On Snowflake: An Ode

October 16, 2009 by maureen.ulrich.

 Snowflake’s my Sportster

He’s small and he’s white

He’s the perfect motorcycle

If your experience is light.

 

To handle at Sportster

At slow speeds is tough

And I must attest that

My right turns are rough.

 

Snowflake’s seen the sky

Lying on his right flank

While I try to reassure

The tellers from the bank.

 

Still Snowflake has mastered

Hills that are steep

And stopping quickly to avoid

A flock of stunned sheep.

 

To ride him is a glory

When the bugs stay away

And the wind is behind me

On a hot summer day.

 

Sometimes it feels

Like he’s not there at all

Just the purr of his motor

And the highway’s soft call.

 

This summer in Wyoming

There was some consternation

When Snowflake was issued

A traffic citation.

 

“Too fast,” said the State Trooper

And I certainly agreed.

Those 1200 CC’s

Are a temptation to speed.

 

Snowflake’s quick, He’s the boss

 Oh the mindless joy he can bring,

But I’m sad to report

Snowflake’s parked till next spring

Posted in On Life, On Travel | 1 Comment »

On the Festival of Words

July 20, 2009 by maureen.ulrich.

If you are a Saskatchewan writer or reader and have never attended Moose Jaw’s Festival of Words (as I had not until this year), you are missing an amazing showcase of Canada’s finest writers — including Gail Bowen, Fred Stenson, Jerry Haigh, Jack Whyte, Thomas Wharton, Andrew Nikiforuk, Anna Porter, Tom Wayman, David Carpenter, and numerous others.  This year’s event was dedicated to the Saskatchewan Writers’ Guild, which celebrates its 40th anniversary in 2009. I was drawn to the event because of a writing workshop — given by Sharon Pollock — an accomplished actress and playwright from Alberta. I studied Walsh in a Canadian theatre class several years ago, and fell in love with Sharon’s style. Her playwriting workshop was immensely helpful to me, and having just finished a second draft of Crossroads Cafe, I am ready to employ her very practical suggestions in my third. It’s so nice to know what questions to ask myself when I am trying to judge whether or not a scene or character “works.” You can bet I’ll be attending the full festival next year. It’s well worth the time and money, since Moose Jaw is truly a beautiful and vibrant city.

Posted in On Travel, On Writing | 2 Comments »

On Being a Southerner

October 11, 2008 by maureen.ulrich.

 

For years I have thought of myself as a Westerner – having grown up in Edmonton and Calgary, and having spent the majority of my life in SE Saskatchewan. On occasion I have waxed eloquently on the topic of Easterners.  “They don’t get us,” I have said. “They don’t understand or value our way of life.” And I never once thought that the same sorts of things could be said by Northeners about Southeners as naïve as I am.

In fact, I have never once thought of Canada as being a land of North and South. Nor did I ever think of myself as a Southerner, but I heard the term repeatedly throughout my visit. “He’s gone south,” Yellowknifers would say – and not in an envious sort of way. More like – “He’s gone to the Dark Side. We just lost another one.”

No duh. You might say. If you go North, then you must be from the South.

Okay, but as a Westerner I always viewed our rural way of life as about as slow-paced and down-to-earth as it gets. Now I have discovered a whole new perspective on RURAL on the population density continuum.  

And let’s keep in mind that residents of Inuvik would class Yellowknifers as Southerners too. Everything is relative.

I ended up in NWT because a good friend of mine is principal of a K-8 school in Yellowknife. She contacted the NWT Literacy Council. Lisa Campbell did a superb job of coordinating my visits to Weledeh, St. Pat’s High School, Sir John Franklin High School, St. Joe’s, William McDonald, and Range Lake School. The staff and students received me warmly in each location. The NWT Literacy Council also flew me (courtesy of First Air) to Fort Simpson, where I did a few more presentations. In all I did fifteen reading and writing workshops in five days. 

Here’s a few observations:

1.     People drive a great deal slower in Yellowknife than they do in Estevan. Drivers stop and wave and smile at pedestrians.  In this city of 20 000, there’s still a very small town attitude.

2.     Yellowknife is still very cosmopolitan – and multicultural – with many amenities of “the big city.” I attended a very classy Food First fund-raising event at Ecole Sir John Franklin School where Canadian Living editor Elizabeth Baird prepared three appetizers

3.     And the bush is generally only a stone’s throw away. Bears are often spotted in the neighborhood. Caribou migrate onto the lake when it freezes over. Giant ravens are everywhere.

