Perky's Fish and Fries Too

A sunny Sunday at Perky's Fish and Fries too

The other day while I was driving through Ontario on Simcoe County rd 27 from Elmvale to Barrie. I stopped for lunch at small road side fish and chip trailer that had recently opened across from the Elmvale Jungle Zoo called, "Perky's Fish and Fries Too". It was some of the best fish and chips I have ever had and I like to think I am a connoisseur of the dish.

I was greeted when I arrived by a mother/ daughter team who were running the trailer on the sunny Sunday afternoon, and had taken a few moments to play a game of giant Janga with a set made by the owner for the visiting public to use. They were very welcoming and the mother suggested I try the cod combo with a hint of "newfie" accent in her voice. I had not have cod often in the past, but was very pleased with my choice to take her suggestion.

I stayed for about an hour, much longer then I normally take for such stops. I was simply taken with relaxed and peaceful setting, and felt the need to sit and take it in while recording my thoughts in my journal. As I sat there I noticed the many things that had been done to make people feel welcome. They have the normal picnic tables and umbrellas, but also a goldfish pond, the giant Janga game and a "Doggie Pond" so that dogs and their owners are able to stay and relax. Over all the experience I had was a very pleasant one and I hope to stop in again some day if I am ever in the area.

Giant Janga Game 

Say what "You" need to say or self care behavior

     As you can see I was not able to continue posting to this blog over the Summer as I had hoped. The job that I took made me very happy, but sadly it took a great deal out of me physicality and mentally and did not allow me the internet access that I thought I would have.  Due to this I did not make the posts that I expected to make and now that I am back in school I have even less time to make post as I am now working part time on top of attending nursing school, but that is not what the purpose of this posting is.

    The purpose of this posting is to talk about what I have realized in this time period of being almost completely away from this blog. I "NEED" to write. While I was working over the summer I made the promise to myself that I would write something each and every day. Even if it was just a single sentence I needed to write something. In making that silent and meaningful promise I came to realize that I write a lot in my personal time. I write in a journal, I write announcements for a community newsletter, I write blog posts and what could be called the most important is I write letters to my now fiancee, Biohazard, who is attending school over 6 hours away from me. Many people find it strange that I write her letters, even with me talking to her several times a day and texting almost nonstop that I would still have anything to write. Well to be honest I know that what I write to her is not epic love poems, and that changes are even if she would never say this to me, they bore her. But I feel they bring us closer. I tell her things that happen to me and thoughts that I have that seem important at the time, but later on when I am talking to her never seem to come up. That is why I need to write them down. I feel in my heart that I need to tell her things, because when I do I feel as if she is closer to me. But that is not all of my writing.

     The need to write everyday is about me. It may come off selfish, but it is the truth. In nursing school they teach us to ask people about their self care behavior because they can say a great deal about a persons health and mental state. My self care behavior is writing. Writing things down allows me to process what has, is and will happen to me. In a time when everything is rushed and crazy I need to take the time to sit and process what is going on. Some times I need an escape so I write down a fiction story, but in that I am also releasing a thought from my head and capturing on paper for the world to see. I am writing down what I need to say to feel good about myself. In many ways that concept has been theme of my relationship with Biohazard.

     When I first started dating Biohazard I was 23 years old and had never had a girlfriend. I had girls who were friends and at times I had tried to turn that into something more, but sadly that never happened. I was 23 years old, never been on a real date, and I had never kissed a girl. At 23 years old I had already given up on finding love and was ok with that. Many people live full and happy lives with out having romantic love and they do great things. I planned to be one of those people. Then Biohazard came along and I did not make things easy on her. She was falling for me and I was in a place where I felt I was above all of that, but then I fell for her. So I was a mind in distress. Then I heard John Mayer's "Say". which I could write a whole post about what it means to me and how it specks to me, but basically it told me I had to say what "I" needed to say to myself and to Biohazard. It spoke to the conflict I was having with in my own mind and that the only way I could make it better would be by letting it out.

       So thank-you for reading this far down. This could be the longest post I have ever made. If you take nothing else away from this let it be a sense that what you need to say is important, even if only to you. What you say and think matters.

John Mayer- "Say"           

        

 

Return to blogging and journaling

It has been some months since I made my last post here. The requirements of nursing school meant that something had to give. Sadly making weekly posts to this blog was one of those things. I must say that I am very glad to be able to once again give time to something that I enjoy so much and feeds my soul so fully. It is my hope that I will once again be able to make weekly posts, but time and work schedules will have a lot to say on that front.

