A Spring Hike

Last week, on April 30th, I went for a hike with my brother, our cousin, and our dog. We left in the morning and came back in the afternoon. The weather was actually pretty great for a hike. It was a bit cool in the morning but it warmed up as the day went by. It was a good thing we went hiking on that specific day since it ended up snowing the next day. Yes, we had snow on May 1st. Welcome to Northern Ontario. The hike and the snow have me reflecting even more on Northern Ontario and why I feel so connected to it. I was born here but some people are born here and don't want to stay. They want to move somewhere warmer where there are different opportunities for them. I am one of the people who actually wants to stay. Although the weather can definitely be a downer sometimes, I like the vast difference between our seasons and the occasional unpredictability in the weather adds a bit of excitement. More than anything though, I love the landscape. I have been feeling a strong connection to nature more and more in recent years and I have been thinking about what the Northern Ontario landscape means to me and what it can teach me. There is a lot of rock and a lot of trees. There is also a lot of peacefulness and mystery. It is simply magical.

During our hike, we did a lot of bushwhacking, visiting areas that my brother has found during his extensive exploration in the bush that he has been doing lately. I had visited these areas but hadn't been bushwhacking to them while our cousin hadn't seen the specific areas at all so it was a new experience for both of us and my brother led the way. My brother loves going out in the bush. He loves bushcrafting and exploring. I am so happy that we share a love of nature. Our family on our mom's side has a passion for the outdoors and I am so grateful to have grown up in this family and to have grown up in Northern Ontario. Cities can be fun but they also drain me. It isn't good for my heart and soul. I need rock and trees as well as the roughness and beauty of the land. That's where my heart and soul reside.

We decided that our ultimate destination for our hike would be an area that my brother refers to as the cliffs. They are not very tall cliffs like the beautiful yet scary ones on Manitoulin Island but you still wouldn't want to fall down them. The area is a beautiful place to have a picnic so we brought along some snacks and lunch. I had just made homemade iced tea and cheese biscuits that morning for the occasion, my brother had bought some dry snacks the day before, and our cousin brought some cans of soup. We built a small campfire, making sure that we were being safe, and used it to cook the soup. It felt very Northern Ontarian to be having a little campfire in the bush and seeing the smoke wisp through the air with pine trees in the background made it feel even more mystical.

That hike was such a powerful experience. It reminded me to just let go and be free. Although the bush is very complex and can also be dangerous, slowing down and enjoying nature makes life seem a lot simpler, at least for a little while. I was able to let my heart and soul open up and explore the beauty and teachings that the land has to offer. It is so hard to describe in words. It is truly something that you need to experience and feel for yourself. I thought that hike was just going to be a fun day out with family but it was so much more. There we were, just three young adults and a dog, hiking through the bush. For a little while, we got to escape our everyday lives and just take some time to breathe and explore. Life moves so quickly and growing up can be tough but nature teaches us to slow down and enjoy the journey. There is definitely some kind of magic there in the bush and I want to explore it even more.

Cheers,
Kaylie

Living in Northern Ontario

With the changing of the seasons, I have been spending more time outside which got me thinking about this wonderful part of the province that I live in. Living in Northern Ontario is not the easiest thing to do but it is definitely worth it if you love the outdoors and like getting away from the big city life. There are still cities here but they are not the same as cities like Toronto. There is a totally different feeling to them here. The Northern Ontario people are also different. It seems like we have a more relaxed but also rough and tough personality to us. I guess that's what happens when you live in areas surrounded by bush. Here is a list of a bunch of things that Northern Ontario is known for and make it what it is.

Winter: I have a love-hate relationship with Winter but it is definitely a huge part of living in Northern Ontario. Pretty much half of the year is Winter due to how long the snow is around. Outdoor Winter activities are popular but there are also people who like me who mostly stay inside during the Winter. I personally think that we should just have snow for Christmas and then it should all melt away but Mother Nature thinks otherwise.

