Travellers!

Another week has passed on the shore of Lake Superior in my hometown. The weather has been somewhat cooler, but we've still managed to get out for our walks and bike rides. Spring construction projects in the area sometimes provide the extra impetus to wander over and supervise! This week, we're watching a neighbour's installation of a recycled asphalt driveway. We had not heard of that before, but with the reduced cost both to the environment and the pocketbook, we're interested in seeing how it turns out! Our own driveway is deteriorating over time with the uneven support of the muskeg under it, so we're thinking it will need repair or replacement some year soon. Our big project this year is the replacement of the furnace, so I've been collecting bids for that job.

Focaccia

I made my first batch of focaccia bread this week following Joanna's recipe—it turned out great, but it stuck to the pan a bit. Modified plans are in place for my next try!

Florida Travellers

Travis and Joanna, along with Erin and Kristian are off to Florida today. They met up in Toronto and arrived in Tampa Bay this afternoon. We have their cars in our driveway, and are caring for one dog (Minnie) for part of the time they're away. I have my outside lights working as planned on an automatic schedule matched with sunset times here. Wendy is still wanting an outlet added to the closet by the side entry—I have it planned! My back is doing great, I work my golf swing each day and have raised my walking/cycling goal to 20 km per week. I found the weight/twist exercises to raise some aches and discomfort, so I've reduced that until I meet with the physiotherapist next week. Wendy keeps very busy with her choral work, and we also have the Silver Sound choir rehearsals as we prepare for our Spring Concert on May 10th. The markets were dismal again this week with the USA economy leading the world. This strengthens the USA dollar which serves as a bit of a brake on the economy, but also lessens the likelihood of rate cuts—we market-players want rate cuts! The regular season in the NHL has come to an end, and sadly, the Penguins fell one game short of making the playoffs. Leafs enter their series against Boston with a lot of trepidation! My Oilers take on Los Angeles in their first round series. I'm sticking with the favourites in most series, but since there always seems to be an upset—why can't it be on behalf of the longsuffering Leaf fans?! So, that's my set: Canes, Leafs, Panthers, Rangers in the east. Jets, Oilers, Canucks, Stars in the west. The Blue Jays are doing just okay in the early season action of baseball. Starting pitching is looking good, hitting is not meeting my expectations! The Players' Championship ended on Sunday with Tirinzoni and Gushue winning the respective sides. Now, curling is into the off-season and already we're seeing some drama as one of the top teams in the world (#4-Bottcher) fired their skip and replaced him with Brad Jacobs from the #11 team! There are more brooms to fall on this story! 

Erica writes, "We received a large dump of snow this week and are now looking forward to second spring. We are hoping to make some progress on a garage. We have a quote and are waiting for a second. Other than that, it’s just been a busy week."

Erin and Kristian had a difficult week as Kristian's skin issues erupted and he needed a trip to Emergency followed up by a visit with his skin specialist. The new meds worked effectively, and his symptoms improved quickly. They were able to head out for a week in Florida beginning today. 

Travis has been enjoying extra Bucket Decal orders from Lacrosse an Baseball teams. This is good, but it was a bit of extra pressure getting things out the door so they were ready to take two weeks vacation in Florida. 

And that's enough for this week! 

Beautiful Weather!

Another week has passed on the shore of Lake Superior in my hometown. The weather has been great, and we've been getting out regularly for bike rides. I've also been working on my exercises and my golf swing. The driving ranges and some golf courses have opened here, but I'm not quite ready for that. I had another meeting with my physiotherapist this week, and he has raised my lift limit to 10 kg, and placed no other restrictions on my activity. I have been working on electrical improvements in the house and garage. Wendy is very busy with chorus management for the Sweet Adelines as they have an international competition coming up in Rochester MN. The major USA jobs production met with an increase in inflation this week, and that combined to convince investors that rate cuts were not in the offing, and may not happen this year at all. This led to a massive sell-off in the markets and all indices are in the red for the first half of this month. The NHL is down to the last few regular season games. My Oilers are in a battle for first place in their division but with the loss to the first place Canucks tonight that's likely over. Leafs are playing out the string as they have their playoff position pretty much locked in. Pens are in a battle to make the playoffs and are currently sitting in the final spot. My main attention this week has been on the Players Championship being played in Toronto, involving the top 12 teams in the world on both the men's and women's sides. My teams, #10-Kevin Koe and #7-Kerri Einarson, both failed to qualify for the playoff round, but I'm enjoying some great curling all the same. It'll be #2-Silvana Tirinzoni vs #9-Isabella Wranå in the women's final. #4-Brad Gushue plays #1-Joel Retornaz in the men's final. 

With the arrival of Spring, Eric and Erica are reawakening work on the development of the back yard. They would like to have a storage shed installed, so they are checking on costs for that. We will follow any progress with interest as the city has shown great reluctance to allow any improvements back there. Erica is pleased to report that Eric has returned from his Family Therapists' conference. It was a very positive learning experience last weekend and through the week. After fulfilling some other requirements, he will be able to add a new credential to his lengthy list! 

Kristian has been having only half days at school, so we're glad to see the government back to the negotiation table, and a return of his support worker in the afternoons. Yesterday, Kristian had a flare-up of some skin issues on his arms, so Erin has taken him to emergency to see if he can get some relief. They felt it was just some further irritation from his eczema, and advised the use of lotions. We hope they are correct! 

Travis keeps busy with the steady work on Bucket Decals orders.

Here's one he's fulfilling for a Florida team call the Iguanas! Gives you an idea of the kind of work he does with that aspect of his business. Joanna is busy with work, and she produced another bread recipe this week as well. Last week, we enjoyed the focaccia bread she made for our Easter feast. 

And that's enough for this week. 

Spring has Returned!

The Gathering!

