Cal's Journal

I stared out the window at the big fat fluffy flakes of snow falling from the sky. My buddy had a plan, he was taking his son out of school and headed for Big White. I had a different plan, one that didn’t involve skiing the fresh snow at the mountain. I wish my plan could be a daily intake of fun and frolic in the fresh powder of our mountain home. Wishing wouldn’t get my work done. Sometimes the Read more

The two friends jumped into the truck and headed on the road for a new adventure. Barrman looked over at his buddy Big Boarder and smiled. It was just after 8:00 am, the road was clear and the sun peaked through the clouds overhead. “It looks like an awesome day at Apex. The snow report says fourteen cms in 24 hours and thirty-two in 48. Powder awaits us!” Barrman practically bounced out of the passenger seat as the Big Boarder Read more

Love. Many times over the years I thought I knew what love was. It was an affliction, an addiction. It was a time when I couldn’t be without that other person. Or so I thought at the time. Now I know what love means to me. It means being wrong and still caring, it means the world may still revolve under my feet but my world revolves around the one I love. It took me a long time to find Read more

‘Windchill of minus 25 in the alpine’ screamed the headline on the Big White website. There it was in bold letters surrounded by red on the top of the page. It was a warning, a caution for those that feared the biting cold. I texted my neighbour Brad and wondered if he had taken his two sons and headed to the mountain. His answer was no. Too cold for his kids. I told him the Gem lake chair was closed Read more

Superbowl Sunday in the coronaverse. It was almost normal to watch the yearly sporting spectacle that takes over the TV screens in North America every February. Almost normal. I tried to care, I tried to find a reason to pull for a team of millionaires chasing a pigskin around a one-third full stadium in Tampa Bay Florida. I tried to care; I couldn’t. It wasn’t the same without the parties. At least the NFL got to play its championship game. Read more

Blue sky and sunshine filled the valley in the morning as I stood atop the tallest building towering over Kelowna. I looked over the scene in front of me in awe. We were putting a swing stage on the building for the glazer and I stood and stared at the snow-covered mountains lit up by gleaming sunshine. In the mirror of the lake, you could see the reflection of paradise. It was like a painting by an inspired artist; the Read more

Our little city is growing up, stretching taller toward the skies. There are three brand new residential towers being built right now with four more just completed in the last couple of years. The next building planned is a 40 story complex that will tower above our scenic downtown core. The next few years are a time of massive growth in The Okanagan Valley. With mixed emotions I watch our beautiful city change. Today I went downtown Kelowna and worked Read more

White, a dirty white, I was mixed and confused. The horizon mingled in my mind and I couldn’t see the slope in front of me. We slid off the top of the T-Bar this afternoon, searching for the next path of fresh powder. At this point, we were searching for which direction was up. We knew the fresh tracks were out there near-by. Not very many people were intrepid enough to brave the near-zero visibility of the alpine at Big Read more

“He wear no shoe shineHe got toe jam footballHe got monkey fingerHe shoot Coca-ColaHe say I know you, you know meOne thing I can tell you is you got to be free Come together, right now, over me” The poetic and nonsensical lyrics of the song ‘Come Together’ by the Beatles is an appropriate song for the times. The musical rhymes stirred my soul and awoke my heart. Jon Bos sang the iconic song as he stood behind a glass Read more