Back to Spring!

Another week has passed on the shore of Lake Superior in my hometown, and, happily, Spring has returned. The weather turned nicely, and the white rain from last week quickly disappeared. I've been able to get out to the shop regularly, and also out for our walks. I feel my back is making progress, and the main issue currently is finding a comfortable position in bed so I can go to sleep! I have milled the oak in preparation for the shadow box frame, and have prepared a jig for the mitre saw to cut it up. I have prepared two complete samples with softer material; they worked out great, but I am struggling to find the courage to make the mitre cuts in the oak! Wendy returned Sunday night from her chorus trip to Rochester. She enjoyed that, and they performed wonderfully. She continues to be quite busy with the work as treasurer for the chorus, but she enjoys that about as much as the singing! Markets continued to whipsaw this week just as they have been doing for months, but at least the general direction is up, as all indices ended green for the month, and I was able to make quota. I am continuing my stance of only being partially invested in the market while focusing on high dividend stocks, and it's working okay. I have three paper trading scenarios in operation, but only one of them is doing well, so I don't have many options to this point. The curling event this week was from South Korea where the Senior Championships and the Mixed Doubles were contested. Canada won both men's and women's Senior Gold; while USA won the Mixed Doubles Gold. NHL playoffs continue. Some series are completed. We're down to where it's someone's elimination game every night, and the remaining series will end in the next couple of days. I've lost one team so far. Baseball is through the first month, and my Blue Jays are doing well. 

Erica writes, "On Friday, we celebrated Eric’s 53rd with a movie and birthday cake. He heard from Haaken, Liam and Greg. Everyone seems to be doing well. This weekend, we will also celebrate with my work. We have escape rooms and family feud on the schedule. I told Eric it was all for his birthday, but it also might have something to do with the end of tax season."

Erin and Kristian, along with Travis and Joanna had a great week in Florida. They enjoyed the warm weather, the tropical beaches and the various amenities. Kristian and Travis took a side trip to the AEW event over in Miami. Mostly, they just relaxed and took in a few special activities. Erin and Kristian flew home today, but only got as far as Toronto as the delayed flight out of Tampa messed up their connections—sigh! Travis and Joanna are scheduled to return next week. 

There's a dog on my bed!

And that's about it for this week. 

White Rain!

Another week has passed on the shore of Lake Superior in my hometown. The weather has been miserable beginning last weekend, and persisting into this weekend. While the old adage, "April showers..." implies that any precipitation in April is rain, I have extended the intent to prove that it doesn't snow in the months of April through October. That assurance aside, we surely had a lot of flakey white rain this week. It started with freezing rain last weekend which closed the highways in Ontario and prolonged our stay in Winnipeg. We were planning to leave on Saturday and eventually left on Tuesday. A spell of warm weather had the roads in excellent driving condition by then, so the trip home was uneventful. We thank Kelly and crew for putting us up for the extra days. We also took advantage to do more visiting with family in Winnipeg as Tom & Mariette returned from the Middle East. We also got to visit with Richard & Louise.

Scarlet Women & their Director

Wendy has been busy with preparations for her trip to Rochester MN this weekend for Sweet Adelines competition. I have marked her location in the group with an arrow, and added a close-up pic of the trophy holding the award! They loaded up on Thursday morning in more um, rain, and took a difficult bus ride south, while I used the snowblower to blow the rain off the driveway! Their competition was today—20 hours on the bus for a 7-minute performance! They did well, winning the trophy for first in their section!

Lamination Glue-Up

I've been able to get back to the shop and work on the lamination project. Of course I had to bring it inside for the glue-up. It will eventually become a chair seat. I am also working on a shadow memory box for Sadie. The markets were troubled all week with a lot of whipsaw action. I managed a small gain, and am closing in on quota for April. Kevin Koe finished off the Players Championship in style. He made a slash double to count three and beat Gushue in the semi-final. Then, he made a triple kill to score three and beat Schwaller in the final! Wranå, from Sweden, won the women's side. First round series continue in the NHL playoffs. My picks are at least all still alive! (Oilers, Islanders, Bruins, Stars, Avs, Knights, Leafs, Rangers) The Blue Jays continue to play well, although they dropped one to the Yankees today. 

Erica writes about troubled travels, "It is Friday night, 8:23 PM. We left home on Thursday morning, 7:15 AM to fly to Halifax. We have made it as far as Calgary. If the powers that be at Westjet are correct this time, we should arrive in Halifax at 7 AM Saturday morning—only 4 hours later than it would have taken us to drive there. I would say this is the worst travel experience I’ve had, however we flew Westjet last fall to and from England. You may recall that some of our party had to sleep on the floor of the Calgary airport as Westjet had a computer crash and decided to let their "customer service” folks go home, instead of providing hotels for their displaced passengers. As you may have guessed, we are less than impressed with the service. What makes it even more frustrating is that none of the “service” agents seems to care and we have had to fight for every bit of accommodation we have received, such as a hotel last night and food vouchers. In the mean time, Eric has missed the first day of his conference and will arrive only a few hours before day two starts. Not good. Other than that, things are good."

Erin and Kristian have joined Travis & Joanna on a trip to Tampa Bay. They flew out of Regina and met up with Travis & Joanna in Toronto. Then, after overnighting in Toronto, they flew to Tampa this morning. And, just to add intrigue to surprise, their flights were on time, and all luggage arrived with them. Better buy a lottery ticket! 

Meanwhile, back at home in Thunder Bay, the boys are partying! 

Hey man—got a light?

And that's enough for this week!

Bye, bye, Aunt Peggy!

Another week has passed on the shore of Lake Superior in my hometown, but we are between the banks of the Red River and the Red River bypass known as Duff's Ditch! We drove up here on Thursday to commemorate Aunt Peggy, yesterday, and enjoy a stay with Dean, Kelly and family. Unfortunately, Dean was forewarned of our visit and arranged to absent himself in Poland! LOL!

Bk-Markus, Becca, Toran, Mitchell
Ft-Sarah, Talitha, Sandra

Anyway, we're enjoying visiting with the family, and catching up with Mike, Angela and Damaris, along with more members of their families. We also enjoyed catching up with many other members of Peggy's family and friends at the service. Sadly, we seemed to have reached an age level where too many of our gatherings are around someone's departure. We spent the early part of the week at home. Today, we got to spend some time with Tom, recently returned from Israel and Egypt, but Mariette was busy away from home already—they had only returned last night! Wendy has a busy, busy schedule with chorus business and rehearsals in preparation for the international competition next weekend in Rochester MN. I made some more progress on various projects in the shop as we celebrated temperatures up to 20°. The markets were also favourable, and I managed to make quota again. Investors seem heartened by better than forecast inflation data, although they're still expecting the FED to raise rates by another 0.25% in May. The regular season has ended in the NHL, so the playoff season is now beginning. Sadly, the Pens did not qualify. Leafs play Tampa Bay, while my Oilers play LA Kings in the first round. Basketball is in the new silly season where teams try to recruit established players who have entered the Transfer Portal! I hope the Jayhawks pick up some good ones. Baseball is nicely underway and my Blue Jays are playing well so far. Curling this week was in Toronto for the Players Championship. My guy, Koe, beat Gushue to advance to the final against Schwaller. On the women's side, Wranå beat my gal, Einarson, so she gets to the final against Tirinzoni. 

