Taking Pictures

The above could have benefited with more flash

Angela took the above after she saw me take the photo below

Both Angela and I took some photos in church yesterday. I don't feel comfortable taking pictures in public buildings unless you have a valid reason. Walking around with a camera in a church on any given Sunday will probably get you some looks but if you are there for a wedding or in our case a baptism nobody takes a second glance. The problem with indoor shots and our little digital cameras is the flash just isn't strong enough. My camera has the ability to add an external flash and for occasions such as this it may be beneficial to get one, but the ease of the onboard flash and the fact that the camera is lighter without it makes me stay away from spending the money.
The Greek Orthodox Churches are quite ornate and you can get some really nice photos. This church was recently renovated as they had a fire a few years back so the colours are still very vivid.

Hot Cocoa

Why is it after a snow shovelling, toboganning, skate outside or almost any winter activity do we get a craving for a nice hot cocoa?
I don't remember my first cup of cocoa but I do remember the first time I craved it after a day out in the cold. In grade school we went out to the local park/forest to look at animal tracks in the snow. I really enjoyed it because it was a park that I went to with my friends and I got to notice things that I hadn't seen before. It was through a teacher that came to our school on occasion to teach us about the outdoors. It was through Mr Nasimoks (or something like that) eyes that we saw things. We ended the day back near the school but still outside. He had a giant thermos full of what was a very watery hot chocolate but it warmed me through and through. It was shortly after this that we got to go out again but this time we went cross country skiing. Old skis, no real winter gear like today besides some long-johns and a pair of mits that once wet were worse than having nothing on at all but it was fun. At the end of the day we were back outside the school as cold as ever and I craved that hot chocolate ( I say chocolate because it's water based and I think hot cocoa has to be made with milk). I was not disappointed as the giant thermos was there again and I filled up with the warmth that I come to expect after any outdoor winter outing.

I think we have passed this on to our kids as we can't go out in the winter without a request for cocoa when we get back home. Sometimes we have to bring it with us as we can't make it home without the warm chocolatey goodness.
I wonder if those that are in tropical regions have a similar drink that they crave when coming in from the heat? Hot Cocoa seems to be universal in the cold regions of the world but I'm not aware of a universal cold drink for the hot regions. Maybe the Icecap fits the bill.

Update:
Link to a page about Mr Nasimok

Deerhurst weekend

At Deerhurst this weekend. First real family overnight getaway. I don't count the cottage because that is family. It was cold -20's C with the windchill but we got alot of activities in. Tubing was the big hit but pond skating and the sleigh ride were close behind.



http://picasaweb.google.com/Frangost/Deerhurst

Superbowl 2007 XLI

Superbowl Sunday was just as eventful as ever. We continued a tradition that started somewhere in the early 90's. As tradition would have it we had too much food and surprisingly actually watched the game as well.
This year Angela took the photos which I've place in Picasa Web Albums.

Superbowl 2007