December 25th

Am busy visiting relatives, attempting to find WiFi hotspots and trying to stay out of cell phone black zones, nursing the second cold of the trip, but have found a few quiet minutes to say Merry Christmas to all and I hope Santa found your house last night.

The Nutcracker

Our local dance school put on a performance of The Nutcracker.  To get into the Christmas Spirit I went to the Yukon Arts Centre and saw the performance this afternoon.  I am always amazed at how much talent there is in the Yukon.  The performance was excellent.  This year we were privileged to have a talented dancer, Cesar Corrales, a young dancer that starred in "Billy Elliott".  Per Wikipedia:  "Cesar Corrales began his professional dancing career at age four when he appeared in a Royal Winnipeg Ballet production of Madama Butterfly.

Corrales received a small dancing role in the 2004 film Shall We dance?

In 2008 Corrales won first place for gymnastics at the Coupe Quebec. In the same year Corrales joined The National Ballet School of Canada.

After successfully auditioning for the part of Billy Elliot in 2009, Corrales began his run as Billy at the Ford Center for the Performing Arts Oriental Theatre in March 2010.

After the Chicago production closed in November 2010, Corrales was transferred to Toronto to begin the production there as Billy beginning February 1, 2011.

Corrales appeared in the part of Billy Elliot for the final time in the Sunday May 1, 2011 matinée performance at the Canon Theatre in Toronto, Ontario.

Corrales has since returned to his home in Montreal where he is continuing his ballet training."

[edit]

It's Christmas

No need to say anything else.

Saturday Night

Saturday night and the girls went to the local pizza bar in Riverdale, Epic Pizza.  I think this place is what Riverdale needed as it was beginning to get packed by the time we left.  Good food, good drinks, good company.  What more could you ask for?

December 3, 2012

Minus 43 C with the windchill ....  brrrrrrrrrrr

Hip Hop

And continuing on this theme, SR has friends who own the studio in the video below. All you fellow dancers who may do hip hop, watch ... so much fun ... and Kayla, since you did hip hop perhaps you can teach me some when I am in your home town.

Let's Dance

I told SR that in the new year I'm going to be learning (hopefully) some hip hop so here is the video he showed me. Wow!

My feathered friends

 I wondered where my little Bohemian Waxwings were ... and then they arrived today.

Cool Facts

• The name "Bohemian" refers to the nomadic movements of winter flocks. It comes from the inhabitants of Bohemia, meaning those that live an unconventional lifestyle or like that of gypsies.
• The Bohemian Waxwing does not hold breeding territories, probably because the fruits it eats are abundant, but available only for short periods. One consequence of this non-territorial lifestyle is that it has no true song. It does not need one to defend a territory.

Once the berries are gone, they will continue on their way south.

Winter again

Our first cold snap is just beginning.  Driving to dance class yesterday, my car registered -25C.  This was a good reminder of things to do to get ready for the cold weather.  1.  Methyl hydrate in the gas tank on the next fill   2.  Put cardboard in front of my radiator  3.  attach the extension cord to truck so I can plug in the block heater if need be 4.  carry extra warm clothes in truck in case of breakdown - of course I already have my winter tires on and winter-grade oil in the truck.

When it is cold, the sky is beautiful.  The above photo is driving into town along the Hamilton Road extension.  I always marvel at the clear crisp colours.

 Then along the South Access beside the Yukon River the fog rises off the water that is  not yet frozen giving the river a mystical appearance.

Just outside the window of the dance studio we watched the young children playing in a snow heap, oblivious of the dropping temperatures.  Oh to be young again.

On the way home I was reminded of what the dropping temperatures mean to a vehicle - seats as hard as rocks and square tires.

I had to smile this morning as I drove into town.  The temperature dropped a bit more to -31C and there was a Raven sitting on the top of the only lamppost that was lit.  What they do is sit on the light sensors blocking any light from entering and consequently the light goes on.  There the raven will sit to absorb any heat that is coming off the electrical light.  Smart smart birds.

