2021 Federal election

I was not happy when the election was called.  I haven't followed it because we haven't been home.  I saw the news on the weekend and I was appalled at the protesters that are following Justin Trudeau and Erin O'Toole around.  You may not agree with these leaders, but this anger and disgusting language is not acceptable.  

Good for both these leaders to condemn protesters!   We see this anger protesting in the US.  Canada is better than this!   I believe you can protest, but do it with respect.

Justin Trudeau is not a traitor Erin O’Toole is not a Nazi Jagmeet Singh is not a communist Annamie Paul is not a Mossad agent They are four decent people who agree on a hell of a lot more than they disagree on, and you’d probably enjoy a coffee or beer with any of them.

I have never joined a political party and never will.  When the election is called, I listen to the leaders and the MP's running in my riding and make a decision.  I have no idea who I will vote for this time but I will get my information from their websites and will watch the debate.   I'm not going to get my news from Facebook or Twitter.  I will try to find an all candidates meeting in our riding of Cloverdale-Langley City.

• Conservatives: Tamara Jansen - the incumbent
• Liberal: John Aldag - lost last election to Tamara 1,424 votes less, close call
• NDP: Rajesh Jayaprakash - don't know him
• PPC: Ian Kennedy - don't know him

Neighbours

We went away on vacation and our neighbours said they would water our plants, take out the garbage and keep an eye on our house.  When we came home, our front garden looks amazing!  It's far nicer than we left it!   More flowers, nice colours and no weeds!

This picture doesn't show the colour as the yellow is much more vibrant!  

Cec has always loved roses.  We started in May by filling these pots.  Next year we will plant them in nicer pots.  I can't believe how gorgeous they are.

Louisa is a friend of our next door neighbours.   She loves to "deadhead" flowers!   She's coming to our house and deadheading ours!   She says "it's therapy".  My plants never looked better.  Thank you Don for watering and Louisa for deadheading.   And whoever planted all those flowers in front, thank you!!!!   

Sunday funnies

 

A true and a wonderful story

 I checked this out and it's true.  What an amazing story!

 

In 1964 in Albuquerque, New Mexico, when this woman got pregnant her senior year in high school, the principal told her she would not be allowed to graduate. She begged the school to change its mind. It did, but there were conditions. She was not allowed to talk to the other students. She was barred from eating in the cafeteria. She could not come to school more than five minutes in advance of the opening bell, and she had to leave school within five minutes of the closing bell. And she was not allowed to get her diploma onstage with the rest of the students. She did marry the father of her child, but it lasted only a year. He was not a good husband and not a good father. After the divorce, he never had any contact whatsoever with his ex-wife and their son. A couple of years later, she married a Cuban emigrant, a good and decent man. He adopted her son and gave him his name. Many years later, in 2013, the biological father was operating a bicycle shop in California when a writer/reporter came by and asked if he could talk to him. That was when the biological father, Ted Jorgensen, found out that his biological son is Jeff Bezos, the richest man in the world. When Bezos exited the space capsule, the first person he hugged was his mother.

 

TRUE STORY: https://www.businessinsider.com/jeff-bezos-biological-father-2013-10

We're home!

Yesterday we checked the BC Wildfire app and Drive B C.  If you have the Drive B C app, and a computer, ignore the app and use the website.  The website gives a lot more information.  When we checked every route home, Highway 97 and Highway 1 were our best option.  It showed a wash out at 76 Mile House but it was gone and we had no slow down.  There wasn't a lot of traffic on the roads.

This was a very enjoyable trip!  Staying in BC and having our own car made us feel safe.  Getting a restaurant meal was a problem right up to Quesnel.  So many restaurants closed.  Restaurants that were open were so busy and we kept hearing "we can't get staff".  Swimming pools in hotels are only available if you make a reservation.  Travelling with COVID restrictions did change things from what we expected.   We found everyone pleasant and mask wearing was never a problem in northern B C.  

We travelled from Port Hardy to Prince Rupert about 35 years ago on the Queen of the North with my mom and aunt Audrey from the UK.  It was a great trip.  When I compare the two trips, I find some nice changes in road trips.  Electronic maps that show you distance, road problems, restaurants and attractions all in one click of the app!  We never had a dash cam, cruise control, or satellite radio.  All those make for a more enjoyable trip.  

When I returned home, I got this email from my nephew Brad.  He does is a huge supporter of men's mental health:

This Saturday I will be on Global News with Jay Janower at 8:15 am ish  talking about men's depression and the great work www.headsupguys.org is doing.

This Sunday, I will be joining Heads Up Guys supporter, Julian Dobko, as he and I will complete a 72-hole night golf marathon with glow balls!  All funds raised will go directly to supporting Heads Up Guys, a UBC program helping men to fight depression and prevent self harm . Heads Up Guys has become a leading global resource that has been used by more than 2 million men from around the world.

