Gratitude #5

I am grateful for small, unexpected, happy surprises.

Today I took Abby to Yellow Point Park. What started as a dull, overcast day turned into pretty sunshine as soon as we began our hike. No - that's not the surprise.

On we walked amid spring flowers and birdsong until we bumped into another dog walker - a charming man with a lovely old Golden Retriever and a young and skittish Black Lab/Visla cross - no - that's not the surprise.

We toured the whole park in an hour and a half and then drove into the village to mail the huge and heavy box full of books to my mother. I mail a care box of books to her every couple of months. I expected to pay a lot of postage this time around and actually ended up paying half of what I thought postage would be. No - that's not the surprise.

I came out of the post office - a function that is carried on in the back of Friesen's, the big Cedar hardware store, to find the leftovers of a weekend garage sale in the parking lot. There were some pretty good bargains to be had but none could beat the array of stuffies at only 25 cents each. Yes - that's the happy surprise. I picked out a whale, a boxer pup, a bunny and what I think resembles a drunk kangaroo.  Loaded with toys I returned to the car and tossed them all to Abby in the back seat.

If you think I'm grateful for happy surprises, you should have seen the look on her face as she tried to jam all four into her mouth at once.

Gratitude #4

I am grateful for my body. No, it's not tall and thin like a model's - and I don't have nice, big boobs or six-pack abs or anything even remotely resembling a weight lifter or someone who works out six days a week.

Most of my life I wanted a different body than the one I have. I wanted to look like Barbie - or at least like Angelina Jolie. No such luck. My legs - I got my father's legs - crooked. I got my mother's nose - large. But what I got from somewhere (a combination of genetics, diet and exercise I think) is a body that is tough, strong, fit and incredibly healthy. For that I am grateful beyond belief. At age 65 I am doing things that I did in my thirties with as much ease as I did then.

I don't wake up with aches and pains. I feel no physical limitations. I have boundless energy - unless I have to do the dusting, at which time I become unaccountably tired - exhausted even. But if you suggest a good hike up the nearest mountain, I'm definitely up for it.

I was talking to a friend a few weeks ago - she's eleven years younger and she was bemoaning the fact that age was catching up with her, which meant aches and pains. This concept is entirely foreign to me.

My intention is to keep my body this healthy and fit for a very long time. In the next ten years I plan on some big adventures including several long distance hikes and I plan to be up for it. My mother once said that if you don't have your health, nothing else matters. Having suffered from a cold once or twice in my life (and pneumonia once) I'd say she is absolutely right.

I'm doing the best I can: no alcohol, cigarettes or drugs - legal or otherwise. Organic, vegan diet - about two hours of walking every day - much more on weekends, eight hours sleep a night. Oh yes, and good genetics. You gotta love and be grateful for good genetics.

Gratitude #3

They say the Eskimos have 50 words for snow - we on the West Coast should have at least that many for rain.

There is the all-day winter rain - the rain that pounds on the roof steadily, hour after hour, day after day. It become so ubiquitous that we almost forget it exists. There is the all-day drizzle - so fine it is like sitting inside a low cloud that had wrapped itself around the world and dulled all sound - leaving only the mist of suspended water droplets in air. There is the sudden spring shower - brief, warm, fragrant and a blessing to new seeds just planted in the freshly turned earth. There is January rain that sometimes feels more like slush and is sporadically coloured white. There is drizzle. There is the rare thunder and lightening rain, full of excitement and electricity. There is rain that falls briefly while the sun is shining, leaving diamond prisms on the leaves of salal and oregon grape.

There is rain in all its myriad forms here in the Pacific Northwest. We are blessed with this rain. How else to explain our towering firs and cedars and further south, the magnificent redwoods? Because of the rain we can spit a seed in the ground and have a fully grown alder tree two years later or a bed of lettuce ready for harvesting within four weeks.

I am grateful for the rain.

