A Walk in My 'Hood'

  

Just a reminder to click on the photos to make them large. They are high resolution and the colors and detail are lost unless you do this. 

I was concerned on the Cruise, that when we arrived back home, the Autumn colors might be gone. There are few things, for me, more enjoyable, that photography in the Autumn. 

The weather has not been cooperative lately, but today, there were some breaks in the clouds and I did a bit of wandering, just in my immediate neighborhood. 

 

The Friendship Garden behind our Public Library is always photogenic, but especially in the Fall. 

Two photos of our home, the LaGalleria. 

The high-rise in the distance is the Towne Centre Tower. I had many very good customers there when I was working and I got to know the building and many of the people intimately. I have stories. 

The Trethewey Towers, across Simon Avenue from our LaGalleria, is another building that I am very familiar with. busylizzy's parents lived there for many years. Again, many good customers and some doozy stories. We were in the building just yesterday where we met some new people from our church. 

 

Temporary Home

    I am writing so much about life on board because two thirds of the trip were 'sea days'. The Koningsdam was our home for that long and we would either become attached to it or we would hate it and just want to get home. Except for our small state room, it was truly living in luxury. Everything but our room was spacious. The well designed area was barely adequate, but because we only slept in it, it was bearable. Comfortable, actually. Even the shower had elbow room although one had to be careful that the TV was not turned on inadvertently with a stray swipe of the hand. And the TV was not even in the bathroom. 

    I often wondered how some of the mobility challenged passengers, or the obese passengers managed. And there were a lot of those. We estimated that because busylizzy and I had no trouble walking or climbing stairs, we were in the tiny minority of maybe 20%. We also estimated that being in our mid 70's, we were probably some of the younger people on board. Indeed, it did look at times that the entire care home population of Abbotsford were sent on a vacation on our ship. 

    The final day before we docked in Vancouver, we agreed that as good as the trip was, we were glad to be home. The last time we were in Hawaii, we stayed for three weeks and we felt the same then, just wanting and needing to go home. I need to remember this the next time I utter the phrase "I just have to get away".  

Meeting People

 

      Having many 'sea days' gives rise to a great opportunity. It is a chance to meet people. The ship seems somewhat crowded at times, so while sitting in close proximity to a stranger, it is easy to engage in conversation. All you need to do is ask "Is this your first cruise?" or "Where are you from?" I never met a single person who was reluctant to answer either of these questions and from there, further conversation would easily ensue. 

      I talked to a retired pipe fitter from Ontario who asked me how I kept fit. I met him sitting down behind a dining room table and could not really see the state of his fitness, or should I say fatness. Had I known, I would have been more circumspect with my pronouncements. 

     I met a retired plumber from Idaho whose hobby and passion was stock car racing. He had built 20 cars and was still building more with one of his sons. One of his photos showed his workshop on his property and the walls and shelves were lined with trophies and banners. He met his wife when he was 19 and she was 29. I saw the photo of a gorgeous young woman and he said that when he found out she was that much older than him, they were already planning to get married and he thought it would not matter. Now that she was 79 and he was 69, it seemed to concern him a bit, although she was put together just fine and looked to be very mobile, and was very sharp with her witty comments. 

    I met a Pilipino who was from Toronto and he filled me in on all the 'ins and outs' of the predominantly Pilipino crew and what their requirements were for obtaining employment on a cruise ship. It surprised me that most were University graduates with good grades in English. 

    I met a retired researcher who worked for the Canadian Armed forces in 'researching weapons and armament platforms'. I probed, gently, after his wife reminded him to be careful what he said. I broached the subject of the Israeli defense system called the Iron Dome and whether he thought their laser beam technology was part of the incredible success of taking down 99% of missiles shot into Israel by the Hezbollah. Interestingly, this was his last project before he retired and it was obviously his hot button. What he told me was fascinating and if I wrote it down here and you read it, I would have to kill you. 😅

    The most interesting aspect of meeting all these people was the three amazing coincidences that happened in a matter of two days. The first one concerned two elderly quilters from Vancouver Island. I was not keen on the conversation until one of them mentioned that her husband worked for BC Tel and did servicing along the west coast of BC in communities like Bella Bella, Bella Coola, and Ocean Falls. I perked up at that and asked her if she had ever been to Ocean Falls. Yes, she had, and we were just starting to reminisce when the other quilter piped up that she had been born in Ocean Falls. That opened a most interesting flood gate as I lived there for three years and busylizzy and I started our married life there. 

   The next day we sat with am unfamiliar couple in the dining room. He and his wife were from Ft. MacMurray. When I told him that I would be most interested to talk to him about that city because I own a condo there, he asked where it was located. It turns out that his sister lives in the same complex where I am an owner. 

