HASTE MAKES WASTE!

You would think I would have learned that by now, at my advanced age? However, this old lady hasn't.

I spent Thursday with a Grade One class of THE most adorable children on this earth.  I was tired from lack of sleep, which is my same, one and only health issue, but I had "une journée MAGNIFIQUE!"  I had no duty at lunch time, so I was able to catnap on the couch in the classroom (Yes, some classrooms have a couch!) for a few minutes.

I knew I needed a short nap, because I almost passed out when I stood up, after having crouched down to the floor during math centred activities earlier in the morning. So FORGET about going to a Hot Yoga class with my friend and neighbour in late afternoon. Doing various yoga poses in a 40 degree Celsius studio, would be an invitation to keel right over SMACK in the middle of a downward dog, the way I was feeling.

I had to stay later at school, to make sure one little sweetie caught the later bus with the older students.  Already running late, I decided to run a few errands before going home.  Once home, I could walk Vimy,  then have the rest of the evening to rest and relax! HA!!

I made a withdrawal at the ATM machine at our local gas bar and dropped off a donation of a board game to the library.  It was only when I got home and was getting Vimy ready, that I realized I didn't have my DEBIT CARD.  We jumped in the car and dashed off to the gas bar.  It has been SO long since I forgot my debit card in a machine, that I also forgot that the machine EATS your card if you don't remove it PDQ! Off I dashed to my bank, thankfully only two minutes away, and because I was able to rattle off my number by heart, got a replacement card in two minutes.  I have had that card since the days where you had to input your number every time you logged into to your bank account. Sometimes it pays you in TIME, to be old!!

Speaking of time, the sun is getting ready to set and I have to take Vimy for a walk during daylight.  To save time, I don't put his Muttluks on him. Doing that takes longer than dressing a toddler in his/her snowsuit!  I figure my favourite walking trail is beaten down enough, and he should be fine.  I also don't put him on his leash, because there isn't a soul around.

Vimy is in his glory! After having been at home alone for almost eight hours, he is ready to take off. Which he does, and promptly finds something really good to eat somewhere off the path, and far enough ahead of me, that I can't stop him from having a wonderful snack on whatever.

WELL... after walking for fifteen minutes, we turn around. ALL I really need is to get in, is thirty minutes of physical activity and my 12K steps will be done for today.  WELL... it took us double that time to get back to the car.  Vimy kept stopping to gag, but nothing would come up.  I got tired of stopping every two minutes, so I took off my mitts and shoved my hand down his "GUEULE" a few times. Eventually, something came up and he stopped gagging.  Meanwhile, his paws had started to ice up, poor thing.  I am NOT above shoving MY hand in his mouth, but NOT his paw in MY mouth!  So off came my mitts, and I held his paws, at various times, to melt the ice clumped there so that we could continue on our merry way.  Mind you, my dog drool covered hands are now FROZEN!

 We do finally make it back to the car, the sun setting in our backs, and a quasi full moon risen above us. Blogging and laughing about life's little ups and downs is MY  way of  letting go.

La vie est toujours belle.

I hope your Christmas is full of  SLOW, precious moments resplendent with love, tenderness, kindness and acceptance.

Que vos Fêtes soient comblées de moments saupaudrés doucement d'amour, de tendresse, de gentillesse et d'accueil. 

💓💓💓💓💓

Whatever happened to thank you?

We bemoan the fact that children are less polite nowadays; they don't say please and thank you.  We tend to notice the few who are polite, as they seem to be such an aberration.

However, children learn what they live.  How will children learn to say please and thank you, if they seldom hear those words spoken?  Have you noticed less civility in the world we live in?  I most certainly have.  I notice it every day, and it isn't children who are responsible for our RUDE AND UNKIND world.

Have a listen around you.  Have you noticed how seldom we hear thank you from an adult, unless it is a prefunctory one from that bored, underpaid clerk in a store, who is mandated to be polite?

