Week 23

You know it's been a full week when your puppy is a clepto and your niece is a fish. Well mermaid really. For her birthday, my sister bought her mermaid lessons. Yes that's a real thing. Apparently she earns a certification that is registered with scuba diving standards. Who knew? Dressing up in a tail and swimmers isn't just for vegas anymore. As for the dog, well she has realized that the neighbor to the north has a yard full of doggie toys that she was quite happily bringing home and playing with. Took a day or two to figure out what was happening, but the end result is I met 2 of the neighbors in the subdivision while returning the ill gotten booty. Can you imagine that conversation? Hi my parents are your neighbor to the south, we are very anti social with no real interest of becoming friends, and our new puppy is ripping you off... sorry and nice to meet you. No not really, but it was interesting. Never a dull moment, like this morning jumping out of bed because there was a calf on the highway bordering the farm. Had to rush out there and stuff the lil bugger back in and then find the whole in the fence. Naturally it was the bottom wire in the middle of the pond. No real way to get to it except take off the shoes and walk in up to my knees in mud and water. Thankfully the bottom of the pond was spongy with vegetation. I was worried about sinking and getting stuck. The other blessing is the pond's water is low right now. Usually it's over 8ft deep which can make things very interesting. But between my brother and I, we got it done and off to the next chore, and the next chore and the next. It never fails to amaze me how different people in town are from rural people. For example, persons on rural properties know that there is always work to be done and with out short summers the lions share has to be done sooner rather than later. Where as town people don't have that same mentality. I hear this quite often at work, are you going to K-Days, are you going to the accidental beach down town, are you going to whatever other event someone dreamed up? You politely say no, and then change the subject. Why? Because telling them that you see no reason to drive an hour into the city, give yourself brain damage finding a place to park, and sit with 200 strangers on a sand bar full of river snot. Especially a river that the city of around a million use as a toilet. Ya, thanks, but no. But I digress. I needed a blog post and there it is. Different people develop different mentalities and priorities with different environments and responsibilities. That and city people are crazy. #justsayin

Week 22

I find myself straining to get a topic for this weeks blog. So I'll go off on a tangent and see if it develops into something worth saving. Today my brother was watching a movie he just bought. One of the newer Dwayne Johnson movies, Rampage. It was somewhat cheesy complete with groan worthy one liners, but all in all a cute little way to decompress via mindless entertainment. During the movie, the my puppy was very agitated. Jumping into and out of laps, pacing the floor and knocking over things deliberately with her paws. It wasn't the gunfire or explosions, she's seen many of those movies and has never fussed. It was the roaring. The wolf howls and gorilla screams to be specific. They were too realistic for her liking I guess. Strange though as she hears coyotes howl weekly at the farm and that never phases her. I thought about it some more and began to see her behavior was worse when the wolf noises were on. Made me wonder if that has some deep seeded instinct to fear a wolf howl, where a coyote howl doesn't have the same effect. Is that something that is hardwired into her like the herding instinct? Is to something to do with her age and will she grow out of it? Is it something that she will always go to the fear well when she hears the howl of a wolf. Maybe you think I'm giving her too much credit, but they have proven that Border Collies have the intelligence of a human child up to 7 years of age. She has demonstrated the ability to problem solve and to apply knowledge from one arena to another. They are also known for their excellent hearing and ability to focus their attention well beyond the average. I see no reason that she wouldn't be able to tell the difference between coyote and wolf vocalizations, and that the vocalizations of the latter would cause her duress where as the former is something within her sphere of normal. Take it a step further to human thought processes. There are things that are instinctually feared with humans, and things that are learned behaviors. For example, I am claustrophobic. This is a learned behavior. I had a bad experience in a small area as a child, and the result is an irrational fear that has followed me through life. One that has to be managed. One that no mater how much exposure I do (caving, crowds, elevators, etc.) the fears always just as strong as the last time and I find myself employing practiced mental discipline to function normally. And even then, my definition of normal function is pushed to the agitated spectrum. My concentration is brought into a very narrowed focus, at times giving me the appearance of zoning out. A more accurate description would be I'm zoning in, to the very narrowed focus of managing the irrational fear. Everything outside that management takes a back seat, sometimes to the point of not registering them. So in a large crowd, please don't take offense if I ignore you. It's far better than pitching a fit in a crowd. But I digress, claustrophobia in my case is a learned behavior. Where as my healthy respect for heights is, I believe, and instinctual behavior. I am not afraid of heights in the traditional sense. I have no issue of going to a high place, but I do become more careful and go into the threshold of the adrenal state. Not anxiety per say, but definitely not a relaxed one either. I go into high places with no reservations or apprehension, just become super aware of every foot and hand hold. I have no memory of every having an issue with high places so I assume that it is something that was hardwired into humans over the evolutionary process. Honestly I think I'm watching way too many documentaries on human behavior, I should watch more cartoons.

Week 21

Today's blog is all about instant karma. Like eating a jar of jalipino peppers. It's all fun and exciting today, but it's going to burn your butt tomorrow. For example, I thought it would be cute and mental stimulating to take my puppy's ball and stick it in a tote bin with the lid on. She has to problem solve to get her ball back. Worked like a charm and was cute as can be watching her figure it out. Problem is I didn't think ahead to say today where she would come up with new and creative ways to apply that knowledge. Like getting into a sealed Tupperware and eating all the muffins, or like last night getting the bananas and eating 2.5 of them. She will be in full firehoze mode today. Le sigh. Remember to think ahead before acting.

