Our special boy is missing. GT does go outside but generally he sticks pretty close to home. He has not been see since Friday morning. He was wearing a (breakaway) collar with a tag and he is microchipped. We have put ads online, posted flyers and have checked our local pound, but so far nothing.

 

The other troublesome thing is that our neighbor's cat Scratch has been missing since Thursday.

 

I can't even begin to express how heartbroken we are. :-(

 

Large

This one is deep. Quote by Anonymous.

The winter of 2005-2006 was the darkest of my life. I was 19 years old at the time, withdrawn from college, working my first full-time job in retail, and in an extremely unhealthy relationship. I was isolated from my friends and family. I felt completely alone, unseen, and unloved. I didn’t know how to get myself out of that state of mind or being. On a dark night in January 2006, heartbroken and helpless, I sat on the floor of my bedroom trying to convince myself to commit suicide. I don’t remember the day because a lot of that time is a blur. But I remember that night clearly. I remember the way my body felt. It was hollow, aching, and exhausted. Tears poured from my eyes and onto the carpet. I was telling myself over and over that no one loved me, that I was worthless, and that the world would be better off without me. My saving grace that night was that I didn’t want to really die, but I just didn’t want to live the way I had been. I may have hurt myself deeply that night, but I thank that young version of myself for staying in the fight. It would take another year before I got any relief from my pain, a beautiful 2 year respite, and then the inevitable resurfacing of patterns and habits in 2009 that had gone unhealed.

 

Despite all of that, she is the version of myself I am most grateful for. She decided to stop digging the hole she had been digging her whole life, to say there must be something other then this hole, and she looked up. She saw light. It might have been the tiniest speck of light really far away, but it was better than the endless darkness beneath her feet. She started to climb. She would slip and fall back into the hole, over and over, and she would cry. She would look up and say it’s impossible. But the ever present darkness surrounding her would make her start climbing again anyway, despite the seemingly impossible task ahead. She closed her eyes and asked for help. She didn’t know who she was asking, or if she were praying or begging, but she put her heart out there. And then a root appeared right when she needed it to, offering her a safe place to grab hold of so she wouldn’t fall back to the bottom. She never fell back to the bottom again, but the top was still so far away. The climb was the hardest thing she had ever done, but over time she came upon more roots that would help guide her to the top. The more she climbed, the stronger she became. She began learning to maneuver the vertical climb, adapting her body and mind to the struggle. More roots were presenting themselves the higher she climbed, some were so long she was able to lean on them when she needed to rest. She began to enjoy the struggle. The light continued to grow brighter. The impossible suddenly became possible. She climbed faster, harder, and more determined than ever. Until one day, she reached the top. She closed her eyes and began to cry as the light engulfed her. Now the hole was just a little dark speck on the ground that she had the freedom to walk away from. In order for her to make it to the top, she needed to make the decision to climb. If the roots hadn’t been there for her, she may never have made it. The roots had been there all along, she just needed to reach out for them. Once she began to walk away from the hole, she came upon a mountain. The mountain stands so tall she cannot see the top. She considered all the effort she just put into climbing out of the hole. She knew no one would fault her if she decided she had gone far enough and chose to just stay put. But she had witnessed the impossible become a reality of her own creation. She may have been covered in dirt, but she was stronger than ever. She knew without a shadow of a doubt that her life’s work would be to get as far up that mountain as possible. So she began to climb again.

 

I use this metaphor often to describe the 3 paths every human being always has the option of taking: digging themselves into a hole, staying unmoving where they are, or climbing to new heights. This paints a picture of the last ten years of my life. I was born in a hole my parents had created in their own lives, and all I knew was how to dig. The light was possibility. The roots were the people I have mentioned in this project, along with so many more. I needed help, people offered it, and I accepted it. What I am grateful for most in regards to myself is that I listened to these people. When they extended a hand, I took hold. They could have offered their help, advice, experiences, and friendship and I could have turned it away. I could have ignored what they were offering because I was too stuck in my dark story. I could have continued to believe the life I wanted was impossible. But I didn’t. I needed to find the will to live within myself, but I also needed to find those that could help guide me through unknown territory. I could not have made it to the top without them, and I could not have made it to the top without being me.

 

Now, let me really introduce myself. My name is Nikki Lanoue, and I am the happiest person I know. Every moment of every day I’m alive I design in a way to enhance my existence. I love who I am. I love how I spend my time. I love my body and what it does for me. I love my mind and what it’s capable of. I love my friends, as they are all the most amazing, loving people I’ve ever met. I love my family and accept everyone for exactly as they are. I exchange my time for money in ways that help make people feel better physically, mentally, emotionally, and/or spiritually. I take care of myself by eating well, exercising/moving daily, receiving bodywork, spending time with friends/family, spending time alone, meditating, and holding myself accountable to stay in the light. I travel the world. I’m self-employed. Anything that makes me feel uncomfortable, I lean into it instead of fleeing from it. Anything that challenges me, I embrace as something that will help me grow stronger. I learn from my mistakes, my experiences, other people, and books. I am honest. I have integrity. I am loyal and responsible. Who I am on the inside is exactly who I project to the outside world.

 

Thank you, from the bottom of my heart, to every single person who has had a positive impact in my life. I am here because you took the extra step, because you cared. In honor of all that these people have done for me, I will forever share my story and experiences in the hopes that I can have the same impact on someone else the way these people have had such a profound impact on me. I now risk being seen as the person that might be a little over the top, that might share too much, that might go on rants about the amazing aspects of life she has experienced. I will forever share the books I read, or give shout outs to those I love on social media. I will continue to make an effort to touch the hearts of others in a way mine has been touched.

 

I love myself. In the truest, deepest way I’ve ever experienced love. No one on the Earth will ever know me as well as I know myself, or love me as much as I love myself, because I am the only person that is with me every single moment of my existence. This is what I hope to inspire in others. How can anyone learn to speak the language of love if they’ve never heard it spoken before? We need each other to thrive as a tribe, but being the person you want to be and having the life you want can only come from within. When we want to see change in our lives and in the world, we must first change ourselves.

 

I was given the seed of change 10 years ago. I have grown into a brilliant tree that will continue to reach for the light as long as I live. My roots will continue to grow firmly into the ground so that others may have something to grab hold of when they need it. I will continue to drop fruits from my branches in hopes that new seeds of change will grow. My tree stands amongst a forest of other amazing trees. In this forest, all are encouraged to climb.

 

Everyone’s heartbroken nowadays. But I mean, we all just have to move on. What’s the point of reminiscing when you know the person is no longer worth while; when they’re no longer who they used to be? When their heart is somewhere else? Do you think they still care for you, or are still thinking about you? Because frankly, THEY DON'T!!!!

For ... T' :) :

Xin lỗi bạn chứ, cảm xúc của bạn là nhất thời. Nhưng tổn thương của tôi là mãi mãi. Cái thứ tình cảm rẻ rách ăn hại của bạn, tôi không thèm. Xem như tôi nhìn nhầm người xấu thành người tốt. Người ta ngu dốt 1 lần, chứ không ai đần độn cả đời. Lắm lời với bạn cũng chẳng qua chỉ vì xót xa cho cái tình cảm giả tạo đáng nhạo báng mà bạn lê lết cho tôi suốt thời gian qua mà thôi. Yêu thì yêu cho tới bến, sến cho tới cùng, khùng cho tới cực.... Xong rồi lên cơn làm trò dẩm dít, thì xin mời bạn tít mít líu lo với đám ruồi bọ đó đi. Đừng vo ve xung quanh tôi để mà làm gì. Tôi không có rảnh chửi bạn nữa đâu. Để lâu cứt trâu hóa bùn...

 

For bạn Mon :

Ta nói... thế gian thứ dễ đổi thay nhất là lòng người. Hiểm ác nhất cũng là lòng người. Thông minh nhất cũng là con người... Nhưng ngu dốt nhất trên đời... cũng là con người nốt.

Sống có tâm có đức chút đi để cho con cháu sau này nhờ cậy, không lại tuyệt tự tuyệt tôn, hậu vận héo mòn, không tốt đẹp.

Cái lũ thất đức, sống không bằng loài chó lợn ( chó còn biết sủa gâu gâu, chủ ở đâu nó còn biết vẫy đuôi tíu tít. Lợn nó còn biết kêu éc éc, ai cho nó ăn nó xoắn xuýt tít mù ) thì số phận cũng chẳng tươi sáng mãi được đâu. Trẻ trâu mà cứ thích làm đầu gấu. Thảo khấu mà cứ thích ăn vận đại gia rồi già mồm nữa chứ!

A Morgana estava de coração partido e a Monsoon veio dar um apoio.

  

Morgana is heartbroken an Monsoon came to lift her spirit.

Waiting for the show to start.

Haiti #Wecare

 

We’re heartbroken with the amount of devastation Mathew has left behind in Haiti and we want to pull all our efforts in to help as much as we can.

Please join us in an very Special Master Class with all the Zumba Star Instructors to help us raise as much funds as possible. All the proceeds will go to:

 

Prodev

www.prodevhaiti.org/

 

Our talented team will come together on Sunday December 4th from 12:00-2:30 PM to deliver an exceptional experience with the single goal to help and give. Be ready to dance for 90min non stop with our all star Team.

Here are some the instructors that will be present:

 

Volha

Angelina

Bryan

Yxia

Rene

Josip

Celeste

Anna

Edmee

Will

Idania- She is flying back from Miami just for you!

 

Photography by Hiroshi Ishikawa

Haiti #Wecare

 

We’re heartbroken with the amount of devastation Mathew has left behind in Haiti and we want to pull all our efforts in to help as much as we can.

Please join us in an very Special Master Class with all the Zumba Star Instructors to help us raise as much funds as possible. All the proceeds will go to:

 

Prodev

www.prodevhaiti.org/

 

Our talented team will come together on Sunday December 4th from 12:00-2:30 PM to deliver an exceptional experience with the single goal to help and give. Be ready to dance for 90min non stop with our all star Team.

Here are some the instructors that will be present:

 

Volha

Angelina

Bryan

Yxia

Rene

Josip

Celeste

Anna

Edmee

Will

Idania- She is flying back from Miami just for you!

 

Photography by Hiroshi Ishikawa

today, with her shoes on the wrong feet, i signed her up for early preschool (2-3yrs old)

(everyday when we drop her brother off she says, "me school, too")

sitter schedule is changing and I need extra help with work

today we walked down to her classroom

her hand gripping my mine so tightly I could barely feel my fingertips

walking into her room, the other kids rushed up to say hello...all with huge smiles

she tried to pull me back out of the room into the hallway..she is shy

I think she thought "school" meant being with her big brother and his friends all day

I told her I'd stay in the room with her so she wouldn't have to go alone

she agreed

after five minutes in the story area with me, two kids talked her into playing blocks

she walked away from me without looking back

(my heart broke a little)

she played

i filled out paperwork

she finger painted - today's color was brown

(i fought back tears and tried to remember where the last 2 1/2 yrs went)

when we got ready to leave, she said, "no. i don't want to."

so i walked down to the administration office to file paperwork alone.

when i came back she was dancing & singing with the other kids to "the wheels on the bus"

 

i told her it was time to go and she protested

(my heart broke even more)

the teacher and other kids told her they'd see her next week

this made her happy as she waved goodbye

i was grateful that she liked the other kids and her new teacher

and i've been in tears all day today knowing that next tuesday begins a new chapter in her life...she is growing up.

