BT Edmonton Blogs

You have to wonder how the publication team over at Golf Digest is feeling about its January 2010 issue. What should have been an excellent feature on two of the most prominent men in the world, Tiger Woods and US President Barack Obama, is now (at least temporarily) reduced to a laughing stock thanks to “recent developments” in the life of the world’s highest-paid athlete.

Earlier this week, Bridget and I decided to lay off our coverage of this sad (yet fascinating) story. But when Friday morning rolled around, we couldn’t resist leafing through the Golf Digest cover feature, “10 Tips Obama Can Take From Tiger.” Click on the video below for that.

We also fielded emails from you, our viewers, as part of our weekly “Free For All Friday” offering. Below are a few of those “Tiger takes.”

 ”I wish (the media) would lay off Tiger Woods…We should be thinking about what all this hype is doing to (Woods’ wife) Elin.”  — Roseanne Rowe

“Look up to Tiger for his golf ability. He’s an amazing golfer. Don’t look up to people just because they’re famous.” — Lori Lloyd

“Let’s not forget all of the other sports role models who are out there living their lives in a good way. (Tiger) allowed his money and fame cloud his judgement and then disregarded the developing storm.” – Kelly Hryciw

“It’s hard to fathom that (Tiger) and all the other very famous people would believe they could get away with cheating…without getting caught in this day and age where everyone has a camera, a cell phone, the internet and TV.” — Gillian Davis

“(Elin Woods) deserves none of the negative attention. Leave her and the kids out of it! I can’t even imagine her embarassment and shame.”  — Shawna Boyd

“Why is no one going after these 13 women who slept with (Tiger) knowing that he’s married?” — Sally Ayres

“Maybe (Elin Woods) should sue these women for any profits they’re making.” — Sid Whitford

“My wife is a little upset that she might be the only female that Tiger Woods didn’t hit on.” — Dwayne Babee

Have a great weekend!

rpj.

Paradise - Literally

Paradise Canyon is one of the most beautiful golf courses in Canada.    Kinglsey - the ‘other’ pride of Lethbridge - takes us there.    Paradise is on the banks of  the Oldman River.    A lot of people compare it to an Arizona experience.    I concur that the front nine eases you into the rugged back nine that has ravines, cliffs and canyon walls.

What colour contrasts in this picture!    The golden grass brings out the green greens, and the fall trees soften the brown coolees.

DID YOU KNOW?    Lethbridge is known for its magnificent coulees.    They are large rolling hills that were formed more than 10 thousand years ago by glacial spill water.    There are also deep canyons in the area formed when melting glaciers cut deep canyons in the rock.

SEND US YOUR KODAK MOMENT … IT MIGHT BE YOUR SCREENSAVER OF THAT JAMAICAN SUNSET — OR MAYBE YOU HAVE A SHOT OF AN ICICLE HANGING OFF THE ROOF.   IT ALL FITS UNDER THE CATEGORY OF MOTHER NATURE OR HER CREATURES.    UPLOAD YOURS TODAY AND BECOME A MEMBER OF OUR FRESH AIR PHOTO NATION!

Old Alaska Highway

Hello Dawson Creek, BC,  specifically Stephen and Juanita.    Honourable mention goes to snowmen Chucky & Conkie – can you see them?    Me thinks Chucky and Conkie will appear in many other places, much like that nomadic gnome.    This is Kiskatinaw Bridge which is on the Old Alaska Highway, about 30km north of Dawson Creek.    It was the 1st curved wooden bridge to be built in Canada. 

DID YOU KNOW?   This bridge was built during the 2nd World War, when the Americans were worried about a Japanese invasion of Alaska.    So, about 11,000 troops endured the cold, the wind, the snow and built the highway – all 1,520 miles of it.     Mile Zero was Dawson Creek.    At the Kiskatinaw River, mile 20 on the original highway, a hairpin turn forced the construction of this unique bridge.     

