Al Zylstra

Why I want to leave Facebook

It is somewhat ironic that my blog will be posted to my Facebook account as it will soon be my last post to this social media.

I do not take this decision lightly but, for a variety of reasons, I have felt that it is time to divest myself of this form of social media.

When I first joined a number of years ago, I felt excited that I would be able to make new acquaintances, friends and renew old friendships that had fallen by the wayside.

It was so cool to do a search and find friends whom I had lost contact with years ago. It was like a reunion of my friends and family. I made HUNDREDS of friends requests and in a very short period of time, I had amassed over 500 “friends”.

There were friends like Shelley, Dawn and Jan – people I had worked with in the Pet Industry all those years ago in Edmonton.

There were friends like Beth, who I grew up with in St. Albert (someone I still hold dearly in my heart after almost 50 years).

There were FAMILY – like my cousin Wout and cousin Nance and her daughter, Tjalline – who live in the Netherlands. It is so cool to reconnect with relatives I haven’t seen in years. Family like Kathy and Shelley – people who fill my heart with love.

Then there are my “logical family” (as opposed to biological family). Thanks to Armistead Maupin for providing me with the best term ever for my chosen family. Debbi, Elaine, Sharen, Glen, Laura, Pam, Scott, Pat, Barb and so many more. If I was a religious person, I would consider myself blessed to have so many amazing people that I can count on to give me joy, laughter, tears, and love.

There are those friends who are only friends on Facebook but, I still consider them friends: Chris, John, Mona, Tracy, and more. While we occasionally talk, I know that you are there and it gives me a smile every time.

Then, there are those friends who started off as friends only on Facebook and as acquaintances in the theatre but, became so much more: Tracy L, Heather E, Caitlin C, Jill R, Chris D, Yasmin and so many more.

I started to clean up my friends lists a few years ago as there was no way that I could have conversations on a regular basis with over 500 people. I whittled down the numbers to eventually settle in at 200 friends, family and acquaintances.

It is the over 200 of you that give me reasons to smile each and every day.

YOU ARE THE REASONS TO STAY.

But, now there is the reasons to say goodbye to Facebook:

Posts that come through my feed are often filled with vitriol, anger, bigotry, ignorance, racism, homophobia, transphobia, and worse. Well meaning people share these so that they can make me aware that the world is cruel, shallow, hurtful and downright mean at time.

These are the posts that have convinced me it is time to leave this platform.

Once upon a time, people were able to disagree with each other and do it politely. Argue with reasoned, well thought points of view. That doesn’t happen anymore.

Today alone, I saw a post attacking our Prime Minister – claiming that because of his “incompetence” there was Sharia law and people of Islamic faith attacking law-abiding citizens. This post was blatant propaganda and insulting to anyone with a conscience or a modicum of intelligence. Yet, the comments I read were from bigots claiming that this is what our country is devolving into.

Another post showed grown adults in positions of power attacking young people whose lives had been shattered by the unthinkable: a gunman shooting 17 of their friends, classmates and teachers. These adults were calling the survivors the most horrific names, claiming they were “actors” and had no business demonstrating against a corrupt terrorist organization called the NRA – (damn straight – this organization is a terrorist group – no doubt in my mind)

Another post showed leaders of various mainstream religious groups advocating my death (well, not me personally, but, people who share my sexual orientation) by stoning.

Here was a post about a mainstream religious leader who is forced to leave his post because he was caught masturbating in front of a member of his church.

We have a man in control of one of the most powerful countries in the world, openly mocking people who have disabilities, advocating sexual assault on young women, calling immigrants of all nationalities rapists, thieves, drug dealers or living in “shithole countries”.

At each of these posts, I have, in the past called out the poster asking for FACTS to prove their point. I have asked them to not resort to insults or epithets. I have asked for polite discourse to see if there is common ground or a way to work together. In turn, I have been insulted, threatened, told that I don’t know what I am talking about and shut down with a volley of slurs.

The anonymity that a computer keyboard brings has lessened us all. So many people can simply type the most profane things, post them and sit back and laugh.