 

as we walked to the van holding hands, she kept saying "me school too" and i noticed again that her shoes were on the wrong feet (just like she likes them) and i fought back some more tears.

 

gratitude for my daughter and how she is growing into her own person...

 

62/365:

Misty’s Big Adventure are heartbroken to announce the death of their friend, musician, composer, songwriter and band leader Gareth Jones, aka Grandmaster Gareth. He died at his home in Birmingham, UK. He was 41.

 

We shared this terrible news on our Facebook and Instagram pages late on Thursday night, as soon as we felt able to express our grief in words:

 

To all the lovely fans of Misty’s Big Adventure, we have some very sad and difficult news to share with you all.

 

Gareth sadly passed away on Sunday.

 

He left us the day after a truly joyous home gig at the Hare & Hounds where we were surrounded by pure love and friendship. To everyone who has attended our gigs, shared in our performances, listened to our music and given us so much in return we are overwhelmingly grateful, and we shall never forget you. We made something beautiful. We are so sorry to have to share this devastating news with you all.

 

Gareth, the world is truly changed without you.

 

All our love to you at this difficult time. Please take care and reach out to friends, family and the people you love. Share your burden.

 

Grandmaster Gareth’s band – our band – Misty’s Big Adventure – was founded in Birmingham, UK, in 1996. We were teenagers. Most of us are in our forties now. The band was our life, our family, our creative purpose. We released five studio albums, numerous tour CDs, a Best Of compilation, and were due to begin work on our next album. We performed live all over the UK and Europe, and met so many wonderful people, and we hope that we added a splash of joyful colour to this world with our music.

 

The late great John Peel was a supporter of Gareth’s music, commissioning a Peel Session Monster Melody and famously declaring Gareth to be “the new God”.

 

In addition to his work with Misty’s Big Adventure, and releasing a series of solo albums, Grandmaster Gareth collaborated with many artists including Broadcast, Jeff Lewis, Pram, The Zutons, The Retro Spankees, Dog Food, Brute Force, Kimya Dawson, Noddy Holder, Gruff Rhys, and Sir Patrick Moore. He was Musical Director for the Creation Theatre Company, Oxford, for whom he composed a number of scores and musical arrangements. He wrote the theme tunes for Dave Gorman’s BBC2 series Genius and for Jimmy Carr’s Comedy Cuts on BBC Radio 2. He also composed music for video games, including Pool Panic, Loot Rascals, and Surgeon Simulator 2. His community music projects with adults and children in Birmingham were a joy he embraced whenever the opportunity arose.

Heartbroken! I just love that jingle on the Subaru commercial by Sean Hayes...Powerful Stuff. Had to get it on my iPod and I was about to work on a "Powerful Stuff" concept and it happened; I dropped my body. The Canon 17-55 f/2.8 seems to be fine maybe but it is doing some funny focusing things at the moment that are probably due to the cracked filter (at least at the moment that's what I'm choosing to believe).

 

The filter is stuck on and I'm afraid to tug too hard. Off to the shop we go. You know this really is some powerful stuff!!!! That sinking feeling in the pit of your stomach when your gear is tumbling down...ah yeah this is powerful, powerful, powerful like the song says!

 

Got me circling like the moon round the sun...ohhhh yeah this is powerful stuff!

She was heartbroken today...

 

Her Omi gave her a little teeny tiny digital camera but it wouldn't work:(. So, I let her take some shots with mine instead.

  

Teaser for the latest flickr photoset from Amsterdam's wildest Monday night party!

 

Heartbroken:

EVERY Monday night at Studio80 on the Rembrandtplein in Amsterdam!

 

Party: Heartbroken

Venue: Studio80

Coverage by: Waking up in Amsterdam!

  

1. flickr.com/photos/50719589@N00/2741031276/, 2. flickr.com/photos/50719589@N00/2741034076/, 3. flickr.com/photos/50719589@N00/2740199833/, 4. flickr.com/photos/50719589@N00/2740204243/, 5. flickr.com/photos/50719589@N00/2741042944/, 6. flickr.com/photos/50719589@N00/2741044842/, 7. flickr.com/photos/50719589@N00/2741046732/, 8. flickr.com/photos/50719589@N00/2741049052/, 9. flickr.com/photos/50719589@N00/2741051968/, 10. flickr.com/photos/50719589@N00/2741054726/, 11. flickr.com/photos/50719589@N00/2741057106/, 12. flickr.com/photos/50719589@N00/2741059596/, 13. flickr.com/photos/50719589@N00/2740226181/, 14. flickr.com/photos/50719589@N00/2740228877/, 15. flickr.com/photos/50719589@N00/2740231607/, 16. flickr.com/photos/50719589@N00/2741070262/, 17. flickr.com/photos/50719589@N00/2740236971/, 18. flickr.com/photos/50719589@N00/2741075486/, 19. flickr.com/photos/50719589@N00/2741078302/, 20. flickr.com/photos/50719589@N00/2740244311/, 21. flickr.com/photos/50719589@N00/2740247353/, 22. flickr.com/photos/50719589@N00/2740249875/, 23. flickr.com/photos/50719589@N00/2741088656/, 24. flickr.com/photos/50719589@N00/2741090826/, 25. flickr.com/photos/50719589@N00/2740257285/, 26. flickr.com/photos/50719589@N00/2740259713/, 27. flickr.com/photos/50719589@N00/2741098672/, 28. flickr.com/photos/50719589@N00/2741101296/, 29. flickr.com/photos/50719589@N00/2740268309/, 30. flickr.com/photos/50719589@N00/2740270887/, 31. flickr.com/photos/50719589@N00/2740273015/, 32. flickr.com/photos/50719589@N00/2741111140/, 33. flickr.com/photos/50719589@N00/2740277913/, 34. flickr.com/photos/50719589@N00/2741116468/, 35. flickr.com/photos/50719589@N00/2741118984/, 36. flickr.com/photos/50719589@N00/2741121340/

 

Created with fd's Flickr Toys.

Two body's one heart ❤️

 

Two separated body's, two broken

 

hearts 💔 💔

   

June 8th, 2017 - Apple Blossom Princess Kentville shown here riding down Main Street in the the world famous Kentville Grande Street Parade after the current ABF board of directors had tried to hi jack the beloved 85 year old Parade and move it to a different town ? Outraged Kentville townsfolk were forced to rise up to battle ABF Management agressors to try and recover their own annual town parade ?

  

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ABF 2017 :

 

A quick review of the notorious hostile takeover bid and attempt to extract the 2017 Kentville Grand Street Parade away from its natural home in the town of Kentville ?

  

February, 2017 - With only 3 months to go and parade planning and preparations well underway as per usual for the upcoming 2017 edition of Kentville Grand Street Parade, officials were suddenly caught totally off-guard and were absolutely blindsided by shocking news coming from out of nowhere that current ABF Management who are in charge of the festival had made a final decision in private to take Grand Street Parade away from its long time home in Kentville ? Apparently, they had already moved to taken it away from Kentville and then transfer it to New Minas during secret meetings held without inviting, consulting, requesting permission or giving proper notice to Kentville ? And so it seemed that a group of inconsiderate Officials with radical new ideas had ignored town of Kentville interests and 87 years of tradition, and had (incredibly) just taken the annual Grand Street Parade ( and even future Parades ) from Kentville without consultation, notice or permission ? Drastic location changes and even elimination of other longtime events and attractions always held in Kentville such as the Friday night outdoor show and fireworks, the Memorial Park Wednesday and Thursday displays with Valley student participation and numerous attractions, the bringing in of popular outside bands, and even the famous historic Kentville Children's Parade were all targeted by this grouping of ABF directors for cut-back or termination ? Radical changes in the Queen Annapolisa and Apple Blossom Princess competition including gender, contestant rules, location of crowning ceremony, and changes in overall competition format were also discussed ? ABF Officials defended secretive, inconsiderate and authoritarian type actions by claiming that as stewards of the festival they are entitled and obliged to uphold the integrity of the festival ? (integrity ? ) They later changed stories saying they were left with no other choice due to Kentville's inability to prove they can successfully host such a large Parade event, ( Kentville has hosted this parade for the last 85 years ), and also because the people in charge of Grand Street Parade were unprofessional, indifferent and uncooperative ?

And so it came to be that a newly elected Mayor and a new Council in its infancy were suddenly confronted with perhaps the most serious challenge ever to be faced by the town of Kentville since the tragic loss of their two major transportation sources, that being the loss of the railway in 1989, followed by the shocking loss of aviation in 2014 when the Town CAO and the Warden and Council conspired to close out Waterville municipal Airport and evict all businesses and tenants ? This new and very serious challenge came in the form of a surprise and pernicious attack and attempt to hijack Kentville's most beloved local commercial attraction ? The unexpected surprise action came from an unfamiliar and unfriendly source that appeared to be inconsiderate, disrespectful, and even a tad opportunistic when considering that Kentville just finished installing a brand new rookie Mayor and Council ? When the newly elected Mayor of Kentville was suddenly swarmed by news of so many extreme actions already taken against her town's best interests, a shocked and disbelieving Mayor Snow said when speaking with local media that she was overwhelmed, heartbroken and called the actions unprecedented, disrespectful and unacceptable ? Everyone seemed to agree that an attack on Kentville's most popular and well known outdoor event without courtesy of an invitation, negotiation, inclusion, consultation or approval is unacceptable ? Needless to say, the biggest losers of all were the good citizens of Kentville who have contributed so much over the last 90 years going back to the thirties and forties in times when the CNR train brought many Parade patrons to stay at the Cornwallis Inn ? Over the years the Town has invested enormous amounts of its time, energy and town resources into the creation of a world-famous event that draws tens of thousands of visitors.

All Valley towns take great pride and look forward to their individual town festivals and especially their yearly parade. The citizens of Kentville are no different. Towns like Kingston, Hantsport, Wolfville, Windsor, Berwick, Canning, Greenwood etc. will never have to worry about someone hijacking their yearly community parade or otherwise taking it away ? However, sadly, the citizens of Kentville now face the troubling prospect of a possible loss of their annual town parade without notice at any time and of losing many years of time, energy, town resources, manpower and all of the other general services and contributions made during the past 88 years that it has taken to create this world class event ?

The current 2017 ABF board of Directors is led by Angela Pelton and Alxys Chamberlain (Queen Annapolisa 2015), with Barb Madic, Heidi Scotney-Kinsman, John Patterson, Katie Gordon, Krista Morine, Linda Keddy, Logan Morse, Sarah Griffiths, and Steffany Cox-Lingard ?

  

No Smoking in KVille, but we encourage you to drink, gamble and smoke pot all you want ? Maders tobacconist in downtown Kentville celebrating 50 years in business,,

www.flickr.com/photos/74039487@N02/9344935900

  

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ABF 2023 :

  

Shocking news from ABF,

  

* There's been a stunning development at ABF. *

 

Apparently in a new younger generation there are those who harbor resentment towards our nations history, for English colonialism, and even for the Monarchy ? Other minority groups have voiced discontent over the diversity and inclusion issue ? And so it seems that the current ABF Board of Directors has listened to the concerns and complaints of a few small minority groups while apparently ignoring and excluding the overwhelming majority of Valley residents ? And it appears that this current Board of Directors chose to resolve discontent by simply moving to implement and execute the nuclear option and final solution ? And therefore after a highly successful lengthy run of 87 consecutive years in a row, the highly anticipated, very popular, family oriented, inclusive and diverse, multi village Queen Annapolisa and Apple Blossom Princess Pageant along with the prestigious Royal Coronation crowning ceremonies held in Wolfville have all been terminated forever by this current board of Directors ?

