Renovations can be a challenge

Yes, I said renovations. One day we're sitting having a coffee looking at the walls and thinking gee, we should paint them. The next thing I know we're in full blown reno mode. Walls, fixtures, switches, plugs, plates, flooring, baseboards, door trim, closet doors and all are getting a fresh look.

We started last weekend and moved all the furniture around and packed the small stuff into blue tubs with lids. This alone has made this job easier than I expected. With the small stuff out of the way, its easy to move the furniture around and just work around it.

Since the walls were the first order of the day we covered the furniture, and got to work patch old nail holes and other imperfections in the surface with drywall mud. Once dry we sanded it down and applied a primer to all the marks and trouble spots. Oh yes we took off all the curtain rods and curtains and light switch covers so we could get down to it.

We also had one wall that was a vertical wood grain venir and we've tolerated it since we bought the house but felt it was time for a change. It helps a bit that our son was in the retail lumber and building supplies business so he gave us lots of good hints and tips. That same primer we used on the walls was used to cover the wood panel wall. Took two coats but covered it beautifully. Then we painted over it with a paint colour called tomchuck its a cafe mocha colour and looks a lot like a Tim Horton's ice cap. The other three walls were done in a colour called kicking horse. It's hard to describe this colour but it is lots lighter than the feature wall. I guess its a pale beigey sand colour. Looks great anyway. Way better than the flat eggshell crap that was on there.

With that said, I'm hitting the hay cause its been a long one and tomorrow brings new challenges. I'll get the names of the paint and the primer so you'll have a reference. Talk to you later. Dave

Frost Makes Gardening Tough

I can't believe it. This weather is absolutely crazy. Here it is the 5th of June and we've had frost over the past couple of nights and have been covering like crazy.

What really bugs us is that we had the garden in and planted back on May 14 and it was coming along pretty well. It's been dry but we've been helping it with daily hand waterings so that's kept it growing. Our tomatoes were getting blossoms, the onions were about 6 inches up and we were looking forward to chopping them into salads. (We will cause they are tough and OK but back to the rest of the story).

Our garden is about 30 x 80 feet and filled with a combination of vegetables including potatoes, corn, peas, carrots, beans, beets, lettuce, zucchini and of course onions. We've also planted some pumpkins for the grand kids and we've even got some watermelon plants coming up. With all this going on you can imagine my the panic the Missus was in when the weather forecaster mentioned frost for Saturday, May 28. We bustled about the garden with all manor of pots, blankets, tarps, cardboard boxes, pails, tubs and even tipped the wheelbarrow upside down to cover momma's precious garden.

The yard looked like someone had dumped their junk off but it worked. We had two degrees of frost that night and we were dang glad we had it covered. Trouble is I think we started a trend. Now the garden seems to want to be covered up every night. Next it'll be wanting bed time stories. Oh, a couple of things got touched but at least we haven't lost anything --- yet.  We'll its starting to warm up outside so we're heading out to roll back the covers and see how things survived. Oh, it only went down to 2 C last night. We've also found some great little tarps at Princess Auto that were designed for wood piles but work perfectly for garden rows. They are 3.5 feet wide and 17.5 feet long. The price was very reasonable at $3.49 each so we bought several. To protect the plants a bit we elevated them on some old plastic starter trays we had in the greenhouse (its just hobby size nothing elaborate). I considered myself fortunate to get to go into Princess Auto cause usually the Missus has me banned cause they have too many things I need. LOL

Oh, I've also got some grape vines going so come back later and I'll tell you how I've got them protected.

Aboriginal Showcase to open in Cold Lake

The second annual showcase of First Nations & Metis culture, dance, song, history and economic potential starts tomorrow (June 2) in the Energy Centre in Cold Lake starting at 10 a.m. and running until 5 p.m.

The event provides an opportunity for all ages to experience First Nations and Metis culture and meet with the people who live in the area. Last year's show was held in Bonnyville  and drew nearly 2500 people and was a resounding success. There is no admission charged and everyone is welcome. 
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Have you ever been to the Opry?