Gratitude #2

I am grateful for friends. This realization shone bright yesterday when I ran into an old friend I have not seen for some years. The joy I felt almost made my heart ache. And now I am eagerly anticipating lunch or dinner and a long chin wag and a big catch-up.

I can't imagine life without dear friends. And I love that I have friends in their twenties and friends in their seventies. I have male friends and female friends - entrepreneurs, accountants, artists, stay-at-home moms, musicians and intellectuals. I am blessed.

I have friends I can argue politics with; friends I can gossip with; friends I can laugh with, cry with, hike with and be silent with. I have friends who will tell me the truth even when it hurts.

Friends are people I can be myself with - completely me, holding nothing back. They are people who accept me exactly for who I am. But they also expect me to be me and will tell me when I'm falling short. They'll give me a shoulder to cry on (and have on numerous occasions) and they will also kick my butt when it's time for me to stand on my own two feet.

My friends are my true family. I have friends I've had for almost two decades and new friends - every one means something special to me. Each holds a special place. You can never have too many friends - and I do have quite a few. But if all you have is one true friend, that's enough.

I have one friend I have not seen or talked to in 20 or more years. I suspect that one day we will be in touch again and we'll pick up right where we left off. Why did we lose touch? I don't know. Sometimes people do. Paths diverge both physically and emotionally. But I still hold her in my heart as a friend.

Grateful #1

If I were to list all the things in my life I am grateful for, it would be a long list indeed. I could list all those things or I could tackle them one at a time. The latter seems like much more fun.

Today I am grateful for books. I bow to the person who first put words on paper - or parchment or papyrus or a goatskin - whatever it was - brilliant. I worship Guttenberg as a minor diety.

Books. I have never been to Disneyland but I imagine the feeling I get when I walk into a bookstore is very similar to that of a five-year-old entering the Magic Kingdom.

I love everything about books. I love the way they feel and smell. I love the solid heft of a good, hard cover tome. I love leafing through the pages and sticking a bookmark where I leave off so that I can come back to it at leisure.

I love the experience of owning books. I have books in my bookcase and in my dining room hutch and on top of my dining room hutch. Every shelf I own is a book shelf. I have books in the kitchen and the bedroom. I have stacks of books on the coffee table, the end tables, the night stands, the benches and stools. Even though I send books home to my mother every month and lend them to my friends, I still accumulate more and more books. They give me joy and escape and stimulate my imagination. I willingly and easily slip into fantasy worlds. I love all kinds of books. I have, in the last few months, read a history of Canada, several travel books, at least one mystery and a dozen or more literary fiction books.

Books are my education. Many times I will pause, put my book down, and go to Google Earth to pinpoint the place I am reading about - and then continue on to read a history of the site. I stop to identify words I may not be overly familiar with.

Books have influenced my travel plans, my food choices, my decor and probably even my choice in romantic partners.

Today I bought only four new books - and I do mean only. My usual haul at Chapter is eight or more at a time. I bought "Wild" which I can't wait to start: the story of a young woman who decides to hike the Pacific Crest Trail (almost 3,000 K) with little preparation; The Art of Fielding, which Chapters/Indigo says should have been nominated for and won this year's Pulitzer Prize for fiction, Europe on 5 Wrong Turns a Day and Fifty Shades of Grey.

I can't imagine my life without books and thankfully, I don't have to. Books have changed the world and will continue to do so. Is there a battle brewing between books and ebooks? I don't know but I don't think so. I believe there is room for both and I embrace both. The main thing is to read and read and read. And then to have them and love them and read them - in some cases over and over again.

Did I mention that I am grateful for books?

Oh yeah.

blogging

I know I'm having a good day when I'm too busy to blog.

That's what happened yesterday. Today - not so much but I sense a few ambushes lurking in the bushes. My "reasonable" day could implode at any moment.

