I’ve seen some good shows in my limited concert attending life. This one will stand forever as a great concert: The Arcade Fire at the Corral, Calgary, AB, September 26 with Calexico. Amber and I scored tickets through my friend Gary at church. They were on the floor, so I pushed for us to line … [Read more…]
I was shocked at how much I missed the mighty and diverse deciduous trees of the east while visiting Tennessee after living four years in Alberta. I also remember the overwhelming power of the fall colours while driving through the Eastern Townships of Québec and the striking yellows of Montréal when we lived there seven … [Read more…]
Amber and I spend a glorious couple days and two nights in Waterton Lakes National Park (or the Waterton Glacier International Peace Park) for the 10th anniversary of our marriage. Neither of us have ever visited the park, so we are eager to take in as much as possible. We also splurge for the occasion … [Read more…]
My mom has been raving about the Canmore Folk Music Festival for a years now and we were finally in province for it this year. I’m glad we were! The great blues musician Matt Anderson (from NB) played a couple workshops and we were excited to see him. We saw him last at the Vinyl … [Read more…]
This is my first complete 15 x 15 crossword puzzle. I’m enjoying the process of creating them after having solved them for a couple decades. Click for larger puzzle grid ACROSS DOWN 1. Scot family5. Infants10. Right away14. 40 phons15. Title character in The Hobbit16. Chaney and Chaney Jr.17. Choir voice18. To sing a la … [Read more…]
It still feels a little strange telling people that we spent a week vacation in Saskatchewan. We don’t have any family there and we live 60 minutes from Banff. The province does take its share of derision, second probably only to Newfoundland. The facts that it is so flat and boring and sparsely populated do … [Read more…]
We’ve been getting promotional deals on the Calgary Herald and then with the National Post off and on for the last 6 months. I enjoy reading a selection of articles, but my real fancy comes when I get to the puzzle section. The Post has a terrific Canadian crossword puzzle, and while I enjoy Will … [Read more…]
The Qu’Appelle Valley in Saskatchewan was once the political centre of the province and the milieu for many of the treaties signed with First Nations in the 19th Century. The valley itself was carved out of the prairie by glacier some time back and it is made up of a string of lakes connected by … [Read more…]
$2.75 to ride the train or bus in Calgary. Not a terrible rate really. Our family used the transit system for the first time in Calgary on July 1st to go to Prince’s Island Park for the festivities and to avoid the parking chaos. I brought change in case the machines didn’t take credit card … [Read more…]
I’m up with the kids this morning at my sister’s place in So. Cooking Lake. We slept in their camper and I have the kids in the car to get their sandals on when a military armoured vehicle drives by and stops at the stop sign (the house is on the corner). Behind the armoured … [Read more…]