O'Malley's Musings

No need to let loneliness take root in Lynn Valley

It’s no secret that social isolation is a huge problem in Metro Vancouver, especially since the Vancouver Foundation published its June 2012 “Connections and Engagement” report quantifying the extent of the issue. And although Vancouver has a reputation for being a place in which it can be difficult to make new friends, the problem isn’t just local. British coppers made headlines last year for having a cup of tea with a senior who had been driven by loneliness to make a call to the 999 emergency line.

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January 27, 2016 in Blog, Current News, Getting Involved, O'Malley's Musings

Community building: A New Year’s Resolution for all?

Love ’em or hate ’em, adopt them or not, thoughts of new year’s resolutions are on most people’s minds each year when the calendar reaches its final days.

As we know, most well-intended resolutions die a quick death in the first few weeks following January 1. But surely it is still worth taking the time to look ahead at the year to come and ask yourself what you’d like to bring to it, and get from it.

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December 31, 2014 in Blog, Current News, Getting Involved, Lynn Valley Day, O'Malley's Musings

Rice Lake rink a rare treat!

Rice Lake Feb 2014

Even those of us who have lived in Lynn Valley most of our lives don’t have many “back in the good ol’ days” stories about skating on local waterholes. The small ‘swamp’ off of McNair Drive in Mountain View Park would very occasionally freeze over enough to provide a destination for a few skaters, but there wasn’t room for many, and ‘skating’ was probably an over-generous verb to use to describe the experience of shakily navigating between the branches and logs frozen into the muddy ice.

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February 9, 2014 in Blog, Current News, Eco-Awareness & The Great Outdoors, O'Malley's Musings

Enter the “Love in Lynn Valley” contest

Love in Valley for BearWin a romantic evening for two!
Celebrate a fun Valentine’s night on the town, close to hearth and home! Start by enjoying a $50 dinner for two at the Black Bear Pub (they’ve promised their most romantic candlelit table!), then carry on to Friday Night Live’s “Love to Laugh” show, featuring dance music from The Sharp Five jazz band, hilarious improv from Ad Libretto, and refreshments – including a chocolate fountain!
All you have to do for your chance to win this great evening (beside being 19+, of course) is to send us the nickname or term of endearment you use for your sweetie (or best buddy, we won’t discriminate against singletons!) by Wednesday, Feb. 10 at 7 p.m. We’ll make the draw that night – so good luck, everyone! (And yes, we’ll be publishing a post about LV’s goofiest endearments – anonymously, of course!)
P.S. Psst! FYI, the prize must be accepted as awarded – all the fun to take place on the evening of February 14, 2014!

 

February 6, 2014 in Blog, Contests, Current News, Getting Involved, O'Malley's Musings

Harvest sunflower seeds in days to come

It’s been fantastic travelling around Lynn Valley and seeing more and more sunflower patches out in full bloom. Perhaps they are showing up more now, thanks to the backdrop of our recent grey weather!

Some of our own flowers are still to emerge, and others are drooping. But just because their petals may no longer be perky, don’t forget that your sunflowers are far from finished. For many creatures, the best is yet to come!

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September 17, 2013 in Blog, Current News, Eco-Awareness & The Great Outdoors, O'Malley's Musings, Project Sunflower

Project Sunflower foot-lings can use boron boost

From the garden of Lynn O’Malley:

Well, I’m very glad I planted my Project Sunflower seeds out in mid-May, because ever since then – between Lynn Valley Days and end-of-term festivities and grad and visitors – there has certainly been no chance for much meaningful gardening.

Fortunately, Mother Nature has been doing all the work, and most of my seeds have turned into fine young plants, many of them now over a foot tall. I need to thin out the ones in the garden bed; although sunflowers don’t prefer to be moved, I am hoping some will transplant into neighbours’ gardens.

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June 24, 2013 in Blog, Current News, Eco-Awareness & The Great Outdoors, O'Malley's Musings, Project Sunflower

Project Sunflower Diary #1: Lynn O’Malley sows her seeds

From the garden of Lynn O’Malley, voice of the valley:

For the past two months, the LynnValleyLife team has been planning and promoting its scheme to blanket Lynn Valley in summertime sunflowers. We’ve talked sunflowers, mailed sunflowers, photo’d sunflowers and dreamt sunflowers. It occurred to me that amidst all the fuss, I might forget to actually plant the darn things!

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May 5, 2013 in Blog, Community Events, Contests, Current News, Eco-Awareness & The Great Outdoors, Getting Involved, O'Malley's Musings, Project Sunflower

Almost-spring days give cause for celebration

From Lynn O’Malley’s typewriter:

These first sunny days of almost-spring make me realize how cabin-fevered I had become! There are still a few weeks ’til spring officially kicks in, and an even longer haul ’til we get some reliable, lasting warm weather, but in the meantime it feels like some small seasonal celebrations are in order.

So what’s a person to do in Lynn Valley, when the crocuses are crowning and the breezes are beckoning? Well, here’s a list to start with:

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March 8, 2013 in Blog, Current News, Eco-Awareness & The Great Outdoors, O'Malley's Musings

Anxious nighttime search something to remember

It was a wet, slushy night and our band gig down at the Lynn Valley Village Christmas Tree Walk had been cancelled. I was looking forward to a night in front of the fire, but life, of course, had other plans and at 4:30 p.m. I was instead trudging exasperatedly down the dark street to help my son look for his lost wallet.

When I caught up to him, though, he wasn’t looking for the Canucks wallet that had fallen out of his pocket on the way home from school. “I’m helping this kid find his sister,” he explained, gesturing to the solemn-looking boy beside him.

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December 21, 2012 in Blog, Current News, O'Malley's Musings