Friday, December 30, 2005
Priorities
Re-reading that last post, I had meant to talk more about the skiing and the hiking, but it all seemed to focus on the meals! Hahaha. Oh well... (they were great meals!)
True Day of Vacation
Ahh. Today is my first day of true, full, vacation. My sister and mum left yesterday afternoon, and this morning my only alarm clock was my bladder. It felt like I slept and slept - in reality I lasted in bed until about 8:45 am - it was the ultimate luxury. The familial visit was terrific, but I am now even more excited to have spare bedrooms at my disposal. Setting your mom up on your couch and your sister on the floor just does not seem like the most adult of situations...
We had a terrific Christmas eventhough Mother Nature was less than accommodating. When I was small we used to go cross country skiing around some local parks (around Guelph, ON) and so when thinking about mountain activities for this week, I turned back to the planks and sticks. I rented three sets of skis from the University of Calgary, and we spent some time on the 25th trying on the various boot sizes that had made it into the living room. On the 26th we packed up the car and headed west. Innocently, we stopped at Lake Louise to check out the ice castle and frozen lake before lunch and felt smug that we were headed for 'better snow' over in Yoho for our first ski. When we got to Field, the park guy at the info center laughed at my condition inquiry as the area was well into it's third straight day of rain. Even with rentals, skiing on rocks was not our intended activity. Luckily, there is a FANTASTIC restaurant in Field, owned by the friend of a friend of my mom's. Faced with nothing else to do that afternoon but drive to Golden, we got comfortable and ate! Good stuff.
Arriving at Golden, we checked into the Kicking Horse River Lodge (we reserved a private room at the Hostel), jeff went to the hill to pick up his pass-thingy, and mum, claire and I walked along the river checking out the ice jams. Dinner with our friend tracey at eleven22 perfectly topped our day of great food. With no snow for skiing, mum claire and I spent the morning of the 27th walking along rocky trails, looking out at the valley choked with low clouds. For a late lunch we took the gondola up to the Eagle Eye restaurant at the top of the mountain, still stuck in the clouds. I hear the vistas are breath-taking, I'll just have to get up there again sometime. In good family form, we spent the afternoon eating excellent food and puttering at the bottom of the hill waiting for jeff to elbow himself through the line up for the lower chair lift to get off the hill. After a little decompression/movie watching time at the hostel we went for dinner at the Cedar House. Awesome food once again.
The morning of the 28th we decided to head back to Lake Louise as that had been the only good cross country spot we'd seen all week. The weather finally cooperated and we spent an excellent 4 hours in -5 temps on great, groomed trails. In order to soothe our skied out bodies, we headed to the Banff Hot Springs - the ultimate tourist destination - and soaked with the most diverse crowd of cultures this side of Toronto. As having a good dinner in Banff between Christmas and New Year's without a reservation is about as rare as a sasquatsh, we piled in for the next leg of driving, getting to my favorite restaurant in Canmore. Good food every meal for days is quite a Christmas present!
When we got back to Calgary there was the crazy 'mom sleeping on the couch' situation, a slow quiet morning walking around the neighborhood, one last house check to the NW (we have shingles!) and I got them to the airport with ample time to spare. Though I do still romanticise Toronto, Calgary seemed quaint, small and relaxed yesterday and I was really happy that I could stay behind as mum and sis flew back east. This afternoon I'm heading wall climbing and then to yoga class, and tomorrow I'm going snowboarding at Sunshine - somehow I have to burn off all these three-course meals! It was nice to showcase my part of the world; it made me really appreciate the blind wisdom of the move west last year. I don't think I had any idea this would be my life at the end of 2005. 2006 here I come!
We had a terrific Christmas eventhough Mother Nature was less than accommodating. When I was small we used to go cross country skiing around some local parks (around Guelph, ON) and so when thinking about mountain activities for this week, I turned back to the planks and sticks. I rented three sets of skis from the University of Calgary, and we spent some time on the 25th trying on the various boot sizes that had made it into the living room. On the 26th we packed up the car and headed west. Innocently, we stopped at Lake Louise to check out the ice castle and frozen lake before lunch and felt smug that we were headed for 'better snow' over in Yoho for our first ski. When we got to Field, the park guy at the info center laughed at my condition inquiry as the area was well into it's third straight day of rain. Even with rentals, skiing on rocks was not our intended activity. Luckily, there is a FANTASTIC restaurant in Field, owned by the friend of a friend of my mom's. Faced with nothing else to do that afternoon but drive to Golden, we got comfortable and ate! Good stuff.
Arriving at Golden, we checked into the Kicking Horse River Lodge (we reserved a private room at the Hostel), jeff went to the hill to pick up his pass-thingy, and mum, claire and I walked along the river checking out the ice jams. Dinner with our friend tracey at eleven22 perfectly topped our day of great food. With no snow for skiing, mum claire and I spent the morning of the 27th walking along rocky trails, looking out at the valley choked with low clouds. For a late lunch we took the gondola up to the Eagle Eye restaurant at the top of the mountain, still stuck in the clouds. I hear the vistas are breath-taking, I'll just have to get up there again sometime. In good family form, we spent the afternoon eating excellent food and puttering at the bottom of the hill waiting for jeff to elbow himself through the line up for the lower chair lift to get off the hill. After a little decompression/movie watching time at the hostel we went for dinner at the Cedar House. Awesome food once again.
The morning of the 28th we decided to head back to Lake Louise as that had been the only good cross country spot we'd seen all week. The weather finally cooperated and we spent an excellent 4 hours in -5 temps on great, groomed trails. In order to soothe our skied out bodies, we headed to the Banff Hot Springs - the ultimate tourist destination - and soaked with the most diverse crowd of cultures this side of Toronto. As having a good dinner in Banff between Christmas and New Year's without a reservation is about as rare as a sasquatsh, we piled in for the next leg of driving, getting to my favorite restaurant in Canmore. Good food every meal for days is quite a Christmas present!
When we got back to Calgary there was the crazy 'mom sleeping on the couch' situation, a slow quiet morning walking around the neighborhood, one last house check to the NW (we have shingles!) and I got them to the airport with ample time to spare. Though I do still romanticise Toronto, Calgary seemed quaint, small and relaxed yesterday and I was really happy that I could stay behind as mum and sis flew back east. This afternoon I'm heading wall climbing and then to yoga class, and tomorrow I'm going snowboarding at Sunshine - somehow I have to burn off all these three-course meals! It was nice to showcase my part of the world; it made me really appreciate the blind wisdom of the move west last year. I don't think I had any idea this would be my life at the end of 2005. 2006 here I come!