    Later that evening at the show, we sat next to a fellow a bit older than me who grew up in Janzen Sask. When he found out I grew up in Lanigan, he told me everyone in Janzen either drove east to Wynyard for groceries, or west to Lanigan. I told him my dad owned the grocery store in Lanigan and he asked, "the Shop-Rite"?  Yes, it was my dad's and he remembered the store well. Who knows, I may have seen him in the store many times with his parents, of course, not knowing that all these years later we would meet in the middle of the Pacific Ocean. 

    It is indeed, a small world, after all. 

Sea Days

      Of the 18 day duration of the trip, there were 6 'sea days' at the beginning and end, with 6 days of exploring on three of the Hawaiian Islands. The first six days were not only useful in terms of getting a feel for the ship and the ins a outs of this type of travel, but they were very enjoyable. 

      We were about 36 hours into our journey, heading southwest, when it was announced that the ship would be heading back toward Astoria, due east of us, so a US Coast Guard helicopter could do a medivac. It was an interesting procedure to witness, and after the excitement was over, we changed course once again, and now being behind schedule, the ship sped up from its usual 16 knots to 20. 

     We learned the lie of the ship but were still confused as to the location of our room each time we returned to it. You had to be there. The signage and directions were all good and once we learned fore and aft, port and starboard, we made fewer and fewer mistakes as we made our way to various locations onboard. We lived on deck 4 and soon learned that the dining room was one deck below us, and the buffet was 5 above us. This information had top priority in my age addled brain. 

     We noticed immediately that the ship was not only beautiful, but very well maintained and squeaky clean. Part of our daily routine was walking the 'promenade deck' for exercise every morning. There was always a crew or two cleaning, painting, fixing and inspecting all aspects of the ship. There was very little, if any, wear and tear on and in the ship even though it is around 10 years old. There was luxury and cleanliness at every turn. 

The design and architecture were stunning.

The art work on the wall of the gallery and the hallways were changed almost daily.

Each elevator lobby had a different sculpture in the center of the area. 

The casino was alive with whistles and bells and was very heavily used. Not by us, I might add.

There were several specialty bars and music venues with various genres of music to delight the ears and other senses. 

Here we look down two decks to the wonderful art gallery where there were many displays and art auctions.

Our usual morning walk along the promenade deck, encircling the ship. Four laps equaled a mile. We are more into steps than distance. Our average step count at home is around 6,000 per day. On our vacation, we averaged around 8,000 with a top day of 19,000. 

The grand staircase that took you down from the casino to the BB King Blues Bar. 

The Dutch Cafe. 

The "World Stage" where we enjoyed many wonderful lectures and shows, the entertainment running from movies, to comedians, singers, dancers, impressionists, and our favourite, Annie Gong, a Chinese musician who played an electronic digital accordion. I know. I almost did not go but went to see both shows and she was nothing short of amazing.

     It did not take us long to discover the excellent quality of the food. The service everywhere was super friendly and helpful, especially our two room stewards, Tri and Andre.  The post cruise survey that is sent to all guests, got a straight 10/10 in all categories. 
 

 

Cruising

      In 2019, pre-COVID, busylizzy and I went on my first (her second) cruise. She was taken on a cruise by an employer a few years previously but left me at home. Willingly, I might add, as competing with her boss for the attention of any of the ladies including my wife was a situation I was not willing to engage in. 

     The cruise was to Alaska, and what I remember of it was quite lovely and a great time to spend with my grandsons and their parents. But three days of it are a blur as I spent most of that time in the tiny washroom memorizing the pattern on the tiled floor, while wondering if  I was going to live or die. There are few things in life nastier than a Norovirus. At one point, burial at sea seemed like a good alternative. 

     I recovered and now seemed the right time to again 'test the waters' as in trying cruising once again.  

     The thought came upon us suddenly and out of the blue as friends of ours were telling us that they were going on a Vancouver to Hawaii and back to Vancouver cruise in October. We love Hawaii and the thought of not having to fly to any of the destinations was very appealing. 

    With permission from our friends, we joined them, and embarked upon our Journey on October 5. 

     I am blogging about the trip so I do not forget some of the details and impressions of the trip on the Koningsdam, one of the beautiful ships in the Holland America line. 

   By late afternoon we were underway and saying goodbye to Vancouver and its beautiful cruise ship terminal. 

     When you pass under the Lion's Gate (First Narrows) bridge, you know it is real and there is no turning back. Many of us stood on deck to catch a last glimpse of  the Port of Vancouver. 

     As a bit of a photographer, I was wondering if all the colored leaves would be down when we returned. They were just starting in early October. 

     The seas were calm as I tried to remember if I had packed the seasick meds. 

     More to come. 

