Happy New Year

Tonight we are having what is called a blue moon, which is the second full moon in a month and doesn’t actually have anything to do with the colour. The original definition of a blue moon was when there occurs a fourth full moon within a single season. For some reason it was changed and stuck.

I was discussing the stars in a previous post and decided to do some research on the star Sirius. It turns out that it is actually two stars. Sirius A is the bright star that we can see which is about three times the mass of our sun and ten times brighter. It has a twin, Sirius B, which is a “white dwarf” which has the same mass as our sun but only four times the diameter of our earth, which makes it very dense. Sirius B was only discovered by modern astronomers in 1862 but the Ancient Egyptians knew about it thousands of years ago and would mark the heliacal rising (the first visible rising of the star after previously being unseen because of the sun) of Sirius as the first day of their calendar. Unknown to most people, our calendar begins at the time when Sirius is at the mid-way point in our sky, when the earth’s orbit around the sun places us closest to the star. The time between the rising of Sirius to the next time it rises is called a Sothic year and is almost exactly 365.25 days, which is the same as our Julian calendar.

This is so interesting to me and I will be digging deeper into the subject, bringing you new information when I discover it. Until then, Happy New Year! (or maybe, Happy New Sothic Year!)

Christmas '09

Christmas at our house was wonderful! None of us had to work which was very nice. Kyle and Laura decorated the tree earlier in the week, and hung the stockings on the wall. We also hung the wreath that Laura made a few years ago on the front door.

The big day started out with the customary opening of the stockings which was so much fun as always. Then we moved on to presents. We went with a bedroom theme for the kids, giving them each lamps, pillows and sheets etc. Everyone was very happy with everything they received. Susan and I were smart this year and did most of our wrapping a couple of nights before so we could relax on Christmas Eve.

After the gifts were finished, Susan made a wonderful brunch! French toast, bacon, hash browns and waffles. Everything tasted great.

We spent a relaxing afternoon at home until it was time to go to Susan’s parents for dinner. We had a turkey dinner and I ate too much, but it was worth it. We had a nice visit with everyone who showed up.

Boxing day was a lazy day in the morning. We put a turkey in the oven at about 1:00 p.m. and then got busy cleaning. Mom and Dad came down in the afternoon and had turkey dinner with us. We had a nice visit and opened presents with them.

Over all, it was a very good weekend. We got time to spend with our families and our kids, what more could we ask for.

Writing Application

I found a website which takes applications from freelance writers to post regularly on their site. I decided to take a swing at it, submitting my application last week. I wrote two articles and a personal profile which was what they asked for. The articles had to be written in the third-person and be factual, not opinionated. I did my best, writing and polishing the pieces, then submitted them with high hopes. A little over an hour after I sent them in, I received my rejection letter. They are apparently looking for people who are experts in the field they are writing in. Since I am neither a doctor, nor a professional dog trainer, I had no business writing about the subjects I chose.

Not wanting to let the articles I wrote go to my trash bin, I decided to post them on my blog, which is what my last two posts have been. At least now I can concentrate on writing my novel, which by the way, is going much better than my first attempt. I am writing full character sketches and making a detailed outline before I even sit down to write the body. I am excited and am feeling good about the process.

Getting A Dog For The Health Of It

Thinking about an exercise routine, but finding it hard to get started? Maybe getting a dog is the answer you.

Many people are thinking about their health these days, but with busy schedules and less free time it can be hard to start and stick with an exercise program. Exercise takes commitment and unless one is very motivated, usually goes by the way-side. One consideration is getting a dog. Although this takes a different kind of commitment, it is one that some may be more inclined to apply.

A dog needs to be walked every day.

No matter what the weather brings, a dog needs exercise. This is something which a dog owner cannot get away from, unless they want to come home to a piece of chewed furniture or worse. If a dog does not have an outlet for energy, it will find one. Walking every day will spend that energy and keep belongings intact. The health benefit to the owner is that a brisk walk is good exercise.

Letting a dog run in the dog park is cheating yourself.

Dog parks are very popular and are more of a social gathering for owners. Owners let their dogs run around and play while they stand and visit. While this may be great fun for the dog, it does the owner no good with their exercise routine. The dog park can be a treat once in a while, but if it becomes a habit the dog owner is really cheating themselves.

Owning a dog is a life-long commitment.

Committed dog owners know that the relationship they have with their dog is something which cannot be pushed aside for any length of time. Once one owns a dog, they are his keeper for the rest of it's life. It is not always easy and may at times be frustrating, but in the long run it will all be worth it. It is a lifetime relationship with no back door.

Caring for a dog is a huge responsibility.

Dogs are entirely dependant on their owners. They need exercise and training, they need to be fed every day, they need love and compassion. One should consider all options and do plenty of research before committing to buying a dog. Dogs are a lot of work but there are rewards as well. A person who is seriously considering getting a dog should weigh everything in their life which will be affected by the new addition. A sad fact is that adult dogs which end up in the pound are most likely to be euthanized.

Studies claim that pet owners live longer.

Many studies around the world claim that owning a pet will prolong a person's life. Not only will the dog owner be healthier as a result of exercise, but they have a good chance of living longer because of their canine companion. What an excellent trade off, give a dog a happy home and he gives back longevity.

A dog will change a person's life, but the rewards are worth it.

After getting a dog, a person's life will never be the same. People adjust to their situation and find time for things which are important. Health is important to many people and a relationship with a dog will increase their greater well-being, get them into shape and possibly enjoy a longer life with a loyal companion at their side.

Stay Healthy During Cold & Flu Season

There are many things one can do to avoid getting sick. The following are a few you may have heard before but also a couple you might not have thought of.

