Early morning musings

As i sit here in my nice desk chair, having been recently re-energized by a refreshing little pot of fruit after having indulged in far too many sugary substances over the course of the night, my mind is wandering and filling up with random thoughts here and there. Luckily I don't have too many holes in my head out of which to lose my deep thoughts which only come along on a rare basis and therefore are difficult to replace once missing. But here we are at the end of 2006 and peeking over the edge into 2007. In a mere 4 days it will be the New Year and i will be ringing it in the land south of our borders. Indeed, i will be attending and participating in my friend Nancy's wedding. By participating, i mean walking down the aisle in a fancy dress, keeping both of my feet on the ground and not managing to trip and embarass my poor friend who is marrying a nice boy from Colorado Springs on Saturday. I am excited to be going down there, to hopefully be supportive to her and to encourage her in this huge new part of her life. Congrats Nance! I wish you the Lord's blessing in this stage of your life. May you always walk with Him as your guide.
But now, as for my other deep thoughts, hmmm... they seem to have hidden round some cobwebby corner of my cranium and vanished from plain sight for now. Grrr... just when i thought i could wax eloquent at 5 am after an extremely busy night shift. Oh well, so much for impressing you all. I'll have to slink back into the ennui of mediocrity. I was recently told that i was a good writer. I hope for all of my dedicated blog readers that you do manage to derive some sort of entertainment from this little piece of cyberspace that i have staked a claim on.
This entry also goes out to my co-workers who have been dealing with so many frustrations and hardships in the last few weeks and months and despite it all, can still laugh and give awesomely good care to their patients. Short staffing, crazy mixed up patients, lack of supplies, lack of communication and many such things. But they develop strong relationships with the patients, win their trust in a very vulnerable time, listen to them, care for them, help their hurts, medicate their symptoms and provide such support that is so needed. There are times when i don't want to be a hematology nurse... but there are rewards too... just difficult to measure in quantifiable terms. Thanks girls for all i've learned in how to be a good nurse.
Happy New Year to all!!!

Christmas is in the air...

Well, i sit tonight curled up on the couch, having finally obtained another phone cord so that i can sit on a comfy chair to type my blog entries... and i am basking in the cozy warmth of our little fire place and am listening to Charlotte Church warbling away and am smelling the wonderful smell of a decorated Christmas tree.... wow, it's Christmas time again! How fast the year spins away and around and back again to this season. I was so glad to see snow the other day and to have some really cold temperatures...i know that sounds odd, but i love snow and cold (talk to me again at the end of January and i'm sure that i will retract that statement so fast your head would spin!!) I think listening to some carols, and singing a few of them together with friends the other night at our bake exchange, the spirit is finally starting to worm it's way into my previously numb little soul. I just am a little slow on the draw to feel Christmasy! I am now trying frantically to complete my shopping, coming up with some types of inventive Christmas gifts, making and writing cards (because i was raised a daughter of my mother and i can't buy cards!! I just can't... i've had them in my hands in the stores, but have put them down after wandering the whole store feeling guilty!!) and generally trying to get ready without going kinda crazy!!
I wish you all a Blessed early Christmas and peace in your hearts as you prepare your hearts for this wonderful time of year. Christ has come, the fulfillment of prophecies and the bearer of good news for all and forgiveness of sins. The best Christmas present ever!!!

A Cornucopia of words

A cornucopia of words outflow from my mouth and brain and thoughts onto the virtual page and create confusion and interest. Words which roll off the tongue with delectable sweetness and enjoyment. Words which inspire and excite and frustrate... so here goes nothing. This post goes out to my youngest sister who inspired this little adventure...
cornucopia plethora magnanimous frustration chrysanthemums keep the aspidistra flying pneumonia Sunfire transatlantic flights zip codes Clydesdales long distance plans msn SISTERS France vestigial emotional female Princess Bride humbug cookies sucking the liquor out of brandy beans chamomile tea Hunt for Red October me you oceans Eiffel Tower I love you! sucking the marrow out of life poetry Pride and Prejudice friends enemies creativity sunsets nasturtiums and i will buy a pickup truck and raise rabbits and she will cook them for me nursing needles Haiti the Netherlands the little boy with his finger in the dyke shish kebabs nasi sapphire blue baobab trees treetop walks brown cows confusion classic novels sleeeeeep chocolate new carpet smell gasoline cursive writing gingko lacy .... rooiboos scissors postcards from the edge Hamilton mawiage is what bwings us together today persay flowers the alphabet airline tickets passport stamps the number eleven fallen crunchy leaves asphalt green waves Moeder bakery smells hugs little kittens stamps contrails stupid fall fairs pizza fuzzy socks fun underwear vacuuming orchids life is good God Daddy swimming pools Christmas lights paperclips computers quilts pens my favorite things Kakabeka Falls as you wish alarm clocks sleeping in Mars bars silver jewelry ice cube math bar codes footsteps who am i? church pancakes firemen what am i doing here? rain hotel rooms film camping star light, star bright mailboxes freight trains cargo hold why? can i help you? The Spanish Steps cobblestones history

Midnight Ramblings...