If you have read earlier posts on this blog you will see that I am a large fan of journaling, and I am pleased to say that I have been able to keep up with that. In many ways I count that as being no small part of how I was able to stay sane as the stresses of school wore me down. My journal offers me a place to both record what is going on in my life, but also a chance to review and work through things that are happening in my life. In my nursing studies and practice I tend to focus toward the "spiritual" heath and needs of people, writing down or letting my thoughts out are a large part of my own spiritual needs. I will admit sometimes I get a little down when I look at the stats on this blog and see that much goes unread for sometime, but every so often I do get a sense that I do reach people, and that makes me very pleased when that happens.

I have many great ideas as to things I may write about this coming summer as a have a bit more time to focus on this flight of fancy into being a writer. It is my hope that those of you who are reading this now take some time every so often to check back in and see what I am up to, and maybe even say "Hi" if I say something that  strikes a cord with you. But, even if you do not ever read this blog again I do hope that you take away the sense of joy that I wish to extend to you.

All the best,
S.A.    

Launch of "Florrie" by John E. Speers

   
     This past Monday I went to the launch party of "Florrie", a book written by John E. Speers about his mother.The event was held at St. Giles' Anglican Church  in Barrie. St. Giles' provided a space that allowed all in attendance of the event to feel close and connected as the excerpts were read and songs were sung. The small  admittance fee went toward The Leprosy Mission Canada.  

      I feel blessed to have been able to attend in person because it was a wonderful evening filled with music, poetry and heart warming stories. Much of it was written and preformed by Canon John himself, with help from his friends.  

     The story of "Florrie" is told both by John and through letters written by Florrie herself. The end result is a  warm, rich and honest story of life in Canada in the early 1900's. As I read the book I was quickly drawn in by Florrie and through reading her letters begin feel as if I was truly getting to know a woman who was a true wonder and lived in Canada at a time when it still being tamed. I was able to see Saskatchewan in all of it's wild splendor, and get a feel for life in a period of time when life was hard but families came together to make it through.

     "Florrie" is only available currently from John Speers himself, But if you are able to get a copy, it is a story that you will not soon forget. I count myself lucky to have a copy. If you desire your own please feel free to contact me through this site and I will see about getting you in touch with him.  

Text from above:
Canon John E. Speers is a retired Anglican clergyman, having served over 50 years with his late wife Gwyn at parishes in the Toronto Diocese. An accomplished pianist, poet, writer, and gardener, Canon John resides in Barrie, Ontario, where he enjoys a full and active life of preaching, concert-going, literary projects, and wide-ranging conversation with friends and loved ones. At 95 years old, he remains an inspiration to three generations of the extended Speers and McLauchlin families as patriarch and bard.

Around the world

Today Bear, my sisters boyfriend, got on a plane to head back home, back to Australia.  I have watched how they have interacted the past few days and it has made me sad. It makes me sad because I know how it feels to need to say good bye to the person that you love and let them go away from you. You know that you love each other, and that you will see them again, but deep down you wish with all your heart that it was not so. You wish reality and logic did not come into play. You wish that the strength of your love could some how reshape reality so that you would never need to say good-bye.  But you must, all you can do is trust that your love combined will be able to bridge the distance and keep you strong until love brings you together once again.

THE MASTER AND THE DOOR

I found this article about the refinishing of the church doors at Trinity Anglican, Barrie. I was really shocked at how well  different it looked and how well It came out. I have added my own photos of the door for my re-posting of  this article. To see the original photos that ran with this or to read the article at its' source please click the link below and scroll down to the second page of the paper. I hope you enjoy. -SA  

http://www.trinitybarrie.ca/happenings/30oct11.pdf

THE MASTER AND THE DOOR

What began as a generous bequest from the will of Verdi Wallwin, a much-loved, beautiful and gracious member of Trinity, culminated in a welcoming new entrance to the church at the top of the hill.

Door just after it was painted in 2000

Jack Wallwin, with the help of Jim Laking and Millet Salter, undertook a replacement of the steps and the handrail leading up to the front door.  Then it was time to address the refinishing of the door itself. Jack contacted the very best man for the job, Ben Poernbacher, a master painter and refinisher, who at the age of 14 began a 3 year apprenticeship in Austria, his homeland, and started to work at his trade when only 17!

Ben was used to working on ladders, at 19 he found a job high in the mountain villages of Switzerland where he would paint on rising scaffolds, church steeples as high as 130 feet!  Ben came to Canada by himself in 1957 when he was 24 years old and settled in Toronto. Because skiing was a passion he eventually found his way to Snow Valley and owner, Hans Eder, also Austrian. Soon Barrie became his home.

