I'm such a flake

Time is just not my friend!!  I can't believe since I blogged again.  I have so many projects - er idea things on the go right now I can't seem to keep the days straight.  We'll go with the short update....

Me and Husband went with M and her boyfriend to Mexico (during the A to Z challenge) where I got a wicked bad sunburn on the 1st day, but didn't let it get me down.  We chilled on the beach, ate strange things, swam in Cenotes, participated in Myan blessings, climbed ruins, learned a few new phrases, and got chased by a giant iguana trying to steal my hamburger!

We came back from Mexico all burned up to find that the harbour was packed with ice.  Kiddo went on trip with her school band, then she had her school concert.  Then she sang Bobbie McGee and played Elphaba in her Voice conert.

Then my friend Debbie came down from Ontario to visit.  She loved the scenery, the row houses and George Street, but didn't like the cold.

We went on an ice berg tour, and I may or may not have got up close and personal with a berg.  Ok, I did I got sooo close my hands were all over it!  (which is a big deal - and you really should not get that close)

 

Then on Father's Day I ran the same 5K race I ran last year (here) by myself and managed to take 5 minutes off my time!  This year M was out of town.  I finally did something I have been talking about for a long time - I registered for the Tely10 a 10 mile road race!!! {{I shiver with nerves every time I think about it}}

And now some of the bergies are melting and the harbours are filling up with growlers and bergy bits.  Kiddo is studying for final exams.  And I still have too many project/idea things :)  BUT I'm gonna try not to be such a flake!

X is for X-rated

Ok, I'm cheating a little today!  X is the hardest letter of the alphabet so far.... so I'm going with X-Rated!

Pictured above is fries dressing and gravy!  (x-rated because of my stupid diet)  Its my favorite thing to eat!

W is for Wishbone Wishes

A wishbone can be described as "the V-shaped bone above the breastbone in most birds consisting of the fused clavicles."

After a meal of turkey, my grandmother would always take the wishbone form the carcass and lay it to dry in the hot oven (what she called the top portion of our old wood stove).  When the wishbone was dry, it was given to two people to pull apart until it cracked and broke into two pieces, each person made a silent wish while pulling.  The goal was to get the 'long half' of the wishbone so your wish would come true.  If the wishbone broke evenly, both would have their wishes come true.  (Provided the wish was kept secret, if you told anyone it wouldn't come true of course.)

U is for Ugly Stick

The ugly stick has played a role in Newfoundland party times throughout the years.  It's about four feet long and is decked out in bottle caps, tin cans, small bells,  rubber boots, old sneakers and other assorted noise makers.  Its played by thumping the stick and hitting its attachments.  An ugly stick is a mummer must!

Ugly Stick Demonstration

T is for Toddy

I have a Newfoundland home remedy today!

Toddy - a Newfoundland Hot Toddy is a mixture of booze, sugar and hot water.

Toddies are a cure for just about everything: cold, flu, toothache, upset stomach, sleep....

S is for Seal hunt

The Newfoundland Seal Hunt is one of the most controversial subjects surrounding Newfoundland each spring, as great numbers of pregnant harp seals gather on the ice flows to give birth.  Concerned by allegations of ineffective management and inhumane killing methods, animal rights and conservation groups began a sustained campaign against the sealing industry. The Canadian government, which is responsible for seal harvesting, responded with more regulations and quotas to ensure the humane killing of harp and hooded seals, and survival of the herds.

There are numerous opinions on the seal hunt, so I will spare you mine.  Instead, here are a few great links if you want more information:

The Seal Fishery.com
lNewfoundland Heritage Society
The Canadian Sealers Association

R as in RDF

Newfoundland's weather is best described as spontaneous!  It can range from mildly surprising to downright unpredictable.  The only thing that you can be sure of is the fog...all year round.  Newfoundland's Grand Banks is the foggiest place in the world; its the meeting place for the cold Labrador Current from the north and the Gulf Stream from the south.  You can tune into the weather any time of the year and hear a warning for RDF (Rain, Drizzle and Fog).

Of all the major Canadian cities, St John's is the foggiest (124 days) the snowiest (359 cm) the wettest (1514 mm) the windiest (24.3 km/h average speed) and the cloudiest (1497 hours of sunshine).  St John's has one of the mildest winters in Canada (third mildest city after Victoria and Vancouver), yet has the most freezing rain days of any major Canadian city!

