Spotted Lake

This is kłlilx'w, or Spotted Lake, a sacred site of the Okanagan Nation. The spots are mineral pools formed as water evaporates in the summer. It's pretty neat. 

Okanagan Lake

Such a beautiful place. I didn't see Ogopogo. :( 
 

Do Not Press

Our rental car has an SOS button. I really want to press it, but Sylvia and Sean say "NO." Alas. 
 

Sylvia and Uncle John

Today we celebrated Aunt Jean's life at a beautiful farm north of Kelowna. This is my favourite photo from that event. Uncle John was Aunt Jean's husband for many decades, and together they lived lives full of travel, art, and adventure on several continents. Uncle John's kindness, tenacity, and talent are truly something to behold, and it's not hard to see why Aunt Jean loved him, and why he and Sylvia connected very strongly at the instant of first meeting several years back. I loved watching them interact this weekend. 

As for the celebration itself, it was a showcase for Aunt Jean's art and our shared love of her somewhat off-the-wall way of looking at the world, something I like to think we share. 
 

Woods, Langergrabers, and a Newton at Red Robin

Earlier tonight Sean, Sylvia and I met with Uncle John, his two sons, their partners, and our cousin David for a long, leisurely supper and chat at Red Robin in Kelowna. Once again, the only real upside of grieving is how it brings people together to remember better times and create some new memories. And it was great to finally meet Kevin's partner, Carol, in person. Sean and Sylvia and I are very grateful to the Langergrabers and David for a wonderful evening. 
 

Osoyoos Oasis

Sean and Sylvia and I are in the Okanagan for celebrations of life for our Aunt Marjorie and Aunt Jean. Aunt Marjorie's was earlier today, and it was a beautiful, welcoming tribute. It was great to see my cousins Diane, Darwin, and Bruce again--Aunt Marjorie's surviving children--as well as several of their children and partners. 

After the service, we took some time to travel around the region, stopping at a patio in Osoyoos for refreshments. Being in such a beautiful setting helps take the sting out of loss.           
 

Still Almost Maybe Nearly Famous

Every once in a while, I search "Earl J. Woods" on the Internet to gauge my level of infamy. Fortunately, my infamy remains low, but just a few minutes ago I discovered a new hit: my name appeared on a long list of people associated with something called the Western Front. 

At first, this alarmed me. In an instant, I thought: "Western Front? Either people think I'm a crazed militia member, or I'm on an enemies list of a crazed militia." 

Neither is true. As their website states, "Western Front is a non-profit artist-run centre in Vancouver." Whew! My apologies, Western Front. 

As I'm turned out, I'm listed on the site because in 2010 I attended an exhibit put on by my cousin, artist Keith Langergraber, and brought along "Finger Puppet Star Trek" for exhibition, the first and only public showing of a movie I made with some friends from the University of Alberta Star Trek Club. Note that "Finger Puppet Star Trek" was not made in 2009, as claimed above; it was actually made sometime in 1991 or 1992. 

Memory Wall

I picked up this wall-hanger thing for sixteen bucks and used it to display about 75% of my collection of buttons and pins dating from the 1970s to the 2020s. This saves a little bit of closet space and, more importantly, puts the nostalgia out where I can see it.
 

Team Broom

 

Soil Sphere

Soil
Sphere
Contains
Infinite
Mysteries within
Orange boundless borderless wall
 

Sgt. Prestown and Bark

I've been painting many minis lately, and Canada Day seems the right time to show off Sgt Prestown of the Yukon and his trusty Husky, Bark - so named for the sound and the skin of trees, of which there are many in the Yukon. It's a pun! 

This miniature set was created by Bob Murch of Pulp Figures, a Canadian company based in Kelowna, BC. Bonus points! 


 

Baby Yoda at Kootenay Lake

Last week, Sylvia and I took Baby Yoda to Creston, British Columbia to enjoy some time in the forest. It was a brief but necessary respite from Alberta. 
 

Baked Bean Soup

While Sean, Sylvia, Mom and I were driving down to Kelowna to visit Mom's sisters, we had a discussion about the merits of beans. During that discussion, I came up with the concept of baked bean soup. Here is the recipe: 

BAKED BEAN SOUP

Ingredients
One can of baked beans
Two whole new potatoes
One rasher of bacon
1 tablespoon nutmeg
1 tablespoon cilantro
1 basil leaf
1 sprig dill
4 dollops sour cream
2 cups shredded cheddar

Preparation
Chop new potatoes into small chunks. Chop bacon into small squares. Pour all ingredients into stewpot and boil for 20 minutes, stirring occasionally. Let cool for five minutes, pour into serving bowls, and add sour cream and shredded cheese. 

Enjoy! 

Susanberry

Beside the Rock

Hidden in plain sight
She stalks her prey
In the forest deep
(Pay no attention to the logging road)

Mini Golf Monologue

Mini golf. A child's game. A sad parody of the real thing.

Putters only. Mine is clutched tightly in my fist. No silly chicanes or cartoonish windmill arms will stop me from shooting nine straight holes-in-one.

It's hot. Teeth clenched. Sun beats down, mocking me. Grip sweaty. Hole out of focus. One simple bounce off the east boundary and I'm in. Just the right angle. Just the right amount of force.

I swing. Gently. But firmly. "Clack" goes the ball as it leaps forward, off my club. "Click" goes the ball as it caroms off the wooden boundary.

It's heading right for the hole. Simple. A child's game.

The ball hops over the hole, petulantly. Comes to rest against the back wall. My face turns red. I hurl the putter, screaming. It bends in half against a tree.

I fall to my knees.

It's beaten me.

Again. 

The Retirement Dream and the Waking Nightmare

Assuming I remain employed for the next 15 years and climate change hasn't quite destroyed civilization yet, I plan to retire at 65. Having now seen most of Canada, here's my short list of retirement possibilities:

Vancouver Island
Prince Edward Island
St. John's (or somewhere on the Avalon peninsula)
Some little hamlet in New Brunswick or Nova Scotia

All of these places offer natural beauty, lovely people, plentiful entertainment and relaxation opportunities, better weather than the Prairies, and proximity to larger cities should the desire for metropolitan experiences ever hit.

In all honesty, though, these feel like fantasies. For some time now I've felt a sense of impending economic doom on a personal level, perhaps because I feel like I've used up all the luck I have to get to where I am now. I've often told people how incredibly fortunate I feel to have enjoyed a comfortable living for the last couple of decades, but during that time I've survived several layoffs and I can't help but feel that eventually my number will come up. Sylvia and I have planned carefully enough that we should be able to avoid homelessness, but the pace of technological change, climate change impacts, and potentially catastrophic political upheaval over the next couple of decades make the future extremely uncertain.

I'm very aware that I live a life of incredible privilege compared to 95 percent of the world, and it feels incredibly selfish to worry about our personal destiny when the fate of billions is at stake.

I wish I had more of Sylvia's confidence that everything will be okay.  But I find it hard to be consistently optimistic.

On the other hand, there's always a chance that the forces of good will triumph over the sociopaths, or that the singularity will come and solve all our problems by means unimagined. Here's hoping...

A Fan of Hangers

Check out that lens flare!

Sylvia and the Lilies

From our trip to visit Jeff, Susan and Steven in 2010. 

Bug on a Leaf

I shot this  while  visiting Jeff and Susan in Port Coquitlam in 2010. Not bad!