News Update

Another week has passed on the shore of Lake Superior in my hometown. The weather has been cool and showery with daytime highs struggling to make double digits, so no golf for me this week. In fact, most courses now have the winter tarps on the greens and tee boxes, so golf is over until we head south next month. We have continued to putter away on our renos; we'd like to get the kitchenette completed before we head out, but we only have one week left! I've pushed forward on work in the new closet upstairs while Wendy has spent most of her efforts this week on painting and refinishing the barn door. She's also been keeping up painting the walls as I get them ready. I built a cupboard base unit to add to the upstairs collection—I think(hope) we have the full set assembled up there now. Wendy is still contemplating options for the countertops in the main kitchen.

Barn Door installed

Other side of Barn Door

New Broom/Linen Closet

The markets continued to be terrible, no good and bad. DOW has now joined the TSX in the red for the year as Trump's trade wars and tariffs continue to bleed value out of American companies. I am not in contention to make my quota this year, and will need two big months to keep from eating into my principal while funding our retirement. Sports have continued to entertain. The big event this week is the Grand Slam of Curling event from Truro. My guy, Kevin Koe, has moved into the playoffs once again. The next event is here in Thunder Bay, but we'll be headed south by then. The World Series is interesting, but Boston seems too powerful for my Dodgers—c'mon Bums! The Riders played their final regular season game this evening against BC. That win put them in first place, but Calgary has a game remaining, so it depends on how they do in that one. We have to wait to see how the other teams finish to find out who we'll face in the playoffs. Go Riders, Go! The early returns in the hockey season are favourable for my teams, but I'm still looking for them to do better! 

Erica has had a tough week health wise. Her surgical wounds have become infected, and she is back in the hospital this weekend getting them cleaned and dressed, after which, we're expecting the antibiotics to clear things up. Eric keeps busy taking care of her, while maintaining his own busy schedule. Haaken with his classes and Liam with his work are carrying on. 

Erin and Kristian are pretty much enjoying life as per usual. This week's bowling league play was displaced in favour of a Halloween celebration. Kristian has qualified for a bowling tournament next weekend in Moose Jaw, so we'll be watching and cheering from afar. 

Travis and Joanna continue to be very busy, and when you're in business, that's a good thing! Andrew had a mishap in the gym, spraining his finger, so he's a bit laid up. Gemma continues her work as an amazing student, while taking brief timeouts to be a teenager and drive her mother crazy! 

And that's about enough for this week! 

News Update

Another week has passed on the shore of Lake Superior in my hometown. We had some lovely summery weather in the middle of the week, and I got out golfing once again, but it's turned cold again for the weekend. Today, I saw some courses were installing the tarps over the greens, so that'll be the end of golf for this season. We have continued to make progress on the renovations. Finishing work always seems to progress very slowly. Wendy spent two days repairing, sanding and refinishing the door we're using for the barn-door application. It's looking great! I installed another arborite shelf in the kitchenette as a work surface. I also installed a pantry unit down there.

Sanding! Coffee!

Counter & Pantry

Not much happening up stairs in the main kitchen as we want to move downstairs before that happens. The markets had another bad week, but I did manage some early progress before the red hit again. Baseball playoffs have continued and we now have our World Series participants identified. Boston will play Los Angeles—that will maximize travel time! I'll be cheering for Dem Bums; Mom always cheered for the Dodgers, so I'll take her side this year! The Riders are struggling with injuries in the late going of the season, and are crawling into the playoffs. Tonight, they travelled to Calgary, and prevailed over the league leaders—Yowsah Riders! Hockey continues to garner my interest. My Oilers, Pens and Leafs are doing okay so far, although not tonight! 

After some adventures in air travel, courtesy of Air Canada, Erica finally made it home after a short detour in Dublin. She returned to work this week, to the extent that she could manage around wound care and including the need for extra rest. Her legs hurt; the wounds are healing slowly; her patience is running a bit thin! However, she is getting better each day! Eric has been up and down the road to Saskatoon for his card hockey draft, massage therapy, and a Marriage & Family Therapy session. Liam continues to enjoy his work. Haaken is finishing his current set of classes. 

Erin and Kristian had a fairly standard week in Regina. Kristian's bowling scores this week were much improved, and averaged 146.7—very near this year's target of 150, and well above his average. Well done, buddy! 

