Cal's Journal

I ended up in the garden today. It felt good digging in the dirt, turning the soil, trimming the hedge, and cleaning the yard. It was a nice connection with the natural world. Spring has burst forth in our amazing part of the world and I was grateful to be outside breathing in the fresh mountain air. It was another Sunday in the caronaverse.  My honey was free of her viral foe and it was only one more day for Read more

Elizabeth stood in the front row and looked up at the smart young man in the naval uniform. He looked dashing, charming, and oh so handsome. Her stomach swirled inside; she had never felt this way before. He smiled at her and she melted, unable to look away she excitedly said yes when he asked her to join him in the garden for a walk. Little did she know at the time he would be the one to walk with Read more

I went down the rabbit hole again. I hate it when that happens. It was almost uncontrollable, my desire to engage on facebook drew me in and I found it very hard to retreat. This time it was the video posted from the restaurant in Vancouver. People chanted “Get out!” at the poor people just trying to do their jobs. A job nobody wants. Nobody wants to tell the poor restaurants they can’t serve people inside. How heart-wrenching it must Read more

Dave lay there, cold sweats soaking the sheets of his bed. Sleep was hard to come by and his mind kept churning. Another wave of nausea clenched his stomach and he waited for it to pass. Food was a luxury he couldn’t afford as the meds they had given him continued to mess with his body. What was left of his body that is… He saw the moment with a clarity that shook him to the core; the moment that Read more

She stood atop the sun-baked slopes. It was a bluebird day and the wind whipped across the peak of Big White Mountain. It was April 5, Easter Monday and this was the last day of an epic season of riding in the coronaverse. Liz’s one-piece skisuit was straight out of 1989 and her hair was freshly cut to match. She flicked on her smartphone’s video camera and shared her first run on the last day with facebook land. Her snowboard Read more

One year ago today I turned fifty. It was supposed to be an epic year. It was supposed to be one that saw us travel the world and enjoy a taste of freedom like I never knew in my adult life. Supposed is a long word that doesn’t always mean what it says. At first, it all seemed so surreal. It felt like an experience from some sci-fi movie. We were told to stay apart; the health experts said we Read more

Natalie held her phone and stared at the message: “Automated message from the BC Centre for Disease Control, Covid19 test result for Natalie D is POSITIVE. You and those you live with need to self-isolate now. You will be contacted shortly for contact tracing.” She sat there numb; shock, fear, and anger took turns coursing through her body and her mind. How could she be positive? Sure, she went to the restaurant but everyone there was safe. Or so she Read more

The news we were dreading came today. Big White announced they were closing the hill six days early. Citing the closure of Whistler and increased traffic from the lower mainland. As well as the foolish party at Charley Victoria’s; the management of the resort made the regrettable decision. I wanted to ski fifty days this year; it doesn’t look like that will happen now. I could have worse problems. It certainly is a first-world problem. Others have much bigger problems. Read more