When you say "thank you", you are showing G-R-A-T-I-T-U-D-E. Gratitude is a proven factor in people's happiness.  So why not first and foremost say"thank you", when you are the recipient of a kind gesture, or some small gift.  Why not acknowledge the giver, instead of just nodding, asking a question, or commenting on the gift.   Why not say "thank you" when someone does something for you, instead of saying "Oh, you shouldn't have done that."  We should not be telling someone what to do.  We can suggest, but when you use that comment, you are depriving the giver of an important feeling... that feeling which makes them feel good as well!

In conclusion, I believe that this time of year is a perfect time to express gratitude, on a daily basis.  You can do it in such a simple, heartfelt way by simply saying "Thank you!"  "Merci!" "Gracias!" "Danke!" "Obrigado!" "Grazie!" ... and accompanying it with a hug makes it even BETTER!

Don't even get me started on P-L-E-A-S-E!

ONE LINE WONDERS!

I have spent most of this fall teaching four, five, six and seven year olds. They provide me with a plethora of chuckles every day, or simply fill my heart.💓💓💓 Here are a few of the more memorable words uttered, that I remember, OR had time to write down.

When I told Brady to hurry up putting away his duotang, he looked up smiling, "I only have two hands."

Moi: Qui est-ce qui chante?
Élève en immersion: Someone!

Are you allowed to give us money for The Book Fair?

One Grade Two student wrote the number 4 backward on the Smart Board. Another "Smart" child remarked, "If we were on the OTHER side of the Smart Board, it wouldn't BE backward!"

Me: Why did you push Logan down?
Jackson:  He touched my coat.
Me:  Excuse me?
Jackson: But it's NEW. (He said this tearfully!)

Student:  You can say women are beautiful, but you can't say that about men!
Another student:  They can be "PERDY!"

Outside at recess:
James: To no one in particular, but miming this animal, yelled out, "I am a penguin!"
Another student running by: NO you are NOT!You're a kid.

Explaining to a class about saying "Excuse me", when passing in front of other people, the teacher asked for other words you could say in the same situation. Ben offered the following:  Please get out of my way?

Kindergartner: If you aren't here tomorrow, Madame, I will miss you!

Kindergartner: Madame, the bell actually just RANGDED!

Kindergartner:  Madame, I go to the After School Podium in the library, every day. 

Me: Julian, is Harry your brother?
Julian:  Patting his little hands all over his face, informs me "YES, but he doesn't have the SAME face as me!"

Me:  Do you want to hold the door?
Kindergartner:  SURE!

Me:  Why were you absent yesterday?
Kindergartner:  I was at home throwing up.

Kindergartner:  (Who was wearing a pair of pants that unzip at the knee, so they become shorts, and one leg had become unzipped.)  I look like a WEIRDO!!

Same Kindergartner: Madame, I need to TELL you a question.

Me: What do you have in your hair?  (He had a BIG green gob of something, stuck just above his ear.)
Kindergartner: I got into trouble at home, and I got SLIMED!

Me: What makes you sad? (We were discussing feelings.)
Kindergartner: When people TATTLE on me!!

🤣🤣🤣

BONNE SEMAINE À TOUS!

If this made you laugh, please feel free to share on FB, or follow my blog. The more the MERRIER!!!

Why is it that...?

Since I have gone paperless with Bell Mobility, I have been late paying my bill THREE times, something which never even occurred ONCE, when I received my bill by mail.  Their "system" error and NOT forgetfullness on my part, caused this last late payment. What REALLY irks me in all this?  I will probably be dinged late charges, which I have no intention of paying. Imagine ALL the other people who are not penny conscious like I am, who will pay their late bill charges even though they never received their bill by email either.  They will just think they were forgetful, MAUDIT!

I can never find a nail file when I need one? I keep one in my night table, another in my purse, another in my TV basket, one in the bathroom, one in my study... yet they have ALL miraculously disappeared into thin air when I go looking for ONE. Where did I finally lay my hands on one? In my traveling toiletries case.  FRANCHEMENT!

