June 9, 2007

The Open House

Where to start!
Well, for sure with !!THANKS!! to all our friends and family who came, partied, met new people and helped us christen our theatre.

It would be unfair to single people out, without naming all 85 who graced our doorstep. So, we'll just ramble on about the day(s) and names will creep in accordingly.

It really started on Wednesday. Well actually, it started much earlier than that with Karen preparing lots of baking and such and both Bill and Karen doing things around the house. Mel and Trevor arrived early and dove into a list of chores. We capped most evenings with a hot tub and fire in the outdoor fireplace.

It was Wednesday that the fun really began. Jill (Bill's Mum) arrived secretly and Karen, Mel and Trevor showed up at wings with Jill in tow.
Thursday we had birthday dinner out and then Friday; Anthony and Donny arrived from Vancouver, Ken, Cheryl and Amy arrived from Mono Mills, Jess and Kent arrived and !surprise! John (Bill's brother) arrived from Aurora.

We spent Friday evening loosely entertaining folks while scurrying around with details - after all, how much food, etc is required for so many people when it's an open house?

Saturday dawned a sunny morning with the promise of fair weather. The kitchen being tied up from 6:00 a.m. on, we asked folks to find their breakfast elsewhere. Cheryl and Amy went off to see the sights - Banff - as this was Amy's first trip west. Jill, John and Ken headed to Bragg Creek and then found some spectacular scenery at an Alberta Recreation Area in eastern slopes of Kananaskis country, just west of Bragg.
Jess and Kent headed into the city and Mel and Trevor stuck around. Then, !surprise!, Ken and Gunta (Bill's Dad and Stepmom) arrived from Ullswater (it's in Ontario - look it up 8--{{>).

And then it was noon. Our neighbour Tammy dropped by with a lovely planter of flowers and Trevor went off to borrow chairs from her. Soon it was colleagues, friends, neighbours, friends, colleagues. The back porch and its auxiliary patio were full. Bill was giving tours, Karen was given tours, Mel was getting ice - oh yes, apparently all the activity was too much for the fridge and it quit making ice - Ken (Dad) was giving tours. It seemed that pretty much anyone who had received a tour was willing to give a tour. How special is that?
At 3:30 p.m., or so, some guests were briefly annoyed when a small plane seemed to be "buzzing" the house but it was minor. At 4:00, Kent rang the chimes and almost everyone moved downstairs into the theatre to hear story teller Lana Skaugge, accompanied by Tom Doyle on keyboards, perform her story When the Sky Got Bigger. WOW!

The only scare of the day came when Erik and Marjorie were leaving. Bill, Trevor and Kent were setting up the ramp and a large piece of log landed on Kent's foot. The ramp was a success and after inspection by Georg, the foot was declared "not broken".

Time for the BBQ. Bill started getting things ready but there were interruptions - new guests, the guys rehearsing. Dwayne Mayell, an old friend Bill first met in Cassiar, offered to help with the BBQ and pretty soon he and Trevor had it well in hand.
Then, Jeff and Diane arrived and the "rest of the story" about the plane was revealed. It had been Jeff, with Diane taking pictures.

Round about 8:30 p.m. extra chairs were carried to the basement and the British Sm'Isles presented Mini-Sm'Isles featuring Mike, Tony, Phil, Karen, Marie-Claude and Michelle. It was 40 minutes of raucous laughter and bawdy humour that everyone seemed to enjoy.

More food, a fire in the patio fireplace, more food. Trevor and Kent lit the bonfire. There were a few tense moments as the wind picked up but no worries and the remaining guests settled in for more chat, more food and more fun. Bill and Dwayne picked up right were they left off many years ago. Dwayne with his Dad's Gibson and Bill with his 12-string, they began playing every song they ever played, carrying on well into Sunday with brief interruptions to say thanks and goodbye to friends as they departed.

Sunday dawned with Darlene sleeping in the booth, Harry and Georg in their 5th wheel, Melissa and Dale in their Aztec with the tent on the back, Dwayne in his truck (why didn't he take the tent trailer?) and the remainder of the guests in their respective rooms. This made for about 15 for pancake breakfast. Bill slaved over the hot griddle (yeah right) and served up pancakes, a mixed grill of meats and fresh ground coffee.
After breakfast, people started trickling off to their next destination. John, Jill, Karen and Bill watched in wonder as a gopher hung from the muffler on the Focus and licked something from around the heat shield.

As the Irish Rovers have been known to say WASN'T THAT A PARTY!