Door once all paint was removed

Over the years Trinity’s main entrance door had accumulated more than 20 layers of paint.  All of these layers were removed by Ben in painstaking fashion using a propane torch.  To avoid burning the wood, the final two layers were cleaned with paint remover and then scraped by hand.  Once cleaned, scraped and sanded Ben realized that the main part of the door was mahogany with pine mouldings which he stained to match the mahogany and bleached once for uniformity of colour. Then came three coats of clear varnish to complete the natural finishing of the door.

Door as it appears today

The final touch to the completion of the church entrance was the installation of a new threshold. Jack Wallwin provided the wood that had been recently cut from a red oak tree on the Wallwin family farm. Two coats of stain and three of varnish were applied by Ben to protect this very handsome piece of wood. Removal of all the old paint from the door hardware and from the wonderful original light fixture above provided for a fresh new coat of black paint to complete the masterpiece!

It is the hope of all parishioners that the new entrance signals a new vision for Trinity

Sweater Song- Hedley

The other night as I was driving home after dropping Biohazard (my girlfriend) home, I heard "Sweater Song" by Hedley on the radio. I was surprised at how much the song spoke to me, and would speak to anyone who has had to been apart from the person that they love for any length of time.

I have posted a link below. let me know what you think.

Sweater Song- Hedley

International

Recently I have been thinking about how a relationship would work with the couple being around the world from each other. I have been thinking about this because it will soon be the case for my sister and her boyfriend. In a month or so the boyfriend, who I will be calling Bear, will be returning to Australia.

I know what is like not to see the person that you love, but being clear across the planet from them is a new concept for me. The time difference alone is going to be a major factor for them. As this plays out I am planning on writing more about this. As for now I am just hoping that they are making the most of the time they have before they most be apart.

First Fire

This past weekend we had a party here at the house. It was the first chance we had to use our new fire pit. We have had many camp fires here at the house, but we always did them in an old tractor rim on the dirt drive way. Recently the county has really cracked down on burn permits so we decided to get one, so now things are nice and legal.

To make it all we really did was take the old tractor rim and dug it about 3 inches into the ground. Not a big thing at all. So now we have a nice fire pit to site around in the evening, and since we get all our own firewood  off out wood lot we can feel free to have a camp fire when ever we like.

So here is a picture of our very first fire in "THE PIT".

Victorian Flirting code

It has been awhile since I posted anything steampunk and I read this post on another blog. It is a Victorian Flirting code. Rather then copying the image (stealing it) I have posted the link below.  I found it to be interesting. I hope you do too. 

Victorian Flirting Code

Wonderful story of Mission to Panama. I was there a few years ago on a different mission in a different area, but I still love to hear stories about what people go to do there. I hope you enjoy
-SA    

VISION CARE MISSION- Rex Leyte

In mid January 2011 after months of back and forth communications with the Panamanian Health Authorities, I received approval for a Vision Care Mission to Achutupu - a tiny island off the coast of Panama. On Feb. 27th my son-in-law, Dan Ayan, my right hand and translator (He's fluent in Spanish) and I arrived at the Achutupu airstrip. We were greeted by the most dynamic and energetic 80 + year old man you'll ever meet, Howard Walter and his wife Mariella. With their continued assistance for the next five days, we did visual testing and issued eye glasses to the native Kuna who call this tiny island home. We matched the prescriptions as close as possible (not always close enough). On my return I began matching prescriptions more closely and to date we've shipped glasses to 99% of those that needed correction. We are now in the process of getting ready for our next trip. Based on the first trip, I have a better idea of what to take and what not to take.

In addition to my eye glasses, my daughter Linda (a Barrie School Teacher) canvassed her school for school supplies. She collected over 150 lbs of school supplies which we delivered to the grateful students. This effort is ongoing for 2012.

Ours was the first such mission to Achutupu and the first time many of these people ever had functional vision. There are 48 more similar island communities in Kuna Ayla, all I'm sure with similar problems. I hope to continue these visit! for as long and as often as possible, expanding to other islands. I have the time, the equipment and a great source of used eyeglasses to do more. The limiting factor is funding. Anyone wishing to help can contact the Trinity Church Office at 705-728-2691.

Thoughts from Chair returns

You may already know that along with this blog, I also watch over another called "Thoughts from My chair". Thoughts is an online version of the weekly writings of Canon Frances of Trinity Anglican Church. Canon Frances writes her weekly article for the church newsletter each week and always has something thoughtful to say. Often tying events from her past to shine new meaning on to current events or subjects. Canon Frances took the month of August off from writing, but she has now started up again and will once again have an article each week.  

