Goodbye 2020...with one last adventure

Even though we slipped away to Sheenboro, QC, last week, we couldn't let the year end without one last winter walk. This time we visited Northumberland County, Ontario, which is about three hours West of our house. For obvious pandemic-related reasons, our expedition was pretty low key: just enjoy a change of scenery and perhaps go for some local walks and hikes.

Even aside from the obvious, it's been a strange Christmas season because there has been almost no snow. Usually at this point we're knee deep in the white stuff but we actually had a Green Christmas in Ottawa this year and Northumberland County was hardly better. The forests had a sprinkling of snow but the property surrounding the farmhouse property we stayed at near Castleton, Ontario, had almost none until our last morning there. 

Snowless in December?!

I'll say one thing for COVID, it's given a newfound appreciation for the quiet beauty at my doorstep in Ontario and Quebec. Northumberland County is a land of rolling hills, small forests and little creeks. It's Ontario's answer to the rolling countryside of England but at the end of the day it just a pretty place I've somehow always overlooked as I go back and forth between Ottawa and Toronto. 

We did eventually find some ice and snow in the woods

The site where we stayed even had a cool tiny microhouse and maze at the top of a hill you can rent with a commanding views of the surrounding (snow-less) hills and farms.

The little maze and littler house

View from the top. Ah the beautiful browns and greys of early winter!

Best of all, it offered just what we needed to end the year: a place for walking, reflecting and a chance to disconnect from the news cycle. (Oh and a nice big fireplace)

2020 - you were a son of a gun. But you didn't stop me and my gang from discovering these simple pleasures. Bring on 2021!

Sheenboro ski holiday

On Monday, Glosette Girl and I jetted off in our Kia Rio to Sheenboro, QC, where we had rented a cottage for us to hide in for a couple of days. 

First cross-country ski trip of the season!

 The cottage had all the essentials for a great Canadian winter getaway:

• Waterfront view - check.
• Down a dirt road - check.
• No Internet - check.
• Crazy cat blankets - check.
  
• Old Board games and puzzles lying about - check.
• Wood oven stove, which I kept crackling with fire  - check.
• Cross country ski trails....well....there weren't exactly trails in the area, but because the cottage was so isolated we were able to use the dirt road leading up to the cottage as a makeshift trail. A bit dodgy but since we never saw another car on the road for the 2 days we were there, I'd say it was less dodgy than going to the grocery store and trying to dodge all the people not folowing the arrows on the ground!

The hills on the road made for good fun:

 

There was a power failure on the last day, which meant we had to skip out a little earlier than we had planned, but overall I would say the visit was a grand success. It was the perfect excuse for each of us to indulge in some simple pleasures (me - eating chips and drinking coke; Glosette Girl - reading and knitting; Margot -  reading tons of bande dessinée and watching some Christmas movies and TV shows) without any guilt that we should be more productive with our time.

500 piece puzzle completed in two days: check!

Christmas Classic TV Shows and Movies

I grew up before the age of the Internet. In December, I used to scan the TV guides we would get in the mail for my favourite Christmas movies and TV shows. There were definitely a few classics that I could never pass up:

• Rudolph the Red-nosed Reindeer (1964) - who wouldn't want to see a reindeer, elf-dentist-wannabee, and arctic prospector Yukon Cornelius triumph over the abominable snowman?
• The Little Drummer Boy (1968) - I think when I was a kid I imagined myself as being the little drummer boy.
• Frosty the Snowman (1969) - I'm not a huge Frosty fan now but when I was young it was a regular part of the fixture.
• Mickey's Christmas Carol (1983) - who knew that you could blaze through hundreds of pages of Charles Dickens' classic in 22-short minutes?! Does a pretty good job.
• A Charlie Brown Christmas (1965) -  this one is even better now then when I was a kid! The second one has some funny moments too.
• Jack Frost (1979) -  one of the more obscure ones but this one has a few holiday songs that are real gems - "It's just what I always wanted, it's perfectly right, it's just what I always wanted - a Christmas delight"!
• Twas the Night Before Christmas (1974) - have you noticed how many Bass/Rankin movies are on this list?! Another one with a catchy song.
• The Year Without A Santa Claus (1974) - Whose side are you on? The Heat Miser or the Snow Miser? It's on!
• And of course I love how my regularly watched TV shows (Transformers, Thundercats, etc.) would have Christmas shows which usually involved the main bad guy doing something nice for a change.
  

