December 21 to 27, 2025 ; Victoria, Vancouver Island, British Columbia

 Sunday ; Mix of sun and clouds, occasional light rain later in the day, +8° C.

To fulfill a year old Christmas present / birthday gift commitment to Joanne, today we indulged in afternoon high tea at the establishment of her choosing. We left our suite at 12:45 PM and walked about a kilometre to Piggy & Paisley, an upscale tea house across the street from Thrifty Foods, in our James Bay neighbourhood. We both thought that the experience started off poorly when we were made to wait at the front door for over five minutes for our 1 PM high tea sitting, their first of the day. If you are going to make your customers make an appointment, and pay a deposit, for an indulgent experience that is outrageously overpriced, by anybody’s standards ... be ready for them when they show up on time ! ! !

Notwithstanding that service “stumble”, the experience was very good. The quantities and qualities of teas and foods, the most important elements of the experience, were excellent ! The ambience was pleasant, three tables serving three couples, in a small, intimate, pleasantly decorated, afternoon high tea room. The young woman server was knowledgeable, and pleasant, although she tried a bit too hard to engage us in small talk. It came off as “phony”. One table was occupied by a pair of young Asian women speaking Chinese. We chatted with the other couple, a bit younger than us, who are originally from Winnipeg.

When we were finished, the experience taking longer than we had expected, we crossed the street to pick up a few items at Thrifty Foods. The afternoon high tea experience is designed to be leisurely, and lingering seems to be part of the experience. If you’re in a hurry ... don’t do afternoon high tea. HA HA HA ! We arrived back at our suite at 3:15 PM. Apollo was asleep ... quiet ! Very good dog, Apollo !

We had another weekend of many dogs ... and plenty of dog drama ... in the dog wing of our suites hotel. By the time we arrived back home at 3:15 PM, all except the couple across the hall who are here due to medical treatments seemed to have checked out, and our wing was quiet, as usual.

I had a brief, late nap with Apollo, then worked on uploading my weekly blog entry, and budget planning for next year.

<checking bucket list> Afternoon high tea for Joanne <check>

Monday ; Sunny in the morning, heavy rain in the afternoon, +8 C.

Because Joanne was dissatisfied with the lettuce available at Thrifty Foods yesterday, this morning she wanted to go to Quality Foods in Esquimalt to buy lettuce and a few other items. <sigh> I’m tired of how frequently we shop for groceries. Joanne is unwilling (afraid) to drive in downtown Victoria, but assures me that once we move to the Robin Hood Inn in a few weeks she’ll drive herself to wherever she wants to shop.

It wasn’t until we arrived at the small mall containing Quality Foods that she surprised me with a visit to that mall’s bakery. How nice ! <sigh> Closed Mondays !

After buying lettuce ... and more ... she wanted to see how close that Quality Foods is to the Robin Hood Inn. So ... we drove to the Robin Hood Inn before returning home to Royal Scot.

At 5 PM Joanne and I went to the swimming pool and did a set of aquatics exercises, then soaked in the hot tub. We have found that 5 PM to 6 PM is a good time to go to the pool and fitness area, we usually have it to ourselves at that time.

At 11 PM I took Apollo for his last walk of the day. BRRRRR ! Cold ! On the sidewalk in front of our hotel was a homeless man’s grocery cart of possessions. While walking Apollo I noticed the homeless man dumpster diving at the Royal Scot, the Grand Pacific and the Days Inn. <sigh> After returning Apollo to our suite I went back outside and offered to bring him a cup of tea. He said he would prefer coffee. I went back to our suite and prepared two cups of coffee for him, in disposable cups.

Merry Christmas, Ryan !

Tuesday ; Mostly sunny, +8° C.

Today’s weather was so nice (no rain !) we both took Apollo for his noon walk. And this afternoon Joanne invited me to the Bay Centre to see the Festival of Trees displays and then ... have an afternoon snack at Beavertails. OK ! ! ! We took the hotel’s shuttle to the Bay Centre at 3:15 PM. That was my mistake ! It took twenty minutes to drive to the Bay Centre ! Walking there slowly takes about that amount of time !

We spent an hour or so wandering around the Bay Centre looking at the many decorated Christmas trees, each created by a local business or organization, and most decorated in some theme à propos of that business or organization. For five bucks one can vote for “best tree”. All funds to BC Children’s Hospital. Our vote was for “Team 4 Hope”, a children’s cancer organization. Some of the attached pics (below) are of their tree. The lower part of the tree is decorated with ornaments made by their current cancer patients. The upper part of the tree is decorated with small angels bearing the names of their deceased patients.

We left the Bay Centre and meandered back towards the Inner Harbour and home/Royal Scot, with a small detour to Beavertails for Joanne’s promised afternoon snack. <blink blink> Closed on Tuesdays ! That’s two days in a row that Joanne tries to treat me (yesterday at the bakery, today at Beavertails) and is thwarted. Pauvre petite Joanne. <snicker> Don’t worry ... I still love you !

It was dusk as we approached the Inner Harbour on the way back home. Nice sunset !

Wednesday / Christmas Eve ; Sunny, chilly, +5° C.

Today I remember my father, who died on this date thirty years ago. Seems like yesterday. And for thirty years now, the Christmas season drowns me in depression and negativity. BAH, HUMBUG !

Today was a lazy day, by design. Apollo and I were up around our usual time of 8:30 AM. He woke me up wanting to go out to relieve himself. Joanne slept late.

In the afternoon I gave Apollo a bit of a facial haircut. WOW ... he has Bette Davis eyes again. HA HA HA !

In the early evening we went for a short drive around the James Bay neighbourhood to see the Christmas lights and decorations on the James Bay homes featured in the local newspaper’s map of “must see” decorated homes.

As is her family’s tradition, Joanne prepared French Canadian tourtière for dinner tonight. Thank you, my dear. As always, it was a wonderful Christmas Eve dinner. As a matter of fact ... <whispering> ... this year’s version was even better than usual.

We watched White Christmas while having dinner. I’m grateful that there was something other than It’s A Wonderful Life to watch.

Thursday ; MERRY CHRISTMAS ; Rain, +4° C.

We slept very late this morning. Well ... I had to get up at 7:30 AM because Apollo was asking to go outside earlier than usual this morning, but after a walk he and I went back to sleep until 10:20 AM.

