My New Home is Heaven, Charlottes Adventures

This up and coming weekend marks the turn of a year for me since Sedna. Nadia came to visit me and brough me a picture she drew me, "While Sedna Sleeps"

Ah how she wakes!

I did not realize when I sat down at my computer a year ago to do the write a novel in three days contest exactly what the implications would be on my life. Most of the time it happens this way.

Sedna ruled my apartment for two years. Vancouver and the West Coast were the place for me to get back. However that happens. Like how things get scrubbed clean by the sand in the ocean. Maybe that environment scrubed me clean a bit too. Here for sure.

When I visited the Charlottes with my mom last September, coming to Alaskaview to see my sister I fell in love with this magical place immediately. I wrote the book without having been up here, based on all the landscape stories Dawn had told me. Based on some things we had conversations about.

It is a special place. This is a special and amazing place.

This is the view from the livingroom.



I arrived to the Fishing Lodge first by plane to Masset and then by Float Plane to Langara Island last week and was completely amazed. I have so much respect for what my sister has been doing these years. Her and Ben. Everyone respects them, knows them. Shes told me so many stories and yet it is nothing like the experience of the thing. I was a galley girl and was serving up there... long days. Very cool guests. Very cool co-workers. Fisherman all over the place. It was teeming with red cruiser suits.

This really great guy Brian took me out on a Zodiak, called Safety One. We were a combo Safety boat slash sandwich boat... we'd cruise and make sure the boats were safe and note when we saw them and where for refrence. We were out delivering great sandwiches and cookies and such when we got a call that on the west side of the island the wind had picked up. So we had a rough ride out to the West side, to round up a couple boats out there.

There was a pirate party the gang had in the fishroom/storage room, a regular disco with amazing soundsystem at impromptu really, and there was a dancefloor and it was all real great.

Crazy, to have sealions sunning on the rocks and an island tree atop the cliff with an eagle on one side of you and a humpback whale on the other and miles of ocean floor below you and above you only sky.
This is somebody elses movie but... well....

There are two Langara lodges there and I had the opportunity to go up to the lodge my very very very dear old friend from childhood Marty Stacey works as a Chef for the Staff. It was cool, he "Facebooked" me and I told him where I was and that I wanted to sdee him. The next day he came down the hill in his down time. I was stocking the staff cooler with soda and heard this, "Ang".
Marty!!!
We had a chat and he said to come up to see him on my down time... when he worked. I got an Americano from the Choho Cafe at the fishing lodge and a little bag of treats for Marty and then I climbed up the big hill to Langara Island Lodge.

I got there and was looking for the kitched and I overheard Marty say "I wonder where Angela is." Then I knew I was in the right place, at this big fancy lodge! It is amazingly beautiful. I have never been somewhere so special. He gave me a tour around and we had chats and I wish we had more time to talk but he had to get back to work. It was so cool. Last time I saw him was when I was in the Charlottes with mom and he was flying through and called us fromthe airport and we went to see him, and I hadn't seen him in fifteen years!!! But he's still Marty.
Ahhh.

I flew out on the Helicopter over Langara Island to Graham Island where Masset is located here in the Charlottes. With the Helicopter Pilot Bucky. I was in the front seat and wore the headset and mic!

Again, somebody elses video:


I got to Alaskaview and Bob was flying through so we all drove together to Alaskaview and we pulled into the driveway and I just thought "I AM HOME."

Erin has been amazing. I can't even believe it! I am so lucky. and I met Jeska who works here. She is amazing too and will be up here in the winter when I am up here. Stoked. Her boyfriend is coming here too and he's an artist. Jeska is an artist. I am so excited. She tells me there is a great arts community here in Masset and this is great. I can't wait. Jeska also tells me that there is a writer down the road. I went out for a walk this AM on the beach and met the neighbor Ernie and we set out a crab trap. Today we cleaned up the yard, went to town with the Recycling.