I'll save adult Christmas classics (e.g. It's a Wonderful Life, etc.) for another time but here are some more modern faves of mine.

• Home Alone (1990) - this one came out just at the edge of my childhood so it's not something I regularly looked forward to it but I can appreciate some of its charms including the great John Candy.
• Elf (2003) -  one of Will Farrell's greatest hits.
• National Lampoons Christmas Vacation (1989) - another one that is more for adults than kids but is bound to be played every year.
  
• And here's a guilty secret - those cheesy Hallmark Christmas movies you may have heard about? Glosette Girl and I are hooked! Yes the stories are predictable* and the acting is bad but something draws us in! Maybe because so many of them are filmed around here? Check out Christmas in the Heartland and The Princess Switch for starters.
  

Why is this coming up now? Because one of my absolute favourite movies was on last night: The Dog Who Stopped the War (originally titled La Guerre des Tuques). 

Orange Crush and Christmas movie = heaven

How many snow forts were inspired by this movie? There's a slightly sad tinge to the film but it perfectly captures the absolute ups and downs of childhood. Bonus points: it was filmed it Baie St-Paul, which I visited this past summer. The movie stands up to the test of time and amazingly the fashions are back in style again.

Good ol' Cleo

Super bonus points: I watched the whole movie in French on TeleQuebec. I understood...60%? Not bad.

* Beautiful yet-for-some-reason still single woman meets slightly stuffy prince or other businessman, they have some shenanigans, there is a mild misunderstanding and then they resolve everything to realize they are perfect for each other.

North, East, South and West

I remember when I was a kid experiencing a feeling that my neighbourhood was mine. Inside the safety and security of a few square blocks, I knew where my friends lived, where the corner stores were and which parks were best. It was my home! But beyond this area, everything felt different.

I sometimes feel the same way around here. I'm not sure what the proper geographic boundaries of Hintonburg are but, to me at least, the elevated highway splitting Hintonburg from the Civic Hospital area, is the southern boundary.

The great southern border...

To the east it's Breezehill Avenue/Loretta Avenue where this past weekend I enjoyed some brew from Happy Goat Coffee.

"Honey, who is that strange man taking photos of our car?"

The west is trickier as some say Hintonburg extends all the way to Holland Avenue. However, I put my money closer to home - Parkdale Avenue. Between Holland and Parkdale the houses are a bit more posh and feel a bit different. 

See that smorgasbord of orange? That spells "Hintonburg"

Finally there is the north. Wellington Street is an obvious dividing line bet but even though the neighbourhood on the opposite has a different look (smaller streets, houses closer together), I consider it part of my hood. So I'll say the northern border extends to Scott Street.

It's not a huge area. I walk to the edge in any direction in about 15 minutes. But it's home.

Last of the Patio days...or is it?

Last Sunday it got up to a balmy seven degrees in Ottawa. So balmy in fact that Glosette Girl and I even had an opportunity to enjoy a ringside table to a sunset on a nearby patio. 

Love that snowy goodness

"Patios on the last day of November you say?" Yes that is the new reality around here in these days of Covid. Ottawa is in Zone Orange, which technically allows for indoor eating but many people are still only comfortable eating/drinking outside as a precaution.

Sadly, even though the city waived patio fees, and many bars and restaurants purchased space heaters, it seems most places in this neighbourhood packed up their patios by mid-November. I find that surprising as we've had a relatively mild November this year and definitely if more patios had been open last weekend, I'm sure they would have been occupied.

Luckily, we found one of the last remaining ones: at our friendly neighbourhood ice cream shop: Stella Luna! I had a hot chocolate and Glosette Girl had a Vanilla Latte. It was really enjoyable to soak in a bit of sun and let the day fade away. If there is one thing I hope we keep even in the brave new post-covid world it is this new experience of shoulder season patios.

Midnight Doghouse Run

 Ever see someone walking down a snowy street with a doghouse in hand? 

Well that was my gang last Sunday. We were alerted by a post on Buy Nothing Hintonburg that there was a dog house available on the corner of Gladstone and Irving and 20 minutes later we were out the door going to pick it up.

