MEMORIES FROM 2018

2018 has come and gone.  Some more memories to capture before they slip away.

The easiest in some ways to forget are those who are no longer with us.  Some left some good memories.  There are of course many others who could have been mentioned.

Lisa De Macio married to Sam with two great kids, Nicole and Gregory and one grand-daughter Chloe.  At one time she taught English as a second language, the same as my sister Rebecca.  Lisa went on to help people with disabilities.  She didn't want people to cry over her death so she planned her own memorial down to a lot of thoughtful details.  Some high school friends from Havergal College were instructed to make sure humor was added to the memorial and they did.   Sam gave a speech part of which I remember,  "When you leave here, her love will go with you."  I remember her father in law Peter (who married my mother in law) liked to take her out to a favorite Greek restaurant in Burlington--we all came to love.   She had degrees from the University of Toronto and Ryerson.  One small detail given by a friend of hers was she recommended the book by Viktor Frankl--"Man's Search for Meaning"--one that left a deep impression on me.  Sam was right--she left her mark and the rest of us are better off for it.

Sridevi was a Bollywood actress, well regarded in her sphere, but probably not well known among western movie goers.  During a vacation in New Zealand I went to an Indian restaurant, Shiraz in Whangerei and noticed they had sweets including ladoo.  I had never tasted them before, but remembered them from a wonderful movie, "English Vinglish"  in which Srivevi played a woman whose husband and children mocked her for not speaking English.  The movie set up circumstances where she learned to speak English secretly, but all the way through her pride and joy was a business making ladoos which I indulged in during my New Zealand vacation.  I went on to see her in her earlier days when she played romantic leads and a more recent memorable movie "Mom" that is well worth seeing.  I was looking forward to new movies, but will have to content myself with her older films.

Stephen Hawking died during the Paralympics.  From an earlier speech  just before the 2012 Paralympics I would like to.quote:  "We are all different there is no such thing as a standard or run of the mill human being, but we share the same human spirit.  Look up at the stars and not down at your feet."  Another quote, "However difficult life may seem there is always something you can do and succeed at."  Not only gave us science understanding, but also contributed to humanity.

Anthony Bourdain.  I love eating, but my attraction to him was his bringing new cultural experiences.  It was upsetting that he committed suicide, possibly due to addiction problems.  We did learn of exotic food items, but more importantly learned about different cultures and how we all have a lot in common starting with a love of communal eating.  In the first video I saw of him he was participating in a hangi which eventually became a bucket list item for me that I finally indulged in on my recent trip to New Zealand.  See below.

Kofi Anan, former secretary General of the U.N.  A voice of reason in a turbulent world.  After retiring Kofi still had words worth listening to:  https://www.facebook.com/Channel4News/videos/2188262544720258/UzpfSTEwMDAwMjk4Mjc2OTIzMzoxNzA3ODI0MDA5MzI3MDA4/

Aretha Franklin left behind a lot of good songs. The one I most remember is RESPECT and I was surprised to learn the original Otis Redding version was a male demand for a woman to be his servant.  She made it an anthem with a different theme.  I have come to appreciate she had other songs, many of which were written by her, but many were covers that were appreciated by the originators including Carole King and Simon and Garfunkle.

John McCain someone we all have to respect.  He was labeled Republican, but in fact he was more free of labels than just about any politician.  More than for others he made decisions based on what he thought was right.  This link is something to remember:  https://twitter.com/kylegriffin1/status/1033524441752457216?s=12



David and Krista presented us with Calder to join his older sister Hannah.  Apparently Calder is already a Toronto Maple Leaf fan.












