Family Day 2015 & A Lil Look Back

For anyone who knows me... this will come with no surprise but has been a pretty great start to 2015 thus far and I continue to be blown away at how fortunate I am.  Family Day may be the greatest new addition to our Holidays here in BC, I think it was a few years ago that it was implemented but love that it is an opportunity for people to stop... reflect... appreciate their family and friends (as we all, so often consider our friends a part of our Family).  Thanksgiving being another one of those days that brings reflection to our lives.  

This year I was away with friends for Family Day weekend and kind of let it slip my mind a bit, as far as my own family.  Luckily I pester my family often daily if not at least weekly with letting them know that I love them, and how much they mean to me.  

Lately I have been sharing with a lot of people something I did a "few" years back.  For Christmas one year I wrote a letter to each person in my family, my Mom, Dad and my 3 older brothers Dorian, Justin & Aiden.  I am beyond lucky to have the best family in the world, so loving, so supportive and well... amazing.  For that Christmas I wanted to put into words how much each of them mean to me and some of those reasons why.  I was worried that saying "I love you" or "Goodnight, love you" every single day, to end every single phone call or before we went to bed each night may be taken as just words we said.  I knew they weren't but I wanted to ensure they all knew.  

Oddly enough in my attempt to organize a few things on my computer and in my emails I came across the letter I had written.  Turns out... it was 13 years ago.  So, with a few photos below, I would like to share this letter, there was a personal paragraph to each of them of what they meant to me and why they meant so much but the part of their letter that was to the whole family will be what I am sharing.   Fun to read again as the emotion & feelings have not changed but I can feel in re-reading this my age at the time, hard to express in writing but makes me smile :) 

Family Hockey Pic back probably from around 1989 or 1990

Dylan, Emmett & I  (Feb 2015)

My Mom, nephew Oli & I (Around April or May 2014)

Christmas 2002

Well, this might seem not like me but it is something that I want to make sure you all know. I know I always say “I love you.” But sometimes I am not sure if it may be taken as just something that is always said, so I am writing this to let you know that it is definitely not just routine. I love you guys so much, much more then words can say but I will do my best. Everyday when I wake up the first thing that I think of is how incredibly lucky I am, how can I not smile when I have a family like you. You are ALWAYS there for me, no matter what. I could phone any of you at any time and I know that whatever I need help with or if I just want to talk you are always there for me. If I am away for hockey, when I get back there are always messages seeing how it was and if I had a good time. After exams or my injuries (lately) you always make sure to ask how I am and that things are going well for me. I think that I used to take for granted just how awesome you guys are. I am so proud to have you all, I mean having the best brothers in the world and the greatest parents in the world. People always comment on the relationship that I have between my family and I guess I haven’t always realized that not all families have what we do, I couldn’t imagine not being able to tell you everything or being afraid of what you’ll think or afraid that you’ll be disappointed, that is never the case you are always there for me. Writing this isn’t the easiest thing either but not everything will be easy and thanks to you if I ever have trouble I know I will have 5 amazing people right there with me helping me. Thankyou! The main reason for writing this is, is because I know that I am not always the most expressive person in general and I may not find it easy to always share my feelings but I want you to know that I love you guys so much and I want to thank you for always being so amazing to me, I know that no matter what you will all play an incredibly huge part in my life as you already have. So for now, Goodnight, love you and sleep safely!

“Harsh words kill, kind words kindle, but a word withheld a dream may dwindle.”

“The best things in life aren’t things.” Art Buchwald.

“To love is to admire with the heart; while to admire is to love with the mind.” Theophile Goutier

“So tell the one you love, just what your thinking of; if tomorrow never comes.”
Garth Brooks

“Talk not of wasted affection, for affection is never wasted.” H.W. Longfellow

“Being deeply loved by someone gives you strength; while loving someone deeply gives you courage.” Lao Tzu

“Love is that condition in which the happiness of another person is essential to your own.” Robert A. Heinlein

“Don’t cry because it’s over; smile because it happened.”

“Never deny what your heart truly feels.” ‘The Mask of Zorro’

“Remember ‘What’s Important’” Pat Norlin

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I share this to remind myself to never take for granted the amazing people in my life and to each and every day or opportunity to tell those people just how much they mean to you and what those little thing are that mean the most.  

Corny

Corny... this word is one that I use to describe myself, my actions and much of what I say.   This weekend I was out for dinner and Canucks game with a very close friend of mine, and old teammate Mo, from back in my UBC days.  We were catching up on life, work and all the funtivities that we've been up to.  I prefaced something, as I always do, with "This might sound corny...", Mo cut me off to say that "corny" is one of the things people love most about me.  We continued on our catch up, enjoyed a great dinner and headed off to the game.

This small statement and comment from Mo has been on my mind now for the past 24 hours and I am certain she has no idea what that meant to me.  All of a sudden, something I constantly say about myself, and to be honest usually with a bit of a negative connotation to it, hence the need to tell people the statement or action is "corny", all of a sudden her acknowledgement of this just gave me a complete 360 on myself.  Being "corny" is absolutely something that I am, and that I am OK with, actually more than OK, I wouldn't want to be any other way.

Google Definition of Corny:

corn-y
adjective
informal
     trite, banal, or mawkishly sentimental

So... this might sound "mawkishly sentimental" but I am proud of the fact that I am caring, that I get excited when I see a stranger hold the door for someone, or that I want to cheer on random strangers I see out running because I am proud of them for being active and healthy, or that I feel incredibly invested in wanting someone to make the bus when they are running to catch it (and often celebrate a lil when they do :).

I want to thank my friend for highlighting this for me, and once again I am shown just how impactful a few words can be if we are open to hearing them, and if we choose to receive and truly embrace a complement that just moments before was potentially suppressed.