  

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-----------------------It's The End of an Era-----------------------------

  

"We are such stuff as dreams are made on, and our little life is rounded with a sleep."

  

Annapolis Valley Apple Blossom Festival 2023 - ABF Board of Directors have announced they are making drastic new changes in format and making more devastating cut-backs to the annual People's Festival ? Recent concerns over ceremony, symbolism, monarchy and past colonialism, along with the ongoing inclusion and diversity issue relative to the Queen Annapolisa contest, as well as the current Trudeau Liberal political environment in Canada, may have all influenced a new generation of ABF Officials to radically update the historic Queen Annapolisa and Apple Blossom Princess pageants in order to bring the Valley up to modern standards that they believe more relevant to current times ? And so it seems that Directors must have held an extremely private 'think tank' and without consideration, consultation, or bothering to invite or gain approval from long time participating Valley communities, Officials must have decided that rather than trouble themselves any further with the issue, why not just take the easy way out and simply get rid of this history ? And so it seems that a decision must have been made, in a very private way, to enforce the life ending final solution ? And so, as of 2023 the iconic 87 year old Apple Blossom Princess contest and pageant is to be shut down and terminated forever ? This act has been carried out without public input, inclusion, involvement, attendance or approval, and now one of the longest running, popular, highly anticipated, inclusive and diverse family events to ever benefit the Valley is over ?

This cold act of finality will end the 88 year reign of her royal Heinous Queen Annapolisa and it will terminate all further participation of the 7 to 10 Apple Blossom Princess contestants and child attendants representing 7 to 10 local Valley communities ? It also ends appearances by the beautiful hand crafted award winning Princess floats that are the focal highlight of Grand Street Parade and will signal the end of the ultra glamorous Queen and Ladies-in-waiting Crowning ceremonies gala that is held and televised each year from Acadia University in Wolfville ? This will end the popular community Princess Tea events, the Royal Party visitations to local Schools, hospitals and old folks homes that were so welcome and appreciated by Students, Seniors, shut-ins and the disabled ? And this means the end of Royal Party appearances at the Kentville Children's Parade, the Memorial Park Friday night open air Rock concert and fireworks, and Royal party attendances at many other events held annually throughout the Valley and Province ?

It appears now that current ABF Officials led by President Logan Morse along with Kentville town rep Lindsey Young not only interrupted the Pageant in 2022 when they temporarily postponed it, but have now in 2023 moved to terminate the prestigious event forever explaining that their decision was made to improve, include, modernize and evolve the fampus pageant ? This final act of termination ends almost 90 years of royal pageantry and also leaves a huge gap in the Festival itself ? It also negatively affects the nearby Valley communities who participate and always enter contestants in the Pageant ? The end of this important multiple community event and the taking away of the better half and Star of the Apple Blossom Festival brings forth the question of what replacement is planned, and what are local towns and villages that always play a major role in both the Queen and Princess competition suppose to do now ? And what about Valley youth and childhood dreams of one day becoming a child attendant or an Apple Blossom Princess or even a Queen ?

You have to marvel at the level of disrespect shown by these new generation Officials who have appointed themselves as the ones that will end the Pageant and then think that Valley residents are stupid enough to believe that by cancelling and taking away a long running 90 year old event they have in some perverted way of thinking moved the Valley forward or improved and modernized anything ? It seems far more likely that they have taken a giant leap backwards and robbed the Valley people of a much beloved, multi community, inclusive and live local family production that has always been the most anticipated highlight of the year for the past almost 90 consecutive years ?

Why current ABF Management, who claim to be stewards in charge and responsible for the promotion and presentation of this event, appear unable to perform their duties or to perform the job they're paid to do and do what their predecessors have always done so well each and every year for the past 87 years, often in far more trying circumstances and in far less prosperous times, is difficult to comprehend ? And you have to wonder, Whatever happened to the # 1 rule in business that says that if you can't do your job because of your inexperience, immaturity, inability, personal bias, laziness, or just plain stupidity, then,, YOU'RE ALL FIRED ! (and a Class action recovery suit may be forthcoming ?)

  

An Identity Crisis ;

  

Can an identity crisis be looming in the town of Kentville ?

  

While a cultural genocide goes on in Kentville, the Mayor's downtown business back yard is being brought up to a never before seen pristine condition ?

  

A proud and neighborly salt of the earth working class community with generous hard working friendly citizens and a rich historic Railroad, agriculture, food and farming background is losing many of its longtime local traditions, themes and trademarks while elected Town officials, many of them new arrivals just stand still, watch and might even enable ? After having always been identified as the main Provincial railroad center ever since the old Dominion Rail days dating back to 1869, the town has since lost all passenger and freight train rail service in and out including a modern passenger Dayliner service that traveled back and forth to Halifax every day ? And after the railway shut down it seemed they couldn't clear out the brand new train station, dig up tracks and demolish the old roundhouse fast enough ? And so now, in what seems to be a cruel mockery, the only visible signs left in Kentville from past glory years of what had been the largest, most important and active railroad center west of Halifax is now just an aged weather beaten hand painted mural etched on the fading paint of one of the downtown business buildings ?

Sadly, the end of the railway wasn't to be the only loss of a major transportation link to be absorbed by the people of Kentville ? The Town was suddenly left even more isolated from the outside World when Kings County Council ordered the long time Airport to get out for no sane or rational reason when they had done nothing wrong and had no where else to go ? And so a fully operational well known and well established municipal airport, as well as a popular Canadian sky diving facility, and an internationally known long time pilot training licensing academy, and many private aircraft owned by local owners, and numerous other well established aviation businesses were gone and only to be replaced with an empty dirt field full of weeds ? The Council's cruel eviction has also left our young Camp Aldershot Air Cadets without a base of operations, and so the next generation of Kentville youth will now have to grow up without their long standing aviation training and education facility thanks to Warden Brothers and her cohorts ?

And so it had seemed that a Warden who lives in another town Kingston and a duly elected group of officials who don't even live in the area were all congratulating themselves on a brilliant business move after they were able to quickly end the long life of a historic local Aviation facility that had taken decades to build and establish ? And so all that remains of this once thriving aviation Aeropark is a barren field where unsupervised Michelin kids ride bikes and dodge dandelions that poke heads thru a deteriorating asphalt runway that had once served as the landing platform for private and commercial aircraft to fly in and out on a daily basis ? And to add salt to this wound, their senseless forced eviction and massive loss of revenue to the local economy was hailed by the prestigious Ivany Report Committee as being a bold and brilliant business decision to greatly improve and benefit the local area ?

After months of facing homelessness with an uncertain future, a few of the evicted tenants found sites elsewhere and relocated at their own expense to start all over again, while others just quit, and others were finally redirected to a new location in Greenwood (which just happened by chance to be Kings Council County Warden's home riding) ? And so, in the end a devastating loss for Kentville and the entire local area became a windfall for Kingston Greenwood, and, Kentville was left to carry on without either a Railway or an Airport ?

 

When the original Kentville KCA town School closed down, Kentville lost its high school and all high school students were left without a home town school ? They were now to be bused to the nearby town of Canning ? This left only the Grade 1 to 8 age groups now able to identify with Kentville as a home school, a situation that still exists today ? There is no longer a movie theater in Kentville as the downtown movie theater has been closed forever ? The very popular Edge sports bar, eatery and pool hall has also closed down and never replaced ? Kentville's Harvey's Hamburgers drive thru closed down and it also wasn't replaced ? The longtime bowling alley in New Minas was sold to developers, then torn down, and replaced with a business office complex ? We lost our local salvage, reclamation and disposal site in South Alton when the Provincial Government ordered it to be shut down, but the same folks who shut it down never offered to replace it with anything and they left our community without this crucial service ? One day a portion of roof blew off the town funeral home and it has never re-opened since leaving the town with only one such establishment ? And, just as the citizens of Kentville were being shocked to learn that both the historic Apple Blossom Princess and the Queen Annapolisa pageants were to be terminated after 87 consecutive years, there was at the same time an all age Drag Queen show in preparation to appear at the Kings Arms Pub in a total flip flop scenario from the popular Irish Rovers or Scottish pipers that most Kentville citizens identify with at this time of year when they play at the pub ? Numerous local restaurants and many small businesses have come and gone - mostly gone ? After ridiculous Government rules and regulations, Maders is now barely able to hang on after 50 years of serving downtown shoppers ? Kentville main town supermarket Jasons IGA had a fire forcing him to close down for over a year leaving no supermarket to provide groceries for local citizens ? The ever popular multi venue Wandlyn Inn burned down and all of its venues were lost to the community ? The Inn was never replaced after the fire and now there's just a fast food MacDonald's on the old property as a replacement for the lost hotel rooms, the indoor swimming pool, whirlpool and sauna, the nightclub, dual convention centers and dual restaurants offered for years by the Wandlyn Inn ?

 

The traditional town sponsored July 1st Canada Day ceremonies featuring fun, food, speeches and local entertainment that was always held each year at th Town wading Pool was curtailed by the Town due to budget considerations, and so if you wanted to enjoy July 1st entertainment or fireworks you must go elsewhere to New Minas, Hantsport or Berwick ? Access to water supply is always one of the most identifiable utility service entitlements provided by a town ? Billions are currently being spent by the Canadian taxpayer to provide First Nations people with free safe water ? Yet Kentville water commission charges the customer 10,000 dollars just to turn town owned water on at the roadside and then leave ? After this 10 G surcharge is forced on the new customer he will still have to pay for yard trenching, pipe laying and household plumbing work ? And then the KWC's valued new customer will be rewarded with a regular water bill delivered to his residence ???

They have even managed to take away Kentville's most famous of all and instantly identifiable town landmark in the hotel name of Cornwallis Inn ? Cornwallis Inn is a well known trademark hotel name that has become synonymous World wide with the name of Kentville and name that represents a multitude of fond memories for many residents ? It was hard to understand why the Town would allow such an important heritage site name to ever be changed, and it was also hard to understand why a previous Town of Kentville planning dept would ever allow numerous subsidized low rental apartment units to be built onto the side of such a famous Town centerpiece and that also blocked the access lane to get to the rear parking lot ? The Cornwallis Inn will always be one of the Valleys greatest treasured landmarks and deserving of protected Canadian heritage site status ?

They have also changed the well known and immediately identifiable names of Kentville Streets and also the name of the local traffic bridge traversing the Cornwallis River ? And so now many citizens and delivery drivers do not know what they're talking about when they use these new names and this can be especially hard on Seniors who can become confused by unnecessary name changes made to long time used accustomed names ? It can create a safety hazard ?

In 2017 ABF Directors attempted to extract Kentville's Grand Street Parade away from its home in Kentville and give it to a different town ? The outraged citizens were then forced to claw and battle just to get their own local parade returned back to them after hosting it for the last 87 years ? And, in yet another huge loss and giant step backwards that same year, ABF decided to cease and desist with all Wednesday, Thursday and weekend games, food, music, displays, amusements, local student displays and performances, etc. etc. always held at Memorial Park during the Apple Blossom festival week ? No explanation was given, no replacement or any apology was ever offered by the Town for such a major loss to Kentville public outdoor entertainment ? Kentville has now lost their most identifiable of all citizens that being their beloved Apple Blossom Princess Kentville, when a newcomer generation of Town and ABF Officials had showed uncommon disrespect and disregard for tradition when presuming themselves to be the generation entitled to end the iconic Queen Annapolisa and Apple Blossom Princess competition after 88 years ? This meant that all public Royal party appearances normally made by Queen Annapolisa and the Royal Party including the Princess Teas, the appearance at Kentville Children's Parade, Friday night concert, Wolfville Coronation ceremonies, starting the fireworks, leading the Parade, all Royal visitations to schools, shut-ins, Seniors, and all of their hospital attendances will no longer be taking place ?