Travis and Joanna are very busy with hockey pictures and bucket decals. They're liking the improvements we're making in their break room downstairs! Joanna did get out for a family dinner, just with the kids.

Andrew, Joanna, Gemma!

That was nice!

And that's about enough for this week. 

News Update

We've had a cool, rainy week on the shore of Lake Superior in my hometown. We enjoy the hot tub each evening to relax tired muscles and get us ready for bed. We plan to keep it running until we head south in early November. With the new cupboards on site for the kitchen, it is time to pull out the old sink cupboards so we can make further progress on that project, but first, we need somewhere to cook and clean up, so we've spent this week on the downstairs kitchenette. We finished that up today, installing the Uppers, the sink and the flooring. We like it. 

Cupboard Install

Flooring

It was definitely the highlight of the week in which we've had a few disappointments. Wendy got hit by a driver who was backing out of his parking stall without looking. The estimate for the damage to our Santa Fe is $3200.00. The markets have been terrible as the damage being done by the Terrible Tariffs and the Trillion dollar deficit in the USA hit folks this week. I keep looking and hoping for a buying opportunity among the red ink, but no progress lately. Finally, my sports picks failed to materialize: the Yankees fell to Boston in the baseball playoff, and the Riders took a royal kicking today in Winnipeg. Riders remain in second place at least, but they've suffered a number of injuries again today, so they're limping into the final weeks of the season. Go Riders, Go! 

Erica spent an extra week in the hospital in Germany dealing with some fluid build up and infection related to her surgery. Fortunately, there was no extra charge for the extended stay, but there was additional costs related to Greg's stay at the BnB, and the rescheduling of flights home. They missed their connection in Dublin, so stayed there one day, and only got back to Canada today, and to home tonight. She will need followup with her local doctor to drain the fluid build up in her left leg. 

Erin and Kristian are gradually recovering their health after falling victim to a nasty bout of cold and flu. Kristian had bowling today, but didn't quite match his average, although his first game was very good. 

Trav, Joanna and crew are busy with their usual assignments. They had us over for Thanksgiving BBQ on Monday, it was great—thanks guys! Gemma is quite busy with midterms at University. Trav & Joanna are into PuckShots and BucketDecals—the machine downstairs keeps pumping them out! 

And that's about enough for this week. 

News Update

Another week has passed on the shore of Lake Superior in my hometown. The weather has remained cool and wet with only a couple of days reaching toward 20°. We've had our first frost now, so the trees are in glorious fall colours. I got out to the golf course once. We're into October, so the courses will be closing here sometime this month. I started the week watching the Ryder Cup Matchplay golf—always one of my favourite events. This year it was in Paris, and provided some fun drama as usual, although the Europeans won handily. I also enjoy the Presidents Cup in the alternating years, although the World side has failed to make it competitive. We got news yesterday that our new cupboards were ready to be picked up, so we've borrowed a trailer and managed to get them all moved in today. We had showers yesterday, so we're glad to find the dry weather today to get them transferred.

Cupboards installed-√

Wendy has been painting, but I still have walls under repair, so we're not quite ready! She has also been doing some yard work, cutting in the lawn along the driveway, and clearing up some branches that fell out of our big oak tree. The tree fought back—as she tried to break up the branches, one came up and smoked her in the side of the head! It still hurts some days later, and she notices it when she chews as well! The markets turned sour this week. The pundits are saying the issue is the Trump deficits. Their concern was triggered by his new tax cuts that were rushed through under cover of the Kavanaugh hearings. Since the administration is showing no inclination to pay for its expenditures, there is pressure on bonds and investors are moving out of stocks. Sigh! The early games of the NHL season have been good to watch, but my Oilers, Pens, and Leafs are not putting up the results I want! The Riders play Edmonton in the Thanksgiving game on Monday. The baseball playoffs have begun; I'm cheering for the Yankees, but they're in tough against the top seed Boston Red Sox. 

Erica had her surgery in Germany, but has suffered a setback during the recovery process. She has experienced fluid buildup in her left leg, and her doctors have kept her there for an additional week. So, she's not home for Thanksgiving weekend. Greg remains there with her, and Eric has reworked the flight schedule. Yikes! Things don't always go as planned. She is now scheduled to fly next Friday. 