Is there something you admire or appreciate in a friend that you may not have shared with them yet?  The first person that comes to mind, stop what you are doing and fire them a text, email or quick message.  So often things cross our minds and yet we don't take the step to tell those we care the most about.  I guarantee you will make someone's day.

We could all use a little more corny in our lives!

Canucks Game 1 vs. Hawks - April 13th

What a wonderful day!! Got to sleep in a bit, work from the comfort of my new place in Vancouver and get a little more organized and unpacked.

Today was game 1 of the 2011 Stanley Cup Playoffs and I was very fortunate to get to go to the game. Me and my friend Kirsten Dixon have had tickets for about 5 years now and decided to go to Game 1 together. All day I could feel the energy in the city. I didn't even have to leave my place in Kits to feel the excitement. It did hep a

bit that I've been learning how to "Tweet", didn't think they would ever get me... but they did. So Twitter kept me in the know of all the talks around town and around the league.

Being a game day, I thought it was important to stick to routines. Had my super salad, pre game nap and then got ready and headed off for downtown. Wasn't the most sunny day out but was one of those days that nothing could stand in my way of being happy.

I decided I would walk from my place to downtown... wasn't sure how long it would take but made it to Pender and Howe in 1 hour and 1 minute... :-) And that included a Starbucks pick up along the way. (Picture was along my walk from home towards Kits beach, one of my favourite views in the world)

Looking out over the Burrard Street bridge on my walk downtown, man I love the water, and the city, and the mountains and... :-)

I was a bit of a dork/super fan wearing my Nucks Jersey, scarf, smile and holding Starbucks. Does life get much better then that? Really?

Anyhow, I continued on downtown and met up with couple of friends Kat and Blake for dinner!!

Just making sure they were ready for the pic... and yes I put this one in instead of the actual pic, I like it, feels like teamwork if you ask me :-)

Then off to the game, watched the warm up from down below, got some fun pics up close and personal. Lets see if you can guess who my favourite Canuck is...

Energy in the rink was also incredible... could sense the nerves of some of the players, feel the confidence of others, the fans & the city. Pretty fun thing to be a part of.

Kirsten loving life being at Game 1!!! Both of us with our new scarves!! Dan, focused and ready to take down the Hawks!!! Proud fellow Smitherite!!

Definitely 2 of the most wonderful people I know!! Art and Marge Buchanan from Smithers, they were my employers at the movie theatre, my friends and consider them family!!! More amazing people I am lucky to have in my life and that I am thankful for!!

Well here is my coles notes version on the recap as it's getting late and sleep is needed. 1st period... this team is one that I believe noone can touch, they looked absolutely phenomenal out there, so poised, confident and making plays that honestly blew me away. The pure talent that these players have is absolutely incredible. What a fun team to watch. Samuelson stood out to me a ton, seemed to have an extra gear that when he wanted to turn it on, the Hawks had NO chance. Then there's Lou... the toe save in the first... speechless... and that's hard to do to me. I sat there with my mouth open, in awe... Wow was he on his game tonight or what!!

It was a high tempo, very physical game. I think that is where the Nucks had them, they were all throwing their bodies around without fear. Kes had a great block, luckily nothing hurts in the playoffs :-)

Come the 2nd and 3rd, some people feel like the Canucks were outplayed. For sure it wasn't like the first but I think it was smart, they were up 2-0, no you don't want to sit back but definitely play it smart. They moved to a 2-3 forecheck which was extremely successful, not always the most exciting for the fans but at the end of the day the W is what matters.

I feel as though Kane's mullet might have gotten in his eyes tonight...

Alright, off to bed for me, but thank-you Canucks for a great game and I look forward to the next couple months!! Or as my brother Dorian said after the first tonight, "47 more periods like that and we're set"

Happy Wednesday everyone and have a great sleep!!

Clarkson Cup Heading to Barrie - Feb 5th 2011

Clarkson Cup heading to Barrie

Clarkson Cup heading to Barrie. Barrie will play home to the biggest annual event in women’s hockey. The Clarkson Cup will be contested at The Barrie Molson Centre from March 24 to 27. Barrie Mayor Jeff Lehman drops the puck for Haleigh Callison, left, and Olympian Sami Jo Small during the event's announcement. Stan Howe photo

Barrie will play home to the biggest annual event in women’s hockey. The Clarkson Cup will be contested at The Barrie Molson Centre from March 24 to 27. Barrie Mayor Jeff Lehman drops the puck for Haleigh Callison, left, and Olympian Sami Jo Small during the event's announcement.

BC Hockey Now Article - Feb 2011

CDN Women’s Hockey League Player Profile: Smithers, B.C.’S Haleigh Callison
Wednesday, February 2, 2011 / By Hockey Now staff / The CWHL is a professionally-run women’s hockey league dedicated to raising the profile of women’s hockey while providing a place where some of the best female hockey players can train and compete. Haleigh Callison grew up in Smithers, B.C., going on to play five years of varsity for the UBC Thunderbirds before taking her place on defence for Toronto of the CWHL. What got you started in hockey? I grew up in Smithers, B.C. and I have three older brothers who all played. Being the baby of the family I wanted to be just like my older brothers. I would be at the rink nearly every day watching them play and practice, so it was a given that as soon as I could stand, I was on skates. That being said then, who did you look up to growing up with the sport? No question, I looked up to my brothers through sport and in life. Also, my parents are incredibly hard workers and did everything to allow the four of us to play the sport we loved. They were always there to take us as well as many of our teammates on road trips. What is one of your most memorable hockey moments? One of my most memorable moments from playing hockey in Smithers would be when I was in Bantam, my team had an opportunity to go to Wolfsburg, Germany and play in a tournament as well as see the area for two weeks. Traveling all the way with friends I have played with since I was young was a pretty amazing experience. How did the B.C. hockey community help you get to where you are now? Growing up, I attended all the Team BC tryouts and camps as well as getting short listed as one of the top nine in BC as prospects for 2010. BC Best Ever is a great program and with the number of females playing in our province, I am sure it is getting even better. As far as my B.C. community of Smithers goes, they have always been incredibly supportive and I was extremely lucky growing up to get to play with so many great guys. Playing with boys when you are usually the only girl on the team could have been a difficult thing; however, every single guy I played with was always respectful, helped push me to be better and treated me just like anyone else on the team. Who is your favourite B.C.-born player? Hands down, it would be Dan Hamhuis. Not just because he is from Smithers and an incredible hockey player but ultimately for the person he is off the ice. Dan is one of the nicest players you’ll ever meet, gives his time to the community, super dedicated to his training and is just a down to earth, very positive person. What is your favourite place to play in B.C.? To be honest, my favourite place to play in BC is any rink where I have friends and family. I was fortunate to have my three brothers in Vancouver with me when I started playing for UBC. Having them in the stands is something that cannot be replaced. Also, it was close enough that my parents would come down from Smithers for a few weekends each season. Visit www.cwhl.ca for more information.

