Here we go again. My plan is to bring part two up to six hundred and then the number of posts will be easier to keep track of. Within a few days we will be within one month of the date.
I think everything is going pretty smoothly. We have the student lounge at Campion on the 25th from 12:00 until 10:00. The plan is for each family to bring their own drinks and snacks for the day. I think Vic is bringing some candied popcorn and there are plans for a rice crispie cake. I expect some Italian Confetti as well. The Wok Box is now up and running and we will have them deliver us a meal around 5:30 or 6:00. There are vending machines in the lounge and a water fountain as well. The restrooms are a good size and just down the hall. I believe we all have Marcia's request for denim and white dress. Therese has the performances set and the day is set for visiting.
Sunday the 26th we have the hall at Holy Rosary Cathedral from 12:00 until 5:00. You are welcome to join mom for the 11:00 mass before hand. The CWL will cater with sandwiches, coffee and juice. Cathedral Bakery is making up a cake or two for mom for the day.
If there are any questions or if there is something else you can think of that I have missed let me know and I'll look after it.
See you soon.
Ed
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909 comments:
1 – 200 of 909 Newer› Newest»Good morning - I hope you can all find me over here, on the far side.
Ed, great job on organizing things. It looks perfect, and not too much work for any one person. (OK, except for Vic making her popcorn).
Thom, Dennis would normally jump at the chance to golf, but we are leaving on Monday. Boo hoo. I'm already sad that the reunion will be over and it hasn't even started yet.
Bye for now,
Marcia xoxo
I am still planing on bringing a big baox of cheerios for everyone to eat and share!
OK so i have a lot of work ahead of me there is almost 800 posts that I am behind I will count them on thursday morning while Bjorn sleeps as that is my day off and i will post the results after that see you thursday evening sometime
Woo hoo, new stats coming thursday. I bet I'm catching up to B.J. That'll teach her to take a vacation to Germany.
Hi All,
Long time, no blog. I'm back and loving all the entries.
QUOTE OF THE DAY:
After a girl is grown, her little brothers - now her protectors - seem like big brothers.
-Astra Alauda
Love and thanks to my 7 big brothers - my heros!
Love,
ME xoxoxoxoxo
#1605
OOOPS!
I meant #2005; now #2006.
ME xoxo
Ok, it took me awhile to find you all over here. When I type in edsedtion.blogspot.com I am sent to a page with only two threads and the second is stuck at 343 posts! Why would that be? That's why I fell behind - I kept checking but the number stayed the same!
Ok, I've got my Regina Beach contest ready, but you'll have to go to a website Jamie set up for us awhile ago but we never updated. Here is the link:
http://112gustafsons.spaces.live.com/
All the instructions are there!
Just in case anyone is interested, my latest video report is available for viewing at:
www.houston-today.com
Neat contest, Holly, I'm not even going to try. Some of them look familiar, but I haven't a clue where they are and the rest are just impossible.
Of course, aside from stopping by Butler's on my way to Smithers two years ago, I haven't really been to the beach for probably 25 years.
Ok, Dad says they're way too hard! I thought they were too easy, so I cropped them even more! I guess I figured if they were too hard I could always show more of the photo, but if they were too easy, there was no going back! I guess it's true - the contests seem so easy when you are making them up yourself!
thomas - i've booked a 9;30 a.m. tee off for regina beach for 12 -16 people, i've booked it for 9 holes, if you want to go 18 of course we play the 9 holes twice, they do have gas carts, so they would like to know how many people, 9 or 18 holes, how many gas carts. we'll have to figure this out and let them know.
holly - the link did'nt work for me, i was wondering if there was another.
thanks mary ellen - your the coolest.
love mike
I'm baaack!!
Guten Morgen, everybody. Of course, it isn't morning where any of you are, but it will be soon in Germany. We had a great trip, but I am glad to be back in Blogland. I have been up for 16 hours and airports aren't much fun any more, so I will say good night and see you in the North American morning tomorrow.
Love, BJ
Mike, my preference is alway 18 holes, but I'll defer to the group on that one.
As to how many people, perhaps we can call upon our blogging contingent to check with their non-blogging counterparts to find an answer for us asap.
I don't need a cart, prefer to walk. Do they have caddies. Maybe we can get some of the kids out to carry our bags.
hey Holly
Check out my guesses and let me know if I got any of them.
Marty
Uncle Mike, did you cut and paste it into your address bar? I think it should work.
Dad said it was way too hard, but Uncle Marty already got 8! I'll show a bit more of the picture - maybe some of the rest of you will get some more. After that I'll show even more.
Ok, I've shown a bit more of the pictures - try again everyone!
I have noted, however, that Uncle Marty got 8 from the original crops!
Ed - great job on the organisation...the original purpose behind the blog has been successful! Thanks again.
Holly - beautiful photos, very artsy but OMIGOSH difficult, especially for those who haven't seen the beach for 10 years!
Thomas - I am up for 9 or 18 but will need a cart. Cleared for golf but not for walking that far yet!
BJ - welcome back from Deutchland...I feel a certain connection to Germany as my blood is now mostly German! Glad your back in blogland!
Congratulations Trish! Looking forward to hitting some little white balls with you.
Edward,
Great job on organizing things. Thank you.
Holly,
You do realize, don't you, that some of us have not been to the beach in about 40 years.
Tricia,
I waved at New York as we took off from Newark for you. It was a clear day and we could see the whole city.
Welcome back, Melissa. It has been way too long!
Nice quote, Mary-Ellen.
Hey everyone, we have pictures for most of the family tree. Just 3 more families to go!
Love, BJ
Wow, that's some good action on the family tree pictures, wish we could get the same kind of response on golfers for monday.
Hmmm, huh, anyone?
Notice my mom, diplomatic as ever, didn't name holdouts on the family pix.
Sorry, Thom, we're waiting until we're retired and actually have time to golf to bother picking up the clubs. You guys don't know your handicaps? Heck, I can't even tell if I'm right- or left- handed (seriously...)!
BTW, good job on the Regina Beach contest to those who have submitted guesses! I'm impressed! Since it's been popular, I may do one for familiar sites here in the city!
i made some guesses holly
i booked your gas cart tricia, i need one too.
welcome back b.j.
love mike
Hi
I know I said that I would have some new stats yesterday but I'm only 1/4 the way through counting the numbers, I will try and have them for you ASAP.
Thom,
From what I have seen so far you are getting up there in over all numbers
and the number of entries in June was 954 WOW!
Great news everybody! Just got off the phone with B.J. and my brother Stephen has decided to join us for Mary's August party!
Melissa, I don't know if I even want to know. If I'm surpassing a bunch of incorrigible blog addicts, what does that say about me.
I might have to cut back on my entries. Anyone know where to buy blog patches or gum?
Hey Thomas
There is help.
I've done some research and have found a new support group for blog addicts.
It's called B.L.O.G.
(Blame Lucy Of Glasgow)
Marty
MELISSA - NO RUSH ON THE STATS, TAKE YOUR TIME
THOMAS - KEEP YOUR ENTRIES COMING, AND I THINK WE MIGHT HAVE A FOURSOME,
TRICIA, MARTY, YOU AND I.
MIKE
Hey Mike,
Of course, a scapegoat, why didn't I think of that?
Hey Kenneth
Who's Mike?
Martay
sitting on tenderhooks... can we avenge the fiasco in Edmonton last week?
The Eskies are moving the ball
me no likey
woo hoo, held to a single!
That's more like it. 34-8 at the half.
So the announcer says.........did the Saskatchewan Roughriders ever jit one out of the park today!!!!
Doesn't he know they were playing football. Although the score was more like a basketball game. Looks like they learned their lesoon last week.
You starting to get a whiff of that Grey Cup again Thom?
Sask 54 Eskies 14
That's just plain mean.
Absolutely, Grey Cup here we come. Those two losses were just what we needed to put us back on track.
What a game Mitchell had.
Btw, Lui, did you like my golf story?
Thomas, your golf story was fabulous. I'm wondering if it was an old dream or a recent one?
I showed it to two of my colleagues at different times, explaining the build up to it and they both said exactly the same thing -- 'is that guy a writer?'
It was also very kind. Thank you
Just doing my part to keep the myth/legend alive.
Spoiler alert: If you haven't done the Regina Beach picture contest and want to look at them without knowing the answers, do so now without reading the rest of this post: answers below!
The winners of the Regina Beach contest are
G2 (second generation): Uncle Marty, who got 8 right immediately even before I went back to add more of the photo
G3: Tricia
The answers were:
#1: view from the Little Beach
#2: the terra cotta stone patio at the front of the cottage
#3: the fieldstone chimney on the outside of the cottage (a reminder of the wood cooker which is no longer there)
#4: the famous tiled kitchen floor
#5: the tile on the bathroom wall
#6: a sticker on the electrical box, above the stove
#7: the 's' in Butler's
#8: a close-up of the picture Grandma painted of Mary smelling a Rose on the inside of their bedroom door
#9: the far window in the back double bedroom, looking out to what is now the fire pit
#10: the large rock on the corner of the property
Congratulations on everyone who gave guesses - I realize the contest was hard, so it amazed me when people from so far away got them right!
