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Issue #1196
Including:

Sus
Carol
Doug

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There will be a graveside internment service for Russ on May 2^nd. For more info please contact Carol as she may have more details.

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From Nova Scotia Sus

We have lost two amazing writers in such a short time. They will be missed so much. Hopefully more will step up to keep our favorite reading going.

Spring has sprung here. The birds are singing and now I'm seeing poor animals dead on the road. Not a pretty site. The woodpeckers are busy pecking away on our trees. At least not on our house for a change. We lost a tree in our yard that had so many holes the tree gave up and fell over.

My brother Warren is still visiting us from the west. We had another music night playing our guitars and singing old songs. He plays the harmonica too. I am just getting over a cold so my voice was not so good. I could hardly stand it. It still was a great night.

Sus

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From Carol

We had our traditional egg colouring / wood chopping / ceremony of the wood pile on Good Friday. Like Gale’s bocce ball gathering on Labour Day weekend, this event has changed and evolved over the decades. My earliest memories of Easter involved searching for our hidden Easter baskets. Dad was carrying on this tradition from his childhood. As our family grew Mom changed the baskets into a chocolate bunny each, with our names on them so everyone still had to search. Since each of the 5 of us had gained other family obligations with our marriages we all couldn’t make it to the Homestead on Easter Sunday, but we knew we would be searching for our bunny when we did get home.

One year, when Beth and Jackie were young, the three of us were colouring eggs on Good Friday at my parents. The girls hated the idea of throwing the egg dye down the sink so Dad suggested we throw the colours onto the wood pile. That was the start of “the ceremony of the wood pile”. At first only those who couldn’t make it to the Homestead on Easter Sunday looked for their chocolate on Good Friday. One year Dad needed downed trees from the bush chopped and since several could come to help on the Friday (and many preferred chopping to colouring) this also became a part of the tradition. Soon everyone was looking for their chocolate on Friday and friends of the kids started joining in.

The year Mom died she had already purchased the Easter chocolate, even though she didn’t make it to Easter. Our search that year was very poignant. The next year Dad offered to pay half if I would pick up the chocolate. Since then, whowever shows up on Good Friday is expected to join in the hunt. This year we were very happy to see the youngest generation inviting friends, there were more under 30 then over 30. I am so glad Beth and Jamie host the event and we can continue this Homestead tradition.

Carol

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From Doug

Last weekend was a long weekend. You all know that. What you probably also know because I’ve written about it before is that I HATE long weekends. For retired people they are a pain in the posterior. Traffic becomes a nightmare, there are people all over the place. You can’t do anything. Total inconvenience.

I made the mistake of misjudging how bad the traffic would be and rode the Harley to Horseshoe Bay. Big mistake, big big mistake. I had Sue on the back as its best to bring her along rather than try to leave her at home alone. Luckily she still enjoys riding on the back of the motorcycle so that part was good. What wasn’t good was the traffic. Several sections of this Sea To Sky highway had become parking lots. The traffic was so heavy that it became grid locked and was at a stand still for hours. After checking the traffic app on my phone I made the decision to hunker down and stay in the Bay for most of the afternoon. Even at that, we still had several sections where the traffic was stopped and go for miles. The Furry Creek hill was at a total stand still and I elected to ride up the shoulder past the stopped vehicles rather than sit, on an up hill section of highway, with a passenger on the back of an air cooled bike with a manual clutch. Riding on the shoulder of a highway is illegal here but sometimes its a chance you have to take. We eventually made it home but both the bike and I were exhausted. I hate long weekends and this was just the first of the many we must endure throughout the summer. A good lesson I guess, I’ll just stay home on the upcoming ones that plague the summer.

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The Upcoming 1200^th issue. We are just 4 issues of this letter away from our 1200^th edition. Russ would have been thrilled to be part of that. Greg would have been thrilled as well, as this Squamidian had become a big part of their lives. Sadly, both of these good men are gone, way too soon. I think we all need to show our respect and admiration for them by making the 1200^th the best it can be. So, lets all start thinking about what we’d like to say in that May 24^th issue. We can start by being involved in the issues leading up to that as well. The point is, lets honor both Russ and Greg by giving the 1200^th a full 100% effort.

After that, we may start our usual summer layoff a bit early. I know that I need an emotional break. This letter has become a common tie for many in this extended family but stepping back for the summer again might be a good thing. During that time, if anyone wants to put out a small, ‘summer edition’ for whatever reason, I’m happy to put it together for them and contribute to it as well. Just a thought.

Doug

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Have a Good One
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The articles in these issues are the sole property of the persons writing them and should be respected as such.