The Big Colon

The other half of the floor was taken up with a huge Colon... gross!  It is National Colon Cancer Awareness month so we got to walk through a huge colon.  We saw Polyps, Crohn's Disease, and Cancer as we walked through the large colon.  Fun!!

Saturday Morning

 Saturday.  The kids were coming to spend the day at my house but first they went to the Canada Games Centre.  They arrived there early so there were only two other small children there in the play area when I arrived around 9:30 AM (I think it really opens around 10).  Emerson loves the riding toy.  So does Alanna  but she will only ride the PINK and PURPLE one.  There were about 5 other blue ones free but the other small person there was riding "her" riding toy so she took up a PINK ball throwing toy instead.

You can see by her clothes what her favourite colour is.  When she was an infant she made the cutest little noise that sounded like she was saying "Ning!"  So her nickname became Ning.  She is now called Pink Ning.  You can see why.

It's a great space for the kids to run around and play.  They have fun playing with their parents as well.

I loved watching them play with the BIG BALL.

On the way out we all stopped to watch the soccer game going on.

More Rendezvous

Here are a few pics, courtesy of Brooke, taken during Rendezvous.  Unfortunately this is when I still was not feeling too well so I didn't join them, but it looks like they had a grand time.

Dadda and Emerson.  Note his moustache.

And I missed Gran but she spent time with the kids which I'm sure is what she came north to do.  Note the beautiful hair pieces on the ladies!

Due to a number of reasons, my annual Oscas' Party was cancelled this year.  But I didn't spend it alone as in came some of my favourite people with pizza.  This was a perfect ending to the Rendezvous weekend.  And in case you didn't hear, Best Picture this year is:  LA LA LAND... OH, WAIT A MINUTE, THAT IS WRONG.  THE BEST PICTURE IS  M O O N L I G H T.  It is a Steve Harvey thing happening all over again.

Rendezvous 2017

Unfortunately I was feeling under the weather, so shied away from attending the events this year.  Did feel better today though so went down to my two favourite events - the craft fair (so many moose hide and fur crafts made by the first nations people -- a dying art) and the snow sculptures.  Above is Clara Jules, the mayor of Teslin (two hours east of Whitehorse).  I talked to her quite a bit.  She was saying that a lynx hide is going for $4,000.00 this year.  She almost talked me into buying the mitts you see in the centre of the picture.  These are fox fur, original price $450 and I could walk away with them for $350.  Boy was I tempted, they were so well made.    The hats, from left to right are wolverine, lynx and fox.  You wouldn't get cold in any of her products.

I also purchased Chaga tea.  Rich in antioxidants, vitamins and with great healing powers, chaga, a mushroom found in the northern hemisphere on wild birch trees, tastes good, reduces cholesterol and is excellent for the skin.  I may just be a new person after a few cups.

I loved Mexico's snow sculpture.  They build a wall and had people destroy it.  "Never again walls between people and nations".  

This one had Sourdough Sam on one side and was interactive on the other side - just slide your body into the people indentations.  Fun!

Loved this one as well.  There was so much involved in this story.

And a couple more above.  There were a lot of interactive sculptures this year.  I loved that the kids especially got involved in walking though and sliding down sculptures.  Glad I wasn't there for the voting as I wouldn't know which I liked the best.

February 24 ... movies

I'm sick!  I've had a cold for 2 months now.  Sometimes I have a sore throat then it goes away and I feel fine; then I have a cough, then it goes away and I feel fine; then I have ...  well you get the picture.  So I felt absolutely healthy since last Wednesday.  Hooray, I am finally fit.  Not so fast.  On Tuesday I started to get a head cold and by Wednesday I was flat on my back.  I slept for 24 hours.  I awoke this morning and I was able to get out of bed.  My headache was gone, my cough was better, my fever had subsided, my achy body felt stronger.  I think I am on the mend once again although my nose is still bothering me but as the rest of my body seems to be working fine I won't complain.  I am still taking it easy today (and feeling a bit sorry for myself) so this afternoon I streamed a movie.  The one I wanted "Jackie" was not yet available on Apple TV nor was "Fences" so I had two to choose from and I chose Manchester By the Sea. (Now I wish I had chosen Hacksaw Ridge).

