We woke up this morning to a temperature of –35 degrees Celsius as well as a nasty wind. It was a perfect day for cocooning! Helge worked on his weekly newspaper submission for the “Caroline Clarion.” I did something very rare. I composed a handwritten letter to some friends. One of my goals for 2008 is to improve my record of personal correspondence. Our cabin is toasty warm from the burning of aspen that has been drying for two years. It is a high-performance firewood, beating pine and spruce hands down. We kept our innards warm with homemade porridge for breakfast and homemade bean soup for supper. My only venture outdoors was to run between cabins. Helge, however, is dedicated to his daily exercise. Once he submitted his news he went outdoors to cut and split more firewood to have on hand for sale. Of course, he also gets daily exercise by caring for his chickens, goats, llama, and dogs. We have four German Shepherd pups born on January 14th. The snow is surrounding the walls and roof of the dog house, turning it into an igloo.
Yesterday’s weather conditions were similar. Aina called in the morning saying that she had awakened to an indoor temperature of 5 degrees. The furnace was not working so she had to call in the repairman. Fortunately the house has a wood stove in the living room and she has an electric heater so was able to warm up the house whilst waiting for repairs. I called Kai at lunchtime yesterday. He has been working in the Grand Cache area since Christmas. The temperature was below minus 40 with the wind chill. He said he had never been so cold on the job. Most of the welding trucks have a diesel engine which just doesn’t warm up when the truck is idling in severely cold weather. Fortunately the crew was given a few days break so he doesn’t have to return to work until Saturday. It is supposed to warm up somewhat by then.
This past Saturday evening Helge and I went to the Longbranch Saloon in Caroline to hear Amber Williams and the Rocky Mountain Experience (Aaron, Warren, and Billy Fay, and Darcy Cech). The bar is not really our scene ( worth a visit because of its unique country décor) but Helge had been asked to promote the group in the local news. They are a fledgling band and are performing for the Valentine’s Cabaret on February 15th. Aina went to school with Amber and Jarl with Aaron. I enjoyed their unique blend of country western, country rock, and gospel music. I especially enjoyed their take on two tunes from CCR, my favorite group during my university days: “Rollin’ Down the River,” and “Proud Mary.” I enjoyed two glasses of red wine (Ambiance) and Helge two bottles of light beer. We shared some homemade fries. For Helge it was a reporting job. For me it felt like a date. I enjoyed myself. We headed home around 11:30 before the patrons got too rowdy!!
My favorite quote this week is from a colleague: “Too blessed to be stressed.”
Yesterday’s weather conditions were similar. Aina called in the morning saying that she had awakened to an indoor temperature of 5 degrees. The furnace was not working so she had to call in the repairman. Fortunately the house has a wood stove in the living room and she has an electric heater so was able to warm up the house whilst waiting for repairs. I called Kai at lunchtime yesterday. He has been working in the Grand Cache area since Christmas. The temperature was below minus 40 with the wind chill. He said he had never been so cold on the job. Most of the welding trucks have a diesel engine which just doesn’t warm up when the truck is idling in severely cold weather. Fortunately the crew was given a few days break so he doesn’t have to return to work until Saturday. It is supposed to warm up somewhat by then.
This past Saturday evening Helge and I went to the Longbranch Saloon in Caroline to hear Amber Williams and the Rocky Mountain Experience (Aaron, Warren, and Billy Fay, and Darcy Cech). The bar is not really our scene ( worth a visit because of its unique country décor) but Helge had been asked to promote the group in the local news. They are a fledgling band and are performing for the Valentine’s Cabaret on February 15th. Aina went to school with Amber and Jarl with Aaron. I enjoyed their unique blend of country western, country rock, and gospel music. I especially enjoyed their take on two tunes from CCR, my favorite group during my university days: “Rollin’ Down the River,” and “Proud Mary.” I enjoyed two glasses of red wine (Ambiance) and Helge two bottles of light beer. We shared some homemade fries. For Helge it was a reporting job. For me it felt like a date. I enjoyed myself. We headed home around 11:30 before the patrons got too rowdy!!
My favorite quote this week is from a colleague: “Too blessed to be stressed.”
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