I have to admit that I have sometimes done the same thing. I have resorted to insulting #45 – I still can’t bring myself to call him anything but that. The man is simply loathsome and while his appearance is repellent to me, it is no excuse for me to attack his looks. I will, however, call him out on his lack of experience, his lies, his attacks on minorities, his blatant disregard for the rule of law and so much more.

It is the absolute hatred that I see each and every day on this platform that is convincing me to leave. I simply don’t have it in me anymore.

So, I will leave Facebook. I think it is for the best. This is just like breaking up with someone. I don’t want to leave, but, for my peace of mind, my sanity and my sense of self-worth, it is best if I cut the ties that bind us.

I am not going far, though. I will still have my twitter account and you are all invited to read my blog – I will do my utmost to continue to write stories that have a positive impact on my life.

I can’t go without sharing stories about my family – my mom’s journey with dementia is one of those stories that fills me with joy and sadness.

I can’t go without sharing stories about my husband, Alex. He is one of the most amazing men I have ever met and I consider myself lucky to be married to him.

How could I not share stories about my furry family: Phantom and Beau my two dogs, Patches and Caramel – our two bunnies – LESBIAN BUNNIES – (take that John Oliver and Marlon Bundo!!!!), our rescue budgies: Tiny and Lucky. Even our fish – we have some pretty cool fish.

How can I not share stories about our upcoming travels? These are things I want to share and happily, too.

I will begin the process of shutting down my Facebook account in early April. I will be in touch…..

My job is the best – thanks to people like these two

Brief synopsis of my year thus far

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Remembering my sister

It has been 3 years since the world became slightly grayer and sadder. We lost my amazing sister on this day.

Here is a transcript of my eulogy to her. It is one of the few pieces that I have written that I am incredibly proud of. Hope you like it.

So, we are here today to celebrate the life of my sister. Wow, never thought those words would be coming out of my mouth.

To try and sum up her life in just a few words is impossible, but, I am going to try.

Anna was an intensely private individual. She rarely showed what was truly going on in her life. But, when she let you in, you were in her life forever or at least until you pissed her off….

My earliest memories of Anna were when I was very young (and I am regaled with this tale by my mother on many an occasion). Apparently, I was angry with everyone at home and decided I was going to run away. So, Mom packed up a lunch for me, gave me my favourite blanky, my teapot (I have no idea why a teapot, but, what the heck… shades of my future self perhaps?), a fistful of pennies, a sandwich and some Koolaid. Off I went. I didn’t wander far, just around the block, as I knew I wasn’t allowed to cross the street. I eventually came home, but, I am told just for refills….

Anna had to follow me from a discreet distance and make sure that nothing ever happened to me.

That is who my sister was: She was my protector.

Anna was funny. When I was 10 or 12 years old, the family went on one of our BHUTAN DEATH MARCH vacations. You know the type of trip I am talking about? The trip where the family patriarch gathers kith and kin into the car at the crack of dawn and begins the never-ending journey to wherever it was that we were going at break-neck speed just to see if he could beat the traffic.

“You needed a bathroom break? Hah! We just had a rest when we filled up for gas 5 hours ago. And you need to go AGAIN? Hungry? Eat some beef jerky that we scored at the last gas station. Carsick? Meh, just roll down the rear window of the station wagon and let ‘er rip on the car following too close behind (that did actually happen to me)”

But, I digress. We were eventually in Disneyland: The Magic Kingdom. The land of eternal joy for kid and adults alike. Unknown to us, it was also the land of pervs dressed in costumes.

Anna, being young and pretty caught the eye of one lecherous looking Goofy. He proceeded to chase her around the park wanting a “Hug”. Anna wanted none of it. She started darting around people, screaming “Mother” at the top of her lungs all the while Goofy was lurching after her, arms open. Eventually, she lost him in the crowd and I sat there and laughed, as this was the funniest thing I had ever seen. She got her revenge on me, though by dragging me on to the Matterhorn. And thus began my life long fear of amusement park rides. Thanks, Sis.

Anna was my cohort at family functions. Case in point: when my aunt would come to a Zylstra family function, she would often zero in on a family member who had somehow given her a self-perceived slight at some point in time between these visits. That person would be cornered at some point in the evening and my aunt’s ginsu-sharp tongue would leave her victim in a pile of blubbering mess on the floor.

One year, it was my turn.

