A Year later...almost

Well, I just got a quick reminder of why I dont blog very much. I had an entire post ready to publish after slowly working on it all day...as it took forever to load pictures...and every time it put in pictures the formatting would add large blank spaces, and as I was trying to delete the blank space above one of the pictures it somehow deleted the entire first half of the post and then autosaved 2 seconds later losing it forever. Needless to say I had a mini flip out and am in the I HATE YOU COMPUTER PHASE. It is lucky to still be sitting on my desk. Autosave is the devil. My least favourite thing to do is to try and remember what you wrote and recreate it.


I had returned to this online journal after someone wanted to post a comment on one of my NZ entries. I saw that my last post had been around this time last year as I was getting ready to go home for Christmas. I am not nearly as prepared and organized as I was last year, shopping in July for gifts did not happen in 2008. The family reinstated Craft Day, but we did not stay for it this year because we wanted to have a day of rest before returning to work rather than getting in late after a long drive and heading off to work the next morning. We had our own little crafty day in NB with Chris woodworking in the basement and I at the sewing machine working on a top secret project.


Kenzie has become a full blown cat. We had been worried for a few days that it wasnt going to be a successful transition into our little family, because everytime Nanuk came in to investigate the new creature, he tried to put her in his mouth. We never left them un-supervised for fear that she would really get hurt. After a few days though we began to let our guard down and as we were working away in the office, it dawned on us both that we had left them alone together for quite some time...we rushed out imagining a scene of flying fur, only to find them snuggled up together for an afternoon nap. They have been great pals ever since. So much so that I am pretty sure Kenzie believes she is a dog.



They have the most hilarious wrestling matches I have ever seen. This picture seemed to have captured a moment of ferocity...yet somehow they always come out unscathed. I cant get over how gentle Nanuk is...

Last winter in Fredericton we got more snow than I cared for. Locals say it was the worst winter in ages (and I have to take their word for it, and hope that means this winter will be an improvement). We were running out of places to throw the snow in our attempts to clear the driveway, and we broke 2 shovels in the process. The driveway was my nemesis last winter. We share a drive with the house next door, and it slopes toward the neighbours, coat that in a thick layer of ice and you have a great little winter game of chance. The people there last winter would park at the end of the driveway to avoid the need to shovel the entire length...so their car became an expensive obstacle. I had the great joy of having to park a rental car at the top of the driveway 2 days a week, a rental car that lacked winter tires. I spent many mornings and afternoons spinning my tires and slamming on the emergency brake trying to avoid that car at the end. Lovely way to start or end your work day I tell ya! I had been very excited the past few weeks because the students who were renting next door moved out over the summer and noone filled their space...however a few days ago we noticed lights on in the house and now today...a car at the end of the driveway. sigh. Let the games begin. :)

There really isnt one iota of me that is looking forward to a rough winter

But then again, I can only speak for myself ;)

I spent the winter fundraising for an organization I joined called Team Canada Healing Hands. We are a rehabilitation medicine group, including orthotists and prosthetist who work with the "teach a man to fish" philosophy in bringing medical aid to countries in need. The organization owns a guest house and clinic in Haiti and travels throughout the year to provide support and training to the Haitian rehab techs and prosthetitians who were trained initially by the organization. When our teams are not there (teams go from Canada and across America in spurts throughout the year) they are self sufficient.
The trip was amazing, not what you would call an eye opener, because I like to believe my eyes are mostly already open. It was educational and fulfilling, challenging and a lot of fun. Haiti is a beautiful country, driving through the country side you get the chance to really see Haiti's potential...hidden underneath it's problems, you can see what Haiti once was, many many years ago. Haiti has been hit hard, again and again. The day after I arrived in the country manifestations (protests/riots) broke out in the southern regions. Long story short: rising food costs are a problem we ourselves are facing, rising costs of fuel etc etc vicious circle. Only for us, it's something to be annoyed and frustrated by...but we still get to eat, we still drive to work. The average Haitian earns $1 a day, that's enough for some rice, cooking oil maybe an egg and the tap tap home. What that means is the average Haitian lives day by day. So what happens when the price of a cup of rice rises to $3? That is what happened in April 2008. And thus ensued...the Food Riots of 2008. To make that even worse there are theories about how it all began, and why unrest seems to always occur. A nation that is constantly at unrest, chaotic and frenzied...is a hot spot for low lifes trafficking drugs in and out of the country. If the authorities are tied up trying to keep the streets safe from the average citizens...that creates one big playground for...well you get the picture. Theories finger point at one man in particular who rallies the people to believe that the president increased the cost of food, and that this is something only happening in Haiti. Who wouldn't be upset by that?