Burlington, Ontario 2011

Well, this has been a REALLY long time since I have written anything. Not sure what has inspired me to get back at it... and who knows how long it will last. Possibly was triggered as I was at the Burlington Montreal game today and the refs were ABSOLUTELY embarrassing and I felt the need to share with them my thoughts... and here I am... figured there is a better way to share thoughts and likely in more of a positive light as well.

I am currently living in Burlington, Ontario playing hockey in the CWHL (www.cwhl.ca) for Toronto. It's been an exciting and yet challenging year but that is how life should be. I have met some incredible people in the past 5 months, people who I instantly connected with and believe to be life long friends... whether they like it or not and some who it has taken a few months to really get to know. That is also a great thing about life, I love that I am presented with people who are challenging to me, people who may not be easy for me to be around for whatever reason. Those are the people and the situations that I believe will help me grow most as a person. Makes me think about my actions, my views, thoughts, everything and realize that there are soooo many people out there with completely different views on life. How great is that? So much to learn.

Alright, it's 2am... as always I'm up too late but look forward to putting down more thoughts and experiences in the days and months to come.

Must also make a note that my team beat Montreal on Saturday!!! Only 2nd game they have lost all year!! I am sooo proud of my team and it was one of the most exciting games I have seen/been a part of. Nice work guys!!! Love, hugs and high fives, Hails

Memmingen Deutsche Pokal Champs to Visiting Family in Sweden

2009 makes history as the first time ever for a German womens team to win both the German Championship as well as the German Cup and I was lucky to be a part of it.  I went from a season back home where I didn’t win a single game (but loved every second of it, why wouldn’t I??  And for anyone who knows me, you know I am dead serious), to making history!!  How fun is that??  Was pretty special too as Aiden was there in Berlin for our last game and he got to watch us guarantee ourselves the German Championship after the scores were already in from Planneg’s game we ended up winning 9-0 to solidify the title by 6 goals I believe. 

The celebrating started by champagne on the ice (which to be honest I really didn’t know how to celebrate, you might think that sounds weird but I am completely serious, I felt weird, happy but weird).  So pictures, champagne, crazy German songs, pictures, more champagne and more crazy German songs which lead us to the dressing room for more pictures, champagne and crazy German songs.  Let me catch you up to where I was at this point.  I ate dinner about 3 hours before the game, maybe a small snack leading up and then onto the ice for 3 hours of hockey and then right into the booze.  Ya… you see where this is going, also for anyone who knows me I am a bit of lightweight.  So in goes the champagne, shots, beer, shots, shots, more shots, a couple more beer and well about 8 more shots.  Germany is the devil with their little bottles of alcohol, no joke even typing that was difficult for me as I get the mental image and clear smell of what I consumed that night (and that was over a month ago). I might have also had a bite of someone’s burger but no more then 2 bites tops.  All night I sort of felt like I had a good angel in one ear telling me not to drink too much, to stop with the shots and in the other ear someone handing me more and more and more of those bottles of awfulness.  Turns out the good angel was Aiden and the bad was Steffi and Sandra (and likely the rest of my team as well). I am told that I was outside waiting for the cab to pick us up and I would finish a shot and smash the tiny glass bottle on the ground (also extremely out of character as I am often the person picking up random pieces of garbage on the ground as I can’t understand how people can’t hold onto it for at most 5 minutes before seeing a garbage to put it in… whoops).  Night didn’t last long, took cab to the bar, threw up when we got there but in the cab and Ms. Jenny Gartner, incredibly kind person, cleaned up the cab and saved me from the fine.  Then Aiden had to take me home, just keeping in line with the majority of our family trips.  I think it is (well my excuse is) that when I have someone there I know will take care of me I sort of turn off completely.  ….not a great idea.  (Cuba, Vegas and Berlin, just ask one of my brothers).

We had a weekend off before heading for Memmingen to win the German Cup and my cousin Kelly arrived in this time, also an interesting story which will be more funny for all parties in about 3. 5 years.  One sentence version is that we don’t really like Italy, their dogs and their unacceptance of codeine and other doctor prescribed medication, or was it milk bones??  Onto brighter times, Aiden was also in Memmingen to watch us win the cup then we were back in Berlin with our skates hung up for the season.  Crazy how fast the season went by, from my first game over here in Prague to Memmingen, on one hand feels like maybe 2 months, and on the other I feel like I have done soooo much that could have been here 3 years. 

Shortly after my return to Berlin and a bit of celebrating with Nina, Kelly’s friend Tara arrived and we instantly adopted her into our family as our cousin and looking back now even after traveling together we would like to keep her in the family.  (What can we say, she’s a great cook!!  Kidding, well actually she is a great cook but we’d keep her anyways).

