Back seat freedom

We used the car instead of the van a bit more this summer when going out with the kids. Perhaps it was the price of gas that caused us to do this but I think it's because they are older now and can manage themselves in and out of the vehicle.

Who could imagine that they would get a kick out of being in the car over the van. The single most exciting part is that they could control their own windows. I know you may find that difficult to understand but it is the first step in a long journey that culminates in getting your own vehicle and being able to control all the other parts of the car as well.

That back seat freedom is not as easy as it was in the past where we would ride around with no seatbelts or lie down on long trips. You still have to have your seatbelt on. You can't kick the seat in front of you which is soo much closer than a van.

Even though you can open that window with a push of a button it only goes down 3/4 of the way down and if the a/c is on you can't open it at all due to rules not mechanics. Gone are the days that all 4 windows were open to cool off the car because a/c did not exist. I remember riding in the back seat on hot day after a shower on our way to an event and the wind from the window would dry and style my hair at the same time.

Winter is almost here so we have a few months of fall to enjoy traveling with the windows down and then the heater will be on and we night as well go back into the van.

More Niagara Falls

We spent a few days in the Niagara area and the weather was great so we went on a hike in the Niagara Glen. It's about 8kms from the falls on your way to Niagara on the Lake. A set of stairs takes you down right into the Gorge. You can get really close to the river. A bit too close at times. You can hike quite a distance and the trails are challenging at points but not that bad. It would be flip flops for any German tourists.

As you hike along the trail you get to see the Whirlpool Jet Boats pass right by you. You can hear the people on them screaming and if you are at the edge they even wave to you.
We got to see many of them. We stopped at a little cove where you could sit out on some rocks that were further into the river.









But ask Brian the best part of the trip and he will tell you.

SHOE BUFFER!! Buff when you wake up. Buff before you go out. Buff when you come back. Buff just before you go to sleep. Dream of buffing again the next day. Ah, to be 6 again!!

Canada Day in Niagara Falls

Some of you may find this hard to believe but up until now I have never been on the Maid of the Mist. Yes almost 42 years and this year was the first time ever. I've made countless trips to Niagara Falls but the expense of going on the Maid had me turn away. It was the encouragement of the kids that pushed me to spend the extra cash to do it. It was a great experience and you really get to feel the power of the mighty Niagara. For those of you that have yet to go I would recommend it. It's quite tame.


Many of you have probably taken a picture similar to the one on the left. From the top of the falls looking down right over the edge where watching the water makes you dizzy. You can imagine those people that went over in barrels and wonder how they survived.

On the left is a view from the bottom looking up. The top right corner of this photo would be where the previous photo was taken.

Hail Storm June 2008

I got a call at work today and Silvana told me that there was a hail storm coming my way.
She also said she was not able to go pick up the kids yet due to the amount of hail that was falling. A few minutes later the storm hit us at work. There was plenty of hail but I thought there was a slight exaggeration on my wifes part in terms of the quantity that she was describing.
Move ahead 3 hours and I arrive home to see a pile of hail that is still not melted. The temperature outside is 22C and yet this pile is still there.
No exaggeration, look for yourselves.

No Burning School House

I can't remember the last time I bought fireworks. What I do remember is watching a burning school house go up in flames. I didn't buy one even though it was available. I stuck with the "box o fireworks" you see in the first picture. Quite reasonably priced. I only did a per bang calculation once and that was after one of the big ones only lasted 3 seconds.
The neighbours and I recently got about 9 yards of top soil so we used a wheel barrow full of dirt as our base and put it in the middle of the street to avoid any shingle damage. The whole thing lasted only 15 minutes or so but I think it was a hit as you can see by the reaction of some of the kids.

Next year Burning School House full of some sort of explosive will be on the menu!!

Fury in the Family room

Move the coffee table and get out of the room we are getting ready for the "Fury in the Family room"

In the far corner we have a member of the Kardiac Krusaders. Weighing in at 170 pounds......Killer Kosta!!!!

