A Courageous Woman

I was devastated by the news of the assassination of Benazir Bhutto. She was a hopeful sign in an otherwise chaotic and repressive country. She was educated at Harvard and Oxford and was an anomaly in a country where few women enjoy freedom or education. What kind of a world do we live in where a woman is killed for speaking of truth, justice and equality? They killed her father in 1979 and now she has also paid the penalty for daring to speak out against the injustices in her country and in favour of democracy.

The government of the tyrant, Musharraf, was quick to blame the Taliban and Al Qaeda. But the government stood to gain from her death because her party was very popular in Pakistan and she was leading in the campaign for the January election. Remember, this is the same Musharraf who responded to the rape of a woman by a military captain by accusing the victim of prostitution.

Whether it was the fundamentalist Muslims or the dictator, she was killed by men because she was a woman who dared to stand up for her beliefs. She was a courageous woman and the world is poorer for the loss.

No one is free when others are oppressed. ~Author Unknown

Turkey Day, Cherry Winks, Reeking Lum, Honour Wall

Hello all in blogland. It's been sixteen days since my last post. Sorry, sorry, sorry. I have been busy. I moved into a larger apartment in the same block. I worked many of those days and I prepared for Christmas. Yes, I do celebrate a secular Christmas. For me the best part has always been the family get-togethers.

I had 6 for turkey dinner on Dec. 25. It was a lot of work, but worth every minute. Here for the festivities were darling daughter and her splendid spouse, sister and spouse, son-in-laws parents. We had a wonderful traditional turkey dinner and a lovely bottle of pinot noir. I lit a candle for those whom we were missing and put his stained glass creation in the window. It was wonderful to be in a bigger suite, where I could accomodate seven people for dinner. I made a toast such as he would have made: Here's to good food, good wine, and family.

One surprise package sent from Winnipeg was a gift of home-made cherry winks and Swedish Christmas cookies. Thanks a huge bunch to great friend Pat. I received many terrific gifts, too numerous to mention, but I love all of them. Many, many thanks to all the friends who sent cards and emails. Lang may your lum reek. (Old Scottish saying: Long may your chimney smoke.)

My new suite has 650 square feet and a great view of English Bay and the mountains. I am looking forward to many more opportunities to host social events. Little hint to any friends from afar that are thinking of visiting me - there is to be a new guest suite here at the block available to family and friends of residents for a mere pittance compared to hotel prices. I don't know when it will be finished, but I will keep you posted. So start planning your Vancouver getaways.

I spent a few minutes rereading the Prairie Dog Blog from December 2004. Had a little cry. I can still hear his voice when I read his blog. His Christmas remembrances are there and the cutest little touching story about a group of little ones he took on a tour through the Western Canada Aviation Museum in December 2004. How he loved life. How I miss him.

I got an email from the Reh-fit Centre. They have finally put up the memorial plaque I requested on the Honour Wall. See picture at the top of the post.

Take care...and TATA...and PEACE.

Honour A Life, Festival of Lights, Remembering Him

It is amazing to me that it was almost two years ago that Dennis died. I feel as if I have lived two lifetimes, one with him and one without.

Last night we went to the Van Dusen Botanical Gardens for the Honour A Life ceremony. It began with music and a slide show. The music was touching and made me cry. We wrote messages of love to our missing ones on Christmas decorations (plasticized cards). We lit candles and went in procession to one of the trees in the garden where we hung our Christmas decorations on a tree. I had also printed up some pictures of Dennis, my mother and my brother and we added those to the decorations. The procession through the garden wound among the lighted trees that they call The Festival of Lights. The lights were fantastical. Some of them changed colour. Some were wrapped around tufts of grass on the ground. Lights played on a fountain. It was indescribably beautiful, like some wonderful fairyland.

The Prairie Dog would not have been happy to hear the references to god in the program. Just because it is "non-denominational" doesn't make it inoffensive. He would have been offended. But I was happy to be there. Many of my bereavement group friends were there and my daughter, son-in-law and sister. It is good to be able to share our losses in community. So I ignored the religious references.

But, in order to be all-inclusive there should be no mention of religion or god in the program. I am an atheist and a humanist and proud of it. Atheism is not just a lack of religion. It is faith in the present, faith in nature. It is faith in the ability of human beings to love and take care of each other. I do not believe in anything supernatural. There are wonders enough in the natural world for me. And wonders enough created by humans...like the Festival of Lights.

I don't know whether I will have time to post more entries this week because I will be quite busy between work and moving. But on December 16 I will remember. I know many of you will too. This video doesn't really relate to this festive time of year, but it is him, so here it is.

Dennis Ousey June 14, 1947-December 16, 2005

He was a man who loved controversy, practical jokes and family.

LD Party, Moving, Timmy's Is Comin' To Town

Here is a picture of me and two work friends at the London Drugs Christmas party. We had a lovely roast beef dinner and the view from the 31st floor of the hotel was fabulous.

I have a couple of pieces of good news. Well, they are good news to me. And I need good news right about now.

The first is: I am moving into a larger apartment in my block. It's just down the hall and so the transfer will be relatively easy since we won't even need the elevator. It will happen over the next week and by Christmas I should be settled into my new place. Details on the address will be in email to all my friends and family soon.

The new apartment has 600 square feet! Every room is bigger. More cupboard space in the kitchen. Bigger living room. Bigger bedroom. I will have room for a dining room suite. Wow! And I have a view of English Bay. I can have a "Fireworks Party" next summer. For those who have never witnessed it, there are fireworks displays four evenings in the summer and thousands of people descend on the West End to view them. They are spectacular.

The other good news is: there will be a Tim Horton's in the store front of my block! I emailed the company and told them there were store fronts for lease here and told them they should get a Timmy's at this end of Davie Street. The building managers told me a few days ago that T. H. signed a lease. Unbelieveable! I looooooove my Timmy's coffee! And muffins, and donuts and soup and sandwiches.... Yahoo. Heaven on earth! I may never cook again.

Now, if I can just get some storage space in the block so I don't have to store 20 boxes in a storage locker...well, we can't have everything. We need something to work towards.

Tata...and take care...and PEACE.

Peace is not something you wish for; it's something you make, something you do, something you are, something you give away. Robert Fulgham

Loved Ones and Slushy Snow

It's been a while since my last blog but my heart hasn't been in it lately. The Christmas season is a tough time of year for anyone who has lost a loved one. The anniversary of his last hospital stay is approaching.

On Monday, Nov. 10 Margot, Joel and I will be attending a ceremony to "Honour a Life." There will be a candlelight parade and the attaching of his name to a tree. My sister and her husband will also be there. There are other family griefs to acknowledge also. Our mother, our brother, Papa (my father-in-law) my sister's brother-in-law and my son-in-law's grandfather. Everyone has suffered losses.

Our mother died on November 26, 1990. Our brother on September 7, 1999. See pictures. I have those two pictures because he scanned them into a computer. Thanks to the old Prairie Dog.

Work at London Drugs goes on. I am grateful for the opportunities to keep busy and keep my mind off grieving for a few hours. One bright note: I won a $50 gift certificate from LD.

The weather here has been weird. For the last two nights it was slightly below zero and it has been snowing. Now it is zero and there is lots of slushy snow. Even though it's snowing people carry umbrellas. They do call this "Raincity," don't they? Tomorrow the prediction is for + 11 degrees! 4 mm of snow and people don't want to go out! I am told the Skytrain can be brought to a halt by a little snow on the track. Strange. This is like a very nice winter day to me.

Love to all. Especially those grieving a loss. My heart is with you.

[A] final comfort that is small, but not cold: The heart is the only broken instrument that works. ~T.E. Kalem

LD, Wrinkles, Elvis and Learning

The Prairie Crocus is still enjoying working at London Drugs. Not enough hours yet, but as we get closer to Christmas, the hours will increase. I am learning new things about cosmetics companies and not all of it is good. Some companies make outrageous claims for their products which are easily disproved. Many of them have "scientific evidence" of the efficacy of their products on their websites. Someone should tell those companies that a report paid for by the company is not scientific evidence, no matter how many dermatologists sign the report. If it's not published in a bona fide professional journal, it isn't valid science. And, of course, a healthy skepticism is warranted for any website. Any fool can create a website. Or a blog! Even a transplanted prairie crocus!

That being said, there are still some cosmetic products that can improve the skin. Most of the good ones contain ingredients that have been around in one form or another for hundreds of years. Madame Dubarry was known for her skin softening milk baths. But none of them can take away years of neglect or sun damage. Not one of them will get rid of deep wrinkles. As one ages, one's skin gets old! To all you young women out there: the number one skin ager is the sun. Forget the suntan. It's a baaaaaad thing. Stay out of the sun as much as you can and use sunscreen and your skin will stay more beautiful longer. Oh, and don't smoke. That's the number two ager of skin. Not to mention its other deleterious effects. If you are not afraid of lung cancer, be afraid of wrinkles! Although she quit ten years ago (it's never too late) the Prairie Crocus is still suffering the effects on her face of smoking for many years. Be wiser than I and you will look younger.

