In my opinion.
In the post 9/11 era, governments came together to encourage all of us to be prepared for that next disaster. Agencies were set up to help sort out the logistics. Companies big and small were asked to put together a plan. Daily adds were placed in various media to ask us if we were prepared? Health Canada even sent out glossy brochures to help us get ourselves prepared.
In the recent past we have been warned about the upcoming and overdue big flu pandemic. It would be a natural disaster of proportions that none of us could imagine. Get prepared.
As an employee of the health region, I have received many emails regarding the upcoming pandemic. Each with a proud assurance that the region is ready and well prepared.
We sat in our watertight ships waiting to float out into the pandemic sea and sail on through to the other side. We were prepared and we were ready.
Patient zero emerged in Mexico. Within weeks it had spread to 23 countries world wide. The good news was that it was at the end of the flu season for the northern hemisphere. There would be a grace period of 6 months and this would be adequate to get the vaccine prepared and ready for mass distribution. The news of H1N1 dwindled to the back pages of the newspapers as the summer blossomed forth in all of its warmth.
September rolled around and our school classrooms became petrie dishes and went into overtime producing Wave Two of the H1N1. Most, but not all, were mild cases. It would be a gentle reminder that we were into the Pandemic Season. It was an excellent time to brush up on ways to prevent the spread of flu. In my own personal opinion, I had a better chance of stopping a full speed freight train than I did the pandemic. The ministers and health officers in government decided to put out as much information as possible. The mass media inundated us with information that at times was incomplete and sometimes contradictory. It oozed through our daily life to a level of confusion not paralleled in the past. As the population looked for clarification that was not coming, they became confused and suspicious of the vaccine. Media showered us in H1N1 and we tuned out. In fact we felt that it was hyped up to the level seen only in a "bunch of hooey".
At this time of confusion and unanswerable questions, our Canadian government had not even rubber stamped the vaccine for use. I could envision the backrooms of the politico playing with semantics trying to put forth this vaccine as safe and yet not wanting to be the one who could be directly blamed. The approval came just a few days before the first vaccinations were rolled out.
At the same time as this the "behind the scenes" pollsters polled Canada and we found out that less than half of the population would line up for the vaccine.Those in the know, knew that this was not adequate to stem the tide of the pandemic. Health Minister and chief medical officers came forward to urge us to be vaccinated. People with faces pleading to all of us really didn't persuade us to line up for the vaccine. Unfortunately at this time an 13 year old healthy vital hockey player from Ontario came down with H1N1 and died within a few days of it. Parents stood up and took notice. The shock wave was visible. Our chief medical officer jumped onto this shock wave and went in front of the cameras to say something to the effect, that I wouldn't want to be the parent of a child who died of H1N1 when it could have been prevented.
It worked. The mass of un-vaccinated people began to feel the government was not getting the vaccine out fast enough. Fear turned once again to frustration that the vaccine was weeks away and wave two was sweeping the homes, offices and schools of the country now.
Distribution of the vaccine was left to the individual provincial authorities. Most of the provinces decided to start with the high risk group. However Alberta would be different. In all of it's cockiness or maybe ineptitude it opened the doors to all Albertans because after all we had enough for all and we will not turn away anyone.
In Calgary four "Fast Flow" sites were set up in the city. In past we called them mass venues, but in all of their preparedness they wanted to put a positive name to these places. And looking back,it has been anything but fast flowing.
Monday, Day One of the H1N1 vaccination program rolled out.There was much hope in all of us. People were ready. They came and they lined up. They wound themselves around the buildings to wait for 7 hours to get the shot. It was unthinkable. It was unprecedented. It was a mess and people were vocal. In a knee jerk reaction the clinics were left open longer to deal with the first day blues.
On Tuesday,Day Two of the pandemic vaccination preparedness plan, people lined up earlier and stayed longer yet. The Calgarians were angry and for the most part it was directed at the government of the day. Words like "mishandled" and "unprepared" snuck into the crowd's vernacular. Meanwhile in some unknown back room an emergency meeting was put together to come up with the next best plan. Down from the top oozed the newly inspired plan that would get the job done. Seasonal flu vaccines were no longer available because H1N1 was the priority. Further all the well child vaccinations centers were to cancel the next week of appointments and stop making any new ones. These nurses were being deployed to the Fast Flow sites. Also they did decide to open one more site for Calgarians in the high risk group. The new preparedness vision was implemented and it felt good.
