Sponsorship Shoutout!
    I'm not sure if you're all aware but I (Jill) am the lucky member of not 1, or 2, or 3, but 4 lovely families! And I would like to make this shoutout to them, the Wartmans, Quirts, Mackillops and Amoses :) Its wonderful to have such a supportive and extensive family spread all over the country and world! I'm sorry to have missed many fun and certainly entertaining family gatherings since moving to the West coast. It always makes coming home for Christmas so fun!
On Mom's side: thank you to the boisterous, generous Wartmans! It's been great catching Ryan, Nancy, Alanna, and Kelsey as you've passed through. The Thanksgiving Ultimate game looked like a hit, thanks for posting all the pictures. Don't worry Duncan and I have been training for the Christmas showdown Snowultimate..get ready!
On Dad's side: thank you to the ever-growing Quirt clan! I'm looking forward to finally meeting all the new additions,all boys still. We seem to have an every other generation trend here: Dad is one of 6 boys, there are only 2/12 boy cousins and no girls of the 3 great-grandchildren...uh-oh!. Tons of love to Grandma Q, the Queen of it all and amazingly sane after all those boys.
On Rachel's side: thank you and a huge and long overdue hello to the big warm family!
On Bill's side: "Tapadh leibh" to my Scottish family! The farthest away, and most climately the same, we'll make our way there for a wee dram soon. Duncan has been trying to perfect his Scottish accent...it seems to improve with a few not so wee drams. Although when we visit you Mary, he'll have to struggle through with the French, yikes!
Thank you all for your cheering us on as Duncan and I have tackled the Grind one climb at a time. We'll look forward to seeing and catching up with everyone over Christmas. Lots and lots of love!!!

 Grind #18 - Thursday October 21st - Bring on the Insta-Winter
Grind time: 50:40

           We have to admit that we've been pretty fortunate with the weather during our Grinding fundraiser though in the last week it's taken a bit of a turn for the wet. Wednesday was a gorgeous day though Duncan was away in Penticton on work so we had to push it until Thursday when insta-Winter kicked in. That's how it goes out here because it doesn't really snow in the city so it's just kind of cold and rainy - and it happens fast (just add water). You see we're of the belief out here that snow is for the mountains; though this means when it does snow in the city its highly entertaining. Two years ago when I (Duncan)was living up at Cambie and 21st with fellow Kingstonians Noah, Eli and Steve we had two weeks of snow that just wouldn't quit. Maybe it's because Vancouver only has two snowplows or maybe it's because snow tires are about as common as a corner without a Starbucks but for some reason a foot of snow is a borderline state of emergency here. One Sunday we were sitting in our living room and it seemed as though every five minutes we'd here "phhhrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr.... PHhhhrrrrr... PHRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR...." as someone would rev their engine and slowly sink down into an abyss of snow outside our place. We'd get out, help push, rock it out and, if necessary, kick people out of their own car in order to get it unstuck. Eventually the snow subsided and went back up to the mountains where it belongs (unless it's an Olympic year - then it belongs nowhere apparently). So, as we've got one more week of Grinding we're dreading a few of these wetter ones, but the end is near and the mountains are starting to get a little dusting already so it's all good. When we started the Grind it was about 8 degrees and rainy I thought to myself "maybe you won't sweat profusely this time...". That thought typically lasts about three minutes, as long as I'm moving I could sweat through a glacier. We arrived at the top in just over 50 minutes knowing that this would be the first of 4 or 5 in a row as we continue to push ourselves on a daily basis. We got to the top and the mist in the air gave the illusion of snow, though given the temperature we figure it's not too far off! Bring on the snow.


Grind #19 - Friday October 22nd - Getting Squirrelly
Grind time: 48:39

           As you've probably gathered something crazy doesn't really happen every time we grind and hence why maybe what we write only has a little bit to do with what we did that day. This day is no different. We've seen some good wildlife when we've hiking - deers, chipmunks, grizzly bears (behind electric fences), and the vicious beast of the Forest - the Western Squirrel. Some Grinds it seems as though the squirrels follow us up mountain like were a couple of nuts, bounding from tree to tree and mocking us with that miniature hyena-like laugh. So, as a squirrel who had been following us ran along a log next to us I instinctively squirted him with my waterbottle (to the delight of a guy behind us). Now for most people this would seem like animal cruelty but this laugh unearths a memory from my not too distant past that I've tried so hard to suppress over the last few years. It's only now that I've been able to talk about it, and for the first time in history I'm going to write about my experience.
           It was the summer of 2007 and a beautiful day on a cut block in Northern BC. It was my last year of treeplanting and I was planting along with a lively French-Canadian named "Red" and a rambunctious dog named Taiga. Taiga decided that it would be fun to start chasing a squirrel, not knowing what horror this would inflict on future Duncan's psyche. We were thoroughly entertained as Taiga and the Squirrel ran off in the distance like a Tom and Jerry cartoon and then back towards us. Then, as they approached at breakneck speeds I had an "Oh, Crap" moment as I looked around and I was by far the tallest thing in the area and with my month old beard and earthy nature, resembled a tree. Now my memory is far from photographic but I'd be lying if I said there wasn't a perfect picture in my mind of a vicious cat-sized (maybe kitten sized) squirrel face about a foot from mine staring me down with those vicious beady little eyes and it's mouth open as if it was ready to eat my face. The next I know someone screams like a girl (we don't have to say who, but it wasn't the Frenchman), the squirrel hits my chest, runs up my shoulder and jumps off my face! I'm dazed and look over at Red who's on the ground laughing and I start to lose it too.

Maybe not all that shocked that the squirrel mistook me for a tree

           It was hilarious and before I know it I get a call on my radio from another crew boss on the other side of the block: "Come in Duncan". I reply: "Yeah, um, ahem, Duncan here". "Yeah, we, uh, think we may have heard a small girl scream somewhere over near your crew though we know all the planters on your crew are guys, everything okay?" he responds. "What? Uh, yeah, weird... um, yeah, nope, nothing here. We were just, uh, ahem, talking about football and eating beef jerky... you know, man stuff." I lie. The story quickly comes out and becomes legendary though I stand by the fact that this squirrel was beastly and had ninja like qualities. For your benefit (and my pride) I've included a recreation (to scale) of the horrific attack.

          Today as I squirted water at the Squirrel on the Grind he took off along a ridge and I really felt as though I'd faced my fear and have had some closure. The weather was half-decent and it was a Friday so there were a number of people that were going up the Grind. The greatest thing about the Friday Grind is knowing that 1) You get to sleep in tomorrow and 2) There are deliciously cold beers waiting for you at home. But... 3) We're Grinding again tomorrow. Luckily we had a couple of friends who were down to join us tomorrow so we were looking forward to it.

Parking Fail in the Grouse Mountain Lot