Erica writes, "It’s been a busy week at work. I’ve picked up some personal tax returns, so, now that adds to the audits and reviews that normally keep me busy! Eric and I enjoyed a visit from his niece Marina. And we also got out to the local business awards show. Liam has started fundraising for his mission with RU and The Great Commission Foundation. You may hear from him soon on his plans. If you are interested in reading more, here is a link: Haaken and Greg are doing fine."

Erin and Kristian are acquainting themselves with the new-look Blue Jays. We get to text our commiserations over their games! So far, so good. They're currently in a series with the first place Rays, but have won the first two games to take that series. Erin got a new laptop for Kristian, and he has already used it to apply for summer work at camp. Meanwhile, Erin has begun stressing over her planned vacation trip next week—never too early to start stressing, sigh! 

Travis & Joanna celebrated several Easter feasts with us last weekend. Joanna is busy at work as well as with PuckShots orders. They are also in the final planning stages for their usual pilgrimage to Florida to the timeshare there. So, we're in the final planning stages in preparation for pet care! 

And that's about it for this week. 

He is Risen!

Another week has passed on the shore of Lake Superior in my hometown. The first week of April has brought a blast for bad weather, but we have recovered from that, and are now looking forward to proper April weather—we hope! The unseasonable dump began Tuesday night, and continued all day Wednesday. We ventured out around suppertime Wednesday, and challenged the snowblower to clear the slushy stuff away. It was a struggle, but, ultimately, a successful one! The change in weather chased me back from the shop, but I'm looking forward to getting back at in next week. I have two main projects on the go, and a number waiting on the back burner. Wendy completed her business contract and collected her pay for that. She's in final preparation for the chorus trip to Rochester MN, so I'm hearing lots of singing around the house! The markets turned green with the arrival of April, so I had a good week and managed to make quota even though it was only four trading days due to the Good Friday holiday. We have been soliciting estimates for supply and installation of new windows in our house. As part of the upgrade, we're also replacing both the front and side doors, and adding storm doors. I've spent a lot of effort getting our curling team into the playoffs at the Men's World Championships. That was successful, and then they beat Switzerland tonight, so they'll be in the gold medal game tomorrow against Scotland. Hockey has entered the final week with Pens looking for a pair of wins, but still needing some help to make the playoffs. Leafs have secured home ice advantage for their first round series, and Oilers are still challenging for top spot in their division. Blue Jays have begun the season with a 10-game road trip. They're doing okay, but not up to expectations. 

Eric and Erica enjoyed participating in a Seder meal on Thursday evening. It was educational and inspiring. 

Erin often chats with me about the progress of the Blue Jays—I enjoy that. She and Kristian suffered a late winter storm there and unseasonably cold temperatures as well. They're doing okay, and expecting much better temperatures soon. 

Travis and Joanna are doing well. They had us over for an Easter meal last night, and we look forward to another one over here, tomorrow. Andrew has been accepted into the Paramedic program at Confederation College in the Fall. Gemma also had good news as she's advanced to the interview stage for the Mid-Wifery program at UBC. 

And that's enough for this week! 

April Showers!

Another week has passed on the shore of Lake Superior in my hometown. The weather has been nice, and we've been able to get out for our regular walks. I've hit my target of 10km easily, and am experiencing little discomfort. The pain has clearly left my legs and my butt, and is now confined to the lower back. I'm informed that this is progress. I still have some neuropathy in the outsides and small toes of my feet. The golf courses are not open yet, and I have not braved the curling ice, but I'm thinking about it! I am back working in the shop most days. I started with some clean up and reorganizing, but that got old quick! There remains much clean up to do out there, and I have many projects awaiting further development as well. The snow has melted away on the deck, so I was assigned to the first barbecue of the year. Wendy keeps very busy with chorus work and practice. The chorus had a performance yesterday, and are in the last weeks of preparation for their international competition in late April. We got the brake pads and rotors replaced on the car this week—pricey! We're expecting a couple of trips west this spring, with the first being just to Winnipeg in the middle of the month for Peggy's memorial service. Then, we're planning a trip to Saskatchewan in May. The markets turned positive this week and I was able to recover over half of my monthly quota—nice! It's the Final Four weekend in Basketball, and with a #4, two #5s and a #9, it's safe to say no one picked these four teams! Since my Jayhawks are out, I've been sticking with UConn, so we'll see how it goes. Tonight, they advanced to the final against San Diego State! MLB has opened on all fronts, and, as the saying goes, "Hope springs eternal!" Everyone is a World Series contender at the moment! NHL is down to the last handful of games. Leafs and Oilers have clinched their spots in the playoffs, but Pens are really on the edge! World's Men Curling championship opened today as well with Gushue winning one, losing the other! I'm a busy spectator! 

Erica writes, "This was a busy week at work. We both put in several late evenings. Other than that, it was a pretty chill week. Last weekend, we saw the Irish Rovers, and then, on Sunday, we enjoyed Liam’s new dance show. It was very good. Liam is starting to raise funds to support his Ministry. He will be working full time with RU, as a minister to the group, and to the youth they minister to. We pray that his fundraising efforts are effective. Haaken and Greg are doing fine."

Erin and Kristian are taking regular or at least frequent treat outings for frozen treats (I guess it's no longer cold in Regina) and restaurant meals. They are also planning the shadow box memorial for Sadie. I have started work on the box. The big news this week for Erin is the arrival of Baseball Season! Her beloved Blue Jays opened with a win, but then lost today. Kristian and the cats are doing fine. 

Travis and Joanna remain very busy with the PuckShot business and Joanna's regular work. Although the hockey season is drawing to a close, they're still pumping out the team photos. We enjoy getting together with them each week for a meal and games night. Gemma remains in Vancouver with Jonas, but is trying to put together plans for schooling in the Fall. Andrew continues to work at Super Store, and is also considering further education in the Fall. 

And that's about enough for this week. 

Aunt Peggy!

