Tracey - The Linguist’s blog

Friday, February 9th, 2007 marked the 50th wedding anniversary of my aunt Ann and uncle Jim.  They had a great party that night, complete with a live band and a great meal.  All four of their children, who live in different parts of the world, made it home for the event, and they even performed a special tribute song for their parents.  Jim has a lot of problems with his legs, and he walks with a walker, but he and Ann shared the first dance together.   It was so sweet!  We all wish them many more years of happiness together.  A great time was had by all, and I have the pictures to prove it! 

 

I am wondering how many people are as sick of winter as I am.  We had a green Christmas here in Newfoundland, which makes the elderly people here nervous because they have a superstition:  "Green Christmas, fat graveyard."  This means that if there is no snow for Christmas,  there will be a lot of deaths in the new year.  How morbid!  Anyway, everything was great until the middle of January, then, to use a local colloquialism, "the bottom fell right out of 'er!!"  We have had storm after storm after storm since then, with the latest one just last night, dumping another 15 or 20 cm of snow on top of the 150+ that we already had.  Oh, what I wouldn't give to be sitting on a beach, sipping margaritas and soaking up the sun.  I could try that on the beach in Middle Cove, about 20 km from my house, but I'd end up with frostbitten margaritas, and everything else for that matter!

The highlight of the winter so far has been a concert that I attended with my family last Saturday night:  Buddy Wasisname and the Other Fellers.  These are a group of three local entertainers that sing and do comedy.  They are great fun to see in person, and we try to see their shows whenever they perform in St. John's.  As soon as I found out they were performing here, I bought tickets for my family and gave them as Christmas gifts.  I like to really have a good time when I go to concerts like this, so I always try to get the best seats.  I managed to get box seats for my family, so it was very comfortable and we had a great view of the stage.  It was great fun, and we laughed a lot.  Our cheeks hurt by the time we left the theatre!  The guys put on a great show, performing songs like "The Chocolate Song" and "Is You Happy?" (this is not a grammatical error, it is actually the name of the song!), and doing skits about old people using an ATM for the first time, and about a man explaining how his dog, Cuddles, and his cat, Fluffy, got him in trouble with his wife.  They are hilarious!  The group is now on a cross-Canada tour, so if you have a chance to see them, I highly recommend it.  You are guaranteed to have a good time!

Our next outing will be to Mile One Centre to see the Barenaked Ladies on February 26th.  That should be a lot of fun as well, and we are looking forward to another great night, if it doesn't snow!  Happy shovelling!!  :) 

 

 

Another Christmas season has come and gone.  It always seems that you spend months preparing for it, but then it's over so fast.  Christmas at the Fleet house was great this year, with way too much food, lots of family and friends, and a great deal of Christmas cheer!  I lost track of my digital camera over the holidays; unfortunately, I did not take any pictures of the parties we had.  Luckily, I found the camera before I took down my Christmas decorations, so I managed to get some pictures of those.  We always leave our decorations up until Old Christmas Day (January 6th), which is quite traditional here in Newfoundland.  Overall, we had a great Christmas, and I can't wait to do it all again next year!

We spent New Year's at my mom's house in Trepassey, a small town on the southern shore of Newfoundland.  It is on the southern tip of the Avalon Peninsula, and is part of a roadway we call the Irish Loop, so named because this is where Irish immigrants to Newfoundland first settled.  They were intermingled with French, English, Spanish, and Portuguese settlers as well.  This part of Newfoundland holds quite a lot of history,  To learn more, visit www.theirishloop.com.

From our family to yours, have a safe and happy 2007!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Anyone who owns a pet knows how much they become a part of your family.  You love them and care for them as if they were children.  You even spoil them mercilessly!  Such was the case with my dog, Caesar.  She travelled with us, greeted us at the door when we came home, and even comforted us when she sensed that we were upset.  She had a wonderful personality, and everyone that met her loved her.  She enjoyed playing catch and eating hot dogs.  When she was younger, she would jump up on the bed and snuggle between us, making sure that we both had ample room to pet her and tell her how beautiful she was.  She could give hugs and shake hands, and she would sit on her back paws and beg for treats.  She was just so smart and amazing!

Over the past year, we noticed a decrease in Caesar's activity level.  She would not run to the door as often, and she wouldn't bark when a stranger came into the house.  She slept most of the time, and could no longer jump on the bed or beg for treats.  We figured that these were signs of aging.  After all, she was 14 years old, which is 98 in people years!  You wouldn't expect a 98-year-old woman to be very agile and energetic!

For the past few months, her kidneys have been failing.  She ate very little but drank a huge amount of water.  Her joints began to ache, and she could no longer climb stairs or even stand up from a seated position.  The vet told us that there was nothing more that we could do for her, and that soon she would begin to suffer even more terribly than she already was.  It was then that we made the decision to end her suffering.  My husband took Caesar back to the vet's office today and had her put to sleep.  It was one of the hardest decisions that we have ever made, and saying goodbye was even more painful.  It is not easy to lose a constant companion, even if she does have four legs!