4.     Yellowknife is a blend of contradictions – a DVD player sitting next to a stack of antlers in the city dump. A community kennel for sled dogs only a few miles from the state-of-the-art NACC.

5.     Two gold mines – Giant and Con — closed in the last decade. These locations bring back powerful emotions for every community member who lived here during the strike in 1992.

6.     Northerners know how to cook! I ate local fair at some of the local dining establishments – and was treated to Arctic Char, my favourite fish – served in three different ways. Pan-fried at Bullock’s, an establishment that prides itself on its brusque service. Eggs Frobisher Bay – a variation on Eggs Benedict — at the Explorer Hotel. And grilled on a skewer by one of the local restaurants at the Food First fundraiser. Delicious.

 

I don’t pretend for a minute to understand the complexities of the North. I just got to open the door a crack and see a little, much like my view of the sled dog kennels at Cam Lake. The three dogs I did see – not quite “wild” and not quite “tame” were just the tip of the iceberg.

So people go North for an adventure and never leave. One man – who has lived in White Horse for the past 28 years  (as long as I have been living in Saskatchewan) came there for a weekend without his coat or wallet and never left.

Maybe it has to do with the climate (of course the residents assured me the gorgeous weather I experienced during this last week of September was nothing like the two weeks of rain previous) or the geography or the isolation. You don’t have to move far from Yellowknife to feel like you’re really OUT THERE.

Flying in on Sunday evening, I peered out the window for a solid hour and saw nothing but an ebony pool.  No lights. No sign of habitation. Apart from flying over the Atlantic or Pacific, it’s not something I have ever experienced.

I said when I found out that I was making this journey that I didn’t care if I sold one book – it would be enough to be shown around and treated like a celebrity for a week. How naïve I was. And how humble I feel. I know I learned far more from the kids I spoke to than they learned from me.

Normally when I am away from home, I can’t wait to get back. This is the first time I have ever felt that I maybe was at home already.

I bought a heart pendant in Yellowknife, with three tiny Diavak diamonds.

I have a feeling I have left a little piece of my own heart – the heart of a Southerner — behind.

Posted in On Travel | 2 Comments »

On Sturgis 2008

September 14, 2008 by maureen.ulrich.

Want some history on North American’s most famous rally? Here’s an excerpt from my unfinished manuscript entitled Bad Girls Go to Sturgis. The narrator is Maria Kennedy, my protagonist:
My father had explained to me that Clarence “Pappy” Hoel and the Jackpine Gypsies Motorcycle Club had initiated the Sturgis Bike Rally in 1938. Two years earlier Pappy had opened a Harley-Davidson sales and repair shop, which quickly became a mustering ground for local enthusiasts.
“The Gypsies even raced on Bear Butte Lake in the winter time,” Dad laughed. “They must have all been a little loco.”
Pappy designed the Sturgis rally in order to compete with the Deadwood and Belle Fourche rodeos. He advertised the event by touring around the Black Hills on his Indian motorcycle, dragging a converted sidecar rig carrying a Shetland pony named Topsy. Nearly two hundred people attended the racing event – a huge success by local standards.
Could Pappy have envisioned the metamorphosis of the rally into the continent’s – perhaps the world’s — largest motorcycle rally? Over half a million people invaded the Black Hills in 2004. So many urban bikers hauled their bikes in trailers and RV’s that many cynics had renamed the event “Trailer Week.”
The only time I’d been to Sturgis was 1978, the year Easy Rider magazine started covering the rally. At that time the number of participants was well under 30 000. In 1990, Steve and Nick (Maria’s older brothers) attended the event’s 50th anniversary – along with 350 000 other riders. It was before the rally was expanded to include Deadwood and Spearfish. It was before the port o potties in City Park were burned in 1982 and camping was banned in the city park. Now many Sturgis residents and residents of the surrounding area rent out their homes for over $4000 a week.
As I drew closer, I opted for the route through the small town of Newell, instead of entering the Black Hills at Belle Fourche. Wanda had told me that I should avoid the highway which bisected Sturgis – particularly at night.
“Once it took Bill and me two and a half hours to drive from Boulder Canyon to the Full Throttle Saloon,” Wanda had explained. “We would have gotten there quicker if we had walked.”
I had been surprised that I hadn’t seen more bikes on Highway 85, but as each mile clicked away on the approach to Newell, I became part of a massive migration – utterly unlike anything I had seen twenty-seven years ago. Frankly, I had thought that Wanda was exaggerating when she talked about the number of bikes. Now, I had the distinct feeling that every bike in the U.S.A. – at least every Harley-Davidson – was touring the Black Hills. And like tiny pulsating red blood cells, they were all headed down the main arteries towards the heart of Bike Week – Sturgis, South Dakota. A town of six thousand any other time of year. . .