What do i think about at midnight? at one thirty two? at three o'six am? my mind is spinning a little and my eyes are burning and my head is trying desparately to nod off and i'm not allowed cause that's not good... and i missed my little treasured nap this afternoon due to my own folly... so now i'm paying for it. Argh! I'm thinking of how clutzy i have been the last day or so... yesterday coming home from Fortinos i had an inkling that something was amiss, and indeed there was wrongness existing in my trunk for my bottle of Vim had uncapped itself and spread its cleaning power all over my trunk... Grr.. now my car smells like Vim on steroids.. my poor car doesn't have much luck staying clean with me around, last winter windshield washer fluid, now Vim and to top it all off, it now smells like onions as well since i had to cut up an entire bag of those tear-jerkers for our work bagged lunch. I'll tell you this much, i'm not volunteering to cut onions again next year, some other sucker gets to do that one!
Other clutzy things include dropping salt on the kitchen floor yesterday, forgetting to do a million and one things, scraping my finger on the paper towel dispenser and a multitude of other small things that add up to a mountain of odd things. Oh well, keeps life interesting and full of stories for others to smile and laugh about right?
I'm sitting here, trying to ignore the frantic little calls of the cookies helplessly trapped in the cookie tin on the counter in front of me, i suppose i really should be a nice person and release them from their dungeon but then this would create additional problems for my clothings which would then not be so accomodating to my figure. And so the cookies stay put... for now!!! Wish me luck in an hour or two when the calling gets really raucous and my stomach is pleading for some sustenance!!

Back safe and sound

Wow, what an afternoon for simply curling up in bed with a good book, a nice cuddly blanket and some nice quiet music on the radio! Yes, i certainly plan on engaging in said activities within the next hour as i have a little nap before beginning my night shift. But i am put to thinking that it has been an outrageously long time since i last updated this thing and hope that people don't think i have mysteriously fallen off the planet or something disastrous like that. Contrary to that belief, i am very much here, simply stuck in ruts that don't allow my creative or literary juices to flow well onto the virtual page.
I am for all accounts and purposes, back from Haiti well and in one piece. No disastrous floods this time, no late night encounters with cats pretending to be rats, no infections or upset stomachs, no crazy 32 hour shifts. But a lot of work and busyness none the less. Nicole and I worked together for 12 days in Haiti, assisting with the care of 18 children receiving surgery for hydrocephalus. It was a busy and sometimes very stressful time. Nursing in Haiti is all about adaptability, flexibility and being open to new solutions to problems. Being creative with resources is always a challenge but we managed somehow, probably because we had some experience in May to back us up.
But none the less, there were difficult moments. The two night shifts that we did, both in the acute post-op period, we lost a child each night. That was difficult. These kids, here in North America, would have been in ICU with constant monitoring and care and would have at least had a fighting chance. In Haiti, with the respirator lying forlornly in the corner covered with cobwebs and leaves, with no hi-tech equipment and limited training, we were forced to accept that we can't fix everything. We were face to face with death of little ones, whom our Father had called home earlier than what we would have hoped for, with frustrations that we could do so little. Yet, somehow, we are called to rest in the knowledge that God does indeed know what He's doing, what plans He has for us, too big for us to imagine or understand at the time.
Yet, we were granted the strength to keep going and were blessed with good health in general for most of the kids. A few spots of diarrhea, some intermittant fevers and two children requiring additional antibiotics rounded out our week at the hospital. On Tuesday morning, most of the kids had already left to head home for their recovery so it felt weird to enter the ward and not see everyone's smiling faces, not to hear Christopher say "good morning, i love you, how are you?" - the limited English that we taught him during his stay. I can honestly say i miss the kids and their faces and smiles. I am very glad we had the chance to work in Haiti again and to serve in even a very small capacity. Below is a photo of our team (minus the one crazy chick second from the left whom i have no idea who she is and she managed to worm her way into our photo, much to my chagrin!! I'll try to photo-shop her out of there!)

From left to right, myself, unknown Haitian lady (grr), great IV nurse, sister Genevieve, Gladys (our amazing Haitian nurse), Nicole, Nadine (our night nurse) and Carol, our co-ordinator.

Remember, remember, the fifth of November

Gunpowder, treason and plot.

I see no reason the gunpowder treason

Should ever be forgot!!

How's that for mysterious little poems? I love that little rhyme. I don't know a lot bout Guy Fawkes Day but it has something to do with trying to blow up the Protestant British Parliament, i believe, by a group of Catholic fellows. I believe they tunneled underneath the buildings and nearly succeeded in this plot but were caught at the last minute. Interesting times!!!

Getting Well Roasted

I embarked on an adventure of epic proportions yesterday evening aided by my faithful friend Olive and her wonderful warm personality. It was a quest to ensure that our ever present appetites were going to be satisfied and sated with an epicurean delight. A journey with an uncertain ending and traumatic hurdles to be overcome along the way. What in the world could I have been doing? I was, for the first time in my life, no, not journeying around the world in barefeet or balancing a camel on my nose or seeking to conquer the Guinness World Record for blowing bubbles but in fact was trying to become one of the elite, those who can cook a roast well. Hmmm… okay, so it doesn’t sound too exciting, right? But indeed it was an adventure involving several frantic phone calls to my maternal figure who sought to fill me with wisdom and confidence in this hither-to unventured realm of culinary skill. I remarked to Carina that indeed I would be a hopeless mission nurse since overseas phone calls cost a pretty penny and I couldn’t be ringing up every time – “Mom, I grew some yams, how do I cook them?” or “Mom, I just bought a goat, how do I go about milking it?” African Telecom would love me, I would probably single-handedly get whatever poor nation I was residing in out of debt in a fraction of the time that all their finance ministers would have planned. Okay, maybe I should go. I might be eligible for the Nobel Prize for Economy or something equally exciting. Anyhow, all logic aside, I will say that after much stressing and pulling hairs and furrowing my brow, the roast did turn out all right and we had a good meal last evening. Thanks to my fan club and supporters who were so loyal and supportive to me and thanks to my manager and all my friends and to Billy and Suzie and the little girl down the lane who received one bag of sheep wool….

