Julie & Keenan's
2004-2005 JOURNAL
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This journal is over, but be sure to check out our fourth year anniversary website and our 2005-2006 journal.
August 21, 2005
It's been a long hot summer, but also a dry one. For the last few weeks we've been dealing with our well having no water or very low water. Earlier today one of our neighbours had their well dry up, and they didn't fool around, they ordered a water truck to come and fill it right away. We were in the process of sleeping in after a rather exhausting schedule the past couple of weeks, but (with some help from Julie) Keenan hauled himself out of bed and organized to have our well filled too. In the end both wells got filled from the same truck and it was only $90 each.
The other challenges of the month of been health-related. Julie somehow acquired a totally wicked case of poison ivy. Keenan had it too, but it was nothing compared to Julie's giant red bubbly blisters! What doesn't seem to make sense is how we got it. Keenan had symptoms while we were still in Montreal with a group of young adults from LiveWorkPlay. Julie did not seem to have any symptoms until after being up at Round Lake for the camping trip with SMILE participants. In any event, it got so nasty that Julie went to the doctor and ended up with a prescription for steroids.
The Montreal and camping trips both went really well, but it was very tiring, because in between the trips we were trying really hard to get the office ready for September. There's been some minor renovations completed and we've compressed the space a little to save money on rent. It's going to work out great, but re-organizing is a challenge. But we've made a lot of progress. The four staff workstations are all set up (the two of us plus Grace and Allison) so it won't be too much of a shock getting back to work in a couple of weeks.
Back on the home front we haven't been very physically active. Keenan got arch supports to help with the problem of the deterioration and resulting pain of his heels, but as a result his achilles tendon is in a lot of pain, and that's probably going to continue for a while. The tendon doesn't have much ability to stretch, so when you move the bones in your feet with arch supports, it pulls on the tendon and it hurts. But it's still a lot better than have the bones in your heels falling apart.
So there's been some physical challenges, but it's also been demanding emotionally with the transition (out of LiveWorkPlay) of Fran and Dale. Fran's last day was August 12, and we had a really nice lunch with her at Domus. She's off on a big new adventure as a teacher, and hopefully it will be exciting and successful for her. It was just difficult having such a long period of transition. She's been so involved for the past several years and it's been hard to figure out how she should fit in as her time at LWP was winding down. But I think we all did really well with it and most importantly did it in a way that made for minimal inconvenience to the participants. Fran did a great job with the summer program and managing things at LWP while we were in Montreal.
There's been a different challenge with Dale, because he's in the tough spot of setting up a new business at the same time as cleaning up what is left of the workshop at LWP. So it has dragged on a lot longer than we had hoped, but the finish line is now in sight. And hopefully starting in September we'll have a really effective partnership with Dale, where he will be taking on some SMILE participants for work experience placements. All in all, this transition has also gone about as well as could be expected, and again, the participants have been impacted as little as possible.
At the same time as dealing with transitions out, we've been working on the transition in. Grace and Allison spent the weekend with us during the civic holiday weekend. It was really productive, because you don't waste time getting back into each day when you are all staying in the same place together. We're working on bringing more of a cognitive therapy approach to what we do, and we'll need to do a good job of being consistent in that approach, so it was important to get a good foundation for it. We all seem pretty comfortable with each other which is important because honesty and open communication is going to be critical.
We have managed to fit in a little bit of time here and there for things other than work, but not much. We've seen Christina, David, Meredith, and Ben and had a delicious dinner at their house, we've seen Marnie and Dave and some of the kids for brief visits, we've seen our parents including an evening of Mamma Mia at the NAC, which was fun even though we weren't sitting with them. Kevin came over to see as at the Renegades game (an exciting 22-17 wind over Saskatchewan) and gave credit to him for a very accurate final score prediction.
We are still planning to take our big kayaking trip up the Ottawa River to Portage du Fort and back, about 160 km in all. Julie wants to try it in 4 days, while Keenan is not so sure! In any event, provided Julie's poison ivy has cleared up to a reasonable level we'll give it a go! We have to be back by the 28th for the Rolling Stones concert, we are going with Sean and Chantal and it should be a blast.
July 24, 2005
The weather has been a lot nicer. There were still some hot days, like yesterday, but the humidity was not so severe and it was comfortable. We were especially comfortable with our fancy new lounge chairs, which were an early birthday present to Keenan from Trish and Dave with some help from Julie.
We also spent time with David on Thursday because there was a Renegades game. It was a tough 29-21 loss to Edmonton. Keenan is now writing an amateur sports column about the Renegades home games at www.ottawarenegades.info and the editor at ottawastart.com has decided to feature it on his website, so it's getting quite a few visitors which is fun.
July 17, 2005
It's hot. We're committed to the no air conditioning house and the no air conditioning car as a basic environmental gesture, but it's been quite a summer to start!
Speaking of hot, along with dad Kingstone we've had quite a good time at the last two Renegades games. First came an unbelievable double overtime victory over powerful Montreal, and then a relatively easy victory over Calgary. We were all jumping up and down with excitement in the Montreal game, and Keenan ended up with a deep bruise on his hand from doing too many powerful high-fives!
