It's so pink, it burns.

I decided to spend New Year's Day starting a job I've been longing to start since before I moved here. Tearing down ugly wood paneling. For those of you who didn't have the privilege of visiting before...


Just so you understand. The entire upstairs, with the exception of one wall in the living room, the kitchen and the bathroom was covered in wood paneling. But! No more. I started with the hallway. which was time consuming, as there were lots of little sections and trim to remove. But what a difference. The walls are white, and opened up the tiny little hallway so much. Once that was done, I started to tackle the kitchen/dining room. We could tell from a couple of places where the paneling was pulling away from the wall that it was pink under there. But neither of us were prepared with how pink. It's Pepto Pink, and burns my retinas when the morning sun shines in.


But again, it has opened the space up so much, it blows my mind. I'm super excited to fix up the walls, and start painting.

This Year's Travels in Review

Since this blog is geared to be a travel blog, I guess I should review the places I have been in 2008. As with last year, I'll likely miss a few places. One place I used to visit, has now become home, while home has become a chicken-with-no-head chase around the city to do a mountain of errands after a full day at work and still try and get home before too late.
So, here we go!

Toronto
Los Angeles/Anaheim
Singapore
Park Valley - a million times, except that I live here now. Did you know that it even has a GPS location? right where the store used to be, so many years ago.
Saskatoon - the wild goose chase. Kind of surreal that I occasionally long for the lonely country roads while sitting in rush hour traffic.
Moose Jaw
Regina
Brandon
Winnipeg (to transfer from a plane to a bus to Brandon. I was on the ground long enough to make it count)
Manitou Beach
Nesslin Lake
Morin Lake
Honolulu, Hawaii

This year's travels also added a couple new airports to my list of layovers. Ok... I guess just one, I was in LAX last year.

Saskatoon
Calgary
Edmonton
Vancouver
LAX
Singapore
Hong Kong
Toronto
Winnipeg
Minneapolis
Honolulu

2009 already promises a trip to Toronto and Panorama, and we're even hoping the BC Coast. Can't wait to see what the year holds.
Happy New Year everyone!!

You might still be a city girl if...

1) You think your house should have curb appeal instead of road appeal.
2) Your first inclination is to walk to the neighbours. Not because you need the exercise, or want to save fuel, but so you don't have to find a parking spot.
3) You pace the produce aisle, longing for good fresh fruit and veggies, hoping you never forget what it really means.
4) You close your living room blinds at 6:30 in the morning, so that passing traffic doesn't see you doing your pilates. The cows might laugh at me!
5) You forget that you don't have cell service in most places in your house, and lose what precious bars you do have every time you touch your phone. For real. We only get minimal service at the far east side of our house. We literally have to lay with our heads on the head board under the window to get just 2 bars for any amount of time. For better luck, put it on speaker mode and DON'T touch it. 96% coverage in the province my behind.

Tales from the Farm

Strange Noises from Within

Yesterday, I decided to treat myself to a delicious chocolate chip banana muffin for my morning snack. As I’m closing the container, I hear “Auld Lang Sign” start to play. It’s soft, but sounds near, and quits before I can discover the source. I start to think it was like the time I thought someone was knocking at the door, but no one was there and I thought I was when it turned out to be a wood pecker, I think that Errol has left his phone in the house, or a neighbour has planted a signing toy, to try and drive me insane.

After trying the cell phone, and not hearing it ring at home, I search the kitchen, the suspected location of the music, and come up empty handed. Dejected, and thinking I really am going insane, I give up my search, and return to work. Puzzled and bewildered.

That night, just before supper, Errol was thumbing through our mail, and tossed some onto the table. Again, the mysterious "Auld Lang Sign" music starts up again. I had told him about it at dinner time, so when it happens again (and he hears it) we frantically looked around for the source. Again, it quits before we can find it.

Very mysterious. At least I don’t have to worry that I’m losing my grip on reality. Or at least, if I am , that there’s 2 of us, and we’ll lose it together. We’ll become that crazy, eccentric wilderness couple.

Hours later, we're sitting in the living room watching TV, and it happens again. Errol races for the kitchen, ears peeled for the source of the sound. This time he acutally finds it. Turns out, it was our clock/thermometer/calculator pen holder that is in the kitchen. The battery was dying, and as a means of signifying the end was near, it was singing that classic New Years song to us. Rather clever way to remind one to replace the battery, if you ask me.

Candy Happy, Happy Candy

'Tis the season for sugar highs.

What do you hunt?

I hunt flies. I stalk them in my house and swat them whenever I get a chance. There were times during the summer when 50+ flies would be buzzing between the screen and closed window in my office. Gross. A couple of times I got high after I tried to “Raid” them… so I tried to limit the number of times I used the Raid can.
I also hunt dust bunnies, and quickly deal with them before company comes over.

Errol; he hunts for real. Around the beginning of September, he started watching the hunting channel every chance he got. Between him and my brother, I have learned more about hunting in the last year than I ever thought possible.
Last night, Errol popped in “Where Legends Roam”, a video diary produced by “Big Buck Magazine”. I thought it was going to be just another hunting video so I kept myself busy with some housework. Then this delightfully soothing music came on, so I sidled into the living room. I quickly realized it was video that the magazine’s editor had captured over a number of years while on the hunt for the perfect pictures for his magazine. I had to sit down and watch it, it was so interesting. All sorts of shots of bulls, cows and fawns (mostly deer, though some moose and elk), captured during all seasons, over a number of years. I learned more about ungulates in those 79 minutes than I have all year.

Did you know that deer, elk and moose shed their antlers every year? I had no idea. Have you seen the size of the elk antlers hanging in my living room? They are almost as tall as me! Errol said they often find shed deer antlers in the field, and have even found them wrapped up in hay bales.
And did you know that the antlers are made entirely of bone and can grow up to 1 inch a day?
Deer antlers aren't too heavy, but a big elk or moose racks can weigh 30+lbs. Imagine walking around with 30 extra lbs on the top of your melon, and still stand up straight.
And that the antlers grow in pretty much the same pattern each year, getting bigger and bigger with each year? Who knew?
As you can tell, I’m totally floored by these new facts.

Just another day in paradise

My northern prairie paradise. It's another gorgeous fall day at home. Oh yeah... I'm home, been since Tuesday. Thanks to some unseasonably warm October weather, I haven't had a tough time adjusting since returning from Hawaii.

I had a wonderful visit with my friend and her husband. We did lots of driving, shopping, a little touristy stuff and some beach time. Not as much as I had wanted, on account of sunburning the bottom half of my legs. I was so diligent in applying and reapplying sunscreen to every part of my body, except that part of my legs, and therefore burned them. Thankfully not badly, so they quickly turned to a tan. But really. I should know better.

Highlights:
1 - 5 days of visiting. That was the best part of the trip.
2 - the scenery. I can definitely see why so many people go there for holidays and honeymoons. The water is incredible, the weather is perfect, and the beaches are great.
3 - Swap meet shopping. If you're going to Honolulu. Skip the expensive souvenirs at Waikiki, and head to the swap meet every Wed, Sat and Sun from 8-3 (unless there is a football game). Gifty stuff is like 50-75% cheaper there, and the people bargain, and are way more friendly.
4 - submarine tour. it was really neat. We went up to 110ft below the water, and saw all sorts of fish, turtles, barracudas and wreckage. Definitely worth it, though way more fun to go with someone else.
5 - The North Shore - home of Oahu surfers, pineapple fields (though not so much any more...) and Matsumoto Shave Ice. yum yum.
For the first time in a really, really long time. I got homesick. I'm glad to be home again.