The Clip-on Sunglasses Fiasco

So I came home today wearing these........

And my wife and oldest daughter LAUGHED at me!!!! (The younger one was not around at the time)

When I explained that because I wear prescription glasses these were the only real option for me, they LAUGHED even more!!!

I began to get really mad when they said that it made me look like an old man! 

"What am I supposed to do?" I asked.  "The sun is really bright and this is the only way I can wear sunglasses"...  but my anger only increased their laughter.

This would have been really upsetting if I had been serious.  In fact, I got a new windshield put in the Alero today and the installer must have found these things stuck between the windshield and the dashboard, because when I got in the car they were sitting on the passenger's seat along with a parking lot ticket and some other junk.... so of course I had to put them on and make the girls think I had lost my mind - which, apparently, would be quite funny to them.

So now.... the big question:  In light of the fact that they did not know any better (I could have been totally serious) and yet they laughed at me any way..... how would you interpret their actions?

    A.  I should be happy to know that they love me enough to be honest - even if it hurts my feelings.

    B.  They are mean and sadistic people who like to laugh at my expense whenever they can.

   C.  They knew that I was too hip and cool to be serious about clip-on sunglasses in the first place.

   D.  Some other fourth thing.

Me.... I am hoping for "C"..... but it is likely "A"..... though I would not bet against at least a little bit of "B" thrown in there too.   :)

Our new wheels

Hey all.... I am only posting this just to complete the cycle... I told you that we wrecked Van-essa, so here is the replacement.... a 2007 GMC Acadia.  We have not named her yet.... suggestions????

Bugs on the Visor :)

After church today, my buddy Paul said to me, "Hey, I am riding my motorcycle out to Bengough to see my uncle.... wanna come?"

I was non-committal.

He left and then came back and said, "I am going and your wife said that you should go with me".

So I knocked my chair over and I ran to Paul's truck.  He gave me a ride home so that I could change, get the bike and get on the road.

It was great!  It was a beautiful day.  We stopped and looked around in several small towns.  We soaked in the sunshine on the deck in his uncle's back yard and drank cokes.  We stopped in Weyburn at Tim Horton's.  It was spontaneous, silly and a lot of fun.

You know that you have had a good day (and that you have a very nice wife) when, at the end of the day, you look at your motorcycle jacket and your helmet and they are covered with bugs!
  :)

PS.  We may have sorted out our "we need a replacement for 'Van-essa'" situation.... stay tuned.

The Girls' new ride

Well - we are starting to sort out some of our vehicle troubles.  We bought the kids a 2004 Olds Alero last night.  It is a newer car than what we were originally looking for, but we thought that maybe it would serve as a decently reliable back-up if we needed a car again.  It has a little 4 cylinder engine (so it should be good on fuel), it is sporty looking (it even has a sunroof) and it won't be embarrassing to drive (which, apparently, matters to some girls).

So there you go.... step one is done.  Now we just need to find something to replace our van.

Good-bye Van-essa

I think it has come time to say "Good-bye" to our dear friend, Van-essa. 

She has been part of our family for almost 10 years and almost 200 000 kms.  I still remember the day we saw her on the lot at "Carlyle Motor Products".  We had said, "If we could find a van like....." and there she was... honestly, just what we were looking for.  We test drove a few other ones, but as soon as we drove her onto the highway, we looked at each other and said, "Ok - this is it!"

We have been through a lot together from trips to see family, to the kid's first drive-in movie, to going up the mountain in Montana to Sari's aunt's cabin, to trips to the beach, to being lost in the tri-cities area of Washington looking for a restaurant, to Katie learning to drive in it, to going to Oregon last summer (Her last big hurrah!).

However, last Thursday night, a lady missed a stop sign and plowed into the driver's door and now I am afraid that Van-essa is not long for this world (We had her in at SGI today and the prognosis was not good).  
 
So we are preparing to say good-bye.  She was a good old girl and  fun while she lasted (Well - other than that really annoying and super expensive transmission problem and the fact that we froze to death in her for a few winters until we got that problem fixed and the leaky intake manifold gasket and the power sliding door that did not always work right and the door locks that would not lock and the front end work that needs to be done now..... hmmm - now that I think about it - maybe I am not so sad to see her go after all). 

Thanks for the memories, the fun and the miles, Van-essa!  :)

(Knock, knock) Penny .... (Knock knock) Penny...... (Knock knock)Penny

So the girls (all three) went to see "The Hunger Games" the other night. 