Last Friday the Crocus went to see live theatre with her sister and sister's husband. The play was called "Bathroom Humour." It was a farce set in the 1980's. Remember the big hair with the teased up bangs! The big shoulder pads! The parties fueled by alcohol and chemicals! Yes, it certainly brought back memories. The play was quite enjoyable. There was even an Elvis impersonator. Hilarious.

In keeping with her belief that learning never stops, the Prairie Crocus is going back to school. She is going to study "Teaching English as a Second Language" at Vancouver Community College. The course runs from the middle of January to the middle of February, all day, five days a week. After that the Crocus might just be looking for a part-time job teaching at a language school here. And, who knows, maybe even going for short term jobs overseas sometime in the future. But I plan to keep my job at London Drugs. For a while at least.

I am going to Victoria tomorrow for the rest of the week. Visiting my mother-in-law (89th birthday tomorrow), and brother and sister-in-law. Should be fun.

Bye to all. Tata...and take care...and Peace.

Wrinkles should merely indicate where smiles have been. ~Mark Twain, Following the Equator

Remember, Coen Brothers, Workin' At the Drug Store

Remember the veterans today. We owe them for their sacrifices.

The Prairie Crocus is enjoying working at London Drugs in the cosmetics department. The other people who work there are very friendly and welcoming. We certainly get some colourful customers. There is one man who came in the other night about a half hour before closing. His clothes are all too big for him and were held together with huge safety pins. He dropped the names of the former manager and current manager of the cosmetics probably to establish that he was harmless. Then he proceeded to talk my ear off about global warming, the weather, the windstorm last year, his father taking up Spanish in his later years, living in a foreign country. It was random and non-stop! I was pretty much a captive audience. Lotsa nodding and smiling on my part. There should be a bonus for dealing with boring customers!

Last night I went to the restaurant where my daughter works and had my usual halibut dinner. Great! Then we went out for a couple of drinks after she was finished work. I'm hoping to have my fabulous daughter and her talented husband over for dinner tomorrow.

I went to see "No Country For Old Men." The Coen brothers were up to their usual tricks. Just when I think I've got them figured out, they do something surprising. It was a very dark thriller. Tommy Lee Jones' performance was terrific. I'm thinking Oscar nomination. Javier Bardem also did a great job in the character of a cool killer. But this movie was not one of my favourites. I found the ending unsatisfying. If you like the Coen brothers you might like this one but I caution those who don't like "weird" movies.

Got to go and get ready for work. I work today from 5:00 till 10:00. I'll be getting double time as it's a statutory holiday! Woo hoo! Keep well.

In war, there are no unwounded soldiers. ~José Narosky

Flu Shot, Transplants, Turning back Time

I went to my doctor's office to get the flu shot. Why are there so many sick people in doctors' offices! I probably picked up a few new germs from all the coughing and hacking.

While I was there I was reading a local newspaper called Metro. Here are the headlines from the first two pages: COP CAR CRASH KILLS 2 and VGH(Vancouver General Hospital) SCORES PERFECT 10 WITH TRANSPLANT RECORD. Tears came to my eyes as I realized those two stories were related. Two young men in their twenties died as a result of a high speed crash with an RCMP car that was responding to a call about a suicidal woman. In the second story, surgeons performed a record-breaking 10 organ transplants in a 24 hour period. The hospital, of course, can't reveal who the donors of the organs were, but I think one quote from the story clinched it for me: "... the hospital was pressed for time because organs from the two donors could only be stored for a few hours." So, there was grief and sadness for two
families and happiness and relief for ten families. Too bad the happiness depended on someone else's grief.

I passed my "drug test" with a very good score. I begin my first shift at the London Drugs store this afternoon. Where else could I get a job in which I could chat with people all day about something I like and get paid for it? And only a block from my apartment! Whoopee!

My darling daughter and her handsome husband return from their holiday tomorrow. Yeah!

One of my nieces is moving into a new house in the Courtney area of Vancouver Island and starting a new job. My brother-in-law and sister-in-law are helping her get unpacked. All the best in the new house!

Here it is, a new month already! How time flies! Don't forget to turn your clocks back tomorrow night. We gain an hour. What will you do with yours?

Every day is an opportunity to make a new happy ending. ~Author Unknown

Drug Test, Something Fishy, Radar Trap

I am now an employee of London Drugs. I just spent two days in training. I go back on Friday to write the exam. I guess one could call it a "drug test." Oooooohmigosh....how long has it been since I last wrote an exam. Too far back to remember. But this is one drug test for which one can study! Got three days to study up a storm. I wonder if the instructors take bribes...

Saturday I start my first shift at the London Drugs a block from my apartment. How great is that! I can walk to work and be there in two minutes. Woo hoo!

My darling daughter and her spectacular spouse are on holidays in the Philipines. They are lounging on beaches and snorkeling in the ocean. I am missing them. It will be nice when they are home.

While they are gone they have left me in charge of the aquariums. Son-in-law J. showed me how to feed the fish in each tank. He has one salty aquarium with a clownfish in it. Remember Finding Nemo? Well, it looks exactly like Nemo. In the same tank are two fish that are bright yellow and saturated purple. They are gorgeous. It's fun to watch the little crab with a conch-shaped shell in that tank too. The most interesting tank is the one with the discus fish. When I arrive at the apartment I talk to the fish and when I go around the corner to look at the discus they are all congregating near the door watching for me with their mouths opening and closing. They have such big eyes and are so curious. I think they are more interested in watching me than they are in eating. The other fish dash for the food when I put it in, but the discus watch me watching them. And then, slowly they amble over for the food. I think they must be quite intelligent for fish - the Einsteins of the fish world perhaps.

I have also been in charge of the daughter and son-in-law's car and I've taken full advantage of it, driving it to work. I have noticed police with radar guns on Granville twice, but always been driving within the speed limit. Nya, nya, nya, nya, nya...you didn't catch me! I wonder if they take bribes? I have noticed one thing about Vancouver car culture - amber means: go very fast, and red means: two more cars can go. Hey, just like Winnipeg!

Friends in Winnipeg, A and J have a new granddaughter! Congrats to all. Welcome to Jin Mei. I had a lovely time at my sister D.'s on Sunday. Roast beef dinner, Canada-opoly and Wizard (card game). Dinner and entertainment. Great stuff. Happy Hallowe'en everyone!

Did you know America ranks the lowest in education but the highest in drug use? It's nice to be number one, but we can fix that. All we need to do is start the war on education. If it's anywhere near as successful as our war on drugs, in no time we'll all be hooked on phonics. ~Leighann Lord

Old Job, New Job, Georgia O'Keeffe's Message

I have given my notice at the kiosk. I am still awaiting word from London Drugs; they are waiting for the results of the background check. I'm sure they won't find anything too awful in that. I have a good credit rating and was never convicted of anything more serious than a traffic violation. They said they would be contacting my references, too. The references I gave were ones I was sure would be positive.

I took the computer aptitude test for London Drugs. Very interesting. It consisted of a Math section, a Verbal Skills section and a personality profile. The Math one was grueling. Math was never my best subject. I didn't finish the test in the time allotted either. Here's me, the perfectionist spending too much time on each question. But I passed it. The Verbal one was a breeze - well, one would hope I would find it easy. A teacher and a writer, if I don't have good communication skills...I finished that one with time to spare. And scored well.

The Social Skills section was interesting. They showed statements like: I am easily angered. I am a successful human being. People talk about me behind my back. The choices for answers are: always true, mostly true, sometimes true and sometimes false, mostly false and always false. It was pretty much what I expected, but what's up with this one? My friends have been successful in business. What does one's answer to this question have to do with one's social skills? I guess it gives a clue to how one perceives other people.

Some of the questions were a little hard to answer, like, I am easily depressed. Not really fair to a person still grieving for a major loss, but I just tried to answer that one in general. I am a pretty optimistic person and seldom get depressed if you don't count grieving.

One of the hardest things I have noticed lately, probably because I am back in the working world, is that I no longer have that one person I can count on to be there when I need a pat on the back or need to bitch about life. He was always so supportive and often provided me with a strong anchor to reality which kept me going in spite of life's little bumps. Such a loss.

I went to see the Georgia O'Keeffe exhibit at the Art Gallery last weekend with friends L and B. I noticed that Georgia survived her husband by forty years, forty very productive years. I realized there is a message there for me to take to heart. I'm trying very hard to make my life productive. Isn't it what everyone wants? To make a difference.

The exhibit was fabulous. I could go again. It is so great to be able to share it with intelligent friends and talk about the experience with them. I have heard that people see sexual metaphors in her work. Giant vulva and such. She didn't agree with that interpretation. She said she used her perceptions of nature to paint. One can find great beauty in her work without relating everything to sex. I guess naughty bits are in the eye of the beholder. I did find her work quite sensual. Her style is very feminine, with the colours and curves. She is famous for her flowers, but I also enjoyed her landscapes and later, more abstract works.

Okay, people, get blogging out there. I'm doing my share. Keep well.