Wednesday, Day Three, came and people lined up earlier and stayed longer and unbelievably or is it ironically, the new vaccine site which was set up for those who could not tolerate the long lineups had the longest lineups. Media reporters gleefully reported the agony and anger in the line up. People wanted to put blame and there was no one there to accept it.
Meanwhile in the background the pharmaceutical company assured the government that they were on track and able to deliver their vaccines. That was until the whole adjuvented vs unadjuvented vaccines for the pregnant ladies was debated. At any rate the government advised the pharmaceuticals to stop production of the regular and get the unadjuvented out by the next week. They complied and in its fallout a shortage of regular vaccine sprang forth.
Thursday, Day Four, the media reported the possibility of a shortage of regular H1N1 vaccine. Health officials begged for calm and patience and continued to assure all Albertans who wanted it would get it, maybe not in the first week, but surely by Christmas! Wave two continued to ravage the city as 10% or more of the school population were home ill.
And on Friday,Day Five the lineups lengthened and the tears flowed with anger. The mobs were ready for a lynching and by god they wanted someones head on an H1N1 laden stick.
Saturday, Day six, the lineups began at 3 am or earlier. They came by the busload full. By 0815 they cut the lines to all vaccine sites and that was even before they had opened the doors to start vaccinating for the day.
At the end of that day Alberta's chief medical officer announced that the H1N1 vaccine program was shut down until further notice. I was gobsmacked to say the least. Also the medical officer said that when it did restart it would definitely be only for the high risk individuals and admitted they had not figured out how to implement that.
Six days and six plans. Unbelievable to those of us who were prepared.
Here it is the first day of week two and what do I see? No one is being vaccinated in this province. I surmise that somewhere in the backrooms of the Alberta government the blame game has begun. Blame is useless defense against the H1N1. I really don't care who is to blame, I just want the vaccine. Their ineptitude at delivering the vaccine for this program is appalling. The Albertan government has failed its population.
The Alberta government was NOT prepared for H1N1. It showed in its inability to come up with a sustainable and viable plan to vaccinate their population that lasted longer than 6 days.
Hopefully these past few days has helped them to come up with a working plan to vaccinate the rest of us. And if not, all I can say, may God have mercy on its soul.
WKH
Monday, November 2, 2009
Saturday, February 21, 2009
Sound Byte
I am still here, however just not blogging as often as I might want to.
I am working more. Work would have me full time. I have a hard time turning them down. It only seems prudent of me to say yes with all the noise about recession and layoffs. Thus I have been working 3 to 5 days each week and probably will continue to work 3 or more each week up to the end of March. Wasn't I retired once?
I am enjoying my new granddaughter. Her 4 months have enveloped me in incredible happiness and thankfulness that I live in the same city as her.
I have recently joined the masses of people on Facebook.
For those without computer knowledge Facebook is a social networking website. It is free to join. It began 5 or so years ago by an American university student as a way to connect new students with other students. Since its inception it has grown to include 175 million worldwide users.
When it was new, it was considered in bad taste for adults to join. It was equivalent to spying on ones children. As it has evolved over the years, this has been thrown aside. Assured by this new etiquette, Jill helped me set up on Facebook.
You have to be invited to friends facebook sites. It gives me some allusion of control.
I have to admit that in the beginning, I could not see what the big deal was about Facebook. But facebook grows on you and it does so insidiously.
It encourages you to post your status with the prompt of "Wendy is..." and then you write what it is you are. Of course we all know what we are. For example; Wendy is happy that it is the weekend. The moment you post a change of status on your "wall", everyone of your friends are alerted to the fact that you have updated your status. They may then comment on your post and so on and so on. In the same manner you can also see what other friends have posted to their comments. I understand why my daughter had a problem letting me in on this world. As she said, she has no control over what her friends say to her on her wall. And as I see,many friends have no problem expressing their opinions. Goodness knows we all want others to hear us.
