All Canadian Idol Auditions - Part 5

Theo's first audition - halfway into this, but it's all pretty entertaining to watch.

Theo Tams - In The Arms of an Angel

Theo Tams - Weak In The Knees

Theo Tams - Collide

This kid from Alberta is the best Canadian Idol we've ever had. I never tire listening to this boy sing. Enjoy.

Theo Tams - Apologize

Theo Tams top 2 Good Mother

Theo's final song on the night of the deciding vote. It wasn't lost on me that he was sending out two messages: the first he was saying thank you to his parents. Secondly, he was letting us all know how bad he wants to win. And the kid is so astute musically, he gave up the band for this performance, cut back on the piano a bit and let us hear nothing but his voice. The judges knew exactly what he was trying to do. Win.

And he did.

I love this kind of passion.

BJORNSON CONGRATULATES MANITOBA SCHOOLS RANKED AMONG TOP 25 IN CANADA

Education, Citizenship and Youth Minister Peter Bjornson today congratulated three Manitoba schools selected among the top 25 in Canada in the Today’s Parent magazine Great Schools 2008 competition.

The magazine’s fifth annual survey of Canada’s “stellar schools” featured in the publication’s September 2008 issue includes the Lakeshore School Division’s Alf Cuthbert School in Moosehorn, the Pembina Trails School Division’s École Dieppe School in Winnipeg and the Winnipeg School Division’s Luxton School.

“It was exciting to learn that three public schools were selected by an independent publication and characterized as excellent on a national scale,” Bjornson said. “This news supports our view that Manitoba has one of the highest-quality public education systems in Canada and I congratulate the schools and divisions for their exceptional work.”

The minister noted the Manitoba government has significantly increased public school funding over the past nine years and will fund 80 per cent of the total cost of public education through general revenues by the 2011-12 school year. The 2008-09 investment in public school grants was more than $1 billion for the first time in Manitoba history.

Alf Cuthbert School in Moosehorn, a Manitoba Interlake community, won in the Real Respect category. The magazine quoted one parent as saying there is “an unwavering expectation of good citizenship” at this school. Students from higher grades pitch in to help younger students with breakfast programs and lunch preparation. Older students help to run intramural sports programs. Christmas dinner is served by support staff each year.

École Dieppe School, located in west Winnipeg, won in the Terrific Teachers category. As one example, music teacher Andrea Wicha helped her students bring home a large number of awards from the Winnipeg International Music Festival. Her music students also performed a composition they wrote with the Manitoba Chamber Orchestra.

In central Winnipeg, Luxton School won in the Community Commitment category. A school family centre is organized and staffed by parents and volunteers who hold activities for students and their families. The school offers adult upgrading programs, English courses evenings and weekends, and a recreational program for children. According to Today’s Parent, this award is about helping students learn they belong to a wider community capable of handling cultural, recreational, social and emotional enrichment programs.

“As a former teacher, I know first-hand that it takes more than a building with desks and books to make a great school,” Bjornson said. “The real credit belongs to the teachers, students and families who have made their schools clearly stand out against a backdrop of thousands across the country.”

It's all about Cattle Country

Wow, what a tough couple of weeks.
We've been fighting rain all summer. Our part of the Interlake has seen more rain than we can handle and we only have half of the hay we need to feed the cows this winter. Dealing with this personally and having to write about it in Cattle Country was hard. Mark said that he'd worry about home and it was my job to worry about everyone else. It's been a long week trying to find out if there is going to be any financial help for producers who have to buy/bring in feed this fall. We still don't have all the answers finalized.

On an optimistic note, I created a new blog!
I made a blog for the paper so that anyone can access the information online. I think this is going to be an excellent resource for people and while it will take some time to get going, it's going to help with some of the challenges of putting out only eight papers a year. I've added the link on this blog so you can check it out.

The book is coming along really well. I haven't been able to work on it the last few weeks, but I'll be back at it first thing tomorrow morning. The plan is to have it done by Christmas.

