Spring Solstice? I call bullsh*t!!

*SIGH*

Sorry for the language people, but this is truly turning into the winter that never ends! Wow. I was hoping to get out hiking - yes, hiking - these past few days off.... I mean, we just had the Spring Solstice, right? And it is almost the end of March, right?! I remember a few years ago, being out ROCK CLIMBING in Cougar Canyon on April 1st... so it shouldn't be a stretch to think that it might be nice enough to go for a simple hike by this point on the calendar. Aaaaaack! Wrong.

I did end up getting out and about for a few walks around the town of Canmore however, including wandering along some riverside trails that I didn't know existed. Plus I had the opportunity to visit with a couple of great friends whom I haven't seen much of lately, and I got my puppy fix by hanging out with Neve.

In the big scheme of things, I really shouldn't complain: I was still in the mountains, and I was not at work! Speaking of which - tomorrow is my "Monday", and as soon as I'm done this set of weekend dayshifts, I get to escape to lots of sun and fun! Woot!

Cheers!




Ha ha!! Some fun with road grime!



It's all fun and games!

Fun, and games, and more games, and more fun.... Isn't that what it's all about? Hee hee! I know, I know, I have to be serious some of the time, since I am a grown-up after all, with responsibilities. (Oy. The "r" word!!).

Seriously though, who isn't up for playing cards once in a while, or shooting pool, or driving their Sister's sporty little VW through the Arizona desert like it was meant to be driven....

 

Thanks for letting us borrow your car Heather!!

Next on the agenda: Palm Springs! In just seven more sleeps, we're off on a tri-state golfing tour which starts in Southern California. I even bought new shoes for the adventure - I'm very excited! As well, I'm going to get a chance to seriously put my driving skills to the test.... by putting the pedal to the metal in a Nascar at the Las Vegas Motor Speedway! Yep, I signed up to be behind the wheel for 8 laps in a real-life race car. It will be a full-on, helmet, suit, climb-in-the-window-cuz-the-door-is-welded-shut kind of experience, and I am stoked about it!

It's all fun and games!!

Cheers.

 

 

 

I used to golf in my flip-flops... Now I have no excuse!!

Snow, Skiing, Sun, SUPing, Sightseeing...

How about all of the above!!? The last few weeks have been awesomely fun-filled - from the snowy slopes of the Rockies, to the desert warmth of Arizona....

Jennifer joined us for a fantastic ski day!

Lovin' Lake Louise!

Standin' on a corner, in Winslow, Arizona!!



The meteor crater, west of Winslow - super cool!

The largest chunk ever found of the 150 ft diameter meteor.

Touring the Titan Missile Museum, south of Tucson, AZ.

103 feet tall... Titan II is one of 54 missiles which are now disarmed and disabled.

We took in a Flames game... in Phoenix! Too bad Calgary lost...

SUP'ing at Saguaro Lake.

Sista makes mimosas!! Yummy!

Now I'm working til the end of the month (with a few play-dates scheduled before then of course!), and on the 31st it's off to Palm Springs. I've never been, so it should be interesting!

More major travel plans are in the works.... stay tuned!

Cheers!

 

Enough already!

Alright, I don't know about you, but I've had darn near all I can take of the cold weather! Honestly, I do love winter - love skiing, love the snow-covered Rockies, love it when the air feels crisp and fresh on a clear blue day.... but MINUS 40 DEGREES CELSIUS?? That is nothing short of crazy.

March 1st... -40C... Seriously?
Thank crikey for heated seats!!

View of my plant from across the
river - does that look cold or what!!

Collateral damage. Ouch.

In spite of the bitter temps, a few fun things have happened this past couple of weeks. Lindsay got her drivers' license, on the first try!! Congrats Linds! My Dad celebrated his birthday - the big 74.... Woot! And Nichole moved into her first apartment. Exciting!

Doesn't the saying about March go something like 'in like a lion, out like a lamb'? If so, then the deep freeze will hopefully be ending soon! In the meantime, only eight more sleeps until Chris and I head for the sunny south. It will be a nice treat to spend time in flip flops instead of a parka! Yeah baby!

Stay warm, people!

Cheers!

Me and my favorite person.

A Golden Day

Well yesterday was just all-around stellar. I was able to take the day off work, so Chris and I zipped out to Canmore late Saturday evening - and we made it in time for a short soak in the hot tub - how's our luck!

On Sunday morning, after setting an alarm with the intent of getting our arses out of bed to watch the Canada/Sweden Olympic hockey game, we dozed until about 8:00am. Then, after checking up on the game via the internet and seeing the happy happy, joy joy, gold-medal celebration (Yeah Canada!!), we rushed out to Sunshine.

10 gold medals - I'm proud to be Canadian!

Rushing was totally unnecessary. I don't think there were even a hundred cars in the parking lot when we arrived. Now, Olympic closing ceremony day could have had something to do with it, or perhaps it was the fact that it was -25C.... Brrrrrr.... Whatever the reason, we ended up having the hill almost to ourselves!

No wind, but cold enough to frost-nip my nose!

The fun starts here!

So while it was chilly, the great snow conditions and lack of crowds more than made up for it.

Today is the first day of my first official set of two weeks off, now that I've returned to shiftwork. I have a couple of meetings to attend and one OT shift booked, but other than that, I have no schedule for the next 14 days! Love it! Love my life!!

Cheers!

Makin' the best of it!

The beautiful Rockies are finally getting the luscious snow that they deserve! And thinking that it might be incredibly busy at the hill yesterday (Family Day holiday), we got our butts in gear extra early and were on the road to the pow by 7:30am. As we were cruising along just west of Banff, approaching the exit to Sunshine, an executive decision was made to keep driving.... to Lake Louise.

And a most excellent decision it was!

Sun! Yay! No sad faces here!

New boards - love 'em!

Powder galore.

What a day! Overall, Louise hasn't had quite as much snowfall as Sunshine, but they did get dumped on this week. We were on the gondola shortly after 9:00am and ripped up the fresh whiteness right until the lifts closed. Oh, and we may have had some lunch and a beer in there somewhere too.... LOL!!

It was a fantastic weekend, and I'm stoked about the forecast for more, more, more snow in the mountains! Yeah! Life's so good!

Cheers!

Ka-POW!

It's been two, maybe three weeks since we've been out skiing. Lately, the conditions have been marginal and deteriorating - throughout January, the weather was horribly windy and cold, and there was very little snow. I was speculative about how the season was shaping up - until this week that is. Sunshine got over two feet of the beautiful white stuff in the past seven days, and the thermometer soared to a balmy -4 degrees C.... So we hit the hill super early on Friday and enjoyed a most glorious day!

Check out all the snow!

 

Fat ski fun!!

 

 

EnviroCan says the snow is going to continue all weekend, so we are heading out again tomorrow - I'm so looking forward to it!


Cheers!

Festivities

The Canmore Winter Carnival was in full swing this past weekend, and even though it was chilly, we managed to get outside and enjoy it!

 

There was an ice carving competition, a log-sawing competition, and there was skiing and mini-dogsled races. We also added to the mix a bit of shopping, and some random wine tasting, and a trip up the Sulphur Mountain gondola (in Banff). It was quite the day!

Can you tell these two are siblings!!?

Not a cloud as far as you could see!

Chris's sister joined us and we had tons of laughs! She's a lot of fun and I look forward to her visiting again soon - I owe her a decent breakfast (long story!), not to mention that she probably wants to redeem herself at cribbage.... heh heh heh....

Well tomorrow, I'm back on shift for a day, then I have a couple of days of training, and then... I have a week off! So stoked!

Cheers!