When they got home, they got into this intense discussion that used English words, but made no sense to me.   I remember hearing things like: "Tributes..... Capital ..... Katnip..... Peta (I am not sure what "People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals" has to do with it. Maybe they sponsored the show)...... Rude" and a bunch of other stuff that I do not remember, get or (honestly) care about.

As I sat there listening to all of this, I thought to myself, "This is my 'Penny' moment.  I AM Penny from the TV show 'The Big Bang Theory'!"  (Though I am not so sure I would look as good in her "Cheesecake Factory" dress..... yellow is not my colour)

For those who may not know.... On the show, Penny is a girl who lives across the hall from two physicists. The guys have a tendency to get into these huge, convoluted discussions that Penny neither understands or cares about, so she often just rolls her eyes and leaves.

Therefore, since my house has now been invaded by a group of "Hunger games physicist nerds", I am rolling my eyes and leaving.   I will be across the hall if anyone wants to talk about something real.... something interesting and important........ like Motorcycles!  :)

PS.  As an aside.... I may have mentioned this before, but it bears repeating:  Because of Sari's employment at the school, my kids have a very different view of their teachers than I ever had.  For example, my kids went to the movie with their current and former teachers.... saw them in a social setting.... talked to them like real people.... maybe even threw popcorn at them when they weren't looking (That is an unconfirmed.... actually - totally made up report.  It did not happen... but it could have).  

Me..... I assumed that my teachers lived at the school and had no other interests outside of teaching since I never saw them anywhere other than at the school.  They certainly were not "real people" that one could get to know or converse with (maybe you could throw popcorn at them.... whether you should is another discussion).  It is just weird!   I like that my kids like and know their teachers...... but where is the fear????   The intimidation????  Where is the kid standing in the coat room crying because he is so scared of his teacher that he doesn't want to go into the classroom????? (Not that I ever did that.... but I.... ummm..... heard about it... once).  There is no trauma inflicted anymore (except maybe the trauma inflicted by the kids on the teachers.... but that is another story).  

Apparently, the "Good old days" are gone!  :)

Baaaaa Haaaa Haaaaa!!!

So Sari is away this weekend at some little homecoming thing (there are like 904368390486904386 people going to WCC's homecoming this weekend..... it would have been 904368390386904387 if I went, but.... that is a completely different story)

Anyway, since she is away, I took two really cute girls out for supper. 

I ordered "Ribs and Chicken Wings" (a "Heart Healthy" choice, right?) and when it came, I challenged each of the girls to eat a "suicide wing" as fast as they could.... no water.... no stopping.

BAAAAAA  HAAAAAA HAAAAA!!!!!   It was great!!!!!   They looked like this......

And then the best part..... one of them somehow got suicide wing sauce up her nose!!!! (Lets just say that Megan thought that was really funny!!!)  Here is a hint for future reference.... if it burns your lips and makes you actually wish that they would fall off..... putting it up your nose is not a good idea!

I hope Sari comes home soon..... I miss her and the girls may not survive.

Just for fun

I know that I have posted this before, but I was going through a bunch of old emails and found it again, so I am re-posting it..... enjoy and learn something useful.  :)

If you get a chance

Brent Butt was in town last night.  We were lucky enough to have been given tickets as a Christmas present and so we got to enjoy a night out for nothing.  It was really good.... funny..... tons of people (they sold every ticket and filled the auditorium).... talked to tons of people (Everyone we know was there.... it was like we were being stalked... or we were stalking them)..... it was a good time. 

If you ever get a chance to see Brent, I would recommend it.  He was 98% clean (and for stand-up that is great) and he used mostly new material.  Good stuff.

PS.  The other thing is that it really made me want to run away and do stand-up.... woudln't that be fun????  So if I am not there on Sunday.........   :)

If you really knew me.....

Hey, if you have a few minutes, watch this video.  Sari and I were privileged to get to participate in a self-esteem building/anti-bullying program at the high school today.  It is called "Challenge Day" and this will give you a quick look at it.

We really enjoyed hanging out with the students, teacher and other adult volunteers.  It was a day of laughing, tears, apologies and hugs...... not to mention that I got to break out all the dance moves that the girls won't let me do in public (We were told to dance badly.... I was complimented for my bad dancing.... is that good or bad?????)

The title of this post was one of the themes of the day..... "If you really knew me would you know"..... and then we had to fill in the blank in small groups.  It was a very powerful day of people talking about their struggles, their fears and their hopes.   To be honest, it was a lot of what church ought to be like.

Anyway, if you are ever offered a chance to go and assist with this program, to send your child to it, or to bring it to your town.... jump on it.  It was great!!!!  (Just make sure you get lots of rest first..... and practice your dance moves!)   :)

Three planets for the price of ..... nothing!

