Catering is a hard business

Holy crap, we helped a friend out yesterday when she needed help in catering supper for a school drama club fund raiser in her home community. Little did we know how much work went into putting this meal on. Both the missus and I have a lot of owies this morning and its going to take a few Aleve or Tylenol to get through the day. Oh, we'll live but I'm thinking we may not do that again.

Oh, how many did we feed? A small gathering of 300! Yup 300 people and everything was prepared fresh, no store bought ready to cook stuff here. The menu consisted of chicken cordon bleu, baked ham, three salads, creamy mashed potatoes with chives, carrots, peas and pearl onions, rice and peas and a ton of dessert. All the chicken cordon bleu was pan browned (over 300 pieces and I did them all in two little fry pans) then baked in the oven. Around 100 of potatoes and well you can imagine the rest. It might have been fun if we'd had a little more help but there were just three of us to do it all. Oh we got bits and pieces of help prior but the three of us did the bulk and I'm dang tired today. Oh well, its a long way from my heart as they say and at least I'll have an excuse for a nap this afternoon or maybe sooner.

Have a great Sunday. Dave.

Ever Thought About Retiring Abroad?

Have you ever dreamed of retiring to a place where the days are warm and sunny, beaches are nearby, the cost of living is much less and the pace of live is slow and easy. There may be a way.

Canada is experiencing a dramatic  increase in the number of people reaching retirement. The first of the postwar baby boomers are now over 60. Over the next decade, an unprecedented number of Canadians will reach the normal retirement age of 65. Many are already opting for early retirement.

Most retirees choose to spend the rest of their lives in Canada, often moving out of large urban areas to
smaller regional centres; others opt for semi-retirement, staying active in their profession or trade on a part time basis. However, a significant number decide to live in another country, either permanently or for part of each year.

Family or cultural ties are sometimes incentives to retirement abroad. Since Canadians come from all parts of the world, there are few nations that are not potential destinations for retirement.

Some of the countries that are Canada’s major sources of immigrants are also major retirement destinations. Lebanon, the United Kingdom, France and Germany are examples.

Those who retire abroad for other than family or cultural reasons tend to be clustered in countries that offer a combination of low after-tax living costs and a warm climate. In some cases, an existing Canadian expatriate community helps to mitigate the cultural isolation that can otherwise make life difficult. Countries in this category include Mexico, Costa Rica and some Caribbean island nations.

Reasons for Retiring Abroad
Retiring abroad holds many potential pitfalls for those who choose a destination on the basis of a dream rather than sound planning. In general, those who consider only the financial benefits of moving overseas are more likely to experience disappointment than those who retire abroad for lifestyle or cultural reasons. Whatever your motives, careful research is essential, and the Internet makes it more practical than ever to carry out a detailed evaluation before you leave.

If you're considering a move for retirement and you'd like a FREE guide, just comment below with your email address and I'd be pleased to send it along. Your email will not be shared with anyone because I hate spam as much as the next person. This is a legitimate report produced by Foreign Affairs and International Trade in Canada.

Happy Valentines Day.

Give your heart to someone special or just share it around with good deeds.

I'm looking for a Great Coffee Maker

We're looking for a Great Coffee Maker but don't want to spend a fortune. We've been using those basic machines that run around 30 bucks but just haven't been happy with their output. Heck I've even made instant coffee that tasted better than what we get out of the pot. We've used good filtered cold water, cone filters and really good ground or pre-processed coffee but just can't get that magical coffee taste.

We looked into buying one of those little Tassimos by Bosch but heard they were noisy and they only brew one cup at a time. There's another one out there but I can't remember the name. We had coffee from it at my sister's place over Christmas but forgot to right it down. It seemed to have a few more bells and whistles than the Tassimo but likely costs a lot more.

They had Tassimo on sale prior to Christmas for around $100 but now they've shot up to $150 and that's just nuts. The pods have prices that are all over the map as well so we're just not sure which way to go. If you've got suggestions for a Great Coffee Maker just comment below.
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Lots of action on the political front in Alberta. PC's, Libs and Alberta Party all seeking leadership, NDP quietly picking away and a bunch of old Greens trying to resurrect their party after they got delisted last year because the didn't submit their financial statements to Elections Alberta and that's a no no. Oh and they can't use their old name either so their scrambling to come up with something that identifies what they stand for. So what's that now, six parties vieing for the chance to lead us citizens into the future. Yoy its going to be a crowded ballot.
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Hey, I was just thinking. We have a family day holiday in February but nothing in March. 31 days is a long time to go without some kind of break so let's put our thinking caps on and get one started. I'm thinking around Monday the 14th which is just before the Ides of March. In Roman times they had parades and celebrated their military. Maybe we could celebrate and thank our soldiers and veterans for all they have done.

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Since I was on a coffee kick earlier here's a little chuckle for you.

One morning, a grandmother was surprised to find that her 7-year-old grandson had made her coffee! Smiling, she choked down the worst cup of her life. When she finished, she found three little green Army men at the bottom. Puzzled, she asked, "Honey, what are these Army men doing in my coffee?" Her grandson answered, "Like it says on TV, Grandma. 'The best part of waking up is soldiers in your cup.'
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Classy Hotel with a real client relationship team

I was in Edmonton recently for a 3 day convention and annual general meeting and we were staying at the Mayfield Inn a venerable hotel in Edmonton's west end. We've stayed before and were always pleased. This time it was different. How you might ask. Well, from the time we checked in until we left everyone on staff was so friendly. I mean everyone from housekeeping to the front desk and everywhere in between. You just feel so appreciated and don't mind the upper end prices although they could adjust them a bit because a bowl of clam chowder and a beer for $15 bucks seems a bit steep. But its all worth it to pamper ourselves once in a while.

My Room

In any case here's another example of great customer service. On the first morning I noticed there was a leak at the top of my window and it was splashing down on the sill and onto the sheers that hung from floor to ceiling. On my way through the lobby to breakfast I stopped at the front desk and mentioned the leak. They thanked me and asked if it would be alright to go into my room to check and repair it. Of course I said yes.

I forgot about it until later in the evening after a full day of meetings when I returned to my room and discovered a nice tray of nachos, salsa and two cold Coronas in an ice bucket. There was a nice little note which I kept, thanking me for bringing the leak to their attention. The leak had been fixed and the carpet freshly vacuumed.  Do you think I'll be going back. Oh yeah. And, I'll be telling everyone I know about the great service. http://www.mayfieldinnedmonton.com/

Oh yes, we even did the Dinner Theatre on Thursday night. "The Groovy 70s II, Keep on Truckin" Was great and the food spectacular. I'll tell you more about the show later. Gotta run. Dave