{"id":3521,"date":"2018-12-31T20:01:16","date_gmt":"2019-01-01T01:01:16","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/helplink.com\/CLAFC\/?p=3521"},"modified":"2019-01-01T13:36:46","modified_gmt":"2019-01-01T18:36:46","slug":"nothing-much-ado","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/helplink.com\/CLAFC\/?p=3521","title":{"rendered":"Nothing much ado"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><a href=\"https:\/\/helplink.com\/CLAFC\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/12\/IMGA0834.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignleft size-thumbnail wp-image-3525\" src=\"https:\/\/helplink.com\/CLAFC\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/12\/IMGA0834-150x150.jpg\" alt=\"IMGA0834\" width=\"150\" height=\"150\" \/><\/a><a href=\"https:\/\/helplink.com\/CLAFC\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/12\/IMGA0832.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\" size-thumbnail wp-image-3526 alignright\" src=\"https:\/\/helplink.com\/CLAFC\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/12\/IMGA0832-150x150.jpg\" alt=\"IMGA0832\" width=\"150\" height=\"150\" \/><\/a>Our vacation life here in Penticton continues to be easy and fun. We arrived near the end of October, and it felt\u00a0like we\u2019d stepped back in seasonal time. The grass was green, the leaves were still on the trees, and after one brief dusting of snow, we saw none of the white stuff until after Christmas day.<\/p>\n<p>We\u2019ve established our lazy daily patterns of late breakfasts, TV and computer watching, and generally just taking it easy. Ann is swimming. I\u2019ve done the occasional walk. And we\u2019re both still practicing the ukulele.<\/p>\n<p>Oh, and of course\u00a0Maxi, or as I\u2019ve taken to calling him: <em>Sir DemandsAlot<\/em>, is his normal cute self \u2014 most of the time \ud83d\ude09 .<\/p>\n<p style=\"padding-left: 90px;\"><a href=\"https:\/\/helplink.com\/CLAFC\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/12\/IGP6859.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone size-thumbnail wp-image-3531\" src=\"https:\/\/helplink.com\/CLAFC\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/12\/IGP6859-150x150.jpg\" alt=\"_IGP6859\" width=\"150\" height=\"150\" \/><\/a>\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/helplink.com\/CLAFC\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/12\/IGP6848.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone size-thumbnail wp-image-3534\" src=\"https:\/\/helplink.com\/CLAFC\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/12\/IGP6848-150x150.jpg\" alt=\"_IGP6848\" width=\"150\" height=\"150\" \/><\/a> <a href=\"https:\/\/helplink.com\/CLAFC\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/12\/IGP6867.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone size-thumbnail wp-image-3542\" src=\"https:\/\/helplink.com\/CLAFC\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/12\/IGP6867-150x150.jpg\" alt=\"_IGP6867\" width=\"150\" height=\"150\" \/><\/a> <a href=\"https:\/\/helplink.com\/CLAFC\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/12\/IMG_1487.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone size-thumbnail wp-image-3543\" src=\"https:\/\/helplink.com\/CLAFC\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/12\/IMG_1487-150x150.jpg\" alt=\"IMG_1487\" width=\"150\" height=\"150\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p>For those who have not visited us, the Penticton house is on the edge of town, in a semi rural area. We get a fair bit of interesting bird an animal life, including quail, owl, doves, deer and new this year, racoons (no pics though).<\/p>\n<p style=\"padding-left: 60px;\"><a href=\"https:\/\/helplink.com\/CLAFC\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/12\/IMGP6846.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone size-thumbnail wp-image-3535\" src=\"https:\/\/helplink.com\/CLAFC\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/12\/IMGP6846-150x150.jpg\" alt=\"IMGP6846\" width=\"150\" height=\"150\" \/><\/a>\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/helplink.com\/CLAFC\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/12\/IGP6856.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone size-thumbnail wp-image-3551\" src=\"https:\/\/helplink.com\/CLAFC\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/12\/IGP6856-150x150.jpg\" alt=\"_IGP6856\" width=\"150\" height=\"150\" \/><\/a>\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/helplink.com\/CLAFC\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/12\/IGP6853.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone size-thumbnail wp-image-3532\" src=\"https:\/\/helplink.com\/CLAFC\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/12\/IGP6853-150x150.jpg\" alt=\"_IGP6853\" width=\"150\" height=\"150\" \/><\/a> <a href=\"https:\/\/helplink.com\/CLAFC\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/12\/IGP6849.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone size-thumbnail wp-image-3533\" src=\"https:\/\/helplink.com\/CLAFC\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/12\/IGP6849-150x150.jpg\" alt=\"_IGP6849\" width=\"150\" height=\"150\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/helplink.com\/CLAFC\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/12\/IMG_3065.