Monday, December 26, 2005
The latest from Tuscany
Tada! Here it is. My house is very simple - a box with windows, a very small front porch, and pretty much the only 'architectural' detail are those funky slim windows at the back of the first floor. I think that's as funky as the suburbs get... This photo was taken Dec. 22. My mum and sis are currently visiting for christmas and the four of us (Jeff, mum, sis and me) drove up for a little tour of Tuscany yesterday. I decided not to take a picture as the only change is that there are shingles on the little porch roof.
This morning we are packing up the christmas dinner leftovers (nut loaf, bread pudding and roasted veggies) and the cross-country skis (rented from the U of C) and heading into the woods! We're skiing around Emerald Lake in Yoho today just to get the blood pumping, and then tomorrow we're skiing and hot spring hunting based out of golden. I'm really excited to get out of town and into the mountains. The weather is beautiful these days and it is snowing like crazy up at the ski hills. My mom got us ipods all around (WOW!! THANKS MOM), so last night we were copying music like mad to rock out on our road trip. Though sometimes stressful, Christmas is a great time of year!
Likely my next post will be the reminiscing about 2005 and musing on 2006 - I feel the urge starting. Stay tuned :)
Thursday, December 22, 2005
Vancouver Black Ice
Well, I survived my trip to Vancouver, but I did end up at my office Christmas party with a black eye. On Saturday morning my friend Julie and I got ready to ride and noticed that the seat post of the borrowed bike was seized. We pushed and we pulled, we kicked and we screamed, but it just wasn't budging. Personally, I love my knees; they have put up with a lot of abuse, but riding for 3 hours with a fast group of women I don't know with a seat more than 2 inches too low (!!) wasn't something that sounded fun. We made the decision to miss the ride and head to a bike shop to see if the strapping young men couldn't bust the seat post free. No Dice. But it was a beautiful day, so julie and I headed out on our own with me standing to climb all hills, start from stop lights, really any time I needed some pedal power.
We had a great time, though it was certainly nothing I could call a training ride. After about 2 hours we were heading home along Cypress Ave. (St.?), basically sprinting between stop signs and having a merry old time, when up ahead loomed a very shiny roundabout. Being familliar with ice, I slowed right down but I guess not slow enough, and my poor balance on a too small bike left me hitting the pavement. Classically, Julie couldn't get around me on the ice and fell too. As there were no cars on the road, we sat there laughing for a good while. Thinking about it, that was the first time I had fallen while road biking. The black eye came from my sunglasses as I rolled a bit when I fell. We then went slowly home, saw a number of cars slidding sideways down side streets, and decided we could rush and make it to a 1:15 yoga class. Standing outside the yoga studio, we saw the group of women we would have been with blaze past us. I am so very happy we decided to ditch that ride - they were crazy fast!
Switching to Julie's bike we went for a ride on Sunday as well, but the black ice was just freaking me out. No wonder everyone in Vancouver seems to have a mountain bike as their commuter. That city is all about traction!
We had a great time, though it was certainly nothing I could call a training ride. After about 2 hours we were heading home along Cypress Ave. (St.?), basically sprinting between stop signs and having a merry old time, when up ahead loomed a very shiny roundabout. Being familliar with ice, I slowed right down but I guess not slow enough, and my poor balance on a too small bike left me hitting the pavement. Classically, Julie couldn't get around me on the ice and fell too. As there were no cars on the road, we sat there laughing for a good while. Thinking about it, that was the first time I had fallen while road biking. The black eye came from my sunglasses as I rolled a bit when I fell. We then went slowly home, saw a number of cars slidding sideways down side streets, and decided we could rush and make it to a 1:15 yoga class. Standing outside the yoga studio, we saw the group of women we would have been with blaze past us. I am so very happy we decided to ditch that ride - they were crazy fast!
Switching to Julie's bike we went for a ride on Sunday as well, but the black ice was just freaking me out. No wonder everyone in Vancouver seems to have a mountain bike as their commuter. That city is all about traction!
Friday, December 16, 2005
Conflicting Activities
Tonight I am heading to Vancouver for my company Christmas party. I work for a small office of a larger west-coast company, so tomorrow night's shindig will have over 100 co-workers and their partners, niether of whom I have met. This will make my fourth work-related party this week, though it is likely to be the strangest. I know maybe 6 people at most. Four of us will be there from Calgary and we will all be seated for dinner together in the classic satelitte office pack. We are those strange folk from the backwoods, way over on the other side of the mountains. :)
In the midst of all this drinking, I need to be on top of my water intake as I will be staying with my friend Julie who is a strong cyclist. She has me scheduled for a 4 hour ride on Saturday (tomorrow!) and a three hour ride on Sunday morning. She assures me that I will not be heading straight up Grouse Mountain and that it will be 'easy'. Yeah, well, I've been on a few of her 'easy' rides and I think she has lost sight of the fact that I have not been on my bike since early September. For most of the good weather this fall I was up north at a rig! Adding this to the inevitable hang-over and I may be making a number of coffee stops. I am excited about being out there on the road, but am daunted by the company - both will be group rides with seriously fast women. I'm hoping they don't mind the green looking new girl hanging on at the back, drafting with all her might!
In the midst of all this drinking, I need to be on top of my water intake as I will be staying with my friend Julie who is a strong cyclist. She has me scheduled for a 4 hour ride on Saturday (tomorrow!) and a three hour ride on Sunday morning. She assures me that I will not be heading straight up Grouse Mountain and that it will be 'easy'. Yeah, well, I've been on a few of her 'easy' rides and I think she has lost sight of the fact that I have not been on my bike since early September. For most of the good weather this fall I was up north at a rig! Adding this to the inevitable hang-over and I may be making a number of coffee stops. I am excited about being out there on the road, but am daunted by the company - both will be group rides with seriously fast women. I'm hoping they don't mind the green looking new girl hanging on at the back, drafting with all her might!
Saturday, December 03, 2005
Juan de Fuca
I got my pictures back from hiking along the Juan de Fuca trail. I went a few weekends ago with my friend Kris who lives in Victoria. None of the pictures of me are all that great, but I think this one is just funny. Now that's a big tree. I'm not looking my best, but i'm small compared to the tree and I'm sure none of you will be looking to closely (please).
