July 26, 2019

Aahh, summer! The time of year that Team Fergmeijer is happier than a seagull with a french fry. We have found ourselves firmly set in our summer routine: Eat, Beach, Sleep, Repeat. But fear not - if you have any events you would like mentioned here, you can still reach us at kagawong@live.ca. 

Please note that because the current water demand is overtaxing the municipal water system, the township has issued the following public notice regarding exterior water usage: Residents may use municipal water for exterior purposes (watering lawns and gardens, washing vehicles, etc.) only on alternating days. Those with even numbered residences on even numbered days, and odd numbered residences on odd numbered days. Exterior water usage may occur between 5am and 8am, and 6pm and midnight only. 

Team Fergmeijer’s secret for how to get a beach body: Step one - go to the beach. Step two - done.

Holy cow! We missed some birthdays last week because we got so caught up in puns of the bovine variety. Happy belated birthday to a pair of Theijsmeijer gents last Sunday - one turned 29, and the other 15. Hope you had a great day! Celebrating this week is Jen C (formerly Jen B). She currently lives in Alberta, but returns to the Island every year for her birthday to ensure she never turns more than 29. 

One of the best parts of living on Manitoulin is the low crime rates, though we heard about a man who came home one day last week and discovered someone had broken in and stolen every lamp in his house. He was completely delighted. 

Summerfest and the art tour drew a large crowd to town last weekend. Mary Buie led a small but mighty parade of decorated bikes and ugly hats, and Bella the clown had kids laughing and dancing. No word has been passed to Team Fergmeijer regarding the winner of the scavenger hunt, but when we know, you will know! 

As for the art tour, it was great to see a few new studios open for business - there are now even more reasons to visit Kagawong!

Batter’s up! Every Sunday at 7pm, join other ball players at the Ice Lake ball field for a game. Everyone welcome.

History Day in Kagawong is fast approaching! Mark Thursday, August 8th on your calendar, and be sure to join staff from the Museum for one of two talks on The Shipwrecks of Georgian Bay and Harbor Island (3:30pm and 7:30pm) at the Park Centre. In between the talks, from 4pm-7pm, get your blue lips on by partaking in the Blueberry Social at the market pavillion! Featuring live music by Paul Best, all proceeds from the social go toward the Angel Bus. See you there!

Mike at the post office told us he is heading to Spain next week. We were so excited for him. We asked if he was going to Parcelona. He just ignored what we consider to be an amazing pun. Of course, we may have told it wrong. After all, the key to a good mailman joke is in the delivery. Have a great week!

July 19, 2019

Cowabunga! There were several unusual encownters in town last week on Udder… er, Upper Street and Rainbow Heights. Some were more amoosing than others, but as far as we know, there were no cowsualties. Rumour has it council is putting together a steering committee to investigate beefing up security around town so that, mooving forward, incidents like that don’t happen again. 

Please note that because the current water demand is overtaxing the moonicipal water system, the township has issued the following public notice regarding exterior water usage: Residents may use moonicipal water for exterior purposes (watering lawns and gardens, washing vehicles, etc.) only on alternating days. Those with even numbered residences on even numbered days, and odd numbered residences on odd numbered days. Exterior water usage may occur between 5am and 8am, and 6pm and midnight only. 

Have you herd? As we predicted, this year’s annual book and bake sale was a legendairy success! Chairperson Ruth and librarian Jill asked us to express their appreciation to all the volunteers (special shout out to the Friends of Billings Library!) who make the sale possible each year. 

Did you feel a special aura mooving in the air this weekend? This past Saturday, a variety of vendors, practitioners and artists for came to town for a day of fun and frolic as part of the Enchanted Forest Mystical Fair. There’s never a dull moment in Kagawong!

TONIGHT! The summer fun continues with another beach moovie, sponsored by the Billings Public Library! Brave the waters of Mudge Bay at the main beach (or stay high and dry with us chickens, well away from the shore) while watching The Meg on the library’s giant outdoor screen. Start time is 9pm. Come early to stock up on snacks from the concession stand. NOTE: If the weather doesn’t cooperate, the movie will run Saturday night. If the weather still doesn’t clear up, the rain date is Friday, July 26th.