As I walked in the door from my flight from Vancouver, Anna grabbed me, a bottle of Black Tower wine (Yes, black Tower…) and we hid in the basement until my aunt left. We sat there in the semi-darkness, giggling and passing the wine back and forth daring each other to go and find my aunt. My aunt would eventually give up and went home. A major tongue lashing avoided.

Anna was my confidante. When I was struggling to accept who I was, she was the first family member I talked to. She simply hugged me and told that it was okay. She still loved me and nothing would change that. With that simple statement, I felt like I could breathe. If Anna could accept me, then everything else in the whole world could suck and I would still be okay.

Anna was the first family member I introduced Alex, my then future husband to. Back in June of 2003, we made the treacherous journey from Vancouver to Edmonton to meet the family (insert dramatic music here)… The first person we saw was Anna. We met for coffee when Anna was still working at West Edmonton Mall.

After a very friendly coffee, I excused myself to go to the bathroom and she looked over at Alex and said with nary a thought, “You’re a couple, aren’t you?” Alex answered quickly, “Yes” and with that, she hugged him, welcomed him warmly into the Zylstra fold and told him she was “glad that Al had someone in his life, finally.”

When Alex and I decided to get married, Anna was the first family member we told. She was thrilled for us. Almost as much as we were.

Anna was smart, funny, brave, considerate and stubborn. And she could fight the best of us. When the Zylstra men got into our usual Christmas Eve family gatherings, or as I liked to call them, “the WWE Main Event”, the discussions were frank, loud (really loud) and passionate. We argued over politics, religion, politics, news, politics, human rights, politics…. Did I mention “Politics”?

When the arguments became too much for Anna, she would call on us to stop being so “REDUNDANT”. I am not sure if she knew what “redundant” meant. But, the over-riding concept was for us to stop being juvenile, argumentative and just get along.

Redundant. A good word and one she used a lot. The real meaning of the word redundant is:

Characterized by verbosity or unnecessary repetition in expressing ideas.
Being in excess; exceeding what is usual or natural
Having excess or duplicate parts that can continue to perform in the event of malfunction of some of the parts.
Being characterized by redundancy; being predictable.

So, I am going to tell you today in Anna’s words: Don’t be REDUNDANT.

Don’t go through the rest of your life being unnecessarily repetitive. Say it once and MEAN IT.

Don’t be a duplicate, a copy of everyone else. Be unique. Be yourself.

Matter to someone….anyone!

Don’t be predictable. Shake up your life and make it matter.

I miss you so much, big sis. Be at peace. Know that you will never be forgotten.

Memories of my mother

This weekend, I am heading off to Edmonton to visit my mom. She will be celebrating her 90th birthday on Monday. It is a monumentous event.

My mother has always been one of the smartest, toughest, most resilient people I have ever met. I got my sense of humour, my passions and my drive from her.

I have always been in awe of her.

My most vivid memories of my mom are when I was very young. She stood guard over me.

My oldest brother, Hans, my brother Ted, My mom, Me and my sister, Anna.

Mom and my BFF from high school, Sharon back in 2012

Back around 10 years ago, we noticed that my mother was struggling with her memories. Sadly, she was diagnosed with dementia. While her long term memories have been solid, her short term memory was suffering.

I have begun to record my mother’s memories as a testament to her. I am not a sound engineer, but I think I am able to capture her essence.

I asked her a lot about her childhood and her side of the family as I am just learning about it.

As you can tell, she is pretty good at remembering her childhood.

Her marriage to my dad was always an adventure.

I will continue to record her memories for everyone but, most importantly for me. I treasure my time with my mom and hope to do so for a long time to come.

Memories of my dad

My earliest memories of my father were always fleeting. I knew who he was but he was never around much. It wasn’t until I was much older that I realized he worked two full time jobs.

He worked at a meat packing plant from 5:00 am to 2:00 pm. From 2:00 pm until sometimes 8 or 9 pm at night, he worked as a landscaper and gardener.

It was this work ethic that he instilled upon his children, including me. We were taught that no one was going to take care of us unless we took care of them first.

My father was a strong, but, quiet individual. Quiet until you got to know him or piss him off. Then, watch out. He could take you down with one glance or a carefully worded insult. My father was not a man to be trifled with.

