Day in Romford

Today we took the double decker bus into Romford.  We had lunch at The Bull, a nice pub with great food.  It's warm with a nice cool breeze. We plan a quiet night in.

We arrived!

At YVR airport.  I thought kids played computer games and grandfathers read!  British Airways was really good and we arrived early   Immigration was easy and they went over Cheryl and Dave's authorization to take Lexi out of the country letter very carefully!  Mark was waiting for us and the M25 was not backed up!   Jean was waiting for us and Lillie is getting used to having company,   We went to the pub for dinner and it was packed.  Food was great and the walk there and home was even nicer,

                                                              Dinner at the pub!

                                               Lexi walking/skipping home from the pub

Trip to the UK and France!

Tonight we leave for our trip to the UK.  We are taking our granddaughter Lexi.  It's her first trip overseas.  She's got a window seat and lots of electronics to keep her occupied.  At twelve she should really remember her experience.  We are staying with my cousin Jean in Romford.  Mark "the Uber driver" is picking us up at the airport.   I will try to post as many pictures as I can whilst we are away. I am not posting much on Facebook.

Terry Fox

Terry Fox's birthday is today.  He was born in Winnipeg, Manitoba and raised in Port Coquitlam, BC. He was an active teenager involved in many sports.  When he was 18 years old he was diagnosed with osteongenic sarcoma (bone cancer) and forced to have his right leg amputated 15 CM above the knee in 1977.  While in hospital, Terry was so overcome by the suffering of other cancer patients, many of them young children, that he decided to run across Canada to raise money for cancer research.  
He would call his journey the Marathon of Hope.  After 18 months of running over 5,000 KM to prepare, Terry started his run in St. John's Newfoundland on April 12, 1980 with little fanfare.  It was shown on our local evening news and I remember them telling us of the local boy from Port Coquitlam and what he was setting out to do.  

Although it was difficult to garner attention in the beginning, enthusiasm soon grew.  Our local news followed him constantly updating the local viewers.  As the days wore on the money started coming in! Terry wore a prosthetic leg and to watch him run was heart wrenching.  He ran close to 42 KM's a day through Canada's Atlantic provinces, Quebec and Ontario.  On September 1st after 143 days of running a marathon a day and 5,373 KM, Terry was forced to stop running outside of Thunder Bay, Ontario because cancer had appeared in his lungs.  An entire nation was stunned and saddened. Terry passed away on June 28 1981 at the age of 22.  The heroic Canadian was gone but his legacy was just beginning.  In May 2016, over $715 Million dollars has been raised worldwide for cancer research in Terry's name through the annual Terry Fox Run, held across Canada and around the world. Over 9,000 communities participate in this run in Canada!  Around the world over 25 countries also participate.  

Lexi came home one day from school and told me they watched the film about Terry's life.  They did this in preparation of the school's Terry Fox run.  I'm not sure of the rest of Canada but school districts in the Vancouver area do a fund raiser every year to collect money for the Terry Fox Foundation.  Terry's brother Darrell is the head of the foundation and has dedicated his life to cancer research.  The foundation is 100% volunteer!

Terry's mother Betty and father Rolly participated in the Terry Fox run in Port Coquitlam for years,  Betty was asked to carry the Olympic flag in the opening ceremonies of the 2010 Olympics held in Vancouver.  She passed away in 2011.   Rolly passed away in 2016 at the age of 80.  

His legacy lives on and one day cancer will be cured.  Today if you got the same type of cancer your leg would not be amputated but reconstructed and the cure rate is 80%!  They've come a long way with research.


In 1981, Isadore Sharp, Chairman and CEO of Four Seasons Hotels and Resorts, telegrams the Fox family with a commitment to organize a fund raising run that would be held every year in Terry’s name. He writes, “You started it. We will not rest until your dream to find a cure for cancer is realized.”