I have posted a link to the blog in this post, but the link can always be found in the links section. I hope you take a look and enjoy it.

http://thoughtschair.blogspot.com/

outlets

I am writing from the new wing that just open at my college. I was struck by the fact, as a student, you start to little things, such as outlets. This new wing is wonderful and bright. It has brand new chairs in cute little sitting areas to talk with others. Areas for quit with little cubicles for quiet study. It even has a new coffee shop. What it lacks is outlets. For a new building that will house so many people that will be using laptops, it has almost no outlets. To me that undoes all the good things. I feel as if because it does not fill that most basic need, the whole thing is undone.  

Old Barn

The past three days I have been working in an old barn doing some cement work. The barn is being repaired to house a second flock of sheep. These sheep are different then the others I have worked with. This new flock is made up of dairy sheep. Due to this they are much calmer then the other flock and I find much nicer to work around.

Much of the work that I did was simply making repairs to the stone work. Fixing cracks and replacing stones that have fallen out over time. It was interesting and important work. One thing that was some what exciting was when I came to a spot where a few stones had fallen out and discovered a family of Common Garter Snakes living in the wall. I was  a bit shocked but moved up the wall a bit and kept working. Making sure to make as much noise and vibrations as possible. By the time I came back they had all left to find a new home. I was left feeling a little jumpy, and was very careful to check before sticking my hand in any where.

Cross Part 1: Old Cross

I my duties at church as sub-deacon I train a lead the alter servers. As part of that I have trained some of the younger ones to be cross bearers or  Crucifer. Do to the young age of these new servers we began using the lighter of the two processional crosses at the church. The wooden one pictured below.  

It was when we started using it more that I realized that it was really showing its' age. As you can clearly see above the dowel that attached the cross to the handle has broken out, and pieces of the border have broken off. I used stain pens to cover up the large colour difference, but that is far from a real fix.


Because of  all of these facts and problems, I have got the permission of the leaders of the church to make a replacement cross. I am very excited about this. It is something I have thought about doing for some time.  

Peer Review Radio

I recently was doing some research for an assignment and I came across a very good podcast. It is Peer Review Radio. It is produced by students in and around the University of Ottawa. The episodes that I have heard so far have helped me greatly in my understanding of what I have been learning in school.   

Video Promoting show
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zCw51SsDPBM

First episode I heard
http://peerreviewradio.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/09/PeerReviewRadio_Episode4.mp3

Directory of all episodes
http://www.podcastdirectory.com/podcasts/archive.php?iid=114917

Share Your Joy

Shared joy is increased.

Spend time with friends to share each others Joy

Good Old Canadian Road Trip

This past weekend I found myself in Central Ontario so I decided to drive Highway 60. Highway 60 travels East to West from Renfrew to Huntsville. One of the really nice parts of this drive is that it passes through  Algonquin Park. It also has some wonderful spots to stop and stretch your legs. I really enjoyed the drive. Normally when I do these kind of trips on my own I find myself needing to stop for coffee to wake myself up. Taking this route I had no such need because the landscape was so wonderful

Really great spot to stop for a bit that is just off the road

 

Looking over  Algonquin Park

I kind of like the outhouses just off the road.

Did not go in this trip, but maybe next time

Trellis

Recently my mother ask of my father and I if a trellis could be placed in her front garden so that some vines could grow up in front of the house. what sprang into my mind was a some thing nice made of wood. What appeared into my father's mind was what is pictured below. A few welds and 3 coats of paint later, a nice trellis made of an old gate and some fence posts. If that is not in the spirit of steampunk DIY, I am not sure what is.

Green Handle ( Ruko Brand RUK0051Y )

I recently picked up an new knife. a Ruko Brand RUK0051Y.

This knife is one that really spoke to me. The full blade including what is in the handle is 4 inches, and the cutting edge is 3 inches. I like that is has a nice black enamel coating covering all the metal parts that will prevent rust.  I also like the green colouring of the handle plaques. What I really like is that is has a good tight belt clip which limits my worry of losing it. I have sadly lost a few knives in the past do to them sliding off while I am working. Some may find it a bit heavy as a everyday carry pocket knife, but I like the degree of control the heavier handle gives me as a use it, and think it is an ideal belt knife. The liner lock gives a solid lock that is not a pain to disengage when it time to put it away. 

If you would like to see the company's website for this knife I have posted a link below

RUK0051Y 

     

Here are a few more pictures showing more detail