Monthly Archives: September 2022

September – Summer hanging on

Spectacular weather, mostly mid 20s with very little rain. Arrived back in Kelowna and came down with Covid a few days later ( I gave it to Mizuho). Several days of fever, aches and a few weeks of coughing. Had a delightful three days in Kamloops with some friends. Played two courses, one of which was old and winded through the forest while the other was a links course (Tobiano, rated #8 in Canada) that had no trees at all! On the way back stopped for supplies in Salmon Arm – De Mille’s farm market for treats, Sedo’s deli for sausage and elk, and Shuswap Pie Company for savory pies and an incredible peach pie.

Delightful three day bike camping trip with Coop in the West Kootenays – beautiful weather and scenery. Mizuho had her first bike ride in 15 years for our anniversary lunch and then our 35th anniversary dinner the following evening at Quails Gate Winery. Took a tour of the 40 acre former Tolko mill site in downtown Kelowna on the lake that will be redeveloped in the next few years.

Building where they stored the J grade wood (the highest grade there is) destined for Japan – always kept indoors and shipped inside boxcars.

On the home front, we had a very successful garden year, including a fine crop of potatoes we grew for the first time.

This is 1/4 of the crop

New owners of the house next door decided to build a 2nd house higher on the hill for the wife’s parents. Scraping out a road and leveling the building site has been dusty and noisy. We won’t be able to see the house but can see the road. Dug some post holes for a fence to go beside the hot tub; expanded one garden and built a new one below the house by moving/installing rocks with Bob (and with a cable and come along); re-stained most of the cedar posts and soffits – photos next month.

Hope all is well your your world

August, 2022 – Winnipeg!

Lots of little jobs around the property. Basement and power shack doors finally painted and the stain on the cedar gates and fence refreshed. Installed drapes in the basement guest bedroom. A delightful 350km bike ride (after getting a new battery). Major service for the ATV and finished the spa deck. Some success in an auction of the Campion Boat manufacturing plant (new investors from Alberta ran a 50 year-old successful business into the ground in 3 years and are moving the moulds to Texas). Shop vac, castors, straps, 2 pressure washers and 39 of these aluminum frames to be used in some as-yet-undefined future project.

Went to Winnipeg for 5 nights – 1st time for Mizuho (who loved it) and second time for me in 40 years – while sister and B in L took care of house and Taisho. Great weather, food, museums, zoo, parks, architecture, art, history – a city of culture with an appreciation of aesthetics and far more diverse than Kelowna. Saw only one mosquito. Drove by my old abodes – dorm, apartments, houses and the housing coop, Common Ground, I lived in during University. Highly recommend a visit to Winnipeg. Airport security in Kelowna and flight changes were irksome.

Museum of Human Rights . Spent 3 hours here and wowed by the architecture and contents.

Interior walkways in the museum
Enjoyed an immersive Van Gogh exhibit and the WAG and new Inuit art gallery
Toured the most impressive legislature buildings
Breakfast at the café in Assiniboine Park
A slice of the Exchange District – Several blocks built in the Chicago style about 110 years ago and remarkably preserved
Oomomo – An enormous Japanese goods emporium (one of two in the city)

We came down with covid a few days after returning and 5 days later are slowly recovering – like having a tenacious vicious cold. And Kelowna just enjoyed its hottest August ever, 3c higher than the previous record but forest fires in the province were few and far between.