He was born on April 21, 1920. His parents had 8 children and lived in a small community in the northern province of Friesland, The Netherlands. He had a busy childhood, helping his father on their dairy farm. My father’s history is vague as I was not able to collect as much information about him and his family. Something, I truly regret.

This is a portrait of my father’s parents.

My paternal grandfather was killed in the Second World War – leaving his wife with 8 children to raise. My grandfather’s death is still somewhat of a mystery to me. I will try to fill in those blanks when I manage to speak with my mother.

My father was left being the head of the household after this tragic event. He helped raise my aunts and uncles until the war ended and then, in 1953, he, my mother, my oldest brother, my sister and my father’s two youngest brothers all packed up to move to Canada. In the spring of 1953, the family boarded the S.S. Groete Beer passenger ship

The passenger list shows my entire family at that time.

I was able to find this information when Alex and I traveled to Halifax, Nova Scotia back in 2012. This was an amazing journey and I was filled with goose bumps when I saw my family’s names on the passenger manifest.

After a brief stay in Halifax, the family bundled up and headed West, stopping everywhere between Halifax and finally stopping in Edmonton, Alberta. This is where my family began to put down roots.

They lived in Edmonton until 1966 when we moved to our home in St. Albert, Alberta – just five minutes north of Edmonton. A very small bedroom community.

This is the home that I remember the best. I felt safe here, I felt protected here. This was a great place to grow up.

My father did that.

My relationship with my father has always been one of contrast. He was never overly demonstrative to me – I always suspected that he knew I was different from his other children. I was more artistic, less athletic, more into reading than playing sports, more into film, books, music. My father never knew how to deal with all of this so we just didn’t.

More my fault than his, I suppose. I never trusted him or the rest of my family to accept that I was gay. I had read so many horror stories about people being disowned by their families. That filled me with such dread. What would happen to me if I came out and they threw me away? What would I do? Where would I go? How would I cope?

These questions forced me into striking out quickly on my own. I moved out when I was just 18 years old. My other siblings all stayed home until they were married. Some of them were in their late 20’s before that happened. Not me. I needed to be able to be independent for fear of them discovering my secret.

So, I remained in the closet and suffered greatly for it. I drank too much, I smoked too much, I didn’t eat well, etc, etc. So, in 1986 when the opportunity came to move to the West Coast, I jumped at it. If I could put enough distance between me and my family, I could begin to take those tentative steps out of the closet. If and when I told my family, I would be established in my own life and I could carry on without them – or at least that was the plan.

My father would have none of that, though. My parents would begin to come out to Vancouver every 4 or 5 months just to visit (I believe it was more to check up on me).

They would drive out, spend a week or so with me, filling up my cupboards with food, bringing me small appliances like a microwave oven or a vacuum cleaner. Every day that they were out, we would be out touring the sights and sounds of the West Coast, but, invariably, we would wind up at a store where they would buy me another item because, in their words, “If we are coming to visit this much, we are going to be comfortable!”

Even though I proclaimed loudly that I was independent, I still had my parents as a safety net.

When it came time for me to get a new vehicle, my parents co-signed the loan without a second thought. When I was running short on groceries, my father would slip me a hundred dollars and tell me to take care of myself.

Normally when I would call my parents, my father would answer, ask about the weather and then ask if I wanted to talk to my mom. He would then hand the phone over to her and that would be the end of our conversation. This made me frustrated. I was desperate to have a relationship with my father, to seek his approval but, it wasn’t every going to happen

We would continue this slow building of our relationship right up until December 2002. Out of the blue, he called me on Christmas Eve. I was on my way to my friend’s house to celebrate Christmas with her and her family. My cellphone rang, I answered and it was my father.

I asked him if everything was okay. It was so unusual for him to call. He had only ever done it once before. He said, everything was fine. He just wanted to wish me a merry Christmas. I thanked him and said, I was good. There was a brief pause and then he said, “I just want to know one thing: Are you happy?”

I was floored. I started shaking. HE KNEW! OH GAWD, HE KNEW!

I stammered out, “Yes, dad. I guess I am! I have a great life here. I have friends. I have people who love me. What more could I ask for?”

He said, “Good, because you know all I ever wanted for you is to be happy.”

