Category: Loving Life

Henry B. Lake Sr. 1929 – 2012

On By WinstonIn Loving Life, Personal, Self Awareness, UncategorizedLeave a comment

Dear Dad,

I just wanted to drop you a quick note to tell you how lucky I have been to have you in my life. We didn’t always see eye to eye… especially when I was younger. But we eventually worked that out. You mellowed with age and I grew up. It’s amazing what a powerful combination that is. It gave us the ability to be honest without being hurtful.

You weren’t a perfect father, but then I wasn’t a perfect son. It took a while for you to stop being disappointed in me and accept me for who I am. It took me a while to appreciate that your disappointment was about loving me and wanting what you believed was best for me.

Over time, I learned that I could love you without having to be you. I decided when I had a child of my own not to discipline from anger. My daughter was a teen before I raised my voice in anger toward her. I’ve never spanked my child. None of this says you were a bad father, only that I learned from you that wasn’t how I wanted to do things. I never felt abused, you were a product of your time as I am a product of mine.

You taught me a lot about how to live. You taught me about treating others with respect. You encouraged me to think for myself and to defend my opinions. Being who you were helped me learn how to be who I am.

I was fortunate to have you in my life for nearly forty-eight years. Four hundred and eighty wouldn’t have been long enough to say everything I wanted to say to you. Every time I talked to you, we always found something to laugh about. I didn’t call as often as I should have, but I enjoyed it every time I did. I will miss those calls for a long time.

I guess there are just a few more things I want to say to you…..

Thank you. I love you. I will miss you.

Cheers, Winston

Another New Toy

On By WinstonIn Loving Life, Personal, UncategorizedLeave a comment

For those who hadnt read my previous posts, I’m now working for Fido.   Fido is a cellular provider here in Canada.  Given my fondness for toys and gadgets it’s turned out to be a good fit. 

My faithful old iPhone 3gs finally gave up the ghost.  Insert moment of silence here. 
So it was time for a new phone and what
a coincidence, I now work for a cell phone company.  Long story short, I now have an HTC One S.

Fast dual core 1.5ghz processor. Gorgeous, pin sharp display. 8 megapixel camera with built in HDR and Beats audio.  Coolest phone we sell here. With a decent set of headphones, the sound quality is amazing.

Of course, I’m currently writing this post on it.  All the apps from my tablet also run on my phone including WordPress.

To test sound and video, I’m currently watching “The Woman In Black”.  Creepy ghost flick made more so with Beats Audio enhancement.  Every tick, click and creak comes through and does so much to set the scene.  Absolutely the best portable movie experience I’ve had.

So yeah.  Love the new phone.  Loving the new job.  Loving my wife, my daughter and my dog. 

Life is good as I sit here playing with another new toy.

Cheers, Winston

Only One Hour To Go

On By WinstonIn Loving Life, Personal, UncategorizedLeave a comment

Hour four of seven solo today. I’ve answered three or four fairly basic questions. Other than that, I’ve read, surfed the Web, thought about going to the pharmacy for Robaxacet (these stools are killing my back), phoned and left a message for Lynn and texted my daughter. For those who haven’t guessed, I’m a little bored. Yep. I’m a little bored like Charles Manson is a little crazy.

Long story short (not that I don’t have the time, but hopefully you have better things to do), my boss has a week off, one coworker is out of town and the other has a project due for University. (Post Secondary summer school sucks too). Because of all this, I get the privilege of working alone from 2-9pm.

That’s right folks. Seven hours of peace, quiet, solitude and burgeoning psychosis. Not to mention a serious scarcity of bathroom breaks. In their defense, I am allowed to lock up and go as required so it’s not exactly a labour code thing. It’s just really inconvenient. I have to pull out one foldy gate and lock it down. Then I pull out the other foldy gate and lock that to the first one (remember to put up a sign before locking up otherwise go back in and write up a sign then lock up), after which I am free to sprint off down the mall. It really limits the spontaneity and if there is any sense of urgency (curse you yummy, delicious, awesome coffee/tea/etc!) then things get a bit more dramatic than I prefer.

I’m that stimulated right now. The biggest news I can think write about is my potential need to go to the restroom. That says it all about my day to this point.

BREAKING NEWS
My puppy just got a clean bill of health! To put my excitement in perspective, Chester is a large mixed breed who recently celebrated his fourteenth birthday. For a large dog, that’s getting up there. He’s also a cancer survivor who had a lump removed from his hip a couple of years ago. He’s grown some new lumps, but the doctor says he doesn’t think they’re cancerous, just fatty deposits (by coincidence, I saw my doctor for a lump a couple of years ago and was told it’s just a piece of hard fat). Other than a stiff elbow, he’s in great shape.

From being bored out of my mind, I’m now insanely happy. I have an awesome dog and I seriously doubt that a major lottery win could make me any happier than hearing news that good about my Chester puppy.