Aiden, Tara and I flew to Stockholm to, re-meet in my case and meet in Aiden and Tara’s case, the family.  Anders, being the unbelievably kind person that he is came and met us at the airport that is at least an hour out of Stockholm and once again welcomed us wholeheartedly with Bodiel and Philip into their home.  What an amazing 5 days we had there, so much visiting, cooking, huge meals, suffle and lots of wine.  We enjoyed our time with them soo much, could have sat at the dinner table for hours (actually we did) just talking and bantering, we cannot wait to have them in Canada so we can even somewhat repay their great hospitality.  We also got to meet one of Bodiel;s brother and his partner.  They were such a blast as well, and their beautiful dog Snow White!!  Also need to note that Aiden, Tara and I spent the good part of a day in Ikea but not just Ikea, THE Ikea, the first Ikea, the head office of Ikea.  Pretty cool, we know!

After Stockholm Aiden and I took a train down to Malmo and Tara was off to Prague where her family comes from.  A funny story, well funny for you and not so much for Aiden and I, while waiting for our train to Malmo we are on the platform and all we hear is this poor cat in it’s cage meowing and meowing, I can’t possibly put into written words the sound this cat was making.  It was a mix between a 2 year old girl’s scream and the noise Jim Carrey makes as the most annoying noise in the world on Dumb and Dumber.  Take the time to think about this… mix them… really get this in your head.  K, so this cat, Aiden and I look at eachother praying that the cat is NOWHERE near where we are sitting on the train and well as the Law of Attraction proves the cat was right beside us, right across the isle and she did not stop for the ENTIRE trip to Malmo, they got off a stop before we did… it’s a 4 hour train approximately.  So not only that we realize that hmm that’s weird there seems to be a lot of dogs in our cabin of the train.  Ya… they put us in the animal section of the train, honestly I think there were 6 dogs and THE cat, maybe more and I am not exaggerating at all.  Well animal cart aside we arrived to more open arms at the train station.  Johan met us there and took us back to their beautiful apartment in the downtown of Malmo.  We met the rest of the family and were taken to our own apartment that they had arranged for us through Asa’s dance company.  Again, so nice of them. 

We had a fun and tasty pizza dinner with the whole family, met Markus for the first time and Aiden got to meet Holger and Kirsten (what beautiful people).  Went for a nice walk through the city and the parks and learned about lighting, which I now find fascinating as I probably have never stopped to think how a building or street or city or performance was lit and the design behind it. The next day Johan was again an incredible tour guide for us and took us all throughout Malmo, we finished our tour at the Dance studio/company where we were celebrating Asa’s 50^th Birthday, pretty cool there were a lot of important people there and funny cuz each time one of them came in they would tell me in a sort of joking tone that “oh, those people over there are very important” but sort of felt like everyone there was and they all just were pretty down to earth.  We ate about 3 pieces too many of the great cakes that were provided and then found out later there were more for her to take home which we also got to divulge in later that evening.  Choosing a highlight is difficult but for me and Aiden to get to sit in on a dance rehearsal for one of their performances was soooo cool.  We were sitting at the front with the rehearsal manager and got to watch and then hear the breakdown and comments afterwards.  I found it very interesting as within any sport or team there are people who can take criticism well and others who bite back immediately and refuse to believe that what someone saw from the front watching the entire performance was correct.  I know we all have our days but just found it interesting and very fun. 

We stopped by to say our goodbyes and once again were given breakfast (we ate way too much of their food and they were too generous).  Saying goodbye to Holger and Kirsten was pretty special.  Holger made sure that I knew to send all his love to my parents and family back home, and saying how special they are and to make sure to give his love to them.  And also very special Kirsten wanted to make sure that Aiden sent a wedding picture to them after his and Jason’s wedding this summer.  Pretty cool J , still makes me smile and tear up all at the same time.

They walked us to the train station, said our quick good-byes and we were off to Copenhagen for the day.  Going to end this blog here as the scenery in Croatia is too beautiful to be spending my time on the computer.  More to come soon!!!

Croatian Adventure April 2009

So I arrived in Berlin to play my first year of pro hockey about 8 months ago and well that is about how far behind I am on my blog… Well, not that bad but pretty close.  J  Right now I am on a bus from Plitvice to Split, in Croatia.  I just spent the last 4 hours walking through Plitvice Javara National Park and it is quite possibly one of the most beautiful places I have ever been, seen and could have dreamed. To another’s eye it might have looked like a gloomy, rainy somewhat cold day, to me the moment I stepped into the park I couldn’t stop smiling.  I think the only time the smile came off my face was for about 15 seconds when I realized the battery in my camera had died.  After a full 15 seconds of sulking I put the camera away and realized this just allowed me to really enjoy the full beauty of the rest of the park, and that there was no way the images and georgeousness would be forgotten (plus the probably 400 pictures I had already taken helped ease the pain as well).  Something to note, about 3 weeks ago I was in Berlin touring around a bit with my brother Aiden and I put my stuff down as I had offered to take a photo for a German couple who were obviously going to go throughout most of their trip with one photo of him, and one photo of her, this might be my 3^rd favourite thing ever to do.  Anyhow, so after taking the pictures making sure they were happy with them I picked up my stuff to hear my camera hit the ground.  Not completely concerned as this might possibly not be the first time I have dropped my camera, maybe once in a disco… So the bad news here was that the screen had cracked on the inside, the even worse news was that there wasn’t any old school peep hole to see what you take your pictures of but the good news (there usually is good news if you just look for it) was that the camera could still take pictures, and the even better news is that I have been in training for the past 4 years taking nearly 1000 pictures a month so I know my camera pretty well and have a good idea of which buttons to press how many times on which settings in order to have the camera on the option I would like to use.

