April 24, 2020

We, like many of you, are dreaming of the day we are able to once again move about more freely. We intend to stay put as long as necessary, but are being optimistic planning a big international trip for 2022. One half of the team really wants to go to the United Arab Emirates, especially Dubai and Abu Dhabi. We’re really intrigued by the differences in the culture even between cities. For instance, it turns out that the people in Dubai really don’t like the Flintstones, but the people in Abu Dhabi do. 

We have several happy birthday wishes to send out this week! Marilyn P is a long time summer resident who is anxiously awaiting the time she can safely come north to celebrate with her Island friends and family. Happy 29th to you! Also turning 29 is Kristy C who is guaranteed to have a fun and exciting day. Rumour has it her kids passed on the birthday cake and just put some candles in a stack of toilet paper to celebrate her quarantine birthday. And last, but certainly not least we wish many happy returns to Jean W who is 29 years young this Saturday! We contacted noted meteorologist Jamie Ward for a birthday forecast. He predicts it will be, “generally sunny with scattered cards and presents; extremely high chance of cake and candles with occasional patches of feeling really old. Yo.”

A reminder that the falls and river trail, the playground at the main beach and the dog park are all closed. In addition, the town has essentially banned smelt fishing along the Kagawong River this year. Please be aware that the OPP, who usually patrol the area during smelt season anyway, will be out and enforcing the 2 meter distance and maximum gathering size requirements put in place by the province. 

Have you seen Billings’ new logo? We were a bit disappointed that our suggestion of a Sandhill Crane with aromatherapy beads around its neck, clutching a chocolate cupcake in one claw and a small cedar chair in the other, while flying over a stack of vintage candy and Kenyan jewelry, with the Falls in the background was overlooked, but overall we’re happy with the new graphic. 

The library building may be closed, but you can still access books for free online! Contact the librarian (billingslibrary@vianet.ca)  to get your patron number and you can log in to the OverDrive app and download books to your heart’s content. 

The library is also looking for new board members. Contact the library or new chairperson Willa Wilson if you are interested. Duties of a board member are very light, especially these days!

The Kagawong landfill is operating on reduced hours: Thursdays and Sundays from 2-4pm. Be patient and have a kind word for our hard working township employees!

If you know of someone in the community who may need assistance, OR, if you are interested in volunteering to help, please call or email the township office (705-282-2611; mbonenfant@billingstwp.ca). 

Since no one seems to be getting out very much, and all social outings are cancelled, we are hoping someone will finally have the time to start giving us some real news! If you have anything you’d like us to share (birthdays, anniversaries, milestones, what you had for supper, etc.) please let us know by writing to us at kagawong@live.ca. 

Physical distancing update: today we melted an ice cube with our mind just by staring at it. It took a lot longer than we thought it would. Have a great week!

April 17, 2020

We hope this finds everyone safe after the windstorm earlier this week. We’re not sure how strong the winds were on Monday, but best gustimate puts them around 70 or 80 km/h. We didn’t get too worked up about the storm, however. We were confident it would blow over and decided to just put our feet up and unwind. 

On that note, let’s throw caution to the wind and re-gale you with some trivia: What kind of music do wind turbines like? They are huge metal fans.

Happy belated birthday to Maya H who celebrated her 29th last weekend (or whatever age people over in Rockville turn each year). She is an animal foster and takes all kinds of critters in, taking care of them and socializing them until they find their forever home. She currently has some racing geese for sale if anyone would like a quick gander.

A reminder that the falls and river trail, the playground at the main beach and the dog park are all closed. In addition, the town has essentially banned smelt fishing along the Kagawong River this year. Please be aware that the OPP, who usually patrol the area during smelt season anyway, will be out and enforcing the 2 meter distance and maximum gathering size requirements put in place by the province. 

Turquoise is the best colour in the world. It’s cyantifically proven. Some might have red that and felt indigonant, or that it is all a pigment of our imagination. For others, it’s a fact that just blue you away. 

The Kagawong landfill is operating on reduced hours: Thursdays and Sundays from 2-4pm. Be patient and have a kind word for our hard working township employees!

 

The municipal office is open, but access is restricted. Council meetings will be conducted via virtual conference call. Members of the public are welcome to observe, but there is no direct participation. Contact Megan (mbonenfant@billingstwp.ca) to learn how to take part. 

For other updates from the township, be sure to visit billingstwp.ca or call the municipal office at 705-282-2611. You could also check their official Facebook page (facebook.com/billingstownshipkagawong). 

If you know of someone in the community who may need assistance, OR, if you are interested in volunteering to help, please call or email the township office (705-282-2611; mbonenfant@billingstwp.ca). 

 

Since no one seems to be getting out very much, and all social outings are cancelled, we are hoping someone will finally have the time to start giving us some real news! If you have anything you’d like us to share (birthdays, anniversaries, milestones, what you had for supper, etc.) please let us know by writing to us at kagawong@live.ca. 

 

One half of Team Fergmeijer recently attended a session with a psychiatrist (virtually, of course) to try and get to the root of why her sister treats her like Lucy treats Linus. The proffered diagnosis was that she has analogy to Peanuts. Have a great week!

