Easter fun

Morning walk

The days are turning warmer here. Rumour has it that the temps are supposed to reach +16C this week, which is fine by me.

I was up early today and walked to the coffee shop - about 2 miles round trip.

Lately I've been mired in a myriad of internal and external challenges that have diverted my attention from a lot of the things that make life truly pleasant. On my walk I re-experienced a lot of those things that make it all worth while: A lady walking her dog greeted me with a smile and a quick chat, excited that Spring was finally on its way. At the coffee shop, the fellow at the counter seemed genuinely happy and content to be there. On my return trip I met one of my neighbours (also named Dave, but no relation) walking his dog. We engaged in a 2-minute update on life and I quickly heard of his recent trip to Seattle. We bantered about the Pike Market and the Pier and moved forward.

I'm feeling content and satisfied right now that everything is where it needs to be - mostly - and looking forward to the end of the course at the U. and tying up some loose ends with a sound system installation contract.

The weekend yielded a great purge of long-accumulated junk which begs the question,

"Where does it all come from, and when will it end???"

Nevertheless, it's forward motion and I'm liking it - a lot!

I have several plans on paper for house projects which, if all goes according to plan, will see a dramatic change in the physical space here by the end of June.

Life has its crappy little moments, but overall is really quite pleasant. Here's to Spring, new beginnings and a ramp-up to vibrant times.

Reminiscing, what’s going on today, and future plans

One year ago at this very minute, I was riding the rails underground in Montreal. I had flown out to see Nathalie and had a full day to spend in Montreal before departing to Quebec City via Via Rail. I had, admittedly, one of my best life experiences on that trip.





Upper Left - My day pass and a coffee: cheaper than a cab
Lower Left - A map of the Montreal Metro - I've been to every stop.
Lower Right - On the platform at Quebec



















What am I doing today? Nothing quite as exciting as jet setting across the country and riding the rails in new-to-me territory. Nope, today I’m pushing paper. I likely won’t look back on today a year from now to reminisce about the experience. It’s kinda cold and grey outside, as is my mood.

As for future plans? I found myself standing in the back yard with my friend Norm a couple days ago. We talked about two projects I want to see come to fruition this year: one is (hold on to your seat) eaves trough and facia repair and the replacement of badly worn downspouts. (OK, be honest, doesn’t this compete with a vacation to Quebec?) The second is a chain link fence project. For years my yard has been in need of a real fence… a full fence… one that actually surrounds the whole yard. We talked at length about moving some lengths of fence to give a different shape to the yard, and to what we might consider in terms of changing the “map”. This includes relocating trailer parking, moving a shed, and possibly foot printing a section for a future garage development, being mindful to maintain the existing fire pit. Oh, and a new wood crib for firewood… that would be nice.

DJ Will and a chocolate swan

Here's what happens when you let your wing-man run rampant in the office...




Went out last night -- awesome lamb for CHEAP, and when they run out of takeout containers for the leftover chocolate cake, and you have a creative server, you get this...





Oh, and I'm on a mission to replace my store-bought dishes with my own pottery pieces. Tonight I celebrated two such bowls with a healthy meal of prawns, asparagus and salad... gee, I feel like this is one of Mollie's posts about food! It's really more about the bowls, honest!

Lots to do!

Jan's post had some cute cat pics with captions... this one I thought was kinda cute.

Think warm thoughts

Spring has sprung, the grass is riz, I wonder where the shovel is?

Ah, Spring in Calgary at 5:30 in the morning!

Dave the plumber

I know this guy who is a plumber here in Calgary. I met him years ago through one of the community centres that we do regular work for. We all swear he's near stone-deaf because he's always asking us to "turn it up!" at community events. He and his wife are pretty amazing dancers too, and whenever I think of Dave I think of the numerous times over the years that I played for him, Dean Martin's 'That's Amore'.

Yesterday I played plumber. Emarie emailed to say that the toilet in the suite wasn't refilling after a flush. It was the oddest thing, too.

I checked the water shutoff, closing it and reopening it.

The toilet flushed just fine, and I thought the problem was resolved.

Nuh uhh...

Upon the next flush, the problem recurred.

Emarie checked the web for advice. It suggested that we use a coat hanger to clean out the line that runs into the float/regulator. We did that. Again, the tank filled just fine. This time I was smart (or so I thought) and flushed the toilet a few times to be sure.

"We make a good team,", she said. "I look up what to do and you do it!"

Later in the afternoon, Emarie informed me that alas, the problem was not fixed. In the meantime, I'd been chatting with a friend whose boyfriend is/was a plumber. He told me over the phone that for the $15.00 it would be best to replace the float/regulator when this problem occurs. So, off to Home Depot. The really fancy-schmancy regulator, which you can adjust to use more or less water, was only $22.00. It made sense to spend the extra $7.00.

I discovered that this plumbing thing is really very 'plug-and-play'. Unscrew the old one, insert the new one, add water and wait.

The other thing I learned about yesterday's adventure in plumbing is that I can fix stuff... correctly... without it costing more in the end!

Now, THAT'S AMORE!

The only difference between this Dave and the other Dave is that he can dance and I can hear. Oh, and I'm taller.