Another week has passed on the shore of Lake Superior in my home town. The wintry weather of last week has given way to sunshine and warm weather so the snow has disappeared once again. We've been enjoying getting out for bike rides as the trails have dried up again. Wendy prepared a roast turkey with all the trimmings for our Easter Feast, but that was delayed until Travis recovered from his bout with Covid. Our regular schedules were revised by Easter Monday, so Wendy's choir practice was on Wednesday evening, and then we both had choir practice on Thursday morning. It's only a month until our Spring Concert, so rehearsals are taking on an extra urgency, but we're also having a lot of fun with it. I had another physio appointment on Tuesday, and he was well-pleased with my development. He increased my workouts, and set the next follow-up as three weeks ahead. I am pretty much restriction-free except for lifting heavy stuff. It is very encouraging. The markets were not so encouraging as strong economic data in the USA led some FED speakers to muse about the possibility of no rate cuts this year! However, when the USA jobs came in with a big beat, investors could no longer deny the reality of economic strength and they bought strongly to end the week—thanks Uncle Joe. Our jobs data was dismal—c'mon Justin, get things going! At least with our economic circumstances, we should get a rate cut! The world of sports remains busy this time of year. MLB has begun their regular season. Jays started on the road and are doing okay at about .500, but with a noticeable lack of hitting. NHL is down to the final handful of games in the regular season. Leafs and Oilers have nailed down playoff spots, and Penguins are refusing to die—they're tied for the final playoff spot themselves! In World Curling, the Gushue team had a great week, and have advanced to the Gold medal game tomorrow against Sweden's Edin. 

Turkey ready for the oven!

Erica writes, "We are into busy season, so longer days are the norm. Eric finished teaching his class at the University of Saskatchewan, and only has the exam left. This weekend, he is in Kelowna speaking at the Canadian Association of Marriage and Family Therapy AGM and conference and next week he is in Saskatoon getting trained on Eye Movement Desensitization. I’m batching it for the week, so today I got a large pizza and that should last me for awhile. I’m also going to try to get taxes done while he’s gone. On Monday, Haaken and I have a meeting with Community Living British Columbia."

Erin and Kristian are welcoming Spring to Regina. Kristian had the week off school due to Easter holidays, and reports staying up too late, and sleeping in! However, he did keep up with his chores, so all was not lost. He had a dermatologist's appointment, and is being recommended for a new drug therapy that may (hopefully will) alleviate his skin issues. Erin had her first month-end at Volkswagen which was a good learning session. She also helped back at Toyota as her replacement works through month-end there. 

Travis has been recovering from Covid most of the week. He finally tested clear on Wednesday, and we enjoyed having a belated Easter feast with them this evening. Andrew, Rosie and Max joined in as well. Trav is celebrating the resurgence of his Penguins into the playoff race—another Peng-Win! Joanna has had a busy week with her sick boy at home along with her usual duties. It was good to see them all this evening. 

And that's enough for this week. 

He is Risen, Indeed!

Another week has passed on the shore of Lake Superior in my hometown. March appears to be exiting like a lamb just as it entered some weeks ago. However, the first few days of this week were far from lamb-like! A Colorado low moved through the region in leisurely fashion, unleashing high winds and a great deal of snow upon our previously dry landscape. I left for Winnipeg on Monday morning, so I missed out on some of the storm, but I surveyed the changed circumstances on the highway there and back, and on our driveway and lawns when I got back on Wednesday evening. We are glad to have the snow for the forests and lakes here in northern Ontario. Wendy was not nearly so glad to have the snow on our driveway! She cleared it before we left on Monday, and then multiple times more before we returned to a clean driveway on Wednesday. She even phoned to get instructions on operating the snowblower! Travis had previously got us tickets to see Connor McDavid in Minnesota when the Oilers played the Wild, but Connor was injured and did not play that game, so, for Christmas, he bought tickets to the Oilers game in Winnipeg which took place on Tuesday. We drove up through the storm on Monday, breaking out of the snowy conditions near Dryden. It was snowy all the way on Wednesday as we returned home. We were hosted graciously during our sojourn by Tom & Mariette, even though Mariette has not been feeling well for the last week or so! Thanks folks!

Connor McDavid

Connor was there this time, and played great in the Oiler win! Thanks Travis for this memory! It was another good week in the markets to close off a great month and great first quarter of the year. In the world of sports, Rachel Homan completed the World Championships with the gold medal for Canada. Today, the Men's World Championships began with Brad Gushue representing us; he is one of the favourites. In the NHL, the Oilers and Leafs are doing well, as both are on winning streaks, but it may be too late for the Pens. March Madness continues with the usual wild games, upsets and thrilling finishes. I have transferred my cheering since the Jayhawks lost out, and I am now aligned behind UConn. 

Erica writes, "It has been a busy week with work and evening meetings. We are glad for the long weekend. Eric and I both had doctor appointments. I got the prescription to get a pneumatic pump! Eric has been informed he is officially old. He has arthritis in his hand and gout in his toe, adding in his eye problems and I am thinking I should send him in for some warranty work. Today, I ran out to get last minute groceries for Easter Dinner—potatoes and yams, and experienced an interesting pop in my calf muscle. A quick call to Dr. Erin and we have tentatively diagnosed it as a minor tear. I’m resting it and letting it experience frozen riced cauliflower. Haaken has an appointment with BC Community Living in a week. We hope that the programming now includes support for higher level job opportunities. There is nothing to add from Liam or Greg."

Erin and Kristian survived a snowstorm in Regina as well, although it was a different system than the one that hit us. Kristian has received notification about graduation, so he's getting ready for that. Erin is enjoying her new work at VW; she's currently moving into her first month end there, so that's a bit extra on the learning curve. She had a flat on her RAV4, so that was another hassle, HOWEVER, everything takes a back seat because the Baseball Season has begun, and her beloved Jays are on TV! 

Joanna has been busy at work all week while Travis and I were gallivanting to Winnipeg. Travis fell ill after we got back, and a test yesterday revealed that he has covid. We don't have a very good idea where he may have contracted it. Wendy and I tested today and were relieved with a negative test. It's still too early to know for sure, so we'll continue to monitor the situation. And, we're hoping to get together for an Easter feast at some point over the next week! 

And that's enough for this week! 

Spring!

Another week has passed and Spring has officially arrived on the shore of Lake Superior in my hometown. However, the weather has taken a turn for the worse, and we haven't felt comfortable making bike rides for most of this week! Now, they're threatening us with snow! I have continued with my exercise program and am able to complete that without discomfort. I'm considering exchanging my resistance band for a higher rating. We enjoy our choir rehearsals with Silver Sound, and Wendy keeps very busy with the management of the Sweet Adelines group.

