The Johnson-Rouleau Journal
Christmas Newsletter 2010
Looking out the window on a cold and grey December day, with just a wisp of snow in the air, the mind turns to yuletide thoughts and sparks memories of Christmases past. And it also reminds me to get up off my behind and finally finish off the annual Christmas newsletter. OK, technically I guess I should say “finally get started on” the annual Christmas newsletter, but I digress. This year has seen many changes chez Johnson-Rouleau, both organic and man-made. So, to absorb it all as intended, please sit back in a comfortable chair, grab your favourite yuletide beverage, and get ready for a vicarious fly-by of life as we knew it in 2010.
On the Home Front
The year got off to a blazing start. Our long-anticipated kitchen renovation finally began in January. Of course, none of the actual work was performed by me. This should come as no surprise to my regular readers of the Johnson-Rouleau Journal. (You know whom you are because you are the only ones still reading at this point.) My idea of a reno involves plenty of discussion and debate about what should ultimately be performed by someone who actually knows what they are doing. We were lucky enough to get the person who built our lovely bookshelf (see photo) to also tackle our kitchen. Our time spent watching Holmes on Homes was put to the test. The appropriate questions were asked ahead of time and, fortunately, everything went pretty much as planned. However, I must say that the most nerve-wracking segment was watching the installation of the granite counter top. It was a custom shape that had to be manually transported from the bed of the truck into the kitchen which required five people (actually six by the end of it all) to lift, carry into the house and place into position. The shape we had selected made it more fragilethen normal so I decided I would get my camera out and record the process. I figured that, if it did end up breaking, at least I would get an awesome video of it smashing all over the place. You might want to check it out. The ending to the video actually reminds me a bit of the Blair Witch Project. Now do I have your interest piqued? To see how it went, click this link: (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1ESgMaCT6ZI).
Not long after the kitchen reno, we finally got a new big screen TV! Sweeeettt! I say finally because the original plan was to buy a big screen TV in 2004. No, that is not a typo. We actually bought our home theatre sound system in 2004 but I decided to hold off on buying a big screen TV at the time because they were so expensive. Actually, that was so long ago that when I say “big screen” I am referring to one of those rear-projection big screen TVs. Those TVs were in the $4,000 range which was a few pay grades beyond my budget. You see, I grew up with a black & white TV with an antenna so the idea of spending almost what my childhood house was worth on a TV seemed a little crazy. But I really wanted one so I decided I would wait until the price dropped to under $2K. Well, by the time the price of LCD rear-projection TVs got into that range, the flat screen TVs came out and Chantal really liked those. But guess how much the flat screen TVs cost? Yup, back up to $4,000! So we decided to wait … again. When the prices on the flat screen TVs finally dropped to under $2K, I started looking at my options very closely. But then they came out with faster flat screen TVs, which, of course, cost more. But I thought we should get one of the fast ones since we were likely to keep our TV for quite a while. So FINALLY those fast flat-screen TVs got down below $2K in late 2009. You’d think I would finally act but I kept waiting “just another week” thinking the price would drop a little more. However, in the spirit of full disclosure, in reality it was the 2010 Winter Olympics that finally got me to pull the trigger, once and for all. And I must say, now that we have the new 47” fast, flat screen LCD TV, it is incredible! The first time I watch a hockey game in HD on it I almost cried. It was so crystal clear that for the first week or so I felt like I was sitting in a sports bar watching TV. For a while we still had our old 27” Toshiba Cathode Ray Tube TV right beside the new one and when you saw them next to each other it obvious which one was a relic from the last millennium.
So, to celebrate the new addition to our family, our new “baby” if you will, we invited a whole gang of family and friends over to our place to watch the Olympic gold-medal mens hockey final between the USA and Canada. For those who either missed the game or don’t remember (or maybe tried to block it out), the Americans put up a good fight and it was a real nail-biter but, in the end, the “good guys” prevailed in overtime! (Don’t feel too bad Jim … at least your Blackhawks won the Stanley Cup.)