You may never have been to the Opry but we're going to bring it to you. Well, at least The Opry Boyz. Yep, Bonnyville's own Opry Boyz and they are playing for the Bonnyville Pro Rodeo Dance on Saturday, May the 28th in the biggest dance hall around - the Centennial Centre Field House.

The Bonnyville Ag Society took on the dance part of Rodeo weekend about four years ago when volunteers were tiring out from being spread too thin. They were working all day at the rodeo grounds and then having to come over and put on a dance till 2 or 3 in the morning. Not a lot of fun and it was burning out volunteers pretty quick so the Ag Society stepped up and its been working pretty good ever since.

Anyway, back to the Opry Boyz and the rodeo dance. The doors open at 8:30 and the band kicks off at 9 with their brand of real danceable country tunes that everybody recognizes and can sing along with or dance holes in the soles of your boots. They have been growing in popularity for the past couple of years and folks just won't let them stop playing.

Tickets are available at the Centennial Centre Box office (Main Desk) for $20 in advance or $25 at the door. You can also order by phone toll free if you're from out of town at 1-877-812-2740 or 780-826-3400 if you're in town. You can even order online at www.centennialcentre.ca and just click on tickets on the left hand sidebar.

A big thanks goes out to the Bonnyville Oilmen's Society who are providing drivers for the shuttle vans that will help get you home safely. Also to Bonnyville Chrysler, Ducharme and Tercier Motors for providing the shuttle vans. Remember if you can to tip these drivers, they are volunteers and their group does a great deal of good in the community.
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Here's another event the Bonnyville Ag Society is working on that will set your heart pounding. They have just inked a deal to host the Canadian National Truck and Tractor Pulling Championships this September 16th, 17th & 18th and its going to be a doozy. Three days of intense competition with a spectacular fire works display on Saturday night and you'll be able to watch the show in the comfort of grandstand out at the exhibition grounds.

There'll be everything from  high-powered minis running 500 plus horsepower up to a five engine monster putting out about 6,000 horsepower. There'll also be modified and super modified two and four wheel drive pickups and tractors along with a diesel wheel standing Semi. If you like motors, motion and power, you won't want to miss this event. Keep checking this column for updates and ticket information as we get closer to the date.  For more information or to volunteer for the event contact the Bonnyville Ag Society at 780-826-3240.
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Singing In the Rain

I don't know about you but I'm starting to get a little cabin fever and was going a little squirrely until this appeared in my email. I've always known that music and singing is good for what ails you so I was delighted to see that the Bonnyville Society Singers are mounting a spring concert at the Lyle Victor Albert Theatre on April 28, 29, 30. For more info on this event, check the poster. You can click on it to make it bigger.

If you haven't heard these folks yet, you'll want to mark it in your calendar and get your tickets bought. The theatre only holds about 160 people at a time so don't delay or it'll be sold out and you'll miss it.  I'm singing in the rain tra la la. Oh, just watch the video.


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Another event that is sure to usher in spring is the EASTBOURNE HALL ANNUAL CRAFT,
ANTIQUE AND GARAGE SALE
 Friday April 15 - 10 to 8 pm and Saturday April 16: 10-3 pm.

Eastbourne Community Hall is located on Hwy 28, 1 mile
west of Hwy 41 – the Elk Point turn off and 8 miles east of
 Glendon turn off. 
If you are interested and would like to reserve a table for your crafts, household goods, antiques, coins,
 stamps, sporting and fishing equipment, collectables baby items or anything you would like to sell or trade.  Tables are $10 for the first two.  Additional tables are available.  Please call Marci at 780-826-3816 or Roger at 780-826-6816.
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A Spring Cold Is a Pain. Is there a Cure?

Ever had one of those sneaky little colds pop up in the morning and lay you low for the day or maybe even more? You know the itchy, scratchy throat and runny nose kind of cold. They are annoying as heck and I got one just the other day. The Missus brought it home from her office where several people have been hacking and coughing for weeks on end. She caught it and then gave it to me. Thanks Honey.

