December 2, 2007:

Winter hit us this week and no foolin’. Temperatures in the high -20s and strong winds made walking a bit of a challenge. Luckily, we are in a moderate traffic area, so crossing streets with a parka hood up isn’t a problem. Staying warm is, because the wind really gets a sweep at us from the north.

We are amazed at how many people approach us in stores and on the street – they recognize Doreen, likely from her photo on the Internet version of the Report, and assume who I am. Almost invariably, they insist that I keep on writing the Report, most often because it is their connection to “down home”.

We are already starting to miss the Greenwater crowd. They really are a great bunch of people and made our twenty-seven years there the best years of our lives. We would like to thank all those who came to our farewell parties, in Greenwater and in Tisdale, as well as all those who have wished us well as we enter the next stage of our lives. We love you all!

Wasn’t that some event in Porcupine Plain? Wish we could have been there. The “ Logan ’s Heroes” hockey game, memorial and fundraiser, organized by our friend and former neighbor Kelly Chase and friends from the NHL, was a huge success. Also a huge display of support for Kent and Kim Logan, parents of Pacen Logan, the seven-year-old who lost his life in a drowning accident this fall. It wasn’t just a local event, either – it rated a major write-up in the Saskatoon Star Phoenix with front-page photos of Kelly, Wendell, the Logans, and more, a mention by Don Cherry, and front-page treatment on the National News and local television news. Besides Kelly and the other NHL stars, Danny and Sonja Stadnek earned praise for helping to organize the event.

One of the smartest moves Porcupine Plain ever did was to arrange to have Kelly Chase born and raised there. What a wonderful asset he has been to the town.

Rose and Jim Steadman dropped in Friday afternoon and we had a short but pleasant visit. They brought a painting to grace our living room wall, and does it ever brighten the place up! We have another of hers on our dining room wall, one that we have had for several years, of the Barrier River Valley .

You may have heard that Fisherman’s Cove has a line of Flaman’s exercise equipment in the new dining room. They are starting a fitness club and for a monthly fee one can use the equipment. Andrew Doan has been working at making partitions to go between the units so one can exercise with privacy. It will be interesting to see how well received the idea of a fitness club will be – certainly a lot of us could use a little fitness!