Calling SBL! SBL can you hear me? Come in SBL!
Welcome
to the Okanagan, with its lack of cell coverage!! Pleased you are
running a high-end youth hostel/day camp! Rebecca and Corey, along with a
number of their fellow RCMP officers, have as many other young children
as you can manage, to help swell your program! In fact, Flamin' would
be delighted to have you take Avery and Ashlynn off her hands. She is up
for this week to help out with grandchild care! Saw Sarge on Sunday,
before he drove back to Vancouver. They were up at Spirit Ridge for the
weekend. Lady Dar, Chloë, Rebecca and Flamin' had dinner at Sushi
Heaven, just a few blocks from us on Main Street, last night, before
taking in Late Night with Emma Thompson. I was playing bridge, down to one table, of late, as many regulars are off on various holidays.
Another
busy week as a local environmental group, First Things First has their
AGM on Wednesday, at the Shatford Centre, a few blocks away, next to
high school. Thursday evening we will hear Laila Biali, [She hosts jazz
program on CBC on Saturday nights.], at the Dream Café, with friends,
Josinta and Aarturos. They live in Summerland and will come for drinks
and appetizers beforehand. About three weeks ago, now, I volunteered to
sell 50/50 tickets at The Dream. On the nights that I am scheduled, [not
more than two, perhaps three evenings per month], we are entitled to
stay for show, drinks half-price! Did one shift last week and have on at
the end of this month.
Just
after your message arrived, had one from Wild Bill. He and Denise will
be here for a week, next month, staying in cabin at Deep Roots, and we
all have tickets for Michael Kaeshammer on the 12th. They will stay with
us that night so we can walk to The Dream and not have to worry about
driving.
Chloë
and I will participate in a charity walk, for mental illness, out of
The Naramata, on Sunday and following Tuesday, close friend, Rhoda
MacCormick, from Cape Breton, will be staying for two nights. She has
family in New West, White Rock and Campbell River she visits quite
regularly. Last time she was in Vancouver we weren't around. Night she
flies back to Vancouver we will be attending the Art Gallery
fund-raising dinner. Loads and loads of fun with an auction for a wide
variety of paintings, etc. Always promise myself I won't bid on anything
but never seem to be able to restrain the impulse. What with recent
expense of new Kona and solar installation, not to mention no wall space
for works we already own, I think my well nigh empty pocketbook should
be safe this time!
Must
away as I have orders from Lady Dar to water plants on back patio. She
did front before she left to play golf with a number of Flatlander
Walking Group friends. Then it's time to begin my shoulder exercises. Do
the sitting/standing ones while watching various series on Netflix.
Currently watching Stranger, a South Korean murder
mystery. Fascinating, inasmuch, as one gets a most interesting view of
the culture, ingrained respect for superiors, etc. Especially fertile
ground for corruption, bribes and the like, when the actions of
"higher-ups" are traditionally beyond question or investigation. Also an
interesting distinction between the police and the prosecutors within
the judiciary branch. Latter seem to have the power to investigate
crimes as well and there is much tension between the branches, somewhat
like that between FBI and local law enforcement we are perhaps more
familiar with in many US based series such as Fargo and Ozark.
Give
us a shout, when you have a nano second, and let us know about time
you'd like us to arrive on Friday and what we might bring, other than
wine, since your cellar will most likely be seriously depleted, if not
completely empty, from self-medication! Cheers, Patrizzio! Pics: KVR walk; Flamin'/Sarge ad Co.; First course: Caesar
salad with home-made dressing, topped with bbq'd shrimps! Bridge,
savouring a fab La Frenz 2015 Single Barrel Lot Shiraz. Dame Judith works in the Tasting Room so has access to such bottles, normally for wine club members, [not us], only.
As mentioned above, Lady Dar went to
play golf with The Summerland Sisterhood, [Olga Polga and Josinta], and
then discharged her volunteer shift at PRH. Around 6:00 pm had a call from
Sendero. Her Imperiousness had gone to have a cooling dip, after her
shift at hospital, at Sutherland Pool and Kid/Dog Compound! She gave me a
shout to let me know that we had been invited for dinner. Kid Chelene
dropped by after collecting Rebecca from work and we headed for the
hills. Arrived to find Lady Dar bbq'ing chicken and corn. Wonderful
dinner with plenty of wine. Chloë arrived around 8:00 pm, just as we had
finished eating so only one piece of chicken left!
Weather
is changing, for cooler and wetter, thank goodness. In any event, cloud
formations, as we left to go home, were remarkable. Back on Burns we
watched next episode of Bosch but will have to re-watch it as we both nodded off at times!
Hello Sendero Pool Bistro! Just a quick note, [from Emergency at PRH where I'm having stitches from today's mauling by a police dog, not to be named!], to thank you both for another wonderful, wonderful meal, plus phenomenal hootch, and visit with The Katzenjammer Kids and their difficult grandmother! It's such a remarkable, rewarding pleasure to be a Freeloader so I wonder why it has taken me so long to cotton on! This being the case, Lady Dar and I have decided to sell Burns and move into your basement. Sales closes tomorrow so see you again, early evening! Steak is on the menu, I trust! Fondestos and Cheers, Patrizzio!
PS: You'll need solares now to better charge our Kona! I've let Argon know that you want them installed immediately. They'll help warm your pool as well, so hang the expense! Pics: Life at Sendero and latest draft for Seahawks!Pat this is great news! The only caveat to you moving in is we wish for your total earning on Burns St to be included in our mortgage payment! Thanks for coming! Suddenly I need to go out and buy more wine and whiskey.
Hi Kid Chelene! Glad
we can move in but am terribly sorry to report that we are mortgaged to
the hilt, what with Chloë's Sendero mansion! We can't even afford
movers so we'll need your truck to bring along everything we plan to
take when we leave. Furthermore, you'll be saving as you won't need a
nanny now. Lady Dar will look after the Katzenjammer Twins while I
devote my attention to your recntly stocked wine cellar and whisky
collection. Always look on the bright side and you'll find everything
falls into place. Cheers, Patrizzio!
PS:
Does your household insurance cover law-suits for dog maulings? You may
well wish to read the small print on your policy as my shyster lawyer
will be sending you a letter, outlining terms of settlement. Too, too
bad that you and the family won't make Hawaii this year, or for the next
twenty, probably! PPS: Since you are from Newfoundland, you might consider downsizing, after settlement, as per below:
The Tiny Cabin: A social worker from Ottawa recently transferred to rural Newfoundland and was on the first tour of her new territory
when she came upon the tiniest cabin she had ever seen in her life. Intrigued, she went up and knocked on the door. "Anybody home?" she asked. "Yep," came a kid's voice through the door. "Is your father there?" asked the social worker. "Pa? Nope, he left afore Ma came in," said the kid. "Well, is your mother there?" persisted the social worker. "Ma? Nope, she left just afore I got here," said the kid. "But," protested the social worker, (thinking that surely she will need to intervene in this
situation) "are you never together as a family?" "Sure, but not here," said the kid through the door. "This is the outhouse!"
Hello Summerlandia! Just wondering if you have thought about coming here for drinks and nibblage before the show. Let us know and we'll plan accordingly. We've found that we really don't need to be there much before 6:45 pm. Chat soon. Cheers, Patrizzio!
Today we went to the Forbidden City. As is usual here, it was immense. For a royal palace, it has no equal. Versailles would fit into a corner. It truly is the size of a small city. Not sure of the exact measurements, but I would guess it is at least 2 km. by 1 km. in size. At the end is the Imperial Garden. Much of the outside is bordered by a wide moat.
After the Forbidden City, we went back to the National Museum of China. We hadn't seen half of it on our first try. They had galleries with Buddhas, jade, coins, and African art. One interesting gallery was full of gifts from foreign leaders to Chinese leaders. Not sure yet of tomorrow's agenda.
Hi Pat, I'm just as slow to reply as you. We've spent much of the last few months in Point Roberts, trying to decide whether to sell or rent out the house there. It needs some work abut there seems to be no-one in PR willing to do any! We have neither internet nor cable there so it's a peaceful but isolated time.
Off to Vancouver tomorrow - seeing Katy and grandson Robin and then, on Thursday, off to Alaska on a Cunard cruise. Took Cunaud to and from England in 2015 - the year I retired - and we thoroughly enjoyed it so when they announced cruises from Vancouver we jumped at the chance. Ideal for Karen since it's accessible and there's no need to pack every day to move from place to place. Nico is able to come to although we'll have to see how he does.
Spent days in the garden here trying to provide irrigation on times for all or numerous pots of veg and flowers - think I have it all covered but guess I won't know till we get back here in early July. Feeling more achy and stiff every year but do enjoy the result in the garden, even though the plants are growing largely on sand! Hope your shoulder is improving - the result of a bike accident?
We have Netflix but rarely watch it. Instead we use a VPN to get UK tv - mainly BBC, using my mum's tv license info. Works well most of the time - we've saved up episodes of Killing Eve, series II to watch when we get back here. Enjoyed the first series - suitably quirky for us. Best wishes from QB - do drop in if you're on the Island. Saw Richard Martin a few weeks ago and will be seeing Andrew late in July.
Which reminds me - Was in Costco in Courtenay a few weeks ago when someone came up to me and asked "Are you from Vancouver?", "Did you play squash?", "Are you Nigel Amon?" It was Fred Ensom who I hadn't seed for more that 20 years - small world. N
Hi All, Just wanted you to join our Pat's memorial and celebration on Sunday June 23rd. Here’s the rough schedule for the day: 4 PM: meet near anchor public statue at Spanish Banks. (Some people will come as early as 2 PM.)
5PM: (roughly) get together and hear news on the Pat-related activities and legacy projects we have been working on. 5PMish: Chanting in honour of Pat. 6PM: Continue to party until Pat's birthday???? I hope you can make it! I will make a few kinds of Thai food. If anyone wants to bring anything, please feel free to do so. Hope to see you all there. Also it goes without saying but everyone is invited so if we missed anyone on this email, please forward it along! Best, Jim and Tip
