Analog to Digital Conversion

I'm back! Aside from checking my inbox once in a while over the weekend and tweeting some of the fun we had on Saturday, I decided to keep things "analog" over the holiday.

It turns out there was a certain irony in my decision since last week, of all weeks, my Mom decided to get wi-fi installed at her house in Sudbury and jump head-first into the world of the internet with a shiny new tablet.

This is a woman who still owns a mechanical typewriter. My jaw was agape.

So, while I'd successfully put down my own gadgets for a few days, I was up to my elbows setting up hers. Imagine explaining to a person whose only interaction with digital technology was grudgingly typing a PIN into a credit card reader what a URL is and you'll have some insight into my weekend.

By the time we waved goodbye on Monday afternoon, my Mom was fully connected with Gmail and Facebook accounts and a stern warning to never, ever enter her credit card or banking information on the tablet. We'll get to the on-line shopping tutorial in due course.

Labour Day weekend wasn't all bits and bytes though. As I mentioned on Friday, we made our annual trip to the Nipissing First Nation Traditional Pow Wow. My sister's home sits on land she leases from the band and the pow wow grounds are at the end of her point.

Lake Nipissing soccer match

The pow wow is a remarkable and popular event and everyone is welcome to attend, regardless of heritage. Native people come from all over Ontario and beyond and many wear their traditional regalia. With all the food, music and dancing, it is a feast for the senses.

Grass dancers

The weather was no gift but the dancers and drummers soldiered on through the rain with tremendous spirit. Because of the sacred nature of many of the proceedings, there are very strict rules regarding picture taking. However, the Grass Dance was one ceremony in particular where the emcee encouraged the crowd to take pictures and broadcast them to the world tagged with #Nipissing. I was glad to oblige!

We trooped back to the house somewhat soggy but happy. We threw together an informal happy hour as dinner was being prepared. My family takes board games very seriously and no prisoners were taken!

Game on!

Finally, dinner was ready and we destroyed this lovely plate of "fresh from the lake" pickerel.

Hello gorgeous!

The prevailing weather for the rest of the weekend consisted of gloom and rain. We still made the most of our time, devouring jigsaw puzzles, games and movies. It's not about how you spend the time, it's about the company you keep.

Anyhow, the new school year is upon us, my batteries are now fully recharged and I'm all set to jump into the meat of the campaign. I've set myself some ambitious goals to meet by the end of the week. Time to get cracking!