A good start to the new year with a bit of a twist on my traditional New Year Day activities. Although I headed off to Inglewood thinking I could repeat my annual tradition for a few years now of starting with breakfast at EAT EAT and then a snowy walk around the Inglewood Bird Sanctuary, we arrived at the cafe to find it closed. So off we went to the Blackfoot Truck Stop Restaurant where breakfast was in full swing. The place has been serving up its large portions and famous pies since 1956 but this was my first visit. The walls are very pink and the art is very eclectic - movie posters, trucker art and Native prints. The portions were trucker sized so we wished we had shared one but tasty and got me ready for a brisk walk around the lagoon. If I make it back again, I will take coins so I can play the jukebox!
The Inglewood Bird Sanctuary is a favourite place of mine in Calgary. I love how you can be so close to the downtown and the busy Deerfoot but the only interruption to the sounds of crunching snow, congregating ducks and playful chickadees was the occasional plane overhead. No owls, deer or coyotes this year but it was still a wonderful walk.
Now if you get a chance - I'd recommend going to see "The King's Speech". I met a friend for the matinee at Chinook. A great movie and sure to be up for Oscars this year! It made me want to head back across the ocean - so very British. I love the use of fog in some of the scenes and wanted to hear an actual clip of King George VI after hearing his address to the empire at the commencement of WWII. The clip is here on the BBC website in reference to the movie. I also found this clip of his Christmas address in that same year on the CBC Digital Archives. It is appropriate for a new year's post and ends with the lines of a poem.
"I said to the man who stood at the Gate of the Year, 'Give me a light that I may tread safely into the unknown.' And he replied, 'Go out into the darkness, and put your hand into the Hand of God. That shall be better than light, and safer than a known way.'"