I'll do another one of sites here in Regina and post it this week!
BTW, a month from now the reunion will be over and we'll all be in Antonini withdrawal! (or else we'll spend the whole weekend in BLOG withdrawal and will be happy to get back to our computers!)
I got 3 and-a-half... I think that's pretty good after 25 years... I should have got the S in Butler's, though, I was just there two years ago.
Which ones did Mar-tay miss?
I have a golf story:
One weekend a fellow, we'll call him Lou, called another fellow we'll call Ed, to see if he could fill out a foursome. Ed thought it a good idea and he would get to play an exclusive course, we'll call it the Wascana.
Ed met the other twosome on the first tee and was immediately drawn into a match featuring Team Canada ( Tom and Bud) and Team Italy (Lou and Ed). They wanted to play for "ticks", one for low score and one for low gross. Each tick would be worth...ah?...one dough, yeah that's it, one dough. Ed had twenty doughs in his pocket so he figured what's the harm. Team Italy won both ticks on the first hole making Ed's 20 seem enough even with some poor holes. Team Canada pressed making the second hole worth 2 doughs per tick. Team Italy won again and were pressed again. Thinking pressing added one dough to each tick Ed was still pretty comfortable. Then he found out pressing doubled the bets so each tick was now worth 4 doughs.When Team Canada got the baking up to 16 doughs per tick or 32 doughs per hole they started to get hot and by the 17th tee Team Italy was down 28 doughs. The 20 in Ed's pocket was looking a bit short. We matched drives down the par 5 17th but they got the edge when Lou hooked his second into the rough, Ed matched their thirds all just missing the green as Lou perpared to hit out of the heavy rough. You could tell Team Canada was excited as they raced their cart green side. We were all watching as Lou hit a flyer from the rough that screamed in low and hard, flew the front trap, and hit a mound in front of the green and rocketed off like it was just rehit and was headed for another 30 or 40 yard flight. Team Canada was counting their winnings when Lou's ball hammered the pin...dead on...and like a scene from the Looney Tunes the pin did the cartoon wobble while the ball suspended in air and dropped straight down within an inch of the hole. The next scene saw a putter trapped in tree branches 20 feet above ground level as rage gripped Team Canada's twosome. They were unable to reign in their rage and Team Italy swung to an easy win on 18.
This story comes from an eyewitness, who thought it only happened in cartoons.
Ed, do you want a job as a sports reporter?
That was riveting.
B.C. OVER CALGARY YA HOOOO, I DON'T CARE THAT WE COULD CATCH B.C. I DON'T WANT HENRY BURRIS(THE TRAITOR) TO WIN ANY GAMES.
HEY MARTY
WHO'S KENNETH?
MIKE-A
Hello all,
While you've been keeping track of the Riders, Dennis and I were at the BIG game. We watched Campbell play (QB)in Nanaimo for the Vancouver Island Raiders. The Raiders were behind for the whole game. Going into the last 5 minutes, the score was 17 to 16 against the Raiders. Then our young hero unleashed a HUGE pass, next a touchdown pass and yahoo - we won! Final score 22-17.
Very exciting stuff.
More later, Marcia
An excellent day all around for the raideriders!
While I agree with Mike it's very difficult to wish the traitorous Burris any success (although his record wasn't all that great with Sask, anyway), it is also very difficult to wish the Lions any success. I would have preferred to see them go down today (Lower Mailand... spit!)
So it seems another outstanding accomplishment has been achieved in the family.
MY nephew (sorry Marcia) Brant Pinvidic has become a Sr. VP of Programming for TLC to oversee primetime programming.
Check it out!!
http://www.variety.com/article/VR1117969292.html?categoryid=14&cs=1&query=TLC
THANKS MARCE FOR THE PLAY BY PLAY, THIS STORY JUST KEEPS GETTING BETTER AND BETTER.
THOM - DON'T WORRY THE RIDERS WILL CATCH THE LIONS ON THEIR OWN
MIKE
hi
Kelly and I would like to invite anyone who would like to come out to the cottage to come out on the Friday of the reunion. We have an agenda, you can come to any or all of the events. We thought it would be nice for some of the family who have never been to Regina Beach and any who misses Regina Beach to come for the day or night (see the agenda below)
11:00am: walk to little arm, this takes 30 mins and I will have my truck stationed there for anyone who wants a ride home.
1:00pm: swim at the little beach, it has changed abit but not much.
3:00pm: Ed says he is going to try to fly a kite, we will cut the string and see if we can find it
5:00pm: fish and chips at butlers if you want, or Ill cook some hot dogs.
Dusk: watch the fish flies, have a camp fire and enjoy the night, anyone can stay overnight the cottage will hold 20 easily and 100 if you're willing to sleep on the colored tile floor, or it's a 30 minute drive home.
Let me know
Len
WOW Len,
What a wonderful offer and what a wonderful series of events you have planned. Bob & I aren't leaving Calgary until that morning, so we won't be able to take part in any of the day events. (A swim at the Little Beach - damn, you're good!) I'm hoping we arrive in time to at least sit around the camp fire with whoever is there. I remember the last time we did that and it was fabulous! Thank you, thank you, thank you, and Kelly also, for your generosity & hospitality. What a team!
Love,
ME xoxoxoxoxxo
Congratulations to Campbell & Brant.....can you believe these nephews of ours?!
With love & admiration,
ME xoxoxoxox
len - great idea for the beach friday, thanks for the hospitality.
count us in.
thomas - we have another golfer for monday - your cousin chris rathwell, handicap unknown(says he has'nt golfed in a long time.
lucy - chris^ tells me you have a laptop in the suite, looking forward to hearing from you again.
love mike
Oh yes, Mike,
I am back in business here. Yesterday afternoon, Christopher came to Mom's suite and installed the Internet for me. His mom, Christine, has loaned me the laptap needed for me to enjoy the connection.
Once again, I am thrilled to have easy access to Ed's Edition, Tricia's Tides, Blogging at the Big Blog, Bjorn's Blog and to my own email files.
This morning, Vic, Michele, Mom and I did a bit of exploring in each site, looking at pictures, catching up on news, struggling with contests and reading about reunion plans. It's good to be part of the scene again.
Love, Lucy
i believe i've seen your message right after you entered it, its good to here your voice again, how is mom and how are you doing?
Way to go, Kelly and Len!
Until now, the Friday before our reunion was a big question mark. Of course, the 24th will be a time of various arrivals before Saturday's events. Your open invitation and the day's agenda leaves people lots of choices for casual participation in any of the planned activities.
I know that the Butcher branch of the family tree will want to take part in some of the beach activities. That swim at the little beach sounds so.o.o.o refreshing. I'll let you know which of us will be there and when we are likely to arrive. Thank you!
Lots of love, Louise and Dave
Hi Mike,
I just read your note as I was entering our response to Kelly and Len's beach invitation.
Mom is doing as well as we can possibly expect - maybe even better! She thrives on the company of family and friends and she is looking very good to everyone who drops in to pay her a visit.
Last night, Vic and Michele drove down from Saskatoon so that Michele could spend time with Grandma. The four of us toasted life - 3 of us with white wine and one of us (guess who) with orange juice - as bedtime approached.
This morning, Michele and Vic made breakfast and Vic gave Mom a shower and washed and curled her hair. Together the four of us explored internet blog sites. In the midst of our activities, I got a long distance call from a friend in Scotland. Marcia also phoned and had separate chats with Vic, Mom and me.
Michele and Vic bought us a Hawaiian pizza for lunch. Mom was active, engaged and engaging throughout. She fell asleep after lunch, but then who could fault her for that?
Life is good!
LOL, Lucy
lucy - i'll be over to see you tommorow afternoon
love mike
Mom and I will look forward to that, Mike. See you tomorrow!
Love, Lucy
Hi Holly,
Grandma had a look at your series of 10 pictures from Regina Beach. She got the view from the little beach, the tile floor and her painting on the bedroom door.
Vic, Michele, Grandma and I then read the answers with "ahs" and "groans" in appropriate places. We are looking forward to scenes of Regina when they too are posted.
Grandma also had a peek at pictures on Barking at the Big Blog including the one of herself in the Queen of Hearts costume. She sure laughed at that one.
I also retrieved the beautiful picture that you sent me for (god)mother's day. Mom was awe-struck, too.
Thanks for letting me use your computer for blogging and email. You will know by now that Mom's suite is equipped with computer and Internet. I'm back on the blog!