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignright size-thumbnail wp-image-3530\" src=\"https:\/\/helplink.com\/CLAFC\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/12\/IMG_3065-150x150.jpg\" alt=\"IMG_3065\" width=\"150\" height=\"150\" \/><\/a>Christmas season had me singing with two local choirs. There were four concerts over the span of a couple of weeks, and it all went well. It\u2019s nice to be singing with a group again, even if the music is not really my favourite stuff. The <em>Tuneagers<\/em> is a choir for seniors, although in this case \u201csenior\u201d means anyone over 50.<\/p>\n<p>There are some good singers in the group, although it\u2019s not what you\u2019d call a great choir. But it is fun, and the music is challenging enough at times.<\/p>\n<div style=\"width: 640px;\" class=\"wp-video\"><video class=\"wp-video-shortcode\" id=\"video-3521-1\" width=\"640\" height=\"360\" preload=\"metadata\" controls=\"controls\"><source type=\"video\/mp4\" src=\"https:\/\/helplink.com\/CLAFC\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/12\/IMG_3066.mp4?_=1\" \/><a href=\"https:\/\/helplink.com\/CLAFC\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/12\/IMG_3066.mp4\">https:\/\/helplink.com\/CLAFC\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/12\/IMG_3066.mp4<\/a><\/video><\/div>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/helplink.com\/CLAFC\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/12\/IMG_4132.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\" size-thumbnail wp-image-3553 alignright\" src=\"https:\/\/helplink.com\/CLAFC\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/12\/IMG_4132-150x150.jpg\" alt=\"IMG_4132\" width=\"150\" height=\"150\" \/><\/a><a href=\"https:\/\/helplink.com\/CLAFC\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/12\/IGP6862.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\" size-thumbnail wp-image-3529 alignleft\" src=\"https:\/\/helplink.com\/CLAFC\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/12\/IGP6862-150x150.jpg\" alt=\"_IGP6862\" width=\"150\" height=\"150\" \/><\/a>We celebrated Ann\u2019s 56th Birthday with a nice dinner and some relatively fine wine. Oh, and more than a few Irish coffees. The flowers from Ottawa are still on the table, and still looking pretty. Maxi loves them too!<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/helplink.com\/CLAFC\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/12\/IGP6863.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter wp-image-3528 size-medium\" src=\"https:\/\/helplink.com\/CLAFC\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/12\/IGP6863-300x199.jpg\" alt=\"_IGP6863\" width=\"300\" height=\"199\" srcset=\"https:\/\/helplink.com\/CLAFC\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/12\/IGP6863-300x199.jpg 300w, https:\/\/helplink.com\/CLAFC\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/12\/IGP6863-1024x680.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/helplink.com\/CLAFC\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/12\/IGP6863.jpg 1280w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p>Since moving back in here I\u2019ve been baking lots of bread and tortillas. Nothing new there\u2026 but Ann has become the master desert maker. Yummy chocolate chip-peanut butter cookies are her standard, but recently she tried her hand at cinnamon rolls. They turned out amazing:<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/helplink.com\/CLAFC\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/12\/IGP6864.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-thumbnail wp-image-3527\" src=\"https:\/\/helplink.com\/CLAFC\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/12\/IGP6864-150x150.jpg\" alt=\"_IGP6864\" width=\"150\" height=\"150\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/helplink.com\/CLAFC\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/12\/IMG_3074.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignleft size-thumbnail wp-image-3541\" src=\"https:\/\/helplink.com\/CLAFC\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/12\/IMG_3074-150x150.jpg\" alt=\"IMG_3074\" width=\"150\" height=\"150\" \/><\/a><a href=\"https:\/\/helplink.com\/CLAFC\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/12\/IMG_3073.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignright size-thumbnail wp-image-3557\" src=\"https:\/\/helplink.com\/CLAFC\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/12\/IMG_3073-150x150.jpg\" alt=\"IMG_3073\" width=\"150\" height=\"150\" \/><\/a>December rolled on to the big santa day. We enjoyed the gifts from Calgary and Ottawa. Normally we cook a full turkey dinner on the big X-mas day, but this year we were invited over to our neighbours for the big meal.<\/p>\n<p>It was a wonderful evening of eating and chatting. Mike &amp; Carol have done some amazing things, including travelling via RV and canoeing. They seem interested in our sailing life, so we bored them with some pictures and a short video. And then we played cards, where somehow I managed to win big time. Guess I\u2019m highly skilled at random chance \ud83d\ude09 .