Facebook has included many many features such as photo albums(my personal favorite), links to websites, instant chat lines. Goodness it even tells you of mutual friends that you might be interested in inviting to your space.
Facebook is quick and dirty. It appeals to our busy life. We no longer feel the need to write epiphanal letters, emails or texts.
Facebook has brought our communication to the fine art of a sound byte.
I am not judging this a good or bad. It just is what is now. Thus I join the future while hanging onto the past.
Wendy K H
I am working more. Work would have me full time. I have a hard time turning them down. It only seems prudent of me to say yes with all the noise about recession and layoffs. Thus I have been working 3 to 5 days each week and probably will continue to work 3 or more each week up to the end of March. Wasn't I retired once?
I am enjoying my new granddaughter. Her 4 months have enveloped me in incredible happiness and thankfulness that I live in the same city as her.
I have recently joined the masses of people on Facebook.
For those without computer knowledge Facebook is a social networking website. It is free to join. It began 5 or so years ago by an American university student as a way to connect new students with other students. Since its inception it has grown to include 175 million worldwide users.
When it was new, it was considered in bad taste for adults to join. It was equivalent to spying on ones children. As it has evolved over the years, this has been thrown aside. Assured by this new etiquette, Jill helped me set up on Facebook.
You have to be invited to friends facebook sites. It gives me some allusion of control.
I have to admit that in the beginning, I could not see what the big deal was about Facebook. But facebook grows on you and it does so insidiously.
It encourages you to post your status with the prompt of "Wendy is..." and then you write what it is you are. Of course we all know what we are. For example; Wendy is happy that it is the weekend. The moment you post a change of status on your "wall", everyone of your friends are alerted to the fact that you have updated your status. They may then comment on your post and so on and so on. In the same manner you can also see what other friends have posted to their comments. I understand why my daughter had a problem letting me in on this world. As she said, she has no control over what her friends say to her on her wall. And as I see,many friends have no problem expressing their opinions. Goodness knows we all want others to hear us.
Facebook has included many many features such as photo albums(my personal favorite), links to websites, instant chat lines. Goodness it even tells you of mutual friends that you might be interested in inviting to your space.
Facebook is quick and dirty. It appeals to our busy life. We no longer feel the need to write epiphanal letters, emails or texts.
Facebook has brought our communication to the fine art of a sound byte.
I am not judging this a good or bad. It just is what is now. Thus I join the future while hanging onto the past.
Wendy K H
Sunday, December 21, 2008
It Is Cold Out There
I am all cozy and snug in the condo.
This morning my computer informed me that it is minus 26. It has a little side notation "feels like minus 36". I have been a prairie girl long enough to know that this is a bunch of hooey because no one feels anything anymore at minus 36! YET as I watch the beautiful mist and steam rise from the river this cold morn, I see at least three groups of people running the river path. They must be crazy. Show offs.
When Jackie was in Grade 3 in Edmonton, she had a teacher who would wait for one of the coldest days of the winter. You know the one where those children who did show up to school are allowed to stay in all day because it is too cold to be out there. Anyway, this teacher would bundle up his class and parade them outside the school making a point of stopping at each set of school windows to show them that it wasn't cold for the 8 year old. I am sure that this teacher was one of these runners.
The cars below are chugging down the road.The whirling vortex of white exhaust tailing behind them leaving a trail of where they have been. It slowly disintegrates into the air as it is replaced by more exhaust from the following cars. I have travelled in bumper to bumper traffic whereby you felt you were in a whiteout due to the frigid exhaust. I have also travelled in a car in whiteout conditions where we opened the passenger door to follow the lines on the pavement. Not so fun.
Last month we had the joy of having Jackie's girlfriend stay with us. We drove to Banff. Along the way we stopped at Lac des Arc. The lake was frozen. There is something so cool about throwing stones on a frozen lake. She had never seen a frozen lake before. The concept was new to her. It never occurred to me that there are people who never seen a frozen lake. I am after all a prairie girl through and through.