Last week there was a powerful thunderstorm and we got caught out on the water in our kayaks. A few nights before we were thrilled to discover a pair of river otters in Constance Creek. The male played with us a bit, making these weird snorting noises and making us look like fools by constantly changing his location. It was great. So we went back to see if they were still there. By the time we got as far as we could go up the creek (it gets overgrown with thick vegetation in summer) there were storm clouds to the west as well as distant thunder. We got to the mouth of the creek with about 2km to go across the bay, and there were wicked lightning strikes that looked very close. We paddled like maniacs across the bay and the storm literally chased us across. We were just throwing the kayaks in the shed when the full fury hit. It was quite a show, huge flashes of sheet lightning, huge strikes of lightning bolts, and the wind...the wind! Our neighbour's rubber dingy blew by like a tumbleweed. We told them about it and they found it two days later. It was a real treat to be out on our covered porch watching it all unfold.
The wildlife has been another continuing treat. We sometimes wake up in the morning to the sight of a blue heron fishing in the shallow water just a few feet from our back yard. There are ducklings swimming in the bay every day, sometimes three different families. The muskrat continues living under the rocks in the back. Julie spotted a raccoon snoozing in the middle of the day on the porch of our mostly absentee neighbours to the south. Sometimes a porcupine goes between our houses to get a drink from the bay. Terns and kingfishers divebomb the minnows in the shallows, where longnose gar and leaping bass are lurking. And most recently two loons have visited, serenading us one morning with their typical haunting tune.
The only work we really feel is needed is to put in some shrubs or trees between our property and the busy cottage to north. They are a very nice family but when we get home from work and want to enjoy dinner on the lower deck, we'd like a little privacy to add to our relaxation. But we are truly spoiled. Not only are they very nice people, they aren't here much except for July and August. So, no complaints, but maybe we'll put up a small natural barrier in the spring.
Our ongoing follies with the broken washing machine are over. We almost bought a whole new washer and dryer thanks to some confusing advertising at the Brick, but thanks to a very honest manager there we ended up getting the washer repaired for just $300 and it is working great. Regional Factory did the work by the way, and they were very good.
The summer is flying by at work. The ACES summer program is already half over, although we are not very involved with it, that's Allison and Fran's responsibility. The two of us are running the summer SMILE schedule by ourselves. It's sort of fun, but it will be good to be part of a team again in September.
Yesterday we went to a barbecue at Jamey and Fran's place before the game. It was brutally humid, but we had a good time, we picked up Penny on the way there, and rest of the LWP-related contingent included Grace, Dale, Elaine, and Allison.
A week earlier we took part in a surprise shower for Grace and Chris. We organized to buy them a nice microwave, and a bunch of LWPers went in on it too. They are already using it. It was a really nice group of people at the shower, but again, it was disgustingly hot. We are looking forward to the cool fall weather, but soon enough will no doubt be complaining of the bitter cold. Such is life in Ottawa!
June 26, 2005
Oh dear, it's been almost a month! Well dear diary, that's partly because whatever time we haven't been spending at work, we've been out on the patio relaxing and looking out over our scenic bay! The muskrat is still living under the big rocks on our beach, and now he's got all sorts of company with dozens of large turtles. We've had to "rescue" a couple of turtles who got lost in our yard on their way to the water.
On Saturday we finally had some guests over to enjoy it with us. Colin and Cyndi (she's back, yay!) came over for a big barbecue lunch and some drinks. They left to play golf and Wendy popped over with her new dog, beagle Bailey. After an afternoon of laughing it up with her, Colin and Cyndi came back and we all ended up on our second-floor patio (now complete with an awesome mesh bug barrier).
With Dale and Fran moving on in August there's been a lot of work to do planning the transition for September, but it is going well. There's still lots to do this summer including a Montreal trip and camping trip, but lots of planning has been done in advance and hopefully it will all go smoothly.
Keenan has been suffering with horrible pain in his left foot, and was found to have serious bone alignment problems in both feet due mainly to very flat arches. He got orthotics on Thursday morning and by Thursday afternoon he was already feeling a bit better. He got a bit carried away and mowed the lawn (it's a pretty big job with our little electric mower) but despite a bit of foot fatigue still feels pretty good.
Julie has been waiting patiently for that foot problem to be resolved so we can resume paddling. But it has been so stinking hot that we've been better off just relaxing anyway. The house gets a bit hot upstairs, but it's nothing like it was in the house on Alta Vista.
We've seen both sets of parents a few times over the past few weeks, and they are doing well. David had to miss the Renegades preseason home game but he and Trish had a great time in Toronto attending an amazing event that Peter organized. Barry and Marjorie are getting the house ready for some changes with the pending retirement from uOttawa so we came over to move some furniture. Barry came with us to the Renegades game and Julie picked up on the idea that he wanted to see the Tatoo coming up at the Civic Centre, so we got him tickets for Father's Day and they had a great time.