The doubly lucky lady!

This week, the children conspired to provide her a new iPad for her birthday and Mother's Day. It has considerably more room for her photo collection! I have puttered around a bit with some electrical projects in the house. I am in the midst of exchanging and programming some switches to manage the outdoor lights. It is not going according to plan as the first switch is not responding as promised! I am in communication with the manufacturer, and they are even able to find my switch on-line, but they can't get it to perform either! We are working our way through their procedures to try to get it working, or at least to determine what is wrong, and whether they should be replacing it! The markets were upbeat this week, and the month is going well for me. The FED announced that, yes, indeed, they are looking to make three rate cuts this year, and the Swiss surprised the markets by actually making a rate cut! The ever elusive soft landing is starting to find believers. My sporting world has focused all week on the Women's World championships. Our team, Homan, has played great and secured first place in the standings as they move into the playoffs. They played Korea, this evening, in the semi-final, and have moved on to the medal game tomorrow. March Madness erupted on Thursday, with the first round games featuring their plague of upsets. Fortunately, my #4-Jayhawks survived and moved to the round of 32 today, but that was the end of the line. The gutsy play, the upsets, the surges of momentum combine to make this a special feature of the sporting calendar for me. In hockey, my Oilers continue to thrive. The Leafs are doing well, also, while the Pens are nearing elimination from playoff contention. 

Erica has been ill for part of the week, but is starting to feel better now. Eric is consulting over his eye issues and also about gout! I told you this getting old is a challenging enterprise! Other than that, life and work continues much as per usual. Erica greatly enjoyed the celebrations surrounding her 50th Birthday, and acknowledged it officially on Monday. 

Kristian had another day off school during the week as the Teachers Federation struggles to get the government to the bargaining table. He's suffering from a headache this weekend, and he's not even old, yet! Erin is working and learning at Volkswagen. This week, the lady she is replacing was away, so she got to work through things on her own, which was very helpful—it's going well. 

Travis make a quick trip to Toronto to take in another AEW event. I did check out a bit of the video, but didn't find him in the crowd or the ring! Joanna continues with work as per usual. They came over for supper and FastTrack on Tuesday night—as they say fun and games! Travis and I are finalizing our plans for a trip to Winnipeg next week to see the Oilers play the Jets. 

And that's about enough for this week. 

Cycling!

Another week has passed on the shore of Lake Superior in my hometown. The weather has continued to be beautiful, and we have got the bikes out and enjoyed touring around the area. As we've passed the middle of March, it will soon be officially Spring, so we're hoping that we have indeed escaped with a very easy Winter. I had another Physio session on Monday, and will now continue on my own for a few weeks since things are going so well. I have a series of stretches and resistance exercises that I cycle through each day. It is very encouraging! Wendy keeps busy with her chorus management, and with rehearsing for both choruses. We're enjoying learning the eleven new songs for the Spring Concert with the Silver Sound group. The markets were troubled this week with inflation data from CPI and PPI both coming in hotter than expected. That has resulted in the TSX outperforming the USA indices so far this month for the first time this year. In the NHL, the Pens are playing out the string and suffering the prospect of neither making the playoffs, nor getting a high draft choice—sigh! Oilers and Leafs are sitting well into playoff positions. In Basketball, the #16-Jayhawks are suffering with injuries and failure to shoot well, as they suffered another loss. Now, it's time to be ready for March Madness, and they do not seem ready! They usually take their #1 seeding in the tournament as a given, but this year, I'm expecting a 5 or 6 seed—embarrassing! The Brier ended last Sunday with Gushue defeating McEwen for his sixth championship—a record! Today, the Women's World championship launched and our team Homan opened with wins over Sweden and Denmark. 

A life worth celebrating!

50th Celebration!

Erica reports, "On Monday I turn 50. Eric arranged a special celebration on Friday night in recognition of my half century. It took the form of a surprise party for me with our friends and some friends from work. He booked a room and hired a caterer to provide Appies. Guido made a red velvet cake. Tina borrowed a Karaoke machine. It was a fun night! Liam came home to provide some extra joy to the occasion. Liam had a recent appointment with his specialist. His weight is healthy, his inflammation is normal, blood count is normal, vitamin D is normal. It’s hard to believe. When we first went to the specialist, Liam was so sick it didn’t seem like he would ever be healthy. It’s good to see him so much better!"

Erin is working through on-the-job training at Volkswagen. While the accounting principles are the same, this franchise uses different software so there are many subtle differences to be accommodated. Kristian is well into his final semester of high school and is looking forward to graduation in June. 

Travis remains surprisingly busy with hockey production this late in the local season. Joanna is busy at work as financial year-end finds many organizations seeking to complete their budgeted purchases. Today, Joanna and Wendy went on a shopping excursion. They enjoyed that—I enjoyed not doing that! 

And that's enough for this week. 

Like a Lamb!

Another week has passed on the shore of Lake Superior in my hometown. March came in like a lamb, and has remained lamb-like ever since. We're enjoying positive temperatures each day, and I've been able to get out for my walks very comfortably.

Front Lawn last year/this year

I had a second appointment with my physiotherapist on Monday, and am scheduled to continue that routine for two more Mondays. After that, and in consideration of my progress, we may continue with longer breaks in between. He added more exercises and some resistance exercises to my regime this week, and I may have overdone it on Wednesday, as I had a tender back, and had to forego resistance training on Thursday and Friday. Still, both he and I report being well encouraged by how things are going! I was able to get down on the floor and clean the flame sensor on the water heater this morning—progress! Wendy celebrated her birthday today, and we enjoyed a family gathering here this evening around Chinese food and Turtle Cheesecake. The markets have continued to be volatile; this week's irritants were the FED chair testifying before Congress, and jobs data. You never know what Powell might say, nor how it will be interpreted by investors. The jobs data on Friday was blow-away good, and that scared investors since it might cause a further delay in interest rate cuts. My main activity of the week was the Brier. My guy, Kevin Koe, performed very poorly and did not make the playoffs. I picked the exact names for the six qualifiers, but it was Kevin's brother, Jamie, who carried the Koe name forward. We are down to the final three teams now: Gushue, Bottcher and McEwen. I am cheering for McEwen, although he is the lowest ranked of the three. The NHL had a breathless week with Trade Deadline, where contenders tried to add the players to get them to the Cup, and pundits filled the airwaves with "Breaking News!" Leafs and Oilers added to their lineups, while Pens management decided it was time to sell, sigh! Only the Leafs won tonight. In Basketball, #14-Jayhawks were dropped hard, and responded with a big win over K-State, but faced #1-Houston today and that was a different story—ugly road loss!