We went from Sombrio Beach, east to the suspension bridge. This portion of the trail has the 'difficult' rating, and the trail past the bridge to Chin Beash has the 'most difficult' rating. It was nice to try what is considered difficult on part of the West Coast Trail system, to get an idea of what to expect should we hike the whole thing one day. It is certainly harder than Algonquin! The Canadian Shield is nothing compared to this mud.
The day was beautiful and there was some sun in between bouts of clouds. A classic costal November day. After the hike we went to the Tugwell Meadery. I have to say, mead is tasty stuff!
Thursday, December 01, 2005
Business as Usual
I was waiting to post until I had a new photo of the house, or something else equally fun. However, I have recently been frustrated by a friend's blog that hasn't been updated in a month (!), and so I am trying not to live by his example.
In terms of the house, there are windows and a plywood roof (no shingles yet) and the electricians are freezing their noses wiring up the place. Currently it is -15 today, and has been all week. I went out there yesterday to get you lovelies a photo, but unfortunately Jeff ran the batteries to 0% while in Costa Rica. I did have a nice chat with the electrician, so the trip wasn't completely in vain.
In terms of Jeff, he's happy and tanned. He had a great vacation surfing and exploring, fixed his damaged rental truck using a multi-tool and some hot water (three cheers for plastic bumpers!), and had what sounds like a typical Costa Rican adventure. He brought back the requisite photos of geckos in the hostel room, hammocks on front porches, and horribly unstable bridges, along with a few pounds of coffee and a liter of my favorite kind of salsa. Huevos Rancheros anyone?
In terms of books, on my last rig-trip I read the three novels in Alexander McCall Smith's series Portuguese Irregular Verbs. Personally, I like the No.1 Ladies Detective Agency series better. Anything of excitement happens in the third book, leaving a lot of petty suspicions for the first two novels. The series is perfectly entertaining, but there are certainly better books out there.
Tomorrow I should pick up my photos from my Juan de Fuca trail hike, and will post any if I look o.k. - Ha!
In terms of the house, there are windows and a plywood roof (no shingles yet) and the electricians are freezing their noses wiring up the place. Currently it is -15 today, and has been all week. I went out there yesterday to get you lovelies a photo, but unfortunately Jeff ran the batteries to 0% while in Costa Rica. I did have a nice chat with the electrician, so the trip wasn't completely in vain.
In terms of Jeff, he's happy and tanned. He had a great vacation surfing and exploring, fixed his damaged rental truck using a multi-tool and some hot water (three cheers for plastic bumpers!), and had what sounds like a typical Costa Rican adventure. He brought back the requisite photos of geckos in the hostel room, hammocks on front porches, and horribly unstable bridges, along with a few pounds of coffee and a liter of my favorite kind of salsa. Huevos Rancheros anyone?
In terms of books, on my last rig-trip I read the three novels in Alexander McCall Smith's series Portuguese Irregular Verbs. Personally, I like the No.1 Ladies Detective Agency series better. Anything of excitement happens in the third book, leaving a lot of petty suspicions for the first two novels. The series is perfectly entertaining, but there are certainly better books out there.
Tomorrow I should pick up my photos from my Juan de Fuca trail hike, and will post any if I look o.k. - Ha!
Wednesday, November 16, 2005
Master A; Master Eh?
After days of no news from Jeff, he finally was rested up enough to pass on his views of La Ruta on Monday night. To quote:
"one of the biggest challenges of la ruta was the lack of information - the whens and wheres were never available. we didn't know where to leave our bags,when shuttles were coming, where to clean or put our bikes. it was all pretty random. the type a's were shitting themselves. our shuttle was so late on sunday that my bike was still on the truck when the race started. i used the nervous, pissed of energy to get to where i belonged in the pack. the stage started with a long tempo climb on good pavement before it descended into a loose, sloppy decent - fun!"
o..k..ay... fun... sure.... crazy guy :)
Also, before he left Jeff did what he always makes fun of people for - he put a computer on his mountain bike. But, because of this, he was able to give this tid-bit:
"the most notable thing about costa rica is how steep the mountains are - up, up, up. at some points we were racing at the breakneck speed of 4.5kmh. we would have been slower, but then we would have fallen over." oooo, that sounds painfully steep.
For those of you who evaluate people by numbers, the official results are posted at http://www.adventurerace.com/eng/results2005.htm Scan down the page and Jeff came in 45th. (He's Master A, for those of you not reading my titles).
The bum is now taking an easy week on the Pacific coast. When he gets back with the camera, I'll post a picture of two if he managed to get any snapped. I am absurdly proud of him, and hence the posting. This is me, shouting from a mountain top. By the way, did I mention he's awsome?
"one of the biggest challenges of la ruta was the lack of information - the whens and wheres were never available. we didn't know where to leave our bags,when shuttles were coming, where to clean or put our bikes. it was all pretty random. the type a's were shitting themselves. our shuttle was so late on sunday that my bike was still on the truck when the race started. i used the nervous, pissed of energy to get to where i belonged in the pack. the stage started with a long tempo climb on good pavement before it descended into a loose, sloppy decent - fun!"
o..k..ay... fun... sure.... crazy guy :)
Also, before he left Jeff did what he always makes fun of people for - he put a computer on his mountain bike. But, because of this, he was able to give this tid-bit:
"the most notable thing about costa rica is how steep the mountains are - up, up, up. at some points we were racing at the breakneck speed of 4.5kmh. we would have been slower, but then we would have fallen over." oooo, that sounds painfully steep.
For those of you who evaluate people by numbers, the official results are posted at http://www.adventurerace.com/eng/results2005.htm Scan down the page and Jeff came in 45th. (He's Master A, for those of you not reading my titles).
The bum is now taking an easy week on the Pacific coast. When he gets back with the camera, I'll post a picture of two if he managed to get any snapped. I am absurdly proud of him, and hence the posting. This is me, shouting from a mountain top. By the way, did I mention he's awsome?
