By Cassie Weiss
I’m dealing with the skeletons in my closet, quite literally.
Skeletons of old model cars, skeletons of shirts from back when I was 16, skeletons of the days I was a teenage rock star (in the figurative sense).
I don’t know how I feel about this.
My mom and dad are finally building the room that is suppose to be mine, in the basement, that they promised me 8 years ago.
I love that they are getting the room done, because now I finally get to paint something a colour that I want, but building the room means I need to prioritize the items I have in my bedroom upstairs.
I walk into my current bedroom, and I see all the posters of my teenage dreams on the walls.
Actors like Paul Walker and Johnny Depp, and singers like the Jonas Brothers and Fall Out Boy.
When I was young, I didn’t need wall paper, I made my own.
I was talking to a friend the other day. She said she had taken down all her childhood posters, and she felt relieved.
Sad that she was taking them down but relieved to be moving onto a new part of her life.
But I don’t know how relieved I will feel.
As Kat said, it will be sad to see that part of me go, the part of me that is still this young girl who obsesses over actors and bands.
But cleaning out my room isn’t a bad thing either.
I’ve been finding so many items that I forgot I had. Items like notes my friends and I would pass during class, and stories I had honestly forgotten about.
Books that made me laugh, and CDs with songs on them that made me cry.
I found a box of items that I had packed away that related solely to my best friend and I.
I spent twenty minutes going through this box, laughing at the insanely ridiculous stunts we would pull. Remembering all the times we would get in trouble, and find someway to make the situation fun and exciting.
I’m glad my mom has me on a blast from the past. The memories I keep finding are worth dealing with the skeletons and maybe finally letting go.

By Jamie Rieger
From time to time, we all make wishes; things we hope for and we hope for the best, but plan for the worst because more often than not, those wishes completely elude us.
As my daughter's due date drew closer, I started with my wishes. The first one that baby Paige would arrive safely, with both her and mom healthy. The second wish was for winter to stay away, and more specifically, that Highway Three would be in good driving condition when I got the phone call that the baby was on her way.
How fortunate it was for this new grandma that I had both wishes come true. Baby Paige blessed us with her arrival, after a marathon session in the delivery room, on Tuesday. With a good headful of black hair and the chubbiest checks I have ever seen in a newborn, Paige is finally here! There truly is no more joyous occasion than the birth of a child. Mom, dad, and their beautiful bundle of perfection are all at home resting, with mom healing from her (eventual) C-section, in the comforts of their home. Wish Number One received with gratefulness!
Up until now, winter has pretty much eluded us as much as most of our wishes do and for that too, I am grateful. I was able to make numerous trips into Medicine Hat (one of them in the middle of the night which turned into a fruitless journey) before and after the arrival of the baby without having to worry about black ice, poor visibility, or bad winter drivers. For as much faith and trust I put in the Volker Stevin crews, they are only able to do so much when the roads turn nasty.
Now that the baby is home, winter has arrived. It almost seemed like Mother Nature let up until Baby Paige got here...even if she was fashionably late. Wish Number Two received and gratitude expressed!
As the snow swirls in the wind, creating drifts and bad roads, Carmen is surely nestling with baby, watching the winter from the warmth of her loving home. And, this grandma can be rest assured that her family is safe and sound.
I think I am done making wishes for the time being. I just went two for two on my recent ones and really could not ask for anything more than what I have been given. Besides, those wishes coming true are rare events indeed, and I have most likely run out of my allotment.

By Cassie Weiss
GO ME!
And now your thinking, “Boy has she really lost it.” And I’m just here to tell you I haven’t lot it yet, but I will.
And no, I’m not talking about my mind.
I am going on a diet. Actually I am already on said diet. I’ve been on it for seven days, and I’ve already lost six pounds.
And I admit, it is really hard!
I know diets are hard, and it takes a lot of will power to get through them, but all the fattening cravings you get. Know I know why people could never stick to it.
And I have to admit I have cheated.
I cheated today, I cheated last week, and I will probably cheat a little bit next week.
And although I am cheating, I’m still highly proud of myself. This is something I am going to stick through.
The diet I’m on is called “The 17 Day Diet” and it is in cycles of 17 days. And the first cycle is nothing but vegetables, fish, and chicken/turkey.
I can’t have beef, I can’t have calories, I can’t have carbs, and man do I miss it. But I want to loose the weight even more.
I could never do this alone. Thank God I have the best boyfriend ever. He doesn’t need to loose weight, he doesn’t need to torture himself with no carbs, but he is.
He is going through the same diet that I am, so that I have the strength to continue on this healthy lifestyle path.
He of course is allowed to cheat more than I am, but he helps me to make the healthy choice, and he cooks all these fancy recipes so that I can eat bland food in an exciting way.
He is just all around supportive, and it gives me that motivation to go on. To run just a little bit further, to wait just a little bit longer until I have another snack.
And I have to admit, I actually am happy. When I stepped on the scale today I had lost 4 pounds in one day.
I couldn’t have been more excited. It makes a person glow, that feeling that they are accomplishing something.
I know this diet isn’t forever, and that one day I will be able to finish the O’Henry pieces Kat got for Christmas.
Right now I’m happy with where I am. I miss fattening food, but I also know that when I step on that scale and I’ve lost my goal of 100 pounds, no amount of fattening food can take that ecstatic-ness away!

By Jamie Rieger

Out with the old, in with the new. As we say goodbye to another year, it is time to welcome the next with enthusiasm and optimism.
2011 was a year filled with its share of ups and downs, ebbs and flows, and of course, lots of things to be grateful for and a few things some of us would love to just forget.
At the start of 2011, Mother Nature and Old Man Winter were in cahoots and delivered some nasty winter weather with lots of blowing snow and high windchills. The relentless pounding from those two was enough to make the toughest say enough is enough already.
The bad weather kept this reporter grounded on more than one occasion and at times, I couldn’t even get my car out of the back alley without getting stuck or sliding into a garbage bin along the way.
Spring finally arrived and the ground turned from white to green and in some cases, into fields of water where flooding was once again creating problems for those living in low-lying areas. I was happy to get my car out of its parking stall without having to ask for a push from a neighbour or use a shovel to first clear a path for myself.
As summer came into view, I was too busy to actually enjoy the pleasant, warm days as I prepared for my move to Bow Island. (I have finally settled in quite nicely, thank you very much!)
Both Mother Nature and Old Man Winter slept through much of Autumn and folks got to enjoy some nice weather as the foliage started turning from green to their brilliant fall colours.
When Mother Nature awoke from her slumber, she proved just what an old windbag she really is. The winds have been howling and it seems to me that there have been more windy days around here than calm ones. Or perhaps, I am just noticing it more.
We have been fortunate that while the nasty, old windbag continues to blow, Old Man Winter has not yet woken up to accompany her and wreak havoc like the pair did at the beginning of 2011.
Let the old guy sleep. Maybe by time he arouses and dumps a pile of snow on us, Mother Nature will have no more wind in her sails to blow our way and we can actually have a winter that outdoor enthusiasts and travelers can safely enjoy.
After our last two winters, having a “normal” one isn’t too much to ask, is it?