The earth has so many wonderful, interesting places to visit. I like where I live ... I enjoy my home and this great city I've just moved to ... but I love travelling.
I've been lucky enough to see a little bit of South America, a smidgen of Europe, much of North America ... and there is so much more of the world I hope to see.
Travelling is an opportunity to escape and take a vacation from the ordinary. It's a chance to experience other cultures and to see exotic places.
One of the best things I love about travelling is coming home with a better perspective. We are lucky to be living here ... we are very well off compared to many other places in the world, and we should be thankful for all we have. Travelling also is a wonderful reminder that we are part of a much bigger picture ...
We have many reasons to be happy and thankful, and it seems that as time goes on I keep discovering more ...
Happy Holidays
: )
Friday, December 18, 2009
Saturday, December 12, 2009
winter's here
This week Ottawa received it's first significant snow of the season. I didn't mind ... it helps put me in more of a Christmas spirit. I love how mother nature forces me to stay fit too ... shovelling snow can be a great way to burn off a few calories, and it's nice to have an opportunity to work out more of my upper body for a change.
I'm glad I was born and raised in the Canadian prairies ... the winters there have prepared me for pretty much anything as far as extreme cold.
I remember playing hockey as a lad in Saskatoon ... early mornings at the outdoor rink in the cold Saskatchewan winters. My dad had the heat cranked in the car afterwards ... there were some pretty frosty hockey practices.
I bought another snow shovel today at Canadian Tire. We now have about 5 shovels in the garage, if I'm not mistaken. The big scoop, the little one in Janice's trunk, the metal scoop, the smaller one thats for digging and the newer plastic one now, for pushing snow.
I don't mind winter so much. I have learned over the years how to drive properly with the Canadian winter road conditions. I know what wind chill is, how to dress in layers and leave as little skin as possible exposed in extreme weather. I know what black ice, a block heater, lock de- icer is. (Don't laugh - there are many, many people in the world who have never heard these terms.)
Everything just takes more time and patience in winter ... what with the extra clothes and adjusting to stopping distances on roads.
This will be my first full winter in Ottawa, and I hope mother nature will be kind ; )
I'm glad I was born and raised in the Canadian prairies ... the winters there have prepared me for pretty much anything as far as extreme cold.
I remember playing hockey as a lad in Saskatoon ... early mornings at the outdoor rink in the cold Saskatchewan winters. My dad had the heat cranked in the car afterwards ... there were some pretty frosty hockey practices.
I bought another snow shovel today at Canadian Tire. We now have about 5 shovels in the garage, if I'm not mistaken. The big scoop, the little one in Janice's trunk, the metal scoop, the smaller one thats for digging and the newer plastic one now, for pushing snow.
I don't mind winter so much. I have learned over the years how to drive properly with the Canadian winter road conditions. I know what wind chill is, how to dress in layers and leave as little skin as possible exposed in extreme weather. I know what black ice, a block heater, lock de- icer is. (Don't laugh - there are many, many people in the world who have never heard these terms.)
Everything just takes more time and patience in winter ... what with the extra clothes and adjusting to stopping distances on roads.
This will be my first full winter in Ottawa, and I hope mother nature will be kind ; )
Saturday, December 5, 2009
I want, I want
This time of years tends to bring out a part of me that wants to buy buy buy. Maybe it goes back to childhood, and years of "What do you want for Christmas" from loved ones.
Advertisers are doing a great job of course, cranking up the Christmas Purchasing Power Machine. The sales are everywhere, and it's tough to resist some of the deals.
Black Friday ... Cyber Monday ... Christmas Sales, Clearance Sales, Deal of The Day... There are bargains to be had. The challenge is not getting sucked into that Holiday consumerism vortex ...
I think most of the time, I'm a fairly savvy consumer. I usually look for sales, know my prices, use coupons and reward programs. This time of year, it's tough to not want to spend money on some of those nicer goodies.
I want a new computer - a Mac; I want a new camera - around the $500 range; I'd like a new TV, a new stereo ... I want, I want ...
Do I really need any of those things? Of course not. I can make do with the stuff I have now. I will exercise self - discipline and be good.
Janice and I have agreed to skip the exchanging of the gift thing at this time of year, and instead - our gift to each other is our Christmas Vacation. We've agreed that travel for us is more of a priority than "stuff", and it's nice not to have worry about what to buy for the other person. If we need something we buy it.
Christmas had become a stressful, pressure filled shopping, gift exchanging thing a while back for both of us, with the crowded malls and the crazy traffic ... this works much better for us right now.
Christmas is not about gifts ... not the material ones, anyway
; )
Advertisers are doing a great job of course, cranking up the Christmas Purchasing Power Machine. The sales are everywhere, and it's tough to resist some of the deals.
Black Friday ... Cyber Monday ... Christmas Sales, Clearance Sales, Deal of The Day... There are bargains to be had. The challenge is not getting sucked into that Holiday consumerism vortex ...
I think most of the time, I'm a fairly savvy consumer. I usually look for sales, know my prices, use coupons and reward programs. This time of year, it's tough to not want to spend money on some of those nicer goodies.
I want a new computer - a Mac; I want a new camera - around the $500 range; I'd like a new TV, a new stereo ... I want, I want ...
Do I really need any of those things? Of course not. I can make do with the stuff I have now. I will exercise self - discipline and be good.
Janice and I have agreed to skip the exchanging of the gift thing at this time of year, and instead - our gift to each other is our Christmas Vacation. We've agreed that travel for us is more of a priority than "stuff", and it's nice not to have worry about what to buy for the other person. If we need something we buy it.
Christmas had become a stressful, pressure filled shopping, gift exchanging thing a while back for both of us, with the crowded malls and the crazy traffic ... this works much better for us right now.
Christmas is not about gifts ... not the material ones, anyway
; )
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)