Sunday, May 28, 2006

Serenity


A pic of Roy gazing at a mesa while watching the sun set. Has anyone noticed he looks better from behind? Roy's brother Don also gazes once in a while, although usually it's just into space.

I don't know what it is about Don. He's obviously not normal. He somehow figures out he can write, actually gets an article or two published, has a New York Times writer as a mentor and then decides that his life is not so bad as it is: a job that isn't that bad, people at work whom he cares about, a family who is far away but who he thinks doesn't mind him, a bike he can ride where he feels almost equal to anyone because he doesn't have to walk much.

And he is enjoying himself a wee touch. He's in that particular time in life where he can look at family and think: that's Kev, that's Jim, that's Ger, that's Julie, that's Roy, that's Bob: what weird persons to be related to. They are kind of kooky.

Next week: How to interpret the Storm language: The Myths.

A recent addition


This is Theo Storm, courtesy of Craig and Lidka. Like all Storms, he is cute. Welcome to our world Theo.

Father and Daughter


After fifty years, Roy still looks handsome to me. It must be the three weeks he needs to recover from a hangover. Julie, on the other hand, only needs five or six minutes, tops. It must be a Miller thing because I myself need at least a day, although I can sometimes have a beer the next day with 19 hours sleep under my belt.

Although Julie looks very beguiling and cute in this picture, don't be fooled. Under that precocious exterier dwells a caring person. I don't know why this incident has stayed with me all these years, but I remember my first experience with downhill skiing at Sunshine Village. I was so bad that everyone finally left me to my own devices except Julie and Gail. They got me down the Strawberry run somehow. I think there is a picture somewhere that shows me wiping out Roy and Leo getting off the lift. After that day, how I ever kept on skiing I'll never know.

And one day at a ski hill that I can't now remember the name of, I achieved perfection (in my mind). I did the moguls and I was good, Kev and Jim saw me come down that run and even they were impressed. Gawd did I have a good time with Jim and Kev in the lounge after. And the ride back to Calgary in Jim's white van was so nice. Jim driving, Kev in the middle nodding off and me in the passenger seat telling Jim that the day had been the greatest day of my life. And I remember Switzer, watching Ger, Kev, Robin and Neil hot dogging it and skiing with Marlene (she was a better skiier than me by far at the time).



One good thing though is that it takes Roy six weeks to get over his hangover