Friday, November 11, 2005
The first 'inside' look
Tada! Walls, floors, stairs and... a second floor! Half the roof trusses are up, but no roof yet (you can tell by all the sun pouring down our stairs). I would post the roof progress next week but I'll be on vacation! It's funny, at my apartment this morning the weather was not so nice, mostly cloudy and dark, but drive up to Tuscany and voila! Sun. it's going to really nice to live on the west side of the city - so far the weather has been very different from dowtown almost every time I've been up there :)
Jeff and I know a few other people who live up in Tuscany, and this picture from our stairs is for them. If you look really closely you can see Brent's deck about three rows of house-crops away. Noel and I walked from their little pod over to ours this morning and it took exactly 7 minutes. It's pretty great to have friends so close by. Now that I know it only takes 7 minutes to walk there I'm hoping I can fight off the car culture of the suburbs and never drive over. I'm trying to get used to my new neighbourhood on foot first so that walking around becomes a default habit, just like now living downtown. Next assignment: Check out the walk to the grocery store. Wish me luck!
Thursday, November 10, 2005
...and he's off!
Well, Jeff flew off to Costa Rica. Dropping him off at the airport tuesday night was a strange feeling; I'm starting to realise how understanding he is about all the time I spend taking off for the field.
La Ruta starts tomorrow at ~5 am, so right now Jeff is getting shuttled from the main hotel in San Jose out to the coast. Looking out my office window onto the grey and brown view of Calgary, I can't even imagine the greens he must be seeing. Apparently this has been one of the wettest seasons in Costa Rica ever, what with all the hurricanes and such, and so the jungle must just be busting out! I have a feeling though that this is not so good from the racing perspective....
Strangely, tomorrow is a holiday in Alberta, and so I'll be heading to Tuscany to check on the house. I hope www.cyclingnews.com posts a report of the first day of La Ruta. Other than that, I have a quite weekend to myself. I'm now not heading north until the 22nd. I realise it's been over a year since I've been home without Jeff around! Crazy.
La Ruta starts tomorrow at ~5 am, so right now Jeff is getting shuttled from the main hotel in San Jose out to the coast. Looking out my office window onto the grey and brown view of Calgary, I can't even imagine the greens he must be seeing. Apparently this has been one of the wettest seasons in Costa Rica ever, what with all the hurricanes and such, and so the jungle must just be busting out! I have a feeling though that this is not so good from the racing perspective....
Strangely, tomorrow is a holiday in Alberta, and so I'll be heading to Tuscany to check on the house. I hope www.cyclingnews.com posts a report of the first day of La Ruta. Other than that, I have a quite weekend to myself. I'm now not heading north until the 22nd. I realise it's been over a year since I've been home without Jeff around! Crazy.
Sunday, November 06, 2005
The Pfeifdom
Tada! Here it is... All the hassle is starting to take form. I am scheduled to go into the field on Thursday this week, but the client company is notoriously poorly organized
in this case (I was supposed to be up right now), so if it gets postponed again - next week I'll show you all my second floor!!!! ROCK. (does that sound dirty? hee hee)
Currently we have a bit of a timing dilema. I'm heading north for a while and then for a vacation kayaking off Vancouver Island, while Jeff is off racing and surfing in Costa Rica for the rest of the month. Once the folks finish the framing they will not continue until we walk through and agree that all the walls and windows are in the proper spots. So, unfortunately it looks like the next building delay will be our fault. I feel pretty bad, whining about how slow they were to start our lot, and then not even being around when they will want to start the next phase...
On the Jeff front, La Ruta is an individual race so there will no time penalty excuses if you are watching his progress on-line. When I find some results I'll post them here too (or at least the link). The official race site is: www.adventurerace.com
in this case (I was supposed to be up right now), so if it gets postponed again - next week I'll show you all my second floor!!!! ROCK. (does that sound dirty? hee hee)Currently we have a bit of a timing dilema. I'm heading north for a while and then for a vacation kayaking off Vancouver Island, while Jeff is off racing and surfing in Costa Rica for the rest of the month. Once the folks finish the framing they will not continue until we walk through and agree that all the walls and windows are in the proper spots. So, unfortunately it looks like the next building delay will be our fault. I feel pretty bad, whining about how slow they were to start our lot, and then not even being around when they will want to start the next phase...
On the Jeff front, La Ruta is an individual race so there will no time penalty excuses if you are watching his progress on-line. When I find some results I'll post them here too (or at least the link). The official race site is: www.adventurerace.com
Saturday, October 29, 2005
in between laundry
Ahh Saturdays. Although I got back from Tumbler Ridge on Tuesday, I just didn't have the heart to tackle the laundry pile the next day. (No matter what, we have to take the day after we get back off, or sometimes two in a row - pretty nice eh? definietly a policy I support) So, today Jeff is off for a 4 or 5 hour ride around some mountains leaving me to the adult responsibility of cleaning up after myself.
To distract myself in the 45 minute increments between loads, I've been researching a new climbing harness. Am I really so addicted to gear?!? You see, I have found that in Calgary the ladies who use their legs all summer, use their arms all winter. More specifically, when I'm in town I've started climbing on Wednesdays with some friends from the SpinSisters mountain bike club. It's awsome. I think I went climbing 3 times in 2004, maybe twice in 2003. I used to go more often but it just seemed to slip away from me. Having a group to go with certainly helps the motivation. Last week I was working on clearing shallow overhangs. I'm no pro, but getting back into something that I know deep down my body remembers how to do, has a very steep and satisfying learning curve. I realise I should keep my field bonus for unexpected expenses associated with the house, but keeping with my long tradition of fiscal irresponsibility, I'm going to spend it on toys! Thank god climbing is cheaper than biking..... :)
This last time in the field I was training my new co-worker Niels, so I didn't get as much reading done. However, I did get to a Soho Press murder mystery, Thirty Three Teeth written by Colin Cotterill, a british author based in Laos. I really like the fiction coming out of Soho Press, as it's mostly international authors writing mystery novels - now that's a good combination! I'm now just finishing Empires of the Plain, by Lesley Adkins, about the life of Henry Rawlinson, the interpretation of cuniform writting and the discovery of the early history of Babylon and Persia. Gripping stuff! The Greeks had nothing on these civilizations. Although they are both very different, I recommend them both.
Well, I'm off to switch the loads!