August 2008 marked our fifth trip to Sturgis during the Rally. We were there for three full days this year, which for us is pretty much the right amount of time. The weather was super – apart from one huge cloudburst on our last night there.
We drove down in a cavalcade of nine bikes. The trip down was pretty uneventful – if you discount Derek’s problems with his clutch and quick repair in Watford City, courtesy of the Case dealership.
We arrived in Newell around 7:00 PM and were amazed at the scarcity of bikes. We knew right away that numbers must be down at the rally. We later discovered that there were only about 450 000 bikes – which is significantly down from the usual 700 000 to 800 000.
It’s still a lot of bikes. I know.
We camped at the Creekside Campground, the same place as last year. We really like the low-key atmosphere, the food, the hot showers, and the location. We can walk to concerts at the Glencoe or take a $5 shuttle into town at night.
Randy and Blaire attended two concerts at the Buffalo Chip. Blaire came down exclusively for Lynard Skynard, but I think she liked Alice Cooper even more. It was the second time she has seen Alice’s stage show, and I guess this one was particularly good. He even had his wife and two daughters performing with him. Lynard Skynard was amazing, and their encore of Free Bird was a concert highlight. I must confess I’m not a huge Lynard Skynard fan. It has something to do with the fact that it was the only CD that Randy played when I rode with him for four years. It’s not the main reason I got my own bike, but . . .
Anyway, all three of us saw Kiss play at the Glencoe Campground. The Glencoe is a great location for concerts due to the natural amphitheatre. One reason I don’t like concerts at the Chip is that – because I am vertically challenged – I sometimes hear more of the concert than I actually see. This is not the case at the Glencoe. Kiss went way over the top with their stage show. Very glitzy. Lots of lights. Colour. Fireworks. And I wonder if Paul Stanley and Gene Simmons decided years ago that wearing so much stage make-up would make it easier to disguise their ages in the years to come. The first half of the concert was a bit of a snore, I’m afraid. We didn’t recognize any of the songs – and apparently many serious Kiss fans didn’t recognize them either. However, they kicked into high gear about half way through and gave us our money’s worth.
This was my first year driving in Sturgis itself. The first day we drove the Nemo Highway, Needles, and Ironman. I never could have driven any of these (without being a nervous wreck!) if I hadn’t made the trip to BC with Randy just two weeks earlier. Curvy roads no longer bother me, but I’m still not wild about parking lots and starting out on hills. I now use my back brake to hold my bike in place when I’m starting on a hill. It’s a trick I learned about in the 2004 motorcycle safety course, but I never really tried it until this summer.
For the next two days, the driving was a great deal more relaxed. We drove to Deadwood for one afternoon and into downtown Sturgis for another. I bought a great new skullcap for underneath my helmet. It’s a 300% improvement on my old one and makes driving so much more enjoyable. Blaire picked up a vest and chaps, so she is now completely outfitted for the road.
I have been trying to upload pictures to this website, but I haven’t had any luck lately. I don’t know if I’ve just forgotten how – or what. Anyway, hopefully I can get some on here soon.
Stay tuned. It’s the UK next!

Posted in On Travel | 4 Comments »

On a Very Long Hiatus

September 5, 2008 by maureen.ulrich.

Yes, yes. I know. Most of you have long since given up on this blog. Have checked and re-checked only to find that last May entry which promised news of a trip to New York . . .

Well, I’ll make a few excuses. It’s been a hectic four months. Juggling a school play and a part-time job and a full-time job and a writing career (Who am I kidding? I’ve hardly written a word since our writers’ retreat on May 10th!!) Then throw in a couple of bike trips to British Columbia and Sturgis and a two-week tour of England and Scotland with Daughter Number One.