Bears and Other Wildlife: Seeing wildlife is perfectly normal here in Northern Ontario due to all of the surrounding bush. Black bears are especially common and I'd be surprised if someone living here never saw a bear. I have seen a bear while walking down a trail along a creek (thankfully it was on the other side of the creek), while biking (thankfully it was far enough down the trail that I was able to get away from the area without it seeing me), on the front porch of my family's house (it was trying to get seeds from the bird feeder that we put out in November thinking that the bears were hibernating), and in my family's backyard (it would come in the middle of the day to eat grapes from our grapevines). Us Northern Ontarians therefore grow up learning about bear safety and what to do if we encounter a bear. Other wildlife that we have seen just around our house include birds, squirrels (including flying squirrels), chipmunks, raccoons (there were two living under our porch for a while and one Winter there was even a raccoon with no tail that would come to the bird feeders), foxes, snakes, frogs, toads, groundhogs, mice, and more.

Camps: In Southern Ontario, people tend to have what they call cottages, but in Northern Ontario, we have camps. What we call a camp is basically a wooden cabin. Some people have electricity and running water in their camp while others, like my family, do not. A lot of camps are also by a lake but some of us, like my family, have a camp that is simply in the bush. My family also has a wood stove in our camp so that we can use our camp all year long.

Saunas: There is a large Finnish population in Northern Ontario. Two cities in Northern Ontario with larger Finnish populations than others are Sudbury, where I live, and Thunder Bay. A quarter of my family is actually Finnish so I am a part of that Northern Ontario Finnish population. My mom has explained to me that many Finnish people settled here in Northern Ontario because the landscape is so similar to that of Finland. Since there is such a large Finnish population, it should be no surprise that saunas (Finnish steam baths) are very popular here, especially for people that have camps by the lake. It should also be no surprise that my family has our own sauna in our backyard.

The Bush: Here in Northern Ontario, and perhaps in other areas of Canada, we refer to the forest as "the bush." I feel like it is probably because our forests are often more wild than what you might think of when you imagine a forest. Also, when it comes to the outdoors here in Northern Ontario, we are fine with "roughing it" so I suppose "the bush" just adds to that roughness that we associate with the outdoors.

Campfires/Bonfires: Having a fire pit in your backyard is popular in Northern Ontario and yes, my family has one. Even though you may have to fight off a ton of mosquitoes, there is nothing better than inviting family and friends over for a fire to relax and listen to someone play guitar while you roast marshmallows under the stars.

If you don't live in Northern Ontario, I hope this helps you understand this part of Ontario a bit more and I hope it encourages you to visit this area sometime to experience it. If you're from Northern Ontario, then you probably just nodded your head in agreement throughout this list.

Cheers,
Kaylie

Afternoon Tea on the Canadian East Coast

In August 2016, my family's summer trip took place. Where to? The East Coast of our beautiful country of Canada! We had been to Nova Scotia together before along with my aunt, uncle, and cousins (on my Dad's side) to visit my great-aunt (also on my Dad's side) who lived there when my brother and I and our cousins were little kids. Of course, we mostly visited with my great-aunt while we were there and my brother and I don't remember everything anyway because we were so young so we decided to go back to visit Nova Scotia but also to visit some of the other provinces too. We ended up visiting the province of Prince Edward Island and we also visited Campobello Island which is located in New Brunswick and is right next to the state of Maine.

We ended up camping in parks and campgrounds most of the way and did many tourist activities. One of my favourite things that we did, besides the Anne of Green Gables attractions that I experienced, was going for afternoon tea in each of the provinces that we visited. What follows are descriptions of all of our lovely afternoon tea experiences on the Canadian East Coast. I hope you enjoy and consider visiting the East Coast to have some lovely afternoon tea experiences of your own.

Afternoon tea at Dalvay-by-the-Sea:

On Prince Edward Island, we went for afternoon tea at Dalvay-by-the-Sea. It is a national historic site protected by Parks Canada and it is located in Prince Edward Island National Park. My Mom had read about the afternoon tea that you can go for at Dalvay-by-the-Sea and we were all interested since we all love tea. We had to book a reservation ahead of time (we only booked it 1 or 2 days ahead) and it cost $100 since we were a group of four people. Our table was beside a window with a view of Dalvay Lake. We each got to choose a type of tea and were brought small individual tea pots with our chosen tea flavours. Two stacked plate display towers full of light snacks and goodies were placed on the table with enough for each person to have one of everything. There were some savoury lunch items on the bottom plate followed by desserts on the other two plates. Since these were all finger foods, I remember thinking that I could eat everything but all of the small items really get quite filling after a while. The room had other tables where other people enjoyed their tea and snacks. The building itself was beautiful both inside and out and we made sure to explore a bit before we left.