A few years back, Alanna and I would walk to the river to throw rocks into it. We would do this in winter too. At this particular spot there was a built up of ice on the side bank. We would find rocks and throw them on the ice to hear the different tones it would make in different depths of the ice build up. It was interesting how hard it was to find the same tone twice. As an aside, the best place to throw rocks on a frozen lake is in the mountains where the echos bounce around until silenced. It is eerily beautiful.
My favorite cold winter phenomenon is "ice crystals" It is not cold enough for this today. However I have seen it many times over my years. The sun catches the crystals just right and it bursts into a sparkling flashes of light. The flashes of twinkling lights fall like snow. They surround you in all their glory and you feel like you are in the middle of stage lit with a million lights.
Jackie's girlfriend asked Jackie simply if it is so cold, why do we stay here. This is good question.
Maybe our brains have been frozen once too often. We most definitely have short term memory loss. Or maybe we have convinced ourselves that we needed an excuse to vacation in a tropical climate. What would we complain about if the weather was always warm?
It is a few days until Christmas and I don't have to wish for a "White Christmas". And that is why in the middle of this bleak winter day, I try to find the beauty of it all. I know this is not particularly Canadian. As Canadians, we tend to be cranky about our weather especially in winter. It is the water cooler topic of many a work day. We like to compare the forecasts we have heard on our various medias and blame the weatherman for our misery in this "God forsaken country".
Being a pessimistic soul, I have tried to find the silver lining in this cold winter day. I wouldn't trade the beauty of a white winter for all the sand on a warm beach.
I hope you find love, joy and peace in all that you see and do on this cold winter Christmas.
Wendy KH
This morning my computer informed me that it is minus 26. It has a little side notation "feels like minus 36". I have been a prairie girl long enough to know that this is a bunch of hooey because no one feels anything anymore at minus 36! YET as I watch the beautiful mist and steam rise from the river this cold morn, I see at least three groups of people running the river path. They must be crazy. Show offs.
When Jackie was in Grade 3 in Edmonton, she had a teacher who would wait for one of the coldest days of the winter. You know the one where those children who did show up to school are allowed to stay in all day because it is too cold to be out there. Anyway, this teacher would bundle up his class and parade them outside the school making a point of stopping at each set of school windows to show them that it wasn't cold for the 8 year old. I am sure that this teacher was one of these runners.
The cars below are chugging down the road.The whirling vortex of white exhaust tailing behind them leaving a trail of where they have been. It slowly disintegrates into the air as it is replaced by more exhaust from the following cars. I have travelled in bumper to bumper traffic whereby you felt you were in a whiteout due to the frigid exhaust. I have also travelled in a car in whiteout conditions where we opened the passenger door to follow the lines on the pavement. Not so fun.
Last month we had the joy of having Jackie's girlfriend stay with us. We drove to Banff. Along the way we stopped at Lac des Arc. The lake was frozen. There is something so cool about throwing stones on a frozen lake. She had never seen a frozen lake before. The concept was new to her. It never occurred to me that there are people who never seen a frozen lake. I am after all a prairie girl through and through.
A few years back, Alanna and I would walk to the river to throw rocks into it. We would do this in winter too. At this particular spot there was a built up of ice on the side bank. We would find rocks and throw them on the ice to hear the different tones it would make in different depths of the ice build up. It was interesting how hard it was to find the same tone twice. As an aside, the best place to throw rocks on a frozen lake is in the mountains where the echos bounce around until silenced. It is eerily beautiful.
My favorite cold winter phenomenon is "ice crystals" It is not cold enough for this today. However I have seen it many times over my years. The sun catches the crystals just right and it bursts into a sparkling flashes of light. The flashes of twinkling lights fall like snow. They surround you in all their glory and you feel like you are in the middle of stage lit with a million lights.
Jackie's girlfriend asked Jackie simply if it is so cold, why do we stay here. This is good question.
Maybe our brains have been frozen once too often. We most definitely have short term memory loss. Or maybe we have convinced ourselves that we needed an excuse to vacation in a tropical climate. What would we complain about if the weather was always warm?