Well, better go. Check out the other blogs.

So true . . .

NICKNAMES

If Laura, Kate and Sarah go out for lunch, they will call each other Laura, Kate and Sarah.
If Mike, Dave and John go out, they will affectionately refer to each other as Fat Boy, Godzilla and Four-eyes.

EATING OUT
When the bill arrives, Mike, Dave and John will each throw in $20, even though it's only for $32.50. None of them will have anything smaller and none will actually admit they want change back.
When the girls get their bill, out come the pocket calculators.

MONEY
A man will pay $2 for a $1 item he needs.
A woman will pay $1 for a $2 item that she doesn't need but it's on sale.

BATHROOMS
A man has six items in his bathroom: toothbrush and toothpaste, shaving cream, razor, a bar of soap, and a towel .
The average number of items in the typical woman's bathroom is 337. A man would not be able to identify more than 20 of these items.

ARGUMENTS
A woman has the last word in any argument.
Anything a man says after that is the beginning of a new argument.

FUTURE
A woman worries about the future until she gets a husband.
A man never worries about the future until he gets a wife.

SUCCESS
A successful man is one who makes more money than his wife can spend.
A successful woman is one who can find such a man.

MARRIAGE
A woman marries a man expecting he will change, but he doesn't.
A man marries a woman expecting that she won't change, but she does.

DRESSING UP
A woman will dress up to go shopping, water the plants, empty the trash, answer the phone, read a book, and get the mail.
A man will dress up for weddings and funerals.

NATURAL
Men wake up as good-looking as they went to bed.
Women somehow deteriorate during the night.

OFFSPRING
Ah, children. A woman knows all about her children. She knows about dentist appointments and romances, best friends, favorite foods, secret fears and hopes and dreams.
A man is vaguely aware of some short people living in the house.

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY
A married man should forget his mistakes. There's no use in two people remembering the same thing!

A bad day at Hallmark

My tire was thumping.

I thought it was flat

When I looked at the tire...

I noticed your cat.

Sorry!




~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~



Heard your wife left you,

How upset you must be.

But don't fret about it...

She moved in with me.





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Looking back over the years

That we've been together,

I can't help but wonder...

"What the hell was I thinking?"





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Congratulations on your wedding day!

Too bad no one likes your husband.





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How could two people as beautiful as you

Have such an ugly baby?





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I've always wanted to have

Someone to hold,

Someone to love.

After having met you ..

I've changed my mind.





-------------------------------------- ----------------------------------------------------------



I must admit, you brought Religion into my life.

I never believed in Hell until I met you.





//////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////



As the days go by, I think of how lucky I am...

That you're not here to ruin it for me.





####################################################



Congratulations on your promotion.

Before you go...

Would you like to take this knife out of my back?

You'll probably need it again.





********************************************************************************



Happy Birthday, Uncle Dad!

(Available only in Tennessee, Kentucky & West Virginia)





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Happy birthday! You look great for your age.

Almost Lifelike!





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When we were together,

You always said you'd die for me.

Now that we've broken up,

I think it's time you kept your promise.





//////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////



We have been friends for a very long time ..

let's say we stop?





+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++



I'm so miserable without you

it's almost like you're here.





=====================================================



Congratulations on your new bundle of joy.

Did you ever find out who the father was?





%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%



Your friends and I wanted to do

Something special for your birthday.

So we're having you put to sleep.





))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))



So your daughter's a hooker,

And it spoiled your day.

Look at the bright side,

it's really good pay


FEEL FREE TO EMAIL THIS TO ALL THE FRIENDS IN YOUR LIFE!

Twin baby moose in sprinkler

Just a little reminder how important wildlife is, and I couldn't help but think while I was watching this, that ranchers play a big part in preserving our natural spaces.

Get Service

I just gave the Weather Network shit

Every morning Mark gets up and turns on the Weather Network. He does not watch t.v. during the day, but every chance he gets he flips it on to see the forecast. This year has been particularly difficult with all the rain. Once again, they skimmed over Manitoba. This is a pattern we've noticed and have becoming increasingly frustrated with. Anyway, I just happened to be sitting on my writing chair working on my novel, which is coming along really nicely by the way.

