Carter's Graduation from Highschool

After 16 years we officially don't have any kids in public school. Carter has graduated from high school and has successfully made it into the Engineering program at UBC. This program is one of the hardest to get into in BC with a high average percentage of the more complex classes. Carter had already been accepted into Douglas and BCIT and despite tight deadlines for accepting those acceptances, he purposely held out for the UBC acceptance. They accept through various rounds and it was the second to last one where he got the word. He starts in September and will be living on campus.

The graduation process includes a few key events such as the Dry Grad which Kerry worked on all year as co-chair followed by the graduation ceremony at the Bell Centre. The ceremony consists of a few speeches followed by a few hours of kids walking across the stage. Some of the speeches were from scratch but I think the valedictorian used AI for his. It was the classic one with the number of seasons in their lives so far and the number remaining. It sounded good but would have been more memorable if it had a more personal touch. Par for the course now that AI is dominating our society.  

A Tribute to Auntie Bernie

This afternoon, we laid to rest my Auntie Bernie. Her and my Uncle Bob have had an immense impact on my life that in some ways I've only fully recognized now that she is gone. I write this blog post to immortalize as many of my memories of her, Bob and the farm that I can. For those that knew her, not all of this will have the same meaning as it had with me but I hope you can be reminded of your own memories by reading those that I have of her, Bob and the farm. For my entire childhood, Auntie Bernie lived on a farm outside of Major, Saskatchewan. I have no idea how many times we came to visit but it was most summers and at least a few holidays like Thanksgiving and Christmas. 

The Farm House

The house they lived in was originally an old school that had been expanded into a full farm house. I can still close my eyes and navigate every room, or at least the ones we are allowed in.

The Side Entrance - The front door led directly to the living room which doesn't work well for a farm house. You entered from the side door into a mudroom that included a sink as well as dozens of shoes. I have never been to the farm where there weren't others also visiting. 

The Kitchen - Off the mud room was a few steps that took you up to the kitchen. To the left was a closet pantry where we had access to the sugary cereals we couldn't get at home. Towards the back of the kitchen was the kitchen table that was the main dinner table that I seldomly got to sit at as I was usually relegated to the kids table with so many visitors. The first dishwasher I recall seeing was in the corner and had to be wheeled over to the sink to be used. On the wall were the latest aerial pictures of the farm. I remember thinking they were lucky to have someone fly by just to take pictures of their farm. The kitchen itself was an unusual layout with two u-shaped banks of cabinets. One with the sink and one with the stove top. The oven was nestled in the wall beside the fridge. 

The Hallway - Past the kitchen was a hallway that started with a wall phone that for many years was corded and long enough to reach into the closest bedroom for privacy. It rang constantly whenever we were there. At the end of the hallway was the bathroom. It only had a tub with no shower which I assumed at the time was just how all Saskatchewan bathrooms worked since it was the same at my Auntie Roses. The end of the hall had Alan's old bedroom. We would always head straight there to grab the box of toys that included metal cast tractors.

The Living Room - We didn't get to spend much time in the living room as we were typically sent downstairs to play. I think the real reason was that was where uncle Bob took his naps. There were some gold elephants and a small TV in a cabinet near the entrance. You could also go out to the deck at the back of the house. 

The Upstairs - Off the kitchen, past the pantry were a set of stairs up to a few more bedrooms, a bathroom as well as Uncle Bob's office. We weren't usually allowed up there unless the main bathroom was busy. I just remember the giant calculator where Bob planned the farm finances.

The Basement - Off the mudroom you stayed straight to take the stairs down to the basement. There was carpet on the walls on the way down and this is where I spent much of my time. When Scott had moved out I often got to stay in his bedroom in the basement. There was a tiny window that looked up into the mudroom. His bedroom furniture was still there and I recall a ceramic container on his desk where he stored all of the concert tickets he had been to. When that room was full though I slept on the couch in what I would call the family room. There was a light switch with a red light that kept me company. I still don't know if the red light meant the light on the other side was on or off. The family room was where we got to play Atari and Super Nintendo. We didn't have a gaming system at home so it was a treat every time we came. There was also a VCR which was a luxury we didn't get until I was in high school. I watched 'Sneakers' every time we came. The rest of the basement included a storage room, a laundry room where there was a shower and a cold room that went down several more steps. 