We're having ongoing challenges with the Frigidaire appliances we inherited with the house. We've already paid to have the dishwasher fix, and now the clothes washer is dead. If you are buying a front load clothes washer, get the extended warranty. The drum bearing on these things wears out. The washers are great because they are better for your clothes and use less energy, but they don't last 30 years like the old machines.
We really like the Echo. It's been a little hot especially if we have to sit in traffic, but we feel great about using so little gas, not only because we save money but because we are creating much less pollution. It would be a better world with everyone in Echos!
We've been pleasantly surprised by how quiet it is here even in the summer (so far). The biggest difference is our cottage neighbours are here almost every day with their three kids and they are not what you would call "quiet." But we are talking about three kids on the loose at a cottage! We get 10 months of almost dead silence here, so we'll manage a couple of months of screaming kids.
May 29, 2005
Hey, how about that dear diary...only one week since we last spoke! When is the last time that happened? I'm sure none of us can remember.
We had an interesting day yesterday. It started with helping out at a fundraiser for Heartwood House at the Great Glebe Garage Sale. Nerds on Site went through the neighbourhood collecting unwanted electronic items, brought them to the back of the Pretoria Loblaws, and then we stuffed them in the van and took them to Celltronx where they will eventually be recycled in various ways and Heartwood will get some money for them that will be shared among the groups (like LWP) who helped out. We managed two huge loads and it took less than 90 minutes, and then we were on our way.
Most of the day was spent on an interesting drive where we skirted the shores of the Ottawa River from Aylmer all the way to Portage du Fort where we crossed to Ontario and eventually ended up back home. We checked out a number of small communities on the water's edge because this was research for a big kayaking trip were are planning for August. We stopped at Quyon, Norway Bay, Portage du Fort, Red Pine Point, Arnprior, and Fitzroy Harbour.
We started getting hungry at Norway Bay, and were planning to get some hot dogs and/or sausages at a chip stand along the way, but believe it or not every place we went they only had french fries, so we didn't eat until we got home...we stopped at the Dunrobin meat shop and picked up 12 big all beef hot dogs...Keenan ate 5, Julie ate 3. Hungry.
It was a pretty interesting drive and we think we have the trip about 80% figured out. We'll paddle from our house to Fitzroy provincial park the first night. Then (and this is one thing we haven't figured out yet) we'll portage around the Chats Falls dam and make our way to Arnprior where we can paddle a short way up the Madawaska and stay in the 'Prior for the night. After that (and this is another thing we haven't figured out yet) we'll have to stay somewhere in the Castleford/Norway Bay area, perhaps on one of the islands in Lac des Chats. Then we hit the midpoint of our journey at Portage du Fort, where there is a place to say right below the dam. And then we'll head back.
May 22, 2005
Spring has sprung here on the shores of beautiful Constance Bay! We've been having a blast interacting with ducks, geese, muskrats, chipmunks, deer...you name it. One sunset is prettier than the next.
Our whackiest adventure so far is known simply as "The Journey." We paddled the entire length of Constance Creek and back. This is not something that people do. Click here to find out why!
A couple of days ago on Friday we had both sets of parents over for a great afternoon and evening. We all just had a great time chatting, eating, drinking, and walking. Julie got these freshly cut rib steaks from Aubrey's (where else?) and Keenan barbecued them to perfection out on the patio as we all feasted in the sun. For some reason there were a lot of mosquitos about (hardly any the next day) but they didn't bite much.
Last weekend we had a great visit with David, Christina, Meredith, and Ben. Meredith put on quite a show, and Ben was no slouch either! It was also occasion to mark birthdays for Julie and David.
On May 8 we celebrated Jane's birthday party at the Plant Pool. It was nice because mom and dad Wellar as well as Dave's parents were all there. There wasn't much to do for adults except watch the kids, but that was entertainment enough. The party got pretty wild especially with the pinata. Kudos to Marnie on making an incredible homemade pinata.
May 1, 2005
Well, "anniversary month" at LiveWorkPlay is over. What an exhausting success it was. $16000 raised at the Law Day Fun Run/Walk on the 16th, $48,000 at the auction on the 21st, and an amazing evening at the banquet on the 28th.
The end of the banquet was a moving experience for both of us. It's all a bit of a blur, but basically we had 180 showing their appreciation for our hard work and it was quite overwhelming. It even went so far as to be crowned king and queen! Click here to see a picture.
It's not the sort of thing we'd want done for us more than once every ten years, but it definitely felt right on the 28th. It's important to pause for even just a moment and accept the reality that something pretty amazing has been accomplished. But now of course it is time to move on because there is a lot more to do!
April 10, 2005
Saturday (April 9) was a gorgeous day. On Friday we had a long day at work followed by a night at Barrymore's to see Big Jeezus Truck with Sean, Chantal, Dean, Wendy, and Mark. We were exhausted but has a lot do and were out and about on Saturday fairly early. We went into work for a 10:00 am meeting, then did our tax returns, and then had a lunch meeting.