I made my family’s traditional Christmas brunch ; Belgian waffles slathered with jam then covered with vanilla ice cream. As I mentioned in a Bluesky post the other day, it wasn’t until I reached adulthood that I realized this was not a “normal” Christmas breakfast. HA HA HA ! We opened gifts, which this year involved opening a reusable shopping bag and pulling them out. We have both finally eschewed, at the ripe old age of 71, the concept of wrapping gifts.

This afternoon we had a lengthy FaceTime session with Joanne’s sister and her partner. We look forward to seeing them in a few months when they come to visit Victoria. Apollo and I napped. Joanne worked on preparing Christmas turkey dinner with all the fixin’s.

Christmas turkey dinner was excellent, as usual. Thank you, my dear ! I moved our suite’s small dinette table from the kitchen to the living room and we ate dinner while watching Call The Midwife, a BBC show we have not seen before. It was interesting.

Between supper time and bedtime I became ... <ahem> ... very ill ! I believe that may be as a result of drinking half a can of the (exploding) probiotic soda drink this afternoon. After speaking with the “owner/manufacturer” of that line of (exploding) probiotic soda drinks, who “discovered” the formula for those drinks while he was in a drug rehab facility, I’m dubious about the “quality control” of his “manufacturing” operation ! I will pour the remaining 1½ cans of the expensive (and explosive !) cans down the drain. Good riddance ! ! !

Although ... so as not to be an ingrate ... <clearing throat> ... thank you very much for the thoughtful (exploding) Christmas present, dear. <snicker>

above video is of Centennial Fountain, across the street from our hotel

Friday / Boxing Day ; Sunny until noon, chilly, +4° C.

I woke up late, still feeling ill. By noon I was no longer feeling ill, just weak. When Housekeeping came to service our suite, we went for a walk with Apollo. Although cold outside, it was nice to walk in sunshine.

After our walk, as I was preparing Apollo’s “kefir lunch” as we call it, and opened the fridge door to remove the bottle of kefir ... ZOOM ... in the blink of an eye, Apollo had his face in the fridge, gnawing on the turkey in the roaster on the bottom shelf. HEY ! Get your ****ing face out of the turkey ! ! ! Apollo backed out of the fridge looking extremely self-actualized !

We had turkey dinner leftovers for lunch, then Joanne stripped the remaining turkey meat off the carcass, packaged it into containers, and put them in the freezer for future meals. Thank you, my dear.

We watched an episode of Call The Midwife while eating dinner. We’re now hooked on yet another BBC show. We spent the evening amusing ourselves yet again with browsing vacation rentals for next winter.

Saturday ; Sunny, cold, +4° C.

We both took Apollo for his noon time walk, the sunshine was so pleasant, but it was cold. Late this afternoon we drove to Centennial Square, where Lights of Wonder continues for a few more days, to see a mariachi band perform. We have seen a lot of mariachi bands, in south Texas and all over Mexico. None were this bad ! HA HA HA ! I think it might be that it was too cold for the trumpets to sound correct. Breath vapours condensing then freezing inside the trumpets ? There were also puppeteers in giant puppet costumes wandering around the square, amusing most children, scaring some. We were there for only about half an hour. It was too cold ! Apollo was shivering.

DSK

December 14 to 20, 2025 ; Victoria, Vancouver Island, British Columbia

 Sunday ; Overcast, +10° C.

Another somewhat lazy day with a slow start. We went for a leisurely walk with Apollo around the neighbourhood at noon. I worked on some financial records updating this afternoon. Posted my weekly blog entry. We had planned to go to a local repertory cinema this afternoon or evening for a showing of the Muppets Christmas Movie which we have not seen, but I received my regular weekly CBC GEM e-mail newsletter, and this week the Muppets Christmas Movie is available for streaming on CBC GEM, so we decided to watch it at home / in our suite. And ... you know ... <shrug> ... I had a long nap with Apollo this afternoon.

After having supper I configured the laptop to the suite’s TV via HDMI cable. And we watched the Muppets Christmas Movie. Good thing we didn’t spend sixteen bucks to see this in a theatre, as we had planned, because ... we didn’t think the movie was all that good !

The most entertaining part of the evening was ... as the movie credits were rolling ... BAM

<blink blink> HUH ? That was an explosion ! On top of our entertainment cabinet ? ? ? In a Christmas gift bag ? ? ? WHAT ? ? ?

HA HA HA HA HA ! ! ! ! ! Joanne had purchased three expensive cans of a probiotic loaded soda/soft drink as a Christmas gift for me. One of them exploded. In the immortal words of John Candy in the role of Billy Sol Hurok on SCTV ... “blowed up real good !”

We both scrambled quickly to grab the bag and start cleaning up. It was a reusable shopping bag with multiple gifts inside, and they all had to be quickly removed and cleaned and dried. As did the top of the entertainment cabinet. I found the whole thing quite amusing. Joanne did not ! She felt that she had found a unique gift for me (and my ulcerative colitis), and was pleased with herself for having found it. And ... eleven days before Christmas ... it “blowed up real good !” <trying hard to stifle my amusement as she skulks off to bed feeling sorry for herself>.

I am somewhat leery of drinking the remaining two cans. What if the contents “blow up real good” in my intestines ? ? ? <doing my best John Candy as Billy Sol Hurok impersonation> HA HA HA <SNORT> HA HA !

Monday ; Overcast, windy, light rain, +13 C.

This morning I sent an e-mail, with photo, to the Vancouver manufacturer of the exploding probiotic sodas. He responded within a minute or two by telephone. His promptness impressed me. However, his response did not ! It was along the lines of ... yeah, shit happens ! He pointed out to me that printed on the back of the can, near the bottom, in blurry, extremely tiny font, is ... “keep refrigerated”. Otherwise ... fermentation of probiotic contents might continue, and explosion might occur !

At 3:45 PM we left our suite to walk to the Legislative Building for the 4 PM Christmas concert of ... ukuleles ! The group was comprised of a couple of dozen grade 7 to grade 12 students. And a disorganized, hyperactive, music teacher. Her disorganized hyperactivity distracted from the performance. Which in and of itself was okay.

We returned from the concert to our suite for just a few minutes before heading to the swimming pool and hot tub. AHHHHH ... <deep breath>. We were gone from our suite for an hour each time. Apollo was alone ... and quiet ... for two hours in the suite. What a very good dog you are, Apollo !

Tuesday ; Raining heavily, +9° C.