Benjamin Franklin said: “An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure.” This is so true when it comes to one's health and well-being. No one wants to get sick but sometimes it happens. If people choose to use the ounce of prevention, they could possibly avoid most viruses altogether.

Wash and sanitize your hands.

Something everyone has heard repeatedly these days, especially with the spread of H1N1, is “wash your hands”. People are washing their hands and using sanitizer more frequently, which is good for impeding the spread of germs and viruses. Awareness goes a long way. People need to take this one step further for it to be most effective, which is to avoid touching their nose and mouth. As soon as a person touches a contaminated object, whatever was on that object is now on their hands. If they touch their nose or mouth, they have a good chance of contracting the virus.

Eat properly, exercise and get enough rest.

These three ingredients are important for a healthy lifestyle. People who are looking to prevent illness need to have energy for the battle. If a person does not get one or more of these, they can get run down and end up being more susceptible to viruses. They invite the viruses in, by being good and easy hosts.

Meditate daily.

Meditation is very good for the spirit and soul, something that directly affects a person's physical self. Healthy spirituality goes hand in hand with a healthy physicality. Meditation is not something that everyone does on a regular basis, even if they know how to and know how good it is for them.

There is no great secret to meditation and there are numerous classes and workshops in any community, if someone is interested in learning. Another option is to simply look on the internet for meditation methods until they find something compatible.

Tap into your mind.

The subconscious is a very powerful tool that people rarely employ, or even know how to use. What a person has to do is simply tell themselves that they are not getting sick, and more importantly, never saying out loud that they are getting sick. When a person says something like, “I don't feel well” they are reenforcing the fact that they are infected and proclaiming to anyone within earshot that they have in fact given in to the virus.

If a person gets a tickle in their throat and they repeatedly tell themselves that they are not getting sick, they can overcome it before it really sets in. This is especially effective if they can put up reminders to themselves, little notes telling them that they are not getting sick. Another effective method is if a person stands in front of a mirror, look themselves in the eye and repeat that they are not getting sick.

These suggestions are just that, some things may work for one person but not for another. Do what you feel comfortable with and if you are unsure, consult your physician before trying anything new.

Night Sky

For the last two nights, the sky has been very clear, at least in the South, which is where some of my favourite stars are located. The Orion constellation is probably one of the most recognizable systems in our night sky. When I was young I thought it looked like a circus horse, with a pointy hat and a fancy belt.

If you follow the line of Orion’s belt down, you can see the brightest star in the sky which is called Sirius and is part of the Canis Major constellation. Sirius has another quality which is unique and that is that it twinkles in different colours. I love to sit and watch as it cycles through the spectrum. The reason that it appears to change colour is that it is closer to the horizon and has more atmosphere to travel through. If it were a dimmer star, it could not be seen.

I take in these stars every chance I can because they are only visible during the Autumn and Winter months. During the Summer they are under the horizon or in the sky when the sun is out which makes them un-viewable.

Another surprise I found the other night was the red planet, Mars, which is located in the South East and is very red at the moment.

I've taken a picture from my astronomy program, showing Orion and Sirius.

Zat You?

One of my favourite Christmas songs is Zat You Santa Claus?, sung by Louis Armstrong. Every time I hear it, I'm reminded of when Laura was five or six years old. We'd got it on a Christmas CD and every time it came on, Laura would sing "Zat You" in her best Louis Armstrong voice; so cute!

Happy Birthday Mr Deuce!

One year ago today we picked up our new dog from the CRD pound. We've had to make a lot of changes in our lives but it's all been worth it because Mr Deuce is a happy dog. He gets a lot of exercise and play time, much better than the life he started with. I get a lot of exercise too, which is good for my health.

We had originally named him Deuce but have since added a "Mr" which sort of just happened. It suits him.

We are having a birthday dinner for him tonight with his favourite food: BEEF! One of his rules when we are eating is that he lies down and leaves everyone alone until we are finished. If he does that then he gets a treat. He's always extra good when he smells beef cooking because he knows he'll get some. It's a good thing that we're big beef eaters.

His favourite game is playing catch with his squeaky bone and he's very good at it. I don't throw it until he's lying down, I just have to snap my fingers and he's ready. He catches it almost every time.

He still has issues which we are dealing with but it is such a good experience and the trials are worth it with each barrier he breaks through. He has worked his way into all of our hearts and we will never be the same again. It's amazing, that's all I can say

Happy birthday Mr Deuce!

Advent Calendar

Here it is once more and I'm on time this year. There is a new Advent Calendar for the countdown to Christmas. Just click on the link and it will take you there. Happy Holidays!

Happy Hallowe'en

From seven pumpkins growing in my garden, come seven Jack-o-lanterns. Laura and I carved up the pumpkins last night and this morning. It was so much fun. It's funny to think that these all came from one pumpkin a year ago which didn't get gutted.

Susan's Exciting News

Susan has some exciting news that I would like to share with you: she got a new job and after twenty years, is no longer in the food service industry.

A few months ago Susan decided that managing in coffee shops was not what she wanted to do for the rest of her life and started thinking about going back to school. She did some research, tossing around ideas such as social work and counselling, choosing to go into the Indigenous Family Support Worker program for which there is a great demand for workers. She was a little late to get into the program in September, so will have to wait until next year.

Last week her sister Diana, who works at the Victoria Native Friendship Centre, told her about a job posting there for a Career, Employment, & Education Resources (CEER) Assistant. We got her resume and cover letter drawn up, submitting it on the last day of the posting. She was short listed, interviewed and yesterday she got the call that the job was hers and can start on Monday.