We finished off 2017 and started 2018 in New Zealand with a memorable holiday.  One of my bucket list items was a Maori ceremony coupled with a hangi.  A Christmas gift from Michael we enjoyed was the best view of Auckland with one of the best meals at Orbit 360, atop Sky City.  Perhaps adding to our enjoyment is that we escaped a bad storm and cold spell back in Ontario. For more details check:  http://www.therealjohndavidson.com/2018/01/starting-2018-in-new-zealand.html

The Winter Olympics are always something that draws my attention.  http://www.therealjohndavidson.com/2018/02/winter-olympics-2018.html

Paralympics a few weeks later is something I have come to appreciate what men and women can accomplish despite life's sometimes unfairness:  http://www.therealjohndavidson.com/2018/03/2018-winter-paralympics-triumph-for-all.html

After three years of tests and wondering, Heather was diagnosed with MS, the progressive kind.  She actually was relieved as she thought her problem might be a brain tumor.  Heather is still mobile, but needs a cane and tires more easily and even falls on occasion.  When the parking lot where she works was tied up with renovations a drive to work campaign had a number of people involved.  We became involved in the MS Mandarin walk campaign and accumulated 9 walkers and cheerleaders--one under one and another close to 90.  We raised over $2,000, but the struggles carries on.  In  a separate fundraising Heather raised enough money for an Alinker ($2800) in a few days.  It boosts her mobility while retaining some muscle use and also allows her to see people eye to eye.

Doors Open Hamilton always seems to fall on the weekend the weather is finally good enough to start getting our yard ready for the summer.  Still I try to keep the tradition alive.  Cannon Knitting Mills has been an empty building I walk by on my way to the dentist, but they have big plans for it.

As Heather reached the age of 40 we decided to have a big party.  It happened that a distant cousin from Atlanta, Lana Wachniak and her husband Bill were in town and wanted to surprise my mother in law.  Heather had friends and co-workers visit.  A lot of baking and cooking was appreciated by the guests.  Heather emulated her birthday photo from age one.

We live within walking distance of a tour boat and this year were able to take advantage of a free community tour.  Hamilton is known as an industrial city and we were able to appreciate the steel plants along the shore of Hamilton Harbour.  But there is also a little bit of nature and art along the way.

A memorable moment for Sharon came when Heather took her to a Blue Jay game as a birthday present.  After the game they encountered a big problem.  The underground parking was flooded and they were delayed for over an hour.  But during  that time Heather spotted Buck Martinez, now broadcaster for the Jays and encouraged Sharon to get his autograph and then a photo.

Another once every four year event was the World Cup.  As usual there were a lot of good games.  The winning French team was mostly made of immigrants or the sons of immigrants.  Croatia provided the other finalist.

40th wedding anniversary of Frank and Connie.  We attended the wedding and were surprised to learn that Sharon is related to her school friend Connie.  Frank came to Canada as an infant with his parents leaving Hungary during the 1956 Revolution.  Family and friends gathered to share memories.






Supercrawl celebrated its 10th anniversary.   It is amazing such a big event is just down the street.  More details:  http://www.therealjohndavidson.com/2018/09/supercrawl-on-its-tenth-anniversary.html 


I attended an event that would have been on my bucket list if it had been conceivable.  A Bollywood backup singer, Arijit Singh has become my favorite male singer, but he was based in far off India and even though he did tours they were to big cities.  Out of the blue an announcement was made he was performing in Hamilton at the First Ontario Centre within walking distance.  I had not been to any arena type concert in decades, but wanted to see this.  As it turned out it was billed as a Toronto event as I suppose it was more suitable for marketing.  It was a bit of a shock because it was too loud for my ears and an arena doesn't have the right acoustics.  He is a very nuanced singer.  Still I was impressed with the level of musicians backing him and I was also impressed at how long he performed.  He was on stage for over three hours with only a five minute break.  I still love his music, but will stick to a quieter atmosphere.  I suspect most of my readers have not even heard of him.  Nonetheless he has a massive world wide audience and is well worth finding and listening to. 

The Art Gallery of Hamilton BMO International Film Fest was in October.  I always attend the Trailers and Teasers show as you learn about a wide number of movies.  We went to see "Puzzle" starring Kelly MacDonald and Irrfan Khan.

Each year I get to go to the Royal Winter Fair on behalf of The Rider and I get to meet some interesting people.  Jessica Phoenix is a very likeable person who has overcome adversity to win gold medals for Canada had her story written up by Julie Fitz-Gerald.  Here they are at the Ontario Equestrian booth.