We left about 11 AM this morning in the car headed to Eagle Creek Village (shopping mall) in the tony neighbourhood of View Royal to run some errands ... and have lunch. First was Dollar Tree followed by Bosley’s (pet foods & supplies) to buy Apollo a large bag of dog food. We’ve been trying to buy small bags of his dog food on PET VALU’s and Bosley’s monthly seniors’ discount days since October, but ... Apollo always seems to finish a small bag of food shortly before each monthly seniors’ discount day. We gave up ! We bought a large bag today, will keep it in the back of the car, and refill a small bag as necessary, and keep that in our suite. SHEESH ... a large bag was over a hundred bucks ! No wonder pet food store owners get rich. <ROFLMAO>

We went to Quality Foods (supermarket) and had Chinese food for lunch at their nice in-store restaurant before doing some grocery shopping. I went to the small independent pharmacy in the mall to buy my choice of deodorant product I was able to find there last year, but ... they no longer carry it. I have been searching for this Ivory brand sensitive skin deodorant, readily available at Superstore, at every pharmacy and grocery store we have been to in the last couple of weeks. <sigh> Tomorrow we will drive to Langford, about 45 minutes away, to the nearest Superstore, to buy my deodorant, which I ordered online tonight to ensure that we don’t waste an hour and a half driving to Langford and back for nothing ! As a result of going to Langford we probably will not attend tomorrow’s 4 PM Christmas choral concert at the Legislative Building as we had planned. BAH, HUMBUG !

WOW ! Horrendously crappy weather in Winnipeg !

Wednesday ; Sunny until noon, then intermittent light rain, +8° C.

We had planned to attend another choral concert at the Legislature Building rotunda at 4 PM this afternoon, but our errands took longer than expected, and we did not arrive back home until 4:30 PM. And it was dark already at 4:30 PM ! ! !

After lunch we left our suite at 1:30 PM heading for Langford, for our 2 PM to 2:30 PM scheduled pickup of my online order placed yesterday with Superstore. We arrived at Superstore around 2:15 PM but it took me ten minutes or so to find the online order pickup area (around back !). And I only found it when I asked two Superstore employees walking from their car to the store to start their work shifts where was it ? ! ? Then we sat for another ten minutes or so waiting for my small bag of four items (deodorant !) to be brought to our car. It was our first time using online ordering, and I did it just to make sure that the items I wanted were in stock. We didn’t much like the online order and pickup process, and are unlikely to do it again. <shrug> Dinosaurs !

After finishing at Superstore I refilled the car with fuel at Superstore’s Mobil Fuel Bar, then we drove across the street for more shopping at ... Wal-Mart. <singing> Oh, tidings of comfort and joy ... <echo> ... comfort and joy ! <sarcasm> Apollo was once again a very good (quiet) dog while waiting in the car at Superstore and Wal-Mart. Good dog, Apollo !

We had supper during the early part of the three hour season finale of Survivor 49. Congratulations to Savannah ... not whom I was hoping would win.

Thursday ; Intermittent light rain, +8° C.

We left our suite at 11:45 AM and walked to the Legislature Building for today’s noon Christmas concert in the rotunda featuring the Greater Victoria Concert Band. It was a pleasant concert, although the band was not much to our liking. Or more specifically, the band leader/conductor was not much to our liking. He and his mini-orchestra sounded somewhat like a (grades 7 to 9) middle school band. That hadn’t rehearsed in awhile !

After an early (for us) supper (of buckwheat holubtsi from St. Nicholas Ukrainian Catholic Church) at 6 PM, we departed again at 6:45 PM, this time with Apollo, in the car, to the Royal Theatre, for tonight’s 7:30 performance of Daniel Lapp’s 22^nd Anniversary “Home For Christmas” Concert. We saw Mr. Lapp perform a few days ago at the Legislature concerts. He is a local musician of considerable renown, a music educator, band leader, choir leader, composer, arranger, performer, Artistic Director at the Victoria Conservatory of Music ... jack of all (music) trades, as it were. A musical genius ! Every year he presents this charity fundraiser Christmas concert featuring the choirs and bands and various other specialty music groups that he teaches, organizes, conducts, leads, etc. He somewhat uses the Christmas season concerts at the Legislature to get his various groups ready and rehearsed for this annual Christmas concert at the Royal Theatre. Many of his previous students return many years into their adulthood to perform (once again) at this annual Christmas concert.

We parked in the underground parkade of the Victoria Public Library, left Apollo in the car, and walked half a block to the Royal Theatre. It was a stupendous concert of musicians and singers of all ages, from very young children to seniors. A fourteen year old violinist who has recently won the Canadian Fiddling Championship. A young cellist on a full musical scholarship at the University of Boston. And so on and so on. Mr Lapp not only plays and teaches many (all ?) instruments, he seems to produce champions and prodigies amongst his students.

The concert was stupendous !

Friday ; Intermittent rain, chilly wind, +7° C.

Today was a lazy day at home. Well ... for Apollo and me. We slept late. We went for a walk with Apollo while Housekeeping serviced our room, as they do every Friday and Monday. In the afternoon Joanne went shopping by herself while Apollo and I napped. After returning home she did laundry.

We spent the evening browsing for next winter’s accommodations, probably in the Puerto Vallarta region of Mexico. IF ... Apollo is no longer alive.

Saturday ; Rain, +6 C.

We left this morning at 11:30 AM to run some errands. A few weeks ago, while refilling the minivan with fuel at an Esso station on Fort Street, I purchased a car wash voucher at the pump before I realized their car wash was out of order. So today I returned and washed the car ... before the voucher expired. It seems counter-intuitive to a Manitoban to wash the car on a rainy day, but, when in Rome ... ! Second stop was Oak Bay Custom Orthotics to pick up Joanne’s custom made, hand made, orthotic insoles. This is the second pair of orthotic insoles she has had made for herself here, and today’s are even better than last year’s. As was predicted by the proprietor, an elderly Asian man who has been hand making custom orthotics in Victoria for over 40 years. Last year he made a cast of Joanne’s feet when her Achilles tendonitis was at its worse, so the tendon was inflamed. This year’s casts of her feet were when the Achilles tendon was in pretty good shape, after almost a year of her wearing last year’s orthotics.

I had planned our last stop to be the Hillside Mall, where I wanted to treat Joanne to today’s special event of gingerbread cookie decorating. <sigh> She declined my offer. HMPH ... perhaps I’m not the only “BAH, HUMBUG” person in our family ?