SKYFALL

Monday is a good night to go to the theatre in Whitehorse.  No line ups, you get your pick of seats (I have watched a movie with 6 other people) - in other words, none of that weekend packed-house stuff. Well, not with this movie.  It was difficult to find an empty seat once the movie began.  And all for good reason.  Daniel Craig plays a superb Bond - James Bond ... And Javier Bardem's role is worth the price of the ticket alone (I hear both are possible Academy Award nominees - and with good reason).  The story pulls much from previous Bond movies, is excellently filmed and of course who doesn't like to hear Adele sing the theme song.  This movie is long - 143 minutes, but the time goes by so quickly you don't notice its length.  I saw it on Monday and, yes Nancy, I will go with you again on Thursday on your return (if you haven't already seen it in YVR).  My rating:  8 Stars out of 5 !!!

www.bobsleigh.ca

If you haven't been keeping up on cousin Joe's blog, his son Joey Nemet is now a member of the Canadian National Bobsleigh Team.  On Joe's recent blog, he posted photos of Joey and his team mates.   In the photo above, Joey is 2nd from the left.  They are now travelling around the world honing their skills.  

Europa Cup Team

Taylor Austin (Calgary, AB)

Sam Giguere (Sherbrooke, QC)

Ben Klepacki (Boston, MA)

Chris Korol

Joey Nemet 

Justin Wilkinson (Calgary, AB)

 The Europe Cup and America's Cup race series are the development level circuits for the newer teams. These races allow the teams to gain experience and earn the qualifications needed to compete at the World Cup and World Championship level. In addition to the senior World Championships, athletes under the age of 26 can compete in the Junior World Championships.

Snow Snow Snow

We had a mini blizzard last night.  I'll tell you it was no fun shovelling the driveway this morning.  SR & Brooke are driving the Alaska Highway and of course I am trying not to worry about them.  Lily and I went out for a walk this morning, but as I was breaking trail, it was a slug for me.  Lily loved it, leaping in and out of the drifts.

This his one of her favourite spots in my house.  The window is just the right height for her.  Right now she is watching the grader and loader clear the snow off my street.

Christmas is coming

I know it sounds too soon, but our Christmas Fairs have started.  I think they started early this year to get the crowds in before Spruce Bog, which is the huge annual fair.  So we poked around though didn't see too much worth purchasing.  

One was held at the Yukon Inn.  The second one at the Gold Rush Inn.  Then out for coffee and a chat with friends.  

America

It's gettin' cold outside so I'm inside watching movies. Here is a Sean Penn/Kid Rock slant on American politics:

Thoughts of Gordie

Walking past the window this afternoon I spotted two spruce grouse wandering around my backyard.  Even though I moved into the city, I am apparently still very close to the country.  They brought back fond memories of Gordie Grouse who lived by me when I lived Country Residential.  Gordie would beat his chest all night long trying to attract a female - night after night after night.  I do not think poor Gordie was ever successful.

Caleb

Caleb says HI to MJT !!

October 11 (10-11-12)

30 years ago, on October 11, a new little boy entered this world.  (Wow, that was 30 years ago!)
So to celebrate, dinner included his favourites - chicken paprikas and apple pie (unfortunately for mom, cake is not his favourite).

Even though he was feeling under the weather, he had enough steam to make a wish and blow out the good-luck candle.

At the end of the night he left with his new coat and his favourite girl.

