A Tribute To Hockey

This past week we were invited by a wonderful Moncton couple to their home for an OUTSTANDING home cooked dinner and a tour of a shrine to hockey, which both were nothing short of amazing. Hockey historian, Ron Leger, has been collecting hockey memorabilia since roughly World War II (1941 or so). The picture above is a picture leading down to the basement.

His basement is a mini Hockey Hall of Fame equipped with a guest book dating back to 1974 with many big names (Don Cherry & Ron MacLean from Hockey Night in Canada, Bobby Hull, Boom Boom Geffrion and Ray Delia to name a few) in hockey stopping in for a visit. Mr. Leger's goal is to collect a photo of every player to ever play in the NHL.

Miraculously, he has been able to retain and archive all that he has acquired! My favorite and most fascinating part of the museum (for me) was the display that started the entire collection. When Ron was a boy the comics of the newspaper had an offer to send in box tops from Quaker Oats and you get three gifts. He has the paper from 1945 in pristine condition along with the 3 gifts in mint condition! You might be wondering about the wooden sleigh on the table, well back in 45 that is how the mail got delivered during hockey season in Canada!!! I was totally blown away.

A Little Canadian Humor, Eh!

Forget Rednecks, here is what Jeff Foxworthy has to say about Canucks! (It's funny but I find them to be soooo true!)

If your local Dairy Queen is closed from September through May,
You may live in Canada.

If someone in a Home Depot store offers you assistance and they don't work there,
You may live in Canada.

If you've worn shorts and a parka at the same time,
You may live in Canada.

If you've had a lengthy telephone conversation with someone who dialed the wrong number,
You may live in Canada.

If 'Vacation' means going anywhere South of Maine for the weekend,
You may live in Canada.

If you can dive 90 km/hr through 2 feet of snow during a raging blizzard without flinching,
You may live in Canada.

If you install security lights on your house & garage, but leave both unlocked,
You may live in Canada.

If you carry jumpers in your car and your wife knows how to use them,
You may live in Canada.

If you design your kid's Halloween costume to fit over a snowsuit,
You may live in Canada.

If the speed limit on the highway is 80 km -- You're going 90 and everybody is passing you,
You may live in Canada.

If driving is better in the winter because the potholes are filled with snow,
You may live in Canada.

If you know all 4 seasons: Almost winter, winter, still winter, and road construction,
You may live in Canada.

If you find 2 degrees (36F) 'a little chilly',
You may live in Canada.

Spring Has Sprung...

Or so these crazy Canadians think! This is the site of the pond hockey tournament that we attended in February, but oh has the scene changed. Ahh, the sights and sounds of spring. Ducks a quacking, Canadians Eh'ing, everyone has a bounce in their step with the 55 degree weather. People here are crazy, I still can't believe that at the park we saw a number of folks in shorts & t-shirts (I even spotted a woman in a tank top - she should've saved that for a day when she is a bit more pigmented...good thing I was wearing my sun glasses). I love the picture above, quite classic here. Check out the person sitting on the stoop, yes folks, he is holding a cup of Tim Horton's! Now look closer to the water - that's right - he is one of the crazies wearing shorts & a t-shirt. I have to say that it was a breath of fresh air to be able to go outside without my winter gear...but it's a long way off to be busting out my summer wardrobe...I'm just glad & relieved that Spring is here with promises of warmer days to come.

While at the park, we busted out the camera to see if we could get some shots that were worthy of the blog (yes, those are hard to come by). Ray was a big fan of the picture of this little guy - based on pictures that he has of himself as a kid, it could've been him 35 years ago...I'm sure Ray's mom would agree. He looks like he's got some trouble to find.

We got a nice National Geographic worthy picture of our beautiful Canadian wildlife with the mallard shot. Ray is fascinated by all the wild fowl that hangs out in our backyard...we have pheasants, mallards, woodpeckers, ravens, and FINALLY robins! Yesterday I saw the first baby bird of the season. Yay for Spring!

Peacock...Not So Much

First off, the picture above is not a picture of "my" peacock, but a similar looking bird that I found on a quick search of the internet. Here's the deal. When I first moved here in October, I was on the phone speaking with my friend Wendy (hi!). I was looking out the back door and saw this large, colorful bird standing in our backyard. I freaked out a bit because I had never seen anything quite like it before. I started describing it to Wendy...I was about 2.5 feet tall, had a bright green/blue head, very colorful feathers, and a lot of colorful feathers on the back side. After careful deliberation we determined that it must be a peacock. I asked around to native of the area and they said that yes, peacocks have been sighted here. Yay! I had seen my first wild peacock in my own backyard!!! "Not so fast Charlie." A few weeks back (when the thaw started) Ray started asking me about my peacock "sighting" as he had seen a bird in the backyard that sounded quite similar. Yep, green/blue head, colorful feathers, about 2.5 feet tall - he laughed and said that it definitely was not a peacock, but a male pheasant. How disappointing - a peacock sounds MUCH more exciting & exotic. Apparently he lives in the brush behind our place because you can hear him when we take the dogs out. Who knew??? Peacocks & pheasants must be related - I'm convinced.

Palooza Destination?!?!?

Ray and I are trying to figure out where to go on vacation this summer and I could use your help!!! We are planning to go away between our birthdays - from July 3-13th - a 10 day UncleRay&Charlie Palooza. A few ideas that have been put out there have been a trip somewhere in the Caribbean to an all inclusive resort, to Europe (Italy, Greece & or Spain) or just travel here in Canada around the Maritimes (people keep saying that July around here is the best time of year - plus who knows how long we'll be living here and I want to soak it all up). Please weigh in as we're having a rough time deciding where to go. All suggestions will be carefully considered...

The Thaw Has Begun

It is finally warming up here!!! I really didn't think this time of the year was ever going to come. Check out the picture...YOU CAN SEE GRASS!!! It's getting pretty messy out there because of all the melting, but I'll take it. I've even thought about busting out my shorts and tank tops...it's been up to 45 these past few days. At least it's warm enough to melt some of this snow that is piled up.

After two weeks of hell at work, I took the morning off today to lay around & relax. I'm here to report that I absolutely hate daffodils and am quite allergic to them as well - suffice to say I'm more than glad that the campaign is over. Ray has really been more than terrific these past couple of weeks. He was out each night with me picking up daffodils and money from all of the places daffodils were being sold. Plus he had to put up with my craziness which I claim is a side effect of being an event coordinator during crunch time.