A Lifetime of Service

Another week has passed on the shore of Lake Superior in my hometown. It was quite a varied experience this week, but the shocker was the decline and demise of our dear Aunt Peggy. We were not expecting her to be ill, let alone be hospitalized, intubated, failing and passing. We lament this along with the rest of her extended family and friends. The weather has turned positively salubrious here these last few days, but we had a spring blizzard at the start of the week, and I was recalled for snowblower work! Once again, I'm hoping that was the last call for this year.

That really blows!

Otherwise, it was a quiet week. Wendy had her usual chorus work and chorus practice. She has also made good progress on her business accounting contract. We have managed our regular walking, and I have managed to make my 10 km quota this week for a change! I'm still feeling plenty of discomfort in my back and legs, but I'll keep trying. The markets have continued to be difficult, but I did manage to eke out a small gain. I remain far below quota this month with only one week to go. The mild weather means I have been able to get out to the shop and make some progress on my projects. The sports world continues to attract a lot of my attention. On the weekends it's March Madness where unpredictability reigns. We've now reached the final eight, and for the first time ever not a single #1 seed remains in contention. Since my Jayhawks have fallen out of contention, I've switched my cheering to Creighton and UConn. All week, I've been following the World Women's Curling with Einarson. Kerri and Val have curled inconsistently and they've fallen short of their goal. They'll curl for the bronze medal tomorrow against Sweden. NHL Hockey is down to the final ten games or so and my teams are currently in playoff positions, but the Pens' situation is quite precarious. Oilers have been playing well, winning 7 of their last 10. Leafs won 6/10, while Pens only won 4/10—big win tonight, though! 

Erica writes, "It’s been a pretty quiet week; this weekend is gonna be a party! We are heading to Moose Jaw for the Irish Rovers and to catch Liam’s new RU production. Last weekend, Eric planned a night out with dinner and bowling and I managed to beat him for the first time ever! That must have been his birthday gift to me! We talked to the boys last weekend and everyone seems to be doing fine. That is about it!"

Erin and Kristian had a quiet week in Regina, and after recent events, that was a welcomed thing! Kristian's second semester is well underway, and seems to be running well. The transition continues at Taylor Motors as the main office building is being abandoned, demolished and rebuilt. Erin is working in the Lexus building across the street during the construction. 

Travis and Joanna continue to be quite busy. Joanna's work seems unusually busy due to many organizations hitting year end and wishing to spend their money! We enjoyed pizza supper and games with them last night. The two young dogs have refreshed with hair cuts, but, while Minnie is also needing one, the cutter was reluctant! 

And that's enough for this week. 

Erica Berica Soderberg!

Another Birthday Wonder Woman!

Another week has passed on the shore of Lake Superior in my hometown. We enjoyed lovely walks on the drying streets in our running shoes, but then Thursday came! A blizzard blew in from Colorado, and stayed with us until this morning. We got quite a dump of fresh snow, and had to clear the driveway twice. I hope this is the last blast for this winter, but it's still March! We had Minnie with us most of the week, and then the two monster pups for the last few days of that! They were rambunctious! It was a workout taking them for a walk. Anyway, Travis, Joanna and Andrew drove back on Thursday arriving here just in time for the storm, but at least they got off the road before it became too difficult to drive. Wendy keeps very busy with the chorus business and practices. They're getting ready for a competition in April. She also has her business accounting contract to work on. The markets continue to be unpredictable and bad! This week, we had alternating strong gains and deep losses. Sadly, three of the days were losses! After making quota January and February, I'm running red this month, sigh! The most recent issue is banking as several banks are wobbling based on the rapidly rising interest rates. My central sporting focus in March is Basketball—March Madness as it is so aptly named. College Basketball is always refreshingly and agonizingly unpredictable, and that has proved true once again. Two of the #1 seeds have already been sent packing, and that, sadly, includes my Jayhawks who lost by one point to Arkansas. Rock Chalk all the same. Hockey continues as the season enters the home stretch. The Oilers won again today and are solidly in a playoff position right now. Pens lost today, and are just one point clear in the final playoff spot. Leafs won tonight and are also comfortably in a playoff position. 

Erica writes, "We had a pretty ordinary week. Eric finished up teaching an evening class 'One heart two homes' for co-parenting after divorce. It’s busy season, so I’ve worked some later evenings.  I also enjoyed St.Patrick’s day with my book club. Our host provided a Leprechaun charcuterie board. After Eric and I went for traditional shamrock shakes. We grieved the loss of Sadie who was such a lovely dog. Our friends, Tina and Guido also had to put down their dog, Archie, who had heart problems. It’s tough to say good bye to our furry family members. Today’s my birthday. We have plans, but I don’t know what they are. Fun!"

Erin opened the week celebrating with her siblings. That was a great time for them. 

Sadie. RIP

Then, as they departed, so did little Sadie. Our furry friends play a sweet role in our families and Sadie is missed. Kristian has no memories without Sadie around, so it'll be quite an adjustment for them both. For now, they are celebrating her memory. They still have the two cats. 

So happy our kids had some together time!

Travis and Joanna spent last weekend in Regina with the siblings! Then, they headed part way back to Winnipeg where they met up with Andrew and took in the AEW event on Wednesday.

Trav, Joanna and Jade!

With the storm threatening, they left early on Thursday, but experienced little difficulty, not running in to the storm until the final hour into TBay. They were here for supper and visiting tonight—nice! 

And that's enough for this week. 

Wendy!

The Birthday Girl

Another week has passed on the shore of Lake Superior in my hometown. It has been a week of celebration and tender remembrances. We recalled Dad on the 98th anniversary of his birth, and then just two days later, we celebrated Wendy's birthday! As is often our custom, we extended the celebration for at least a week around the event! The weather has remained spring-like, and the sidewalks and streets are inviting our walks each day. The weather folks are threatening us with some snow tonight! Travis, Joanna and Andrew took us out for a birthday fête on Wednesday night. We went to a small pinball cafe and enjoyed it a great deal. The children plied her with gifts, including these lovely flowers.

Birthday Flowers!

She also enjoyed phone calls from children and grandchildren. And today, our tenant brought her gifts including a cake—Nice! The markets have turned harshly against me, and it was a losing week. Otherwise, we've been well-engaged in watching the Brier competition. My guy Koe, made the playoffs but has now lost out. There are three teams left: Dunstone, Gushue, Bottcher. I've picked Dunstone to win it all, but the other teams are very good as well. With the trade deadline behind them, NHL teams are working to settle in their new players and jockey for playoff position. The Oilers had a big win over top-ranked Boston this week, but fell to the Leafs tonight. Pens won their game over the Flyers today. The Jayhawks are completing their preparation for March Madness with a good showing in the conference tournament, but they lost the final. They've been playing without their coach who has been hospitalized this week.