HERE’S ONE MORE TIDBIT:  The Canadians who helped build the bridge, camped in the area.    That area is now Kiskatinaw Provincial Park.     Kiskatinaw in Cree means “cutbank” and had been labelled “Cutbank River” on early maps.

SNAP AND SEND – THAT’S HOW EASY IT IS.    MOTHER NATURE AND HER CREATURES ARE WAITING FOR YOU(AS ARE WE).    UPLOAD YOUR PHOTO TODAY!

Mother!

The aww factor is high in this photo.    Mother Goose is showing her tough and protective side.    Murray says this webbed, wonderful wife and her honking husband nest in the same area every year along the Battle River at Ponoka.    The location of the nest near water makes it easy for the family to make a quick exit after the young dry off.      Mr. Canada Goose was not far away - as protection.

DID YOU KNOW?      For some reason, this shot reminds me of one of my favorite movies:  Fly Away Home.    The  film was released in 1996 and starred  Anna Paquin and  Jeff Daniels.    It was based loosely on Canadian, “Bill Lishman”.    He wondered if geese could be taught new migration patterns by following ultralight aircraft onto which they had been imprinted.

THE NEXT TIME YOU ARE OUT AND ABOUT – WE WOULD LOVE TO SEE YOUR KODAK MOMENT.    SNAP AND SEND YOUR PHOTO,  AND THEN IMPRESS AND AMAZE YOUR FRIENDS WHEN IT AIRS ON BT AND THIS VERY BLOG.

Chef Paul Shufelt is no stranger to innovation. The corporate chef for Century Hospitality Group (Lux, Delux, Century Grill & 100) is responsible for developing dozens of trend-setting menu ideas every year.

Creations like Red Bull Shrimp Shots (Lux), Lobster Nachos (Delux) and Porcupine Chicken Satays (100) have found their way to Edmonton thanks to Chef Paul. But I guarantee our city has never seen anything along the lines of what he busted out on Wednesday morning’s BT.

Click on the video below for total sensory overload: Alberta beef tenderloin braised in bacon fat and topped with a homemade Hollandaise sauce, accompanied by (Hollandaise-drizzled) green beans and a double-stuffed baked potato topped with lobster, pancetta and (of course) more Hollandaise sauce.

(Click here to book your quadruple bypass.)

rpj.

Mount Cheam

Wow!    Standing proud amid the cloud it’s Mount Cheam in beautiful BC.    Thank you to Sheldon who was in the lower Fraser Valley in late October.     Mount Cheam is above Bridal Falls , about 115 kilometers east of Chilliwack, and west of Hope.

DID YOU KNOW?     The  Stolo First Nation’s name for the peak  means “the source” or “the place from which the waters spring.”    They also say the peak is the “mother mountain” or old woman looking over her children dwelling in the valley.

TAKE US ALONG ON YOUR NEXT ROAD TRIP!    OR, IF THAT’S TOO MUCH TO ASK – TAKE ALONG YOUR CAMERA AND SHOW US A PICTURE OR 2.    WHEN WE RECEIVE YOUR PHOTO, YOU BECOME A MEMBER OF OUR FRESH AIR PHOTO NATION - PLUS,  YOUR MASTERPIECE WILL AIR ON BREAKFAST TELEVISION AND THIS VERY BLOG.

Dock dots landscape

I learn so much from our Fresh Air Photographers … in this instance Don and his wife.    They were out looking for Tundra Swans at Twin Island Lake – that’s east of Sherwood Park.    Didn’t see any swans, but did capture this kodak moment.    The dark brown plant is Curled Dock.    I have seen it a million times, but until Don ID’d it for me, I never knew what it was.    Curled Dock is a weed – and is very unpopular with our farmers and ranchers.    It is found in meadows, low pastures, hayfields, roadsides.    It is considered one of the five most widely distributed plants in the world.

 DID YOU KNOW?     Dock is closely related to Rhubarb, and the root is sometimes used as a mild laxative.    When livestock eat curled dock — they can develop dermatitis and gastric disturbances.

