Musical Pots - A New Beginning

Hello,

It's been quite a long time since I've posted, so I'm not sure if anyone still reads this or not, but I wanted to let anyone out there who's interested know that I will no longer be posting to this blog, but will be sharing a new blog with my beautiful wife, Susan.

Please change your links and bookmarks to check out http://musicalpots.blogspot.com

I can't believe it is already the end of February... this month seems like it has gone by WAY too fast.

The end of the month has been a bit slower for me. I've been forced to relax a bit as I've battled with a cold for the past week. It's starting to go away (I think). I was able to be at work yesterday, but a rough night of coughing fits slowed me down again today.

Tomorow is moving day for Susan. We have found the apartment that we will share after we are married in August. It is a nice little 2 bedroom setup in a small, quiet building. It has been an interesting experience preparing for this move. Learning how to get the power hooked up, ordering services like phone and cable, it is all a new experience.

Plans for the wedding are coming along. Initially Susan had hoped that we could have the wedding in Ontario to allow more of my family to be present, but it quickly became apparent that we would not be able to make that work very well. The wedding date and location is now set and booked and we will be married at Grand Falls Citadel (in Grand Falls-Windsor, Newfoundland) on August 23. We have a piano player, soloist, photographer and other details worked out. Planning is coming along nicely and we are excited for that day.

Christmas with New Family

After a long break, another post appears...

Susan and I are happy to announce that we were engaged on December 21st. The wedding will be in late summer of 2008 in Ontario.

We have just returned from Newfoundland where we spent our Christmas with the Banfields.

We were greeted at the airport in St. John's by a welcome party made up of Susan's: father, sister, brother, 2 aunts, an uncle and 3 cousins. During the next week I met several other members of the family.

We spent time with family and friends and had a great time in Grand Falls.

Our trip home was a bit rough. We were scheduled to leave St. John's at 5am on Dec. 30. Our flight was delayed and then cancelled due to bad weather (oddly enough every other flight leaving around that time took off). The flight was eventually rescheduled for 4:15 that afternoon. After napping and grabbing lunch at Jungle Jims, we returned to the airport and checked in around 2pm. However, our flight did not leave at 4:15. It was discovered a little before we were scheduled to begin boarding that the plane at a mechanical problem and that the flight would be delayed until a mechanic could look at it. After replacing the dead batteries, the plane powered up and they boarded us at least an hour late. We were further delayed while we taxied to another part of the airport for de-icing, and then to our runway. Were were nearly 2 hours late leaving. This made our connection in Toronto VERY tight...so tight that when we got to the gate, we discovered that our seats had been given away. The agents at the gate were very rude (they seemed to think that it was our personal fault that our flight was late), but they did get us seats on the plane. We were moved from row 19 to row 29, which of course meant that we could not recline our seats because were in the last row and had a bulkhead behind us. Obviously it didn't matter that we had paid extra to select our seats in advance back in September when we booked our flights. We did make it home though, and our baggage, which was not transfered to our plane in Toronto, is expected to catch up with us today.

I haven't flown with Air Canada much, prefering to travel with West Jet, and the amount of complications on this trip as well as the poor customer service has definately convinced me to stick with West Jet. Hopefully the next time Air Canada runs out of money the government won't waste their time (and our tax dollars) bailing them out.

I will be sure to post further information regarding the wedding as details are established.

For anyone living in the area between Pickering and the Niagara region, if you attend an Army corps (or other church for that matter), we'd appreciate some pictures of sanctuaries as we are trying to figure out where to have the wedding. You can e-mail me at listowel1984@gmail.com

Where to begin...?

Well, it's been nearly 2 months since my last post, and LOTS has happened!!

To follow-up on my last post, the GBS concert was great!! So much fun!! Since then, I've also been to see Rick Mercer, thrown a suprise "welcome home" party for a friend who went to BC for a week, a fair-well party for a friend who has headed back to England for school and the waterpark at West Edmonton Mall. I'm pretty sure I'm missing stuff. Oh, I was also at Music Camp in August - that lots of fun.

I am continuing to take various training courses for work and the certificates are starting to pile up. Over the next two weekends I will be taking the Amateur Radio Licensing course.

Seeing as I am not doing very well posting, I figure I'll include a bit on my plans for the Thanksgiving weekend. That weekend I'll be in southern Alberta with Susan. We're going down to Banff/Canmore/Calgary for that weekend. She hasn't been south of Red Deer yet and never out to the Rockies, so that's where we'll be. So, people in Calgary, make sure you're around so I can catch up with you!!

Here's a picture that I took on Tuesday at a "Crash-On" exercise at the Edmonton International Airport. You can see the Salvation Army's EDS Canteen in the foreground with the Stars Air Ambulance taking off just behind.

Finally!!

Hey all!! I'm finally going to a Great Big Sea concert tonight!! A couple years back I had tickets to a concert in Calgary but ended up not going because I was supposed to get my wisdom teeth out...which I didn't on that day...bummer!! Anyways, they're doing an outdoor concert at Capital Ex this evening, free with gate admission, so Susan and I are going to check that out.

Yes, Susan. For those who don't have facebook, or who I haven't found to add as a friend, I have a beautiful girlfriend named Susan. Readers of my father's blog might have noted a reference to her on a post a little while ago. We will have been dating for 3 weeks this Saturday and are very happy.