We returned home, had lunch, Apollo and I napped ... as always. Joanne and I both wasted (?) a lot of time this afternoon and evening browsing condos available for rent in Puerto Vallarta next winter. And I sent our Season’s Greetings e-mails to family and friends.

MERRY CHRISTMAS TO ALL

DSK

December 7 to 13, 2025 ; Victoria, Vancouver Island, British Columbia

 Sunday ; Overcast, drizzle in the evening, +11° C.

After lunch we left our suite at 1:45 PM headed for an afternoon (2:30 PM) concert of Christmas Pops with the Victoria Symphony Orchestra at the Royal Theatre. We drove to the downtown Victoria Public Library and parked in their parkade, leaving Apollo in the car, then walked half a block to the theatre. The concert was ... okay. The orchestra was fine, the two vocalists and their “jazz styling” of Christmas music was not to our liking.

After the concert ended at 4:15 PM we walked back to the library parkade and retrieved the car ... and dog. Good dog, Apollo. We drove about another kilometre north through downtown and parked in the Centennial Square parkade. We were there to see the “Lights of Wonder” Christmas lights display in Centennial Square, behind and beside Victoria City Hall. Apollo wondered why there was so much “foliage”, and none of it smelled like ... trees ! HA HA HA ... that’s because it’s all made of plastics, Apollo !

Somewhat Much (!) to our amazement, there was a large owl sitting on a branch on a tree beside Centennial Square, looking down and scowling at all the lights, people, and dogs in the square. <shrug> I don’t think I’ve ever seen an urban / downtown owl before !

HA HA HA ... I’m writing this at 7 PM Sunday evening. Joanne has just started preparing pizza for supper. Apollo is wandering around trying to convince us that it’s time to go to bed. HA HA HA ... no, no, Apollo, not yet ! Obviously Joanne and I are not the only ones with age related declining stamina issues. Poor tired old dog ! By the time I finished typing these few sentences he’s fast asleep in his dog bed in the suite’s living room.

Monday ; +12° C , heavy rain all day. Apollo has been resistant to going outside all day. As have we all !

At 3:45 PM we left our suite and walked to the Legislative Building to attend today’s 4 PM Christmas concert in the rotunda, the Motanka Ukrainian Women’s Choir. Thanks to today’s miserable weather, the concert was poorly attended, but that gave us excellent seats. We both enjoyed today’s concert.

I will attach two videos that I took of the choir. The first requires explanation. It’s an old Ukrainian folk song, and like many old Ukrainian folk songs, it’s about the four seasons. The little girl dancing represents a goat. When the song starts in the summer, the weather is wonderful, the crops are growing well, the little goat dances happily. In the fall, the bountiful harvest is brought in, the weather deteriorates, the little dancing goat is not happy. Winter comes ... <gasp> ... the little goat dies ! The people are horrified, then sad, then determined to make it through the long, hard winter, made possible thanks to last fall’s harvest. In the spring, the little goat is reborn ... the cycle repeats, and so on ! HA HA HA ... as I said, this is a recurrent theme in old Ukrainian folk songs. When I was a little child, I remember my father and his cronies singing such songs when they all had a bit too much to drink, which fortunately wasn’t often.

The second video is of “Carol Of The Bells”, a Ukrainian Christmas carol that has been translated into many languages around the world, and certainly popular in the English language.  SLAVA UKRAINI

Tuesday ; Overcast, +10° C., rain starting around 4 PM.

We left our suite at 11:30 AM this morning, first to take Apollo for his noon time walk, and for me to drop off at Huntington Manor, a local hotel, one of their room key cards I found a couple of days ago. We returned Apollo to our suite, then walked to the Legislature Building for a Christmas concert at noon in the rotunda.

Today’s concert was a performance by South Island Harmony, an a cappella chorus comprised of about fifteen men ... and a woman. Well ... somebody has to hit the soprano notes. HA HA HA ! They were very good ! They had better start shopping around soon for a new basso profondo member. Their current basso profondo member ... and he’s very good ... looks ... <ahem> ... rather elderly !

After lunch we headed off in the car for an afternoon of shopping errands ; Country Grocer, Dollar Tree, London Drugs, Save-On-Foods, Dollarama, and Fairway Market. It’s now becoming dark in Victoria at 4:30 PM. We arrived back home around 7 PM. Too much shopping, too many malls, too much driving in the dark and the rain ... just ... too much ! All three of us are too old and too tired for days like today. This evening we (Joanne and me ... Apollo did not participate, he was napping) discussed how to do “errand days” differently and better.

Wednesday ; +11° C., heavy rain all day.

At 11:45 AM we headed to the BC Legislature Building again to attend today’s noon Christmas concert featuring Folkestra, a local folk orchestra, mostly string instruments, but including two accordions (twice the fun !) and a flute. I was an accordionist from age 8 to about age 17, so I am entitled to poke fun at accordionists. Today we forgot our cell phone in our suite, so ... no pictures or videos of today’s concert. Most of their concert was “fiddle music”, specifically Canadian fiddle music.

After the concert we returned to our suite, had lunch, then set off for an afternoon of Wal-Martin’. WOO-HOO ... <sarcasm> ! Once again we went to the Wal-Mart located at Uptown Shopping Mall, an incredibly goofy Wal-Mart in an incredibly goofy mall. We chose that location today simply to avoid the rain. Uptown has an underground parkade, so one can get from the car to the store then back to the car without being exposed to rain. Well ... even that’s not true. Uptown is such a goofy mall that you must come upstairs out of the parkade, and dash across about 100 feet of outdoors to get into the Wal-Mart. At our “regular” Wal-Mart location at Hillside Shopping Centre, one needs to pack a lunch to get from your parking spot to the store.

Apollo seemed slightly ill today, very lethargic, not hungry, etc.

Congratulations to Jag and Jas, the brothers from Omak, Washington (a stone’s throw from our previous home near Keremeos, BC) on winning The Amazing Race tonight.

Thursday ; Overcast, intermittent light rain, +9° C.

Late this afternoon we left to go to the Esquimalt Farmers Market where we bought assorted wild mushrooms a few weeks ago. We wanted more today. On the drive there Joanne told me that while she enjoyed the Chanterelles, Winter Chanterelles, and Belly Button Mushrooms we bought last time, what she really wanted to try were Matsutake Mushrooms, a.k.a. Pine Mushrooms. We have never eaten Matsutake / Pine Mushrooms despite having found a few in the wild when we’ve been mushroom hunting / foraging.