Happy Birthday Cheryl

43 years ago my daughter Cheryl Louise (named after my sister) was born.  Happy Birthday Cheryl.  I am so proud of you.  Your years in school, your wonderful husband Dave and of course our second greatest love Lexi!  I hope you have a wonderful day!

Computers

Computers have come a long way!  I just bought a new one because my little travel computer was giving me problems.  I went to Costco, bought a 15" HP laptop.   One week later the price dropped $100 and I got a credit!   Checking the warranties offered by Best Buy, Microsoft Store and Costco I found Costco to be better and cheaper.  We had to deal with Costco warranty for Cec's laptop and they were awesome!   Nice to have a laptop with a larger screen, however it will be a little bigger to travel with.

The Phantom of the Opera

Last night my friend Carol and I went to the evening performance of The Phantom of the Opera. It was a fantastic show.  We usually go to the matinee performances but we were unable to go to our performance so we changed it.  That's what I like about Broadway Across Canada, you can easily change your tickets and just print off the new ones.  Our next performance is The Sound of Music in September.

Sleepovers for girls

My life long friend forwarded this picture of her granddaughter's birthday sleepover.  What an incredible experience for the girls!  Sure different from the sleepovers we had as children.   They bought the fabric in Bellingham.  The eye masks were delivered to the girls with the invite written on them.  They shopped for matching pj's!   What a great idea!

BC Wildfires continue

46,800 British Columbians have been evacuated from their homes.  The firefighters are continuing to battle these blazes.  Hot temperatures and high winds are not helping.  The number of fires are down, however they are combining so it's still a bad situation.  Thank you to all the men and women who are out there fighting these horrible fires.

Kinetic V arrives in Honolulu

Saturday the Kinetic V reached Hawaii!  Here is a copy of Dominique's Facebook post:

Today we made landfall after sailing from LA to Honolulu. I did not expect how emotional I'd be after this experience. I want to let all those folks who followed this trip online know how I appreciate your support. This has been an adventure of a lifetime. And now for a week in Hawaii!

Provisionally, Kinetic V finished 5th of 9 boats in the fastest mono hull division, and 20th of all 49 mono hull teams.

What a fantastic experience for all!  Congratulations and I hope you and Tracy have a wonderful 18th wedding anniversary!

You need a sense of humour

Cruise cancelled - and it's all good!

Yesterday I got an email from Princess Cruises saying if we cancelled our upcoming 12 day British Isles cruise they would give us a full refund, a free cruise, $500,00 credit for any air cancellation fees and upgrade on our cabin on a future cruise.  We are scheduled to fly out in 15 days!  I've heard about these offers but never been offered one.  I was shocked because I got our two balcony cabins on a flash sale and we paid $1,887 plus taxes each.  We rebooked the same cruise next year on the Royal Princess. They upgraded us to a mini-suite and the cost would be $5,645.00 per person plus taxes! We pay NOTHING!  FREE CRUISE!!!  Cec and I had one cabin and my cousin Jean and Lexi were next to us.

Lexi was here and we had a family discussion.  She wants to go to the UK this year as we've promised so we are not taking the air cancellation $500.00 per ticket but having a nice trip to London with a side trip to Paris!  Next year we will all have a wonderful British Isles cruise.

Wildfires still out of control!

With all the devastation in our province, they have a sense of humour in Keremeos!

Kinetic V Update - Transpac Day 6

NE trade winds, 12-18 knots, low swell and waves. Sunny, some clouds, very warm and no shade on deck. It may actually be hotter and humider than Hades inside the 'house'. Dripping sweat on keyboard to type this report.

Crew and boat are doing well. No significant breakage or injuries, except possible long term impairment to our olfactory senses due to toxic sock syndrome. Sailing fast and safe with spinnaker, stay sail and mainsail. Did our first gybe in over 1,000 NM today. Keenly aware of our competitive situation. Saw and quickly passed one of the slower, first start boats, earlier today.