So I came out of the leisure centre tonight after playing squash with Paul and I saw these two very bright "stars" in the western sky.  I figured that they had to be planets but I did not know which ones so I looked them up and they are Jupiter and Venus. 

For the month of March they are visible in the western sky for at least four hours after sundown and look like this.......

As an added bonus..... turn to the southeast portion of the sky and you can see a big red dot.... that is Mars.

It is just cool to me that you can easily pick out three planets like that.... they look like nothing else up there.... you cannot miss them.

Ooooh.... then lLook down and you will see one more planet.... earth.... unless it is too dark. :)

Go have a look.... this will not happen for a while again.  If you would like to know more, google a sky chart for your area or read about it here

Random thoughts and real news

Is it a bad sign when your dentist knows you by your first name?  I don't mean like when you are in his office and he looks at your chart and says, "Ok Tim, how are you today?"   I mean like when you are at the hockey game and he walks by you at the concession and says, "Hi Tim".

Now don't get me wrong.... my dentist is a nice enough guy, but we are not buddies or anything.  And, to be fair, it is a small town and there are not that many preachers in it, so people tend to at least sort of know who I am.

But this was just a little weird!  I mean, I think I saw him wink when he said, "Hi Tim"..... you know that wink that says, "I am looking at buying a new boat this summer and I think you are going to make that a little easier on me".   In other words, he seemed just a little too happy to see me.  It was as if he had just seen his personal cash cow!!!  D'oh!

And then - after he left - I got the chills...... it was sort of like seeing the Grim Reaper and living to tell about it.  Good think I actually don't mind the guy.... think what it would be like if I didn't.
_____
On the way to the office today, I heard a story on the CBC about a curling bonspiel that is for preachers only.  It is called "The Friar's Brier".  The story went on to talk about the fact that it gets guys together from all over the country, that it is good for making new friends across denominational lines and that it gives the guys a fun event to look forward to.  That is all great..... but I think that they missed the best line of the whole story.

They should have pointed out that they all WALK ON WATER!!!  Bah ha ha!!!!   Get it????? Water.... curling ice...... preachers...... Jesus........  Hello????  Is this on?????  Hello???????? (tap tap)

Oh never mind!
_______
On to real news.....

- We celebrated a 16th birthday in our house this past weekend.  As I said to Katelyn on Saturday.... "I remember the day you were born.  I came home to our old house after a long night at the hospital and crashed on the couch.  I hit the stereo and a song called 'God has smiled on me' came on"...... at that point in my story I got at little teary eyed and choked up..... so I turned to her and said, with choking voice..... "I really miss that couch!"....... We both laughed for 10 minutes straight!  :)

- Sadly, Megan's B-ball season has come to an end.  It was a lot of fun watching her play and improve so much over the past few years.  I am going to miss going to the games and I am going to miss having kids that wear the "Hillcrest" uniform, but it was fun while it lasted.

So there you go...... some things to think about or to try to forget.  Have a good week!

I just got back from Ladies Retreat

Ok - so I did not actually go to ladies retreat (though I have been lobbying to be the guest speaker there sometime..... If they don't give in soon I am going to take them to court for discrimination.... you cannot ban someone from an event based on race, colour or gender!!!   Right????  Why should I miss out on a weekend away just because I am a man, huh????  It is wrong I tell ya!!!!).

Anyway - what was I ranting about before I started ranting.... oh ya.... I just got the minute by minute replay from the daughters.  I am serious... it took like 2 hours to tell me all about the three days..... 2 hours (literally!).

I am not sure where they got their "detail oriented story-telling" from....their mom maybe?  :)

Actually, it is sort of funny.... before the kids started going to this event, Sari would come home and I would ask, "So how was it?  What happened?"...... now that the kids go, I don't have to ask that question any more.


I am glad that they (all 3) had a really good weekend and I enjoyed hearing about it.  It was a nice weekend for me too.  I am enough of a hermit that I don't mind a few days by myself and I had enough outside activities (hockey game, work day remodeling the old kitchen in the church building, a few stock car races on TV) to keep me from going stir crazy. All in all - a good weekend.

But, mark my words..... I am going to the retreat next year!!!   I am going to be the "Jackie Robinson" of Ladies retreat (Jackie broke the colour barrier in Major league baseball). One day they will make a movie of my life.... I will be a national hero!!!!  They will build a statue of me outside the Kenosee Inn to commemorate the spot where I stood up for the rights of men everywhere. My dream is that it will no longer be referred to as "ladies retreat" - it will just be "retreat".