To distract myself in the 45 minute increments between loads, I've been researching a new climbing harness. Am I really so addicted to gear?!? You see, I have found that in Calgary the ladies who use their legs all summer, use their arms all winter. More specifically, when I'm in town I've started climbing on Wednesdays with some friends from the SpinSisters mountain bike club. It's awsome. I think I went climbing 3 times in 2004, maybe twice in 2003. I used to go more often but it just seemed to slip away from me. Having a group to go with certainly helps the motivation. Last week I was working on clearing shallow overhangs. I'm no pro, but getting back into something that I know deep down my body remembers how to do, has a very steep and satisfying learning curve. I realise I should keep my field bonus for unexpected expenses associated with the house, but keeping with my long tradition of fiscal irresponsibility, I'm going to spend it on toys! Thank god climbing is cheaper than biking..... :)
This last time in the field I was training my new co-worker Niels, so I didn't get as much reading done. However, I did get to a Soho Press murder mystery, Thirty Three Teeth written by Colin Cotterill, a british author based in Laos. I really like the fiction coming out of Soho Press, as it's mostly international authors writing mystery novels - now that's a good combination! I'm now just finishing Empires of the Plain, by Lesley Adkins, about the life of Henry Rawlinson, the interpretation of cuniform writting and the discovery of the early history of Babylon and Persia. Gripping stuff! The Greeks had nothing on these civilizations. Although they are both very different, I recommend them both.
Well, I'm off to switch the loads!
Wednesday, October 26, 2005
Not unexpected
After being up in Tumbler Ridge, again, I came home and went to see my new house. I have gotten the word that things are now 'officially' a month behind schedule. I'm sort of pissed off because there is a lot two or three east of ours that did not even have a basement when I left, and now it has walls. And here is our plot. I guess I should be excited that at least there is wood stacked next to it and a pickup truck nearby. They have not forgotten about it, and hopefully, fingers crossed, by next week I will have a picture of walls!!!Patience.
Monday, October 10, 2005
"Outcast yet sensible men" are after my imagination
hello again. nothing like sitting at a computer on your extra day off work, but hey, what are holidays for?! Sorry about the lack of house updates - i just haven't had the time to head up to the NW with my camera. As of last tuesday, we had a full foundation, sealed and painted black, with an electric and gas meter. wooo! trust me - it's delux :) other houses in the pod had piles of wood infront of them to start framing, and they seem to be a week ahead of ours, so finger's crossed, next week i'll post a photo of a partially framed house. wicked.
on a different note, i've been reading a bunch lately. mostly it started with heading up to a rig site where i had to share a trailer with the safety guy and had no internet connection. I fully recommend reading Annie Proulx while surrounded by men. That newfoundland woman can write about texan and montanan men like nobody's business! I was happily surprised to find That Old Ace in the Hole at the Safeway in Fort St. John (FSJ from now on). I also read Miriam Toews A Complicated Kindness and A Boy of Good Breeding - both from the FSJ Safeway as well. I didn't have the guts to ask the men on site if the descriptions and characters these women write about burly men are true to form, but they sure seem bang on to me (though a bit more comedic/tragic than reality). If anyone wants to email me to recommend more novels in this similar vein, I'm likely headed up to FSJ again in a week or two and need some literary sustenance. It may seem presumptuous, but i tend to think of these stories in the Steinbeck, Abbey, Beat Poets sort of realm, but written by women. I really like the 'drunk yet sensible man who doesn't take shit' sort of characters.
SInce getting home last sunday night, I have been hit with a cold. Being hit with a cold sends me flying to one specific place - the public library. If you're looking for a quick read without much to get your teeth into, I recommed A Perfect Manhattan by Leanne Shear and Tracey Toomey. Team written by writer/actresses, somewhat autobiographical about a bartender-lady and her coctail waitress friend getting great paying gigs in the hamptons and spending all their cash on fancy dresses and channel sunglasses. I hope to god this book still falls in the realm of Fiction! I know that many people really are this shallow, but i like my fiction to be, well, a bit more fictional... not so much like reality t.v. on paper.
After that day of reading I moved on to Julie Johnston's As If By Accident. A wonderful novel, particularly for any of you who know a woman in her 50's in toronto living on her own (just like the protagonist). Not that i've ever been a woman in her 50's living alone in toronto, but the character seems bang on to me. And there are awsome plot twists, excellent geographical descriptions and even a few questions left unsolved at the end for the reader to mull over. Very rare these days. It ties almost everything up into a nice satistying package, but not just quite. Excellent. The difference between a best selling american novel (A Perfect Manhattan) and a Canadian Govenor-General award wining author's first novel for adults (J.Johnston won the GG for children's work) is stunning. Can i really be this smug about being a canadian? Are we really just so immensely superior in our fiction?
Today I started Julie & Julia by Julie Powell, which has gotten alot of coverage in the Globe and Mail and other such cultural touchstones. First 80 pages in - it's o.k. I has a bit of the "woe-is-me, i'm a reasonably sucessful woman in her late twenties in NYC and i don't know what to do with my life" that seems to sell these days (see above - A Perfect Manhattan), but the contrast with french cooking, Julia Child, emergence and awareness of suburban women in the 60's and 70's and the continual smei-professional struggle sort of sets it apart. I'm 99% positive that Ms. Powell's life is going to go along perfectly fine at the end. I'll report back once i'm done. The whole 9/11 tie-in seems one too many issues piled on at the momment but maybe the thread really will get through to pull them all together. Though after this I think i'll really need to read a book written by a man! and hopefully something international to get me out of this pulp-american vs. intelligent and critical canadian competition i seem to have going.... :)
on a different note, i've been reading a bunch lately. mostly it started with heading up to a rig site where i had to share a trailer with the safety guy and had no internet connection. I fully recommend reading Annie Proulx while surrounded by men. That newfoundland woman can write about texan and montanan men like nobody's business! I was happily surprised to find That Old Ace in the Hole at the Safeway in Fort St. John (FSJ from now on). I also read Miriam Toews A Complicated Kindness and A Boy of Good Breeding - both from the FSJ Safeway as well. I didn't have the guts to ask the men on site if the descriptions and characters these women write about burly men are true to form, but they sure seem bang on to me (though a bit more comedic/tragic than reality). If anyone wants to email me to recommend more novels in this similar vein, I'm likely headed up to FSJ again in a week or two and need some literary sustenance. It may seem presumptuous, but i tend to think of these stories in the Steinbeck, Abbey, Beat Poets sort of realm, but written by women. I really like the 'drunk yet sensible man who doesn't take shit' sort of characters.
