Sunday, June 23, 2013

Somebody is wearing her cranky pants!


And that somebody would be Mother Nature! Wow, has she been in a pissy mood lately!! She has wreaked havoc across Alberta this week, with non-stop rain and subsequent horrific flooding. Calgary and High River have been particularly devastated, and other areas around Medicine Hat, Lethbridge and Red Deer have seen way too much water as well.

The community closest to my heart which suffered, is the Rocky Mountain paradise town of Canmore. Luckily for me, my place escaped unscathed (although I haven't actually seen it yet - I guess at the very worst, my third floor condo could now be a first floor condo, with a lake view!!), but sadly, many homes did not fare well.



Here is how peaceful and beautiful Cougar Creek normally is:





And here is Cougar Creek, at the peak of its wrath:






The brute force of something which is usually so inert will never cease to amaze me. These pictures show how the water just chewed its way through everything and went wherever it wanted.






Fortunately, few lives were lost in the province-wide fiasco, and now that the flood-waters have receded, the massive clean-up process and recovery can begin.

I'm wishing good karma and positive vibes to everyone who was affected by this incredible natural disaster - nature is truly the epitome of beauty and the beast, all at the same time.


Cheers.

**The second, third and fourth pic are mine.... all others came from various sources and are used for editorial purposes only - no copyright issues are intentional. Thanks.**

Sunday, June 16, 2013

For my parents....


It's Father's Day today! And you know, thinking back (and actually going and having a look through my blog to confirm it), I did not make mention of the equally important Mother's Day, last month. Tsk.... My bad. So I'm shouting out a Happy Father's Day and Happy Mother's Day to all those VIP's in the world who've taken on the life-long career of being a parent.

I have to laugh a little, because I am always hearing people boast about their offspring: Everybody thinks their own child is the absolute smartest, cutest, most advanced, most amazing, most perfect child in the history of children. Well, having parents is very similar.... because if I do say so myself, MY Mom and Dad are truly the coolest, most perfect parents a person could ever want, and need. Now don't get me wrong - my sister and I got hollered at and grounded and even got our butts swatted on the odd occasion when we were particularly smart-mouthed.... But we also received unconditional love and support, our home was open and always welcoming to all of our friends, our summer vacations rocked, I learned some mad card-playing skills, and I saw alot of eye-rolls but honestly do not ever remember hearing "I told you so" from either parent (even though I'm sure they were thinking it, many many times over!! LOL). I wanted for nothing; I had so much fun growing up and at every available opportunity I was encouraged to try new things.

I am never going to be a parent, but I will forever be someone's kid.... and I am probably the luckiest kid on the planet, seriously. I love my Mom and Dad more than anything - they are the best people I've ever known and I am fortunate beyond belief to have the family that I do!


This is one of my favorite photos!
Love you Elmo and Dunkster!!

I wrote this for my parents, years and years and years ago.... but it still stands true.....


It Takes Alot

It takes alot for two people to be parents.
It takes even more to be good parents,
like you.

It takes alot to get through the sleepless nights in infancy,
and then again during the adolescent years.

It takes alot to let a toddler inquisitively explore the world,
and listen respectfully to a teenager who can take on the world.

It takes alot to be stern with a teary-eyed three year old,
and to reason with a defiant sixteen year old.

It takes alot to teach a child right from wrong,
to instill morals and values,
and to sit back and watch a young adult learn from mistakes made.

It takes alot to support all the activities a growing youngster is involved in,
and to support all the decisions and choices a grown child makes.

But you two did it all,
and you did it all so extremely well.

No complaining,
very little questioning,
minimal interference.

Just love, honesty and understanding,
and immense confidence and trust.

It takes alot.



Thank you Duncan and Elinor! I love you!!!


-Cheryle

Saturday, June 15, 2013

Sportster Love....


Mmmmmm.... Love, love, LOVE my bike! No, sorry... not the kind with pedals.... this bike of which I speak has 1200 cc's of V-Twin goodness.... Mmmmm!!


My HD Sporty - Ember RED of course!

I got it out of storage a few weeks ago and have been out on it a handful of times. It's sooooo much fun... and I know, I've said that before... but really, it IS!! Can't wait to start riding to work on a regular basis - now if only the weather would cooperate!

Cheers!


Saturday, June 8, 2013

Sunshine, where art thou?


June 8th. I had to do a double-take on the calendar.  June..... 8th..... Crikey, where does the time go!!? Sadly, between the uncooperative weather and that necessary evil called 'my job', I haven't been outdoors doing fun stuff nearly as much as I would like. Today however, I did spend some quality time outside and made a quick trip up to West Wind Pass.





I've been up to the pass several times, and it definitely has a huge reward-to-effort ratio. It is a fantastic place to breathe some fresh mountain air and enjoy lunch - which is exactly what I did. A bit of exercise, beautiful scenery, and best of all with great company.... what an awesome afternoon!

Tomorrow... not sure what's up. Rain, apparently. D'oh! Although I'm pretty sure I won't melt, so I am going to try to take full advantage of whatever the day might bring. I'm not at work, so how bad could it be!!

Cheers!

Not really related at all to this post... LOL!
I simply love graffiti, and I saw this old building
on my way home after hiking.