Erica writes, "We got our winters worth of snow on Monday and Tuesday, and the snowmobilers are delighted! Eric had a specialist appointment this week concerning his vision, and has a diagnosis of Keratoconus. He is being referred to a surgeon. We are heading down to Regina this weekend. Eric and I are attending the CPA convocation celebration and I’m joining the Lipedema ladies at a booth to share with people about Lipedema. We hope to fit in a quick visit with Erin and Kristian. I got a quote for a medical grade lymph pump. Our provincial healthcare will cover 40% of the cost. Not sure exactly why it doesn’t cover all the cost. I blame the SaskParty."

with Matt Dunstone

Kristian got to go the Brier on Thursday (lucky duck!), and enjoyed that. He got pictures with several of the players. Erin finally started at VW on Tuesday. It's a much longer drive out to the east of the city to the dealership, and takes extra time depending on traffic and trains. VW and Audi use different management software, so she's having to familiarize with that aspect. Then, her furnace went down this week, so that took some extra running around as well. 

Celebratory Cheesecake

Celebratory Meal

Travis and Joanna keep busy, however, we did have one games night early in the week. This evening they, along with Andrew & Rosie, joined us for a very Wendy birthday celebration. She made her own cake, while they brought food and good cheer!

And that's enough for this week! 

Marching Along!

Another week has passed on the shore of Lake Superior in my hometown. The weather has continue to be unseasonably warm, and the snow is practically gone. The meeting with the physiotherapist on Monday went well. He was pleased with the progress on my back in the five weeks, and has initiated a set of five stretching exercises for this week. I am experiencing some tenderness and tightness from my first day of the exercises, but nothing unreasonable. Next Monday will mark six weeks post-surgery, and he felt we should not do very much until after that surgeon imposed deadline. Anyway, I am quite encouraged. He supports my goals of golf this summer with walking the course, and curling beginning in the Fall. We got a bit of snow early in the week, so Wendy had a bit of shovelling, but we've returned to above expected conditions and that bit of snow is now history. As you will note, the TSX is not doing well, while Uncle Joe has the USA markets flying. 

Year-to-date index gains:

X: 1.9%

D: 3.5%

S: 6.8%

Q: 7.2%

In the NHL, my teams are improving their standing as far as the playoffs are concerned, but Pens still remain with quite a bit of work to do, and they didn't help themselves tonight, sigh! The Scotties completed on Sunday with the Homan team victorious. They will carry Canada's colours to the world championship later this month. The #7-Jayhawks played a disastrous home game early in the week, losing despite holding a 12-point lead in the second half—it was disheartening. Then, they had a tough road game today, and lost that one as well. They will drop severely in the rankings! Rock Chalk Jayhawks! The Brier began last night in Regina, so I'll be very occupied for the next week! My guy, Kevin Koe, is there, but if he continues to curl like last night, he won't be there for long! I'm picking Bottcher, Dunstone, Jacobs from Pool A, and Gushue, McEwen, Koe from Pool B. We'll see how that goes before picking my playoff survivors! 

Eric and Erica have returned from their vacation in Arizona to a late winter blizzard in Prince Albert. It is predicted to snow all weekend, so maybe they're trying to catch up on moisture needs on the prairies. Erica writes, "Eric and I made it back home. We experienced a remarkable event on our trip. Our flights all left on time and we didn’t miss any connections. I think that is the first time in several years. We really enjoyed Arizona and decided we will need to return some time to see all the things we didn’t have time for this trip. There were places where the landscape was exactly what we expected. And there were a few surprises—in one spot a boreal forest with snow, just like home. Also—we purchased a bed! We broke our bed frame a while back (not nearly as exciting as it sounds), and we have been sleeping with the box spring and mattress on the floor, just like university days!"

Erin and Kristian are hunkered down under a winter storm warning in Regina. Kristian completed another of his industrial safety courses on Wednesday. I believe that's a half dozen or more safety categories that he has completed—well done, buddy! Erin and Kristian toured through the VW dealership this week, and Erin got the news that she will officially begin over there on Monday! Exciting times! She expects most of the accounting work will be similar, but there will also be an added dimension with the management facet. We're proud of her, too! 

Joanna returned from southern Ontario on Tuesday. So, she was back at work the rest of the week. Travis has kept busy with business, more photo shoots, and the dogs. They came over for pizza and cards tonight. It's been too long! 

And that's about enough for this week. 

2024-02-24

Another week has passed on the shore of Lake Superior in my hometown. The weather has continued to be mild and the snow continues to disappear. This is way too early for such a situation, but we're enjoying getting out for comfortable walks. Wendy keeps busy with Sweet Adelines, but we had a week off from our Silver Sound choir since our director is holidaying in Cuba. Wendy has completed her annual accounting assignment for a business here. He keeps paying her more than she asks, so clearly he is pleased with her work. I continue to do not much of anything while healing my back. I start physio on Monday, so I am hoping I'll be freed to be more active soon. This afternoon we took a safety training course to allow our volunteer work at church. The markets have continued to show volatility, but also keep putting up record values, and returning big gains to shareholders. Anyway, I've been occupied all week with the Scotties. My gal, Einarson, made it to the playoffs, but has now been knocked out. The teams left are Homan, Jones and Cameron. The popular choice from the outset was Homan, but it's a slippery game, and we'll have to wait to see how it plays out tomorrow. In hockey my three teams are all improving their situation a little. Pens and Leafs won their recent games, in fact Leafs are on a seven-game winning streak. The Oilers have fallen off the torrid pace they were on earlier, and dropped another to their provincial rival tonight, sigh! #9-Jayhawks dropped again in the rankings after last week. They only had one game this week and performed very well for an easy win over Texas. 