Buy Nothing is an interesting phenomena. People are literally giving away almost everything on this site: TVs, plants, pots and pan, even half eaten boxes of cereal. And guess what? There are takers for everything! Well... almost everything. Glosette Girl tried to give away some teaching books earlier this year and there were no takers :( 

Oh well. Guess open boxes of Cheerios are more interesting.

Anyways, if you haven't done so yet, check out whether there is a "Buy Nothing" group in your area. There probably is and you will be surprised at what you can find.

As for me, well I am now a proud owner of a doghouse, which takes pride of place in my backyard. By the way, I don't have a dog.

Margot is hoping to rehabilitate the doghouse for our cat, Panda

Étoile du Squat

Ah the simple joys of childhood...

This week, Margot was recognized by Télé Quebec as the Étoile du Squat. Squat is a french supervised social media website that does a surprisingly good job at keeping Margot on top of current affairs in a kid-friendly way. It's like a french CBC website for kids. On the site children post comments about hot topics and also have the ability to comment on each other's posts. 

The Internet loves Margot

Well Squat has apparently been paying attention to Margot's posts because she received the award for her polite tone, her positive comments and her kind words towards others. 

Margot was literally BEAMING when she found out she had received the award. To top things off, after Squat announced she was the Étoile du Squat she received 289 comments or posts congratulating her. Of course she had to respond to them all personally!

The only downside is that has to check every morning for new Squat comments!

What a great day to be a squatteuse!

Hintonburg lineups

 Ottawa is known for a lot of things:

• There are more than 14 museums in Ottawa, and apparently the Canadian History Museum is the most visited museum in Canada.
• A skilled and competent civil service (20% of all adults in the Federal civil service alone)
  
• We take great pride in civic responsibility (we are above the national average when it comes to voting woohoo!)
• We have an educated population (four universities plus colleges)
• The Rideau Canal is the largest skating rink in world
• It's the seventh coldest capital in the world...*
  

Hmmm not exactly the most riveting list is it? It probably explains why people often claim it's a boring city even though, as I've said before, I would argue that's unfair.

And true to form, even a worldwide pandemic can't stop Ottawan's from our organized and officious selves! I snapped this photo of people standing in line to buy Suzy Q donuts on Sunday when it was a (crazy) 20 degrees Celsius outside. Now don't get me wrong, Suzy Q isn't half bad but standing around for 20 minutes at 2 pm...for donuts?

Still, it's great to support local. And who am I to judge what people stand outside for? I've seen lineups around the block for ice cream (in October) and grocery stores at 8 am when they open (waiting 30 minutes after opening avoids the lines).  Compared to the passion in that country down south of us... maybe standing around in lines isn't such a bad quirk!

*Ulaan-Baatar (Mongolia), Astana (Kazakhastan), Moscow, Helsinki, Reykjavik and Tallin (Estonia) apparently beat us.

US Election: And So It Goes

I rarely write about politics on this blog. It's not that I'm not into politics and world affairs, it's just that I like to focus my writing on the quiet quirks and moments that make up my little corner of the world. 

However, every once in awhile something happens that I can't help but take notice of. Not a Canadian election! Those are yawn fests (expect when Quebec seperatism is on the table). Canadian political disagreements are akin to arguing which colour of beige is best for the walls. Sometimes UK or European news captures my attention...but, let's be honest, no one does crazy, epic, political fights like the U.S.  

It's like everything Americans do - amusement parks, hamburgers, sleaze, celebrity, rock and roll - they do it bigger and badder than anyone.

With no direct skin in the game, I'm more bemused than anything these days. It looks like Biden has the election wrapped up but the results are a lot closer than many people thought it would be at this point although I don't understand why journalists seem surprised about that. Don't they know what country they live in? From my vantage point in the Great White North, the U.S. is a conservative inclined country with periodic liberal interludes. This is the exact opposite of Canada, which is a naturally liberal country with occasional conservative periods. Trump just brought out an extreme version of what was always there.

Honestly I think too often journalists and other smart people substitute what they want to happen with what will happen.

Anyways, eventually this period of turmoil shall pass. The U.S. is almost out of the crassness of the Trump era. A modest Democrat era begins. And it certainly is modest - there was no "blue wave".  I hope that at least gives both sides pause. The U.S. is a divided country and each side needs to realize that they must live with and listen to the other. Will anyone try?

