Regarding the "NEW" Our Canada, and "the current community site ... going offline" I may not get the opportunity to say thanks to all 42 members of my group, Canada's West for their great photos, blogs and videos. I'll miss it big time; it's been FUN for sure. Babbo

We have some wonderful new albums by jpmajko including his splendid The Northern Lights on our group. Hope you see them. Babbo

We have a great new video, "Summer Shorts" by bbgun as Editor's Pick this week. Makes me long for that season to return. Take a look. Babbo

Submitting my proposed vacation dates for this year to my boss got me thinking about time off in general and how much I look forward to it. Don’t get me wrong, I genuinely enjoy my job, but sitting down with a calendar and a freshly sharpened pencil every January to plan my “downtime” for the coming year gives me quite a thrill. I take a lot of ribbing here at work about my vacation time, one reason being that I’ve been with the company for over two decades so I must admit my allotted number of vacation days is generous. There doesn’t have to be a big trip planned for me to get excited either: A few nights camping in Ontario or a long weekend across the border are enough to make me giddy. I love the feeling of freedom. No alarm clock, no running for the train, no having to be in bed by a certain time and I can spend each day exactly as I wish. I’m also not the type of person who likes to fill every minute with plans and visits. My friends and family laugh because...

So, another work week is almost done and the weekend lies ahead. After a bite to eat, my wife and I’ll be off to watch our daughter play hockey this evening (Concordia University vs one of our cross-town rivals, Université de Montreal). Tonight’s dust-up will be followed by another game Saturday afternoon; this time we’ll be playing host to University of Ottawa. Two games in one weekend? No problem; in fact, we can' get enough!We’ve been watching both our daughter and our son play hockey since they were five years old and they're both in their 20s now. Our son hung up his skates (for organized hockey anyways) a couple of years ago, after finishing up his Midget years--and we really miss following his games. But what can you do--school, work, friends and girls all moved above hockey on his priority list (although not necessarily in that order). And it’s understandable really: after all, there are only so many hours in any given day. Still, it was fun watching him play and I’m happy he p...

We have some great photos from two of our members, Dale2000 and walksoftly. Thanks for giving us your work. Babbo

I come down with it every year without fail, usually sometime in February, and there’s no vaccine.  I don’t know why for sure, although it might be related to global warming, but I’m experiencing an early onslaught this year. I mean, c’mon, it’s still January for pete’s sake and my throttle hand is already beginning to twitch, the fingers of my clutch hand are going into involuntary “grasp and release” spasms, and the toes of my shift-lever foot are squirming up and down in my boot, just itching to race through the gears. But it’s the uncontrollable rumbling -- “vroom, vrooom, Vroooom!”-- that occasionlly escapes my lips, spittle and all, as I walk through the house wearing my helmet that’s most embarrassing.I don’t know what to do anymore. I’ve tried movies, magazines and websites--and even rereading The Art of Motorcycle Maintenance--but I’m telling you, there ain’t no way to cure these wintertime blues...Other than riding. That means  I won’t get any relief from motorcycle...

I love books—I love everything about them. Ever since I was a kid, reading has been one of the great joys in my life. Whether it was the latest Nancy Drew mystery—read by flashlight under the covers after lights out—or dog-eared copies of stories by British children’s author Enid Blyton that my mom would buy me from church bazaars or book fairs, I always had my nose in a book. On Sundays after Mass we’d go down to the library in the church basement—to this day the smell of library books makes me weak in the knees—to choose a new book for the week. Well, it was supposed to last a week. I’d spend all of Sunday afternoon sprawled on my bed reading Black Beauty or Charlotte’s Web and by the time the weekly roast beef dinner was on the table, I’d be almost finished. Staying home sick from school meant snuggling under the covers to spend the day re-reading a well-loved old favourite, such as Anne of Green Gables. As an adult, I still find it comfor...

Minou, formerly PsychoCat.

Wow, we are really rolling now. We have another new member. Dale 2000; he has photos he's going to put on our group. Check us out. We are still number 1 on page 2 of groups from the Our Canada home page. Click on the words Canada's West, not the photo of the tree and ferns. Babbo