Friday, August 26th, 2011

I was on the road for Edmonton by 6am this morning.  With large coffee in hand, an iPod full of music and a Dodge Caravan with Tomorrow Project logos all over it, I headed North.

I arrived in Edmonton around 9:30 or so.  I went to the Edmonton office to meet the team there.  It was very productive, and now I feel better being able to put faces to names.  After a 2 hour brainstorming session, I went over to Telus Field to meet the coordinator for the game tomorrow.  He filled me in on the logistics of where to park our Tomorrow Project vans, where we'd be setting up our booths, etc. etc.

Then, I went back to the office briefly before heading to The Matrix hotel downtown to check-in.  My room was an executive suite with a king size bed and a beautiful view from the 14th floor.  Things could be worse.  The only downside was that they leave a fully stocked mini-bar in the room... and snacks!  I think this is to torment the guests until they breakdown and indulge!  I resisted, however difficult it was...  here is what I had to look at during my stay.  Can you blame me for taking a picture?

Anyway, I went in search for a local pub to get some dinner and a beer.  Thanks iPhone for helping me find a great little pub called "The Pint" just off Jasper Ave.  It was already getting pretty busy when I arrived at around 4:30 or 5pm.  I sat at the bar and wished my bestie was sitting with me to enjoy the atmosphere.  I had a steak dinner and a drink (or two).  Yum!  The weather was picture perfect and I really enjoyed it.

Then I headed back to the hotel and since I haven't had TV or a bed for a while, I got comfy in my PJs, turned on the TV, and lapped up a lot of mindless entertainment - including Jersey Shore - yep... I'm almost embarrassed to admit it.  Almost.  I caught some of the news regarding Hurricane Irene and Jack Layton's funeral.  I almost felt like I was back in touch with the world.

Thursday, August 25th, 2011

More of a tougher day at work.  Had more things come up that I didn't have answers to, but stumbled through it nonetheless. Onwards and upwards...

On another note, I'm still waiting for a reply from my landlord stating that he'll let me out of my lease by the end of September.  I think that's fair considering that's still two months more in this building by the time I find another place and move out.

I went for a drive after work, then a short walk near Signal Hill.  Of all the years I've lived here, I never knew what the numbers on the side of the hill stood for ... obviously it's a signal - hence the name, but it looks like some kind of code.  Here's the real story:

Battalion Park on Signal Hill (both the park and the hill are named for the numbers). In 1910, a militia camp was established on land that was leased from the Sarcee (Tsuu'tina) First Nation, more than a day's travel from Calgary.


During WWI, this became a large military training camp. Lacking much to do in their off hours, the soldiers training there dreamed up something that today would be called a "team-building exercise": carry rocks up the big hill that overlooked the camp, and use them to make the unit numbers of the battalions training there. Because many of the trainers were from the United Kingdom, they saw an opportunity to utilize the abundance of field stones as a training exercise, to display the soldiers battalion numbers, as so often was done in the UK. So in 1915-16 field stones, were carried up the hill and arranged by the soldiers in their Battalion numbers

Calgary: 137, Lethbridge; 113, Red Deer: 151 and Edmonton 51.

Those soldiers from the 137 Battalion, who survived the war, came home with a mission to save the Stones of Signal Hill, which had become a symbol of their lost comrades.  Over the decades, the numbers slowly became invisible, as growth and erosion took their toll.


In the early 1990's, development threatened the neglected site, as plans were announced to grade the hillside to provide a larger flat area at the base for a future shopping centre.  After extensive lobbying by those interested in preserving this historic site, a compromise was reached: the hill would be graded, but the Calgary military cadet units would recreate the numbers on the new slope with the original stones. The result is Battalion Park, a park on the side of the hill with interpretive signs explaining the history of the numbers and of the military units that they represent."

Anyway, I'm off to Edmonton bright and early in the morning - I'm aiming to be on the road by 6am... yuck!  I'm staying overnight in a pretty nice hotel called the Matrix and by looking at the photos, it's very slick.  Then the double header baseball game on Saturday between Edmonton and Calgary where we'll be promoting the Tomorrow Project.  We were on CTV news last night, and some of my team got some air time.  The Project's getting a lot of publicity and attention which is fantastic, since we need 50,000 participants!  You can see the news clip here:

CTV News Clip