Saturday, December 10, 2011

Christmas decorations

We finally finished decorating our house for the holidays.  Here are a few snapshots of our festive decor.
 Our more formal tree in the living room.
 Town folks in the square...looks like the mail box fell over...oops.
 Santa's all ready for take off!
 Some carolers bringing joy to the Dickens Village neighborhood.
 The old lamplighter lighting up the shops.
 Our family Christmas tree with all the old familiar ornaments that have been with us for years.
 Couple of guys just hanging around.
 The Victoria train station is very busy this time of year.
 Our official greeters with Shakespeare's Globe Theater in the background.
 And the "reason for the season"...Joy to the world!

Tuesday, December 6, 2011

The new fireplace

Today our new fireplace was installed and we love it!  It's a little bigger with darker wood for the mantel and a deep mantel top which holds Christmas decorations, photos, etc. much better.  Here are some pics:
 This is what our fireplace has looked like for the past 11 years.
 Dustin and David begin the dismantling.
 Mantel is gone...what's next?
 The tile, what else!
 Mantel and tile gone; next step the fireplace insert.
 The toughest part of the job but these guys did well.
 Underneath the tile and wood and plaster, a house really isn't very glamorous!
 Installing the new insert.
 Tired but happy installers--thanks guys for a job well done!
 Now Santa can come down our new fireplace!

Thursday, December 1, 2011

What is your legacy?

Some of you may remember the actress and movie star Elizabeth Taylor.  In my day she was the hottest thing in Hollywood—glamorous, mysterious, and very rich.  She married eight times, twice to Richard Burton, an equally popular British actor. 

Elizabeth Taylor died in March of this year at age 79.  Today I saw in the news that Christie’s, the high end auction house, is putting up for bid a number of Ms. Taylor’s gowns, diamonds, and other collectibles that are sure to fetch the sellers millions of dollars.

As I thought about this it occurred to me: things last longer than their owners.  The scarf mom used to wear; dad’s old saw; grandpa’s guitar; grandma’s favorite hot cocoa mug.  The owners are gone but their treasures and trinkets remain, of no real value other than their link to the ones we loved—and still love.

I think the moral here, at least for me, is this:  spend more time on that which has enduring value—my dear wife and eternal companion; my children, their spouses and their ever expanding brood of our grandchildren; my mother; my siblings and their families; my aunt. 

There is a joke that carries a profound message.  A rich man died.  At his funeral one fellow whispered to his friend, “How much did he leave?”  The friend responded, “All of it.”

Some day when my mortal journey is finished, I won’t have much of material things to leave although we have arranged our affairs so Melba will be able to live comfortably.  But more important to me is another legacy—a legacy of faith in God, love of family, and dedication to our country—that I hope I have been able to pass on to my children and they in turn to their families.

Each of us is only about three generations away from being an unknown name on our descendants’ family tree.  However, we can be more than that if we leave the right legacy.  Let’s fill our journals, our home movies, our picture albums, our life histories, our blogs with thoughts, reflections and images of the things we value most—the things of real value: God—family—country.

Sunday, August 21, 2011

Dad's voice

My dad died on Thanksgiving Day, 1991 after a long struggle with ALS (Lou Gehrig's disease) which left him speechless the last year or two before passing away.  So it's been over 20 years since I've heard my father's voice and I had forgotten what he sounded like.  I know that might seem strange but it's actually pretty typical.  I have a friend whose wife died a few years back.  For the first two years he didn't change her message on the answering machine because, as he put it, "I didn't want to forget what she sounded like."

 Well, all that's changed.  A few weeks back I found 6 small reel-to-reel tapes in the back of my closet.  They were audio letters my folks and I exchanged during my mission to Argentina (1963-1965) and my first stint with the Army (1966-1968) when I was assigned to South Korea.  I paid a professional to clean up and transfer the tapes to CDs and what a fun surprise.  On the tapes were, among other things:

--Christmas tapes with my mom and dad, sisters Doreen and Diane, and brother Kevin--all very young--opening presents and sharing with me what they had received from Santa. 

--Me playing the guitar and piano (I still play some of the same songs--how's that for being stuck in a rut for over 40 years!)

--One tape of just my dad bringing me up to date on family events.  This one meant the most to me because after all these years I could hear my dad's voice again.  Even as I write this my eyes are tearing up...with love...with gratitude...with memories.  Thanks, Dad, for making that tape and for all you did for me and our family.  I love you.


My dad, William "Bill" Barry, Jr., age 20ish.

Post script:  Maybe all of us parents should think about leaving a video and audio record of ourselves for our children and grandchildren--I know I will be working on this.

Saturday, July 30, 2011

Our Alaskan Cruise

Here are some of the highlights of last week's cruise to Alaska with our friends Harry and Dolly Patterson and Karen and Ned Therien.

We departed Seattle on Holland America's Oosterdam on Sunday 17 July 2011.
 Melba with Harry and Dolly on our adjoining verandah.
 Harry with Karen and Ned Therien
The intrepid cruisers!
 The formal dining room.
 Excellently prepared gourmet quality cuisine!
Several times we ate breakfast in our stateroom with an ocean vista.
 We enjoyed our tour of the galley.
 Each evening our steward prepared our room for the night and left a "towel animal" on the bed.  The swan was the first one.
 The elephant.
Loved the monkey best!
Our first two days were on the sea but often within view of the Canadian coastline.
 Breathtaking!
The handiwork of Heaven!
 Heading into Glacier Bay.
 Magnificent glaciers!
What a sight!
 Juneau--capitol of Alaska yet only accessible by plane or boat.
 Visited a commercial garden--this is called a Skunk Cabbage.
Mendenhall glacier.
 Harry and Dolly Patterson at the Red Dog Saloon.
 Interesting decor at the Red Dog Saloon...bear chasing man!
The Barrys, Theriens, and Pattersons.
We rode the tramway up Mt. Roberts.
 Quite a ride on the tram.

You can see what a good time Melba was having on the tram!  :-)
How would you like a house on your own itsy bitsy island?
At Sitka the Russian influence was obvious.
 Another house on a mini-island.
Energetic group of women who perform traditional Russian folk dancing.
 Ketchican, Alaska.
Ketchican.
 Interesting auto decor in Ketchican!
 Staff and crew bid us a final farewell in style!