Erin's Journals

Welcome to the second half of 2019 – hope you’re well on your way to making those New Year’s resolutions (remember them?) a reality. BAHAHAHA! Who am I kidding?
 
My resolution for this next while – along with self-improvement, as always – is to get a computer whose keyboard is running smoothly and can keep up with me. In that vein, I’ll be turning this one in tomorrow for a quick fix. Luckily, Rob was able to diagnose what was making it run so hot since we bought it, while the Apple folks (and the company that fixes them here on Vancouver Island) admit there have been problems. So the whole thing’s going to be replaced – the keyboard, that is, not the computer. 
 
Did you have a FANTASTIC long weekend? I know, I know: for some it wasn’t a three-day break, but for many – most, I’d venture – it was. We had an unexpected drive up the island on Sunday when Rob found some used hockey equipment online. It gave us a chance to enjoy four hours on the road, stopping at the halfway mark, after having gotten the equipment, for lunch at a marina in Nanaimo. 
 
It was after lunch that we discovered a little confectionery that makes its own ice cream. You can almost imagine my “squeeeee!” of joy when I spotted my flavour of choice: black licorice. A childhood favourite, I haven’t had it since May of last year and it was wonderful. Not quite as black and rich as I really like, but it was pretty good just the same.
 

 
Sunday night, on Canada Day Eve, there was a fireworks display from Sidney, the picturesque town a few minutes’ drive down the mountain and up the highway from our place. My iPhone wouldn’t do it justice and you’ve already seen fireworks, so I’ll spare you a picture.
 
But yesterday under a mainly sunny sky and in 22 C temperatures (no humidity) it was a wonderful small-town Canada Day celebration as Rob and I helped with the ball toss game for our Rotary Club of Sidney. The loveliest part was that it was held in the very park where our bench for Lauren is situated behind a fence and next to a serene duck pond. We spend plenty of time at Iroquois Park, so it felt nice to be there to celebrate our family, our country and our community all at once!
 

 
I wish you a pleasant, short work week and I’ll be back here with you tomorrow. Happy 2019 Part Two! What adventures will these next six months hold, I wonder?
 

Ah, her U key is back, you’re thinking! Actually, I’m writing this on the ferry, using Rob’s laptop. My U problem needs a bigger fix, apparently. 
 
I was so lucky to truly savour the beauty of Canada’s natural glory for a few hours Wednesday as we made the crossing from Vancouver Island over to mainland BC. Hey, BC Ferries – how did you know?
 

 
I guess it’s better than the ticket on the way home yesterday…
 

 
For the first time, Rob and I went as foot passengers, leaving the car behind with friends (a fun-loving couple who enjoyed the MINI convertible). Once we’d gotten to the Vancouver area’s Tsawwassen Ferry terminal, job #1 was finding our bus into town. We were able to buy our transit passes aboard the ferry.
 
We bought one-day passes, took the bus to our hotel, then a train to a mall for the Apple Store visit and ultimately to Rogers Arena to see Jeff Lynne’s Electric Light Orchestra. (More on that next week, including a moment with Dhani Harrison that brought Rob to tears.)
 
So, part of our car-free getaway included getting familiar with the Vancouver transit system. It was, in a word, FANTASTIC, especially the SkyTrain. Now, there will be plenty of residents of this glorious west coast city – past or present – who will disagree and I bow to their familiarity. But for Rob and me, it couldn’t have been easier to navigate or more convenient for what we needed.
 
Arriving home after a partly rainy day in Vancouver and a gentle crossing back to “our” island home, we were struck with gratitude once again for the healing that this part of the country has given us. Interestingly, the famous Homewood Health Centre of Guelph has opened a sister property about one kilometre from our home. I’m sure we share the same views and peaceful surroundings as Ravensview. If tranquil surroundings can help soothe a soul and aid in transition and healing, then surely its patients will be helped by the location.
 
