stoned

Jeff and I woke early this morning to the sound of the fog horn on a nearby island, through the mist. Reminded me of the Ray Bradbury story, "The Foghorn". I couldn't help but notice that the fog horn notes were a major third apart, and wondered if this was intentional. Can the people who manage fog horns change this interval? I'm serious, I must know.


Called my dad this morning to wish him a happy birthday...he turns 70 today!


Oatmeal and almond pancakes for breakfast, with banana compote on top. Yum! At 10:30 a.m., I wandered down to the Ancient Cedars Spa for my Hot Stones Massage.





I had Angela, the woman who had given me my Reflexology treatment several days ago. Angela seemed a bit stressed out; I think she could have used a few spa treatments herself. She also seemed to have mixed me up with another client.


"I remember how much you enjoyed the steam room that last time," she said. "Why don't you have another one before we start?" I was somewhat confused, having never tried the steam room. We went through the usual choose-a-scent ritual, which she called "starting your sensory journey". This time I chose something with lime and orange.


After my heated footsoak, Angela took me to the treatment room, where I lay on my back beneath a SPT (strategically placed towel). She explained the chakra points to me, where she would be placing some of the rocks, which were apparently linked to some kind of mystical spiritual centre blablabla. Uh oh, I thought.


I confess that my biggest challenge during her intro speech was not laughing, especially when she seriously told me about the "chakra third eye" on my forehead. She also told me that some people experienced a new level of spiritual awareness during the hot stone massage. Some saw colours. Some experienced emotional release. She encouraged me to feel safe to embark on my own spiritual journey. Angela was excited to hear I was a writer...perhaps I would journey with some of the characters in my books, she said.


By this time, I had resigned myself to a two-hour spiritual sermon with a hot stone thrown in here and there. Angela was very sweet and well-meaning, I'm sure, but I wished that the spa brochure had included some kind of warning about all the mystical talk. I was looking for a relaxing massage, not a third eye.





To my relief, however, Angela fell silent as she began the treatment. After, placing a warm towel over my eyes, she placed hot rocks (heated in a turkey roaster in the corner of the room) beneath my back, cushioned by a towel. A warm rock went beneath each of my hands, and even between each of my toes. She walked around the table, clacking rocks in her hands, then placed a warm towel on my belly, more rocks on that. Then she poured hot scented oil along my arms and legs, and massaged them with hot rocks in long strokes.


Wow, what an incredible sensation. the spots of heat sliding up and down my body. Sometimes she would add extra pressure, or twist the rocks a bit. I had tensed at first, expecting some pain, but relaxed when I realized that Angela's pressure was carefully-regulated.


The only time I did experience pain was when she massaged my neck with hot stones. I had told her that I had some neck soreness, which is probably why she concentrated on that area. I cringed as I felt the oily rocks hit tight tendons as she pushed them repeated from my shoulder to neck. I was about to yell at her stop when I realized that the tightness was gradually fading, the knots disappearing. Then I dozed off. She might have done other stuff at this point, but I'm afraid things got pretty fuzzy from this point, or at least until she asked me to turn over.





After I turned to lie on my stomach, she placed newly-warmed rocks on my upturned palms and soles of my feet. More oil and massage with hot rocks, all over my body. The last thing she massaged were my hands and feet...she must have been using several somewhat angular stones, because it felt as if an elf were walking over my hands and feet on stilts made from hot rocks. It felt REALLY neat, hard to describe.


Then she spritzed some scented water beneath my face, murmuring something about the scent of rose bringing me love (since I was only half-conscious by then, I may be misremembering), and told me that she was finished. By the time I staggered out of the room for some water, I felt like a piece of cooked chicken. Happily cooked chicken, that is.


"Did you journey afar?" Angela asked me as she handed me my glass of lemon water out in the waiting lounge. I smiled and sipped my water, not trusting myself to say anything. Fortunately she seemed to be satisfied, and said good-bye before heading off.


I decided to try the steam room this time. I had hesitated before because of my bad eyesight without my glasses, and because I wasn't sure if I was keen on sitting in a small steamy room with a bunch of strangers who might want to smalltalk. The room was empty, however, so I wrapped some towels around me and sat on a bench. It was WONDERFUL, inhaling the eucalyptus-scented steam and leaning back on the cedar benches. If I had any atom of stress left in me (which I didn't), it would have melted out of me right then.


Only one more day at the Wickaninnish, and then Jeff and I are off to Japan!!





Today's Blatherpics


- Photo that Jeff took of my feet and their reflection on the beach.


