L is for LISTS

My life is limited by lists, lately.  Some are written down and some are in my head.  When I got married in my 20's, my parents took over and did everything.  It didn't even occur to me to have a say in anything.  It's different now, so I can do everything just the way I want.  But that's not to say it's easy! 

There really is so much to do - arrange the venue, the caterer, the baker, the flowers, the clothes for both the bride and groom and all the attendants.  There are invitations to send out after narrowing down the list to what we're allowed at the venue.  There's a wedding website to write up (you can see it if you're at all interested here) and rsvp's to keep track of and buying gifts for the attendants on both the bride and groom's sides.  There are hair appointments to make and makeup appointments to make and music to write down and get onto a laptop or ipod....the lists just keep going on and on and on.  A friend is making my guest book as she has her own little "Lost Arts Café" where she does hand crafted books and journals.  We decided on the paper and colour scheme together so it's going to be lovely!

I think we're doing pretty well so far.  Monday I saw the florist and the caterer and I must stop in at the bakery.  I have my dress (to be fitted today), my shoes dyed to match, earrings and headpiece (no veil).  The dress is tea length and we decided to have a noon wedding with a type of high tea luncheon afterwards.  Then there will be an "after party" at our friends' place where we'll "get down" to the real partying.

One month from today (May 1st) is the big day and I'm getting very excited to finally marry the love of my life.

Lorne and Leslie

everlasting love

 



Don't forget to think of our legendary Denise who created this wonderful ABC Wednesday and of the laudable Roger, our administrator.  Without them, we'd all be lost!

K is for KAYAKS

Another repeat as I'm still so over my head with details from my recent move.  Hope you enjoy this post from March 2014.

A kayak is a small boat with a covered deck that is used for paddling on open waters of lakes, bays, and oceans.  There are always kayaks around my neighbourhood and always lots that you can rent if you don't own one.  I'm a bit nervous about them because you have to know exactly what to do if you go over and find yourself hanging down into the water.  Also, I don't have great upper body strength for paddling, but I do have enough upper body strength to take photos people kayaking.  Here's one of a young boy paddling his kayak and later on, both he and his Dad went paddling past me together.

 

Then one day in September after I'd broken my ankle and was already tired of my four walls, a friend took me for a drive down to Harbour Park and settled me in a deck chair.  Trusty camera in hand, I spied a couple of yellow kayaks coming towards me.  Here's one shot I caught as they silently glided past me. 

It all looks so relaxing, doesn't it?  When my friend Jane from Wales visited me a few years ago, she rented a kayak and paddled all around the tributaries nearby.  She loved it!  Any of you kayak?  Anyone ever tried it?  I wish I could, but I think I'd be much safer on shore.

Hope you like the photos but most of all I hope you like the fact that Mrs. Nesbitt was very keen on creating ABC Wednesday many years ago and that it's still going strong!  And we must remember to be thankful for the kind-hearted Roger who took on administrative duties when ABCW became too large for one person to handle.  He and his team of kindred spirits keep things rolling along each week!  Have a killer week everyone and see you next week with the letter L.

J is for JOYOUS JUMBLE of JITTERS

First of all, I must remind everyone that if it were not for the jazzy Denise Nesbitt, we would not have ABC Wednesday to keep us on our toes each week.  Also, we must thank our very own jolly Roger for taking on the duties of administrator of a blog that has exceeded all expectations! 

That said, I should be going into a very joyful time of my life.  The wedding preparations are moving along nicely and we're now talking weeks instead of months before the big day.  However, mixed with the joy of the upcoming event is a jumble of emotions that include not only excitement, but also jitters and fear. 

We have waited so long for this - one of the most important days of our lives.  And as I am going through my own jumble of emotions, I'm finding that Lorne is exhausted and all stressed out, too.  He's worried about money because he has been jobless for about 18 months due to cancer and the savings have gradually been disappearing.  He's worried about having to have surgery to repair the damage done from his liver surgery.  He's worried the cancer will come back at any time, even though his latest PET scan showed him to be free of it.  And he seems to be looking for reasons to start a fight.

Maybe it's all just normal jitters, but I guess I feel that at our age we should be able to cope better than 20-somethings.  If we can get away to a nice warm sandy beach with palm trees, hopefully we will get all juiced up and be raring to get on with life. 

So let's forget about the big C, broken ankles, and root canals!  Let's just get on with joy of living without the jumble of jitters!  Watch this space...

I is for IMAGINE

There has been so much bad news lately!  Russia and the Ukraine fight over Crimea with the Ukrainians trying to establish a new government and the loss of 239 people who went down in the South China Sea during a Malaysian flight.  Also, Oscar Pistorius is currently on trial for allegedly murdering his girlfriend by shooting her through his bathroom door.  And Syria is still at war, with a Canadian photographer being shot to death the other day. Activists sent his sister a photograph of his corpse!  And not even close to comparison, locals are astonished that Roberto Luongo (goalie of the Vancouver Canucks) was traded to the Florida Panthers. 

All of this horrible news had me thinking about the song written by John Lennon called IMAGINE.  The first two lines of the song, however, indicate his atheism, but overall it does make one stop and think. For myself, I prefer to believe that God's gift to us was peace, but our sinful nature won't stop. Is this God's plan?  Do we have to figure it out for ourselves? Perhaps we will only have peace in the next world.

Imagine there's no heaven
It's easy if you try
No hell below us
Above us only sky
Imagine all the people
Living for today...

Imagine there's no countries
It isn't hard to do
Nothing to kill or die for
And no religion too
Imagine all the people
Living life in peace...

You may say I'm a dreamer
But I'm not the only one
I hope someday you'll join us
And the world will be as one

Imagine no possessions
I wonder if you can
No need for greed or hunger
A brotherhood of man
Imagine all the people
Sharing all the world...

You may say I'm a dreamer
But I'm not the only one
I hope someday you'll join us
And the world will live as one.

JUST IMAGINE 

H is for HOCKEY

First of all, be sure to herald Mrs. Nesbitt for her heroic efforts at creating ABC Wednesday as well as the handsome Roger, our administrator.  Also, don't forget about the honorable and hard-working team that helps out by visiting a share of contributors.  Since we seem to be attracting quite a few new people, we are offering virtual hugs to anyone who'd like to join the team to help lighten the load.  If you would like to help out by visiting 8-10 posts per week, please contact Roger or leave me a comment here.

Well, the 2014 Winter Olympics is over and Canada is again the gold medal champions in HOCKEY - both the men's and women's teams.  It was an exciting series and we enjoyed seeing all the teams play because there were lots of players who play on our local Vancouver Canucks team who were playing for their home countries.  And it was even better than the regular season because (in my humble opinion) there was no fighting!  The games were played the way they were supposed to be played - with good sportsmanship and skill.  Here is our men's team.

And here is our women's team.

Canada did extremely well in all the sports events and we were humbled by the effort all members put into their individual events.  You can see photos of all of Canada's medal winners here.  These are great photos, by the way.  The country came third overall, with only Russia and Norway beating us. Congratulations to our friends and neighbours, the United States of America, who came fourth.