Q is for Questions

Q is for Questions- the kind that don't really need answers... the rhetorical kind.

Who clipped your ears and made you skipper?  - what you're really saying - What makes you think you're the boss!

What are ya after doin' now? - what you're really saying - Somethings wrong and you did it!

Don't think I got either mouth on me? - what you're really saying - You got food for yourself, but forget about getting some for me!

Are you catching flies? -what you're really saying - Close your mouth, you looks stupid!

P is for Partridgeberry

Partridgeberries (known internationally as lingonberries) are a relative of the cranberry, they grow on a low, mat forming, evergreen shrub.  

As a child I spent many hours on the barrens, in October and November picking the dark red berries. I can recall tiring before my bucket was full, and lying on the marsh spreading the surface area of my body out as much as possible so not to get wet, grasping the plant and running my hand distally pulling the berries in multiples, the cold air biting me.  The sour, slightly sweet, slightly bitter taste popping into my mouth as I squished the softest ones with my tongue.  Then the smell of the kitchen as the berries boil and simmer into jams, pies, muffins and loafs.

Partridgeberry jam is my father's favorite, I've seen him more than once hurry spoonfuls to his mouth straight from the jar.

O is for Oil

Drilling under the world's toughest conditions

Petroleum, or crude oil, is one of the most valuable commodities traded in the world, and offshore Newfoundland holds about 28% of Canada's conventional oil reserves.

Newfoundland has 3 working undersea fields (Hibernia, Terra Nova, White Rose) and a fourth (Hebron) is gearing up now. 

The offshore oil industry has made significant contributions to the provincial economy in recent years, pulling the province from its "have-not" status, and boosting it to a "have" status.

N is for Nicknames

Nicknames are common around the bays,  where there are often a  limited number of family names. Children are often named after relatives, saints or biblical characters, its fairly common to have more than one person in the community with the same name.  So to alleviate the problem, nicknames are often used.  The names are sometimes after occupation - "Carpenter John", sometimes after where they live "John Up the Hill",  certain characteristics "Stunned John", "Small John".  Nickname can also come from a long forgotten incident "Foxy John".

Nicknames are so common, the Island has a nickname - The Rock!

Happy Birthday to me Mudder!!!  (see anothe nickname)

M is for Mummers

The Mummer's Song

I've mentioned Mummers (aka mumming or janneying) here before, but I love it.  So here's the short version.... during the 12 days of Christmas, men and women throw pillow cases over their heads, disguising themselves in old clothing padded in the all wrong places and going from house to house visiting, playing music, singing songs, disguising their voices and drinking your booze, while the homeowners try to correctly identify them.

 

L is for Legends

Have you ever had a nightmare where you were aware you were dreaming, but were unable to wake yourself up, unable to move even unable to breath?  You may have met the "The Old Hag", a phenomenon documented around the world that scientists call Sleep Paralysis.

The experience varies from person to person.  Some people see a woman't face in the distance but can't pick out her features.  The dreamer usually senses something is very wrong and becomes anxious, as the figure draws nearer they realize it is an ugly old crone.  When she finally reaches the dreamer she slowly crawls up over the person's body and straddles their chest; slowly crushing it, stopping their breath.  The dreamer is hyper aware of what is going on; the fact that they are sleeping, that this is not really happening, but yet they sense the evil, and can feel her leathery touch as breathing becomes a struggle.

In David J. Hufford's book The Terror that Comes in the Night he writes that you can call the Hag by reciting the Lord's Prayer backwards.


Photo credit here

K is for Kindness

Survivors & Rescuers photo credit here

Newfoundlanders are renowned for their kindness and terms of endearment "my lover", "me ducky", "me doll" and  "me son" which immediately put you at ease and fill you with a sense of belonging.  There are many examples I could site of Newfoundlanders opening their homes and hearts to help out someone in need.


The letter that Obama wrote on the 10th anniversary of September 11, when 38 passenger planes were diverted to Gander in the hours after the attacks.

