Celebrating!

  Dinner out with the family yesterday to celebrate the two graduates. I had Fish and Chips with a (very small) helping of coleslaw. But the fish was tender with a delicious beer batter.

 Oldest grandson is off to Quebec on Monday for a month of intense French instruction. He got a bursary to attend a college there so hope he can cope with not speaking English for a month! Although he won't be fluent, it's always something useful to have on his resume.

  It rained heavily all morning but stopped around noon so I got my walk in. The garden was grateful for a good soaking and I only had to water the plants on the porch. After lunch I slept for what seemed like ages (all that fresh air) so may have trouble sleeping tonight. A light dinner tonight, a shrimp and avocado salad, then some TV. Looking forward to Wimbledon starting next week, some Canadians have made it into the main draw.

Grand River Cruise

    The Grand River flows 500 kms. through Southern Ontario before emptying into Lake Erie near Port Dover. Today a busload of retirees arrived in Brant County, Ontario to embark on a cruise of a 20 km. section of the river and enjoy lunch aboard the boat.

   Our first stop after leaving the city was Caledonia where the boats are based. After a snack of coffee and pastries we were entertained by a fabulous musical show by the Blazing Fiddles, and they did not disappoint. High energy and dynamic, they soon had us cheering, clapping along to the music and joining in singing old time favourites. The group got a standing ovation at the end of the show and it was definitely well deserved. 

   Right on time we boarded the boat and were soon tucking into lunch, green salad, roast beef and strawberry shortcake. While we were eating the captain regaled us with a commentary of the passing sites. We sailed upriver as far as Brantford before turning around to head back to base. All in all, the cruise lasted 2 1/2 hours and, although it wasn't very sunny, it was mild and pleasant to sit and watch the activity on the banks on either side. Back on land we had time to browse in the gift shop and check out the Blazing Fiddles CD's. 

   Soon it was time to head back to the city and that's when the heavens opened so it was a relief to stay dry and have the bus driver navigate the highway in pouring rain. I have to admit to dozing off on the drive home, probably the result of the glass (or two) of Pinot Grigio I had with lunch. Back home I only needed a small snack for dinner and I think it will be an early night! Sorry, no photos, as I am still without a camera but I am hopeful my finances will allow me to purchase one for my next excursion.

Changed Days

 The extreme heat has passed but today we have had very powerful winds - I was too nervous to open the awning over the back walkout in case it got blown away! I did manage to cut the grass and do a bit of weeding so not an entirely wasted day.

    Last Wednesday the seniors at the community centre were treated to a BBQ lunch and very nice it was too. I decided to try a veggie burger which was "OK" (but I don't think I will order it again) and there was potato salad, coleslaw and an ice cream bar, all for $5. Unsurprisingly, the tickets sold out pretty fast but my three Bridge friends (and one husband) all managed to score tickets so it was a lively lunch. Lots of my Fitness class friends were there too.

   That same evening I went up to Markham to attend youngest grandson's Grade 8 graduation. Nice to see the 13-and 14-year olds dressed in their  finery, the guys in suits and the girls in party frocks. For me it was a "blast from the past" as this was the first graduation I had attended since participating in them as a teacher. Both my other grandkids were only able to have virtual ceremonies as they graduated during lockdown. I had to miss my own kids ceremonies as they both conflicted with my other duties. Of course I was able to see them receive their University degrees but there's something extra special about moving on from elementary to secondary school.

Heat Dome

    That's what the meterologists are calling our current extreme weather. It has seemingly settled over most of the continent and is set to stay for quite some time. Today was 31C (Humidex 41C) so I reluctantly turned on the A/C this afternoon. Ironically, at Bridge in the community centre we were all complaining of the cold draughts and wearing sweaters. Go figure!

   It was our end-of-season pot luck before we played today and lots of delicious stuff to try. I brought enough home for tonight's dinner so that's sorted. We play one more week and then are off for the summer as the centre is used for day camps and other kid activities for July and August.

