Continental Coffee House

This morning we drove over to Main Street to do some produce shopping. There is an Asian grocery store that always has an amazing selection of fruit and veggies at very good prices.

Enroute the skies opened so we stopped in at the Continental Coffee House. After a night of stomach distress, I opted for a pot of green tea with a delicious cranberry/lemon muffin, still hot from the oven. John experimented with a pot of Rooibus Surprise and a blueberry/passion muffin. The interior has a modern industrial feel but the chairs were super comfortable and the staff was very friendly.

During the downpour an Asian woman asked if she could join our table. From Beijing, she told us stories about her 12 year old daughter's education. Coming from a class size of 70 students in China to a class of less than 30 in Vancouver was quite an adjustment. She explained that the teachers in Beijing get "boners" when their students do well. I was trying to visualize this when I realized that she meant "bonuses"!! In China the students have no free time, here they have too much free time!!

She also told us that it was very difficult to make friends and become involved in the Kerrisdale community where she lives. That area was chosen because of the high quality schools but her daughter has found that cliques were formed long before they moved to Vancouver. Next year her daughter will attend Magee High School, taking academic subjects during the morning and studying ballet every day from 1-6pm.

They don't like the idea that their daughter wants to pursue a profession in the arts but this is a different generation. In China, they did what their parents told them to do. Their daughter has tasted life in Canada and is determined to follow her own dreams.

The sisters meet!

Yesterday was a special day. It was the first time that my sisters met each other!

From left: Dorothy, Lin, Tracey, Tara

Tracey was performing in a play, "Death Among the Delphiniums", out of town in Mission. I invited Dorothy and Tara to come along to a matinee on Sunday. The community theatre held about 50 guests and the production was top notch. Tracey mastered a flawless British accent. She and the rest of the cast did a wonderful job of leading the audience through a murder mystery plot!

Tracey is my sister through my father's second marriage while Dorothy and Tara are my sisters through my mother's second marriage. I am very fortunate to have so many wonderful sisters including sisters-in-law and a step-sister in England.

Testing the blog with iPad and photos transferred from camera to IPad.

Memories!

From Apple genius to the knee surgeon

What a day! We met another "Apple genius" this morning to solve the problem of connecting my digital camera to John's ipad. When I hooked up the connector, the ipad screen said "the connected USB device requires too much power". Of course the "genius" was able to solve the problem within about ten minutes. It was the camera, not me!!

Afterward, we decided to explore a different part of Vancouver between Cambie & Oak Streets and between 14th & 16th Avenues. In the process we discovered a great coffee shop...maybe the best. While sipping and munching we were serenaded by an unusual mix of Farsi music and old Dean Martin classics.

The Iranian owners were very friendly, coffee was excellent, comfortable seating and all of the baking is done onsite. Unfortunately it is a bit further than our usual walking range but we will return!

Back on the street we were thrilled to see the first cherry tree blossoms!

This afternoon we drove over to North Vancouver to see John's knee surgeon. We had some concerns about fluid retention in his left leg but the Doctor assured us that it appeared to be an effusion that was
nothing to worry about! It is not painful, just unusual...but this is John! When was he ever "usual"?

There are several "mosaic" cars driving around the streets of Vancouver. This one invited us to "tickle me"!...where?...under the hood, behind the rear bumper, inside the trunk???

My Vancouver Doctor

I visited my Vancouver Doctor today to have a small growth removed from my right breast. He thinks that it is a keratoacanthoma and thought that it should be biopsied.

It is possible that, after 45 years in the medical profession, my Vancouver Doctor is the longest practicing physician in the lower mainland. He has occupied the same space in the same building for the entire 45 years! He refuses to stop because he still enjoys his job! It is impossible for me to view him as too old because we are almost the same age! My first appointment with him was 36 years ago. Now we meet only when I am staying in Vancouver for months and need medical attention.

Mariah, his absolutely crazy receptionist, showed me into a small room with an examination table pushed against the window wall. At the foot of the table was another small table to hold the coffee maker and microwave. She left me with a few words of wisdom "I hope you survive!"

He appeared wearing a face mask (because I am still suffering from a cold) and a weird magnifying glass that wrapped around his head. Behind the glass his eyes peered at me through a pair of eyeglasses creating the illusion of a Hannibal Lecter.

"I have complete faith in you!" I stated bravely. "Well, I have done this before" he replied.

"Are you going to hurt me?" I asked. "Only in order to not hurt you" he retorted.

Aha...a needle! We chatted a bit during his excavation. I was careful to not distract him from the task at hand. He described the shape of the incision and the three stitches that would leave a small scar.

Leaving, I was happy to report to Mariah that I had survived. She might not have heard me between singing along with Shania Twain, one of her favourites.

An internal discussion

I am having a discussion with myself. It isn't easy because the "me who wants what she wants" always has valid arguments. The "me who wants to change the habits of the me who wants what she wants" is readily convinced that any changes are unnecessary.

The internal discussion began when I decided (maybe) to leave my laptop behind when we go to Greece. It is heavy and I thought that it would be a good idea to lighten the load. That's when the internal suggestions started to pop into my head.

I could buy another ipad so that we each have one, but, would I rather spend $500 on another ipad or on travel experiences. Then a serious thought surfaced. Why not try to travel without being glued to an electronic device?! OMG!! What about my scrabble addiction? What about my blog? What about my photos? What about email? Of course we would still have John's ipad. That would mean constant disagreements about whose turn it is to use the damned thing!

Finally it dawned on me! Too many hours in my day are absorbed by the need to be connected!
So, we will travel with John's ipad as well as my writing pad, drawing book and camera. In lieu of looking at an electronic screen I will savour my surroundings, draw my impressions and write some thoughts. That will be enough. (maybe)

heavy rainfall warning!

This is what the heavy rainfall warning

looks like from the apartment...

...no downtown buildings,

no boats in the harbour,

no mountains,

no walks!