Alright, so quite the side note but it was a traumatic and memorable moment I wanted to share.  Aiden had to deal with me being in a pissy mood for about 18 minutes but I slowly came around after realizing there really wasn’t anything I could do at that point to change the situation, except for get back at taking too many pictures the way I lived my life 18 minutes ago. 

So, back to Plitvice and the 400 pictures I had already taken of this absolutely astonishing National Park and it didn’t matter for a second whether I could see what I was taking or not as the entirety of the park was breath taking.  Now I sit here wishing I hadn’t packed the camera adapter under the bus otherwise I would be going through the photos and seeing how they turned out.  But again, on the positive side I am catching up a bit on my blog. 

Prior to Plitvice I had been in Zagreb for one day, 2 nights.  I had my very first couchsurfing experience and it turned out great, stayed with 2 young guys from Zagreb and they were super helpful, Marin picked me up at the train station, offered to carry my stuff and we arrived back at his place to a Champions League Soc… I mean Football game (which I have somehow grown to really enjoy until I either get bored cuz there is no goals or til I throw something at the TV due to the frustrating and embarrassing dives the players take), so football game, pizza and beer.  Boy did they choose the right girl, not much more you could ask for, Beer, Pizza and sports.  So needless to say I knew this situation was going to work out just fine.  I crashed on their couch that night then had a decent sleep in and did 2 walking tours, one around the old town and one around the lower town I believe it is called.  From my 3 days of experience Croatians are incredibly nice and very helpful people.  I enjoyed touring myself around Zagreb with a book that gave me the route, a map and then information and history at each stop point.  Was a nice way to see a city, it was completely at my own pace and if I wanted to wander down some random street or into a different church I wasn’t holding anyone up and I could stop for food or to take others pictures anytime I liked.  **Side note to the side note, the breaking of my camera while helping others with a photo has not deterred me from continuing this passion of mine**.  After the tours I dropped by where Tomislav works “Cyber Funk Café” great place and one of the only juice bars in Zagreb right now, he told me when things happen in westernized countries they usually take a few years and make their way over to them.  So always smart to travel, see what’s cool and working and get a head start on everyone back in Croatia.  Jumping ahead to our evening, we decided to stay in watch TV, order some more Pizza and just hang out.  Was really nice and turned out to be a great decision as the weather turned to lightning and thunder storms. 

So Marin, Tomislav and his girlfriend Sandra (who I only got to meet for maybe 10 minutes but she is such a sweetheart) were great hosts and also got to meet some of their other friends too.  I highly suggest this form of travel to anyone and EVERYONE.  If you have heard of couchsurfing then skip this next paragraph, I am going to try and give a Coles notes version of what I understand of it so far cuz I think everyone should be involved even on a small scale if possible:

Couchsurfing.com a program started by someone either in Canada or the States (I told you I don’t know a lot yet) and it allows people all over the world to have a profile, share what they would like about themselves and get to know and experience other people from every walk of life imaginable.  So some of the ways you can be involved is to host people at your home, you say how many you can have, if you are currently available to host someone and what your home is like (ie: pets, non-smokers etc. etc.) and then people can check you out, see if you are a good match and then you do the same to see if the person requesting a couch is someone you would like in your home or not.  You can also be that person looking for a couch to sleep on, so you contact whom you’d like and share a bit about you and why you would like to stay with them (obvious shit reason.. cuz it’s free, really helps to take the time to read through profiles and what others have said about them and their experiences couchsurfing with them).  Or you can also just be available to meet for coffee and give some advice of what to do in your city.  Things like that, so super short version but likely noone got this far anyhow.

Hello everyone who either just woke up from my last paragraph or who skipped it entirely.  To complete my update of Croatia thur far, I am now headed to Split where a really nice PHD student has offered to take me into her home for a few days, she is supposed to be coming to BC (Sydney) to do some research for 6 months, not sure when though.  Anyhow, the drive has been beautiful and I am extremely happy that I chose to sit on the right side of the bus from Plitvice to wherever we are now as the cliffs and heights are not my favourite.  But if you love the view and are tougher then I am take the left side.  Helpful random tips for traveling in Croatia.  That wraps up this portion of my blog and I will working my way backwards to attempt to catch up on highlights.  Thanks for tuning in and back on home soil in less than 2 weeks!!  CRAZY!!!

Deutche Meistershaft... so close I can taste it

Well.... 1 game left.  Today is Thursday March 5th and on Saturday March 7th we could be named Deutche Meistershaft which means German Championship.  This is where it stands right now.  We are now tied with Planegg when it comes to games won.  As mentioned in a previous post, we beat them by two goals and they beat us by 2 goals and those were the only games lost the entire season for either team.  Now it comes down to goals for and against, currently we are up 3 goals on them.  Planegg plays Memmingen (a decently strong team when it comes to the rest of the league, and now with a new goalie and a new Canadian on their team), and we play Ottobrun who is in dead last in the entire league... so not so strong.  

My ideal weekend goes as such:  Planegg plays against Memmingen and Memmingen wins (this is a possibility), the puck drops for them 2 hours before it does for us, so for sure by the end of the 2nd period we will know how many goals we need to score or if they have lost.  I don't really want to know though until 2 minutes left in the game, and that might be possible if I just don't allow myself to understand the German... well ok, likely not possible cuz I'm sure the emotions will be pretty obvious.  Anyhow, will be great either way.  

Some phenomenal guest viewers this Saturday will be my brother Aiden, who flew in a couple of days ago.  My friend Kelsey Blair who is currently playing pro Basketball in Sweden and I think one of her friends, then some hopefuls are a few vballers from the SCC, a bunch of the staff from the Jr/and DEL Eisbear teams and then a bet has been made between me and the team I train (Eisbaren Jr's) that if they bring out 10 of their players I am to get in a fight.... I'm actually getting a lil nervous about this cuz as much as I don't think they will come I believe more that they hate to lose a bet... we will see what happens.  

