Neon Christmas

Merry Christmas everyone! I know it has been a while since my last entry, but things have been hectic here! We just put my parents back on what must be a record long series of flights back home, and I finally have time to sit down and write. Of course the biggest news is that we were able to celebrate Christmas with my mother and father this year. In hindsight, it would have been an awfully lonely Christmas without them! They arrived on the 14th and we kept them busy. The first day I took my mother out for her birthday present; a sunset beach ride on a secluded strip of land up in West Bay. The following days we did the touristy shopping thing and then settled my parents at the beautiful Westin for three days of R&R on Seven Mile Beach. For their Christmas gift we surprised them with a sunset dinner cruise in the North Sound aboard a sailing catamaran. What a great night! We also took them out on a snorkel trip and Stingray City trip- where my father actually got in a swam with the stingrays! We drove around the island and checked out some historic wrecks and spent quite a bit of time relaxing by the pool and going for cool drinks at seaside pubs. All in all it was an amazing visit and we were pretty sad to see them leave!

Having just experienced our first tropical Christmas, it is time to fess up. We missed the snow. There... I said the four words I thought would never come from Natalie Schneider! Now, to clarify that statement let me elaborate. For anyone who has grown up in a snowy land, Christmas is a hard sell without the snow. I remember distinctly the one Christmas of my childhood when there was no snow on the ground (luckily it also coincided with the year I got a bike for xmas... therefore making the day tolerable) and it just wasn't the same. Though we tried hard to get in the Christmas spirit with egg nog, a christmas tree, carols and ice cold air conditioning, something crucial was missing. So on the 23rd we decided to head out to look at some Christmas lights. With the wealth on this island you can imagine some of the displays. Two houses in particular go all out. The Crighton family Christmas display is spread over an acre of their land. Complete with several nativity scenes, massive Casaurina trees covered in lights, a visit from Santa and his helpers and a driveway dedicated to toy trains, the site is visible from a mile down the road. The entire display takes months to put up, and is often still being taken down by the end of February! Amongst all the bustle of Santa-happy kidlets one might almost miss the festively lit dolphins or santa-on-his-jetski displays. Somehow no matter how you present it, a "tropical Christmas" is a bit of an oxymoron. Further down our road we have the blinding Christmas lights of the Bodden house. Using only high powered LED flourescent and neon colours, this yard comes a close second to National Lampoon's Griswald's house. Palm trees, both real and plastic, are festooned with millions of lights and strange asian looking neon trees are placed intermittently along the lawn. A steel pan drum band plays Christmas favourites giving the whole sight the feel of a Las Vegas Margaritaville explosion.
Our Christmas light viewing trip, although fun and eye opening (literally and figuratively) still didn't quite provide the same satisfaction as the snow. Perhaps Camana Bay forsaw this little dilema, because they have gone to the trouble of recreating a snowy scene each evening at their outdoor shopping centre. Our first encounter was other-worldy, as the little flakes glistened on their way to the ground. However, upon inhaling the air, a coughing fit ensued when we found that the flakes were actually a nasty sinus plugging foam.
No, I am convinced that 364 days of the year, island living is the answer. For Christmas though, there is no place like home, where the snow flakes fall, and the tree tops glisten.