DID YOU KNOW?   WE ARE WAITING FOR YOUR FRESH AIR PHOTO.    YOUR FOCUS:  MOTHER NATURE OR HER CREATURES …  UPLOAD YOURS TODAY.

Rocky Racoon!

The masked Racoon  – a very clever little animal.    Mischievious, but hard not to think of this little guy as cute.    Behind the lens is Mary-Lou.    She and her husband Garry spotted the racoon at Stanley Park.    This is a daylight shot, but the evening is when raccoons look for food.    Their favourite for din-din is crayfish.    They also eat snails, frogs, insects, young birds, birds’ eggs, and berries.    Sometimes they are a pest,  -going into chicken coops and yards, knocking over garbage cans looking for something to eat.    I can’t help but think of an old  Walt Disney episode that feature the little rascal knocking over tins of flour in the old abandoned cabin!

DID YOU KNOW?    The racoon gets its name from the Algonquian Indian word arakun, meaning “he scratches with his hand”.      Some people believe the racoon washes its food with its front paws.   This could be because they capture crayfish in the water.    But the behaviour might be innate(born with it).    Captive raccoons have been observed attempting to “wash” their food, when there was no water.

HEY FRESH AIR PHOTOGRAPHER – SNAP AND SEND.    UPLOAD YOUR PICTURE OF MOTHER NATURE OR HER CREATURES …. TODAY!

It’s one of the unofficial signs the Holiday season has arrived in Edmonton: the annual ice sculpture display at the Alberta Legislature. Leading up to today’s grand unveiling, Ritchie Velthuis of the Alberta Sculptors’ Association spent the morning with us on Jasper Avenue, teaching a certain “artistically-challenged” BT host how to carve with a chain saw.

Sound like a dream come true, fellas? Trust me…it was. I’ve never fancied myself a sculptor, but with Ritchie’s direction (and finishing skills), our BT bunny wound up looking pretty good!

Be sure to check out the ice sculptures in front of the Legislature reflecting pond at some point this month. Thanks to Ritchie’s generous spirit of inclusion, if you look hard enough you’ll spot our BT bunny there amongst the other pieces!  Grab yourself a hot chocolate or peppermint latte, take in the impressive light display and be sure to check inside – if you’re there on the right night, you might just be treated to a Christmas carol concert! Click here for a complete schedule of events.

Speaking of carvings (and rabbits, for that matter), DON’T MISS our very own Jason Carter’s show opening at the Catalyst Theatre (8529 Gateway Blvd) this Saturday, December 5. “Nanabozho: The Tail of Giving” is a new series of stone and canvas, leading up to Carter’s inclusion as one of six Alberta artists to be represented at the 2010 Olympic Games in Vancouver! The show runs at the Catalyst from December 5-20, in conjunction with Bridget Ryan’s Big Ol’ Christmas Cabaret! I might just be a tiny little bit proud of the both of them.

Happy Holidays!

rpj.

I stand alone

Delicate yet strong,  under-stated yet powerful, classic yet simple.    I’m talking about both Wendy and this little guy holding its own amid the grasses.    I wonder if this Saskatchewan flower is a Primrose?   Perhaps a Cinqfoil?    If you can identify, please let me know.    One thing I know about Wendy, she is a great believer of  the golden rule:  take only pictures, leave only footprints.   

DID YOU KNOW?      The provincial flower of Saskatchewan is the Western Red Lily – this beauty has reddish-orange blossoms.    It likes to grow in moist meadows and semi-wooded areas and blooms from late June to mid July.           

Saskatchewan's flower

DON’T PICK THE FLOWERS – PICK THE PICTURE (THE BEST OF THE BUNCH).    WE INVITE YOU TO BECOME A MEMBER OF OUR FRESH AIR PHOTO NATION … ALL YOU HAVE TO DO IS SNAP AND SEND.    DO IT TODAY!