Of Inuit and Epidurals

Quote of the week has to go to T, the frustrated expat, trying to see the brighter side of being away from home…

“For all the stupid things the stupid Canadians do, every single day, you have to admit, they DO do foliage well”

(BTW this picture is from Quebec. The trees are just starting to turn here in Vancouver, but since my camera is in Calgary for repair, Quebec will have to substitute.)

It’s the rituals and traditions that make celebrations stand out from the everyday. I can’t imagine Christmas without the carols, or Easter without the eggs. But with Canadian Thanksgiving we were stumped. We knew it didn’t involve the pilgrims but we were certain it still had something to do with pumpkin pie.We began planning for an orphan Thanksgiving by booking two cabins in Tofino for the long weekend. Little did we realise we had unintentionally arranged to participate in one of Vancouver’s greatest holiday traditions, queuing for the ferry.

Whilst voyaging across the strait of Georgia, I began my newest ritual, of talking up Coombs. Well, actually I probably began a little earlier than that, singing “Goats on the Roof, Goats on the Roof” on our way to Horseshoe Bay. (Think “The Bonnie Doon song” but a little less tuneful). Coombs doesn’t appear on many lists of top 10 places to see in the world, or even in Canada, possibly not even in British Columbia. I simply don’t know why. It is the most hilarious place I have ever seen. It seems like an ordinary country town. OK, it has a bird sanctuary, oh and a butterfly farm, but nothing exceptional. That is, until you reach the pink concrete castle, complete with crooked turret. And then the weirdness begins. [read on]

My bike in happier days. And no, I don't have a picture of the whole bike. Now, I've written about my bike before. I've mentioned that it's ... [Continue reading this entry]

“I’m thinking buttercups, I’m thinking butterscotch, I’m thinking butternut pumpkin.” Or so I imagine the stream of consciousness of the interior decorator. Sitting here in my new house (yes third in five months, a record even for me!), I am ... [Continue reading this entry]

The clock on my computer reads five am.  It’s Australian time, but it doesn’t much matter.  I did night shift last night.  I’ve been awake for nearly thirty hours.  The witching hour of five am seems more fitting than midday. I ... [Continue reading this entry]