Haunted Houses of Hintonburg

I went for a walk around the neighbourhood recently and noticed that the the Halloween decorations seem extra spooky this year! Here are some of the better ones I saw:

Jazzed up ghosts...not bad...

This house is spooky even without the decorations

Where do you even buy a 15-foot skeleton?!

Simple yet effective. Nice.

Happy Halloween!

World of Maps

Glosette Girl and I recently invested in a little art project that I'm excited about! We purchased and framed three maps from World of Maps, a specialized map store in Hintonburg. 

I will be honest, I love maps. I can stare at them forever. If I haven't been to what I'm looking at on a map, I imagine what it'd be like. If I have been to what I'm looking at, looking at a map will remind me of what I did when I was there.

The maps we chose were of three places that hold special significance for our lives:

2003-2004: Bristol, UK

2004-2007: Fredericton, NB

2007-now: Hull, QC/Ottawa, ON

Together, these maps show the three cities where Glosette Girl and I have lived together since we moved in together way back in 2002. Anyways, just a little side project and as a bonus got to help a cool local business to boot! Right, Margot?

"Right, dada"

Fall camping - the edge of madness!

To celebrate my b-day this weekend (yay me!) I convinced Glosette Girl and Margot to try fall camping with me. We've done fall camping twice before, but never this late into the season. Our target: Reserve Faunique Papineau Labelle where the temperatures were forecast to hit minus three degrees celsius at night.  A little bit crazy? Not for an Ottawan!

I'm not sure what the technical difference is between a park and a reserve faunique is in Quebec. Without googling the answer I'm guessing that the answer is that "parks" have more facilities and are geared towards camping and hiking, while "reserves" target hunting and fishing. And when I say "target" I mean target: just a couple of minutes past the reserve entrance we saw orange clad hunters in full hunting gear. The lady at the reserve check in also cautioned us to wear bright colours if we took a hike as it was boar season and she didn't want us to get shot. 

...

We decided to pass on hiking.

Fortunately our campsite was really pretty and didn't require us to explore too far. We started our day by reading by the shore. It was very peaceful.*

We ended our day eating fire-cooked hamburgers and roasting marshmallows. A real bonus was that the night was very clear and the stars were out. For the first time ever we got a chance to see the Milky way.**

Fortunately our tent was bright orange!

I was a little worried that the cold at night would be unbearable but we were smart enough to pack tons of blankets and a couple of air mattress. With all three of us bundled up under the covers it wasn't too bad.

Reserve Faunique Papineau Labelle is just under two hours away from Ottawa. The campsites are super secluded (only five where we were [at Lac Ernest], compared to hundreds of sites at some of the local Ontario parks). I 100% recommend going...if you have bright clothing.

Morning mist by our campsite

* we only heard two gunshots far in the distance! 

** for astronomy geeks: we live in the Milky Way galaxy but I'm talking about the band of hazy light that is visible across the night sky if you go far away from light pollution.

Guest Post: a 10-year old's thoughts

Well, I enjoyed picking Glosette Girl's brain in last week's post, so I thought I would continue the fun with another guest post - this time from Margot's perspective.

First question: "What do you like about your cat, Panda?" (sidebar one: two great joys in Margot's life right now are horses and Panda)

Second question: "What do you like to do after school?" (sidebar two: a bonus of these guest posts is that Margot tells me what's going on in her life without too much pushback. Parent score!)

Third question: "Do you like mornings or evenings better (sidebar three: trick question - evenings during weekdays, mornings on weekends!) 

Fourth question: "What is the square root of 361?"*

Ha fooled you. Bonus Panda question!

* It's 19 if you're curious.

Guest Post: Fall ramblings

It's been awhile since I had a guest post here on Tough Cookies: Hintonburg Style, so I thought I'd check in on Glosette Girl and see how she's handling things.

First question: "How is the teaching going this semester?"

Hmmm honest answer! (p.s the heavy breathing you hear - that's Margot. She could hardly contain her laughter what with our cat Panda cleaning himself throughout this performance. She was also the camera man on set).

Second question: "What do you think about autumn?" (Glosette Girl always tells me autumn is her least favourite season). Panda makes a guest appearance in this one too.

So now I know Glosette Girl really likes soup and thinks Margot and I are holding her back from her soup escapades. Wait...wasn't my question about autumn?!