In 2022 the Kentville Grand Street Parade was understandably very limited after the 2 previous cancellations due to Covi but unfortunately this year's 2023 effort wasn't much better ? The contribution and wonderful diversity of many nearby Valley communities from Windsor to Digby was excluded this year and was no longer included in this Parade ? Apple Blossom royalty and all Princess floats were also no longer included ? Many residents expressed extreme disappointment when their beloved Apple Blossom Princess Kentville and her child attendant were no longer included in their own home Town Parade ? It seemed that Kentville had lost its most identifiable citizen and a wonderful Town Ambassador who always carried out important official Town duties by representing the town with beauty, charm, grace, dignity and talent whenever and wherever she visited ?

 

The long running Friday night rock concert held at Memorial park has been downgraded into a cheap affair only offering some of the regular local entertainment, a few kindergarten bouncy castles and food wagons selling twenty dollar hamburgers, (gone are the days of the dollar dawg ) ? And there is a strange vacancy felt down there now ever since the highlight of the evening Royal Party visitation and great music supplied by Eddy's Basement are no longer included ? And there was even a noted decrease in the quality of the fireworks which btw are no longer started by Queen Annapolisa during Royal Party visitation to the Park following Coronation ceremonies in Wolfville ? Inflation stressed locals were also charged out of pocket to attend the downtown Saturday evening outdoor ABF street dance ?

And so, citizens of Kentville are frustrated with so many cutbacks, cancellations and closures never to be replaced once they are taken away ? Both of the Provincial Railway and the municipal Airport are now permanently closed and even Acadia Van lines inter provincial no longer stops ? The Wandlyn Inn complex and all of its popular hotel and restaurant services were never replaced ? Devastating cut backs to Apple Blossom Festival week and cancellations made to the all week long public entertainment held at Memorial Park reduced to a boring one night Friday night event followed Saturday by a Royal-less Grand Street parade that lasted less than an hour ? The loss of a home High School for Teenage students, the loss of a key funeral home, the loss of the Pool Hall, the ongoing absence of a movie theater, the loss of Harveys drive thru, the loss of one of 2 Tim Hortons and their foreign hiring policy, the loss of the dt pizza parlor, the loss of the local fruit and vegetable market, the absence of a 7/11 convenience store, the closure of the bakery, and also the loss of the local disposal site when there was no replacement ever offered by the same Province that had shut it down ? And there was the shocking elimination of the Apple Blossom Princess event and an end to the prestigious Acadia U Coronation ceremonies in Wolfville ? The sacrilegious change of name to the internationally known name Cornwallis Inn symbolically married to the Town name Kentville and cherished by local residents ? And the serious shortage of tourist facilities after the Wandlyn hotel complex burned down and the Town lost many hospitality, business, tourist, restaurant, hotel, night club, convention and recreational venues have all taken a toll ?

But now, in more recent issues, we are seeing more and more small businesses from all over the Valley that not only provide local employment but serve as popular meet and greet gathering spots for friends and neighbors, now completely changing hands when taken over by outsiders that have not come from Halifax or from N.S. nor even Canada but from another Continent ? This includes replacing management as well as workers and apparently controlling the hiring policy in many long time Valley fast food, gas, and coffee businesses ? And it seems that whenever shopping at the Milne Court Petro-Can, or New Minas Ultramar, KVille Ultramar, KFC, or Mary Browns, the DQ, or the Burger King, or Subway, or any of the 3 Timmies , or Walmart, Needs, or when receiving a parcel from amazon, or paying the bill at many other stores it feels like you're suddenly in a foreign country ? Many newcomer hired employees are new to Canada so don't bother asking for directions, and they are not familiar with the local currency and so it is advisable to count your change if paying by cash ? There are also some worries about the temporary foreign workers program being unfair and even racist, and there is worry about nepotism in the hiring of foreign employees when many of our local residents can't find a local job any more ? A major local employer, Eassons Trucking, also seems to have been affected by the current influx of foreign workers with some reports of untrained, unlicensed, unqualified, unsafe (and Government subsidized) drivers behind the wheel, and there are rumors of certain units with multiple drivers that have had a hole drilled in the floor of the sleeper cabin to accommodate a long piece of ABS plumbing pipe used to transfer raw shidzen sewage on a one way trip from the truck cabin interior directly down to the open highway below to avoid any pit stops at the Big Stop ?

Major concerns were also shown over the recently held Kentville municipal election, when it appeared that many of the candidates didn't know much about Kentville and seemed to ignore the Town's important long time traditions, customs, character and past history ? Some candidates had even naively described Kentville as a kind of idealistic, carefree, blissful, happy Who-ville storybook fairy tale village where jolly munchkins frolic up and down the colorful cobblestone streets bordered by quaint shops, boutiques and fancy eateries ?

Kentville did elect a new Mayor who is also a new local business owner, who must now tackle the current town crisis ? However, it appears that he has befriended and could even be being advised by the ex County Warden Brothers who resides in the Kingston/Greenwood area and doesn't give a squat about Kentville and previously sold out Kentville when leading the charge to expropriate the municipal Airport, popular skydiving academy, international flight training academy and many other successful aviation businesses at Waterville ?

The new Mayors' New Year's message seemed to focus on congratulating himself on the enlargement of the size of his downtown retail store located on the recently totally renovated Webster Street, and he expressed personal happiness over the new (taxpayer funded) installation of a brand new double wide sidewalk in front of his store ? However he seemed to leave out a few nagging town issues like the towns current youth unemployment, the racial profile hiring going on at Hortons, the fentanyl and opioid crisis, downtown vandalism, street people and homelessness, the ending of Princess Kentville, the lost revenue due to the cancellation of the Queen Annapolisa pageant, and the deterioration of the now Royal-less Grand street Parade ? There was also no mention of issues like the problem of there being no place to stay and eat for tourists who want to stay in Kentville, the long running need for a new indoor town recreation facility (no one wants to continue getting their daily exercise by hiking down crude outdoor trails while attacked by mosquitos and witnessing homeless users shoot up in the privacy of the forest) , and also the current housing crisis and sudden increase in the cost to rent, the alarming increase in downtown business foreclosures and bankruptcies, and a desperate need to honor Kentville's glorious past railroading history with a museum and outdoor train and locomotive display of some sort ? And many are alarmed at the mistreatment of Senior citizens in Grand Street Parade when seen perched precariously aboard an unstable, stop and go, unsheltered, jerking motion, no sided open vehicle without restraining devices, water or protection from the sun in a float designed to hold only the Apple Blossom Princess Kentville and her child attendant ? There's also the pressing need to build a Town high school for Kentville teens, and the complaints about the Towns removal of many long time public entertainment events and Town failure to provide new public outdoor entertainment exceeding the grade school level ? There was also some controversy over the hanging up of the biggest pride flag money can buy hung over the main entrance of the honorary heritage site Cornwallis Inn ? And of course, many residents are concerned over the serious Town drainage problem discovered after recent town flooding ? There was also shock when the Provincial Government forced the local reclamation and disposal site to permanently close down but never offer to replace it and just left shocked citizens without this vital service ? And, there remains a demand for an inquiry into the exploitation of many vulnerable customers when, unlike the Indians, they are charged a five figure fee by Kentville water commission just to turn their water on at the road and offered no further help ? And there are new concerns over the formation of an exclusive kind of Ontarioville newcomer type club that is gradually establishing itself to be its own independent town within a town ? There were also concerns put forth by many local drivers over this years Spring pothole epidemic making some streets unfit to drive on (at a time when a brand new double lane sidewalk installed in front of Phinneys was smooth as a baby's bum), and a Town refusal to help drivers with their expensive auto repairs caused by unmarked dangerous potholes ? And there were many complaints about the inconvenience felt by local area residents when ultra slow motion repairs on Canaan Ave moved at three legged turtle race speed causing a vital access route to remain closed to traffic, incl emergency vehicles, for many many Months, (unlike the speedy workmanship and high priority given to a street beautification program in front of Phinneys) ?

Adding to this, many citizens of Kentville and all veterans were extremely concerned and did not appreciate the disrespect shown when ( due to a drop of rain ) Town and newly elected organizers cancelled this year's Military march-on and (the best in area) honorary Remembrance Day ceremonies that are always held outdoors at the Memorial Cenotaph on Park Street and moved it indoors ?

 

And so, can it be time to stop come from away newcomer mentality, and to make it mandatory that all candidates bidding on these important Town governing positions must be born, raised and reside in the town of Kentville in an effort to preserve, protect, retain and respect the unique character, history, diversity, identity and many longtime community traditions that make Kentville ?

  

OUCH ? ( can someone please remove the daggers from our back ), Et tu, Warden Brothers and u tu Leo ? March 10th 2014 - A Date That Will Live on in Infamy - Warden Brothers, (Greenwood riding) and the Kings County Council use a calculated forced eviction to shut down the Waterville Airport aviation complex and then relocate some components to the Kingston/Greenwood area ?

www.flickr.com/photos/74039487@N02/28588465413/in/album-7...

 

the genocide of a Valley history and culture ? The long proud history of all 87 past Queen Annapolisa and Apple Blossom Princess winners has been removed from the official Annapolis Valley Apple Blossom Festival website ? The special site page that honored and was dedicated to all previous Queen Annapolisa winners 1933 thru 2019 has been taken down and has apparently been replaced with jumbo size smiling portraits of the newcomer ABF President and officials who have taken over and pretty well ruined the historic internationally known Festival ?

Meet the newcomer directors,

www.appleblossom.com/about/

 

How dare They ? Kentville IS the Cornwallis Inn and the Cornwallis Inn IS Kentville . If you are to google the 2 words Cornwallis Inn you will get over 600,000 entries and almost all of them are married to the word Kentville.. (what a great promotional tool) . The world famous Cornwallis Inn is the source of many fond memories for local and Valley residents.. "It was the centre of everything’: The past and present of Kentville’s iconic Cornwallis Inn"

www.saltwire.com/nova-scotia/lifestyles/it-was-the-centre...

 

Kentville's own Trash Canyon - toughest S.O.B. wrastler to ever come outta the KVille !

www.flickr.com/photos/74039487@N02/53939211581

 

Trash Canyon - If u go away,

www.dailymotion.com/video/x8zb9u0

.

  

Apple Blossom Festival news updates :

  

Logan Morse and the newcomer ABF Board of Directors break the hearts of Valley families especially the Children when they move to terminate the historic long running Queen Annapolisa and Apple Blossom Princess Pageant after 88 years ? Directors in charge show no remorse, while boasting that their bold action was needed to improve, evolve and bring the pageant up to their modern standards ? www.pressreader.com/canada/annapolis-valley-register/2023...

 

May 26, 2023 - We Are the Ones. An unusual amount of disrespect disregard and arrogance is shown by newcomers as they cancel the historic 88 year old Valley Peoples Pageant without notice, consideration, consultation or approval ? ABF officials have apparently proclaimed themselves as the only generation in 88 years that will interrupt and permanently end 88 years of wonderful world class multi Valley village Queen Annapolisa and Apple Blossom Princess pageantry ? www.cbc.ca/news/canada/nova-scotia/apple-blossom-festival...