Anyway, I’m back, and I’m committed to updating my blog every two weeks.

I’m not at school this fall, so there should be time for it. . .

So . . . where to begin?

How about . . . on the road to Nelson, British Columbia on a 1200 Low (Sportster)?

Randy and I drove from Weyburn to Lethbridge in one day, stopping frequently to rest our achy posteriors. The weather was gorgeous — and the traffic was minimal. We actually saw very few motor homes on the entire trip, which isn’t all that surprising, considering what gas costs now-a-days.

From Lethbridge we headed west through Blairmore and Creston. There’s a great stretch of highway that goes north from Creston to the ferry — very curvy and scenic. Locals told us afterword that it is ranked as one of the best stretches of road on a motorcycle. I believe it!!

Sometimes it’s a good idea not to know what lies ahead. This is especially true for me and my Sportster. At the ferry, we encountered a two hour wait — and a very steep hill. I just shut off the bike, shifted into neutral, and glided down it — with a liberal application of the front brake. No problem. Randy is a great teacher.

The ferry ride is about thirty minutes and — it’s free! I was plenty nervous driving ONTO the ferry — and the staff were nice enough to put us at the very front — so we could be amongst the first wave of vehicles to drive off. Great, I thought. I’ll stall a few times and make a fool of myself. But I didn’t. Not even one restart. From the ferry there’s a good half hour drive along the inlet to Nelson, with a beautiful bridge to cross over.

Nelson’s streets are very steep. Considering the amount of freezing rain it receives, driving in the winter must be VERY interesting. I opted to park my Sportster for the duration of our visit and ride with Randy on the Electra Glide — or with my mom and dad in their rental car. They flew to Castlegar on July 22nd and spent two nights with us, touring the area.

Nelson would be a great retirement community. It has everything we love — golf courses, a ski hill, lakefront, community theatre, a junior hockey team, and of course — great roads for driving a motorcycle.

We spent an evening at one of the local bars, listening to Fred Eaglesmith and his band. They put on a terrific show. Fred is one half musician/songwriter and one half stand-up comedian. He was well worth the price of admission, and I urge you to go to one of his concerts if he’s passing through your community. I don’t think you’ll be disappointed. His music is sort of Bruce Springsteen meets Bob Dylan meets John Mellencamp meets Gordon Lightfoot.

Anyway, from Nelson we headed south to Kalispell, Montana and the Going-to-the-Sun Highway in Glacier National Park. I thought I would be a nervous wreck doing this on a motorcycle, but I actually found it far much LESS nerve-wracking than in a vehicle. The view was spectacular and well worth the trip.

We spent one night in Medicine Hat on the way home — and that TransCanada Highway was sure a disappointment after learning to drive the curves in B.C. I’d love to go all the way to Victoria next summer, but that’s a long ways away, and I haven’t told you about Sturgis yet.

And I’ll do just that . . . tomorrow . . .

Posted in On Travel | 2 Comments »

On Toronto

March 8, 2008 by maureen.ulrich.

Over the school mid-winter break in late February, I headed out to Toronto for a few days to visit friends and family.

The weather was less than perfect. Believe it or not, it was colder – and snowier — in Toronto than it was back home in Saskatchewan.

My brother and his wife live in Oakville. It was a crisp but sunny day as I headed towards Lakeshore Boulevard and the downtown area where I did some shopping. There’s a number of quaint furniture stores in the area. I ventured into Bookers, an independently owned bookstore and discovered in the young adult section — to my Xtreme delight – three copies of Power Plays. I enjoyed a piping hot mocha and a Greek salad at an adjoining café called the Caffee Del Libros. Delicious!

The next morning I took a cab to the Go! Station in Oakville and from there transferred onto a train to Union Station. I left around 8:30 AM and found myself in downtown Toronto by nine. I can see why the Go train would be popular with people who make daily commutes.

In the downtown area, you can get many places without ever surfacing to street level. There are a series of connected underground malls, which extend for blocks and blocks.

Randy’s cousin Keith and I spent part of the day at the Royal Ontario Museum or ROM, which has an impressive dinosaur display.