Another blow to my stomach,

I reassured him that I couldn’t have been happier. He then told me that he was getting ready to go out with Mom to see my brothers and sister. That conversation was the last one we ever had. That conversation will stick with me for as long as I live

By the last week of January 2003, I got a phone call from my oldest brother advising me to get home. My dad was in the hospital and it wasn’t looking good.

My father smoked for 40 years. He had emphysema and it was getting worse every year. The last 5 years had my dad on Oxygen 24 hours a day.

I got to Edmonton that afternoon. We drove straight to the hospital where my father was comatose. My entire family was there, except my youngest brother and his wife. My father demanded that they go on their planned trip to Las Vegas and so they went.

I acknowledged my family, kissed my mom and went to my dad. He was struggling for every breath. I held his hand for a few minutes and talked to him through a veil of tears.

I went and found his doctor who told me that my dad was fading fast and that we should be prepared. A massive weight just dropped on me. I couldn’t move. I couldn’t breathe. I couldn’t react. I just stood there frozen for what I thought was an eternity.

Eventually, my world came back into focus. I went back to my dad’s bed. I leaned in and whispered very softly to him, “Dad, I love you. I think you want to go somewhere else. Anywhere but here. You need to know that you can go if you want. We will be okay.”

I left with my oldest brother and we went to his house. I was exhausted. I went to lie down and fell asleep. I was jolted awake at just after midnight. It was the hospital calling to let us know that he died.

I found out that he passed away, about an hour after the last of my family left to go home and get some rest. Perfect timing on my dad’s part. I honestly believe that he planned it that way. He wouldn’t leave knowing that someone was watching him. Typical of my dad. He never wanted to burden anyone. This was his way of making sure that didn’t happen.

Writing this, I feel a wave of sadness. I had so much I wanted to say to him. I wanted to show him so much. I wanted him to meet Alex, who I had started dating the year before but, had only gotten serious in the latter part of 2002.

Somehow, though, I think he knew that I was embarking on a new chapter in my life with someone I truly wanted to spend the rest of my life.

My dad was a good dad but, he was the BEST FATHER. I will always treasure the time we had.

I am a DOMAIN!!!!

Whoot! Whoot! Time to celebrate! I have now established a domain for my blog:

alzylstra.com

I am not sure if I should feel excited or just ambivalent about the whole situation. But, this is now pushing me to write more. That can only be construed as a good thing, right?

So, I guess I will be writing more to keep my single digit numbers of fans updated on my comings and going….

2017 or as I call it – A LONG TIME COMING

Well, it has been a long time since I did this. Putting pen to paper – as it were. So much has happened since I last recorded anything on my blog.

Since I last wrote, we have been in our home for almost 5 years. Nykie, our beloved fur baby crossed the Rainbow Bridge,

There isn’t a day that goes by that I don’t think about him and how much he was loved and how much he loved us.

Alex has had major health issues – thankfully all are under control now but, it has been a long slog to get him through the myriad of health issues. But, my husband, if nothing else, is a fighter (as some of you well know).

Back in April, 2014, he came down ill with Infectious Gastro-Enteritis. It took almost 6 months of visits to the ER and to various medical specialists to actually diagnose what happened to him. We spent the next three and a half years fighting to get him well. We have almost succeeded. The downside, though, was the aftermath of all the fighting with the medical system and the various governmental entities.

Alex found he was unable to work due to the various afflictions he was now burdened with. I won’t go into details as that is his story to tell, not mine. Suffice to say, he struggled valiantly to regain some semblance of a normal life.

My husband is one of the most resilient men I have ever met.

I, myself, had my own health issues – no nothing major (thank goodness). I had a bout of kidney stones in 2013 which laid me out for almost two weeks. In 2014, I had a bout of bronchitis – another week and a bit of being sicker than I have been in decades. As a result of Alex’s diligence and persistence, I was able to finally secure a health practitioner – the next best thing to a doctor. She was able to successfully treat my hight blood pressure and prostate issues – hello drugs for the rest of my life, but, thanks to those drugs, it should be considerably longer than without them.

