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Rions and Cadillac

Rions and Cadillac

  • Travel
Let’s get one thing straight at the outset: it’s cahd-e-lach not cad-a-lack. OK? OK! Done.

Today we set forth with something of a jet lag hangover to see what was interesting in the nearby area. If your idea of “interesting” is the BIG SITES, God bless you and

And So It Begins

And So It Begins

  • Travel
Our European journey started off smoothly. Our driver showed up as arranged, the ferry to Seattle was right on time, and we sped through check-in at the airport in near record time. Then I almost caused us to miss our flight.

Things had gone so well that we found ourselves

Flying Piano (reprise)

Flying Piano (reprise)

  • News
What goes in through the bedroom, comes out through the bedroom.

And so it was for our 7’ 4” Falcone piano. The difference was that Martinson Piano Movers used a crane on the way in and a forklift-like machine on the way out.

Although the forklift seemed to be a

Clouds

Clouds

  • Photos
A cloud formation I’ve never seen before.
The End, eh?

The End, eh?

  • Travel
Our six-week Canadian voyage ends at tiny Cabbage Island.

I was surprised to find so many people here when we arrived just after Noon. Because there is a sand beach and swimmable water, the place is popular with visitors from the BC mainland and Vancouver Island. They zip across the

Swimmin’ Pools, Movie Stars

Swimmin’ Pools, Movie Stars

  • Travel
Come and listen to a story about a man named Jed(ediah) 
A poor mountaineer, barely kept his family fed, 
Then one day he was shootin at some food, 
And up through the ground came a bubblin crude. 

Oil that is, black gold, Texas tea.

The Ballad of Jed Clampett

Photos from the Sea

Photos from the Sea

  • Travel
This happens every time I take a trip. Many photos fit nicely into a narrative, some do not. Here are a few that didn’t.

The Gulf Islands have become a parking lot for freighters waiting to unload at Vancouver. During the pandemic, the crew was not allowed to leave

Pirates Cove

Pirates Cove

  • Travel
I’ve been avoiding Pirates Cove on De Courcy Island for years. It’s difficult to enter, anchors don’t hold well, and it’s so popular that boats stern-tie (more in this later) so they don’t bump into each other.

But we had a couple of extra days

Princess Louisa Inlet

Princess Louisa Inlet

  • Travel
The journey from Vancouver to Princess Louisa Inlet was both a return to a favorite place and something new. It was our first time cruising north along the coast of the mainland, known as the Sunshine Coast. It was also our first time with a guest aboard for more than
A Gabriola Island Bike Ride

A Gabriola Island Bike Ride

  • Travel
First off, let’s get this straight: it’s not GAB-re-ola, it’s GAY-brie-ola. Why? Canada.

Silva Bay, on the east side of Gabriola, is a popular jumping-off point for boaters intending to cross the Strait of Georgia. That’s because Silva Bay opens directly into the Strait, so no

The Land That Time Forgot

The Land That Time Forgot

  • Travel
Pssst! Wanna see a hippie?l

Galiano Island is a place where counterculture lives. Catch the free bus to the Hummingbird Pub, and Tommy Transit will hand you a rhythm instrument so you can join in the neverending concert. Rock on as the old school bus tries to make it

Genoa Bay

Genoa Bay

  • Travel
All you folks who’ve been to Italy listen up! This small bay on the eastern shore of Vancouver Island is not GEN-oa Bay, it’s Ge-NO-a Bay. Get it right. Don’t annoy the locals.

Not that anyone around here is easily annoyed. Genoa Bay is a friendly place

A Little Jack

A Little Jack

  • Travel
It seems like I’ve heard about Lynchburg, Tennessee forever. I can thank the Jack Daniels advertising department for that.

To the casual observer, there’s not much to Lynchburg; basically a single block of shops and restaurants. But what is there is attractive and the surroundings are classic southern

Fairyland

Fairyland

  • Travel
Fairytales. Like kinky sex, sweet cocktails, and Jerry Lewis movies, they seem fun at first but can turn on you in an instant.

No one plumbed the dark depths of these happy tales better than Stephen Sondheim in his musical Into the Woods. Well, almost no one. Let’s not