As if renovating the kitchen and buying a new television was not enough to single-handedly jump start the Canadian economy, a few months later we find out our front door needs to be replaced. Well, actually it started off as the front doorknob needing replacement. It was the second time the doorknob had broken and now we were being told that the reason the doorknob keeps breaking is because the interior of the door was damaged. Translation: we should replace the whole door otherwise the next doorknob will likely break again very quickly. Besides, the door was over 18 years old, which, I was told by my wife, is within the bounds of the typical life expectancy for a door. Really? Well, sometimes you have to pick your battles so I let this one slide. But then I found out that you can’t just go out and buy a door since it might not fit the frame properly. Are you serious? This is not standardized? So, to be sure everything will fit properly, we have to buy a whole new door and frame! Now wait a second, wasn’t this just supposed to be a simple doorknob replacement? The next thing I know, there I am filming the removal of the entire old doorframe and door from the front of our house and the installation of a brand new front doorframe and door. Well, it turns out that even I have to admit that it is a huge improvement, not only aesthetics, but also security and thermal protection. And it has a wider opening to boot (figuratively not literally). That would have come in handy about six months before when they were trying to get our new fridge into the house, but that is another story with which I will not burden you.
Winter Sports
I was lucky enough to squeeze in more skiing this year than I have for many years. The kids and I now get a season’s pass each year for night skiing at the local ski hill, which is only 15 minutes away. It is so close we can easily go skiing in on a week night. Even if we only have 90 minutes, it is rarely busy so we can get four or five runs in, along with some fresh air and a little bonding with my sons on the way up the lift. Of course, the height of the hill may have a little bit to do with the number of runs we are able to squeeze in.
This year we also made it to both Mont Ste.Anne and Le Massif just east of Quebec City. I have been to Ste. Anne before and it was as wonderful as I remembered. But it was my first time to Le Massif and it was fantastic! What a different experience it is there since the hill is situated on the banks of the St. Lawrence river. Once you park and get your ski tickets at the main lodge, you put on your skis and ski *down* from there to the bottom of the hill which is near the banks of the river. Then you take the ski lift back up to where you started. You get some fantastic views of river as you are skiing down but don’t miss the last lift up at the end of the day!
Finally, in March I ended the season with a ski trip to Titus in northern New York with my dad, my brother, and his daughter, Laine. It was St. Patrick’s day and it had to be the warmest conditions in which I have ever skied. The hills were empty on this Wednesday and we had a wonderful day on the slopes. I can’t remember the last time I was skiing with both my brother and father. Unlike me, they can both look back on over a half-century so I have to admit they did pretty well for a pair of old farts. (haha)
And I was also lucky enough to make it out multiple times for skating on the Rideau Canal, the world’s largest skating rink. Our friends, Steve & Carol and their daughters even managed to make it to Ottawa for some skating this winter. The Rideau canal is a little over 5 kms (3 miles) long so a round trip from Dow’s Lake to the city centre and back makes for either a leisurely 90-minute frolic or an intense and focused 45 minute workout. I am not a runner so one of the reasons I like skating the canal is that I get a kick out the look on my friends’ faces when I tell them, “Ya, I did 10K this morning.”
Sweet Sixteen
Believe it or not, my oldest son, Andre-Paul turned 16 this year. That’s right, he is now old enough to drive. He waited until the summer to get started and I have to admit that I was unprepared for my first drive with him. I think whenever you have done something for decades, something that people all around you do everyday, you forget how much concentration it took the very first time you tried it. (Hey now, stay focused, I’m talking about driving!) Before A-P and I went for our first drive together, I had not really put much thought into the process of how to teach him. I figured that once we got going I would give him pointers on what to watch for and what to keep an eye on. I figured that A-P is pretty thorough when he tackles new things so he is likely going to be just fine when it comes to driving. Now that I look back I wonder how I could have been so naïve. What I should have been thinking about was how I faired the first day I ever used an XBOX controller. When I saw A-P using an XBOX controller it was clearly second nature to him yet my first attempt at doing so was a complete catastrophe. But I was not thinking about any of that so I was totally unprepared for the events that unfolded that September day. In hindsight, the whole scenario with me and him in the car was actually quite humorous. Here is my recollection of how it went.
