The Good Things in Life

She says:
Do you ever have those times when things just seem to go right, and that proverbial Murphy fellow is nowhere to be found? Well, last weekend I had one of those times and I thought I would share it.

We went to Vancouver to see “Stomp”, a group of performers that do routines using various percussion instruments. It is something Martin had always wanted to see, and we had been looking forward to it since Christmas. It is also the only Saturday he is not working for a long time, so that was a treat in itself! (The first good thing to start the weekend…)

We got to the city and the sun was actually shining (no gloomy clouds for us!). We found our little bed and breakfast in Kits Point, a place that I am concerned is one of the best parts of Vancouver, possibly due to the large number of four-legged people who live there (everyone, I think, knows my fondness for dogs). Having a suite in one of the lovely homey places in that alcove near Kitsilano Beach was just right, as I had important business at the park. It also meant we were close to Granville Island, and as dedicated foodies, we had that on our “must-do” list, too.

The suite was lovely and I highly recommend you try out the Chocolate Lily if you want something urban but cosy. (But please don’t tell too many people, or we won’t be able to get in next time!) Karen and Bob were fantastic hosts, and they suggested a fun and funky sushi place for dinner, which suited us perfectly. I had a crab and green tea buckwheat noodle salad with fresh mint and radish sprouts that was most refreshing and tasty. We had dessert at an old haunt, Sweet Obsession, where our wedding cake was made. Their desserts are as decadent and delicious as ever, which was most reassuring.

The next morning I awoke to the sound of cheeseburger birds, a song I had all but forgotten. (In Kits, the chickadees really do say, “cheeeeese-burger!”) That made me smile as I remembered many an early morning heading for the Point to walk with Satchmo. It was only fitting, I suppose, as I was headed there one last time with her, to spread her ashes at the place she loved the most. She had the perfect send-off, with old friends in attendance and many more remembered. Many a day had the perfect start in that place with her, and this was another of them.

We went next of course to Granville Island, for the compulsory pastries and coffee. Thankfully we had company, so we could share a donut and a blueberry bread along with the fruit and other nibbles. In the good old days we would have plotted on what was for dinner, but this day was more just for window shopping. If you were a fan of Oyama Sausage when they were in Lake Country, you will be pleased to know they are doing extremely well in Vancouver. Old stand-bys at the Market like Stuart’s Bakery have had face lifts and their goodies taste as wonderful as ever. How can you not be inspired to at least want to try foods when they look so enticingly fresh? And don’t you want to set a beautiful table when you see flowers like those?

We enjoyed the rest of the day just visiting the city we used to know, and it was fun to discover the changes and see that some things were still the same. It was also good to remember that traffic here at home is nothing compared to what they see!

Our evening was another Murphy-free outing, with a parking spot a block away from the theatre, great seats for the show and another fun and funky meal on Davie Street at a “hidden gem” of a restaurant just down the street from the one everyone lines up for. We felt like royalty sneaking in and getting a table instead of standing in the wind! After dinner, we strolled the avenue to see the incredible array of goods in the shop windows. You know you are getting older when the place that really attracts your attention on Davie Street is filled with home décor items. It was really cool, though – honest! I capped it all off with a walk at the Point under the moonlight while Martin made us a cup of tea at our quaint little suite. I don’t think Simon cared much for the romantic nature of the setting, but he seemed to like the change of venue from home.

If you can imagine it, we even finished off the whole event with a casual Sunday morning lounging about before we headed back towards home. As I watched all the dogs play at the Point and thought about the weekend, I realized we had a lot to be grateful for and that life was really pretty darn good. Perhaps all it takes to remember that is some time to think about enjoying it all. I wish all of you some of that time this weekend.

He says:

This was a well deserved get away with my wife and my dog. It was nice to see the dog jump in the ocean and react as if to say, “Wow this water tastes really bad!” He had a blast running everywhere meeting other dogs as we don’t see many dogs where we live.

One of my traditional stops with my daughter used to be donuts at the market. When Kristin and I first dated we used to all meet there on Saturday mornings. Chloae was not with us that day, but what I did was buy two home-cut donuts combined with a nice red rose and stopped at her house on our way out of town to surprise her (she did not know we were coming). Well, when you take chance to surprise someone sometimes you end up being the one surprised. She was not home! We left the food and flower at the door and headed home.

I spoke to Chloae on the phone once I got back to Kelowna and she said that as soon as she saw the donuts she knew I had been there. It is such a cool thing to know that my daughter and I share some food memories that connect us. By the way, the donut shop on Granville Island is awesome – pretty much the closest to home made donuts as you can get. Crispy outside and doughy inside: the best! I did an extra curl at the gym the next few days to work out all the extra calories taken on the weekend. I am telling you, spend time with your spouse now, because life often makes you so busy that you forget how great it is to eat good food with the people you love.

This article is written by or on behalf of an outsourced columnist and does not necessarily reflect the views of Castanet.