I'm okay with that. I'm having fun. The Barton & Leier property in Yellow Point is up for sale and I have the delightful task of doing the marketing writing. Actually, I think I've already done the major portion of it. Nixie and Grant are two of the most wonderful, vibrant, alive, happy and positive people I have ever met. I think that's partly because of who they are and largely due to the fact that they are living their best lives - or their callings if you will.

Nixie's parents, who share the property, are also delightful. I love them.

So yesterday was full of creative challenge - and then I had to fit in watching The Voice. Definitely not easy but I sucked it up and did it.

I just realized that I have found the formula to a successful and happy retirement: don't!

More on Work

After my post yesterday - and after David's kind comment - I had some further thoughts about work. Mainly, I thought about what work used to be - a very, very long time ago. Everyone did it - children as young as two years old had work to do. We lived in small family groups or tribes and if you didn't work, you died. It was as simple as that. You sewed your clothing - after hunting and killing the animal that supplied the raw material. You cooked, you sowed seeds and harvested and made medicines - you did what it took to remain healthy and alive. You chopped wood and carried water. Everyone worked. It was what life was about.

But does that mean people didn't enjoy what they did? I suspect they liked it very much. There must have been enormous satisfaction in becoming a valiant and respected hunter or a particularly skilled and creative hand crafter. There must have been joy in providing well for your family. I doubt that people complained about their work - even when it was hard. And why not? Because it's what you did. It was life. And so people's attitudes were different.

In the end, what makes it work and what makes it play is all about attitude. Take housework - dusting to be precise. For me, it's work. I hate it. I'm also going to bet that there are people in the world who enjoy dusting. Dusting is not inherently good or bad. It's all about attitude.

Gardening is hard work. But I don't consider it work. However, I'll bet a lot of farmers do. Hiking up a mountain is very hard work. I don't consider it work. All I have to do to turn anything into a thing of joy is to change my attitude.

And that, folks, is often easier said than done.

The Nature of Work

I'm allowing myself quite an idle day - if you count hiking as being idle.

At any rate - hiking ended just before noon - so in my postprandial, post-somnolent stupor, I pondered the nature of work. You see, it's Sunday so I enjoy being idle. Love it. Except for when I see Pat (landlady) working furiously in the garden, which makes me feel guilty because I am not helping her.

At any rate, on Sundays I generally derive a great deal of pleasure out of idleness. The same cannot be said on Mondays or Tuesdays or even Wednesdays because I am "supposed" to work on those days. I grew up with a strong work ethic - heck the work ethic I grew up with was downright fundamentalist.

And that led me to wondering "What is work?" I mean, idleness doesn't mean I'm just navel gazing. I was out hiking and I'm about to take Abby into the back 40 and so on. I am exerting myself.

My definition of work: a means to an end wherein the means gives no inherent pleasure.

So I could argue that working on a widget assembly line is work - unless, of course, I totally adore assembling widgets - thousands of them every day. But generally - the main goal is a roof over one's head and food on the table and how we get there (that's the pleasure) is through doing something we wouldn't otherwise do (assembling widgets).

Now - I look at what I call work. I have been writing since the day I could pick up a pencil. So is writing work for me? Yes and no. If no one paid me to write, I would still write - and do. But I wouldn't necessarily write the subject matter I am paid to. Still, if I wasn't being paid, I wouldn't write as much as I do, so is it really work? I love getting cheques in the mail and it truly doesn't matter to me whether I "earned" it or whether some lovely benefactor (the government) gave it to me.

Bottom line - if I am to be truly honest, I'd say that 90 percent of what I do is not work. I would write regardless.

And that's the secret to a truly happy life. Would you do what you are doing even if no one paid you to do it? If the answer is no, I think you have to find work where you can say, yes, I would do it anyway. Sometimes payment comes in forms other than the monetary ones. If the only reason you're cooking dinner is to win someone's approval, maybe you need to rethink your role as a cook. That's not to say earning approval is bad - just like earning money for doing what you like to do isn't bad - but is that the only reason or the major reason you're doing it? If the answer is yes, the quality of your life is leaking away.

