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Here comes another "Armchair Travel" episode. It has been rolling around in my head while I have been dealing with this summer's unusual routine; in and out of medical facilities, and other items on my "to-do" lists that didn't always include my computer. I will let my PHOTO STORY to tell you about... REMEMBERING THE RED ROCKS Please click on the above title. I hope you enjoy it.
Tags: Travel A-Z
We had long talked about venturing north in British Columbia to see some new country. I did know that a friend from my junior and senior High School lived in Quesnel, but hadn’t heard from her for years. We decided to head north, hoping we would be able to track down her and her husband, but if we weren’t successful, it should be an interesting trip.
We had the map of B.C. (paper in nature), and stopped at anything that look interesting along the way. We learned that we would travel on the main route to northern British Columbia and the Yukon, and if we couldn’t find our friends, we would continue north and perhaps even have a look around the Yukon. Barkerville was also on our list, having learned in school that it was the main town of the Cariboo Gold Rush, and had been preserved as a historic town.
We didn’t get to the Yukon, because we did find our friends. We talked, we shopped, we talked some more, and they took us to Barkerville. We were with them for almost a week; a great treat after no contact for many years. Friendship is such a treasure!
For a bit of “Armchair Traveling”, click on this: Visit Quesnel, B.C.
Tags: Travel A-Z Friends
It has been a lifetime journey for me, to try to learn what is important to me. I grew up in a home where Sunday School and church attendance was very important, memorizing Bible verses was required, and good behavior was expected. As an only child, I thought it was my responsibility to conduct myself in such a way to keep my parents happy and pleased with me. When I moved away from home, I was introduced to many other lifestyles and opinions, and it became apparent that I needed to think through life issues myself and decide what was important for me. Life handed me some challenging circumstances, showing me that prayer is a privilege and a comfort.. Even though I had learned about prayer as a child, I reminded myself that I believed that God was everywhere (omnipresent), and wherever I was, He was right there with me. I could have a conversation with Him in our travels, enjoying His creation in our valley, or in my hospital bed. And it was a conversation… I would see Him through unexpected events, a comment from a friend, or a Scripture verse that I “just happened” to read. The more I became aware of my need for direction from my Heavenly Father, the more I talked to Him. I also learned that my prayers were not to be a list of requests and reminders to God of all the things I was wanting to happen. God IS Love, and there isn’t anything that I can do to make Him love me more. And for that fact, I praise Him. How is the word praise defined in the dictionary? “Whether it's used as a verb or a noun, praise means "approval." If you enthusiastically praise your dog, he's likely to wag his tail and expect a treat. What you've given him (in addition to the treat) is praise, the noun. In a religious context, the verb praise is interchangeable with worship, as when a minister says, "Praise God." I am a “people person”! I love to meet new friends, and hold tightly to old friends. I can’t imagine living in a neighborhood and not meeting my neighbors. How would I like it if I moved into my new home, and never seeing or meeting the people who live next door? Lonely! And when standing in line at the grocery store or other queues, it is very hard for me to pretend that I don’t see the person in front or behind me. I am compelled to make a friendly comment… “Are you having a good day?” or “Did you find any good bargains today?” Even if it only brings a smile, that gives me a great feeling. I love being a helper, if I know anything that will help. Sometimes, it just helps to BE THERE, and not even use any words.
Tags: A To Z People Prayer Praise
If you have met me on 'The Hill' before, you will know that I am a huge fan of music; anything that produces harmonious sounds, from any instruments and a select number of voices. I give the credit to my Opa and my Dad for setting me on my life's musical journey. My dad was a cattle driver in the Cypress Hills of southern Alberta, and even though he travelled light, he told me that he always had a mouth organ in his pocket. He told me that even though he wasn't a very good player, it kept the cattle calm. In his later years, he would sit on our back deck on a summer evening, enjoying the view of our valley, and playing his favorite music. My second influence came from my maternal grandfather. When we went to visit him, he would let me "experiment" on his pump organ (also known as a Harmonium). It wasn't easy because my legs were too short to pump the bellows and play the keys at the same time. But when he played it, it sounded wonderful. It was Opa who gave me my first piano when I was about five years old, and that piano is still in our family. I started piano lessons that same year because there was a piano teacher on a dairy farm quite close to us. When we moved to the city, my parents found a good teacher for me and my musical journey continued. By the time I was about to enter high school, I had already been playing the piano at our church, and when a new organ appeared in the sanctuary, I was fascinated. It had two keyboards, and even a full keyboard to be played with the feet. When I told my music teacher about it, he asked if I would like to learn how to play it. He was aware of a church about a block from my high school, and the organist was a friend of his, and was sure that I could practice on that organ before or after school. If my parents would give their permission, he would arrange to start lessons that summer. You can only imagine the begging, and wild promises of jobs I would do to earn some money for those lessons. Permission was granted if I kept my marks in high school above 50 percent, and I found a job. Success! My first high school job was at a Photography Studio, a block from my high school, where I learned to color tint photographs. No color film at that time, so wedding photos and personal portraits were tinted for that "special effect".By the way, my music teacher played that organ at our wedding in 1963. What a treat! During that particular musical adventure, my teacher took me to a downtown church where I could play on a pipe organ (when the church was empty), and the majesty of that sound rang in my ears many, many times, especially