Alright off to bed here as it's actually nearly 2am Friday morning and Aiden and I are off to visit a concentration camp tomorrow morning.  Will be quite the experience for sure.  This history amazes me absolutely every single day I am here.  Crazy.  So... check back for a huge announcement come Saturday night!!  Our website is:  www.eisladies.de  (you can also choose to see it in English once you get the the website)!

2 Weeks, 2 Games, 1 German Champion

So season is somehow closing out and I am at a lack of words to describe what I am feeling as well as to describe just how fast the time has flown by.  6 months.... already.  I wasn't sure when I first started this adventure whether I'd last 6 days but apparently moving across the world and getting to play the sport I love, travel Europe every free day I get and train National level athletes hasn't been all that bad. :-)  Clearly, I've loved every second of it and makes for an extremely difficult decision about next year, but that is a whole nother topic.  (Just realized that "nother" is not a word, won't really stop me from using it as I'm certain most of my blogs from here on out will be mixed with some German as well as a whole lot of poor English due to the learning of another language).  So... 

This is where the OSC Eisladies stand.  (Yes, for anyone first hearing our team name, laugh it up, I still think it's pretty funny).  Currently the Eisladies are in 1st place in the German league.  We have 2 games remaining against teams we have beat 7-1 (Grefrath) and Ottobrun 10-0.  This sounds like a pretty easy ride into the end of the season however, there is a little team called Planegg that is trying to get in our way to victory.  Planegg has 3 games remaining and are also in a pretty good position.  We have played Planegg twice, us beating them at home 4-2 and them beating us at their home 5-3 (with 1 second left, scored by a player who quit our team and joined their's just maybe a week earlier... but that is beside the point).  So each of those loses, one for them and one for us puts us at a dead tie.  Now comes the interesting part.  We have to basically score as many goals as humanly possible against these next two teams we play.  Which to be honest I really don't enjoy doing, it does not feel very nice to just destroy a team and truly be excited about the 14th goal scored when the other team has hardly touched the puck.  But I have been informed over and over by teammates that this is normal here in Germany and that it isn't a mean thing to do.  Still... anyhow it is the situation we are in and I believe that the other teams are also aware of it.  We are currently up 10 goals on Planegg and they have one game in hand on us.  It actually makes for a much more exciting season then had we beat Planegg that second game or had only lost by one goal, now every single game we plays matters and every shift and every goal so there is no time let off even for a second.  

I hope to have a post-game update this Saturday with extremely good news, so if anyone reads this before Saturdays game please think/dream about goals for us.  

March 21st and 22nd marks the end of the season over here for me.  We have our German Pokal (German Cup) and that is for a different title the the German Championship that is won at the end of the regular season.  However, we would like to take that title as well so the training continues.  

Injury Report:  #16 Kathrin Fring (My roommate) has partially torn one of the ligaments in her left foot and is out for ... 2 weeks.  Injury went down in her Uni track and field class during their final practical exam when she was demonstrating her perfect Javelin technique when on the last step CRACK :-(  So we are down a D, my D-partner (BOO)

#4 Haleigh Callison (Kathrin's roommate) has beautifully slightly thrown out her back.  Being the smart HKin Graduate, 6 year Twist employee decided to train a group of the Womens German National Hockey Team and not warm up herself before doing so.  Oddly enough, who knew?  When you don't warm up and start demoing exercises it's not a really smart thing to do.  Only missing 2 practices, she'll be back training tomorrow (friday) and more then ready to play saturday, expected to score a minimum of 2 goals. (also suffering from a cigarette burn to left upper to mid back/side from an unknown at Dante Saturday.  Ironic that the person that probably hates smoking the most, gets burned with a cigarette...awesome)

**Other then that only one player is prego, 2 are back from maternity leave and I believe the rest are good to go** (Only in Women's hockey does this happen)

More on non-eisladies hockey hopefully to come soon.  (Working on not waiting every 2 months to update blog).  

To Uncle Ivan

(This is the letter I wrote for my Uncle Ivan who recently passed away.  I miss you so much.)

I would like to play a song that to me, is for Uncle Ivan.  But first I have a letter I would like to try and read for you.

How does one write a letter to someone when you don't believe they won't get to read it or that they're no longer with us, physically.  It is hard.  So hard, but I want to write this letter first to Uncle Ivan.

Uncle Ivan, Thankyou.  Thankyou for always always making us all laugh, every dinner especially Thanksgiving, we would all make sure we could sit near you, make sure we were near enough to hear your jokes and hilarious comments.  So calm, so happy and so funny.  From teaching us how to say some names in French to informative lessons in relationships.  You had it all covered.  Generous and kind do not even come close to explaining or describing the person you always were.  There was always something I loved so much about you, you were always happy, you didn't need big material goods to do that.  It was a Lucky in one hand, surrounded by amily, making everyone laugh and absolutely having a blast on the dance floor at every gathering.  (The odd time a cigarette, but hey we almost had a deal right :-)).  It seemed to be an attitude of just "Happy to be here".  One that I try to live by.

I am honestly still in disbelief, I wrote this sitting on a bus somewhere in the middle of Germany after 2 games that were won for you.  Could only get you one goal but it was a little tough to keep my heart in the game when it was so so much with you back on the Island.  And with Suzanne and Jeremy.  You have raised two of the kindest and most loving individuals I have ever met, so much to be proud of.