Selfish? Maybe. But when your life is full of joy you spread that into the world. If you are not happy, how can you spread happiness to others? It's a bit like oxygen masks in airplanes. The instructions are: put your own mask on before helping your children with theirs.

And that's where pondering about work will get you. At least, that's where it got me.

Chop wood
Carry Water
Why?
To chop wood
And carry water

Extension Ridges

For a 2.5 - 3 hour hike, few places close by can beat the Extension Ridges. This morning was as near perfect as it gets. We hit the trail (me plus two very happy dogs) at about 8.45 and happily walked the loop for three hours. There are so many beautiful sections here. The start is particularly picturesque with a forest that has an almost elfin quality to it.

There are enough ups and downs to give your legs and even your heart a decent workout and at least a couple of times in the loops, there are distant views out to Georgia Strait.

So - a great morning, followed by a great afternoon of gardening, walking the back 40 and meeting re: "exciting new project."

There is no question that I will be creatively challenged with this one - and I couldn't be more thrilled about it. I know that I love telling stories when I write - but the more I do it, the more I realize that I also adore copywriting - finding just the right word or turn of phrase to describe something - to entice - to invite further exploration.

Copywriting about a product I believe in - well, that's the best - and that's what this project is all about. Work starts Tuesday. I'll reveal all - stay tuned.

Sun

I completely understand how primitive peoples hundreds of years ago could be sun worshippers.

If I had to worship anything, it would definitely be the sun, especially in the spring, after being deprived for weeks and months on end.

Today was glorious - walking in the park with Abby, searching out the places where the trees thinned out, allowing the warmth of the sun to penetrate.

Hiking tomorrow morning in the Extension Ridges - one of the sunniest Nanaimo spots I can find.

Gardening this weekend too - and looking forward to an exciting meeting about a great, creative project. Weekends don't get much better than this.

Work

Many years ago, when I was still married, I remember remarking to a friend, as I was bemoaning how bad my marriage was, that the big problem was that I got all my needs met through my work. In other words, there wasn't a lot of incentive to make my marriage good.

Goddess knows, I tried. The reason I enrolled in the Excellence Series of programs was to "save" my marriage. And I worked on it over and over in every program there was on offer. And still, my primary needs for achievement, autonomy and admiration all got met through work - and they still do.

I suppose that's why I don't contemplate the idea of not working with any great seriousness. That's not to say that I don't go into a state of bliss when I'm hiking or that I don't adore reading etc. - but those primary needs - that visceral gut reaction of getting and completing a great assignment - well.

Take today for instance. It was a good day to start with - off to do the shopping etc. (Yes, a day that gets me out of the house is cause for excitement). Then I got a call to do a really interesting and challenging piece of writing. Following right on the heels of that, another series of assignments that qualify as creative and challenging. And that just made my day. I am energized and delighted and generally feeling on top of the world.

So - hurrah for work!

retired? - Not!

I have such an odd love-hate relationship with the whole concept of "doing nothing."

When I say those two words, I usually mean "not working." and not just any kind of "not working." Specifically I mean "not earning an income." So - digging in the garden feeds my need for achieving something but it doesn't quite bring the satisfaction of earning, say $100 per hour.

This week really demonstrates to me why I don't think I will ever fully retire. I've had no work to do since last week. That means three days (Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday) off. Monday was lovely. I liked kicking back and walking with the dog and hanging out and watching lots of stuff on YouTube (Britain's Got Talent) and exploring Pottermore.

Yesterday, I got a bit restless.

Today - very restless - and then this afternoon more assignments came in and I'm feeling more alive and excited again.

In a week or so (judging by past data) I'll have too many assignments and I'll be really busy for four or five days and I'll wish for a few days of doing nothing.

Duh.