We were intrigued by the title of a new exhibit entitled Shapeshifters, Time Travelers, and Storytellers. However, we soon discovered that the title was larger than the exhibit. It was interesting – to be sure. Where else might one see a jock strap made from raccoon fur or the life-sized skeleton of some prehistoric creature made from plastic lawn chairs? 

Afterwards, I observed to Keith, “Sometimes, less is less.”

 The same could be said for lunch at the ROM’s fifth floor restaurant.

Keith and I were served a sprinkling of greens, a lobster soup, and an alcoholic beverage for $72.00.  It was delicious, to be sure, but very poor value compared to my meal at the Caffe Del Libros. If you have a hearty appetite and a tight budget, please order a hot dog from a street vendor.

That night we attended the “One Night Live” benefit concert at the Air Canada Center. The event was a fundraiser for the neo-natal ward of Sunnybrook Hospital. My ticket cost $300 – but it was worth every penny.

Performers included Jan Arden (a very entertaining host!), Sarah McLachlan, Josh Grobin, and Bryan Adams. The concert got underway an hour late, but it lasted until nearly one ‘clock in the morning. What an incredible evening! I knew I was going to hear some great singing, but I never envisioned McLachlan and Grobin collaborating on  “Arms of the Angel.” Wow! Or Bryan Adams playing for over an hour. He was everything I dreamed he would be.

I spent Friday night and most of Saturday with my friend Joanne and her husband, who live on Front Street directly across from the St. Lawrence Market.  The view from their penthouse is magnificent! Naturally it was snowing when I arrived and still snowing when I went to bed, but when I awoke once in the middle of the night, the sky had cleared and I had a spectacular view of the CN Tower and the red brick Flatiron Building. The latter, located on the east edge of the financial district, is a distinctive landmark even though it’s only five storeys high. Also called the Gooderham Building, it was the first flatiron building in a major city. 

On Saturday morning, after eating fresh bagels warm from the ovens at the St. Lawrence Market, Joanne and I ventured over to the market itself.   The night previous Joanne had introduced me to tapanade, a spread similar to antipasto, but made entirely from olives. I wanted to buy a jar, but we never did find one — although we found nearly everything else! For example, I bought cookie cutters in the shape of a guitar, ballerina, violin, and motorcycle for $1.00 each.

Another word of caution. Businesses in downtown Toronto do not shovel outside their premises. They throw down salt. The soupy slush which results is very hard on boots and clothing. If you’re visiting Toronto after a heavy snowfall, take along water proof footwear. Gumboots overtop several layers of wool socks might be a good idea!

Later we walked over to the Distillery District, an industrial area built during the time of Queen Victoria. It contains over 30 historic buildings which house a number of trendy restaurants and businesses, including the Mill Street Brewery. If you stop in the brewery, be sure to try sample their beers flavoured with coffee and raspberry. Definitely different! I highly recommend the food at their Brew Pub, especially the Brewer’s bread. The Distillery District is a very cool shopping area if you’re looking for something you might not find in the West Edmonton Mall.

 

On Sundays Joanne attends Little Trinity Anglican Church – affectionately known at Little T. She walked me by this beautiful church which has been sharing the power, love, and truth of Jesus since 1842!

Having grown up in Calgary and Edmonton, I still enjoy a visit to a larger center once in a while, although I’m not certain that I could ever live in one. It might sound strange, but I find it rather soothing to hear city sounds at night. I especially love the sound of cars splashing by on a rainy night.

Still, it’s might nice to be back at home on the farm – listening to the coyotes.

 

 

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On the British Isles

June 22, 2007 by maureen.ulrich.

Randy and I had a marvelous time on our nine day excursion to London, Edinburgh, and Oxford. Although we found gorgeous scenery and friendly people wherever we went, we particularly liked Scotland. I have always loved Tudor/Stewart history, and fortunately, Randy didn’t mind spending several hours at the Tower of London, Edinburgh Castle, and the Palace of Holyrood while I immersed myself in it. I highly recommend the Literary Pub Crawl in Edinburgh. For Randy, it was also a highlight. More to come next week when school’s out and I have more free time on my hands!

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A Hop Across the Pond

May 30, 2007 by maureen.ulrich.

Randy and I are off to the U.K. tomorrow for nine days – splitting our time between London, Edinburgh, and Oxford. Needless to say, we are very excited. I’ll be sure to post some pictures of our trip when we return. Cheerio!

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