World Cup 2015

A few months ago Jordan called me and asked if I wanted to go to a soccer game. I must admit I had no idea what he was talking about. Apparently the women's world cup of soccer was being held in Canada with the quarter final game in Vancouver. As I've looked into it, it seems that FIFA spends about 1 tenth of the budget on advertising for the women versus the men and I guess virtually nothing was spent locally because even leading up to the event, I saw very little mention of it.

It sounded like fun though so we agreed and Jordan and Karla bought tickets for the whole family. When he bought them it was impossible to know who would be playing. It would depend on where teams placed during the round robin and it would be luck of the draw. As it turned out we were lucky enough to get the Canadian game. They did well in their pool and won their game of 16 match which left them playing England in the quarter finals.

The game itself did not go Canada's way. Mistakes early in the first half resulted in two quick England goals. Canada had not scored more than one goal in all their previous games so it didn't look good. Being behind though left them needing to score which opened the game up and made for a lot of excitement. They scored late in the first half and had lot's of chances in the second. Unfortunately it wasn't meant to be. They were ranked 8th in the tournament so they did as well as expected. Half their team was quite good but they just didn't have a full squad. It was still a lot of fun to watch.

A Field Trip to Fort Langley

Near the end of the school year in June it was apparently field trip time. Callie and Carter both had field trips on the same day. Wherever possible I try to go since Kerry typically can't since she's a teacher at the same school and can't really 'call in sick'. I of course didn't want to choose so I left it up to their teachers and based it on who needed chaperones. Carter was going by bus to Science World and there were already quite a few parents while Callie's class was driving and needed drivers. This made the decision pretty easy.

Admittedly I was leaning towards Fort Langley as a destination anyways. It had been several years since Kerry and I had last gone and I knew there would be lot's of traditional woodworking displays. The highlight was the barrel making shop which showed lot's of tools and various barrels in different stages of construction. I'm pretty sure I know where I would have worked if I was born 150 years ago.

I liked how they structured the activities for the kids. There were various stations set up including barrel making, gold panning and re-enactment of a play that covered the creation of BC as a province. After each station they headed back to the camp fire where they were quizzed on what they had learned. Each correct answer resulted in points that were totalled up at the end. The winning team each got a wooden coin stamped with the fort logo though after some discussion it was decided that everyone would get one. The kids had a lot of fun and so did I.

Callie's Dance Recital - Frozen

In May it was time for Callie's annual dance recital. This is typically the only time we get to see her dance. There are a few open houses where we see parts of the dance but never the whole thing and never with them wearing costumes. This year was very special because Callie had tried out for one of only 9 special character spots. She was assigned the role of 'Young Olaf' which of course is her favourite character in the movie. She had a duet with young Elsa and young Anna and did amazing including a bit of play crying which was very convincing.

Her first dance was tap where she was an Ice Man. She had a bit of trouble this year with tap. Mainly because there is such a wide range of ages in this class. She was one of the youngest and some of the older girls were 3 years older. This left the instructor trying to balance the skills of the various students. We were happy that it was the first dance and she got through it nicely. The next big ask of her was the fact that she had to get into her Olaf costume in 60 seconds. We got a bit nervous when there was what seemed to be an extra long break but out she came.

Her next dance was Lyrical which is my favourite dance style. It's much less structured then the other dance forms and I always seem to like the songs that the instructors choose. Callie was dressed as an Icicle and they danced to 'Diamonds' by Rihanna. (Though it was sung by some else and slowed down.) The lighting was quite beautiful with more blues and reds to give them a purple hue and really accentuate their costumes.

The third (or fourth if you count Olaf) dance was was Jazz. It's hard to get Callie to say which dance style is her favourite but if you based it on the smile on her face it would be Jazz. For this one she was a 'Sassy Snowman' and they danced to 'Do Your Thing' by 'Basement Jaxx'. There was a whole lot of shoulder and hip movement and this was my other favourite costume. The red, black and satiny white was a good combination.

Dance four was Hip Hop. You'll notice that in a 3 hour concert Callie was up there a lot. The quickest change was 60 seconds for Olaf and she had at least a full song for the remaining changes. She started with extra layers of clothing including multiple leotards which worked out well since her first costume was pretty bulky anyways. I think the hardest part for the people back stage must be the hair styles. Hip hop is probably a fun dance style and looks like it teaches some good techniques but I find they sometimes try to do too much. Still fun with some complicated moves.

