Spooky Places

The iconic Banff Springs Hotel

The historic Banff Springs Hotel has a ghost who appears as a bride who is seen, dancing alone, in the dining room before she bursts into flames. The story goes that on her wedding day in 1932, she tripped on her wedding gown as she descended the stairs and broke her neck. Her unsettled spirit still comes back to haunt the hotel on occasion.

La Boheme, in Edmonton

Purportedly, guests still hear the thump and bump of a head hitting the stairs as a body is dragged down the 3 flights into the basement. Apparently, that's what happened to an employee of the establishment after she was murdered, then dismembered and thrown, piece by piece into the furnace, still used to this day by the way.

Calgary's Deane House

The Deane House is a restaurant and tea house now but at one time was a boarding house. A former resident was shot in a dispute on the stairs and his disembodied spirit still wanders the building.

The Real Deal?

I saw this photo and was thinking it certainly looks like those are real shrunken heads on the wall. Pretty creepy, to say the least, especially thinking that their legitimately some poor person's noggin.

Hallowe'en

Hallowe'en is believed to have it's roots in the ancient rituals of "Samhain" (pronounced Saw-win), which is basically a Celtic new year celebration. On Samhain Eve, at the death of one year, spirits were believed to walk the earth as they travelled to the afterlife as the doors between the two worlds opened. The spirits could be those of ancestors but also included demons, fairies and other such creatures. 
Traditions of the event included large bonfires and dressing in animal skins to hide from the evil spirits, and the wearing of masks and costumes to impersonate predeceased ancestors. Revelers would also go door to door, engaging in silly acts and pranks while seeking food and drink from those who had left offerings out for the spirits, a likely inspiration for our modern day trick or treating.
Since Christian leaders were good at co-opting Pagan holidays to gain followers, they labelled this occasion as All Saint's Day or All Hallowed Eve, which translates to what we now call Hallowe'en of course.

Real Life Zombie

Just saying "parasitic mind control" sounds ominous!!

Leucochloridium is a parasite that gets into an Amber snail's eye stalks when the snail eats bird droppings on a tree branch or leaf. The parasitic worm eventually takes control of the snail's brain and guides the creature up tot eh tops of the tress, into the open, where it's consumed by a bird. The cycle begins again as the worm's eggs grow inside the stomach of the bird, which inevitably excretes onto a tree branch or leaf, which in turn is eaten by the snail. True nature and pretty creepy!

Kind of like this! haha!

Spare Tire

If there was a way to get rid of that "spare tire" around your middle, using a spare tire or two to wear it off is the answer!! We run a boot camp after work at the BlueCircle Tower and took a few videos of what we do with a few old tires I rounded up from a tire shop in the neighbourhood. The big truck tire weighs in at 77kg. (170 lb) and the smaller skid steer tire is a bit lighter by at least half, but certainly heavy enough for what we need. We do a variety of exercises with them, like flipping them end over end, rolling them, picking them up and tossing them, or hooking up a harness and dragging them around the yard. We also take a 5 1/2 kg (or 3 1/2 kg for the beginners) sledge hammer and beat on the edge of the tires as they lay flat, switching from a left hand swing to a right hand swing every 10 swings to get an equal work out on both sides. All of this makes for a full body workout and I can tell you that a few rounds of each exercise over the course of even just 30 minutes can get you huffing and puffing and sweating up a storm. Well, the guys "sweat" but the ladies "perspire" of course! haha
We do get some looks from people driving by, and even a few who stop to watch, but so far no-one has asked to join in the sessions! haha! It will be a bit tougher to do this workout when the snow really starts to fly but while the weather is decent enough, it's great to be outdoors and get in some fitness training. And, it sure will help keep me in shape for my wood splitting sessions up at the camp, especially the sledge hammer swings! Bonus!!!

Want!

How's this for a cool 'go-anywhere' type of rig? The Russian made Sherp ATV is just that kind of vehicle, though I promise you, purchase price does not include a shirtless Vladimir Putin! haha!

Designed by Aleksey Garagashyn, this 1.5. liter, 44 hp little 'dozer' can only reach a land speed of 45kmph, but it will go across, over and through just about everything you can throw at it, and it is capable of water travel to, albeit at 5 kmph. Equipped with a set of self inflating 1600mm tires, it can climb over objects as big as 70 cm, though if you've ever operated a skid steer like myself, you know there's got to be a crazy bit of tilt and tipping point. 