 

Annapolis Valley families are in shock and children cry when learning that their beloved Queen Annapolisa Pageant has been cancelled without notice, consultation, consideration or compassion ? Newcomer Directors say they are taking bold action to improve, evolve and modernize the historic Annapolis Valley Apple Blossom Festival ? www.saltwire.com/atlantic-

 

Air Show Atlantic Inc.- Valley residents have lost a long time major yearly family entertainment event when the annual ABF Greenwood Airshow is terminated and will be no more. Fast forward to Aug 24, 2024, and, to corporate greed ? Corporation Air Show Atlantic Inc. now charges big bucks to see taxpayer owned aircraft on taxpayer owned property in a vastly inferior airshow with far less aircraft ? They don't have the courtesy to offer a discount Seniors ticket category for Valley Senior citizens ?

www.flickr.com/photos/74039487@N02/52345513615

 

How dare They ? Kentville IS the Cornwallis Inn and the Cornwallis Inn IS Kentville - If you were to google the 2 words Cornwallis Inn you will get over 600,000 entries with almost all of them married to the word Kentville.. (what a great promotional tool) . The world famous Cornwallis Inn is the source of so many fond memories for all local and Valley residents.. "It was the centre of everything’: The past and present of Kentville’s iconic Cornwallis Inn"

www.saltwire.com/nova-scotia/lifestyles/it-was-the-centre...

 

Kentville identity crisis. Help, Is there a Superhero anywhere out there that can save Kentville from the newcomer agenda ? www.flickr.com/photos/74039487@N02/54418705157/in/album-7...

 

The 2017 Grand Street Parade - Has Kentville once again been the target for exploitation ? After Warden Brothers, (Greenwood ) and Liberal MP L Glavine (Kingston) had all but hijacked Waterville Airport before relocating it to their own home riding in Kingston/Greenwood area, it seems that the town of Kentville must face yet another attack from the Kingston area when Alxys Chamberlain, Apple Blossom Princess Kingston, and ABF Directors attempt to take yet another major source of revenue and another major attraction away from the town of Kentville ?

Et tu, Madama Chamberlain ? The unconscionable attempted hijacking and subsequent recovery of Kentvilles's most beloved yearly event ?

www.flickr.com/photos/74039487@N02/18506181065

 

2023 Kentville Grand Street Parade - A disregard for safety of Seniors is shown as unrestrained Senior citizens are precariously perched atop an unsheltered, open sided, stop and go, large unstable jerking motion moving platform ?

www.flickr.com/photos/74039487@N02/53900780519/in/album-7...

 

Exploiting a past Queen Annapolisa in a photo op ? ?Looks can be deceiving as Politicians attending the official opening ceremony of the 2023 Apple Blossom Festival pretend there's still a Pageant when knowing full well that they have terminated the Queen Annapolisa and Apple Blossom Princesses and it will no longer be a part of the Festival after 88 years ? www.flickr.com/photos/74039487@N02/53755100811/in/album-7...

 

The 2023 Kentville Grand Street Parade - What happened to the Trudeau demand for inclusion and diversity ?

Newcomer Parade organizers defy and snub the Trudeau Liberal Government's wish for diversity and inclusion in Canada ? Many nearby local Valley towns and villages are not included in this year's parade ? This exclusion also means a denial of the wonderful diversity always provided by these local towns and communities ? Where is Canning, Digby, Annapolis Royal, Hantsport Greenwood, Windsor ? Where's our Queen Annapolisa ? Where's the Apple Blossom Princesses and where's all of the individual Town floats including the Princess Kentville royal float ? To view complete 2023 Kentville Grand Street Parade press here, www.dailymotion.com/video/x8lchie www.dailymotion.com/video/x8lchie

 

Facebook, Friends of Kentville - The site Administrator, a new arrival from PEI, says she wants to see Kentville as the queerest town in all of Nova Scotia ? www.facebook.com/groups/2588266877982288

 

Will a drag Queen replace an apple blossom Queen in Kentville ? www.nsbuzz.ca/life/kentville-all-ages-drag-show-draws-pro...

 

Nov 16 2023 - Apple Blossom Princesses call for a return of Queen Annapolisa,

www.saltwire.com/atlantic-canada/communities/former-apple...

 

The Town of Kentville has cut back and cancelled many hours and even entire days of long time traditional public outdoor entertainment at Memorial Park that was always a standard part of Apple Blossom Festival week ?

www.flickr.com/photos/74039487@N02/52094784785

 

A medley of guest Tribute bands seen at Memorial Park Kentville that were always free of charge in the past when performing at the Festival : Petty Larceny, Fleetwod Mix, Keep the Faith, Stones Tribute, Green River Revival, Viscious, Eddy's Basement, Matt Minglewood,

www.dailymotion.com/video/x5hqti9

 

Corporate greed shown by newcomer organizing committee ? Instead of providing a free guest Tribute band for patrons as per normal at the annual free Memorial Park Friday night concert, it will now cost 50.00 pp to see a 'Queen tribute band' performance. that's 50.00 per ticket in 2025 ? acadiau.universitytickets.com/

 

40 $ to take your lady to a outdoor street dance without a live band ? Town of Kentville organizers rip off citizens right at Apple Blossom Festival time ? Cold-hearted Capitalism is shown by the Town and the newcomer organizing committee as citizens are burdened with a twenty dollar per person out of pocket expense just to attend an outdoor street dance held outdoors on taxpayer owned street property during Apple Blossom Festival week ? www.flickr.com/photos/74039487@N02/54546051832/in/photost...

 

They've Ruined It ? Millions of dollars in revenue has been wiped out ? Our great Festival is no longer even recognizable ? How could anyone take a world class event and turn it into something stupid ? President Erica Gillis has to be the worst ever ?

www.flickr.com/photos/74039487@N02/54418705157/in/album-7...

 

Directors Erica Gillis, www.appleblossom.com/about/

Mayor Andrew Zebian www.facebook.com/andrewzebian

 

2025 Kentville Grand Street Parade - Is this a joke ? A low entree, bare minimum 45-minute Kentville Grand Street Parade this year ? Zero in large marching street bands and majorettes other than the regular RCMP (mini version) marching unit, no Sottish pipers or pipe bands, zero in Apple Blossom Royalty and no famous royal floats, Most of the regular nearby Valley village participants not there, no horse and wagons, no armaments, soldiers, marching bands or displays from Aldershot or Greenwood, etc etc, ? And yet Guest parade announcer proclaims in quote @ 29:17, " this parade is the largest in Canada, - it's the longest with the largest route and the most entries. " Wha-a-a-t ? Where did that come from and what's she talking about ?

www.youtube.com/watch?v=rQuaIdrQi00

 

A new Apple Blossom Princess now occupies a makeshift bench that has been mounted on board the historic Kentville Apple Blossom parade float in the Grande Street Parade. It seems that the newcomer Mayor of Kentville has replaced our 88 year old Apple Blossom Princess Kentville on her royal float ?

' Somebody get that King a crown and sceptre '

www.flickr.com/photos/74039487@N02/54557663677/in/dateposted

 

They've ruined it part 2 - Millions in town revenue have been lost as Parade attendance shrinks to all time low ? May 31st, 2025 Kentville Grand Street Parade has gone from 100,000 down to 10,000 - They've ruined the Festival, and the Parade too ? www.flickr.com/photos/74039487@N02/54568017261/in/photost....

www.facebook.com/avabf

 

British colonialism - ABF Directors may disapprove and terminate the Queen Annapolisa pageant and Apple Blossom Princess competition but nevertheless Valley residents will continue to admire, support, respect and remain fond of the British Monarchy. Valley citizens were delighted to hear that his Majesty King Charles III and Queen Camilla are coming for a royal visit to Canada on May 26 and 27, 2025. This year's incomplete and now 'Royalty-less' ABF starts on the 28th, www.cbc.ca/news/politics/king-charles-canada-visit-1.7524946

 

the genocide of our Valley history and culture ? The long proud history of past Queen Annapolisa and Apple Blossom Princess winners has been erased from the official Annapolis Valley Apple Blossom Festival website ? The special site history page dedicated to previous Queen Annapolisa winners 1933 thru 2019 has been taken down and replaced with jumbo size portraits of the newcomer ABF President and officials ? www.appleblossom.com/history/past-queens

Meet the directors,

www.appleblossom.com/about/

 

May 29th, 2026, Kentville Memorial Park, the ABF Friday night concert, ( Can the good ole days of dollar dogs and bargain Big 8 soda pops be over) ? High level security protocol issued for an evening of food wagons and kids bouncy castles ? ( must have taken up most of their budget at the sacrifice of bringing in some quality outside live entertainment) ? Town calls in outside police to reinforce local Kentville officers, cordons off the entire ground zero event perimeter with road blocks, street barricades and manned guard check posts for high level traffic control that, unfortunately, forces patrons including seniors, the disabled, toddlers, and Mothers carrying babies to park and walk a fair distance to get to the park gates ? Also, in the past years the concert always brought in special outside guest rock bands, and featured interesting games, demonstrations and displays, and there was a visit from the Queen Annapolisa Royal party following the prestigious coronation ceremony in Wolfville, However, unfortunately now the concert appears to have deteriorated into some kind of a Children's outdoor romper room type family show featuring food trucks, inflatable air bouncy castles and a local band as the featured guest main stage star performer ? There's not much to do or see for those exceeding elementary grade school level other than to maybe purchase some food from a food truck charging upscale restaurant prices to then dine on a paper plate using plastic utensils while standing in a crowd of unruly kids and being lustfully observed by nearby hungry saliva drooling pet dogs leashed to owners ? However, thanks to the heightened security and crowd control there was a report of a parking violator being successfully apprehended and a runaway pet was also captured and returned to its owner ? www.flickr.com/photos/74039487@N02/54558198569/in/photost...

 

Oct 4th, 2025 - The Kentville Harvest Festival is held annually in Centre Square :

A disappointing effort this year that didn't include many of the long time traditional favourites like the family horse-drawn hay wagon ride or the pumpkin people scarecrow making class, contest and the live group demo ? Didn't see much of a showing from the Valley harvest, Valley livestock or the local Valley farmer ? Many of the usual Harvest Festival standards that had always been featured in past festivals were no longer here but are instead replaced by business kiosks selling commercial merchandise unrelated to the harvest ? Some bouncy castles were brought in along with some high-priced food trucks ?

 

Upgrade 2025 ? A photo taken from in front of Phinney's dept store downtown Kentville after major renovations to double its size gave Phinneys the second largest downtown store front display window area next only to the NSLC liquor Store : A massive Town expenditure was budgeted this year for a major upgrade to the Mayor's downtown business backyard as Webster Street gets a complete 100 % total beautification makeover with new installations of street paving, paint and signage etc, new double sidewalks both sides, driveway entrances, and new curb and gutter both sides ? All other streets surrounding the Webster Street downtown area business block also upgraded including Aberdeen Street (twice), Cornwallis Street and Main Street ?

www.flickr.com/photos/74039487@N02/54835340734/in/photost...