Auntie Bernie's Garden

Auntie Bernie was an amazing gardener that included both vegetables and flowers. 

The Main Garden - The farm house was surrounded by a double row of caragana's. Through those bushes you walked to the main vegetable garden. I came here with my family in 2011 and was amazed at how well everything grew.  Every row was perfectly spaced and weeded. 

The Raspberries - I spent many hours picking raspberries. They were big, juicy and produced for weeks.

Flower Gardens - I have a memory of Auntie Bernie browsing the seed catalogues as she got ready for spring. I was inspired by her excitement for such a simple task. Her flower gardens grew bigger from when I was there as a kid to when I was there as an adult. She started planting bulbs for creating arrangements. The variety would put many flower shops to shame.

Auntie Bernie's Food

It's impossible to think about Auntie Bernie without thinking about her cooking. 

Nanaimo Bars - There were many treats but I enjoyed her Nanaimo bars the most. You had to get to them quickly, before Alan came and ate just the tops. 

Frozen Raspberries on Vanilla Ice Cream - A simple summer treat that started with a bag of frozen raspberries. There were plenty of course. I have my own raspberry patch now and freeze the excess just for this reason. 

Honey Comb Cereal - Perhaps oddly specific but we weren't allowed sugary cereals at home so it was a treat when we came and this is a cereal I specific associate with the farm. We always got to have a bedtime snack and this was always my first choice. 

Bernie Buns - White buns baked to perfection. I have to be cautious on saying these were the best because I have my mother-in-law who makes them very similar. I will call it a tie.

Animals At the Farm

I don't recall all the animals at the farm but there were a few that stood out. 

The Goats - This is not technically my memory but I still remember the stories. The lore is that at one point there were goats at the farm that they eventually had to get rid of because they would jump on the cars when people came to visit. 

Digger - For much of our visits, Alan's dog digger was a highlight. Under 10 lbs and the perfect size for taking out to the fields in the combine. 

Jenny the Cat - This memory is a bit hazy but I recall a cat with a gimped leg was there when I visited with my own family. 

Working on The Farm

I never formally worked on the farm but whenever we came to visit we were put to work on something. We made at least enough money to lose it to Uncle Bob in crib. 

Burn Barrel - When I was younger I got to take the garbage out while Auntie Bernie lit the burn barrel. 

Fence Painting - There was once a white fence to the right of the house that would get stained by the high iron content water. It was my first painting job and I was closely monitored by Auntie Bernie.

Mowing the Lawn - My main job was usually to cut the lawn and spread the clippings between the rows of caragana's.

Retrieving Uncle Bob - My favorite activity when I visited was riding the quad runner. Of course that was one of the ways that Uncle Bob got around on the farm so I was tasked with picking him up from the shop for lunch. It wasn't working when we came to visit with my own family but there was a golf cart that Callie got to drive when she was only six. Driving starts early on the farm. 

Auntie Bernie

The most striking trait of Auntie Bernie was here ability to relate to anyone. This included my own kids when we came to visit. They were 3 and 6 at the time and she got down on the floor to play with them, pushed them in the swing and made sure they had plenty to eat. It had been several years since I had last seen her and we immediately felt at home. Although I didn't get out to Saskatchewan in recent years she was someone that regularly used Facebook to stay in touch. 

She will be missed.

Mother's Day

Mother's Day was the usual fare this year. We start with a trip to McDonald's for breakfast, let Kerry do nothing and Callie creates a Mother's Day brunch in the gazebo with all the fixings including finger sandwiches, tea, biscuits and treats. The weather was perfect for an event in the gazebo. Although Kerry doesn't like to do too much on Mother's Day we had also just gone downtown the day before so a restful day was better for everyone anyways. I think if Mother's Day wasn't at the end of the school year she would want to do more but by this time, doing nothing seems like the best Mother's Day she can have.
 

