A Note on Canuck Currency
Our recent side-trip to Oregon gave me another chance to observe the odd American obsession with our Canadian money. Comments about the colour, denominations and nicknames for the cash (okay, I admit that “toonie” is a lame moniker) are ever-present when our Canadian currency is displayed and I have a couple of points for anyone with an unusual fascination with our moola:
1. I am really not sure that the Clown commuminty as a whole has one accepted form of currency, so please stop calling it “clown money.”
2. The colours help us tell them apart at a glance and reduce the risk of slipping a $50 bill to our cab driver instead of a $20 when we have been having a few too many at the bar. Good idea, no?
3. Stop trying to pull the middle out of the toonie. It’s way too hard, and besides, I think it is a federal offense.
4. Okay, so we don’t have a bill for anything under $5 anymore – just the one-dollar and two-dollar coins. But you can have a whole wad of cash in your pocket and still only have $7, whereas we can have $35 dollars worth of “just change” in our pockets and not even know it until we count it. I like good surprises.
5. Loonies may look like Pirate gold to you, but I can use it to get a coffee from Timmies while you are still trying to get the chocolate out of it.
Thank you. Carry on…
We’re Back!!
Well, the trip to BC was amazing. We spent 4 days in Vancouver, Surrey and Whistler, then drove down (in a rented car) to Eugene, Oregon to see Emily and Colin (we miss you guys!) and came back up to White Rock for Sue & Chris’ wonderful wedding on Saturday before flying out of Vancouver again back to Toronto. I’ll be uploading my pictures (as soon as I find the damn cord for the camera) and talking about each day in detail, but for now I’ll leave you with a few of my favorite pictures of Adam’s and links to the rest of the set.
Roomies…
Our best friends Colin and Emily have lived beside us for years, either in the same house (before we were married) or just across the street, and people marvel that we survived the roommate thing and all still remained friends, but we did, somehow. For the past year we have lived across the street in the same complex and we are always seen carrying different combinations of furniture, food, cats, guitars, alcohol, workout equipment and electronics back and forth as we hang out at each other’s houses. It has been great having them so close.
Sadly, the legacy must die, as Colin begins his Master’s of Athletic Therapy at the famous University of Oregon. As they prepare for the move to the states we offered to let them to stay with us for a bit so they can be free to look for a place in Eugene without being hampered by needing to finish a lease here. To pay us back for the room, Emmy has been cleaning non-stop since she got here. It has been magnificent. I haven’t lifted a finger since she got here, and the house is spotless. She even organized my spices, streamlined by stovetop collection of seasonings and cleaned the backyard.
My only problem? Since she is so good at putting things away and finding a good space to put everything, can’t find anything in my house now if she’s not around to ask. What am I going to do once they leave?
The End of the Dock
A weekend at the cottage is never complete without certain required traditions, and the creation of some new ones. Here are some of my memories from our most recent cottage expedition, to celebrate “Old Man Wallace’s” 30th birthday.
Getting “While you’re upped,” which means getting sent for a beer when you’re not actually up.
Colin and Aiden getting inducted to the “I’ve tipped in a canoe” club, of which I have been a proud member for years.
Ollie trying to eat a caterpillar, a chipmunk and that ugly bug with wings we found in the cabin.
Learning that Aiden does not require sleep. We think he’s a cylon.
Adam taking record 2 Gigabytes worth of pictures in 4 days.
An 8-foot bonfire for no reason on a perfectly warm night.
Sleeping 15 people in a cottage that is supposed to sleep 10.
Adam endlessly poking the fire because he can’t let it alone, and me endlessly bugging Adam about poking the fire because I can’t let it alone.
Watering the flowers in the rain because “it was a directive.” The weather was great, except for the fantastic thunderstorm as we were leaving, and it was a perfect mix of hilarity and clarity, of laughing so hard our cheeks hurt and sitting still for almost a full hour to stare at the perfect sunset. With Colin & Emily’s move to Oregon just around the corner, our cottage days together are numbered. But even when they are over, we’ll still have all these stupid memories to keep us laughing.