Bottom line - I like working. Working feeds a lot of my needs. But these days I want the right amount of work and I want work that I'm really interested in. Happily today's assignments were pretty much perfect.

And tomorrow is going to be a fun and productive day.

non-wasted time

There are days when "wasted time" feels totally constructive.

Take today for instance - a banner day as far as I'm concerned. Started with watching last night's episode of The Voice and deciding that both Xtina and Blake made the wrong decisions. Moved on to Britain's Got Talent and decided that Simon is wonderful but David is almost as good.

Then I moved on to my brand new addiction: Pottermore. And flew through to the end of book one only to realize that that's it for now. Book 2 is not on the site yet! Boo hoo!!!!

Still, I will now go back to the top of book one to pick up on anything and everything I am sure I missed on my first pass. And perhaps challenge other to a Wizard Duel or two.

I know - it's all mindless stuff - games.

But I LOVE this mindless stuff and refuse to feel the tiniest bit guilty about it.

Bring it on!

Enbridge

I've been debating jumping into this fray for a while - methinks I have decided to get more than just my feet wet.

A while ago, I spoke to someone who must remain anonymous. Off the record, this person who is the head of a company in the oil and gas sector and who really, really knows what he is talking about, told me that if the Enbridge pipeline is built, there will be spills. Not "if" - "when."

And when those spills occur, we, the public, won't be told. Enbridge, like other oil companies, spend a lot of money hushing up that kind of news. Even worse, when those spills occur, they will not be cleaned up.

Bye-bye environment.

As Justine Trudeau so aptly put it a few days ago: it's not the environment versus the economy. Rather, without the environment there is no economy.

Right now we are using the resources of 1.5 earths.

It is up to me and thee to change. No one else. No finger pointing. One person (me) (you) can do it.

And by the way, I haven't even mentioned what my source said about oil tanker accidents - you don't want to know.

One last note: few things enrage me more than when companies like Enbridge try to buy goodwill - The Enbridge Ride to Conquer Cancer! Please! We can start making our voices heard by not participating in any way, shape or form.

Alone

There she is - my best friend.

I wonder sometimes, if some people are just meant to be alone. By "some" of course, I mean me.

Goodness knows, I've had my share of relationships and until about a year ago I still held out hope of finding another one - the "perfect" lasting relationship. When I discarded that hope, I felt exhilarated. True freedom = losing all expectations.

I've been married twice and both times I felt more alone for the majority of those married years than I do now.

I've been madly, passionately in love. I've liked. I've loved.

I wouldn't trade my life now for anything. I have never been so at peace - so contented - so happy. I admit that when I have been in a relationship and it was in those early "good"stages, nothing could top the feeling. But it was always a roller coaster ride: the highs had their parallel lows.

I am content to simply be happy. To wake up each day with joy and anticipation of the wonders it will bring. I make my own happiness. I choose who to be with and what to do to bring happiness and joy into my life.

I don't know how you do that in relationships. Novelists and Hollywood have sold us on the idea of "happily ever afters." Do they exist? I don't know. Not in my experience, which doesn't for one minute mean it isn't possible.

But I love my life as it is. I embrace it wholeheartedly. It could just be that by a combination of nature and nurture, I was destined to live my best life on my own. And I'm happy to acknowledge and celebrate that.

Hiking the Cow River Footpath

This was as beautiful a day in April as every occurs on Vancouver Island. In other words, perfect to head out on a hike with good friends and dogs. Today it was Skutz Falls and the Cowichan River Footpath. I'd had a tiny taste of the trail this past winter and had vowed to come back. And no wonder. This is a magnificent hike - much of it perched high on the cliff looking down on the fast moving river.

When we arrived this morning the place was teeming with sear and rescue folks - apparently someone had been swept into the river and they were trying to find and recover the body.

At any rate, we had a happy up and down trek along a really well-maintained trail - dappled with sunlight and alive with spring flowers.

