Savannah Trip

Pictures from the Red Bud 5 (and sisters) weekend trip to Savannah, GA on Jan. 17 & 18. Credit for all the pictures goes to Bryn Q. She enjoys taking pictures much, much more than I do, so she's the main photographer and does a marvelous job.


Bonaventure Cemetery


Old stairway at the River Front


This squirrel didn't move the entire time we were watching it


Kristina, me, Kim & Hillary by a Vietnam Memorial


Talmadge Memorial Bridge linking GA and S.C.
After about 20 minutes of attempting to find the right road to cross the bridge, we finally managed to get on it and drove across so Hillary could be in S.C. Kim took pictures of Hillary by the Welcome sign and then we drove back over to Savannah.


By some ivy on Bull St. (the street with all the city squares)


Fountain at the largest city square on Bull St.


One of the Savannah College of Art & Design buildings


The 3-storey SCAD book store (with towers of real books!)


Chocolate mousse tower from Lulu's Chocolate Bar
My sister-in-law told us about this yummy chocolate place. Our GPS first led us to the Savannah ghetto, but eventually we found the right place and got to eat our chocolate!


After eating the chocolate mousse at Lulu's Chocolate Bar

After this, we left for Southern, but made one quick stop at Parker's gas station to find out what chewy ice was. (We had seen billboard ads for chewy ice on the drive down and all over Savannah and were curious about this new product. It turned out to be small cubes of ice with more air in them to make them "chewier"...not all that amazing, but at least now we know.)

Dids and Didn'ts

When I come home for a break, either Christmas or summer, I always make a mental list of the things I want to do while I'm at home. Here's what I managed to do this break, and also what I didn't quite accomplish.

I did...
-watch as much hockey as possible (Canucks & World Juniors)
-read ten books
-go skiing
-go sledding
-play a bunch of card games with my friends & family
-get a real Christmas tree in the mountains
-spend time at Chapters & Mosaic bookstores
-play with my dog, Pepper, in the snow
-go out to eat with my family
-make a snow angel (or two or three)
-sit in front of a real fireplace with a fire in it
-special music at my church two weeks in a row
-help make Christmas dinner
-a photoshoot
-go grocery shopping at Safeway
-have a dentist appointment

I didn't...
-go to a Kelowna Rockets game
-play Crokinole
-go snow quadding or snowmobiling
-go in our sauna
-eat at Tim Horton's
-do a photoshoot with Bryn or my friend, Julie
-go ice skating
-get my glasses lens fixed
-convince my dad to go winter boating
-help my parents reorganized certain unorganized areas of our house

I also did some things that I hadn't planned to do: I...
-spent half a night sleeping in the ticketing level of SEA-TAC airport
-drove over the Coquihalla & Connector highways in a snow storm
-experienced -28 C weather again
-accidentally gave myself three bruises (left leg, right leg & lip)
-went for a late, late Friday night walk in the snow
-helped my mum do a photoshoot of a 2-month-old baby
-ate sushi (vegetarian of course)
-sang German songs to my great-aunt at her nursing home
-ate soap candy (aka Floral Gums)
-visited my Grandma in the hospital
-inhaled 11 minutes worth of cigarette smoke while waiting for a shuttle to our hotel at SEA-TAC

Hockey Nation

Today our prime minister, Stephen Harper, visited the Team Canada dressing room at Scotiabank Place, the site of the 2009 World Junior Hockey Championship going on right now in Ottawa, ON. The PM and his son, Ben, wished Team Canada's players well in their upcoming game against Team USA (at 7:30 p.m. EST on New Year's Eve). Surely no one can dispute that Canada is Hockey Nation when our country's leader takes time out of his day to meet with junior players and wish them good luck in this important international competition game.

EDIT: 12/31/08
The PM's visit must have worked because Team Canada won the game 7-4! In all fairness, Team USA came out strong at the start of the game going up 3-0 on Canada, but the Canadians came back to tie the game at 3-3 before the end of the 1st period. The goals went back and forth in the 2nd period with Canada leading 5-4 going into the 3rd. The score stayed the same in the 3rd period until the US coach pulled his goalie to put an extra player on the ice in the hopes of getting the equalizing goal. The Canadians took advantage and potted two empty net goals, winning the last game in Pool A's round robin. With the win, the Canadians move straight into a semi-final game on Saturday. They will play the winner of tomorrow's quarter-final game between Russia or the Czech Republic. The US has to play a quarter-final game against Slovakia tomorrow. The winner will play in a semi-final game against Sweden on Saturday. The winners of the semi-final games will play Monday in the gold medal game, while the losers play earlier in the bronze medal game. Tournament schedule

Trevor Linden Night

If only I was done my finals right now. I could be boarding a plane this very minute, bound for home. Canada, the true north, cold and free! I can't wait to go home and experience some really cold weather. The West is in the middle of a ferocious cold spell at the moment and I hope that it waits around until I get home. But, snow and cold aside, the real reason that I wish I was flying home tonight, is because Trevor Linden's No. 16 is going to be retired at the Vancouver Canucks home arena, GM Place, tomorrow night. I would give almost anything to be at that game, but, even if I were back in BC by the 7 p.m. start time, I know I would never be able to see the game live. Tickets to Canucks games are in such high demand that the whole season sells out within 10 minutes of going on sale in September. And I know that tickets for Dec. 17 were the first to go. The next best option would be to curl up in our comfy, pink rocking chair and turn on the game to watch the pre-game show and see Linden's number retire. The last time the Canucks retired a jersey was Nov. 3, 1991, more than 18 years ago, when former Canucks captain, Stan Smyl's No. 12 was raised to the roof! Tomorrow marks the end of the 16 Days of Linden and another former captain, one of Vancouver's best loved players, will get his time to shine. I just can't believe that I'll miss it.


Linden's tribute video from the number retirement ceremony

Advent Calendars

Today I drove Tim to Fresh Market so he could pick up some myzithra cheese. While he was trying to find it, I saw some exquisite looking smoked gouda that was completely irresistible...so I decided to buy it. And then I saw Advent Calendars for sale. I didn't have time to look at them extensively because Tim had to get back to SAU for a quartet rehearsal, but I think I'll go back in the next day or two and get myself one because it just doesn't feel quite like December without one. Plus, I'm pretty sure that eating one of those little chocolates every day for 24 days straight is probably an excellent idea...