Erin and Kristian have been suffering ill health this week. Kristian was home sick a couple of days, and then Erin caught it, so she missed work as well. We trust they're on the road to recovery now. Kristian bowled his league games this morning. He wasn't quite hitting his spots, so he didn't score up to his expectations, but he continues to raise his average. 

Travis has continued to be very busy developing and printing bucket decals. His contacts continue to spread via word-of-mouth and other advertising. He gets a lot of work from southern Ontario, and this week produced work for St. Louis and Arkansas teams as well.

Go Hogs!

Joanna returned from TO with her mom, so we got a visit with them. We plan a Thanksgiving meal together on Monday.

And that's about it for this week. 

News Update

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

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

Prying them off the walls!

And then they were gone! 

Old vent gone, new vent cut in!

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

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

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

And that's about enough for this week. 

News Update

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

Hang 'em High!

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

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

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

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

And that's about enough for this week. 

News Update

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

Used to be!

Patch and Replace

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

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

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

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

And that's about enough for this week! 

News Update

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

How many electrical sites did they try?

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

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

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

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

Roo Hockey!

And that's about it for this week. 

News Update

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

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

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

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

And that's about enough for this week. 

News Update

Another week has passed and we've moved on. Today, we left the shore of Lake Wascana, and drove over to the banks of the Vermillion River in Dauphin. We've enjoyed 2.5 months on the prairies, along with a side-trip to BC, but we are finally headed for home. We spent most of our Saskatchewan time at Erin and Kristian's place—thanks guys! We also enjoyed time at Bern, Alicia, Logan and Dad's place, and another week at Eric/A's. So, it's been a good summer, and it's not over yet! This weekend, we're at Kent & Paula's place, enjoying their hospitality. Thanks! We've had a good week in Regina, clearing up as many projects as possible. Wendy has done the patching and painting in Kristian's room, so it's ready for baseboards. I got the floating shelves built and installed in his room. 

Floating Shelf

I did some more development on Logan's bass box, so he's about ready to finish that. We took the Santa Fe in for a recall repair; it will be running out of warranty on the way home, so were glad to have that done. The markets have continued their volatile ways. The TSX is up less than 1% so far this year, so I'm falling well short of my quota. I had a green week, but not up to what I'm planning for. The Jays have been using a lot of new players and prospects, but they're playing better, too. The Riders gave us a tremendous surprise on Sunday as they knocked off the undefeated Stampeders. We feared they may suffer a let down tonight at BC, and indeed it was quite a bit tighter game than it should have been, but we'll take the win. Go Riders, Go! 

The Bailey's began the week in Estevan celebrating the life of Eric's uncle, Bill Muirhead. It was a wonderful time of memories, stories and music. They enjoyed being able to reconnect with family! They stopped in Regina to celebrate Erin's 40th birthday with my patented peanut butter ice cream cake, along with a lot of additional great food! This is Liam's last week at home this summer. He has been working on the second bedroom, finishing the flooring and working on the walls. He's also working on his plans for his Moose Jaw residence, looking for furnishings, and trying to decide what to bring from home. Haaken reports that everything is fine in Victoria! Erica is facing planning pressure as she's off for her next surgery in another month. 

Erin had a full week at work with their annual BBQ fundraiser closing off the week. Now she's on holidays for the next week. We're thankful for our accommodations there over the summer. 

Travis and Joanna are getting ready for the relief yard people to arrive home! We hope to get back on Monday. We are certainly thankful for their care of the place. 

And that's about enough for this week. 