We passed (and later crossed) the mile 66 trestle.

and continued on through changing topography until we stopped for lunch by the banks of the river.

At that point we looped back and returned partly along the other side of the river. - More wonderful views all along the way.

Including views of lovely little streams that we had to cross every now and then.

A great hike that almost anyone can do - and you can make it as long or as short as you want - 10 hours or 2 - highly recommended by people and dogs.

Big Boys' Toys

Who needs television?

I have the most interesting view (especially these days) from the window right beside my desk. It seems that my landlord has a project in mind and I am watching it evolve with great interest.

First he trucked an enormous amount of boulders in from the back 40 and deposited them is an uneven heap in the front pasture. And there they sat.

"Aha," I thought. "He's going to build a replica of Stonehenge."

Then, yesterday, his friend moved in with the excavator and started digging lots of big holes. "Hmmm, I thought, enlarging the swamp to make a better home for the frogs."

But then he began to redistribute the boulders into a more orderly row and began to pile the dirt really really high. My best guess now is a mini Matterhorn to anchor a new miniature golf course in Cedar.

Anyone else have any guesses?

Stay tuned. The fun never ends.

bike helmets

Notice something strange about this picture?

She's not wearing a helmet! (gasp!)

It was probably taken in Europe - likely The Netherlands. Almost everyone cycles in The Netherlands - hardly anyone wears a helmet. And guess what? They are generally living to tell the tale.

When I grew up no one wore helmets.  We all did just fine.

But then, when I grew up, we roller skated without shin guards and we had playgrounds where we played without the supervision of parents. My parents were pretty busy with adult stuff - kids did kid stuff - it all worked out and I'm still alive and healthy.

Today we live in a fear-based society - everyone is afraid of something and a lot of corporations are cashing in on that fear by selling products (like bicycle helmets) that are supposed to make you safer. What they are really doing is making you even more afraid. As in, "Oh my gosh, I have to wear a helmet when I ride my bike - this must be a pretty dangerous thing to do."

My friend, David, who has been working in China for a number of years now, has been on a campaign to get the Chinese to wear bike helmets. Until very recently I thought this an admirable goal. I mean, bike helmets are great right? It's like seat belts and air bags - we take this stuff for granted.

Maybe we shouldn't take everything quite as much for granted. I have been researching the subject for the last couple of days, doing my best to find the most unbiased studies showing the pros and cons of wearing bike helmets. "Unbiased" is a tricky concept in an argument that has ardent supporters on both sides.

The more I read the more I drifted to that anti-helmet side - to my immense surprise.

This TED talk has pushed me over the top:

http://video.tedxcopenhagen.dk/video/911034/mikael-colville-andersen

I am reminded of something my ex-husband said to me many years ago. I was about to go off on a solo hike in Strathcona and he very seriously stopped me and told me about all the dangers of bear encounters. That day, for the first time, I was afraid while I hiked. Let me tell you how much that ruined my favourite activity. I was and still am furious with him. It is easy to acquire a fear and terribly difficult to eradicate it once it has made a home for itself in your psyche. I still do it - I still hike on my own - but for quite a while fear was my companion.

I don't think any of us should live like that. Ever.

Let's get back to critical thinking. Who benefits when we are afraid? Certainly not you or I. Life is a risky business. There is no such thing as protection from every eventuality.

Down with helmets!

double gasp.

More on Spring

I love spring.

I love it for many reasons - for the sun, the return to life, the bird songs, the frog songs, the annual ritual of sowing seeds, of turning the earth, of saving earthworms - I love all these things. I particularly like the effect it has on my body. As soon as the sun packs enough heat to warm my bones and to make me shed layers of clothing, I slow down. I love moving like a slug - I swear I can hear my vitamin D factory gearing up - wheels grinding, the assembly line going back into full-time production.

I like slowing down.

