Goodbye, Scoon...

No photos in this post.
Today, I attended the funeral for one of the town's most well-known members of the community, Dale Scott.
I left my camera at home. I may have met him when I came to work here, but the last thing I wanted to do was show up in the role of 'reporter'. The other paper had a photographer there, but for today only, I didn't want to be behind the lens. I was ready to absorb the entire atmosphere as one of his friends, not as a reporter.
Firstly, there were so many people, it had to be held at the town arena. I heard there were almost 1,000 people there, to give you an idea.
The lineup to get in was through the parking lot and down the street. I do hope the family got a chance to see that, as people parked far away and cheerfully walked to the venue, all for Dale.
As I sat with a few coworkers, and we sat in the middle of it all.
Man, what a ceremony. It was a celebration of life, not a tragically sad goodbye. While Dale was only 42-years-old, the amount of stuff he has done in that short time is mind blowing.
Anyways, it was very musical, which is of course, appropriate, seeing as music was his passion. (He ran his own DJ service, was a music promoter, etc.)
The evening began with live music, featured two fantastic songs by The Bowes Brothers (well, one by the four brothers and one written by just one of them, which was phenomenal), stories of good times and laughter and so much more.
As well, this was the first funeral I have ever been to where applause was encouraged. After the first two gals finished their performance, the minister encouraged everyone to applaud and I thought that was really cool.
As the ceremony came to a close and the family/close friends began to exit with the casket, Hockey Night in Canada's theme song came on, which was just perfect.
Dale was the Detroit Red Wings' No. 1 fan, so everyone is so pleased he got to see them win the cup.
To summarize, it was a fantastic celebration of his life, and as I type this, I know the party is STILL going on at the arena, (it's after 9 p.m. right now) even though it was an afternoon ceremony.
So, thank you, Dale, for being one of the first people I met when I first started out in town. I know I am not alone when I say how much I appreciated it when you'd always be there with a smile, asking how my day was going. The fact that your funeral was 'standing room only' really shows how much the community appreciated everything you have done.

Hurdles on the track, hurdles in the yard.

Track and field is something is not really something my high school did. Actually, with the amount schools are taking away play structures and anything "hazardous", it's almost amazing it exists at all. However, I'm glad to see it is in full swing out here. Students gave it their all in the recent regional track and field finals, participating in hurdles, short and long distance running, shot put, long jump, high jump, pole vault, javelin and much more. It requires major concentration, dedication, and of course, major lessons in safety. It's all extremely important, so I hope schools continue to honour the tradition of track and field.
If you happen to visit an elementary school, you'll see what I am talking about; no swings, teeter-totters, tire swings or wood play structures. The most common item you'll see is that (extremely boring) colourful bucket on top of a pole with four holes. You throw the ball up into it... Annnnnd it falls out of one of the holes.
Ooooo, which way will it go?! Sorry, kids, the fun goes away quickly when it has a 25 per cent chance of coming out of the one you stand under. Kids are often amused easily, but let's give them more credit than that. Give them a swing set.
© Katie Mulligan/Metroland - Ottawa Region

Swoosh screen happenings...

iPod Touch: just a wee bit mind blowing.

© Katie Mulligan 2008

Ol' Rockytop

Ricky Skaggs is a band I got into out of the blue. It was during Riverside Jam 2006, to be exact. His band was performing and I was blown away. Every single member of that band is award-winning, and they sounded fantastic. The bluegrass stuff won me over more than his more country-sounding stuff, mainly because that's the kind of music my grandfather got me into. Anyways, that performance will always be stuck in my mind, as I was really impressed with their overall performance.

© Katie Mulligan/Metroland - Ottawa Region

The calm before the storm

The local theatre group, The Valley Players, recently closed their production of Les Belles Souers. The cast, made entirely of the ladies of the group, did not disappoint as they eagerly stepped right into their characters. Here, one of the youngest cast members finds a moment of quiet during the last chaotic minutes of hair and makeup as she reads through a thank you card, emotionally written about the magnificent performance she and fellow castmates put on.
© Katie Mulligan/Metroland - Ottawa Region

Good food, good company

The Good Food Company here in town was named one of Ottawa Magazine's top 12 restaurants in the area. The interesting part is that it usually focuses on places downtown Ottawa, with the occasional spot in the east or west end. So the fact that reviewers actually made their way to the Valley, OUTSIDE of Ottawa, and were impressed enough to return is pretty fantastic. I spent time speaking with the owner this morning, and she mentioned she is the only original restaurant owner left in town. The rest are new owners, or just plain new establishments. When I publish the piece this photo goes with, I stay neutral, but since this is my blog, I will go ahead and say that if you've ever eaten at this place, you will totally understand why it's still around. It rocks.
© Katie Mulligan/Metroland - Ottawa Region

Kids say the... Nicest things.

A warm and fuzzy:
Today, I was taking pictures of elementary school kids taking part in Pitch In Day. Each class gets a box of gloves and a big plastic bag, so they can go out into their school yard to clean up garbage.
What a great bunch of kids. They were racing each other, making it into a competition.
"Look at how much garbage *I* am picking up!"
Amazing.
To top off the good feeling this gave me, one of the kids from the class I focused on came up to me after they were done, and said:
"Did you know you're the best photographer in the whole world?!"
I almost got teary eyed.

So, thank you to the grade five student (his name is Chevy) who made my day.