Today we bought another basket of mixed wild mushrooms, about ¾ large Matsutakes, and about ¼ small Winter Chanterelles. We also bought a variety of locally grown (overpriced) vegetables and greens. Doing our part to “support local” ! Back at home Joanne did some Matsutake recipe research, and we decided that our basket of mushrooms was enough to make three meals ; Matsutake risotto tonight, Matsutake omelette tomorrow, and Matsutake & Winter Chanterelle creamy pasta Saturday.

We have long been aware of foods that taste differently to different people, but have not experienced that personally. For example, we have long known that some people love the tangy taste of cilantro, while some people taste “dirt” when they eat cilantro. Joanne and I are in the former group, we love cilantro. But tonight ... while she thought the Matsutake / Pine mushrooms in the risotto had a delicate, pleasant earthy taste, I found that the mushrooms had a strong bitter taste. How odd that we taste them differently.

I visited for awhile with the people across the hall from us, while I was returning from a walk with Apollo, and they were going out with their four year old male brown miniature poodle Dash. They are from Nanaimo, and will be staying here at Royal Scot for three weeks while the woman undergoes daily radiation treatments following surgery for breast cancer. As soon as her final treatment is finished on Christmas Eve they will drive back home to Nanaimo, a few hours north of Victoria. Apollo and Dash were friendly to each other. In the year and a half that we have had Apollo he has become much friendlier towards other dogs. Good dog, Apollo !

He was much healthier today, active and happy. We surmise that he may have simply been literally “under the weather” after being cold and wet from having to go outside about half a dozen times per day during the last few days of constant heavy rain. Poor old dog ! His time is running out ! <whispering> I can relate !

Friday ; Overcast, +9° C.

A slow “stay at home” day. Although ... Joanne procrastinated all day about going out shopping by herself for a Christmas gift (HMPH ... just one ? ? ?) for me. She claimed repeatedly throughout the day that she was “just waiting for the (forecast) rain to pass”. Yeah ... it never rained today ! Then ... “it’s going to be dark before I get home and I don’t want to walk in the dark”. Another “empty stocking” Christmas for me ? ! ? HA HA HA !

In the afternoon I made another brie en croute. This time I used apple sauce instead of jam. And I sprinkled cinnamon sugar on top before baking. The cinnamon sugar was an improvement, the apple sauce was not. Nevertheless ... still very good ! Well done again, Daniel ! Joanne assisted. A lot ! I’m a messy cook, an especially messy baker. Flour dusted everywhere ... on the table, on the counter, on the stove ... on my sweatshirt, on the kitchen chairs, on my computer ... ! <shrug> Even I can’t explain how it ended up on my computer. HA HA HA !

By the way ... <blink blink> ... currently (7 PM) it’s -26° C at home in Winnipeg at the moment, with a wind chill factor of -36° C. That’s 33 below zero for you Fahrenheit people. Makes +9° C (48° F) with rain forecast look pretty good ! ! !

I cooked Matsutake (mushrooms) & Brie (cheese) omelettes for supper tonight. At Joanne’s insistence I employed a new (to me) cooking technique. The results were ... visually ugly. HA HA HA ! The flavour / taste was just fine, thank you very much !

Saturday ; Overcast, +9 C.

We left Apollo alone in our suite when we left at noon to walk to White Eagle Polish Hall, a bit more than a kilometre away, for their annual Christmas market. We wanted to buy home made Polish food again. When we got to the hall, there was a line-up from here to eternity to buy a variety of Polish Christmas sausages. Fortunately for us, that was not what we were there to buy. We were there to buy home made Polish food from the operators of the Polka Pierogis food truck located in the parking lot of the hall, but operating out of the hall’s indoor kitchen during November and December. Once again we bought beef holubtsi (cabbage rolls), and something new to try ; uszka/mushroom stuffed dumplings, somewhat similar in appearance to tortellini pasta, and a large jar of Borscht broth, in which uszka are cooked and served.

We detoured slightly on the walk back to Royal Scot, stopping at Thrifty Foods to replenish some groceries and buy some advertised specials ... (ooooo ... chocolate dipped shortbread cookies !). By the time we arrived back at Royal Scot Joanne was complaining that the 2.6 km. distance we walked was beyond her comfortable capabilities. <sigh> Her two year persistent (and still undiagnosed ... <fume>) chronic coughing/respiratory problem has significantly diminished her stamina. That inspired a discussion about next year’s winter travel plans ; what/where is practical/possible and what/where isn’t. <whispering> We’re assuming Apollo will not be around next winter.

When we arrived back at our suite, about 1¼ hours after leaving, Apollo was sound asleep in his dog bed. As opposed to standing at the suite door ... barking ! Good dog, Apollo !

We left again, at 3:15 PM, with Apollo, in the car, heading to Belfry Theatre for the 4 PM performance of Little Dickens, a 2¼ hour, no intermission, one man marionette show. What a demanding performance for Ronnie Burkett, the founder of Daisy Theatre of Marionettes, creator of all the puppets, and the plays in which his cast of marionettes “perform”. This performance, and I think most of his creations, are “adult only” puppet shows. It takes a lot of moxie to create puppet shows that can inspire a full theatre’s adult audience to shout at the top of their lungs, on cue ... “FUCK OFF DIANE !” Dianne is a witch puppet. HA HA HA ! The story line of Little Dickens is loosely based on Charles Dickens’ Christmas Carol. Emphasis on “loosely” ! HA HA HA !

We left Apollo alone in the car for almost three hours. What a good dog you are, Apollo !

Tonight was our last wild mushroom meal with the basket of mixed wild mushrooms we bought Thursday at the Esquimalt Farmers Market. Joanne sautéed the remaining mushrooms, a mixture of Matsutake/ Pine mushrooms and Winter Chanterelles, and then mixed them into creamy angel hair pasta. It was a very good meal ! Well done, dear !

During and after supper we watched tonight’s episode of SNL. Weak episode !

DSK

November 30 to December 6, 2025 ; Victoria, Vancouver Island, British Columbia

 Sunday ; Sunny, +8° C, seemed chillier than that.

Most of the (American) dogs in our hotel “dog wing” checked out this morning. AWWW ... no more dog parties and dog fights in the hallway. HA HA HA !