The final dance was ballet. By now we've been through 6 costumes and 10 months of dance lessons with 6 practices a week. Two of those practices are for ballet and it shows. Callie is getting quite good. She was offered the chance to do her Grade two exam though she decided not to. I think we'll be able to convince her next year. These costumes where very ballet like but they made the dance look quite professional. Callie had another great recital year and we look forward to seeing her on stage again next year.

Half Corked

In May we headed up to Oliver so Kerry could meet up with Melissa and they could run the 'Half Corked' marathon. This is a 17km run with stops at 10 different wineries or winery stations. Planning for the event had actually started months in advance. Melissa and Kerry had heard about it and attempted to get in however it turns out there is such high demand for the 1000 spots that they get as many as 4000 entries. The only fair way for them to choose is a lottery which and with less than a 1 in four chance, they struck out on and planned for the next year. As it runs out Barb and Reg are very good friends with the owners of one of the wineries that participates and the owners were able to get two tickets for them to run.

Kerry and Barb being who they are, weren't content to just take the free tickets. I was volunteered to make something as a thank you. I still had some old wine barrel pieces from previous woodworking projects and set about making something worthy of the $200 tickets. (Each) I was running out of time so I decided to make several items. I didn't want to focus on just one big item because I might not finish so I narrowed it down to four smaller projects. A fruit bowl, a cutting board, a pen and a wine stopper. All made from wine barrels.

The race itself was not exactly what Melissa and Kerry were expecting. Despite it only being May, the weather was in the 30's and Silver Sage provided an absolute feast at their stop. Coupled with the wine and food provided at other stops and the hills that accompany most wineries, the two were quite exhausted by the end. Thankfully the race provides buses for the participants which made it so they could at least get to the finish line in victory.

Victory was somewhat short lived. Shortly after finishing Kerry was overheated and had a massive headache. We made it home but it was apparent she needed professional help. Off to the hospital we went where they cooled her down and topped her up with a few pints of saline. Apparently last year there were over a dozen people sent to hospital but this year Kerry had the privilege of being the only one. I think there would have been more but more people likely took advantage of the buses because of the heat and if we had seen the paramedics at the event instead of going home we could have avoided going to the hospital. In any event, Kerry was okay and won't forget yet another unforgettable running event with Melissa. 

New Orleans - The Zoo

Yesterday was hotel switching day. Since I came down early I was on the hook for my hotel until my work event started. I wouldn't recommend the other hotel but the new one is much nicer. It's a bit off the beaten path relative to the French Quarter but it's where our meetings are so it's very convenient. I don't know the whole history but it's a very old building with original wooden floors and a brick facade. Not a huge pool but everything is well maintained and a welcome relief from the heat.

I wasn't expecting to be able to check in right away since it had been booked solid over the weekend but I guess during the week it empties out quickly as I was able check in just after lunch. This gave me an opportunity to drop off my bags and head to the local zoo. Not sure why but when I go to big cities I like to go to the zoo. As per usual I took transit which was pretty easy, starting with a couple block walk to a bus that went straight there. By the end of the line I was the only one on the bus. I guess going to the zoo in the heat of the afternoon isn't a local pastime.

This zoo has a very long history, starting in the early 1900's. I knew it was older so I was expecting it to be a bit run down, but they've obviously done a lot of work recently. All the exhibits looked fairly new and there were whole sections of the zoo off limits for renovations. It even had a water park in the middle of it. Not huge but it had a nice play area for the kids, a pool and a small lazy river. It was 30+ and muggy so a dip in the pool would have felt very good but I already feel a bit creepy walking around the zoo without kids so I stayed out of the pool.

Some of the highlights included the chubby jaguars who like many of the animals were apparently very well fed. None of them moved very much so I don't think most of the animals were super fit. There was also the white alligators. They've apparently been out tours all over the world since they were born in the early 90's. I also enjoyed the very old Live Oaks. Live Oaks don't lose their leaves and are typically covered in Spanish moss. A quintessential southern looking tree. I'd recommend the zoo if anyone is visiting New Orleans and has an afternoon to spare.

New Orleans - Pralines and Beignets

I was fortunate enough to get an opportunity to go to New Orleans for work this week. We're meeting with other North American utilities regarding their use of drafting and design software for electric substations. (Alright, enough of the boring work talk that no one understands anyways.) The event starts Tuesday but I came down on Saturday so I could check out the sites. I'm rather enjoying the opportunity to check out a foreign city on my own. Not that I don't enjoy doing the same with my family, but you can see a lot more when there is just you.

