John Cleese and Eric Idle: Live

John Cleese and Eric Idle are (of course) among the founding members of Monty Python's Flying Circus and currently doing a live tour together. This was clearly too good an opportunity to pass up, so Kathryn and myself made sure to not only attend, but make sure we snapped up good enough seats that we could have one look at a pair of comedy legends that changed our lives. And of course the promo artwork for their tour was done by a friend of a friend of ours, because its a very small world indeed.

 I don't think its possible to overstate the impact these two men had on both of our lives. I remember watching reruns of Monty Python on PBS with my dad as a young 'un, and their style of comedy made a clear impact on both my and Kathryn's personal senses of humor. From the dead parrot sketch to wink-wink nudge-nudge. From the ministry of silly walks to the end song of Life of Brian.

Of course those sketches were all a long time ago and both men are now in their golden years, but are still certainly worth the time to go see if you have the chance. It was also sad to hear that Terry Jones has dementia now and that so many stories involved friends (Graham Chapman, George Harrison etc) that have passed away. Ultimately, the show contained a few more video clips than either of us needed, and the history of Monty Python is so covered that its hard to find new things to say, but just being in the same room with two of our childhood heroes for a couple of hours was a once-in-a-lifetime treat for us both.

Beachfront in Kelowna

 On our drive to Vernon this summer, we took a break from driving to stretch our legs and enjoy the scenery in Kelowna. The downtown core beside Lake Okanagan is very popular and built up, with all manner of fancy boats and hotels, but they have done a good job of keeping the waterfront itself open to the public in large areas. This allows for some nice paths, food vendors, beach access, open-air piano spaces, public art, and a general feeling of community.

 The interior of the province also gets hotter than we are used to on the coast, but Kathryn was prepared (as always) and took the opportunity to go frolic and splash in the water.

 Jared and myself declined to get in the water, but had a nice wander along the lakefront and took a moment to pose for a picture with Ogopogo, the famous (however unlikely) lake monster of the Okanagan.

Hiking in Vernon

 We had a spare afternoon before the wedding in Vernon, and luckily Kathryn had booked a nice room at the Silver Star Resort. They cater to both the mountain biking and the snowboarding crowds (though clearly not at the same time) and have a rather vibrant colour scheme which Jared (as an art director) took a little while to comes to terms with. Kathryn and I expect that while its a little jarring in the summer, in the winter it must stand out for miles around in a sea of white and grey.

 The mountain bikers had lots of clearly marked trails to enjoy, but there were also some nice hiking trails from the resort up to the peak and back. After months of schooling and life in Vancouver, it was really nice to get away to somewhere wide and open for a few hours.

 There were several warnings about black bears and plenty of scat on the trails, but none to be found. Funnily enough, Jared carried a few rocks that he clacked together which he thought might keep the bears away and Kathryn and I worried would scare them before we could spot them. Then when we got back, people at reception told us that's a bad idea because territorial males will gnash their teeth and make a similar sound to show dominance. So we took a walk in bear country and worried we'd scare them off while simultaneously sending out a challenge call. City people, am I right?

A Few More Animal Encounters

 The Kangaroo Creek Farm had quite a few non-marsupial animals which you could spend time with depending on your comfort levels. Being a very tactile person who wants to experience everything, Kathryn waded through a scrum of children in order to be covered in birds for a few minutes. The grey parrot in the left of frame was particularly friendly and started nuzzling up to her right after this picture.

 A slightly more confusing encounter occurred shortly thereafter when this juvenile emu took a fancy to our friend Jared and began assuming a mating position. Apparently many emus go through a curiosity phase where they are more attracted to people that other emus. While its a pretty funny situation in hindsight, being pursued by an amorous 4 foot bird is a bit alarming at the time. Maybe its for the best that the dinosaurs are all extinct...

 Rounding out or visit with the most relaxed animal you could ask for, I was able to check an item off my bucket list and spent a bit of time patting a capybara. For those of you who are unfamiliar, they are the largest rodent in the world, hail from Patagonia, and feel quite a bit like a bristly inner tube.

Hands-on with Marsupials

 On our way through the Okanagan on our way back from the wedding, we stopped in Lake Country at the Kangaroo Creek Farm for some one-on-one time with a variety of marsupials and other oddities. Based on advice from both my boss and the people at the gate, we started immediately with the line to hold baby kangaroos. There were about 6 which ranged from 3 to 5 months of age since first coming out of their mothers pouch. They come wrapped in little blankets as shown, and are just about the cutest things you can imagine.

 Kathryn also had the chance to hold a sugar glider, which is another tiny marsupial similar to a flying squirrel. We learned quite a bit about them, the good pets they make, the long lives they have, and the trouble they can have at the vet (since their veins are too small to treat in any way). They are also ridiculously soft and very patient with the number of people holding and cooing over them.

 This albino wallaby was a little strung out from being followed around by small children most of the day and was quite happy to relax with me and have its ears scratched for a few minutes. It actually leaned against me and had a little snuggle before the next batch of jam-covered urchins started chasing it around again.

 Fun fact: kangaroos often have a life-long obsession with pouches, such that grown adults will try to get into baby carriages and juvenile animals will eat my ratty pants at the knee trying to make room to climb in.

Kalene & Blair Pt 2: The fun and games

 Blair and Kalene are both talented artists and know how to host a good party, so there was plenty of style and fun to be found at the wedding. The picture below is of a huge banner they had on the side of the barn as well as on a number of the take-aways from the event. Anyone with goggles on their cat is pretty awesome in my book.

 Speaking of awesome books, they had a little kiosk which would record 7 seconds of video and convert it into a flipbook which was printed and ready within minutes. To add to the fun, there were also silly costumes and accessories available. We did a few as a couple and part of a larger group and have to say that it was a brilliant and memorable little take away :)

 And after every wedding comes the dinner, drinks and dancing with a great mix of familiar friends and new faces. We were seated at a table with other visual effects people and a university friend of Kalene's. All in all a thoroughly enjoyable evening spent with the special new couple :)

Kalene & Blair Pt 1: The couple and the locale

 Our friends Kalene and Blair got married on August 27th and were good enough to invite us. Better yet, they were good enough to give us 10+ months notice, which ensured we had time off, a place to stay, and a car booked since they had their ceremony in Vernon, BC.

 Vernon is just a little north of Kelowna in the Okanagan, and was a new place for us both. They chose a lovely spot with sprawling wheat fields up to gentle mountains under striking skies. The weather was rather variable on the day but they had gorgeous sun for the ceremony and reception, with only a little wind and rain later in the evening.

 The reception and dinner were held inside a barn, which comfortably held the entire group and was very charmingly decorated with family photos and mementos of their adventures together. Just beyond the door was a saloon for refreshing beverages and a wide open field. There was a very nice buffet dinner with pie for dessert and lots of dancing to round out the evening.

Thanks again to the happy couple for including us on their special day, and we wish them years of happiness to come :)