The Written Word(s): Wasaga Beach

(Yep. . . Wasaga Beach is still cold. . .)

Have to say, it's probably been at least 6 weeks since I've felt this relaxed. My reading week vacation with my aunt and uncle is going along swimmingly so far. While I do have some homework to do while I'm here, I'm going to be here for several days, and I have a little time before I have to start working on it. Not having anything to really "worry" about for 24 hours really has been the best feeling.

Last night I found out that I forgot to pack my pajamas - typical me XD But the room that I'm staying in has its own fireplace, and the bed and blankets were incredibly comfortable, so I slept really well. Whenever I visit here I stay downstairs in what my aunt and uncle call the Jane Austen room. The walls are painted yellow and there's a fireplace - it really is something of an homage to a regency era parlor.

(Really like the Stratford poster up there. My aunt and uncle have always loved the theater.)

When I went upstairs in the morning I was shocked to see that it was my uncle I heard walking in the kitchen, not my aunt. My aunt Kathy is a caterer, and is always up cooking away for board dinners and other various events. Uncle Mike was shocked too. "Kath hasn't slept this late in 10 years!" he said to me. My uncle is a chiropractor. In fact, there's something of a joke with regard to my dad's side of the family - if you're not a musician or a playwright or some sort of artist, you're a chiropractor.

My uncle pulled out everything I would need to make myself French toast this morning. It's my favorite thing to eat for breakfast, and during my first visit to Wasaga Beach I made it for my aunt and uncle later one evening after my aunt and I had come back from the movies - we had gone to see Silver Linings Playbook. My uncle is a very energetic and excitable man when you get him going; his energy is contagious once you get him going. My breakfast wasn't too bad, although I accidentally added too much cinnamon to the French toast batter.

(The upstairs is just as lovely as downstairs.)

(My aunt is very, very proud of her china.)

Today has been quite the relaxing day. I've relaxed with my aunt and uncle (Mike had the day off work) at home and we've been watching movies. First it was Saving Mr. Banks, which I really enjoyed, and next it was The Butler, which is also good. They have a friend that is a member of S.A.G, so they have copies of these movies burned on disc. I still have dinner to look forward to, and it's usually one thing I always look forward to when I come here. My aunt may cook for a living, but it's my uncle that always makes his "fries" - which are more like boiled potatoes - whenever I come to stay with them.

(That's a lot of potatoes. . .)

He puts them in a glass dish and adds salt, pepper, oil and this spice/seasoning created by Emeril Lagasse. And before you ask, no, he didn't throw it on the potatoes and yell "BAM!" :P Kind of wish he had, actually. If he has to make up another batch on Wednesday I'll tell him to do that.

(When they were done cooking my uncle gave me a few potatoes to sample. They were good - only I wasn't crazy about the little bit of lemon juice he added to them before mixing them up.)

So today's been a lazy day. Haven't had any reason to leave the house yet. Tomorrow I'm going out with my aunt, along with my cousin Valerie and her husband Gord, and we're going to see a movie early in the afternoon. It should be nice - usually when I'm here I only get to see Val & Gord briefly, and the same goes for when I see them at family get-togethers throughout the year. All in all, it should be a good day.

Haven't had the chance to take my camera out to the beach yet, but I'm hoping that I'll be able to do that sometime before I have to head home. I've had fun taking pictures around the house today so far, but I'd like to get as much use out of my camera as I can during this trip. My uncle got all excited when I was fiddling around with my camera today. He was all "Take a picture of my Georgian birds! You gotta get a shot of my piano! Take some pictures of your aunt's freezers and her food stuff! Look! I found my marbles!"