Or maybe I will just go to Daytona for the 500 instead.

For my "Word Nerd" friends

Flipping around the stations last night, I saw a guy doing a stand-up routine.  Most of it was not that funny or interesting, but I liked this part.....

I hate spelling.  In fact, I really hate the word "doubt".  It has a silent "b" in it and I always look at that word and think, "Did I spell that correctly?"..... and that makes you actually experience the feeling that the word is meant to convey.

Wouldn't it be cool if other words worked the same way? 

I mean.... what if the spelling of "random" just had an "x" thrown in there for no reason?

Or what if you spelled "Stutter" with like 18 "T"s...... "Stutttttttttttttter"

That would make a lot of sense to me.  :)

Doing the right thing

Left alone, I don't know how much longer he would have lasted.... it is hard to say.  When we found him he was shivering in a tarp garage alone behind this guy's house.  He was cold... there was no heat.  He was in the dark.... no windows or lights.  It was easy to tell - just by looking at him - that he was being neglected.... abused even. 

When we asked the owner about the poor little guy, he said that he had checked in on him the previous day, but I was not sure that was true.  Then, as the guy talked, he revealed that frustration had set in recently, causing him to just give up on the little guy.  It was sad, but it happens.   I am just glad that we got there when we did.

As we got closer, it was obvious that all the little guy wanted was someone to love him and care for him..... you could see it in his headlight.  He just wanted someone to take him for a run out on the open road, so he could feel the wind through his spokes one more time.

It is not every day that you get to rescue a motorcycle from neglect, but yesterday was one of those gloriously good days!

My friend Dennis and I went to Weyburn, found a 1984 Honda Magna V45 (750 cc) and rescued it.  In fact, we got 3/4s of another bike thrown in for nothing (a frame, various wiring parts and an engine that was spread out in 4 different totes and literally a thousand pieces).  

Dennis was looking for a project bike.  Something that he could make into a "bobber".... and he found it and bought it.

Some may say we are heroes for what we did.... but I don't see it that way.  We just did what any other red blooded, thinking male would have done for a motorcycle in distress.

Sometimes the right thing to do is the easiest thing to do.   :)

(Ps.  The funniest part of the transaction was when the gruff 24 year old oilfield worker who was selling the bike said.... "I don't know.... this is hard.... it is like selling your girlfriend!"  :)   I am not exactly sure how it feels to "sell your girlfriend" but Dennis and I both understood...... and Dennis gave him an extra $100)  

A Valentine's day commentary

This is not a Valentine's Day rant.... even though that is sort of the popular thing to do these days.  I sort of like the idea of Valentine's Day.  I don't like all the commercialism but the basic premise is good. 

So, these are simply a couple of observations and questions related to the day.......

1.  I was shocked again this year at how many "To my Wife" cards start with a line that sounds something like, "I know that our lives are so busy that we hardly get to spend any time together any more" or "I know that I don't say things like 'I love you' as much as I should" and then go on to say something like "I hope this card helps you to know what you mean to me". 

Really??? Is this what we have come to as a society???  Neglect your wife most of the year and then buy her a $4 card and that makes up for the whole thing????    Isn't that like burning your neighbour's house down and then going to the house warming party for their new place and saying, "Here - I bought you a pineapple... I hope we are good!"  

2.  Men are funny when they buy Valentine's day cards.  First, there are the "on fire" guys.  Those who race in, grab the first card they can find, make sure it has hearts on it and does not say "To my dear husband"... they then spin around, run to the checkout and out the door as if they are spies about to be caught and tortured by the KGB. I literally saw one guy come in, barely stop walking, grab a card and go in less than 15 seconds.  Hopefully, he had spent so much time over the past few weeks looking at cards but not buying that he knew exactly where the absolutely perfect card was on the rack so that he did not have to look any more... he just grab it and went based on hours of research.  I would not bet the farm on that one though.

The other type of guys that are funny are the "deer in the headlight" guys.  They wander in as if they have never seen a Valentine's Day card before and have no clue as to what is expected of them.  They stand there forever as if the perfect card is going to jump off the shelf and into their hands.  The fear of process totally incapacitates them to the point that they cannot function.  Eventually, they end up buying the card they buy because it is the most sparkly.


3.  I heard on the news tonight that the average Canadian spends $126 on Valentine's day and that Saskatchewan residents spend the most.  Were you higher or lower than the average? (Full disclosure... I was lower and I bought for 3 girls)

4.  A survey on the news stated that 75% of people (or something in that range) do not look forward to Valentine's Day.  That sort of shocked me.  If the 75% are saying that b/c they do not like the commercial garbage and the pressure - then good.... I could be with them.  Otherwise, if it is a vote on whether it is a nice idea or not to have a special day, then I will go with the 25%.   You?????