The story of Lanier Phillips after surviving the 1942 Truxtun and Pollux Disaster and the people of St Lawrence.  (the above photo contains my Nanny and Poppy and my taken by my Great-Aunt Ena)

J if for Jiggs Dinner

Jiggs dinner is a traditional meal often cooked on Sundays.  It consists of salt meat, cabbage, potatoes, carrot, yellow turnip (rutabaga) turnip greens and pudding (yellow split peas), all boiled in the one pot, accompaniedby roasted chicken or turkey stuffed with savory dressing, and then smothered in gravy.  (Some people will also use mustard pickles and pickled beet as condiments).  Jiggs Dinner is also often called Sunday Dinner, cooked or boiled dinner

There is always plenty of leftover vegetables from a Jiggs dinner, which are mixed into a pan and fried to make "cabbage hash" or "hash" on Monday.

Jiggs Dinner is also called "Sunday Dinner", "Cooked Dinner" or "Boiled Dinner" 

ITS SOME GOOD!!

-Birthday wishes going out today to my youngest sister Heather!-

I is for Ice Caps

The St. John's Ice Caps  are a professional hockey team.  Members of the Atlantic Division of the Eastern Conference of the American Hockey League (AHL) and farm team for the Winnipeg Jets of the National Hockey League (NHL).

The Ice Caps are so popular, its nearly impossible to get tickets to see a game!

H is for H'accents

Visitors to Newfoundland and Labrador on occasion find themselves at a linguistic disadvantage.

“The arse fell right out of ‘er, bye,” usually elicits a blank stare from the folks from out of town.

Newfoundland dialect is not homogenous and can vary from community to community as well as from region to region.   Its a watered down mixture of Irish and West Country influences, which makes sense since  many came from these ports of call to fish and later settle the island.  But we were also settled by the French (mostly on the Port o Port Peninsula).  The Basque, the Spanish and the Scottish also threw their nets into the water and contributed to the various accents.

Run on words, abbreviations, slang and misplaced H's are prevelent, not to mention speed.

Got loads 'a time on yer hands?  Check out da Dictionary of Newfoundland or da Whaddaya App just for shits and giggles, it 'ill help ya's understand what I's pretting on 'bout.

F is for Flags

MY G POST IS LOCATED UNDER MY F POST (DON'T ASK)

Official Newfoundland Flag

Two official flags have represented Newfoundland and Labrador since Confederation with Canada in 1949. First the Union Jack, followed by the current provincial flag in 1980.

The flag incorporates three colours set against a white background. Blue represents the sea, red human effort, gold self-confidence, and white the snow and ice. Four blue triangles echo the Union Jack and represent the province's Commonwealth heritage, while the larger red and gold sections represent its future. Two red triangles signify the island and mainland portions of the province, while a gold arrow points towards a bright future.

Newfoundland also has 2 unofficial flags

The Labrador Flag

and the Tricolour Republic Flag.  Although the PWG flag was never an official flag, it can be seen all over the island is considered to represent independence.

G is for Good Luck

Since I did Bad Luck for the letter B it seems fitting I do Good Luck for the letter G.

Seeing the new moon first over your left shoulder -  picking up a horseshoe on the road -  picking a four leaf clover, - seeing two black crows flying overhead -  putting on a garment inside out by mistake - picking up a penny - picking up a pin or a white button -  a rooster crowing on the doorstep - to see a baby smiling in its sleep - to dream of one's father - a bee flying into the room.

E is for Entertainment

  

I remember the day we got cable television - I was 12, I remember getting off the school bus and running down the meadow, throwing open the door, rushing to the TV and twisting the dial to find more that the CBC... it was momentous.  I can also remember the day we got dial up internet, and the very first day I watched satellite TV.

Growing up around the bay, there were few planned activities to partake in outside the summer months, so for the most part you made your own entertainment...... I spent many hours traipsing over the bog picking berries, skipping, hopscotch and red rover, sliding in the meadow, on Ski-Doo and ATV, sitting at the egde of the government wharf catching Tom Cods and Conners, looking in tide pools, walking round the harbour with my friends, and in the evenings I playing growl with my grandparents.

Now I can't really discuss Newfoundland entertainment and leave out......

 Great Big Sea  - one of the provinces best know musical groups (front man Alan Doyle was in Robin Hood with Russell Crowe)

Republic of Doyle a comedy drama about a father-son team of private investigators, currently in its 4th season on CBC.

AND The Once, currently one of my favorite local bands.  I've seen them in show a bunch of times and will be sure to see them a bunch more :)