Posted on August 9, 2021 under Monday Morning Musings with no comments yet

Heading out for my birthday walk – 75 km

 

Good Morning. By the time most of you read this, I will have begun my two- day, 75km walk around the Cape. Below is a repost of a story I did in July regarding a fundraiser for a youth day in Kangiqsujuaq where I taught school.

Recently, I was in touch with community leaders in Kangiqsujuaq (where I taught school the past two years) to see if there was something that I might do that was positive and constructive. I received a message from the Fire Chief who informed me that the Fire Service, Police Service and Social Services in the village were teaming up to put on an information and fun day for the youth in the community sometime before school starts up in mid-August.

Covid has affected everyone in some way. It has been particularly hard on our oldest citizens and in many ways, our youngest citizens. Besides the fear of the virus, it has forced people to spend long periods of time away from friends and family. We were lucky in Kangiqsujuaq in that we were able to hold in person classes at school but most other extracurricular activities including group gatherings were cancelled or severely limited.

The event in Kangiqsujuaq will center around safety. There are many issues and challenges faced by young people in northern communities. The hope is to have a day of education and frank discussions with the young people. After all, they are the future leaders of the village.

This is where you come in.

I have committed to raising at least $1,500 to assist the organizers with the purchase of food and treats for the event to be held on August 21^st.

So, here’s my plan. To celebrate my 70^th birthday, I have decided to go for a little stroll. My original plan was to walk 70km to match my age. After some consideration, I have upped that a bit to 75km which is the precise mileage to walk around “The Cape”. I will complete the walk over two days, August 9^th and 10^th. I will dedicate this walk to the youth of Kangiqsujuaq and hopefully draw attention to my fundraiser. Day 1 will be 40km and day 2 will be 35km. I have arranged overnight accommodations just outside of Ballantyne’s Cove. I will be accompanied on Day 1 by my good friend, Brenda Gould. Many thanks to PP and MP for agreeing to put me up and put up with me.

I have set up an account at the East Coast Credit Union (it will always be the Bergengren Credit Union to me) called Len’s Walk, for those of you in Antigonish who want to make a donation in person. For the rest of my friends, you can send me an e-transfer at lenpdmacdonald@gmail.com.

Any size donation will be greatly appreciated and will go directly to the young people of Kangiqsujuaq.

There is another way you might help. Why not lace up your runners and come and walk part of the route with me. I don’t expect that many of you would be keen to do all 75km but maybe one or two kilometers to help me pass the time.

I know that I always seem to have my hand out for some worthy cause. This one is personal to me, and I am confident that we will be able to raise the funds for this important event.

Any excess funds raised will go towards The Family House in Kangiqsujuaq, a safe place for families to go during difficult times.

Thank you.

Have a great week.

P.S. I would be delighted if you would share this post with your friends. Tx.

 

Posted on August 5, 2021 under Thursday Tidbits with no comments yet

 

 

Inverness Beach. August 3, 2021

 

Warning: I’m tired and cranky. Incoming rant.

Things are finally opening up across Canada. After many, many months of hibernation, we are finally able to come out of our caves, meet friends and family, go out to dinner and (gasp) actually hug someone we love. We can go to a dance (for those who don’t have two left feet like me!), attend a wedding or a reunion and finally get to grieve the loss of a loved one properly by attending a wake or funeral. Yes, things are indeed looking up and despite my eternal optimism, I see a few dark clouds.

What could possibly spoil a summer of beer and lobsters? An election. No, two elections. We are in the throes of a provincial election in Nova Scotia, and it appears that we are only a few days away from a federal election. This rhymes with another word that I was soooo tempted to use!

Would you rather have a root canal, suffer from dengue fever, have a tic embedded in your arse or suffer through endless loops of empty promises by provincial and federal candidates? I mean no disrespect to those seeking office. It is honorable that you would dare put your name forward in these hostile political times.

History will record these events as the pandemic elections. Politicians of all stripes, federally and provincially, are banking of the warm fuzzies of coming through the Covid 19 crisis in pretty good shape. They are hoping that all we will remember are the soothing press conferences of chief medical officers and politicians followed by analysis of infectious disease specialist. Isaac Bogoch could probably become Prime Minister if he chose to, but he is too smart to do that.

I also believe that most sensible and informed politicians (is that an oxymoron?) know damn well that this opening up of the economy is a temporary reprieve before we’re hit with a fourth wave. They know that respite care for weary Canadians is essential after 18 torturous months. They also know that by relaxing restrictions, it is only a matter of time before those nasty variants rear their ugly heads in large numbers. I hope I’m wrong but if we let Jason Kenny and the likes of Mad Max Bernier have their way, the pile of manure out behind the barn will look like cotton candy.

You see, Maxime Bernier, the leader of a federal political party (PPC) refuses to get vaccinated. Pandemic leadership at its finest. And cowboy Jason Kenny has let all the horses out of the barn and left the doors wide open. Should you be an Albertan, you have the luxury of getting Covid 19 without having to self- isolate. And forget about those pesky contact tracers. The wild west lives again. Secretly, I think Jason and the Gang (sounds like a disco group), want to become the 51^st state south of the border.