Why is that it takes me MORE time to get Vimy's MUTTLUK bootees on him, to go out walking, than it does to help dress nineteen, four and five year olds to go out at recess? PATIENCE!!!

Why is it that a four year old will argue black and blue with you, insisting that he/she is NOT wearing their snowpants to go home, when they have ABSOLUTELY no chance of winning that argument? 

Why is that on blue bin recycling day, when it happens to have snowed ALL day while you were at work, that the cover doesn't fall back into place, so that when you get home, you have to SHOVEL out your blue box, and not just your driveway?

Why is it January in November?  I got locked out of my house, and had to go fetch my spare key I had hidden outside. Where was it?  B+U+R+I+E+D  under over a foot of snow, in a sea of white in my back yard.  Did December fly by me, and I TOTALLY missed it?  PAS POSSIBLE!!   

Tis the season to be JOLLY.. I know.  Bah humbug!!😉😉

PS: Thanks to mon amie LC for the great poster quote :)

Get your PRIORITIES straight!!

We all need to prioritize in life. It is a fact. If you don't, things can go awry very quickly and can even blow up in your face BIG TIME!

IT was a dark and windy night (sounds like the beginning of a novel!)...  my cousine and I had gone for a lovely, long walk down by the beach, on a walking path.  Of course Vimy had to do his usual daily deposit, which I had to scoop. I can just hear my other cousine Annie say, "Only you can blog about poop and I will read about it!"   My little flashlight on my keychain decided to die right there, but I managed to fumble around and pick up what I thought was his little bomb. I then stopped to fiddle repeatedly with the flashllight, trying to get it to light up, but it was a goner.

WELL, all the way back I kept focusing on NOT dropping Vimy's poop bag.  So much so that I only noticed twenty minutes later, that my keys WERE NOT in my pocket.  People - N*E*V*E*R focus on dog poop, to the detriment of your keys.

I was in a TOTAL panic, because I only have one key for Jiminy.   My cousine continued on alone to go get her car, while I quickly retraced our steps.  I hadn't heard them drop, so I figured they would be, HOPEFULLY, right near where Vimy had started this whole mess. Of course, it is PITCH DARK, and I can't see a thing, even with the flashlight on my phone. I keep walking up and down that path, looking for my keys, but to no avail. I meet two other dog walkers. They haven't seen any keys. How could they? It's dark and they don't have flashlights.   All the while I am thinking... HOW do I get home, HOW do I get another set of keys made for my car, HOW could I be so STUPID ... you get the idea!

The second walker tells me he walks this way every day, so if he finds them tomorrow, he will put a notice on FB. Off he goes.  I continue to search d-e-s-p-e-r-a-t-e-l-y, when I hear him yell back at me.  Lo and behold! Yo my cousine had driven up, and where she stopped to park her car, her headlights had shone right ON MY KEYS!  I was estatic, to say the least!

I was so happy, so excited and so discombobulated by the whole affair, that I thought I had lost my phone as well, when I drove away from her place. I returned to check my entire car.  I asked Yo to check her car, which she did but she A=L=S=O had the presence of mind to call my line. My phone rang, from where I had tucked it...in the lefthand corner of my dash, totally invisible in the dark. WHEW! I HAD TO REMIND MYSELF right then and there... TO BREATHE!!!

Thank you God for younger cousins who look out for their ditzy older cousins.  I will no longer be overly focused on being "Écolo!" (Green!).  LOSING a bag of dog poop is NOT THE END OF THE WORLD!   LOSING my keys would be close to it!

There IS good in the world!

You may NOT think it. The world we live in now seems to be a very dark, nasty, unkind, combative, divisive, and intolerant kind of place. We have always had conflict, but that conflict seems to be spreading like wildfire.  I feel that democracy, as we know it here in our beautiful and free western world, is very much threatened.