LOLOL,Lucy
Hi again, Holly,
I have one piece of unfinished business here - a correctly answered riddle.
You are right about the angels in Mom's suite. I counted 96 and Mom tells me that there are a few others packed in with her Christmas ornaments. They more that match her age of 89.
The angelic images appear on plates, as windchimes and ornaments, in cross-stitch and pictures, as pins and keyrings, in stained glass, soap and fimo - you name it - the version is here.
As for your first guess of creatures whose number matches Mom's age, I counted Mom's stuffed animals and she has ONLY 55 of them. (In making this announcement, I do not encourage anyone to bring the number up to 89 no matter how tempting that might be!)
Are you ready for another riddle?
TO KEEP HIS FAMILY FRESHLY FED
HE BUILT A WAY TO ACCESS BREAD.
lolol, lucy
hello
Okay, I'm back. Please allow me just a moment to rant about sites like this one.
I became concerned about unwanted cookies so I bumped up the security on Lorraine's computer. Turns out the people who designed this site set it up so you can't use it unless your computer is insecure. I doubt it's anything nefarious, probably just laziness or incompetence. Anyway, it's annoying.
'nuff said.
So, a very quiet day yesterday, but a very nice flurry of activity today. Nice to see.
Woo hoo, Len. I think I'll leave on Wednesday night instead of Thursday. I should be able to make it to at least McBride on Wednesday, which should put me in Medicine Hat by Thursday with a nice short jaunt to Regina Beach on Friday. I'll meet you there, hopefully in time for Little Beach swim if not the march to Little Arm.
At worst, I'll be there for Fish and Chips and guitar in hand for the campfire.
Excellent news on Chris joining us for golf. Unknown handicap = scratch golfer or sandbagger. Unless, of course, by "unknown" he means doesn't know because he shoots in the hundreds. Please clarify?
I am, of course, just joking on the golf thing. It's entirely for fun. However, if we do get enough players to have a scrable, I will try to balance the teams a bit so we can have some friendly competition. Oops, sorry, I forgot how you Antoninis are so completely non-competitive (snigger).
Hi Thom,
I checked with Paul about the reunion golf scramble but he has to be back in Kelowna for work on Monday morning. He chose to take off the Friday and is already booked to fly into
Regina on Thursday night. The good news is that he'll be around for Friday's beach events.
So far Dave hasn't said anything about golfing in Regina. He is too busy preparing to look after those women golfers in their first British Open on the Old Course St. Andrews, August 2 to 6. Watch for him on hole #3 in his marshall's red jacket and cap.
LOL, Luce
I'm still a little miffed about the Women's British Open. Canada had a major championship until DuMaurier was forced to pull out as sponsor because of draconian legislation regarding a legal product and nobody else stepped up to the plate to rescue it.
Oh well, at least Dave gets to be a marshall, I'll be watching for him.
I'll answer Lucy's latest riddle. When I was a kid, or I should say, when I was a younger kid, dad built a bread dispenser he positioned to the right of the stairs leading out of the kitchen to the basement. It would hold 8 or ten loaves of bread, as you took one from the bottom another would drop down. I think we still ran out because he would forget to fill it.
Oh yes, Ed, add another correct riddle to your winning responses!
Dad's system for delivering bread one loaf at a time was as creative as it was short-lived. I believe that he designed the box in an attempt to stop the build up of partial loaves. In our large family, we usually had 5 or 6 loaves of bread on the go at any one time - each at its own stage of consumption and freshness.
Eventually Dad's new contraption caused more trouble than it was worth. If we wanted fresh bread, we just dropped an unfinished loaf into the top and pulled out a new one from the bottom. Before long, the box was delivering partial loaves instead of whole ones. The smooth movement of solid loaves was stopped up by bits and pieces that wedged themselves inside the narrow passage. Then someone had to reach an arm in from the top or the bottom only to find out that we were virtually out of bread except for scraps fit only for the birds.
We can't blame Dad for not filling the bread box. He did his part; we just didn't do what he expected. Did we ever?
Try this one now:
BALD OR GREY? DESCRIBE YOUR HEAD...
ONE REMAINS FOREVER RED!
LOL, Lucy
Hey Luce
That's gotta be The Mom.
When I was in Regina, The nurse came in to care for Mary Clark,
and she commented on how nice mom's hair looked. I said, she chose a nice color to dye her hair. The nurse said, it was a nice choice.
Well...Mom tore in to both of us...I DO NOT COLOR MY HAIR!
Don't mess with the mom.
Marty
Bread dispenser!??? Never heard of it. Am I on the right blog? Maybe the memory goes, or maybe it happened after I left--but then how did Lucy know about it? This is definitely a mystery that needs solving. What year did this dispenser appear? Who else in the family does NOT remember it? Help me out here, somebody.
Puzzled, BJ
Sorry about that BJ,
Mom and I were trying to figure out when Dad built that bread dispenser at the top of the basement stairs leading into the kitchen. We know that he came up with the idea after the breakfast nook was altered. It was in the corner of the new counter area that the partial loaves of bread would get into such disorder.
I guess our poor recollection proves just how unsuccessful Dad's invention was. He was such a creative man, though.
LOL, Lucy
Of course, Marty! The answer to my riddle about lasting hair colour is Mom. In fact, your hospital blunder provided the inspiration for the riddle itself. Mom recalls the day that you led the nurse to believe that she colours her hair.
Imagine having such beautifully coloured hair at 89! Over the years, Mom has often had to convince others that her vibrant red hair is natural. Only her hairdresser knew for sure. He once had to tell another client that he had no bottled match for Mom's red hair.
When Tony was over last week, he pointed out a few grey hairs that are starting to appear among the red strands. Is there any wonder?
Two weeks ago, James gave Mom a terrific new haircut. Yesterday, Vic washed and curled Mom's lovely locks. This morning Mom's beauty hides both her age and her frailty. Together, she and I are celebrating with joy and thanks, the day she gave birth to this 65 year-old woman!
Ok....time for another riddle.
YOU MIGHT CALL THIS MOMMA'S MIX...
40'S TO 60'S...3/ 5/ 6.
LOLOL, Lucy
Some of you may have seen this, it's kind of circulating around by email, but it's worth a bit of a giggle.
Now that Vancouver has won the chance to host the 2010 Winter Olympics, these are some questions people the world over are asking! Believe it or not, these questions about Canada were posted on an International Tourism
Website. Obviously the answers are a joke but the questions were really asked.
Q: I have never seen it warm on Canadian TV, so how do the plants grow?
(England )
A. We import all plants fully grown and then just sit around and watch them die.
Q: Will I be able to see Polar Bears in the street? (USA )
A: Depends on how much you've been drinking.
Q: I want to walk from Vancouver to Toronto can I follow the Railroad tracks? (Sweden )
A: Sure, it's only Four thousand miles, take lots of water.
Q: Is it safe to run around in the bushes in Canada ? (Sweden )
A: So it's true what they say about Swedes.
Q: It is imperative that I find the names and addresses of places to contact for a stuffed Beaver. (Italy )
A: Let's not touch this one.
Q: Are there any ATM's (cash machines) in Canada? Can you send me a list of them in Toronto , Vancouver , Edmonton and Halifax? (England)
A: What did your last slave die of?
Q: Can you give me some information about hippo racing in Canada ? (USA )
A: A-fri-ca is the big triangle shaped continent south of Europe .. Ca-na-da is that big country to your North.. oh forget it. Sure, the hippo racing is
every Tuesday night in Calgary. Come naked.
Q: Which direction is North in Canada ? (USA )
A: Face south and then turn 180 degrees. Contact us when you get here and we'll send the rest of the directions.
Q: Can I bring cutlery into Canada ? (England )
A: Why? Just use your fingers like we do.
Q: Can you send me the Vienna Boys' Choir schedule? (USA )
A: Aus-tri-a is that quaint little country bordering Ger-man-y, which is...oh forget it. Sure, the Vienna Boys Choir plays every Tuesday night in
Vancouver and in Calgary, straight after the hippo races. Come naked.
Q: Do you have perfume in Canada ? (Germany )
A: No, we don't stink.
Q: I have developed a new product that is the fountain of youth. Can you sell it in Canada ? (USA)
A: Anywhere significant numbers of Americans gather.
Q: Can you tell me the regions in British Columbia where the female population is smaller than the male population? (Italy )
A: Yes, gay nightclubs
Q: Do you celebrate Thanksgiving in Canada ? (USA )
A: Only at Thanksgiving.
Q: Are there supermarkets in Toronto and is milk available all year round? (Germany )
A: No, we are a peaceful civilization of Vegan hunter/gatherers. Milk is illegal.
Q: I have a question about a famous animal in Canada , but I forget its name. It's a kind of big horse with horns. (USA )
A: It's called a Moose. They are tall and very violent. They roam the city streets eating the brains of anyone walking close to them. Spraying yourself with human urine before you go out walking will scare them off.