Susan is so excited! It is in the field she is going back to school for and she couldn't have asked for a better transition job. It's a Monday to Friday, 8:30 to 4:30. No more 5:00 am starts, no more closing shifts, no calls to cover shifts; she works when the office is open and when she doesn't, it's closed. She'll be able to get her nails and hair done, wear the clothes she wants (no more black dress code), she can wear jewellery (she misses her dragonflies), perfume instead of smelling like coffee. What a joy!

I am so happy for her and glad that she's found a direction to focus outside of the food industry. She will shine in her new position and eventually her career. It's never too late to change one's path.

Oops, My Mistake

I'm going to review a very basic lesson which I'm sure you've all heard before: "Don't believe everything you read on the internet". This is good advise, especially if you are inclined to use sites such as Wikipedia, which should always be taken with a grain of salt. I write this for a reason, which I'll explain.

At the time I started writing my blog, I was also of the habit of perusing websites which listed famous quotes. I love reading inspirational words of modern and historical figures. I try to get an idea of how they succeeded in life through their words and thoughts. As you may have noticed, there are a few quotes at the top of my blog, reminders to me of the frame of mind I like to keep, or ideas which inspire me. One of these quotes is: "All that we are is the result of what we have thought". I copied and pasted it straight from a quote website, including who said it, which was Sartre.

The other day I was browsing the Project Gutenberg website as I often do, searching for something good to read. (If you have never been to Project Gutenberg, I highly recommend it. All of the books are in the public domain and free to download and read. You will doubtless find something there of interest.) I ended up opening the Dhammapada, which is one of the sacred texts of Buddha. As I started reading I was shocked to find the first line: "All that we are is the result of what we have thought".

I was horrified with my discovery. I had misrepresented a quote which was on my blog header. If anyone familiar with the Dhammapada had looked at my blog, they would see my ignorance immediately, and my lack of research. Better late than never, I thought.

My research began with looking up Sartre, who was an Existentialist. I discovered that this quote is the very basis for his philosophy. Man is responsible for where he is, there is no excuse or blame put on anything else such as God, parenting, environment, etc. Man is free to probably stay as he is, but with limitless possibilities to reach great heights. (Understand this is a very elementary explanation and there is so much more to his philosophical views, but I'm not writing a philosophy paper here.)

With research concluded, I come to the understanding of how this could be considered a quote of Sartre, but let us recognize that Buddha said it first.

Black Jack Davy

I enjoy researching because I learn things of interest to me that I would not have normally discovered. Sometimes my research takes me to places that I never would have imagined and leads me into new subjects of interest. In effect, my research never ends.

Not too long ago I heard a song for the first time, or at least the first time that I remember. The song is called Black Jack Davey by the White Stripes. It has a catchy tune and tells a story of a gypsy who swoons a girl to run off with him, leaving her home, her husband and baby. The husband comes home to find his wife gone and goes after her only to be rejected because she's in love with the gypsy.

The more I listened to the song, the more curious I became about the story. I decided to do some research. I found out that the song has been covered by many different groups and singers including Bob Dylan and a version I like by Steeleye Span.

I dug a little deeper and found out that it was originally a ballad dating back to 1720 and can be found in Francis James Child's collection of ballads which was published in the late 1800's. In the Child collection, it is number 200 and titled The Gypsy Laddie. There are twelve variations listed in the collection and the following is one of them:

THE gypsies came to our good lord’s gate,
And wow but they sang sweetly!
They sang sae sweet and sae very compleat
That down came the fair lady.

And she came tripping down the stair,
And a’ her maids before her;
As soon as they saw her well-far’d face,
They coost the glamer oer her.

‘Gae tak frae me this gay mantile,
And bring to me a plaidie;
For if kith and kin and a’ had sworn,
I’ll follow the gypsie laddie.

‘Yestreen I lay in a well-made bed,
And my good lord beside me;
This night I’ll ly in a tenant’s barn,
Whatever shall betide me.’

‘Come to your bed,’ says Johny Faa,
‘Oh come to your bed, my deary;
For I vow and I swear, by the hilt of my sword,
That your lord shall nae mair come near ye.’

‘I’ll go to bed to my Johny Faa,
I’ll go to bed to my deary;
For I vow and I swear, by what past yestreen,
That my lord shall nae mair come near me.

‘I’ll mak a hap to my Johnny Faa,
And I’ll mak a hap to my deary;
And he’s get a’ the coat gaes round,
And my lord shall nae mair come near me.’

And when our lord came hame at een,
And speir’d for his fair lady,
The tane she cry’d, and the other reply’d,
‘She’s away with the gypsie laddie.’

‘Gae saddle to me the black, black steed,
Gae saddle and make him ready;
Before that I either eat or sleep,
I’ll gae seek my fair lady.’

And we were fifteen well-made men,
Altho we were nae bonny;
And we were a’ put down for ane,
A fair young wanton lady.

Age

When I was young, probably around six or seven, I spent the night at the house of my parent's friend, George. I remember talking with him about age. George was thirty years old at the time and my parents were still in their twenties. I don't recall if I figured my parents were old at that point, but George certainly was because he was thirty.

My Dad told me a story the other day about a time when I was in my early teens. We were visiting another friend of my parents and he asked me how it felt to have such young parents. I replied in shock, "Do you know how old they are?!?".

I can remember turning thirty. I thought it was the end of the world. I can honestly say that it was the worst year of my life. I hadn't accomplished what I thought I should have and wasn't where I figured I should be. It was the end of the world and I was old! It was all going to be downhill from there. I don't take things so seriously anymore. Life is too short to worry about what I haven't done. I like to have fun now and am happy with where I am.