After than we did a whole bunch of shopping and got back home in the later afternoon. The sun was shining brilliantly on the back deck, and he just kicked back and enjoyed it. Keenan was rolling around on the big rocks along the shoreline while Julie was stretched out on the deck with the paper. Much to our delight there is a muskrat living just south of our property and he has been swimming along the narrow ice-free channel collecting food and materials for his lodge. He whines like a small dog, apparently something they do in the mating season. From reading up on muskrats they are not afraid to take on a human if feeling trapped or otherwise angry, so while we find it cute to watch, we'll offer plenty of respect!
We had barbecued veal chops from Aubrey's and a nice salad with white whine for dinner on the patio and watched the sun go down. This house is unbelievable, over dinner we talked about how amazing it is that we got it. It's such a different feeling that our last house, which was in a great neighbourhood, had a large property, and all that sort of thing, but it just wasn't "us."
Oh, and it all happened so fast it still doesn't seem real, but we bought a new (used) car. The Corolla is dead. Fortunately, everything went at once. We drove it all winter with few issues, and then brake lines, gas lines, suspension, gauges...all dead or dying. Julie's dad wasted no time giving us a hand with a replacement vehicle. We were down at Mendes on Friday morning where he'd lined up for us a creampuff of a used Camry, which was a beautiful car but a bit bigger and fancier than we were looking for. We test drove an Echo and then a Corolla, and we really liked the Echo! We took it out on the 417 and had a very long test drive (no one from Mendes came with us, which was nice) and liked the Echo better than the Corolla. Keenan fits into the front seat just fine, and both the Lemon Aid book and Consumer Reports think the 2001 Echo is a fantastic car. So, Dave helped us get the best deal possible and we pick it up Monday! It's in absolutely perfect shape and looks brand new inside and out.
Keenan's parents are off in Colorado right now, so we'll just drive up with the new car when they get back and surprise them. Barry should be pleased to know that we'll be commuting with one of the most fuel efficient cars in history.
Sunday turned out to be a gorgeous day too! We went for a long walk in the "neighbourhood" which means walking along Armitage which follows the shoreline, and then eventually taking a small road to Greendland which returned us to Armitage. We did notice all sorts of walking and bike trails cutting through the wilderness and we'll have to try those out.
Most of the ice is now off the main section of the river, but the bay is still about 90% ice. When we got back from our hike (which included sightings of various woodpeckers and a blue jay) "Mr. Peepers" our muskrat friend was swimming along near the edge of the ice. After a while he stopped straight our from our property, stared at Keenan, and then dove under the water...he swam all the way under the water and into a little cave formed by the rocks at the water's edge. Eventually he swam just a few feet from where Keenan was sitting and went under a different rock. A cute and intriguing critter!
Julie crashed out right on the deck and had a little nap. Then we had BLT sandwiches and a gin and tonic. Julie gave pookie a treat and let him sit out with us for a few minutes.
March 27, 2005
Today was yet another gorgeous early spring treat. The sky was bluer than blue, and the sun was a blaze of glory. In the middle of the afternoon after a day of lazing about and some cooking we stumbled out ont othe deck in our lounge wear (t-shirts and pyjama bottoms) and had our first stretch in the sunshine since moving to this wonderful house. We poked at knots in the deck, watched a crow picking for worms, chatted with a squirrel in the tree, and speculated about when the ice would be off the bay. Here we are watching the sun go down.
It was a much-deserved piece of relaxation, as we've had a tumultuously busy month! We've had to tackle many serious issues at LiveWorkPlay because it is time to take a serious run at creating housing and that means we have to be serious about every other part of the organization too. We're still in the process of making some tough decisions and we don't really have all the answers, but some things are starting to become a little more clear.
We've also had quite a bit of good news at work which has been helpful in dealing with some of the more difficult times. We are getting a grant from Ronald McDonald Children's Charities for some excellent technology that will help us a lot with out teaching stragegies. And some sponsorships are starting to come in for the auction.
One of the coolest things was a meeting with the Parliamentary Assistant to the Minister of Community and Social Services (aka MPP Ernie Eves from Belleville). We supported the clients for a two week period to get ready for the meeting and lead it themselves. Julie helped them come up with a really great agenda, and Keenan put together a special slide show, and it all came together in an amazing way. Ernie Parsons is a very sincere man and he obviously appreciated what the participants were trying to communicate about themselves and what they want for the future.
Last weekend we had all the Friday night volunteers over on Saturday for a short bit of professional development and an amazing potluck dinner. The next day we went with David, Christina, Meredith and Ben for a fun time at Fulton's surgarbush. Julie's dad got a new car (Avalon) which is a used car but it just perfect for him and was reasonably priced. Their new dog Oliver is a real sweetie and quite a change from poor old Elsa.
Way back on February 28th Keenan had a blast at the Motley Crue concert with Jamey, Sean, and Chantal. One reviewer wrote "it was cheesy and hard to take seriously, but it was also, at times, wonderfully entertaining" and that was about right.
It was a very different type of concert, but the Barra McNeils fundraiser for Heartwood House on St. Patty's Day was a really good time. Both sets of parents were there, but due to a seating mixup Julie ended up with her parents on one end of the aisle and Keenan with his on the other. Before the concert we had dinner with Lucile which as really great. She is doing amazing things with the co-op and the three of us share a lot in common in terms of our motivation for what we do.