Erica writes, "We’re alive! Eric and I have survived Covid-19. It’s been a quiet week as we were both self-isolating. We had a couple days of feeling congested and hot and tired. But overall we had it pretty easy. Liam had a checkup with his specialist on Friday and his condition is improving. We are so glad. Greg and Haaken are both doing well. This weekend we expect to see Travis and Joanna down in Regina. We are just so glad we are Covid negative!"

Kristian is sporting a fresh hair-style with a bit of colour! He also reports that classes are going well again this semester.

Dude!

They have been preparing for family company this weekend. Travis & Joanna are already there, and they're expecting Eric, Erica and Liam to arrive soon.

After taking us out for birthday supper, Travis & Joanna headed west for a family-connection trip. They enjoyed overnighting with Tom & Mariette in Winnipeg on Thursday, and then completed the trip into Regina on Friday. We're expecting them back sometime next week. 

And that's enough for this week.

Spring Again!

Steve Bell in Concert

Another week has passed on the shore of Lake Superior in my hometown, and we have returned to Spring! Once again, we're enjoying temperatures without that annoying tic mark in front! The driveway has melted off, sidewalks and streets are slushy and gradually clearing, and we're enjoying getting outside for our walks. Through the wintery weather, I am often confined to the treadmill to get my walking done. Truly, it didn't take long to walk as far as I have been able in recent months, but with my therapy, things are getting better, and I am able to walk everyday for 1 to 2 kilometres. My back and, occasionally, my legs complain a bit, but really, I'm encouraged. The searing pain down the back and outsides of my legs is a rare phenomenon now, and the neuropathy has significantly improved in my feet. I've even been swinging a golf club some days, and am considering a trip to the rink to try showing rocks. This week, I had more ultrasound on my back, but that was related to my kidneys; we'll see what the doctor says about that in my appointment next week. I am scheduled for bloodwork and an appointment with my vascular surgeon next month. Then, I expect, we'll be ready for a trip west! Getting old, hey? We began the week in a wonderful concert with Steve Bell. His stories and songs were a blessing. Wendy keeps very busy with chorus work as they're preparing to attend a competition down at Rochester MN next month. She is also making progress on the business contract she took on recently. The markets took an upturn this week, and I enjoyed that to start the new month with some good gains. It seems we're in a phase of "Good news is bad news!" and "Bad news is bad news!" When economic data is strong, investors lament that the FED will raise rates more aggressively. When economic data is week, investors lament that the FED is causing a recession! It's a multi-faceted fear of the FED, and investors are suffering! The NHL trade deadline was Friday, and all of my teams made some moves. However, the Pens were mostly criticized for how little they did to improve. They are in a playoff position, but their prospects are questionable, at best! Oilers picked up some hopefully helpful additions, and Leafs added a lot of talent. Now, we'll wait to see which team progresses the furthest! My #3-Jayhawks proved once again to be the cream of the crop as they have captured another Big 12 Conference crown. Today was not a good day for my teams as Oilers, Leafs, Pens and Jayhawks all lost. The Scotties ended last Sunday with my pick, Einarson, winning the Canadian Championship. Local team, McCarville, performed very well, and took home the bronze. Now, the Brier has started. There are many highly rated teams in the running. I will follow Sask Champ, Knapp, with sentimental attachment, but not much hope of winning it all. It will probably come down to my favourite, Koe, along with Gushue, Bottcher and McEwen. 

Erica writes, "Liam has been discussing working full time as a missionary leader with Refined Undignified. Refined Undigmified is a hip hop dance group that shares the message of God’s love through dance. This week he was approved to move ahead and start fundraising support through The Great Commission Foundation. Please keep him in your prayers as he moves forward.

Covid 19 +

Eric and I got to enjoy a comedian in Saskatoon. I was feeling a bit stuffed up this morning, and suffering a sore throat, so I took a test! Guess I won't be going to LaRonge next week! We have no update from Haaken and Greg."

Erin and Kristian enjoyed a family date night last evening at the Olive Garden. They've been using a menu-driven food service lately. Kristian participates in the menu selection and the meal preparation. Their meals look great! 

Travis and Joanna keep busy with their business and her job. Tonight, we went with them to the Thunderwolves Hockey Playoff game. Trav braved the line-up to get us red line seats—that was fun! However, our guys lost, so they will not advance to the University Cup final four! 

And that's enough for this week. 

A Week of Winter!

Another week of winter has passed on the shore of Lake Superior in my hometown. It was positively frigid for most of the week down in the minus 20s, but it has now moderated to single digits of frost and we're looking at melting temperatures once again. The cold weather has not been such an issue for us; we're blessed with a warm house, and with the cold weather, we haven't had to worry about fresh snow, so we've had no real reason to be outside! Besides, it's been Scotties week, so I've been busy, busy, busy! There have been surprises, especially for the pundits who only acknowledge the high profile professional teams. Local hero, McCarville, accorded no chance due to not playing the pro circuit, has won her pool, and played her way into the semifinals! Unknown Nova Scotia, team Black, has knocked off high flyers like Lawes and prohibitive favourite, Homan! We have three teams left: Jones, McCarville and Einarson. Wendy was down with a bug for a couple of days, but is feeling better again. She is working diligently on the business contract and will finish that up within the next week, I'm estimating. The markets continue to be no good, very bad and terrible; all indices are in the red for the month. Investors are seeing solid economic indicators coupled with worrying inflation data and concluding that the FED is going to keep on raising rates. I'm only partly in the market, but I've managed enough to be within reach of quota for the first two months. The hockey world is consumed with continuing trade action which will keep the burner hot for another week. Of my teams, only the Leafs are performing well, and have also made some news on the trade front. Oilers are near the top of their division, but showed their goal-tending and defensive weaknesses in today's loss. Pens are also needing an injection of talent, but have been doing little, to the frustration of their fans. My Jayhawks were elevated to #3 in the rankings and keep winning, although today's game was closer than it should have been. 

Erica is away this weekend at a Ladies' Retreat, and also taking in the Lipedema Association meetings. Otherwise, it's been pretty routine work schedules. 

Kristian has been off this week for winter break and the weather cooperated with temperatures in the -30s in Regina. He heads back to school on Monday. Erin has been pushing through yearend busyness at work, and now is into new year office transition as they're packing up and moving to the Lexus building. 

Travis and Joanna keep very busy. Surely that's a good thing when your operating a business, but we'd like some time with them as well! 

And that's enough for this week.

Spring Training!