He got in and then started talking his way through all the things he knew he had to do. Adjust the mirrors - check, adjust the steering wheel - check, adjust the seat, check … after re-adjusting the mirrors and re-adjust the steering wheel it was obvious he needed to change the order. Then he puts on the seat belt, puts his foot on the brake and is ready to start the car. As I waited to hear the familiar click, click followed by the sound of the starter motor, he turned to me and asked me what he needed to do exactly to start the car. “Just turn the key”, I said. But then he gets a little more detailed. “Which direction?”, he asks. Well, ok, I wasn’t expecting that question so this makes me think for a second. “Hmmm, well, clockwise I suppose … if you are looking at it from the passenger seat.” Then, before he turns it he asks, “When do I stop turning the key?” Well, um, sure, I guess if you have never done it before, you don’t know. So then I had to think about what I actually do. How many clicks do I go through as I turn the key? How long do I hold it before letting it spring back to “on”? Man, I really have no idea. I guess I should have prepared for this a little more thoroughly, eh? So finally, there we were in the driveway, foot on the brake, engine successfully started, ready to go. He asked what to do now, so I suggested letting his foot off the brake and slowly exit the driveway. So, the next thing I know he releases the brake fully, the car starts to move, and then he slams the brakes back on, BAM! I ask what he is doing and he said he was just slowing down. It was then that I was starting to clue into the fact that the only brake he had ever used was an XBOX steering wheel and pedals where the pedals are basically on-off switches. So that was how he was treating the brake in the car. I suggested moving his foot gently and smoothly when pushing in the pedals or letting pressure off the pedals. So he slowly releases the brake and we start out into our street. He starts to turn the wheel to the right to exit the driveway but then abruptly stops turning the wheel any further. Although he has only turned the wheels about a third of the way they need to be turned, he hasn’t touched the brake either. So now we are heading across the street on a 30 degree angle and soon to mount our neighbours front lawn. I don’t know what he is trying to do so I tell him to slow down. BAM!. The brake goes on full and we are stopped again in the middle of the road … on an angle. I ask him why he stopped turning. He said that he thought you shouldn’t take your hands off the wheel and he had turned as far as he could go with both hands on the wheel. I informed him that you do actually have to move your hands and let go of the wheel, temporarily, to make sharp turns. He informed me that you never do with XBOX. It was at this point that I think he was starting to understand why I sometimes (ok, a lot of the time) yell at the XBOX car racing games saying things like “this is nothing like real life!!!” Well, to make a long story not quite as long, we jerked back and forth and side to side around corners for the first 5 minutes of our trip but we safely made our way around the neighbourhood that evening and by the time we came back home I can happily report that A-P had made a 1000% improvement in his driving skills in just that one little tour. I now have two years to mentally prepare for when Morgan gets behind the wheel.
Summer Vacation
This summer we packed up the tent trailer, hooked it to the back of the aptly-named Odyssey, and headed off for two weeks of fun in the sun, sand and surf along the east coast of the US. We started off with a ten-hour drive all the way down to the state of Delaware to a campsite we have been to a few times in the past. It is by the ocean and the beach is just a short walk away. The weather was fantastic. Well, maybe a little too fantastic as there is virtually no escape from the relentless sun and heat when you are camping. It was so hot that even the thought of a campfire made me start sweating … ok, continue sweating. The only respite was at about 4:00 in the morning when I would wake to the feel of a very gentle breeze, just slightly below body temperature, wafting through the mesh screen of the tent material and across my body. Other than that, the only other option was to jump in the ocean, which is really not a bad option at all in my books. We were joined soon after by Chantal’s brother, Paul, and two of his kids, Heloise and Olivier, along with some other good friends of theirs too. It was a very nice family visit and after 4 days of fun in the sun and surf, we packed everything up and headed to New York City!