Skiff of Snow

As I ALWAYS said, the first skiff of snow that stays on the ground comes on October 11th.  How do I know this?  It is SR's birthday of course.  The snow began falling late this afternoon.  By tomorrow we should have 1 to 2 centimetres - that is a light dusting of snow - or, as we northerners say, a skiff. And, I do believe that the snow is here to stay.  I went to the dictionary so I could prove to those that live in Ontario that SKIFF is an actual word, but what I found was:  "small boat"  --- no mention of a "dusting" so I went to another dictionary, then another dictionary ...  well, you get the picture.  Then, thank you Bill Casselman for this: (and P.S., I love the title "rare and delightful"; oh and PPS:  we northerners don't use that saying)

RARE and DELIGHTFUL SNOW WORDS

Skiff

Canadian Prairie Saying: Ain’t but a skiff of snow to dust a gopher’s arsehole.

A skiff of snow in Manitoba and the Canadian West is a light snowfall, a gentle powdery dusting of snow. It is probable that early Scottish immigrants to western Canada brought the word with them, for it is still a familiar dialect word in Scotland where it means a light wind, a misty rain or a modest flurry of snow.

A State Flower

And now that I have composted my flowers, I see these tiny blooms appear.  The seeds were from my trip with Kristin to Alaska a year ago fall - Forget-Me-Nots are Alaska's state flower.  I planted the seeds in the spring, then forgot I planted them.  Perhaps, as they are late bloomers, that is where their name comes from.

Autumn

The berries are plump on my Mountain Ash.  Soon they will all disappear in a whirlwind of Bohemian Waxwings.

FOR Dawson

Oh Dawson, here is another use of Gangnam Style - you're not the only one that likes it:

E.coli

Following is the list from the Canadian Food Inspection Agency with regard to the meat that must not be ingested.

"The CFIA is warning the public, distributors and food service establishments not to consume, sell, or serve the beef products described below because the products may be contaminated with E. coli O157:H7.

The affected products are associated with the same XL Foods manufacturing dates of August 24, 27, 28, 29 and September 5, 2012, as the previously recalled ground beef products. The trace out from XL to secondary and tertiary distributors, manufacturers and retailers could result in a large number of affected products over a wide range of codes and dates."

Please go through your freezer and do not eat anything that is on this list.  The CFIA advises us to throw out the meat on this list (although that doesn't sound too safe either, does it?).  Below is the link to what we must NOT eat and this list is LONG.  Be safe!

http://www.inspection.gc.ca/english/corpaffr/recarapp/2012/20121001e.shtml

Thinking of Dawson

Cannot look at this without thinking of Dawson.

October 1

 I wasn't kidding .... YUCK!

October 1

The snow flakes are falling.  Hopefully they will not stay on the ground.

Hayley's New Song

Today is the day that you can purchase Hayley McLean's new song on iTunes - That's When You Know. If you haven't seen her video for this new tune, here it is:

A Short Trip

 Jumped on Air North (Yukon's Airline - right Kristin??)  and headed south to Edmonton to shop shop shop and visit visit visit.  Accomplished both I might add.  Had a good chat with an old work buddy on the trip south.  It's always fun to sit beside someone you wish to catch up with while flying.  The time passes so so quickly.

Dawson is now in Grade 7.  He is attending a Sports School and was just accepted onto the Volleyball Team.  He practises every chance he gets outside his house.

Little Jenny came shopping with me the first day but I'm certain found it quite boring as she just followed me and then waited and waited. She was very patient and good humoured about it (although the second day I shopped by myself).
Had a successful trip and a good visit.

Gold Diggers

Want to read a good book on the Yukon Gold Rush of 1897-8 ??  Gold Diggers by Charlotte Gray.

"This is the story of the Gold Rush through the intimate lives of six extraordinary people: the saintly priest Father Judge; the feisty entrepreneur Belinda Mulrooney; the struggling writer Jack London; the imperious British journalist Flora Shaw; the legendary Sam Steele of the Mounties; and the prospector William Haskell. Brilliantly interweaving their stories, Gray creates a fascinating panorama of a frontier town where desperados, saloon keepers, gamblers, dance hall girls, churchmen and law-makers were thrown together in a volatile time."

That from Amazon.com and a good summary of how the book was written.  A very enjoyable book.