I arrived late on Saturday night so I was ready to go first thing on Sunday. I tried to get a hotel room near the French Quarter but everything was either booked or terribly expensive. I managed to get something okay in Matairie which is the first suburb of New Orleans. I knew transit would be cheap but I hadn't checked out the schedule for Sunday's. Turns out it's not great. I had to wait about 40 minutes for a bus from near my hotel which would get me to New Orleans. So far my observation of Transit here is that it shows up whenever it feels like it. Not on schedule at all.

I had planned on doing some research last night on where to go but the internet connection in the hotel was terrible yesterday and I gave up. This meant I was wandering blind. I knew I wanted to check out at least one cemetery and it turned out that there were some very nice ones at the transfer point for switching between Matairie and New Orleans. The mausoleums ranged from the mid 1800's right up until today and were in various conditions. I suspect that once a family moves on or can't afford to, they stop maintaining a particular location.

After the cemetery I hopped on one of the electric trolleys down Canal Street. I've previously been against ground level light rail in Surrey in favor of Sky Train, however this system was effective and simple. The stops weren't elaborate and weren't slowed by traffic and without being elevated there were a lot more stops. It might just be a good option. The trolley I was on was quite old with wooden seats. I really think we should use more wood for circumstances like this. It's fairly light-weight, easy to maintain and gets better with age. No more plastic.

I got off at Bourbon Street and wandered around the French Quarter. The atmosphere was quite good. If you heard music it was often live, even during the early afternoon. There are lot's of places to eat and I checked out the French Market which is really a huge flea market with lot's of different souvenirs. My only issue for the day was the first half of Bourbon Street. The smell of alcohol and the impacts of too much to drink by people from the night before was quite over powering. Maybe it's nicer after a good fresh rain.

I stopped for a quick street show with some very athletic performers doing a gymnastics type routine on solid concrete. It finished with a leap over 9 people landing on nothing more than a tick towel. They were quite good with the crowd, asking specifically for $10 or $20 dollars before they would do their last trick. They probably took in a grand for the four of them. They claim to have been doing it for 25 years. Quite impressive. The rest of my walk included Pralines at the French Market and Beignet's at Cafe Du Monde. Lot's of good food here.

I finished off the day with a trip to the World War II museum. It claims to be the #1 Museum in New Orleans, the #4 Museum in the US and #11 in the world and to be honest it really was quite well done. A bit of an American Centric view of the war but that's to be expected. The exhibits were well built, informative and included some very well preserved artifacts. I only had a few hours but it would take you at least a full day to see and read everything. I was pleased to see they also had a Victory Garden, though of course most people were passing it by.

Party for the Planet

On Saturday we had a special day planned. It was the Party for the Planet celebration at Surrey City Hall. This is Surrey's Earth Day event and is the largest such event in BC. I believe this was the first time it was being held at the new City hall which is quite an impressive building. The old building wasn't terrible, however it was in the middle of nowhere. The land might have been cheap but it was a terrible location. The new City Hall is at Surrey Central and there have been a lot of improvements in what was previously one of the less desirable areas of town.

I should mention that the day wasn't just special because it was the Earth Day celebration. It was special because Callie got to meet the Mayor. One of her recent class projects was for a city wide poster contest. Each poster had to represent a super hero for the planet. Callie's was Green Girl and Bottle Boy. Callie always makes a good effort to make it look as if she hates her little brother but secretly we know she likes having him as a side kick. The poster was not only the best in her class but it turns out it was the best of all grade four posters submitted in the City.

There was one winner for each grade level. The prizes were awarded at the opening ceremonies and personally presented by the Mayor. Things started out with their poster returned to them in a frame and were followed by a presentation on stage of a super hero cape themed to their poster. Callie's was a green cape with the initials GG on it. (As I right this I suddenly realize those initials are already taken by Great Grandma. Must be a connection there.) Callie was all smiles as the cape was tied on with everyone watching. I'm always surprised at how well she performs in front of large audiences. Not shy at all.

After the opening ceremonies, the Mayor and the kids were joined by Curious George as they planted a ceremonial Monkey Tree. After some pictures they headed back to the VIP area to get one last gift. Callie's was a few books and some seeds to plant her own flowers. The VIP area was great with free drinks, appetizers and desserts. We all had a cake pop which was delicious. (I may have had two.) We're very proud of Callie for putting such great though into her poster. It was a memorable day.