Erica writes, "This week Eric and I have joined our friends, Guido and Tina on some pre-retirement research in Arizona. Specifically, we are checking for places where we can avoid the cold winters when we get to retirement age, whenever that may be! We arrived on Wednesday only to find that I had booked an electric car—one that doesn’t work at the Tesla stations that are scattered around the state. Since we plan to do some exploring, we decided to pay the extra fee for a gas engine. Then, we headed to our accommodations at Camp Verde. So far we have seen Montezuma’s Castle and Well, which have no actual connection to Montezuma or the Aztecs. The castle is built into the limestone and the well is an underground spring that continues to flow wet and dry season. We explored historic downtown Camp Verde. The town was a fort “back in the day”. Today we explored the Desert Botanical Gardens and the Musical Instrument Museum in Phoenix where we saw the guitar used by Paul of Peter, Paul and Mary. There is much more planned on the agenda for the next few days. We are hoping for a bit of relaxation in there as well. The weather is a pleasant 20ish degrees and cools down at night."

Paul's Guitar

Erin and Kristian are doing well in Regina. Kristian enjoyed the weeklong break from school. He reports that he was able to sleep in most mornings. Erin has been informed of further delays in her transfer over to VW. Her boss at Toyota will be away for a couple of weeks, so she'll be running the show at the mother ship for a while longer. 

Travis continues to have hockey team shoots, and Bucket Decals is surprisingly busy for this time of year. Joanna left on Friday to spend some time with her mom and the rest of the family in Toronto. We're expecting her return on Tuesday. Travis is batching with Max and the dogs this weekend! 

And that's about enough for this week. 

Making Progress!

Another week has passed on the shore of Lake Superior in my hometown. The weather has turned to more seasonal, with daytime highs remaining below zero most days. We have continued to be blessed with very little snow, which benefits Wendy as she has driveway duties since my surgery. The last time we had to clear a big dump was the morning of my surgery—so I got in one last shovelling episode then! I am making good progress with my back. I was back to see the surgeon on Wednesday, and along with dumping all over him for the failures of post-surgery care, he told us about the surgery, and approved how things were looking for my back. He has approved rehab work, and I have managed to check in with the physiotherapist and schedule my first session for Feb 26th. I remain quite impatient as everything feels good—much better than before the surgery, and I am eager to get on with things! My plan is that I should have full range of motion and get into golf at the end of May. I continue to be grateful that Erin encouraged me to go for this "while I was still young"! I regularly watch woodworking videos and look forward to getting back into the shop as soon as it warms up again. We have had a busy week with choir practices, home group, and a lovely Valentines supper out with Travis and Joanna! The markets took a major dump on Tuesday as USA inflation data showed up higher than expected, but we recovered from that in the remainder of the week. Sports has also become very busy with the opening of the Scotties on Friday. My local favourite, McCarville, is back, and my returning favourite, Einarson, is as well. They clashed in the feature game tonight, so I enjoyed that—Einarson won! In hockey, the Leafs and Pens are playing a bit better, while my Oilers are slumping after their 16-game winning streak. All won their most recent games at least. The #6-Jayhawks were dropped two spots in the rankings; they split their games this week, losing ugly to TTech, and then winning ugly over OU. 

Erica writes, "For Valentines Day, Eric and I did a Clue-based escape room. Unfortunately, we did not escape. So, we went back on Friday and were more successful! It was a lot of fun. We were asked to test out a new room while we were there, but I had book club, so, we had to decline. We need to make some plans for June—we have Greg’s wedding and Haaken is coming home for a month. But, I haven’t got myself into gear to book anything. I must be too focused on our trip to Arizona this week."

Kristian had a session at Sask Polytech on machining last weekend, but that seems to have been a one-off, so nothing this weekend. He, along with his curling team has been invited to attend a draw at the Brier next month—I'm jealous. Erin keeps doing her several jobs and looks forward to settling into her new job. She took off Thursday and Friday to let her replacement work on her own and see how she managed it. 

Travis and Joanna keep busy. Joanna has been fighting a cold most of the week, but they still took off time to take us out for Valentines supper—thank you so much! They continue to have some hockey team photo shoots, but that is dwindling now as the hockey regular season nears completion. 

And that's enough for this week. 

Winter is Back!

Another week has passed on the shore of Lake Superior in my hometown. The weather has continued mild, including a few showers this week, but this weekend, the rain turned to snow, and it looks like winter outside once again. Wendy has been in a workshop called Competent Caring on Thursday through today. She imagines it will enable her to provide good care for me in my dotage! The lovely weather has allowed us to get out for walks each day until today when it stayed below zero with icy conditions, so I didn't dare walk outside. We're back in practice sessions with Silver Sound Choir each week. We have a new set of about a dozen songs to prepare for the Spring concert in early May. 

Silver Sound Choir

I completed my course of medicine for my hiccups, but I have had several short episodes of hiccups the last couple of days—those startle me in ways they never used to! The steri-strips have fallen off my incision scar and it's healing nicely.

Turns out it was 8cm.

I am scheduled for a follow-up with my surgeon next Wednesday. I'm looking forward to his prognosis of the situation, and an estimation of when I can begin physiotherapy. The USA markets have had a good week based on their economic strength so they don't have to concern themselves about the rate cuts. TSX suffered all week until Friday when we got strong jobs numbers, and good corporate earnings reports, so we turned in a week's worth of gain to end the week. The NHL has returned to play after the all-star break. The Oilers failed to carry on their winning streak in Vegas (not too many winning streaks survive in Vegas), but they started another one last night in Anaheim, and ended it in Los Angeles tonight. The Pens have returned to their road-weary ways and dropped a pair of road games. Leafs have returned to play, but continued their up and down performances which drive their fans crazy! #4-Jayhawks were rewarded with a jump in the rankings. Two lacklustre games this week may not reflect well, but the worst of it was they lost to K-State—that is unforgivable. I've kept busy all week with provincial curling. My guy, Koe, dropped into the semi-final in Alberta. Likewise, the favourite in Manitoba, Jacobs, has fallen to the semi-final. We'll see if they can mount a rally tomorrow. 