Here's the email I sent them. Please let me know if you agree:

Good morning,

My husband and I tune into the weather network many times each day. We are cattle producers living in Manitoba's Interlake region. While I understand this is a large country and the bulk of the population lies in Eastern Canada, I am disappointed that you report very little on what is going on in the west. Just a few minutes ago, I watched again as a brief mention of predicted rain in southern Manitoba was mentioned and then a long description of all the rain and photos of rainfall in Toronto and Oakville. I believe the reported stated a total of 344 mm of rain there since June . . . we have had the same amount here. Because we rely heavily on the weather for our livelihood we keep track on our kitchen calendar.

I would like to go on record as saying that while the bulk of your potential viewership may be in the cities, the people who watch your station regularly are the farmers. It is seldom that you mention the weather in Bruce County in Ontario; and you skim over Saskatchewan and Manitoba as if we don't even exist. We never see footage from B.C.'s farming region and Alberta is the largest cattle province in this country - there is more to report there than just what is happening in Calgary and Edmonton. It is both discouraging and insulting that while we are struggling to get the hay made so we have something to feed our cows over the long winter, or agonizing over whether or not we'll be able to get the crops off the field, that your main focus is on the cities.

I know for a fact that right now your station is on and being watched by the majority of farmers in the above mentioned regions. How many people commuting to work turn on the weather channel before they leave? Unless it's Friday afternoon or the weekend, the weather plays a very small role in their day-to-day life. I know this because I haven't always lived here. I am originally from Stoney Creek, Ontario and grew up a city girl. The difference between how my parents reacted to the weather and my husband's family is a world apart.

Complaining without offering a solution amounts to just bitching. I would like to make the following suggestion: Why don't you report more on what is happening in the rural parts of this country on weekdays and give more time to the urban areas leading up to the weekend? This may sound a little simplistic but believe me when I say that increased coverage of the west and farm areas in the east would be both noticed and appreciated. We are the ones relying on your forecasts.

Thank you for considering my comments.

Writer's heaven

This is where I spend most summer mornings.
I get up as early as I can, usually between 4:00 and 5:00 and my day begins by writing from this chair on our deck. We screened the deck in the spring of 2001 and this became the room we use most in the summer time.

The deck faces the east so I am able to watch the sun come up over the bush. A large oak tree in the yard filters the glare, letting in enough light and warmth that by 8:00 a.m. I can take the blanket off my lap. This is an absolutely wonderful place to write.

All is quiet here in the morning except for the twittering of birds and the occasional bawl of a cow or calf at the far end of the pasture. It is really nice when the cows come by, swinging their tales and munching grass. The air is absolutely still until about 9:00 a.m. when the wind starts to pick up.

As the days grow shorter and summer progresses into early fall, I'll spend less time out here. But for now I'll appreciate every day that I can. My creative juices flow freely here and the scenes of my novel are vivid in my mind. They say that connecting with nature is one of the best things a person can do to inspire creativity and I believe this is so.

The book is coming along nicely and hopefully will be done soon.

The Last Lecture

A university professor who inspired thousands with his message of hope and determination, despite having only months to live, has died.

Randy Pausch, a computer science professor at Carnegie Mellon University, died early Friday at his home in Virginia.

The 47-year-old became famous after the "last lecture" he delivered in September 2007 became an Internet sensation, watched by millions online.

He had been diagnosed with incurable pancreatic cancer one year earlier -- and given just three to six months to live.

"We can't change the cards we're dealt, just how we play the hand," the computer science professor says at the beginning of his lecture. "If I don't seem as morose or depressed as you think I should be, sorry to disappoint you."

The husband and father of three young children goes on to deliver a phenomenally uplifting message, speaking about achieving your dreams. At one point he even does pushups to demonstrate the strength he still had in his cancer-ridden body.

