Dec 26 - The Family Continues To Accumulate As Grandsons Arrive From Two Directions

This day's a mixed bag
Hedgehog curls up in Paul's shirt
Boy numbers rising

Dec 25 - No Shortage Of Family This Year, Though Sometimes I Find Myself Thinking Back To That Place On Rio Dulce

First Christmas with Z
Breakfast after the dog walk
Spiderman: So good

Dec 24 - A Perfectly Fine Night At The House Of Three Dogs, Where We Have Relocated For The Christmas Week

Zac comes for dinner
We eat Korean chicken
amid the strobe show

Dec 23 - I Return The Faulty Keyboard Pedal And Buy A Book Of Chopin

This is a surprise
I want to play classical
Weird. It's been so long.

Dec 22 - In Which I Suffer Killer Indigestion Late In The Night After The Kass Gathering Due To Too Much Time Standing Around The Food Table

I'm the lone stand-in
The rest: Sick or unwilling
Oyster Jim's an elf

Dec 21 - Making Music At The Kensington

I hate Christmas songs
But if it's with Chelle, okay
The piano's nice

Dec 20 - This Is A Period I'll Remember For All The Use I'm Getting Out Of My Winter Cycling Clothes

Loving long bike rides
As for work, minimal's best
These are days of fun

Dec 19 - Nobody Was Planning A Beach Walk In The Dimming Day, But It'll Do When The Bird-Feeding Plan Falls Through

We're here for pigeons
But in a heartbeat, they're off
Gone before the storm

Dec 18 - Happy Birthday To Me

Steaks on the fire
And look! A light-up mirror!
That's a thoughtful gift

Dec 17 - When You Make A Wrong Call In Thinking That People Would Be Interested In Seeing The House You're In

Come for tea, I say
Not sure why. M looks restless
But shortbread's eaten

Dec 16 - In Which I Cry Enough Tears For Poor Michelle To Float Her To A Happier Place, Then Pay Respects To Howard, Then Make Cookies And Baileys With The Family

Funeral one: Pain
Funeral two: Honoring
A heavy, sad day

Dec 15 - Not Every Christmas Season Tradition Feels Like It Fully Works, Even Though At Least It Doesn't Pour Rain On Us This Time

This is a long drive
for a 10-minute train ride
Next year, more raptors

Dec 14 - A Christmas Social, A Final Farewell Drink, A Christmas Meal At Rainbow Kitchen

So many events
The final one's tough: Poor girl
with the eaten leg

Dec 13 - We Gather With Bits And Pieces Of The TC Crowd For A Rare Dinner In A Bygone Fave Place

Meals with old workmates
are more relaxed with Szechuan
Pass the ginger beef

Dec 12 - Finally, My Small Companion Grows Big Enough To Take In Miniature World

Yikes, R's shoes light up
So many buttons to push
Fairies to tally

Dec 11 - In Which I'm Scarred By The Blank Looks Of "Huh - What Should We Do About This One?" On The Faces Of Doc And Nurse At The Wound Clinic

Battery bandage
A new leg experiment
PICO, do your thing

Dec 10 - In Which I Buy One More Article Of Specialty Clothing In Hopes Of Finding The Perfect Combo To Keep Me Cycling In All Weather

Double board meetings
Cycling in between, in sun
I can live with that

Dec 9 - These Days, We Are Most Likely To Socialize With People We Barely Know

We drink martinis
Strange, because I don't like them
Vegan cheese is yum

Dec 8 - Reflections Upon A Day Spent With A Dear Friend Who Is Killing Herself

Such pain in your face
Old friend, don't dig your heels in
And please quit smoking

Dec 7 - Sure, I'll Pick Up The Pace Again One Day. Maybe.

I love working less
More time for cycling. More time
to get my life back

Dec 6 - Realizing That My Athletic Commitment Is Going To Require A Wardrobe Adjustment

A winter's chilled ride
My puffy coat is too much
Thin coat not enough

Dec 5 - My Wild And Wacky Companion And I Do The Aquarium. But Why Does The Octopus Never Catch Her Interest?

