The second retirement gift I sampled came courtesy of Jesi, thanks. The beer she chose for me is Poland’s number 1 beer, Zywiec. This is a pilsener, light on the palate and smooth. The colour is golden, and overall very refreshing. A very good beer, worthy of further investigation. Another brewery that needs closer inspection.
Number 8 is likely the easiest entry on my list, retirement. It is easy as I did the deed on July 15, ending a working life of over 50 years. The bulk of these years were spent in the transportation industry and ended in a role in finance. This item was key and is intimately related to several other wishes on my list.
I currently have no regrets over leaving the workforce and will remember and cherish the many people that have become friends, and are still friends over the years.
As crazy as this sounds, employment has opened our eyes to many new things. We have lived in Winnipeg, St. Albert, Okotoks, Saskatoon, Martensville and Calgary. We have made many friends and acquaintances and experienced many things with the help of these friends. We intend to spend time revisiting these places and people at every opportunity.
I read a quote that makes absolute sense, “There really are two lives we live. The first life and then the second life when we realize we only have one life.”
See you soon.
The next installment of The Maplelist is Faber Drive at number 121. This group hails from Mission, British Columbia. The band formed in 2004, the current members being lead vocalist Dave Faber, lead guitarist Jordan Pritchett, bass guitarist Jeremy Liddle and drummer Seamus O’Neill. They were discovered by Chad Kroeger of Nickleback and were signed to a record deal with his 604 label. They have released 3 albums on that label, “Seven Second Surgery” in 2007, “Can’t Keep A Secret” in 2009 and “Lost In Paradise” in 2012. Their initial release was an independent EP, “Faber”, that was released in 2006.
The band had some early success, being nominated for a Juno in 2008 as “Best New Group Of The Year”, and won the same category in the Canadian Radio Music Awards.
They faded from sight in about 2014, but have recently been recording, releasing 2 demos in 2020. Good band, a comeback would be welcomed.
To give you a flavor for their sound, I give you the SOCAN number 1 song award winning tune “Tongue Tied”, followed by the very energetic “G-Get Up And Dance”.
The first entry into our top 100 is Honeymoon Suite and their song Love Changes Everything.
Back in the hair band days of the 1980’s, Honeymoon Suite was formed. The year was 1981 in Niagara Falls, Ontario. The band’s name and the place share a connection, very witty. They had a string of hits in Canada throughout the 80’s and even had some traction in the USA, highlighted by performing the title track for the movie Lethal Weapon.
Love Changes Everything was released in 1988 and is on their album Racing After Midnight. The song reached number 9 in Canada, 13 on the US Rock and 91 on the US chart, all by Billboard. The band is still recording, it’s latest release was in 2019.
Get ready to rock to a live version of the tune, live is always best.
Guess Who bassist Jim Kale turned 78 on August 11. He is an original member of the Guess Who, going way back to 1962 when they were known as Chad Allan and the Reflections. He was with the band until 1972 and even co-wrote American Woman. During a reunion tour he discovered that the band name had never been trademarked. He registered the name and began touring as the Guess Who with a string of new members, and occasionally with Gary Peterson on drums, also an original. Yes, they still exist and record, just not with the Burton Cummings and Randy Bachman. Jim is now retired from the band.
The video is from 1970, and of course, American Woman.
I was browsing for hiking books online and came across this gem. We now have a comprehensive guide to a wide range of falls, complete with how to get there. We are considering a loop in September and will keep you updated.
As a plug, we do not purchase books from chains, preferring local bookstores. When in Cranbrook, please patronize Huckleberry Books or use their website at https://huckleberrybooks.ca/
As I look for material, I was ecstatic to discover a comprehensive list of Canadian bands. Talk about material. Inspired by this, I am initiating a series that will be titled the Maple List (see what I did there, Whitelist, Blacklist, Maple List). This list and a random number generator will make this an interesting endeavour.
The initial post is this one, as last should be first. I present Number 1168 and last on the Maple List, The Danks.
The band is from Charlottetown in the province of Prince Edward Island. PEI is Canada’s smallest province and is an island off the north shore of New Brunswick. The band has 3 recordings, an EP called “Samples” in 2008, a full length debut, “Are You Afraid Of The Danks” in 2009 and their (maybe) final release “GANK” in 2013.
Some members of the band are also known for another Indie band “Two Hours Traffic”. We may randomly run into them at some point as well.
Very little online for them. I did find the following.
I am impressed with The Danks. Very catchy tunes, well written and played. I’ve included a couple of videos, which will give you a good feel for this band. Hoping for a reunion.
First is “In Alright” off the “Are You Afraid Of The Danks” debut.
Second is “Experimental Fiction” off their second album.
Found this sitting in my drafts, time to share I’d say, and give us a reminder that this isn’t too far down the road again.
Don’t think we saw the conjunction on December 21. We received 30 cm of snow that night. Up to 20 inches for our American friends. It is pretty though, until you have to shovel it.
The first beer I sampled was Erdinger. This is advertised as the ultimate premium wheat beer, and is brewed in strict accordance to the Bavarian Purity Law. This was gifted to me by Terry, one of the very small group of us known as Boston Bruins fans. Go Bruins. Thanks Terry, your pick was exceptional. I’m going to have to visit this brewery at some point, they do a great job at what they do. I found it to be very tasty, hits the front of the tongue and then goes down smooth, with a slight hint of bitter. Golden in the glass and sparkles with bubbles like champagne. Definitely one I intend on having again, and likely again, then again some more.
July 15, a big day for us, the day when everything changed, and we are positive it will be for the better. I feel slightly overwhelmed at being unemployed for the first time in 50 years or so, but also relieved that we can now move down the path to a more fulfilling future.
In all honesty, work, as much as I enjoyed it, was getting in the way of a multitude of projects that are in planning, in progress or are almost completed. More on those in later posts. This is about the “Big Day”.
For us, the CoVid pandemic did a few things. We both worked from home, which allowed us to move about and work on our retirement nest. For this, we are grateful to have understanding and progressive employers. It also allowed us to winter in our spot and test out those waters. We were successful on multiple fronts. Come spring, the decision was made that I would retire on July 15 and moved forward to attain that goal.
We purchased our lot in 2017 on the Moyie River in British Columbia, with mountain views on all sides. The intent was to retire here and spend a chunk of each winter in various locations, while basking in their warmth.
On the the 15th of July, I spent the day with all my work friends, doing minimal work of course. We went for lunch with all who could make it, as only 25% of employees were on site due to health restrictions. Prior to lunch, I was presented with my good bye gift, an ample supply of beer, each attached with a note from the person who contributed it. A wonderful gift on so many levels. I’m going to miss these people.
Now that I have more time (apparently, I’ve been retired 6 days and this is the first post I’ve done) I am planning on regular posts. There will definitely be a series of beer reviews added to the mix, to go along with all the regular cadre of photos, reviews and recipes. I am so looking forward to the R&R, and the more casual lifestyle.
旅行記、ゴルフ、ドローン映像など自由気ままな内容/Travel, Golf, Drone etc.
Music With A Lean To Canadian Artists
Exploring What Captivates, Inspires, and Intrigues.
Finger Lakes Connected connects consumers to local businesses.
A Part of TopOnlineGuides.com
Travel blog for everyone
Jane's Lens
Best Reasons To Love Dog Doors
Home oF Hiphop Videos
Writing, Poetry, Short Stories, Reviews, Art Contests