Tomorrow I turn forty years old. How the heck did that happen? I can also see from my notes that I have to learn how to spell forty, not fourty (thank goodness for spell check). I certainly don't feel forty, in fact I still feel like I'm in my twenties and usually act as if I'm in my teens. I often say: "I may be getting older but I refuse to grow up", which becomes more true every day.

Life to me is a wonderful journey and age doesn't mean anything, it's simply a number.

White Zombie

During the 90's, one of my favourite bands was called White Zombie and is still among my most listened to music. The lead singer, Rob Zombie does a lot of movies and directing now in the horror genre. He's most famous for his films, House of 1000 Corpses and The Devil's Rejects. More recently he directed Halloween and Halloween II. All of his work has a very dark theme.

Some time ago I discovered that Rob Zombie got the name for his band from a 1932 movie starring Bela Lugosi called White Zombie. If you click on the link, it will take you to the movie which is posted on uTube. It is in the pubic domain, so there are no copyright concerns.

White Zombie set in Haiti and is the first movie dealing with zombies. It is also the movie which most zombie films are modelled after. If you like old horror films, especially zombie movies, this is a must see.

While I'm on the subject of old movies in the public domain, here is a link to a bunch of films on uTube called Public Domain Theater Films, which has hours of old movies for your viewing pleasure.

Harvest Time

Above is a picture of the harvest from my unintentional pumpkin patch. It has been a great adventure. I think back on the first vines which started to grow last Spring, trying to figure out what the heck I planted. They overtook my entire garden and I even had to cut the vines back a couple of times.

Below is a shot of my pumpkin patch a few weeks ago. The vines are pretty much all dead and the pumpkins are ripening nicely.

Finally, here is a picture of my patch the day before harvest. The pumpkins are all a very bright orange and the vines are all dry husks.

I am so proud of my pumpkins! I have them sitting on my balcony right now to catch a bit more sun before they are gutted and carved for Hallowe'en. The best thing is that we don't have to buy any pumpkins this year.

I will make sure that all of the seeds are out before we set the Jack-o-lanterns out, because next year I'm going to have a real garden, with flowers and plants -- not an out of control pumpkin patch.

The Saanich Fair

The Summer went by in a flash and here we are in September, in the rain. We can’t really complain because this has been the best Summer for weather in recent history. Until yesterday, I had not walked Deuce in the rain since probably May or June.

We went to the Saanich Fair yesterday, as we have for fourteen of the last fifteen years, (one year we went to the PNE -- bad mistake) and had a great time even though it rained on us the whole day. The Saanich Fair marks the wrap up for our Summer and is a lasting tradition with us. It rained so hard all day that most people didn’t even bother going, it wouldn’t stop us though. Mom and Dad came down and went to the fair with us which was an extra nice treat -- it was good to spend some time with them.

We aimed arrival at the fair for two o’clock in the afternoon, as we usually do. The first thing we did was to get some food, and really, we ate most of the afternoon in between browsing exhibits. We saw bunnies, pigs, sheep, goats, llamas, ducks, chickens, horses, turkeys; we browsed the market and got some berries, flowers and a few free things. The rain was not going to spoil our fun. We were all soaked by the time we were done at seven o’clock and I think everyone was ready for a nap.

It always amazes me how quickly the year passes and once again we are heading off to the Saanich Fair. It is always the same yet different. The basics of the fair are always in the same place and some exhibits come and go, but the real difference is our family and how we’ve grown over the years. We’ve built a life with our own traditions and that is what makes us the family we are today. For this I am thankful.

Fear

When I was young, I was afraid of the dark, for with the darkness came the monsters in my closet, the mad scientist under my bed, the rats behind the walls, not to mention a multitude of other fantastic imaginations which haunted me. I had nightmares that I would recite to my Mother, in which horrors to my young mind would cause me to lie in darkness, sweating with fear. My only protection was my blanket, for if my head was covered I was safe from these fiendish atrocities, even through the heat of Summer. These horrors were a fascination for me and I would unwittingly feed them by reading frightful stories or watching scary movies. There was a thrill in the adrenalin rush which I did not understand, but I’m sure I was thoroughly addicted to.

When I grew up, my imagination relaxed and I no longer had fear of such things. I could turn out the light and my biggest fear would be stubbing my toe on a unseen piece of furniture. I no longer had to check in my closet or look under my bed for I knew that there was nothing there in darkness which had not been there in the light. Something was missing though. I watched horror movies but the only rush was the occasional surprise when something jumped out. In the stories I read there was never the irrational afterthoughts of my racing imagination.

I continued with my horror studies, the stories and the movies, continually working with my imagination to one day regain the thrill I knew so well as a child. The only thing I could sometimes rely on was the occasional nightmare, though they were few and far between and once awake, the thrill would quickly dissipate. I took to reading King, Rice, Barker and my favourite, Lovecraft. The movies I grew to love contained zombies, vampires and other such monsters.

Earlier this week I’d read a story by Lovecraft called “Herbert West, Re-Animator”. It is a very good story and thrilled me with the grotesque, as much as any horror story can. I’d seen the movies based on this story which helped form the “reality” of it in my imagination. I reflected on this tale as I took my dog for our evening walk.

The time was around ten o’clock and it was still fairly warm, though I still brought my jacket. There was not a cloud in the sky, the moon had already set and a gentle breeze blew through the trees. The darkness was uncanny. We walked down to Saxe Point, to visit the ocean as we often do on our evening journeys. There is a stretch of road, just before the parking lot where the street light is unlit and there are no houses to illuminate any part of the road. I couldn’t believe how dark it was and I felt a bit of a thrill, nothing like when I was young, but a thrill none the less.

