Some of our friends and family have headed south to Arizona and Mexico while others have taken a trip to the Far East and tropical points. Our winter getaway was a relaxing weekend in Calgary. It was a great break from the busy routines of life and an opportunity to relax, sleep in, eat out and explore a new city.
As we took a tour on the C-Train, Calgary’s rapid transit system, we realized how multi-ethnic the city has become. We talked about how we could have been on a transit system in almost any big city in the world because there were so many different languages being
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spoken around us.
It was a weekend of ads on TV by merchants vying for the recently mailed Alberta “prosperity cheques.” But as we travelled the transit system we observed the homeless living in boxes and picking through garbage bins. I don’t imagine any of these individuals were recipients of the “prosperity” cheques.
We also explored some of the new housing development areas. Again, we saw extremes. Huge homes on acreage-sized lots on one side of the highway. Then on the other side there were small homes, on tiny lots, probably no bigger than 25 feet wide. I know our friends will return with stories about the plights of many in the countries they will have visited. On our trip we found there is also much to learn about the lives of those emigrating to our country and the circumstances in which some Canadians must live.
Cash-strapped families
A recent report from the Vanier Institute on the Family entitled The Current State of Canadian Family
Finances Ð 2005 Report highlights that many families are cash strapped. That is, they are having difficulties keeping up financially. Because of increasing debt and stagnant or dropping incomes, many households are unable to pay for their everyday or special purchases.
The situation is such that they borrow more and save less or are spending their savings to meet household needs.
There has been a rapid increase in the contribution of women to family incomes, but the reality is that this increased contribution to the family finances has generally just been enough to maintain family and household incomes rather than create major increases.
The degree of financial stress on families is climbing and will continue to do so as interest rates increase. This stress is leading to more marital problems, depression and increased bankruptcies. For more information go to www.vifamily.ca.
Recipe books
Dear TEAM: I just read the story about the family recipe book for Gramma in your Jan. 12 column. I wanted to tell you about our recipe books. We have made three different ones in memory of our grandparents. In the front of the book we have a family tree where we put everyone’s birthdays, marriages and deaths. This is a good reference. I find myself referring to these pages often about ages or marriages.
The recipes were collected from everyone in the family and sent to my sister. She then compiled it into an organized cookbook on her computer. She also added pages of old pictures and then made copies for everyone. This is nice for all family members, especially the younger ones, to have as a reference and a keepsake. Hope you enjoy your book as much as we have ours. – C.L., Foremost, Alta.
Game confusion
Dear TEAM: In the Dec. 15 Western Producer you mentioned a group holiday game. I was confused about how to play it. After shaking all five dice, what number dictates the number you use? When you shake all five you can get as many as five different numbers. Could you please explain? It sounds like a game that my grandchildren would really like. – F.L., Foam Lake, Sask.
Dear F.L.: Each dice represents one of the quarters that the individual who shook the dice has. The number on the dice dictates what the player does with each quarter. If they have three quarters they would shake only three dice. The instruction below should explain what you do with the quarters.
For the game you have five dice, a bowl for the pot in the centre of the table and five quarters (or dimes, pennies, tokens or buttons) for each player. These are placed on the table in front of each player. The players sit in a circle around the table.
For the first round the first person starts by shaking all five dice. Each dice represents one quarter. If one dice number is six, pass a quarter backward to the person on your right; if one dice number is five, throw a quarter in the pot; if one dice number is four, pass a quarter forward to the person on your left. For dice that have the numbers one, two or three keep the quarters. Moving around the table in a clockwise direction, each person takes a turn rolling the five dice.
On the second and subsequent rounds the number of dice rolled is determined by the number of quarters still held by the person whose turn it is to roll the dice.
For example, if you have three quarters, then you roll three dice. The numbers on the dice determine what you do with each of your three quarters.
If a player no longer has quarters, she is still in the game if someone passes her a quarter. The winner is the person who manages to have the last quarter and rolls a one, two or three to keep that quarter. All the coins in the pot go to the winner.
I hope this explanation helps and that you and your grandchildren enjoy playing this game.
Betty Ann Deobald is a home economist from Rosetown, Sask., and one of four columnists comprising Team Resources. Send correspondence in care of this newspaper, Box 2500, Saskatoon, Sask., S7K 2C4 or contact them at team@producer.com.
