A New Focus

About mid-September, the timing belt of the 2000 Focus gave way and I found myself stranded on the side of the road. Inconvenient at the best of times, the matter was complicated by the fact that I was on my way to the airport to catch a flight to Sault Ste. Marie. Calling roadside assistance, I discovered the program that we'd accessed in the past no longer existed (once the operator stifled her scoff upon hearing the age and mileage on the vehicle).

There was a panicked call to Shelley who happened to be home with Kai who happened to be home sick from school, a call to our dealership to arrange for a tow truck and a call to the airline to explain the situation. Watching the minutes tick by, I also called the hotel in Sault Ste. Marie to inform my colleague that I likely wouldn't be available to meet for supper as planned.

My rescue arrived when Shelley and Kai speedily delivered me to the airport, in time for my original flight! It wasn't until my return home that we made arrangements for a replacement car (we'd figured the cost of the next major repair would be better directed towards a downpayment on another car). We discovered with all the incentives, upgrades, and enticements, a new car would only be a couple thousand dollars more than a used one.

So after 300, 636 km, we handed the keys over in exchange for another Focus (2011 with Sirius satellite radio for 6 months - hello Radio 3!) I think I'll call it Desmond as a tribute to Paul Quarrington and Maury Chaykin.

Such was the adventure of the new car, apart from the fact that I lost my passport at the airport in Toronto...

"Taking My Talents to South London"

The biggest development in the year past is my resignation at my current churches to take a position as "Lead Minister" (lightning rod) at Calvary United Church in London. Effective January 1, 2011, I've been trying to wrap things up where I am but things keep cropping up.

I have to say this came about rather suddenly. I wasn't expecting to re-locate so soon, but an opportunity arose that was too good to pass up. Given the uncertainty that many mainline Protestant congregations are facing, the proposition of a stable and viable ministry that had opportunity for further outreach into its local community seemed like divine providence.

While I look forward to being part of a staff team (children's minister, youth minister, visitation minister, administrative and custodial support), I'll certainly miss the earnest commitment and engagement of Appin and Trinity United Churches and the support they've shown to myself and my family. But such is life, full of transition with cost and reward.

Reiko's first question was when we broke the news to her was: "We don't have to move, do we?" Which wasn't really a question, followed quickly by: "So, we won't have to decide what church we're going to on Sunday morning." That was the extent of her analysis and she deemed it to be good.

All this was happening in June/July when all the Raptors were getting ready to cut ties with Chris Bosh and LeBron James was preparing for his ill-advised LeDecision. Here's hoping I handled it better than they did.

What's New?

There's been a lot happening in the year-plus of inactivity onsite here. Where have I been? I guess The Facebook is to blame for a lot of it. And me being otherwise occupied (read: lazy) is another.

So, what's new? New job, new car, those are the big ticket items. Also, new glasses, new school year, new user ID at CBC Radio 3, new expansion pack for Settlers of Catan...

I'll go into more detail on each of these in due course (and backfill some of the missing year too). I was looking for an opportune time to return to this cyberspace; thanks to Ursula for having a birthday giving me that excuse. I am so excite! [sic]

Rebirth

back to beginnings:
birthday wishes for urs.
time to blog again!

Halloween 2010

Halloween 2010, originally uploaded by buddhak.

Reiko as a lioness and Kai as the Autobot Transformer Bumblebee.

I'm taking the picture, dressed as Travis Ishikawa, the light-hitting, defensive substitute for the San Francisco Giants. I have on my cap (circa 1987) and ballglove (circa 1978). It's an elaborate costume for me to masquerade as a Japanese-American first baseman when everybody knows I'm more of a middle infielder!

But you don't really care, look at the kids! For your information (and our own record-keeping) the count was 108 visitors between 6 -8 p.m.

To the Cottage!

Instead the backroad, country drive we opted for major highways going 402, 401, 407, 400. To keep Reiko busy, we charged her with the duty of writing down the names of the cities and towns we drove through.

We stopped at an outlet mall where Shelley and I bought some shoes. Thanks to my short, wide, flat, pronating feet, I got an extra 25% off an already discounted pair of "premier running" shoes, paying $98 less than original price.