Another week has passed on the shore of Lake Superior in my hometown. The weather has remained pleasant except on Wednesday when a blizzard wandered through. This left us with another driveway cleanup, but not such a bad one as the storm came with a wind that blew most of the driveway clear! We got that cleared away and the sun has taken the necessary steps to return the pavement to black. Spring Training is when baseball players prepare for the upcoming season, and we prepare for the upcoming season! Curling has begun again with the Scotties launching last evening, so, I shall be spending a fair amount of time ensuring that the right shots are called and properly executed! I begin the week with a fair number of favourites, and an expectation that Einarson, Homan and Jones will rise to the top. Our local team, Krista McCarville, often surprises the bigger names, and made it to the final last year. I'll be cheering for her, for sure. I have managed a little bit of my walking program, and added to my stretching program in my efforts to overcome my spinal stenosis. It seems my back is more tender this week—that's not progress.

Pegs & Jokers

I got my first rendition of the new game completed, and we had Travis and Joanna over to give it a trial! Reports were favourable, but I'm still not happy with the connection system. The photo shows the set up for up to four players, but additional paddles can be installed to accommodate five or six players. The markets were mixed as FED Fright dominated thinking and served up some severely red days. However, the three green days provided a small gain for me. The NHL is slogging toward the trade deadline date at the end of the month, and several teams have put together surprisingly complicated deals. It is not only desirable to obtain better players, but it is necessary to accommodate their salaries within the maximum salary cap established by the league. Oilers & Pens have only managed to win 5 of their last 10 games, so they aren't gaining in the standings. Leafs have won 6, but gained little. This week, the #5-Jayhawks won a tough road game in Oklahoma and returned home to beat #9-Baylor today! 

Erica writes, "Eric has a restful Monday and then taught a community class that evening (5 Love Languages of Teens). We are both busy with work stuff right now, but it is not too tiring, as we had a good vacation. Not too much else going on."

Erin and Kristian have spent the week basking in the glow of his curling medal.

Kristian's Construction

He has also returned home with his final wood-working project from semester 1—looks great! Erin is turning her attention to the Blue Jays as Spring Training begins. They have begun using Hello Fresh for their grocery provisions. The menus and meal choices look pretty appetizing! 

Travis & Joanna continue to be busy with PuckShots production and photoshoots. Andrew keeps up with work at SuperStore.

Both Hands Wood-Fired Oven

On Thursday evening, they all joined us at Both Hands Wood-Fired Pizzeria for a nice outing and great pizza. Then, they came over here to try out the Pegs & Jokers game. The gals beat the guys two games to one. 

And that's enough for this week!

Ground Hog√

Another week has passed on the shore of Lake Superior in my hometown. The weather has turned positively salubrious with temperatures above freezing and sloppy streets. We topped out at +6° today. We took advantage to get out for walks although the sloppery(making up words!) sidewalks did pose some hazard. Wendy kept busy with chorus work as is usually the case. It is surprising to me how much call there is on a volunteer treasurer! She also performed my quarterly haircut—looking kempt(again!). On Friday we started, and I completed our seasonal teeth cleaning exercise with the Confederation College students. They usually work pretty slowly at it, but I had a third year student, and she plunged ahead relentlessly and completed the work in just one session. Today, I got my long-awaited meeting with the Low Back folks. They confirmed that the MRI shows Spinal Stenosis. I have three options: a program of exercises; minimal surgery to remove some of the impinging bone mass; fusion surgery to lock the impinging bone mass into a more favourable position. I gladly chose option 1! She assembled a raft of exercises designed to improve flexibility and the shape of my lower back. She also accepted my goals of being able to walk 18 holes of golf, and being able to curl again, and confirmed they were viable. Currently, I am able to walk 1km each day; I can walk 2 km, but then, I can't walk the next day. My target is 5 km; if I get to that, I feel I can walk a round of golf. Now, that I've had this consultation, I feel free to try curling at any time. The markets continued to whipsaw all week as the strong economic data raised the fears that the FED would keep raising rates. At least the green was stronger than the red, and I was able to make some money. In the world of sports, the #9-Jayhawks stood out. They claimed comfortable wins over #5-Longhorns early in the week, and over the Sooners today. I predict an upgrade in their ranking over the weekend. The Oilers, Pens and Leafs came out of the All-star break and need to get back to their winning ways. Oilers have moved to just one point back of first place in their division with their win today, but Leafs, inexplicably dropped a game to the little sisters of the poor tonight. The Pens lost their game today also, sigh! Much time this week was spent following the provincial curling championships in Manitoba and Alberta. Of course, I was following my guy, Koe, in Alberta; he made the playoffs, and is now in the semi-final. 

Erica writes, "This week we started in Punta Cana, Dominican Republic, then journeyed to Bogotá, Columbia, Toronto, Saskatoon and finally to Prince Albert. Boy—we love adventure!! Eric put in a full week of work while I took a day off. I’m finding that the swelling in my legs is a regular side effect of air travel, and causes a lot of sore and achy body parts. It took a couple days to get back to “normal”.We are celebrating Valentine's Day on Saturday as Eric is teaching classes next week. We will take a romantic stroll through Costco which doubles as a meal, followed by a movie. Liam is considering the possibility of missions; so, pray as he has further talks about this. Nothing new with Haaken or Greg."

Bronze Medalists

Medalist!

Erin kept us updated via text and photos as Kristian and his team competed in the Regina City HS Curling championships. The team played great and achieved a bronze medal—congratulations! 

Travis and Joanna had as normal a week as they usually manage during the busy hockey season. We haven't got to see them all week, although there have been several phone chats, and many exchanges of text. 

And that's enough for this week. 

Ground Hog?

Another week has passed on the shore of Lake Superior in my hometown. Wintry weather prevailed most of the week, but with the weekend, milder weather and some snow have taken their turns. The cold weather and the wealth of curling on TV have kept me from the workshop, so no progress on the game boards. I got an update from the ENT doctor. The MRI of my head shows as completely normal—who knew?! Wendy always seem to find things to keep her busy. She's been well occupied with chorus practice and chorus business as usual. And she's begun work on her annual business books assignment for a local company. We have had some light cleaning to do on the driveway, but as I noted, the cold weather has kept most of the precipitation at bay. Some snow arrived last night with the arrival of the warming trend. We've been caring for Minnie while Travis and Joanna were in Punta Cana. They got back Thursday evening, Thursday night, Friday morning... finally got them from the airport and home about 3:30AM after frequent flight delays by West Jet out of Toronto. Their cars have also been staying with us since their street requires vehicles to be moved to the opposite side every day. They've taken Minnie and the cars back home now. The markets spent the early week worrying about what the FED would do and say on Wednesday. That turned out to be reassuring, but then the USA put up blow-away jobs numbers on Friday, and fear that good news for the economy is bad news for the markets reared its head again. TSX proved to be the steady index through this and I had a good week. In sports, I had lots of curling catch up from provincial playdowns held last week, and then Saskatchewan had men's playdowns this week. NHL hockey has been in a lull for the All-Star game. My Oilers have been playing well, but Leafs and Pens are pretty much marking time. #8-Kansas played well to take down rival K-State this week, but then played sloppily to lose to Iowa State today, sad! I predict a further drift down the rankings. C'mon boys! Rock Chalk Jayhawk! 