Destination Haiti

Destination Haiti
Bonswa s’ami mwen! Sak pase? Mwen bon, mwen grangou, mwen swef, mwen pas kapab pale Kreyol! That’s a whole lot of things in Kreyol that I will be saying or asking in the near future. I leave on another adventure to the capital city of Haiti, Port-au-Prince, on Friday morning, early! I have to be in Buffalo by 6 am! No, wait, I fly at 6 am, meaning I have to be there at 4ish. Insane!!! Nicole Dejonge and I hope to assist with the post-operative care of about 20 children receiving surgeries for hydrocephalus. I have never appreciated our North American health care system with all it’s flaws so much as when I returned from similar endeavors in May. Please be thankful that you have trained medical staff, that you have sterile conditions for operations, that there are ICUs and lots of medicine and IV solution and clean sheets and air conditioning and so many of the other things that we so easily take for granted! Hydrocephalus is fairly common here in NA as well as in Haiti but the big difference is that in Haiti there is next to no health care. So we go, to help out as best as possible, crossing cultural and language and skill barriers along the way and stretching ourselves to attempt to share a little of our knowledge and a lot of our love with the children of Haiti. Please pray for safety and strength and health as we are in Haiti, but most especially for the children who are being assessed and operated on. May God add His blessing to the labours of our hands!

As the Hart

As the hart about to falter

In its trembling agony,

Panteth for the brooks of water,

So my soul doth pant for Thee.

Yea, a-thirst for Thee I cry;

God of life, O when shall I

Come again to stand before Thee

In Thy temple, and adore Thee

O my soul, why art thou grieving;

Why disquieted in me?

Hope in God, thy faith retrieving;

He will still thy refuge be.

I shall yet through all my days

Give to Him my thankful praise;

God, who will from shame deliver,

Is my God, my rock, forever.

PH# 74, vs 1,7 based on Psalm 42

I love this song. Sometimes i don't know what to make of the words. I find this psalm quite often tumbling through my head in various snippets of the verses, in a comforting yet haunting melody and yet sometimes i struggle to make this my confession too. I don't always know where i am in my walk, i stumble so often, i fall into dry spells more often than not, but yet, i still have a hope in God. A trust that somehow He will make things right if i just would cling to Him as my God, my rock, my refuge. Strengthen the weary hands and the feeble knees of your servant.

Romin' thoughts

I can’t hear you. I have a banana in my ear
Te audire no possum. Musa
sapientum fixa est in aure

Passport to Adventure!!

When I arrived home this afternoon, much to my amazement and wonder, there was a pick-up notice on my shelf from Canada Post. What was I supposed to pick up? A love note? A huge cheque? A new pair of slippers? Alas, no love notes, but an equally exciting document. My new passport and for once I don’t look like a convicted mass murderer! Although I still look quite glum and remorseful, I think probably this time I only robbed a general store or something like that. The Canadian Government has outdone themselves in this department – the passports that we Canadian citizens are privileged to hold have a newly increased amount of security and anti-fraud features, including holographic maple leaves and a little Mountie riding across the page! Fun times! Aah, the wonders of a newly minted passport – where will I go to next? What adventures lie ahead? Whom will I visit or meet? Whilst I regret having to invalidate my old passport, I look forward to filling this one up with lots of stamps from interesting places. Anyone wanna go somewhere? I’m game!

A close call...

Count your blessings, and your moments, one by one. I had a good reality check this morning as to how fast things can change and how we sometimes take our health for granted.
There i was, merrily munching away on my bagel and drinking my apple cider, downing my vitamin and chasing it with my banana. A grand old time at the breakfast table, to be sure...
I finished my meal and put away my plate and sat down to finish my crossword puzzle and sudoko - what a wonderful way to start a morning, when all at once, my chest felt tight, my breathing felt rapid and i felt rather "odd". I pondered at one point what was going on and whether i was having a heart attack and how that would really rather suck since i was all by myself in the house and no one would even find me until late in the afternoon... yes, i know, crazy thoughts, but that's what was going through my head. At last, the feeling passed and I was left thinking "what in the world was that?". Aaah, but my body's immune system wasn't finished with me yet, it had more tricks up it's sleeve. My face began to feel hot and full - i kinda ignored it until it got to the point where it felt like it was gonna explode and was hurting - at which point i betook my self to the bathroom where i got the shock of my life to behold not my familiar face but a great glowing red ball, with white circles around my eyes!!! What was going on?? And then my arms started to feel funny - they turned bright red as well and developed hives and itchiness abounded. And then my legs turned purplish/white mottled colours and i was put to thinking that perhaps this wasn't so good!!!
I searched the cupboards frantically for any sort of anti-histamine but alas, and alack, the cupboards were bare and i didn't suppose Benalyn cough syrup would be an acceptable substitute.
Fortunately my dear mother was home and she came to the rescue with some Benadryl and some TLC. Thank goodness for modern medicine and Moms! A wonderful combination. But it sure left me kinda shaky - things could have been a lot worse, that was sure. I thank the Lord that He provided for me in such miraculous ways that I was able to recover from this reaction quickly and with no adverse effects. I think back now and after talking with some co-workers, it most likely was the multi-vitamin i was taking that caused the problems... but it sure was scary!!! How that all works, i have no idea, i was just blessed to have been spared any further reactions and reminded how we need to always keep ourselves ready for God to work His plans in our lives...

Planes, no Helens and Automobiles

Well, i would just like to share this with you all since it was an adventure in my life and it was kinda funny after I looked at it in retrospect and just so you could have a little chuckle at your blonde friend.... perhaps it was all that turkey yesterday that caused my brain to malfunction, who knows?? Anyways, i got up nice and early this morning, somewhere around the awful hour of 5:00 and got my little self ready for an airport run since today was the day! Helen was coming!! I grabbed a Timmy's cafe mocha to wake me up and put the tunes on and headed out on the road. I must confess that i didn't leave a lot of time for getting there but made it quite on time and parked and casually strolled into the terminal and promptly had to walk five miles since i was on the wrong end of things from where i parked. But nevertheless, there i was, all ready to greet my friend Helen and take her suitcase from her and to welcome her back to her home province of Ontario with a big smile and hug. Well, to my surprise and frustration, she never appeared.
And i waited and waited and i didn't know what to do. I wandered up and down the halls in a bit of a daze for a little while and finally came across a lady with a "can i help you?" badge on her shirt and i explained my dilemma and she said okay, i'll see what i can do. We had Helen paged overhead a few times, but as she didn't seem to be in the airport, that action was desparately ineffective!! Unfortunately, she couldn't do much since she was not allowed to tell me if Helen had landed "for security reasons, you see" No, i didn't see... if i need to locate someone, it's ridiculous if you can't tell me if she landed in TO at all... she might be in the air or in Bangkok or somewhere cozy waiting in an airport lounge cause she missed her flight... i was pretty frustrated. The attendent girl let me in the arrivals hall and we talked to the staff there but they again couldn't tell me anything either. They did nicely let me peer around the hall to see if my dear friend was there somewhere but alas and alack, she was not there. Now what???
I have to tell you that my brain was having conniption fits as it tried to best determine what it was to do next.... It's still hurting at the moment from all the mental calisthenics that it was forced to perform on very little sleep or nutrition!!!
See, i was in an awful mess cause first of all, i didn't have Helen's cell phone number. Secondly, i didn't have a cell phone with me to call her cell phone. Thirdly, it costs $3.85 to make a long-distance call from a payphone (what happened to a good old quarter?? Somehow between gas prices rising and the formation of the EU, i must have missed the price hike!!). So the next dilemma was who do i call? Okay, so i called Dad, and how did i call him with no cell phone and no change... well, i happened to be standing next to a nice lady who was waiting for her daughter to come in on the Harmony flight from Vancouver at 7:00 and i explained my dilemma to her and she called her husband over and he let me borrow their cell phone and i talked to Dad who unfortunately had no brilliant answers and so i hung up on him rather than stick these nice folks with a huge phone bill. They did their good deed for the day.
So no solutions yet!!! Hmmm... i called Carina, but alas she wasn't home cause i thought perhaps she could check on my computer in my in-box to determine if it was indeed today that Helen was arriving... cause i was having my doubts now. But alas, she was departed for areas of higher education already, leaving me with no recourse but to quickly hang up before the answering machine picked up and thus save myself that precious $3.85. For the other part of the dilemma was that i only had toonies in my wallet... no loonies... and the phone booths don't accept toonies... and do you think that anyone had a store open so i could purchase a measly stick of gum or a cookie to obtain some change? No way man, not in the bowels of the arrivals hall on the far end of the airport where i was hanging out. So that necessitated a trip all the way upstairs to the Departures hall where there was a significantly higher concentration of human figures from whom to beg change.
I changed a $5.00 bill for some loonies in the travel store which had just opened and finally got through to my mom who agreed to call Francine and see if she knew anything... again, i nearly got cut off cause i had to deposit an extra few quarters since the $3.85 only gets you one minute connection fee... insane!!! I kept thinking, what about first time visitors to the country, how do they function? Crazy!!!
So i hung up with Mom hoping against hope that she would indeed be able to determine what had occured... and then realized i had run out of loonies again and needed to again beg and borrow some coins from some individual.... i couldn't go back to the same lady again, she already thought i was nuts so i went to buy one of those delicious chocolate chunk cookies... however, there were frustrating people in the line in front of me who kept mis-ordering and screwing things up and i was like just get it right and get out of my way. The man kept wanting to put the ketchup packets in his pockets or in his luggage but the nice clerk lady kept telling him that he couldn't do that since security would have a fit if they saw that and that he was better off eating the ketcup then and there... I'm telling you that i nearly snatched those ketchup packets from him and squeezed them on myself so that i could stagger through the terminal feigning a large wound and hoping that someone would have pity on me and allow me to use their phone to call my parents... Fortunately, he finished up his business and allowed me to pay for my cookie and request lots of loonies from the cashier lady who was super nice and made me smile and made me happy. Thankyou lady!!!
I finally got through to mom again after having made my way all the way back to the barren arrivals hall and having no sight of my curly headed friend, called mom back and decided to head on home.
So the moral of the story is that you should always check the arrival dates on your friend's flights since if they're coming from B.C. and they tell you they are arriving at 6:22 am from Vancouver.. you should have put two and two together and realized that if they are leaving from Prince George on the 10th and arriving in Vancouver in the afternoon, that the arrival date is thence the 11th of October, not the 10th!!!
Hope you enjoy this epic saga of woe...

Shipwreck

I built a fortress

With a hundred thousand faces

I'll keep it safe

With a hundred thousand more

But these masks are wearing thin

As You draw me in.

I spent my time

On the empty and the fleeting

I spent my life

On much less that what I'd dreamed.

But I'm reaching out to You

To make me new

Cause I am just a beggar here at Your door

I am just a shipwreck here on Your shore

I come empty handed

Ready to see

Your life in me changing who I've been

To who I need to be.

You tell my story

As You sift between the pages

I feel redemption

In the space between each turn.

Could you take me in your arms

And tell it just once more?

Could You take me in your arms

And tell it just once more?

As I lie here...

As I lie here on my bed, absorbing the sunshine pouring in my window this fine afternoon, enjoying the breezes and the good sounds of Starfield playing on my speakers, i think i am happy! But so often, so often, i am mixed up and not sure about anything. I am worried about the future - lately the whole idea of 30 (which is slowly creeping up on me) is frustrating me. Where am I in life? Should i be further? Should i know more? Have i done well with the time allotted for me thus far? What am i to be doing in the future? Hmm.. yes, not just light little inquiries but genuine hard thinking posers that baffle me and cause me to go off in endless trails of thought until i am wound around myself and am no more sure of where i am than when i started. When i reach heaven, will God be saying "well done, good and faithful servant?" That is my prayer but i'm always scared (and i know that we don't live a life that is earning salvation, that's for sure, thank Him for that!) but did i do all i could with the talents I have been given? I think about this as i again ponder a trip to Haiti and another opportunity to serve as a nurse in a country with next to nothing. How do i fit into that whole thing? Is that the direction i am supposed to be heading in? Would be nice to have our life's paths laid out clearly in front of us - although I might be scared to see what comes... He always gives us strength enough for the day and that is His promise... and we are to trust Him for that - as is said in the Bible (can't remember where or who said it) , "Lord i believe, help me in my unbelief".

All Teed Off!!

Danielle and Dad at the Open

Golf, the sport of kings and nobles, of Tigers and Mikes, of Henrys and Danielles. Or at least on Thursday it was. After a week and a half of subterfuge, avoiding telling the truth and of maintaining absolute silence on a most important subject, I arose early on the morn of the 7th to betake myself off to my parent's abode to rendezvous with my male parental figure and to abscond with him for the entire day to watch a bunch of guys whack a small little white orb around a huge park for lots of money. Yes, we joined the masses who thronged to the elite Hamilton Golf and Country Club to participate in that phenomenon known as the Canadian Open.
Apparently i have been to the Open before, only the views weren't so great as they were impeded by my mom's shirt and i couldn't use the bellybutton to see. But this time, the views were wonderful. The day had dawned misty, with hints of sunlight peeking through the swirling fog. But very quickly the day warmed up and we were treated to the wonderful views of the golf course. And what a course it is! Magnificent rolling hills (a very lot of them, my calves and feet could attest to that!), brilliant greens, huge old trees, little rippling brooks, and a plethora of big-name golfers. Dad and I first of all did the grand tour of the place, walking the front nine and part of the back nine, all the while keeping an eye on the golfers and their schedules. We thought we should take advantage of this chance to wander around the place while we could.
Then we headed up to the 10th tee to watch the crowd favorite, Mike Weir, tee off. He was good, but i'll be honest and say i saw a lot of superior golfers that day and even the young amateur performed more honourably than he did. But that said, it was neat to see him play. He's such a face for Canadian golf.
After rubbing shoulders with Vijay Singh, Mark Calcavecchia, Jim Furyk, Vesper Parnevik (the dandy of the course), Camilo Villegas, Justin Rose, or rather with the crowds who were straining to see the power of the drives, the precision of the shots and the finesse of the putts, we decided we might be hungry. After all, why not bring along a lunch to revive the spirits and the soul after tramping all over the park? But security, no wait, fundraising, was such that outside food wasn't even good enough for the Country Club and if you wanted to eat, you had to pay the exhorbitant price of $3.50 for a bottle of water, $5.50 for a Haagen-Daaz ice cream bar and $6.50 for a hamburger. No way that these two Dutchies were going to splash out so we jumped on the handy shuttle bus, ate our lunch which was banished to the car, and then jumped back on our own personal shuttle bus to watch some more golf.
Dad and I thoroughly enjoyed our day, the weather was perfect, not too cold, not too windy, no rain, we came back slightly sunburned but all the richer for watching how the pros manage to pull off such wonderful games. It would take me about 17 shots to get to the tee in the time it takes them 4 or 5! Amazing!! I thought maybe i'd learn something from them, but i only learned that in the game of golf, you need to practice, practice, practice!!! The only time i'll ever see -8 is at the end of my life, piled up on top of me!! Heehee!!
I shall finish with a beauteeful little paragraph. If you'd like to iron out your golf woes, come over to the club and putter around a little bit. Don't turf your clubs if you're not up to par, but rather go to the woods and search for your swing and have a ball!!!

Wild wild west!!

Riding off into the sunset on a faithful steed. Charging through a river with foam and water droplets flying off a horse's hooves. Deftly guiding an equine companion around rough terrain and feeling like a real working team. Digging your heels in and saying "Giddyup!" Or probably rather clinging with all your might to the reins and hauling back on them and yelling "Whoa, stupid horse!" when he decides that he's a little smarter and stronger than his rider and wants to have things go his way - running into the corn field, snatching grass snacks every chance he gets, trying to pretend he doesn't know you're on board and squeezing through spaces that he fits through and not you and your leg. Hmm.. sounds like fun?! Yes, definitely. I think i probably had a huge smile on my face all afternoon Saturday.
As a special early treat for my birthday, my wonderful friends decided i needed to have some more horsey experience so they betook me as an unknowing participant off to the trail-riding farm on Jerseyville road on Saturday afternoon. I was pretty excited when i realized what we were going to do! We got fitted with our ever fashion-conscious helmets and were assigned to our equine partners. My horse's name was Willow and he was a beautiful cream coloured horse with definite ideas on when he wanted to stop and they weren't always in harmony with my wishes, in fact usually about five paces after i said "whoa", he would finally deign to come to a stop, by then nearly sticking his nose up Lauren's horse's butt! But (heehee!) we did get along fine!
When all the would-be cowgirls (Joyce, Carina, Helen, Anne-Marie and Lauren) were mounted up, some of us older fogies requiring a step-up to the saddle, (a fact that made me a little ashamed - i wanted to say i did it myself but that stirrup sure looked higher than my hips and knees could allow!) we did a few practice rounds in the covered arena to get our sea-legs. It was pouring at one point and i was hoping against hope that the weather would clear to allow us a chance to feel like real cowboys out on the range. The owner fellow, who was super nice, told us that he's had people come in there with all grand illusions that they were John Wayne and were gonna show off how to be a proper cowboy, complete with big jangling spurs! Crazy!
Thankfully the weather did clear and we were on our way to an hour communing with nature and our steeds. Our trail leaders took us through woods and up hills and past trees and cornfields and along fields, the horses all the while thinking and planning ahead to when they can snatch the next tuft of grass to munch on - like a huge well-spread buffet just begging to be munched on!! All in all, it was a very great experience, just being able to feel the rhythm of the horse and try to feel at one with that and to sit properly and ride according to all the rules that i had memorized as a horse-crazy kid.
Carina's horse, Comet, seemed to enjoy being an oxymoron - he was the slowest horse of the bunch, enjoying causing everyone else to slow down occasionally to let him catch up, but according to Carina, that was okay because she is older too and couldn't go so fast - whatever, girl!. Lauren's horse was endlessly hungry, always wanting another snack. Helen's was named Dice - a cute white and brown spotted horse. Blaze and Booboo were faithful in the middle of the pack and bore Joyce and Anne-Marie well. A few little stints of trotting produced groans from most of us as our butts came down a little harder inthe saddle than intended. But it was fun to go faster and to be perfectly honest, i would have liked to have gone one gear/gait up and cantered because that's a little easier on the backside! Aah, delusions of grandeur and expectations that i can ride like a pro when i am only a sack of potatoes. When we dismounted at the barn (i could do it all by myself, yeah!), with legs a little wobbly and muscles stretched to the max, it had been a great hour. We spent a little more time wandering around the farm admiring all the rest of the horses on the premises, including a 26 year old pensioner who was given free range over the whole farm - he wouldn't leave since his food and friends were all there. And a beautiful Clydesdale with a blue eye, a cute Appaloosa, a few ponies, a few donkeys, and lots more. I love horses!!!
I want to thank you girlies very much for this experience. I thoroughly and most truly enjoyed it wholeheartedly. My butt however, may beg to differ.....

Here I am

Okay, here I am for hopefully a short update. Tonight Carina and I spent some quality time at Mom and Dad’s place eating some ?chicken for our nourishment and having some really good laughs together about some impossible situations. Poor Lauren probably thought we were nuts, but that’s okay, cause we are!! Lauren and I also spent some time chatting away about the way life is going at the moment and how much things seem to change and how change is not always so fun! I would love to stop the clock sometimes and see how things would pan out if we stayed at the same stage we were at a “happy” time in life. But I suppose also that it is good to keep progressing forwards to find out what is in store for the rest of our time here on earth. We might not like it all but we as humans don’t do well being stagnant either – we would probably rust or mold or freeze up our wobles or eenks and wouldn’t be able to get anywhere!
I’ve also learned some new words this evening courtesy of my youngest sister who seems to teach me a lot of things, things both useful and useless. I learned about the alternative meaning of tool/tulle and she learned about being called a tulip!! Och, it’s so nice to be able to just relax and hang out and enjoy some good sisterly time together. I love both my sisters so much and I sure miss being able to be with the three of us. I guess that’s part of that good old change thing again but it sorta is a bummer sometimes. Well, I guess that’s what phone calls and emails and cars are all for! To keep up communication! So here’s to modern technology and to the future!
Tomorrow is coming soon and tomorrow is gonna be exciting! I’m gonna take Dad to the Canadian Open for the day, only he doesn’t know anything about it yet and I’m super excited about that. I called him up at work last week after I bought tickets and asked him “can you just take the day off next Thursday?” and he was kinda curious but I begged him if it was all right if I didn’t tell him why. He’s been ever so good about the whole thing and so I hope he will enjoy our little outing.
So Mike Weir and the rest of the field, here we come!

Vive le Quebec!!

Quebec City…
C’est une belle ville, n’est pas? Ca ville est tres interessante et marveilleux (best guess at spelling) et elle a beaucoup de personnes qui est tres capable de faire les actions acrobatique et humereux. Ca c’est le fini de mes attempts a ecrire en Francais. Pathetique!
Okay, once more with feeling! Quebec City – a wonderful city with so much to see and do and experience and soak in. I had been in its environs in the distant past (highschool) but unfortunately my normally excellent memory for travel failed me at that time. Perhaps it was frozen in slow absorbent gear at that point since it most likely was very cold at the time since we were there with the purpose of attempting to ski at Mt. Ste. Anne – me with very little success since I ended up lost and on a very difficult slope which unfathomably was positioned directly next to the beginner slope with none too clear marking of the trails (Hmm, a conspiracy by the local hospitals to create some much needed revenue from setting broken legs and fixing concussions? We will never know – but the interesting little factoid for today is that Ontarians and all other Canadians need health insurance coverage for traveling to Quebec. Did you know that? I sure didn’t and was kinda surprised by that info – My Quebec does not include Canada apparently).
Wow, that was a large digression from the main topic – What do I say about the trip? We left early on Monday morning to drive the 9 hour drive to Quebec City, the capital of la belle province de Quebec. We made excellent time, in part due to good weather and traffic conditions and in part due to my superior map reading and navigational skills. Perhaps I could start my own little guide company. Hmm, if I’m ever bored of nursing…
Memories of the trip will just come out in blurbs and blobs in no random or particular order:
- Mom snorting the entire song of Happy Birthday!
- reading Princess Bride, complete with different voices and accents, in the car and leaving poor Westley in the torture chamber!
- loving our B + B located just outside the walls of the city, complete with cool views from the toilet, a wonderful hostess, good beds, a cute couple from Washington at our breakfast table, croissants, old windows and crooked wooden floors.
- wandering around the old city a lot – we sure walked a very lot. Good ting we had good shoes. Here’s to no blisters!!
- visiting the Citadel and driving around the walls twice before we found out how to get out of there – could have been endless entertainment – driving around in circles – would be a good cheap outing since it doesn’t cost anything to get into the fort – only a wonderful salute from the dapperly dressed guard. “So kids, how did you like that guard?” “But Dad, we’ve passed him four times already and I’m sick of waving to him!”
- taking a horse and caleche ride around the city with Francois and Beauty (you figure out who is the horse and who is the driver!)
- eating crepes and croissants and curried chicken sandwiches and gelato by the gallon
- trying to buy a painting on the artist’s street without getting knocked over by the prices
- nearly getting run over and smushed by a horse who was a little thirsty
- getting to see minke and fin whales, dolphins, porpoises and seals on the St. Lawrence – do you all realize how big that river is??
- watching the abundance of wonderfully flexible and distortable street performers who juggled fires, rode infinitely tiny bicycles, balanced each other on impossible angles, and generally kept us quite entertained until the time came for the tips – then we just said “look both ways before you cross the street” and left – just kidding of course, we tipped the ones we really were amazed by and there were quite a few!
- marveling at the European feel of the city and loving it and wanting to move there – I have no idea what I would do there, just wander around and gawp at the walls and windows and feel old
- driving through wonderful little villages along the river coast line, yelling at Dad to slow down around hair pin turns and marveling at stomach-dropping views
- sitting in sidewalk cafes after debating endlessly about where to eat and then thoroughly enjoying our food – fettucine alfredo, salads, soups, steaks and lots of other yummy things
I loved spending time with Dad and Mom and Lauren, just relaxing( well, walking a lot but still out of the daily grind and routine) and experiencing new things together and making memories.
Vive le Quebec trip of 2006!
Bon nuit et je t’aime!