- Tea rose soap in our room.


- Sign in front of the sushi restaurant where Jeff and I ate last night. It was pretty good for a place only open three months.


- Jeff at breakfast.


- This photo was taken during an evening walk on the beach, during low tide.

Feel free to suggest a daily poll question.


Today's Poll:



Do you like sushi?

whales and hot springs

Weird...I posted yesterday's Blathering on Sunday. I guess the time difference shifted the posting date to one day later. Today is Monday.


My favourite part of today's trip to the Hot Springs Cove was the boat ride. Major waves! Or at least they seemed major to me...I was lifted off my seat several times, only to be slammed back down in heartstopping freefall when the boat came down from a wave. Apparently the waves were only 1.5-2 metres (5-6 feet?)...I can't imagine what it would be like to ride the 30 metre waves described in "The Perfect Storm". Our ship captain, Patrick, said that the boat we were in could handle pretty big waves, as long as they didn't curl. It also depended on how far apart the waves were...if the waves were closer together than the length of the ship, for example, that would be more of a problem.





We kept our eyes out for whales; there was no guarantee that we'd spot any, but we were still hoping. Jeff was the first to see anything. He said he wasn't sure if he was imagining it, but though he saw a back of a whale arc slowly through the water ahead. Patrick immediately slowed down the ship, just in time to see the whale blow a spray of water -directly- in front of the boat. A few seconds later, we saw two whales briefly surface, then a large tail wave before going under again.


"I've never hit a whale before," Patrick said, a bit pale, "Just then was the closest I've ever come." He thanked Jeff several times for spotting the whale in time.





After the hour-long boat ride, we finally arrived at Hot Springs Cove. Then came a half-hour walk on a boardwalk trail through the rainforest. It rained the entire time (not surprisingly, it rains a lot on rainforests :)). but Jeff and I had on our Gortex jackets and were fully prepared to get wet. There was a lineup at the one-room changeroom, so we changed into our swimsuits in a nearby clearing instead. After the wet and cold walk, it was great to be able to soak in the natural hot springs. The steaming water temperature averaged about 110 degrees and smelled of sulphur. Some of the pools at the top were too hot, so we were limited to a few in a narrow rocky crack (see photo above).


My only complaint about the hot springs is that they were smaller in size and number than I expected...if it had been good weather, I suspect the pools would have been overflowing with enthusiastic bathers. Even with over a dozen people in the pools, it was pretty crowded. :-) I suppose I had expected something more like the hot springs we had encountered on our Nahanni trip. It was still a fun experience, however, and we met several friendly Germans. :-)





After soaking for a while, Jeff and I got dressed and explored a nearby trail to find a quiet spot for lunch. We perched ourselves in a secluded rocky cove overlooking the ocean and munched on cheese and crackers and a muffin I had picked up at a coffee shop before we left. It kept raining throughout, alternating between a heavy mist and a hefty downpour. By the time we got back to the boat at 1 pm, we were both pretty wet and cold. I took another Gravol (which had been essential on the way over), but this time it knocked me out...I kept dozing on Jeff's shoulder, though I gave up once the big waves started.


We picked up some cold remedies (I've developed a head cold, yuk) and some fish and chips in Tofino, then headed back to the Wickaninnish. After quickly chowing down some halibut (which was DELICIOUS) and chips, I filled up the jacuzzi. Sinking up to my neck in the steaming water (fragrant with the Aveda Soothing Aqua Therapy bath salts), I felt my chills and head cold stuffiness melt away.


We plan to head into Tofino for dinner tonight, and will probably crash early. Tomorrow: my Hot Stone Massage, woohoo!





Today's Blatherpics


- Grey whale off starboard on our way to the hot springs!! Patrick said that he whale-watching boats never normally go this close; we only did so by accident (and had it not been for Jeff's eagle eye, we might have had a much closer encounter). We also saw a pod of killer whales on the ferry to Nanaimo, which was cool.


- Slug that Jeff and I saw in the rainforest on the trail. Perhaps a banana slug?


- Hot springs!


- If you look closely, you can see Jeff sitting on the rocks near the top right.


- Me in the rainforest. The little dots are reflections of the flash off the raindrops.

Feel free to suggest a daily poll question.


