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Facebook blessing

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I’ve been known to rant about Facebook, but sometimes it’s a wonderful blessing! Yesterday was such a day.

I was sitting in the vehicle at a gas station while Richard filled the tank when I decided to check Facebook on my cell phone. I immediately noticed that I had a friend request. I’ve recently received (and deleted) a few of those from creepy men I’ve never met, so I assumed that this was just another one of those. I couldn’t have been more wrong. I’m sure my heart skipped a beat when I saw the name of one of our sponsored children in Haiti!

We have been sponsoring Marie through an organization called New Missions since she was nine years old. Today, she is a lovely young woman of 22 with one year of high school left to complete and a dream of pursuing nurse’s training. Over the years, we’ve enjoyed exchanging letters with her, but never in my wildest dreams did it cross my mind that we might become Facebook friends!

I immediately accepted her request and we began a conversation that continued on and off throughout the rest of the day and again this morning. Her English, learned at school, is weak and my Haitian Creole is non-existent, so communication is slow and sometimes confusing, but we’re talking without the aid of a translator! What joy!

Marie, who lost her own mother shortly before we started sponsoring her and her father a few years later, has been calling me ‘mother’ in our conversation. That and her Facebook profile picture of the latest letter and photo that she received from us melt my heart.

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For the past few years, we’ve been hoping that when Marie finishes high school and begins her nurses training through the New Missions program, we’ll be able to continue sponsoring her, but even if we can’t, now that we’re Facebook friends we won’t lose touch with her. What a blessing!

For just $33 a month, child sponsorship through New Missions provides a child in Haiti or the Dominican Republic with quality education, a daily hot lunch which for some is their primary meal of the day, and medical care. New Missions also provides a number of community development initiatives including clean water, vocational training and local employment, all vital in this poorest part of the western hemisphere.

Ghost moose

/ edebock / 2 Comments

We had an unusual visitor yesterday; a young moose that has been hanging around our neighbourhood for the past few days munching on the plant life.

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Yes, I was actually that close to him! When I first realized that he was there, he was standing just outside our front door snacking on my rose bush.

A rather scraggly looking character, he is what is known as a ghost moose. Infested and irritated by ticks, he has rubbed off most of his dark brown hair, exposing his pale undercoat.

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Though I’ve never seen one before, apparently ghost moose are becoming more and more common and are most often spotted in March and April. Biologists blame climate change for ushering in shorter, warmer winters that are conducive to increased tick populations. The tick’s life cycle begins in late fall. Larva cling to plants and climb aboard unsuspecting moose that brush against them, feasting on their warm bodies over the winter months until early spring when they generally drop off and lay their eggs to begin the cycle over again.

A single moose can be host to a staggering number of ticks. I’ve read numbers upwards of 50 000! Thousands of feeding ticks can actually kill a moose! Calves, like this one, are particularly vulnerable. Loss of blood leaves them weak and easy prey for predators. Scratching off large patches of their thick outer coat in an attempt to remove the ticks leads to the loss of body heat and even hypothermia. Some spend more time scratching than foraging for food. Skinny and malnourished, they eventually die of starvation.

Considering that our young visitor has made it through our cold winter and seems to be eating well, I’m hopeful that he will survive, but I also have other concerns for his well-being. He is obviously one of last year’s calves. As such, he’s still a bit young to be wandering about on his own. Moose calves usually stay with their mothers for about a year and a half.

The fact that he’s spending so much time in town is also a major concern. It’s not unusual for us to see a mother moose and her calves in the yard during the winter, especially at night, but they are usually easily spooked, retreating to the trees on the edge of town when startled. This little guy is much too bold. He continued to nonchalantly trim the lower branches of our weeping birch while vehicles passed by just a few feet away. Even a neighbour in a noisy truck stopping to take pictures didn’t deter him.

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Not only is becoming semi domesticated not good for him, but as cute as he is (in his own scraggly way), he poses a danger to people. He’s already big enough to cause serious damage and  if he survives, he’s going to get a LOT bigger. A full grown bull moose can reach a height of up to 2.15 m (7.1 feet) at the shoulder and weigh between 500 and 725 kg (1,102 and 1,598 pounds)!

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Real date

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Since yesterday’s dream date post captured the interest of so many readers, I thought today I’d share a real date that Richard and I went on on a beautiful fall day. We live in a tiny town of just over 800 people. It’s a two hour drive from the closest major city and an hour from a town large enough to have a movie theatre and a choice of restaurants. If we lived in the city there would be a myriad of things to do on a date, but out here coming up with creative date ideas is much more challenging.