He later said the message was meant as a "message in a bottle" to his kids Logan, Dylan and Chloe.

The momentum of the YouTube video was carried over to a book project that Pausch embarked on with Jeffrey Zaslow, a columnist at the Wall Street Journal.

The book "The Last Lecture" is essentially a series of lectures that Pausch delivered by cell phone to Zaslow as he rode his bicycle to stay fit.

It climbed to the top of the best-seller list when it was published in April and remains there still.

Pausch was a professor of computer science and human-computer interaction and design, and was considered by many to be a pioneer in virtual reality research. He also co-founded the Carnegie Mellon Entertainment Technology Center -- a facility designed to bring artists and engineers together.

He was known at Carnegie Mellon -- where he also studied and received a Ph.D. -- for his energetic and exuberant style as a teacher and mentor.

Watch the last lecture through the link on the right hand side of this page.

The Joy of Strawberry Pie

When we were young and industrious, Mark and I cultivated a U-Pick Strawberry patch right here on the farm. Every year from 1985 until 1996, we buzzed around in May and June getting ready for the three weeks that, depending on the weather, would either be a complete washout or booming success.

I remember those times fondly. I'd pull on my sweatpants, sweatshirt and rubber boots and open up at 6:30 a.m. People would come from all over with stacks of empty ice cream pails in their cars to pick them all full. Some years our crop was tremendous - Mark really did know how to grow strawberries and it helped that we hit upon a June bearing variety, the Glooscap, that produced particularly well in our soil.

Some of our pickers were the best customers in the world. They came regardless of the year we were having and picked, without complaint, even when the berries were small. Some of them would bring along a picnic lunch and sit in the shade after the picking was done. The memory of one group of pickers crawling along the rows, singing hymns is something I'll never forget.

My mother-in-law, Jonina, loved the strawberries. After her morning chores were done she would come out to the field and either spell me off or pick a few for herself. I remember in the early years when were first getting started "Jo" would try and pay me for the berries she picked. Of course I never accepted it and had to act really insulted so that she would stop offering. We had some really wonderful times together picking berries while the guys were out haying. She taught me how to make jam and we filled our freezers full with whatever was left over at the end of the season.

During the days of the Siglunes ball tournament, both Jo and I would each take two strawberry pies down to the hall and they were sold by the ladies club along with pies from all the other women in the community. Jo happened upon the recipe one day, gave it a try and then passed it on to me. As the years passed, it got so that people in the stands would jump down and run to stand in line when they saw us walking up past the ball diamonds with those pies.

After Jo passed away in the spring of 1993, things began to change here on the farm. We shut down the U-PICK as our lives began going in different directions.

I'd like to share with you Jo's recipe for Strawberry Pie:

Crust:
1 1/2 cups graham crumbs
1/4 cup sugar
4 tbsp. butter or margarine

Mix together and press into a pie plate. I use a deep dish glass pan. Bake in the oven for 10 minutes at 375 degrees. Let cool.

Filling:
1 1/2 c. water
3/4 c. sugar
2 tsp. cornstarch
1 pkg. strawberry jello
Approx. 5 cups halved strawberries

250 ml (1 cup) Whipping cream
Sugar to taste

Mix the cornstarch in the sugar in a small bowl. Heat the water in a small pot until boiling, then slowly pour in the sugar mixture. Cook until clear, stirring continually. Remove from heat. Pour in the jello and stir until there are no clumps.

Using a slotted spoon, pour in a cup of strawberries. Stir until the berries are coated and then lift them into the cool pie shell. Continue doing this until the pie plate is heaping with coated berries. Then pour the remaining liquid evenly over top. Cool in the fridge for about 2 hours.

Whip the cream with a mixer, adding the sugar slowly until the cream is stiff. Spread on top of the pie and put back in the fridge. Don't worry about how to store the leftovers because there won't be any.

If you have any questions about this recipe, feel free to comment and I will reply.