It is a few days until Christmas and I don't have to wish for a "White Christmas". And that is why in the middle of this bleak winter day, I try to find the beauty of it all. I know this is not particularly Canadian. As Canadians, we tend to be cranky about our weather especially in winter. It is the water cooler topic of many a work day. We like to compare the forecasts we have heard on our various medias and blame the weatherman for our misery in this "God forsaken country".
Being a pessimistic soul, I have tried to find the silver lining in this cold winter day. I wouldn't trade the beauty of a white winter for all the sand on a warm beach.
I hope you find love, joy and peace in all that you see and do on this cold winter Christmas.
Wendy KH
Friday, November 28, 2008
And Poof She Was Gone!
Jackie was here. Now she is gone.
Again!
She arrived November 8 and left November 23.
No matter how long it is, it is never long enough.
I could get into the whole thing of mother love and heart tugs, but that is just a given.
To quote my mother in law, Jackie got to see the newest twig on our family tree. I love that saying. Jackie was thrilled to see her newest niece, Kelsey. I am sure that she spent one gig of a memory card just on Kelsey baby pictures. And why not she is the cutest baby around.
We all had a chance to visit with Jackie at a impromptu family get together. Thank goodness for the amenities room in our condo. Jackie gladly shared her newest endeavors on the weekly paper of the Japan Times. She shared a few stories of her life in Tokyo and Japan in general.
Jackie requested a “fake Christmas” for the immediate family. So on Saturday the 15th, we put on the carols and Christmas videos. We put the turkey in the oven and set the table with green and red. Short of our Christmas tree, it felt like Christmas. We shared our presents. We stuffed our faces with food and Jill's lovely decadent dessert and fell into a luscious post somnolence stupor of a Christmas dinner.
Jackie and I had a day of shopping. That is she shopped and I got to watch her try on hundreds of things. It reminded me of the times I sat outside of the change rooms when the kids were teenagers. Jill and Jackie would each take a room with an armful of clothes and I would sit a wait for each to come out and model their newest fashion must have. I was always a sucker for fad clothes for the girls.
Through the haze of those few weeks, Jackie and I got a chance to chat about her newest hopes and dreams. Her ever evolving plans. Her love.
Jackie lives life to the fullest and at break neck speed. Vicariously, I live the life I always said I wanted to do through her. I did not understand that distance from family would be the expense at which it came.
As Alanna told her auntie Jackie on the last visit to Calgary, I can email and see you on skype (video telephone on the computer), but it is not the same as being able to hug you in person.
Yes it is not the same. That is why the time flies as their is never enough hugs to carry you through to her next visit
It was sooooo good to see you Jackie.
We love you : )
mom
Wendy K H
Again!
She arrived November 8 and left November 23.
No matter how long it is, it is never long enough.
I could get into the whole thing of mother love and heart tugs, but that is just a given.
To quote my mother in law, Jackie got to see the newest twig on our family tree. I love that saying. Jackie was thrilled to see her newest niece, Kelsey. I am sure that she spent one gig of a memory card just on Kelsey baby pictures. And why not she is the cutest baby around.
We all had a chance to visit with Jackie at a impromptu family get together. Thank goodness for the amenities room in our condo. Jackie gladly shared her newest endeavors on the weekly paper of the Japan Times. She shared a few stories of her life in Tokyo and Japan in general.
Jackie requested a “fake Christmas” for the immediate family. So on Saturday the 15th, we put on the carols and Christmas videos. We put the turkey in the oven and set the table with green and red. Short of our Christmas tree, it felt like Christmas. We shared our presents. We stuffed our faces with food and Jill's lovely decadent dessert and fell into a luscious post somnolence stupor of a Christmas dinner.
Jackie and I had a day of shopping. That is she shopped and I got to watch her try on hundreds of things. It reminded me of the times I sat outside of the change rooms when the kids were teenagers. Jill and Jackie would each take a room with an armful of clothes and I would sit a wait for each to come out and model their newest fashion must have. I was always a sucker for fad clothes for the girls.
Through the haze of those few weeks, Jackie and I got a chance to chat about her newest hopes and dreams. Her ever evolving plans. Her love.