Today - Easter Monday - a "sort of" work day - but not really. I made one phone call to set up an interview. Nothing came of it. I don't mind. And I really have to get used to that "I don't mind" idea. How long does it take before work ethic really turns into a play ethic?

I don't know. Work is deeply ingrained in my psyche. I'm going to have to dig to get it all out.

Perhaps not yet.

perfect weekend

I have to admit that this has been pretty much as good a long weekend as any I've ever had - keeping in mind of course that my weekend began with cross country skiing at Mount Washington on Thursday - and it's likely to extend into tomorrow seeing as I don't have all that much work booked at the moment.

So hurrah!

Skiing, hiking, walking with dogs, seeing friends, gardening and ticking off everything on my list.

Today I decided to add washing the car to my list (silly me) and was about to "make" myself do that today when I realized that I would still be transporting two dogs most days this week. Clean the car? Are you kidding? And so I relaxed, now that I have an excellent excuse to put that item further down on the list. Oh yes, I should also trim Abby's nails. Maybe later - maybe not. Truth is, sometimes the most important thing on the list is "do nothing."

Spring

Yes - this *is* a spring photo - because, you see, it was taken this morning on a glorious spring hike over the Westwood Ridges. Notice the youngest of the bunch. He can't walk yet but he sure can hike (with a little help from mom).

I officially declare today the first day of spring. It's warm! I mean really warm. The sun is positively hot! I had to peel off layers of clothing and when I took Abby into the back 40 this afternoon, I practically crawled. When it's this beautiful out, I just slow down. I want to soak up every drop of sun; I want to hear every note of every bird song. I want to smell every flower - even if that flower is the prodigally blooming skunk cabbage.

Live is very good.

Not only did we hike for more than three hours this morning, but after lunch I ticked off the last item on my spring "to do" list. I sowed the peas and lettuce - well, the first planting of lettuce. My secret to great salads all season long and well into the fall, is buy every imaginable kind of lettuce seed you can find (except iceberg), open all the packets, dump the seeds into a suitable container (Tupperware for instance), mix them all up and then sow every two to three weeks in wide rows. Results: instant fresh baby mixed greens all summer and fall.

So - that's done. I now feel well justified, after the last three active days, in being a bit lazy tomorrow. If the weather is fine I'll weed the blueberry patch and wash the car - inside and out. The car situation is desperate. It has served as a "muddy dog" mobile for the past three weeks. You get the picture.

back to local politics

I have given quite some thought to the recent local political kerfluffle re: Susan Cudahy CEO of the Economic Development Corp using a Toronto firm to get the tourism website up and running.

The outcry has uniformly condemned the move - we should have used a local company!

As a knee-jerk reaction, it's the obvious one and was indeed my first thought too. But I also had second and third thoughts, particularly when the Daily News reported that Mayor John Ruttan was going to "have words" with her.

So - yes, I would like to see government spending stay in the town, in the city, in the province and in the country, depending on which branch of government it is. Now seriously folks - does it? Have a look - especially on a national level. I understand the feds want to export  oil from Alberta (while destroying BC's forests and rivers) so that China can make a lot of money refining it.

Susan Cudahy, on the other hand, gave a contract of about $9,000 to a Toronto firm. She was in a hurry and she knew the people. Not that big a deal. Really.

But here's the really big deal: the firestorm this generated. When Ruttan said he was going to talk to her about it, I thought, "Whoa! The Economic Development Corp was created to operate at arm's length from City Hall. Hear that? Arm's Length. So that means, I guess, that Cudahy can't make her own choices about where she spends $9,000 for a web site."

I wasn't surprised when I heard she had taken some "personal time" and could not be reached for comment. If I were Cudahy, I'd be mad as hell! I'd be fuming! I'd be taking some personal time to decide if I wanted to continue working in such a small-minded place.

X country

My first day ever cross-country skiing - the verdict?

I love it!

It helped that the day was perfect with almost continual sunshine - tons of snow.