SInce getting home last sunday night, I have been hit with a cold. Being hit with a cold sends me flying to one specific place - the public library. If you're looking for a quick read without much to get your teeth into, I recommed A Perfect Manhattan by Leanne Shear and Tracey Toomey. Team written by writer/actresses, somewhat autobiographical about a bartender-lady and her coctail waitress friend getting great paying gigs in the hamptons and spending all their cash on fancy dresses and channel sunglasses. I hope to god this book still falls in the realm of Fiction! I know that many people really are this shallow, but i like my fiction to be, well, a bit more fictional... not so much like reality t.v. on paper.
After that day of reading I moved on to Julie Johnston's As If By Accident. A wonderful novel, particularly for any of you who know a woman in her 50's in toronto living on her own (just like the protagonist). Not that i've ever been a woman in her 50's living alone in toronto, but the character seems bang on to me. And there are awsome plot twists, excellent geographical descriptions and even a few questions left unsolved at the end for the reader to mull over. Very rare these days. It ties almost everything up into a nice satistying package, but not just quite. Excellent. The difference between a best selling american novel (A Perfect Manhattan) and a Canadian Govenor-General award wining author's first novel for adults (J.Johnston won the GG for children's work) is stunning. Can i really be this smug about being a canadian? Are we really just so immensely superior in our fiction?
Today I started Julie & Julia by Julie Powell, which has gotten alot of coverage in the Globe and Mail and other such cultural touchstones. First 80 pages in - it's o.k. I has a bit of the "woe-is-me, i'm a reasonably sucessful woman in her late twenties in NYC and i don't know what to do with my life" that seems to sell these days (see above - A Perfect Manhattan), but the contrast with french cooking, Julia Child, emergence and awareness of suburban women in the 60's and 70's and the continual smei-professional struggle sort of sets it apart. I'm 99% positive that Ms. Powell's life is going to go along perfectly fine at the end. I'll report back once i'm done. The whole 9/11 tie-in seems one too many issues piled on at the momment but maybe the thread really will get through to pull them all together. Though after this I think i'll really need to read a book written by a man! and hopefully something international to get me out of this pulp-american vs. intelligent and critical canadian competition i seem to have going.... :)
Monday, September 12, 2005
Home Sweet Home
After a another weekend of rain, Jeff and I figured we'd head up to the northwest to check out the progress of our house. Ta-da! We have achieved a hole. And it really doesn't look too wet; I guess we have good drainage?
I've been thinking quite a bit throughout this process about how interesting it is to watch the whole thing unfold. I think I've mentioned to many people how you realise how materialistic you really are - when you pay for something you want it immediately! (not that we've paid for this, but the down payment feels pretty big) Although this house is certainly no unique project, it's surrounded by acres of exactly the same houses, you get a better feeling for the amount of effort, resources and time that go into the things you use everyday without thinking. At first I was finding the process pretty frustrating, but now I'm excited to sit back and watch it grow and bloom into our first house. I think I've changed my tune. These days, I think I would recommend to people who want to live consciously to get involved with the suburbs. It's fascinating...
Friday, September 02, 2005
Finally got to Lake Louise!
One problem with not really being a tourist and not really being a local yet is that no one wants to do the classic hikes with me. Last weekend though I was invited on the classic tourist hike up to the Victoria Glacier from the Chateau at Lake Louise. Oddly enough, this was my first time actually up to the Lake. I was stunned at all the tourists! There were 300, maybe 500 people on the trail up to the top! I'm amazed that I actually got a photo without anyone else around me. At this point there were over a dozen or so other hikers
. But it was great to do something so classic. This weekend I'm heading out to do the Three Sisters Pass in Canmore. Hopefully I'll get a picture of me there too.
Happy Trails!
. But it was great to do something so classic. This weekend I'm heading out to do the Three Sisters Pass in Canmore. Hopefully I'll get a picture of me there too. Happy Trails!
Tuesday, August 16, 2005
Day 7 - Fresh and Clean!
Looking through my pictures, I don't really have many good ones to post. It was so cloudy and rainy, and all the pictures I took of Jeff finishing just seem too personal to post. Exhausted, dirty racers aren't really all that photogenic - Imagine that!
This one was taken near Hart Creek on the way into Canmore. Check out that good looking Speed River club kit. I know my friend Noel has some better pictures than me of the finish, I'll see if I can grab any.
Mud Mud and more Mud
This is Jeff's bike after the fourth day - and this is after crossing the Sheep River!!
After recovering from some mild hypothermia, Jeff proceeded to spend 3 hours cleaning and rehabilitating his machine. This race is crazy hard on bikes. One week of racing probably caused a year's worth of wear. Even the derailleur cage has been worn down... geesh.
Monday, August 15, 2005
Mulling it over - After the Transrockies
Well, I didn't find any more small town public libraries and then when we got home, laundry and food took priority over posting! Wow, what a race. It's very strange to be around people in a continuous competitive mindset - it's all a bit more subtle.
Jeff had a good race and, thank goodness, had no injuries or major mechanical issues all week. Sure his knees are a bit sore, but compared to the range of possible injuries he sailed through! Unfortunately, on Wednesday morning it was clear that Jeff's race partner Paul was going to be too busy with his media relations duties to compete, so Jeff was left to ride on his own. The world of a single rider in a team race gets pretty murky. On Wednesday, though he finished with a time just over 7 hours and 10 minutes, he was given the 12 hour disqualified time in the standings. Luckily (in a sick way) they let him keep racing for the rest of the week but he picked up an hour penalty at each of the feed stations, adding another 12 or so hours to his overall time. There were about a dozen other riders in similar positions, and let me just say that the desire to finish this race is boardering on the fanatical! There were people riding on with bronchial infections, broken collar bones, mid-range fevers.... geesh!
Given all this determiniation it was stunningly inspiring to see them all try so hard. Almost everyday I found myself in a position to help people out in times of bad luck and I was more than happy to do it. I gave out towels and clothes to those with lost luggage, chain lube, chain lube and more chain lube out on the trails, pedals, wheels, rides home to warm beds for a few locals, etc... Although there were many times when it was clear there were problems with the race organization, people really band together and the offering of goodwill, mutual appretiation and well, simply good karma, is terrific. It was so encouraging that by the final dinner on Saturday night in Canmore even I was thinking of starting to train to try and race it next year. As a girl who has just gotten her own mountain bike this year, I think this might still just be out of my league... hee hee
I have been playing around with the video functions of my digital camera and will spend the next few lunch-hours this week working to get the perfect stills for posting. After the first few days I realised that I simply do not have enough practice with the split-second delay of a digital camera and was getting some great shots of Jeff's back after he passed by. Hence, the movies.
