Do you remember...the first day of Grade Three

Do you remember the first day of grade three? Or any "first day" of elementary school? The air is filled with a mix of contradictory emotions.

Kids are filled with a nervous energy as they wait to see if their friends from the previous year are in their new class. Shouts of joy can be heard from those who find out that their friends are with them in their new class while kids who aren't so lucky look around pensively.

Parents, seem to share a bemused look as they try to make sense of the madness of hundreds of children milling around teachers holding signs and calling out their particular class and grade.

"Any child who has been assigned 'Lac Erie' as their class please line up over here"!
"'Lac Huron' kids are with me over there!"
"Here?"
"No there!" 

Are parents happy that the summer break is over and they don't have to constantly figure out what summer activities they need to do with their kids? Or are they a touch sad as they witness yet another milestone in their children's lives? mmmm I'm guessing the former :)

Teachers - wow! The summer has worked its refreshing magic and they radiate newfound sources of energy. They are dressed to the nines and giving high fives and hugs to all their last years students. Haha save that energy teachers! You'll need it in the depths of March when that kid with the curly hair in the back of the room has glued a pencil to his hair again.

The first day of grade three. Definitely not for the faint of heart!

Guest Post: In Her own Words

Sometimes, words just don't do the real world justice. This past weekend I recorded Ms. Margot, a.k.a. the star of Tough Cookies: Hintonburg Style, answering some basic questions to show a glimpse of just what really is going on in that little mind of hers.

Question #1: What is your favourite subject and why?

Question #2:  What is something you're good at?

Question #3: What is something you would wish for if you could make the world better?

And just so you don't think she's a little Goody two shoes, here's a taste of what she does when she grabs my cell phone camera behind my back at the local Canadian Tire:

WHO-HUG-A-CHUGA-CHUGA

Day Trips: How Far to Go?

"Day trips" have always been important to me since I was a kid: packing a cooler into the car, driving to a nearby provincial park and then kicking around until the afternoon before returning home... ahh that's the stuff of life.

Now that I'm an adult I find they are also a great way to enjoy weekends, learn about some local lore, or just do something other than plain old house chores. Because let's be honest, there are always more chores to do if you stay home!

If you've read a few blog posts on this site you may have noticed that Glosette Girl and I try and do a lot of day trips. Whether it's winter walks, experiencing local fall festivals, going apple picking, or climbing the Gatineau Hills, we're always on the lookout for something new. Sometimes they are just mini day trips: a couple of hours. Occasionally they are full day affairs. But interestingly, if you were to pinpoint on a map all the places we have been you would realize that they are all within a roughly one hour drive from my house.

That seems to be the maximum range of driving I'm willing to do without spending the night at wherever I am. Maybe...maybe I would do an hour and a half. But I'm pretty consistent with the one-hour limit.

This past weekend we took Margot kayaking for the first time at Parc National de Plaisance on the Quebec side. It's a decent destination for water sports, birding and cycling that's just under the one-hour mark from me (so looks like I'm putting my money where my mouth is!).

How to give a "handshake" with a padle

I'm curious what other people's day trip limits are. 2-hours? 3-hours? Am I too conservative with my driving limits or just about right?

Poor ol' Magee!

This neighbourhood has a fair bit of history by Ontario standards. My house is over 100-years old, which is almost as old as it gets. Almost...but not quite the oldest. There are some buildings in the area from the 1870s.

So it's sad when something happens to one of those older buildings. Just a couple of weeks ago, this happened just down the street from where we lived during a rain storm:

Why do I sense a lawsuit here...?

Luckily no one was hurt.

Apparently this building was known as "Magee House" after its original owner who was a "energetic Irish widow who became a shrewd real estate speculator." In subsequent years it had a diverse history as a bank, catering service headquarters, menswear store, hardware store and even had a car dealership.

We were actually in Newfoundland when the building collapse occurred so we didn't hear about it right away but the media appears to have picked up on the story. Probably because buildings of this age are pretty rare in Ottawa.

I wonder what will happen now? Another heritage building in downtown Ottawa partially collapsed in 2007 and over 10 years later it still hasn't been reconstructed. Hmmm. Is endless discussions, delay and litigation the future here too? Hintonburg has a good community spirit so hopefully we'll have a more positive and timely outcome.

Exploring the edge of the World

I've travelled far and wide in Canada: British Columbia, Alberta, New Brunswick, Quebec, PEI and Nova Scotia. Everywhere I've been (even francophone Quebec) has felt reasonably similar to my home in Ottawa, Ontario. For that reason I've tended to make certain assumptions about how Canadians live and who we are as a people.

All my assumptions have been thrown out the window now that I've visited Newfoundland.

Glosette Girl, Margot and I are currently wrapping up our 12 day tour of this far flung province perched on the edge of North America. It has been been an eye opening experience. I don't want this blog post to sound like a tourist ad but the scenery has been spectacular.

I mean, what's your fancy? Haunting beauty?

The gates of "Western Brook Pond"

Vertigo inducing hike?

Hiking in the clouds of the Skerwink Trail

Or just your regular, run-of-the mill, breathtaking lookout?

Lobster Cove Lookout

Of course, pretty much everywhere in Canada has pretty scenery. What has made Newfoundland extra special for me has been the people. The people here are different. They say "hi" and look you in the eye. They are rougher but nicer. And everything you've heard about the Newfoundland accent is true (other than in St John's, where the accent is less pronounced). The words are English, I suppose, but they just come out of people's mouths in a different way!

And I haven't even gone into the traditions yet. Ever heard of a Mummer's parade?

This weather here is harsh and to add to that (or sometimes because of that) history has not been kind. A melancholy feeling hangs over the air. Yet there is a fierce and authentic happiness that is hard to put my finger on. I can see why, even with its seemingly endless winters, people can fall in love with this island.