Peace

Watched a program on TV tonight that was in support of teaching 1 million school children in the USA transcendental meditation.  At the end, Ringo came on and sang some songs, then Paul came on and sang some songs then they both got together.  It warmed my heart to see the remaining two Beatles playing together on stage and they both remembered John and George.  So good to see them together.

The following poem was read:

A Poem of Unknown Origin

May everyone be happy

May everyone be free of disease

May auspiciousness be seen everywhere

May suffering belong to no one

Peace

Learning Something New

 I PVR a lot of my shows now on TV - cannot stand all the commercials which I fast-forward through, or don't have the time to sit and watch when a particular show is on - I find it very handy.  The one I am currently watching is  Charles Darwin and the Tree of Life on TVO.  I have to say some of these shows introduce me to things that I have never in my life thought of.  These two photos are a case in point.  The flower above was shown on this program.  It was called the larges flower in the world - and it does look pretty large.  Here is what wikipedia says about it:

Amorphophallus titanum (from Ancient Greek amorphos, "without form, misshapen" + phallos, "phallus", and titan, "giant" ), known as the titan arum, is a flowering plant with the largest unbranched inflorescence in the world. The titan arum's inflorescence is not as large as that of the talipot palm, Corypha umbraculifera, but the inflorescence of the talipot palm is branched rather than unbranched.

Due to its odor, which is reminiscent of the smell of a decomposing mammal, the titan arum is characterized as a carrion flower, and is also known as the "corpse flower", or "corpse plant" (Indonesian: bunga bangkai – bunga means flower, while bangkai means corpse or cadaver). For the same reason, the title "corpse flower" is also attributed to the genus Rafflesia which, like the titan arum, grows in the rainforests of Sumatra.

But when I googled largest flower in the world, the flower above came up.  Rafflesia arnoldii is a member of the genus Rafflesia. It is noted for producing the largest individual flower on earth, and a strong odor of decaying flesh - the latter point earning it the nickname of "corpse flower". It is an endemic plant that occurs in the rainforests of Sumatra Island, Indonesia. But then the same species (Arnoldi) also has reported to be found in Gunung Gading National Park, Sarawak (East Malaysia). Although there are some plants with larger flowering organs like the Titan Arum and Talipot palm, those are technically clusters of many flowers.

Rafflesia arnoldii (Indonesian: padma raksasa) is one of the three national flowers in Indonesia, the other two being the white jasmine and moon orchid. It was officially recognized as a national "rare flower" (Indonesian: puspa langka) in Presidential Decree No. 4 in 1993.

So, two of the largest flowers, both vying for the name corpse flower, both indigenous to Indonesia... 

something I have never before even thought about.  Thank you TV.

Cremation

While driving into town today I was listening to a person being interviewed on CBC radio.  She had attended a Trade Show.  This was a Trade Show on cremation.   She said that in Vancouver, about 85% of the (dead) population are cremated.  She spoke of the coffins on display, headstones, the specially created bags for those wanting their ashes to be spread into the sea (you deposit the bag containing the ashes on the water - the bag sinks and biodegrades and the ashes scatter underwater). But the creepiest thing of all was a company that will take about 1/3 of the cremated ashes and through various processes, make a diamond for you which can then be mounted in a ring or whatever you wish ... cost from about $3,000 to about $20,000 depending on what you wish.  Just perusing the website below, I can see there are a number of things one can do with the dearly departed such as fingerprint jewellery, putting ashes in a scattering machine, or in a birdhouse in which birds can nest.  I guess with the number of elderly in this day and age, this may be a wise business to get into.  We all have to go somewhere and like this interviewer said, "it is not if, but when".  If you are feeling a bit morbid, here is the website:  http://www.cremationsolutions.com

The other day I also heard another unique idea for the dead.  Turn your ashes into a tree.  A biodegradable urn with tree seeds can be planted and one day your ashes will help spawn a living tree.  Interesting.  Want to do that, here is a website:  http://bigthink.com/design-for-good/this-awesome-urn-will-turn-you-into-a-tree-after-you-die

So many choices ...