Since I have left, Haiti has been hit hard by several tropical storms, and as you can see in one of the pictures, a large storm could effortlessly destroy many of the homes, not to mention the surges that easily engulf many of the towns.

Well, jumping down off my soapbox...some quick highlights! ;)

A tap tap, a very colourful form of public transit. Entrepenuers buy into the truck like a franchise.

Driving up into the mountains

This serenity was found at Wings of Hope, a home for children with special needs who could not be provided/cared for by their family

Our neighbours at the guesthouse and clinic.

A sailboat on our trip north

The gang! Taking a break on Sunday.

With a little girl Melisse outside P-au-P (knee flexion contractures)



We (Caryn a PT from Ottawa) met a fisherman on our walk along the beach, he had clawless lobsters, red fish and conch...Coconut milk is too sweet for my tastes!

The boys performing at St. Josephs, a school that teaches the arts to boys who had been living on the streets. It was a great show, and I would highly recommend it to anyone traveling through Petionville.

Bartering for a painting in Delmas...that piece now hangs in my living room...I'm so glad I had a translator and a staff driver there with me! What a HUGE help!

Playing with sound

A little footie with some children affected by HIV at Arc en ciel.

I am currently fundraising for my next trip with Team Canada Healing Hands, and my co-workers are such great supporters of this effort. The OT Dept even hosted a bakesale during OT month with all proceeds going towards purchasing a one-arm drive wheel chair for a little girl in Isle a Vache.

When I got back from Haiti all our snow had melted, which was a nice homecoming. The adjustment back to routine was a process, to say the least.

Over the summer my best friend Colleen got married, and shortly after that my travel buddy from NZ, Jo Anna, who you will be quite familiar with if you have been following along, also got married.

Colleen and Jacob

JoAnna and Eddie

As I was pulling into the hotel for Colleen's wedding I received a call from dad, letting me know that my Grandfather had been rushed to the hospital and things did not look good. He didnt know much more than that, and I spent the rest of the evening trying to pretend everything would be fine, with minimal success. I went home directly afterwards and stayed there for a week, as we all tried to pick up the pieces. He passed away before making it to the hospital, it was all very sudden and unexpected, which makes it so much harder to accept. Last year, with my dad's dad, it was very hard, but I had a chance to go see him, tell him I love him and say goodbye...this time...I felt...cheated. It has been three months and I still cant think about it without tearing up. I was blessed with wonderful grandfathers, caring and gentle, intelligent, down to earth grandfathers. Both of them loved nature and worked hard their whole lives. I didnt volunteer to speak at the funeral this time, I knew I wouldnt be able to get past one word. My sisters both got up and spoke, and I cant believe they were able to do it, they were great...even the choir cried. It is in times like this that you appreciate growing up in a small community in rural Canada...what amazing people.

My last image of Grampie is him standing in his yard waving and blowing kisses at me as we pull out of his driveway, after we stopped in for a visit on our way through to NB. A big hug and an "I love you, I love you more"

...it's as good as a goodbye as I could ask for.

I just always thought that I would see him again.

Where I get my adventurous streak?

I can remember standing in his basement, shortly after my dad's dad passed away, faced with an overwhelming amount of grief, current grief and thoughts of what could come if I had to say goodbye to the man who stood in front of me. I really didnt think that I would lose both of my grandfathers before I had a chance to start my own family. I think I was spoiled because I had great-grandparents in my life for so long, I just thought that would be how my own children would grow up. I think the 5 stages are more of a cycle, because I keep returning and revisiting certain emotions even after I thought I was finished with them.

As we prepared for the funeral we spent hours and hours digging through old photos, and I found a new hobby...restoring old photos. This was my first attempt at colouring along with the restoring. So many great pictures in the collections, mesmerized for hours. It is times like that where you smack yourself for not doing this with your loved ones while they were there to tell you all the great stories to go along with the stills.

It provides some comfort knowing that they are reunited.

Now we are beginning to get ready for another Christmas...and I have picked up yet another crafty hobby, but I cant speak of it just yet because its a christmas present if I finish it in time. That and I borrowed a fiddle from my cousin, I have to fit lessons in there somewhere. Maybe over the long snowy winter...