The Blue Bus

You know when things get quiet and your mind begins to wander? When you find yourself thinking of your childhood and you start to get all emotional? You begin to think of all those happy times and become sad, because they are over and you will never be able to replicate them.

If you don't normally experience this sort of nostalgia, then you are probably in some serious walk-down-memory-lane withdrawals. Hans Zimmer can assist with a blast from the past if you are struggling to flashback Thursday.

The particular series of memories that I'm thinking about delivers these exact feelings. 

It is the end of an era with a rather unfortunate finale, but we won't talk about that part.

Sunday, March 6, 2016 marks the day we lost a dear 14 year old family member. Although the circumstances of the loss are not particularly wonderful, the health of the family member had me threatening euthanasia for the past few years. 

Now, I realize that I have been leading you to believe that we lost a living, breathing creature; but this is not the case.

On the aforementioned Sunday, there came about a vehicular crash wherein we were disposed of our dear  2002 Dodge Caravan. 

As the nostalgia has been strong, I have compiled a short list of memories of the minivan to share with you. Unfortunately, I can't share it all. Probably mostly because I moved on from the van about eight years ago. You really can't expect a teenager to choose a minivan over a Volvo. It just isn't done. 

Cue the memories:

- Carpool throughout all four years of high school. There are a lot of memories within this statement, but I just can't possibly summarize them into one.

- That one time that Pa said we weren't allowed to wash the van anymore because all the dried mud was holding the frame together. (The big guy got rather rusty near the end.)

- The most recent adventure involved us traveling to the airport and the upper rad hose protesting. We should have known better than to take such a long (three hour) trip in the old guy.

- This one time (maybe even the last time) we were traveling to Chesley Lake when Pa went over a bump as Syd was taking a drink of water. She dumped the whole bottle of freezing cold water onto herself. I still remember the look on her face as the water doused her. 

- When we were in elementary school, if the buses weren't running because of snow or fog; the Blue Bus was always running. 

Hairs to the future! this is t-bear signing off

Lavender

Let me explain this whole "ecocube" business to you. 

One day, you may be searching through the beautiful Chapters website looking for a $10 item to add to your order to receive free shipping. (Free being the Mennonite way) All of a sudden, you stumble upon a collection of ecocubes that promise a future of flowers. 

Each ecocube comes fully loaded, flower already planted in the soil. All you have to do is water the cube and let it bask in the sunlight. How hard can it be?

Well, the cube suggests that it should take approximately 2 weeks for the dear plant to arrive above the soil. I had almost lost hope in my plant nurturing abilities, when I discovered a little leaf poking through about 4 1/2 weeks after beginning germination. 

I feel I was quite justified in my lack of hope. Our humble abode is a rather difficult place to grow and maintain the life of a houseplant.

If you Google "who can't keep a houseplant alive", I guarantee Google Maps will zero in on our humble abode.

Now, I don't blame the humble abode. I blame the people. I would like to say that it is just our generations but I fear we acquired such a trait from Oma. 

I am happy to report that the lavender is still alive. A mere inch above the soil, it towers over the three-legged table it rests upon.

Every day the lavender gets to take a trip from its three-legged table by the east window, to the dining room table at the west window. Sometimes I really wonder why people buy homes that don't have southward facing windows. 

Whatever the case, I feel that I have taken our inability to grow plants and turned it a couple degrees to the positive. I feel it's too early to declare a full 180.

Brought to by 11 degrees Celsius at 9pm on March 8/16, this is t-bear signing off

How to improve your Sunday.

Some of you may be sitting around thinking that your Sunday is already as good as it's ever going to get. This is why I feel it is my obligation, as a fellow human being, to give you some hints as to how you could improve your Sunday. 

I always start my Sunday off with a little Jesus-ing at our lovely local Mennonite church. Now, I'm not saying that you are required to check into a Christian establishment, but you might want to take some spiritual time on your Sunday morning. I guarantee it will brighten your week. 

If you didn't have plans for lunch before your morning activity, find plans. Good food is just around the corner. Also, it's really wonderful when you bring friends along to add conversation. People just look at you funny when you start to get really into your own conversation. Helpful tip; if you are going alone, bring a novel. 

Once you have finished your meal, acquire half a dozen sugar coated donuts. Don't question it, just do it. Careful where you set the bag, the grease may be seeping through the bottom. Not to worry, it's just a confirmation that there is goodness in the bag. 

When you finally arrive home after the events of the morning/early afternoon, pick up a book, "watch" golf, or maybe sit with a nice chocolate martini and a jello cup; and catch up on a television show. I would also recommend family board game time. The enjoyment is endless. Relationships will seriously be tested. A good time will be had by all!

If you are feeling super adventurous, figure out where the neighbourhood Mennonite people are hanging out, and get yourself an invite. If you are that influential person who gets the group together; make the plans, invite the people. 

