I always want to start off every Christmas letter by exclaiming, "Where the heck did the year go?" and I'm sure you feel the same way. I remember "older people" always telling me that time will go by quickly the older I get, and now here I am, stuck in that time super highway, desperately trying to slow everything down! According to some physics theory, as Brad patiently tries to explain to me, the faster a motion is, the slower time will go. So why does it seem that when I'm rushing from the point A's of life to the point B's of life, I don't have enough time to do what it is that I intend to do? I think he'll have to re-explain that theory to me because it isn't fitting in to this artist's logic of the world. haha But what a deliciously fantastic year it has been; full of creativity, love, and adventure even if it has gone by at lightning speed.
Last winter started off with a lot of excitement, as Brad moved in at the beginning of December 2010, and shared Christmas holidays with Alexander, Sandy the Wonder Dog and I. We all got caught up in the chaos of feasting, jamming to carols, burning down sliding hills in dangerous positions, spending time with families, and kissing under the mistletoe. *blush* We headed down the highway to Brad's stomping grounds on Boxing Day where the Beckman's put on an annual skating party/bonfire. Alexander had his first hand at playing hockey and really enjoyed himself, not coming off the ice until he was literally numb. I on the other hand, didn't attempt to put on my old figure skates and preferred to sit by the fire and meet all of Brad's family, extended family and friends. What a fun crew!
It wasn't long before Brad had to pack his bags though, and headed "South" to Ottawa to attend Algonquin College for Part 1 of his apprentice for plumbing. We were very thankful for technology and the ability to keep in touch daily through Skype. It made me think a lot about the war time wives and how horrible it must have been to not hear from their better half for excruitatingly long periods to time, if at all, which kept me humble and remembering how lucky we truly are to have the conveniences we have today. We continued to have our nightly reading time with Alexander and got through Book 3 of the Harry Potter series via Skype. It was also quite romantic to send and receive letters back and forth and send care packages to remind Brad of home. He was quite embarrassed, yet thrilled, when I sent him a big bouquet of sunflowers for his birthday and he had to carry them to class before having the opportunity to take them back to his dorm! All of that time apart was not in vain, as Brad got an almost perfect GPA, and even spent time tutoring other students and teaching some of the math classes when it was apparent that he was doing a better job of explaining the theories than the professor! (Oh, he's going to hate that I'm bragging for him. haha)
While he was gone, I was busily preparing for an art show, and spent most of my alone time working in my studio. Unfortunately the show was postponed, but will supposedly run this summer, so I will have an opportunity to re-apply for the show and hopefully show what happens when someone is holed up in a studio for two months!!! haha
Here's a link to my Facebook art page. Enjoy browsing around!
At the same time, I was also in the process of preparing to direct a community mural program, as artistic director of three groups that painted murals around the theme of "My Red Lake". I was the leader for the teenage group, and we had a blast getting together once a week through the summer months, making a wild mural that focuses on what it's like to be a teenager in a small northern town. If you are ever going by the OPP station, check it out. It is posted on the Treasure House building thanks to the generosity of the Weaver family. My son also participated in the program and painted a mural about his favourite activities; biking and fishing in the summer, and skiing in the winter. That mural can be seen downtown on the fence beside the pharmacy. I love that our downtown is coming alive with colour and creativity!
Alexander also spent time in his studio, conjuring up his next award winning Science Fair idea. He won a "scholarship" from the University of Toronto's Young Engineer program and also an Ontario Hydro award for his idea about solar power and how variants in the colour of the light source changes the amount of power given to a controlled object such as a remote controlled vehicle. Where does he come up with this stuff??? I'm curious to see what he's going to design for this year, albeit the older he gets, the less I understand regarding his scientific interests. The important part is that I support him in what he does, and it's also a big time guarantee that I am NOT one of those parents that does their project for their child. haha
Brad and Alexander usually spend the weekends waking up early and scheming on different inventions and designs, theorizing about concepts around time and space and speed and force and all of those things that allow me to sleep in on Sunday mornings. They worked on a trebuchet this summer which is kind of a flingy catapult, and had a working model in the yard. The intent was to make a huge trebuchet on Brad's property out by Vermilion Bay. Eventually, we are going to see pianos and pumpkins flying great distances, so keep your head up if you're in the neighbourhood, and perhaps keep your cat indoors. haha Just kidding, kind of.