February 20, 2005
Hey, it's less than a month since the last update!
On Friday night (two days ago) we finally had Dale, Elaine, Jamey, and Fran over for dinner and to see the new house. Elaine had already seen it because she did some of the cat-sitting for us during the Miami trip (more on that later) but it was fun to have everyone over for a formal housewarming. We even got a really nice gift that - a candle chandelier - that we hope to use on our second story patio.
This was our week off, and although we had some fun and got a bit of rest, there were a few work things to do, and Keenan was still getting over a nasty cold that was at its worse in Miami the week before. The good news is that Julie seems to have fully recovered from passing kidney stones (also in Miami!). We went to see our doctor and he took us together in a joint appointment, it was a most unusual way to celebrate Valentine's Day. Keenan has bursitis in his left heel that might have to be treated, but otherwise, all is pretty well with both of us.
OK, you must want to know about this Miami business. It was a LiveWorkPlay trip with 12 of the SMILE participants. You can read about it at www.liveworkplay.ca/MIAMI. The short story is as follows. The plane we were supposed to take out of Ottawa was cancelled, so there was an interesting beginning, but it all got worked out. South Beach (Miami) was a great place and there might not have been all that much stress involved in the trip were it not for the fun that started 1:45 AM on Tuesday. Julie had been to the bathroom because she thought she had to pee, but then she felt sick. She woke Keenan who joined her in the bathroom. Then the puking started. Horrible, violent puking. Yes, we know what you are thinking...food poisoning right? That's what we thought too. But after throwing up for about the twelth time and with the pain migrating to her lower back, at about 3:30 AM the decision was made it was about time to find a hospital.
We arrived at the South Shore hospital about 4:00 AM. Julie was doubled over in pain and could hardly walk. After Keenan filled out a questionnaire they let us into the hospital and into an exam room. This would be our home for the next 12 hours.
The first hour or so was consumed with insurance and payment. Keenan had his FlexCare card in his wallet, which he have to the administrator (Santiago was his name). Santiago came back later and said that he could not reach anyone with the card and suggested Keenan give a VISA instead. With Julie writing on the table waiting for treatment it was tempting to give in to this, but he took the card and tried the number. It went to ManuLife but there was no option for health care. He dug through Julie's purse and found the travel card version of the FlexCare card and that number worked. "Kim" ended up talking to Santiago and they worked things out. A doctor finally saw Julie about 5:30 AM and pretty quickly arrived at the theory that she was suffering from one or more kidney stones.
After two urine tests, an ultrasound, and finally a CT scan, the suspicion was officially confirmed. Thanks to painkillers that included morphine, the time at the hospital was basically all about passing time (and passing the stone). The first stone (other smaller stones or pieces came later) did not show up until the next day, but obviously at some point on early Tuesday afternoon it moved to where it was no longer hurting so bad and Julie felt hugely better.
The challenge now was to get through the next two days in Miami having had basically no sleep in 36 hours. Julie was a bit tender but was able to move about, and Keenan had lost about 80% of his voice but was able to communicate, so the show went on. Fran and Dale did a great job on Tuesday with the group while we were in the hospital.
Getting back to Ottawa we had a number of visits planned and decided to keep on schedule despite not feeling too well, because things would only get busier once we had to go back to work. We saw both sets of parents and also visited with Christina, David, Meredith, and Ben. Meredith put on quite a show with a rush of energy after dinner.
David and Trisha got a new Dell computer after the whole fiasco with Keenan trying to help make David's older Mac laptop work with some moder programs. Marjorie has (coincidentally) the same new computer but the even newer thing for Keenan's parents was that they decided to buy a treadmill. So we went out to see Mike at Fitness Depot and he set them up with a great price on a PaceMaster. Then we all went to dinner at Baton Rouge.
Julie was a bit concerned about how her mom in particular would react to the kidney stones but she handled it really well. The doctor here in Ottawa sympathized with the pain (one of the worst pains you can experience) but basically suggested drinking more water and juice. Julie recognized that since moving to the new house she's not been drinking as much as she used to. So, orange juice is once again dominating the fridge.
Speaking of the house, it's been great and we are looking forward to getting on the water in spring. The wood stove is wonderful. It heats up the living area in a crazy way (sometimes as much as 24 celcius!) so the furnace shuts off and we save propane. It's been really nice being home during for a couple of days during this time off when we got to experience the sunset from the bedroom. On Saturday night there was some snow and crazy clowds between us and the sun and it was a really cool show.
January 27, 2005
It's been a month, and a busy one at that, even by K/J standards. We've both been at the exhaustion point a couple of times this month, but we are staggering our way towards the SMILE trip to Florida and then after that we'll have a full week where the office is closed and we hope to get a bit of rest.
Most of January has been all about work, but the time we have had in our new house has been pretty wonderful. Keenan got to use our new (used) snowblower for the first time. Even during the winter the bay has many different looks to it and each morning it is lovely to look out the windows to the west. We took one long walk out over the ice, stopping to look at the colouful huts and even an an ice sculpture (that's our house just to the right of the sculpture in the background).