Grade Five...still walkin'

In 2016 I blogged how much I enjoyed walking with Margot to school. Well, four years later I'm still enjoying those walks. Margot is in grade five now and doesn't need me to walk her to school anymore. But she tells me she likes that I walk her...part of the way.

I don't hold her hand as much but I still walk her to the corner of Gladstone and St Francis street, which takes about three minutes. I then give her a hug and let her go on her merry way. It's short but in many ways a much more relaxing routine than it used to be when she was younger. Our mornings used to be a constant battle of Glosette Girl trying (and failing) to brush Margot's hair and get her out the door. It was incredibly stressful.

Now that's all in the past and often she has time to enjoy a little bit of Squat before we leave. Growing up, I remember walking to school with my brother and some local boys who would come over to our house.We were a geeky little crew but we had our fun. It was a rough and tumble start to the day and very different from Margot's experience. 

Sometimes I wish there were some neighbourhood kids around here that Margot could walk to school with. I think she would like that. She's half way there already because after school, she and a gaggle of friends walk home together  But secretly (well, not so secretly since I'm blogging about it), I'm glad I have all to myself in the mornings for just a little longer.

The One that Got Away

I've been trying to squeeze in some extended family time before fall/winter really hits and things possibly go into lockdown again. Luckily, my annual fishing trip with my brother and dad always falls on the shoulder seasons bordering summer: early June or late September.

This year we settled on a fall trip and visited Kirk Cove Cottages, on the shores of Big Gull Lake, which is just under 2-hours from my house.

As always with these fishing trips, it's easy to slip into the routine of enjoying nature, trying to catch fish (mostly without success) and just chillin' with my dad and bro. Hard to believe but this is our 12th year in a row doing these trips and we haven't missed a beat. 

The boys!

 So far we've tried:

• Talon Lake (near north, Ontario) - 2 times
• Christie Lake (eastern Ontario) - 3 times
• Brailey Lake (far north fly-in-fishing) once
• Hungry Lake (eastern Ontario) - 4 times
• Big Gull Lake (eastern Ontario) - twice

Sadly the annual fishing trip is often the only time I get to go on fishing, although this year was an exception. I tried city fishing with Margot on a couple of occasions early in the year, without much success (we still had lots of fun though and Margot really knows how to cast a line now!)

Speaking of lack of success, I would say this was one of the worst years fishing for me in a long time. Luckily "my boys" helped me out and eventually I caught a few smallmouth bass to get on the "board" (p.s fishing brings out lots of air quotes).

This guy was a tough lil' son of a gun to catch

 Regardless of the amount of fish I caught, being in such a pretty place for 48 hours reminded me how much I enjoy nature again. A perfect late summer/early spring gift to myself.

 

U.S Border Loophole

The Canada-U.S. border has been closed to all non-essential traffic since March...but this past weekend we found a loophole!

On Saturday we visited the Thousand Island region of Canada, which is an archipelago of freshwater islands about 1.5 hours away from my house that separates Ontario, Canada from New York state, United States. In that region there are tourist boats that cross the border daily. For the time being, Canadian boats aren't allowed to stop on the American side and vice-versa, but the boats do technically cross the international border. 

On the Canadian side of the border, we wear masks...

That's how we were able to visit Boldt Castle, a 120-room mansion built by hotel magnate George C. Boldt (who owned the original Waldorf-Astoria Hotel in New York City) between 1900-1904 at the end of the robber baron era.  We saw lots of other island mansions as well. It really does feel like a vacation playground from a bygone era, before planes allowed the rich to visit more exotic locales.

...but anything goes in the U.S.!

OK, maybe we technically didn't touch U.S. soil but I'm still one of the few people who can say they crossed an international border without a passport during a pandemic and didn't have to quarantine upon my return. Hmmm maybe I should wash my hands... 

Land of the free (and sick) and home of the brave (and sick)

Hintonburg Food Trucks

I've noticed an uptick in food trucks in Hintonburg since we first moved in. I can think of three within spittin' distance from our house:

• The Merry Dairy operates an ice cream one sometimes
  
• Frenchie's chip wagon, a poutine and burger place
  
• And most recently we went to Curb Appeal, another mostly fries truck, with a splattering of other moderately healthier options like...um... onion rings.