It was only fitting that Brad, Alexander and I went to the Leonardo da Vinci exhibit in Winnipeg this fall, so that they could tinker with replicas of his amazing inventions and I had an opportunity to get a closer look at his intricately detailed art work and learn more about the mystery behind the Mona Lisa painting.
Summer came upon us quickly and we busily got to work on the "BoBeckman" farm, making the gardening plot a bit bigger, planting a ton of veggies and working on other landscaping projects. We finished off the rock pathway and Brad built a beautiful gate using birch trees and adding permanent planters at the bottom of the gate so that annual ivy can shimmy up the gate in the summer. My perennials (compliments of the late Leni Sadtler) worked double time this year, and I even had the opportunity to divide and share my plants, twice! Even though it was a hot, dry, fire riddled summer, we were able to use mainly rain water to keep everything lush and productive. Brad and Alexander have big plans to create some kind of recycled water system with pipes (and God knows what) dug underneath the yard. Next summer we're considering making the garden even bigger, and I still want to have an outdoor tub to lounge in under the stars in the evening. I'll definitely have to invest in some mosquito netting!
We also had an opportunity to go on a super fun vacation after Brad and I pointed to a dot on the map and decided a road trip west would be fun. We did a bit of research but kind of let the wind just take us, with the destination of Saskatoon in mind. The goal was to go to the Saskatoon Ex. The true fun was in the journey there and back though, stopping in every small town along the way, exploring abandoned farmsteads, stopping in an artist community to give a critique of all the paintings at a local gallery (They asked me! It was quite entertaining!), stopping in at a sod house in Elbow, Saskatchewan, enjoying the sand dunes at Great Spirit Lake, coming back to a soaked tent at midnight, meeting a luthier who let us into his home to try out all of his beautifully made instruments and tour his workshop (eventhough he had to clean the house because his girlfriend was coming over), and of course, counting endless cows and hay bales. I love the prairies!
Here's a link to the blog about that "interesting" experience.
September came quickly and I was back in the saddle, teaching the awesome students that make my job entertaining on a daily basis. I swear, I learn more from them than they do of me. And nothing makes me more proud than to see them grow into the beautiful, intelligent people that they become in those short four years that I have the opportunity to spend with them. Many graduates swing by for visits and it's awesome to hear about their life journeys. That is one of the perks of living in a small town, I guess, because Red Lake has a way of bringing people back to see what they've left behind. It's not sooooo bad here afterall! :)
Along with our busy jobs, Brad and I also had the task of harvesting everything in our garden and deciding what to do with it. We made many a jar of pickles this year, along with pickled beans, cajun pickled beans, salsa, and canned tomatoes. We have a freezer full of shredding beets, carrots and more tomatoes to get us through the winter. Yum. But all of the canning created a ripple effect as we decided to make a cold room in the basement, which led to adding extra walls, which led to redesigning the whole space downstairs, and finishing the laundry room. Brad has almost completed the drywalling, taping, mudding and sanding of the den (his man cave and music room...haha) and I'll most likely spend the Christmas holidays doing a lot of painting and decorating.
But we are about to have our lives changed again, as Brad has decided to take a job at with KPDSB as one of their maintenace men. We are thrilled that he will have steady hours from 7 to 3 so that we can spend more time together as a family to do all of the crazy, kooky things that make us who we are. Change is good, and that's the way we roll around here!
And on that note, I'm off to spend more time with my kooky family and hope that you have the time to do the same with yours. We hope that your year has been filled with joy and that your future is filled with adventure surrounded by the people you love.
Happy holidays!
Love Rhonda, Brad, Alexander and Sandy the Wonder Dog