My family will be donating $5,000 to the fundraiser and we are hoping you will make a contribution to help as well. We're big supporters of their work and the huge impacts they are making on men’s health. 

Here's a quick promo video we made: Hole 72 Night Golf Marathon for HeadsUpGuys

And the link to learn more and make a donation: Donate to Support Hole 72 and HeadsUpGuys

Brad Newell

Smithers

Smithers is a lovely place to visit.  The mountains are so gorgeous.  Last time we were here they were covered in snow.  My cousin Sharon lived here for many years.  

We couldn't find a restaurant that was open and serving breakfast.  So, we went to Tim Horton's.  We have a Tim Horton's close to our home but we rarely go there.  I take Lexie through the take out when she has a sleep over and I've never noticed the door handles.  The door handles at this Timmies is a hockey stick!  I don't know if any other Timmies has  hockey sticks as a door openers but I thought it was unique!

We drove from Smithers to Costco in Prince George.  We needed gas and I was thrilled with the gas prices!  When we left Surrey the Chevron station at our corner was $1.719 a litre.  Check this out:

We got to Quesnel at 2:30 and I texted Cec's cousin.  They met us at our hotel and we had a great afternoon.  Their daughter and son-in-law joined us for dinner.  We had a great visit!  

Tomorrow we will return home.  We will check again on the fire/road situation and figure out our route.  

Port Clements Museum

We arrived in Smithers yesterday and today we are driving to Quesnel.   I thought I would post the pictures from Port Clements Museum.  For such a small place, this was a surprise.  

Port Clements is a very small community (population 280).  It's between Skidegate and Masset.  They have the most unique museum.  Outside is a lot of old logging equipment.  Inside is everything people used from the late 1890's and it's all been donated.  Each item has a story of who used it, the dates they had it and the name of the person who donated it. 

There were a lot of pieces of logging equipment but I only took one picture.  They did a good restoration of this equipment!

Every piece in the museum has a card showing what it is, who donated it and approximately what year it was used.

These catalogues are from 1975!

Typewriters over time,  There was a Gestetner machine at the end of the table. 
Those were interesting duplicating machines!   Boy have things changed in offices!

I still use my mom's potato masher.  An identical potato masher was donated and in the museum!  This isn't a picture from the museum but I actually found one for sale on the internet.

Leaving Haida Gwaii

Our ferry leaving Haida Gwaii yesterday.  You can see the ferry dock in Skidegate on the right.

When we were driving around Haida Gwaii we would smell smoke.  The BC fire sign shows fire risk "moderate".  The thought of a forest fire didn't enter our minds.  It was fish smokers.  We've smoked enough fish to recognize the hickory or other deciduous trees smoke from smokers.

At the high end restaurant when we went to pay on our credit card the tip read:

1 - 10%

2 - 15%

3 - 18%

Since COVID we've always tipped at least 20%.  I've never seen a 10% tip on a credit card payment device in Vancouver!

I've seen this on airplanes and I guess I should have expected it on a B C Ferry:

 

We arrived in Prince Rupert early!  Seas were calm and we saw two whales just outside of the Prince Rupert harbour.  We also saw some porpoises and Cec said they would be after fish.  Too bad his rod was on the car deck!

This is the view from our hotel in Prince Rupert.  B C Ferry Vacations put us in The Crest Hotel.  It's right on the water and the view is gorgeous.  It also has windows that open so we've got fresh sea air coming into the room.

We just got the news the Province of B C is introducing vaccine passports.  I am pleased and relieved.  I have two people in my life who won't get vaccinated.  I sent this text to one of them and it hasn't made a difference so far.  I thought it was very well written:

You are not vaccinated, I respect your choice, (provided you don't invade my space and adversely impact me or persons important to me); 

I am vaccinated, respect my choice ...

I'm vaccinated, not to please the government but:

* To not die from Covid-19.

* To NOT clutter a hospital bed if I get sick.

* To hug my loved ones, and friends  (vaccinated).

* To Not have to do PCR or antigenic tests to go to a dance, go to a restaurant, go on vacation and many more things to come ...

* To live my life.

* For Covid-19 to be an old memory.

* To protect us.

On the other hand, no, I don't know what's in it - neither in this vaccine, the ones I had as a child, nor in the Big Mac, or in hot dogs, or in other treatments, whether it's for cancer, AIDS, the one for  polyarthritis, vaccines for infants or children.

I also don't know what's in Ibuprofen, Tylenol, or other meds, it just cures my headaches, my pains ...

I don't know what's in the ink for tattoos 

In short ...

There's a lot of things I don't know.

I just know one thing: life is short, very short,  so I still want to do something other than just going to work every day or staying cloistered at home. I still want to travel and hug people without fear, find a little feeling of life "before".

As a child and as an adult I've been vaccinated for mumps, measles, rubella, polio, chicken pox, and a few others; my parents and I trusted the science and never had to suffer through or transmit any of said diseases ... just saying.