Eric writes, "This week was looking the same as most in Prince Albert, where we live, but for the boys (Haaken and Liam) is was their birthday week. We called Liam on Sunday. He was in the van on his way home from a weekend excursion to Southern Alberta Bible Camp. While there, he taught and the team performed for the campers. He celebrated with his friends on his birthday. Haaken’s birthday was on Thursday. He had a birthday treat from grandma, celebrating with the other Baileys out in Victoria. Erica had work this week with only had one evening meeting (SK Lipedema). Eric worked his regular hours at CFS and taught his adolescent development class at the university. We had a quick trip to Caronport to visit Liam and meet his girlfriend, Mercedes." 

Liam & Mercedes

Erin and Kristian carried on with life in the mild Regina winter, but they got a taste of snow as well. I'm sure the snow was welcomed by the agricultural industry. Kristian signed up for a machining workshop at Sask Polytech, so he took that in today. Fun way to spend a Saturday! Erin feels her transfer over to VW is imminent—possibly this month. 

Travis and Joanna were busy with work all week, and when they finally had some free time for cards, Wendy was busy with the week-ending seminar on Competent Caring. Otherwise the dogs were thriving! Trav and I watched the Pens fail to re-start their season in Minnesota, and then, they followed that up with a loss in Winnipeg tonight—sigh! 

And that's about it for this week. 

Hiccups Over!

Another week has passed on the shore of Lake Superior in my home town. The weather has been lovely with melting each day—unexpected for the end of January! The hiccups are not exactly a distant memory, but in the past at least! The medical folks think the problem developed from the facedown intubation during surgery, and it was exacerbated because my surgeon was relatively new and had not gone through all the expected protocols for effective medical service. The hospital offers a SeamlessMD program, but he had not been registered, so I was not included, and thus got no service! I have never dealt with an experience so terrible. I didn't even know there was such a thing as fast hiccups. They began during the night after my surgery and continued for the next seven days and nights. The spasms occurred about every three seconds, but sometimes more rapidly, and often with double and triple spasms. Sometimes the complete exhaustion allowed me to sleep. Wendy commented that sometimes I snored along with the hiccups. Monday, was my last bad night, as I finally took some T3s and got to sleep about 5am. Wendy got up at 7:30 and said I was sleeping hiccup-free, so she left me sleep. I woke for a phone call about 11am. That was when we finally got some action on the medical front. The call was from the Low-Back team contact. She was one of the doctors I was hounding for help (I was leaving plaintive hiccup-filled messages on her answering machine). She had, like-wise, been trying to get in contact with the surgeon and had failed to do so! (No kidding, I left lots of messages on his machine, too), any way, she was able to enrol me directly into the SeamlessMD program which is designed to accommodate a seamless transition to home after surgery (what a concept!) As a result, I was finally in that program; the nurse-practitioner called me, and after I explained my problem, she sent a prescription order to my pharmacy for a drug to deal with the hiccups. Wendy picked up my new med Tuesday afternoon. I took my second dose at midnight that night; the hiccups stopped about 1am, and I enjoyed a lovely sleep each night since, along with hiccup-free days, too! It’s a 7-day course of metoclopramide hcl 5mg. I asked the nurse-practitioner about the med, since it's not listed as a hiccup killer! She acknowledged that this is an off-label application, but one that in her experience seems to work, so she uses it! So, I am delighted to be back on my healing program, getting sleep, and allowing my incision to heal. My back seems to be healing well, and I am feeling little pain. The current difficulty is waiting out the 6-week period before the rehab can begin. In the meantime, I am allowed to walk, but little else. I can't bend over to the floor, I can't lift stuff, I can't twist my back... Two weeks are almost completed! Otherwise, Wendy continues with her work with the Sweet Adelines choir and with her enjoyment in the Silver Sound Choir. For the Spring concert, she has joined the tenor section of this choir and is enjoying that experience. The markets were dogged by big events this week: the FED and the USA jobs data. The FED is teasing two actions: dropping the interest rate, and changing their Quantitative Easing program. They were equivocal on both issues and investors were alarmed. Then, USA jobs data dropped showing Bidenomics had produced another blockbuster month of 353,000 jobs. The upshot of it all was bad news for Canadian investors (Yeah, that's me you're looking at!) and begrudging good news for USA investors: even if they're not going to cut rates, the USA economy is doing so well that companies are making big money. So, I did not have a good week—sigh! NHL teams are off for the All-Star break, so my Oilers are sitting on their 16-game winning streak. Penguins are close, but out of the playoffs. Leafs are in a playoff position. #8-Jayhawks were dropped another spot in the rankings, but enjoyed a blowout win over Oklahoma State early in the week to set up today's big game against #4-Houston. KU came out hard, built up an early lead, and were never threatened in a 13 point win—that should move us up. Rock Chalk Jayhawk! 

Erica writes, "We have been enjoying the extraordinarily warm weather in PA. The snow is starting to melt. We got out for a walk in the snow, only to find some of the paths covered in slush and ice, but it was quite nice anyway. I’m on worship team tomorrow and looking forward to that. Eric is eyeing up bass ukuleles to round out his collection. We are also working on a few upcoming adventures: a short trip to Arizona at the end of February, Greg and Kiersten’s wedding in June, and a Girls' 50th birthday trip to Costa Rica in the fall."

Erin and Kristian are likewise enjoying the mild winter in Regina, but already we're hearing concerns about moisture levels for the agricultural industry. Kristian's high school curling team lost in the playoffs and have thus ended their season. Erin remains very busy with year end, and now month end, as well as the training of her replacement. She expects to begin the transition over to Volkswagen soon. 

Travis and Joanna got back from Punta Cana on Monday. I was able to pick them up from the airport although my hiccups were still a thing at the time! Travis had a couple of busy days, but is caught up to his Puckshots work now. Joanna is back at work as well. Last night, we had a special celebration for Rosie as she has completed her Canadian citizenship. 

Welcome Rosie!

Spinal Surgery!

Another week has passed on the shore of Lake Superior in my hometown. And what a week it has been! The weather has turned to the mild side with daily highs rising above freezing and some melting has taken place. But the big event began early Monday morning as I reported to the hospital for my long-awaited spinal surgery. A friendly doctor on the surgery team drew us a diagram and explained the procedure. 