during the three years that I was in nursing training and had only limited access to a piano. Then I moved to a small town to work as a registered nurse in a 19-bed hospital. That was where I met a small organ in a church called a Spinet Organ. Not bad, but at least it was an organ. I participated in Sunday morning worship services when I wasn't at work. The most special organ in my musical journey came when our family moved to the country. Because we had a large living room, my husband bought a Heinzman concert organ which I enjoyed for a lot of years. When friends came to visit, or we had a larger group of friends in for a Sunday evening Hymn Sing, that organ helped make our attempts to sing (in harmony at times) to make our living room sound like we were in church. Nobody ever told us that we could have church in our home. Two more organs were later added to my experience. On one of our trips to England to visit relatives, we spent a day at the Dorset Steam Fair, where we were introduced to a myriad of steam tractors and trucks, plus a number of calliopes. They reminded me of music I had heard in old movies. Each calliope was beautifully decorated, and for me, the sounds was almost haunting. The second organ that we bought, due to reduced space when we "down-sized", was electronic. Depending on what combination of switches were activated, the sound of many instruments, orchestrations, or style of music, it could be set to play without my help. In my opinion, the sound it produced, supposedly of a concert organ or a pipe organ, fell far short of the real sound, and I rarely played it. I now enjoy CDs of organ music and many other types of music, with much less effort. I did lose one organ due to health challenges, but that's another story.
Tags: A-Z
There have been a lot of changes in our lifetime. Just think about what has changed since you were in school. Think about the way we cook, the music we listen to, and the way we travel. Then there are the clothes we wear, the communication methods, the entertainment we enjoy, and the games we play. The name given to children in our generation were often duplicated in a family; George, Joseph, Robert, Edward, and Mary, Elizabeth, Barbara, Lydia. Now, there seems to be no end to the created names for children… different in spelling, or just plain silly. But what about the changes on the pages of our maps? Some changes were made many years ago, and some during our lifetime. Here are a few the I can think of: Burma was changes to Myanmar in 1989 Rhodesia was changed to Zimbabwe Persia was changed to Iran Ceylon changed to Sri Lanka in 1972 Peking, China to Beijing
Can you think of any other changes? I invite you to post any changes that you can think of. It may bring some surprises that we weren’t aware of.
Tags: Maps A To Z
What are you up to now, you ask? Are you making up some ’M’ word, just to continue in the challenge? Hold on, I can explain! When my grandparent moved to Canada from North Dakota in the early 1900s, they settled in a farming community near a small town called Sever Persons in Alberta. They were about 50 miles south of the city of Medicine Hat. As a child, our family would visit relatives who lived in Medicine Hat. If anyone were to ask me about the name of the city, I wouldn’t have an answer, so I looked it up on the Internet, and this is what I learned. Medicine Hat Many families in Alberta knew about the Medalta factory in Medicine Hat , manufacturer of clay products. They made the best clay crocks, bean pots, and substantial dinner dishes. My grandparents used Medalta crocks to make sauerkraut every winter, a truly German traditional food. Medalta When I started collecting telephone and telegraph insulators, I was surprised to learn that Medalta insulators were very collectible. They were distributed mainly in Alberta, and I was able to add several of them to my collection. If you haven’t seen one, here is a photo of two that I have. 
Tags: Alberta Collectibles
If you have visited my page in the past, you will have learned that I love to share our travel experiences, and call them “Armchair Travels”. It is what my father loved to do, sharing his travels with other residents in his Seniors' Apartment complex. Here is a “short form” of an Armchair Travels from me. Warning: some of the links are longer than a few minutes.We had never been to London before we learned that my husband had relatives in various locations in England. His father had immigrated by himself to Canada at the age of 19 years old, and rarely talked about his home. Our first contact with the family in England was when a young cousin came with two older aunts came to Alberta for a visit. It was such a pleasure to meet the three delightful ladies. It also sparked the desire to visit them, and visit the area where his father was born and raised. Our experiences were delightful, creating a bag full of memories. We flew into Heathrow Airport, then traveled to London by train, arriving at Kings Cross Station. Wait a minute; isn't this the station that was bombed not long before we arrived? That was scary! We made several trips back to London later with various relatives, and toured or drove past so many places, and returned to a number of them on return visits. Several of our favorites were The London Eye, London's centennial project, Winston Churchill's War Rooms, Imperial War Museum, and Westminster Abbey. We dropped by to have tea with Lilibet (aka Queen Elizabeth) but she was out of town, so we stood just outside of the main gate and took pictures of the Changing of the Guard. I put in the word Lincoln in my collection of 'L' words, just to keep you guessing. What's the story about? A vintage luxury car? A late American president? You're not even close! We boarded the train at Kings Cross Station and traveled north to the city of Lincoln, in the county of Lincolnshire, within the East Midlands of England. The cousin who had come to Canada with her two grannies, lives in Lincoln, and the hospitality and acceptance we received was like no other. Other family lived nearby, and there seemed to be an ongoing discussion as to who would take us where. Many mornings we were served a delicious breakfast, then asked “Where would you like to go today?” We had no idea; a tour around the block would be a new experience for us. A tour of the Lincoln Cathedral, and a restful hour when we attended a choral evensong. We had our first and last sampling of 'Stinking Bishop's cheese, a wonderful dinner on a tug boat. A delightful day at the Lincolnsire Steam and Vintage Rally, and a morning visit to a Boot Sale. It was a smaller version of a Garage Sale, and even though we didn't purchase any new-found treasures, we enjoy the many chats we had with Vendors.