Rita's Tea Room:

In Nova Scotia, we went to Rita's Tea Room in Big Pond on Cape Breton Island. Rita MacNeil was a famous Canadian singer. She bought an old schoolhouse to convert into a house for herself in her hometown of Big Pond, Cape Breton Island and would invite her audiences to stop by for tea if they were ever in the area. So many people took her up on the offer that she decided to convert her home into a tea room. Visiting Rita's Tea Room was very special to me since I am a big fan of Rita MacNeil who unfortunately passed away in 2013. I knew that this was one of the places that we absolutely, without a question, had to go to during our East Coast trip. When I first stepped inside, I instantly felt a feeling of coziness and friendliness. We looked at the lovely museum section all about Rita's life and achievements before sitting down at a table. My Dad and brother ordered tea and lunch items while my Mom and I shared The Old School House Strings which included enough tea for two along with a plate of small desserts. The tea was Rita's Tea Room Blend and we made sure to buy a box for ourselves and a box for my grandma in the small gift shop. I also made sure to buy a Rita tea cup, identical to the tea cups used at Rita's Tea Room, because I had promised myself that I would buy one. The two ladies that we encountered who were working there were so wonderful and there was just so much warmth and happiness in that beautiful place.

Tea with Eleanor in Roosevelt Campobello International Park:

In New Brunswick, we attended the Tea with Eleanor program in Roosevelt Campobello International Park on Campobello Island. When we visited the park's visitor centre, planning on visiting the Roosevelt cottage that Franklin and Eleanor Roosevelt owned and stayed at with their family which is free to visit, we found out about the free Tea with Eleanor program and decided to participate in it. We were given tickets and later made our way over to the Wells-Shober Cottage when it was time for the tea to start. We were part of a whole group of people participating in the program and we all went into a room that had several tables with chairs. On one wall, there were photos of Eleanor and on another were copies of some of her My Day newspaper columns. My family had a table all to ourselves and everyone in the group enjoyed tea and cookies while listening to two lovely ladies tell us all about the life of Eleanor Roosevelt. They explained that the reason that this program was set up was because Eleanor Roosevelt always had afternoon tea every day with her family and it was very important to her. Afterwards, we got to see some rooms of the cottage that were set up with old furniture before heading over to see the Roosevelt cottage which has its rooms set up to closely resemble what it looked like in 1920.


After this trip, I absolutely adore the idea of afternoon tea. Stopping in the afternoon and taking a break from everything in order to drink tea and maybe have some light snacks just seems good for you, even if it's just a solo afternoon tea just for you. For one thing, taking breaks is healthy. Working on something for too long can become stressful or tiring. Drinking tea and just concentrating on that really makes you focus on the present moment and helps you relax. Of course, if there are other people, then it becomes social and I know that even I need to be social once in a while even though I'm an introvert and am fine being on my own. I've had afternoon teas of my own with family once in a while but I'm thinking that I might need to do it more often. It just feels right, especially for a tea drinker like myself.

Cheers,
Kaylie

I Shall Have Some Peace There

My family owns a camp, a little cabin in the bush (woods) with a small wood-stove. It is like a second home. When we started using it again regularly this year, two years had passed since we had last visited it. I checked my journal and found out that the last time that we were there was September 22nd, 2013 and we had arrived on September 21st and stayed there overnight. The day that we finally visited again was September 21st, 2015, the day which, two years ago, had been the last night that we would spend there for a while. Of course, some of our relatives who also partly own the camp may have visited it during that time, but it didn't look like it had been used very much.

We have been trying to use it more now. It feels good to go back there, where it is quiet and relaxing. Where we are surrounded by nature. Where there are less distractions. Where we are away from society, away from civilization. I could go on and on but the point is, it's peaceful there. When I am there, I am surrounded by nature and I am also surrounded by my family since we go there together.