Many more flying fish now, and various types of seabirds trying to feed on them.

This is our sixth day sailing Transpac, making our elapsed time five days so far. We are well past our halfway point, measured by distance, and today we celebrated with a 'special' re hydrated cold pasta salad. First instruction on the package for cold pasta salad: boil water. Who knew? Very tasty. A more libatious form of celebration is contemplated for tomorrow. Or possibly Honolulu.

B C Wildfires

The wildfire situation in our beautiful province continues to worsen!  A State of Emergency was declared last week and is still in effect.  On July 6th my cousin Jim posted the picture below on Facebook of the view from his new retirement home at 108 Mile House.

We heard from him on July 7th and then nothing until he arrived in Prince George on July 8th at 9:33 AM.  They are staying with a relative. To date Jim knows nothing about his home or the beautiful community where they live.  They've since evacuated 103 Mile and 100 Mile House. 14,000 people have been forced to leave their homes.  They are being housed in arenas, university dorms and people are opening their houses to help others. Firefighters are working 30 hour shifts and additional firefighters are arriving from every province across Canada to assist.  Boston Flats and Ashcroft have lost many homes.  Cellular towers and hydro wires are down so getting information to people has proven difficult.

If you want to help, donate to the Canadian Red Cross. They are in the community and working with both the Provincial and Federal government to make sure people get what they need.  Our thoughts and prayers are with you all!

Dale & Ginny's Wedding

Yesterday my first cousin Nancy's daughter married the man of her dreams.  He's from Barrow-In-Furness, UK.  They met in Whistler and yesterday they got married!  The wedding was amazing.  It was held at the Sea To Sky Gondola in Squamish, BC.  On top of a mountain in gorgeous sunshine they took their vows.  He has immigrated to Canada and they are living in Vancouver! 

After the ceremony everyone walked back over the suspension bridge!

 It's a Canadian/UK wedding when the dessert is wedding cake and Tim Bits!

View from the top!

I took these pictures with my LG cell phone.  I can't wait to see the pictures the professional photographer took.  This last picture is my favorite.  My grandmother had a necklace all her daughters wore when they got married.  The tradition carried on with the grandchildren and great grandchildren.  Ginny is wearing the necklace!  What a beautiful bride!

2017 Transpac Honolulu

 

Tomorrow my friend and former colleague Dominique Labrosse is participating in the 2017 Transpac race that starts in Los Angeles and ends in Honolulu.   They are the only Canadian team in the race.  They are sailing the "Kinetic V".  The race is 2230 nautical miles and takes 8 - 12 days.  I will follow them on their fantastic journey!   If you want to follow them their Facebook page is "Kinetic Sailing"!

We hope you have calm seas, smooth sailing and the wind at your back!  Good luck Kinetic V!

Royal Homecoming News and Views

This is part of the communique I received this morning from the Monarchist League of Canada regarding the three day visit of Prince Charles and The Duchess of Cornwall. THE ROYAL HOMECOMING ~ CANADA 150  Amongst those reporting on their experiences in the next issue of CMN will be Dominion Chairman Robert Finch, Québec Chairman Francois Marquette, Montreal Chairman Karim Al-Dahdah (en français) and our member at the homecoming in Prince Edward County, Brock Weir. OVERVIEW: For now, we can agree with what many of you have told us: despite the damp weather, Charles & Camilla's tour was a success, especially the Prince's deliberate engagement with issues of concern to Canadians. The Government showed its respect for his contribution to the life of our country in creating the Prince of Wales as an Extraordinary Companion of the Order of Canada, and in the thoughtful and enthusiastic way it programmed his and the Duchess' itinerary in a respectful, positive light.  The League is investigating the one sore point: how it happened that Ms Oh introduced Charles as a member of "the British Royal Family" - which while true, was not the point of the presence of our future King of Canada!  Some see this is a small matter; but it should not have happened on this of all days! REPUBLICANS SHOW THEIR HAND: An interesting development was the appearance in Toronto and Ottawa of some "We don't need a King" billboards and bus ads sponsored by a small organization named Republic Now.  You will see the basic poster on its website http://republicnow.ca/   We don't think giving you the URL will cause mass defections from the League lol!   It is significant that the group apparently raised funds for the project from crowd sourcing. We're not about to panic - nor are we going to ignore an organization that appears to be capable of more imaginative action than other republican groups have displayed.  We'll be interested in your views as per the poll above, and as to the opportunities to use crowd sourcing as to which we had already tasked several members. THANK YOU TO MEMBERS and FRIENDS.. Patricia Adams (Brampton); Patsy Hennessy (Bathurst); Joanna Howard (Calgary); Roddy MacKenzie (Vancouver); Carrie Mullins (Dundas); Byron Thomas, (Georgetown), all of whom contributed recollections of meeting HM to the Toronto SUN feature of July 3, entitled "Royal Memories" -

