Stittsville

Just a quick note to let you know that I'm safely back at home.  There will be laundry...

North Bay, Ontario

I arrived in North Bay just in time for an excellent BBQ last night. Well worth the 10 hour drive!

I did notice that the police were hiding out at the official passing lanes which I thought was kind of unfair: after all, you're expected to pass safely, which often means you're going faster, or in some cases: much faster, than the speed limit; it seems somewhat unethical to set up speed traps there.  Somewhat like shooting fish in a barrel?

There's a big family reunion here for Kaomi's birthday, so there's lots to do and talk about, even if it's raining right now... Joan and I should be heading back home tomorrow, on Sunday.

Portage la Prairie to Nipigon ON

After a fairly slow 9am departure, I ended up in Nipigon Ontario, trying out the motels that still had vacancies...  How quickly I forgot that all the construction workers had basically taken all the available rooms.

It turns out I had stayed at this particular motel in the past and while it's OK, it unfortunately has smoking rooms... [I think they're all smoking rooms...].

The motel is right behind a drive through place and an Esso keycard station for trucks.  It may not be a quiet night, but that usually hasn't stopped me before.

I should make North Bay tomorrow.

Heather & Michel's garden, Museum of Human Rights

Heather and her husband Michel [my nephew] have always been gardeners, and it shows. Here's a small selection of gardens that they made on their two acres of land.

Below is just one of three patio decks wonderfully decorated with plants.

They also have large areas devoted to Hostas, definitely one of my favourite plant groups.

And here's the interesting Zoey: one of those affectionate loving pets with a very short fuse. You really have to know when to stop petting before Zoey hisses at you...

Heather and I went into Winnipeg for a visit of the Museum of Human Rights.  It's a wonderful museum with enough reading to keep you busy for a day or three. The exhibits were very factual, and they made you aware of mankind' inhumanity over the centuries, as well as the huge progress that has  already been made, and what remains to be addressed.  

This next picture is a very small part of a wall displaying progress during recent centuries.  The wall is likely more than 30 metres long!

There were many displays, and this one was representing an artist whose name escapes me: the artist hung red dresses in the forest which must have been a sight to see.  Here's a shot of one of the dresses, followed by the whole display with a picture of the installation in the forest as a background.

The architecture of the museum was stunning.  This next shot is of the white translucent stones that bordered the ramps from one floor to the next. These translucent blocks of stone held me in awe as we walked from floor to floor.

If you are ever in Winnipeg, I heartily recommend at least a full day at this exceptional museum.  The building itself deserves a few dedicated hours...

High Bluff Manitoba

I've arrived safely at Michel and Heather's home in High Bluff, Manitoba.

I've made many pictures of their mind blowing gardens which I hope to have ready to show tomorrow.

The weather here is comfortable, and I'm building up my immunity to mosquitos...

More to follow.

Okotoks to Grenfell SK

After a great week with family, followed by many sad hugs, it was time to head east. My initial target was Regina Saskatchewan, but as I got nearer, there was a tornado, hail, and heavy weather warning so I moved on to Grenfell SK.

I shot these pictures just before supper. The first is the lawn in front of my motel: the Grenfell  Homesteader Motel.  I'm pretty sure it's the only show in town.

Next is a view eastward along the TransCanada: more weather eastward.

And now, the view to the West, with the Esso sign promising a restaurant.

And lastly, the ever present welcome sign to town.  Note the towns'  distinctive awards. [you can click on any picture to see them all larger]

After those pixels were safely tucked away, I braved the stiff wind from the west, and tested what is likely the only restaurant in town: the Esso restaurant.

The place was surprisingly busy: a large table down the middle with at least 12 adults and kids just finishing their deserts. While I waited for my hamburger steak & onions to be delivered, two or three more couples walked in.  As I ate, the large table emptied and more people started coming in. I seemed to be one of the very few that wasn't a local...  All in all, a good home cooked and tasty meal.

Of course, it poured outside and the stiff wind made sure the later arrivals at the restaurant were completely soaked, a fate I expected would be mine on the walk back to the motel.

On chap arrived in soaked motorcycle leathers and I overheard him saying he just wanted a coffee since he was waiting for the storm to pass over, after all, there was a ridge of brightness under the clouds to the west.

He was right!  The wind was still howling when I walked back, but I was dry. After dealing with the pictures for this entry, and as I write this, the sky turned blue in all directions until sunset. Now it's almost completely clouded over again with menacing dark clouds. I hope the motor cyclist reached that small area of brightness that I can just see under the western clouds...

As they said in Calgary, if you don't like the weather, just wait a bit and it will change.

Heritage Day

Heritage Day has been a fun day. Jacob found a good deal for a scooter on Kijiji to replace his missing one, so today was a great day to try it out at the scooter park.

Eric was trying out his camera on a small tripod to make scooter movies, and here he is being filmed by his camera and mine...

Jacob's scooter may not be very visible in this shot, but it does seem to jump tall trees...

Scooters apparently require a lot of energy: here are the guys recharging...

Levitation seems to be a prerequisite for using a scooter...

After lunch we all headed off to the dog park in Black Diamond. Here's a picture of our chauffeur du jour!

The dog park runs along a small stream with swimming holes here and there.  This is Dexter jumping in the water from the short cliff that separates the path from the water.

As others chose to get wet, I found a few flowers to shoot; I hope you enjoy them.

Olympic Park Sports Museum

Sunday we had some fun at the Olympic Park Sports Museum.  Here's a family 'portrait' in the Jamaican ice sled. 

One of the major sights on Sunday was an infectious laugh that was present all day...

The Olympic site has a podium and our stalwart sports group took centre stage.  

It looks like Jacob is going to be a terrific actor or a legend in his own mind.  Either way, he's very amusing and much fun to be with.

Here's Jacob rounding out for a KO punch.  

Shadow boxing is such a hoot...

Eric delivers a crushing blow in the next shadow boxing round...

Here's Eric the announcer  commenting on the state of affairs in sports...

On Friday night, we had a major storm warning, claiming high winds, hail, and other nasties...

Saturday news were much the same: hail warnings, etc.

Sunday, not so much: sunny with possibility of rain.

Just a little background info: in the last month, Okotoks had a major hailstorm that damaged Nick and Colleen's house as well as many other houses in the immediate vicinity. Hail damage in not fun: insurance deductibles are high, and repair estimates are higher! Repairs from the last hailstorm are still ongoing.

Our possible Sunday rain had turned into a hailstorm!

Nick offered to drive my car from the road, where it was parked, to the front of the garage, where the wind was less powerful, and the area protected somewhat. 

He ran for my car, I ran for my camera.

Nick definitely drew the short straw: I was safe and dry in the garage, he was in an unfamiliar car, with a frosted windshield, and zero visibility. 

As you can see in the picture below, nothing is visible through the windshield, yet Nick drove my car into the driveway and out of the serious winds. My Son is my hero, ... again.

You can see the hail bouncing off the roof, and the accumulation on the driveway.

The storm didn't last long, but a fair bit of hail accumulated everywhere.  We've saved some in the freezer for eventual cocktails...  

I'm sure the car survived nicely, to be confirmed by an early morning inspection.

Tomorrow looks like an usual sunny day in Okotoks, so outdoor activities will be in order.