This afternoon I did monthly preventive maintenance on the car, checking tire pressures and fluid levels. I paid our monthly condo fees. I processed yesterday’s Santa Claus Parade pics, and when that was finished, I was able to post last week’s daily journal to my blog.

Joanne walked to Thrifty Foods to buy some groceries, and asked me to come pick her up with the car so that she wouldn’t have to walk home (about a kilometre) carrying a heavy jug of milk.

In the evening I did regular monthly computer maintenance ; scans and backups of all files, etc.

Monday ; Overcast, occasional light rain, +7° C.

I spent the early part of the day working on month end and month beginning financial matters ; paying bills, reconciling, etc.

At 4:30 PM we departed to run some errands, have dinner, and visit Butchart Gardens. First stop was Wal-Mart at Uptown Shopping Mall. We’ve been to this location last year, and it’s not quite as goofy as the Wal-Mart we regularly visit at Hillside, but it’s a further distance from Royal Scot. From Wal-Mart we headed to our choice for supper, Gyrosa, a fast food Greek restaurant in Royal Oak Shopping Centre. The meal was good, the friendliness and efficiency of the staff was superb. After supper we headed for Butchart Gardens, halfway up the Saanich Peninsula, in the middle of nowhere, near Brentwood Bay. Thank goodness for GPS !

Today was the first day of Butchart Gardens Christmas displays season. And from 8 PM to 10 PM dogs are allowed. The intermittent drizzle of the day held off between 8 PM and 9:30 PM. It started again as we were leaving the display gardens and walking back to our car in their massive parking lot, so all we were subjected to was a few minutes of drizzle, and on our way from the gardens to the parking lot we picked up a loaner umbrella, a common amenity offered by Victoria businesses.

The Christmas lighting displays in the gardens were quite spectacular. And I still don’t recall ever having been to Butchart Gardens in the past, but Joanne is certain that we have been, many years ago. <shrug> Much like at the Victoria Santa Claus Parade a few nights ago, Apollo was captivated, especially as we watched people skating on Butchart Gardens slightly elevated skating rink, so that the people’s skates were at Apollo’s eye level. I would guess that he’s never seen people on skates up close before. HA HA HA ... good dog, Apollo.

His exuberant “Happy Dance” upon our return to our suite about 10:30 PM was indicative of how much he enjoyed the outing, and particularly how much he enjoyed returning “home” to Royal Scot.

Tuesday ; Overcast, +7° C.

Today was another “start late, do little” day. That seems to be our new normal following a busy day. <sigh> Being old is so wonderful ! <sarcasm> However ... low energy / stamina is better than ... the alternative, n’est-ce pas ?

I continued working on financial matters today, necessitating a phone call to Steinbach Credit Union and another to Service Canada / Govt. of Canada. Lots of time spent on hold. And I downloaded and processed photos and videos from last night’s visit to Butchart Gardens. I cooked dinner tonight. Baked Steelhead Trout with creamy pasta and vegetables.

Wednesday ; Overcast, +7° C.

Joanne decided we should go out for lunch today, so at 1 PM we headed out to walk to her choice for lunch, Little Sweet Cakes, a bakery about one kilometre from our hotel. When we arrived at the tiny bakery they advised us that they no longer offer lunch, only baked goods. Well for crying out loud ... then change your website !

No problem ... Joanne had a plan B. We walked a few doors down to Smile Chicken and had lunch. It was superb ! We had purchased take-out Korean chicken from Smile Chicken last winter. After lunch we walked back to Little Sweet Cakes and bought a slice of Tiramisu to have as dessert after supper tonight.

On our way back to our hotel we stopped at Victoria Public Library. I wanted to use the restroom, and I’m always interested in libraries. They had a section of free books. I helped myself to two oddball cookbooks that must have received so little interest as library books to be borrowed that they ended up on the free shelf. They will be part of my “Santa to me” Christmas gifts. If they turn out to be disinteresting ... <shrug> ... no big loss ! HA HA HA !

I noticed while in the washroom that Victoria Public Library’s washroom was being used by some homeless people as their place to perform daily toilette / hygiene. HEY ... great idea. Great use of public facilities. And the fellows washing up in the washroom seemed to be particularly careful and respectful of the privilege. Bravo ! Homelessness is a HUGE social issue and problem here in Victoria, especially downtown. The climate here makes it not only desirable for us elderly Snowbirds, but is one of the few places in Canada where winter is more or less survivable by the homeless. Helped by the BC government’s enlightened attitudes towards safe consumption sites and harm reduction policies and programs for the addicted.

I’m a big fan of both Manitoba’s and British Columbia’s NDP governments. Once a pinko, always a pinko, je suppose. HA HA HA!

I cooked supper again tonight, making egg and (cottage) cheese pie. Well done, Daniel. We had supper while watching Survivor, then Amazing Race, our usual Wednesday evening ritual. This is (probably) the fourth time I have made this egg and cheese pie recipe, and it turns out better each time I make it. Well, except this time I forgot to spray the bottom of the casserole dish I baked it in and ... <whispering> ... it stuck to the bottom !

The Tiramisu was ... mediocre.

Thursday ; +7° C, light rain all day.

We had planned to go again to the Esquimalt Farmers Market this afternoon, but got sidetracked. Walked with Apollo this evening to the Inner Harbour to see the annual Harbour Light Up event.

Friday ; +10° C, windy, intermittent drizzle.

At 11:45 AM we all headed off for Apollo’s noon walk, and to replenish groceries at Thrifty Foods. The leisurely <rolling my eyes> walk to Thrifty’s went fine. While Joanne went into Thrifty’s to pick up a few items (35 minutes !) Apollo and I waited outside. After about half an hour, Apollo’s feet were so cold from standing in one spot on cold concrete he was shivering. I had to pick him up (21½ pounds !) and hold him in my arms, wrapping my hands around his feet to warm him up. Like us ... he’s old ! And also like us, seemingly much more so this year than last ! I think we shouldn’t combine his walks with shopping trips to Thrifty’s any more.

We’re planning an outing tomorrow ... with him ... to another parade ... that will involve walking 1.7 km. then back the same distance. I hope that doesn’t prove to be too much for him. Or Joanne !

Today was the first day of another holiday season of daily Christmas concerts in the rotunda of the BC Legislature building ; some bands, some choirs. At 3:50 PM we left to walk half a block to the Legislature Building to attend the 4 PM concert featuring the Vancouver Island Chamber Choir. It was pleasant, and helped improve my negative mood, a common problem for me during the ... <ahem> ... “Christmas season”. Yes, yes, my depression turns me into one of those “Bah, Humbug” people.