In the near corner we have the Boyche Boy.
Weighing in at a 41 pounds soaking wet with rocks in his pocket..... Brian the Bruiser!!


A little bit of Wii boxing was on the agenda. Both these contenders did not want to loose but the Bruiser ended up victorious with a KO in the 4th round.

Xristos Anesti (Happy Easter)

Yes I realize that I'm a week or so late or for those that celebrated Catholic Easter even more weeks late. There is usually not much to write about for Easter but this year the weather was the story. Oh yes you can say that given our Easter was 5 weeks later it was bound to be warm but I can give you many a year where although we were later the weather was much colder, snowier, rainier...
The picture is actually from Palm Sunday which was warmer than Easter but this year we could not complain. It was warm enough both on Good Friday and Saturday night. The priest at the new church in Markham has some good order so that made it even more enjoyable. I'm not sure if it is just me but he seems to cater to the kids which is good for us because we have 3 (2 officially if you don't include me).
The Leafs were not in the playoffs so I though I would not hear much in terms of hockey talk but given the size of the crowd and the amount of people outside it was inevitable. I was up to date on all the playoff news within the two days.

My new favorite song

Every once in a while I hear a song I like and it becomes my favorite song. I'm not your ipod carrying, digital music listening kind of guy... yet ... so most of my music listening is still in the car or on the stereo at home before dinner or on the weekends. This means I don't get tired of hearing the song even if it is popular and gets played often.

In most cases it lasts a while and even if years pass I continue to like it. Now don't think that I only like new stuff. These are new favorites, I have old favorites as well. Some of the 80's stuff is stuck in my brain forever even if it isn't that good. I think that is a teenage thing that stays with you. If you watched Scott Baio is 46 and pregnant you probably heard all the good songs mixed in quite well with the show.

The kids usually know the song as I tell them it's my favorite. Anytime they hear it they will come running to tell me my favorite song is on. They will do the same if they hear an Elvis song or see him on TV. They will do this with Silvana's favorites as well but hers don't change as often as mine do, I think.

Some recent examples:
Finger 11's Paralyzer
Pinks, Get the Party started (make fun all you want but with the kids this one is great)
No Doubt's Dont Speak

So long story to get to my new favorite which is a song by Jully Black called Until I Stay.

A little time with Mother Earth

Earth Hour was spent at the David Dunlap Observatory where a member of the Mohawk tribe provided us with inspiration about the planet and the Observatory lands. There were more than a couple of hundred people there with us. We did not go into the the Observatory but after a 10 minute line up we were able to get a look at Saturn through one of the telescopes that someone had set up. It was amazingly clear. Brian said it was fake and just a picture of Saturn that someone put in front of the telescope.
I know the U of T is trying to sell the lands and I don't want to suggest that I know everything about the reasons but I do think the lands are worth saving. If this little event is any indication of what can be done it shows that it's not only valuable for heritage and historical value but also may be commercially viable.
There is a Facebook Group for those that are interested in joining. It's called

Save David Dunlap Observatory!!

Paddle to the Sea

For those of you that went to school in Ontario in the 70's you may remember a movie about a carved canoe that traverses through the Great Lakes. That movie is based on a book from the 40's by Holling C. Holling. I'm not sure why it came to mind but it may have to do with a bunch of books the kids brought home from the library the other day. Of course I didn't remember that it was called Paddle to the Sea but a quick search on the net using "carved" "canoe" and "movie" and there it was along with a little clip to tease you with. I even came across a download that will add the route the canoe took to Google Earth with some excellent facts about the areas the little canoe passes.

That very weekend the kids went to the library and picked up the 60th anniversary of the book Angela is reading it to Brian. I believe she said they are at chapter 7 of 27. I'd like to think that I inspired them a bit due to my vivid story about how I loved the movie and then showing them the things I found on the web.

It may be worth getting the movie so they can enjoy it after they have read the book. It too is available on the web and I may just get it.