Q: Will I be able to speak English most places I go? (USA )
A: Yes, but you will have to learn it first.
What new counter area?
lucy - is it 3 children in the 60's, 5 in the 50's and 6 in the 40's?
i won't br over until wed.
love mike
be
Hey Luce, if you've got Internet in Grandma's suite, does that mean we might be graced with a posting from "The Mom" herself?
I know Grandpa was getting interested in the world of computers...
Maybe you could entice her with this site:
www.erosary.com
Includes: rosary chat room, rosary discussion group and online rosary community
Mike,
Try 3 in the 40s, 5 in the 60s and 6 in the 50s. I haven't forgotten everything.
love, BJ
HAPPY BIRTHDAY LUCY !!!!!
Today, Lucy's smiling face graces my perpetual calendar.
What are Mike and Betty Jo talking about?
Betty Jo is asking about the changes to the kitchen that she doesn't recall and Mike is trying to answer Louise's riddle about Mom's children, 5 of whom are in their 60's, 6 in their 50's and 3 in their 40's.
I think!
I was just guessing the age groups Ed, but I know I'll only be 59 in Aug and since I'm the sixth oldest, there can't be more than 5 in their 60's!!
Betty Jo is right Lou. Never doubt B J. Lucy had to clue me in...duh...I'm blaming the heat.
Although Mike's is better for ME and Tony and Chris, Marty and of course... himself.
Yes, Betty Jo, your answer to my latest riddle is correct. Though Mom had babies across four decades - the 30's, 40's, 50's and 60's, her children's current ages span only the 40's, 50's and 60's.
Rob, Therese and Len are still in their 40's; (that's 3). Marty, Mike, Christine, Marcia, Edward and Lui are in their 50's; (that's 6); Tony, Mary-Ellen, Louise, Vic and BJ are in their 60's; (that's 5).
You might be an Antonini if such amazing family stats seem too obvious to state.
I got a good laugh out of all the discussion that this riddle generated. Nice try, Mike; you won points from those of us who wouldn't mind having a few years lopped off our ages.
I have yet another riddle for you to solve:
PICK A FLOWER FROM THIS BOUQUET
AND IT WILL HELP YOU HAVE YOUR SAY!
LOLOL, Lucy
What a happy 65th birthday this has been for me! Aside from the fact that Dave reminded me that it's OAP time, I have lapped up the generous attention of family and friends.
Your cards, calls, letters, e-greetings, visits and flowers have overwhelmed me. I even had an afternoon party with cake, candles and the birthday song to mark this occasion.
Mom told me the story of the day I was born. Dad was at a football game in Saskatoon and Aunt Vic had to take Mom to the hospital when I signaled my arrival two weeks early.
Though my mind asks, "Why so much attention?", my heart simply says,
"Thank you!"
Lots of love, Louise
BJ,
The alterations to the kitchen at 1140 Garnet were made so that the breakfast nook that we liked so much became a kitchen sink and cupboard area that meant work, work, work.
Mom reminded me tonight about how much she liked the table and benches in that special corner of the kitchen. Apparently it was Dad who wanted to make the changes for increased work space and more storage room.
The bread dispenser was probably a small part of Dad's efforts to upgrade and organize our family home.
Love, Lucy
Thom, thanks for the link to the site about the rosary. Aunt Barbara and I explored it earlier today while Grandma slept.
I'll see what I can do to encourage "The Mom" to comment on the blog. She told me that she does not know what to say. She and I did agree on a brief remark at the end of your series of wedding pictures which Mom viewed for the first time today. It was fun to watch her reaction and to record her enjoyment.
Love, Luce
I'm glad Grandma enjoyed the wedding photos. Give her a hug for me.
I liked the breakfast nook better than the sink area, and I remember both quite well. I just have no memory of the bread box. It is probably stored somewhere on my hard disk, I just can't retreive it.
BJ
I guess I'll answer Lucy's latest riddle. Mom has a small bouquet of home made flowers on the end of pens. It's a great idea because when you try to find a pen to write in her book you usually pick up half a dozen decoys before you find one that writes. Eventually these clever little flowers run out of ink and they also become decoys. The bouquet she has now is quite new and... noteworthy. Great riddle Louise.
I'm off to work, I'm making a silk purse today.
Yah sure Ed and I suppose you're using a sow's ear!
Hi, Lui,
I expressed the same skepticism as you did about Ed's work project. He says he is doing a stairway that is faulty to start with. He's using quality materials and you can bet that he is doing an artistic job despite the defective "canvas" on which he must do his work. You know Ed; he will indeed create a silk purse out of a sow's ear!
Lucy
Hi Ed,
You are so right about Mom's bouquet of pens. I enjoyed reading your description of the newest floral arrangement that graces the coffee table here in the suite.
Years ago, Deanie gave Mom her first lot of pens topped with red roses. Eventually the pens lost their purpose. Though still pretty, the "decoys" were frustrating to those who tried to write with them.
Now, thanks to Deanie, Mom has a lovely mixed bouquet of daisies and pansies. The pens are in good working order and they are effective tools for writing in Mom's guest book.
I didn't miss your comment about the pens being NOTEWORTHY, Ed. Indeed, they are .... in beauty and in function. Good eye!
I wonder who will spot this one?
ONE RED-HEADED SIBLING GOT HIS DANDER UP
DUE TO THIS FAUX PAS BY THE LOCAL COP!
LOLOL, Lucy
Wow, took me a while to catch up! I was in Waskesui with the boys, now it is back to work....!
post more later!
sonia
Hi Sonia,
Welcome back! I hope you had a great time in Waskesui with the boys. At least the weather did its best to contribute to a hot, holiday time.
Don't work to hard in the heat. No doubt your workplace is air-conditioned, making it a nice place to be on days like today.
We'll watch for more from you here on the blog. How's your lawn?
Lots of love, Louise
Thom...Grandma got your message and your hug. She is literally too tired for words these days but she is still a pretty good listener.
This morning Grandma's doctor reduced her blood pressure medication. The high dosage worked too well and now Grandma's blood pressure is too low. That could be why she can hardly find the energy to do any of the daily tasks that the rest of us automatically perform. I'll keep you posted on her progress and will relay anything she'd like to put on the blog.
She has even solved my latest riddle but says that she doesn't know enough of the details to make an accurate response. If no one else jumps in with a reply, I may just give Grandma credit for her vague recollections.
LOL, Luce
Oh, oh did I just make the 2100th blog entry without fanfare? I believe that I did!!!!!
I wonder what our total will be come the reunion weekend which begins 3 weeks tomorrow, by the way. I'm going to guess 2425.
Lucy
My Guess is:
2319
I know the answer to your riddle Lucy, but I am scared
to guess cause I do not want to get beat up.
Marty
Hey Lucy
My guess is:
2319
I know the answer to your riddle, but I'm scared to guess 'cause I might get beat up.
Marty
Hi Lucy,
You deserve the 2100 entry, I didn't make it on after work yesterday, if I had I would have wished you and Dave a Happy Anniversary along with Chris and Ron.
I will guess we will make it to the 3000 mark. It's not busy now but I think it will pick up closer to reunion date.
I don't suffer from short term memory loss. My first comment failed to post, so I tried again and both of them came up.
Way weird.
Marty
I'm going to make a guess at Lucy's riddle, I'm not afraid of getting beat up, I'm pretty sure I can outrun Tony as long as he doesn't catch me in the first couple of seconds.
It could be the time he was stopped for allegedly going through a red light. It was out at Campion and he realised his driving instructor was behind him at the time and called him as a witness at traffic court. Sure enough his driving instructor informed the judge that he himself followed Tony through the light because it had only just turned yellow.
However, it could be the time he was accused of being somebody else and doing what that other person had done, simply because he was a red head. He was in the back yard at the beach lifting a wagon wheel at the time to build up his scrawny little back and ah...accidently...yeah that's it, accidently dropped them at the accusers feet.
But... more than likely it was more recently. I remember it well, at the Antonini Brother's reunion at the cabin, T-Bone had parked his car at the west side of the lot on the grass paralleling Fairchild. Unbeknownst to any of us a local constabulary was busy writing out a parking ticket and placing it on his windshield. The aforementioned ticket was found sometime later by the red-headed owner of said car. It stated that he was facing the wrong way on the grass, and he may pay the ticket at the town office. That wasn't going to happen. It wasn't long before he tracked down the Mayor to confront him with this "stupid" ticket. I'm not sure what ever became of the ticket but I'm pretty sure they don't pay ticket writers enough to ask Tony for the money.
Hey, I could be wrong it could be a totally different time.
I must say he did have his dander up though, we were playing horseshoes at the time and after he found the ticket his next throw knocked the pin right out of the ground, cement and all. Even the mosquitoes left the area.