On that happy note, I’m going to wrap this up, send up a sincere “Thank you!” to the big Puppy Lover in the sky, and then start thinking about going home. That’s the other good news. Only an hour to go…… Then I come in to open…. Alone…. For three and a half hours. But for now, there’s only an hour to go.

Cheers, Winston

A Little More Trailer Time

On By WinstonIn Loving Life, Personal, UncategorizedLeave a comment

image

Tammy is back in Sudbury, and I’m back at my trailer. We drove up on Saturday, and back to Ottawa on Sunday. That’s about 650kms each way. Since I don’t drive, that’s a lot of driving for Lynn. From the get-go, we planned on stopping at the trailer on the way home. Officially, it’s to save Lynn the extra hour and change to drive all the way to the other side of Ottawa, really we just wanted some trailer time.

I was up and out on my deck by 7am, Lynn may have slept a little later. So I sat out here and enjoyed the cool, early morning breeze and watched chipmunks and birds in my yard. I read for a while, then took a little nap in the shade. When my shade went away I went inside and read for while before taking another nap. After that, I made a late lunch for Lynn and I.

Now I’m back out on my deck. The day is still hot, but under the awning there’s just enough breeze to make it pleasant. The only question now is, “Do we go home tonight or wait until morning?”

I haven’t been able to get up here for a while, and I won’t be back until mid-month. I think I should stay to the last possible moment. It is so peaceful here. We both feel renewed when we go back into town and back to the “real world”. I’m okay with getting up early if it means I get to enjoy a little more trailer time.

My Happy Place

On By WinstonIn Loving Life, Personal, UncategorizedLeave a comment

Today’s post is all about the things we take for granted. This has a lot to do with being home all alone. Lynn, Cynthia and Tammy have taken my dog and run away. At least as far as our trailer. That was another thing on my niece’s to do list, spend a few days at our trailer and relax for the last of her vacation. I can’t say as I blame her at all.

Perhaps, “take for granted” isn’t quite what I want to say. Maybe it’s more about comfort. We are a comfort loving species. We live for our routines and the security of the well trod pathways of our daily lives. Personally, my routine revolves around my wife, and my daughter and my dog. Not having them here always messes me up.

Don’t misunderstand, I don’t begrudge them the time at the trailer. I just don’t feel right in my skin or in my heart when they aren’t with me. I know that sounds all kinds of needy, and but it’s more than that. They are a major part of the fabric of of my life.

When we are all home, and Cynthia spends most of her time in her room on her computer. Lynn and I are together on the couch, and but often doing differnt things. My dog is there, snoozing on his bed at our feet. It’s how my world is meant to be. We don’t do everything together. But we can if we choose to. When I don’t have that option, life isn’t as enjoyable.

Everyone has the things that make them happy, and bring them peace, and and complete them. It’s different for everyone. My family is what gets it done for me. My home is wherever they are. When they’re away, I can sit in my living room and feel far from home. That’s what I’m feeling now. I’m not so much lonely, I’m homesick, but only for a couple more days. I can tough it out for that long. I’m sure of it…….. I think.

Then I get my happy place back! ;^D

Cheers, Winston

Keep The Good Times Rolling!

On By WinstonIn Loving Life, Personal, UncategorizedLeave a comment

If you read the previous post, you will recall the near disaster when when we took my neice to the Museum of Nature Monday.   I am happy to report that our trip to the National Gallery went more smoothly.

Neither Lynn nor Cynrhia were really interested in the gallery, so it was just Tammy and myself.  We managed to enjoy ourselves anyway.  In fact, we had a blast.

The first thing that struck me on entering is it’s similarity to Dr Who’s T.A.R.D.I.S.  It seems much larger on the inside than it appears on the outside.  From the outside, it looks big.  On the inside, it’s enormous.  This became painfully obvious around the same time I realized it’s a bad idea to try to do it all in one day. 

Not only is it a great deal of walking, but you become saturated with art.  It turns out that there is a finite amount of beauty and wonder that I can absorb in a given day.  Spending the entire day surrounded by the work of legends (Rembrandt, Ruebens, Krieghoff, Tom Thompson, to name a few) hit my personal limit.  I will go back at some point when I’m not on a timetable and take the time to sit and enjoy them at my leisure.

Afterwards, Lynn picked us up and we went to take pictures of the ducks at Billings Bridge.  While there, someone else was feeding the ducks, squirrels, and a very fat and friendly groundhog.  We were able to get some excellent pictures.  It made for a nice finish to a truly enjoyable day.

Now off to work.

Cheers, Winston

Another Awesome Day

On By WinstonIn Loving Life, Personal, UncategorizedLeave a comment

My niece Tammy is visiting from Sudbury, which is very cool.  I haven’t seen much of her since I moved to Ottawa in ’97.    We are really close, so it’s nice to have her here.  Of course, as I mentioned last time, I’ve just started a new job so not much time off during her visit.  Good news is, she and Lynn also get on quite well so they’ve been having a great time anyway.

