August 6, 2014
The Players
The Grampies
We tried to explain who we are in our Crazyguy Profile, though that needs some updating now. In general, we are, or seem to have become, the elderly (now over 65!) couple that have somehow cycled across North America twice (North and South)and around Western Europe three times. We have even challenged the Pacific Coast in winter. We claim to have done this to have some stories to tell our grandchildren.
Amelia
Amelia is the first born of our son, Joshua, and his wife Sabrina. Amelia was born in Montreal, Quebec, and lives there in a central area of the city known as the Plateau. Amelia's home in the Plateau has some big features that no doubt have shaped her life. There is an ice cream store just down the street. With a bit of a hike, there is a shopping street (Rue Mont Royal) that features a great toy store, the world's best bagel shop, and a Montreal specialty - restaurants offering super elaborate breakfasts. On the way to the Rue Mont Royal is the huge Lafontaine Park, populated by oak trees and an insane number of friendly grey squirrels.
Amelia lives in a house stuffed full of books of all kinds, but including hundreds of children's books. Joshua and Sabrina read these to her all the time. Amelia also has in her house her younger sister and brother - Evee and Joey, to play with and share with.
Amelia can sometimes be strong willed. I am especially fond of the times when she has taken a firm position with me. Once the dispute was over where I should rest my hand on a counter, and once it was about how the chairs around a table should be arranged. Both times, I lost.
And oh, Amelia is 3!
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Violet
Violet can claim to be our daughter Laurie's first born, by only by a narrow two minute margin. She was followed into the world by her twin brother Avi. Though born in Vancouver, British Columbia, Violet spent most of her "formative years" in Missoula, Montana. Missoula, as many Crazyguyonabike readers may know, is the headquarters of the Adventure Cycling Association, a main force behind touring cycling in the USA. Missoula is also a university town, and is much more cycle friendly than other nearby cities. Missoula also has some of the best farmers' markets in the region. So Violet spent a lot of time moving about Missoula in a bike trailer, going to markets and attending classes on the University of Montana campus.
Like Amelia, Violet lives surrounded by books, and also by videos. One of her favourites has been The Last Unicorn, and unicorns and princesses have meant a lot to her over the years. This is not to say that she is a stay at home dreamer. Quite the contrary. Violet will bravely tackle anything (with the one exception of smelly pit toilets), and is always ready for a new experience.
Last year, one of those experiences was a trip by bike with the Grampies first down the Trail of the Hiawatha and then from Plummer to Wallace, all in Idaho. This featured dark tunnels, mud, a moose, a long route in lakes and woods, and even the depths of a silver mine. All this was done on a recumbent tandem affair known as a Weehoo. The story of the trip is told in our blog "Grampies Go Panhandling". Have a look at the first pages of that, especially the one that explains about Weehoos.
Violet and Avi and Laurie have now moved to Seattle, to a blue wooden house in the northwest part of the city. This places them a lot closer to the Vancouver Island farm of the Grampies, and will make it easier to plan adventures together.
And yes, Violet has just turned 6!
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Avi
Avi has also grown up surrounded by books (and videos) but also in places that allowed for outdoor adventure, even if it was just to the banks of the Clark Fork River near the farmers' market or the Carousel in Missoula, or a walk up Rattlesnake Creek, just north of town.
With books, Avi has always had an encyclopedic knowledge of the home library of kids' titles, and when asked what he would like to hear, could scan that knowledge, go to the right shelf, and come back with a selection with uncanny accuracy. However, like Violet, Avi also has some favourites in the video line. The Avengers stands out from these. Aside from the colour and flash of these, no doubt it is the adventure that captures his interest.
Though like everyone, Avi will not turn down an ice cream, it is melon and fruit that really tempts him, and it has been so since earliest childhood. Good fruit is not totally available or cheap in Montana in most seasons. So if you wanted to get rid of $10 or $20 worth, you only needed to invite Avi to sit down with it!
Avi, as you can figure out, is 6 too!
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