Ok, fascinating reading all the comments and riddles and guesses to riddles, but right now we need everyone's concentration as we near the kickoff of our intrepid Riders against the evil Leos.
"Get 'em in the backfied!"
Hello Marty and Ed,
You guys are too funny! I had no idea that this latest riddle would generate such emotion - from Marty's fear to Ed's flight!
You might as well admit it Marty, you were shaking so badly that you hit the "publish" bar twice. As you say...way weird!
Ed, I would like to give you credit for each one of your funny solutions. However, as you well know, the third is the one I had in mind when I posted the riddle. Even Mom had heard about this reunion incident at Regina Beach.
Like you, she was unable to say whether Tony ever paid the ticket after his strenuous objection to being singled out in this way.
I'd like to hear T-Bone's own version of this one. I'm sure he'd have us rolling over with laughter on the blog. I'm still chuckling at thought of a flying horseshoe breaking the post and scaring off the mosquitoes.
I don't have to say another thing about this riddle. Here's another to follow it:
YOU MIGHT SEND THIS PRECIOUS FLOWER
BUT IT ARRIVES BY SAINTLY POWER.
Laughing Lucy
OK, Thom you caught our attention with that "Get 'em in the backfield". The score is 0 to 1 so far. Go Riders!
Luce
Excellent kick... all the way through for a single point.
1 to 1
now we got em!!
I must answer this one. This is my own precious flower, The Rose, I send it to Mary often.
The Little Flower
Touchdown! 8 to 1
Are we concentrating hard enough now, Thom?
Luce
8 to 8 now!!!
Grandma has just said in disgust...
"They're even. It didn't take them long to catch up."
Luce
15 to 8 and we get a break. Grandma says, "That's not a big enough lead yet!"
Luce
Grandma is right, 18-9 is still not a big enough lead.. especially with a quarter to go... and especially in Vancouver
Go Green and White!
keep concentrating Luce
OK, Thom...we are back to concentrating on the game. Believe it or not, Grandma and I stopped watching the game to say our family rosary. We came back to 18 to 9. 14 minutes to go...Go Riders, Go.
Luce
PICK OFF!!!!!!
yeah baby!
Heck...field goal instead of TD.
21 to 9.
Luce
yeah, baby!!
i smell grey cup
ooops, that wasn't good
of course, you know what I was yelling:
GET SMART!
I hate that guy
Sweet Victory 21 to 9.
September 22nd .... Riders meet Lions in Regina. Bring 'em on!
Luce
That's what I'm talking about. Go Riders... Go Roughies... Go Green...
When I was a kid, or I should say, when I was a younger kid, I remember Lou coming home late one night and waking me. That's pretty exciting for a little brother to be woken by his older brother for important news. "Hey. Ed, Ed?" He was shoving my shoulder waiting for a response. He had been introduced to Marie Gunn that evening. When I responded he said, "I just met the girl I'm going to marry".
We all know the rest is history.
When I moved my family back from Calgary, it was Marie who found us the house we are now living in. With a bit of renovation work on my part and a great deal of work and talent on Deanie's part, it quickly became our home.
Thanks again Marie.
HAPPY ANNIVERSARY Lou and Marie
Ed and Deanie
Hi Marie and Lui,
Mom and I echo Ed's wishes today. We send our love and prayers on your 39th Wedding Anniversary. Here's an orange juice toast to you ... cheers!
Mom and Louise
Welcome to the blog, St. Therese of Lisieux!
You had a distinct advantage over the rest of us in knowing the answer to the latest riddle.
At one time or another, we have all sent Mom roses because we know how much she loves them. She has received these blossoms in every form, shape and size. They have come to her in bouquets, on cards and letters, in cross-stitch, soaps, candles, stickers, serviettes, chocolate, floor mats, towels .... you name it ...
and always you have been given the credit! We have heard Mom say, "You should see the rose (roses) that St. Theresa sent me today!" Her conviction comes from your own earthly promise to "send forth a shower of roses" from heaven.
You probably already know this, St. Theresa, but here on earth Mom's family and friends have purposely been helping you out. We don't mind at all that Mom believes our roses are heaven-sent by The Little Flower herself.
(By the way, you are the first canonized saint to appear on our family blog. The rest of us are still on life's journey.)
This seems like an appropriate riddle for this spot:
NOW THIS TREE IS IN FULL BLOSSOM;
THE OVERALL EFFECT IS AWESOME!
Respectfully, Louise
I see we have a few predictions about the final count of blog entries come August 25th.
Louise 2425 ... still possible
Marty 2319 ... easy peasy
Ed 3000 ... oh, brother!
LOLOL, Lucy (2128)
THE FAMILY TREE IS FINISHED!
Thank you everybody for your co-operation, and congratulations for doing something we didn't think was possible. I think this may be the answer to Louise's riddle.
Love, BJ
Good recollections Ed! My dad told all three of those stories to me last night...
My lawn?? yeah, the back lawn is great, very lush - needs mowing.
the front lawn...yeah. couple barricades on it from re-paving. they left them there and haven't picked them up. I don't want to move them because they are not my property....so I can't mow around them. So - you know I found a way out again!!
Later!
i guess 2777
Hilarious description Ed of the horseshoe and mosquitoes!
I watched the Riders last night as well with total joy.
I'll be able to come to the beach activities on the Friday of the reunion...
I love the blog for a good source of fun and games and stories...thanks Ed for the one about Dad and Mom...I had tears in my eyes.
This blog is a great diversion for me from my own blog - I plan to post an update in the next day or so in case you've been looking. Thanks also to many of you who have posted supportive comments lately - it keeps me sane!
Finally - Louise...can you let Grandma know that I'm going to be passing through Regina on Monday afternoon and that I'll drop by if she's up for it?
My guess is 2860...
We are on our way to walk a lake, ha, ha, I use that line every year about this time. The funny thing is, when I was a kid, or I should say a younger kid, one summer I prayed and prayed that I would be able to walk on water. Sure enough 5 or 6 months later my prayers were answered, I was able to walk out on Last Mountain Lake to places I had never been.
Every year Deanie's sister Shirley and her husband Gary host a family reunion on the July or August long weekend. This year it is August. They have a cabin we helped them build on Wakaw Lake. It's a much smaller reunion than The Reunion of August but it is always a lot of fun.
I'll be blogless until Monday evening.
Have a great weekend
Ed
Happy Anniversary, Lui & Marie!
Hope everyone has a great long weekend.
Love,
ME xoxooxox
My guess is 2508. That would be significant wouldn't it!!!
Wow, great news on the family tree... so, when are you going to send it?
I'm going to go with 2393, with summer holidays and all, I don't think we're going to get back up to our peak average.
What's the prize for who comes closest?
recap of guesses so far:
lui 2508
trish 2860
Mike 2777
Louise 2425
Marty 2319
Ed 3000
Hi Tricia,
Grandma is already looking forward to your Monday afternoon visit. We will be here whenever you happen to be passing through. We'll see you then.
Love, Louise
Hmmmm.... we are standing at 2136 postings right now, so all of the guesses seem a little high to me. However, this blog has been known to go crazy at times, so who knows. A lot of people are away, or else very busy.
Thomas,
Watch for the family tree at the reunion. It is far too big a file to send by email. And, we are still waiting for our disk of the wedding pictures.
Tricia,
We will be watching your blog for the updates. I check it every day, anyway.
Len,
Thanks for your wonderful invitation to the beach festivities. We will probably not be able to attend as we are only getting into Regina Friday, but it is very generous of you and Kelly to host them, and I love the agenda.
Holly,
I got 2 of your Regina Beach pictures half right. I got the view across the lake, but didn't know where it was from, and I recognized the window, but also didn't know which window. I doubt I will do much better on the Regina ones, considering how much it has changed every time I visit.
Marcia,
I am planning on wearing all denim--no white; hope that is okay.
Congratulations to Campbell and Brant--our nephews are getting to be as wonderful as our nieces!
Love, BJ
Oh yes, Betty Jo,
The answer to my latest riddle is Bob's family tree in pictures.
The updated version is sure to be a highlight of the reunion when it goes up on display in the student lounge at Campion College on Saturday the 25th and again in the Holy Rosary Cathedral church hall on Sunday the 26th.
We knew we could bring all those images together! Thanks, Bob! We met your August 15th cut-off date with time to spare. As Thom would say, "Easy peasy".
I suppose you could say that about this next riddle too:
WE CALLED THIS THING THE FAMILY COW;
THE TRICK TO MILKING? LEARNING HOW!
LOLOL, Lucy
Good Morning, BJ ... I wasn't aware that you were on the blog until I went to post my latest riddle.