Week 20

I was at a funeral on Saturday, hence my absence from the meeting. It was for my 2nd cousin Vicki. She had a sudden heart attack on July 1st and died at 85. Vicki was married to my mom's cousin Ray. She was a stick of dynamite, which to me has more value than someone with no tenacity or worse yet, honesty. Vicki was married and had 7 children. Her husband had a heart attack and she was left to raise her 7 kids on her own until she met Ray. Ray didn't bat an eye, he just loved her and the children with no questions or reservations. I was 4 years old when they got married, and no I'm not telling you how many years because no one needs to do the math. Anyway back to Vicki. Stick of dynamite. Vicki was almost 5ft tall, but she had a big personality and voice to match. She was not formally educated, but she was a shrewd business woman and co-ran the hardware store Ray's father left him. Together they had a successful and happy life. They lived simply and enjoyed family, day car trips, wood working and building crafts to sell at farmers markets, and keeping up on the small town gossip. Vicki and Ray were very close with my parents and us kids. Their spontaneous visits were always welcome, and we knew the door was always open to us (if you could catch them at home - we always called first before going up there). I remember the time Vicki's kids got her and Ray a trip to BC on the train. Quite a pricy gift and one I know they were both looking forward to, but neither of them were big fans of the idea of being away from home over night let alone for a week. So they came and asked me to take care of their place (I was in my 20's). Vicki eyed me up and asked me how much I wanted to watch their place for a week, ever ready to negotiate the best deal. I told them I needed a book shelf, and if Ray built me a book shelf, I would watch their house. Seemed like a great deal to both of us. So I went up the weekend before they left learned all about the little quirks of the house and how much to feed Vicki's spoiled fish (she had a huge tank in the living room and dad used to tease her that they were pan sized). They left with peace of mind and I had a nice relaxing week taking care of their place. It was literally the only time I enjoyed "living" in town. A few weeks after they got back, Ray and Vicki pulled into the yard... with matching book shelves. I asked for only one. On top of that they handed me a few hundred dollars. I tried to protest, as all I wanted was the shelves, but they insisted. In her gruff way, Vicki was very generous and once she made up her mind, well it was a done deal. Ray and I actually talked about that time on Saturday. He surprised me when he brought it up, like he could tell what I was thinking about. Vicki was a stick of dynamite. I didn't realize at the time, but I learned something from her. I realized it this weekend when I was reflecting on her life, what I knew of her, what affection we had for her. She taught me that even if your opinion is not popular or politically correct, it is still your voice. You have a right to it and you have to stick to it. These are things that I have said to others many times, but I never associated the wisdom to her until now. She lived that way, she didn't care who you were, if she had something to say popular or not, you got it right between the eyes with both barrels. I respect that immensely. She never took me aside and spelled it out for me, she just was who she was. Her strength was just there for me to learn from. Sadly an unacknowledged gift, I would have liked to let her know the positive influence she had. I'm worried about Ray though. Ray has had bone cancer for a while now. He hasn't got a lot of time left, few months, maybe a year at best. Ray is the opposite of Vicki. He's no one's fool, but he is a soft spoken gentile soul. I hope he doesn't give up, though I can understand if he wanted to be reunited with his wife. So Ray is alone now, he has good neighbors, family and friends to look out for him, but they are not Vicki. I'll keep an eye out for him as best I can as will the rest of the family. Still, that house is going to be very quiet without his stick of dynamite. Cherish those who are in your heart, it's the only place you really get to keep them.

Week 19

Just leaving Anbotsford listening to 80's Classic Rock calculating the next leg of the trip. My cousins wedding was wonderful. I don't think I've ever seen Robert so happy and his wife Julie Lynn is a lovely person who radiates warmth. She looked amazing. Like she just stepped out of a fairytale. Robert was over joyed that all 10 of us cousins were together. It's been roughly 30 years since that happened. Ironically it was at our cousin Dianne's wedding. But we're all together. Aunt Florence, her daughters Sharon and Dianne. Aunt Elfredia, her 3 sons David, Kevin, and Robert. My dad Wilfred and the 5 of us, Josie, Erna, Gord, me, and Jake. Of course there were spouses, friends and +1's but again over 30 years of my grandparents direct decendants together. Robert was very moved. Some of us were chatting and David was saying how strange it was that he sees us all as piers, yet we all have different memories of what the family was like when we were kids(respectively). I agree, it's hard to fathom, but when you thunk about how far we have come. For example, David is 14 years older than I am. We hang out and are best of friends. But my memories are much different than his. He was 20 when grandpa died, I was 6. So yes it stands reason that we have vastly different memories of the same man. My memories of David, Kevin and Robert we of following them around with a good measure of hero worship. Robert rough housed with us and David read to us. Kevin was the wildcard. I credit him for influencing my sense of humor. He even commented on how we are both entertained by the same silliness. I really miss those guys in the times we don't see each other. Bottom line it was a great weekend. It wouldn't have been possible if not for the support of Dan & Mel. They babysat my puppy and that was such a huge contribution to peace of mind. So thanks. In the mountains, going to lose signal, so thanks and chat later