   The pool guys were in to fix my leak last week but I missed seeing them in their diving gear as I had other plans that morning. It was the main drain that was leaking so now it is permanently sealed off. I have been complaining about the leak for years as it gradually got worse but finally someone was smart enough to figure out the problem. At least I hope that's the case, we shall see!

I Passed!

   On Monday morning I had to attend a group driver's test at a nearby community centre. This happens every two years for people over 80 who want to keep their driver's license. This is my second test as I am nearing 82 and I certainly want to keep using my car!

   We were a group of about a dozen seniors and I think some may have taken the test several times. It's a very basic test and I think it is just designed to weed out people whose faculties are deteriorating. First there are individual eye exams (or you can get your optometrist to submit the results of your last checkup), then there was a written component. The task was to draw a clock face showing the time 11:10. The whole thing took about 40 minutes and at the end the examiner announced that we had all passed. Phew! Now I can go and get my license renewed. 

   

Another Busy and Interesting Day

 An early RTO Executive meeting - only 9 showed up and only three "regrets" so where were the others? I don't think we even had a quorum but we passed all the votes regardless and were done by 10:30. I doubt anyone will complain about that!

   For those who did attend there were lots of snacks and coffee, most left over from the Health seminar on Tuesday. These also, plus muffins, went on to the Book Club meeting in the afternoon with even more treats added! But most of that disappeared as it was a special, end of year, meeting with double the attendance.

    We have three book club groups as they are immensely popular, and two meet in the same location on different Thursdays. Today was the final meeting for both groups and we met to discuss "The Kitchen" by John Ota. And, best of all, the author was there! He gave a wonderful talk, with a slide show and video clips, describing how he researched and wrote the book and had us fascinated from start to finish. Lots of questions and comments after and he sold several copies of his book which probably made him happy. 

    The book is a study of the configuration (John is an architect) of North American kitchens through the ages from Pilgrims to modern day, and included Thomas Jefferson's , Frank Lloyd Wright's, Louis Armstrong's, Julia Child's and Elvis Presley's. He also included recipes that he prepared in each of the kitchens and I brought one I had made using his recipe (Scottish Shortbread ) to let people sample. It was a very fun afternoon! We won't meet again until September but the books for next year's meetings have been selected so we can get started on reading them right away.

Some Health Tips

   27C today (humidex 34C) so two swims, one after tennis (doubles only) and one after watering the garden. I have worked up to 8 laps of my admittedly small pool but this is already an improvement over the first couple of days. Since then I have stayed in the shady and slightly cooler house. I haven't had to switch on the A/C so far and it is forecast to go down to 14C overnight so that should cool things off a bit.

    I attended a Health Seminar this afternoon hosted by the Retired Teachers organization. It was aimed at seniors, especially those who have multiple health concerns (such as high blood pressure and high cholesterol) and dealt with over prescribing of medications, side effects, drug interactions and other adverse effects. Seemingly, as we age, our body becomes less efficient at processing medications. All very interesting. The main message was to consult your doctor or pharmacist to see if you are being over medicated and to explore other ways of treating conditions. The speaker, a pharmacist, was very knowledgeable and dealt with many questions afterwards. The seminar was well attended and there were tasty nibbles to send us happily on our way! An afternoon well spent. 

    

A Damp Sunday

    Tennis was planned for this morning (just Kathy and me - our numbers are falling) and we just squeaked it in before the rain arrived. It kept spitting the whole hour we were playing but not enough to stop us. We can only book one hour for singles but, truthfully, that's all I can manage. I felt quite sick and wobbly by the time we stopped. Mind you, I hadn't eaten breakfast as we started at 8:00 a.m. so that may have contributed to my weak state. But I did manage to walk home!

   I had a substantial breakfast when I got home, then lay down for a nap. The rest of the morning was spent with the Sunday newspapers and then I had another nap after lunch. So the rest of the day has been quite slow and peaceful. The rain was pretty heavy for a while so no need to water the new plants, but it is dry now.