Your Sunday may just be a variation of the above activities, but it will still be a successful time. Don't forget to document and share on various social media sites so that everyone will know that you didn't just sit at home the entire day.

Happy Sunday! this is t-bear signing off 

Carnival Dream - 2016

Ten things you should know about my 2016 southern vacation;

1. If you are sister, Syd, people will gawk at your McDonald's grade soft ice cream twirling. I was rather jealous myself.

2. Hot tubs in the Caribbean are a wonderful idea. Especially in the sun. Especially on a Monday.

3. It was discovered that walking down the cabin-only decks feels like walking to China and back. The Youngest Cousin will gladly let you know how much he absolutely hated the walk from fwd. to aft.

4. If you wake up at 8:04 am to the sounds of the cruise director, Jase, letting you know that there has been a medical emergency and you are pulling into port; you just might be arriving in Cozumel four days earlier than you should be.

5. Serenity (the 21+ deck) is a very serene place to sit and write in your travel journal with Ma, Pa, the Aunties and sister, Syd.

6. The people of Honduras are a wonderfully humourous group of people. The only thing they lack is height, but don't let that take away from their ability to successfully run a zip-line course through the canopy a trees.

7. Following the visit to Belize, I have adopted such phrases as "Unbelizeable" and "Belize you me". Tour guide, Jeff, is the instigator of that escapade.

8. Tour guide, Jeff, inherited some beautiful sunglasses. In completely unrelated circumstances, I purchased new sunglasses in Cozumel. 

9. The dining room is always a lovely place to try new and delectable foods. However, I didn't find myself trying alligator fritters or frog legs like The Youngest Cousin. I felt so honoured to be sitting beside such interesting foods.

10. If you questioned whether or not 14 people (our 13 plus the driver) and, approximately, 18 bags/pieces of luggage could fit into a 10 seat van, don't anymore. It was a tad bit squished, but hey, we're all family!

this is t-bear signing off

Free dollars are the best kind of dollars.

As you all know, books are a rather large part of my life. This automatically creates a strong love for bookstores.

If you are a frequent spender at Chapters, then you will probably know what Plum Rewards are, and how to collect them.

One day, as I was working in Kville, minding my own business, I received an email from the lovely people of Plum Rewards. To that day, I had collected $20 worth of Plum Rewards.

This rather spectacular email was sent to inform me that I was the lucky participant of an optional top-up of points. If I so chose to, I could collect $50 of rewards, but there was a four day limit. I requested the opinion of my dearest lawyer friend, Liz, and was happy to hear that I should definitely do it. 

Do you think I was going to say no to 50 Chapters dollars?

Absolutely not.

Upon arriving home after a long afternoon stuck in a pizza smelling office, I took to the computer, with supper in hand, to purchase some books.

After I carefully selected three novels, two of which were on my wish list, I added an ecocube to my cart. 

People, I will not let this lavender die!

Actually, the lavender hasn't sprouted yet. I have been moving it from the east side of the house to the west every day to see if the sun will shine. The day the little guy pops out of the dirt will be a day of miracles. 

Growing up with my mother, I soon learned that we are better at killing indoor plants then keeping them alive. This, I will change. 

So, while I sit comfortably knitting, in a living room that isn't mine, and watch my lavender germinate; I look forward to a fantastic year of growth and prosperity.

11 days, 19 hours, this is t-bear signing off

PS - M says hi!

2016

Here we are, 9 days in, and not a post to be found.

You may not be surprised to discover that I don't really know what to write about. For the past year I have been writing the thoughts that cross my mind while reading novels. Now, I really have no direction. This should be interesting. 

So far in 2016:

- I have been to a yoga class that didn't involve yoga-ing by myself in my bedroom. This took place at an actual studio. Fancy, I know.

- I have been to McDonald's more times than I can count on one hand. Shamefully? Yes. Deliciously satisfied? Absolutely. 

- I have completed the "scarf" that I began knitting in 2014. It really is just one line of knitting. Nothing too fancy, yet the beginning of a knitting career.

- I have visited the uncharted waters of the yarn section at Walmart.

- I have learned how to cast off. 

- I have decided to knit myself an infinity scarf. 

- I have begun planning, with two of my friends, for a 3 week adventure through Europe. 

- I have been told to save a date. Rather strange that they ask me to save such a date as I will be standing beside them on the date. I mean, do they really think I'm going to decline?

- I have been given $50 from Chapters by way of topping up my Plum Rewards account. Yes, I am currently waiting for the arrival of new books. :)

- I have witnessed a roosting cat. Her name is Garfield. The basket is clearly too small for her. She is the only one who doesn't realize this.

I am not one to make resolutions every year. I do have future plans that I hope to implement throughout the year, but there won't be any sort of resolution to hold me to such a task.

As I plan to devote more time to writing this year, I definitely won't be reading as much. This isn't a problem though. There are always books to read if I decide that I am missing their beautiful pages. 

