Posted on August 9, 2013 under Storytelling with no comments yet

I have two stories coming up that have a theme in common. Aging.

The first story is about romance but would hardly rate as a best seller with Harlequin. The story begins at the old high school dances and ends at a nursing home. That just about covers the gamut. One of the highlights of my trip to Alberta was a visit I made to an extended care facility. Two people I taught with back in the 1970’s are residents there so I stopped by to see them. We looked at old year books and I played some songs for them.

My story takes place at a nursing home and happened during Christmas last year. Enough time has elapsed for me to get over the shock of what transpired when I went there to sing Christmas carols. I read it out loud for a group of friends in Alberta who got a big kick out of it. The story is called “An Old Romance”.

The second story is about “cheque day”. Have you ever found yourself trapped in a lineup at a financial institution on the day the Canada Pension and Old Age Security cheques arrive? Most times, I will just turn around and leave but on this day, extenuating circumstances forced me to stay in the lineup. I took the opportunity to watch what was going on around me. I never studied anthropology at university but I’m thinking of getting a government grant to do an examination of the phenomenon of cheque day. Weather and ailments figure prominently in this story. It is called “Chequed”…. coming soon.

Hope you have a great weekend and stay tuned tomorrow for “Last Tango in Toronto”.

Posted on August 8, 2013 under Thursday Tidbits with one comment

It’s back to reality after a week out West. The economy in Alberta seems to be firing on all cylinders. We contributed our share in food, gas and shopping. I bought a rock for $8.00. That was the sum total of my shopping. Betty is always shocked when I buy anything. In due course you will see this rock resurface and will understand this curious purchase.

We had to drive six hours from the Peace Country down to Edmonton ( 8 if you count the shopping stops ). I was driving and we were accompanied by Geoffrey, a splendid 13 year old gentleman who sought the peace and quiet of his house in Spruce Grove after a hectic week on the farm. It was a good thing he was with us as he saved our marriage. Do you find that at the end of a long day when you are perilously close to your destination, that you and the co-pilot can get a bit edgy when it comes to directions? No. I didn’t think so. You use a GPS and can always curse at the lifeless voice telling you that she’s “recalculating”. As we approached a major fork in the road, I politely inquired which exit to take and “we” took the wrong one. Geoffrey took over and spirited us to his house by way of a secondary route. He was surprised when I offered to pay him $20. for his efforts. I suggested that it was a bargain compared to a counselling session!

Many of you have been up to Bethany to see the 1000 aprons display. I have received many messages of your own recollections of mothers and grandmothers who perpetually  wore aprons. So, one of you wisecrackers who read my bra story suggested that I endeavor to collect 1000 bras and put them on display. A suitable title might be ” My cup runneth over”.

Coming up this weekend is the story I promised a few days ago regarding economy fare passengers on planes. It’s called “Last Tango in Toronto”. I couldn’t convince Marlon Brando to take the lead role so I took it myself.

Posted on August 5, 2013 under Storytelling with one comment

It’s very difficult to pack a week of activity and emotion into five hundred words.  Such is my challenge as I try to sum up my thoughts from my recent visit to the North Peace Country.

Did you ever notice that when you are vacationing, you always seem to be eating, especially when the vacation is all about visiting old friends?  When we weren’t eating, we were driving Vinnie’s old red truck past magnificent fields of canola, wheat and barley.  Many of the locals feel that this could be one of the best crops ever.

We walked, we talked, we reminisced, we shopped (well, one of us shopped), and we laughed (a lot!) and even let a tear slip by times.  We shared stories of times past but made sure that we enjoyed the present.  The days were long and warm.  So were the memories.

We stayed at Kay and Vinnie’s farm, the epicentre of hospitality in Golden Meadow, if not the entire area.  The Helfricks are the best hosts that one could possibly imagine.

I am an early riser and the first morning at the farm provided the first of many humorous incidents.   It was still dark as I was creeping around the kitchen trying to make coffee in order to get my heart started.  I was making every effort not to wake anyone so I left the lights off and fumbled my way around.  I placed the filter in the basket and commenced pouring the water into the back of the tank.  To my horror, the water started spilling over the edges, into an adjacent drawer, down the sides of the cupboards and onto the floor.  In my semi-conscious state, it took me a few seconds to realize what was happening.  Someone had filled the tank to the top the night before, preparing to make coffee in the morning to take to work.  I took a lot of good natured ribbing for this.

The purpose of the trip was to gather with former students that I had taught (and I use the term loosely!) back in the late 1970’s. There were two official functions which were very heartwarming and several other unscheduled get-togethers.  Thankfully, none of my former students exposed my frailties to my wife.  It was a chance for pay back but mercifully, they restrained themselves.

It was amazing to jam with Trevor, a former student from Whitelaw who took the few chords I taught him and went on to become a wonderful musician.

While I am not one of those who lament the passage of time, it is still quite shocking to be standing in front of someone you taught who is now a mother and a grandmother.

Betty and I want to thank everyone who treated us so kindly.  We could not have been made to feel more welcome.  My good friend, Jim has an expression that I think of often at times like this; “It’s hard to make new, old friends”.

To paraphrase the old Eagles tune,” I got a peaceful easy feeling.”   Thanks for the memories.