Castlegar Fire- 2021
Sometimes smoke really does mean fire. And in our case, it was an ‘interface wildfire’ that came within about a kilometre of our new home on July 1 of 2021.
(more…)The day to day aspects of life: what is happening around the house and in our family
Small Treasures
Irene has been sorting through a collection of paper items from the past several decades. Maybe this should have been completed before we moved. But it is surprisingly time consuming, and I don’t blame Irene for deferring it.
A lot of this material is freighted with emotion. Letters from friends and family who have died or who are estranged from us for various reasons. Cards and keepsakes… it is hard to let go of those, but for the most part we must. But we also allow ourselves the luxury of preserving a few such items. Like this hand-made card my friend Chris sent us…
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Covid Thoughts
Today I received the first of what should be two vaccinations against COVID. This has caused me to give some thought to how I got here, and what the world has gone through during this first pandemic of the 21st century.
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Spooky Relics…
I have gone several days without really enjoying the area I now live in. Work and personal errands get in the way: but really, that’s an excuse.
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The main house from the front yard
Country Home
Irene and I have moved to Castlegar from our home in Surrey. And as of today, our old home is ‘sold’ (although the possession date is later in June).
Above is a picture of our new place, and the rest of the body of the post explains a bit more about our relocation process.
(more…)Adding an e-Bike to the garage
It has been snowing a lot here in Cloverdale the past week or so. This naturally leads me to start thinking about Spring, from which follows feeling out of shape, and somehow mumbly-jibbly-brain stuff bicycling.
Bicycling is something I used to do out of necessity. From about six years of age, I always had a bike: and from about 15 onward, including that time I failed to get a motorcycle license when I was 18 or so, I ended up using said bike to get to places I wanted to go without having to use a bus. At times, I rode a lot: hundreds of kilometres a season, which it bears mentioning was a rather short season as I was living in Edmonton at the time. I used to like riding a bicycle quite a lot, actually: like riding a motorcycle, it was a mentally ‘focused’ process that led to a kind of zen state when I was in decent shape so that the mechanics of riding weren’t to physically challenging.
NOT AN EBIKE- Similar model to the bicycle I bought in 2015: same brand (Achielle)
A few years back with those memories in mind I bought a ‘city’ bike with the idea that I could use it to enjoy being outside a bit and get back into shape. What I didn’t count on was just how incredibly out of shape I was/am. I carry a good 40-60 pounds of ‘excess’ weight: pure fat. And that bike darn near broke my heart: I couldn’t make it up any of the hills in my neighbourhood. And one day trying to ride along while Irene (my wife) rode her horse was a complete impossibility. I ended up getting off the bike that day and never getting back on. So why am I buying a bike again this year? Read on…
I CPAP, U CPAP, we all CPAP…
I have had an interesting year or so for me in terms of health. Strange pains and fear of tumours culminating in discovery of damage from a couple ’silent strokes’, tiredness and increased depression leading to a finding of extremely low testosterone: aging sucks.
My testosterone treatments have been helping a lot with my low energy, but when my doctor asked I had to admit to still feeling exhausted most days. This led to a sleep apnea test, and discovery that I have a rather severe problem with, well, breathing rather poorly while I sleep.
Bane: he has some breathing problems too
My strange medical journey continues: ‘Roids, statins, and brain holes
I have holes in my brain. As I discussed in my previous post on this topic, the next diagnostic planned was a CT scan with contrast, and the analysis is back in.
Brain hole: not exactly as illustrated…
A Series of Unexpected Events: My Strange Medical Journey
First it was a sore nipple…
It all started with a sore nipple and a lump that I noticed in May of 2018. Why do men have nipples anyway? It is the very definition of ‘useless’, starring in phrases such as ‘like tits on a boar’. But we guys have them, and sometimes things go haywire as they did with me. But the nipple wasn’t the real problem… therein lies a tale.
Words of wisdom on choosing a career… not so easy, actually
My brother Ron and his two daughters, Rebeca and Sophia, visited a couple of days ago. We had a barbecue and some good conversation: I really enjoyed the visit.
My niece Rebeca is about to enter high school, which is amazing in itself. More amazing is that she asked me for some advice on whether pursuing computer science / IT was a good choice. I tried to share some ‘wisdom’, but I found it surprisingly difficult to give good advice. This is a crazy old world, and who knows what the future holds? So I thought I’d post some of my thoughts here in a bit more detail.