I heard from Alix

Refer to my July 2nd post.  Alix participated in the Yukon Quest.  She was in Whitehorse on her way home.   Her friend Ingrid passed on these photos! 
Great news: her and her husband are joining us on the Emerald Princess September 24th!

Yukon River Quest - Race to the Midnight Sun

My long time friend Alix Ahmed just completed a second year at the Yukon River Quest! The 715 kilometre (444 miles for my US friends) from Whitehorse to Dawson City.  It is the longest annual canoe, kayak and stand up paddleboard race.  Ninety-six teams and 234 paddlers representing 13 different countries were registered to compete this year.  If you aren't familiar with Canadian geography is it very far north, close to the Arctic Circle.  They took advantage of the midnight sun and completed the race in 55 hours 57 minutes!  Her team was Paddlers Abreast #68 and their empty canoe is above.

Paddlers Abreast was started by a cancer survivor.  Eight women were on her team.  Six are from Whitehorse, Yukon Territory one from Atlin, BC and Alix lives in Maple Ridge, BC.  Their motto is:

A survivor driven group living with breast cancer whose mission is to: 
Provide an opportunity for personal growth while meeting a physical and mental challenge.           
Provide an opportunity for a shared and supportive experience. 
Create an understanding that those living with breast cancer can live full and active lives.
Create an opportunity for remembering those who do not survive this disease.
Raise awareness about breast cancer. 

Alix will be 67 on August 8th.  These women are an inspiration to all!  

I couldn't find Alix in a picture and she hasn't replied to my emails.  I'm sure she's exhausted!  I did find these other pictures.  It doesn't look very warm!

Happy 150th Birthday Canada!

Today is our 150th anniversary of Confederation.  We celebrated not only from coast to coast.  Our UK friends had a huge celebration in Trafalgar Square. 

The Royal Canadian Mounted Police on the Capilano Suspension Bridge!

Prince Charles, The Duchess of Cornwall along with His Excellency The Right Honorable David Johnston and his wife Sharon Johnston arriving at our largest celebration in Ottawa.   Our Governor General's appointment ended in March 2015 but was extended to September 2017 by our Prime Minister.

                                                  Trafalgar Square, London

                 
                                                              
                                                                Kathleen with Henry Burris!

                                                                    The Grey Cup!

           My friend Kam tells me the lineup for Tim Hortons circled Trafalgar Square!

Celebrations were held across Canada all day long.  The Canadian Broadcasting Network did an excellent job of coverage so everyone across this vast country could see the celebrations in other provinces and territories.  We went downtown and had a nice lunch at Rogue in Sinclair Center.  We ventured out into the crowds but didn't get far as the crowds were far larger than we expected.  I read on Twitter they were asking people to stay away from Canada Place because it was at capacity.  We ended out wonderful Canada Day celebrations at our daughter's house in Cloverdale.  She has an awesome view of the Surrey Fireworks that are set off at the Cloverdale Fairgrounds.