News Update

Another week has passed on the shore of Lake Wascana in the middle of the prairies. We spent most of the week on the shore of the South Saskatchewan River in Prince Albert, but we returned to Erin's place in Regina on Friday. Today was her birthday, and we spent the day celebrating her, and her birthday. It was a good time. Shawn, Astrid and Liam were here. Eric, Erica and Liam were here. And we were here along with Kristian. Wendy spent most of the last couple of days preparing the menu and the food. I built another of my hallmark ice cream cakes. I took Erin for a game of golf. We even used a power cart! I had the PA announcer primed to announce, "Now on the tee, celebrating her twenty-third birthday—Erin Ulrich!" We had a good time golfing. Good times for sure. Up in PA, we worked on Liam's bedroom. I repaired the existing wiring and added some outlets for the room. Wendy spent a lot of time cleaning up the demolition mess, and also the construction mess! Liam did the vapour barrier and we got styrofoam and drywall installed on part of the room. Eric had the morning off on Thursday, so he was my able assistant that day. Erica was working out of town most of the week. We had to tear up part of the hardwood floor, but they're able to reinstall that now. We had Kristian with us in PA, so, while Grandpa and Liam were busy, Wendy and Kristian went to see Transylvania3 one day, and to the swimming pool another. While at the pool, Wendy slipped on a painted patch of concrete and took a fall. She cut her knee and jammed her arm, so she had to get patched up. At the encouragement of the pool staff, she also filed an incident report on those painted spots. Another old friend, Bill Muirhead, passed on this week; we're planning to head down to Estevan on Monday for the funeral. It seems we're saying farewell to too many friends these days. The markets continue to be volatile with multi-hundred point swings from one day to the next. I'm thankful to be able to report achieving quota this week. The Jays continue to play more and more new and younger players as they build and look to the future. I am relieved that they've formally announced the termination of Gibbons! The Riders have made a few changes as they prepare to play the league-leading Stamps on Sunday. Go Riders, Go! 

Golfing with Erin on her 40th!

Erin tees off—the coyote keeps the geese away!

Trav, Joanna, Gemma and Andrew continue to hold down the fort in Thunder Bay. We look forward to getting back there in another week. We are scheduled for some recall work on the Santa Fe on Tuesday or Wednesday,  and then we'll be ready to head east. I hope to get in a round of golf in Winnipeg, so we're looking to make it a leisurely drive home. 

And that's about enough for this week. 

News Update

We've had a hot week on the shore of Lake Wascana in the middle of the prairies. The hot weather reached its apex today with a temperature of 42, but we spent much of the week indoors in air-conditioned comfort. We're expecting a bit of a break in the next few days, and the garden certainly could use the break! We've spent this week at Dad's, thank you! I got out golfing at Avonlea on Monday. One of my students from Earl Grey days looked me up, and took me out there. It was a tough, tight course, and I was not hitting the ball well enough to overcome its challenges. Logan and I have been building a woodworking project for his sound system. We managed some progress on that, when it got cool in the evenings so we could work in the shop. The markets were showing signs of green early in the week, but then Trump renewed the trade war rhetoric with tariffs against Turkey, and investors started to worry once again. Both the TSX and the DOW are red so far this month. I'm in the green, but far behind quota. Hockey has opened again with the under 18 world championships. Canada advanced to the medal round, and was able to advance to the gold medal game thanks to a goal given to them by the officials. They faced Sweden in the final tonight, and managed to win that one in regulation time. The Blue Jays are playing out the string, and about the only thing the fans are looking forward to is the impending call up of Vladdy Jr. The Riders have the bye this week; I hope they're preparing well to face Calgary next Sunday! 

Eric and Erica took a road trip on their bikes this week through Drumheller to Calgary. Then, on the way home, they stopped by Vulcan (namesake for their bikes!) to pay homage at the Star Trek centre there!

Live Long, and Prosper!

To boldly go...

Liam has been pushing forward on the bedroom project in Prince Albert. We plan to head that way tomorrow or Monday.

Erin and Kristian have also retreated indoors this hot week. Kristian got out a couple of times with Grandma, to go bowling one day, and to the natural history museum another. Her small garden is suffering in the heat as well, but we hope the break in the temperatures will allow the tomatoes and strawberries to continue to produce. 

Travis, Joanna, Gemma and Andrew are enjoying much more comfortable temperatures in Thunder Bay, but it's still hot, and they're glad to make use of the air conditioning in their home and at the office. 

That's about it for this week. 

News Update

Another week has passed on the shore of Lake Wascana in the middle of the prairies. The weather has been favourable, and we've enjoyed a good week. We have worked on a couple of more projects at Erin's condo: drop leaves for her island, and flooring in Kristian's room. Wendy also applied another coat of paint to Kristian's room to get it ready for the flooring. Shawn and I did the flooring on Friday evening with artistic assistance from Erin to prevent a pattern from appearing!

Shawn and I laying flooring.

Kristian's new floor!

Kristian and I got out to practice golf on Wednesday. I went golfing with Dale on Friday and shot an encouraging 84 at Tor Hill. Then, Erin, Kristian and I went golfing this morning and that was fun as well.

Golfing—many years ago!

Golfing—updated!