Summerfest continues tomorrow (Saturday, July 20th) with more fun than you can shake a paddle at! Beginning at 10am, come check out a special vendors’ market, village scavenger hunt, Artists on Main, face painting, BBQ lunch (sponsored by the Old Mill Heritage Centre), pop-up info booths, a kids-decorated bike parade, volunteer firefighters’ demoo & boot drive, a funky hat contest, a family-friendly obstacle course, the Cooking with Bella dance-off… and more! Come on out and celebrate our amazing commoonity spirit. Brought to you by members of the Economic Development Committee, and the Parks, Recreation, and Wellness Committee. 

One person’s junk is another person’s treasure! Do you have gently used clothing, books, household appliances or furniture you are looking to get rid of? During the Saturday of Summerfest (10am-3pm), bring your junk to sell, swap or give away! Park your vehicle, open the trunk or hatch, and you’re good to go! Watch for the signs along Old Mill Road. 

As usual, the Sunday following Summerfest (Sunday, July 21) is the annual Blessing of the Boats marine service at St. John the Evangelist Anglican Church. Service begins at 9am. Everyone welcome.

Fun fact: The leather from one cow hide yields 12 baseball gloves. Every Sunday at 7pm, join other ball players at the Ice Lake ball field for a game. Everyone welcome! 

History Day in Kagawong is fast approaching! Mark Thursday, August 8th on your calendar, and be sure to join staff from the Mooseum for one of two talks on The Shipwrecks of Georgian Bay and Harbor Island (3:30pm and 7:30pm) at the Park Centre. In between the talks, from 4pm-7pm, get your blue lips on by partaking in the Blueberry Social at the market pavillion! Featuring live music by Paul Best, all proceeds from the social go toward the Angel Bus. See you there!

Had you heard most of these cow puns before? It might be deja-moo. Have a great week!

July 12, 2019

Breaking news! The first Paikin sighting of the year was made by a (slightly hysterical) fan outside the Sugar Bush Canadian Coffee Company. Said fan nearly fell into a fit of the vapours upon realizing who was walking towards them across the parking lot. We felt their reaction was a bit over the top. Team Fergmeijer considers themselves to be big Steve Paikin fans, but we would never *cough cough* act so juvenile *ahem* and star struck… yeah, we don’t believe us either. We totally fangirl all over the place when our paths cross with Mr. Paikin. Welcome back to Kagawong, sir!

St. John’s Anglican Church would like to thank all the volunteers who helped out with the sale, and all the shoppers who came out to find that special treasure on Saturday. The sale was a spectacular success! 

This year’s annual book and bake sale was a huge success! If you ignore the brawl over the last double chocolate brownies at the baking table. And the shouting match that began as a friendly discussion over whether or not Hermione and Harry should have gotten together. Don’t even get us started on the hair pulling that broke out after one browser was overheard to say, ‘The movie was so much better than the book.” To be fair, we write this column early in the week, so we have no idea what happened. We assume that the efforts of all the volunteers, including the amazing Friends of Billings Library (aka FOBL), have paid off in spades. Thanks to all who came out in support of the library!

The summer fun continues next weekend with another beach movie, sponsored by the Billings Public Library! Friday, July 19th, brave the waters of Mudge Bay at the main beach (or stay high and dry with us chickens, well away from the shore) while watching The Meg on the library’s giant outdoor screen. Start time is 9pm. Come early to stock up on snacks from the concession stand. 

Summerfest continues on Saturday, July 20th with more fun than you can shake a paddle at! Beginning at 10am, come check out a special vendors’ market, village scavenger hunt, Artists on Main, face painting, BBQ lunch (sponsored by the Old Mill Heritage Centre), pop-up info booths, a kids-decorated bike parade, volunteer firefighters’ demo & boot drive, a funky hat contest, a family-friendly obstacle course, the Cooking with Bella dance-off… and more! Come on out and celebrate our amazing community spirit. Brought to you by members of the Economic Development Committee, and the Parks, Recreation, and Wellness Committee.

One person’s junk is another person’s treasure! Do you have gently used clothing, books, household appliances or furniture you are looking to get rid of? During the Saturday of Summerfest (10am-3pm), bring your junk to sell, swap or give away! Park your vehicle, open the trunk or hatch, and you’re good to go! Watch for the signs along Old Mill Road. 

