Monday, October 20, 2008

home bittersweet home

I'm back from NS and filled with many mixed emotions.  First and foremost, the photos from my trip can be found here.  I haven't posted them all up yet, but I am really impressed with the quality of the photos.  I took the time to get that perfect shot as they say, but got really lucky with beautiful weather and thus, perfect lighting.It was so great to see my family and friends, especially since most couldn't make it to our wedding in May.  We had a roaring night out on the town which included [too] many beers and trivia.  Our huge table of 20+ people should have killed trivia night however the questions were just so darn hard.  Seriously, I don't know off the top of my head the name of Marge Simpson's hair salon.

Mike and I took a drive around the Cabot trail, something that I hadn't done before.  It was the perfect time of the year; leaves changing into autumn hues, sky blue skies and windy roads.  We stayed a night at the Glenora Distillery which makes the only single malt whiskey in Canada.  It's really a scotch however to be called a scotch, the product must be casked for at least 3 years in Scotland.  It was introduced to me by my father who then decided that Mike should try it.  Last Christmas BURROWS! discovered it and we now have a family circle of scotch drinkers with esquisite taste.





Towards the end of the week, we made a visit to see my Uncle Kevin.  About 1.5 years ago, Uncle Kevin was diagnosed with ALS or Lou Gehrig's disease and the disease has taken its toll.  I hadn't seen him since my visit home last February and he has changed so much in appearance.  In the Spring, Kevin was able to speak (although slowly) and move around in his chair.  As of last week, he had very little movement, only his head and wasn't able to speak.  To communicate, someone has to hold a piece of paper with the letters of the alphabet on it and he spells a word by either nodding or blinking his eyes.  He was in good spirits, however, and managed to squeeze out a laugh or two and smile through his sunken-in face.  He is now 50 years old, weights 114 pounds and is completely dependent upon everyone around him.  What makes this disease so horrifying is that Kevin's brain functions completely normal; it's his body that is dying away.  

Saturday found us in Parrsboro at the Hidden Falls.  This area has the highest energy field of all of Nova Scotia.  As you approach the falls, you can feel it in the air.  We drove around, took photographs and checked out the Rock & Minerals Museum which is where the owner, Elton George, found the world's smallest dinosaur tracks.  He's a pretty big deal around those parts, selling different types of stones, minerals, fossilized wood and has appeared recently on David Suzuki's 'The Nature of Things'.

So now it is back to reality.  Back to my desk job, our two cats, our warm duvet and bottled milk.  Back to Daisy who is ready to face a slow cremation.  Bring it on.

1 comment:

Allie said...

Aw looks like you guys had a great time!