Known as a flip-a-coin date or a penny date, this concept is a simple one that works just as well in the countryside as in a city, perhaps even better. Here’s how it works:

  1. Pack a picnic lunch.
  2. Grab a coin. HEADS is right; TAILS is left.
  3. Choose a number. This will be the number of times you turn before you reach your destination.
  4. Every time you approach an intersection, flip the coin to determine which way you’ll turn.
  5. Once you reach the number that you chose in step 3, look around and find a spot to enjoy your picnic.

Since we didn’t want to spend our time driving around and around our tiny community, we drove to the nearest exit from town before flipping the coin the first time. The countryside in our area is criss-crossed with roads, most of them just a mile apart, so we chose a number large enough to take us some distance from town. Though I don’t remember for sure, I think it might have been 20.

We were hardly out of town when we stopped to watch a huge flock of snow geese landing on a pond. It was like a magical dance!

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As we wandered the backroads we passed a few old abandoned buildings including this one, the old curling rink which was moved out of town when a new recreational centre was built in the early 1960s.

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At one point, a right turn followed by three lefts in a row took us in a complete square back to where we’d been not long before. Fortunately, the next flip was a right and off we went in a new direction!

Soon after we made our final turn, we spotted a secluded clearing overlooking a field of ripening grain.

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It was a perfect spot for our tailgate picnic!

Now, with spring finally on the way, geese are flying overhead again. When the last bit of snow has melted away, the muddy roads have dried and leaves are back on the trees, I think we’ll try another flip-a-coin date. I wonder where the next one will take us?

Dream date

/ edebock / 1 Comment

A couple of years ago, when our decades old marriage had hit a particularly low spot, Richard and I decided to be more intentional about incorporating regular dates into our often busy schedule. We’ve been a little lax about that lately which has given me reason to start thinking about what my dream date might look like.

I visualize candlelight, seafood and white wine on a patio overlooking the ocean. After a leisurely meal with gentle waves lapping in the background, we’d walk a moonlit beach with warm sand between our toes.

Alas, I am a coastal girl living on the western Canadian prairie, so unless I’m on vacation, that date is but a dream. I’m delighted, however, to collaborate with Turo, a unique car-sharing company, to suggest a way to ramp up that or any other date and take it to a whole new level. I’m imagining Richard and I arriving for our dinner in a red carpet worthy luxury vehicle, perhaps a Mercedes Benz or a BMW, instead of our trusty SUV. With Turo, that part of the date doesn’t have to be a fantasy!

Perhaps your dream date would be entirely different from mine; maybe something more adventurous and outdoorsy. Turo can help you with that too. With vehicles available in more than 4500 cities across the US, Canada and the UK, you could rent a truck, an SUV or, in some locations, even a Hummer.

I was delighted to learn that Turo operates right here in Alberta. I’ve got my eye on this sporty little Jaguar. Wouldn’t that make date night special?

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Disclaimer:  This is not a paid endorsement. Information and image provided by Turo, but the words are my own.

I’m a Barbarian!

/ edebock / 3 Comments

logoI’m fortunate not to have to leave the house to exercise. We have a treadmill, two weight benches and more free weights than I’ll ever be able to lift in our basement. As a result, thinking about what to wear to the gym isn’t an issue for me. I usually work out in a pair of yoga pants or leggings and an old t-shirt. As long as I look presentable enough to answer the door if someone rings the bell unexpectedly, that’s good enough for me. There are, however, three items that I do consider essential parts of my weightlifting wardrobe.

1.  Shoes

If I was a competitive lifter, I would want a pair of shoes with low compression soles designed specifically for the sport, but for someone like myself, a good pair of cross-trainers is an excellent choice. The soles, which are wider than the upper part of the shoe, provide excellent stability and support.

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2.  Gloves

Padded weightlifting gloves improve my grip and keep me from getting callouses on my hands.

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3.  Belt

Though there is some debate in the weightlifting world about whether or not a belt should be worn, I have always worn one and will continue to do so. The main reason is to stabilize and reduce pressure on my spine, hopefully avoiding back injury. Wearing a belt also forces a lifter to use their legs more than their back which is precisely what you want to do when lifting anything heavy.

Though it’s possible to purchase a pink or purple weightlifting belt specifically for women,  I’m not concerned about looking feminine when I’m working out. As I said, I do it in the privacy of my own basement where only my husband sees me. Besides, a girly belt wouldn’t say that I’m a Barbarian!