Jordan Visit and Chinatown

It's the day before Mother's Day and my brother and his wife were in town for a concert so we decided to meet up for breakfast in downtown Vancouver. It's a bit of a trek for us to get there but we don't mind doing it a few times a year. Out plan was to meet at the Palate Kitchen which is a moderately priced restaurant located in a old bank. As soon as we walked in it was obvious it had been something else in the past as it had the old style polished concrete flowers and high ceilings. We were seated on the mezzanine layer. Breakfast was quite excellent. I had Famous French Toast which was deep fried cinnamon toast with seasonal berries and caramel sauce. As I get older and need to eat less I can see a world where we downsize to somewhere with restaurants like this and eat out regularly.  When you only need to eat a couple of times a day, it's more affordable then when you are young and are eating 3 or 4 times a day. I also like the idea of always eating something high quality where as when I'm at home the quickness of chicken fingers isn't exactly high quality.

We walked with Jordan and Karla until we got to Wendel's books which I felt Callie had to experience before making our way over to Chinatown. I've lived down here for 27 years and never really explored the area or gone to the Sun Yat Sen Classical Garden so I told the family we could count this as Father's day since we were in the neighbourhood. The garden is nice and the hardscaping is well done but the plants themselves are not what I would have expected. I realize it's not a Japanese garden but I was expecting more than just basic landscaping. I'm still glad I went. Happy Father's Day to me!

 

A Trip to Victoria for Work

In April I had the opportunity to take an overnight trip to Victoria for work. I'm on the board of directors for the Integrated Cadastral Information Society and we have our annual board meeting either in Victoria or in the lower mainland and this year was Victoria. I made my way over the night before since the meeting was first thing in the morning and it's not realistic to fly over first thing in the morning. This gave me a bit of time to do some touristy things in Victoria which included walking by the parliament buildings, exploring the bay and taking in the miniature museum. The highlight was a working scale model of a saw mill but Gulliver was a close second.

The meeting itself was uneventful except for when it was over and I had to walk back to my car. I had to circle the building a bit to find parking and ultimately didn't have a good reference of where I ended up. The only thing I could remember and happened to have evidence of was a seagull with a fish and chips tarter sauce container stuck on it's beak. I'm pretty sure it was at least temporarily stuck as he flew between buildings with it on. I never ultimately found the seagull again but I did manage to find my car after about an hour of searching. There were only so many car lots that it could be in. 

On my way out of town I wandered through Victoria's Chinatown. Having recently also been in Vancouver's version of Chinatown there is a significant difference. Victoria's is smaller but it's remained livable and there were several restaurants and shops that would be good places to regularly visit. I'm assuming it's not just Chinese residents anymore but it's nice that the historical elements have survived and are being preserved. Hopefully Vancouver is able to do the same. 

 

Easter

Ordinarily we go to Oliver each year for Easter but this year we had just gone to the island for a celebration of life and there was a lot going on with everyone's school so we decided we would stick around the house. Kerry made turkey and we had the traditional easter dinner but just with the family. The highlight was Kerry put on her new Easter Bunny costume. She had purchased one for her previous school and decided her new school needed the same. When purchased off of Amazon they are quite economical and the kids love seeing the Easter Bunny. She always has good stories about the kids that feel they know it's her. She doesn't have a voice when she is the Easter Bunny so they have no real way of knowing. This was Oliver's first interaction with the Easter Bunny and he was not exactly thrilled.
 

A Trip to UBC

After two years of hard work, Carter and his best friend Jeevin have successfully made it into UBC. I do not think I would have made it into UBC if I had tried. The requirements for UBC engineering are in the mid to high 90's over the course of grade 11 and 12 and Carter managed to do that in virtually all of his courses. He will be heading there in September so we decided we would head down for a visit of the campus and pick up a shirt and see where his residence may be. The commute from our house would have been 100 minutes each way so it doesn't make sense to commute.

I'm not exaggerating when I say that the UBC campus is likely one of the best looking campus' in North America. It's on a peninsula on the ocean and is surrounded by forests, mountains and ocean. The residence that he will likely get is not very old and everything is walking distance. If he wants to venture 'into town' it's just a bus ride away. It will be a big change not having Carter in the house during the school semesters but I know he's looking forward to it and this will be a very memorable part of his life. Congratulations Carter!