We continued our way to our resting spot which is a concrete platform facing out to the ocean. The pad has three benches and a railing all around. I walked up to the railing and looked up to admire the stars, still marvelling at the darkness surrounding me. Something caught my dog’s attention and I looked to see what it was, though seeing in the darkness with any exactness proved seemingly impossible. To my horror I spied a face.

If a person of average height were to walk around the platform and stand opposite, their chin could rest on the floor of the pad. I tried to focus on the face while my dog worked at pulling me closer but all I could see in the darkness was a faint image which suddenly moved a little bit. My heart pounded in my chest and I resisted his advance. Whether a person was standing there or not, I did not want to really find out. I was thrilled and exhilarated. I took out a cigarette and lit it, to prove to the figure that I was not afraid as it continued to sway. I then turned and continued our walk homeward.

This incident has been the closest I have ever come in my adult life to the thrilling horror which filled my childhood. It may seem odd to imagine one wanting to have this feeling but it is the rush of adrenalin and the prospect of discovering the dark unknown that I find exhilarating. I reflected all night and the following day on that moment of fear and couldn’t wait to return to the location of it’s cause.

The night again was dark, with no moon or clouds to illuminate the ground but the wind was stronger than the previous evening. When I reached the spot, I saw that the face was still there but was moving around wildly. As I advanced it looked less like a face because of it’s rapid movement and when I walked right up to the railing to take a close look, I saw that it was merely a long stock with a few leaves and a small flower on top.

I laughed. Something which would appear so lovely in the light, had brought me a moment of terror in darkness and I was very pleased. It will probably not happen again any time soon but I was happy to have received the thrill of my childhood horrors and a wonderful story to tell.

If I Only Had Thumbs

Deuce's favourite toy is a squeaky bone. He loves to have it thrown for him and plays with whenever he can. I've posted a video of something he does quite often, which is to lie on his back and try to lift the toy out of his mouth. It would be a lot easier if he did have thumbs but he does accomplish the task once in a while -- then he is so proud!

The Terror Zone

Laura and I both love to watch scary movies. On my last day off, we did something that we wanted to do for a couple of years now, which was to visit the Terror Zone in Trounce Alley. It is a nightmare tour, bent on trying to scare it’s patrons.

We started the tour in pitch black, which was very cool, trying to find where we were to go next. Laura grabbed my hand right away and held on through the whole thing. I will give nothing away in case someone who reads this wants to go through, but I will say that I was very impressed. There were many surprises and a lot of scary scenes and models. There were things jumping out at us and many creepy images. At the end, there were full sized models of Leatherface, Freddy, Jason, and Michael Myers.

We now have plans to go during the Halloween season when they have live actors to add to the mood.

Work, Holidays and The Prodigy

It was so easy to post on my blog while I was on holidays for two weeks. I find, now that I am back to work, I am having problems with prioritizing my time. It's not really that I have that much less time, it's just a matter of doing what is important to me. Work really only takes up 50 hours per week if I include travel time.

While I was on vacation, I re-discovered a music group which I thought were not together. They are a UK band called The Prodigy and I can't stop listening to it. Back around 1997 I saw a performance by them on TV and was thoroughly impressed. I remember the camera panning the crowd which was a massive sea of arms being thrown up in unison, to the beat of the music -- it gave me goose-bumps, so I went out and bought their then current CD. Shortly after that, they broke up and I never heard anything about them again until a couple of weeks ago.

I had decided to look up The Prodigy on the internet and found that they were still together and had done quite a few new albums since their apparent break up. I went and got their latest CD called Invaders Must Die and was very impressed. They have put out some very good music, the kind that I really enjoy and now I am hooked. The reason that I didn't know they were back together and still producing music is because they are a UK group and get no press in North America. I'm glad I did a search on them.

Camping Trip

Well, I won’t be posting for a couple of days because the kids and I will be camping at Goldstream Park. I am so happy that all of them are coming this year. Last year Kyle was in Summer school and Eric was busy with his friends; Laura was the only one who came with me. It was a good trip and we had a lot of fun, but this year I have them all once more, just like when they were younger.

Happy Anniversary

Happy Anniversary, Blog. We’ve hit a bit of a landmark.
Three years today, I made my first post on this blog. I can hardly believe that it’s been that long already. I never imagined that I would find so much to write about. It’s been a wonderful journey so far and I don’t intend to quit anytime soon. I’ve written about my family, my animals, work, writing, my garden -- well, you can see for yourself in the list at the side. Each post has been a little peek into my life. I was a bit afraid to begin with, making all my life events public like this, but it’s not really as bad as I thought -- if people don’t know me, they are not going to care about things in my life and won’t bother with it.

I have thoroughly enjoyed blogging, it’s actually just a public journal of my life. I have tried journalling before but it never lasts very long, I get bored with it and find a hard time seeing what the point of it is. Not so with my blog -- sure I’ve had some dry spells and maybe haven’t written for a month or two, but I always come back to it. It’s one of the things that I can find comfort in doing, just for the sake of doing it.

3D Movie

Yesterday Susan wanted to get some cleaning done, so she sent me and Laura out of the house for a while. We decided to go and see a movie. Laura decided on Ice Age 3D. I have always wanted to see a 3D movie so I was quite excited. It ended up being pretty good for a kids movie, even though it had that annoying Ray Romano as the main character.
((NOT everybody loves Raymond, in my opinion it’s right up there with Friends, King of Queens, Seinfeld and all the rest of them for that matter)--(end of sit-com rant))
Laura and I ate a bag and a half of popcorn -- something about popcorn at the theatre, I just can’t stop eating it. We also had an ice tea and peanut butter and jam M&M’s (only in theatres), which were pretty good. After the movie was over went to Starbucks for a treat and had a nice visit. Lastly we went shopping in a book store at the mall, where Laura bought herself a book.