In the first 20 minutes I discovered I didn't like nor had any sympathy for the main actor "Lee" then I met his nephew "Patrick".  I didn't like him either.  And so far the story was boring.  Now I have a two hour plus movie with two characters who are not high on my like list.  And the movie went downhill from there.  Yes bad things kept happening  but I didn't care as I didn't like the people.  I cannot believe that Casey Affleck is nominated for Academy Award.  If downcast and glum for two hours is a desired quality for an actor then I guess he should win.  And if grey and boring is a desired quality for best picture, then this one should win.  I didn't wear a watch but I kept pausing it to see how much time was left (always too much for comfort).  I give this movie 1 out of 5 stars, and that is being generous.

Now, having watched an awful movie, I do have to say the other day I watched one that I thoroughly enjoyed even though I didn't quite understand it.  It was a movie I needed to watch with someone who could answer all the questions I had.  Luckily, SR watched it and I dined with him a few days later.  He got it!  And he explained it to me.  Then I really liked it.  And this movie was "Arrival".

Firstly, it is an area I find interesting.  Secondly, I have heard a lot of linguists talking on the radio about how true to life many parts of this movie are.  Amy Adams is an excellent actress and played the part well.  Even though I left the movie with many questions, I liked it.  When discussing the movie with SR and putting the floating pieces of the puzzle in place I really liked it.  An interesting premise and well done.  I never did pause the movie (i.e. look at my watch).  I give this movie 4 out of 5 stars.  I would have given it 5 if they made it easier for me to understand.

It is February once again.  Boy, it keeps coming faster and faster each year.  Two birthdays to celebrate, so here we are at the Goldminer's Daughter.  The food was excellent, prices were good, and company was fun.  What else could we ask for!  And Happy Birthday to E.... & Nancy!

Stuck in the house for two days with this Blooming' Cold!!  So went out tonight for some food.  Coming out of Super Store, had stop for fire engines with their lights flashing and sirens going full blast.  When I went to turn onto my small street, there were the fire engines.  First I hoped it wasn't my house as they were pretty close (3 houses away it turned out) and I had to back up an use the other entrance to my street.  This was taken from my driveway.  No hoses out so don't know what the call was about.  They soon departed.

Oh yeah, you probably noticed I changed my main Photo.  I am tired of winter - it is hot then cold then hot then cold (it's no wonder everyone is sick).  I began looking for some pictures of Greece to remind people what beautiful weather looked like then came across The Hungarians ... taken at the Hungarian Day Festivities in Ancaster around about August if memory serves me well. So there you are - summer!

La La Land

Saw La La Land last night.  Considering what both Richard Crouse (one of my fave movie critics) and Eli Glasner (CBC movie critic) said, I was anxious to see this movie.  I knew it was a musical, and as I have said before, they are not one of my favourite things, but when the opening scene came and all of the people in the cars on a grid locked highway jumped out of their autos and started singing and dancing, I was worried.

This is a simple love story, girl meets boy, they are both seeking careers of their dreams in Tinsel Town, go through some ups and downs and occasionally sing and dance (I did like their tap dancing, which I have recently been drawn to).  They both had subdued singing voices for which I was glad - no booming musical numbers. I liked the cinematography and was totally surprised at the ending (I'm not telling, you'll have to go and see it yourself) and when I walked out of the theatre I was glad I went (if only to see what all the talk and awards were about).  It was a pleasant couple of hours with no bloodshed, bullets, speeding cars flipping over, children dragged from their parents and forced into slum conditions.  It was a bit of a fantasy, and sometimes that fills the ticket.  I give it 3.5 Stars out of 5.

