September is but a few days away, my friends. That’s one of those facts that I can both believe and not believe at the same time.
I can believe it because it felt like a very full summer, the kind that you can look back on and go, ‘Welp, that was a good few months, looking forward to next year already!’
I can’t believe it because, well, that pesky time just has a way of jetting by with nary a moment’s notice! It feels like Canada Day was just yesterday, doesn’t it?
As fall peaks just around the corner, I thought I’d take the time to say goodbye to the best things about summer and say a hearty hello to all the best things about fall.
Goodbye to all the road trips. Whether it was zipping east, west, north or south, they all provided their own highlights and special memories. I’ll never forget the view I had of the Alberta Badlands skyline from inside the mouth of a 90-foot tall Tyrannosaurus Rex statue, nor will I forget the wobbly yet bizarrely euphoric feeling of walking across the suspension bridge in Rosedale, which brought about old feelings of the SkyTrail walking bridge in Outlook. I’ll never forget the feeling of sitting on a trolley in Moose Jaw after dark, listening to a guide tell all of us about the city’s more “colorful” past in the form of cold-blooded murders and ghost stories, nor will I forget taking a walk through Canada’s past by visiting Moose Jaw’s Western Development Museum, and in particular, reading all about John Diefenbaker in a special exhibit aimed at him.
Goodbye to the landmark events of summer. This year saw country music legend Garth Brooks return to the province for two nights in Regina at Mosaic Stadium. Luckily, I went on the night that wasn’t delayed by rainfall. Having seen him perform in Saskatoon three years ago, I think that I enjoyed the Regina show more. Oddly enough, it felt like it was easier getting around Mosaic Stadium in a sea of over 30,000 people than it was in the SaskTel Centre in 2016 in a crowd of roughly half that size. As well, the other landmark event – at least at the local level – was the opening of the new swimming pool facility in Outlook, which opened its doors on Canada Day. Really, the excitement of the occasion spoke for itself, with long lineups of people waiting out the doors to get in and see it for themselves. A video I shot and uploaded to the paper’s Facebook page was popular and seemed to only add to the hysteria. Luckily, the pool has been consistently busy since opening on July 1, proving to be a hit with local swimmers.
Goodbye to all the “little things” about summer. You can plan a vacation, but sometimes you just need to slow down, live in the moment, and just enjoy the little things that make summer great. For me, my day trip up to Candle Lake is one that I’ll vividly remember, particularly when I had the water largely to myself. It was a serendipitous moment that I just “took in” and appreciated. Another just happened this past Friday night. My family got together at my sister and brother in law’s cabin at Pike Lake, where we got a roaring bonfire going and enjoyed a few drinks, as well as some birthday cake. The conversation flowed and many laughs were shared, and it was the kind of late-summer evening that I needed.
Hello to the new school year that comes with fall. Once again, the hallways are going to be filled with the collective noise of youth, and teachers are tasked with molding and crafting the next generation of young adults.
Hello to a new season of high school football. With the new school year comes another season on the gridiron for local teams, and I’m particularly happy to see the Outlook Blues return to the field after being absent in 2018. Football is my favorite sport to cover, and I’m psyched for another six-man season.
Hello to the collective changing of the colors, which I see has already started in some places. Those ‘summer greens’ are fast becoming ‘fades of fall’, and they’re gorgeous in their own right. The leaves will soon fall, so enjoy our lush greenery while you still can.
Hello to events such as the upcoming trade show in Outlook, put on by the Chamber of Commerce. I’m curious to see how the newest incarnation of the event is received after an absence of a few years.
Fall will bring all sorts of other happenings, and I’m looking forward to all of it. In the meantime, we bid adieu to another summer after this coming Labor Day long weekend. I hope yours was as well as mine!
For this week, that’s been the Ruttle Report.