As usual, the Sunday following Summerfest (Sunday, July 21) is the annual Blessing of the Boats marine service at St. John the Evangelist Anglican Church. Service begins at 9am. Everyone welcome.

Please note that because the current water demand is overtaxing the municipal water system, the township has issued the following public notice regarding exterior water usage: Residents may use municipal water for exterior purposes (watering lawns and gardens, washing vehicles, etc.) only on alternating days. Those with even numbered residences on even numbered days, and odd numbered residences on odd numbered days. Exterior water usage may occur between 5am and 8am, and 6pm and midnight only. 

The township called for nominations for senior of the year, and the public has spoken! Mary Buie is Billings Township Senior of the Year for 2019! The announcement was made last Friday by His Excellency, Mayor Anderson, in full mayoral regalia (the township staff keep refusing to get him a chain of office, so he had to improvise, but was still terribly impressive). The official ceremony will be held at a later date, to be announced.

Words of wisdom, from a toddler’s perspective, as we continue to enjoy warm weather and long summer days: Scream like no one’s listening; Dance like you’re going to pee your pants; Play like someone else is going to clean up your toys. Have a great week!

July 5, 2019

Shell yeah! It’s summertime, folks! You know what that means… sun’s out, puns out! If you haven’t been feeling it, perhaps all you need is a little vitamin sea.

The Kagawong farmer’s market is in full swing for the summer! Every Wednesday through July and August from 10-3pm you can find homemade treats, local crafts, fresh veg and a lots of other treasures! For vendor opportunities, call 705 210-9924. 

Looking to be swayed by some pier pressure? Tonight (Friday, July 5)! All the cool kids are heading to Providence Bay to see the Kagawong Folk Roots group perform on the boardwalk at 7pm. Be there or be squid. 

Tomorrow! St. John’s Anglican Church is hosting a giant yard sale, bake sale and BBQ on Saturday July 6th. Head down to the market pavillion from 10am-2pm to browse for that perfect item and walk off with a cupcake in one hand and a roast beef on a bun in the other!

What did the water say to the beach? Nothing - it just waved.

Fancy a bit of tennis? Join the Manitoulin Tennis Club for their usual outing on Sunday, July 7 (6:30pm at the courts at MSS in M’Chigeeng) and in honour of Wimbledon, be treated to strawberries and cream! What’s not to LOVE about that? Regular tennis nights run Wednesdays and Sundays at 6:30pm; lessons for any level of player are available for free. All welcome! Search Manitoulin Tennis Club on Facebook for more information.  

Have you been to the library this week? Summer hours are now in effect - you can check out books, board games, magazines, DVDs and more, Tuesday through Saturday from 9 to 5 (closed 12-1 so Emily can have lunch. They have to keep their amazing summer student happy!) The library facelift was a huge success! The board would like to thank all the volunteers who came out Saturday, Sunday and Monday to take down books and shelves, paint, and reassemble everything again. The new paint job looks great, and it’s all thanks to you! 

Now that it’s all spruced up, the library can turn its attention to prepping for the book and bake sale on Wednesday. From 11am to 2pm at the Park Centre, there will be book bargains, baking, and a bbq! If you would like to donate baking for the sale, it can be dropped off at the Park Centre after 10am. If you need an earlier drop off, goodies can be dropped off at the library after 9am. 

Also on the library’s summer agenda is another beach movie! Friday July 19th, brave the waters of Mudge Bay (or stay high and dry with us chickens, well away from the shore) while watching The Meg on the library’s giant outdoor screen.  

Seas the day - Summerfest is coming! Mark July 19-21 on your summer calendar, and stay tuned for more information on the great events happening that weekend!

Looking ahead to August, the Old Mill Heritage Centre is celebrating its 10th anniversary this year. The museum board would like to thank all their supporters with an afternoon BBQ on Saturday, August 24th. Even though it’s barely the start of July, Team Fergmeijer likes to plan our meals well in advance, so we are definitely saving a spot on our calendar for this one!

Life is better in sandals, and that’s one opinion we won’t flip-flop on. Have a great week!