a bit as I will be travelling the next two weeks for work. I have concluded my pre-surgery medical tests and everything seems pretty good. Mom and I will head to Germany in a month. Our Lipdema group met with government this past Monday—first with the Sask party’s human caucus and then with the health critic of the NDP. We feel like they heard our concerns and they’ve committed to take the lack of support for Lipedema forward. We just hope something will happen. Lipedema is estimated to affect 60,000 women and 6,000 men in Saskatchewan. Our big request was to get a specialist, perhaps an Endocrinologist specializing in Lipedema, so patients have someone to see for advice and to champion their case when surgery is the right option for them." 

Erin and Kristian had a routine week. Kristian seems to have lost enthusiasm for bowling—don't know what went wrong there. He did forward me a writing piece he was working on, so I helped with the editing. Lucy had her final vaccination this morning. They have done some shopping for Christmas decorations, and probably will get serious about that next weekend after the tree is set up. It's Shawn's birthday tomorrow, so they'll have a celebration for that.

Trav and Joanna are here most days as they're very busy with PuckShots and BucketDecals. They often have multiple teams to shoot pictures on any given day. Trav is looking at buying another printer to ensure production in case of down time on his current machine. Gemma is recovering nicely, and following doctor's orders to take it easy. 

That's about if for this week. 

News Update

Another week has passed on the shore of Lake Superior in my hometown. The weather has been cold, but dry. We drop into freezing temperatures most nights now. I had a job briefly! I picked up a flyer delivery route, I made my first delivery on Thursday to 66 houses in this neighbourhood. Thought it would provide an excuse to get out for a walk!

Flyer Boy - Short Career!

However, it also required a couple of hours of collating the various flyers and ads into my carry bags, and my arthritic thumbs just couldn't manage that, so after doing it one week, I quit the flyer business! Wendy keeps working on her Sweet Adeline music; she has a library of their regular music to catch up on, as well as the Christmas music they're preparing for the season, and the special selections for her quartet! It's been very musical around here lately. She's working the keyboard and singing along with the downloaded documents as well. Today, she was off all day learning some new choreography for their songs. I've made some further progress on the drawer I'm building for the kitchen. Wendy has pretty much completed repairs to one side of the kitchen door. Now, she'll prime it, and I'll turn the door around so she can work on the other side. There was a big turnout for Hallowe'en this year, and we almost ran out of treats—the final four chocolate bars mysteriously disappeared early the next day! Despite the TSX being red for the month, I managed to eke out some gains although not up to quota. Now, we are into November—these final two months are usually good ones on the market, so we hope Trump will be occupied by his impeachment and leave world trade alone. The World Series played out as a complete surprise to everyone as for the first time in MLB, NBA or NHL history, the visiting team won every game. I was also surprised to see the Nationals win it all—congratulations to the former Montreal Expo franchise on their first World Series Championship. The Leafs are falling in the NHL standings—pick it up boys! They did manage a shoot out win over the Flyers today. Oilers continue to play well. I was treated to an Oiler/Pens game this afternoon with the Oilers winning in OT. Riders played their final game of the season without their QB who was injured. So, that made it tough. However, they prevailed to clinch first place and get a week off before the Western Final. Go Riders, Go! The Jayhawks have finished their preseason games in good form and are ranked #3; I guess that means they'll have to try much harder! Rock Chalk! 

Eric is back from his week of teaching. He’s been busy marking papers: 25 students x 6 minor papers and 1 major paper—whew, too much like work! Liam is home this weekend as he has another iron infusion on Monday. His iron has been holding around 100, but the doctor wants to see it increase to more normal levels like 130. Haaken has enjoyed a break from work while the Tim Hortons has undergone renovations. He’s back at work on Monday. He has also continued to apply for animation jobs and we are praying the right position comes along soon. On Monday, a group or ladies, including Erica, are meeting with government to convince them to do something about Lipedema.

Kristian was ill, and did not complete his bowling on Sunday evening. Callum and Kristian enjoyed Hallowe'en activities.

Kat-Kid!

Kristian got his new ear-moulds; he reports they fit better, look better...

and hear better, too!

Trav and Joanna have been very busy with hockey team photos. He even missed his Pens game today while taking more shots of six more teams! And they're still pumping out the Bucket Decals as well. On the concerning side, Gemma has fallen, and is currently suffering with a concussion. We hope she's feeling well again, soon. 

And that's about enough for this week.