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Fitted or baggy? What’s your style?

/ edebock / 12 Comments

logoIt’s kind of spooky how the spirits of the cyber world seem to know exactly what our interests are and how accurately they tailor the ads we see to those areas. Ever since I introduced Fashion Friday to my blog last March, the majority of ads that I see on Facebook and on the news pages that I read regularly have been related to fashion.

Lately, whenever I go to Facebook, this is what I see in the margin.

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I seldom wear dresses, but apparently the internet thinks I should and feels that I should be shopping for some new ones! It doesn’t seem to know my style though, so it’s offering me two strikingly different options.

The dresses on the Fashion Mia site are mostly what I would call fitted. When I do wear a dress, it’s usually for a special occasion and I want to look both feminine and sophisticated. Here’s a closer look at one from that site that I could see myself wearing. It’s definitely my style.

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The dresses on the Buykud site, however, are baggy and, in many cases, shapeless. Here are a few examples.

There’s nothing actually wrong with them. They’re certainly modest and they look comfy, but they’re not my style. In fact, I’d probably look and feel like a bag lady in any one of them and I suspect that my husband, who is rather fond of my shape, would be horrified! They’re simply not flattering; one of my essential fashion F words.

If I had been looking for a new dress this winter, I would definitely have considered this one that kept appearing on a Bay banner across the top of my favourite news site throughout the Christmas season.

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The Ivanka Trump lace-detailed sheath dress, available here, caught my eye every time it appeared. It’s definitely my style.

In the words of fashion icon, Iris Apfel, “I think the biggest fashion faux pas these days is looking into the mirror and seeing somebody else. It doesn’t work. You’ve got to know who you are.” You need to know your style which may be entirely different from mine.

What’s your style? Do you prefer fitted or baggy?

Take that, Miss Chen!

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My first memory of phys ed was Miss Chen yelling at me for not being able to serve a volleyball over the net. It was grade 6, my first year in a new school, and I don’t think I’d ever held a volleyball before. In fact, I don’t recall having physical education classes at all prior to that year. The small town elementary school that I’d come from was overcrowded. When I was in grade 1, the gym had served as our classroom and after that, I only remember going there for school-wide assemblies.

Miss Chen also taught us health. She was an odd and intimidating person. I remember her standing at the front of the classroom doing callisthenics while she taught. Her explosion on the volleyball court did nothing to persuade this uncoordinated, timid child that physical education was a good thing.

In high school, I was the gawky kid who hated phys ed, all except gymnastics. I remember the year that each student had to plan, practice and perform her own gymnastics routine to music. I chose the 1967 hit, Love is Blue. Though I wasn’t able to manage some of the more difficult gymnastics moves like walkovers and handsprings, I remember that my routine started with an arabesque and incorporated other ballet poses and moves that I’d learned in the dance classes that my mother had insisted I take when I was younger. My teacher loved it. It was my shining moment in phys ed! She even wanted me to enter my routine in the high school talent show that year, but I was too shy.

Over the years as a teacher in a small rural school, I taught almost every subject at one time or another, but never phys ed. How remarkable then that one evening this week, I found myself in my basement teaching a couple of friends the exercises that I begin my days with as well as the weight lifting routine that I follow three times a week! Me, teaching anyone phys ed? Wow! Take that Miss Chen!

 

A boy for his birthday!

/ edebock / 5 Comments

Today is my husband Richard’s birthday. We quit buying birthday gifts for each other years ago, but this year I broke with that and ordered something really cute for his birthday.

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His name is Rodolson. He’s seven years old and he’s in first grade in his home country of Haiti.

No, we aren’t adopting a child in our old age! Instead, we will be sponsoring Rodolson through an organization called New Missions which, coincidentally, is celebrating it’s 34th birthday today.

In 1983, the late George DeTellis and his wife, Jeanne, left the United States for Haiti with nothing more than what they could carry on the plane. They lived in tents pitched under a grove of coconut trees and started a church the first Sunday they were there. Now, 34 years later, New Missions, which also branched into the Dominican Republic in 2000, has over 30 churches as well as elementary schools, high schools, medical clinics, a Bible college, and a professional trade school.

Following the devastating earthquake of 2010 the United States military made the main New Missions compound their primary base camp for relief work in Haiti’s southern plain. Though many churches and schools were destroyed by the 7.0 earthquake, New Missions has rebounded and continues to thrive.