I want to make sure you know how much you affected everyone's lives and just how much we all loved and still love you.  Getting to see you every year at Thanksgiving and when you came up to Smithers for my parents 25th.  I remember clearly when my mom saw you, she nearly dropped to the floor.  Family is everything for her.  I know this is part of why this is so tough, you guys all have taught our generation of kids to truly appreciate and love our siblings and the family we are so lucky to have in our lives.  Thankyou for that lesson and thankyou for helping me understand how to enjoy life and appreciate every second of it.  Enjoy every last prawn, every chicken curry, every smile and every moment with those we are surrounded by that we love so much. 

I remember saying good-bye to you, not knowing it would be the last time, it was this past Thanksgiving at Aunty Murial's house.  Justin set me up on Skype so I could feel like I was there with you all.  A little unsure of how this skype/video/phone thing worked you came and talked to me for a bit, when I close my eyes now I can still see you standing there... so clearly.  Also lately, through the tears I see you dancing with my mom at Sandra's wedding, every image that comes into my mind and heart is of you having a good time somewhere with a smile on your face, enjoying and appreciating the simple things in life. 

How do you end a letter you never wanted to write.  Please just know how much I love you and we will miss you so so much.  Lighting the candle this year at Thatnksgiving is going to be the hardest it has ever been.  I love you and I know you are with Uncle Dale and you get to see your Mom and Dad again.  Say hi for us please.  Good-bye for now, think of you often and love you forever.  

Song Lyrics for Mark Perry's "A Song for Joe"

You must be mistaken, I have not been taken,

I've just been set free, to wander wherever I please.

I'll be in the mountains, and I'll be in the trees,

I'll be on the path we used to walk, and out of the blue my name will appear when you talk.

I'll be out there on the wind, and the rain will wash me clean.

And the sun will heat my back and I'll breathe easy and deep.

You must be mistaken, I have not been taken.

I've just been set free, to wander wherever I please.

I've just been set free to wander wherever I please.  

Drei Monate in einem blog...

So I'm going to attempt a coles notes version and will work at elaborating when I have more time... more time??  That seems a little inaccurate as all I have over here is time... anyhow here goes:

TRAVEL UPDATE:

So... 10 countries in 3 months and a couple days:  Aug 30th Canada to Germany, played first 5 games in 5 different countries:  Czech Republic (Prague), Slovakia (Bratislava), Slovenia (Maribor), Austria (Vienna... aka Wein over here... that story to come) and back to Berlin, Germany.  A pretty fun way to start a hockey season.  Hit up Potsdam, Germany for an afternoon. Then went to London for a week at the beginning of October to visit my good friend Janelle and her boyfriend Adam, took off from London to Hamburg to watch Marcus Sommerfeld and Rich Mueller play (DEL hockey) then back to Berlin to get back in shape.  Games in Salzburg Austria in October, went to visit Daniel Imhof who is playing pro soccer in the 1st German League for Bochum (living in Castrop Rauxel).  Then took off to Holland for a week to visit Casey Bartzen, a fellow Twister and old T-Bird.  He's living in Sittard and playing for Geleen.  Also went on a roadie to watch them play in Groningen where Lance Morrison (also an old T-Bird) face off against each other.  Then spent a night/morning in Amsterdam before heading back to Berlin to get in back into shape and ready for the next games.  Got to watch the world cup of speed skating in Berlin and then my parents arrived on the 13th of November.  

While they were here we went to Stockholm, Sweden to visit/meet family.  They did some more traveling around between my games (to Munich, Vienna and Salzburg).  We visited old friends in Wolfsburg for a day.  And at the end of their trip we went to Paris for a day and a half.  Also my brother Justin was able to drop by on his way to India for work (unfortunate timing but all went fine and he is now safe and sound back in Vancouver :-).  So did some sightseeing and visiting while he was here as well as he got to watch one of the biggest games for us in the entire season, which we won!!!  (Against Planegg... more to come on the hockey front).  Well... now I'm back into the Berlin swing and am just deciding on where to go next weekend as we have another weekend off and I am very lucky to have some days left on my Eurorail pass.  So hoping to add Switzerland to this list and maybe head back to Wolfsburg or Vienna, or check out Munich... we will see.  I'm back in Smithers for Christmas from the 22nd of December to the 4th of January, when I fly to Vancouver and will be there til the 14th when I return to Berlin for the rest of the season!!  (Going by far too fast).

HOCKEY UPDATE:

www.eisladies.de

or English translated version:  http://translate.google.com/translate?u=www.eisladies.de&hl=en&ie=UTF-8&sl=de&tl=en

(if that doesn't work just go to google and search translate websites and enter the top one in, it's pretty entertaining actually)

So in the European League we are currently tied for first but we have also played more games then any other team so... hopefully we can work to keep that.  We've played 11 games and have a total of 21 points, you get 3 for every win.  The tough teams are Prague and Planegg whom we have now beaten both but lost to each of them as well early in the season.

In the German League we are undefeated, we have played 6 games giving us 18 points but we are currently in 3rd as we have about 3 games in hand still.  HUGE game for us in two weeks, on the 20th, right before I come home.  We play Planegg for the 3rd time, but the 2nd time in the German League.  We beat them last week (German League) which means if and when we beat them on the 20th in their rink that pretty much guarantees us the German Championship so gotta get ready for that.  A new sponsor actually is paying for us to fly there (we'll bus back) but that makes a HUGE difference as bussing 10 or so hours to head straight into a game is not the best way to be well prepared.  I'll keep you posted on that update (think winning and scoring thoughts for us please)!!!  

