birthdays

Mum would have been 89 today.  Wow.  Already 6 years since she passed.  She rather hated her birthday - a cold, dark time of year, and she didn't care for the passage of time and what it meant physically.  Still, happy birthday, Mum!

And I was remiss in not marking what would have been Dad's 86th birthday late last month.  Both of them Aquarius, yes.  He didn't even make it to 70, unfortunately.  A lot of time gone since we lost him.  I don't think he cared all that much about birthdays, but the man had a healthy appetite, so if there was a good spread, he would have been happy.  Happy birthday, Dad! 

Mum and Dad

My sister posted a photo of Mum and Dad from their wedding to Facebook yesterday, and I decided to "borrow" it and share it here.  No particular reason - their anniversary was in December, and there is no significance in terms of birthdays or other anniversaries this week in March.  It's a lovely photo, though, so in the lull before my next travel, I'm writing this simple little post.

Mum and Dad married in 1966, if I remember correctly (I wasn't there, of course!).  They separated in 1977, and the divorce was finalized in 1980.  They were amicable enough, though perhaps more as the situation dictated than anything else.  No matter.  They make a fine couple in the photo, and surely they were happy at the time.

Happy birthday, Dad!

You would have been 83 today, Dad.  Happy birthday.  Gone for almost 14 years now - far too young a man to have died when you did.

No moroseness on my part.  Just a celebration for Dad, simple as that.

forty

Oh yes, I AM milking this birthday. Unabashedly so.

I will have fun posts on the food, the shopping, the people in my life, certainly. I just want to take a bit of time this morning while I linger over breakfast and lattes to take stock.

I am 40 today.

I have a man I love, one whom I will marry next year. Conrad grounds me, Conrad completes me.

I have family. I have a lot of family - steps and halves and such. At the core, though, is my sister Marie. We've been in this together all my life and most of hers.

I have three of four parents. I do not have a father alive any longer, and I wish he were here to celebrate. I am not sad, do not think that, just simply wishing he could enjoy this celebration and the ones still ahead.



I have no grandparents left. How odd to realize that.

I have a good job that I will still not comment about on this blog. I am employed, I have tenure, and I have great colleagues.

I have my health. I set a goal of being in the best shape of my life when I hit 40. I think I've come pretty close, though I've indulged well in food and wine this last week or so. No matter. Do I need to lose more weight? Well, maybe re-distribute it a little more and firm/tone up more. But I like how I fit my clothes, and I am pretty comfortable in my skin at this moment.

I have friends whom I love dearly. I have former friends I wish were no longer "former". I miss some people who have moved on in my life. I am thankful for my best friend (Todd), my Best Woman (Allison), Kendall, CG, Jeph, Martin (and Mark), BTH, the SF, Darth and Heidi
and the great group from library school, our Yoshi's friends, the good friends who have stuck by Conrad since before I knew them and him,

Louise and Sandra and Wayne and others in Terrace, the Don Diego's family, the Smelts and other swimming friends like Chris and Brian and Daniel and Frank.
The list goes on, and I struggle to name every one.

I have a good life. I have said that several times to Conrad lately, and also to TK when we chat. Oh sure, I want to win that Lottery ($50 million? I MUST buy a ticket today!) and have a life of ease. But I've earned every grey hair starting to poke through, every wrinkle, every memory, ever difficulty and every reward.

So, yep: totally milking 40. Why not?

And thanks all of you who read this blog for being a part of it, too.

May 14

One year ago today Dad died. A battle with cancer, not a long one.

I didn't blog it (or even discuss it with many people) then, and I won't discuss it at length now. No sympathy needed, thanks. I just wanted a short note to honour his memory.

Every once in a while I have the urge to pick up the phone, call him, and just tell him how life is going. You know, it's kind of nice to still feel that connection. Not the easiest Dad ever (but am I the easiest son?), but I did pretty darn well by him in many ways.

Thinking happy thoughts about him as I wind down the week...

Filipino cooking

Ah, if only I could make this food. I never learned, and I've never sought out the recipes. Shame on me.

A couple of days on the Sunshine Coast, visiting family, and for the first time in (I think) almost 6 years, I got to have a bunch of homemade Filipino food. Ah, memories of many delicious meals made by my step-mother in years gone by. Bella's sister, Alberta, took care of most of the cooking while Bella was at work, offering up a dish of noodles and local prawns with a sauce made from the prawn shells and heads,
adobo chicken, and another chicken dish. And salad, by the way. A family dinner for me for a change.



Truly, it rocked. So very nice after all these years. I hope it's not 6 more years. After dinner, rain - then hail - moved through the area, then things brightened up enough for sunset over Texada.

Marie and I came back to the hotel, and all felt contentedly well.

Sunshine Coast trip wind down

Hmmm.... Time enough for one last, quick post before heading to the gate.

Two days ago I took Dad and Bella down to Gibsons so that they could take care of a few errands and so that we could have lunch there. Our first and second choices were not open, so we ended up enjoying the sunny October lunchtime at the Waterfront Cafe, admiring the view. Truly, the weather for my visit with Dad could not have been better. The Sunshine Coast is getting a great autumn for one week, at least.

I drove back to Vancouver yesterday. I was sorry to have to go. It's been a good visit for Dad, and I shouldn't want to take that for granted. The Sunshine Coast is no longer the same as when we visited my grandmother at her home there every summer when we were young, but it remains a handsome place. Davis Bay, just outside Sechelt, lured me to stop and take a few photos.



I stopped in Gibsons for coffee since I was so ridiculously early for the ferry. I also wanted to drop into a bookstore near Molly's Reach. It, too, was closed (is everything in Gibsons closed??), so I wandered briefly and took a photo of Nick Adonidas' boat. We all know our Beachcombers, right?

Lunchtime, one day after dining with Dad in Gibsons, I was aboard the ferry. I felt a little restless reading, and ended up going to an outer deck and taking a few photos.
Clouds had drawn in - we'd get light light sprinkles in Vancouver. In under an hour, the Sunshine Coast was tucked back in my memory for another few months.