Mike ... I'm sorry I missed your visit yesterday. I was out with my friend, Joan for the day while Therese was here at the suite with Mom. I hear you had a taste of both of my birthday cakes. Well done, you! Did you know that one of my birthday cards was a personalized one that read, "Happy Birthday, LUCY"? The nickname you inspired is truly official now!
Love, Lucy
It is amazing what is stored in our minds that we never think of unless someone prods our memory! I think the answer to the latest riddle is the box of milk Dad used to buy. It had a plastic lining inside the box that compressed as the milk was used. I think it has probably been 35-40 years since I even thought of one!!
Thank goodness,I had not forgotten the cow. I'm still smarting from the lost memory of the bread box.
BJ
You can see from my postings, that in spite of my reservations about reaching any of the blog estimates, I am doing my bit to getting them up there.
BJ
i thought that old plastic cow was a dream i had once, i actually thought of it when i saw the riddle but thought it was a dream, lou, you had an advantage on that riddle because your so old. lol
mike
If there is still spots available, I will be staying for golf on Monday. I just couldn't justify missing the fun for a tournament I can play in next year!
Woo hoo! Lou is golfing too. Welcome aboard.
Speaking of, I just finished one of the wierdest rounds I've played in years. It was my second time out this year. Wedding, broken thumb, yada yada, excuses excuses...
Anyhoo, I was 5-over after 11 holes... just like riding a bike, so they say.
On the 12th tee, I lost my swing. I'm not talking oops, where did that fade come from, I'm talking all-out, Tin Cup-esque, shanking it direct right 50 yards off the tee into the ground yip-yip-yips.
For the next six holes I could not right the ship. I went triple, double, bogey, double, par, triple and that was really a lot better than it could have been had it not been for some pretty stellar putting.
Fortunately, with the gallery looking on I managed to bring it home with a par on 18, but for those six holes I felt, for the first time in many many years, like a complete novice, aside from the putting.
What was shaping up to be a very good day on the course turned out to be a bizarre 16-over. Funny how your handicap always seems to catch up to you.
I've thought of a way to get our numbers up (and reveal a little bit of ourselves as well).
I am starting a "pet peeve" column. What really riles you up? Here's your chance to name your peeve, vent about it and say what you do about it.
I will start with Dad's. We all know how lint left in the dryer irritated him. Every time it happened, he did his little soap box rant. His solution: He prayed for the offenders. What a nice man!
My pet peeve is gift items with price stickers that don't come off easily. I used to break out the lighter fluid or nail polish remover when I got home and curse the vendors while I was inhaling the toxic fumes while attempting to remove the stickers.
Now, my solution is to take the item to the cash and tell the clerks that if they can remove the sticker without damaging the item I will buy it. Otherwise, I don't want it. (I'm not as nice as my father.)
My challenge: What's YOUR PET PEEVE?
Love, BJ
Good eye on my latest riddle, Lui!
You might be an Antonini if you ever drew milk from a container large enough to be called a cow.
I don't remember how many quarts that box of milk held but the container occupied half of the top shelf of our refrigerator.
The small plastic tap for accessing the milk was a little tricky to operate. You had to hold a T-shaped mechanism between your index and middle finger while pressing a release button with your thumb.
If you just pressed the button, the whole tap disappeared inside the box. It then had to be coaxed out again before you could get any milk to flow. If that mistake happened too often, a leak would develop in the plastic bag that held the milk. That could get messy.
Of course, it was imperative that you use your other hand to hold a container under the tap to catch the flowing milk. It was also important to turn off the tap before the glass overflowed.
Given its drawbacks and the number of people "milking the cow", it's a wonder that Dad continued to buy fresh milk in this way.
Here's another funny memory:
HE SAID A PEEP SHOULD NOT BE HEARD
BUT WASN'T TALKING TO A BIRD!
LOLOL, Lucy
Lucy,
Your description of the milking of the cow had me laughing out loud. I should say 'has'--I'm still laughing--hilarious.
And speaking of laughing--why is it that when Dad was trying to get us to go to sleep and said "I don't want to hear another peep out of you", one of us could not resist saying (in a very tiny voice, of course), "peep", resulting in the rest of us dissolving in laughter.
Is that the answer to your riddle?
Love, BJ
P.S. I'm still laughing.
D'oh! I had that riddle, but B.J. beat me to it. I don't know how many times I've heard that story, but it's a lot.
Pet peeves... where do I start?
Most of mine have to do with the butchering of the English language.
Still top of my list is the use, or in my mind misuse of the word comprise. It is now accepted by approximately half of linguists that it is okay to say 'is comprised of'. I disagree, I always felt the true elegance of comprise was that the 'is' and the 'of' are implicit in its use. Otherwise, we simply do not need it because we have the word compose.
Whenever someone says "is comprised of" I cringe. It still comes off as pretentious to me, like someone who is trying to impress but doesn't know what the hell they're talking about.
It also really irritates me that so many people are incompetent with the use of adverbs. Golf announcers are the worst offenders. You do not hit a ball solid, you hit a ball solidly. ARGH!
QUOTE OF THE DAY:
You keep your past by having siblings. As you get older, they're the only ones who don't get bored if you talk about your memories!
-Deborah Moggach
Thanks for the memories everyone. I'm discovering, as you each blog, that things are coming back to mind - things I had forgotten all about. I love the walk down Memory Lane.
LOL,
ME
xoxoxoxoxo
Hey Thomas
Our pet peeves have so much in common.
I also hate it when people misuse our language, although I am probably as guilty as many of them.
HOW THE HECK do you use the word BADLY in a sentence.
People always say, "I feel Badly about it". Shouldn't they say- I feel bad about it. I mean, you don't say- "I feel goodly about it"
if you feel good about something, do you?
Am I wrong? Tell me.
Marty #2152
Marty, you are indeed correct. Badly is not a word.
Of course, I mean it is not appropriate in that context. One could say: "He hit the ball badly," although I would be more inclined to use poorly.
Yes, BJ
Whenever Dad said, "I don't want to hear another peep out of you" he was giving fair warning to his children who were talking and laughing when they were supposed to be asleep in their beds.
You are also right about the impish "peep" that broke the silence that usually followed Dad's admonition to us. Then our giggles and conversation would start again.
Mom tells me that all Dad would have to do then is tap on the living room ceiling with a broom handle and we would quickly settle down again. I wonder why that added threat was so effective. What did we think would happen next?
My next riddle seems to belong here:
POINTER...NUDGER...WALKING STICK...
HOW HE USED IT...TAKE YOUR PICK!
LOLOL, Lucy
Now I, too, have a PET PEEVE to meet your challenge, BJ.
There are many things about the computer that frustrate me but none is as traumatic as the loss of a long and newsy email letter that I am about to send to a friend.
I know exactly when this loss of my correspondence occurs but I don't know how or why. It seems that my right hand brushes against a wicked key somewhere in the lower corner of the keyboard and everything I have written disappears off the screen. I sit in stunned disbelief and then use the tried-and-true BACK button only to discover that it does not work in this particular situation.
I can humbly report that I have devised a strategy for cutting my losses. Whenever I am busy typing a letter, I press the SAVE button after each paragraph. Then, when the computer decides to eat my words I can at least return to my draft file and pick up where I left off at a previous paragraph.
Only after I have successfully sent my email into cyberspace, do I go back and delete the 10 or 12 back-up letters that have collected in my draft file.
I'm sure that computer experts will wonder at my awkwardness around this intimidating technology. Oh well, I'm here, aren't I!
Lumbering Lucy
Hi, Mary-Ellen,
Your latest Quote of the Day was worth waiting for. Deborah Moggach is right about sibling memories keeping the past alive. This family blog proves her point. We are happily walking, running, jogging and skipping along memory lane.
I just have to say it: DOWN RODE GAME! Keep those quotes coming.
Love, Louise
Talk about pet peeves!! How about Blake Shelton's pet peeves -- drivers that blame you for their bad driving, people that steal your parking spot you've been patiently waiting for and the worst one of all, when the dentist first starts to grind away at your teeth!!
Must be a country tune!!!
I like the solution though. Maybe it's time for us to start planning another trip to Maui!
Driving down the interstate
Running thirty minutes late
Singing Margaritaville and minding my own
Some foreign car driver dude with a road rage attitude
Pulled up beside me talking on his cell phone
He started yelling at me like I did something wrong
He flipped me the bird an' then he was gone
Some beach
Somewhere
There's a big umbrella casting shade over a empty chair
Palm trees growing and warm breezes blowing
I picture myself right there
On Some beach, somewhere
I circled the parking lot trying to find a spot
Just big enough I could park my old truck
A man with a big cigar was getting into his car
I stopped and I waited for him to back up
From out of no where a Mercedes Benz
Came cruising up and whipped right in
Some beach
Somewhere
There's no where to go and you got all day to get there
There's cold margaritas and hot Senioritas smiling with long dark hair
On some beach
Somewhere
I sat in that waiting room
It seemed like all afternoon
The nurse finally said doc's ready for you
you're not gonna feel a thing we'll give you some novocain
That tooth will be fine in a minute or two
But he stuck that needle down deep in my gum
And he started drilling before I was numb
Some beach
Somewhere
There's a beautiful sunset burning up the atmosphere
There's music and dancing and lovers romancing
In the salty evening air
On some beach
Somewhere
On some beach, somewhere
Wow, Lui...you are good! Imagine finding a song to fit BJ's latest challenge! I might have known that you would respond with music.