This past fall was another gathering of friends from M M Robinson high school plus spouses, friends and some offspring plus Chef Luther..  A few more hit the 65 mark with three cakes from Sharon.

We returned to our traditional New Years' Eve party for food, drink and conversation with close friends.  Sharon outdid herself and my sister Rebecca helped out.




Restaurants eat up money and time, but I love them and consider them a form of art with a lot of potential for beauty. Some memorable  visits in Canada were to Bangkok Spoon, Loaded Pierogis ,Gate of India,  and Mesa.

Looking back to New Zealand restaurants fond memories of  in Whangerei found an Indian dessert, ladoo at Shiraz; Newmarket Sun World Chinese Restaurant, Orbit  360 way up  inSky City;  Pakuranga mall has a weekly market--enjoyed Char Kuey Teow, a Malaysian booth with long lineup, difficult t find a seat, but worth the effort.

Read over 30 books and would like to remember a few:  http://www.therealjohndavidson.com/2018/12/my-favorite-books-of-2018.html 

Saw over 300 movies and here is what I want to remember: bit.ly/2R505Gh

top 3 blogs of 2018

Starting the year in New Zealand: http://www.therealjohndavidson.com/2018/01/starting-2018-in-new-zealand.html

my favorite book of the year  http://www.therealjohndavidson.com/2018/12/21-lessons-for-21st-century.html

animals after vegans:  http://www.therealjohndavidson.com/2018/01/what-happens-to-farm-animals-when.html

To read  about 2017 check:  http://www.therealjohndavidson.com/2018/01/2017-another-year-to-remember.html

Starting 2018 in New Zealand

During my vacation in New Zealand Canada has been undergoing a cold spell as well as a lot of snow.  I am wearing shorts as I write this, because I would look pretty foolish in long pants. This is not just in resort areas, but downtown Auckland..

The first two days of the year most businesses are shut down.  We explored a number of sites in Auckland.  Right near our son's residence is Mt Wellington which you can drive up about 2/3 of the way where they have created a parking lot in the crater.  We climbed a little higher and got a view.  Met a visitor from Cape Town, South Africa.  We visited the Michael J Savage Memorial which we had last seen in winter.  We visited a rose garden and then the Winter Gardens.  A visit to a Chinese restaurant, Cafe BBQ Duck with the fastest service and good food.  Checked out downtown and to the waterfront.  Western Springs is one of my favorite spots with a variety of birds.  Eels might not be thought of with anything less than squirmy feelings, but visitors feed them and enjoy watching them.

A trip to Hamilton, New Zealand was originally planned as a sort of namesake exploration, however attempts to find a T shirt with Hamilton on it failed and I settled for a hat.  On the plus side we took more photos at the Hamilton Gardens than at any other venue on the whole trip.  We ate at Iguana.  On a Side trip to Pokeno found the best ice cream deal.

Our trip furthest up north on New Zealand ended at Paihia.  Walked by a used book store and found a long sought for book in Whangerei at The Piggery.  Another interesting restaurant--Shiraz--also bought some sweets including ladoo which I only heard of from the movie "English Vlingish," but found delicious.

A bucket list item was to attend a Maori ceremony and hangi.  Rain threatened to spoil the fun, but in the end it was even better.  Mr Busby entertained us with  a tour of the Waitangi Treaty Grounds and later for the hangi feast.  Two performances were great.  There was a lot of rain and also a power failure, but it was handled very well.  The second half of the second concert was performed in the eating area with an inspiring song to end.  The photo at the top is the two of us posing with some of the performers.  We were urged to talk to strangers and had good conversations with a couple from Perth, Australia and another from Germany.  The original treaty was signed and enforced under deception, but in fact the Maoris were seeking protection from other foreign nations and wanted to boost trade.  The British were not too concerned that not all chiefs signed as they felt they only needed a few to claim sovereignty.

We stayed in Paihia for only one night, but at a great motel--Admiral's View Motel.   The next day was rainy and blustery and we had to cancel our cruise.  Weather has been kind to us, but any traveler risks having the weather intervene.  We could be home shoveling snow.