Starting price will run you around $50,000 for the basics, which is really basic, with a canvas top and not much for way of amenities in the cabin. The 'Kung' version upgrades you a bit for about $5,000 but no matter the model, this little beast can tackle whatever Mother nature can throw at it and more.

Crazy looking rig!

It goes anywhere, but slowly

And it goes over lots of stuff too

Basically, it's just a giant skid steer

Nothing fancy here

It's a watercraft but only chugs along at about 5kmph

Great for crossing a lake or bog

Access is just like on a skid sterr too

Eighty One + Thirteen = Cool Bike

I've been busy with a whole bunch of stuff at work, like our IBAA Broker Challenge and the Man-Van initiative we submitted to the Aviva Community Fund. I've been meaning to post about a couple of things, including my second offering on the "Old Money" but until that's completed, here's a quick little photo essay on a cool Honda rebuild that caught my eye recently. 

Thirteen And Company did a great job with creating this customization on an old CB750 and I'll let the pictures tell the story.

I'm not usually a fan of cafe racer style but this has a bit of grit to it, especially with those fat tires

A totally ride worthy custom too

Vote Man-Van!!!

BlueCircle is promoting a special initiative this year, through the annual Aviva Community Fund program and we're on a mission to get to the top and get our hands on some cash! Of course, we can't do this alone so we're sending out the word to all our clients, associates and friends to lend a hand by casting some votes for the Man-Van , simply by clicking on the word and following the link to the Aviva website. Or, copy and paste this link into your browser and get registered for the program.
https://www.avivacommunityfund.org/voting/project/view/16-146
It does take a few minutes of your time to set up but the bonus for this year is that instead of having to log-in and vote daily, you can do it once, taking all of your entitled 18 votes and casting them at one time. Done in one shot and super easy! So easy, we hope that each and every person can take another minute or two and share the link with their friends, who can share with their friends, who can share with their friends...well, you get the picture. Haha! 
What we really want is to get a share of the $4,000,000.oo that Aviva generously donates to a variety of community projects and initiatives throughout Canada, which in our case is the "Man-Van" and "Know Your Numbers" program. Read all about the Man-Van program on the voting site and if you need any more encouragement, check out some of my blog posts such as the one on Friday Oct 7th, or September 23, 2016, September 3, 2015, May 31 2013....the list goes on and for a good reason! BlueCircle has been a proud Platinum sponsor of the Motorcycle Ride For Dad for 8 years and this group also raises funds for the research and awareness campaign for prostate cancer, with the latter part driven by the mobile blood testing clinic called the Man-Van. One in four men have a brush with this disease and it has a 95% rate of survival when detected early, so let's keep the Man-Van on the road and help save some lives!

BlueCircle President, Gerry Baert, got tested

Paul cried when they took his blood sample!! haha!

'Ride For Dad' Co-Chairman, Ron Parkinson, visited our Man-Van event at the BlueCircle Tower

Re-Wired

This is a very cool 3-D motorcycle and side car sculpture by Shi Jindian

Ivan Lovatt created this life like bearded man

Designstack built this GIF of sculptures by Edoardo Tresoldi

Life size pieces by Derek Kinzett

Mattia Trotta wired this nude

Recycled coat hangers were used by artist David Mach to build this beautiful tiger

Seung Mo Pak created this eerily life like reclining nude figure

Another nifty bike, this one by Martin Senn

A previously featured artist, Sophie Ryder, branches out with a different theme than her other works shown in earlier posts

Stay Warm!

It's going to be a cold and snowy Thanksgiving and since we'll be spending a lot of time outdoors at the camp, it will be a challenge to stay warm. Here's a photo of one of the ways we do it and the reason why I don't mind spending all that time in the Spring, Summer and Fall, chopping wood!!

T.B., A Prostate Cancer Survivor

BlueCircle is really thrilled to know that early prostate cancer detection helped save the life of our very own Terry Bradley

So, BlueCircle has been a proud sponsor of the Motorcycle Ride For Dad for at least 8 years now, helping raise almost $800,000.oo for the research and awareness campaign for prostate cancer. I've said it many times here, and in BlueCircle's Facebook page, that part of the awareness campaign involves things like the Man-Van, a mobile clinic that does blood tests for the Prostate Specific Antigen (PSA). Despite some negative reports contrary to what a PSA test can do, we have living proof that this test can save lives because when detected early there is a 95% chance of survival. Yes, a 95% survival rate thanks in part to a simple PSA blood test.