Without things to bug him, Blake Shelton would never have written this song. There is a lot to be said for PET PEEVES that inspire artists to create in such a way.
The next time my email disappears, I may just stop what I'm doing and write a poem.
LOLOL, Lucy
Lucy again, Lou
I'm thinking that you might be able to help me track down a song that I heard only once on the radio about 10 years ago.
I was driving along a winding, wet north island road, with a single piece of rush freight for the pulp mill, feeling stressed and tired. The radio was on and all I heard was a female vocalist lament..."I'll never drive through Paris with the wind blowin' in my hair". Before I knew it, I was crying. Don't ask me why. Such emotion happens without warning.
I know that one obscure line is little to go on but maybe you can track down this song that made such a strong impression on me that day. If not, my memory of that moment will still hold firm.
Luv, Lucy
Ah Louise, isn't music wonderful when it stirs the emotions?
I think the song you heard was the Ballad of Lucy Jordan by Marianne Faithful. The words follow:
The morning sun touched lightly on the eyes of Lucy Jordan
In a white suburban bedroom in a white suburban town
As she lay there neath the covers dreaming of a thousand lovers
Till the world turned to orange and the room went spinning round.
At the age of thirty-seven she realised shed never
Ride through Paris in a sports car with the warm wind in her hair.
So she let the phone keep ringing and she sat there softly singing
Little nursery rhymes shed memorised in her daddys easy chair.
Her husband, hes off to work and the kids are off to school,
And there are, oh, so many ways for her to spend the day.
She could clean the house for hours or rearrange the flowers
Or run naked through the shady street screaming all the way.
At the age of thirty-seven she realised shed never
Ride through paris in a sports car with the warm wind in her hair
So she let the phone keep ringing as she sat there softly singing
Pretty nursery rhymes shed memorised in her daddys easy chair.
The evening sun touched gently on the eyes of lucy jordan
On the roof top where she climbed when all the laughter grew too loud
And she bowed and curtsied to the man who reached and offered her his hand,
And he led her down to the long white car that waited past the crowd.
At the age of thirty-seven she knew shed found forever
As she rode along through paris with the warm wind in her hair
What can I say, Lui? I can't thank you enough. You not only found the name of the song and the singer, you provided me with all the words that fill in the single, concrete image of freedom that has stayed with me for years.
How about that title, too?- The Ballad of LUCY Jordan. Like many ballads, the song itself is too sad. Still, today I understand a little better why I was moved to tears on that long-ago day on a lonely road.
Thank you! The song has come full circle and so have my tears.
Love, Lucy (Butcher)
Luce, the image of you on that lonely road reminded me of one of my all time favourite melancholy tunes by Ferron.
A Girl on a Road
My momma was a waitress, my daddy a truckdriver.
The thing that kept their power from them slowed me down awhile.
I remember the morning that was the closing of my youth, when I said goodbye to no one and in that way faced my truth
and a walk along the river
and a rain a'coming down
and a girl on a road.
There's a rhythm to a highway to match the rhythm of your fears
My shopping bag possessions scattered with my splattered tears.
A string of nights in truck stops and in darkness and in lies and a man they all called Tigerboy...he just had to show me why.
He just had to give me something I'd forever understand
as a girl on a road.
Rain upon the water makes footprints sunk in sand.
Anger upon angry hurt, take me by the hand.
Take me by the heartstrings and pull me deep inside and say I'm one with your forgiveness and separate from my pride.
I don't know what it's like for you but here's what it's like for me
I wanted to turn beautiful and serve Eternity
and never follow money or love with greasy hands,
or move the earth and waters just to make it fit my plans.
My eyes would be the harbor, my words the perfect place
for a girl on a road.
I met you in the Summer, I left you in the Fall.
In between we did some living...I like to think that's all
but now I see words can be like weapons no matter that they're small
and I used three tiny words on you and then beat it down the hall. Does this road go on forever?
Does this terror know no end
for a girl on a road?
Rain upon the water makes footprints sunk in sand.
Anger upon angry hurt, take me by the hand.
Take me by the heartstrings and pull me deep inside
and say I'm one with your forgiveness and separate from my pride.
You cannot measure what it takes to mend a withered heart.
They'll tell you at the onset everybody does their part.
I did my best to follow the calling of my soul.
But, it's like that first guitar I played...at the center is a hole, at the center is a longing
that I cannot understand
as a girl on a road.
But if music be a boulder, let me carry it a long while.
Let it turn into a feather, let it brush against my smile.
Let the life be somewhat settled with the life that song has made. Let there be nothing I am longing for in some plan I may have made, in some story quickly written during a long forgotten time
as
Rain upon the water makes footprints sunk in sand.
Anger upon angry hurt, take me by the hand.
Take me by the heartstrings and pull me deep inside and say I'm one with your forgiveness and separate from my pride.
Lui,
You are awesome! Great postings on both songs. I think you should write one of your own.
Love, BJ
And speaking of pet peeves, two of my all-time favourites reared their ugly heads this morning.
On my way to church, I stopped at Tim Horton's for a cup of the mediocre brew. It took forever to get served. Why? Because drive-thru customers take priority over flesh-and-blood customers. GRRRRR
Later, I was standing on the seventh tee box. The group ahead stood on the edge of the green counting up their scores, marking their cards and generally adjusting their bags etc. Then, they leisurely strolled around the green.
This falls under the more general pet peeve: People who are completely oblivious that there are other people in the world.
BJ, I wrote a song just shortly after I met Marie. I used to sing it to myself and I one fingered it on the piano. I didn't get it down until many years later when I sang it to Marty and he put the music down for me. I have sung it a few times especially when Marty and I have jammed together and I could probably sing it at the reunion. It goes like this:
If I told you that I loved you, would you treat me like a fool?
Would you laugh and kid and joke around with all your friends at school?
I know that it's unusual to love you like I do,
'cause it was only yesterday that I first met you.
It was only yesterday I fell in love with you.
Oh babe if I could only make you feel the way I do.
And yes it's hard to say the words I want to say to you.
'Cause baby it was yesterday I fell in love with you.
I'm acting like a fool I realize and yet I'm here,
speaking words I know I must just to you near.
I'm thinking 'bout the girls I've known,
the ones that I went with,
I'm thinking 'bout my feelings now, it seems just like a myth.
It was only yesterday I fell in love with you.
Oh babe if I could only make you feel like I do.
And yes it's hard to say the words I want to say to you.
'Cause baby it was yesterday I fell in love with you.
Yes baby it was yesterday I fell in love with you.
Wow, Lui! I didn't realize you could write a song like that. Amazing! And the fact that it was written for Marie makes it even more powerful. What a guy! And what a girl!
QUOTE OF THE DAY:
Whatever you are, be a good one.
- Abraham Lincoln
This quote reminds me of Tricia because wherever she is, whatever she is encountering, and whatever she is doing, she is doing it to the full. What a remarkable woman! You're incredible, Tricia, and I dedicate this entry to you.
Love,
ME
xoxoxoxoxo
xoxoxoxoxo
xoxoxoxoxo
Lui,
I am so touched, not only that you could write such a beautiful song, but that you would write the words for us here. I am writing this through my tears; it is beautiful.
Love,BJ
how appropriate that louise's long lost line would be a song about a lucy and that the song specialist would know it, its great to hear your golfing lou, we can now say one of the big boys is golfing.
love mike
Lucy here, Lui
I thought you'd like to know that I have just listened to Marianne Faithfull singing The Ballad of Lucy Jordan.
When I told David about your song find, he said he remembered Faithfull and her connection to Mick Jagger. He suggested that I could probably find the song online and that I might even be able to listen to it once more for old times' sake. I did just that.
Thanks again. You made my day!
Love, Lucy
I'm back again, Lou
This time I listened to Ferron singing "Girl on a Road". Her voice, lyrics and music definitely appeal to me. Besides that, she is a Canadian!
You probably already know this but, believe it or not ... LUCY Records is Ferron's recording company!
You sure know your stuff when it comes to songs and recording artists.
Lucy
Mike?
How's that for coincidence?
The Ballad of Lucy Jordan sung by Marianne Faithfull and Girl on a Road by Ferron on a Lucy Record. I'm liking my nickname all the more after a day like today!