And lastly, I included the word LICORICE! What now? On one of our visiting side trips to meet another family, we definitely detected the scent of licorice in the air when we arrived in Pontefract. I've always been a fan of Bassetts Licorice Allsorts, and now I can tell you that I loaded up on the freshest Allsorts that I have ever enjoyed.
Tags: Travel Family And Sweets
As long as I can remember, my Mom and some of my aunts would have their bag of knitting with them wherever they went. They could always do a few rows... or a lot of rows as they had some sit-down time, with friends over a cup of tea, or in their own kitchen as they waited for the bread to rise, or the cake, baking in the oven, was ready for the next step. There was always a project or two started and needing to be finished; woolen work socks for the men, warm scarves for the ladies, and mitts for the children. It was a hobby that never held my attention; I had better things to do. Much of my spare time involved keyboards; piano keys, organ keys, and typewriter keys. When my grandfather purchased a used piano for me, I was hooked. Piano lessons for me started when I was five years old, and continued until I entered high school. I learned that they was a pipe organ in the church across the street from my school, and my parents agreed that it would be fine for me to start taking organ lessons. The church that our family attended had a new organ but only one person knew how to play it, so I had a new goal. Circumstances and interests changed when I left home after High School. During the three years of nursing training, I did have access to a piano, but was very self-conscious about playing the piano in the public lounge of our Residence. It was a treat to play a Heinzman grand piano, but I would usually play it when I should have been sleeping. When I moved out of the city to my first job as a registered nurse, a “new” hobby grabbed my attention. Living in the basement of the hospital, I had no trouble sleeping in the daytime, which was good news for several married nurses who had family responsibilities during the day, and struggled to stay awake and sharp during their night shift. There was a nursing aide who also enjoyed the night shift, and we often worked together. Many times there were empty beds in this 19-bed hospital so there wasn’t much for us to do but make hourly rounds to check on patients. To occupy our time, we cleaned cupboards, raided the kitchen refrigerator and cooked our own meal. My partner also had her “craft” bag, and her work was flawless. It was she who came up with the wise idea that she would love to teach me how to knit, insisting that it would be a very handy craft when I had my own family. Hmm... I had heard that before from my Mom, but I reconsidered. The first suggested project was to knit a baby shawl, hoping that I would eventually complete it in time for the arrival of my first baby. That would give me plenty of time to complete the project... I was still looking for a husband! Guess what... I DID have it completed, a year before our son arrived. Since then, I have knitted two more shawls, for the first arrival to our kids’ family. I fell in love with the pattern, and the baby, and the grandchildren. I continued to knit sweaters, hats, scarves, and afghans, until members of our family had a stronger preference to store-bought garments. That’s not all bad; I now have more time for my latest hobby; my computer.
Tags: A-Z Hobbies
In my growing up years, a trip to Banff National Park was a special treat, often including members of my mother’s family. She grew up in a large family, on a farm in central Alberta where there was always a lot of work to do. There were times, between the spring seeding season and the autumn harvesting season, that a trip to the mountains was possible. I don’t remember that anyone had a trailer, but those who could stay overnight were snug in their tent, or in a cozy cabin. Of course, there was lots of food, much a which had been prepared at home. Home-made buns, hand-shaped hamburger patties, along with everyone’s favorite dill pickles and relishes. Potato salads, sticks of celery stuffed with peanut butter, and jugs of lemonade, were a ‘must’. The climax of the meal were fresh-baked pies, filled with rhubarb from the garden, or saskatoons or gooseberries, picked in the valley on the farm. Our camping destination was not in or near the town of Banff, but by Johnston Canyon, about a 30 minute drive from the town. When we could see Castle Mountain ahead, we knew that we were getting close to the canyon. Everyone, even including the youngest children, could manage the hike along the safe and guarded path to the falls. The sound of the water falls, and the breeze through the trees on a summer day, added to the pleasure of the experience. If you ever have the opportunity to come to the Canadian Rockies, no matter in what season, take the time to visit Johnston Canyon. In the winter, the Icewalk traverses several steel catwalks that provide spectacular views of the canyon below. This is a great winter experience, especially for those who have no desire or ability to strap on snow skis at any of the ski resorts. And... don’t forget to visit the Banff Upper Hot Springs swimming pool before retiring for the night. Sitting in a very warm pool, with icicles in your hair, is a great preamble to a very restful sleep.
Tags: A-Z Challenge Rockies Family
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