Weather

Our weather forecast (above) for tonight and tomorrow morning ...  hmmmmmmmmmmmmmm

Skagway

Skagway, Alaska ... September 7, 2012.  Not a day for strolling the streets or marina.  A good day to eat a hearty lunch at the Thai restaurant, StarFire.  Excellent red curry with rice!  If you Toronto people come back north (and I suspect you will be coming perhaps in June of next year, per my crystal ball) I now have three restaurants that we can eat at AND ENJOY the food in Skagway.

We knew the weather was not forecast to be very good, but it has been a while since we were last there and all needed something from the coastal town.  Our list:  wool, wool sox, smoked salmon and glacial soap.

On our drive home, the road kept getting closer and closer to the clouds.

We passed the US Customs office and made our way towards Canada.

The summit was pretty socked in but once on top there was no where to go but down and thus out of the clouds.  Still rainy all the way home so no wildlife.  Perhaps next time we go it will be sunny.

We wished for better weather as this was the day for the start of the Klondike Trail of '98 International Road Relay - Teams of up to 10 runners compete in this overnight relay starting in Skagway, Alaska and following the Klondike Highway past the Southern Lakes region, finishing in  Whitehorse - a distance of about 100 miles.  It is always a better event when it is not raining and close to 0 degrees, but rain or shine, the road relay goes on.  Want more information, here is a link (hint page 12-15 gives the course description):    http://www.klondikeroadrelay.com/race2/raceinformationguide.pdf

Marigold Hotel

Saw The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel last night in a theatre (I won't say 'filled' as on a Wednesday night our theatre is never filled, but there WAS a respectable showing) of white haired viewers ... mostly all women but did find 3 men, which we first guessed came to the movie because they were 1.Gay or   2. To hook up with a woman their age... and then their wives (??) joined them.  Yes, this is a movie that attracts the retired crowd.  But look at the stars.  That is what attracted me.  The story is about individual British pensioners allured by an advertisement of a newly refurbished luxury hotel for "the elderly and beautiful" in India.  Of course, when they finally arrive, it is not quite as charming as the advertisement showed but they all do find charm in other ways.  The movie was fun!  We laughed out loud and could definitely relate to a lot of the circumstances that the cast found themselves in or have passed through.  And a lot of the lines in the movie had real meaning for me ... you know, those things you have learned in life but have to be reminded every once in a while, as well as new ones like "everything will be alright in the end, so if it is not alright, it is not yet the end".  I'm not sure how a teenager would rate this movie but I am certain that from middle age and up, you would find it entertaining.  And like my friend pointed out no one was shot with a machine gun or blown up and yet we thoroughly enjoyed it.  I give it 5 Stars.

Rock Collecting

 On my way back to the highway I stopped at a small turn-out (to pick up another rock).  It was on the Fish Lake Road around the final descent.  I followed a trail to see where it lead and behold, a whole new vista opened up for me.  Funny how I had travelled that road every day for 10 years and never stopped to find this trail.

The yellow wild flowers were brilliant agains the green of the mountain side.  

But, watch your step.  This is the root of a tree clinging to a rocky outpost.  Had I tripped on that, it would have been the first and last time I would have feasted my eyes on this beautiful scene.

Last Days of August

Yesterday it rained all day.  Perfect for me as I was fertilizing my lawn and digging up a garden and planting some perennials.  On my way to visit Gramma (and visiting Dianna) this morning I could see that it is that time of year - the rain is white now on the mountain tops.

While rock collecting - did I say I am making a wee rock garden area?? - I took a few more photos of the surrounding mountains.  I must say the day turned out beautifully and tomorrow we are suppose to reach 21 degrees!!  Yea, considering it is golf night tomorrow!