It also helped that I was the only person in my "group" lesson and so had a private lesson that progressed from beginner to intermediate.

I love going downhill in X-country because it feels like I had to work for the pleasure of flying down. And I like that I'm going somewhere - not just down a hill and then back up again.

What was lovely was that my instructor gave me an additional 20 minutes and then, when I was done, they gave me a pair of snowshoes so that I could go out on the trails for another half hour. All in all - just a great day!

Have a look at this beautiful snow:

When Will I Learn?

Seriously - when will I learn to leave well enough alone? Why can't I purge myself of this need to "stay informed."

Stay informed about what?

I just came across this while going through me end-of-day news: http://news.yahoo.com/ariz-bill-says-unlawful-annoy-others-online-223900419.html

Click on the link and you'll see that Arizona has now made it a crime to "annoy" others on social media sites.

Glad I'm not in Arizona - I mean, just mentioning this could be annoying some folks, right?

(Please don't be annoyed - we don't know when this trend will head north, especially not with Harper as our unlawful PM)

On a brighter note, The Voice was terrific.

On an even brighter note, I finished work today before noon - got my shopping done - ready to spend the day at Mount Washington. Now that's something to cheer about!

End of Tuesday

I spoke much too soon, at least in my own mind, when I predicted a fairly easy workload this week. Ha!

The Port Alberni newspaper weighed in with three more assignments that I didn't see coming and then BVI came along and suddenly, my free afternoon became two more features to write.

As for tomorrow, forget it. If I'm going to go skiing on Thursday, which I am, I'll have to knuckle down.

I booked my cross country lesson for 1 p.m. on Thursday, meaning I can have a leisurely lunch at the Nordic Lodge before gearing up. And after the lesson, I want to get out on the trails for at least another hour.

I hope I never lose the hunger for new experiences and opportunities to learn. I know and feel the temptation to stay comfortable - meaning my own well worn little groove - but it's only when I push past that and jump off the cliff that the adrenaline flows. I want to keep that - that willingness to be foolish, be brave, be crazy.

When

I had a good, busy and productive day. I wrote two stories, and then, at about 3 o'clock, I took Abby to the park. I felt good - really good. Work was done for Monday and I had only two more work days this week to think about, neither as frantic as last week.

On Thursday I am going up to Mt. Washington to X-country ski for the first time in my life! Exciting! I like trying new things! And then I will garden and hike on the weekend and all is good.

And then I thought, well, what on earth are you going to write in your blog today? That you wrote an article about a financial services company and one about a car dealership? Your life is so dull - it's hardly worth the effort to record it.

But I'm happy, I argued. I'm thoroughly content. And that's when it hit me. This is my life. At what point, does this become enough? At what point do we stop wanting to make our mark? Make a difference? Leave a legacy? At what point do we realize, "This is all there is - this is my small and insignificant life?"

Or do we ever get to that point? Will I ever get to that point? I know that if I were to die tomorrow, what would sadden me most is missing the small beauties of nature - never to see a cherry tree bud again - that would be sad. Never to feel my dog's breath on my face again - that would break my heart.

But I wonder - is there still something big left for me to do? Or will I simply continue to love this simple life?

I don't know.

Hiking Extension Ridges

As far as Sundays go, they don't get much better than this. J still has a bad back so I picked up Ocean and set off with both dogs for the Extension Ridges. I expected snow, rain and bad weather. What I go was sun and warmth and a plain old glorious day.

So - three hours of fabulous hiking.

And happy dogs - especially Ocean who has been cooped up all week.

Got back - ravenous for lunch - quick nap and then ticked off another big to-do on my garden list: pruned and weeded the raspberries.

My garden list is down to spreading manure - there really is something to be said for boarding a gang of horses: you never, ever run out of free fertilizer, digging up a patch for the first lettuce of the season and sowing early seeds. I expect to get it all done easily by the end of Easter weekend.

And then - yes, more hiking in these beautiful woods: