Calgary Tweak

Calgary Alberta, Canada September 8, 2007

I'm in Calgary today with Duncan and we're tweaking this deck that we built last year. Suzanne and Steve are great people and we want to make sure they are really happy with this project so I've flown in from Waterloo and teamed up with Duncan; who I worked with last year; to make sure everything is just right here.This is one of my favorite projects of all time because we got to do so many interesting things. This lot has a big slope to it and so we built this multi-tiered deck to extend the living space. Then we built around these beautiful old trees
Our clients live in a beautiful old neighborhood and they say they are getting wonderful use out of the new deck. You can see other photos of this deck on my construction page.

Calgary Karma

I'm in Calgary taking care of some old business this week. I have some tools stored here that I am shipping to Waterloo. I am staying with my friend, Duncan. This is his faithful companion; Roxy. I enjoy being back here, very much. I even managed to have sushi with a woman I think of as a daughter; Sarah. I wondered what it would be like to talk with Sarah after being away so long, but it was great. We laugh and talk about the things that have happened in our lives. I tell her about my strange experiences in India and she tells me about her new home and how her new job at the bank gives her good challenges every day. I'm glad for Sarah because she is so bright and loves to learn.
I promised my friend Mac, that I would get my Lincoln Town Car out of his friend's driveway. I have been meaning to do it since I got back from India in April but I have been very busy getting my business going in Ontario. He and I team up on the last day here and drive the car to it's new home; Sarah's place. It's a strange feeling to watch Mac driving my old car for the last time. A lot of things have been accomplished this week. I feel like I've burned off a lot of karma on this trip.

Ticket To India

Today I went to Nippon Travel to get my tickets for Asia.

Okay, here's my plug for my travel agent. Elaine is fantastic. She had to change my travel plans five times before we were done. And she got me a great price. She managed to get me a flight from Toronto to Vancouver on Christmas Eve. She has me arriving in Bangkok in time to make my other connections for New Delhi India at just the time I wanted.
A few weeks ago, I thought I would have to arrive in Asia on New Year's Eve. But then she suddenly found me a ticket for December 24th. I told Elaine I couldn't go on Christmas or my Mom would kill me. A couple of days later I tried to score Brownie points with Mom by letting her know what a loyal son I was being by staying with her in Waterloo on Christmas. Her reply shocked me. "I don't care if you're here for Christmas. You're going to be here for the three weeks anyway. Take the ticket and go."
So everything is working out great. Thanks Elaine. Thanks Mom. India here I come.
...So you don't want me home on Christmas eh Mom?...

Cheers for Humour

My dear friend Kathy invited me join her on Sunday for an hour of Comedy at the Blackfoot Inn. All the Comics are students of 'The Cheers Project'; a program for men and women with disabilities. The program is sponsored by the 'Calgary Foundation' and another organization I have never heard of called 'Scope'. The Program on this night was called: 'Activate Your Sense of Humour' There were twelve performers in all and this was their first time performing on stage. We especially came to see Bruce and Audrey. I met this couple a week ago when I came with Kathy to their home to pick up the tickets for this show. They travel all over the World and they especially enjoy sailing.
Bruce has a dry wit and great timing. He has MS and has been Visually impaired for several years. As he did his one-liners he was relaxed and enjoying himself. When he would forget a joke he would just call out to one of his friends to remind him. Bruce told us he really doesn't mind not being able to look at beautiful women any more. He says it's more fun in braille anyway.

This is Bruce's wife, Audrey. She has been blind all her life. She's the first comic I ever saw who read her cue cards in braille. Her guide dog took a nap while she did her act. (What a critic). Audrey told us she was born with her eye condition. She said: "I have never been able to see more than five percent...so reading at night is not a problem."

There were a hundred people in the audience cheering on the performers and we all really had a great time. It wasn't just that the Comics were able to laugh at their disabilities; it's that they were able to make some poignant remarks that helped remind us of their struggles. Pat said: "My condition makes it very dangerous if I get aroused. I never thought I would actually take medication to kill my sex life. Let's face it, I wouldn't mind getting wounded once in a while."

The performers included a schizophrenic, a few survivors of brain surgery, the visually impaired Couple I just mentioned, a man who can't remember things he just did, and even a man who can't remember things he just did.

Tax Holiday

Today I'm at my accountant's office getting my taxes done before I leave for Asia.

Ron's a great accountant but what I like most about him is that he's just fun to be with. Once we are done with the tax work he announces he was closing the office for an hour so we could all go for lunch.

One of his new assistants greets me. Her name is 'Holiday'. When I find out she's from Saigon, I start talking with her about Vietnam. It turns out her parents were boat people who fled their country in 1981. By the way, Holiday says her principal in High School named her 'Holiday' when he noticed she was not showing up for class. She did all her homework and got straight 'A's' but she lived very far from School and found it was a real hassel to get there. But when the Principal questioned her on her attendance she told him: "my family takes me on a lot of holidays. That's why I'm not here very much." And so he coined the nick-name. And it stuck
In honor of our discussion, Ron decides we will go for Vietnamese food. When I try to take a photo of us together, he instinctively reacts the way Revenue Canada has taught all Canadians to act. But I'm pretty sure this is a legitimate deduction Ron.

The conspiracy continues accross the table as we talk about the Vietnamese culture and eat some 'gnong' food. Xin chao!

Aw Canada Snow

Alberta Canada has been experiencing a cold snap for the last week. The weather report yesterday said it was -37 degrees Celsius. For some reason they like to add: "feels like -45."
Yes, it does.

My dear friend 'Aw' in Thailand says it is 'lawn jin jin' (very very hot) in Bangkok right now. She says she wishes she was here where it's cold. So for Aw's benefit I will go over a few tips for enjoying this wonderful Alberta weather.

This is me in the cold. The temperature is -33 degrees. Oh my God.

This is my car. I wasn't sure it was my car until I swept some of the snow off it to make sure. By the way, Aw thought it was funny when I told her I drive a 1985 Lincoln Town Car. 'So old Stevie'. But remember it's paid for and it runs.

Okay. Maybe it doesn't run. In Thailand they have Thai massage. In Canada we have 'battery hot tubs'. I didn't plug my car in last night so I had to take my battery inside to warm it up in the sink. And I did actually manage to start my car.

I don't want to go out today but I have to. Today I have an appointment with the International Travel Clinic to get some shots for my upcoming India trip.
I drove to the Travel Clinic where I got some wonderful advice. This is Mary-Beth. She's from the Philippines. She gave me shots in both shoulders and got me excited about visiting her country in the future. I had my consultation with Chris. He's from Northern India and we spent most of the time pouring over a map while he gave me great advice about how and where to travel.

After getting my shots and some very important information about what to do if I eat a bad chapatti, I headed over to see my fellow carpenter; Duncan. This is Duncan's dog; Roxy. This is how Roxy deals with the cold weather.

In Canada when it's cold, we eat. In this case, we had Ted Heller's favorite meal at Ricky's Restaurant; The Roast Beef dinner with Yorkshire pudding. 'Aroi mark mark' (very delicious).

At the end of the day I got a call from my friend Malcome (who sounds just like Raymond Burr). He invited me for dinner at the Olive Garden...where we had some more great food.

I had lots of adventures today but what I enjoyed most was settling in to my Monk's Cell in an unfinished basement room, where I'm staying for a few more days, and reading my Wilbur Smith book. All I kept thinking when I was reading was: 'I wish I was in Bangkok. It's too cold here'.

50 With Wonderful Friends

June18
This is a Magical day. I didn't know I would enjoy it so much. Birthdays don't really mean that much to me but this one was very special because of the company who joined me today.

A week ago I got a surprise phone call from one of my dearest friends; Joyce. I lost track of her about three years ago. We used to get in all sorts of trouble when we were in the same spiritual group back in the late Seventies. I was a quiet respectful person before she came along. Don't let that oxygen tank fool you. She just needs it because she lives life faster than the rest of us. Joyce is a Gemini like me, with her birthday just two days before mine.

Ted is also a Gemini, with his birthday on May 26th. He's a loyal friend and I'm lucky to know him. He has been working with me on several construction projects here in Calgary.
The lovely woman beside him is Lilian. She is an energetic woman with a lust for life. She is a retired Art teacher and still does a lot of painting herself. She taught in Africa for 3 years. Lilian has lately become an expert 'Squirrel Catcher'. She's my landlady, and a great friend. The more I know Lilian, the more respect I have for her. It was really fun to see her and Joyce meet. Right from the get go the two began talking. It turns out that they have two friends in common. They carried on like long lost friends even though they only met today for the first time.

Around the table you can see my very dear friend and fellow conspirator; Malcome, on the far right. Next to him is my 'contiguous' friend, Geeta. You may remember Geeta from a couple of Blogs I did last year when Ted and I renovated her basement. She has made my reconnection with Calgary a wonderful experience. She got a call while we were having the party. She had a prospect for her house. It sold that same night for a great price. Now she's moving to Winnipeg to be closer to her family.

This is Belen. She just arrived a month ago from Hong Kong to work as Geeta's nanny. She's a warm gentle woman who has a great way with children. I'm sorry you're moving again so soon, before I have a chance to get to know you better. Be sure to email me. Remember you promised to show me around Manila when I visit the Philippines in the near future.

This is Scott. He's Kathy's daughter's partner. It's great to meet you Scott, but mostly I just wanted to show everyone your tattoos. Wow. I told Scott we have to do a Seminar on his tattoos one day soon. He has twenty-two of them. I'm only prepared to look at nineteen. Some things should be left to the imagination.

And here is my new son, Braden. He belongs to Christine and Scott (Sorry I don't have a photo of you here Christine.) Braden latched onto me when I arrived and stuck like glue.

I got everyone to sing Happy Birthday to me before I did the Japanese Cake ceremony with this very delicious Cake.

And this is the hostess behind the party. I have shown you Kathy before. She is 'Nanna' to her grandson Braden. He adores her. Kathy suddenly went blind last year. In fact she has experienced an amazing series of mind boggling events in the last couple of years. Two years ago her father died. Her daughter had life-threatening surgery. Her estranged husband died a few months ago, and her mother was diagnosed with Cancer on Christmas Eve and died 10 days later. The doctors didn't even know she was sick.
And yet, Kathy decided she wanted to throw me a party for my fiftieth birthday. She made all the arrangements, prepared the food, bought a barbecue and made sure everyone was taken care of. She's blind. She still works full time. She's cheerful. I'm honored to have you as a true friend Kathy. You made this day Magical. You're my hero.

Ayako Shares Thanksgiving

On Sunday, I asked Ayako what she would like to see in Calgary; The Calgary Zoo? or perhaps Heritage Park? Her answer was:
"I want go Grocery Store!" So I took her to 'Canada Superstore'.

We did the low tech version of an amusement park. I know this is no Calgary Stampede, but she still had her chance to ride a horse.

Halloween is a special celebration we have in Canada. We carve faces in pumpkins like this one and put them in our windows to attract children dressed up in costumes.

Ayako san was delighted to find this costume. Pickachu is a very popular cartoon in Canada and in Japan.

After our Supermarket adventure, we headed to Geeta's for a Thanksgiving celebration. Geeta put on a wonderful feast of Curries, Chicken breasts and Lamb, with lots of vegetables and sauces. Everyone contributed something. Her children even made the place settings for the table.

What really made it so magical on this night though, was the company. The women in the front row are: Judy, Judy's mother; Margaret, and Marjory. Margaret is a War Bride from London. She told us amazing stories of her trek across Canada to arrive at her new home. Marjory is Geeta's next door neighbor. She is from Scotland and has also travelled extensively.

Geeta's family has Hindu roots in India but she is from Kenya. This is what I call a proper Canadian Thanksgiving Celebration. So many cultures sharing the best of Ourselves with each
other.

This morning, Ted and I got up at 5am to take Ayako san to the Bus Depot.

She will travel today, through the mountains of Alberta and British Columbia. Then she will she the Okanogan Valley, where some of our best Wines come from. Finally, at the end of her 15 hour journey, she will be met by my niece; Millie; who is the same age as Ayako. They will hang out together in Vancouver until Thursday, when Ayako san will fly back to Calgary for a final night in Canada before returning to Japan.

I got a very nice email from Ayako's father, last night. He said: "Dear steeeve. Today I see your Blog. I find Ayako enjoying travel. Pig cake , Nice friend ,and BIg Turtle , Every Picture Ayako show amusing face. I see her amusing fece after a long time. She looks like in junior school child. Thank you your kindness. cheers; Yosihiro."
It is our pleasure to have Ayako san here in Canada. You and your wife must be very special people to have raised such a yasashii daughter. Arigotto, Yashihiro san.

Ayako Meets The Dinos

On Saturday, Ayako started her Canadian adventure with a good Canadian breakfast at Ricky's Restaurant,

where she met her new friend, Jessica.

Jessica is a student who has studied and travelled in Japan.

Then my Carpentry partner; Ted; joined us for a trip to the Royal Terril Museum in Drumheller. We stopped at Horseshoe Canyon to see the badlands, where the Dinosaur bones have been found.

The Museum itself is fascinating and beautiful to see.

But as Ted and Ayako found out; it can be a dangerous place.

It seems that everything wants to eat you here!

Fortunately, Ayako made a new friend here.

When we left the Museum, we went back to Calgary for some Vietnamese Soup with Geeta. Then I took Ayako to an Irish Pub for desert. I said: "If you think those dinosaurs were big, wait til you see the Mud Pie they serve here!"

Ayako has lots of spirit and she is a joy to have here in Canada. She kind of reminds me of a puppy. she is full of energy but when she needs to sleep, she sleeps.