Quiet day in coffee.bc.ca land... · Sunday September 10, 2006 by colin newell
My eldest Uncle died last night.
Our thoughts go out to his widow Monica and their family…
My Mom… and my remaining Uncle.
Tomorrow is the 5th anniversary of 9/11/01
I have been feeling (as well as many friends and loved ones), kind of creeped out by all the wierd and wacky stuff that has been going on in the World the last few monthes.
Call me crazy, but I get the wierd feeling something really bad is going to happen tomorrow.
Like I said.
Call me crazy.
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Mister Bigley`s big adventure · Sunday August 27, 2006 by colin newell
It has taken 3 or 4 years of gentle prodding by my wife to get me to upgrade my (our) home mobile phone.
3 to 4 years…
Of gentle prodding.
So I broke down a month ago and got a Motorola Razor.
A damn fine phone.
A tough phone.
A phone up for some adventure.
And so it was to be.
While at Jordan River and Port Renfrew this weekend (with one fully loaded camera bag), my shiny new phone went sailing.
Without my knowledge.
Sailed right out of my bag.
Into the air.
Landing on a rock.
Without me hearing a thing.
It was only an hour later when we got back to the cabin that I noticed that it was not snuggled in my Lowe-Pro mini-trekker anymore.
Within minutes of this discovery, I was on the phone to Telus Mobility, cancelling my service.
I guess you might say I was crestfallen.
I mean, what is the likelihood of recoverying a phone lost on the wild west coast?
Higher than I thought.
24 hours later and the phone rings.
“Hello Sir, this is Telus Mobility calling…”
“We found your phone… you can pick it up at the downtown store…”
Within a half-hour I am cradling my little phone again…
and buying a 26er of Irish Whiskey for the guy at Telus Mobility for bringing me such good news.
Ladies – his name is Connor and he is single, 21 – looks a little like Keanu Reeves… works at the Bay Centre in downtown Victoria and he will keep a lid on that bottle of Irish Whiskey til you come down and introduce yourself.
Tell him I sent you!
Meantime, our phone (now nicknamed Mister Bigley ) is back home, safe and sound.
To whomever or whatever brought the phone back, thanks!
Point no Point - that's my point · Saturday July 8, 2006 by colin newell
Just had 24 hours of decompression at Point No Point resort, about 30 minutes West of Sooke on Highway 14.
I have been thinking about PnP as an alternative to Tofino for some time now. It represents a neat opportunity to leave work at 4:40PM on a friday and be at the resort restaurant by 6 and in the cabin by 7:30PM.
Being a cautious kind of guy, it has taken me years to get around to checking out this alternative.
I actually did a poll at my workplace, on the department off-topic listserv. I was looking for the ultimate get-away in a certain search criterium within a certain distance from Victoria.
The overwhelming opinion was this: Point no Point Resort won hands down as the quickie get-away that is within a light-year of Victoria.
You have to like that.
I was cautiously optomistic and, as it turned out, PnP resort was way beyond my expectations.
I was worried about it being to rustic. Rustic is was not.
Granted, there is no CELL phone service. No TV. No Phones. No microwave ovens. (I brought my own radio gear… that is another story!)
Long story short (I will upload some photos when I develop them from my 1965 Rolleiflex!) – this was a 5-star experience on 3-star prices. The onsite (and modest restaurant) was 3-star with a 5-star view. Seriously, the food was way better than I expected.
The cabin(s) was(are) spotless and (obviously) recently updated.
Bed: very cosy.
Outdoor jacuzzi on private patio: Delighful!
View: To die for.
Where else can you sit in a hot tub under the stars and sleep in a wonderful cedar cabin under the trees, by the Pacific Ocean, for < 200 dollars a day?
Check it out.
12 years on. · Sunday June 25, 2006 by colin newell
Had a wonderful 12th wedding anniversary dinner at the Deep Cove Chalet restaurant with my bride.
We are in the middle of a hot spell and we got to sit on the patio by the water. Surrounded by their wonderful flower and herb gardens, all explosively in bloom, we could not have had a better experience anywhere.
Do not get me wrong folks. This is not an ad for a restuarant.
This is public service announcement for marriage.
Not just ours, but anyones.
Or anyone who is in love.
And anyone who is as in love as I am will know what I am talking about. If there is someone special in your life, let them know. Do something special for them. A random act of kindness is good too.
It does not have to be a nice restuarant or a shiny gift either.
Turn to the one you love right now and tell them how you feel.
Do it now or your keyboard will burst into flames, I promise you.
All alone and unhappy? Keep looking. There is someone out there for everyone. I am not kidding.
I waited a long time for the right partner. A long time.
Love has no expiry date. Seriously.
Oh, and by the way – the restaurant is a knock-out. If you are ever in Victoria, on Vancouver Island, make sure you consider the Deep Cove Chalet as a spot to stop.
Cheers!
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Sitting at Bubby Rose's Bakery... · Saturday June 24, 2006 by colin newell
Could be as close to heaven as possible.
Sitting at Bubby Rose’s Bakery, on the sidewalk.
With a mug of Sam Jone’s Discovery Coffee Yirghacheffe.
And one of Mark Engel’s fabulous Cinnamon Buns.
This is not one of your run-of-the-mill sticky buns folks.
This is a Mark Engels tour-de-force.
This baby contains real butter, flour, milk, cinnamon, more butter and some secret ingredients.
Imagine that with a great cup of coffee… on the avenue in historic Cook Street Village, Victoria.
Pretty girls walk by. Some with their dogs. Some with their pretty boyfriends. Ah. Cook Street village.
This is living!
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