<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/helplink.com\/CLAFC\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/12\/IMGA0872.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\" size-thumbnail wp-image-3545 alignright\" src=\"https:\/\/helplink.com\/CLAFC\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/12\/IMGA0872-150x150.jpg\" alt=\"IMGA0872\" width=\"150\" height=\"150\" \/><\/a><a href=\"https:\/\/helplink.com\/CLAFC\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/12\/IMGA0849.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignleft size-thumbnail wp-image-3537\" src=\"https:\/\/helplink.com\/CLAFC\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/12\/IMGA0849-150x150.jpg\" alt=\"IMGA0849\" width=\"150\" height=\"150\" \/><\/a>The following day (Boxing Day) it snowed for real, which finally made it feel more like x-mas. This Penticton weather is pretty nice, but I do miss real winters and heavy snow. It was nice to see it coming down (even though it meant shovelling). We cooked our big meal, and have been enjoying turkey dinners ever since.<\/p>\n<p>And not to be outdone by the Calgary crowd, Ann picked up the Globe &amp; Mail monster crossword. She\u2019s been working on it ever since.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/helplink.com\/CLAFC\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/12\/IMG_1505.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter wp-image-3539 size-medium\" src=\"https:\/\/helplink.com\/CLAFC\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/12\/IMG_1505-300x224.jpg\" alt=\"IMG_1505\" width=\"300\" height=\"224\" srcset=\"https:\/\/helplink.com\/CLAFC\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/12\/IMG_1505-300x224.jpg 300w, https:\/\/helplink.com\/CLAFC\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/12\/IMG_1505-1024x765.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/helplink.com\/CLAFC\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/12\/IMG_1505.jpg 1280w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p>She even gets some help from a certain fuzzy master:<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/helplink.com\/CLAFC\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/12\/IGP6876.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone  wp-image-3538\" src=\"https:\/\/helplink.com\/CLAFC\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/12\/IGP6876-150x150.jpg\" alt=\"_IGP6876\" width=\"275\" height=\"275\" \/><\/a>\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/helplink.com\/CLAFC\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/12\/IMGA0870.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone  wp-image-3546\" src=\"https:\/\/helplink.com\/CLAFC\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/12\/IMGA0870-150x150.jpg\" alt=\"IMGA0870\" width=\"275\" height=\"275\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p>The New Year beckons. Happy 2019! For\u00a0Auld Lang Syne&#8230;<\/p>\n<div style=\"width: 384px;\" class=\"wp-video\"><video class=\"wp-video-shortcode\" id=\"video-3521-2\" width=\"384\" height=\"288\" preload=\"metadata\" controls=\"controls\"><source type=\"video\/mp4\" src=\"https:\/\/helplink.com\/CLAFC\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/12\/IMG_1510.mp4?_=2\" \/><a href=\"https:\/\/helplink.com\/CLAFC\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/12\/IMG_1510.mp4\">https:\/\/helplink.com\/CLAFC\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/12\/IMG_1510.mp4<\/a><\/video><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Our vacation life here in Penticton continues to be easy and fun. We arrived near the end of October, and it felt\u00a0like we\u2019d stepped back in seasonal time. The grass was green, the leaves were still on the trees, and after one brief dusting of snow, we saw none of the white stuff until after [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-3521","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/helplink.com\/CLAFC\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3521","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/helplink.com\/CLAFC\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/helplink.com\/CLAFC\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/helplink.com\/CLAFC\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/helplink.com\/CLAFC\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=3521"}],"version-history":[{"count":7,"href":"https:\/\/helplink.com\/CLAFC\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3521\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":3563,"href":"https:\/\/helplink.com\/CLAFC\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3521\/revisions\/3563"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/helplink.com\/CLAFC\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=3521"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/helplink.com\/CLAFC\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=3521"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/helplink.com\/CLAFC\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=3521"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}