Although they aren't found right near our house (at least not so far) a number of Great Grey Owls are living in the area. Yesterday we stopped near some farmland on our way back from town ("town" is now any of the built up areas along March Road between Kanata and South March, and Ottawa is "the big city") and took a picture of one of these lovely creatures. At one point he took off and flew right over our heads. Amazing!
Also on the home front, we finally got the wood stove installation completed. Well, just the chimney, the stove was already here (never used). It's made for a nice old fashioned routine. When we get home Keenan gets a fire going and Julie gets dinner going. By the time we've had dinner the firing is roaring and the living area is nice and warm for the rest of the night. We not only save on heating costs, but it's really cozy and for whatever reason very relaxing to have a fire going.
We haven't had a lot of visitors over, although Keenan's sister, partner, and all four kids spent a few hours in the afternoon sliding on the ice and fooling around. It should be a lot of fun for people to come over in the spring.
December 26, 2004
We're in the house! It's been over a week now and life in Dunrobin Shores has been great so far! We hosted our first dinner party on Christmas Eve with both sets of parents, Julie's brother, and his partner. The dining area accomodated the 8 of use quite nicely and we could probably manage 12 without much difficulty.
Most of the past two weeks was a blur, what with trying to finish up at the office and then moving all at the same time. The move itself went pretty well. We decided to manage it just the two of us, although we had many kind and generous offers of help.
It started on Thursday. After an excellent staff/partner dinner at Les Fougeres we headed out to Dunrobin Shores with our set of keys to what is now "our house." Although it was late and we were pretty tired, we needed to go out and unlock the doors because the Fireplace Centre would be arriving early tomorrow to start installing our wood stove chimney, and Star Choice would be coming to drop off receivers for sattelite television (more channels and cheaper than cable, check it out!).
There are lots of beautifully decorated houses on the drive, including a house on Greenland that has a projection system with little reindeers floating on the side of the house. Armitage was very quiet as we drove up just before midnight. The house was dark and we fumbled a bit getting the door open before realizing all we had to do was put in the code (it has a coded locking system as well as a key). The bolt slid open and we were in.
The first thing we saw was that Tommy and Tammy (previous owners) had left us two little bottles of champagne, a poinsettia, and a really nice note on the kitchen counter. We wandered around the place much as we did the day we drove out to the open house and first fell in love with it. It's definitely a different feeling from out last (and first) house in Alta Vista, where we never really seemed to move in.
We unlocked the door and left the house, stopping to check out the biggest of the two sheds. Keenan was pleasantly surprised to find that a very large pet carrier had been left behind. We snatched it up and took it back to Farnsworth because we'd need it to transport Bubba, who would surely be very upset about the move.
We got off to a decent start on Friday morning, picking up our 4500kg truck from Budget on Industrial. We started loading a little after 9:00am.
By mutual agreement, the big stuff was first...stove, fridge, leather sofa. The doors to the stove pop off easily, making a good grip easy and it was really no trouble. We have a good dolly, so once we were down the front steps, it was a short wheel down the walk and up the ramp into the truck.
The fridge was a different story, only because it is so darned big (more on that later!). We took the doors off, and also removed some parts from the screen door to give as much clearance as possible. We got stuck right on the lip of the front door. There was less than an inch to along the sides, so "wiggling" wasn't really an option. We backed it up and surged forward and found ourselves at the top of the stairs. Hurray! Then we took it one step at a time, onto the dolly, and into the truck.
The sofa is also a tight squeeze through the doors but we managed it. Then it was on to lesser furniture and boxes. And on and on until the truck was full. Left behind were the kayaks, snowblower, lawnmower, and other bits and pieces. We stopped off at Wendy's near Carling and March Road for chili and burgers and then it was off to Armitage to unload.
Unloading was beauty. We were able to position the truck so that the ramp extended right onto the front deck and from there it was just two feet into the front door! So everything rolled out quite quickly. Our fingers and forearms were getting a bit weak, but we made it without breaking anything!
The first and only screw-up of the day came after we positioned the fridge and plugged it in...turns out that when you swing the door open on this beast, it doesn't clear the kitchen island! Sigh. We can use it for now (it opens about 75%) but we'll have to sell it and get one that opens in the middle.
We finished unloading and headed back to Farnsworth for the kayaks and the rest of it. The truck wasn't quite long enough for both kayaks, but thankfully we were able to stick the bows through the little door that leads to the cab. We filled up the rest of the truck around them and then it was back out to Armitage.
Most of the stuff went into the shed. Keenan was intent on melting the snow and ice off the kayaks and the barbecue, but Julie pointed out that with the propane tank on the barbecue, it might not be a good idea to run a heater in the shed. Good thinking!
The race was on because we wanted to have a late dinner at Dick's on Merivale, but it closes at 10:00pm. We got there for about 9:30 and enjoyed some big juicy burgers and shakes.
