Sophie's Story

           When some people get to be "a certain age", they tend to reminisce. Things were better then including the food.  While that may be true about some foods, there is one that has improved over time. It is ice cream.          When I was young, we always had ice cream in the house. Most evenings after supper, my dad would eat a scoop of vanilla ice cream with nutmeg sprinkled on it. Sometimes we would buy it in plastic buckets, most of the times it was in rectangular cartons that we kept in the basement freezer. I remember that ice cream came in very basic flavours vanilla, chocolate and strawberry. If you felt fancy you could get Butter Brickle, Moose Tracks or Mint Chip.          I'm not sure if ice cream making technology has improved in the last 40 years, but for some reason ice cream tastes better to me now than it did then.           There could be a couple reas...

           The past few years it seems like we get a lot of rain in the spring. I've never checked to see if my feelings match reality. I've taken to calling it monsoon season. Last year, there was so much rain that our sump pump was working constantly to keep the water from our basement. I gained a new appreciation for sump pumps.          We got our garden planted before the rains started. I was happy that I didn't have to water the carrot and wildflower seeds we planted. I got concerned as it seemed there were no days without rain. I hoped that my seeds would take root and would not be washed away or rot.          Tuesday there was no rain in the forecast so we loaded up and went to our favourite trail for a ride. It felt good to stretch our legs and get some extended time outside. The river was high but not overflowing the banks. Once the weather gets warmer it will be a fun place for people to tube. ...

           In January 2009, Jeffrey R. Holland, member of the Quorum of the Twelve of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and for president of Brigham Young University returned to that campus to speak at a devotional. The title of the speech he gave is 'Remember Lot's Wife'. As it was the beginning of a new year, Elder Holland spoke on faith and the future.           One of the things he talked about was wanting to live in the past. The "good old days" when life was better and everything was easier. Having a "I wish I were eighteen again" attitude.  Nothing in the future could be as good as the past. He claimed that this demonstrated a lack of faith in the future.          Then he brought up the tendency to remember past mistakes, our own or someone else's. He referred to it as "the worst kind of wallowing in the past" and said that when someone has repented of their mistakes and is tru...

           Last week C and I did some much needed shopping. The tennis shoes that C wear for pickleball were getting worn out and I needed to replace some clothes that were getting worn out.           The first place we went was the shoe store. While C was talking to the salesman about the right shoes for pickle ball, I looked around. The first thing I looked at was tennis shoes. I was thinking about buying a pair to wear at work. Most of my coworkers wear tennis shoes to work. The shoes that I have are pretty comfortable but I wondered if a good pair of tennis shoes would be more comfortable especially on days when I work long shifts. An employee approached me while I was looking. I hadn't planned on trying anything on, but figured it couldn't hurt.           A bit of background might be in order here. When I was younger, I wore tennis shoes to work. I had a white pair specially designated for thi...

           C and I have been doing a little shopping for new cat tree. Barnaby and Willow liked to chew on things as kittens and have chewed on the cat trees we have now. I can put towels and blankets over the trees to cover the chewed parts, but we wanted something taller with places for them to climb. Some of the trees we looked at had things the cats could play with.           Last week while shopping at Costco we found one. It was tall, sturdy and had several levels for the cats to sit. There was also a little cat condo that they could use to hide in or nap. It was the right price so we bought it.          The box with the pieces was too heavy for either of us to lift. C decided we would open the box in the garage and carry the pieces into the house. We put them in the music room. They stayed there for a week.               I must admit, I'm always nervous abo...

                     YouTube is a wonderful invention.  While I was eating lunch on Monday, I watched a live stream video of a funeral. The funeral was for the daughter of my cousin Miri who lost her battle with cancer at age 36. I haven't seen Miri in over 20 years and I never met her daughter but we are family and I've covenanted to mourn  with those that mourn. Even if they don't know I'm doing so.           From the obituary and the homily given at the funeral, Amber seemed like an interesting person. She liked to climb things from mountains to trees, she played several instruments and she loved horses. Her hobbies included blacksmithing, leatherwork and sketching. Where would anyone learn blacksmithing anyway?  From the comments I read she was funny, kind and adventurous.           On the front row of the church to the right of the silver casket dra...