In case you are wondering, right now I'm reading The Illegal by Lawrence Hill. This is a book that appeared in my church mailbox one Sunday. I greatly enjoy that my pastor sends me mail in the form of books. She knows me so well!

21 days, this is t-bear signing off

WE MADE IT!!

Just a little faith, trust and pixie dust; and we've made it a whole year! Isn't teamwork magical?

After such a busy year, I really don't see how I've read 52 books and not become a hermit. I am sure there were times when you feared for me along the journey. I must admit, I feared for myself here and there.

I worry I will break hearts with this next part; I will not be able to participate in the 2016 Annual Reading Challenge. There, I've said it. 

I know you have all been waiting for the first week of January when I would post the first book review of the year. Sadly, and not so, I have decided to spend my time in other ways, rather than just reading.
Oma believes there are more important things in life than reading. I made sure she knows that there are some more important things, but not many.

For those of you who haven't been following 100%, or have maybe got lost in the middle but found your way back; here is the list in full.

1. A book with a one-word title - Light by Michael Grant

2. A book from an author you love that you haven't read yet - The Blood of Olympus by Rick Riordan

3. A book set in the future - All These Things I've Done by Gabrielle Zevin

4. A book a friend recommended - hush, hush by Becca Fitzpatrick

5. A book by an author you've never read before - Prayers for the Stolen by Jennifer Clement

6. A mystery or thriller - The Last Juror by John Grisham

7. A trilogy - The Kane Chronicles by Rick Riordan

8. A nonfiction book - The Treasures of William Shakespeare by Catherine M S Alexander

9. A book you can finish in a day -  Winnie-the-Pooh by A. A. Milne

10. A book at the bottom of your to-read list - The Fault in our Stars by John Green

11. A book with a number in the title - 1984 by George Orwell

12. A book with antonyms in the title - My Life in Black and White by Kim Izzo

13. A graphic novel - The Sky Goddesses of Dryden by Laura Konrad

14. A banned book - The Catcher in the Rye by J. D. Salinger

15. A book by a female author - Crescendo by Becca Fitzpatrick

16. A memoir - Eat Pray Love by Elizabeth Gilbert

17. A book more than 100 years old - Alice's Adventures in Wonderland by Lewis Carroll

18. A Pulitzer Prize-winning book - The Old Man and the Sea by Ernest Hemingway

19. A book based on or turned into a TV show - Hemlock Grove by Brian McGreevy

20. A book that made you cry - We Were Liars by E. Lockhart

21. A book by an author with your same initials - Medicine River by Thomas King

22. A book published this year - Saint Anything by Sarah Dessen

23. A book based on a true story - Freedom Writers Diary

24. A book with a colour in the title - Green Eggs and Ham by Dr. Seuss

25. A book with nonhuman characters - Silence by Becca Fitzpatrick

26. A book that was originally written in a different language - Suite Francaise by Irene Nemirovsky

27. A book with a love triangle - The Host by Stephanie Meyer

28. A book of short stories - The Edge of Spider-Verse

29. A book from your childhood - Junie B. Jones and the Stupid Smelly Bus by Barbara Park

30. A funny book - Alice in tumblr-land by Tim Manley

31. A book you started but never finished - The Fairy Tales of the Grimm Brothers

32. A book that scares you - Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn

33. A popular author`s first book - Harry Potter and the Philosopher`s Stone by J.K. Rowling

34. A classic romance - Persuasion by Jane Austen

35. A book set in a different country - Finale by Becca Fitzpatrick

36. A play - The Tempest by William Shakespeare

37. A book you own but have never read - The Infinite Sea by Rick Yancy

38. A book that became a movie - Treasure Island by Robert Louis Stevenson

39. A book by an author from your hometown - Lorelai, You'll Never Die by Laura Konrad

40. A book recommended by your sister - Crazy Love by Francis Chan

41. A book set in high school - Dreamland by Sarah Dessen

42. A book you pre-ordered - The Sword of Summer by Rick Riordan

43. A book with magic - Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets by J.K. Rowling

44. A book set somewhere you've always wanted to visit - Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban by J.K. Rowling

45. A book your mom loves - The Villa by Nora Roberts

46. The largest book you own - Percy Jackson's Greek Heroes by Rick Riordan

47. A book with more than 500 pages - Afterworlds by Scott Westerfeld

48. A book that came out the year you were born - Junie B. Jones and some Sneaky Peeky Spying by Barbara Park

49. A book written by someone under the age of 30 - The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald

50. A book set during Christmas - A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens

Now, as we close off another year, let's remember to continue reading in the future. While reading 52 books in one year may take a lot of time and dedication, reading one a month hardly takes any amount of brain power.

If you possibly feel as though I am abandoning you next year, there is a way that you can continue with the reading challenges. Visit this website to see what your future reading could look like: http://www.popsugar.com/love/Reading-Challenge-2016-39126431

Much love, this is t-bear signing off