I found I could say things with color and shapes that I couldn't say any other way - things I had no words for. ~Georgia O'Keeffe

Aligning the Calendars and What The Boss Doesn't Believe In

I realize it's been a while since I posted a blog entry. I have been busy with the new job. I have discovered that I am incapable of being on my feet for 10 hours without a break! Who knew! I requested shorter shifts. 4 or 5 hours and I feel the strain. And I'm in good shape for a sixty-year-old. Then I have an hour-long bus ride to get home. What a nice end to the working day! Why is it that when a person gets on the bus reeking of garlic, they always sit next to me! This often happens early in the morning. In what culture do they eat garlic for breakfast?

I often work in the morning. It is actually quite boring. There are very few customers at malls in the morning. The only excitement is the little old Chinese men who come to the kiosk an hour before it opens to ask questions while I'm trying to get set up for the day. Or the little old ladies who talk and talk and tell me their life stories. And they never buy anything. I think they are just lonely and need to come to the mall to socialize. It's kind of sad, really.

My boss has a pet peeve, a messy kiosk. If the calendars are not lined up exactly, you are not doing your job. So I spend most of my time roaming the stand, looking for that calendar that's 5 degrees out of alignment. I think I will bring a measuring tape and a level to work. it's the only way to satisfy her. Actually she has a lot of pet peeves and they seem to change daily. I am glad I changed my mind about wanting to manage, although the way things are now, we all seem to be managers. At not much more than minimum wage.

We are expected to be at work 15 minutes before our shifts. Correct me if I'm wrong, but if she's not paying us, that's illegal. We don't get breaks. We can snatch a couple of minutes to get a lunch to eat at our kiosk or take a bathroom break if we can con a security guard to babysit the kiosk. And the boss doesn't believe in chairs or stools at the kiosk.

The boss also doesn't believe in getting sick. If we are ever sick, I have been told, we have to get our own replacement! Isn't that supposed to be the manager's job? She didn't have time to set up the schedule of working hours so she told two other women working there to set it up themselves. They scheduled me in for a twelve hour shift! And when I reminded her that I had asked for shorter shifts she told me to talk to the others and settle it! Isn't scheduling the manager's job also. Oh, yeah, I almost forgot. We have no manager. The manager that was working there got sick with strep throat and, "she is no longer with us." I guess the boss doesn't believe in strep throat either. That was the day I decided I didn't want to be a manager there.

Seems the boss doesn't believe in communicating with the staff either. I had to pick up my paycheque yesterday on my day off after it had been sitting under the kiosk cash register for three days. And there was no stub to show how much tax or other deductions was taken off. So I can't even tell if she paid me for the right number of hours. Maybe she doesn't believe in paying taxes!

So, things are pretty disorganized and I'm looking for a job closer to home. I have applied to London Drugs, a block away from my apartment building. They have an opening for a sales associate in the cosmetics dept. I have experience. In the late sixties and early seventies I worked in the cosmetics dept. at Eaton's. I am hopeful that I can get in there. It would be a couple of minutes walk away and I have heard from other employees that London Drugs treats their employees like human beings. What a concept!

Gotta go get ready for work. Meanwhile I'll dream of the perfect job. Or at least a satisfactory job. Bye for now.

Remember the difference between a boss and a leader; a boss says "Go!" - a leader says "Let's go!" ~E.M. Kelly

New Job, Calendars, Jewellery, Thanksgiving

I have a new job! I will be working at a Calendar Club kiosk in Oakridge Shopping Centre. My boss, Cheryl, hired me on the spot. She said I was "classy" and "awesome." I have to agree with that. Never argue with your boss.



She is opening a kiosk tomorrow. I will be helping her set it up tomorrow and working there for a few days while she gets a store up and running at the same mall. She is considering putting me in management there. It's going to be fun. Exhausting, but fun.



It takes me about 40 minutes to get there on the bus. The Oakridge Shopping Centre is a high-end mall. There will be high sales volume there, based on Cheryl's past experience, and if I manage the store, there will be bonuses also.



I will be working a lot of hours for the first two weeks to get everything up and running, but, after that I can decide how much I want to work. It's just so exciting. My sister is going to apply for a job with Cheryl also and that would be just about perfect, if we could work together.



The mall is great. I've been there twice already and the people working there, like security and maintenance are so nice. There is a store there, Monte Cristo Jewellery, where the door is locked and you have to buzz to get in. I'm assuming most customers have appointments. They probably don't let anybody else in unless they look like real money. La-di-dah. Look out Prairie Crocus, you'll be mixing with the rich and pretentious!



I had a stroll through the Birk's Store and tried on a couple of rings. Sapphire and diamonds. The least expensive one was $2000. Not that I'll be able to afford anything like that. But I can dream, can't I? Even a cat may look at a queen.

Happy Thanksgiving to all friends and relatives. Take care.

In the business world, everyone is paid in two coins: cash and experience. Take the experience first; the cash will come later. ~Harold Geneen

Grand Nieces and Nephews, Rain, Happy October

Here are two pictures from my Victoria trip. Ben, Megan and I and Jacob, John and I. As you can see, I had a great time with all the nieces and nephews, and grand niece and grand nephews. I forgot my camera when I went to Lyn and Alan's.

I am happy to be back in my little suite. It does seem very little after the huge space I had in Victoria. Well, it is my home. I came back to three days of rain and the prediction is for continued rain for several days. It is fall, isn't it?

I have been having trouble off and on with my internet connection so a Shaw tech is coming on Monday morning. I hope I am able to upload this post.

I am back to working out at my usual location and plan to get back to dance lessons ASAP. I got myself a new pair of tap shoes, so look out, dance class, here I come!

I hope I get an answer soon to my application for a BC teaching certificate. I am anxious to start applying for a job.

Bye for now. Have a happy October and fall.

Delicious autumn! My very soul is wedded to it, and if I were a bird I would fly about the earth seeking the successive autumns. ~George Eliot

Dinner, Dinner, Dinner, Across The Universe, Dog Doo

On Saturday I went to Lyn and Alan's for dinner and afterwards his band, The Wharf Street Band had a practice. So it turned out to be dinner and a show! Great fun. I so enjoyed the music. Alan cooked pork with a cinnamon, apple sauce. Very nice. Thanks again for the invite.

On Sunday I went to David and Tena's for dinner. It was a very tasty meal. Tena made rouladen with veggies and mashed potatoes. Great gravy. I did not know how much David had travelled when he was in the air force. He's been to so many places in Europe, Africa, and Asia. Thanks for the great meal and company.

Tonight I go to Noni and John's for dinner. It will be good. John is a great cook. Noni is doing very well after her surgery. She had lost her voice for a few days, but is getting better each day. When I spoke to her on Sunday her voice sounded deep and husky.

I am really enjoying my time with the nieces and nephews. Thanks to all for the hospitality.

Yesterday I went to see two movies: 3:10 to Yuma and Across The Universe. They were both excellent. I loved ATU. It was all based on the Beatles' music. It took me right back to the sixties. With the protests, the Vietnam war, the flower children and the death of Martin Luther King. There were some interesting effects. A sort of acid trip in parts. The actors were great and good singers. I read that Ringo and Paul liked it. Kudos to Julie Taymor. I'll be buying that one when it comes out in video.

I saw a sign on someone's lawn when I was out walking: Here lies the last dog to do his business in my yard. I can sympathize. Some people are always careful to clean up after their dog, others not. I remember one occasion when the Prairie Dog saw a dog owner letting her dog do his thing on the boulevard in front of our house. He ripped open the door and shouted, "DO YOU NEED A BAG?" The startled woman pulled a bag out of her pocket and picked up the leavings. Then she ran off with her dog. We had a neighbour who would walk his dog and carry a little black shovel from a fireplace set. It still had the price tag on it. If that was visible, how much could he have used the shovel? I've been getting my dog fix at Noni's and David's. Each of them has two dogs.

I'll be going back to Vancouver on Thursday. Originally I planned to go back on Saturday, but I decided the ferry would be less full on a week day and since Mother is in the Cridge Centre, she doesn't need me to be here. I will go for dinner with her one last time on Wednesday. I'll be glad to be back in my own little suite. Thanks to G. and C. for letting me stay in their house and use their car.

Bye all.

A dog. I wonder what goes through his mind when he sees us peeing in his water bowl. ~Penny Ward Moser

Winnipegers at the Cridge, Emmys, Funny-coloured Fuzzies

Moving day went without a hitch. Mother is now a resident of the Cridge Centre. It's a lovely place and the staff are helpful and caring. The residents get lunch and dinner provided. The kitchen is managed by a trained chef who believes that they should have two different entrees from which to choose. And the food is good there. I had dinner there on Saturday after moving Mother in. We had pepper steak with rice, squash and broccoli. It was tasty. And the tiramisu I had for dessert was great.

Many of the residents play cards. There is a group that play cribbage, and since that is Mother's game I expect she will probably join up. Mother's neighbour across the hall, Archie, is originally from Winnipeg and apparently there are a few other former Winnipeggers at the Cridge Centre. So Mother is quite happy.

I went there to take her some plastic bags and an over-the-door hook this afternoon and when I left her she was happily planning all the friends and relatives she was going to call. The residents have free long distance calls in North America.

What with the good food, the free long distance calls, free Shaw Cable and internet access, maybe I should move in there! Her suite is even bigger than mine! She has 650 sq. ft. I only have 450 (and I think that's an exaggeration on the part of the building managers). Naw, I really do like my suite and besides, I moved there to be close to darling daughter.

Watched the Emmy Awards last night...TV giving itself a huge pat on the back. I watched because I'm a sucker for red carpet fashions and jewels and hairdoes, and shoes. Apparently the gimmicks the producers tried didn't work too well. The ratings were down.

The round stage: James Spader said he got the worst seat in the house (behind all the presentations). Well, with that round stage I don't think anybody had a good seat. I missed the intro with the cartoons from Family Guy singing. By all accounts I didn't miss much. I hated that stand-up comedy routine by what's his name, the unfunny comic. All he did was spit out toxic comments about his employers, the producers of the show. And another vapid acceptance speech from Sally Field. Pretty much a waste of three hours. Maybe next year I'll just watch the red carpet show and skip the awards.

Probably the most interesting comment was from the Saturday night part of the show, the "creative" awards. (Aren't acting, writing and directing creative?) It'll never be shown on prime time TV, though. Kathy Griffen said: “A lot of people come up here and thank Jesus for this award. I want you to know that no one had less to do with this award than Jesus.” Then she made an off-colour remark. The old atheist Prairie Dog would have been chuckling.

Tomorrow is "clean out the fridge" day. There are some funny-coloured fuzzies growing in there. It's time to wipe them out before they come spilling out to swallow me up and take over the world.

Tata...and take care...and PEACE.

How can you put on a meaningful drama when, every fifteen minutes, proceedings are interrupted by twelve dancing rabbits with toilet paper? ~Rod Serling, quoted in Submitted for Your Approval, Public Broadcasting Station, 1995

Il Terrazo, Zen Martinis, Retoxing, D Q, BB8

My darling daughter and son-in-law were here on Monday. We went to dinner at Il Terrazo. This was on the recommendation of niece Noni and it was a fine restaurant and a lovely meal. Then we went for a bar crawl. No much doing in the bars on a Monday night. All the sensible people were at home sleeping. Next day was hangover day. It was not pleasant. You'd think by the time I reached 60 I'd know by now...I think next time it'll just be Zen martinis.

On my actual birthday, yesterday, I spent a very quiet day. I went for a workout, roasted a chicken for supper, bought myself a new book: George, Eric and Me by Pattie Boyd. Great trashy read! The stars were retoxing even then! Nothing new under the sun, Lindsay and Brittany.

I treated myself to a sundae at Dairy Queen. Very nice. I had a phone call from my sister. Very, very nice. And my daughter. Very, very, very nice!

Mother is getting ready for the big move on Saturday. She had me packing a few boxes today. Niece Noni is having surgery today. If I don't hear from John or Lyn by this evening I will call to get the scoop. She is scheduled to go home tomorrow. Hopefully I can get out there to see her within a few days.

How are you doing Char? I think about you every time I watch Big Brother. It'll be down to the final two tonight. Who will win? Shouts out to Jack and boys, too. Even Gary hasn't been blogging very much although he has a good excuse.

Zen martini: A martini with no vermouth at all. And no gin, either. ~P.J. O'Rourke

Moving, Moving, Moving, Camping and Cruising

I have been busy in Victoria. Mother is moving into her new suite on Saturday. Niece Lyn and nephew David will be helping with that. A friend has lent his truck and trailer. I anticipate that it will go smoothly.

I went to visit niece Noni on Saturday. She and John and Jacob were cleaning and packing stuff to take to storage. They are decluttering in preparation for marketing their house. Been there, done that last spring. Isn't it amazing how much stuff one accumulates over the years!

They have bought a house in the Courtney/Comox area. I've seen pictures and it looks great. Lots of yard, enough bathrooms so that they each get their own (Noni is ecstatic about that). There is even a little shed which they plan to convert to a clubhouse for Jacob. They are moving up there the beginning of November.

I have been going for workouts every other day. I am so lucky to have found a gym that belongs to the same organization as my gym in Vancouver and they are letting me use this gym for ....nothing! It's great. I can go there as often as I like and not have to spend money on it. One of the members said that when he goes to Vancouver, my gym makes visitors pay ten dollars a visit. Not really fair, is it? I would speak to them, but I doubt it would do any good.

I went to see the movie, "Stardust." It is a fantasy about a boy who sets off on a quest to find a fallen star. Very enjoyable - just the kind of movie I love, good escapist fare.

I am also taking long walks. I went along one side of the gorge and up the other side. I was only accosted once by a street person asking for a handout. The weather has been gorgeous here. Sun, sun and more sun. But I'm not complaining. I'm loving it.

There is a street person here in Victoria who is suing the city for not allowing him to sleep in parks. He claims the law banning people from camping in city parks is unconstitutional! Against his human rights! He should be allowed to sleep anywhere he wants, including private property!!!!! What next. Will they be demanding that restaurants feed them? That retail stores must give them clothes? That citizens should be forced to let them take a shower if they come knocking on the door?

I'm reading Gary's blog and they are enjoying Italy. I am mighty envious. Take lots of pictures, Gary. Then I can live the cruise too.

A shout hello to niece Charlene. I watched Big Brother last night. It's down to the final four. Dick and Danielle, a father and daughter, Zach and Jameka. Who do you think will win?

My darling daughter and her husband are en route from Vancouver as I write. Better get back to my laundry.

Tata....and take care...and PEACE.

When you come to the end of your rope, tie a knot and hang on. ~Franklin D. Roosevelt

Lagoon, New House, Blood Test, Jewellry, Baking

Hello everyone. Not much news here. See Gary's blog for first posting on the cruise. I am sending Gary an email to his gmail address. I'm pretty sure he can access his gmail from anywhere. There's some information from the council.

We went for a drive on Monday to see the lagoon and dropped in on David and Tena to see their new house. It's very nice - big back yard, pool, hardwood floors, fireplace, neat little kitchen with glass doors on the cupboards. I can see them re-decorating and making it their own. Well, Tena, maybe. I think David would be just as happy to let her do it. He likes his computer time. The two dogs, Zach and Tyson are very friendly, big, and intelligent. David already has them trained not to go into the living room by just putting a piece of cardboard across the door! Those dogs could easily knock over the cardboard, but they hate noise, it seems, so it's an effective deterent.

Tuesday, Nana and I went to take her for her blood test and, not knowing where I was going, I followed her into the clinic instead of the lab. The receptionist soon figured out what we really wanted and directed us to the lab. Three doors down in the mall.

Yesterday Nana and I went to a jeweller's to get her watch band made smaller and to put special attachments on her rings which were loose and she was afraid they would fall off her fingers. It's always a big production when she goes anywhere. She can't walk far unless she has a shopping cart on which to lean. Then we had trouble finding the elevator in Zeller's. Then we didn't know how to get from Zeller's to the mall. Luckily the jeweller was close to Zeller's.

She thought the jeweller was taking way too long with such simple jobs and she told me she, "...doesn't trust anyone." I think she was worried that he might take off with her rings, or change the stones or something. All jobs were completed without mishap and she was glad to get done jobs that she had been wanting done for some time.

Next we had to find a dollar store so she could buy me a birthday card. Then she sent me into a hairdressing salon to inquire about prices for the different services and whether they set hair using rollers. None of this new-fangled curling iron stuff for her!

She sure is keeping me busy. Well, it's keeping me off the streets! You never know what kind of trouble you are going to get into in a strange city.

Today I made some almond haystacks and later I plan to make some biscotti. Gotta keep busy. Maybe I can outrun my sixtieth.

My grandmother started walking five miles a day when she was sixty. She's ninety-seven now, and we don't know where the hell she is. ~Ellen DeGeneres

Chez Ousey, Tim Horton, Substituting Redux, Sixty

Hello Everyone in blogland. I am now in Victoria, chez Gary and Carolyn. Great hotel, but I have to do the cooking. I don't mind, though.

I am here to keep Nana company. She will be moving into a seniors' place by September 15. Everything has been arranged with niece Lyn and some friends. I will just have to help with the packing and unpacking. I am so envious. Nana's apartment is bigger than mine! Mine is 450 sq. feet and hers is 650 sq. feet! Well, who'd a thunkit. I do like my apartment though.

Anyway, I have already been to the grocery store to stock up on some things I like. And this morning I went for a long walk to the nearest Tim Horton's. They have the best coffee. No, I was good this time - didn't have a donut or a muffin. I wish there was a T. H. closer to my place in Vancouver. Oh well, can't have everything, I guess.

I am looking forward to seeing all the nieces and nephews and their children. Although, so many of the children are moving out, going to school, etc. I plan to spend as much time as possible visiting with them.

My wonderful daughter will be coming here for a couple of days. Looking forward to that. Anyone know any good restaurants in Victoria? We will probably go out for dinner. Someone's birthday coming up. Sixty! Hard to believe. I have applied for and will be receiving Canada Pension. Whoopie! That'll just barely keep me out of the poorhouse.

I have started the process of applying for my BC teaching credential. I think I will have to do some substituting. Otherwise I will have to give up all luxuries. Can't have that!

Bye for now. Bon voyage to Gary and Carolyn on their Meditteranean cruise.

A daughter may outgrow your lap, but she will never outgrow your heart. ~Author Unknown

Money, Astronomers, Senior Moment, Wedding

Today I'm writing about everybody's favourite topic: money! My mother used to say that money was the root of all evil. She had a million sayings and some of them were even funny. Later in life I found out that the real quotation goes something like this: The love of money is the root of all evil. I suppose the idea is that one should not be greedy. But, seriously, how would we survive without money? I guess we would all have to use the barter system.

What got me started on this topic was that this morning I put my coins into those paper coin holders and found that, omigosh, my coins added up to $20.00! Wow! Well, by this time of the month I need every penny I can scrounge, so off I went to the bank to turn in my coins for a crisp, new 20 dollar bill.

I don't know about you, but no matter how hard I try, my month always lasts longer than my money. I think astronomers ought to train the Hubble telescope on my bank account because I'm sure they would find the black hole of the galaxy for which they've been searching since telescopes were invented.

Oh, Prairie Crocus, you just have to sit yourself down and have a serious talk with yourself. Make a budget! And stick to it! Stop making those impulsive purchases! Like the food you bought yesterday. Did you really need the tomato, the apple, and the 6 eggs you bought at Extra Foods? (When did I start buying single pieces of fruit?)

There. Wasn't that easy. I feel so much better.

Anyhoo, I was at the bank handing over my hoard of pennies. Then I started searching through my wallet, muttering (mild) curses and rubbing my forehead. The very nice young man who was counting my treasure said to me: "Something wrong, ma'am?"

"Yes," I said with a sigh, "I left my bank card at a store I was at yesterday."

"You mean this one?" he inquired, holding up my bank card. We both laughed along with the teller beside him and the customer beside me.

"Just having a senior moment," I said with chagrin.

Smart-alec bank tellers. The thing to do if you are caught out by a younger person when you are having a senior moment is to get very ornery and try to pass the blame on to someone else. Play the curmudgeon. To the hilt. It's what he would have done.

Speaking of greed - tonight's 6/49 lottery is estimated at 15 million! Whoopee. Now, I agree with my brother-in-law who says that the odds of winning is almost the same whether you buy a ticket or not! He is right. Still, I happily plunk down my $3.00 for the privilege of imagining for a few minutes what great things I would do if I had 15 million dollars.

In reality, I watch my little nest egg shrinking with the recent drop in the equity markets. The bankers keep assuring me things will look up. Stay the course, they tell me. Yeah, it's not your life savings. Why is it that whether the economic times are good or bad, the banks still make money?

I have been asked by my niece and her fiance to perform their wedding next summer and I am completely honoured to do it. I am permitted to do it as long as there is a BC Marriage Commissioner at the ceremony. When I lived in Manitoba I was a Marriage Commissioner, but I am not qualified here. I would like to be an MC here, but at the moment there are no openings.

I know everybody is busy with their summer activities, but come on, everyone, do some blogging.

Tata and take care...and PEACE.

Foul cankering rust the hidden treasure frets,
But gold that's put to use more gold begets.
~William Shakespeare, Venus and Adonis, 1593
(Somebody forgot to tell RBC about that!)

Queen Elizabeth, Estrogen, and Harry Potter

I went to Queen Elizabeth Park a few days ago. This is the highest point in the City of Vancouver. It was an old quarry that has been converted into a park. Isn't it beautiful? I think so. The first picture shows Mount Seymour. The second is a flower bed along a walkway. There is a restaurant called "Seasons," and a botanical garden which was not open the day I went because of the strike by civic workers. There were some children playing in the fountains near the botanical garden building. I took a lot of gorgeous pictures. I know he would have taken a whole pile of pictures and would have enjoyed the park.

I read in the paper that some scientists did some research and you'll be surprised to hear that a lack of estrogen in menopause causes women to gain weight! Any woman over 50 could have told them that. I suppose these scientists got a government grant to come up with that brilliant conclusion. What a waste of taxpayers money.

I just got the last book of the Harry Potter series. I'm going to take it with me to Victoria. I heard that some people go immediately to the last chapter and read so they can find out who dies. I'm not doing that. So if anybody out there has read the book, don't tell me how it ends...No, I'm covering my ears...La la la la...I can't hear you.

Well, time to say goodnight. Pleasant dreams, all.

Ron Weasley: Hermione, you are truly the most wonderful person I have ever met and if I'm ever rude to you... Hermione Granger: Then I'll know you've gone back to normal
(Lines from the movie Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix)

Acadians, Rush Hour, Funny Cigarettes, Hugging It Out

I have just spent the day in my pyjamas reading a book about my ancestors, the Acadians. I think one should do that sort of thing every once in a while. Then I hauled out the genealogy my aunt Evelyn produced in the 1980s. Fascinating stuff. My ancestors were deported from Nova Scotia in 1755. One of my ancestors returned to Nova Scotia after the furore had died down and re-established my family lineage. I am hoping to go to the Maritimes next fall with my daughter. We'll go looking for our roots. See how many relatives of my father we can find. Of course I have been there before and met some cousins of my father and saw some of the old places, but it was a while ago.

I went to see the movie, "Rush Hour 3," a few days ago. I like to go to movies by myself on a weekday afternoon when there are few people there. I can just sit there in the dark and enter the world on the screen. It's very therapeutic.

Anyway, the movie was amusing. It was definitely better than RH2. I think they must have hired some half-decent comedy writers this time around. There were some interesting minor characters including a French taxi driver who starts out as the stereotype of a French taxi driver and...well, I won't spoil it, but it is funny. The highlight for me was a "who's on first" type of exchange involving some Asian names. What a hoot.

The walk home was as interesting as the movie. And To Think That I Saw It on Davie Street... One feisty old lady with a walker was wearing a tee shirt that said: "No Smoking Near This T-Shirt." She was about as wide as she was tall and looked tough enough to take me two out of three in arm-wrestling. I wouldn't have messed with her for any amount of money.

A middle-aged man and woman sat side by side on a bus bench scratching matching lottery tickets. Now that's togetherness! I wonder if they would have shared their winnings equally?

As I walked past an outdoor bar I caught a whiff of some funny cigarettes. Not that I ever smoked anything like that! Oh, no, the Prairie Crocus would never do that. (You can't see my crossed fingers behind my back, can you?) Reminds me of the time I watched a man get on the bus with a lit joint. When the bus driver told him to put it out he said, "I have a license for medical use."

"I don't care if you have a signed note from the Prime Minister," the bus driver said. "Put it out while you're on my bus." So he did.

Anyway back to Mulberry Street, uh, I mean, Davie Street. I passed many professional recyclers. They make a heck of a noise trundling their shopping carts down the street. Most of the stores will only allow each customer to turn in a certain number of cans and bottles, so they need to make the rounds of grocery stores to earn their money.

I passed a man wearing a tee with "LET'S HUG IT OUT" printed on it. Sounds like a plan to me. Far superior in my estimation than fighting it out.

I missed the first part of the conversation, but as I passed two men on the sidewalk I heard one man say to another one who was carrying two large pizza boxes: "You're not faaaaaat!" Well, excuse me, but if you eat those two large pizzas by yourself there's every chance you will be. One article I read recently told BCers not to be too smug about the fact that BC has the lowest percentage of obese people. The writer was of the opinion that just meant BC people were not gaining weight as fast as other places.

Ah, Davie Street. 24 hour grocery store and drug store. This street never sleeps.

I notice none of my favourite bloggers have been blogging! Except for Gary. Come on people. I write for you. You could return the favour and let me know how things are in your little corner of the world.

Tomorrow I am having lunch with my friend, K. I am going to the North Shore on the Seabus for the first time. Should be fun!

Take care.

What is the city but the people? ~William Shakespeare

Insalata, Ancient Roma, Griffin's, Printed Noise

Why is it that salad always tastes better away from home? I can't be that bad at making salad. Yet, even when I get the same ingredients, it's never as good as the salad at restaurants. The best place to go for a salad here in Vancouver is Insalata in the food court of the Pacific Centre. They have a great selection of fresh ingredients: veggies, meats, seafood, nuts, cheese and fruit. And about a dozen different dressings. You pay by weight and you can get a great salad for about $8.

Here's a little information for all you trivia buffs. The word "salad" comes from the Latin word for salt "sal" and the Romans (world's best Latin speakers) ate their fresh veggies with a salt dressing. Another little aside. The word "salary" also comes from the Latin word for salt because the Roman soldiers were sometimes partially paid in salt which was quite valuable in ancient times. Hence the expression someone is "worth his salt." Ain't education great? The Prairie Crocus learned about that in her other life when she taught thirteen-year-olds about ancient Rome.

Another good place to go for a salad and cold buffet is Griffin's in the Hotel Vancouver. Their selection is not as extensive but it includes cold crab, prawns, pasta salad, greens, veggies, soup and dessert for $27. A bit pricier, but also good.

I went out for lunch at Insalata the other day and I noticed on my way home how young people, especially Asians, like to wear t-shirts with words on them. Mostly the Caucasians like tour t-shirts from their favourite bands or funny sayings like, "I'm with stupid >>>>>>>" Or, "I'm more of a hands on guy." There are also some racier ones, but, hey, this is a family blog. I don't want to get an R rating.

But the Asian youth like to wear either brand name tees like Hollister or Abercrombie and Fitch. I see more of those than any other brands, so they must be the height of cool. Okay, I can understand why they want to wear the clothes that tell the world how cool they are. I wonder if they realize they are unconsciously providing free advertising for those companies. Maybe they don't care, Crocus!

But I really don't understand why they wear tees on which are printed meaningless English phrases. I've seen a few, but this day I saw one on the bus: IN BORN DAYS THE SURF. What does that mean? Is it just printed noise? Is it a bad translation from another language to English? Should it be: BORN TO SURF? Or is there some aspect of the Japanese, Korean or Chinese culture that I just don't get?

And speaking of clothes and shopping, I saw a rack of clothes in the mall with a sign that said: 4.99 and up. Out of curiosity I checked. Every piece of clothing on the rack was priced at 29.99! I suppose they could have put one item on the rack for 4.99 and it sold right away, but really, I don't think so. I guess truthful advertising really is an oxymoron.

And at Sears they have a shoe sale: CLEARANCE, BUY 2 PAIRS, GET 1 FREE. How can they call it clearance when the very same shoes are there every time I go and the sale has been there since I moved here in April! That's 4 months, people. Why haven't the shoes cleared out by now? Has no one bought any? Do the shoes magically reproduce at night when the stores are closed?

I see by Gary's blog that Crocus' niece, the lovely Noni, and her lovely man John have got themselves engaged. Congratulations to you both! Happy August to all.

As advertising blather becomes the nation's normal idiom, language becomes printed noise. ~George Will, quoted in Stephen Donadio, The New York Public Library: Book of Twentieth-Century American Quotations

What is the difference between unethical and ethical advertising? Unethical advertising uses falsehoods to deceive the public; ethical advertising uses truth to deceive the public. ~Vilhjalmur Stefansson, 1964

Birthdays, Children, Philosophy

Here are pictures of our birthday celelbration at the Sandbar. We celebrated birthdays of Margot and Diana, Joel's mother. We had a lovely time. Friends of Margot's and Joel's bought us a bottle of champagne and paid for much of our meal. Merci bien, vielen dank, gracias to J., T., and M. You know who you are. It was a tasty meal. And don't we all look happy?

Yesterday my beloved daughter and I spent the afternoon together, just chatting, having supper, watching some videos. It is great fun to have such a good relationship with an offspring. My friend, L., and I were just talking about this yesterday. Not everyone is fortunate to have such a great relationship with their children. My friend was telling me about how supportive her son and daughter were when her husband died. And now she lives in one half of a duplex and her son lives in the other half. Her daughter and grandson live close, too. She said she was grateful that her children wanted her so close.

As a parent one hopes that one's children will not suffer in their lives, but it is an impossible dream. Life happens to everyone and no one is immune to pain, loss or suffering. As the old prairie dog would say, "It's what you do with what life sends you that matters."

A little touch of philosophy.

Children are the living messages we send to a time we will not see. ~John W. Whitehead, The Stealing of America, 1983

Chatterbox, Snooty Cats, Cutesy Dogs, Hairspray

Here it is seven days into August already. Time sure flies when you are having fun. Hmmm. Something tells me that is not original.

I was in Victoria for a couple of days. Jack and the boys were there. We had a great time talking with them. Andrew - what a chatterbox! I wonder where he gets that from? Know anything about that, Jack? I heard a rumour that Jack was a real chatterbox as a kid. Played cribbage with Nana and got Gary to show me how to use my new portable drive.

I also had lunch with my friend, S. He's in Victoria to attend Camosun College in September. We ate at a great vegetarian/vegan restaurant called "Green Cuisine."

The ferry ride was uneventful. That's the way it should be. No bomb scares. This time.

As soon as I got back, I hopped on the Skytrain to Surrey. I don't know if "hopped" is really the right word. Weighed down with a large suitcase and a carryall full of books I did more dragging than hopping. I was pet-sitting for my sister.

The two little canine boys were happy to see me. Buster and Dusty, two fuzzy little cuties. But the whole weekend they kept going to the front door. Looking for their master and mistress, I should think. The cats just came and went as the mood took them. They have a pet door and once or twice they graced the house with their presence. Cats are such aristocrats. They look down their noses at the world and walk on their tippy toes. They're like the high fashion models of the pet world. I guess that's why they call it a "cat walk!"

While I was there I went to see the movie "Hairspray." Loads of fun, especially John "Revolta" in drag. He did a credible job with the part, but ooo, they should have gotten a better make-up artist. His face looked as if it were going to fall off any second. The audience clapped at the end. You don't hear that too often at movies.

I also went to my friends' place for dinner. Afterwards we all played a rousing game of "Probe." Did you know that game came out in 1968? At least that's the copyright date on the Rules folder.

Now I am back in the West End and glad to be home in my own comfortable bed. Today I worked out, did laundry, dusted and cleaned out my fridge. Quite the domestic. But I am looking forward to dinner tonight at the "Sandbar" on Granville Island. It is a celebration of my darling daughter's birthday. Another year goes by.

Must be on my way. Still having trouble with my new TV and DVD player, so it's another trip to London Drugs this afternoon.

Bye all.

As every cat owner knows, nobody owns a cat. ~Ellen Perry Berkeley

The problem with cats is that they get the exact same look on their face whether they see a moth or an axe-murderer. ~Paula Poundstone

Paris Encore, Madness, Fireworks, Oklahoma

This posting will just be to catch everybody up on my activities this week. On Monday my daughter and I had lunch and went to see the movie, "Paris, Je t'aime." I already reviewed it in a previous posting, but it was worth seeing again.

Wednesday I went to a "Summer Madness Picnic," with my Walk-and-Talk Bereavement group. Everybody brought something and we all sat around, chatted, ate, drank a little wine. It was fun although it didn't quite live up to its name. The only possible "madness" was a fuzzy-haired dog being walked that was barking at us. I don't know why.

Saturday my sister and her fiance came downtown to watch the fireworks. It was the Canadian team's turn and they didn't disappoint. The show was loud and colourful. The head of the team was from Winnipeg! His company is called Archangel Fireworks. I remember passing it on Pembina Highway as I was driving home from the reh-fit centre. See, Winnipeg can be known for something other than mosquitoes.

My sister called the next day to tell me that they did not get home until 2 am even though they left my place about 11:00. The lineups at the Skytrain stations were several blocks long. Wow! I'm kind of glad I will be out of town for the other two evenings of fireworks.

On Sunday I hosted my friends, L. and B. for dinner. I made some of my world famous lasagna. Well, maybe that's a bit of an exaggeration. But it was a hit.

Tomorrow I will be getting ready and packing for a trip to Victoria. My brother-in-law from Oklahoma will be there with his two sons. I hope there aren't any delays at the ferry. There was a bomb hoax a couple of days ago. Passengers were evacuated and delayed for a few hours.

As soon as I return from Victoria, I go to Surrey for the weekend to animal sit for my sister's menagerie. Buster and Dusty are the two dogs. I don't remember the three cats' names, but they are cute.

When I get back we will be going out to dinner to celebrate my daughter's birthday.

Whew! I really am pretty busy. I may not be posting for a week, but I will be back and posting regularly.

Tata...and Take care...and Peace.

We dare not trust our wit for making our house pleasant to our friend, so we buy ice cream. ~Ralph Waldo Emerson

Bitterosity

This morning I read a great piece http://www.cbc.ca/news/viewpoint/vp_mallick/20070723.html written by Heather Mallick on the CBC news website. The topic fit so well with my last posting that I had to share. Food for thought.

Murphy, Grumbling, Strikers, Gelato

I see by the hit counter on my blog that I have had 948 hits. That's amazing considering I've only been writing it since the middle of April and it's basically being read by family and friends. This week I will probably top 1000! Yahoo! Mountain Dew!

On Wed. I went to visit my sister in Surrey and returned in the early evening. It was raining pretty steadily, but I was nice and dry on the Sky Train. The calm before the proverbial tempest. I got off at Burrard Station and walked a block to Robson. Normally that bus runs about every 5-10 minutes. I stood sheltering from the rain under a store overhang and waited for a Robson bus...and waited...and waited...and waited. I started to worry about the bag I was carrying. Murphy was on the pitcher's mound that day, because I was carrying a foil bag with two containers of gelato in it. I really like the chocolate gelato at the Great Canadian Superstore ( or as my friend, C., calls it the "Stupidstore") so I had taken advantage of my trip to Surrey to replenish my supply of gelato.

My arms were getting tired and my feet ached. Several of my fingers were white from the cold and I was shivering like someone fighting off a fever. I considered walking home. After all, I had walked that far before. But it was raining and I didn't want to ruin my leather shoes. After about 40 minutes I spotted a bus in the distance. Great, I thought, my gelato will still be edible. But Murphy stepped up to the plate once again. And hit a grand slam. The bus sailed on by. It was so full, the driver didn't stop. I said a bad word, a very bad word, a word my daughter would be shocked to hear coming from my mouth. Then, I startled the people on the sidewalk by loudly declaring that if the next bus looked like not stopping, I would throw myself out in front of it! I don't know why some of them moved away from the overhang.

After another 20 minutes of shivering and worrying about the gelato, another bus came along. I was going to complain loudly to the bus driver, but the look on his face said many others had been there before me and I decided discretion was the better part of valour. With the luck I was having that day he probably would have thrown me off the bus. I meekly took a seat and sighed deeply.

In the end, after a half hour on the Sky Train, an hour waiting for the bus and the fifteen minute ride home, by the time I got the gelato home it was like soup and I had to trash it. I could have walked home and back in the time I waited.

People can be such whiners, can't they. (Not me, of course. My complaints are completely justified.) It seems every time I get on a bus, the vitriol starts. Complete strangers assault each other with unsought opinions. The big news this week is the civic strike. The city workers are members of CUPE and they started with work to rule and have now moved to full-blown strike.

I heard some people discussing it on the bus. They all agreed that the $20 an hour being sought by the strikers was way too much. Is $20 an hour too much? Or is it a decent wage? This is a pretty expensive city. I read in the paper that the average person in Vancouver spends 70% of income on shelter. I wondered if someone had offered one of the complainers $20 an hour for a job, would they still think it was too much? People get so incensed when they think someone is getting more than they are, but I venture to guess not one of those people would have turned down such a wage. One man said they should fire all the workers and hire some out-of-work people. He'd be the first one to complain when those untrained people couldn't do the job.

Another man opined that bus rides should be free. What this has to do with the strike issue, I don't know, because the bus drivers are not in the same union. But some people have to take every opportunity to express their opinion. One woman said, if riding the bus were free, taxes would go up. At that point the debate degenerated into stupidity. The free rider said bus rides should be free with no increase in taxes. You're dreaming, buddy. To call him stupid would be an insult to stupid people everywhere.

Hey, bus riders, stop bitching on the bus. Get yourself a blog. Then you can rant to your heart's content. Har dee har.

Last night I went to dinner at my daughter's restaurant. Well, she works there! Some friends were celebrating a birthday. A fine time was had by all. Happy Birthday, Lori!

Bye all. Take care now. I'll keep you posted on the stink from the uncollected garbage!

Oh, wouldn't the world seem dull and flat
With nothing whatever to grumble at? ~W.S. Gilbert

Coffee Grounds, Tappy, Happy and Casino

I love my coffee. Sometimes I make my own. Often I go to a coffee shop. Since I now have vascular issues, and an irregular heartbeat I should not be drinking coffee. So now I usually order half decaf and half regular coffee. Shhhh. Don't tell my doctor. Of course there are an infinite number of coffee shops here in the city that never sleeps. Probably can't sleep. Drinking too much coffee.

There is the ubiquitous Starbucks. They are everywhere. There is even one corner, Robson at Thurlow, which boasts two Starbucks kitty corner to each other. The tourist buses point them out as a tourist attraction. I have heard various stories about why there are two at the same corner. The two businesses have mated and spawned several urban myths.

I counted six Starbucks on Davie Street, a street that is about 12 -15 blocks long. That's almost one every two blocks! And do they know their business! They know how to keep the customers coming back. Their people are so cheery. Their tables and chairs are inviting. Their tops never leak!

The other day I ordered my usual "tall" (which is really the smallest size) half decaf, half dark. I noticed grounds floating along the top, probably because it was the last cup in the pot. This has happened to me before but until that day I never said anything. I just drank it and picked the grounds out of my teeth. Well, this time the Prairie Crocus decided to speak up. No more Ms. Nice Gal. "There seems to be a lot of grounds in this cup," I stated firmly.

The baristo (is that what you call a male coffee maker?) peered into the coffee, made huge eyes, poured it in a sink and apologized profusely. He requested that I sit down and read my paper while he made a fresh pot. Not only did I get a grande (large) fresh cup, but he also gave me a coupon for another coffee. "I'm so sorry," he said, "That your experience here was less than perfect." Well, la-di-dah. Sounds like a prepared speech. I wonder if they have to recite The Speech back to the manager. Still, it is nice to be treated so well. And when I went back the next day and ordered my usual tall, half-decaf, half-dark, flashing my coupon, the barista said, "Keep the coupon for a special, more expensive order. This one is on me."!!!!!!! It's not hard to figure out why I keep going back. Treating the customer well: what a concept!

I am embarrassed to admit I have never ordered anything at Starbucks except coffee or hot chocolate. It just seems so confusing. Latte, cappucino, mocha frappucino, strawberry machiatto etc, etc, etc...!!!! And they all seem to be full of caramel, chocolate, and mountains of whipped cream. Oh, yeah, that's just what my arteries need.

Some people here don't ever go to Starbucks as a matter of principle. I remember a stand-up comedy routine by Ron James in which he talks about the shiny, scrubbed, cheery, uber-youth of Starbucks. He says it's a reminder of what life might have been like had we lost the war to the Nazis.

The competition includes the franchises of Blenz and Tim Hortons and there is even a locally-owned coffee shop on Denman Street called Delany's. I have sampled the coffee at all these places, and like the coffee at all of them. I used to go to Delany's most often until the day I ordered a decaf. With a sneer, the coffee maker told me, "Delany's doesn't do decaf." I got out of there before he carded me or asked for a note from my mommy saying I'm old enough to drink real coffee.

Friends of mine will only drink coffee certified as fairly traded. I tend to agree with this stance, but I'm just too lazy to ask. There's a brand here called "Saltspring Coffee," which is certified organic and fairly traded. You get to feel smug about two issues for the price of a cup of coffee.

I went to my first tap dance class on Saturday and I'm loving it. Harbour Dance on Granville; I dragged myself up three flights of stairs. Talk about the Grouse Grind! Once I got there I thought I might have to ask for the defibrillator. But the class was fun. Jennifer, the instructor was great.

After class I had a few sore muscles in my calves and my feet, but nothing requiring medication, so I think it's going to be all good. I bought a t-shirt that reads "NO TAPPY, NO HAPPY" on the back and the text on the front is: "Hit the wood!" Okay, for those non-dancers out there, "the wood" refers to the wooden floors on which one does tap dancing. I think. Although it could be interpreted as a double entendre. I think. Oh, Crocus, you are so naive.

This week the Red Hat group, the Hollyberries, are having lunch at the River Rock Casino. Row-di-dow-dow! The Prairie Crocus will be let loose in a casino!!! Stay tuned to see whether Prairie Crocus has to go out panhandling on the street.

Take care...and ta ta...and Peace.

I bought a decaffeinated coffee table, you can't even see a difference. ~Author Unknown

This coffee tastes like mud! Well, it was ground this morning. ~Author Unknown

Dance Class and An Amazing Coincidence

When I lived in the small city of Winnipeg, I used to say that I could stand on any street corner for an hour and someone I knew would pass by. But who knew that could happen here in the city where you can see palm trees and snow from the same vantage point. Granted, the snow is at the top of the mountains, but still...The world is full of the most amazing coincidences and I experienced one today.

Those of you who know me will know how much I enjoy my dance classes. I started ballet classes when I was about ten, and throughout my teenage years I took ballet, jazz and tap dancing classes. From about age 15 to about 19 I aspired to be a professional dancer. But it was not to be. I met the love of my life, my husband, Dennis, and not for one second did I ever regret giving up my dream and moving to Winnipeg to be with him. Right about now, most of you are thinking, right, but what does that have to do with amazing coincidence. Be patient, I'm getting there.

Off and on through my adult life I took dance classes. (See picture above from 1977)
I took jazz dance classes right up until my seventh month of pregnancy. So, my darling daughter, I danced you into life. In recent years I have taken hip hop dance classes and I have enjoyed them tremendously. Some of my readers have seen the video of my friend Deborah and I doing our hip hop routine. I am not a great dancer, never have been, but I think I am pretty good for a soon-to-be-sixty-year-old. Dance class was a form of therapy that helped me cope with the grief of losing my love, my husband. Dancing gets the endorphins flowing, those happy hormones of the natural high.

So it won't be a surprise to learn that I signed up for a set of dance classes. Today I put on my dance clothes, packed my tap shoes in my bag and headed off to the West End Community Centre. The woman at the Information Desk informed me that I was the only registrant for the class. Oh, oh, I thought, looks as if the class might be cancelled. Sure enough, when the instructor showed, she said she would not conduct a class for just one dancer.

Disappointed, I began to negotiate for a refund. Behind me I heard a voice say, "Catherine?!" Then I heard a scream as I turned around. There was petite, dark-haired Lena the hip hop instructor from Winnipeg. Words can't express how happy I was to see her. She was such a good teacher and it is due to her understanding of how I learn best that I was able to do as well as I did with hip hop. I knew that she had been planning to move to Vancouver and I often thought how great it would be to meet up with her here, but Vancouver is a big city and I never thought I would run into her just by chance. After hugs and promises to get together for coffee, we exchanged phone numbers and email addresses. She recommended a dance school downtown.

If I hadn't signed up for a dance class I wouldn't have been in the Community Centre at that precise time. And if the class hadn't been cancelled, I would have been in the auditorium when she went by and we would have missed each other. What a precise sequence of coincidences!

Take care, everyone. Keep dancing.

Dance till the stars come down from the rafters
Dance, Dance, Dance till you drop.
~W.H. Auden

1965, Ben Kingsley, Job Hunt

Tomorrow is the anniversary of the day I met Dennis. July 9, 1965. It doesn't seem possible that is 42 years ago. It feels like yesterday. Thanks to brother Gary I have video of us in 1965 and 1966. We were unbelieveably young and good-looking, weren't we?

Yesterday I went to a movie with my sister. We went to see "You Kill Me," with Ben Kingsley and Tea Leoni. It's a dark comedy about a hit man with a drinking problem that starts to affect his job, so he goes to AA. Much of the movie was filmed in Winnipeg and one of my friends has a part in it. I recognized the Forks and the train station and other places in Winnipeg, standing in for Buffalo. My friend Lorraine plays a member of AA, Brenda. It was a most entertaining movie. Just the kind of wry humour he loved. It's worth seeing. Congrats to Lorraine. Hope you get lots more work.

I have been out making the rounds of some retail stores on a job hunt. I decided I needed a part time job to keep me busy. One can only do so much working out and walking on the beach. I wouldn't have room for any more furniture so the assembling and painting are finished. Now that I am pretty settled in I have lots of free time. Too much free time, really! Never thought I'd ever say that.

So, I updated my resume, went to my daughter's hair stylist for a new hair cut, donned my Calvin Klein suit and boldly walked into most of the designer stores in Vancouver. I left resumes at Ferragamo's, Louis Vuitton, Gucci, Tiffany's, Holt Renfrew. Which might be a mistake. If I do get a job at one of those places, I'll probably want to buy all the things I'm selling. I'll keep you all posted on the job hunt. Wish me luck.

Tata and take care...and PEACE.


Nobody grows old merely by living a number of years. We grow old by deserting our ideals. Years may wrinkle the skin, but to give up enthusiasm wrinkles the soul. ~Samuel Ullman

A Stinky Story: Eagles, Kilts and The Decline of Hunters

News flash: there's been a sighting of a rare and wonderful pseudoscotbird in its urban environment. I spotted a six-foot-something man yesterday swaggering down Howe Avenue in its summer plummage: a kilt. Okay, that's not too bad. I'm sure we've all seen pipers or certain soldiers wearing a kilt and a sporran. But no uniform jacket, and no sporran! Scandalous. A slight breeze could have exposed his gaucheries. And call the fashion police. On his very shapely legs he sported black stockings! With seams! Now, I know what most of you are thinking - YOU'RE NOT SUPPOSED TO WEAR ANYTHING UNDER A KILT! Well, at least he was wearing shoes that were a cross between Mary Janes and those funny round-toed shoes they wore in the Renaissance. And he did have on a hat that approximated a scottish tam. Such a colourful bird!

Here's a really stinky story. The BC government is trying to encourage more people to hunt. Hunters are now an endangered species!!!! It seems over the last couple of decades, the number of registered hunters has dropped from six percent of the population to 2 percent. Well, I'll be hornswoggled, what a crisis!

And in order to "meet a provincial goal of generating 20 000 new hunters by 2014" the government is going to allow people to keep any roadkill they decimate!!!!! Jumpin' prairie dogs, I didn't know it, but formerly roadkill was legally the property of the Crown. I'll bet you didn't know that either. I'm sure most of you are just as excited as I am at the prospect of sinking one's teeth into that skunk splattered all over the highway! How in the name of holy hopscotch is that going to encourage hunting? Why would we want to encourage hunting?????

For another "stinky story" see The Prairie Dog Blog Tues. Aug. 16 and Wed. Aug.17 2005

I think they should just issue licenses for the hunting of the rapperplaying cruising adolescent and the foulmouthed pubcrawler. This city is full of them. That's a population that needs keeping down. I'm just saying.

And in other news, bald eagles are now off the endangered list. What is this world coming to when bald eagles are off the endangered list, but the government is worried about declines in the population of hunters? Well, folks, who voted these cretins into office? Don't blame me; I wasn't even a resident of BC at the last election. I feel as if I just channelled the old prairie dog.

Speaking of bald eagles, I guess the population must be up, because I saw two pairs of them this morning as I walked along Kitsilano Beach. One pair was at each end of the beach. Each pair had a humongous nest of very large sticks in a very tall tree. I hope they had a clutch of eggs. The birds were magnificent. I also saw a flicker on my walk. These species, of course, are routinely to be found in Manitoba. I remember fondly seeing bald eagles at Grand Beach, great blue herons on Hecla Island and ruby-throated hummingbirds at White Lake. We did a fair bit of bird spotting in the day. So far the only exotic birds(not seen in Manitoba) I have seen here are of the mammalian variety. Colourful birds indeed.

Summer has finally arrived in our fair city. Today it was about 28 degrees, hot and sunny. I guess that's why so many birds were out and about. My daughter and I went for pedicures in an air-conditioned spa this afternoon and we followed that up with a couple of episodes of "Sex and the City" and a glass of rose wine.

Congrats to Chelsea for her Humanitarian Award. Happy Fourth of July to our American friends. Love to all family and friends.

(Here's a bird quote to remind you of Papa - remember how he used to recite this)

A wonderful bird is the pelican
His bill will hold more than his belican.
He can take in his beak
Food enough for a week,
But I'm damned if I see how the helican.
~Dixon Lanier Merritt

Canada Day, Usual Suspects, Weeping and Laughing

Let the bells ring out and the banners fly. Canada is 140 years old. I hope you all had a happy Canada Day, relaxing and spending time with your loved ones. I went down to Canada Place at the harbour here in Vancouver. There were lots of people there, mostly families, watching an "Idol" contest but it felt lonely so I came home and by the time they set off fireworks I was in my apartment baking biscotti. My son-in-law loves biscotti, so I put some in the freezer for him.

As I write, the usual suspects are out in the streets carousing. I have to keep the window open because it's too warm, and with an extra day off this weekend the young and the restless aren't letting it go to waste. The shouting and foul language floats up to my window and is punctuated by cars roaring by, sometimes with the reverberating boom of a car stereo. I hear the occasional police car siren as Vancouver's finest make the streets safe from crime.

Although I have been fairly busy this week, spending time with my sister, going shopping with my daughter and setting up my new TV, I haven't posted anything to my blog lately because I've been a little depressed. I'm thinking my readers have come to expect some amusing tale or other, but I just haven't found much funny this week. Into each life a little rain must fall...

Take care and TATA.....and PEACE

Those who do not know how to weep with their whole heart don't know how to laugh either. ~Golda Meir

Victorian Travels, Jeanne's Cake, The Bard Rides Again

I just got back from a visit to the Victorian Ouseys. It was Gary's birthday on Thursday, so I went to celebrate with him. I stayed one day in the clubhouse near Gary and one day with niece Lyn. I took with me a Jeanne's cake from Winnipeg. My friend P. just happened to be arriving the day before from Winnipeg, so he hand-carried the birthday cake. Thanks to him, we had a taste of the finest cake in the world. Yummmmmmm. See pictures above for the brunch we had on Saturday.

Yesterday, I went to Bard on The Beach. They do Shakespeare's plays in a tent. I have been told that it is the only Shakespearean festival in Canada that is self-supporting. I think I can see why. The play was "Taming of the Shrew" and it was terrific. It was set in the wild, wild West. I wasn't sure it would really work, but it did. It had gunfights and Mexican characters, tumbleweeds and a message delivered by Pony Express. Argueably the funniest part was when a man rode in on a horse and the actors followed the sound of a horse's hooves around as it "rode" through a series of speakers behind the audience.

The character of Petruchio was introduced like Clint Eastwood in "the man with no name" of spaghetti western fame with his signature music. Sporting a six-shooter, a stetson and a striped serape, he strutted around the stage. It was perfect. His sidekick, Grumio, looked just like Gabby Hayes in one of the old westerns we boomers remember fondly.

They even dealt with the modern sensibilities of the audience by having the character of Katharine played with complexity and irony, so that her "transformation" into a dutiful wife became a realization that she could manipulate her husband into doing what she wanted by helping him save face. Without changing a word of Will's dialogue, they conveyed her cooperation and his recognition of her need for validation by having them both kneel to each other at the end. A happy, funny and most enjoyable play.

As I was leaving the theatre I saw a young girl of about six or seven telling her mother about her favourite part. A new generation of Shakespeare fans is in creation!

Oh, Will, the Prairie Crocus loves you. I think I will be watching some of my Shakespearean faves on DVD. I'm so looking forward to the next Bard On The Beach play.

I am wealthy in my friends. ~William Shakespeare "Timon of Athens"