One Onion

Was just down at the river watching some of the Yukon Quest dog teams as they took off.  It was -20 with a wind chill and I was dressed for town as I wasn't expecting to be there.  When my toes chilled, I left.  On the way home I bought an onion - one red onion.  Cost = $1.00.  No wonder my grocery bill is so high.

They're Home!

The family returned from holidays this weekend.  First, a couple of weeks in Mexico, then a week in Vancouver.  It was a big trip for the little ones and they fared well.  They saw a tiger named Duke(at their hotel in Puerto Vallarta), held a parrot and stroked a crocodile.  What an experience.

Once home, they got into "cooking" once again.  They made me a very hot pot of something that I had to blow and blow to cool off before I could eat it.

Emerson is an expert cooker, using the oven like a pro.

Soon it was bath time.  I put this photo in as I believe I had one of SR in his bath when he was little and I am sure it looked just like Emerson, even with an orange container in his hands.  I will look for it and post if I do find the photo.

New Walk - Hospital (Long Lake) Ridge

Our walk today took us up on the ridge that runs parallel to the Hospital Road.  Above you see the start of the trail (after we ascend from street level) by the old Yukon College (then you look towards downtown).  Not having a trail leader and not having a trail map, we walked along and guessed which trails we should be taking.  I must admit, we did pretty good and made it back along the Broken Truck Trail to our place of descent.

Looking south we see the new FH Collins High School.

Lion

Saw this movie a week ago.  It was featured at the Available Light Film Festival and was shown at the Arts Centre on the biggest screen in the Yukon.  Not only that but the festival purchased a digital projector (instead of spending $7,000/year to rent one) and this was its inaugural night.  A tiny glitch was the projector's sound stopped half way through the film and they had to reboot the projector, therefore we had about a half hour break but so be it.

The movie takes you into the depth of India and follows a five year old boy (who was so cute)  through his life on two continents, into adulthood and his desire to connect with his roots.  The life in India is eye opening.  Dev Patel (Slumdog Millionaire, The Man Who Knew Infinity) plays the adult Saroo or as you discover at the end Saru, and is excellent in his role (although I wished when he was becoming obsessed that he washed his hair a bit more), as was Nicole Kidman.  Although there are some parts that will make you laugh, don't forget to take a kleenex with you for the odd tear you will shed.  This movie was nominated for Best Picture at the Golden Globe Awards, as well as Best Original Score and Best Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role (Dev Patel) and Best Performance by an Actress in a Supporting Role (Nicole Kidman).  See it if you can.

I give it 5 Stars + one Kleenex

The President

As this blog is kind of my diary and as I am printing this blog in books for generations to come to read, I want to make it clear that I am NOT the type of person who supports a man like the 45th President of the United States, and I cannot understand the minds of the millions of people who did support him to the extent that he rose through the ranks and became the top person in the 2016 elections.  

He is rude, crass, a racist, a liar, a narcissist, an egomaniac, a pompous billionaire who has never participated in politics in his life and now has the ability to push that atomic button should someone make him mad.  And if you do not agree with him he calls you down and calls you names as he has done to the Press, Saturday Night Live (oh yeah, did I mention no sense of humour?), and even his wife Melania's dress designers who refused to design for her.   Someone who puts down Mexicans, Blacks, Latinos, and Muslims to name a few, not counting the press, freedom of speech,  the disabled and smeared a dead soldier's parents and I could go on.  In his inaugural speech he put down all the work of the presidents before him while promising to END welfare and END Isis.  He won the election but lost the popular vote.  

There are a lot of demonstrations taking place this weekend against his presidency and if I was an American, I would be joining them.

Addition to the above - and this is all I am going to say on the subject:

January 21st one day after Trump's Inauguration

:  

"Hundreds of thousands of people gathered in Washington on Saturday and at coordinated protests against Trump’s presidency in New York, Chicago, Boston and other U.S. cities and towns, as well as in Paris, Berlin, Ottawa and other international locations. The crowds choked subway trains in Washington, where the transit authority reported more than 1 million riders, eclipsing that of the inauguration."  