Who's the living proof? Well, quite a lot of men out there, but in this case it's none other than our friend and business partner, Terry Bradley. Seven years ago, Terry took the blood test and had an elevated level of PSA in his sample. Terry went for further testing and through that process discovered he had an aggressive form of prostate cancer that required some serious intervention. Fortunately, that early detection allowed for the early intervention and saved his life. We're very thankful that Terry is alive and well today and share in his encouragement for every man out there (40 years of age and older) to get the test and stay on top of their health, especially knowing this disease can be beaten.

Don't worry guys...it's just a blood test and there's no 'digital' exam required! haha! 

Old Money

Having just returned from a visit back east with my mother-in-law, here's a post about some old bank notes she gave which she had been keeping as mementos of a bygone era. 

The Dominion Of Canada 25¢ bill is from 1900!

I already had some 1950's era bills myself and thought the ones from the mid to late 1920's were cool, then saw the 25¢ paper note from the year 1900 and was blown away by those, especially with King George VI on the bills. "The Dominion Of Canada' certainly puts the times into perspective!

I remember using the old 50's era bills as a kid,  though I can tell you that back then I never had anything more than a $1.oo or $2.oo bill, and even those were not something I was carrying around in my pocket. I'd be lucky if I had any loose change, and that probably included lots of pennies. Nowadays, kids might say "what's a penny?" haha.

And, though it had something to do with the fact that my father was in the military and we lived in the P.M.Q's ( Private Married Quarters) on a base where prices were low (no tax maybe) my money sure went pretty far for me. My dad would give me 25¢ to go to the Saturday matinee or the swimming pool and it would get me in the door and I'd have enough for a treat too! Yikes, am I aging myself or what? LOL

These bills are from the early 50's

The good old days I'd say, but maybe for not the reason some people think. In this case I mean that back then, candy and pop and all the other crap that seems so prevalent today just wasn't an every day thing for me and my friends and it really was a 'treat'.

Same with 'entertainment', where we'd actually play games (gasp!) with one another. And, I got to watch one or two t.v. shows  a week and the choices were limited. Hockey Night In Canada was great, even in black and white (yup!). I'd get up early and get out of the house before my parents were up and disappear pretty much all day Saturday, swimming at the pool or playing shinny in the Winter. I was a bit of a bad kid too, like when we'd swipe some cigars from the PX and hang out in our fort in the woods.

Sometimes we'd sneak off the base, which meant going through restricted areas where they did tank training or other military exercises, so we could explore. We never got caught but had our fair share of brushes and close calls with the M.P.'s ( Military Police). We'd go over to the river and dive off the train trestle or go to the dump that was between the base and the nearest town where we'd pick through stuff and break bottles and other stuff with rocks.

Maybe the old money isn't just of interest in the banking and financial sense, but conjures up old memories of bygone days!

Resolve

Did you know that it actually would cost taxpayers less to end homelessness than to manage it with costly public services? That's a fact and RESOLVE has a campaign to do just that, with the objective of raising $120 million to build affordable and supported rental housing for as many as 3000 people. This is a collaborative effort between 9 different agencies, including but not limited to The Mustard Seed, Alpha House and The John Howard Society. 

BlueCircle got on board when we got a call from our pals at Indevelopment, who were organizing a golf tournament to raise funds for the cause. We sponsored a hole in one through our own subsidiary company "Hole In One Direct", with a $10,000.oo prize that pays half tot eh golfer and half tot he charity, which of course is RESOLVE. Not only that, but we mixed up a tasty BlueCircle Special Caeser, which we hoped would get people relaxed and ready to put it in the jar! No such luck on this occasion but we did manage to help raise over $10,000.oo for this worthwhile cause.

It's never too cold and wet to enjoy a tasty, BlueCircle customized  ( with our secret ingredient) Caeser!

BlueCircle sponsored the 14th hole as a Caeser stand and $10,000.oo hole in one through  "Hole In One Direct" 

Amy and Alex were repping RESOLVE

Wired

I love public art, especially large installations, so when I saw the over sized Sasquatch shown in the first photo of today's post it prompted me to look into more of the same. There's some pretty amazing sculptures out there and many are life size or bigger. Here's a selection from my first search and there's plenty more to come, so watch for another post in the near future.

Artist Unknown for this huge Sasquatch

Artist Kendra Haste created these life like and life sized lions

Frustrating not to be able to find the creator of such great pieces of art

This work from Jordi Diez Fernandez

"1 O'Clock Wish" was created by Robin Wight

Another beautiful piece from Kendra Haste

Sophie Ryder sculpted this huge and whimsical piece

More from artist Sophie Ryder

Don Hefner designed and built this Bison