I also find that it is easier for me to concentrate on various activities like reading books and working on various projects. I like writing there and working on crafts like my loom knitting. There are so many distractions at my family's house and there are just so many things to be done there. At our camp, however, life is simple. There aren't a million things to do, only a few. That leaves time for working on other things. The quiet of the bush and the warmth of the wood-stove provide a great atmosphere. We sit quietly and read or work on whatever we like. In the mornings, we meditate, and on Saturday evening, we listen to Randy Bachman's Vinyl Tap on CBC Radio, a radio show where Randy Bachman shares songs that fall under a theme (a different theme is chosen for each show) and shares stories from his experience as a musician and his experiences meeting various other musicians.

Of course, many experiences of mine remind me of songs or literature and my experiences of staying at my camp are no different. In William Butler Yeats' poem, "The Lake Isle Of Innisfree," he talks about going to Innisfree and he describes Innisfree and describes what he will do there. At one point in the poem, he says, "I shall have some peace there." For Yeats, Innisfree is where he finds peace. For me, my family's camp is where I find peace.

Cheers,
Kay

90s/Early 2000s Canadian Childhood Nostalgia

I was born in 1993 meaning I was 4 years old in 1997 so I got to experience some of the kiddy goodness from the 90s and also the kiddy goodness from the early 2000s. I am also a Canadian, therefore I didn't just get to experience the kiddy goodness from the 90s and early 2000s, I got to experience Canadian kiddy goodness. Without further ado, let me take you back on a trip down memory lane with some of the things that I remember from my Canadian 90s/early 2000s childhood.

Sugar from YTV's The Zone

Sugar (real name: Stephanie) was a host on YTV's The Zone from 2001-2007. The Zone is an afternoon programming block on YTV where the hosts entertain viewers and also introduce the TV shows that are on the YTV station at that time. 

I remember watching The Zone when I came home from school. I will never forget her high voice! Just watch some old videos of her hosting The Zone on youtube and you will know what I mean. I remember when Sugar hosted The Zone with Pat and then when she hosted it with Carlos once Pat left. I also remember when Sugar left for Hollywood. Apparently Carlos is still the current host.

Concerned Children's Advertisers: "The North American House Hippo" and "Don't You Put It In Your Mouth"

The North American House Hippo:

Don't You Put It In Your Mouth:

These two advertisements, "The North American House Hippo" and "Don't You Put It In Your Mouth," are the ones that I remember most from Concerned Children's Advertisers (now known as Companies Committed to Kids). "The North American House Hippo" was part of their media literacy advertisements and it encouraged kids not to believe everything they see on TV. "Don't You Put It In Your Mouth" was part of their child safety advertisements and it encouraged kids to ask someone they love before putting anything in their mouth. Concerned Children's Advertisers/Companies Committed to Kids also made and still makes other advertisements about various children's issues. 

"The North American House Hippo" is such a neat advertisement because 1) it seems so real and 2) it mentions Canada as the home of the house hippo. It's so funny and cute! I always remember the part about how the house hippo eats "the crumbs from peanut butter on toast." This is such a cool Canadian advertisement that so many people remember! In my opinion, it's one of the best Canadian advertisements ever made. I'm really excited about how you can actually buy house hippo shirts and bags now!

"Don't You Put It In Your Mouth" is a really goofy and kind of creepy advertisement but that's one of the reasons why I remember it so well. The song was so catchy that I can still recite some of the lyrics.

Crosscountry Canada

Crosscountry Canada is a geographical and educational computer game made in 1991 which you can now play online for free! Basically, you drive around Canada in a truck and you have a sort of mission where you have to pick up certain items and bring them back to certain certain cities. To do this, however, you have to type in the commands (for example: drive north, look at map, go to gas station, etc.).

We had this game on the computers at my elementary school. I remember how annoying it was to have to type in the commands. After playing it recently, I got so frustrated because I couldn't remember the commands that you have to type in and the game kept telling me that it didn't understand or when wanting to go in a certain direction, it kept telling me that I couldn't go that way. Seeing a hitchhiker was always exciting, however, and it's cool how the game would give you a little safety warning before picking up the hitchhiker.

Sharon, Lois, & Bram

Skinnamarink:

Sharon, Lois, & Bram formed in Toronto in 1978 and they have been entertaining kids ever since! Their singing is unforgettable, especially "Skinnamarink." Apparently Sharon and Bram still perform together but Lois left the group in 2000.

Well, thanks for strolling down memory lane with me! If you're a Canadian 90s/early 2000s child, I hope this brought back memories!

-Kaylie