For just $33 a month, child sponsorship through New Missions provides a child with quality education, a daily hot lunch which for some is their primary meal of the day, and medical care. New Missions also provides a number of community development initiatives including clean water, vocational training and local employment, all vital in this poorest part of the western hemisphere.

Rodolson is not our first New Missions child. We have been sponsoring Marie since she was nine. Today, she is a lovely young woman of 22 with one year of high school left to complete and a dream of pursuing nurse’s training. Over the years, we’ve enjoyed exchanging letters with her and watching her grow. Now we get to do the same with Rodolson.

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So, Happy Birthday to both Richard and New Missions and welcome to the family, Rodolson!

 

Shopping the January sales

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logoI haven’t been to the city to check out the January sales yet and when I do go this year, I’ll be looking for bathroom fixtures and accessories because we’re planning to have both our bathrooms renovated soon. Hopefully I’ll also have a chance to sneak into a few of my favourite clothing shops to see what’s on sale.

I’m no stranger to shopping sales. In fact, I seldom pay full price for anything I wear, but just because something is on sale doesn’t mean that it’s necessarily a bargain. I’ve written about the F words that I use as my shopping guide before, but perhaps this is a good time for a quick review.

Fit

Do the shoulder seams lie in the right place? Are the armholes sufficiently high without cutting into your armpits? Does the garment pull across your shoulder blades? Is the length appropriate? Is there puckering or wrinkling anywhere? If you’re unsure about the fit, try on another size for comparison and if you’re seriously considering buying an item, don’t forget to check a three-way mirror! Don’t buy anything without first checking the fit from behind!

Flattering

Does the garment suit your body type? Does it accentuate your good features and disguise the less desirable ones? Does the colour suit you?

Feel

Regardless of how well the garment fits and whether the colour suits you, if you don’t find it comfortable or you don’t like the texture of the fabric, you probably won’t wear it.

Functional

Does it fit your lifestyle? Where will you wear it? Can be worn with other items that are already in your closet? If you have to buy a whole new outfit to go with it, it really isn’t a bargain at all.

While we’re on that topic, let’s talk about what to do before you go shopping. Take a good look at your closet and decide what you’re going to look for and what you’re not. Are there any gaps in your work wardrobe or your casual wear? Are there items that are wearing out and need to be replaced? Is there a colour that seems to be missing? Shopping the January sales can be pretty overwhelming if you have no idea what you’re looking for and you don’t really want to come home with more jeans and sweaters if what you really needed was a new winter coat or a nice suit for the office.

Fun

Lastly, when you’re considering making a purchase, ask yourself if you’re going to enjoy wearing it. Will it boost your confidence and make you feel great? Also, don’t forget to be adventurous and have some fun while you’re shopping. The January sales can be a great time to try on styles and colours that you haven’t worn before.

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One word

/ edebock / 7 Comments

As a mentor for a course that I helped edit this past summer, I was given a thought provoking New Year’s challenge that you might also want to consider. I was asked to choose one word to inspire or guide me in the coming year and to choose a scripture verse to go along with it. As a lover of words, this was a perfect assignment for me!

After pondering for awhile, I chose still as my word and Psalm 46:10, “Be still and know that I am God” as my verse. This well-known scripture has sustained me through some very difficult times over the past few years and I trust that it will continue to do so.

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But why still? Why a word that at first glance seems to suggest inactivity, perhaps even lack of effort or progress? When I looked up definitions of still I found beautiful words like “deep silence and calm” “free from turbulence or commotion” “quietude” and “tranquility”. These are definitely characteristics that I want to exhibit in my life and in my relationships. I want to be calm in the face of whatever storms 2017 might bring.

I also discovered that still is a verb, an action word meaning “to quieten” “to settle” or “to soothe”. In 2017, I want to be one who brings stillness and calm into the lives of others, especially those whose lives are torn and broken.

As I further searched the concept of stillness, I came across a lot of new age thinking about finding it within ourselves or by being in tune with the cosmos. Sadly, though, there is no stillness to be found within our own souls unless the Lord resides there and it most certainly can’t be found in the world around us, a world characterized by economic crisis, terrorism, war and natural disaster. Psalm 46:10 tells us that true stillness comes from knowing the great I AM, the creator of the cosmos. He is the source of the peace and calm that I want at the centre of my life in the coming year and for all eternity.

What about you? Can you think of a word to inspire or guide you in this new year?