If you are interested in more details of the race, Keith Bontrager wrote a great diary for cyclingnews.com
Although sleeping in the back of the matrix was miles better than sleeping in the old GTI, next year I am excitedly thinking about renting an RV. Those things are really living in the lap of luxury. Warm dry beds, your own bathroom, heat, space to stretch, cook, wash dishes.... i've got stars in my eyes!
I'll post some pictures soon :)
Jeff had a good race and, thank goodness, had no injuries or major mechanical issues all week. Sure his knees are a bit sore, but compared to the range of possible injuries he sailed through! Unfortunately, on Wednesday morning it was clear that Jeff's race partner Paul was going to be too busy with his media relations duties to compete, so Jeff was left to ride on his own. The world of a single rider in a team race gets pretty murky. On Wednesday, though he finished with a time just over 7 hours and 10 minutes, he was given the 12 hour disqualified time in the standings. Luckily (in a sick way) they let him keep racing for the rest of the week but he picked up an hour penalty at each of the feed stations, adding another 12 or so hours to his overall time. There were about a dozen other riders in similar positions, and let me just say that the desire to finish this race is boardering on the fanatical! There were people riding on with bronchial infections, broken collar bones, mid-range fevers.... geesh!
Given all this determiniation it was stunningly inspiring to see them all try so hard. Almost everyday I found myself in a position to help people out in times of bad luck and I was more than happy to do it. I gave out towels and clothes to those with lost luggage, chain lube, chain lube and more chain lube out on the trails, pedals, wheels, rides home to warm beds for a few locals, etc... Although there were many times when it was clear there were problems with the race organization, people really band together and the offering of goodwill, mutual appretiation and well, simply good karma, is terrific. It was so encouraging that by the final dinner on Saturday night in Canmore even I was thinking of starting to train to try and race it next year. As a girl who has just gotten her own mountain bike this year, I think this might still just be out of my league... hee hee
I have been playing around with the video functions of my digital camera and will spend the next few lunch-hours this week working to get the perfect stills for posting. After the first few days I realised that I simply do not have enough practice with the split-second delay of a digital camera and was getting some great shots of Jeff's back after he passed by. Hence, the movies.
If you are interested in more details of the race, Keith Bontrager wrote a great diary for cyclingnews.com
Although sleeping in the back of the matrix was miles better than sleeping in the old GTI, next year I am excitedly thinking about renting an RV. Those things are really living in the lap of luxury. Warm dry beds, your own bathroom, heat, space to stretch, cook, wash dishes.... i've got stars in my eyes!
I'll post some pictures soon :)
Tuesday, August 09, 2005
Tuesday Morning at TransRockies
Three cheers for public access internet at small town public libraries!
This morning sees the racers off into the cold and wet. There was a big rain storm last night in Elkford and luckily I bought the last tarp from the hardware store when our old one was ripped apart by the wind. Unfortunately the last tarp in town was a 12'x18' behemoth, so we were well covered.
The race is perking along well, and those who were top contenders are showing their colours. Probably the most amazing thing in my eyes is the large spread of finishing times. There are certainly two separate crowds here - those who race to win, and those who race to finish. Yesterday was a long stage mostly on a dirt road, and today again has something like 80% of the riding on gravel and paved roads. After this though, the stages get shorter but are almost all single-track. A second perk to this is the riding will be getting better around the camping areas so us support people can go entertain ourselves too!
Jeff is still alive, having fun and, knock on wood, has had no major issues and nor has his partner. Jeff's partner Paul is writing the Stage Reports for the main website. Check them out to get all the news and gossip actually related to the racers.
I'll post pictures soon!
This morning sees the racers off into the cold and wet. There was a big rain storm last night in Elkford and luckily I bought the last tarp from the hardware store when our old one was ripped apart by the wind. Unfortunately the last tarp in town was a 12'x18' behemoth, so we were well covered.
The race is perking along well, and those who were top contenders are showing their colours. Probably the most amazing thing in my eyes is the large spread of finishing times. There are certainly two separate crowds here - those who race to win, and those who race to finish. Yesterday was a long stage mostly on a dirt road, and today again has something like 80% of the riding on gravel and paved roads. After this though, the stages get shorter but are almost all single-track. A second perk to this is the riding will be getting better around the camping areas so us support people can go entertain ourselves too!
Jeff is still alive, having fun and, knock on wood, has had no major issues and nor has his partner. Jeff's partner Paul is writing the Stage Reports for the main website. Check them out to get all the news and gossip actually related to the racers.
I'll post pictures soon!
Saturday, August 06, 2005
long time no post
Howdy!
I don't know how many friends will be cheking in on this anymore as nothing all that exciting has been happening. I had a few saved drafts about my field work, but they seemed a little too mundane. There are only so many ways to describe rocks and trees and gas rig trailers. But now i do have somehting to write about. Jeff (my absolutely amazing partner) is starting the TransRockies Challenge tomorrow!
So here I am, hanging out in a B&B in fernie with an internet connection and a bit of guilt about my dropped blog. I have my camera, but sadly in the packing rush i forgot the cord to dowload the pictures. Fingers crossed that i am organized enough to post photos when we get back to Calgary.
Hanging out at the community rec center in Ferine where the registration took place was totally mad! There are 300 racers (or there abouts) all trying to register. This race certainly takes some serious organization. The parking lot is crazy too - all told there are approx. 75 RVs with racers, organizers, media etc.. all hanging around. This really is part race, part carnival. All the hotels and hostels are packed with people taking their last nice hot shower and getting ready for their last good sleep, with racers riding around the streets wondering if they need to just spin the jet lag from their legs or eat a big meal, or maybe some spaced out small meals, or do one last pre-ride of the start loop near town before dark. People are stopping each other in the streets and running into friends from last year's race. I don't think there will be much of a party tonight as people are nervous about what to expect tomorrow. Even I'm starting to get nervous! geesh! :)
Hopefully there will be great stories to come over the next week. Stay tuned!