Jackie lives life to the fullest and at break neck speed. Vicariously, I live the life I always said I wanted to do through her. I did not understand that distance from family would be the expense at which it came.
As Alanna told her auntie Jackie on the last visit to Calgary, I can email and see you on skype (video telephone on the computer), but it is not the same as being able to hug you in person.
Yes it is not the same. That is why the time flies as their is never enough hugs to carry you through to her next visit
It was sooooo good to see you Jackie.
We love you : )
mom
Wendy K H
Friday, October 24, 2008
It's A ......
Baby Girl
Born; 1:55 am, October 24, 2008
Weight: 7pounds 14 oz
Length: 53 cms. Whatever that is.
Name: Kelsey Ann Matish
Mom and Baby are doing fine. Dad is a little shakey! Just kidding!
Big sister, Alanna is out of town for her outdoor school camping trip and will find out in one hour when we pick her up at school.
Grandma spent 3 hours holding Kelsey this morning. Grandpa will get his chance this afternoon.
We're ecstatic and very proud of Jill and Chris.
WendyKH
Born; 1:55 am, October 24, 2008
Weight: 7pounds 14 oz
Length: 53 cms. Whatever that is.
Name: Kelsey Ann Matish
Mom and Baby are doing fine. Dad is a little shakey! Just kidding!
Big sister, Alanna is out of town for her outdoor school camping trip and will find out in one hour when we pick her up at school.
Grandma spent 3 hours holding Kelsey this morning. Grandpa will get his chance this afternoon.
We're ecstatic and very proud of Jill and Chris.
WendyKH
Tuesday, October 21, 2008
There Was No Call Screening Then
No Baby Yet!
When I was pregnant with Jill, I was one day shy of 3 weeks overdue. These were non ultrasound days. They let nature take its course! They watched your blood pressure and weight just to make sure that you did not have high blood pressure or pre-eclampsia as they called it then.
Every day after my due date seemed like an eternity. Brothers called all miffed thinking that I had forgot to let them in the "big news". Remember 30 years ago, we did not have answering machines or call screening on our phones. It rang you answered it.
My mother told me that she was 25 days overdue with me. I couldn't cry on her shoulder. It fell on deaf ears.
Now we all wait for Jill and Chris to have their baby. I find that I have to call Jill each day to make sure she is alright. The conversations have gone from cagey to straight forward, anything happening? I wonder if she will ever use her answering machine? I would have.
As each day passes, I anxiously await for mother nature to take it's course. I feel for Jill. I will be there to listen to her because I have been there and done that.
Waiting. Will let you know.
Wendykh
When I was pregnant with Jill, I was one day shy of 3 weeks overdue. These were non ultrasound days. They let nature take its course! They watched your blood pressure and weight just to make sure that you did not have high blood pressure or pre-eclampsia as they called it then.
Every day after my due date seemed like an eternity. Brothers called all miffed thinking that I had forgot to let them in the "big news". Remember 30 years ago, we did not have answering machines or call screening on our phones. It rang you answered it.
My mother told me that she was 25 days overdue with me. I couldn't cry on her shoulder. It fell on deaf ears.
Now we all wait for Jill and Chris to have their baby. I find that I have to call Jill each day to make sure she is alright. The conversations have gone from cagey to straight forward, anything happening? I wonder if she will ever use her answering machine? I would have.
As each day passes, I anxiously await for mother nature to take it's course. I feel for Jill. I will be there to listen to her because I have been there and done that.
Waiting. Will let you know.
Wendykh
Friday, September 26, 2008
No Hybernation This Fall For Me
Summer, what summer?
I know that i am not alone in my feelings that summers are gone before they start and that winter drags on forever.
The leaves are in their deepest golden hues and are trying desperately to fall from their tree branches. In the meantime, i am trying to enjoy them for the beautiful piece of nature that they are. But somehow, I still see the bare branches as a come hither to the snow that is inevitable in this region.
I am not a fall / winter kind of gal. In fact, I quite dislike them. To me fall just means that a dark cold winter looms in the not too distant future. I should have been a bear. At least they are expected to fatten up in the fall before they lay down for a long winter nap.