The new Harry Potter movie will be out soon and Kyle asked if we were going as a family, because we have all seen the earlier ones at the theatre -- as a family. That made Susan and me feel very good, that our seventeen year old still wants to see a movie with us. Hopefully Eric will go as well. It's good to know that our kids are not to embarrassed to be seen with us, some of the time anyway.

Please, Sign My Guestbook

I’m coming up on three years of blogging and I don’t really know who I’m writing for except myself, my wife and a couple people who’ve told me. What I am asking is that you take a moment and sign my guest book, I would really love to hear from you. There is a link above my profile at the side, which will take you to a site that holds my guest book. If you are shy about writing something on a public site like mine, there is a private option so that I am the only one who can see it. I would also love to hear comments on what you like and dislike about my blog and maybe some suggestions of what you would like me to write about. This would be a great service to me and it may be just the type of motivation I need to stay consistent with my posting. Thank you for stopping in and taking a look at my blog.

Olfactory Memory

When I was two years old, I lived in an apartment in Prince George with my parents. I have some strangely vivid memories of that time, even though I was very young. In one of these memories, I was playing at Janet and Doug’s apartment (my parent’s friends who lived down the hall) with a boy named Duane. The two of us were running around the coffee table in their living room when Duane fell and broke his forehead open on the table. Some time after this I was driving my Tonka Mighty Dump truck up and down the hallway. Some people came into the hall and one of them was carrying Duane. I remember that he had a bandage on his forehead and they were saying that he was going to be fine. I don’t recall if he got stitches or not -- I’m sure I wouldn’t have known what stitches were anyway. What I do remember very clearly was an odour. There was a smell in the hallway that was very strong to me and very distinct. I couldn’t tell you what it was, or even describe what it smelled like as I know of no similar aroma.

I was out for my walk the other night and I ran into exactly the same odour as I detected in that apartment hallway in Prince George almost thirty-eight years earlier. What it did was trigger all the memories I had of that time. I stood there on the quiet street, walking in circles, trying to get a better whiff and pondering the fantastic systems we incorporate in our bodies. It occurred to me that the aroma could be a combination of different odours, which is why I have only run into it once or twice in my life. Maybe it is a combination of some spices cooking in someone’s meal, mixed with the scent of a candle, or the smell of a flower -- it’s impossible to say. The only way I’d be able to tell what the odour was, is if it were in the air and someone recognized the aroma and could identify it. Short of that, I’d say it will remain a mystery to me for the rest of my life.

Garage Sale

It’s been a busy day! We had a garage sale from nine until three today. It was a perfect day for it, weather wise. We spent half the night and getting all the stuff ready for sale, sorting and pricing. Laura made signs which I put out early this morning. Lots of work, but it was fun. We had missed the newspaper to put in an advertisement, so we went online and put ads on UsedVictoria and Craigslist -- lots of people use those sites so we figured we’d be safe.

I’m now going to offer some friendly advise: Always put an ad in the newspaper for a garage sale! We ended up with four customers and one very sad little girl who was counting on selling a lot of her stuff to make some spending money. Lesson learned.

We are going to have another garage sale in a week or two, but this time we are definitely going to put an ad in the paper!

Week One

I’m so glad that football has started for another season. I watched three of the games this week and was thrilled. The best one was yesterday, BC at Saskatchewan, even though BC lost. I have to hand it to the Roughriders crowd, they really came through for their team in the end. Kyle watched the game with me which was so nice. I really miss him playing, he was so good at it.

It always seems like such a long stretch from the end of the Superbowl until the CFL season starts again because football is the only sport I watch. To me it is the ultimate game. Every other team sport seems to be chasing something around the playing area, man on man in a team effort, trying to get a score. Football is different, more like a war. There are two teams trying to gain ground. Each play is a battle in which teams are trying to strategically outwit the opposition, to gain the most ground possible. I love it! It also seems that with every game I watch, I learn something new. There’s nothing else like it.

Now that the CFL has started, it won’t be long until the NFL has their first game. Each league has their good and bad points, but football is football, and I love watching my teams (BC and New England) no matter how they are doing. I would love to make it to a live game, that would be so much fun! One day.

Deuce's Progress

We have had Deuce now for almost seven months and we have noticed a few things. Remember, he is a rescue dog and was around two years old when he came into our lives. He had and still has issues. He accepted us right away but whenever we tried to leave the house it was a fight to keep him from bolting out the door. Now when we have to leave, we just tell him to stay and protect the house and he doesn’t try to escape.

Feeding time routine he learned right away, after all, he has to do what he’s told to get his food. I make him sit and wait for his food until I say “okay”. Then, and only then is he allowed to approach his dish to start eating. If he gets impatient and tries to get his food before I say the word, I take the dish away and we try again in a few minutes. That doesn’t happen very often anymore. One other benefit of the feeding routine was establishing hierarchy. Deuce was “herding” Laura because he figured he was above her in the family chain. I got her to feed him and then take his food away, play with it and then give it back to him. Guess what? No more herding issue.