Trump's continuing trade war rhetoric led to a bad start to the week for the markets, but we managed a recovery toward the end of the week, so I was in the green at least. The Riders played in Edmonton on Thursday evening, and put up a good showing despite falling short of the win. The Jays are having a good series in Seattle this weekend; they are working new players into the lineup to replace those who have been traded away. My old team in Earl Grey advanced to the medal round, but then lost out in the provincial playoffs. It was fun to get out there, catch up with many old friends and enjoy some good ball games. 

Haaken was home this week, and while it was great having everyone together—Erica had to leave! She had a couple of days in Edmonton training accountants on revenue recognition. Eric and Liam have been working on plans to put the second bedroom back together. Liam has started looking for work and an apartment so he can return to Caronport at the end of August. He's had a couple of leads on both issues, so we're hoping and praying that something will work out. Haaken is on his way back to Victoria this weekend. 

As noted, our activity this week has been mostly at Erin's place. She has more projects in mind, but we're heading over to Dad's this weekend, and planning to spend the next week there. Of course, it's not far, so we could get back to continue things here. 

Trav, Joanna, Gemma and Andrew are carrying on with things in Thunder Bay. We feel a bit bad about leaving them to take care of the yard during the busiest times of the growing season, and then leaving them again to take care of the driveway during the snowiest parts of the winter! We are grateful for their efforts on our behalf. Joanna has been down to southern Ontario on family concerns for part of the week. 

And that's about enough for this week. 

News Update

Kristian enjoyed time with the relatives in BC!

Another week has passed and we have journeyed from the banks of the Fraser, to the shore of Lake Okanagan, to the shore of Lake Wascana in the middle of the prairies. We enjoyed visiting with many relatives at Bordie's birthday party which extended into Monday, then we headed east. We stopped for supper with Lyndon and Janelle in Enderby, and then returned to our favourite Okanagan digs with John—thanks John! We spent Monday and Tuesday nights there, and enjoyed a visit with Warren and Evelyn who came out Tuesday evening. Then, we packed up once again and headed to Calgary where we enjoyed a night in the outpost cabin at Gary and Barb's—thanks! Finally, we drove back to Regina on Thursday, where we are once again ensconced with Erin and Kristian—thanks again! This weekend has featured the provincial championships in fastball, and our old home town, Earl Grey, is hosting this year. We drove out Friday and again today to watch them. They have advanced to the medal round which is set for tomorrow, so we'll be hoping and cheering for them to continue to win. The markets have had a dreary week, and I didn't manage to even break even—sigh! The Jays have now sold off three players, and more are on the block before the trade deadline at the end of the month. The Riders hosted the first place Stampeders tonight, and fell behind 24-0 early before staging a spirited comeback to make a game of it at least. They lost by 8. 

Eric and Erica enjoyed having the family together this week as Haaken was home from Victoria. Progress continues on the renovations, and plans are in place to complete another bedroom upstairs. 

Erin has continued her painting, and is making good progress on Kristian's room. We have also reviewed the plans for a drop-leaf on two sides of her kitchen island. That may proceed next week! In the meantime, we're eating tomatoes and trying stay ahead of her productive garden. The cucumber vines continue to suffer with powdery mildew, and we continue to treat it, but without much success! 

Kristian learning to drive

Travis and Joanna installed a projection TV in their room. Gemma has returned from Europe, so the whole family is together again—yay! 

And that's about enough for this week. 

News Update

Happy Birthday, Uncle Bordie!

Another week has passed and we have been travelling—same ol', same ol'! The Canadian team lost out in the playoffs, so we headed back to Regina a bit earlier than expected on Sunday. Australia ended up winning the World Junior Men's Softball Championship with a win over Japan. New Zealand took the bronze. We spent Monday in Regina, and then headed west on Tuesday, arriving in the Okanagan at John's place on Wednesday. We enjoyed several days on the shore of Lake Okanagan, where Scott, Margaret and Tori have been holding down the fort for the last three weeks. We enjoyed our time there very much. Wendy got some lake-time, Kristian enjoyed boating and a trip to a game farm with some very special game! 

Thanks for the boat ride, Scott!