So there you have it.  Not a rant.... not a ringing endorsement.... just some things to think about.

Very cool

This video was taken by the crew of Expedition 30 on board the International Space Station. The sequence of shots was taken January 30, 2012 from 06:13:36 to 06:23:09 GMT, on a pass from northern Mexico to northwest New Brunswick. This video begins looking northeast over Texas, where cities like San Antonio, Houston, and the Dallas/Fort Worth area can be seen. Continuing northeast over the Great Plains states, cities like Oklahoma City, Kansas City, and St. Louis can be easily distinguished. The pass continues over the familiar shape of the Michigan Peninsula, with Chicago at the south edge of Lake Michigan. As the ISS continues northeast, the Aurora Borealis can be seen over Canada.

I am going to miss Estevan

After 22 years in the same place, you make a lot friends and become comfortable doing the things you always do.  I like going to the hockey game or to to the mall and running into people and chatting. Small town life has been great.... and I am going to miss it.

Where am I going?  Well - I am not completely sure yet.  I think I am just going to take all the offers, look them over and decide from there. 

You see, I officially start my "Basketball coaching career" tomorrow and who knows where it will take me?  Right now I am helping coach the "Hillcrest School Grade 7 and 8 Boy's" team, but after the tournament this weekend, who knows? 

Do I know anything about basketball????  Well, check out the picture at the top of this blog.... does that look like I know what I am doing? (What do you mean that doesn't look like me?  After 22 years of living near a coal mine your skin darkens up a bit)

Anyway, it is not all about my skill.... but my brain.  You see, I am going to have ONE KID on the bench at all times.... so I am really going to have to manage the game and make sure everyone gets playing time and that no one gets lost in the shuffle.   And then there are the water bottles..... SIX of them!   And they have to be cold (I once threw a bottle across the gym because it was warm..... I still have flashbacks about that). 

I am not sure who TSN is sending to cover the event, but I have written up some questions for them to ask me just so that they don't look dumb.  Things like this can be intimidating.

I'm sure going to miss Estevan...... but you can't stop your destiny!

I think we have a misunderstanding here

"No, I didn't watch the Super Bowl".......  What???

 Super Bowl Sunday is not about the game... whether you are interested or not.... or even like football or not.

Super Bowl Sunday is all about the Super Bowl party.

It is about getting together with almost everyone you know.

It is about having tables of junk food stacked so high that you cannot see over the pile to the other side of the room.

It is about eating Louisiana style chicken wings until it feels like your mouth is going to burn off and it feels like you have a lump of lead in your stomach.

It is about watching the commercials (or at least it would be if Sasktel allowed us to see the US feed instead of the CTV one on every channel)

It is about rating the halftime show (Our crew gave Madonna an average of 4.5 out of 10...... And then agreed that Tom Petty, Michael Jackson and Bruce Springsteen have been among the best halftime shows ever.....  Paul McCartney =  the worst..... "Time for bed Grandpa!")

It is about challenging the teenage sons of your buddies to see how many gummie bears they can put in their mouth at one time

It is about drinking so much Coke and eating so much cake that you can't sleep for a week afterwards

Oh - and occasionally - like yesterday, the game turns out to be really good too

So for all of you who missed out yesterday, let me just say that you are all invited to my place next year (Maybe just let me know an hour or two before you show up so I can tell Sari..... That is sort of what happened this year - "Hey Sari, I invited half the church over for supper and to watch the game" - it was great fun after she calmed down)

So I am serious... Consider yourself invited.... But please do not bring anything - we still have 456654556 bags of chips left over from this party

Something fun and something new (and also fun)

Megan is currently in the middle of her school basketball season. The city tournament went last night and today and here are some shots from it......

She enjoys playing, it is fun to watch and the kids that she plays with are really nice.... what could be better?

Katie had something new and unique happen to her today too..... here is a hint:

Well - the "monkey" part is just for me (I love monkeys), but the fancy "froo froo" coffee part is the hint.... she worked her first day of her first real job at a very nice coffee shop in town. 

I was trying to convince her to work at Peavey Mart, because...
(a) she would not spend all her money on stuff from the store (like she would if she worked in a clothing store) and....
(b) I would get a discount.

In the end, though, she thought that the coffee shop would be a better fit.  She likes her boss, her co-workers and the atmosphere and I like the fact that not many guys go in there (the only male presence seems to be married guys with their wives)..... so everyone is happy!

A good weekend so far.