Randomness accomplished

Friends, Romans, Countrymen...
At long last i sit before you and begin to say a few things about my life and such as has happened to and around and because of me in the last few weeks... Yes, i have been miserable at updating and my most abject apologies go out to all for that (all two of you that read this thing because it isn't really interesting or current!! Thank you to my loyal fans for sticking with me through hard times and good times.. I love you!!) Isn't that a good pic of us all??
At the moment, i'm listening to the soundtrack to Harry Potter on my computer but i'm sure in a few minutes, that will randomnly change to a classical piece or Switchfoot or Les Miserables or whatever else is lurking in my music files... mostly thanks to my younger siblings whose mission in life it is to introduce me to new music to enhance and broaden my listening horizons. Thanks again girls. What would i do without you?
Now that Mozart is orchestrating his way through my thoughts, I sit back to think about the last few weeks. They sure have been busy ones! I had a little panic attack at the beginning of July when i started to ponder the next month and a half and realized how full and busy all was. But now i'm almost done that long stretch and it wasn't really so bad. I shouldn't stress myself out so much and worry about everything. That's a big problem with me, worrying about things, worrying things to bits, things i don't need to worry bout or fret about. There's a verse about that - to paraphrase - don't worry what you will eat or drink or wear, because your Heavenly Father knows your needs and will supply you with all you need. Well, that doesn't mean a license to ask for whatever i want but it definitely means He knows what we need to live for Him and will provide it in His time!! That's so good to know, that we aren't in control of everything - we'd fill ourselves up with so much chocolate cake and would get sick - we so often, most often, don't have any clue what is good for us, do we?
As i peruse my calender, my agenda wherein my whole life is contained, it seems, i am happy to have been equipped with the strength to do all the things that are listed there. I surely didn't do it in my own strength cause that wouldn't get me anywhere. There are things that i have been challenged by, frustrated with and happy and excited about. So just what are all these things, you may be wondering...
*working - that may not seem any different to anyone - nursing is nursing, but this summer has been a challenging one - Hamilton Health Sciences has been running at overcapacity and this filters down to us on the ward in the form of medical admissions with multiple problems and no doctors to oversee them and a pile of frustrations for us poor nurses in the trenches. With our patients, we know the treatment plan (most of the time) and how to care for them in a routine but throw an NG tube at us or dialysis catheters or all sorts of strange referrals and we are left in a quivering pile of scrubs and alcohol swabs wondering what to do. Well, okay, it's not that bad but sure makes me think how much we get into ruts and routines (isn't it funny how close those words are?) and forget how to do certain skills. Well, i guess it's all to make us practice and learn right?
*in between working, i have beenhanging a few nights with Miriam - definitely not a very physically stressful time (unless you count half-hanging out of bed holding onto the siderail trying not to wake her up as my bladder slowly but surely lets out protests of fullness at three in the morning with no call bell in reach and the nurse on break!!! Hee hee, makes me laugh now when i think about it!!) but sometimes an emotionally draining one, although that too is getting so much better. It is encouraging to see progress with every time i sit with her. She has done so amazingly well and that makes me also realize how much our God can do... I also think about prayer. So many people praying for Miriam and yet God has an ultimate plan and yet He wants us to pray. I suppose that is the thing also that brings glory to Him, isn't it?
*having to care for our little abode all by myself as Carina was gone to PEI. Man, it's stressful to remember to feed the menagerie (including avoiding getting my fingers bitten off by the ferocious carnivorous bird that Joyce owns!!), vacuum the feathers that fly here and there, clean out the fridge of all the spoiled food that i don't get around to eating cause i'm eating most of my meals at Mom and Dad's (thanks guys!) and various other tasks that are involved in caring for a household. Well, she's back home now (yah!) and i have someone to talk to (at least for a day)
*driving up to Grundy - again, not a stressor but definitely a fun thing but driving four hours north after working twelve hours is a little bit not fun. But thankfully again, i had Corinne in the car with me and we chatted the whole way up there and proceeded to pack all of Grundy into a day and a half - canoeing, swimming, jumping, campfires, awesome camp food - thanks Mrs. V., and who could forget the outhouses?? Can't forget them, an essential part of any camping expedition. I had a wonderful time with Lauren, Amanda and Corinne - quote of the weekend "your nose IS cold!!" "your butt IS cold!!" I was so happy to be able to make it up there for even a short time. The sky is so clear and open and fresh and full of stars... and laying in your bed at night, attempting not to fall off your airmattress as you listen to the loons crying their laments out on the lake at midnight - nothing beats it!! Grundy, i love you!!! The top most pic on this post is from Grundy last year - i know, it 's a cheat and i'm not sure either why it ended up at the top of the page, i will have to consult with my technological expert sister to remedy that problem...
*Mom went to Holland and Helen to Romania - chalk up another two trips on the van to Pearson!! I seem to have been there so many times over the last few years - don't get me wrong - I love going to the airport - so fun to watch people and reunions and partings and fashions and hair styles and appearances and fictionalize the lives of those we don't know. Who are these people in their regular lives, why are they here, who are they meeting or leaving? Interesting indeed!! And i suppose, now with all the heightened security measures, that travel will not be so fun anymore - no liquids, no cell phones, no i-pods (not that i'd know how to use one of the those!) What a world we live in! Sad!
Dixie Chicks now... previously, the soundtrack for Sense and Sensibility...
* The great move! The shuffle towards Buffalo! The eastward trek! The journey to St. Kitt's! Yes, we have lost Rach and Mike to the greater metropolis of St. Catherines as they moved to their cute little house. It sure was hard work slugging all those boxes, and painting (aah, Rach, too bad we didn't have any pics of that!!) and cleaning and organizing! What a job! I hope your bed stays in one place on that crazy floor!! It really hit me on the way home after slaving all day in the heat to move all their stuff (they sure had a lot of it!) on the hottest day of the year into spaces not meant to swallow up so much stuff, that they have moved! That may sound very redundent but it's true... they lived at Redeemer for the last year and that still felt like they were close to us and hadn't really moved away, but now they're 45 minutes away (i know, still not long to go but longer!) and I miss them already! Won't see them at church or at Mom and Dad's doing laundry or the like. I sure hope they will still drop in once in a while to let us know they're still alive and good thing we have a great long distance plan. I guess i'll just have to learn how to be a phone talker!
Lord of the Rings....
*Campfire! I was only there from Sunday evening to Wednesday evening - i thought i would be glad to skip out a little early but found myself thinking a lot about the rest of the week and how things went and how were the kids i looked after and how did the beach go and such... I normally spend the whole time stressing about how things will go. I shouldn't do that since the Lord provides what we need at all times and He provided friends, new and old to keep my spirits up and that was great! The kids were fun and in general healthy - a few cut knees, tummy aches, bee stings (that freaked me out since there were two people with severe allergies to bees!), and a possible turtle bite! What in the world do you do with a turtle bite? I was on the verge of calling HealthCanada to make sure that we didn't need any special vaccinations or the like when i was told that it wasn't even certain to be a turtle! Talk about relief! How a turtle bites you when you're swimming is beyond me!
John McDermott
*Vacation in Quebec City - we're leaving tomorrow morning early to have a little French experience. We hopefully are staying in a bed and breakfast in Quebec City for three nights - if my French communication skills are at all up to par. My first phrase when i called to inquire at places was "Es-que ce possible de parle en anglais?" (not spelled right, i know). Most people were good with that. I'm really looking forward to this one! Spending time with Lauren, Mom and Dad. I hope we can see some whales! That's the one big thing i really want to do! So we'll see how Frenchified we are when we return. Oooh la la!
And so, that's been life in the last few weeks... packed full and running over. But that's okay, it's good to keep busy to keep out of trouble, right? I hope to be a little more faithful in updating in the future so the posts are not so long!!! What can i say? That's me, liking to ramble on and on!

Here we go....

Yes, here i am in the modern age -- the Blogger world... and where do i begin? I'm a bit of a dark-ages sort of person, liking history and all. Well, I guess the best thing, being a true beginner, is to peruse the "for-beginners" pages of the blog to first of all even figure out how to post anything..."how to make a post". Yes, truly a difficult thing for all of you who have real experience at this... but for beginners like me (wow, i've used that word three times already!!!) Do you know that you have to actually be logged onto your blog to post??? Duh!!! That fact alone took me about half an hour to discover and remedy... alas and alack, the woeful ignorance of how the computer and internet work! Staring at my blogspot page, with its blank canvas and virgin screens, i was put to thinking how this whole thing would work in the first place... sometimes i don't really have a lot of time for rambling or deep thoughts and I especially don't have the ability to be on line for a long time to work on something to post on here due to the wonders of dial-up internet. But i suppose there's probably ways to write off line as well. I'm sure i'll figure that out eventually.
Today, as I sit at my computer, i am keenly aware of all the things going on around me, the blowdryer whirring in the bathroom, the people upstairs walking back and forth and forth and back, the cheeping of the birds who keep me company outside my windows, the smell of damp grass, still trying to shake the dew and rain of the previous evening off, the soft feel of my sheepskin mat under my feet and the tickle of my hair on the back of my neck, reminding me that i desperately need to get a haircut.... and it's amazing how much goes on around us if we would just take time to listen and appreciate things...
Hmm... enough sappy stuff for now... i should probably mosy on along and try to accomplish something in this day....