Walking him has always been a challenge; he’s a puller. We tried a regular collar but he’s very strong, so we moved up to a choke chain. What he did then was just choke himself for the whole walk, stopping to cough and sometimes barf much too often. Next I considered getting a pinch collar but when I went to buy one, they wouldn’t sell it to me -- they only sell to trainers. They did however suggest a harness where the lead attaches to where the breastbone is. This seemed to work for a while but I noticed that Deuce was getting sores under his front legs because he was still always pulling. I tried a few different arrangements of wrapping the leash around his torso and legs and finally found something that works. I use the harness, wrap the leash behind his front legs, up across his chest and around the side of his neck. This way it does not restrict his movement unless he pulls and then it squeezes his front legs together, stopping him. Now he is to the point where I sometimes can walk him without wrapping the leash around and he stays right beside me. Once he pulls a couple of times though and tries to get ahead of me, I wrap it around once more. He’s getting better all the time.

He has a few toys which he loves to play with but his favourite is a squeaky bone. I’ve found that it’s better than treats for training him. He loves us to throw it for him, either down the hall or up in the air where he catches it almost every time. I started telling him to lie down before I would throw it and now I just have to snap my fingers and he drops to the ground, waiting for the release. When I throw it down the hall from the living room, I put my legs out between the couch and the love-seat so that he has to jump over them. So much fun! There is a down side to this game though that I have to break him of: he gets pushy if he wants to play at an inappropriate time. He squeaks his bone repeatedly in our faces, dropping it in our lap, trying to make us play. I’ve started taking the toy away to let him know that he’s not in charge and that it’s time to play only when I say it’s time. He’ll learn.

One thing we’ve really noticed in the last week or so is that he’s wagging his tail a lot more, noted by objects being knocked over much more often. That is a very good sign I think. It means that he is really getting comfortable with us and that he’s accepted us as his family, knowing that we’re not going anywhere. It’s a great feeling!

We’ll never know what he went through before he came into our lives but it’s a gift to know that we are making a difference in one dog’s life who didn’t have a very good start. He still has issues with strangers in our house and usually has to go to the balcony when we have company. He is almost over his fear of cars and motorcycles when we are walking. He’s almost used to the idea that he’s not allowed to chase cats, squirrels, bunnies and deer. One day he may be able to ride in the car without panicking the whole time. He’ll always have the scars and the broken tooth, but those physical wounds are just reminders to us of where he came from and that he’s happy now. He is such a blessed addition to our lives and I’m happy that we found each other.

Sunset, Pylon & Deuce

Last night when we were walking, there was not a cloud in the sky and it was so warm. Usually when I see a sunset, there are at least a few light clouds to make the whole sky light up with colours, but not so last. As we walked down one of the streets along our current walking route, I had to stop and take a few pictures with my phone, although they didn’t turn out as I’d liked. It's too bad that I didn't have my digital camera with me! The sun had set and the skyline was a beautiful magenta, the likes of which I’d never seen. It made me wonder at the beauty and the majesty of our earth and how we take so much for granted. Of the pictures below, the first one is untouched and the second was my attempt to try and duplicate the colours of the scene. It didn't work, though I did my best, so you'll have to use your mind's eye. Imagine the colour along the tree line as a deep magenta and the sky above purple, turning into a deep blue. I really should start taking my camera on our nightly walks.




While I’m on the subject of my nightly walk with Deuce, I’ll describe a something that happened a couple of nights ago which made me laugh. When we started our walk, we passed a large orange pylon on the side of the road. Deuce looked at it curiously as we walked by the first time. On the way back, I stopped beside it to let him investigate but he wouldn’t go near it. I coaxed him but he still refused to approach the pylon and when I touched it and made it move a bit, he jumped back as if it was going to attack him. I stood it upright and he seemed less apprehensive of it and approached with caution. He kept jumping back as he was sniffing it, which was funny because there isn’t anything else that I can think of that he’ll back down from. I decided not to push the issue and we walked away; he has enough issues without me helping him to create another.

Moleskine X Three

I recently wrote a blog about my Pocket Mod notebook. That idea has since gone by the wayside, as I received for Father’s Day a new Moleskine notebook. It is a very small, 6½ by 10½ cm that fits perfectly in my pocket. Now I have three Moleskines: a large one for a journal or hand written stories which I will later transcribe into my blog; a medium sized one for hashing out thoughts and ideas or personal discoveries; and now the small one for story ideas, websites, schedules and little bits I want to remember. Now I always have a Moleskine with me and sometimes all three. There is something about writing in a quality notebook, with a quality pen which makes what I write a bit more important, not like when I write with a cheap pencil on a scrap piece of foolscap that I will only do in an emergency.

Pumpkin Flower

I was in luck today when I looked in my garden and saw one of the pumpkin vines flowering. I grabbed my camera right away so I could get a picture before it wilted. The flower is not as big as the first one, but at least you can see it in its open state.

Happy Canada Day!

Yesterday, Laura and her cousin Samantha had plans to go to the movies but changed their minds to instead work on a Canada Day project. They went to the mall and bought a couple of white t-shirts for a deal at $2.00 each. They also bought two red Sharpie felt pens and spent the evening decorating their shirts for Canada Day. They each drew and coloured a red maple leaf on the front. On the back they wrote a bunch of things that are uniquely Canadian or invented by Canadians. The end result was something which cost around five dollars total and better than anything they could have bought.

Garden Pictures

I took a few pictures of my garden yesterday and things are coming along nicely. I was a little disappointed when I took the pictures though. The third pic below shows a pumpkin flower which was huge in the morning but shriveled up by the time I took the shot. I'll try to catch a picture of another one and post it.

I have had to steer a couple of the pumpkin vines to keep them off the sidewalk. Other than that, they are not doing too badly. I can't wait to see the pumpkins actually start growing.

One of the lily's finally bloomed and it is such a deep, dark colour, very beautiful.