Enjoying Punta Cana

Eric and Erica spent this week in Punta Cana with Travis and Joanna. Their reports and photos show that they enjoyed themselves a great deal. Now, they're on the way home, via Columbia, no less! We are happy to hear of their safe arrival in Canada. Liam celebrated his birthday by going to summer camp! (Hate to tell you, but the ground hog ain't no meteorologist and summer's still months away!)

Winston Knoll Curling Team

Kristian is in transition to second semester. He reports that his courses this time will be Social, Mathematics, English and Art. They won their playoff game in curling this week, so they've advanced to the semi-finals. We wish we were there watching the games! 

Last Supper!

Travis and Joanna continued to enjoy Punta Cana right up to the last minute, and then headed for home. The transition through Toronto did not go so smoothly as West Jet kept delaying the flight. We fully expected the flight would be cancelled, but finally they arrived, we accommodated the vehicle swap and they got home about 3:30AM. Minnie and the boys have done well while the grownups were away. Andrew did a good job of taking care of things over there, and Wendy did her usual excellent job of taking care of Minnie! She even had me trim Minnie's nails! 

And that's about enough for this week. 

Winter has returned!

Another week has passed on the shore of Lake Superior in my hometown. The weather remained mild with a couple dumps of snow, but with the weekend, the skies have cleared and it has turned cold with temperatures in the -20s, brrr! Aside from clearing the driveway a few times, I've also managed regular trips to the shop until it turned cold today. Still not making much progress on drilling all those holes as I'm not being successful in developing a jig to keep them all evenly spaced and in a straight line. Wendy has put the jigsaw puzzle away—too many other things on her plate. She has begun work in the side entry and stairs to the basement. She always seems to have lots of activity with the chorus, regular singing, books and banking. She has also begun an accounting job that has been a regular assignment the last few years. My back and legs continue to trouble me, and I'm getting impatient for the doctors to come up with some additional help. The markets have continued to gather value. Investors are easily troubled as the usual battle between fear and greed seems to be more susceptible to the fear side again this year. We're almost through the first month and all indices are nicely into the green. Keep 'er goin' Uncle Joe! The main fly in the ointment is if the USA decides not to pay their debts. That would cause a world-wide crash, so I'm keeping an eye on that situation and hoping cooler heads prevail. In the world of sports, my Oilers have continued their winning ways and are solidly in a playoff position. Leafs are in good shape, but are getting hit with injuries. Pens are a bit shaky, and are just on the edge of the playoffs at this point. As expected, the Jayhawks were punished for their losses and dropped to #9 in the rankings. They put together a big win today in Kentucky; that was a delight to watch! Now, we'll see if it's enough to arrest their drop in the rankings. 

Erica writes, "I had a couple days of training with the Indigenous services group. We touched on the history of the Indigenous people pre and post contact and learned a lot about what not to do. It was insightful. Eric and I also finalized our preparations for the trip to Punta Cana which included a bit of extra time at work finalizing projects so we could leave with a clear conscience. We left on Saturday morning and look forward to joining Travis and Joanna on Sunday. Our flights via airline points includes an overnight in Toronto. We haven’t heard much from the boys, but I believe they are fine."

Erin and Kristian are completing semester 1 of grade 11. Kristian had a few tight timelines at the end—how does this happen?! He starts curling playoffs on Tuesday! Hurry hard! Erin had a hard time swallowing the Jaguars loss in the NFL playoffs. She's decided to cheer for Bengals this weekend. 

Travis and Joanna are enjoying their vacation in Punta Cana. Their weather is running a boring +28° most days—tough work, but someone's gotta do it! Andrew has been taking care of Moxley and Darby over there, while we have Minnie with us! Jonas and Gemma got to attend Bruce Boudreau's final game with the Vancouver Canucks and reported that it was a lot of fun. 

Minnie

And that's enough for this week. 

Keep Going

Another week has passed on the shore of Lake Superior in my hometown. The weather has continued to be mild and we've enjoyed that,  although we could have done without the slushy snow/rain midweek! I heard back from my doctor concerning the MRI on my head. He's only asking for a phone interview, so I'm concluding they found nothing of concern. We were able to get out for walks most days, and my back and legs didn't complain very much. We topped out at 2.4 km on Thursday, which did raise some complaints! So, there was no walking yesterday. I keep doing my exercises while waiting, impatiently, for more direction from my doctors.

Paddles can form as 4, 5 or 6

Development of the new game continues apace. This week I got a batch of beads to use as pegs, thanks Joanna! Now, that I have the precise size, I can begin drilling the holes. I will consider a variety of joinery solutions as I plan to build several versions with six paddles for each. I want to complete one, and see how playable a game it is before I consider building more. The markets were troubled most of the week as some earnings reports were weak, and investors decided that sometimes bad news is bad news! However, we got a rally on Friday as Netflix showed strongly. I had another good week and a strong start to the year. In sports, the Oilers are on a winning streak—yay! Leafs and Pens also doing well, although Leafs dropped one to the Habs in OT tonight. My #2-Jayhawks, however, had a very poor week (2 losses) and we'll see the ranking take quite a hit, I'm predicting. 

Erica writes, "The big event this week was the arrival of a box from Haaken. It was Christmas in January! I reminded me of the January Christmases from my Childhood, when a box would arrive from Regina or Dallas.

Christmas in January

It was extra magical as we thought Christmas was over and suddenly—more presents! Thanks, Haaken! Eric and I both had evening events throughout the week, so it was busy. We have one more week before we join Travis and Joanna in Punta Cana. Maybe they will return the favour and join us in Puerto Vallarta some day. (And mom and dad and Erin and Kristian, too?)"

Kristian has completed his regular season of high school curling. Once the exam period is over he will start into the playoffs on January 31st. He's also into heavy catch-up mode on some assignments that got surprisingly delayed! C'mon man! Erin suffered through the final game of her Jax Jags season today, as the KC Chiefs dropped them out of the playoffs! 

Travis and Joanna had a busy week getting as much product out the door before heading to the Caribbean.

Punta Cana

They left early Friday morning, and made a successful transit through Toronto on their way to Punta Cana. We helped them deliver the rats to their new owner, and took management of Minnie while they're gone. Andrew will manage the household and the other two dogs. Trav also got the accident damage repaired on his car, although that became quite a story as well—Insurance companies! 