Kristian and a Joey

John hosted us to some great relaxation, and a Rider win! Yay! The Blue Jays are enjoying a good series against Baltimore, but then, most teams are enjoying games with Baltimore this season! The markets enjoyed two good days at the start of the week as Trump returned much-weakened after the meeting with Putin, but then the Republicans decided they wouldn't stand up to him, and he gained courage to launch more trade threats against China, so the markets took a three-day dumper, and I lost my early gains—sigh! This morning, we drove over from Lake Country to North Bend to celebrate Uncle Bordie's 90th birthday. It was a good trip across. We saw the areas currently suffering forest fires near Kelowna. There was a lovely gathering in the community hall with much talk, laughter, eating and singing! 

Erica continues her recovery from her most recent surgery. Both she and Eric are back to work, while Liam continues the home improvement program. Haaken is expected home soon. They have also taken charge of the house-sitting assignment that we began. 

Kristian is travelling with us. Erin is continuing with her regular work and also trying to complete the second coat of paint on Kristian's room while we're away. Her garden continues to produce, but the peas seem to be reaching the end of their season. The cucumbers have fallen victim to a powdery mildew fungus, so we hope her treatment regime helps out there. Alicia has the same malady over at 55 Laird on her yellow zucchini, and is trying the same remedy. 

Trav is holding down things in Thunder Bay while Joanna and Andrew are visiting in southern Ontario. Andrew is recovering well from his toe surgery. Gemma continues her travels in Europe. 

Gemma makes a friend!

Trav has had to make a change to his icon for Bucket Decals as another firm thought his 'bucket' looked too much like Gretzky's old Jofa helmet! True, but sad all the same! 

And that's about enough for this week. 

News Update

Another week has passed and we remain on the shore of the South Saskatchewan at the northern end of the prairies. The weather has been fine with some very hot days, but cooling off nicely in the evenings. We open up the house, and it's generally been pretty comfortable for the boys, while we retreat to the air-conditioned comfort of our house-sitting arrangement! Project work is going well. Wendy and Kristian have done a lot of demolition upstairs, while Liam and I have been installing ceiling tiles on the main floor. Eric and Erica arrived home on Friday, so Eric and I completed the window areas of both the living room and the dining room today. I think it turned out well. 

Dining Room

Living Room

We've been attending the World Softball Championships all week for Junior Men. It's been very good and entertaining ball. Our guys won their pool to join three other teams in the medal round, but they did not fare so well there, losing to Australia and New Zealand to finish fourth. Japan is also still alive for the final day tomorrow. 

At the ball games!

Otherwise, we've been taking care of lawns and garden at the house-sitting, and enjoying our time in Prince Albert. The markets continue to be volatile with two up days and three down days this week, however, I did manage to make quota for a change! The Riders had a bye week, while the Jays continue to play and shop their better players, sigh! 

Eric and Erica started the week in Germany where Erica was convalescing after her most recent surgery. She got a final check from her doctor, new prescriptions for compression sleeves, and did a lot of sleeping! They flew back to Canada on Thursday, and then drove out from Saskatoon on Friday. Erica is feeling pretty good today. Haaken will be home soon for his summer break, and has made his determination to return to school in the Fall. 

Erin has made great progress painting Kristian's room. She showed it to us today via FaceTime. We'll get pictures for next week! Her garden is producing lots of tomatoes, lettuce and peas, along with a few cucumbers. The cucumber vines seem to have picked up a leaf fungus, and we don't know whether anything can be done about it. I've suffered with that in my garden back in Thunder Bay, also. Kristian has been doing great work here with us. He likes using the hammer to knock off the plaster and lath. He's also pretty good with the gooseneck taking structures apart!

Travis and Joanna are taking care of things back home, and it's a good thing! They discovered that something had been leaking in the main floor bathroom. They got the water turned off to the vanity faucet and sopped up the water, so that's good. We'll have to check out the extent of the damage when we get home. Thanks guys for being on the watch! 

And that's enough for this week. 

News Update

Another week has passed, and we're on the shore of the South Saskatchewan River on the northern end of the prairies. After our weekend reunion at Weyburn, we cleaned up as much as we could on our Regina projects, and drove up to Saskatoon on Tuesday morning to meet Eric/A for breakfast and wish them well on their way to Germany. Then, we filled up with groceries at Costco and headed over to Prince Albert. Liam is hosting us here, and we're working on the living room ceiling as well as some demolition upstairs. Kristian is along with us, so he's been working on the projects as well.  