Today I'm at home for most of the day working on my sermon for August 19. I'm speaking at Castledowns Church on that Sunday. I realise that it's still a while away, but my schedule will be busy for the two weeks leading up to it and the officers are commencing their vacation time at the end of this week and they're wanting to find out what I'm speaking on. I'm looking forward to the opportunity!! I very much enjoy any opportunities I get to speak on a Sunday (hint, hint for any officers in the Edmonton area who might read this).

Take care everyone! (If anyone is still reading this)

They just might make an Edmontonian out of me yet...

I am absolutely loving living in Edmonton!!

I NEVER THOUGHT I WOULD EVER UTTER THOSE WORDS!!

I have thoroughly enjoyed my first month in Edmonton. My job is great!! I've made some new friends. I'm getting out and seeing more things than I have for a long time. Life is just really great right now. Since moving here I have been to an international soccer match, a picnic in a park, a day at a plant conservatory, the Taste of Edmonton Festival, the Edmonton Street Performers' Festival and just been out and around. There are pics on facebook for my friends with accounts.

On Monday I am headed to Calgary for a day and a half for work. My hotel is booked and I'm looking forward to the trip, just for something a bit different.

Still alive...

Well, I have now been in Edmonton for 3 weeks, or very near that. And it has been just under one week since we moved into our house here. I am really starting to feel more settled.

I am loving my job!! I am excited about the opportunity for me to learn and grow, as well as the potential for ministry and partnerships. I have just finished my first training course - Standard First and CPR (scary thought - I've spent 3 summers at camp and however many more years working with kids and I've never taken a First Aid course before now). So now, instead of not knowing what to do, I'll simply not remember what to do...(joking...really...)

Yesterday I was at Edmonton Temple for church. It was the installation of Captains Don and Donna Bladen. They have 4 children (they must be nuts!!). I also had my first cell phone call during Don's sermon (the phone was on vibrate - not ringer mode). I was sitting in the band and had to leave the service for a bit...kind of awkward on my first day up there. I was also back in the trombone section for the first time in years...that was interesting...I remembered my slide positions luckily enough, but dropping down and switching back to Bb was a bit awkward for the first bit...it'll take some time.

I'm definately feeling positive about all of this!!

Counting down the hours!!

Well, almost all my belongings are packed (minus my computer - that goes in the box tomorrow). Either my things are in boxes to be shipped in a couple of weeks or in suitcases to go with me next week. All that remains is some cleaning.

Tomorrow evening I head for Salmon Arm for the weekend and won't be back until late Sunday night. It should be a fun weekend. I always enjoy these weekends (at least when I don't get sick!!).

Monday morning I'll head for St. Albert where I'll be staying until the end of the month. Then I get a couple of days down time before I start work on Thursday. So - my next post should come to you from north of here.

Move date pushed ahead

I will now be moving to Edmonton a couple of weeks before my parents and ahead of schedule. I have accepted a position in Edmonton working for The Salvation Army which requires me to be available as soon as possible. So, I have given my two weeks notice at my current job and am trying to find a place to stay in the Edmonton area until my parents move up later in June.

I will be coordinating the Army's Emergency & Disaster Services for the northern part of Alberta. This is another fantastic opportunity for me to learn new skills and grow personally and "professionally" in preparation for officership. I start in the office on June 14th.

This has come together very quickly. It was only last Tuesday that I got a phone call to setup an interview. I had my interview on Friday and was offered the position yesterday.

This means that this upcoming Sunday will be my last at my church since I will be in Salmon Arm, B.C. the following Sunday just before I move north. I only have 7 work days left in my current job. It all seems very fast, but I feel great about it!!!

Sick in Cranbrook

My weekend was spent in beautiful (but rainy) Cranbrook, B.C. on a band trip - the first of two over the next few weeks (in a few weeks an ensemble is going to Salmon Arm, B.C.). I billetted with a lovely family who were very friendly and hospitable. I spent more time with them than I have with any other people that I've been billetted with on a band trip. Most trips are so full of activities that very little time is left to get to know the people we are staying with, but due to a smaller schedule and some rain on Saturday there was plenty of time to just relax. Saturday morning was free for us and many bandmembers travelled up that day. And because of rain our afternoon outdoor engagement was cancelled leaving us with more time off.

Sunday was not quite so pleasant for me as I awoke with an upset stomach that lasted all day, causing me to miss the second half of the morning service. In the whole day I only managed to keep down a bowl of chicken noodle soup in the evening once I got home...most unpleasant. I had to take my first ever graval for the trip home, meaning that I slept soundly from Kimberley, B.C. to Okotoks, just south of Calgary.

Today my stomach has been fine, but I've had headaches, muscle aches and been very tired. I've slept a lot and still feel ready for a solid night's rest.

It is interesting to see how much my father packed over the weekend. There is still a lot more to pack, but quite a bit has been done at this point. I need to repack many of my boxes that I never really unpacked since I got back to Calgary from Peace River, just because I had to open them to find a couple of small items. Overall, I don't really have much to pack most of it is already done. Most of my efforts will go towards cleaning the house for the Vincents who will be moving in to the house in July.