Today was one of my days off so Lynn, Tammy, Cynthia packed a picnic lunch and spent the day at the Victoria Memorial Museum of Nature.   It’s a beautiful museum filled with amazing exhibits.  All of us thoroughly enjoyed it and had an incredible day.

There was one glitch. I left Lynn’s camera in the men’s room.  I didn’t realize this until we were walking to the car at the end of the day.  I ran back inside, ran up four (tall) stories worth of stairs only to discover it gone.  Not a warm fuzzy moment. 

Did I mention this was my wife’s camera.   Lynn really enjoys photography and gets very attached to her cameras.  You can imagine my dismay as I set off for the security office to report a lost camera.

On my way, I stopped to ask a guard for directions.  He asked what I had lost and where.  When I told him, he asked me to accompany him to the security office.  I was expecting to fill out paperwork.  Instead, he opened the safe and retrieved my wife’s camera.  Someone had found it and turned it in.  Thank you kind stranger whoever you are.  You just earned yourself a LOT of good karma!

And so, a great day was saved. 

Tomorrow Tammy and I are off to the National Gallery.  We’ll see how that goes.  Hopefully, crisis free. 

Cheers, Winston

New Job, New Toy

On By WinstonIn Loving Life, PersonalLeave a comment

So, my brief tenure at GameStop has drawn to a close.  Nothing against them, it was a great job while it lasted.  Unfortunately, it was only part time.  Not enough hours for me to live on.  So when I heard my local Fido store was hiring full time, I jumped ship.  Everything is very amicable, and I often stop by to visit my former co-workers.

For those not from Canada, Fido is a cell phone service provider.  The job is pretty  straight forward although there is a bit of a learning curve around the back end.  Sales are easy.  Learning the process to setup the sale and invoice everything properly is still a learning opportunity, but I’m getting there. 

The other news is the new toy.  I’ve been wanting a tablet for a while, but couldn’t justify the cost.  Well, Rogers found a pricepoint I couldn’t resist.  $21/mo on a three year plan.  So I talked to Lynn and went and picked it up before work yesteday.  It is sooooooo cool! 

I picked up a Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1 4G.  Big screen, fast dual core processor, 16Gb of storage, this thing is  a beast!  Yes, I am writing this post on it right now ;^D

Now I have to go to the new job, to pay for the new toy.

Cheers, Winston

Writer’s Block, A New Job And The Holiday Season

On By WinstonIn Loving Life, PersonalLeave a comment

Hello again everyone.   As you can see from the title, I figured I’d get all the excuses out of the way right off the top.  I won`t bore you with all the details, but it`s been a busy and occasionally frustrating week.  `Nuff said.

In other news:

In a rare fit of something  I`ve never managed before, my Christmas shopping is almost finished.  We`ve just got to pick up one or two small things for our daughter and then it`s just Lynn`s parents and we`re officially finished!  To put that in perspective, I`m normally closing the mall Christmas eve looking for some last minute item for Lynn, so this is cause for some major celebration.

There is of course another reason that I won`t be shopping Christmas eve.  I`ll be at work enabling all the other procrastinators who put off their shopping.  Should be an interesting experience.  (He said hopefully.)  I`m also going to be working Boxing day which should be even more interesting.  (He said sarcastically.)  But at least I`m working again and the hours are good so I`m not complaining.  Not too much anyway.

Speaking of Christmas, there`s one bright spot to my new job.  Blockbuster was open Christmas day, and because Lynn`s family does dinner and gift exchange Christmas eve, I always worked Christmas day so other`s could be with their families.  Game Stop is closed Christmas day, so I will be with my family all day.  Life doesn`t get better than that.

Speaking of the new job, I have to go and start my day.  Hopefully I can get past the writher`s block thing and get back on track.  Time will tell.

Cheers, Winston

Sorry For The Absenteeism

On By WinstonIn Loving Life, Personal, Video GamesLeave a comment

I realize that my posts have been a bit sporadic lately to say the least.  It’s kind of a good news, bad news thing.  I’ve started a new job, which is a good thing.  On the other hand, the learning curve has been eating so much of my energy that it hasn’t left a lot for my  blog.

I’m starting to get on top of the new job, so I should be able to refocus and get back on track here as well.

For the idly curious, I’m working at Game Stop now.  It’s a pretty cool gig.  I love video games, and gamers tend to be pretty laid back people so it’s a good fit.  Also, some of my former Blockbuster customers are finding me which is way cool in it’s own right.  There’s just one problem with the job.  I’m like a cannibal working in a morgue, I tend to want to take my work home with me.

Speaking of which, it’s that time of the day again.  Off to feed the cravings again.  Not mine, all the others coming in to join the Christmas Horde.  When I listen to the screaming and shouting and see the crowds shuffling through the mall, it gives me preview of the Zombieapocalypse.  I wonder how sturdy those foldy gates really are.

Cheers, Winston