 

A Koncerned Kentvillian must ask, " why is it every time you gas up at Milne Court Petro-Can, New Minas Ultramar, KVille Ultramar and now the Big Stop, or go to the KFC for chicken, or Mary Browns, or the Burger King, or Subway, or all of the 3 Timmies for coffee, or Walmart, or Needs, or receive a parcel from amazon, or attend a cash register post to pay a bill at many other stores, it feels like you're suddenly in a foreign country ? " What has happened to all of the friendly locals that used to hold these positions and was one of the main reasons that we frequented these local establishments ? www.flickr.com/photos/74039487@N02/54418705157/

Kody Bloise . Liberal Party

 

Kentville's own Trash Canyon - toughest S.O.B. wrastler to ever come outta the KVille !

www.flickr.com/photos/74039487@N02/53939211581

 

Trash Canyon - If u go away,

www.dailymotion.com/video/x8zb9u0

  

George Orwell's dark prediction has just come true.

London England, Apr 22,2026 - The British Parliament has just enacted legislation to install a form of Orwellian Totalitarian rule into the current democratic English society that allows for the installment of Government social control in the form of mandatory lifetime probationary orders to be placed on certain selected unwary citizens without asking their permission who will then be state monitored from birth to death to insure compliance is met on the legal lifetime probation order that is attached to them ? Rob Cunningham and his Cancer Society are boldly crusading for residents of his democratic home country of Canada to lose their current freedom and be forced into this same type of Orwellian social control system ? www.ctvnews.ca/world/article/uk-agrees-ban-on-cigarette-s...

  

Dec 13th, 2025 - this could be a bit rich ? The top doctor for Nova Scotia is advertising smoking for the liquor store ? Dr. Robert Strang Chief Medical Officer of Health now appearing in TV ads that endorse the (safe) smoking of pot while he represents the Provincially owned liquor stores ? It's also a bit rich that Rob Cunningham and his Cancer Society don't appear to have a problem with these smoking ads ?

www.facebook.com/watch/?v=4190201767960744

  

Closing down museums, tearing down 88 yr old historic statues, the vandalizing of precious artifacts and the changing of historic street and heritage site names are all slowly erasing a peoples' proud history ? March 04, 2026 - Halifax Nova Scotia - P. C. Provincial Government downplays the importance of preserving the Provinces history and culture, and dismisses those who strive to preserve, protect, honor and expand it ? Artists, cultural and heritage workers, arts organizers, and their allies rally in Halifax over the latest Tim Houston PC worst in history 130 M cuts to the essential funding needed for arts, culture, tourism, and heritage sector programs ?

www.youtube.com/watch?v=XQjKntnV55c

www.flickr.com/photos/74039487@N02/55129846907/in/dateposted

 

A cultural genocide is going on in Kentville ?

Why always Kentville ? Now it's the library ? First came the loss of the Railway and Day-liner service back in 1989, then Kings council expropriated the local Airport and evicted the many other established aviation schools and businesses, they had tried to take Grand street parade away from Kentville in 2017, and then we lost the famous Cornwallis Inn logo and the 88 yrs old statue in Halifax was torn down, they then terminated Apple Blossom Princess Kentville and ended the 87 consecutive years of the Queen Annapolisa pageant. Kentville lost a massive amount of diversity that had always been provided by the multiple villages that participated in the Festival, as well elimination of the Princess teas, the Coronation, and all of the popular mid-week public outdoor entertainment always normally held at Memorial Park during ABF week ? And now they appear to be after the popular long time Kentville Library ?

After the Town has terminated so many traditional sources of public enjoyment while never offering a similar replacement, and as Kentville gradually approaches cultural ghost town status, it is noticed that the downtown business core (in which the Mayor has a major private business interest ) has been totally renovated and restored to pristine condition by way of a complete 100 % makeover beautification program complete with new installations of street paving, street paint, new double sidewalks on both sides, new driveway entrances, new curb and gutter both sides, signage and flower pots ? And the other three surrounding streets making up this downtown business block have also been totally upgraded including Aberdeen Street (twice), Cornwallis Street and Main Street ?

www.cbc.ca/news/canada/nova-scotia/annapolis-valley-libra...

www.ctvnews.ca/atlantic/video/2026/06/02/funding-cuts-lea...

 

May 18th, 2026 - CBC speak with forked tongue ? CBC lures unsuspecting RCMP members into a trap set by First Nations ? Ambushed by the CBC and First Nations, a music video ? www.flickr.com/photos/74039487@N02/55278767366/in/dateposted

 

the ongoing deterioration of Annapolis Valley Apple Blossom Festival in Kentville ? Bring back Eddies Basement to Memorial Park ? www.flickr.com/photos/74039487@N02/55295377420/in/photost...

 

honey they shrunk the stage ! Safety side fences have had to be installed,

www.flickr.com/photos/74039487@N02/55307116357/in/dateposted

 

An ongoing downsizing of the world-famous Annapolis Valley Apple Blossom Festival ?

www.flickr.com/photos/74039487@N02/55304178661/in/photost...

  

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Kentville - Mader's celebrates 50 years of service,

www.flickr.com/photos/74039487@N02/55187690268/in/dateposted

    

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On the recent 2023 edition of the Grand Street Parade :

  

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On the recent 2023 edition of the Grand Street Parade :

  

"it looked as if some spectators along the route just joined in and began to walk along to make themselves a part of the parade ? "

May 27th, 2023 - Dismay, disillusion and disappointment prevail in Kentville over shocking changes and missing regular entrees in this years 2023 Grand Street Parade ? Where is our famous Queen Annapolisa and where are Apple Blossom Princesses and child attendants riding in their beautiful hand crafted decorated floats ? Where's the town criers ? And what about majorette groups, Scottish pipers and large multi marching bands that always attend ? And where is Hantsport and Windsor and their large delegations ? And where are Digby, Aylesford, Annapolis Royal, Canning, Middleton, Wolfville, and more ? Why are so many of the Valley towns and villages that normally participate not included in the parade this year ? It was also disappointing for many when for the first time ever, Kentville Apple Blossom Princess (aka Miss Kentville) was no longer included ? Many local residents young and old identify with the Apple Blossom Princess at this time of year ? The sacred royal float was used this year to transport a group of everyday town residents that sat together in a social scene meant to identity Kentville with diversity and inclusion ? The New Minas float also did not include their usual Apple Blossom Princess this year, however it was transformed into a mobile advertising commercial for the famous New Minas UFO incident which all New Minions can identify with. Berwick's float didn't include a Princess Berwick this year but had been altered to proudly identify with their town's upcoming Centennial celebrations. And the Kingston float was also missing its Apple Blossom Princess this year but was instead promoting their long running Kingston Steer Barbecue that all Kingstonians can identify with. It was good to see an RCMP contingent again although they only sent a far smaller mini version this year ? And we noticed only one other large marching band in the parade when there is usually 4 or more of these street march bands, many with pipers, that always attend after traveling from places like Cape Breton, Bridgewater, Dartmouth etc ? And where were the pets and farm animals ? There wasn't horse teams, no wooden wagons, riders or livestock this year and even the usual greyhound dogs didn't show ? Also noticed that some spectators must have taken it upon themselves to just walk along to themselves become a part of the parade ? Others must have come over from the Children's parade with strollers to join in ? There was a variety of advertisers, most from out of town but some local ? There were various Political parties represented, with the largest delegation coming from the Kody Blois Liberals as they were emphasizing inclusion and diversity ?

All in all, this Year's parade seemed to be a minimum weak effort that really missed the inclusion and diversity of Apple Blossom royal pageantry and the 7 to 10 spectacular Princess floats ? It also missed all the large marching bands, majorette groups and popular Scottish pipers that always attend ? It also lacked the usual agriculture horticulture and livestock component, and also the many out of town contingents that normally participate ? This was not the famous grand street parade that patrons are used to seeing and did not represent the high standards and degree of professionalism set by all previous Grand Street Parades ? It became obvious that what they had advertised as a newer, bolder, more inclusive and more diverse parade was instead just the opposite because sadly it was instead missing the diversity and inclusion provided by the many excluded local Valley communities and all of their Apple Blossom Princess contestants that always come to Kentville to participate in the Queen Annapolisa competition before taking a Royal ride down Main street Kentville on their beautiful hand crafted Town floats ?

And so, quickly summing up, can such a strange, incomplete, amateurish, cheap imitation version of our world-famous Kentville Grand Street Parade that is missing her Royal heinous Queen Annapolisa and the 7 to 10 Apple Blossom Princesses with their 7 to 10 beautifully handcrafted Town Princess floats and also missing the unique character and diversity provided by the many now uninvited Valley communities, and that appears to be a new generation cheap re-set version of the original historic Grand Street Parade now signal the end of the once glorious Grand Street Parade era ?

 

2023 parade - To view the re set (newcomer version) of what once was the world famous Kentville Grand Street Parade, press here www.dailymotion.com/video/x8lchie www.dailymotion.com/video/x8lchie

  

A Koncerned Kentvillian must finally speak up, www.flickr.com/photos/74039487@N02/44424045874

  

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Kentville is an incorporated town in Nova Scotia. It is the most populous town in the Annapolis Valley. As of 2021, the town's population was 6,630.

  

I had to give little one up tonight. I'm heartbroken.

I decided to make one last batch of delicious beef jerky in 2020. I decided to throw together a “big ass” batch of “Honey Ginger Shallot Garlic Horseradish Pineapple Orange Lemon Brown Sugar” Asian-style Beef Jerky.

 

It’s always a problem for me to decide what to do with all of this delicious jerky I make with my stainless steel commercial equipment because I limit my red meat intake. Sure, I’ll save one bag out of each batch which will last me a couple of months. But honestly, what the heck am I going to do with 10 to 15 pounds of delicious beef jerky?

 

I had planned to send this batch to A. Olivares, a twice graduate of Texas A&M. He lives down there in “Deepest Darkest Texas.” Sadly, he lives in the worst part of Texas — The Greater Dallas area. I had always considered East Texas the least desirable part of Texas, but Dallas? Ouch! What do they possibly do around Dallas? Sit about and wish they were as good as the Texans from Houston?

 

Luckily, Augustin has much higher character friends than himself. One of them is an Aggie Marine Officer who lives with three other Marines (not asking) in Florida. This (somewhat) young Marine selflessly stood up and volunteered to take all of this delicious beef jerky off of my hands to ease my burden of finding a place to store it all.

 

I told Jersey Shore Fightin’ Texas Aggie Ring, “Hold on to your hat because we’re going on a ‘Mission from God!”

 

“Like a Blues Brothers Mission?” asked my Aggie Ring.

 

“If we’re going to be spending 5 or more hours in the kitchen sanitizing everything and making this batch, there’s going to be Blues Brothers music played over the Apple HomePod Mini speakers.” I told him.

 

Jersey Shore Fightin’ Texas Aggie Ring was excited and exclaimed, “Marine Corps Infantry Officers! I can’t wait to make this batch of delicious beef jerky for Marine Infantry like Chesty Puller and Gunny Sergeant John Basilone who was from Raritan, New Jersey from just up the road from us. Do you think that these four young Marine officers have ever been to the Tun Tavern?”

 

I took a deep breath and broke the news to Jersey Shore Aggie Ring. “Well… they’re not “exactly” Infantry Marines.”

 

“Oh!” exclaimed Jersey Shore Fightin’ Texas Aggie Ring. “Then they’re Artillery Marines. I really enjoyed going to AFATDS school with Artillery Marines at Fort Sill, Oklahoma years ago.”

 

There was nothing I could do but break the terrible news to my Aggie Ring. “Well… They’re not Infantry or Artillery Marines. They’re Aviators.”