My luck happens to find Erin who has taken Publishing in school and so we have much excitement over this, she's going to lend me some books on publishing.

We are friends after a couple days, I am so excited! We have a lot of things in common.

Today Chef Stephane Levesque came to releive Erin and he cooked. Tonight he made Scallop Bruschetta, AMAZING!

Right now the Cedar Planked Salmon is on the barbeque and the guests are in the hot tub. He made Chantrel mushroom Risotto which the musroom guy came along this week and dropped off the fresh local mushrooms.

Stephane is from Rimouski and is off on adventures cooking in remote locations. He was previosly cooking on a scuba diving boat. Quite tasty cooking!

Today Erin cut Stephane's hair in the driveway behind the B&B. It was a classic picture.

We listened to this on the satelight while he was cooking dinner.
Abotu a little French seal.






I am back to Vancouver tomorrow.

This weekend coming up, Dave and I are writing a novel in the three day novel contest.

How much life will change again!

After that, I get preapred to stay up here for the next 7 months.

I can not wait. I am holding my breath. It is beautiful.

My love as always,
Angela


Update:

Okay so after I entered this entry events started cookin. I went to get Erin from the cabin down the road where she was chillin and when we got back the guests were down by the fire. We ate dinner. Wow. The Risotto that Stephan made was AMAZING. And he made my favorite vegetable, Eggplant. Wowsa and the cedar planked salmon was so perfect. All in all, a 10/10 meal.

We were invited tot he beach with our guests, Jes, Erin, Stephane, and myself with the six guests. We sat around the fire and Stephane and Jeska sang and played their guitars. Erin took videos.
Just as were starting to get a little sleepy the rain shower came briefly, and we scampered up the pathway to the house.

Thank you Ben Cleland for building such an amazing fire pit. The guests loved it.

On the Road Again, Hobo Style

Oh! I have so much to tell you and not enough time. The Mexican Fiesta was brilliant and I had so much fun. Rita's friends are amazing, and I can't wait to be in Mexico with everyone in November. Rita is hard to leave. I love her so much!

I was hard pressed to get in the car but I made myself and I felt horrible leaving again and barely said goodbye to Rita so I didn't have to sob!



The drive was great. Over the mountains and canyons and hills. There is something about the road for me that makes things feel okay when put space between yourself and things and then it does this magic thing and opens up before you and the way is clear.

I got to Vancouver and saw some of my peeps, Claire's home a nice welcome sight. Lara and I had a fabulous walk on Kits beach for a couple hours. Dinners, chats.

Before I left Calgary I got a call from Langara Fishing Adventures to come see them and I went in to see them when I got back to town.

This time, for realsies, I did get a new job. I am going to be up at Alaska View B&B October 01 for the winter season. Its the bed and breakfast Dawn was at up in the Queen Charlottes. You've heard about it!

I am going up to the Charlottes tomorrow for a week. I will update you later my friends about what goes on.

I am over the moon happy! After this amazing summer even more amazing things to come. Sometimes things work out better than you could imagine.


Tori has been here and I have had a good visit with Violet. Amazing place. We went to the PNE and I rode the closest thing to a rollercoaster I've ever been on. I am a screamer. I think there were three or four rides I screamed the whole time on. Poor Tori!

We've been hiking, picking berries and swiming here. Its been great.

I have once again for the third time now packed up my car and I am just getting ready to hit the road.

I am sure there are so many more adventures to come.

I have so much more to say, but have to go. All my love, as usual.

For all those Canadians who remember... one of my favorites:

Lime in the Coconut and all "Knocked Up"

Yesterday we took back the defunct palm tree cooler and this time we brought Lynn with us, Rita's mom. Alas we found a new fan of the party decoration store! We spent a lot of time in there again. We were having so much fun int here the girl behind the counter said " Hey you guys are having so much fun one of you should work here!"


I got a new job.






Just joking! I'd never do that!!!!!!