On to other stuff now:

Since writing last, I have come back to IRIS the Visual Group. I could not be happier. When I left IRIS back in 2009, it was to follow a new path. One that was, supposedly, going to fulfill my every need – financially speaking. I was promised a bed of roses by a former friend and other than being subjected to a bunch of pricks, the prophecy did not come to fruition.

After struggling with (she who shall not be named) for 3 years, I was able to get away from her and her toxic life and began to rebuild my own. I was able to find gainful employment. I struggled to decide what I wanted to be when I grew up – apparently, being a firetruck is not a suitable or realistic goal to achieve.

I was able to transition from Volunteer at the Canadian International Dragon Boat Festival Society into a part time office manager / race registrar gig. That was a wonderful opportunity to put my administrative skills to use.

I was then able to secure a part time gig at Earth Options Pet Products – a company that I am still with today. This was the brand of dog food that Nykie was on for the last 8 years of his life. The quality of the product line is unsurpassed in animal nutrition values.

I then created a trifecta of work by going to work for one of my oldest and dearest friends – Elaine. Elaine purchased a small consignment shop back in 2012 and was looking for someone to help out occasionally with some general sales duties and to help organize her paperwork. That shop is East Side ReRides now located just off Main Street in Vancouver. Working here and for her has been a true joy. I am able to stretch my selling skills and work with some of the most interesting people ever.

Fast forward to 2014 – IRIS the Visual Group suffered a tremendous loss in the untimely death of their President – Dr. Francis Jean. I contacted my amazing friend (friend doesn’t begin to cover my relationship with her), Debbi to express my condolences. We spoke at great length about Dr. Jean’s legacy and the future of IRIS. It was shortly after that conversation that Debbi offered me a new opportunity back in the IRIS family.

I jumped at the opportunity to work with Debbi again. We have worked together at 4 different organizations over the years and we have always worked well together. That is an understatement. We ROCK when we work together. We have been working on IRIS’ Corporate Eyecare Benefits Program and have turned it from a small little benefits program into a Juggernaut with sales in the multi-millions of dollars annually.

I have come full circle and couldn’t be happier.

So, that has everyone almost caught up with what has been going on until 2017.

2017 has been an amazing year for Alex and I. We have been in our home almost 5 years and it couldn’t be better. Yes, we have had a few challenges. We have had two separate floods but thanks to insurance and great restoration services, we were able to replace all the floors in our home.

The furnace died in 2015 – the end result of that was a new furnace and very strained relations with my family – some irreparably harmed, others are slowly coming back to where they should be.

The hot water tank turned into a rust generator – again another major expense to replace, but, glad it is done. I was getting covered in so much brownish water from the old tank, I was coming out of the shower looking very tanned.

We have increased our menagerie. We have two adorable rabbits – Caramel and Patches. A couple of beautiful does who reside in a massive hutch Alex built for them back in 2014.

We have two budgies – Lucky and Tiny. Lucky came to us as a result of being caught by Nykie back in 2013. Tiny joined him about 6 months after that.

3 aquariums and one pond rounded out the crew. That is until Nykie left us.

Alex was lost without his furry buddy. Thankfully, Alex found Phantom and Beau through a rescue foundation – Furever Free Dog Rescue. Our two boys were rescued from the streets of Tijuana, Mexico and came to us back in March of 2016. Our lives have been forever changed as a result.

We have been to the Maritimes in 2016 – an adventure one I will never forget or repeat. Suffice to say, I am no longer the apple of some of Alex’s family members. A story for another time.

Alex’s BFF, Angela has moved back to the Maritimes and so now we actually have a reason to consider going back there. The next trip there will be under completely different circumstances and on our terms – not anyone else’s.

2017 also found some great financial rewards for Alex and myself. With some serious saving as well as Alex FINALLY getting his long term disability income, we found ourselves DEBT-FREE – other than our mortgage and car payment. The weight of the world is off our shoulders now.

So, next year – EUROPE! I have been promising Alex a trip to the Netherlands since we got married and next year, we will be able to afford it.

Then a trip to Costa Rica – a whole new adventure awaits us there. We are looking at moving there when I retire, but, first a trip there to see if it is feasible.

