Month: August 2010

Canoe trip

The minister, Rev Katie, sponsored a church fundraising trip via canoe. We took the “Cranberry Lady” out onto the Fraser, and there I saw:

  1. Gillnetters working.
  2. More raptors and birds of prey than I can ever recollect seeing in one day.
  3. A LOT of dead salmon.
  4. A LOT of very bloated, unable to fly seagulls.
  5. The rotting backsides of businesses facing onto the Fraser.
  6. Kanaka park.
  7. A convivial bunch of fellow church goers including the 17 year old grandson of one, (who’s a bible believing Christian, but I don’t hold that against anybody I know in meatspace), whom I got seated with, and who regaled me with Red Dead Redemption stories, seeing as how I was the only one in the canoe who had clue ONE what he was talking about.  And I know who Linkin Park is.
  8. My lunch.  Rev Katie makes insanely good potato salad.  It wasn’t on her resume, but YUMMERS.
  9. What it’s like to paddle on the Fraser when you’re paddling upstream and the tide is making.
  10. Monster homes with monstrous docks.

I am a little stiff and a little sore today, but nothing like I expected, and I’m feeling a little giddy today from the exercise.  Blessed be!

Lexi’s partay

I got filled up with baby loving.  Neville’s little girl is SO cute I immediately went into Gramma mode and stayed with her almost the whole evening.  Jeff jammed, but Lexi’s forgiveness took the form of an entire container of leftover chocolate (dairy free!) cake.

It was lovely driving home in Ziva with Keith, roof down and the delicious summer breeze blowing over us.

Also yesterday, breakfast with Sue.  Jeff and I later we watched Ahlaam, the most remarkable semi-documentary I’ve ever seen.  Highly recommended, but wrenching.  War, heroism, mental illness and the bombing of Baghdad.

Pauley Perette and Betty White at the Zoo

I have no idea why they are hanging out together, but this pic makes me happy.

It’s raining and thundering.  My little corn may get big enough to eat.

Tom L just phoned to say he’s picking up my fish.  The biggest sockeye run in a century is happening and I’m not missing it.  I’m getting 5 salmon, if the First Nations fisherfolk who will be catching it have a good day.  Apparently it’s going to come already gutted, which is awesome if true.

Thinking about church non stop.  BUT I am thinking about what I can do, not what ought to happen, and that is making it easier.

Pork tenderloin in a cream garlic sauce, steamed carrots and fresh Chilliwack corn for a late dinner.

Jeff was talking about this kind of computing last night.  It’s spooky to see how far it’s come.

More meetings?

More meetings.  Last night’s was awesome… a planning meeting for the 5th September service, which I’m abruptly helping with.

There’s no beer in the house, and Jeff and I are going to leave it that way until the weekend at least.  I am finding my crabbiness has increased somewhat, but not enough to be too worried about it.

Katie has definitely found a place to live and is now agitating for help moving.  I’d say no, but I volunteered already.  One of my ongoing personal hazards…..

John gets a parting shot

From his close friend and landpeer, the incomparable Juliana, comes an email I simply must share in its entirety:

Allegra, as an anarchist I thought you would appreciate this.   In 2007, John took to me a movie to celebrate my birthday.  It was at University of Victoria, where he had a film membership.  He carefully parked his scooter on the sidewalk next to the bicycles and we attended a wonderful film about the life of Edith Piaf.  When we came back out, it was to find a parking ticket, & he was NOT amused.  Being John he had no intention to pay the ticket and ignored a number of friendly reminders from the University.

Forward to this morning when “he” received a letter from the University telling him that they had not been chasing him for the past 1.5 years because of a court dispute regarding the right for UBC to issue citations but that he still owed the money and they now wanted it.  Apparently after appeal and counter appeal, UVIC is with it’s rights to cite violators so…. they were back at it.

I phoned, asked for Accounts Receivable and started the conversation with  “Account # blah blah”  …   I explained that John would not be paying the bill because he was dead.  I controlled the urge to tell her he wouldn’t have paid it if he was alive either.  Period of Silence, then a pause for review and she came back on the line to tell me his account had been deleted from the system.

I know John is happy to know he won.  A small victory and I’d much rather pay the $20 and have him back but… he won.

hugs and love

Juliana