Kristian Demolition!

Living Room Ceiling

It's quite hot here, so we're relieved that Eric/A set us up for house-sitting in an air-conditioned place. The markets have continued to be rocky with Trump continuing his trade-war rhetoric and even extending more tariffs this week. I did manage to make a small gain, but well short of my quota for the week. The Junior Men's World Softball Championships are on here. They began today. I took in some games this morning, and Wendy joined me for the US/Canada game tonight. We won that one handily 10-3. The Riders won their game this week; that was a relief! The Jays continue to play, but are now considering selling off some of their players while rebuilding. On Wednesday, we celebrated our 48th Anniversary. Here's another picture from our wedding day. Wendy is wearing a cute "going away" outfit.

Eric and Erica flew to Germany on Tuesday. Erica had surgery #3 for lipedema—this time they focused on her arms. Liam is hosting us here in PA. He did some painting in the dining room. We're working mainly on the Living Room ceiling. We're applying decorative tiles, and installing pot lights. 

Kristian is along with us, so Erin has begun a painting project in his room. She's hoping to have that completed before he gets back. Her garden is producing lettuce and cucumbers. There are a lot of tomatoes forming, but they're not ripe yet.

Erin: cutting in the grey paint.

Trav & Joanna are taking care of things back in Thunder Bay. We hear it's living up to its name with big thunder storms, and plenty of heat! The lawns must be growing wildly—sorry about that! Gemma is getting ready for her trip to Europe to visit cousins and explore the area. 

And that's about it for this week! 

News Update

Another week has passed on the shore of the Souris River in the middle of the prairies. It's been another busy, but memorable week. I got out for two golf games, one with Dale, and the other with Kristian. My game continues to show progress on the path toward consistency. The weather has been nice, with a few showers and thunderstorms to break the hot days. My supplies have all arrived, and I have completed the drip irrigation projects for 55 Laird, and for Erin. There's still a bit of clean up to do on each, but they're functioning well. The markets continued to be troubled, and the DOW remains in the red for the year. The TSX is barely into the green, so I've also struggled. Thus, half the year is gone, and I am well behind my targets. I will keep trying! This weekend featured the 50th reunion of our graduating class. Five of the 21 have already passed on, and another six were unable to make it this weekend, so there were only ten of us, but it was a good and memorable time. Including updates from those who didn't make it, we enjoyed seeing or hearing from these longtime friends. The Blue Jays are playing a bit better, but are so far out of it, it's hard to be enthusiastic. The Riders played Montreal tonight, but fell short in a close game.

Grads of 1968

On Wednesday Erica drove to Caronport to load up Liam’s boxes and stuff to move back home. It took both vehicles. And just when they thought everything was fitting in—Liam pointed to his bike. So, they repacked both vehicles and headed to Regina for that night. Erica fit in a couple of meetings and then they headed home—now to catch up on rest! They are starting to make renovation lists—starting with the stuff that was supposed be completed last year. This will be a long term project. But that’s okay because it gives us an excuse to visit! Eric and Erica head to Germany on Tuesday for surgery number three. They were very encouraged this week by a God-incidence. They didn’t have all the funds yet in place to pay for the next surgery, and had been praying about it. Then one night they got an email announcing some unexpected funds! They were reminded of how blessed they are and that God provides: sometimes through people, and sometimes through random emails in the middle of the night. Not much news from Haaken this week as he continues at school.

Kristian completed his grade six this week. He seemed pleased with the announced teacher for grade 7. He has been puttering away, helping his grandmother organize his room to get it ready for painting and flooring, but there's lot of work to do there. On Friday, he went golfing with me, and managed three pars in a row during one stretch. He's swinging in a much more controlled fashion. Erin found more material, representing another project for me in her kitchen. We'll see how long before I get to that!

This week, Trav, Joanna and family celebrated Gemma’s graduation from high school. She won several awards including a full tuition scholarship to Lakehead University's Life Sciences (Medical Focus) Honours Bachelor Undergrad Program. She’s been offered this because she achieved an average of 95% or higher. She also has graduated with honours and was selected as the recipient of a generous cash award for academic excellence. She was also acknowledged for the level of French she achieved. She is one of 9 students in the school who achieved her nationally recognized bilingual status (DELF B1).

Gemma! A great kid! A wonderful woman!
Proud parents and grandparents!