Spinal Surgery Diagram

The dark blue circle is the spinal cord which is being impinged here by a ruptured disc, or boney material, or both. They will cut straight down from the surface of my back (carefully, he was at pains to assure me) until they encounter the bone. Then, they will retract the muscle tissue to the red lines to give them greater access. At that point, they will finally see what they're up against. However, I have not had any meetings with the surgical team to find out what they saw or what they did. Wendy changed the bandage this afternoon, and took a picture, so I know they did something! The pain from the incision is pretty much gone, but it will be months rebuilding proper strength and motion. 

Incision

The incision is about 10cm (4") long, and is now held together with steri-strips. There has been little seepage and it seems to be healing well. The main feature of the week has been, unfortunately, hiccups (I always spelled it hiccoughs, but that seems to have changed!). I was discharged from the hospital Monday evening, gingerly made my way home and went to bed. "To sleep, perhaps to dream"... yeah, no chance of that! I spent most of the night trying to find a comfortable position in which to rest, and finally at 4:22am, the hiccups arrived and have remained ever since. To be sure, many folks have sent along their advice and remedies and some of them have proved helpful. This has not been the case with my medical people, none of whom have gotten back to me. I plan to visit them on Monday! 

Otherwise, the markets remained volatile, but expanded to new all-time highs again this week as strong USA economic data for jobs, GDP and inflation encouraged investors. In the world of Basketball, KU was punished for their lack-lustre performance last week and dropped to #7. A win at home and a loss on the road this week are unlikely to encourage the voters! In the NHL, Oilers pushed their winning streak to 16 games and are solidly in a playoff position. Pens remain on the outside looking in and need to definitely go on a winning streak. Leafs remain unpredictable as they frequently appear to snatch defeat from the jaws of victory. But all three of them won today!

Erica writes, "It’s been a fairly ordinary week in Prince Albert. We enjoyed a reprieve from the cold temperatures. It warmed up to 0 degrees on the weekend. This weekend marks the beginning of the winter festival. We enjoyed an evening out at the Tux and Toques Gala. I wore a jacket with tails (tux) and Eric wore a toque. And that is about it! :)" 

Erin and Kristian are also enjoying the break from the deep freeze. Kristian has had to struggle to do his make up work in math while teachers are on job action. 

Travis and Joanna are starting on their way back from Punta Cana this weekend. We are expecting them on Monday evening. 

And that's about enough for this week. 

It's Time!

Another week has passed on the shore of Lake Superior in my hometown. The cold weather has broken, and we're enjoying sunny days. They're predicting temperatures near zero next week, but also suggesting that we'll get some snow. We'll see how that plays out! I am scheduled for spinal surgery on Monday, so I won't have to worry about snow clearing for a while! We've had a cold week here in Thunder Bay, but not the wild weather experienced east of here, nor the deep freeze enjoyed in the west. We've had a quiet, mostly indoors week. Wendy had her choir practice on Monday evening, and went for a fresh haircut on yesterday. I had my pre-admission conference on Wednesday. The markets have been struggling with fears that the FED will maintain its high interest rates for longer than hoped since the USA economy continues to perform so strongly. However, as jobless data was much better than expected, and consumer confidence data also was a beat, the investors finally decided that companies pretty much had to make money in this environment so, we closed the week with some nice gains. In the world of sports curling has been a highlight. Last week concluded with Koe winning in Lloydminster. This week, it's the Canadian Open in Red Deer. Koe lost in the tie-breaker this morning. It will be a Canada/Scotland final on the men's side tomorrow, featuring Bottcher vs Mouat. On the women's side, it'll be Switzerland/Canada with the Tirinzoni vs Homan matchup. In hockey, my Oilers ran off another big win streak (now at 13 games) to move into a playoff position. Leafs are having a bad spell of blowing leads and losing games; they're barely hanging on to what used to be a solid playoff position. Penguins are playing better and have moved within two points of the playoffs. They all played today, but only Oilers managed a win. #3-Jayhawks have continued their sloppy ways in college basketball, and have not been achieving the easy wins that I expect! Today, they dropped a road game that they should have won easily! Rock Chalk boys! Stadium stairs, boys!! I expect this will show up in a drop in the rankings!

Erica writes, "Eric and I honoured our grandfathers on Friday by attending an NDP fundraiser in PA. We dragged along a few conservatives as well. Ha! It was a fun evening with music bingo, silent auctions and air banjo. On Saturday, we went to listen to Amy Bishop at the EA Rawlinson in PA. I also had an appointment in Saskatoon to get my hand electrocuted. Turns out, I have carpal tunnel. I also had some testing for arthritis, but I don’t have that yet! So that’s good. I have to wear a brace for four months and if that doesn’t fix it, we may do a procedure. The boys all seem well. We’ve had a few chats here and there and they are doing okay."

Kristian won his curling game last week, but this week's schedule was postponed. We expect they will catch up on that one later. Then, they'll be into the playoffs. Erin had a small disaster with her RAV4 as the battery failed. Modern vehicles rely heavily on the computerized aspects. We experienced a similar issue earlier this winter as the battery weakened, and the computer said, "So sorry, can't run on that!" It wouldn't start, it wouldn't even lock the doors, we couldn't even get it out of gear for towing—it was dead! Her situation was similar and in the very cold weather, she had to get it towed to work and a new battery installed.

Ah, the life!

Travis and Joanna are enjoying life in Punta Cana where tropical beaches beckon! They laugh at we poor folk suffering in the cold! Seriously, we are glad to see them taking a break from the work and the weather. We are taking care of Minnie, and that's going fine.

And that's about enough for this week!

Spinal Surgery!