 

We went to Curb Appeal last week and I was fooled by the deceptively sized "large" fries. It didn't look so big so I ordered a large one for Glosette Girl, another large for Margot plus a poutine for me. We ate fries for days afterwards!

Food trucks have become a big hit in Ottawa in recent years. Although the ones around here are mostly standard fare, a little further afield you can find Thai, Mexican and other creative options - even Beaver Tails! It's kindof surprising consider how cold Ottawa can get but I guess it's just another example of how crazy (or desperate!) us Canadians can get.

Patio in January anyone?

Onlne ordering bonanza

It's absolutely crazy to think how much I've started ordering things online. Things that I would never have thought to purchase online before, like shoes, I now don't hesitate to buy off the Internet. Since March, Glosette Girl and I have ordered:

1. Books
2. A cool T-shirt from a local clothing boutique
   
3. A video game
4. Shoes (for me and for Margot)
5. School uniform for Margot
6. A toaster oven
7. A kettle
8. A new bookshelf
   
9. Craft beer
10. Car tire inflator
    
11. Wine
12. Camping supplies (lights, new tent)
    
13. A slack line
    
14. Gravel and a plastic pipe for a mini-construction project (ordered online but I had to pick up in person so maybe that doesn't count)
15. A life jacket for Margot (ditto)
    
16. Gifts (lots of books)

And probably lots more that I've forgotten!

As long as there is a good return policy, buying shoes online isn't so scary...

Glosette Girl has also discovered a social media group where you can obtain things for free locally. You have to pick it up, but hey, it's free!

I'm doing my best to buy from stores other than Amazon but it's not easy. I still do buy thing in "real" stores but when the experience isn't as carefree and enjoyable as it was before, it's a major disincentive. I do think neighbourhood stores will continue to exist, but what will be in them isn't so clear to me right now.

9 things that have got better over the last 6 months

I get annoyed at the news articles that occasionally pop up online, which discuss how great the last 6-months have been as it allowed people to "slow down" or "get to know themselves". Or, which laughably, suggest that virtual concerts and festivals are nearly as good as the real thing. According to a recent poll, 50% of Canadians think 2020 is the worst year of their lives ever.* That's half of everyone.

2020 has been brutal, let's just accept that. But unlike those who pretend that online versions of real experiences are somehow as good, I think I can objectively and honestly say that there have been some good things out of this year's COVID-19 mess:

1. White collared jobs like mine will never be 100% in the office again in my lifetime. I was at the forefront of the stay-at-home revolution as I've been working from home in some capacity for almost 7 years. But I had to negotiate that. Now, some sort of work-from-arrangement is likely here permanently!
2. Glosette Girl learned to bake kick a** bread!
3. I never would have seen Charlevoix without this mess. 
4. I got to teach Margot a bit of piano. Was fun -she's a fast learner!
5. Expectations when it comes to acceptable office attire and hair were blown out the window. I almost had a mullet! Although I have a new hair do now it's more youthful than what I had before. I probably would never have tried this without the forced closures of barbershops and hair salons.
6. People finally realized how crappy old folks in old age homes are treated.
7. For the first couple of months there was almost no traffic on the roads. For those close enough to access some of greenspace, it was a walker's dream to get to these sites and appreciate nature even more.
   
8. Some alternative experiences have been a success. Normally, there is a fireworks display at the Casino Lac-Leamy at this time of year. But this time, in an effort to spread out the crowds, 8  locations were used to launch simultaneous and identical fireworks across the city. Was really innovative and actually more enjoyable than crowding into one location.
   
9. And (this is occasionally a mixed blessing if you ask me on a bad day!) I got to spend more time with the 'fam! Haha in all honesty we haven't fought that much and it's been more good than bad.
   

Soakin' in the lights

*Makes 2018 not look so bad in comparison! Remember this post?

Punch in the Gut for a Lil' Person

It's an anxious time around here (more than normal!) as schools release their back-to-school plans. The biggest unknowns are will Margot be back in school full time (all signs point to yes for the moment) and will she be joined by her friends?

The former is important for me. But the latter is equally important to Margot. Recently she found out that one of her best friends, W, is moving schools far away. That was a real punch in the gut for her because only a couple of days ago another good friend, L, told her she may be doing 100% online learning for awhile.