Saturday ; Morning was sunny, becoming overcast by lunch time, +8° C.

This afternoon we left home at 4:30 PM to walk to Dallas Road to watch the Christmas Truck Parade. BUT ... I decided shortly before leaving that the chilly, strong wind coming in off the Pacific Ocean would make it uncomfortable to walk there, watch the parade, and walk back, and ... run errands in both directions. So we took the car !

We drove to Thrifty Foods and parked in their lot. While Joanne went into Thrifty Foods (our errand planned for the walk back to the hotel) I crossed the street to Piggy & Paisley, a snooty bakery café to make reservations for afternoon high tea just before Christmas (our errand planned for the walk to the parade).

Last year I had planned an afternoon high tea outing to the Fairmont Empress Hotel, very close to the Royal Scot where we are currently staying. The price for afternoon high tea at The Empress is truly ridiculous, but ... it’s a classic tourist activity in Victoria. I had planned and made reservations for it as a Christmas gift for Joanne. But she decided that she would rather have afternoon high tea at Butchart Gardens, equally outrageously priced, in conjunction with a visit to Butchart to view the floral gardens. So ... this year when we decided to go to Butchart Gardens during their Christmas (lights) season, and bring the dog, allowed after 8 PM, that eliminated Butchart Gardens as the choice for afternoon high tea. So ... she researched all the snooty places in Victoria that offer afternoon high tea, and many of them are in our James Bay neighbourhood, and she selected Piggy & Paisley. But I digress ...

So after Piggy & Paisley reservations and purchase of lettuce and mushrooms at Thrifty Foods, we drove a bit further south in our James Bay neighbourhood and found a parking spot on a side street about a block from Dallas Road, the Pacific Ocean waterfront road that runs along the coastline that defines the southern tip of Vancouver Island. We walked the last block to Dallas Road, and found a spot to stand and watch the 2025 Christmas Truck Parade which started a few minutes later, at 5 PM, from its starting point a couple of blocks down Dallas Road. It would take three hours to reach its finish line in Langford. It was quite spectacular. And Apollo thought going to another parade was GREAT ! Good dog, Apollo.

The amazingly decorated big commercial trucks zoomed by at a pretty quick clip, and it took only about 15 minutes for the parade to pass by us. We walked back to where our minivan was parked, and drove the short distance home to Royal Scot Suites Hotel.

While having supper we watched Saturday Night Live, broadcast LIVE ... FROM NEW YORK ... surprisingly early here on the West Coast at 8:30 PM.

HEY ... guess what ? Tonight Apollo and I discovered that we both like Egg Nog mixed with kefir. HA HA HA HA HA !

DSK

November 23 to 29, 2025 ; Victoria, Vancouver Island, British Columbia

 Sunday ; Sunny, +9° C.

At 1:15 PM we left our suite to head to Belfry Theatre for the 2 PM performance of Burning Mom, a one woman play about a recent widow who decides, shortly after the death of her husband, and against the wishes of her children, to take the RV she and her husband had recently acquired to fulfill their retirement dream of full time RV’ing, and head to ... <blink> ... the Burning Man Festival in the Black Rock desert of Nevada.

Quite a profound play ! Powerful imagery at the end !

We had a choice of leaving Apollo alone in our suite, with a risk that he might spend 3½ hours barking, possibly disturbing neighbours, or leaving him alone in the car parked near the theatre for almost three hours, where even if he barked the whole time there were no consequences. We left him in the car. Good dog, Apollo !

Late in the evening we stumbled upon a movie on PBS Masterpiece Theatre that we found quite moving, called The Great Escaper. HMPH ... moved to tears twice in one day, first by a play, then by a TV movie.

Monday ; Overcast, +8° C.

Early this morning I received a scheduled “call back” from the Govt. Of Canada. I had called them to change our CPP and OAS direct deposit bank account to our new Steinbach Credit Union daily interest savings account. It wasn’t until late in the day while working on something else that I discovered that I had provided them with the incorrect “branch transit number”. <sigh> I make more errors nowadays than I did when I was younger ! That’s a bit discouraging.

After lunch and a nap for me and Apollo we went shopping at Hillside Centre shopping mall. First of two planned stops was Dollarama. After Dollarama I offered to take our Dollarama purchases to the car while Joanne got a head start on the Wal-Martin’. Perfect ! She fell for it ! On the way to the car I got some Christmas shopping done as quickly as I could.

I refilled the minivan with fuel at an Esso station that has a car wash. YIKES ! Regular fuel in Victoria is $1.599 ! At the pump I purchased a car wash ... on impulse. The car wash entrance was not obvious so I went inside to find out where the car wash entrance is. “Out of Order” today. <fume> Now I have to return to get a car wash ! Is it too much trouble to put up “car wash out of order” signs at the pumps ? ! ?

In the evening I worked on planning our return trip home in the spring, and making motel reservations. As I expected, I was able to score some Black Friday special pricing offers.

Tuesday ; Raining all day, +7° C.

I spent most of the morning dealing with the intricacies and complexities of getting our multitude of direct deposits rerouted from BMO to Steinbach Credit Union. And when I was done ... I had to undo half of it because the new daily interest savings account I opened at Steinbach Credit Union is in my name only ! <sigh> And can only be changed to a joint account in person, so will have to wait until we return to Winnipeg next spring. <sigh>

Late in the afternoon we walked across the street to the Grand Pacific Hotel, to view this year’s Gingerbread Showcase competition / displays, an annual fundraiser for Victoria’s Habitat For Humanity. The displays were fantastic, as they were last year as well, with some of the gingerbread creations taking hundreds of hours to produce. Each year’s competition has a theme. This year’s theme was Homes For All.

See www.habitatvictoria.com/gingerbread

While viewing the gingerbread creations I overheard a young couple speaking French. I engaged them in conversation in French. Joanne joined in, her French is much better than mine. The young man is a teacher at one of the two French language public secondary schools here in Victoria. We did not know that such a thing existed. The young woman was here to visit him. She is a medical student at a university in Laval, Quebec.

We left Apollo alone in our suite for an hour. He was a very good (quiet) boy.

Wednesday ; Overcast, +8° C., rain starting at bedtime.