We all have our reasons. 

Tlell River

We've had good weather with no rain.  Lots of sun and cloud but today we woke up to a gorgeous sunny day.  We decided to spend the day at the Tlell River.  It is so peaceful and such a beautiful river.  When we arrived the tide was out and we watched it come in and it was fast!  No one was catching fish.  

This is the Haida House.  It's the nicest place to stay on Graham Island.  Of course it was full and we couldn't get a reservation.  It's on the banks of the Tlell River and there is no cell phone service.  It's quite remote but a beautiful place.

Here is a list from BC Parks of the fish in the Tlell River.

We wanted to do a hike, however, most of the trails are remote, steep and not even.  I found this 150 M to the beach.  Oh wait, read the sign!

We stayed by the river and had a nice walk, not a hike but we made it back to the car without seeing bears or falling!   We saw lots of ravens and a few fish jumping.  It was very warm and a nice brisk breeze off the water.

A day at Haida Gwaii Museum

 

If you are familiar with Bill Reid, you will know this piece of art is located at Vancouver International Airport.  Bill Reid was born in Victoria.  His mother Sophie Gladstone Reid was from the Kaadaas gaah Kilguwaay, Raven/Wolf clan more commonly know as Haida.  Bill Reid was raised without the knowledge of his Haida heritage due to the oppressive measures of the Indian Act!   

Yesterday we visited the Haida Gwaii Museum.  One of the first pieces of art I saw was this 4 of 50 print of Justin Trudeau and Stephen Harper.  I don't know if you can see the entire painting but it says a lot!

The museum is a wealth of Haida history and culture.  The artwork in this museum was awesome.  

This is part of the museum

This picture was taken by turning around after I took the picture above!

There were many exhibits and a great video of totem pole carver Robert Davidson.  When we were watching the video a girl walking through the museum said "Robert Davidson came to my wedding!  He's a lot older now but he's part of my clan".  Robert Davidson is the artist who carved the totem pole in Old Masset.  I wish I'd taken a picture of it on Friday when we were there.  Here is the video of the carving and raising of the totem pole.  It is16 minutes long and presented by the National Film Board of Canada.  I really enjoyed it.

Now is the time

Here are some of the exhibits:

This makes me feel old!  I sat in one of these at Carleton School in the 1950's and at the same time, we had that phone at home!

There was an area where they were carving these canoes inside.  I didn't take a picture as I don't think they wanted people in the room as it was a project they were working on.  

I read they found some artifacts that dated back 12,800 years ago!  I have a picture of the article and that isn't a typo!  They were found on the west coast and were thought to be ancient bear-hunting artifacts.  

In 1862, smallpox was brought to Haida Gwaii and the population went from 30,000 to 600!

In 1871 BC joined Confederation and officially becomes part of "Canada".  Aboriginal people account for the majority of BC's population.  In 1872 BC Provincial legislation is passed to exclude Indians from voting!  Indians were not allowed to purchase alcohol.

In 1876 the first missionary to enter Haida Gwaii arrived and was from the Church of England (Anglican).  In 1884 the Indian Act banned the potlatch.  It was done by legislation.  In 1900 the first group of children were sent to a residential school in Chilliwack!  In later years they were taken to Alert Bay to residential school.  

In 1949 Indians were now allowed to vote in provincial elections.  In 1951 the ban of the potlach ban was removed and they were now allowed to purchase alcohol.  In 1960 registered Indians were granted the right to vote in Federal elections.  

If you are wondering why I'm using "Indians", I took pictures of the history that was on the walls of the museum.  They are many photos and the text is difficult to read.  The paragraphs above are exactly as written on the display.  I didn't change the text.  I thought the above was interesting as most of it I didn't know.  There are many other changes after 1960 but I'm not going into detail it as it's long and most of us have read what's been happening with Indian Affairs.  There was a lot of information detailing how their land was taken away and what has been given back.  Of course the horrors of residential schools are in the news.  There was never a residential school in Haida Gwaii, but the children were taken away and sent south.  

They are very proud of their heritage and their clans.  They are working on preserving their native language.  Here is an interesting article:

Haida language here to stay

They love the air, ocean and land.  When you arrive in Haida Gwaii you are asked to respect the following:

• Follow all Haida Gwaii COVID 19 protocols (every building has mandatory masks and everyone respects it).
• Acknowledge Haida Title throughout Haida Gwaii including rights
• Speak kindly and listen thoughtfully
• Walking, driving, parking and camping only where permitted
• Keeping a safe distance from wildlife
• Accept not all areas and events are open to visitors
• Ask permission before taking pictures of people
• Be mindful of your environmental footprint and my impacts on the earth, air and water
• Leave everywhere cleaner that when I arrived
• Take only what is given, leave rocks, feathers, sand and artifacts behind
• Support local businesses and give back where I can