Well we had a lot of fun and for round two, we got the best thing ever a Shrilling Chicken.

You squeeze it and an egg jumps out its butt. You squeeze it a couple times and the egg jumps in and out of the shrilling chickens butt.
Its a laugh. Get yourself one.

Party plans are coming along!

Today we did the food shopping and got a haul. I am going to make some dip and then I am making homemade salsa ala Billy. I am going to make a fruit salsa too.
We've got the music. We've got the decorations. We've got the costumes (sombreros!) 30 + guests... and we've got Margarita's. We even got this weird thing "Carmel Diet Coke". Which I was going to make fun of Rita for choosing (but really wanted to try) so weird and unusual. We got it and tried it. I will never underestimate "Carmel Diet Coke" again. It is going to be fabulous with booze!!!!

I am thinking I am going to make Lime jello shots, and even maybe Lime Coconut jello shots.

Rita and I haven't had jello shots since the Scavenger Hunt in Williams Lake, a very very very long time ago. But so influential we haven't done them since. Or a good scavenger hunt since.
Oh yes! I believe that the Jello shots were deadly. I was talking with Teresa about it it too, and I think I had a chat with Janice about it before I left Vancouver...

Yesterday after we did our decoration shopping we went to the movies and saw Knocked Up. I laughed my ass off, really really loud. Rita laughed so hard she was crying. Lynn was laughing so hard her stomach hurt. It was funny. I mean we came outta there just laughing.

Beware of the swearing / ADULT CONTENT:




All in all this was a great week. Tomorrow it Friday and it is cooking and cleaning for us chicks!
Mexican Fiesta all the way my friends!

Mexican Fiesta- the Decoration Store

Yesterday at the party store we had a hay day! It was unbelievable. There were party themes for every type of party you could imagine. We went cuckoo for the Mexi themed decorations.

I was in heaven. I mean if there is a heaven and I die and go to it, it has got to be an "everything themed decoration party supply" heaven, or I don't want to go.

It was Rita and Leslie and I at the party store. The three of us were exclaiming "Whooa! Look at this! "No look at this."

Okay and I think my party days are over but I meant I could really get into the themed party thing. There were Oktoberfest decorations, Man parties with football and sport decorations, there was a balloon counter. I could go nuts! How many green balloons could I blow up! Not to mention 99 red balloon's!!!

There were streamers and noise makes, cow bells and feather boas!

I mean it really was heaven.

One of Rita's prized finds was a 6 foot tall palm tree whose base was a beer cooler. She hummed and hawed about getting it but she did in the end.

My prized treasure- the "Mexican Moustaches", oh yes! I knew I would find them one day! That day has come!

We went out last night had Vietnamese soup and salad rolls- Calgary has the best Vietnamese restaurant selection in Canada. Then we went to Chapters and I had my first fancy coffee in six weeks! It was a treat night!


We came home and the palm tree was out on the deck with a few floating chairs and a helium balloon kit. So the palm tree was faulty, but we are taking it back. How disappointing!!! Alas we will fix this situation!


All in all, a very cool time.

August 07, 2007

Today Rita and I are going to look for Mexican Pinatas for the party on the weekend. We are having a Mexican Fiesta for all the bride and grooms friends, time at the lake and a barbecue at night. It should be great. A week of preparation.

I was just lounging in the sun in yoga pants and a little baby doll, glam sunglasses and my hair in rollers reading a book and having morning coffee. Rita comes by. "You look like the ultimate suburban housewife." Irony.

This morning I got up and before I even went to get coffee and I checked in on the newly replanted strawberry plants. They were a little wilty so I got the hose and started watering them right away. I hope the sun isn't too hot. Its a scorcher today!

I hope they survive. We found them yesterday as we cleaned up a whole pile of junk behind the greenhouse. A bed underneath, they survived and I managed to separate them, the root systems looked good. So I replanted them last night in the newly cleaned area. I am here one more week, lets see what happens in a week!