December 27th, 2006
Boxing day
We spent the day in today, mostly hanging out (“slobbing around” in Red Dwarf language) and it was a very nice change. We made a big breakfast with bacon, hash browns and french toast and then read for a bit. I am reading a collection of select 20th centufy novels, plays and short stories. I finished “Saint Joan” by George Bernard Shaw and quite enjoyed it. Then we got out the box of photo albums and keepsakes from my mom’s place and looked through them. My mom made an incredible baby book for me and we had a lot of fun looking through that. There was a page with my footprints and handprints. I had really massive feet! They sure don’t make baby books like that one these days.
Then we looked through some other albums and I found a book my mother put together with information about her various family members that had passed away. I found out more about my uncle Alan, who died of leukemia when he was only 10. She had photocopied some of the letters he wrote from the hospital and also a letter from the school where they had sent my grandparents some money to help with the cost of his hospital stay (in the days before public health care). It was really sad to read about. After that the family decided they couldn’t keep the farm (my grandfather was also frequently ill) so they moved to Medicine Hat and my grandmother worked in the hopsital there; my grandfather was too ill to work. He died not too long after that. What makes it particularly sad was that there was so little in the way of medical intervention back then – my grandfather had pneumonia 5 times during his life and still worked hard on the farm despite how sick it made him.
I also have my mother’s baby book and it was really interesting to see how different her childhood was from mine and from that of kids today. There was no doctor present when she was born (at home) and I doubt my grandmother even saw a doctor when she was pregnant with any of the children. My mom’s birthday presents were usually “The Royal Bumps” (i.e. birthday bumps). How different things are now! Parents can’t get away with giving simple presents anymore (“but mooom, Angie got a new ipod!”). I have personally had so many doctor’s appointments I feel like I’ve seen someone every 2 weeks. Since September I have seen my obstetrician 5 times, the dentist once, the optometriest once, my family doctor twice, had two blood tests and 4 ultrasounds! I used to grumble when I had to take off an hour early to keep a doctor’s appointment and now I’m used to taking a half day off and waiting 1-3 hours for each of these appointments.
Yesterday we had a little picnic in the park and the weather was very mild. It snowed today but we will see if it lasts – I wouldn’t be at all surprised if it is already gone. Tomorrow we’re planning to go out in the (late) morning and then eat out for dinner. We still have to make the anise cookies sometime this week, not sure when that will be yet.