We take comfort in the fact that Caesar is no longer suffering.  She had a long and happy life filled with adventure, fun, and especially love.  We kept her dog tag so that we could use it as a Christmas ornament this year, as well as to have a constant reminder of this wonderful animal that brought so much joy and fulfillment to our lives.  We will always love her, and never forget our time with her.  She is in our hearts forever.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

September 22nd was our fifth wedding anniversary.  We went to dinner at a lovely restaurant and enjoyed a quiet and romantic evening.  We talked about everything that has changed over the last five years, and how quickly the time has passed.  A lot of significant events have happened in our lives during this time.  We bought a house in a nice neighborhood. I took a job in a small rural community, so we lived in different towns for two and a half years.  We have celebrated many birthdays, anniversaries, weddings and births, but also worried about loved ones experiencing health problems and undergoing surgeries.  We sorrowfully mourned the passing of my father in 2004, and my beloved uncle in 2005.  We have had highs and lows,ups and downs, laughter and tears, but the most important thing is that we have each other.  We are looking forward to many more happy, fun-filled years together.

Now that I have told you about all of the mushy stuff, I will tell you about the great party that we had on Saturday night.  We invited some of our closest friends, and had a great time eating, drinking and laughing.  There were plenty of libations, including a bottle of Sour Puss that did not survive the night!  Of course, we could not resist hooking up the karaoke machine and singing - a lot!!  If any of you are looking for a karaoke challenge, I recommend that you sing "The Lion Sleeps Tonight".  It's not as easy as it may seem!  We had a great time, and we are really looking forward to Halloween, when friends of ours are having a costume bash.  John and I will have to think about costume ideas.  I would welcome any suggestions!  Have a great day!  :)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

As several of you know, I have been training my sister, Tammy, to work with The Linguist.  She is now doing some of the writing corrections and answering Forum questions.  Anyway, I figured that there was no better way for her to learn than to be left on her own.  Therefore, I went away this weekend.  I left on Saturday afternoon and returned this morning.  It was great to get away from home for a while, and to really experience some of the Newfoundland outdoors, even though I am not the outdoor type! 

We stayed in a community called Horsechops ( funny name!) which is an offshoot of Cape Broyle, a town located on the southern shore of the Avalon Peninsula.  My husband's parents own this cabin, and we visit there quite frequently during the summer.  It is a well-equipped summer home, as you can see, and we had quite a good time there, playing cards and singing karaoke.  It was quite a lot of fun!

 

 

Our dog, Caesar, enjoys it as well.  It is a great opportunity for her to roam free and to experience the sights and sounds of nature.  She also enjoys chasing the rabbits and squirrels that run around the yard!  Sometimes, though, she just likes to laze around and relax.

 

 

 

 

We do not spend all of our time at the cabin, though.  This time, we did a little bit of exploring around Cape Broyle, and ate at a restaurant there.  The food was okay, but the view was great!  I even managed to get a picture of a few motorcyclists as they stopped for a rest.  They are the people sitting in the boat.

 

 

 

All in all it was a great time, but now I'm glad to be back to work at The Linguist!  Happy Labour Day, everyone!

 

 

 

 

 

What's your favorite song to sing karaoke-style?  If you don't have one, why not?

 

 I love karaoke!  My favorite songs to sing are "Daydream Believer" and "These Boots Are Made For Walking", but I've recently begun singing "Unchained Melody" - a little more challenging!  :)  Maybe someday, if I get enough nerve, I'll post a song sample.  Watch for that one!

Okay, so this is my first blog entry.  I have never kept a blog or an online diary before, so this is all very new to me!  It is really a fascinating way to communicate and to share your everyday life with others.

For those of you that are not familiar with my province, I live in Newfoundland and Labrador, which is located on the east coast of Canada, bordering the Atlantic Ocean.  I live in the capital city of St. John's, with my husband, John, and our dog, Caesar.  Most of our family members live here as well, with the exception of my sister, who lives in Mississauga, Ontario.  Newfoundland is a beautiful  place to live, with many historic sites and a wide variety of wildlife.  It is rugged and rustic, yet serene and modern.  It is a land of contradictions.

Here is a link to a few of our city's webcams:

http://www.ntv.ca/cams/othercameras.php

St. John's is a bustling metropolis with a population of about 175,000 people.  It is very small compared to some other cities in Canada, but we do not have headaches like three-hour-long traffic jams or inadequate housing.  The city is rich with history, and is home to many museums, bookstores, art galleries and music sites.  We also have a very active local pub scene.  George Street is famous for housing 21 clubs - the most of any single street in Canada! 

Here is another link to pictures of our fair city.  Click on each individual picture for more photos.

http://www.stjohns.ca/visitors/photos.nsf/wPhotos?OpenForm

That concludes our virtual tour around St. John's.  Maybe next time I will try to include a few pictures of my family and friends.  Have a great day, everyone!  :)