This year, I had a number of trips to Edmonton to visit my mom. She is struggling with dementia and it is definitely taking a toll on her (and by virtue of proximity – my siblings and their spouses). I expect to be doing a number of those again in 2018. But, it is an opportunity to keep my mom connected to the here and now. Something, I am very grateful for. Her 91st birthday is in February and I am hoping to take Alex with me to go and visit her then.

We also had a camping trip to Edmonton in August and got to hang out with one of my best friends, Pat. He is an amazing man who has put up with my shenanigans for almost 40 years now. How he does it, I will never know. I suspect it is due to drinking….

We were able to take the dogs with us and Pat was able to see how wonderful they were.

I have also just come off a very successful run in the theatre world. I have been a stage manager for a number of organizations for the past 10 years. This is a labour of love for me, but, all things must come to an end. Sadly, I am going to be on a sabbatical from the theatre for at least 18 months. Stage Managing is brutal and takes a lot of work and time and effort and all three plus working full time have taken their toll. So, my last show is my LAST show (for 2018 – I did promise my director – Alison Schamberger that I would be back and I can NEVER say “no” to that woman. She is one of the most amazing directors I have ever had the privilege to work with)

2018 is shaping up to be a great year for us and I hope to write more (and hopefully better).

Post Renovations Bliss

Well, folks: Here is the end result of many, many, many hours of work put in by Alex, myself and a couple of neighbours. I cannot believe the transformation of our home. I am also relieved that is (for the most part) done…..

Enjoy

Master Bedroom

Master Bedroom – Nykie’s sleep area which he ALWAYS messes up…..

Dining Room – new floor. I love it.

I have shown this shot numerous times, but, I am still astounded at how good the built in hutch looks.

New Pantries just off the kitchen to replace the built in pantry we took out….

Guest room / office / sewing centre. This room had probably one of the best transformations considering we weren’t even goint to work on this room….

Our dining room hutch which is now my Stephen King collection display and Alex’s Craft centre….

Note, the re-upholstered work chair. Alex did that in like 2 hours…. Sheesh!

Guest Bathroom. New floors, new paint, new design, new everything…..

Guest bathroom… New Mirror, new lamps

New Kitchen Flooring….

New workstation where the old pantry was…. So clean and neat…. Plus, now I can actually work on a computer when Alex is on the other one… Hooray!

New expansive laundry room with additional storage…. Who doesn’t need more storage????

The hero of the day…. my amazing husband surveying the living room…. One of our next projects…. New floors… But, will wait until spring… In the meantime, he has, however, re-upholstered all the furniture in this room….

I got to decorate the tree this year…. Not bad, if I do say so myself….

The rabbits – who up until a month ago LOVED each other…. Now, they hate each other. *sigh*

Lucky and the fishes…

The last of the decorations… for this year. Alex and I have big plans for next year…. *shudder*

Merry Festivus!!!

Well, here it is. Almost the end of 2013 and I am just about ready for it to be over…. Not really. It has been a pretty amazing year with all of its ups and downs. Fortunately, it has been more ups than downs…. Whew!

We bought a house! HUGE UP!

Nykie is doing great after his health scares in early 2013. HUGE UP!

Got laid off in May. Kinda down but, in retrospect… a MASSIVE UP. No photo to insert but, just picture me doing my happy dance…. I am free of the stress, frustration, worry and anger that that job created. Plus, to be rid of my boss (and former friend) is equally exhilarating….

Got a new job! MASSIVELY HUGE UP!

I am working for a non-profit. The International Dragon Boat Society…. Hooray! It is an amazing opportunity for me. Money is okay, but, the educational experience is going to be huge. I am also working a few stage managing gigs which are actually paying me! Gotta love that.

We have some new additions. Another UP! We have adopted two rabbits and a budgie…..

Alex is doing great. He loves being able to stay home and work on the house, yard and making a real home for us. His talents continue to impress and amaze me. He, with the help of one of our good friends, Cam installed all new flooring in the house. He has repainted the majority of the rooms. Redesigned and refinished all our furniture. The man truly inspires me….

We will be spending Christmas here (and why wouldn’t we???). We hope to have a houseful of guest including Angela & Roy, Bonnie and some new additions this year.

I will be posting more regularly in the new year… it is probably the only New Year’s Resolution I can actually keep….

All the best from Alex, myself, Nykie, the rabbits and the bird…..