We returned the truck to Budget and dropped the keys through the slot. The Corolla was waiting for us there, and it was a bit cold waiting for it to warm up and for the ice to come off the windshield. Back at Farnsworth we colled some more bits and pieces and loaded them in the van. Keenan grabbed Pookie and carried him out the van. Julie stuffed Bubba into the pet carrier, and together we carted him into a spot just behind the front seats. During the trip her did a little bit of crying, but it really wasn't too bad. Pookie had blast, crawling all over the dash, driver, passenger, and everything else. He decided the best spot was right on top of the pet carrier where he had a nice view out the back window.
It took every ounce of determination to finish this one last unloading. Our fingers and arms were definitely losing interest in gripping and carrying. We unleashed the cats. Their little spider senses were tingling as they scoured the every inch of the house. Bubba was relieved to discover the familiar bed and boxspring, and sound entered his "happy place" (inside the boxspring).
Saturday we awoke to our wonderful view of the frozen bay and the trees in the distance. Julie was up and at it getting things organized. Keenan was trying to sleep off a bit of a cold and only got involved when the Steelers game was about to come on TV and the television set and sattelite receiver weren't hooked up yet.
December 12, 2004
Moving day is coming...just 4 days away! Aside from actually moving, the most exciting thing will be that people will stop asking us if we are ready to move. Of course we aren't ready! But don't have to do it all in one day, so it's not so bad. We have all the day until the end of the month to finish the move, and we aren't going out of town at all for the holidays, so it should be fine.
What else is going on? Keenan put some of his photography on public display for the first time ever with three 11x14 prints in the HeARTwood Gallery. Lots of people have made really positive comments, and some of them have involved thoughts about the pictures that Keenan never intended, which is kind of neat.
December 3rd was a really wild day. On Thursday the decision was made that LiveWorkPlay should attend a housing forum being held on Friday by the provincial government in Toronto, so Julie flew out of Ottawa at 7:00 am and then flew back the same day because she had to take a group of SMILE@night participants to the spa as part of our International Day of Disabled Persons celebration. At the same time Keenan was at the first meeting of a committee he joined at Algonquin College. In one of those weird twists of fate, there were three people missing from the meeting, and as it happened, they were in Toronto with Julie attending the same meeting she was.
December 10 was the Holiday Family Fun Night, and aside from the stress of people calling as early as 11:00 am to ask if it was cancelled because of the weather (of course not!) it went great. There was a huge turnout and a nice little ceremony with a representative from Accenture that gave a $5000 donation for Journeys. Keenan hosted a station that featured a short skit called "Santa's Important Papers" and Julie made up a scrabble type game of holiday trivia. There were four other stations and there was a really good volunteer turnout, and most of the staff and volunteers went out to the New Edingurgh afterwards and had a lot of laughs.
November 21, 2004
Oh, we've been busy busy busy. And no, it's not the fact that we are moving in less than month. We've hardly had time to worry about that!
Probably the biggest excitement at LiveWorkPlay was having Dave Hingsburger with us for four days. He's an amazing guy...you might call him a "consultant" but that doesn't cover it. He's an author, maker of films, speaker, therapist...and he tackles the tough stuff. Like sexuality education and relationship education. And explaining to parents that trying to prepare their children for the world by protecting them from everything just results in making them more vulnerable. As a staff we had 2.5 days with Dave and frankly we could have gone on for a while longer. There are lots of things we are going to do in order to be better, but we also feel pretty good about where we are now. It seems we are on the right track with must about everything, but we need to further in terms of encouraging self-advocacy and in terms of talking about sexuality openly and honestly.
What else happened at work...the residential sign program at Against The Grain is finally getting off the ground! There's a whole new website and the orders are starting to come in!
So what's been going on with the move? Well, we sold off a whole bunch of stuff, and made about $800. Keenan made a little web page and posted free ads in local newsgroups. The only thing left now is the washing machine!
Julie has a firm command on most of the important details, including figuring out all the arrangements with the bank and transfer this that and the other. The combination of moving and the coming of the holiday season has Keenan at a high level of anxiety, but so far it has been manageable.
We got out with Marni, Dave, Flannery, Jane, Phoebe, and Jason to see a fun little show at the NAC Fourth Stage. It was really nice to see them as it had been a long time. They've made quite a bit of progress fixing up their house, but it's a lot of work and they aren't done yet. It should really change their lives once the "construction zone" signs come down!
We took mom and dad Wellar out to see Stomp at the NAC as a birthday present for mom. It was an awesome show! Everyone's favourite was the "emptying of the sinks" scene. After the show we went to Al's and had a great dinner mixed in with all the Grey Cup fans.
Speaking of Grey Cup, today we were over at the Kingstone's to watch the game. We'd all decided to cheer for Toronto so it was a lot of fun. Damon Allen was pretty amazing. Who'd have thunk it?
October 10, 2004
So much for keeping the journal up to date in 2004-2005! But what a month it has been.
Remember back at the end of August in our Anniversary Journal where it says how relaxing Keenan found it to be living at the water's edge in Point Pelee? Well, Julie hasn't heard Keenan make comments like that very often, so she took it to heart and went on a mission: find a waterfront property in the Ottawa area, sell our house in Alta Vista, and move in.