As we consider what it means to be Canadian and to live in this vast, bountiful country of ours, I’m struck by the sickness that overcomes me when I read the comments and posts in our own land that are so filled with anger, hatred and intolerance. Whether it’s bigotry, a strong political bent or the seeping stench of Trumpism and “Make Canada Great Again” nationalism coming across the border and dropping in through our devices, I worry for the future of our beautiful, peaceful home and native land.
 
We are far from perfect, but without a willingness to stop calling each other (or our leaders/candidates) names, without a commitment to listen instead of shouting, without a desire to educate ourselves about the facts instead of simply holding opinions, we’re destined to spiral into the cesspool of disharmony that has befallen so many other countries, including, of course, our closest neighbour.
 
Yesterday as I awoke in Vancouver, I cried quiet tears of joy thanks to journal visitor Jodi K. who sent me a link to Jann Arden’s list of Canada Day essentials. My book is there, along with this lovely illustration:
 

 
Here’s what she said, in case you can’t open the link above.
 

 
I cannot thank her enough, not only for her immense heart, but for her kindness and support through so much. What a gift she is to this country of ours! I could write a blog about Jann; in fact, I already have. And thank you.
 
May you find whatever your soul needs to help you to have a peaceful heart. Our Canada Day weekend will be quiet and contemplative, except for Monday, when Rob and I have volunteered to help run some of the outdoor activities for Rotary Club of Sidney. Let the games begin! And Happy Canada Day. How truly lucky we are! I’ll see you here Tuesday.
 

I want to start today by wishing Carol, a friend I met through grief who also came on our cruise this past spring, good luck! In honour of her son Jamie, whom she and her husband Rod lost, Carol is going to do the CN Tower Edge Walk. She’s got more nerve than I do and she is making sure she lives large in Jamie’s memory on his birthday. Like I said, good luck, friend!
 
Perhaps it was realizing that yesterday was the 10th anniversary of Michael Jackson’s death that triggered a vivid dream of Lauren during a rare afternoon nap. The connection isn’t as faint as you might think: on the day that we heard from TMZ that Jackson had died, I called Rob immediately. He was on a streetcar in Toronto, heading to a rental place to pick up a truck we then loaded to move Lauren out of our condo to her new place in Ottawa that weekend. So that’s what memory June 25 will always hold for us. (This is where someone would write that Farrah Fawcett also died on that day. While that’s true, her death is not why I called Rob, who was off on that epic errand.)
 
My dream of Lauren was clear and cheerful. We’d spent a lot of time together – something to do with a boat and a cottage – and she ran into the kitchen to avoid evening mosquitoes. We were hugging and laughing. Next thing I saw, we were both sitting on a kitchen floor: I was chomping on a Tootsie Pop, while she munched on a Charms Pop (TP’s biggest competitor, if I remember their cartoon ads of the 70s). As syrupy spit dripped down her arm and onto the floor, Lauren said to me, “You know what’s the BEST?” I asked what. 
 
“Having a daughter you can love forever.” 
 
With that, I began to awaken, having just sung the song “Smile” by Charlie Chaplin. A loaded dream to be sure. But better than the one from a few nights earlier. Do you ever have that “job nightmare?” You know the one: something about work where you’re completely helpless and everything is going sideways, bigtime. 
 
I had the “radio nightmare” where the station was playing music endlessly but I couldn’t find a way to turn a mic on or turn off the automatic programming so that I could do the show I was supposed to do. (There are as many variations to the radio nightmare as there are radio hosts. I could go on, but basically it involves finding yourself in a scenario where your arms can’t reach the equipment to stop the music or start it, or you run into a booth to do a national newscast and all you have is a pile of concert listings.)
 
Luckily, none of that was coming true, but I always wonder what it is that’s triggering that kind of dream again. Hmm.
 
Meantime, speaking of concert listings, Rob and I are off to Vancouver today to see if we can’t relive a highlight of last year: Jeff Lynne’s Electric Light Orchestra live at Rogers Arena. I’ll fill you in here tomorrow, but I hope you have a great day. With dreams of only the best kind. 
 