Today's Poll:



Do you prefer taking baths or showers? Choose YES for baths, NO for showers.

sacred sea thalassotherapy

I had my Sacred Sea Thalassotherapy treatment this afternoon. It started with an introduction to my Sacred Sea guy, Shadow, a cute-looking young guy with a soul patch and ginger-coloured hair. After my heated foot soak (I chose a different scent this time, called "Calming"), Shadow gave me a Salt Glow massage using a mixture consisting of salt, epsom salts, my chosen essential oil, and massage cream. I had one towel strategically-placed over my bum when I lay on my stomach, then also a strategically-placed towel on my chest when I turned over. It was heavenly and utterly relaxing. Nothing like having a nice-looking young man rub salt into one's butt to put things in perspective. I'm not an exhibitionist, but I've learned how to let go of most of my prudish "AUGH DON'T LOOK AT MY BULGES" impulses during a massage. Defeats the purpose of the massage otherwise, doesn't it?





After my Salt Glow, I was led to a mega-tub jacuzzi thingy that looked more like some kind of rocket ship than a bathtub, with a zillion dials and levers and handles. Shadow gave me copious instructions about what to do if I got faint or too hot or claustrophobic. After I got in the bath, he dimmed the lights in the room and lit several candles. He had already added some kind of herbal seaweedy stuff that foamed up as 144 jets of water massaged my body. It was -wonderful-. After the bath, I took a shower to rinse off the last of the Salt Glow stuff and the seaweedy stuff, then wrapped myself in my terrycloth bathrobe. Shadow led me outside on the private patio while he cleaned up the room, and brought me a cup of Aveda Peppermint-Licorice herbal tea while I listened to the ocean and dozed on and off.





After about ten minutes, I was taken back to the room, which had magically turned into a massage room instead of a uber-tub room. After the usual strategic placing of towels, etc., Shadow dribbled hot scented oils all over my body and gave me a complete massage. He was even better than Dean from yesterday. When he was finished, he wrapped me in warm towels mummy-style, and a reflective crinkly blanket over top to keep in the heat. He left me in the room for about 10-15 minutes, and I dozed off again.


Time for another brief shower, and then back on the table for a final rubdown with a lighter oil, this time eucalyptus and leaving my skin tingling. Mmmmm. This was the best spa treatment I've had by far, ever.


By the time I was finished, Jeff was already having his massage. Jeff's not really a massage person, but he said he really enjoyed himself today, so much that he's been convinced to book a Hot Stones Massage on Wednesday. He'll have Angela, my reflexology person from yesterday.





After dinner, Jeff and I went for an evening stroll on the beach. Saw more starfish, anemones, and a tiny crab in one of the tidepools. Some of the residents had set up small bonfires along the length of the beach. Interesting to see that there is pretty much ZERO garbage along the beach (no cigarette butts, broken glass, paper garbage, etc.). Either people are extraordinarily conscious of cleaning up after themselves here, or the tide does the cleaning up for them. :-)


Tomorrow, we're off early in the morning to visit Hot Springs Cove, a trip that involves a boat ride and a short hike.


Today's Blatherpics


- Each night when we return to our room, Jeff and I find that the housekeeping staff has turned down the covers and put out our bathrobes. Sometimes there is also a basket of fresh fruit. Tonight we found our robes spread out on the bed in the shape of a heart. :-)


- Sign at the top of the path to the beach.


- Barnacles I saw on my beach walk this morning.


- Barnacle appetizer at dinner tonight (!). Looks pretty gross, if you ask me. Interesting to try (you also break open the barnacle to eat the insides), but a bit too rubbery for my liking.

Feel free to suggest a daily poll question.


Today's Poll:



Do you consider yourself a somewhat picky eater?

wickaninnish day one

August 25th, 2001


Jeff and I have already decided to come back to the Wickaninnish Inn near Tofino, B.C., for our 15th wedding anniversary. We originally found the Inn while searching online for relaxing-sounding resorts with beautiful scenery. The Wickannish certainly fits the bill. Our room (as do all rooms) have a view of the ocean. We have a gas fireplace, a small patio, a jacuzzi, microwave, bar fridge. Amenities include a basket of fruit, samples from the Spa's Aveda line, including Rosemary Mint shampoo and conditioner and Soothing Aqua Therapy Bath Salts, and handmade lavender and tea rose soaps.


This morning I woke early and spent an hour out on the patio wrapped in a thick terrycloth robe (provided by the Wickaninnish) and a big Hudson's Bay blanket I found in the closet, reading my novel and watching the ocean waves break on the rocks. Not a bad way to start the day. We had breakfast in the Pointe Restaurant downstairs: omelets with asiago cheese, spinach, and scallops, with glasses of freshly-made blackcurrant-orange juice.