That really got Margot down and we had a long talk this past weekend about how she met W, and how she was a girl who you didn't have to ask to play with - you could just do it. In contrast, with other girls she doesn't fit in as well. I feel bad for Margot because a couple of years ago a new French public school opened up in the area (Margot goes to French Catholic school) and two of her best friends, E and S, switched schools. 

I don't feel there is much I can do for Margot with this particular problem other than listen. However, we would be willing to switch her to the French public schools as it's pretty close to our house. Margot is a trooper though and wants to continue at SFA for the moment.

The simple days of yesteryear are fast receding in my memories. Remember grade one? What about grade three? Even last year, the problems related to the ritual of back to school shopping seem pretty trivial in comparison to the big feelings Margot is feeling these days. I think she'll be fine. She's a very personable kid and joy always finds her. But it's still tough to hear sometimes.

Little Libraries

I like all the little libraries that are scattered here and there throughout this area. I'm not entirely sure where the first one sprung up in Ottawa, but in Hintonburg, the first one I recall seeing was on Melrose Avenue:

The next great novel

The only complaint I have about the Melrose Avenue little library is that sometimes people overstuff it it. C'mon peeps! Only add one or two books at a time!

Unsurprisingly, these little libraries aren't that great for high minded literature but they are pretty good for summer reading like Ready Player One, which I recently picked up and I'll probably breeze through in a couple of weeks.


A new little library has recently been installed on Bayswater Avenue (the Civic Hospital part). It is so well organized it even has adult vs. kids sections! Way to one up the competition!

Who makes these things?!

Charlevoix: between the mountains and the water

With limited travel options this year, the fam' and I had to get creative. Fortunately, within a reasonable (6 and a half hour or so) drive from Ottawa there are some pretty amazing destinations. The choices were between going west (towards the Great Lakes) and east (deep into Quebec). We chose east and ended up in the Charlevoix region of Quebec where we shared a chalet with my bro and sis and their families. I'm so glad we chose this area the landscape in this region is simply stunning. It rivals anything I've seen in Europe but with a Canadian twist of course.

Cute towns and villages? Check. Majestic mountain valleys? Check. Casse croute? BIG check!

Home away from home!

We're mid-way through our 6-night mini-trip to the region but so far the area has exceeded my expectations. Our current home is a chalet up the side of a mountain overlooking the St. Lawrence river. The vegetation here is maritime forest and very lush.

Somewhat crazily we're actually in the off-season here as this area is best known for being a major ski destination with the highest vertical east of the Rockies. But I came for the hiking. After testing the waters on the Sentier de la forêt marine-La Seigneurie, we hit the Mont du lac-des-Cygnes in the Parc National des Grand Jardins.

Monkey in the Mist

Pizazz in the Parc!

A bit busy, but there is a reason for it. The first three quarters feels like a magical misty birch forest, while the last bit is a massive rock bursting through the clouds. I can't wait to see the rest of what this region has to offer.

King of my Own Island

I hafta give it to Quebecers...they do things right.

Ontario has many small provincial parks. As I've blogged about before, some are nice, some are OK and some are dregs. But one thing that Ontario has a bad habit of doing is cramming way too many campsites into to small a space. I think Ontario does this because, although the province is huge, the part where most people live is relatively small so they are trying to allow as many people to visit the parks overnight as possible.  
Maybe I'll buy that excuse.When I compare how camping can be done just across the border in Quebec I hafta say Ontario's approach is pretty weak in comparison.

This past weekend the gang and I rented our own island at the nearby Lac du Poisson Blanc regional park.  Yup, you heard me - island. We had the whole thing to ourselves (and Jen's brother's family). Other bonus features: clean dry toilet (way better than what exists in Ontario parks), the park will bring wood and ice to your island on demand (for a small fee), and it was not expensive.

It was a 1.5 hour paddle to our island. We made it in a record breaking... 2 hours!

The local coast guard

Of course the best part about the park is the warm lake water of Lac du Poisson Blanc that is great for just floating lazily around in for hours. Or maybe it's the incredible solitude? Hmmmm....

Look, camping at Lac du Poisson Blanc isn't for everyone. In July there are still too many bugs for my liking, on the weekends there is too much motorized boat traffic on the lake, sleeping on the ground is OK at best and three days without showering leaves one feeling a bit..icky. But having this at our fingertips (1.5 hours away!) is just mind boggling.

I think monkeying around on shoreline rocks is the definition of childhood

Free evening movie