Bubbles

Last night we had birthday cake for Kyle. Laura had made up goodie bags for her brothers and herself. In the bags were squirt guns, parachute men and a bottle of bubbles each. They all opened up their bags and started blowing bubbles. Deuce thought it was great fun chasing them. He would bite them in the air (just as he does with flies and wasps when he'd outside) and lick the carpet when they would land and disappear. He didn't seem to mind the taste.
Susan took some pictures of the event which I have posted below. What fun!

Bathroom Door Fiasco

The other night while I was out walking Deuce, I got a message from Susan telling me that our upstairs bathroom door was accidentally locked with no occupant inside. Normally one would be able to unlock a bathroom door with a nail or a bobby pin, but the fools who lived in our unit before us had changed all the door knobs. The doorknob in question has a key lock and we don’t have the key. This was a problem.

We checked the window from the roof outside but it was locked so, not wanting to damage the door, I went onto the internet to find some information on picking locks. I found what I needed and spent some time making some homemade tools (you can find virtually anything on the web if you know where to look -- scary). I spent close to an hour trying to pick the lock but the tools I made were not strong enough to do the job. Time to explore other options.

I removed the moulding from the door frame with a pry bar and then tried sliding a kitchen knife between to release the latch. This didn’t work because there is a small cylinder at the back of the door latch which locks it when the door is closed. Frustration was setting in and I was not worrying so much about damage anymore.

I slid the pry bar between the door and the frame to see if I could open it that way without breaking anything, or not. It worked! I managed to apply enough pressure for the latch to clear the door jamb with minimal damage. My next job is to buy a new doorknob for the bathroom and install it before this happens again.

Walking With Deuce

Every day I take Deuce out for at least two good walks, one in the morning and one at night. If I happen to not have to work, we may go for three or four, but the minimum is two. The first place we go for each of these walks is Memorial Park because that is the only place he does his business. If I am running behind in the morning and we don’t have time to go to the park, he will wait until the evening to take care of business -- I try to never let that happen though. In the evening we usually go for our walk between nine and ten, so at this time of year it’s just starting to get dark out. I switch up the routes regularly; sometimes we go to the ocean or through different neighborhoods.

The last few nights we’ve been going through Highrock Park as part of our outing. When we get there the sun has set but the sky is still light. When I look at the trees from the field in the park, they are dark against the sky. To my surprise I saw a few bats. I wasn’t sure what they were at first but one flew very close over my head and I could see the shape of its wings. It was very cool. I don’t ever remember seeing bats in the wild before. I do remember visiting Crystal Gardens in Victoria, before it was shut down. They had a bat room where one could go and see all kinds of different species of bats. That was very interesting but it’s so much better to see them in their natural habitat.

Another funny thing that I want to share about one of our walks the other night is what I call the plastic bunny incident. Deuce is crazy about deer, cats, bunnies and squirrels. If he happens to see one while we are walking, he whines and pulls on the leash, wanting to give chase. I correct him and usually walk in a different direction to try and break him of his obsession. This time however, I had to let him investigate. It was dark and we were almost home at the end of our walk. On the other side of the road there was a small dark figure which looked very much like a black bunny just sitting there. I saw right away what it was and when we got to the “bunny”, Deuce was quite embarrassed to find that it was a plastic plant pot. I laughed and we continued on our way. The next couple of nights the pot was still there and each time we walked by, Deuce still had to investigate.

There are so many things such as this, that I get to experience because I am out walking with Deuce. We are so blessed to have him in our lives. I am reminded that he was the one who chose us and not the other way around. When we entered the pound yard, he walked right up to us, ready to play. From that moment he was ours, or rather we were his! David Aird's Blog: New Family Member

Pocket Mod

There are two things with which I am never without and they are my pen and a small notepad. If I ever need to write something, I am always prepared. I used to buy the small coil notepads, but by the time I was half way through them they were destroyed, which seemed a waste to me.

A while ago I discovered a website to make a notebook out of a single piece of paper. It’s called a Pocket Mod. Here is the site: Pocket Mod Link. You can customize what you want on each page which is very cool. It is eight pages and fits right in a back pocket without any bulk. By the time it’s filled, it’s still in pretty good shape and then it’s time for a new one. There are planner pages and calenders, games and reference pages; a very handy tool.

I found that I wasn’t using it very productively though and it was more a plaything than a writing tool. I decided to just use a blank piece of paper and fold it into a blank pocket mod that I could customize myself. Now I have a tool I can use.

Once the mod has been in my pocket for a day or two, the front and back cover can’t be written on clearly with a pen, so I write a quote or something inspirational on it. I then also put a strip of scotch tape along the spine, this holds the whole thing together a little longer. On the inside pages I write my work schedule and the rest is for my notes and thoughts.

One other thing I do is I write everything in Dwarf Runes. This way, if I ever loose my Pocket Mod, my thoughts and ideas are safe. It’s also interesting to see people’s reaction if they happen to see my Mod, or see me writing in it.

Garden Update

I spent a couple of hours today in my garden which was horribly overgrown with pumpkin vines. I moved some plants around and pulled a lot of weeds. I also pulled a lot of plants. I saved three of the pumpkins for people who wanted them and took out about ten more, leaving seven in the garden. If they get too out of control I'll pull a couple more. I just have to figure out some way to steer the vines as they grow so that they don't cover my other plants and flowers.

It was a lot of fun playing in my garden. I didn't get to plant one last year and I missed it, it's such a relaxing task.

I took a few pictures with my phone tonight and then fixed them up with my photo editor. I should have just used the camera but these pictures are good enough I guess.