A World View

      Why do people get entrenched in their views to the point of discarding anything that challenges those views? I would suggest that our ideas and our opinions do not necessarily arise from critical thinking, but from our well established world views. We believe certain things about the universe, about ourselves, about faith issues, about government, about how to raise children, and the list goes on. If an idea is directly opposed to our world view, we outright reject that idea because it will put into question some of our assumptions about other ideas (beliefs) and those things which we hold dear, and, in fact, base all our opinions on. 

     An avowed atheist, for example, sees the world quite differently than does a Christian or anyone who holds to the belief that there is actually a God. What happens when an atheist is confronted with what he believes to be irrefutable proof, beyond a shadow of a doubt, that God exists, created the world, and is indeed watching over it and controlling it? Well, he has to change his mind and adjust his thinking on absolutely everything. He is faced with what is called 'ontological shock'. Ontological shock refers to a profound cognitive and existential jolt experienced upon encountering phenomena that drastically challenges existing world views.  

     When faced with an idea or ideas that put our entire world view into question, we tend to reject the idea rather than explore it. It is much easier to wrap our minds around the status quo than recalibrate so much of what we have believed to be true all our lives. 

      So this is why the opposing views on COVID shots are so controversial. The common world view which has been around for at least all of my life, is that governments, health care systems, pharmaceutical companies, doctors, and our leaders in general, have our best interests at heart and would never do anything deliberately to harm the citizenry. If the COVID virus was a result of 'gain of function' research at Chapel Hill University in the USA and then shipped to Wuhan China for further study, and perhaps release, and if the "vaccines" were actually developed before the virus was released (escaped) and if it was known by Pfizer's own research that the "vaccines" were very dangerous and needed another 3-4 years of testing, and it was known that Ivermectin was a treatment but a "no treatment available" scenario was necessary in order to facilitate emergency use of the untested "vaccines", then it would follow that the very people we trusted were out to do us great harm. (The above facts were once deemed conspiracy theories but are all proven to be true). I am not suggesting that all of the above players were out to do us harm, as many of them were duped into thinking that certain actions were for the "greater good". What I would suggest is that the profit motive for many of the above players was so great that they were willing to roll the dice and take a chance on a very questionable product. 

     Being confronted with this information would certainly be a dilemma for most people so it was rejected outright and the topic was off the table and anyone who questioned the motives of the above players was 'out to lunch' and was labelled as a conspiracy theorist. It certainly happened to me many times. But, if you have read my previous posts on this subject, you will know that I came by my skepticism honestly and over a period of years, so it was no great leap for me to realize that my government did not care one lick about me, with the exception of seeing me as a tax payer. It created in me a keen awareness that I should be a critical thinker in all things.  

It's Still a Thing

      It has been almost three years since my last post. There has been no shortage of material to write about, but there has been a reluctance on my part to share my personal journey on the subject of vaccines and pandemics. My experience in talking to people about the subject is that it is controversial to say the least. There was the old adage that you do not talk about politics or religion at certain gatherings such as extended family, but there is another subject that is even more divisive, and that is the subject of shots, boosters, and all related conspiracy theories, whether those theories are debunked or proven to be true. 

     Hence, I have not been promoting this blog, and may continue to not do so until it is safe, and indeed, it may never be. You may have gathered from reading the previous posts under the label of Covid Journey, that I did not get the shot. I use the term shot because the injection has been proven to not be a vaccine in the traditional sense, but is an injection of a new technology called  mRNA gene therapy. It was only ever called a "vaccine" so it could get the emergency use designation. I have already triggered some of you if you are reading this. 

    I have become an avid student of all things vaccine, covid, and anything related to those two words. Daily, I would follow some of the more prominent doctors and scientists who were bucking the system, and who were not afraid to take the criticism from their colleges and from the news media. They were onto something, and daily, there was proof from 'boots on the ground' experience, to reliable data, that the shots were a grave danger to humanity. In a conversation with a friend, he summed up my stand perfectly when he observed that I was more afraid of the jab than I was of COVID. I have never regretted, for one second, that I refuses the injection (s). I thank God that He gave me the discernment early on to make that decision because I have seen so many I know, and many that I love, and have loved, succumb to the often deadly effects of the "vaccines". 

    Did I get COVID? I was never tested (the tests were bogus and were never meant as a diagnosis for disease, a direct quote from the inventor of the test) but had all the classic symptoms of COVID about two years in, and found it be a very tiring but not altogether debilitating experience and recovery was quick and full. Sleeping 17 hours a day for three days and taking some Ivermectin (black market back then) was the extent of my experience. All this while people I knew who were jabbed multiple times, were getting the disease multiple times. 

    I will explore, in my next post, what I believe to be the reason why the whole subject is so controversial and why people dig in their heels instead of have a rational discussion on the merits of the various aspects of all things COVID.