Well, Im not sure this can be called a “tradition” yet, but, 2 years in a row, and maybe it is the start of one !!!

Thanksgiving in Canada is a strange time.  Sure we have Turkey and Stuffing, spend time with the family and all sorts of associated activity…  But, unlike our US neighbours, it doesnt start on the Thurs and most of us are lucky if we can actually make a long weekend out of it.  Most importantly though, Thanksgiving represents the “end of summer” for us Canadians and we all need to start preparing for the long, dreary, cold, snow filled winter ahead.  Gone are the long, hot, humid, lazy summer days spent on the dock sipping your favourite beverage.  As a whole, Thanksgiving is the weekend we spend shaking the summer fun and preparing ourselves for the bitterness of another long winter.

The more I think about this, I really do need to consider a move to a location with a more fixed climate.  To be completely honest, I dont care if its always cold, or always hot.  Being raised in Canada, you learn to find activities you enjoy in both seasons and you welcome each one in its own little way.  In the summer you have the lake activities (Jet Skiing, Wake Boarding, Roller Blading, etc) in the winter, you have the snow activities (hockey, snow mobiling, snow boarding/skiing).  The transition is what really hurts.  Each summer you need to pack away all of the winter toys and each fall (ie Thanksgiving), you need to pack away all of the summer toys and prepare for the Winter.  This one is particularly difficult, as not only are you required to entertain the family, help the wife prepare for thanksgiving, spend time parenting (apparently its not called baby sitting when its your own children - and yes, I learned this the hard way ) in order to free up time for your wife to prepare the thanksgiving feast - but, you also need to ensure the boat(s) and jet ski(s) are out of the water and winterized properly, the dock(s) are pulled out of the water so the floats dont crack, all of outdoor furniture is put away, snow tires are put on the cars, etc, etc, etc…  Busy busy time - so, this year, I decided to add some fun to the festivities and hit the water one last time before embarking on the 16 hour day required to get everything done.  Got to tell you, the family all thought I was nuts, as the water in Canada is mighty cold come October - but heck, if Im going to put in a 16 hour day, entertain the family and somewhere in there shove a couple pounds of turkey and stuffing down my throat, Ill be damned if Im not getting in the water one last time to enjoy myself.  Squeezed myself into the web suit (which by the way, is getting tighter each year that goes by), packed the family into the boat and out I ventured into the water to play (and got to tell you, if I really understood how cold it was, I might have chickened out ) - eitherway, the family really enjoyed themselves watching me freezing myself in the water (I think they enjoyed themselves a little too much) - but, they snapped some picks and I promised some friends I would post them here.  I seem to be taking alot of grief for going through the effort of getting a blog up, but, never really populating it with anything but “business stuff” (not my term by the way)…

So, here it is - me venturing into the water, in October, to play with “the toys” one last time before putting them away for the winter.  Immediately after these pics were taken, I then proceeded to spend 6 hours taking things out of the water, taking the dock out of the water (though to be fair, the family and the inlaws really did work their tails off and helped out). After which, we all sat down to a wonderful Thanksgiving dinner (prepared by my lovely wife and mother in law).  We spent a couple of hours on the couch trying desparately to digest what we had just consumed, before wrapping up the evening winterizing the boat and jet ski, putting patio furniture away and then settling in to watch Hockey Night in Canada (where unfortunately, the Leafs lost, AGAIN)…

Jet skiing and landing some decent air off a nice wake behind the boat

Catching some air on the wakeboard

 

 OK - thats all for now.  I PROMISE to keep this updated more often.  I have added a “personal” category to this site.  I KNOW, I KNOW…  there is no facebook or any other such social networking site.  I simply refuse to participate in that sort of thing.  I promised you all that I would add this sort of stuff to my blog, and until now, have never come through with it.  I will spend ALOT more time on this (yes, I really promise this time ).  I will ensure to complete future blogs soon - look for such exciting topics as My Daughter learns to be mobile, My lovely wife (no further description needed - yes, I am learning ), My Dogs and their co-dependence and how I survived the Canadian Rockies with my snowboard and a flask (hasn’t happened yet this year, but, managed to pull it off the last few years, so, I am feeling quite optimistic about my chances - completely ignoring the fact that aging is painful )..

Cheers for now

Andrew