This is unprecedented.  And this is how the President responded (via Tweet):

“Watched protests yesterday but was under impression that we just had an election! Why didn’t these people vote? Celebs hurt cause badly,”

And his main concern on Saturday was that the press "lied" about the number of people that attended his inauguration.  He even had his press secretary read from a script which mentioned a number of blatant lies regarding attendance at his inauguration, a subject that no one really cared about until he brought it to our attention.  

And so it begins.

Yukon News

Gotta love living here.  Picked up the paper yesterday and the headline story of the day in the whole of the Territory was that a cat was rescued from a tree.  Who said Good News doesn't sell?  

If you're interested, the whole story of this rescue is below.

First Walk of the New Year

I was looking forward to this walk.  It was around the airport - the total walk was just over 8 Kilometres.  It was the views I was interested in.  The fence on the left is barbed as it divides the runways from the public area.  The path was very sketchy.  It wasn't well packed and if you went off of it, the snow was midway to my knees.  Nancy brought her Cairn Terrier, Ginny, who had trouble walking ...  the uneven trail and the deep snow were not conducive for her little legs.

But the views were fabulous!  Above is the wonderful view of the South Access Road and views beyond.  Just a little to the right would be the eagle's new nest.  Next time I walk it I will try to find the access to the view of the nest.

Above is the south end of the the downtown area.  You can see the hospital directly above the road (in green).  As you can see the day was glorious - sunny and quite warm, only about -5 degrees C.

Was a great viewpoint to see the boat.  I think when the snow is gone I will redo this trail and stop at more of the viewpoints.  

Up to 2 degrees C this afternoon. What a difference a few days make.

                                       

View from balcony at 10:27 this morning. 

                                       

Although this thermometer says it is evening, it's really morning. And yes, it is above 0 degrees C!  Yikes. 

First Walk of the New Year

My first walk of the New Year was on the trails in Copper Ridge... finally, walking in my own area.  We walked close to 5 Km.  The sun was shining bright when we began at 2 PM but quickly began to set behind the mountains and our sunglasses were more of a detriment than a help.

Although the trails were extremely wide, most of the walk was well treed.  There was a portion in which we could look about 180 degrees to view the vast scenery ... mountains, valleys and lakes.  And there were others using the trail - ski-doers, kick sleds, fat tire biker and a walker with a dog.

I asked Debbie to get into the photo which I would send to her Mom, but when home found I didn't have Mom's address, so I hope you are keeping up with my blog Mrs. M.  Although difficult to see details, above is your daughter!!  Maybe next time we will walk while the sun is still fully up and you will be able to see who is in the photograph.

New Year's Eve

This is who I spent New Year's Eve with this year.  This was their FIRST sleep-over in a bed that is NOT a crib.  First, we had dinner in the living room, and second, they had dinner watching TV.  That is something they NEVER do at home.  

And not only watch TV, but watch their favourite TV program, Paw Patrol.  That was pretty neat for them.  Even though I had a barricade in front of the TV, when I wasn't looking, Emerson did get the small glass birds I had sitting on the TV table (that I got in Venice, and did I say they were glass ... ??) and he was playing with them in the Fisher Price Farm Barn.  So I pulled them out of the barn and put them safely in a higher spot and reminded them they were not to go closer to the TV than the boxes.  That done, it was bath and bed time.  I had wings for one of the twin beds and I pushed the other against the wall and pillowed the edge.  It took about 20 minutes, but they settled and slept till 8 in the morning. And I was able to sip my Champagne to quietly bring in the New Year.

Happy New Year to all my readers.  May 2017 be all that you can wish it to be.

Just before Xmas

OK, this is the best I can do with a selfie.  I need another six inches at least on the end of my arm (or perhaps a stick, but I don't often take selfies, so guess I don't need one of those).  This was just before Christmas, me and the kids having fun.