April 10, 2020

We are doing our part to maintain physical distance from others to flatten the curve, but we are still reaching out to friends and family through phone calls and virtual meetings. A bunch of us all got online together one night and it was fun! It got a bit chaotic though: while Stew was busy showing us a recipe for a hearty meal, Jim was bragging about his new workout regime, and Josh kept teasing Phil who is pulling double shifts at the gas station. Bill was worried about making his payments on time, but Frank told him straight up that you can only do the best you can do. A couple friends were only on for a portion of the video call - Warren’s rabbits kept distracting him and John spent most of the visit in the bathroom. All in all though, it was wonderful to visit with everyone.

A belated happy birthday goes out to Sharon A, who celebrated her 29th birthday surrounded by her friends and family (virtually, of course!). And a very belated happy birthday also goes out to former Kagawongian Micki B. Jill F sent us a special message for her: “Best wishes to a great friend and a reminder that no matter where in the world we go, you will always be 3 months older than I am!” Such a lovely sentiment. 

A reminder that the falls and river trail, the playground at the main beach and the dog park are all closed. We know it is a temptation to ignore the signage and barriers in place, but it is in the best interest of you and everyone else to put off touring for another week or so. The less we go out now, the sooner we can get out again! 

Another controversial, but necessary, step the town has taken is to essentially ban smelt fishing along the Kagawong River this year. In previous years smelters have lined up almost on top of each other for a chance to dip in the river, and it’s just not safe to allow that at this time. Please be aware that the OPP, who usually patrol the area during smelt season anyway, will be out and enforcing the 2 meter distance and maximum gathering size requirements put in place by the province. 

The Kagawong landfill is operating on reduced hours: Thursdays and Sundays from 2-4pm. Be patient and have a kind word for our hard working township employees!

For updates from the township, be sure to visit billingstwp.ca or call the municipal office at 705-282-2611. You could also check their official Facebook page (facebook.com/billingstownshipkagawong). 

The municipal office is open, but access is restricted. Council meetings will be conducted via virtual conference call. Members of the public are welcome to observe, but there is no direct participation. Contact Megan (mbonenfant@billingstwp.ca) to learn how to take part. 

 

 If you know of someone in the community who may need assistance, OR, if you are interested in volunteering to help, please call or email the township office (705-282-2611; mbonenfant@billingstwp.ca). 

Last year a bevy of dedicated volunteers planted and tended the various flower boxes around town. Unfortunately, that won’t be happening this year, but we want to let them know we appreciate their efforts and look forward to what they will bring out next year!

Since it’s Easter weekend, Team Fergmeijer has been bombarded with questions about the season. Mostly from each other, but still. For instance, when rabbits take pictures together, do they try to give each other people ears?

However you are celebrating this weekend, be well, and have a good week!

April 3, 2020

Like many others, we are working from home lately. Yesterday, we were really confused to hear music coming from the home office. Turns out the paper in the printer was jamming. But at least we aren’t like King Felip VI who has been quarantined to his private jet after a trip overseas. Madrid news outlets are reporting that the reign of Spain is staying mainly on the plane. 

This week Billings Council has decided to close off the falls and river trail, the playground at the main beach and the dog park. In addition they are encouraging people to not take part in the smelt season this year and will be limiting access to areas along the river traditionally open to the public for smelting. For anyone who has ever experienced a night smelt fishing, you know that it’s not really possible to practice or enforce responsible social distancing. The township appreciates your understanding and patience during this critical time. 

The Kagawong landfill is operating on reduced hours: Thursdays and Sundays from 1-4pm. Be patient and have a kind word for our hard working township employees!

For updates from the township, be sure to visit billingstwp.ca or call the municipal office at 705-282-2611. You could also check their official Facebook page (facebook.com/billingstownshipkagawong), or join the new Kagawong Covid-19 Community Volunteer Facebook Group. It’s not affiliated with the town directly, but aims to be a good source of information on how to stay safe and to connect volunteers with those who may need a helping hand. 

The municipal office is open, but access is restricted. Council meetings will be conducted via virtual conference call. Members of the public are welcome to observe, but there is no direct participation. Contact Megan (mbonenfant@billingstwp.ca) to learn how to take part. 

If you know of someone in the community who may need assistance, OR, if you are interested in volunteering to help, please call or email the township office (705-282-2611; mbonenfant@billingstwp.ca). 

One half of team Fergmeijer made arrangements to meet their significant other at the gym a couple weeks ago. He never showed up. Does that mean they aren’t working out?

This climate of limited social interactions can be a great opportunity for you to take some ‘me’ time. Dive into some ebooks and audiobooks through the library system. Email billingslibrary@vianet.ca to get your patron number, download the free OverDrive app and get reading for free! Or maybe find a podcast or two to follow.  Whether it’s real crime, Canadiana, or comedy, we guarantee there is a podcast out there for you. Also, many international museums offer virtual tours where you can take in some of the world’s most celebrated art all from the comfort of your computer. Put your feet up, and take care of yourself!

Peter G crushed all the competitors in this year’s Sandhill Crane competition. Not only was he the first to report hearing the dulcet tones of the aforementioned winged critter, he was also the first to report actually setting eyes on one! We have it on good authority that although Patty is not above messing with Peter, in this instance the sighting/hearings were authentic. Congratulations to Peter on earning the much sought-after (and non-existent) trophy for 2020!

The annual Sandhill Coo-ing contest was held this past Wednesday, April 1st, though it had to take to the web so all competitors could still observe responsible social distancing. Thank you to the many participants and to our sponsors: Ollivanders, Cyberdyne Systems, and Genco Pura Olive Oil Company. We look forward to next year’s contest and coo-ing in person again. 

Be well, and have a good week!