Now, as you can imagine, Manhattan is not exactly a camping-friendly town. Having taken this into account ahead of time, we had booked a hotel for the weekend. I had been to NYC many, many times but my kids had never been and it had been decades since Chantal’s last visit. We spent the whole weekend pretty much doing the touristy, sightseeing type things. We basically engaged in a two-day walking tour of the highlights of Manhattan which started off at Penn Station, a stroll by the Empire State Building then a swing past Bryant Park on our way to Times Square, which required a thorough tour of Toys R Us. Then it was off to Rockefeller Center where we took the elevator all the way to the “Top of the Rock” and got a stellar view of the entire city. Yes, yet another crystal clear (if I may use that term in NYC) blue sky making it perfect for viewing everything from Central Park to the statue of liberty.
Our path then took us northward along 5th avenue which afforded us the pleasure of checking out some of the premier retail outlets on the planet. It is kind of like New York’s version of Los Angeles’ Rodeo Drive. Our ultimate destination was the Apple Store, which was a must-see since it was the highlight of Andre-Paul’s NYC trip. The Apple Store was definitely cool. The store itself is completely underground but it has a huge, totally transparent cube-like glass enclosure covering the entrance. From a distance it looks like a four-story glass building with a massive Apple logo floating inside near the top. And once you enter there is a circular staircase, also made of glass that takes you down to the store. The circular glass staircase wraps around a glass, tube-shaped elevator as well. The whole thing was truly a feast for the eyes.
After playing “what if” with all of the cool Apple “toys” available to sample, we were off to the Guggenheim Museum. Now that is another extremely cool looking structure. A-P is interested in becoming an architect so he specifically asked to visit the Guggenheim. Morgan wasn’t that interested in attending so we dropped off Chantal and A-P, and spent our time walking from the museum down to the Plaza Hotel trough Central Park. On our way through the “park” there were a number of different young girls who did a double-take when they saw Morgan, who had an surprising resemblance to Justin Bieber. Given that it was NYC they probably thought it could be the real Justin Bieber. First they would look at him, and then they would look at me. Then they would realize it can’t be The Bieb since he would never be seen with a dorky old man like me. For dinner the four of us made our way to a wonderful sushi restaurant which took us down Park Avenue and, happily, past a Ferrari dealership. This was definitely a pleasant surprise for dad. And perhaps that fortuitous Ferrari find was what helped the sushi taste that much better.
The next day we found the Washington Arch (remember Sally dropping of Harry there in “When Harry met Sally”) then continued south to the financial district for a walk across the Brooklyn bridge. Then we made our way along Wall street as we headed for the Staten Island ferry. You see, you can get a wonderful view of the Statue of Liberty, and, you can ride this ferry for free. Oh yes, I am a big spender! Of course, the only bad weather of the entire weekend has to be a freak rainstorm as the ferry was making its way past Miss Liberty. The return trip gave us a wonderful view of lower Manhattan. With dark storm clouds in the background it looked much more like Gotham City. We wound down the day by taking in the United Nations building, the art-deco Chrysler building and Grand Central Terminal. We finished things off with a visit to Macy’s … you know, of “Miracle on 34th Street” fame. Wow, this store is huge! It must have seemed incredible back in the 30’s and 40’s when it first opened. What I thought was the coolest part was that some of the escalators are still the original style, made of wood! Talk about retro.
At that point everyone’s dogs were barking so we headed back to the hotel to put up our feet and take a rest in our air conditioned sanctuary. So that was the small bite we took of the “Big Apple” in summer 2010.