I have been suffering sciatica-like pain for the last year or so as a result of an issue in my spinal column. It came to my attention one day in September 2022, while I was working in the shop, however the doctors think it was under development for years ahead of that! I was sitting on the floor, installing a set of storage drawers. When I tried to get up, there was a severe pain in my back that took my breath away. In the immediate aftermath, the pain was debilitating—I could only walk about fifty metres. Over the year plus since then, it has played out as lower back pain, pain points in my butt, a burning sensation in my thighs and calves, and neuropathy in my feet. Helpful suggestions from family and doctors have allowed me to achieve significant relief. I am now able to walk about 1 km without negative repercussions. I can even walk up to 5 km, but then I suffer significantly the following day. The lower back team at the hospital has assured me that only the lower back pain is real, and that the rest are phantom pains caused by the impingement on the nerves. I had my pre-admission meeting on Wednesday morning, and now all is in place for spinal surgery on Monday, January 22nd. The plan is to reformat the spinal column between L4 and L5 to create some room for my spinal column and the nerves associated with it. In the MRIs you can see the narrowing of the spinal column at the L4-L5 area; the doctor calls it severe spinal stenosis. He was not surprised that I was experiencing discomfort while walking, in fact, he seemed to be more surprised that I was walking at all! One of the pictures has encouraged me to think that it's only soft tissue pressure caused by the ruptured disc, but the surgeon did not accept that conclusion! So, he'll see when he gets in there. He predicts that I will be released from hospital on Monday unless there are complications. After that, he assures me, I will be feeling real pain in the lower back, but I'll have drugs to allay that! Then, he predicts I will get relief from the butt and leg pains in short order, but that the neuropathy can not be expected to dissipate very soon, or possibly ever. Is it delicate, risky? Of course it is. No surgery is risk-free, and the spinal column is particularly complex. Thus, I covet your prayers over the surgery and the rehab work to follow. Thanks

BRRR!

Another week has passed on the shore of Lake Superior in my hometown. We are into a cold snap with a polar vortex bringing cold weather down both east and west of us, and we're getting caught a bit as well. Western Canada is seeing temperatures down to -40°, and eastern Canada is seeing cold and storms pushing down into the USA. We feel a bit fortunate with calm conditions and temperatures around -15°, but it still leaves us relieved to sit, well protected, in our comfortable home. We did get some additional snow early in the week, but we remain well below average on that front for this point in the season.

Puzzle-Lady completes another!

Wendy has completed another puzzle. She also keeps busy with her choral group, and her small group at church. She continues to improve, albeit slowly, from her long term coughing problem. This weekend, we inherited Minnie as Trav & Joanna headed south to Punta Cana. The colder weather has kept me from the workshop, but I did pick up two large pallets (4x8) with full 2x4s. I got one of them stripped down. They were new pallets, probably only used once, so they came apart very cleanly, providing me a good source of lumber. I have been back and forth with the surgeon this week, and my surgery date has been adjusted and readjusted as operating theatre schedules have changed. I was set for the 24th, which seemed like a good omen to me since that was Mom's birthday, but yesterday, they changed it to the 22nd, a week from Monday. Markets were troubled this week, and retreated in value. CPI came in higher than expected, raising inflation concerns. PPI came in lower than expected, lowering inflation fears. Investors didn't know what to do, so with the Monday USA market holiday, they sat on their hands! In hockey, my Oilers followed up their earlier eight game winning streak with another winning streak that has now reached a team record ten games! As a result, they have moved into a playoff position. Penguins are close, and Leafs are in a playoff position, but both lost tonight. #3-Jayhawks unexpectedly lost their game earlier in the week, but they came back with a solid win today. Since #1, 2 and 5 also lost, it's hard to predict where they'll be ranked next week! The curling world is focused on Lloydminster this week, and my guy, Kevin Koe has qualified for the playoffs. We'll see what he can manage tomorrow. 

The Saskatchewan families have hunkered down against the extremely cold weather out there. Erica did venture into Saskatoon for a medical referral. Liam and his team ventured into the frigid northern Saskatchewan for presentations at Canoe Lake. We're glad they made it safely home again!

We remember

Erin has begun dismantling her Christmas tree, but not before taking time to appreciate the Sadie memento in recognition of their first Christmas after her passing. Kristian has been putting in extra hours at school as he works to earn additional math credit. 

Travis and Joanna delivered Minnie to us. Moxley and Darby are being cared for at home by Max, who is also in charge of the house. Travis and Joanna have escaped the cold and storm for two weeks in Punta Cana—we're jealous!

And that's about enough for this week. 

It's beginning...

Another week has passed on the shore of Lake Superior in my hometown. The temperatures have remained comfortable, but the snow has arrived, and it's finally beginning to look a lot like Christmas! We got a snowfall on Sunday, and then another good dump last night, so I got the snowblower out for the first time, and it ran well. We enjoyed a New Year celebration with Travis & Joanna; they helps us complete a puzzle that evening. We continue to make progress on the side entry, and Wendy has begun another 1000-piece puzzle. I have revised my investment plays. I began the year with a good green week, despite the fact that all indices are in the red. Investors are struggling with their response to several issues. The USA economy is going great guns with another 200K+ month of job creation, wage growth and the unemployment rate at record lows. However, ISM data show weakness in consumer enthusiasm and spending.  But, inflation is retreating. We're not doing nearly so well up here: job creation is flat, even though wage growth is good and unemployment rate is satisfactory. Meanwhile investors are wondering:

-Big time job creation: That will allow the FED to keep rates high? Sell

-Inflation falling: That will cause the FED to drop the rates! Buy
-ISM number weak: That will force the FED to drop rates! Buy
-ISM number weak: That means the USA is headed for recession! Sell

And thus, we had a week of indecision with equity values falling. 

In the world of sports, we watched the completion of the World Junior Hockey Championships. We were shut out of the medals, while USA beat Sweden to collect the gold. My three teams put up good action in the NHL. The Leafs solidified their place. Oilers and Pens rode their improved play up the standings and now sit just two points out of the playoffs. The #2-Jayhawks began conference play today, and while playing sloppy, still managed to eke out a 2 point win. Rock Chalk Boys! 

Eric and Erica spent the week in Australia and enjoyed touring around there, including a snorkeling trip out to the Great Barrier Reef. Truly, it was the trip of a life time. They have now arrived back in Canada, and will be adjusting to the time and climate change! 

Erin continues her training work with her replacement. Her employer was expecting her to be moved over to Volkswagen by now, but they underestimated how much work she is actually doing! Besides, it's yearend time (the busiest time of the year), and she wishes to help with that before moving on. Kristian did not get as much Math completed over the break as he was expecting (and we were hoping). He needs this if he hopes to get into Sask Polytech in the Fall. 

Travis & Joanna joined us to welcome in 2024 and do a jigsaw puzzle. Now, they're enjoying the last days of Jonas & Gemma's visit, and are also busy back at work. Andrew & Rosie made a road trip to Toronto to visit family down there. We're glad they're safely back home. 

Challenging Jigsaw!

And that's enough for this week!