Just like that? Yes, just like that. Keenan's first reaction was NO. No, no, no, no. And no. Although he did admit to the comments and did admit they were genuine, he never meant it to be an impetus for moving. But Julie quietly persisted, and organized a drive out to Dunrobin Shores to see a house on the water.
Keenan did not want to like this house. Not one bit. We followed March Road out into Dunrobin, and found the dead end street. It was lovely and quiet. We found the Open House sign and came on in. Keenan engaged in brief pleasantries with the agent and then was out the back door to see what "waterfront" really meant. Julie had already host upstairs and was doing the same thing from the second floor patio.
What greeted both of them was a lovely sandy shoreline some 20 feet from the end of the small back yard. A gorgeous sunset was building across the bay. It was a beautiful scene.
The next thing to catch Keenan's eye was the huge storage shed. More than 20 feet long. Big enough to store two kayaks during the winter. And how convenient to pull them out and hit the water, slipping in from the beach at the first break of the ice.
The house was just three years old, but for the most part looked brand new. The master bedroom overlooks the bay with a large second-story patio to boot. There's a large upstairs bathroom was laundry, and two smaller bedrooms.
Downstairs a large sitting area with a new wood stove (yet to be installed, however). State of the art water purification system in the closet, a nice powder room. a large open kitchen, and a dining area overlooking the back patio and the water.
Driving away from the house Julie remained silent, not wanting to exert any undue influence. Keenan began to curse the house - he liked it so much he was having a hard time not saying he wanted to move.
The next night we drove back and checked out the house again, thoroughly cruising the neighbourhood. It was time for some serious discussion. But soon the wheels were in motion.
We retained the same agent that was selling the waterfront house to sell our house. We sat down and structured an offer and at the same time made plans to put our own house on the market. And then it was happening. The offer was accepted on condition that our own house was sold.
Then came the cleanup. A full rented cargo van went off to the dump on Thursday. The house was going to show for the first time on Sunday, and with a busy Friday that included working until 11:00, that didn't leave much time for preparing and painting doors, walls, and ceilings, nor did it leave much time for a general thorough cleaning.
It's amazing what 19 straight hours of work can accomplish. By 9:00 am Sunday morning we were out of the house and on our way to meet Christina, David, Meredith, and Ben for apple picking and brunch in Orleans. Some 7 parties trouped through the house, and by that evening it was apparent that offers were going to come in.
To make a long story short, by Tuesday it was sold, and at the full asking price. Perhaps the hard work had paid off, or perhaps they just wanted the house and didn't give a damn about how nice it looked. In any event, it was great to be done with it, and to close the deal on the new house.
Returning to the waterfront home to meet with the owners the house seemed even nicer than before. There was more room in the dining area than we remembered, and the upstairs hallways seemed wider. We noted how the walls and ceilings are in perfect condition and would require little work, if any, before moving in.
We were also delighted to find out that the homes on each side of our house (there is nothing across the street but woods at this time) are cottages. One has just been upgraded and looks like a small house, but it is a cottage that will be used only in the summer months. On the other side is a nice but more rustic cottage that is not used very much. So, at least for the near future, it will be a very quiet and private place to be from fall through spring.
Without having a chance to recover from all this work and excitement it was time to head off to Niagara-on-the-Lake for the second year in a row with David and Trisha to take in a couple of plays at the Shaw Festival. We had a lovely time at the Parliament bed and breakfast, thanks to our gracious hostess Isabelle Parliament. Carl and Nancy, a lovely couple from Rochester, were the other people staying there, and we appeared to agree on many issues which made for some fun discussions of serious topics.
Our dinner at the Epicurean was unremarkable, but it was convenient and we got to the play at the Courthouse on time. Ah! Wilderness is the story of a young man in the 30s making his way into the adult world. It is both fun and serious, and the acting was superb. The standing ovation said it all.
Not so for Saturday's play, a musical called Pal Joey. Some good acting and splendid singing could not make up for what is essentially a bad script with an ending that leaves you completely uninspired and devoid of thought - of any kind.
However, before the play we had a spectacular dinner at the Strewn Winery. Keenan is still raving about the giant but tender veal chop, Julie and Trish had delicious arctic char, and David had a succulent tenderloin. We tried the dry riesling wine from the Strewn vineyard, and decided to pick up an extra bottle from the store and bring it home.
For the drive back on Sunday we stopped in Toronto to visitor with Peter and Michael. Michael was experimenting with a very complex lunch recipe, which gave us all time to catch up on what Peter is doing. It's not easy, he is into many different art-oriented projects, but one this is clear, he is doing very well and enjoying life.
The drive back was without excitement, and Trisha and David slept most of the way. Julie did almost all of the driving and Keenan worked on the LiveWorkPlay BUZZ newsletter on the laptop.
Dad Wellar did a great job looking after Pookie and Bubba. We found out he and Mom Wellar didn't have such a great time at the Renegades game because they were too cold, so they left at half time. We plan to see them on Monday if we ever wake up.