Greetings Creekers!
By the time you read this it will be June. If you take a walk, you will notice that the side roads and beaches are lined in bright yellow broom and pink wild roses. I like to pick those and make syrup and candied petals but maybe you just want to admire them and feel summer coming on. If you are a student, June can be a nostalgic month, a combination of winding down and anticipation of what’s next; a new grade, graduation, a new job, moving away from home. It’s the month for weddings and also the month with the longest day, which gets me every time. What?? How is it that the days are going to get shorter just when you want them to be as long as possible? But it just is. So don’t let those long days slip away, get out there and enjoy them. We did that the other evening when we celebrated a birthday with a beach picnic. Several groups of amused young people commented on our little gathering. They clearly found us quaint, with our ratan picnic baskets and tablecloth but I like to think that perhaps we inspired them too.
Speaking of nostalgia, an old Creek resident has been sending me his reminiscences of living in the Creek. He writes about enjoying a nice evening on the beach in 1962 when large ashes started falling out of the sky. The legible flakes of burnt dictionaries and text books were a clue and soon the school was burnt to the ground. The arsonist was not a disgruntled student but a troubled summer resident looking for a claim to fame. So Roberts Creek kids all had to go to school in Sechelt for a year while the new school was built. That building lasted into the 1990s when the additions and renos were started to accommodate the growing population and soon we had the school that is there today.
Well, there is just something about warm weather and live music, and you can celebrate that seductive combonation this Saturday night at the Hall at the First Annual Sunshine Shakedown. It starts early, outside, with The Billy Hillpicker Band and then moves indoors where Buddy and the Scarecrow and The Grateful Dead Tribute Band from Vancouver will you have up and dancing. Food will be available and tickets are at Eventbrite.
Then, on June 16, the Jazz Festival is kicking off with Soulstream, the 10-piece powerhouse funk band that packs the hall every time. So get your tickets now. Check out the Jazz Festival site for purchase locations.
At the Legion tonight (Friday), it’s the gypsy folk sounds and eerie melodies of Simbi and Witness and on Saturday night you can amp it up with the local indie-grunge Nirvana tribute band, World Image is Nirvana. See the Legion website for details.
As I walked by the library today, I passed a woman with a bucket of yellow paint brightening up the food cupboard. I also noticed that the cupboard was empty, just a package of spaghetti and a can of soup. The Salvation Army will restock it but it empties very quickly this time of year so think about adding something next time you pass. Robert Van Norman has re-installed the beautiful wooden book cupboard that he built as a gift to Roberts Creek and there is a new bike rack. It’s part of a nice public area that we can be proud of and so this is another appeal to keep it that way. Do not use it as a drop off spot for stuff you don’t want and please note that there is no garbage pick up there so take your empties and takeout containers with you when you leave.
Okay all you people who like to write (I know there are lots of you), how about writing a guest column when I am unavailable? If that interests you or you have anything else to share with me: mounseyyvonne @gmail.com.