 

“Oh…” sighed my visibly disappointed Aggie Ring. “It’s all good , Chesty wouldn’t mind me making all of this delicious beef jerky for Marine Aviators. Chesty would also be the first to say “The Women in Marine Corps Aviation make just as important of a contribution as the men in the infantry and artillery.”

 

I then took Jersey Shore Aggie Ring up to market where we procured lemons, shallots, garlic, ginger, and fresh horseradish to use with the other ingredients we had on hand. Before we headed to the registers (using the Vegan isle because it’s always empty), Little Heartbroken Aggie Ring said, “You might as well pick up another 7 or 8 pounds of lean beef. Since this is our last batch of 2020, we might as well make a “big ass” batch.”

 

TO BE CONTINUED

The winter of 2005-2006 was the darkest of my life. I was 19 years old at the time, withdrawn from college, working my first full-time job in retail, and in an extremely unhealthy relationship. I was isolated from my friends and family. I felt completely alone, unseen, and unloved. I didn’t know how to get myself out of that state of mind or being. On a dark night in January 2006, heartbroken and helpless, I sat on the floor of my bedroom trying to convince myself to commit suicide. I don’t remember the day because a lot of that time is a blur. But I remember that night clearly. I remember the way my body felt. It was hollow, aching, and exhausted. Tears poured from my eyes and onto the carpet. I was telling myself over and over that no one loved me, that I was worthless, and that the world would be better off without me. My saving grace that night was that I didn’t want to really die, but I just didn’t want to live the way I had been. I may have hurt myself deeply that night, but I thank that young version of myself for staying in the fight. It would take another year before I got any relief from my pain, a beautiful 2 year respite, and then the inevitable resurfacing of patterns and habits in 2009 that had gone unhealed.

 

Despite all of that, she is the version of myself I am most grateful for. She decided to stop digging the hole she had been digging her whole life, to say there must be something other then this hole, and she looked up. She saw light. It might have been the tiniest speck of light really far away, but it was better than the endless darkness beneath her feet. She started to climb. She would slip and fall back into the hole, over and over, and she would cry. She would look up and say it’s impossible. But the ever present darkness surrounding her would make her start climbing again anyway, despite the seemingly impossible task ahead. She closed her eyes and asked for help. She didn’t know who she was asking, or if she were praying or begging, but she put her heart out there. And then a root appeared right when she needed it to, offering her a safe place to grab hold of so she wouldn’t fall back to the bottom. She never fell back to the bottom again, but the top was still so far away. The climb was the hardest thing she had ever done, but over time she came upon more roots that would help guide her to the top. The more she climbed, the stronger she became. She began learning to maneuver the vertical climb, adapting her body and mind to the struggle. More roots were presenting themselves the higher she climbed, some were so long she was able to lean on them when she needed to rest. She began to enjoy the struggle. The light continued to grow brighter. The impossible suddenly became possible. She climbed faster, harder, and more determined than ever. Until one day, she reached the top. She closed her eyes and began to cry as the light engulfed her. Now the hole was just a little dark speck on the ground that she had the freedom to walk away from. In order for her to make it to the top, she needed to make the decision to climb. If the roots hadn’t been there for her, she may never have made it. The roots had been there all along, she just needed to reach out for them. Once she began to walk away from the hole, she came upon a mountain. The mountain stands so tall she cannot see the top. She considered all the effort she just put into climbing out of the hole. She knew no one would fault her if she decided she had gone far enough and chose to just stay put. But she had witnessed the impossible become a reality of her own creation. She may have been covered in dirt, but she was stronger than ever. She knew without a shadow of a doubt that her life’s work would be to get as far up that mountain as possible. So she began to climb again.

 

I use this metaphor often to describe the 3 paths every human being always has the option of taking: digging themselves into a hole, staying unmoving where they are, or climbing to new heights. This paints a picture of the last ten years of my life. I was born in a hole my parents had created in their own lives, and all I knew was how to dig. The light was possibility. The roots were the people I have mentioned in this project, along with so many more. I needed help, people offered it, and I accepted it. What I am grateful for most in regards to myself is that I listened to these people. When they extended a hand, I took hold. They could have offered their help, advice, experiences, and friendship and I could have turned it away. I could have ignored what they were offering because I was too stuck in my dark story. I could have continued to believe the life I wanted was impossible. But I didn’t. I needed to find the will to live within myself, but I also needed to find those that could help guide me through unknown territory. I could not have made it to the top without them, and I could not have made it to the top without being me.

 

Now, let me really introduce myself. My name is Nikki Lanoue, and I am the happiest person I know. Every moment of every day I’m alive I design in a way to enhance my existence. I love who I am. I love how I spend my time. I love my body and what it does for me. I love my mind and what it’s capable of. I love my friends, as they are all the most amazing, loving people I’ve ever met. I love my family and accept everyone for exactly as they are. I exchange my time for money in ways that help make people feel better physically, mentally, emotionally, and/or spiritually. I take care of myself by eating well, exercising/moving daily, receiving bodywork, spending time with friends/family, spending time alone, meditating, and holding myself accountable to stay in the light. I travel the world. I’m self-employed. Anything that makes me feel uncomfortable, I lean into it instead of fleeing from it. Anything that challenges me, I embrace as something that will help me grow stronger. I learn from my mistakes, my experiences, other people, and books. I am honest. I have integrity. I am loyal and responsible. Who I am on the inside is exactly who I project to the outside world.

 

Thank you, from the bottom of my heart, to every single person who has had a positive impact in my life. I am here because you took the extra step, because you cared. In honor of all that these people have done for me, I will forever share my story and experiences in the hopes that I can have the same impact on someone else the way these people have had such a profound impact on me. I now risk being seen as the person that might be a little over the top, that might share too much, that might go on rants about the amazing aspects of life she has experienced. I will forever share the books I read, or give shout outs to those I love on social media. I will continue to make an effort to touch the hearts of others in a way mine has been touched.

 

I love myself. In the truest, deepest way I’ve ever experienced love. No one on the Earth will ever know me as well as I know myself, or love me as much as I love myself, because I am the only person that is with me every single moment of my existence. This is what I hope to inspire in others. How can anyone learn to speak the language of love if they’ve never heard it spoken before? We need each other to thrive as a tribe, but being the person you want to be and having the life you want can only come from within. When we want to see change in our lives and in the world, we must first change ourselves.

 

I was given the seed of change 10 years ago. I have grown into a brilliant tree that will continue to reach for the light as long as I live. My roots will continue to grow firmly into the ground so that others may have something to grab hold of when they need it. I will continue to drop fruits from my branches in hopes that new seeds of change will grow. My tree stands amongst a forest of other amazing trees. In this forest, all are encouraged to climb.

 

  

Heartbroken: EVERY Monday night at Studio80 on the Rembrandtplein in Amsterdam! Party: Heartbroken Venue: Studio80 Coverage by: Waking up in Amsterdam!

Though still totally heartbroken over Miss Maybelle, we couldn't resist adopting this tiny ragamuffin! She was found wandering the streets of Portland with a hurt paw, a kitty flu, and her fur all in mats... so sad!

My nephew was stillborn at 35 weeks on July 31. My family is heartbroken.

 

My brother and sister-in-law had chosen a Lion King/jungle theme for their nursery and I had picked up a bunch of Cotton + Steel fabrics to make something after the baby was born. I ended up embroidering a little piece from the fabric for his parents instead. I'm not an angel kind of person, but it seemed like the thing to do. Sometimes you stitch for art, and sometimes you stitch for therapy.

 

They did not know the sex of their child prior to his birth, and had jokingly referred to him as Bart, but once he was born they could not imagine giving him any other name. The back is all wonky but it doesn't matter.

sweet sugar is a good model,she got pretty face and figure,we invited her to the keelung sea

coast and we want her to pretend a pityful girl which just lost her lover ,so she expressed sad mood that made the frame full of sexy and heartbroken atmosphere.thank sweet sugar

she did her best model job

"Sometimes when I'm alone, I wonder

Is there a spell that I am under

Keeping me from seeing the real thing?

Love hurts...

But sometimes it's a good hurt

And it feels like I'm alive." - INCUBUS

 

My boyfriend of three years broke up with me last week for his own personal reasons. Ever since then I've been ok, but not really. I come outside now all the time and just sit and think about things. I want to move on already. I want to fall in love again <3

Finally found a use for the fingerknitting I learned in fifth grade.

  

Heartbroken: EVERY Monday night at Studio80 on the Rembrandtplein in Amsterdam! Party: Heartbroken Venue: Studio80 Coverage by: Waking up in Amsterdam!

Haiti #Wecare

 

We’re heartbroken with the amount of devastation Mathew has left behind in Haiti and we want to pull all our efforts in to help as much as we can.

Please join us in an very Special Master Class with all the Zumba Star Instructors to help us raise as much funds as possible. All the proceeds will go to:

 

Prodev

www.prodevhaiti.org/

 

Our talented team will come together on Sunday December 4th from 12:00-2:30 PM to deliver an exceptional experience with the single goal to help and give. Be ready to dance for 90min non stop with our all star Team.

Here are some the instructors that will be present:

 

Volha

Angelina

Bryan

Yxia

Rene

Josip

Celeste

Anna

Edmee

Will

Idania- She is flying back from Miami just for you!

 

Photography by Hiroshi Ishikawa

I gave you everything. This bed is too big and I can't sleep anymore. Without the rise and fall of your big shoulders I'm left to wonder how I will ever be okay.

  

Heartbroken: EVERY Monday night at Studio80 on the Rembrandtplein in Amsterdam! Party: Heartbroken Venue: Studio80 Coverage by: Waking up in Amsterdam!

I flew down to Los Angeles for a few days to do some plane spotting. This was my first airplane trip since February, before the pandemic took off. I was nervous at first but Alaska Air did an awesome job. I decided to skip a rental car this time; instead I stayed at the Homewood Suites/H Hotel near the airport. It has an awesome open air terrace on the 12th floor that has great views of the north and south runways at LAX. Like an idiot, I wasn't paying attention to my camera settings; half the photos were not sharp so I zapped them I was heartbroken by this, however, I will be back.

 

I was surprised by the air traffic - it wasn't anywhere close to pre-pandemic levels but it was quite busy with many flights from Asia and Europe. Who was on these planes?

 

Next year it will be a decade since I started at university. A decade since I left home for the first time, entered an adulthood of sorts for the first time and ate houmous for the first time. I went from degree to degree and then, immediately that I left my last degree, I got a job at the University of Glasgow, pictured above. If it ain't broke, why move away from the cosseted loveliness of a university environment?

 

It's hard to underestimate the influence that attending university has had on my life. I expect that I would have learned to look after myself, made friends, been heartbroken, stayed up all night and come to eat Mediterranean dips had I not gone to a higher education institution. I'm the only person in my generation of my family to do an academic degree - I know that not everyone wants or needs it. But my route was, and is, uni.

 

I took today's photo while having lunch after doing one of my jobs at the university. I work in the widening access department, helping kids who go to schools with low take-up for higher education to prepare for university. I believe in this work. When people ask me if we aren't doing the pupils a disservice by propelling them into an environment for which they are not suited, there are now studies which show that the students we help do just as well, if not better, than their more affluent counterparts. I LOVE THOSE STUDIES.