Next morning, we set off for Cape Cod. We camped one more night in Rhode Island on our way to Hyannis where we met up with my long-lost Australian mate, Steve, and his family. (Come to think of it, perhaps Steve is not so long-lost given that he showed up in the 2008 edition of the Johnson-Rouleau Journal.) I met Steve in Europe way back in 1986 when I was backpacking around with my buddy Joe. Joe and his family were also able to make it to Cape Cod so it was a reunion of sorts. After a couple of days of relaxing by the pool, some excellent seafood dinners and lots of catching up on things, it was time to say good-bye and drag that tent-trailer back home.
School Update
This year Andre-Paul graduated from high school! In Quebec you have just six years, rather than eight, of primary school followed by five years of secondary school, so it is like graduating from grade 11. And when you factor in that Andre-Paul skipped a grade, you realize that I am really not as old as that first sentence makes me sound. One thing I found unusual was that the parents were invited to, not only the kid’s graduation ceremony, but also their/dance reception afterward. It was fun to see all of A-P’s friends all dressed up in suits and nice dresses but, in an effort to minimize the embarrassment factor for A-P, Chantal and I bugged out early.
So, as of September, A-P has been attending CEGEP, which is the college in Quebec that is part of the Quebec public education system. It offers a two-year program that essentially takes the place of grade 12 and the first year of university in Quebec. Not surprisingly, Andre-Paul is doing very well, but it is not coming without putting in some long hours of work. Thank goodness he managed to adopt that trait from his mother!
Morgan is now in grade nine, and he too is doing very well. This, of course, is his third year of secondary school, so he is just two years away from his graduation and, perhaps more frighteningly, the previously mentioned drivers license. When it comes to driving, Morgan appears to have tendencies that lean much more toward his father’s side of the family so I am trying not to think about how things will go when he learns how to drive. (Note to self: do my best to enjoy these next two years as much as possible.)
Working World
This year was a big one for Chantal because this year she finally and officially received a full-time teaching position. If you are a little confused I can totally relate. You may be thinking, “Hey, wasn’t Chantal already working full-time as a teacher?”, and you would be pretty-much correct. There is a subtle, but important difference, however. For the last number of years, although Chantal has enjoyed a steady gig of teaching a class of students for the entire school year, she has had to choose a new teaching position at the beginning of each year, based on seniority, from a list of part-time positions available. It just so happens that there are many part-time positions that span the entire school year. How does this make any sense, you may ask? Well, when teachers are away on maternity leave or take a sabbatical for a year, they need another teacher to fill that position for the year. So, although Chantal was pretty sure she would get a full-year part-time position each year, the problem was that from year to year Chantal would not know what school she would be teaching at or what grade she would be teaching. It was something entirely new every year. If she liked a school she was teaching at, there was no guarantee she would be there again the next year. However, now that she has a permanent, full-time teaching position, she will be teaching at the same school every year and she will have her own classroom and will be teaching the same grade. So this makes life much more predictable and, hence, much happier. Chantal is now teaching grade one, which she really enjoys. And, as an added bonus, her school is the closest one to where we live. As a matter of fact, this fall she often either rode her bike or walked to school. So now, are you glad you asked?
As for me, I continue to break my personal best record for years at one company as I eight years with ZixCorp. Things are going very well there and this streak is almost getting more impressive than the other streak I have attained … consecutive business days working from home in my pyjamas. This year I had my usual amount of business travel. On the plus side, I am fortunate that I get to travel to cities where I have some friends. In 2010 I was able to visit with Ian & Kristi in Austin, TX, and John & Shannon and Denver, CO, and Jim & Susan in Chicago, IL, and almost …Brian & Louise in LA … it’s a long story.
Auto Update
Unfortunately I am not able to report on any new vehicles this year. On the positive side, no collisions to report either. However, we did reach an automotive milestone. For those of you who attended our wedding many years ago, you may remember that we left the church in a little red Miata. Well, we still have that little red Miata and this year it turned 20 years old! It seems to have held up extremely well. I’d go as far as saying it has held up better than I have … but then again, I don’t get to rest all winter.