A class above

Its Christmas Party time of the year again! Only someone with a career in Education can really appreciate the scale and grandeur of the rest of the world's Christmas parties. There is no pot-luck portion, no one has to pay for their dinner or drinks, and best of all, there is a certain level of classiness to these events that is unattainable at a teachers party. It is true that we can never complain about our time off, summer vacation and work hours, but when it comes to Christmas time, our parties don't hold a candle to the corporate ones. This winter the KPMG party was held at Grand Old House, right on the ocean. Some women even took the afternoon off for a hair appointment and professional make-up. Everyone was looking forward to the three course buffet and open bar. KPMG rented shuttles to pick us up from different locations around the island and to take us home once we had reached our alcoholic intake limit. In honour of our first ocean side island holiday party, I went out to my friend Kate's store and bought an overpriced cocktail dress from her upscale boutique. At just after 7pm the busses arrived with nearly 200 KPMG employees and their spouses. Since our entire social circle and even our acquaintances are all from KPMG it felt like a reunion of our favourite people. The wine, beer and cocktails flowed freely on the patio. White icicle lighting and a live piano player gave the whole setting an amazingly warm holiday feeling, and the waves crashing in the background brought back the reality that a warm winter party is really the only way to go! Memories of tromping through slush and snow, inevitably ruining my black pumps and freezing my bare feet were far away. The thought of coat checks and waiting hours for a taxi at the end of the evening were long gone. Bailing my car out of the car park early the next morning only to learn I owed an exorbitant fee from parking in an hourly lot didn't even cross my mind. Instead I was fascinated with the create-your-own pasta bar, the tables piled high with fresh salads, the desert gazebo (thats right... a whole gazebo dedicated to my favourite course), and the traditional Christmas buffet line. As if the lure of delicious food wasn't enough, there were even prizes! Bottles of wine and gift certificates were given out to lucky employees. After dinner the dance floor above the sea opened up and we all danced to hits from the last year under the starry sky. A perfect winter party if you ask me!
Now, one might assume that only KPMG offers such classy events, and that would be wrong. The weekend previous to the KPMG party we were generously given tickets to the holiday benefit soiree to honour the National Caribbean Conservation Institute. Working towards protecting the reefs and ocean life, this lavish affair is held annually and is best known for it's Silent Auction and Parade of Trees. Blake and I knew we were in for a good night when we found that the tickets cost $150 each, and the dress code was Black Tie Formal (unfortunately this was at the end of Movember, so Blake looked more like a cross of business man/creepy car sales man). We were greeted at the entrance with a glass of sangria and guide for the evening. We at once started a tour of the trees, only to learn we were much further out of our realm than we had initially believed. The trees and gifts were going for no less than $1000. Attempting to look as classy and well-to-do as possible we searched out our table and seated ourselves. Glass bottles of tonic water had been imported from Austria. A large bottle of wine sat in front of each plate setting and a basket in the middle held all the accoutrements that one could ever imagine. We were seated at a table with two girls from KPMG and the owners of the Luxury Island Charters company. Seated at the next table were the CEO's of the Camana Bay enterprise (MASSIVE real estate) and the best known architect on island. In the middle of the room was the Governor. When dinner arrived we were treated to the most amazing feast put together by different high end restaurants on island. The Butternut squash soup was delectable. The fresh cranberry salad followed by prime rib with lightly roasted asparagus were followed by an artistic mousse and personal size cupcakes. While we ate dinner we were treated to a slideshow honouring the work of the Institute. It wasn't until after supper when we were treated to the real show. A live auction of the Christmas Trees. Every dollar going towards the institute. The more modest trees sold for $1500. The rest sold for around $3000. The largest surprise came when the MC asked for donations to the Institute. A bidding war took place and one man forked over $5000 that evening. Overwhelmed by the affluence around us, Blake and I slipped out the back doors that evening after the auction. It was enlightening to see the money that really is on this island. There is such an abundance of cash that it makes the recession seem far far away... or at least it did for the evening. Blake and I darted the four blocks to the other side of the Camana Bay Complex where we jumped in our dirty squealing jalopy and prayed we would make it home with out the crankshaft belt breaking.

Pictured above: Christmas tree on auction, Dinner photo, KPMG xmas party

Consequences

Well, I spoke too soon about my triumph over Novembers. It seems that November wanted to hold out its punishment and dole it out in one cruel week of vengeance. Through a failed car inspection, and plenty of expensive car repairs to run ins with the boss and a painful last day of work, November if finally done. However, the month ended by providing us with a painful reminder about the consequences of our move. My grandfather has been ailing for awhile now, but he took a turn for the worst last weekend, and after a massive heart attack and many other afflictions he passed away Saturday night. Luckily my parents were able to make it up to Vernon to be with him in his last days, but a death in the immediate family reminds us just how far away we really are. We were able to speak with my parents and grandfather's wife- Vicki, but speaking on the phone is nothing compared to being able to be there and support your family. A sad event like this just hits home that our choice to live down here borders on the selfish side.
My grandfather's passing was not the only difficult thing we had to deal with this year. As many of you know, Blake's mom was diagnosed with breast cancer earlier this year, and has gone through a long and strenuous battle with 6 rounds of chemo and countless trips to Prince George. It was very difficult to stand aside this year and offer only verbal support. Joel was able to make it home to be with Reita a few times, but we were unable to just drive up for the weekend. We are so very thankful that Reita is now in remission and was given a clean bill of health in September.
Of course we are not the only ones this year who have had to deal with illness and tragedies from afar. Of our friends, one has had her father pass, another is home with his father as we speak. A close friend is still watching his father battle cancer and another has a nephew who is very ill. We do all we can from afar, and go home when the time and money permits, but the distance between us and our loved ones is massive. To fly home Blake and I look at nearly 18 hours of travel and at least 4 flights. Although we chose to live in Paradise and were aware of the consequences, it is not without deep sadness that we bid my grandfather goodbye and send our thoughts and wishes out to those back home.

Pictured above: Blake and his Reita on our visit this fall. My last visit with my grandfather.