 

I was working for the access to the professions side of the work, helping budding medics, dentists, vets and lawyers. We get them to fulfil various tasks and they come to a summer school to find out what uni will be like, what their envisaged profession will be like. I was working with a group of potential lawyers and we were reading various articles and discussing their written assignment topic: prisoner voting rights.

 

It was, well, it was hard. They rested neatly in the far, far right. Nope. Further than that. Not only was hanging too good for them, but in the thought experiment that 5% of them were incorrectly accused, they were happy to see those innocents die, rather than give human rights to the others. Or TVs, heaven forbid any of them have TVs. I tweeted my immediate reaction as: 'Don't know where the idea that teenagers crave change comes from. Most conservative demographic I ever encounter. Them & taxi drivers.' I remember discovering similar views in my peers at school, ten years ago. At that age I felt that it was to do with the affluence of my friends. But today we were in a catchment area marked as a deprivation area, and there were those ideas again. Maybe even more vehement. I normally leave these sessions pleased and bouncy. This time I was sad and angry. Sad sad and angry angry.

 

I have rested. I have chatted. I have pondered. Would my school friends still espouse these views? Most of them, not at all. Did I have some pretty terrible views at 16? Yup (man, I was shit to women). How did these things change? Uni. The University of Edinburgh, and the University of Life.

 

Churchill/Mark Twain/Dickens/Oscar Wilde/Dorothy Parker famously (is misreported as having) said: if you're not a liberal in your youth then you have no heart, if you're not a conservative in middle age then you have no brain. Currently, though, I get more and more left wing (not the same as liberal at all, as well you know, but why split hairs? Churchill had hardly any, though I grant Twain and Dickens more than make up for it) as I age. I am much, much more radical now than I was in my teens and early twenties. In my case, I put that down in large part to the skills I got, books I read and friends I made at university. The things which had made me square in school (loving poetry reciting, general knowledge and playing the clarsach) made me cool at uni. In the same sort of way, I learned to question, to probe, to weigh up facts as an end in itself in a way that would not have been okay at school, or which I was incapable of. I learned to transform a general feeling of ickiness to argument, reason and persuasion when people bad-mouthed immigrants or called our friends sluts. I became unwilling to let things lie when people said them, because I had learned that openness of mind is THE thing.

 

University taught me variously about the work of Michel Foucault, how to concentrate (RIP that skill), how to cook, how to love, how to bullshit about paintings, how to hope, how to put on plays and how to form ideas based on my understanding, my heart, and my reading rather than just stuff I've heard from my parents. I know there are other ways to engage with different viewpoints, but my-oh-my an arts degree is an easy peasy way to do it. Thank the heavens for universities.

Went to a farm, found a fresh egg, got excited, ran with egg, tripped, #heartbroken

The winter of 2005-2006 was the darkest of my life. I was 19 years old at the time, withdrawn from college, working my first full-time job in retail, and in an extremely unhealthy relationship. I was isolated from my friends and family. I felt completely alone, unseen, and unloved. I didn’t know how to get myself out of that state of mind or being. On a dark night in January 2006, heartbroken and helpless, I sat on the floor of my bedroom trying to convince myself to commit suicide. I don’t remember the day because a lot of that time is a blur. But I remember that night clearly. I remember the way my body felt. It was hollow, aching, and exhausted. Tears poured from my eyes and onto the carpet. I was telling myself over and over that no one loved me, that I was worthless, and that the world would be better off without me. My saving grace that night was that I didn’t want to really die, but I just didn’t want to live the way I had been. I may have hurt myself deeply that night, but I thank that young version of myself for staying in the fight. It would take another year before I got any relief from my pain, a beautiful 2 year respite, and then the inevitable resurfacing of patterns and habits in 2009 that had gone unhealed.

 

Despite all of that, she is the version of myself I am most grateful for. She decided to stop digging the hole she had been digging her whole life, to say there must be something other then this hole, and she looked up. She saw light. It might have been the tiniest speck of light really far away, but it was better than the endless darkness beneath her feet. She started to climb. She would slip and fall back into the hole, over and over, and she would cry. She would look up and say it’s impossible. But the ever present darkness surrounding her would make her start climbing again anyway, despite the seemingly impossible task ahead. She closed her eyes and asked for help. She didn’t know who she was asking, or if she were praying or begging, but she put her heart out there. And then a root appeared right when she needed it to, offering her a safe place to grab hold of so she wouldn’t fall back to the bottom. She never fell back to the bottom again, but the top was still so far away. The climb was the hardest thing she had ever done, but over time she came upon more roots that would help guide her to the top. The more she climbed, the stronger she became. She began learning to maneuver the vertical climb, adapting her body and mind to the struggle. More roots were presenting themselves the higher she climbed, some were so long she was able to lean on them when she needed to rest. She began to enjoy the struggle. The light continued to grow brighter. The impossible suddenly became possible. She climbed faster, harder, and more determined than ever. Until one day, she reached the top. She closed her eyes and began to cry as the light engulfed her. Now the hole was just a little dark speck on the ground that she had the freedom to walk away from. In order for her to make it to the top, she needed to make the decision to climb. If the roots hadn’t been there for her, she may never have made it. The roots had been there all along, she just needed to reach out for them. Once she began to walk away from the hole, she came upon a mountain. The mountain stands so tall she cannot see the top. She considered all the effort she just put into climbing out of the hole. She knew no one would fault her if she decided she had gone far enough and chose to just stay put. But she had witnessed the impossible become a reality of her own creation. She may have been covered in dirt, but she was stronger than ever. She knew without a shadow of a doubt that her life’s work would be to get as far up that mountain as possible. So she began to climb again.

 

I use this metaphor often to describe the 3 paths every human being always has the option of taking: digging themselves into a hole, staying unmoving where they are, or climbing to new heights. This paints a picture of the last ten years of my life. I was born in a hole my parents had created in their own lives, and all I knew was how to dig. The light was possibility. The roots were the people I have mentioned in this project, along with so many more. I needed help, people offered it, and I accepted it. What I am grateful for most in regards to myself is that I listened to these people. When they extended a hand, I took hold. They could have offered their help, advice, experiences, and friendship and I could have turned it away. I could have ignored what they were offering because I was too stuck in my dark story. I could have continued to believe the life I wanted was impossible. But I didn’t. I needed to find the will to live within myself, but I also needed to find those that could help guide me through unknown territory. I could not have made it to the top without them, and I could not have made it to the top without being me.

 

Now, let me really introduce myself. My name is Nikki Lanoue, and I am the happiest person I know. Every moment of every day I’m alive I design in a way to enhance my existence. I love who I am. I love how I spend my time. I love my body and what it does for me. I love my mind and what it’s capable of. I love my friends, as they are all the most amazing, loving people I’ve ever met. I love my family and accept everyone for exactly as they are. I exchange my time for money in ways that help make people feel better physically, mentally, emotionally, and/or spiritually. I take care of myself by eating well, exercising/moving daily, receiving bodywork, spending time with friends/family, spending time alone, meditating, and holding myself accountable to stay in the light. I travel the world. I’m self-employed. Anything that makes me feel uncomfortable, I lean into it instead of fleeing from it. Anything that challenges me, I embrace as something that will help me grow stronger. I learn from my mistakes, my experiences, other people, and books. I am honest. I have integrity. I am loyal and responsible. Who I am on the inside is exactly who I project to the outside world.

 

Thank you, from the bottom of my heart, to every single person who has had a positive impact in my life. I am here because you took the extra step, because you cared. In honor of all that these people have done for me, I will forever share my story and experiences in the hopes that I can have the same impact on someone else the way these people have had such a profound impact on me. I now risk being seen as the person that might be a little over the top, that might share too much, that might go on rants about the amazing aspects of life she has experienced. I will forever share the books I read, or give shout outs to those I love on social media. I will continue to make an effort to touch the hearts of others in a way mine has been touched.

 

I love myself. In the truest, deepest way I’ve ever experienced love. No one on the Earth will ever know me as well as I know myself, or love me as much as I love myself, because I am the only person that is with me every single moment of my existence. This is what I hope to inspire in others. How can anyone learn to speak the language of love if they’ve never heard it spoken before? We need each other to thrive as a tribe, but being the person you want to be and having the life you want can only come from within. When we want to see change in our lives and in the world, we must first change ourselves.

 

I was given the seed of change 10 years ago. I have grown into a brilliant tree that will continue to reach for the light as long as I live. My roots will continue to grow firmly into the ground so that others may have something to grab hold of when they need it. I will continue to drop fruits from my branches in hopes that new seeds of change will grow. My tree stands amongst a forest of other amazing trees. In this forest, all are encouraged to climb.

 

Seconds later, Fleder had enough and smacked Morsel; heartbroken she crept away to sleep under a pillow : (

Our son's bench.

Maesgwastad Cemetery, Welshpool.

 

Alex was killed at 22-years-old, coming home to us on his motorbike by a dangerous driver on September 16th 2024.

I'll be heartbroken forever, and miss him every second of every day! 💙

Heav'n has no rage like love to hatred turn'd / Nor Hell a fury, like a woman scorn'd.

Haiti #Wecare

 

We’re heartbroken with the amount of devastation Mathew has left behind in Haiti and we want to pull all our efforts in to help as much as we can.

Please join us in an very Special Master Class with all the Zumba Star Instructors to help us raise as much funds as possible. All the proceeds will go to:

 

Prodev

www.prodevhaiti.org/

 

Our talented team will come together on Sunday December 4th from 12:00-2:30 PM to deliver an exceptional experience with the single goal to help and give. Be ready to dance for 90min non stop with our all star Team.

Here are some the instructors that will be present:

 

Volha

Angelina

Bryan

Yxia

Rene

Josip

Celeste

Anna

Edmee

Will

Idania- She is flying back from Miami just for you!

 

Photography by Hiroshi Ishikawa

Haiti #Wecare

 

We’re heartbroken with the amount of devastation Mathew has left behind in Haiti and we want to pull all our efforts in to help as much as we can.

Please join us in an very Special Master Class with all the Zumba Star Instructors to help us raise as much funds as possible. All the proceeds will go to:

 

Prodev

www.prodevhaiti.org/

 

Our talented team will come together on Sunday December 4th from 12:00-2:30 PM to deliver an exceptional experience with the single goal to help and give. Be ready to dance for 90min non stop with our all star Team.

Here are some the instructors that will be present:

 

Volha

Angelina

Bryan

Yxia

Rene

Josip

Celeste

Anna

Edmee

Will

Idania- She is flying back from Miami just for you!

 

Photography by Hiroshi Ishikawa

Ophelia themes...still at it.

  

Heartbroken: EVERY Monday night at Studio80 on the Rembrandtplein in Amsterdam! Party: Heartbroken Venue: Studio80 Coverage by: Waking up in Amsterdam!

Haiti #Wecare

 

We’re heartbroken with the amount of devastation Mathew has left behind in Haiti and we want to pull all our efforts in to help as much as we can.

Please join us in an very Special Master Class with all the Zumba Star Instructors to help us raise as much funds as possible. All the proceeds will go to:

 

Prodev

www.prodevhaiti.org/

 

Our talented team will come together on Sunday December 4th from 12:00-2:30 PM to deliver an exceptional experience with the single goal to help and give. Be ready to dance for 90min non stop with our all star Team.

Here are some the instructors that will be present:

 

Volha

Angelina

Bryan

Yxia

Rene

Josip

Celeste

Anna

Edmee

Will

Idania- She is flying back from Miami just for you!

 

Photography by Hiroshi Ishikawa

Here we go again.