After breakfast, we took a long walk on the beach. Low tide leaves all sorts of interesting things behind to examine in the sand and in the tidepools, including starfish, barnacle-encrusted mussels, sea anemone, and acorn barnacles. The water is cold, but some brave souls (mainly kids) can be seen wading knee-deep into the waves. Surfers wore bodysuits to keep warm in the water.


After our walk, it's time for the first of my spa appointments. I wander down one floor to the Ancient Cedars Spa. A relaxed-looking receptionist asks me if I'd like lemon water or herbal tea while I wait for Dean, my massage guy. I accept some water and flip through spa magazines on a couch by the fireplace. Dean is a cheerful and rather good-looking 30ish guy in a ponytail. After filling out a basic "do you have any injuries or things we should know about" form, he has me sit at a nearby table and choose an essential oil fragrance. I sniff about ten kinds; if I find them all starting to smell the same, Dean tells me, I should sniff a bowl of vanilla beans to help clear my sense of smell. In the women's changeroom, I get undressed and put on a terrycloth robe and rubber flipflops (no paper slippers!). Dean then takes me outside in the garden area to soak my feet in a basin of hot water scented with my essential oil of choice (a lemon-mint-orange concoction called Invigorating) and with marbles in the bottom.





After ten minutes or so, he kneels beside me and dries my feet off before taking me to a treatment room for my massage (a nice perk, that :-)). And a fine massage it is, too! My favourite kind of massage is the type that borders on, but does not delve too deeply into, pain. If I don't feel like punching the masseur/masseuse at least once, then I feel ripped off. I did not punch Dean but came close several times, so am highly satisfied. At the end of the hour, Dean guides me and my wobbly self to the waiting room again to wait for Angela, who will give me my reflexology treatment.


I never really understood what reflexology was. When I asked Angela, she said something about it being a treatment that "reflexed" (her word) uric acid up from one's feet (where it apparently accumulated, causing stress) back up to where it belonged. Hm. It turned out to basically be a light foot massage of sorts that involved a lot of slow movements and pressure points. I probably would not opt to have it again, though I do admit feeling so relaxed that I fell asleep at least once. I vaguely recall Angela breaking up the massage with activities like spraying scented water above my face, shaking a rain stick above my head (I would have laughed if I hadn't been feeling so dozey), putting a drop of eucalytus oil on my forehead.


I did feel very kindly toward Angela by the end, however, because I was so relaxed and because she had asked me, when she found out I lived in Toronto, whether I was a student at the university there. :-)





After I finish my Blathering, I will probably take a nap. Jeff is out on the patio of our room, reading the paper. We have both agreed that this is the most relaxing holiday we have ever spent together.


The flight to Vancouver on Thursday was uneventful except for the fact that the Air Canada plane seemed to be disturbingly poor shape, at least from the inside. My reading light and others kept turning on and off at random intervals, making reading impossible. They were short of headsets (fortunately I had my noise-cancelling headphones with me) though they did offer free drinks to anyone who -didn't- take a headset. Several seats were broken so that they could not pulled into the upright position. The inflight staff, however, were great and also seemed to be as unhappy about the state of the aircraft as we were...they were enthusiastically encouraging people to fill out comment forms to give to management.





Jeff and I rented a car and drove from Vancouver to the island. Taking the ferry was pretty painless. We parked our car on the ferry, then went upstairs to snack, read, snooze, and walk around on deck during the two-hour ferry ride. When we reached the other side, everyone got in their cars and we all drove off.


A TON of gorgeous scenery on Vancouver Island. We also checked out Cathedral Grove, an area with incredibly tall Douglas Firs...reminds me somewhat of the redwoods I saw in California a while back. Lots of rain, too, but apparently that's the norm right now in and near Vancouver.


Jeff and I don't care...we've both brought tons of reading material and have ambitious napping plans.


Speaking of naps, I think it's time for one now... :-)





Today's Blatherpics


- A view of our room upon arrival at the Wickaninnish Inn, with a view of the ocean. On the mantelpiece is a pair of Bushnell binoculars (for watching the surf or bald eagles), candle and matches, several books about local sights and wildlife as well as a copy of "The Perfect Storm", a guestbook.


- View of our sink and jacuzzi area. Window looks out on our balcony area, which in turn looks out onto the ocean.


- Starfish and an anemone we came across during our walk on the beach this morning.


- Surprise free dessert last night. The chef had painted an elaborate drawing of a humming bird in different icings/sauces, with "Happy Anniversary" written across the top and bottom. Above the hummingbird picture were two exquisite chocolate truffle cakes, a small piece of dark chocolate shaped like a honeycomb fragment, a wispy shaving of white chocolate. Yum.