This blog is dedicated to my only grandchild, Sophie, who is five and one half months old. She is my hope for a better world!

I have therefore decided to put a real positive spin on my blog, and talk about GOOD, not EVIL!  We all want to have hope in humanity and we want to believe in the inherent goodness of ALL our fellow human beings. Well, my faith has been restored this week, because I met one of  these "good" people.

I will call him Mr. Elf, ( M. Lutin), because he does INDEED live up to that name.

Mr. Elf lives in my city.  He has a beautiful home, and by extension a large garage, and A HUGE spread of land in his backyard.  I mean acres and acres of land: beautiful land dotted with hardwooods, cedars, pines, birches, firs and spruce trees.  He has made a wide trail that wends its way all through his property.  His wood chipper chips all his dead wood, which he puts down on the trail. In some places you trod on leaves, or moss/lichen, or pine needles, all of which makes the trails soft on knees and feet.  Fresh wood chips emit a delightful scent too. On his trail you can catch a glimpse of our beautiful Baie des Chaleurs, as well as enjoy hiking a stretch that hugs a marsh, which meanders out to to the Baie.

What does Mr. Elf do with all that land?  Other than work at improving his trails?  Well, he used to work at the hospital.  People would ask him what he had been up too lately.  When he retired, he  always replied, "Pâpital!", which is a contraction of the following words, "Pas à l'hôpital!"  His passion? He has turned his beautiful, magical forest into a hiker's haven, for ANY and ALL who care to come stroll, walk, or run through his many beautiful trails.  These five kilometre plus trails are all named, and well posted throughout Sentier Pâpital.  You need never fear getting lost.

There are thoughtful additions to the various trails, all the way throughout his little woodsy paradise.  There are feeding stations for chickadees.  He EVEN provides the seeds. You have a dog and no poop bags?  He provides those, along with a gentle reminder sign. There are benches to sit on, and at the very end, when you turn around, he has built a fabulous gazebo overlooking the river and marsh.  Everything you see, Mr. Elf has put up at his own expense.  He obviously loves the outdoors and nature.  Everything is so well maintained.

On the "Traverse des Lutins" you will come upon an enchanted forest.  There is even an "elf" house.  You know elves live there because their clothing is drying on the line.  You notice the exquisite detail of an elf's tuque, carved into the window’s shutter. Mr. Elf built the elf house at his wife's suggestion, so that children who came to hike with their parents, would find the spot magical and captivating. I know I certainly did and I am an old woman. 

MISE À JOUR: UPDATE:  Cet endroit est enchanteur, féérique et romantique au bout!!  J'ai emmené ma petite fille Sophie ici, le 16 décembre. I hope that this visit to Enchanted Forest, is the beginning of an annual Christmas tradition. 

I know many wealthy people with beautiful homes and properties, but NONE who has so SELFLESSLY welcomed anyone to come enjoy what rightfully belongs to them alone.  We need more people like Mr. Elf.  That HE will go to heaven is a given, I think.  I, for my part, am sharing so that others may know of the beauty and goodness that shines in our community.  Beauty we find not only in our surroundings but the beauty found in the hearts of people like our Mr. Elf.

  

Sentiers des Pins

Wood chipped trail

I think I will end off my Hallowe'en week...

with the following quote from a little one in Kindergarten. My latest blog was not read anywhere near as much as it usually is read.  MAYBE my readers are feeling the same way Jay did, when he said the following to me?  Let me set the scene first though!  The gym teacher was late dismissing her class, and my nineteen, five year olds were getting restless waiting in line to enter the gym. I tried to distract them by having them do a few yoga poses, which they did so well, bless them.  However, one little fellow had HAD it.  Jay looked at the me and said, "I am getting tired of what you have to say!"

Don't children have such a way of making you HUMBLE?   BONNE FIN-DE-SEMAINE à tous!!!