Why are you so cranky and cynical today, Len?

As I mentioned in my opening, I am tired as I write this piece, but it is a good tired. Is there such a thing??? For the second time in 7 days, I have circumnavigated the Cabot Trail… by car! If you are new to my website, you might not get the inside joke. Two summers ago, I walked the Cabot Trail, all 300 kilometers of it. I am very happy to report that the easing of restrictions across the country can be seen on the Trail. Last week, there was very little traffic, and the restaurants, motels and gift shops were virtual ghost towns. The switch was flipped this week and things almost looks normal. The restaurants were busy, there were tons of vehicles on the road, and the beaches were filled with giddy sunbathers and swimmers.

The latest tour with family members was a marathon 16.5-hour affair. The weather was outstanding, and we got to see just about everything that we had hoped to see. We were mildly disappointed that the entrance to Mary Ann Falls was blocked off. I was hoping to get in there to retrieve the car keys that I lost 40 years ago, that sit on the bottom of a deep swimming hole at the falls.

Even though fatigue was setting in, we were determined to get to the final item of our “must see” list. We arrived at Inverness Beach (pictured above) about an hour before sunset. The sky was absolutely electric. While the others swam or walked the beach, I stayed in one spot, utterly transfixed and mesmerized by the changing skyscape. I kept taking pictures every minute or so and no two looked the same. It was the proverbial icing on the cake to a wonderful day.

Sorry to all my political friends running for office.

I didn’t mean to take a jab at you!

Have a great weekend.

P.S. Just a reminder that my four children (The MacDonald Family) will be performing at Piper’s Pub tomorrow evening (August 6^th) from 6-9 p.m. There is no admission. Come and have a beer and a bite and enjoy some old classics. Hell, if you sit with me, you’ll be sitting with an old classic!

Posted on August 2, 2021 under Monday Morning Musings with no comments yet

 

The Skyline Trail on a hazy summer day

 

I don’t know about you, but I am (im)patiently waiting for the dog days of summer to arrive.June was a pretty decent month, but July was quite wet. On many days, it rained cats and dogs. We are by nature, an optimistic lot, so here’s hoping that the summer and fall bless us with some warm, sunny weather.

The weather isn’t helping the battered tourism industry. I took a spin around the Cabot Trail last week with two friends and colleagues from Montreal.

Chad and Emma made their very first trip to our province last week. Chad had the good sense to propose to Emma, and doubly so, by going down on one knee on the waterfront in Halifax. We had a few days together including a tour around the Cabot Trail. As I have commented in this space before, it is infinitely easier to drive the Trail than to walk it. I still shudder at the thought of walking from Cheticamp to Pleasant Bay in one (hot) day (42km) while navigating French Mountain and Mackenzie Mountain. I must be nuts. I can see you all nodding in agreement.

Sadly, there wasn’t much traffic on the Trail and tourism operators are suffering. They are seeing a small increase in traffic but not nearly enough. Many of my readers have been to Le Gabriel restaurant in Cheticamp. It is normally very busy with every seat in the front and back sections of the restaurant flat out. On the day we stopped for dinner, there was a grand total of three tables of patrons.

I think Chad and Emma would agree that the highlight of the trip (other than spending 14 hours of quality time with yours truly!), was the walk on the Skyline Trail just on the outskirts of Cheticamp at the top of French Mountain. The path is easily negotiable by most able- bodied people. It is wide and well graveled, and it is flat. The reward for a 45- minute walk is one of the most spectacular views on the Cabot Trail. It was hazy the day we were there and at first glance, I thought it was fog but in fact, I discovered later that it was smoke from the wildfires in Ontario. Chad commented that it was the most beautiful thing that he had ever seen upon reaching the 314 steps at the end of the path. Had he known about Skyline, he might have delayed his proposal. They reenacted the scene although this time, Emma went down on one knee. I called this a “counter proposal”!

I am deliriously happy to announce that my four children will be performing at Piper’s Pub this Friday, August 6^th from 6-9 p.m. They are in town to push their dad over the cliff into his 70^th year on the planet. There is no admission or cover charge. They haven’t had the opportunity to perform together live for some time now. I can’t think of a better birthday present. Why not drop in, have a brew and a bite, and listen to some great music. I might even take the stage to sing Neil Young’s “Old Man” which seems quite appropriate.

I am about to embark on my second attempt at medical marijuana for pain relief. The first time was shortly after marijuana became legalized. I went to the NSLC and got some CBD oil but honestly, I didn’t get much relief. In retrospect, I should have done more homework and stuck with it a little longer. This time, I will go through a federally regulated cannabis clinic to seek advice on what to take and in what dosages. I have an interview with a medical expert in mid -August. I’ll keep you chronic pain sufferers posted.

This has been yet another edition of “Len Lite”, the new moniker I will use when I don’t have much to say.

Have a great week and stop in at Piper’s on Friday evening.