Thursday, June 27, 2013

A Stroll in Port Haney and My Song About Growing Up Here.

Last night the sun came out and invited me to go for a stroll. I live right on the Fraser Heritage walkway

I sauntered down to the Fraser river. The cloud formations were fantastic and the river looked beautiful
The beautiful Fraser River at Port Haney

The first thing I came upon after going through the underpass tunnel was an ironwork sculpture of flowers which is the worse for wear and tear. But it was heartwarming to see it because it was made by my ex-husband many years ago, when he was the artist in residence.
Metal Sculpture with horse shoes by Colin Southwell.

I walked across the tracks down to the wharf and enjoyed the river views.


 I walked back across the tracks and across River Road to the new pizza restaurant beside the old Billy Miner pub.
The Billy Miner Pizza Cafe

 It was great to see old friends sitting out on the patio enjoying their evening meal and I stopped and had a visit with Bernice and Don. I updated them with all the family news. They asked about Beth's concert in Vancouver. It is so nice to have all this history with the community here. Beth used to work at the Billy years ago, when Bernice and Don owned it. Great memories.
I went into the off sales for some cider. There is such a wonderful atmosphere in the Billy Miner Ale House, home to the Sunday Night Jam.





I am so lucky to be able to walk out my door and enjoy the walk to the Fraser River past the old heritage Haney House.
Haney House
I grew up in Haney, before it was Maple Ridge. I love this town, the place where I grew, playing in the forests and swimming in the Alouette on hot summer days.

Here is a song I wrote while living in England, I was homesick and thinking of all the things that were special to my childhood and youth here in Maple Ridge.  I am so grateful to have grown up here, in the rainforest of my childhood.




I Grew Up In Haney
I grew up in Haney with some friends of mine.
It was a lot smaller then and we had a good time.
From Haney Central up to Maple Ridge High
Well we just had to go.

And we painted the walkways from Junior to Senior
So we wouldn’t get caught in the rain.
And the Beatles were famous and hippies became us
And John F. Kennedy died.

I remember the day the five and dime burned down.
It was all over town, in no time at all.
And when the old Aggie Hall reached the end of the road.
Well we just had to go.

They built the craziest rooftop that you’ve ever seen.
On top of the new five and dime.
And a big skating rink we can use all year round.
Near where the Aggie Hall once stood so proud.

When I was a kid they built the outdoor pool.
And we would go swimming, come rain or come shine.
With a season ticket clutched in my hand.
Well I just had to go.

And the Alouette River so cool and so clear.
Invited us all to come in.
And the lovely big rocks down by Davidson’s pool.
Were perfect for laying back on.

Oh, I grew up in Haney with some friends of mine.
It was a lot smaller then and we had a good time.
Words and Music Pam Carr



Monday, June 24, 2013

My Daughter Beth Southwell Celebrates the Release of Her CD

On Saturday night, June 22nd, I went to the Firehall Arts Centre to see my daughter Beth perform the songs from her new CD.
This is her first solo CD and it was very exciting to see her perform surrounded by her amazingly talented friends and collaborators.  The first song of the night was Lake Ontario.


Beth is supported by Jesse Waldman on guitar, Michael Simpsonelli on drums, Michael Rush on bass, Monica Lee on viola and piano and Meghan Engel on violin, and back up vocalists Christie Rose and Bahiyyih Peters.
It was such an exciting night for me. We have been involved with music all our lives and Beth used to fall asleep at the music nights down at Alouette Arts in Maple Ridge when she was three.  Alouette Arts was where she first performed and where Two Tall Women first appeared. We are so blessed to have such a rich musical history.
Saturday night was so special because her whole family turned out and so many friends, new and old were there too.  You could feel the love in the theatre. The evenings production was stellar, with lighting and sound run by Craig and magnificent arrangements and performances that blew the audience away.
I am so grateful for my Beautiful Life.


Monday, June 17, 2013

Weekend On Mayne Island

I had a wonderful weekend away on Mayne Island.  I have a little trailer there and this property is where I am going to be building a cob house this summer.
The reason for me spending the past weekend there was to meet with Elliot who is helping with the foundations. We poured over the house plans spread across my picnic table and it was in interesting process unpacking the information hidden in the plans. :-)

I managed to fit in a ninety minute walk down to the Farm Gate Store and got some organic produce and some Avalon milk, which I am sure began it's life here in Maple Ridge.

The owners of this store actually built a cob house on their Deaconvale Farm with Cobworks. They are also on facebook. 


I had a lovely barbecue with friends on Saturday and then met with Rudi who is going to put a new tin roof on my shed and I am transforming it into a washroom for us to use as we are building the house this summer. Elliot has also agreed to build me an outside shower so we will have two showers, a bath (hopefully) and a swish new composting toilet I bought several months ago. We will be civilized as the work parties mix cob and raise the walls.

A plus to the weekend was getting some serious reading done towards my Masters thesis. I sat out on my deck in the sunshine and read all about qualitative research.
I am happy to be home now and looking forward to my day with my students. I have been granted a years long term leave from school and I am currently planning my travelling schedule.  It will be a year of travel and writing.

I had lots of time for meditating over the weekend and came up with a weekly schedule for blogging during my week off. Today is day 1. If things go according to plan I will be posting a blog on My Beautiful Life every Monday. :-) 

Monday, June 10, 2013

Re-discovering Old Affirmations

I was going through my Affirmations  journal and found these affirmations I wrote out many years ago. They have been so helpful to me and I thought I would share them here in case anyone else finds them timely and useful.

These affirmations are from Stuart Wilde. I was thinking of him recently and when I did a google search to see what he was up to I discovered he had died of a heart attack while driving in Ireland.


He was a great source of wisdom for me at a time when I was searching for answers in my life.

I am so grateful to him and the many other teachers who have magically entered my life. I read so many of his books I am not sure which ones these affirmations come from.
I offer them here with love and it is wonderful to think his words carry on supporting others even though he is no longer with us on the earthly plane.

"May the freshness of this new day vitalize and heal my body.  May there be balance and power in this day."

"I am what I am, and what I am has beauty and strength."

"In this day I express love to each person I meet, for I know that I am truly loveable."

and this is my all time favourite, I even made a t-shirt with this on.

"My expectations are truly limitless."