LOLOL, Lucy
OK ... three hits were too much to ask for. I guess I'll have to wait until the reunion to hear Lui Antonini sing Marie's Song.
Even with my rapidly developing computer skills, I was not able to put a tune to the lyrics of Lou's love song.
Oh well, three weeks is not too long to wait at all. You're on Lou!
Lucy
Thom ... will we also get to hear Lorraine's song? And maybe Life is a Circle, too?
Have you tried Blake Shelton's song-writing solution for dealing with pet peeves? I'll bet you could fit your Tim Horton's and golf course experiences into a song about people who don't take others into consideration.
Now there's a three-week challenge for you, too!
Love, Luce
Hi Mary-Ellen,
Mom and I were reading the blog together tonight. When she came across your Quote of the Day she said ... "Oh look at that... whatever you are, be a good one".
Mom enjoys short, meaningful quotations. Several times today she delighted in reading one of her cryptogram solutions out loud.
Here's a sample:
"Yesterday is a cancelled check; tomorrow is a promissory note; today is the only cash you own - spend it wisely."
Lucy and The Mom
I get the impression that I'm all alone here. I'm heading to bed now .... and that's a promise!
Lucy
Hey Luce, chances are I am all alone here now.
Ferron is from Vancouver Island originally. She alternates with Bruce Cockburn as my favourite song-writer of all time. When I put out The Forest for the Trees I sent her a copy. She sent me a card.
Highly recommended (especially for those who like melancholy, I understand there are a few of those in this family.
Luce, it's almost like you're back in Scotland, only then it was a flurry of early morning posts while everyone else was in bed, now it's a flurry of late night posts followed by a flurry of my west coast postings.
And yes, you will all get to hear Lorraine's song and Life is a Circle and bunches more at the campfire on the lake on Friday night.
I already have a Tim Horton's song, which I am now working on a Saskatchewan version of. The lyrics to the northern B.C. version will be posted in my next comment.
Tim Horton's Song (also known as The Mediocre Brew
Canadians around the world are a sentimental clan
From Norway to South Africa, from Scotland to Japan
No matter where you find us, one thing keeps us proud
We'll sing it from the rooftops, we'll sing it long and loud
It's Tim Horton's we love
It's Canadian as hockey
We'd crawl from Kamloops to St. John's for our fix of Timmie's coffee
Let Ma and Pa go out of biz
To hell with Starbucks too
We're like lemmings in the springtime for that mediocre brew
Joe was late for work last week
It just could not be helped
The line at Tim's stretched all the way from Queen Street to the mount
His boss was really mad at him and screamed through angry fits
"Where's my double double and my cartoon of Timbits?"
It's Tim Horton's we love
It's Canadian as hockey
We'd crawl from Kamloops to St. John's for our fix of Timmie's coffee
Let Ma and Pa go out of biz
To hell with Starbucks too
We're like lemmings in the springtime for that mediocre brew
A customer at Zellers was in an awful tizzy
The cashier wasn't serving him, she said that she was busy
But he was calm and understood when she firmly told him
"I'm sorry, sir, you'll have to wait, I'm rolling up my rim."
It's Tim Horton's we love
It's Canadian as hockey
We'd crawl from Kamloops to St. John's for our fix of Timmie's coffee
Let Ma and Pa go out of biz
To hell with Starbucks too
We're like lemmings in the springtime for that mediocre brew
Late one night while driving east from Smithers to Prince George
I was tired, fading fast and needed to recharge
I passed a truckstop in Burns Lake 'cause it would just not do
I had to push on through to Vanderhoof for a Tim's all night Drive-Thru
It's Tim Horton's we love
It's Canadian as hockey
We'd crawl from Kamloops to St. John's for our fix of Timmie's coffee
Let Ma and Pa go out of biz
To hell with Starbucks too
We're like lemmings in the springtime for that mediocre brew
Once again, I apologize for using this forum for reunion organizing... heaven forbid.
I'm pretty sure we've got enough golfers now to make a scramble worthwhile. I'd like to get a confirmation from those who have committed. I'd also like to find out who among the non-committed (i.e., Don Wohlberg and David Butcher where the heck are you????)
Of course, we will have to have prizes for long drives, closest to the pin etc. I will donate a Thom Barker The Forest for the Trees CD. Does anyone else have anything they would like to throw in the hat?
I am really looking forward to the reunion. I have Aug. 23 to Sept. 4 off and a wonderful drive through Banff, Lake Lucy etc. and will still have a few days off to have a holiday from my holiday when I get back. Sweet.
Thom.,
I,m off to the links.
I hope to be in your scramble.
God willing.
Do 21 handicappers qualify.
Dave B.
Thom, I have some small golf promo items I will bring - enough for five or six prizes. Sleeves of balls, divot tools and the like.
Dave, if you have a 21 hdcp the slope rating at St A must be astronomical!!!
Dave, a 21 at St. Andrews is something like a 10 at Regina Beach.
How was the ladies' Open?
Good one, Lou. I love it, three weeks away and the trash-talking already begins.
I sat down to read
What I missed on the blog.
And thinking it's easy,
like falling off a log.
It was early, I swear
when I started to write,
but by the time I was finished,
day had become night!
With songs and good wishes
for birthdays and all,
It took longer to catch up
than the aforementioned fall.
Talk about music, golf and coffee hounds,
The good news? I'm caught up and I lost three pounds!
Love to all, see you soon,
Marcia
Apoligies to Vic, who does this so much better....
Note to BJ, yes all denim is great, (all denim, all white or a combo of both is what we're after - just a reminder to everyone else)
luce & thom - i love when there are lots of new entries, so keep them coming.
i've got a few c21 items for prizes at the golf, i think were up to 7 or 8 golfers and growing, i've booked for 12 to 16 so we'll see if that has to be increased, the beach club said to just let them know.
hey thomas - don't you just want to golf in this little tourney "badly".
Actually, badly is an interesting word. I did some research and, like comprise, experts are now divided on its use. It's a living language.
oh, and i wanted to mention this little tourney "is comprised of" family members only, so far
love mike
Thom ... I didn't miss your reference to Lake Lucy and neither did Mary-Ellen. We had to agree that it was very clever of you to slip that nickname in the way you did.
At breakfast this morning, when I told Grandma about your reunion route through Banff and Lake Lucy, she thought we might be carrying this LUCY thing too far.
Aunt Jo says that I'll never be a "Lucy" to her. That's okay, too ... I love Lucy but I also answer to Louise.
Luce
Oh Mike,
You sure know how to get those digs in, don't you! I have to admit, they are pretty funny, too. It seems to me that when we're not crying on the blog, we're having a good laugh.
Participation in the Monday golf tourney at Regina Beach is building. I almost wish I were a golfer. Do you need caddies, ball spotters, marshalls for crowd control?
Dave should be able to muster up a few prizes from St. Andrews. Let's encourage him to bring one of those precious Jack Nicklaus five pound notes for sure. How about it, Dave?
LOLOL, Lucy
Great poem, Marcia!
Vic would say that you don't need to make any apologies for your versifying. Our family poet is away from the blog right now but I know she would appreciate your blog poem with its good-news ending.
There's lots of talk about denim and white here in Regina. We are all on track in the costume department. There is even mention of your professional posing plan courtesy of a friendly photographer you met on an airplane. The excitement is building.
Love, Lucy
Hi David,
Fancy meeting you on the blog! If you have time before you fly to Canada this Friday, could you buy another box of Scottish Fudge for our reunion? I have already given a few bars away and I would like to replenish my stock.
I hope you will keep your newly lasered eyes open for golf prizes, too. Can you track down a couple of Jack Nicklaus five-pound notes?
Whatever happens ... just be sure you are on Friday's flight home to me!
Love, Louise
Wow, this golf thing is taking on a life of its own. It looks like we'll probably have more prizes than golfers.
Luce, of course, anyone who doesn't play is welcome to come along and caddy or marshall or just walk the course.
Carrying the nickname thing too far? We've only just begun.
I just thought of a new blog game: clever mixed metaphors or malapropisms.
Two of my all time favourites: "Why don't you make like a tree and get out of here." From Back to the Future
I like it because it messes up the well-known metaphor (which is actually a simile) but it still kind of works because you wouldn't normally have a tree indoors.
Movie mogul Sam Goldwyn was famous for malaprops as in: "A verbal contract is not worth the paper it is written on.
You could also include misunderstood lyrics. I have a friend who always thought the line from Margaritaville was "Searching for my lost jigger saw," instead of "shaker of salt" until he heard me sing it.
thomas - is this sort of what your talkin about.
whats green and go's slam, slam, slam, slam.
a four-door pickle.
who's gonna get 2200?
we're gettin close
Mom here.... on 2200
It won't be long now!
I can't imagine what it will be like. It's going to be so big.
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