I won't be napping this fall. In fact for once in my life, I am really looking forward to this fall. In a few weeks Jill and Chris are expecting their first child together. I am so excited that I will have another grandchild to spoil. I have done such a marvelous job of spoiling Alanna. They did not wish to know the gender of the baby so it will be a surprise for all of us whether they have a son or daughter. As I understand it they are in the minority of expecting parents who do not wish to know ahead of time. Good for them, as their really are too few real surprises in our lives.
They have just moved into their new home yesterday. I guess they thought their lives weren't full enough of adventure. As we watched an endless parade of boxes be moved out of their home to their brand new bigger home, it brought back the memories of all the moves, we have been through. I was never brave enough to do one 8 months pregnant! Their home is a beautiful spacious two storey home. It smells like a new home. Men love the new car smell, but I would have to guess that for women there is nothing like the smell of a brand new home. Its the smell of love, hope and memories yet to be made.
As these two events settle out, fall will give me one more event to look forward to. Jackie will be coming home (!) from Tokyo for two weeks. I don't think Calgary has ever been her home. She has been away from Canada for almost two years now. She arrives in early November and I am already counting the days. The last time I hugged Jackie was over a year ago as we hugged goodbye in the Osaka airport.
I know that there is email, skype and even the telephone to stay connected. But there is nothing that can ever fill in for that good old feeling of touch. It will be wonderful to have my children and grandchildren all in one place. I am sure that this will not happen all that often in the future. So for now, I look forward to this with great anticipation. It is better than the feeling of waiting for Christmas and its surprises.
Bill continues to work at retirement and enjoying it. I have been working casual two to three days each week as a clerk in a baby well clinic. All those newborn babes are just warming my cockles to having a brand new grandchild to hold and cuddle.
Its all good.
WendyKH
I know that i am not alone in my feelings that summers are gone before they start and that winter drags on forever.
The leaves are in their deepest golden hues and are trying desperately to fall from their tree branches. In the meantime, i am trying to enjoy them for the beautiful piece of nature that they are. But somehow, I still see the bare branches as a come hither to the snow that is inevitable in this region.
I am not a fall / winter kind of gal. In fact, I quite dislike them. To me fall just means that a dark cold winter looms in the not too distant future. I should have been a bear. At least they are expected to fatten up in the fall before they lay down for a long winter nap.
I won't be napping this fall. In fact for once in my life, I am really looking forward to this fall. In a few weeks Jill and Chris are expecting their first child together. I am so excited that I will have another grandchild to spoil. I have done such a marvelous job of spoiling Alanna. They did not wish to know the gender of the baby so it will be a surprise for all of us whether they have a son or daughter. As I understand it they are in the minority of expecting parents who do not wish to know ahead of time. Good for them, as their really are too few real surprises in our lives.
They have just moved into their new home yesterday. I guess they thought their lives weren't full enough of adventure. As we watched an endless parade of boxes be moved out of their home to their brand new bigger home, it brought back the memories of all the moves, we have been through. I was never brave enough to do one 8 months pregnant! Their home is a beautiful spacious two storey home. It smells like a new home. Men love the new car smell, but I would have to guess that for women there is nothing like the smell of a brand new home. Its the smell of love, hope and memories yet to be made.
As these two events settle out, fall will give me one more event to look forward to. Jackie will be coming home (!) from Tokyo for two weeks. I don't think Calgary has ever been her home. She has been away from Canada for almost two years now. She arrives in early November and I am already counting the days. The last time I hugged Jackie was over a year ago as we hugged goodbye in the Osaka airport.
I know that there is email, skype and even the telephone to stay connected. But there is nothing that can ever fill in for that good old feeling of touch. It will be wonderful to have my children and grandchildren all in one place. I am sure that this will not happen all that often in the future. So for now, I look forward to this with great anticipation. It is better than the feeling of waiting for Christmas and its surprises.
Bill continues to work at retirement and enjoying it. I have been working casual two to three days each week as a clerk in a baby well clinic. All those newborn babes are just warming my cockles to having a brand new grandchild to hold and cuddle.
Its all good.
WendyKH
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