WORK (SORT OF):

So quick update here, I've been training the mens farm team to the pro team here in Berlin.  They are all called the Eisbears but these guys are known as the Juniors and play in the Oberliga which is the 3rd league in Germany but is the farm team to the DEL Eisbaren.  Anyhow, I have taken over mostly their Speed, Agility, Stabi (Core and Balance), Reaction training on Tuesdays and Thursdays.  Each of those days I have one group in the morning around 10 or 10:30 of about anywhere between 12 and 16 guys (Tuesdays more of a speed day and Thurs Stabi focus) and then in the afternoon any of the guys who are either in school, might be on ice with the pro's I have them at 4:30 and usually is between 6 and 8 players.  It has been an incredible experience to work with them, having 20+ athletes that are so very different in the way they move, their athletic background, their training background, their size, skill level, attitude, character, motivation.... etc.  Learning to watch the way them move and really try to work with them on their individual strengths and weaknesses and also with watching them on ice in practices and games has been a huge learning experience as well as a challenge but I'm loving it and seriously learn something new every day, every session.  I'm also working with my team as well doing their strength and conditioning, usually it has been once a week, sometimes twice but the numbers are dying off big time so I'm going to have to find a way to get people back and off their couches in the evenings.  I think the tough part is that our on ice practices are usually mon/thurs/fri evenings so for them to also come on tues/wed evening for training... people need some evenings for themselves.  Anyhow, also a great experience and so much fun to show and teach people different ways of  training and to find the fun and enjoyment in training.  As I recall Dean Shiels (my boss at Twist) saying many times, you have to LOVE to train, and it is true.  For some it is harder then others but I 100% believe it just takes looking at things from different angles and finding ways to keep it interesting. 

Alright, so that wasn't so much a coles notes version but once you eventually see the rest you will possibly agree a little more.  

That is Haleigh's life in Berlin thus far!  No complaints, have loved every bit of it!!!! :-)

What the NHL should learn from European Hockey

I would like to have a contest to see which city or team in Germany (or Europe) has the best fans.  If anyone has ever attended a hockey game in Europe (I know soccer is much bigger but for the purpose of this topic and my life, I'm sticking with hockey) they will know just how loud, how passionate and how supportive the fans are here.  A team could be losing 5-0 and they never stop cheering.  The only booing that ever happens is for the refs and sometimes the other team if a penalty was bad enough or if they are trying to throw them off on a power play.  (the booing here is actually whistling).  

The stadiums have entire ends and sections blocked off for standing room only, that is where the super fans are.  They have their drums, every single one of them has a jersey and maybe 3 to 10 team scarves on and they are LOUD.  

I was at a game tonight and to be honest the atmosphere in the rink I honestly 100% believe is better and more excited then in a Stanley Cup final game.  No joke.  At least once everyone in the stands are standing up in support of their team.  Everyone has some sort of noise maker that has been handed out or left on the seats.  It is absolutely incredible.  

I would like there to be a contest where they bring the best fans from one of the teams here (even just normal fans would far outshine us "fans" back home) and bring them to an NHL game, fill half the rink with European fans and let the other half experience what it truly means to support a team wholeheartedly and to stay til the dying seconds of every game regardless of the score.  It is something I think any and every sports fan must experience.  

So for anyone traveling Europe, please pay the money (which is also 1/4 the amount of a pro game in N.A.) and check it out.  Bring your camera!

Thoughts on a potentially good problem to have...

So... everyone always asks, What do you want to do when you grow up?  Where do you see yourself living?  etc. etc....

Here's my problem: 

Every single job I have had in my life I have loved.  Every city or place I have lived I have loved.  Basically for whatever reason I have been lucky to enjoy and be happy no matter where I am, no matter what I'm doing and no matter who I'm with.  

Ultimately, I do believe this to be a good thing, however, how am I supposed to ever know where I'm supposed to be, what I'm supposed to be doing and who I'm supposed to be doing these things with?  If I'm always enjoying the situation I am in and always make sure to be having fun no matter where I am at, this makes life tough to make decisions cuz as much as I don't like change (only because I am happy in the situation I am currently in) I know that the next situation I am also going to enjoy and be happy in.  

Anyhow, something I think about often.

Back to our Roots

So clearly I am starting 3 months into my trip and will either attempt to catch up as life goes on this season or there might be a few holes here and there.  

My Mom, Dad and I arrived in Stockholm early this morning, Nov 16th 08 from Berlin.  This is an exciting day for us all as I have never been to Sweden, my dad hasn't been here for 40 years and my mom has also never been here.  Her dad, my grandpa, Anders Strom was born in Sweden and moved to Canada when he was 24 to avoid entering the military (94% sure on my details).  Getting to come to Sweden was something my mom never thought would happen and to see her excitement and emotions was a pretty cool thing.  

After an adventurous trip from my place in the Ghetto of Berlin, transferring trams/trains/S-Bahns to the Airport and arriving at City Centre Stockholm we met up with my mom's cousin Anders who graciously picked us up at the station and took us back to their place for a delicious lunch Bodiel had made for us.  Anders is Holgar's son who is my mother's father Andreas' brother's son.  Read it again, nice and slow.  :-)  And Bodiel is Anders' wife, we also got to meet and spend time with their youngest son Filip.  It is a pretty amazing experience to meet family for the first time, it took about 4.6 secounds to get comfortable, they are such nice people and so incredibly welcoming.  

After tour of their beautiful house, nice lunch we went for a walk in the neighbourhood.  Went along the ocean, past a golf course which had a driving range into the ocean... Europe never seems to let me down, everyday something new to experience.  The driving range lets you hit balls into the ocean where there are bit areas marked off to allow you to check your accuracy.  Pictures will explain better.  Anyhow, returned back where shockingly enough my dad passed out as did mom and I and finished our day getting to meet my mom's first cousin Holgar and his wife Kerstin, again incredible people and we enjoyed a "typical Swedish meal".  They are hilarious, basically their theory is that everything is typical Swedish as there is no way we would know any different.  Super friendly, fun and pleasant people to be honoured to meet and spend time with.  

I will be in Stockholm til Wednesday morning and parents are returning to Berlin friday morning.  A bit of a rookie here on the blogging but in time... in time...