Yes, it is raining again

1. Wake up at 3:00 a.m.
2. Start working on my novel.
3. Check the basement for flooding
4. Realize I am being paranoid and get back to work.

Things are starting to get tense here on the farm. It is, let me check the date, July 17th and we haven’t started haying yet. To put that in perspective for non-farming folk, we usually start at the end of June.

The problem is that it has been raining since May. Mark checks the rain gauge faithfully and has recorded a whopping 13.36” this season. The pastures and hayfields are saturated and a small lake has sprung up in the yard. Last week, we had a mini-flood in the basement.

On the bright side, he’s done all sorts of things around the house. He fixed the stove, installed a new pill switch in the septic tank and has the garage almost cleaned out. This morning, between a break in the clouds, we rode our bikes over to the neighbour’s house and had coffee on their screened in deck.

The cattleman’s motto is: Make hay while the sun shines. This year however, it’s become: Drink coffee and watch the weather channel.

Wine Season

Wine Season

1. Get up and check on two new batches of wine
2. Stir vigorously
3. Add a heater to the closet since it’s frickin cold outside
4. Realize the garbage stinks like rotten fruit and pitch it outside onto the porch.

I spent yesterday afternoon cleaning 10 baskets of strawberries. They were brought to me by a friend who went and bought the pre-picked pails from a farm in Portage la Prairie. I froze some, put a basket in the fridge to make a strawberry pie and have turned the rest into wine.

Making home made wine is my only hobby. I started a few years ago after getting hooked on Louis Cote’s wine. Louis is a retired teacher who lives north of Moosehorn and he’s been making the stuff for over 25 years. His is all natural, made from berries that he and his wife Sharon pick themselves.

I remember the first time I was offered a glass of Louis’ wine. I was visiting and told them politely, “No thanks, I don’t drink wine.” The insisted I have a taste, which I did and then forgot about it. On the next visit, I had another taste. And the same thing happened every time I visited over a period of two years. Then one day a friend of Laurie’s came for a visit and brought with him a bottle of home made wine. We served it with dinner and after about two glasses, I began to exclaim how good it was. I examined the label to see that it was made by Louis Cote. At that moment it all came together for me and I’ve been a wine fan of his ever since.

Over the years, Louis has taught many people to make wine. Nervous that I’d do something wrong, he went through it with me step by step. Still nervous, I bought all the supplies I needed and went to Mike and Diane Price’s house. Mike had recently learned from Louis how to make the wine and we made a few batches together. Once I was confident, I started making it on my own. Last summer I put down 10 carboys which resulted in close to 300 bottles of wine. Like me, people who drink it get hooked. I’ve made a lot of friends because of it.

With my berries and sugar all ready, I went down into the basement and began rooting through my supplies. After about 10 minutes of searching, I realized that I’d lost the recipe Louis gave me. Sheepishly, I called his house. After a few minutes of razzing, he gave me the instructions over the phone.

For me, summer has become wine making season. I am already eyeing the chokecherry bush in the yard, am hoping for saskatoons and have checked both the tame and wild plum trees and because of the rain it looks like there will be a bumper crop. I picked enough rhubarb for a batch and a half, and put two more rhubarb plants into the garden. We plan to clear a section of the garden with hopes of putting in more plum and cherry trees next year.

How many batches do I plan to make this year? At least 12. And I’m going to enjoy every minute of it.

Victory

1. Wake up feeling guilty that I haven’t blogged in awhile
2. Resist the temptation since I need to finish my novel
3. Make a resolution that I will instead blog in the evening
4. 4:00 p.m. – get started!

My internet service was down for awhile and I was away in Winnipeg for nearly two weeks, so those of you who visit my blog regularly probably noticed that the posts in June and July were scant at best.

I do have some good news to report that should have been done long ago – Teresa Johnson was successful in her bid to have Bill 28 changed to include the Ashern and Fisher Branch Early Years Schools. That means that in the foreseeable future, these schools will be protected under the Bill and will stay open.

Education Minister, Peter Bjornson, gave Teresa the news in person.