Upon arrival at the cottage, (turns out the highways did reduce our driving time substantially), it was to the beach. In trying to extricate a lovely pink- and black-speckled rock from the lakebed, I tried building a little dam to drain the area and allow for more digging room. It didn't work. But it kept me occupied for the afternoon.

In the evening, I pulled some lucky letters during Scrabble allowing me to play "jerk", "reflex", "gizmo" and the coup de grace "monetary".

So ... with a good bargain on my feet, 300+ points in Scrabble on the board, cold drinks in the fridge and some more quality family time in the offing, I can safely say vacation time is here.

Turnaround List

Kai woke up at 6:45 a.m. today. That's 13-hours of sleep for him. Maybe it's the start of a growth spurt.

We left the farm after lunch, did a couple errands around town before heading home. Next was the checklist: unload the car, start laundry, mow the lawn, get ready for Reiko's soccer game, go the Y for some Total Body Conditioning, talk with the neighbours, pack for a few days at Shelley's parents' cottage, watch some Colbert and Letterman. Head to my own bed for a night and we'll be off again.

Early to Bed

After a full morning of helping Grandma with some sewing and gardening, an afternoon in Mitchell's Lions Park and mini-zoo (where Kai discovered he could communicate with donkeys), and a visit with our neighbour Aunt Myrtle, it was an unexpectedly early bedtime for Kai.

He picked away at his supper, cranky and irritable, I invited him to leave the table for a little lie-down. Checking on him five minutes later, I found him fast asleep on the half-reclined La-Z-Boy. Attempts to rouse him were unsuccessful so I put him in bed at 5:45 p.m. So far, he's woken once briefly to take of his daytime clothes; we'll see how long this lasts.

Silent Spring

It was a busy season of work (developing a Confirmation Class curriculum and schedule with a neighbouring church and working with a couple church visioning processes along the way) and free time was used at the YMCA, starting and finishing the Nintendo adventures of Zelda: Windwaker, and some reading (recreational - The Book of Negroes, and work - With or without God).

Now that we're well into summer and proper holidays are upon me, I'll re-attempt the catching up of things here. Mostly, I imagine it will be posting and captioning pictures of the kids. Maybe a story or two too. I better get at it; these things don't write themselves.

Depreciated Portrait

Now that we live in a world where a 3.0 megapixel digital camera no longer costs $600, the answer to the question "Daddy, can I use the camera?" results in a self-portrait.

March Madness (blogging ketchup)

Well, so much for that momentum I mentioned about a month ago...

I'll at least recount the week that was March Break 2009 and see what else I might extract from the memory banks.

Potty Party!

After many false starts and half-hearted attempts (and numerous unclaimed "potty presents" that Shelley bought at the dollar store eons ago), Kai spent the afternoon in Spiderman underwear and peed in the potty!

It was not the attentive parental moment that we had hoped it might be. Shelley was shopping in the States with her sister and I was upstairs getting supper ready. Still, when I happened upon the scene, there was much rejoicing and celebration.

His potty present turned out to be a volcanosaur. Just add water and the volcano "erupts" and dissolves in foamy tectonic fury leaving behind a dinosaur that will increase in size after 72 further hours in water.

There was one other accident this evening, there was another successful potty event as well. Here's hoping this time, we've turned the corner and diaperless days are in sight.

Learning from the Past

Last year when returning from Princeton, the company I was with got rather lost and disoriented when we got off the QEW highway before Hamilton in order to have some supper.

This year when returning from Niagara Falls, the family I was with made the same error. I had the sense that we should stop for lunch before getting to Hamilton because of the trouble I'd had before. Instead, I managed to direct us to taking the same exit and following the same path as a year ago.

My sense of déja vu guided us to some fast food (sharing the same parking lot as the Subway francise of last May) and I got us back to the highway afterwards in short order. I saw the parking lot of the Food Basics where I asked for directions last time. As well, my lane selection indicated that I had been there before.

Kai's First Trip to the Falls

The last time we went to Niagara Falls, Shelley was pregnant with Kai, and we wanted to have one little holiday with Reiko before the family expansion. We used some AirMiles for a hotel near downtown and stopped at IKEA en route getting some cushions, bedding and kitchen gadgetry.

Last time, Rei had a fit of temper when at the Falls proper (granted she was not even 2-years old). This time, her tummy troubles revisited her and we had a little snack before heading back to the hotel. It was also around this time I discovered the new batteries I put into the camera were not so new ... or maybe the camera itself was nearing the end of its functionality. So we don't have any pictures of the snowy misty falls or resultant rainbow.

Supper was surprisingly good. We patronized the hotel restaurant, not wanting to venture too far from Reiko's bed, and were treated to some flavourful dishes: a tasty salmon for Shelley and a yummy chicken and shrimp pasta in a curry sauce for me. Well done, Apollo Grille. Don't be lulled by the Internet's lacklustre sample menu.

This being Kai's first trip to the Falls, he enjoyed rolling around on the hotel bed and driving through "that funny place" Clifton Hill (Tourist Area). Some day the kids might want to learn about what Ripley would have them believe, or not, the amazing things that Guinness recorded in the world, and the marvel of wax museums. For now, they're happy with a pool and being able to watch TV from bed!

March Madness (basketball bracketing)

Today, everyone's Irish and with Guinness and Smithwick's in hand, I undertook the real work of my holidays: prognosticating the NCAA basketball tournament. While it was with a heavy heart, grieving Kentucky's absence, I suspect I might be more objective (and accurate) in my selections without having a sentimental favourite in the mix.

Although I did go with Louisville (also in Kentucky) and coached by former UK coach Slick Rick Pitino to win over Oklahoma in the final. Connecticut and Villanova complete my Final Four. And I did pick Western Kentucky as my 12 vs 5 upset recalling that former UK point guard Travis Ford was their coach ... or is it Eastern Kentucky? (Wikipedia tells me it was Eastern ... but he's now with Oklahoma State. I have OSU losing to Pitt in the 2nd round).

Does this really matter? Could I not have used all this brain power to solve world hunger or bring peace to the Middle East? No more or less so that President Obama, I imagine.

Just Another Monday

With Reiko still not feeling well, March Break roared off to a low-key start. The kids were plugged into some shows in the morning while I cleaned and organized the 4th bedroom/home office.

I got some propane for the barbeque and look forward the new season of outdoor cuisine.

As Expected

As expected, Kai stayed home from daycare today. We had a semi-eventful morning, registering for Junior Kindergarten, going to the library and not eating much lunch.

There was a brief playtime outside, taking advantage of the springlike weather, when he biked for a few metres before tiring out and insisting that his dad carry him and his bike home.

His visit to the doctor diagnosed a virus. My visit to the Presbytery meeting resulted in me being roped into offering the courtesies to the caterers and then being talked at for 2+ hours.

On a Blog Roll

At the risk of jinxing myself, I've recaptured some blogging momentum and clearing out some old entries. So you may see things pop up out of chronological order and you may have to scroll past some already published posts to find out what's been happening since October 2008.

Unless it doesn't matter to you; but I'm just doing this for my own benefit. And for the grandparents, too. And uncles. And aunts. OK, there may be more of you that care than I thought ...

Senior Status

My dad will soon join the ranks of Canadian pensioners. Naturally, his perception of the "old age" threshold has been adjusted accordingly.

My parents came over for supper tonight; we treated them to a night out at Crabby Joe's. Our initial plan was to sample the work of the new chef at Johnny Bucks, but they were closed for the Famil-iday. After a soy sauce-less meal, we returned home for candle-lit cupcakes, tea and a Happy Birthday song.

Kai's developed a temperature and was fading quickly. He didn't eat much (at all) tonight and fell asleep during the 5-minute car ride home. I'm guessing it's a sick day tomorrow.

Snow, Sand and Surf

With fluffy fat snowflakes softly falling on this Family Day holiday, we celebrated with an indoor beach party. Lunch was a seaside picnic featuring lemonade and ice cream (Kai was feeling well enough for the ice cream, at least).

Starfish pose:


After a safe interval, the kids went swimming:


After an hour in the "pool" they emerged with hair washed and pruney fingers and toes.