Thunderstorm!

Another disappointing week, weather-wise, has passed on the shore of Lake Superior in my hometown. We have had some rain, and some fluffy rain as well! We've also had quite a bit of melting, and we're now seeing some of the grass on the front lawn, but it's nearing the end of April! We should be outside, cleaning up the yard and getting the garden ready. However, last night we had a thunderstorm—the first of the year for us, and that was nice to hear. It brought heavy rains (70mm), and that brought its own issues as you will read about below! They are forecasting more rain, along with a continued warming trend next week—I'll be holding them to that promise! Otherwise, we've had a quiet week. We enjoyed a visit with Dave & Heather early in the week as they stopped overnight on their way to Kingston. On Tuesday, we got our second booster shot of Moderna (fourth in total). We both experienced some pain at the injection site, but no other side effects. We have managed to get out for regular walks; I've increased my distance to 3.5km without any knee flareups, so I'm encouraged. I plan to push it to 5km next week. Wendy has been occupied all week with babysitting Minnie, Mozzie, and the pupsters! That has gone well, except for those occasions that she lets the budgie out to terrorize me! The markets started the week in positive mode, but then central bankers began musing about 0.5% or even 0.75% rate hikes, and investors turned to selling. This week's action has dropped all indices into the red for the year, and I have reduced my holdings to under 40% of my portfolio. It's hard to be patient, but it's necessary. On the Pandemic front, Ontario hospitals are filling, and elective surgeries are being cancelled. In the world of sports the NHL is closing out the regular season, and Oilers have joined Pens and Leafs in the playoffs. At the Players Championship last week, Mouat (Scotland) won the Men's side, while Hasselborg (Sweden) won the Women's. This weekend, the World Mixed Championship began in Geneva with Peterman/Gallant representing us. They won their first game over Germany. MLB season has begun, and my Blue Jays are playing well despite suffering a few injuries. 

Erica writes, "Eric, Liam and Erica returned from Victoria on Monday. It was a good weekend—sorry to say it's been over two years since we've seen the family in BC. We celebrated Easter with turkey and ham and all the fixings, including an apple crumble pie and cheddar cheese. No, it wasn't keto, but we enjoyed it anyway. The weather in PA keeps us on our toes. One day, we think spring might be arriving. And the next day, we find we are sorely mistaken. This up and down weather has been playing havoc with our allergies. I'm coughing, sneezing, blowing my nose and taking covid tests (all negative so far). Eric is scratching and taking his inhaler. Liam is here this weekend and has itchy eyes—fun for the whole family! Greg and his girlfriend Kiersten are here for a visit. She is also a Harry Potter fan so we took in the new Dumbledore movie. If Haaken could have made it out, we would have the whole family. It's been a fun time sharing old stories, and looking at old photos.  Liam and I, and maybe Eric will be on for worship leading this Sunday. This coming week, the Saskatchewan Lipedema Association will be meeting with government to share our ongoing health issues, and provide suggestions on how our health care could better address our needs. We will see if that has any effect."

Erin has remained sick all week with Covid; she still tested a light positive on Thursday, but tried to go to work on Friday. She got part way there, but turned around and went home. She probably should have gotten her booster shot! Kristian has remained covid-free even while he had his Easter break from school. That should make him the chief cook and bottle-washer! However, he seems to have avoided that as well! Skip the Dishes continues to operate! 

Travis and Joanna are in the other TBay—the one in Florida! Gemma has joined them this week. They are enjoying salubrious climes while we suffer and wait for Spring to fully arrive. The thunderstorm last night brought about some basement flooding at their place, so we were busy vacuuming that up this morning. It seems to be from all the rainwater coming down the downspouts and failing to evacuate from beside the house, so it's coming inside! Anyway, it's a bit of mess, but it's looking better tonight. 

And that's about enough for this week. 

...Can Spring be far Behind?!

Another week has passed on the shore of Lake Superior in my hometown. We are now halfway through April, and still Spring refuses to make its entrance—very disappointing! This week the prairies suffered under a Spring Blizzard, and the tail end of it hit here. The TransCanada was closed in both Saskatchewan and Manitoba over the course of several days, but they're gradually digging their way out, and normal activities are resuming. I have managed to collect a few more pallets as I prepare for some wood projects once it warms up. I've also been practicing golf, and arranging to get some clubs regripped, so I might be ready if ever we get summer! And, we've been going to physio, doing our exercises at home, and walking. I am hoping to get enough recovery in my right knee so I can walk the course this summer as usual. So far, I have managed 3 km; I expect I need to build that up to at least 5 km. Wendy feels improvement in her shoulders and is starting to talk about golfing again, however, the paint trays are not coming out, yet! The Russian war in Ukraine continues, and they seem even more desperate now that Ukraine has sunk their flagship. Atrocities against civilians abound—what a tragedy! The pandemic is surging—another tragedy! Here in Ontario, they assure us that although we are probably experiencing 100,000 new infections per day, and our hospitals are at capacity, there is no problem, and we don't need to take greater care! Could it be that we're in an election campaign?! Sigh! The Bank of Canada took the first move on rate hikes, jumping it by 0.5%; I'm hoping that will get the financial sector moving forward. Otherwise, we had two red and two green days on this shortened week, and that left us pretty much flat for the week. In the world of sport, we continue to bask in the glory of the Jayhawks win! NHL regular season is closing out, and the Pens clinched a playoff spot this week, so it's just my Oilers still unconfirmed, but they're in good position, and playing better lately as well. In curling, Brad Gushue was unable to match Edin from Sweden, so he had to be satisfied with the silver medal. This week, the Players Championship is on in Toronto. My guy, Koe, qualified for the playoffs, but has lost out now. Edin is continuing his winning ways, and will play a Scottish team, Mouat, in the final tomorrow. On the Women's side, it will be Einarson vs Hasselborg, of Sweden. 

Erica writes, "This weekend, Eric, Liam and I are enjoying spring in Victoria. Apparently, they got spring this year! While we got another sprinkling of snow and sub-zero temperatures. It was great to see Haaken. We haven’t seen him since before the pandemic. He is doing well. We also decided to plan a family fall trip to London with all the boys and Greg’s friend. So that will be fun! Eric took me for a walk yesterday. Our walking adventures haven’t been as regular this winter. It was good to get out for a good hike through the BC forest, but I’m a bit sore today. We’ve also been hunting down various Easter treats—with a gluten-person and a nut-free person, the Easter egg hunt is challenging. We are back in PA on Monday; Greg will arrive on Thursday night." 

Erin has fallen ill, and it has been confirmed as Covid-19. She is suffering some ill-effects, mainly in the form of sore throat and stuffed head. As a result she has been off work starting Wednesday, but she hopes to get back early next week.

Nice colour combos, also!

In the meantime, she's enjoying her bedroom-living room that she developed recently with the help of Liam and Kristian. Kristian has not reported any symptoms. 

Travis and Joanna have had a very busy week getting as much product out the door before their Spring Break in Tampa Bay. They flew down early this morning. I'm sure they'll enjoy the weather there! While they're gone, we are hosting Minnie, the budgie, and, on occasion, the new puppies. On Thursday evening, we had a birthday celebration for Gemma.

Yummy!

Wendy made a lovely chocolate orange chiffon cake for the occasion, and Travis brought Chinese food. It was a feast suitable to the occasion and the celebrant! Gemma has completed her honours degree with a double major in biology and chemistry. We are very proud of her. Andrew continues to work at Superstore—that's going well. 

And that's enough for this week! 

If Winter Comes...

Another week has passed on the shore of Lake Superior in my hometown. The weather has continued to disappoint, and we had several days of showers—Wendy called them flurries, but you can look it up: "April showers bring..." There is no companion saying about April flurries! I take it as a matter of principle that all precipitation in April through October is rain! The week has progressed normally with the addition of a medical appointment, and a physiotherapy appointment. Dr. Prowse assured me, once again, that, "It feels normal." ["It does not," I responded!] Wendy and I both had physio sessions. We were well impressed with the care and professionalism exhibited by our therapist, and encouraged by his prognosis for improved function in the next few months. Along with the prescribed exercise program, we are getting out for regular walks, and I'm starting to feel that I will be able to walk the golf course by summer. The world is not as troubled as it should be by the war in Ukraine, nor by the resurgent pandemic. Our infection rates and hospitalizations have returned to peak January levels, but our government is in a re-election campaign and cannot admit that anything is going wrong. The federal government released their latest budgetary plan this week, and the markets were surprised and impressed such that we got some green on the screen and in my portfolio.

Jayhawks are Champs!

It was a big week in the world of sports for me. First off, my Jayhawks completed a record-setting comeback from 16 points down to win the national championship in basketball. That was wonderful to watch! Brad Gushue and team have completed the round robin in first place and advanced to the semi-finals in the world curling championship in Las Vegas. They will play Sweden in the gold medal game tomorrow. Baseball season opened with my Blue Jays coming back from 7 runs down for a win—why did they get 7 runs behind? NHL regular season is down to single digit games remaining. My three teams (Oilers, Pens, Leafs) are looking good for a playoff run, but only the Leafs have clinched a spot so far. 

Erica writes, "There is still a fair bit of snow on the ground, but according to my eyes and sinuses, spring is here. It took me several negative COVID tests and a night of being completely stuffed up to realize what the problem was. Wrong diagnosis = wrong medication. We are well into busy season at the firm so I’ve had many long days and weekend work. But it’s going well. Eric has been busy with CMFT meetings and conferences. Work is good and he got to do some professional training on Friday. Liam is heading to Victoria on Monday to visit the BC Baileys and Haaken. Eric and I will follow for Easter weekend. Then, Greg is coming to PA for a visit at the end of the month. Other then that we are looking forward to getting the motorcycles out this month."

Erin and Kristian are eagerly awaiting the opening of the golf courses in Regina. Meanwhile, she writes, "Ball season has started! Opening night was fun to watch. Kristian is down to one phototherapy session a week starting next week. 😊 Liam is on his way to hang out with us for the weekend, and then, I’ll take him to the airport Monday for his flight to BC." Kristian writes, "I have been working on getting a job at Clearview Christian camp as a camp counsellor. I have an interview with Angela coming up."

Travis and Joanna welcomed the arrival of not one but two new puppies.

Welcome Darby & Moxley!

They are heading to Florida for a break next week, so we expect to enjoy some time with Minnie and the new pupsters. 

And that's about it for this week. 

April: Showers & Spring?

Another week has passed on the shore of Lake Superior in my hometown. The weather is still sub-optimal and certainly sub-expectations! Official Spring has arrived, and the weatherman has completely ignored the date! However, the forecast predicts massive melting in the next week complete with the proverbial showers. We have some concern over flooding both here and in Manitoba. I even returned to the shop today and started ramping up my thinking toward some outdoor projects. Elsewhere the news is not encouraging. Putin continues to savage Ukraine while issuing contradictory press releases, and complaining about Ukraine hitting back! (You can't make this up!) Yet another covid variant is causing a new wave of infections in the few provinces still recording and reporting cases. Hospitals are filling up with the unvaccinated, once again. The markets remain volatile, and while I finally got a green month, I was red for the quarter, sigh! Wendy has kept busy with her Barbershop Choir group. There seems to be an inordinate amount of business issues to clean up, but arranging meetings to deal with them is problematic and time-consuming. She found a new recipe for Keto Brownies, and I've been enjoying too much of that! I made a batch of Keto Bread, and another of Keto Cornbread which supplement our breakfasts. In the world of sports, we were glad to see our Women win the Bronze Medal over Sweden. The Swiss won a third straight championship going unbeaten! The NHL is down to about a dozen games left in the regular season and my three teams are in playoff contention. Baseball is ending Spring Training; regular season begins next week. Let's go Blue Jays! March Madness has taken us to the Final Four, and my Jayhawks played solidly, sometimes spectacularly to qualify as the only #1 team left. They beat Villanova soundly in the semi-final tonight, and now only North Carolina stands in our way! Rock Chalk Jay Hawk! Today, the World Men's Curling championship began in Las Vegas. Brad Gushue is representing us, and opened with wins over Czechia and Norway. 

Erica writes, "The snow is still here. Usually, by now, we are pulled into a false spring, believing the snow is behind us before winter takes one last shot. This year we can’t even fool ourselves into thinking spring is coming. We had a few days of melting, but it turned to sub-zero temperatures again and all that was accomplished was to turn the snow to water then to ice. Eric is batching it this weekend as I join the ladies at the ladies retreat in Moose Jaw. I have the pleasure of leading the music, enjoying the speakers and the pool. Our group of ladies took the opportunity to enjoy the Little Chicago Connection themed escape room on Friday night and we are dressing up in 20’s themed dresses for the gala. (That is the 1920’s not the 2020’s)

Ladies from the Roarin' 20's!

I also had a chance to meet Liam for coffee, which was nice. He has found a summer job and hopes this will lead to more long term employment. Greg and Haaken are doing well and we have plans to see both of them this month."

Erin is trying to arrange another session of driver training for Kristian to prepare him and give him confidence for his driver's test. His curling is over for the season, but he's had a good introduction and is looking forward to curling again in the Fall. 

Travis and Joanna keep very busy, but the business is paying off, too. That's a good thing. The hockey season has turned out better than expected, and they have thrived on that. Gemma is continuing her search for her next educational opportunity. At this point, it appears University of Victoria is the most likely answer. If so, we'll certainly miss her here, but would consider moving to live with her there!! 

And that's enough for this week. 

More March Madness!

Another week has passed, and we have returned to the shore of Lake Superior and my hometown. We've had pretty much the full range of seasons this week, and currently sit in the grips of Winter once again! We began the week with a memorable trip to Kronau where I got to curl with Erin and Kristian—what a memory that is! Then, on Monday, we headed east enjoying a good trip to Winnipeg and a short visit with Tom & Mariette—thanks folks! Tuesday dawned with the threat of a blizzard in Ontario, but our conclusion was that it would get worse if we waited, so we headed east. The trip was pretty good until we got to Upsala, although we did pass two semis in the ditches. The last hour and a half was heavy going as the snow was building up, but we arrived during daylight hours and were glad to be home. Wednesday, we arose to Snow-magedon! The highway west was closed, and our driveway was snowed in. I managed to blow out the piece between our vehicle and street so I could get to my bloodwork appointment. Then, we did a bit more clearing before giving in to the blizzard, and watching it fill the driveway once again. Thursday saw us under sunny skies and +10°, and the streets cleared and dried! Crazy weather for sure! Otherwise, we have returned to our normal programming here. We both had a doctor's appointment on Thursday, and now we're both referred for physiotherapy.  Wendy's is for her shoulders; mine is for my knee. The mess in Ukraine continues unabated even while news of Russian setbacks provides some encouragement that Putin might withdraw from this madness. Markets continue to be headline-driven, but we had a good week, and I managed a good gain. Sports have been big—Trav got the PVR set up to record the world curling championships, so I've been catching up on that. Our team Einarson advanced to the playoffs, defeating Denmark this afternoon, but then she lost to Korea in the semi-finals tonight. Tomorrow, she will play for the bronze medal against Sweden. The NHL has passed the trade deadline, and now is in the final push for the playoffs. My three teams are looking good to advance, although they all lost their latest game. The big spectacle this time of year is March Madness in Basketball. There have been more than the usual share of upsets, and lots of heart-pounding finishes. A #15 seed has advanced to the Elite Eight for the first time ever, but the better news is that my Jayhawks have as well! Rock Chalk! 

Erica writes, "It warmed up and there was significant melting in the south facing back yard,  but very little in the front and our Christmas Moose is still up to his shoulders in snow. No further water dripping from the ceiling. We got a little in the basement, but nothing too difficult to deal with. We got some good news—Greg is able to come for a visit at the end of April. I’m leading music at the ladies retreat next weekend, so this week I am busy finalizing music choices. We are looking forward to it! We are into busy season at work, so the days are longer, but still manageable and I’m finding it less stressful than prior years. Eric is teaching another anger management class. So that pairs well with my longer hours on at least one day of the week."

Erin writes, "No big news—the house is intact! [She's making fun of me since I un-repaired the plumbing last week!] Kristian’s new curling shoes were really good. He seemed to have a lot of confidence going up and down the ice. I decided to keep them because I can use them even if Kristian grows out of them. We had a really good 3-way conference on Thursday. All the teachers said they love him and he’s taken on a leadership role with all the other DHH (Deaf & Hard of Hearing) kids and he’s keeping up with his school work. He went to Sky Park last night with the DHH youth group. He said it was fun."

It was good to get back to Thunder Bay and to our family here. Gemma has taken easy care of our place where she lives downstairs. Travis and Joanna keep busy with hockey photography, but have also been on call for any bigger issues at the Manor—thank you, all! They have lost another pet, and are anxiously look forward to the arrival of their new dog in April. They are also in the rush to get prepared for a warm weather trip in April—lucky them! 

And that's about enough for this week. 

March Madness!

Another week has passed on the shore of Lake Wascana in the middle of the prairies. Spring has arrived and pot holes are plumbing their awful depths! We've had a busy, but good week here in Regina. We get over to visit Dad regularly; Kristian had curling Tues, Wed, Thurs—we saw two of those.

Grace & Joanne

We drove down to Ogema with Dave on Wednesday to visit Aunt Grace and the cousins there. It was a good trip, a great visit, and wonderful afternoon coffee break! I re-repaired Erin's shower faucet. Then, I rebuilt her glider rocker into a rocking chair. We bought a lighted mirror at Costco and installed it at 55 Laird in the downstairs bathroom. It has a defogging feature; I've tried it out and it works great! The markets finally produced a good week's quota for me. I still have some work to do to get the quarter into the green. In hockey, the Leafs are working in a new goaltender, and having some success, although not tonight. Pens & Oilers are doing well, and won their games today. The trade deadline is Monday, so we're watching to see if there's any action for my teams. Gushue beat Koe in the curling final to win the Canadian championship once again. Now, we're seeing lots of teams contemplating changes for the next season. Baseball Spring training games have begun, and every team is a contender at this time of the season! But the big news is March Madness and my Jayhawks have started off with two wins to advance to the Sweet Sixteen! Rock Chalk Jayhawk! The women's world curling championship started today; Canada (Einarson) split their first two games. 

Erica writes, "We had a bit of excitement last week with some ice buildup on the roof. Water found its way into the house and started dripping. So, Eric has been getting up on the ladder and chopping away at it. He continued his ice chopping this week. Now, the walkway is flooded and iced over. We hope spring comes soon! We enjoyed a visit last week in Regina including a musical afternoon with Grampa at his new bachelor pad. Today was my birthday and I took the day off and planned some relaxing treatments at the spa. Then, Eric took me out for dinner with our friend Tina. Then, we enjoyed some German chocolate cake back at home. With everything this has been going on in the Ukraine, we thought we should become more knowledgeable about the country. So tonight, we started watching Servant of the People on Netflix—the Ukrainian sitcom starring President Zelinskyy before he was president. It’s pretty funny!"

Erin suffered a house calamity and a migraine this week. Each of them cost (allowed) a day off work. I had "repaired" her shower diverter faucet, but in the process, the O-ring had broken, and water flowed back into the wall the next time she showered. So, that repair had to be re-done, correctly this time! The water stains in the ceiling below will need to be repainted in the summer, but at least the damage was minor. (Hard to get good workers these days!) Then, I repaired her rocker—she was delighted to get the rocker back in service. On Friday evening Kristian and I played a round of golf at Divots, a golf simulator. It wasn't much like golf, but we had fun!

Travis and Joanna keep busy at home. At least the snow has stayed away, and Spring has arrived in TBay as well. We look to head home early next week, but in the meantime Gemma reports that all is well at Kensington Manor! 

And that's about enough for this week. 

Travelin'

Ellis - 97

It has been an adventurous week as we have transitioned from the shore of Lake Superior via the shore of La Rivière Rouge to the shore of Lake Wascana in the middle of the prairies. After a favourable covid test result on Sunday morning, and in light of a favourable weather forecast and a favourable highways report, we headed west on Sunday. We got into Winnipeg in the early evening, and enjoyed food and fellowship with Tom and Mariette. Thanks folks! Then, we continued on to Regina on Monday. As is often the case, the highway was snow-covered and icy west of Winnipeg until we got to Portage. We ran into some severe blizzard conditions from Broadview to Wolseley and saw some vehicles, including two semis who had not managed to travel safely. We got into Regina in time to visit Dad on his birthday, and wish him joy in the celebration of 97 years. We moved in with David at 55 Laird, and have enjoyed the remainder of the week there—thanks, Dave! It has been good to see how well Dad is settling in to his new place.

Partying!

More partying!

And still more!

Eric, Erica and Liam joined us for this weekend, and today, we enjoyed having the whole crew visit Dad for a sing song, accompanied by Eric & Erica—good times! The weather has continued with extremes, but now they promise us melting temperatures for the next days. Perhaps, Spring is finally here! The markets whipsawed through another week around each new headline. The Russian war and the world-wide restrictions in response put pressure on commodities so both Gold and Oil surged upward, and then downward! I continue to wait for opportunities when things settle and the markets turn upward. Most jurisdictions are dropping pandemic restrictions, but infections continue, and the unvaxxed continue to die at unfortunate levels. My main preoccupation this week was the Brier. Lots of fun curling, and my three picks advanced to the medal round. However, Jacobs has lost out, Koe has advanced to the final; Bottcher and Gushue will play in the semi-final! Basketball is playing out the conference championships this week, but I haven't been privileged to watch my Jayhawks. Today, they beat TCU to win a record 12th conference championship! Rock Chalk on to March Madness! NHL teams are approaching the trade deadline and trying to decide whether and who they should be trading! Leafs and Oilers are in a desperate search for goaltender help. Pens are pretty well set. 

Melting snow has created ice dams on their roof, so Eric was up chopping it loose earlier in the week. Then, Eric, Erica and Liam joined us here in Regina on Friday. We are enjoying closing off the week with them. 

I managed to do a couple of projects at Erin's house this week. I still want to do a bit more plumbing work over there. We enjoyed watching Kristian curl, and are scheduled for more of that next week. 

Travis, Joanna and Gemma are taking care of things back home in TBay. They got a bit more snow this weekend—sorry about that! Temperatures look to surge well into the positive numbers next week, so maybe that will help clean things up. 

That's about enough for this week! 

Slava Ukraini!

One of the recurrent nightmares I have is of being in a war. In the dream, I walk up over a hill, and there is a tank waiting on the other side. That's it. I wake up with pounding heart, and spend some minutes settling back into sleep. That is the reality of what Putin is putting upon Ukraine. I could not bear it. 

Slava Ukraini!

Another week has passed on the shore of Lake Superior in my hometown. By now, we should have been in Regina, but events intervened! On Tuesday we learned that we had been in close contact with an individual with Covid-19, so, instead of heading west on Wednesday, we hunkered down in isolation for the rest of the week.

Yay!

We tested negative today, and we will retest tomorrow before embarking on the trip. We could not forgive ourselves if we carried covid to the family in Winnipeg or Regina. We are also watching over a winter storm that moved in last night. We hope it will move through before Sunday morning, and that we can get an all-clear on the highway west. My knee is rehabbing well, and while it tires quickly, it's not giving me much trouble. Otherwise the week has been quiet, and we enjoyed local activities.

Wendy-Ice Sculpture

Bill-Ice Sculpture

The markets have been reeling over the events in Ukraine, and it has been difficult to know which way to jump. Biden's calm determination seems to have heartened investors some, so we enjoyed some good gains around the bad losses! USA jobs data on Friday was very strong, and that also encourages investors. Most jurisdictions are relaxing pandemic restrictions, and reducing monitoring and reporting of the situation. Other data, like waste water assessment, show slightly increasing infection rates. Troubling data of illness among infants who are not eligible for vaccination also gives us pause. The world of sport moves along; the MLB season is suffering cancellations as the billionaire owners and millionaire players struggle to find a way to play! Oilers and Pens are playing pretty well, while Leafs are floundering a bit in hockey. Both Leafs and Oilers seem to need goaltender upgrades. Jayhawks played three games this week, needing to win two to claim the conference championship. After splitting the first two, they needed to beat Texas this afternoon. It took OT, but they did it—Champions! Now, it's off to March Madness! Rock Chalk, Jayhawks! But the big event this week is the Brier. I have three picks: Koe, Gushue, Jacobs. I'll be cheering for Koe to win an unprecedented fifth Brier. 

Erica writes "I spent some time on the road this week with jobs up in La Ronge. Eric held down the fort back at home. It’s turned cold again, then snowy. It feels like winter will never end. Liam, Haaken and Greg don’t have much to report."

Erin also had a close encounter with covid as one of her co-workers fell ill, and tested positive. She ends the week feeling a bit punky, but has tested negative so far. Kristian has continued with school and curling. They got another dump of snow in Regina this week. That's the storm that is now bothering us! 

Travis & Joanna are busy. They've also been helping with the care and feeding of Gemma while she isolates and convalesces. Gemma will be in charge here while we're gone, and Travis has been trained in the snowblower should that become necessary. They have the worst of city snow removal service in their area. They don't have off-street parking, but are required to park on a different side of the street every night so snow removal can be accommodated—however, snow removal does not happen! Parking spaces are becoming more and more limited! 

And that's about it for this week!

Spring!

Another week has passed on the shore of Lake Superior in my hometown. The weather has continued to be unseasonably cold, but we're now looking forward to a forecast with single digits in the high category, so we are starting to hope that the worst of it is over, and that Spring is just around the corner. We have not had any melting spells yet, which is unusual for us.

Wendy K Snowblower!

We did get a couple of more dumps of snow, but since Wendy is now trained on the snowblower, all is well on that front! The pile out front is now over her head; we're thinking it's the most snow we've had in our years here.

Front lawn snow pile!

On the mobility front we got the diagnosis revised with information from the X-rays. They found no breakage in the knee, and no tears in the ligaments. Physiotherapy is recommended to tighten up the stretched ligaments, and to restore as much motion as possible. There is evidence of arthritis in the knee. So, I have begun rehabilitation. The knee tires quickly, but I can walk about 20m before I need the additional support of a cane. The Russian invasion of Ukraine caused a major sell-off in the markets. Fortunately, Biden came forward with several well-formatted press conferences to reassure investors, and we enjoyed a major rally for the last couple of days of the week. I managed to finish in green for a change—need more days and weeks like that. The pandemic continues world-wide. It is quite difficult to know how bad things are, since many jurisdictions are refusing to release data. What is clear is that we're at least at 6 million victims, and we keep adding to that total. In hockey, my three teams have cooled off, but all three remain in playoff contention at least, and all three won their games today. #5-Jayhawks continue their inspired play, and are closing in on another conference championship, but they did let me down tonight against Baylor. March Madness is coming soon! Rock Chalk! MLB owners have locked out the players, so the baseball season has been delayed. 

Eric and Erica have been enduring a cold and snowy winter in Prince Albert. 

Innovative!

They have resorted to cutting steps into the snow to climb out to their back yard. We hope Spring arrives there soon! 

Erin and Kristian are playing out the winter in Regina. 

Kristian has begun play in the Mixed Doubles Curling league. He now has his own broom, and appears to have good form. I'm hoping to watch him play while we're out in Regina. 

Right up the Stick!

Travis and Joanna have returned to their busy season with more photo sessions and lots of work get the pics ready for publication.

The new Pupper!

They have arranged for another pet, but it'll be some weeks before it's ready for delivery! 

And that's about enough for this week.

Lame!

Another week has passed on the shore of Lake Superior in my hometown. The weather has developed a pattern of alternating cold days with warming trends that have brought accumulations of snow. We have been enjoying our warm home on the cold days, and busily clearing the walkways and driveway after each dump of snow. I achieved a second negative covid test on Sunday, so I was cleared of my isolation time, and back to curling on Wednesday.

Swollen knee—now a cane-user!

Unfortunately, that game did not last long for me! As I stepped down onto the ice for my second throw, my foot slipped, I fell forward landing hard on my right knee, and then fell backward landing on my foot and wrenching the knee. That was the end of that game, and of curling for me for the next while. The doctor feels there is no damage to any of those 3-letter ligaments in the knee, but has ordered X-rays to check it further. We are awaiting those. The markets have been troubled all week by the Ukraine/Russia conflict. As a result, I have had another holding hit stops and sell, so I remain substantially under my investment quota at this point. I also remain substantially under my quota for investment income! The pandemic continues to rage, although the many jurisdictions refuse to keep track of the actual damage. Even under reduced reporting, USA is closing in on 1 million lost to the disease, as they add at least 100,000 cases each day. No province or state can be considered to have the pandemic under control. I spent quite a bit of time this week watching the curling from the Olympics. Surprisingly, our women's team did not qualify for the medal round. The Muirhead team from GBR won the Gold for Women's Curling. The Gushue team qualified, but lost out to the eventual Gold medalists from Sweden. Gushue won the Bronze Medal over the team from USA. The other high profile Olympic event for me is hockey. In this event, it was the men who failed to qualify, while the women rode an undefeated campaign to a Gold Medal victory! Yay! In the NHL, the Oilers have indeed begun a winning streak, proving victorious in five straight games since the coaching change—yay! As a result, they have joined my other teams, Pens & Leafs in playoff contention. I don't get to watch my #6-Jayhawks often, but I did get to see their two-point win over OU, but not their blowout of OSU, nor tonight, when they travelled to WVU who are always tough. However, they won again, and stretched their conference lead. Rock Chalk Jayhawk! 

Sounds like the Baileys have been experiencing similar weather conditions in Prince Albert. Erica writes, "Hi! It’s been a pretty quiet week. The most exciting thing is how rapidly the weather changes. We go from -40 to +5 within a day. Then, back to the cold again. And the snow just keeps coming down every time it warms up."

Erin and Kristian took Sadie for a fresh hair cut today. She's always extra energetic after she gets a fresh cut. 

Sadie! Lucy in the background

Travis & Joanna are still happily busy with their business. As restrictions ease, they have been able to get in more team photo shoots, and also keep busy cleaning up and publishing the photos. Today, Travis came over to run the snowblower. Wendy had cleared the snow to the lawn side of the driveway, and he blew it up onto the lawn. Wendy observes that she has not been trained to use the new snowblower! 

And that's about it for this week. 

Curling!

Another week has passed on the shore of Lake Superior in my hometown. We have had two dumps of snow this week, but now it has turned clear and cold. We hope this is winter's last kick as our lawn is full of snow! Dad is not doing well in Regina, and has been admitted to hospital. Of course, this makes us wish to travel west, but currently his ward is in lockdown due to covid, so we couldn't even visit if we were there. 

Scotties Champions-Again!

The Scotties ended on Sunday; I enjoyed getting to take that event in. Our local team, McCarville, made it to the final, but fell to the three-time straight championship team, Einarson. I have returned to curling myself this week, playing on Monday and Wednesday. Otherwise, we have cleared snow from the driveway and puttered around at things inside the house. The markets have continued to be very volatile between economic data, Ukraine fears, and unfettered FED speakers! I managed a green week, but not up to quota. TSX is about 1% from its all-time record, but USA indices are all down so far this year. Wendy is putting in lots of hours on the Barbershop Choir books; this week, she added another job doing the year end reports for a local company. She also got another Chiropractic treatment, but is finding progress slow on her aching shoulders. This week my attention has turned to curling at the Olympics. Our teams (Jones and Gushue) are fine representatives, but the truth is that curling is doing well around the world, and we're facing tough opposition mostly coached by Canadian coaches! Elsewhere in the world of sports, the Oilers returned from All-Star break to a couple of losses and fired their coach! They had their first game with the new coach last night, and started a winning streak—I hope it's a winning streak! Pens and Leafs are doing just fine, although Canucks took down the Leafs tonight. In basketball, the #8-Jayhawks seem committed to testing the strength of our hearts! Let's have a couple of blow-out wins!

Covid App

Covid Test-Negative

On Thursday, I got a shocker as my long-since forgotten about Covid App came to life and announced that I had been exposed to someone with Covid. I am unable to nail down just when this contact happened. It is likely that it was at the Scotties since no one has reported being ill from the curling league. In any case, I took a test yesterday, and will take another one tomorrow. 

Erica writes, "We started the week celebrating birthdays with Liam and Haaken. Liam was able to come home, unfortunately Haaken was not. We haven’t seen Haaken for over two years and we miss him very much. We had a family group call with Greg, Haaken and Liam on Monday and everyone is doing okay. We had hoped to visit Grampa this weekend, but the ward is on covid shut down. So, we are staying home and maybe we will find the energy to do some destruction on the bathroom."

Kristian has completed his regular school 4-person curling, but has decided to take up mixed doubles curling at one of the local curling clubs. Saskatchewan is looking to get back to in-person classes, so they're preparing for that change. Work continues to go well for Erin, and she also manages Kristian's schedule of school, sports and UV treatments. 

Travis and Joanna had a big photoshoot with several teams—can you say, "Super-spreader?"! Anyway, they have more business lined up preparing all these photos for the players and their families. Andrew is working at SuperStore, and after some initial issues over footwear, that seems to be going well. He gets to work both in the store and outdoors; that's a big temperature gradient this time of year! 

That's enough for this week. 

Jobs? Recovery!

Another frosty week has passed on the shore of Lake Superior in my hometown. The temperatures moderated toward the weekend, but then we got a dump of snow, so we were out clearing the driveway again tonight. 

Krista McCarville

I've been busy all week following the Scotties on TV, and then got the good news that I was invited to attend the weekend playoff games in person! I'm really enjoying that, and more so as local team McCarville has enjoyed success and has now advanced to tomorrow's final. She is overlooked by the pundits since she refuses to join the tour, dedicating her time to her teaching and her family, so it's extra gratifying to hear them struggle with her success. Wendy has been struggling with pain in her shoulders, and was delighted that our chiropractor opened her office across the street corner from us this week. So, she got a treatment and an exercise program and is looking forward to improvement. The markets had a terrible January, so I was glad to turn the page to a new month. Although they were roiled by varying earnings reports from the big tech companies, finally the blowout jobs numbers both sides of the border brought about a strong rally, and I had a good week. It was a tale in line with our times. Our job numbers were so bad, investors felt the central bank could not raise interest rates so aggressively, so they bought stocks! In the USA, the Biden administration set an all time record for jobs created in a year, so investors bought stocks based on the strong economy. Hockey is on break for the all-star game. My Oilers have shown improved results of late, and are in the playoff race again. Leafs and Pens are in good position, although the Pens have been losing OT games lately. In basketball, the Jayhawks were dropped to #10, but have responded strongly, and knocked off #8-Baylor handily tonight. Keep playing like that boys! 

Eric/A are into birthday celebrations for their boys. Liam is home, getting some medical attention, and celebrating his birthday. Haaken will have to celebrate long distance! Liam is also showing some improvement in his medical results, so we're encouraged. 

Kristian has completed his school curling schedule. His team did well, and advanced to the playoffs, but has now lost out. He is considering joining mixed doubles curling later this month. 

Junior Curling Team

Travis and Joanna are keeping busy with work, and have managed to set quite a few appointments for hockey team photos as restrictions were relaxed at the end of January. League hockey has resumed. Today, he even got a Bucket Decals order from his old nemesis franchise in Manitoba! Not such fun memories! Andrew is working at Super Store now. He fills grocery orders for phone-in and online customers. 

And that's about enough for this week. 

Inflation? What inflation?

Another frosty week has passed on the shore of Lake Superior in my hometown. We have hunkered down in our cosy house for the most part, and at least we have not been hit with further dumps of snow. Wendy continues to venture out from time to time for groceries, or to take care of further arrangements around her voluntary fiscal support of the Sounds of Superior Barbershop Chorus. It has been another challenging week in the markets as central banks have come in with their rate change proposals on Wednesday. So, investors made their guesses and tried to prepare for the details, and then when both BoC and the FED surprised them, they tried to examine the tea leaves to determine what they should do next! This led to continued volatility in the markets, and I am also trying to figure out what to do next. If you've read my investing story, you know my mantra, "Plan the trade; trade the plan." Loblaws provides an illustration of how that is "supposed" to work! As the years go by, I continue to make enhancements to the plan, and I am doing a better job of trading the plan.

As you can see in the chart, Loblaws came in last March as the crossover occurred (the green star). I was able to buy at $61.89. It topped out at year end at $105.15 for a gain of 69.9%. Of course, I did not know that was the top, but as it pulled back, it crossed over the buy/sell indicator (the red hexagon) and I sold at $98.15, for a gain of 58.6%. That is how my main plan works, but it doesn't often work so well! The pandemic continues to rage world-wide. Ontario is the best performing province as we have maintained restrictions, but we're still over 300 infections/million/day. Saskatchewan, refusing restrictions, is running over 1000 cases/million/day—sigh! In the world of sports, the Scotties has begun here, but they're playing it in the bubble, so I will be watching on TV. In hockey, the Oilers put together a couple more wins, and signed a free agent. They need a winning streak to get back in playoff contention, and they got another one tonight over the Habs! Leafs beat Detroit tonight, after Pens lost the Red Wings last night. #5-Jayhawks keep playing heart-aching games. They won earlier in the week in double overtime. Tonight, they got slaughtered by arch-rival Kentucky—ouch! 

Erica writes, "We are back in the land of snow and sub zero temperatures, but I am so glad we had a warm holiday. I’m not really a big fan of hot, but it was very energizing to get some sun. We will have to go back. Also, I figured out if Eric and I can manage $50,000 between the two of us, we can live in an all inclusive resort year round! I wonder how that compares to retirement homes. On our return trip, Eric was randomly selected to be retested. They tested him in Calgary on Monday night, and he got his negative results on Wednesday morning. So we jumped through all the hoops. And while it may have been tiring mid-trip, we are glad for the security measures."

Eric scored a new coat!

Kristian has begun semester finals; soon, it will be time for second semester. Saskatchewan is reconsidering how classes will run; we are left to find out what that means. Otherwise, winter has continued in Regina and they keep dealing with the snow and cold. Today, they enjoyed a visit to the cat cafe known as Excalipurr! 

Travis and Joanna continue to catch up on December orders. They hope the relaxation of restrictions due next week will mean they can get back to the rinks for some more hockey team photos. 

And that's it for this week. 

Brrr!

Another week of wintry weather has passed on the shore of Lake Superior in my hometown. Temperatures regularly dropped into the -20s this week; we were hit with another couple dumps of snow, and the wind blew. We did not enjoy the weather this week! We were two days clearing the first deposit onto the lawn. Last night's was a mere skiff by comparison. Wendy has continued to spend many hours working on the books/records/authorizations for the Barbershop group. Occasionally, she declares that everything is in order, but that seems to turn into a self-curse, as she then discovers something else that is definitely not in order! The banks involved regularly blame it on the computers! The computers muse about who made the programs and who did the entries! The pandemic continues to flourish with two provinces (PEI, SK) reporting over 1000 cases/million each day. None of our provinces are in control, but the country seems to be flattening the curve, so we hope for better times. We have been hoping to travel to SK before Spring, but it's not looking possible at this time. The markets have remained troubled over inflation and interest rates. Monday was a great day, and I got back to quota for the month, but the four red days that followed depleted all of that and left me in the red. I've sold out of all three index funds, and another of my regular stocks as Loblaws fell out of favour. There will be a reaction next week as the central banks announce their new interest rate positions, but which way will they react?! In the world of sport, the Scotties have been confirmed to play within a bubble, so my volunteered services won't be needed, and I'll be watching on TV with the rest of the fans. In hockey, my Oilers continue to flounder, but tonight, they beat the Flames to break a seven-game losing streak. Penguins are flying (see what I did there?), and Leafs are fluttering between good games and lackadaisical ones. In basketball, #7-Jayhawks are playing well, and developing into an effective team. Today, they made a big comeback at K-State. They were down 16 at the half, and finally took the lead with 9 seconds left—whew! 

Erica writes, "Eric and I are enjoying this week south of both borders in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico. We planned the trip last summer when it seemed the Delta variant would likely have run its course before Christmas, and we would be on the upswing. With Omicron, we debated whether or not to go. In the end, we decided to take the precautions available to us and take the break from winter. It has been a steady week of highs around 27° and lows of 18°. This is right at the upper end of what I find comfortable and has allowed us to be more active. We had a couple days of just relaxing at the pool, masked except when swimming. Masks are required everywhere, temperatures are taken at each entrance, and a squirt of cleaner is provided. On Wednesday night, we went on an excursion to Rhythms of the Night. The trip included a boat ride to an island which is set up as an outdoor restaurant (dinner was amazing) and outdoor theatre. The show rivalled Cirque de Soleil in production values, and the entire set up made us feel as if we had travelled to a magical land. We also had a tour of Puerto Vallarta and San Sebastián up in the mountains. We’ve learned about glass, coffee, tequila and silver production and a fair bit of local history—some of which might even be true! Our tour operator today was quite a story teller! We’ve also sampled chocolates, candies and enjoyed some of the local art. We have one more trip on Sunday to do some snorkelling, kayaking and paddle boarding. This will be a fear-facing opportunity for me, which I think is good to do. We will see how it goes. Saturday, we get our mandatory PCR test for our return on Monday. We are praying all goes well with that. One of our travel companions is a nurse and is regularly self-testing. She has remained negative while a large number of her colleagues back in PA have tested positive!"

Kristian briefly returned to school as their government thinks that reality is a socialist plot. As infections skyrocketed among both students and staff, he's now back to online learning as the semester comes to an end. The weather in Saskatchewan continues to be fierce with cold, snow and wind. 

Travis and Joanna keep busy. There are support programs available during these covid times, but they're doing too well to take advantage! It's a good thing. 

And that's enough for this week. 

It's Winter!

Observing Martin Luther King Day! 

Plenty of reason for more work on racial issues in our country, too! 

"Darkness cannot drive out darkness; only light can do that. 

Hate cannot drive out hate; only love can do that." 

Another frosty week has passed on the shore of Lake Superior in my hometown. We officially hit -30° this week, so I am confirming that we've had Winter, and we should now move along! We got back to single digits of frost today, so I'm encouraged to think we have moved past the nasty cold days. We added very little snow this week, and that was okay by me. The newer snowblower we bought last Fall has performed admirably, but there's no need to wear it out! We have enjoyed a rather mundane week, with only our usual chores and activities. Wendy brought out another puzzle, but hasn't opened it yet! She continues to have some activity nearly everyday tracking the financial aspects of the Sweet Adelines group. They also have regular zoom meetings, and a zoom practice session each week. Then, she does the shopping for us. I try to remain clear of stores at the best of times, and these days are far from the best of times. She did measure, cut, hem and hang a new set of curtains in the office—looks good. The pandemic is surging throughout the world. Our best province, New Brunswick, is putting up nearly 400 cases per day/million. Recall that in-control is defined as fewer than 100 cases per day/million. Our worst performing province, Manitoba, is at nearly 1400. And the bigger point in all of the data, is that no one seems at all interested in actually tracking how many are becoming infected! "Asymptomatic? Sorry, no test for you." Meanwhile, troubling signs are emerging that the Omicron variant is producing different, but still dangerous symptoms. It may be that reports of milder cases may relate most closely with the fact that so many folks are either vaccinated or have had covid before. Manitoba may be the first province to simply admit that everyone is going to get it! Herd immunity (if such exists), hopefully obtained mostly via vaccines, is their default position. The markets have been wild, and I've sold off another index stock, and am looking askance at a longtime contributor (Loblaws). It's up over 60% since last March, but these last two weeks have seen significant declines. Still, I had a great week; I have overcome the damages from last week and pushed into the green for the month.

Ready for Scotties

Today, I picked up my volunteer uniform for the Scotties. Plans continue to develop for that. It now appears it will operate within a bubble, so very few volunteers will be needed. I do not know if I will be assigned anything. Curling playdowns are struggling to even take place across the country. Locally, Krista McCarville was assigned to represent our region. Kevin Koe went through undefeated to win Alberta again. In hockey, my Oilers have had several games postponed due to covid infections. Pens continue to thrive, and now have Evgeni Malkin back from injury to bolster their ranks. Leafs have had their own covid issues, causing some postponements, and the sidelining of several players. It's a troubled season for sure. All three played tonight: Leafs and Pens won. Oilers, somehow, blew a 3-1 lead in the third period. In Basketball, my Jayhawks returned from a disappointing loss to Texas Tech to take a 1-point win over Iowa State—should not have been close! They were dropped to #9 in the rankings. Today, they blew out WV—good to see!

Erica writes, "The temperature has warmed up—though Eric protests that -10° isn’t warm! We will remedy that this coming week. On Monday, we fly to Puerto Vallarta for a week to thaw out and get some vitamin D." 

First Baptist Church in Prince Albert debuted their new logo, designed by Liam Bailey! Congratulations Liam! It looks good. His design incorporates the map of the city with the North Saskatchewan River flowing through it. 

Erin and Kristian have managed their usual program of work and school. They are much relieved to have a reliably performing vehicle this winter. Kristian is preparing for finals and the end of the semester. Extra-curricular activities have been cancelled for the time being. 

Trav & Joanna hosted a family supper on Sunday evening. That was delightful and delicious. We even got to open the Christmas Crackers that have been mislaid or forgotten on our earlier gatherings since Christmas! Andrew has decided to go back to school at Confederation College, so he has begun the application process there. Gemma is considering her post-graduate options, and is also preparing applications for various programs of study. Rhys is completing his engineering degree, and is looking for a job anywhere on the continent. All the young folks are looking to make changes. Trav & Joanna continue to have some Puckshots work to clean up, and are still getting some contracts for the Bucket Decals side of the business. 

And that's about it for this week. 

Welcome to 2022!

Another week has passed on the shore of Lake Superior in my hometown. We've had some colder weather this week, but nothing like they've experienced in western Canada, and we're back to single digits of frost here on the weekend. We've had a couple more dumps of snow; that keeps us occupied clearing the driveway. Wendy has completed puzzle #2. This one had 1002 pieces!

2 extra pieces from some puzzle!

We got good news from Regina as Dad was released from Wascana to return home. He is receiving Home Care morning and evening which provides a good service and some relief for David. The markets resumed with the Santa Claus rally on Monday and Tuesday, but then the FED hit! The minutes from the December meeting were wildly out of touch with the change in reality since then, but investors simply took them at their hawkish word, and started selling! And they sold for the rest of the week. So, it was a very bad start to the new year for me, and I even had to sell my Nasdaq100 index fund. At least this gives me the opportunity to reconsider my plans, and it gives you an opportunity to check my plans and give me your feedback and advice! Thanks! I got some bloodwork done this week, and will look forward to getting the results concerning my PSA in due course. I've been following the curling playdowns in SK, AB and BC. My guy, Koe, is through to the final in Alberta. Amber Holland is having a good week in Sask, and is in the semi-final tomorrow. In the NHL, we continue to get games cancelled by covid, and many other games where the play is very much affected by the loss of players to covid. My Oilers are doing very poorly, and are at risk of not making the playoffs at all. Pens put up a ten-game win streak that ended today. They have themselves back in playoff consideration. Leafs have maintained a high success rate and are near the top of the league. #6-KU has begun conference play in Basketball. I even got to see the game today at Texas Tech! But the game itself was a bummer—bye-bye #6! Rock Chalk Jayhawks! 

Erica writes, "Eric and I are back to work. Liam is still at home, so we enjoyed a few more days of his cooking expertise. On Friday, Eric put a chicken in the roaster with salt, pepper and sage, and asked Liam to put it in the oven. Liam spatchcocked the chicken, separated the skin from the chicken, and basted it with herbed butter—so fancy! Haaken got his new computer this week and he was very excited, or as Andrew said, he might have smiled. Liam heads back early next week. It has been terribly cold. Last weekend, we had long power outage. Fortunately, the power returned before the temperature got dangerously low in the house. It has us thinking about alternative heat sources, and garages, and under ground parking. Speaking of which, we have underground parking at my office. I don’t have a pass yet, but was able to use it after hours when another person was away—it gave our poor car a break! We are looking forward to warmer days. Eric got a jury summons today!"

Erin and Kristian have returned to more normal schedules, but the weather is interfering. One morning was so cold the buses were cancelled, so Erin took Kristian to school on her way to work. Friday, another nasty day, they just decided to stay home and avoid the weather! They also took advantage early in the week to visit Papa, and deliver the Christmas goodies to 55 Laird. 

Travis and Joanna have had business cut back due to the new covid restrictions in Ontario. All minor games are off for the next while at least. Maybe the season will resume later if we can slow down this wave of infections. At least they got a lot of photos taken before the pause. 

And that's about it for this week. 

Happy New Year!

Another week, another year has passed on the shore of Lake Superior in my hometown. Thankfully, today finds us in good health, peace and contentment.

Wendy's done Puzzle One

I have little time for New Year's celebrations. If they did it at a Solstice or an Equinox, I'd give it more consideration, but this is just an artificial designation. There are some aspects of our lives that are impacted by the turning of the year, so I do take notice of those. As I do each year, and on occasion, much more often, I review how I'm doing on my investment project. This year, I've chosen to do a write up of my thirteen years in the markets, and attempt to describe my latest permutation of my investment strategies. I won't bother you all with the details, but if you wish to check it out, it's on my blog. Read at your own risk! We are long since retired, and busier than ever! The pandemic has interfered markedly with our plans and activities. We long for the time when we can travel freely, and visit our loved ones around the world. We also have a few adventures on our Bucket List, so, we hope for a time when we can pursue more of those. But, for now, the pandemic rages stronger than ever with the Omicron variant building case numbers higher than ever before. It must be observed that the count of virus infections has always been lower than the reality, but it is even more true during this wave. Omicron appears to be producing much milder symptoms, and with its surge, many jurisdictions are even refusing to test or count low-symptom victims. Still we find all USA states and all provinces reporting out-of-control infection rates. Recall that 100 infections per million is considered the control limit—there are 17 states, and 1 province reporting (emphasis on reporting) over 1000 infections per million! There are 44 states and 6 provinces reporting over 500 infections per million! It is way out of control! The potential candle in this darkness is the lower hospitalization rates for Omicron. There is much discussion over why this may be happening, and until a conclusion is determined, we remain in suspense, but hopeful. We got a major snowstorm last weekend, and finally cleared the driveway on Tuesday. It was a big job! Then, we got a bit more snow on Wednesday, but that didn't add up to much. We only had three days of market action this week due to the holidays, but we managed to close the year with a gain, and achieve our yearly quota for the first time in five years—thanks, uncle Joe! The hockey season has been severely impacted by the latest pandemic surge—many games have been postponed. The highly anticipated participation of the NHL players at the Olympics has been cancelled. The Junior hockey World Championship was cancelled after the first few games! Many provincial curling championships are impacted as well. I remain hopeful for the Scotties scheduled for the end of the month here in Thunder Bay, but that is by no means assured. The Bowl season continues in football. My Sooners won the Alamo Bowl comfortably. The Cowboys won the Fiesta Bowl today with a big second half comeback. The Longhorns did not qualify for a bowl game this year. In the NHL, my Oilers continue to falter, but remain in playoff contention. They've lost the last two games in OT. The Pens and Leafs have suffered many players lost to virus protocol, but are getting them back now. Jayhawks continue to rack up the wins, but they are not on TV up here very often. 

The Baileys passed a frigid holiday season in Prince Albert, but they did get out for a few celebrations with their friends. They enjoyed having Liam home, and extend warm thoughts and prayers for Haaken and Greg in Victoria and Kenora, respectively. 

Erin and Kristian are likewise hunkered down in frigid Regina as the cold snap for western Canada has been pronounced. They got in some time with Shawn, Astrid and Liam. Erin also had some days of work this week. Kristian's return to classes is a bit in doubt; we wait to hear of the plans for that. 

Travis and Joanna have remained busy catching up on all the photo sessions they got in before Christmas. With pandemic protocols it is questionable whether they will have more team photo sessions. We were able to enjoy some time with them over the break, including Christmas Turkey Dinner, and New Year Chinese Supper tonight with the whole family. 

And that's enough for this week!