20 things I love about Parki

Parki and me on a hiking trip. Photo by Jeff.

Happy birthday, Parki!

In the past I've done "Things I Love About..." Jodi, Allison, Dave, Rand and Luisa. In honour of Parki's birthday, I offer:

20 Things I Love About Brian Parkinson

- He's a technonerdboy.

- He's one of those rare technonerdboys who has a strong creative side: an irresistable combination.

- He designs and makes furniture, for instance! Check out this incredible dining room table that Parki designed and created out of snooker materials, as well as his other projects (see navigation bar on the left of that page).

- He's a great hiking/canoeing/cottage companion.



Visiting our cottage.


- He can write poetry.

- I love his cartooning style. He drew a little cartoon guy on our kitchen whiteboard called "Mr. Buzzwordy" years ago...and it's still there; neither Jeff nor I could bring ourselves to actually erase him. I'm sure we couldn't erase Mr. Buzzwordy now even if we tried.

- His herbal tea collection.

- His living room has My Favourite Armchair In The Whole World. Pleasantly worn-looking, great to curl up in under a blanket, super-comfy.

- He's comfortable with silence.

- He was darned cute as a kid:





- Then again, he's darned cute now. ;-)

- He's handy with a hammer.

- Our regular lunches at Queen Mother Cafe. He always orders ping gai. I sometimes stray to other menu items. Food may vary, but the conversation's always great.

- He's a great cook.

- He let me plant some herbs in his garden. (Ok, so they're dead now because I chose the wrong plants for his backyard's sun exposure level, but at least he let me plant them.)

- He's introspective.

- He collects hood ornaments.



Jeff, ScottM and Parki.


- His wicked sense of humour. Check out his Anti-Blathering. :-D

- He's done amazing things with his house.

- He follows intention through with action.

- He's an accomplished Ultimate player.

- He makes killer roasted red pepper and goat cheese sandwiches. YUMmmmmmmmmm...


A cool mask that Parki made. We had it up on the wall
in the Inkspot office. He also designed and created all the
ceiling light fixtures in the office!


- He has an amazing sense of design.

- His love of the outdoors. Loves camping, hiking.

- He's not afraid of change, nor of taking risks.

- His cool sister, Kate.

- He and Jeff share a close friendship separate from the friendship between Parki and me.


Parki, me and Jeff on Parki's couch.


- He's not afraid of goofy fun.

- The great relationship he has with his cool sister, Kate.

- His love of music. He's always open to new artists, different kinds of music, and has the most extensive CD collection of anyone I know.

- He's spontaneous, willing to try new things, doesn't always colour inside the lines.

I'll stop now. I adore Parki, and value his friendship tremendously. It's impossible to capture this in a single Blathering, so I'll just end with this:

Have a very happy birthday, my friend. :-)

Parki and Jeff on Parki's couch.

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poll: favourite cake?

Ginny and a friend, Harry. I made the cartoons behind her.


Happy birthday to my mom-in-law Ginny, who turns 67 today! We celebrated her birthday last night. Anita made a wonderful raspberry angel food cake from scratch (and WITHOUT angel food cake pans or an electric mixer). Cake-making from scratch has always seemed like magic to me, but especially in this case.

When I was much younger, I recall trying to make a cake for a family birthday, only to have the top of the cake cave in completely when I opened and closed the oven door too many times to check on its progress. I was horrified, of course, and ended up disguising the gaping pit by filling it in with icing until it was level on top.

My very first cake was a very small (4" across?) cherry cake with cherry icing, made with my Betty Crocker baking kit. I was sooooo proud of that little cake and actually managed to resist eating it for nearly an entire day.

Poll: What's your favourite type of cake? I have a weakness for carrot cake with cream cheese icing, though I find most store-bought carrot cakes too dry. Though there's nothing quite like a thick slice of moist chocolate cake with lots of chocolate icing.

Ok, now I'm hungry...



Ginny's dog, Jamie.

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tent

Sleeping out in the tent was fun (thanks to Scott Murray for the loan of the tent!). I hesitate to call it camping out since we had access to far more luxurious conditions that we would normally on a canoe trip.

An air mattress, for example, as well as many layers as struck our fancy without regard to bulk; we didn't have to carry everything on our backs, so why NOT double up on sleeping bags?

Still, it was wonderful to snuggle down into a cushiony arrangement of liner and sleeping bags, leaving only part of one's face exposed to the chilly air. I listened to my audiobook for a few minutes (an iPod is also a luxury I wouldn't have on a camping trip) before shutting everything off and going to sleep.

The tent platform, designed and constructed by Jeff & Scott a few days ago, was solid and level.

Doing it again tonight! Going back to the city tomorrow.

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change in seasons?

Jeff paddling just after sunset.


Summer seems to have turned the corner into autumn this past week; we've all been bundling up in sweaters and using the fireplace in the boathouse to keep warm. Lake's colder, too (brrr), but I still try to get in a couple of swims a day anyway. One benefit of the colder weather is that there are far fewer bugs than when we first arrived.

Tonight Harry, Jean and Ginny arrive! Jeff and I are sleeping out in a tent to make room for all the people at the cottage this weekend. Should be fun if it's not too cold. :-)

Thanks to those of you offering ant problem solutions. I'm trying the detergent solution for now, and it seems to be helping (either that or the colder weather!). Must still figure out where the ants are actually coming from, but I figure this is going to be difficult since the nest is probably UNDER the cabin.

Congrats to Gary & Sheryl, and Rob & Larissa on getting married recently!



Wild raspberries we found on a hike.


And I've finally updated My Life In A Nutshell:

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letters to my brother

I took this photo yesterday morning.


Tomorrow (Friday), it will have been eleven years since my brother and his wife died in a car accident on the way to a camping trip. While browsing an old cottage guestbook, I found a short note written by Jim and Diane. I remember Jeff and I taking them to Adaskin's Bay, how we drifted in canoes and talked for a while.

Shortly after he and Diane died, I started writing letters to him on my computer. I knew he would never read them, but it was good therapy, or so I told myself at first. I cried a lot while I wrote them, and eventually realized that I found little comfort in the process. So I stopped.

I could write those letters now, I think, but I no longer need to. I don't think about Jim all the time but he's always with me, if that makes any sense. His life and death are both an inextricable part of my life now, have shaped me into the person I am...my tribute to my brother, and his gift to me.

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