- A "palate cleansing" dish between courses at our dinner last night: Saskatoon Berry Ice served in a beautiful dish of ice imbedded with dried flowers and berries.


- Jeff and me on the ferry from the mainland to Nanaimo.

Feel free to suggest a daily poll question.


Today's Poll:



Have you ever had a professional massage?

weddings

I feel almost guilty when I tell people I enjoyed my wedding. So many of the married women I know say they were just glad when their weddings were over.


My mom-in-law was SO great throughout; I experienced none of the in-law wedding planning horror stories that I've heard about. We agreed on everything, and had fun as we plunged into wedding prep. We decided to hire a wedding coordinator (a friend of the family) who was fantastic, and that also made a huge difference. Unlike some other grooms-to-be, Jeff wanted to be closely involved in all wedding plans. Our families got along, there were no major conflicts or disagreements.


Yes, I know I was unusually lucky. :-)





My wedding dress cost about $250...it was a display sample at Creeds (an upscale clothing shop in Toronto, now defunct); a drycleaner got rid of a faint coffee stain near the hem. I loved my dress. :-) I made my own headpiece using materials I found in Lewiscraft. Jeff designed and printed the wedding invitations, which I illustrated with watercolours. I did my own hair (i.e. I brushed it). My wedding bouquet contained a silk rose which I had made from a piece of my mom's old wedding dress. (How I wish she could have been at the wedding to see it.)


We hired Quartetto Gelato to play during the wedding ceremony. They weren't very well known back then; we first them at a small pub/restaurant out in the country. Now they're touring Canada, Mexico, U.S. and Japan (sadly, we'll be a few weeks too early to attend their concert in Tokyo).





I remember being really nervous for the actual ceremony. We purposely kept the ceremony brief, and also decided to face our friends and family rather than turn away as is custom. No receiving line...we chose to visit each table near the end of dinner, instead.


It was a wonderful day, and I had an incredible amount of fun. I still can't believe it all happened ten years ago (ten years ago tomorrow, in fact). Last night I kept showing Jeff old photos and pages from the wedding scrapbook I put together back then. He was patient with me despite the fact that he was frantically trying to finish packing.


Jeff and I have shared many joys and sorrows over the years. We've each made our own mistakes; it's a learning process for both of us. But in the end, we're always there for each other. I feel very lucky to have such a friend. :-)





Other news:


Happy Anniversary to the Boreans, whose 15th wedding anniversary is today!


Air Canada called about an hour ago to tell us that our flight tonight is cancelled. Fortunately there are seats available on an earlier flight, so Jeff and I are still leaving for Vancouver today. Staying at the Vancouver Hilton tonight, then renting a car and taking a ferry to the island. My plan is to keep Blathering mostly every day, with photos (taking my digital camera, of course!).


Packing was somewhat of a challenge. Apparently it's cool in Tofino (about 15-17 degrees Celsius), hot in Tokyo (about 32 degrees Celsius). Jeff and I have both found, however, that the biggest challenge is deciding what books to bring. We both plan to do a lot of reading at the Wickaninnish Inn and during our long plane flights. Neither of us can stand the idea of running out of solid (i.e. books in which we can lose ourselves for hours at a time, rather than just a magazine) reading material.


Bill Sutton posted some useful advice re: long plane flights and jet lag in Blatherchat. I've added this info to my Blathering on long plane flights. Thanks, Bill! Interesting how some of these Blatherings are turning into mini-resources of their own. I am resisting the urge to turn any of these ideas into a full-blown online resource/community. Better to turn them into books and magazine articles, I think. :-)


I'm SO excited about this trip, and am actually glad that our flight was cancelled because it gave us the opportunity to rebook on an earlier flight. I've been packing for two weeks! Jeff thinks I'm mad but humours me.


I'll Blather again in Vancouver...


Today's Blatherpics


- Picture from our wedding on August 24th, 1991, taken by Jeff Kesner ("jok" in Blatherchat); it's my favourite of all that were taken, including the professional shots. Each guest was given a handful of flower petals to throw at us just after the ceremony. I think this photo was taken just after the wedding party threw their petals.


- Wedding tent. The cake was decorated with fresh flowers (we also had edible flowers on the reception menu).


- Nuptial News, a newsletter I started up before the wedding to keep the wedding party and family informed about updates in the plans as well has to help everyone get to know each other better. As I've mentioned in a previous Blathering, I've always had the editor bug in me. :-)

Feel free to suggest a daily poll question.


Today's Poll:



Are you or have you been married?