And if you see somebody atop the CN Tower today, give a wave. It could be a mom celebrating her son’s life – you just never know, do you?
 

Hey there – hope your week’s going well so far. It’s been a week since Mike Cooper and I shared an hour with you via webinar. I wanted to update you on cabin availabilities and so on, just to keep this top of mind in case you’re considering joining us for a magical week (plus land tours, which I think Rob and I are going to do, and maybe Mike, too) river cruising from Switzerland to the Netherlands. As our host Gerry Koolhof of New Wave Travel put it, with ocean cruising you go to a country, but with river cruising you go through a country.
 
A reminder that if you book before June 30 (which is a Sunday – so better you should do it by Friday) you’ll get an added bonus of pre-paid gratuities ($185 per person) plus a $200 CDN on-board credit (per stateroom based on double occupancy). I won’t go on with details and prices; you can find out all you need to know about the trip in October 2020 here. 
 
See, the whole reason I’m nudging on this is that we REALLY want to take over the entire boat with just our group. So far, we’re about one-third to one-half booked and that’s terrific! But if we get the whole boat, that way we can stage more than one dance of our own, Mike and I can have the run of the dining room in terms of visiting tables, etc. and we can just make it one big (old) school trip, if you will! Once you’ve looked at the itinerary etc. just email Gerry. He’s a sweet guy whom Rob and I have known and dealt with for about a decade. 
 
That’s all I’ll say for now. I was just reminded to mention it by Jann Arden’s Instagram photos of the riverboat cruise she’s on in Europe with fans/guests. I hope they got their whole boat too – and that she’s having as much fun as her guests undoubtedly are.
 
Rob and I are off for a musical adventure of our own tomorrow and I’ll fill you in then. 
 
Meantime, I’ve entered the world of home assistants. No, I’m not firing Rob; we found a great deal on Google Home last week and bought one for the bedroom and one for the living room. I think – like any new device – it’s going to be up to us to find uses for it, other than asking her what the weather is.
 
We play music on it, like soft meditation music or smooth jazz, but more often I’ll get it to tune in my favourite radio stations, Ocean 98.5 here in Victoria (without the static that used to accompany listening to it – stupid transmitter rules!) and 680 News in Toronto. That may sound strange to you, but I like hearing friends like Paul Cook and Steve Roberts. Plus it’s kind of comforting in its way to listen to “cottage country traffic on the nines” or hear how the 404 is moving.
 
I’ve had a few people ask, “Well, aren’t you worried they’re listening to you?” and frankly, I’m not concerned at all. For one thing, I have nothing to hide from anyone and if Google, his pal Alexa or any of the other home devices out there want to listen in on me, feel free. I figure we’re giving away information about ourselves every moment, so one more portal isn’t going to break me.
 
One guide to privacy quotes someone at Symantec (a cyber security company) as saying, “If you’re talking about your plans to take over the world, as you do every night, there’s a physical button to mute.” (Both Google Home and Alexa have that mute button.)
 

 
But I AM hoping she’s listening once in a while – like when I use a tool called “broadcast.” You say “Hey Google,” or “OK Google” to get her attention, and then tell her what you want the household to hear. For some, that means, “It’s time for dinner, everybody…” or “Someone had better walk the dog,” or a message like that. For me, as it was yesterday morning, it was, “Hey Google….broadcast ‘I’m ready for my coffee, Rob.'” She did, he laughed from the living room and, yes, I got my coffee, after he messaged me back with a few choice words!
 
As I say, it’s going to be all about making the most of this device. I do love the radio aspect (I think this is a bigger game changer than satellite radio, quite honestly) and the fact that I can ask Google to play me Terry O’Reilly’s latest podcast – or any podcast for that matter.
 
Hmmmm…maybe I’ll get into this podcast thing after all…we’ll see. 
 
Back with you tomorrow on our midweek travel adventure!