Of course I headed for the medicine cabinet to see if we had any over the counter (otc)stuff that I could pound down to get rid of this little bugger.. Well, I took a tablet of something that seemed to work OK and then about bedtime I took another one (the night time label) and fell into a sound sleep. Until that is about 1:15 in the morning. Something was not right. My hands felt like they were covered with fibreglas insulation - you know itching, twitching and feeling like they had a life of their own and they didn't want to sleep. I got up and walked the floor, washed them, drank some milk, ate a couple of soda crackers, anything to quell the tingling. Finally a couple of hours later they had settled down enough that I fell asleep until I was awakened with a coughing jag and a plugged nose. Rats, no more pills for me so I got out the chest rub and smeered it on my chest and under my nose and got some relief that way.

After a fitful sleep I got up and decided that I would check out the health food store that day to see if they had anything because  I didnt want to risk taking another cold pill. (Oh and I have high blood pressure and those pills were pushing it upward.) Luck was with me because I think I found it. Maybe not a cure but something that works and has helped me get rid of this cold in record time. Would you believe POMEGRANATE juice!

I've always been a fan of the fruit and love the taste of the juice but hated peeling the tough skin so when I saw this little bottle of concentrated pomegranate juice I thought I'd try it. It was only eight ounces and a little pricey at around $11 bucks but I thought concentrated so maybe it'll go a little further and it did.

I started using it as a tea. Just a half ounce in a cup topped with hot water. It was awesome. It started cutting through the junk in my throat right away and then my sinuses started to clear. Three days later and I was feeling much better. I was still getting rid of stuff from head and chest but didn't have that crappy feeling and was sleeping better than I ever have.

I don't know if it'll work for you but I know it worked for me. I have it as a tea every morning and I'm going back for more. I hardly even drink coffee any more except later in the day and I may cut that out.

Anyway, I'm not selling the stuff just telling you about my experience with it. The one I tried is called Bernard Jensen's Pomegranate Concentrate. It recommends 2 Tbsp per serving which is pretty strong so adjust to taste. I use much less and it worked. This serving size is about 100 calories so using less means less calories. In addition, it has no fats, only 1 percent sodium and 8 % carbs. There is no sugar added so diabetics won't have a problem with it.  You should be able to find it or something like it at better health food stores. Or order it through Amazon and you can use the search box on the right. 

Oh, one more thing, I've noticed it cut my appetite a bit and I've even lost about five pounds over the last week and a half and that can't hurt.

Hope this helps with your rotten spring cold. Enjoy life. Dave.

Is there still time to go RVing?

Its still winter here in Canada but there's still time for a short jaunt to meet the Sun on its northward treck. You have lots of options so lets check them out:

Fly away with me:  The quickest way to get there is by plane and there are some deals to be found out there. Check out Westjet's Blue Tag Thursdays. Visit them at http://www.westjet.com . How about prices like this - $99 from Calgary or Edmonton to San Fran Cisco. Cool stuff and the discounts start after 1 pm every Thursday.

Or you could consider driving in your own vehicle or a new rental with great rates from online companies like www.redtag.ca who can help you with hotels, flights and car rentals. How about these last minute deals: Calgary to Veradero Beach Cuba on March 19 for $477 per person. Unbelievable. But you have to be flexible.

If you've got a bit more time why not take the RV. You'll have your home and your food and you can stop when and where you want to. Plan ahead though and make sure you have a great auto club plan like AMA's  RV insurance coverage options. You never know when you'll need it.

Insurance aside you'll need to budget for fuel because you'll find prices ranging from $3.50 to $4 per gallon in the US and up to $5 in Canada. You'll also be paying for parking each night unless you find a free style sight without any services. Either way, plan well and worry less and most of all, enjoy your trip. Here's how a few folks do this full time. Enjoy the videos and tips.