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This bun better be good!

Henri — Fri, 14 Mar 2008 22:57:54 +0000

Whoop! I figured since my first kid is so amazing, that it wouldn’t be right to not have another one.

So with a quick wham and a bit of a bam, I’m pleased to announce Cara has once again been transformed into a Preggalo.

The expected ejection date is sometime around the middle to end of November. (Or so. Ok, give us a break. We *just* saw the two pink lines on the stick a day ago, and she hasn’t been to the doctor yet to get the official time.) But middle/end of November would be great timing, since it would allow Cara to enjoy the deathly heat of summer here in Corsica (ok, paradise to some, scorching heat that must be feared while observing from the shade of a tree on the beach to others… heh) without getting her belly too burnt with her pregnancy bikini. haha. As if, eh?

Other than that, life is good. We recently returned from a nifty week over in Barcelona with Cara’s dad. That was pretty neat. Barcelona is a very nice city, and (despite walking for about 6 hours every day) we enjoyed it a lot.

Once little tidbit of fascinating trivia — did you know that Corsica has a world class golf course? Yes! And apparently it’s very nice. Google tells me the course was designed by Trent Jones, and is classified as the number one course in all of France since 1997. It is ranked as the world’s 16 best course.

Cara and her dad went and played it while he was here. (Well, he played and Cara got some exercise.) I think Cara’s blog might have some pictures, but not sure. I’m too lazy to go look.

A better explanation.

Henri — Sun, 17 Feb 2008 18:27:03 +0000

Over the last few years, whenever I talk about moving to Corsica with my "North American" friends, almost all of them reacted the same way.

"Why on earth would you move away from the gloriously bustling metropolis of Vancouver, a world-class city of staggering beauty, wealth, and activity (and host of the upcoming 2010 winter Olympics)… to Corsica?

And then I get a blank stare, as I realize the question is actually serious and they truly do not understand why I’m still here.

Until now, I typically use the same one-word reason as my response.

Tranquilité

But now… some good news! I just came across a written story which so nicely illustrates my desire to live in a place away from the "hustle and bustle" of city life that I could not resist breaking my 1.5 year hiatus from this blog.

The story is a little long (sorry Jeff), and the point is somewhat subtle (sorry everyone else)… but I’m sure with a little help you can figure it out. Ask me if needed.

The Canadian investment banker was at the pier of a small coastal Mexican village when a small boat with just one fisherman docked. Inside the small boat were several large yellow fin tuna. The Canadian complimented the Mexican on the quality of his fish and asked how long it took to catch them. The Mexican replied, "Only a little while." The Canadian then asked, "Why didn’t you stay out longer and catch more fish?" The Mexican said, "With this I have more than enough to support my family’s needs." The Canadian then asked, "But what do you do with the rest of your time?" The Mexican fisherman said, "I sleep late, fish a little, play with my children, take siesta with my wife, Maria, stroll into the village each evening where I sip wine and play guitar with my amigos. I have a full and busy life."

The Canadian scoffed, "I am a Harvard MBA and could help you. You should spend more time fishing; and with the proceeds, buy a bigger boat: With the proceeds from the bigger boat you could buy several boats. Eventually you would have a fleet of fishing boats. Instead of selling your catch to a middleman you would sell directly to the processor; eventually opening your own cannery. You would control the product, processing and distribution. You would need to leave this small coastal fishing village and move to Mexico City, then Los Angeles and eventually New York where you will run your ever-expanding enterprise."

The Mexican fisherman asked, "But, how long will this all take?" To which the Canadian replied, "15 to 20 years." "But what then?" asked the Mexican. The Canadian laughed and said that’s the best part. "When the time is right you would announce an IPO and sell your company stock to the public and become very rich, you would make millions."

"Millions?…Then what?"

To which, the Canadian replied, "Then you would retire. Move to a small coastal fishing village where you would sleep late, fish a little, play with your kids, take siesta with your wife, stroll to the village in the evenings where you could sip wine and play your guitar with your amigos."

And that, my friends, is why I’m still not back in Vancouver.

I need a drink.

Henri — Wed, 01 Nov 2006 18:03:40 +0000

As some of you may know, I have recently spawned a child.

And now some of you want more pictures.

Well, the problem is that I’m not particularly fond of those boring yada yada pictures of babies that are all the same. You know, those ones of them "smiling", yawning, staring vacantly at the camera… that sort of thing? Sure, they’re cute pictures… but they’re really not so interesting after you’ve seen.. like the first one of them.

Cara has forbidden me to post on her blog any more , but luckily, I have my own blog. (You’re reading it now, just in case you’re a left-brain thinker.)

So what kind of pictures do I like? I prefer this sort of thing:

That’s Ayva after celebrating her one-week-old birthday. Those little mini bottles are the perfect size for babys. Just enough that they’re not too full. You know?

And here’s one of my step-dad Dave, my cousin Pierre (well, actually he’s the husband of my cousin Marie-line) with Regina the dog. We went pigeon hunting yesterday morning.

Ok.. so I’ll capitulate a little. Here’s a "cute" ones for all you girls out there. (And Jeff.)

But wait! There’s more!!

Henri — Mon, 13 Feb 2006 22:10:18 +0000

Yes, it’s finally happened.

Cara is with child. Preggo. Bun in the oven. Seed in the field. A frog in the making. (Double entendre in that one. Ha!)

I know it’s hard to believe that I would be allowed to breed, but despite the world’s best interests, it happened. I’m pretty sure the Powers-That-Be took Cara into consideration and figured that there’s no point punishing her just to get me. Although who knows.. we could wind up with quadruplets. Gack!

So if you’re lucky enough to see Cara while she’s "home" for 2 weeks in Vancouver, be sure to pat her tummy (gently!) and say something pithy like, "So I hear breeding season is all year long in Corsica." She’ll appreciate the sentiment. Trust me.

BTW - for those of you who care about the details.. we are expecting the delivery to occur some time around early October.

Witness The Birth Of Amazingness!

Henri — Thu, 12 Jan 2006 19:49:25 +0000

Yes folks, this will be short and sweet.

Just a quick update to let you all know I’m still here, still as amazing as ever, still working like a brick (stop and think about that for a second or two), still as handsome as ever, and that early in the morning two days ago at about 4:30am I awoke to a sudden inspiration I can only attribute to either whatever I ate the night before (I forget) or the sweet gurgling of a brand new Good Idea.

I’m going to keep it (the idea, not what I ate) under wraps for now, until I can finish my current workload and then spend some time brainstorming my idea. I think it’s a winner though. Well, maybe. It’ll be interesting, that’s for sure.

You want a teaser? OK. It’s something to succeed (as in, replace in a "just as good if not better" way) my last Good Idea.