Maryse Good:  

UPDATE September 24, 2015 We retired November 21, 2014 and we moved from the north to southeastern British Columbia. The coldest it got during the winter was -21. We had a few snowfalls which did not amount to anything. Our snow to stay arrived a week before Christmas and was gone by the first week of February. Ralph was detailing the cars outside at the end of February 2015. For the past thirty years the earliest that he could detail the cars was June. Our son was really pushing to get us out of Yellowknife. He completely helped us with the move. He took holidays so that he could accompany us out of Yellowknife. He said that he did not want us alone on that highway just in case we broke down. He is a godsend. He scheduled the stops, he helped to walk the dogs for their pee breaks. He was wonderful. It took us three days of eleven hours worth of driving each day to reach our destination. My dream was for my beloved Amber to be able to lay on her pillow in front of the window and look outside. Amber enjoyed her view for almost nine months. She loved looking outside. On September 3, 2015 Amber crossed over the Rainbow Bridge. She had an inoperable cancerous growth in her colon. We kept her comfortable until we had no choice but to let her go. She was an amazing dog and I am glad that we had the opportunity to show her unconditional love. And to prove to her that not all humans were cruel. Today, September 24, 2015 I hope we have finished with the renovations to our home. The only thing left is that I would like to have a nice deck built at the front of the house. That way in the morning a person could have their cup of coffee and enjoy the view of the Skimmerhorn Mountain Range. I love our view of the mountains. "Best Accomplishment in my Life" The birth of my son 30 plus years ago. To have the privilege and honour to be a "MOM" and to watch my son grow up and become an honourable man. To have the privilege of loving him unconditionally and to still have him in our lives. To know that when I need a "Hero" that I can count on him to save the day. And the best part of being a MOM is that he loves me unconditionally and gives hugs freely. (Same Old Stuff) Life My father was a heavy duty mechanic and we moved around to where the jobs were in my younger years. The one place that sticks out in my mind is Gagnon, in Northern Quebec. Quebec Cartier Mining built the town. Then when the mine was no longer viable the town was bulldosed to the ground. That was the first time that I had heard about a town being destroyed. Hospital, hotel, Hudson Bay store, arena, pool, english and french schools, apartment buildings and all the houses. I remember some of the buildings were built with brick. In my mind a brick building was sturdy and meant to last a long time. My dad continued to work in Gagnon until he retired while the rest of his family moved to NB. In 1973, Ralph (Class of 69 BHS) and I moved to Edmonton, Alberta and lived there for four years. While in Edmonton, we were married. I love Edmonton. Always have and always will. We moved back to Bathurst in 1977. We stayed in Bathurst until 1985 when Ralph and 2 others were laid off. He was told that if he could speak french that they would hire him back and was also told to go to the local college and learn french. Ralph communicated fine for 9 years with french speaking people. In 1985 someone had a "concern" and 3 hard working people lost their jobs. Ralph had a basic knowledge of french and it is not hard to understand someone who comes in and asks "J'vieux un tire pour mon truck" or "J'vieux un carberator kit pour mon 350 motor". He lost his job because he could not speak french fluently and this happened in New Brunswick - the only noted bilingual province in Canada. Back then we were not aware of human rights. (We know about Human Rights now because I studied to be a para-legal and worked for lawyers for years.) Ralph applied on a few jobs in Bathurst and was told the same thing over and over, "learn how to speak french and we will hire you". So being desperate he applied on a job in the Northwest Territories where speaking english was a priority and it did not matter if y...Expand for more