Relative News
Just this month my mother’s brother, uncle George, had coronary artery bypass surgery to address some serious blockages in his arteries. Amazingly, even in his eighties, uncle George made it through this incredibly serious procedure in a surprisingly uneventful fashion. We are happy to hear that he is already recovering in the comfort of his own home. Get well soon UG.
Another major announcement this year was the engagement of my, well, let’s just callher my cousin, Katye and Rob! They moved to the Ottawa area during the last year or so which has afforded us many more opportunities to see them and get to know them better. Life is very busy for these two this year as they also bought a new home and Katye started a new job as well. We are all looking forward to the big day!
Kid Kwotes
It seems Morgan may have been a little less talkative this year as he appears to be less widely represented in the annual kid kwotes. Or perhaps it was just that I managed to forget more of Morgan’s kid kwotes by the time I was in a position to actually write them down. Either way, Andre-Paul will be getting more air time in this year’s newsletter. Morgan, let that be a challenge for you for 2011! So let’s get started …
At one point we, as a family, were talking about how it is nice that our kids get exposure to both French Canadian culture and English Canadian culture. Chantal commented that they experience French Canadian culture because they go to French school here in Quebec. A-P then asks me, "So what is English Canadian culture?" Well, it looks like I have done a really good job with that, eh?
I play squash a couple of evenings each week so one morning we were talking at breakfast about how my squash games went the night before. I commented that my winning percentage was much lower than normal. A-P finished up the discussion by saying, “Face it, dad, you’re an old fart now.” You know, sometimes I believe it is better to keep the truth to yourself.
Morgan was talking to me and was saying how he finds a certain thing annoying. I wasn’t really clear on how this thing could annoy him so much so I asked Morgan if he could clarify what meant by annoying. He said, “You know … like a baby.” A little shocked by this response, I asked if he didn’t like babies. Morgan replied by saying that he actually did like babies but, when they cry, they are very annoying. OK, I’ll give him that.
A-P was telling me about an incident that happened at school that day. He said he is normally on time for all his classes but he had forgotten something and retrieving it between classes ate up a little extra time. This ultimately caused him to be late by about 30 seconds for his science class. This science teacher is quite strict about being on time for his class so, as A-P entered the classroom, his science teacher announced, “You’re late!” Unfazed, Andre-Paul immediately responded, “Well, not in astronomical terms”. Fortunately, most of his “etiquette” DNA is from Chantal, but it is nice to see that there is a little bit of Johnson in there too!
The kids where having a conversation in English and I heard A-P say a phrase to Morgan that didn't make any sense to me. Then Morgan responded with another phrase that made even less sense. So I couldn’t help but ask, "What are you guys talking about?" Morgan said dismissively, "It is just some lyrics from a song." I asked what song and they told me the name. I said I didn't recognize the name of the song which prompted A-P to quickly add, "Don't look it up!" Ok, so, it looks like we have reached the stage where the kids are enjoying music that they are pretty sure the parents will not approve of. The “teenage kids” phase begins …
It had been an unseasonably warm day in late November. I had just finished telling the family about how it was so warm that I washed my car at lunchtime. I said that I decided to wash my car because it wasn't going to be that warm again until at least March. A-P chimed in and quickly challenged, "Do you want to bet?" I asked why he thought it was going to be that warm again before springtime and he replied, "I don't know if it will. I just thought it would be cool to be part of a family that always bets on everything.” Yeah, I’ll bet he would.
Seasons Greetings
Well folks, that pretty much wraps things up for 2010. It was another busy year at the Johnson-Rouleau household and we were lucky enough to share it with many family and friends. Here’s to wishing that we see even more of you in 2011. Merry Christmas and healthy, happy, and humourous New Year to you all!