And that's enough for this week. 

Enjoying the weather!

Another week has passed on the shore of Lake Superior in my hometown. The weather has been cloudy, but very mild with daytime highs around zero each day except Friday (a cold and frosty Friday the 13th!) when we had a brisk, sunny day! It surely puts a dent in Winter when you have a prolonged warm spell in January like this. I've been able to get out to the shop nearly everyday, so, I'm making some progress on my next game. It's a Sorry-like game, but comes with a flexible board arrangement as you play with up to six players and four decks of cards. It's called Pegs & Jokers; there are a variety of rule sets and board designs out there. Wendy put one jigsaw puzzle away, and has taken out another, but hasn't put any time into it yet. She got measured for her cataract-induced lens replacement. Her vision is already quite obscured in that eye, so we hope the surgery will be accomplished successfully. She also enjoyed her regularly scheduled mammogram—surely knows how to have fun! She enjoyed getting out for a couple of coffee-visits at least. A bigger event was second-hand shopping where she scored two microwave safe cornbread pans! We have begun work on the stairwell from the side entry down to the basement. I had another MRI on Monday; this time, they were checking my head to see whether they could determine a cause for my hearing loss in my left ear. My non-prescribed exercise program certainly seems to be easing my symptoms, and the neuropathy in my feet seems much improved. My legs and lower back continue to ache. The markets enjoyed a Goldilocks-level batch of news on the jobs front, and on the inflation front—just right, thanks Uncle Joe. All indices are running green so far this year—keep 'er goin' boys! The main sporting event for me this week is Curling; the Canadian Open is running in Camrose. My guy, Kevin Koe, did not qualify for the playoffs, but my gal, Kerri Einarson, did. Tomorrow it'll be Einarson vs Fujisawa in the Women's Final, and Edin vs Bottcher on the Men's side. In hockey, my teams remain in contention. Leafs and Oilers had good weeks; Pens did not! On Tuesday, #2-Kansas had a spectacular comeback against OU as they recovered from ten points down with 5 minutes to play. Today, it was another tough conference game against Iowa State and the scored on their final possession for the 62-60 win. These are home games—how will they do on the road?!

Erica writes, "We had a pretty quiet week here in PA. I’ve been enjoying the new bathroom with the super large tub! I love it. I am back to intermittent fasting and keto and my joint pain has substantially decreased. I also started back on my nightly yoga routine. The first night was so painful I could barely lay flat on my back. But last night I felt good. So, I know the stretching and moving are a great help. Eric will be teaching a class this term on co-parenting. We continue to pray for an animation job for Haaken, income from art for Liam, healing for Greg, and patience and energy for Kiersten (Greg’s fiancée) as she helps Greg. We made a commitment to the kids to pray every day for them, and, we are, hopefully, awaiting a response."

Kristian has continued to follow the saga of the faulty VR set. They've written twice commending him for his patience, and admitting they still have no solution. Perhaps he just doesn't have the heart to tell them the toy has already been returned! His team lost their curling game this week, 7-6. Kristian informed me that the ice was bad, so the rocks didn't curl properly, and I thought, "Now, that sounds like a real curler!" He has one game left before the playoffs. Erin, Sadie and the cats continue with life as usual. Big day for Erin today, as her Jaguars came back from a 27 point deficit to win their playoff game! 

Travis and Joanna hosted us for supper—yummy Swedish meatballs! They were also over here for a games night, and brought Moxley along with them—he seems to be much larger than expected, but is a gentle dog. They have continued to be very busy with photoshoots and the production of PuckShots pictures for the players and their families. Travis has also adopted the Jags, so he enjoyed their remarkable success as well. 

And that's about it for this week. 

Another Day!

Another week has passed and we have returned to our home on the shore of Lake Superior in my hometown. We celebrated the arrival of the New Year in Dryden and completed the drive back on January 1st.  The weather here has been comfortable with daytime highs reaching near zero. Our friends have kept the driveway mostly clear of snow, but the recent storm had left behind several inches  to greet our arrival, so I got to bring out the snowblower and clear it away. Since then, the sun has been doing its job of returning our driveway to black pavement. However, we are not fooled and expect several more storms before Winter gives way to the inevitable Spring! We had George and Anne over last evening for supper and to thank them for their snow-clearing efforts. As you may be aware, I'm having back issues. This came to my attention in late September, and I've been whining about it ever since! Although I had to postpone it while we were in Regina for December, I finally had my MRI late Monday night, so late it was actually about 1:30 am when we got back from the hospital. The doctor has called and informed us of the results. They do not sound good! They accentuate the difficulty we can experience if we don't take much notice of pain—we don't realize how ill we are! It's issues with my spinal column that are causing my pain and disability. I have bulging discs in my lower back that are interfering with the nerves. She cautioned me over symptoms that could develop that would reveal that the problem has become critical. In the meantime, she is referring me to the Spinal Group, and a Spinal Surgeon to advise us further. Aside from the pain in my lower back, glutes, the back of my legs, and the neuropathy in my feet, the nerves involved also control bladder and bowel control. She doesn't want me to lose those—I don't either! In the meantime, she agrees that the stretching exercises I was doing for periformis syndrome should be helpful, but that I need to remain watchful of neuropathy in my inner thighs as that would be an acceleration of symptoms, and should prompt me to report to Emergency. I will be asking the Spinal Surgeon if, or when, I may resume golf and curling activity, and also what therapy may assist in repairing this situation. I continue to hope/expect that surgery will not be needed. Otherwise, we have been easing back into our home routines.

Another day...

Wendy is putting a jig saw puzzle together.

...and done!

I am considering some small winter projects in the shop, but ran into a significant snag—my table saw wouldn't run! The other day when I switched it on, it ran for about 10 seconds and stopped. I speculated that it may have overloaded from stiffness in the cold, but was unable to uncover any reason why it was not running. I checked and confirmed electrical flow to the motor, but it doesn't even hum; so, today, I opened up the motor! I pulled out the brushes and scraped them clean. After I replaced them—zoom! There is a lot of extra sparking between the brushes and the commutator, but it's running, and I'm expecting the brushes to reshape fairly quickly. The investment year has opened red-green-red-green—same ol', same ol'! Fortunately, the greens have been stronger, and I had a good week. The highlight of the week in sports was the World Junior Hockey Championships; Canada beat Czechia in OT to win the gold! #3-Jayhawks continue their dominant play and won again today over WVU. Rock Chalk! The bowl games have run their course with only the championship game between TCU and Georgia left to play on Monday. NHL schedule has settled back into normal after the holiday and outdoor special events. My three teams (Oilers, Pens, Leafs) are all in playoff contention, but none of them inspire great confidence! Pens lost their latest game, Oilers lost in OT tonight, just the Leafs won today. 