I don't know how many friends will be cheking in on this anymore as nothing all that exciting has been happening. I had a few saved drafts about my field work, but they seemed a little too mundane. There are only so many ways to describe rocks and trees and gas rig trailers. But now i do have somehting to write about. Jeff (my absolutely amazing partner) is starting the TransRockies Challenge tomorrow!
So here I am, hanging out in a B&B in fernie with an internet connection and a bit of guilt about my dropped blog. I have my camera, but sadly in the packing rush i forgot the cord to dowload the pictures. Fingers crossed that i am organized enough to post photos when we get back to Calgary.
Hanging out at the community rec center in Ferine where the registration took place was totally mad! There are 300 racers (or there abouts) all trying to register. This race certainly takes some serious organization. The parking lot is crazy too - all told there are approx. 75 RVs with racers, organizers, media etc.. all hanging around. This really is part race, part carnival. All the hotels and hostels are packed with people taking their last nice hot shower and getting ready for their last good sleep, with racers riding around the streets wondering if they need to just spin the jet lag from their legs or eat a big meal, or maybe some spaced out small meals, or do one last pre-ride of the start loop near town before dark. People are stopping each other in the streets and running into friends from last year's race. I don't think there will be much of a party tonight as people are nervous about what to expect tomorrow. Even I'm starting to get nervous! geesh! :)
Hopefully there will be great stories to come over the next week. Stay tuned!
Sunday, January 30, 2005
That's my job! - take 2
I was all excited that I could post pictures, and looking back at those last posts I had some revelations - I'm a poor typist and I should clarify that I do spend hours and hours at a desk looking at a screen just like everyone else. Most of my days are spent trying to predict what will happen or what did happen relating to who put what into the air, and many tasks more mundane than that. I do like it, but it's not exactly exciting :)
Well, I am feeling myself slipping into exactly what I said I did not want this blog to be - my thoughts on mundane life. I will end it here. Other 'adventures' that you may soon see posted are: 1) my learning to snowboard, 2) my taking an environmental law course, or 3) my next trip up north. Stay tuned!
Well, I am feeling myself slipping into exactly what I said I did not want this blog to be - my thoughts on mundane life. I will end it here. Other 'adventures' that you may soon see posted are: 1) my learning to snowboard, 2) my taking an environmental law course, or 3) my next trip up north. Stay tuned!
What an acid job looks like...
I'll admit, when I first headed up to a site I had no idea what to expect. This picture is from my fourth site and I'm starting to be more comfortable with what goes on. Basically, there are alot of really explosive things in a small space with dozens of people doing thier specific jobs really well. This is the smallest drilling rig I had seen, but the most trucks per square inch. Watching them maneover and fit together with high pressure lines everywhere is somewhat impressive. Whdn you break it apart into each job/piece, nothing is all that difficult. It's only when you stand back and look at the whole thing - yikes!
If you look closely behing the first trailer you can see a tiny anemometer atop a very straight-looking 'tree' - that's my job!
If you look closely behing the first trailer you can see a tiny anemometer atop a very straight-looking 'tree' - that's my job!
Met Tower
So this is what I babysit when I'm up on a rig. The Met Tower. The small beehive-thingy above the solar panel is the thermister (temperature reader) and 10 meters up there is the anemometer. They are wired into the white Campbell box (facing north) to the data logger. It runs off the car battery, charged by the solar panel, and in this case there is also a satellite modem attached. I was not staying at this site, (just set up and take down) the data was being downloaded to Richmond and they were advised by email. ooooohhh technology :)
Snowy Roads 2
This was a few days later, but about 300 kms farther north from the last photo. You'll notice only one set of tracks. These roads are two-way, but you use a radio to call your position and slow down/move over when someone is coming. Following logging tradition, most roads call 'loaded' or 'empty' to distinguish which direction you're traveling. This photo makes me laugh because the road was called 'Bubbles'. So this is me, driving 'loaded on Bubbles'. hee hee
Snowy Roads 1
O.k. clearing the backlog I am finally getting to the few pictures I took when I was in the field in November. I'm heading back up on Tuesday, so there might be more soon. This is generally the same area as I am heading to next week - though next week I'll be on a different road, just on the other side of that mountain ahead of me. Unfortunately for this lovely area, the reserves are super-sour and so the potential to harm through flaring is very high. I don't want to comment on my job or the companies who hire us on this blog, but some days I really question the definition of 'profitable'.
Connecting Space
This is the last peice. Standing next to the mirror in the hallway, this is the bedroom/living room transition. Oh yes, and the bikes in the living room :)
Kitchen
True to my roots, no apartment description is complete without a picture of the kitchen. The sink is directly opposite. All in all, about 4 square meters.
Backlog 1
Okeedokey, I think I've got this photo posting thing figured. I can't seem to post more than one at a time though, so that'll be my next goal. For those of you who care, Jeff and I seem to be a bit famous for the tiny spaces we live in. I thought that this one wasn't too bad, but looking at the photos I took right after moving in, this place is less than 2/3rds the size of Arthur St. (maybe a bit more than half)
Friday, January 28, 2005
Baby Steps
I'm getting ever closer to my goal of sharing my adventures. So much for a christmas present eh? This happy lady I'm using to test my photo uploading abilities is scanned from a gorgeous japanese tea towel my mom gave me for christmas. More to come :)
Wednesday, January 05, 2005
Hold your Horses!
Hi all,
So much for my posting things for christmas eh? I have a good excuse though! I'm not particularly taken by the "opps, I left my diary on the coffee table" aspect that blogs have these days, so i'm not going to give you my opinion on every little thing going in my life. However, I am still interested in posting pictures and relaying my adventures - but, I can't seem to post pictures at the momment (and usually I'm pretty good with error messages, working tech support and all). The one guy I know who definitely knows how to do it is away in Thailand (he's O.K.!), so I'll try to corner him when I can and get this site on it's way.
Happy 2005 - I hope it's going well.
Zoe
So much for my posting things for christmas eh? I have a good excuse though! I'm not particularly taken by the "opps, I left my diary on the coffee table" aspect that blogs have these days, so i'm not going to give you my opinion on every little thing going in my life. However, I am still interested in posting pictures and relaying my adventures - but, I can't seem to post pictures at the momment (and usually I'm pretty good with error messages, working tech support and all). The one guy I know who definitely knows how to do it is away in Thailand (he's O.K.!), so I'll try to corner him when I can and get this site on it's way.
Happy 2005 - I hope it's going well.
Zoe
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)