Going "home" again

August 17/12.

The highlight of the week was taking a road trip with my sister, Carrie, to our old childhood stompin' grounds in Lindsay, Ontario. Carrie drove the two of us there from Toronto, while cousin Kevan vacated a family party in Bala to meet us there on his own.

We passed the good old Lindsay water tower on the way, (an object that somehow has the ability to make me both laugh AND cry, depending on whether I'm coming or going from town)!

Got stuck behind a couple of horse's asses on the way there, (and I don't mean victims of road rage, but the real deal!)

And we saw something really unusual at a gas station - an actual phone booth!

The reason for the trip was to see our beloved Aunt Leslie, who was about to turn 96 the next day! She lives in a seniors residence in town, but it's been years since we've had the chance to visit. We were very surprised to see her walk out to the parking lot to greet us!

How many 96-year-olds could do that?? She looks just beautiful, still has a trim figure, lovely hair, wears nice makeup, dresses well

and maintains that wicked sense of humour!

We brought her lilies and photos to look at, while she provided delicious shortbread cookies,

cold French white wine and cranberry juice,

 and gave us a great walking tour of her spacious apartment!

Very pretty!

Before the visit with Leslie, we went to Pleasant Point Road to see some of our favourite old sites including the Pleasant Point Union Church,

where our grandfather used to play the hymns on the piano every Sunday morning.

That beautiful glimpse of Lake Sturgeon in the distance,

and finally, the familiar old boathouse and dock where we used to hang out every summer.

New owners have been there for years, but we were allowed the fun of getting reacquainted with the place!

Such a familiar curve of boathouses lining the lake. This is where we learned to swim!

Auntie Leslie paid us each a quarter if we would swim from one side of the dock to the other and back. And we DID it! (Money talks)!

It was great fun when Kevio joined us. Being on this dock together again brought back so many funny old thoughts and laughs. We worked on our tans down here, used the diving board to do cannonballs, (and the occasional lousy dive), and once, as a kid, I jumped in with my glasses on. They sunk to the bottom of the lake, but our cousin, Ellie dived in and under, spotted the specs and brought them back up to the surface.

43 years after her death, (of lymphoma at the age of 19), her initials, E.C. (Ellie Carter) are still visible in the cement dock. The spirit of the beautiful Ellie, (Aunt Leslie's daughter) remains at Pleasant Point always.

Just a few metres below the initials, we also spotted the old Pirate's Cove, a hidden, cave-like area where we used to play and pretend we were pirates!

The whole point area is just so darn nice,

Kevan didn't even want to leave!

But no visit would be complete without a look at Burridge's Century House, (or what's left of it). This is what our grandparents' antique shop/home looked like in its heyday. Stunning! We had so many great times here, especially at Christmas every year.

But then, years after Mabel and Arthur Burridge passed away, the place, tragically, burned down.

This is all that remains of Century House now. A tiny portion of the house. The rest went down in flames.

We didn't DARE get to close to the house, due to this scary sign!!

But no fire can EVER take away our super-powered memories of Century House. They will live on in our hearts forever. For Carrie and I as kids, Kev was a HUGE part of our fun here. Strangely, the same is true today. Where EVER you are with Kevio, is fun!

Before leaving the point, we caught up with four old friends - The Nurses. (left to right, Bill, Mary, Mae and Anne). They were our neighbours at Pleasant Point for years and they still have cottages there. It was SO great to see them again!

See ya in my dreams Century House!

Later in the week, I started a new short-term job! I'm working at the Toronto International Film Festival, screening TIFF films and later, doing interviews with some of the visiting celebs for Tribute Entertainment. It's been ten years since I've covered any part of TIFF. (At Global TV, I covered it for 18 years)! Sure feels weird to be doing it again.

It's all thanks to my old pal Bonnie Laufer Krebs, Executive Producer at Tribute. She was our Entertainment Producer for years at Global and she asked if I'd help her out this year, along with Ola Sturik, another former Globalite. Above, we attended a screening of A Liar's Autobiography - The Untrue Story of Monty Python's Graham Chapman

at the Manulife Centre.

Thursday, went back to Urban Nails to get a manicure/shellac. (gotta look professional to go back to work!) More screenings next week!

The Cool Down

August 10/12.

After weeks of sweating it out without an upstairs ductless air conditioner during a major heat wave, finally got it! Sears was supposed to install it days earlier (which sure would have been appreciated in these sweltering temps), but the model was out of stock. Now the LG is in and all systems are go. Wasn't easy though. Took four guys from 10 a.m. till 4:45 p.m. to rip the old one out and get this one up and running.

Ta-da!

To accomplish their goal, tarps had to be laid down,

all throughout the house to protect the carpeting.

The outdoor unit was so huge,

it had to be hoisted up with ropes,

to the third floor flat deck,

since it couldn't possibly fit through Max's bedroom window! Gak.

After much effort, yay! It's in place! (The guys were none too happy about the logistics).

Next came the indoor unit between the second and third floors.

It had to be torn down.

Leaving quite a messy looking wall!

Meanwhile, ladders were brought in to make the changeover to

copper refrigeration tubing, bringing things up to proper standards.

Then it was out with the dead 14-year-old "Mr. Slim" unit,

and in with the LG Inverter V! Works great for the second floor, but as suspected, (with the concept of heat rises), does little to cool the third floor bedrooms, which still require electric fans to allow for sleeping. But at least the second floor is no longer blisteringly hot! Whew. The Sears guys even vacuumed the carpets before taking off.

Earlier in the week, Kate went to see Paul Taylor,

intrepid master hair stylist at I 'N I salon before he took off for his holiday to Peru to visit Machu Picchu.

Now she's got her gorgeous dark colour back!! And it looks great from every angle!

Sam and I had a special dinner at The Keg Mansion on Jarvis Street after receiving a generous gift card from an unexpected source! It started pouring rain, so I didn't even get to have my picture taken outside.

I forgot what an elegant place it is to dine,

with interesting views everywhere you turn.

Inside, I saw a pretty candelabra made up of tiny tea lights. They flickered in the breeze. So pretty I wanted to take it home!

(Instead, I took home delicious leftovers from the prime rib and shrimp dinner)!

Today, Kate and I 

went to see the new Meryl Streep/Tommy Lee Jones movie, Hope Springs

at The Beach Theatre. (Little did we know, Queen Street East was torn apart, so we had to take a detour, but luckily we left early enough not to miss the beginning of the film)!

Hope Springs sure touches some nerves and had me laughing and crying, (sometimes at the same time). Terrific performances. Meryl can break your heart with just a look,

and moments later, have you giggling.

I get the feeling many couples will relate to this flick in a big way. Cheers! 
(P.S. - Have NO idea why blogger insisted on changing my font for this entry from normal, to dark, to teeny tiny. Ai Carumba. Technology!)