Erica writes, "After holiday Monday it was back to work—back to waking up early and going to bed on time—yikes! We enjoyed some ongoing celebrations with a friend’s birthday dinner on Tuesday, box seats at the PA Raider game courtesy of MNP on Wednesday, and an impromptu hockey watching party with friends on Thursday. Yay for Team Canada! With all that fun, we are now exhausted and sleeping in on Saturday. Liam is back at Caronport. We’ve also chatted with Greg and Haaken and they are both well."

Kristian is back in class after the Christmas break. He is set to get back to curling next week. Erin continues with work—her break was brief and ended long ago! Kristian finally got an email from Meta about his non-functional VR set. They admitted that it didn't work, and that they didn't have a repair ready. We are very relieved that we were able to get that returned. 

Travis and Joanna are back to work although Joanna has been suffering with respiratory distress. Negative tests for Covid—was it RSV? Gemma and Jonas headed back to Vancouver, work and school. Jonas is mostly working on research at this time while taking one class. Gemma has been accepted into one program of interest, but has decided to wait until Fall to continue classes. 

And that's about enough for this week. 

Happy New Year!

Another week, and another year have passed. We have begun the trip home, moving from the shore of Lake Wascana to the shore of the Assiniboine River on Friday, and finally today, ending the year in Dryden on the shore of Lake Wabigoon. I have received calls confirming two MRIs for me back in Thunder Bay with the first being on my spine for late Monday night. We hope this will allow them to complete the diagnosis of the pain in my lower back and legs. For sure the Piriformis exercises prescribed by Dr. Tom have brought a lot of relief, but discomfort and weakness remain. At least I've been able to avoid painkillers the last two weeks. We have enjoyed another week of family time while living in Erin's basement.

Some of our presents! 

Wendy has completed her regular regimen of oven cleansings—sure knows how to have fun! I have upgraded the mantle to nine stocking pegs, and then dismantled (see what I did there?!) and put it away until next Christmas. The weather has wreaked havoc on travel around the city and on the highways as a winter rain coated vehicles and roads. Another long time family friend has passed and when her funeral was scheduled for Friday in Virden, we decided to make that part of our schedule, too. We enjoyed catching up with many more friends as we celebrated Evelyn Muller's life. Then, we spent the night with Bonnie and Charlie in Brandon—thanks folks! Today, we drove only as far as Dryden as it was getting dark and we didn't fancy challenging northern Ontario moose, or New Year's Eve drivers! The markets closed off a troubled year with a bit of green on this short week of trading. This was the first quarter of the year where I managed to make quota, so while I made a bit of money to the bottom line, I fell well short of my quota—I shall have to work harder! We do hope for better market action in 2023. This year concluded with all indices that I follow, badly in the red. TSX: -8.7%; DOW: -8.8%; S&P: -19.4%; Nasdaq: -33.1% In my world of sports, it has been a mixed year. The absolute high was my Jayhawks winning the basketball championship! Rock Chalk! They have another good team this season. They are currently ranked #4, and completed a thrilling comeback today after a 15 point half time deficit. In hockey, all my teams made the playoffs last spring. Sadly, none of them won the Cup, but all three are in playoff contention once again. Go Oilers! Football was a definite downer as my Riders failed to qualify for the playoffs. My Sooners, and the other teams I follow in college football (Oklahoma State, Longhorns) all lost their recent bowl games. C'mon man! 

Eric & Erica celebrated their 29th Anniversary on Tuesday—congratulations! Erica writes, "We enjoyed a week with family and a couple of friends over Christmas and the following days. We even had a hootenanny at 55 Laird. We said good-bye on Friday morning and caught up with Neil and Darcy in Saskatoon and Chris Lock in Warman. This Sunday, Eric, Liam and I will be part of the worship team, so I’d better pick out some songs and get organized. Happy New Year!"

Erin returned to work on Tuesday, but the rest of us continued to holiday most of the week. Kristian and I have unsuccessfully attempted to get his new game working properly. We took it back to Best Buy, but they wouldn't touch it. They offered a replacement, but that didn't work either. An on-line chat revealed that Meta was well aware of the problem, but they continued to sell the game anyway—disappointing! I worked on Erin's door bell problem. The front door bell recently quit ringing as workers were installing siding repairs around the door button. They declined responsibility, but the facts remain that we're getting power to the button, and through the button, but it doesn't get back to the door bell while the back door bell transfers the power successfully. I'm guessing they broke one of the wires somewhere within the door frame, but that becomes an impossible task at this point. 

Travis, Joanna and crew worked through much of the holiday week, but also took time for family and pet celebrations! We look forward to catching up with that action next week! 

And that's enough for this week! 

Merry Christmas to all!

Another week has passed and we have returned from the shore of the North Saskatchewan River to the shore of Lake Wascana in the middle of the prairies. The weather has been beastly cold most of the week, but has improved a lot for this weekend. We have moved in with Erin and Kristian again, and really appreciate all the care they take of us. We started the week in Prince Albert with Eric and Erica at a special Rotary Christmas brunch and toy distribution. We drove back to Regina on Tuesday, and they followed us yesterday! Now, the family is gathered for a week of Christmas celebrations. We're surely enjoying that—lots of good food, lots of bad sweets, gifts for all, and family time!

with room for 7 stockings!

Kristian and I built a mantel so the stockings could be "hung with care, in hopes that St Nicholas soon would be there!" Wendy and I didn't bring our stockings, so we're borrowing some and going under pseudonyms of E and K with the hope that St Nick might be fooled into giving us something better than the traditional lump of coal. The markets were mixed all week, but overall had a good week, and I made quota for a change. Sports has a special schedule in acknowledgement of the holidays, so we had extra games featuring many of the teams who will now be able to enjoy a holiday themselves. In hockey the Leafs and Pens are doing well, while the Oilers continue to have some good games and some stinkers. The Jayhawks were rewarded for their good season so far with a ranking of #4 in the country. 

Fully Functional

Lovely new Shower/Bath

The Baileys got the bathroom back together and it's looking great! Then, they drove down here to celebrate with the rest of us. 

Erin and helpers prepared a Christmas Eve banquet featuring ham and scalloped potatoes this evening. We hear them planning a breakfast casserole and a complete turkey dinner for tomorrow. I'm sure it'll be yummy. 

Travis & Joanna, Jonas & Gemma, and Andrew are celebrating in heavy snow back in Thunder Bay. 

And that's the abbreviated Christmas edition!