The girl's full of beans
Laughing at her own poo jokes
Saying 'stupendous'

Dec 4 - The Trials Of The Damaged Leg Continue With A Visit To The Wound Clinic

Ick - scab removal
Followed by iodine paste
It stings. But I'm tough

Dec 3 - Hard To Explain The Euphoria Of Settling In One Place For All Of December And January To Those Who Have No Idea What It's Like To Drift For All These Years

"Two months!" Paul exclaims
And repeats it, many times
The man's excited

Dec 2 - And The Packup Begins

The nomads prepare
The dogs grow nervous, knowing
Big change is coming

Dec 1 - The Up-Island Family Descends For A Down-Island Meal And My Favourite Parade

Yay, a piano!
We cook food and watch bright trucks
The night bedazzled

Nov 30 - And The Chesire Cat Fades To Black

My last day at work
Strangely anti-climatic
Not much of me here

Nov 29 - In Which My Plan To Make R Think That The Dogs Are Going To Class Too Appears To Work

The preschool ruse works
A trick to distract the kid
who loves chihuahuas

Nov 28 - In Which, Among Other Things, A Man Falls From His Scooter As We Feed Birds And Needs Our Help To Get Righted

The pigeons won't land
Weird, but we'll find our duck friends
The dogs come along

Nov 27 - The Failure Of My Big Plan To Heal My Leg Without Need For Antibiotics

Doctor seems alarmed
I take the swab to the lab
Damn it, drugs again

Nov 26 - Time To Get Serious About Whatever That Damn Bike Wound Has Created

Now I've got a rash
Bad leg, bad skin, bad feeling
One more bread poultice

Nov 25 - The Plan For A Fun Christmas Event In Downtown Oak Bay Falls Very Flat

Light-up is a bust
R hates big crowds and leg views
Santa still scares her

Nov 24 - Doing The Grandson A Favour Sends Me Wandering Through All Our Fun Time Together

Storage locker hell
But the albums are worth it
Hi there, wee Paxton

Nov 23 - Starting To Piece Together The Romania Trip

My thoughts travel east
I find a Balkan rail pass
Could do Serbia

Nov 22 - Two Compliant Wee Dogs Are Just What The Doctor Might Order For A Three-Year-Old Not Up For Too Much Activity Today

The girl's not herself
But chihuahuas like role play
if they can lie down

Nov 21 - Dusting Off My Movie-Making Skills To Do Something With These Powerful Stories

I miss video
So fussy but compelling
Direct to the heart

Nov 20 - What Is It About This Month?

Novembers feel wrong
They always do. Blah. Heavy.
Even in sunshine

Nov 19 - There's A Hole In My Sidewalk (Oh, Wait, My Leg)

My shin cut is gross
How am I here again?
Precontemplation

Nov 18 - Shopping Trip In Abbotsford, Though Not Before We Do A Little RV Porn At The Dealership

Now it's Gage's turn
Pillow. Boiled-wool bomber. Shirt
Clothes make boys happy

Nov 17 - The Conference Wraps And I Pack Up Spare Sandwiches For J and G And Head East To Abbotsford

What, more food to eat?
I can't resist sausages
Late sun ignites fields

Nov 16 - One Of Those 15-Hour Days On A Long Night Of Tossing

Bleary-eyed, no sleep
Adrenalin will suffice
Though it's gone by 10

Nov 15 - And So It Begins As I Head To The City To Make This Thing Happen

Surprise text: Move now!
I pack too, bound for Richmond
and tuna poke

Nov 14 - The Conference Pressure Mounts But My Childcare Commitment Gives Me No Choice But To Be Here Now, Which Is Such A Gift

R wants Bean again
Luckily, Austin is home
Glad for small problems

Nov 13 - What Would I Do If I Couldn't End The Day Being A Kindly Monster Befriending A Wounded Dog In A Random Park?

Work. Work. Work. Work. Work.
Come up for air. Do more work.
Then Rosetta. Fun.

Nov 12 - In Which It Dawns On Me That It's Time To Do Something About My Wrecked, Infected Shin From The Bike Falling On Me

OK, I give up
This bad cut is getting worse
Should have got stitches

Nov 11 - At Least I Took The Time To Get Dad Up On My Facebook Feed

Don't let the sun shine
I've got a long work day here
Juggling all these jobs

Nov 10 - A Day Of (Mostly) Doing Nothing Except What I Want, Striking For Its Rarity

I love a free day
Bike to the mall, get stuff done
Ramen with the boys

Nov 9 - In Which I Get Bolder In My Resolve To End Office Jobs Forever

One more ask to stay
No, I say, committed now
Freedom awaits me

Nov 8 - First Of The Shingrix Shots Makes Me Nervous For The Second

Fevery and sore
This vaccine is rocking me
Advil is my friend

Nov 7 - Now If Only I Can Get The Key To This House, Too, So We Can Visit More Former House-Sit Pets Whenever We Like

She misses the dogs
So we show up to walk them
Ian is bemused