Slept poorly, had a slow start to a lazy day. Entered pension deposits in financial records, paid bills, processed photos, made motel reservations for return trip home in the spring. Joanne walked to Thrifty Foods in James Bay to buy a few grocery items. Had supper while watching Survivor followed by Amazing Race.

Late in the evening Apollo injured his right front knee. It was after 11 PM, we were watching late news on TV, he went into the bedroom. We thought he was tired and going to sleep before us. A minute later he returned from the bedroom, limping heavily. WTF, Apollo ? He has pet steps leading onto the bed, so it’s unlikely that he injured himself trying to jump onto the bed. Or did he ?

Thursday ; Steady drizzle all day, +9° C.

Apollo was still limping heavily this morning, but as the day wore on his limp slowly diminished until it was completely gone by this evening. We went to a Bosley’s store this afternoon to buy more dog food and treats. Today was their monthly seniors’ discount day. We left Apollo in the car to give his knee as much opportunity to rest as possible. We thought that shopping at Bosley’s is so exciting for him that he might make his knee injury worse.

While I was at Bosley’s Joanne went into The Market On Yates to buy tomatoes and avocados. I met her in the store as she was in line to pay. The Jamaican accented cashier should win the award for most disinterested cashier in existence ! She made a pricing error, charging an incorrect product code that resulted in a few tomatoes (that were on sale) costing over $5, and then “didn’t know how” to correct that. We had to go to an adjacent (very busy) cashier and wait for her to become available to get that error corrected. <sigh> I dislike ineptitude, but can accept and forgive it as part of a learning process. However ... I’m completely intolerant of “I don’t give a shit” disinterest !

BTW ... each tomato had a small label with the correct product code on it ! ! !

The “dog wing” of Royal Scot Suites Hotel that we are in seems to have rapidly filled up with Americans with dogs coming from Seattle or the Olympic Peninsula by ferry to Victoria for their Thanksgiving weekend. Apollo has participated in or instigated a number of dog parties and dog fights in our hallway today. HA HA HA ... you go, Apollo ... good dog !

Friday ; Sunny, windy, +10° C.

Around noon we all went for a walk to the nearby New Horizons Seniors’ Centre to browse their Christmas Bazaar (craft sale). An entire large hall filled with a year’s worth of members’ production of crochet and knit items of dubious value. Oh, well ... it was a lovely, sunny day for a long, leisurely <sigh> walk with the dog. The walking capacity of both Apollo and Joanne has diminished greatly.

At 5 PM we went to the swimming pool and fitness room. I exercised with dumbbell weights while Joanne exercised in the pool, then we went for a soak in the hot tub. Afterwards Joanne went to the sauna briefly. I returned to our suite where Apollo had been a very good boy, waiting quietly. Good dog, Apollo. That might be because ... he’s become so deaf in the last year that he probably didn’t even hear us leaving, and snoozed right through our one hour absence. HA HA HA !

I purchased tickets to Butchart Gardens for Monday evening. Monday is the first day of their Christmas season. The massive flower gardens are all decorated with Christmas lighting. And dogs are permitted after 8 PM, until closing at 10 PM. I don’t recall ever visiting Butchart Gardens before, but ... much like Apollo’s hearing, my memory isn’t what it used to be. Joanne seems certain that we have visited there before.

Saturday ; Mix of sun and clouds, +7° C.

We left our suite this morning at 10:30 AM. First stop was Vessel Liquor where I bought a locally produced specialty gin product requested by our neighbour who is collecting our mail this winter. Next was ... <insert drum roll here> ... St. Nicolas Ukrainian Catholic Church for their Christmas Food Fair fundraising event, the sale of home made Ukrainian food and baking. WOO-HOO !

<blink blink> Holy shit ! The line-up to get into the church basement looks like the line-ups to get on rides at Disney World ! Took about forty-five minutes to get in. T’was worth it ! Bought seventy-nine bucks worth of home made perogies and buckwheat holubtsi (cabbage rolls) and nalyshnyky (stuffed crepes) and fruit cake and kolach (braided Christmas bread) and cinnamon buns and a gingerbread man cookie (for Joanne ... I don’t like gingerbread) and a sourdough boule (I’ll eat that !).

One of the women serving us asked ... in a thick accent (recent immigrant), “do you have Ukrainian ancestry ?” My answer was yes, but I was thinking ... “do I look like I have a neck ?” HA HA HA ...Uke humour.

That long line-up made us slightly late for Joanne’s appointment at Oak Bay Orthotics, where she ordered another pair of custom orthotic insoles. She had a pair of custom orthotic insoles made here a year ago with the hope that they would alleviate her Achilles tendonitis pain, which had become debilitating. They did ! So ... today she ordered another pair to be made. The cost is outrageous, but ... the results make it worthwhile. Today she had casts made of her feet. The orthotic insoles will be ready a few days before Christmas.

When we were finished at Oak Bay Orthotics we went to Fairway Market in the same small mall to buy some groceries, including an advertised special ; a box of Chinese mandarin oranges for $3.99, half the price advertised by other grocery stores here in Victoria.

At 5 PM we left our suite and walked half a block to where the Santa Claus Parade was being assembled / marshalled on Menzies Street beside the Legislative Building. We wandered around looking at floats waiting for the parade to begin, then found a spot to sit in front of the Legislative Building and watch the parade. It only took a few minutes of sitting on a low concrete wall to realize that I needed to return to our suite to get a blanket to sit on. For reasons unknown the parade was a bit late to start (scheduled for 5:30 PM), so that by the time the entire parade had passed by us it was almost 7 PM.

BRRRRR ... we were all cold, from sitting on concrete, and from the chilly wind blowing in off the Inner Harbour. The parade was lengthy / long. And a lot of the children marching in the parade (scouting groups, athletic groups, etc.), who had assembled prior to 5 PM, looked frozen. And we were at the very beginning of the route. They were still going to be marching outside for about another hour or so before reaching the end of the route. Poor kids !

Despite being a bit cold, Apollo was awestruck ! Lots of lights, lots of dogs, lots of people, lots of children. We have no way of knowing if he has ever seen a parade before, but it all seemed new to him. Good dog, Apollo. He was friendly to all dogs and children who approached him. However ... HA HA HA ... he was thrilled when we returned to our suite. “WOO-HOO ... HOME ... WARM ... I’M HUNGRY !”

Holy mackerel ... that St. Nicholas Church fruit cake is good ! ! !

DSK