Back to our Auckland base we ended up with a new experience for us at the Genghis Khan Mongolian BBQ Buffet.  Many of my readers have probably had a similar experience, but if you haven't look for one nearby.  You get to select from a wide variety of items to be stir fried.  The one we visited was in Manukau City. A train ride into downtown Auckland leads to a most entertaining walk up and down Queen St which could be favorably compared to Toronto's Yonge St.

The Maritime Museum gave a history of boats from the Maori migrations to New Zealand winning the America's Cup.  Large (and small) boats on display.  Saturday night at the Pakuranga Mall was quite the experience.  More packed than the previous Saturday.  This time had Malaysian street food and a Japanese crepe.

We were told to get up early Sunday morning and that there was a restaurant reservation for 1:00 pm.  We guessed wrong.  First stop was strawberry picking.  Next we spent time at a reserve in Muriwai where we were mesmerized with a colony of gannets that seemed to soar on unique air currents. A para sailor was inspired and amazed us with how high he could sail in the wind.

The 1:00 reservation was another unique restaurant experience.  At Sun World Chinese Restaurant in Newmarket, an Auckland suburb carts were brought around to a table and you chose which items to eat.  I am not sure of every delicious thing I ate, but for the first time I tried chicken feet which were enjoyable.  This was Hayley's gift, telling us she remembered her grandparents liked to dine like this on Sundays.  She did the ordering in Chinese while checking for any preferences.

Afterwards we visited Mt Eden and later One Tree Hill with spectacular views.  They remind us that Auckland is built on volcanoes.

One of our holiday habits is to eat mostly at restaurants and for dinner we chose a Mexican restaurant called Mexico at the Sylvia Park Mall and afterwards took in a movie.  We were still full from dinner and I had been told that Mexican restaurants in New Zealand were not really very Mexican, but we were all pleased.

On our last full day in Auckland Michael delivered on his Christmas present which was a dinner at the Sky City Tower restaurant, Orbit.  Heights frighten me, but the view was terrific. The Sky City Tower is not nearly as tall as the CN Tower, but it has one feature that attracts attention:  Jumpers.  We saw about 3 while we were there, but only for about a second.  The food was among the best we ate anywhere, anytime.  Below the dining level we indulged in what is becoming a favorite ice cream flavour, feijoa-pear sorbet by Kapiti.

Last day still another new experience.  We were driven to Mt Eden and had a Chinese noodle dinner and after that we went to Huluku Bubble Tea where you were given the choice of various teas with various condiments-- I had a Mango slushy milk tea with lychee jelly--wonderful.

My favorite restaurants tend to be Asian and New Zealand has more than its share.  That means I got to practice my chop stick technique.  Still pretty crude, but I make it work although it does also help slow down my fast eating.

The feijoa fruit has become a new obsession for me.  Apparently the actual fruit is only available for a limited time and I have missed that limited time on both my trips.  In the meantime I have eaten it as an ingredient in cereal, drinks, pastry, sorbet (really distinctively good) and even a sparkling wine.

Reading has always been an important part of my vacations.  I finished a Jane Austen book, "Northanger Abbey" and then bought "See you In September' by Charity Norman and while waiting for some other books started "The Husband's Secret," by Liane Moriarty.   After picking up two more Charity Norman books I started "Freeing Grace."  More on my new author discovery:  http://www.therealjohndavidson.com/2018/02/charity-norman-discovery.html

Traveling back and forth across 18 (or is it 16 depending on who is on daylight savings) time zones, as well as changing hemispheres is energy draining.  Actually watched the Toronto Raptors live on tv win in overtime before leaving for the Auckland airport.  The trip home seemed drudgery, but not without movies, some interesting conversations, some reading.  Our shuttle driver Caesar was back with his sense of humor.  Apparently he had been away almost as long as us and missed most of the really bad weather.

Now back to reality, but with a lot of good memories and souvenirs.  My favorite souvenirs are the photos.

For the first part of our trip in 2017 check http://www.therealjohndavidson.com/2018/01/ending-2017-in-new-zealand.html  To read about an experience I took with me:  http://www.therealjohndavidson.com/2018/02/charity-norman-discovery.html