Weeda Stamps: News


FOX TALES ON STAMPS Edition #482 Friday, October 30, 2009
100 Years for Professional Sports Winningest Team!
	2009 is the centenary of the Montreal Canadiens hockey team. In order to properly acknowledge this milestone Canada Post has issued a groovy 3-D moving picture souvenir sheet of three different $3.00 stamps. Each stamp reproduces the 500th goals scored by former Canadiens stars Maurice Richard, Jean Béliveau, and Guy Lafleur. For more information on the Montreal Canadiens and this particular stamp issue go to http://www.canadapost.ca/cpo/mc/personal/collecting/stamps/2009/2009_oct_Montreal_Canadiens.jsf.
A Trip to Parksville and Coombs
	No visit to the Parksville, Qualicum and Coombs area would be complete for us without a visit to the Parksville Train Station and Pottery Guild and Gallery. On this visit we noted that they had painted it a lovely and more historically authentic shade of red. The prior colour had been an olive sage. The potters use the train station as a studio, including kiln facilities and as a gallery for their finished work. We acquired a lovely bowl this time through. In return for the use of the space, the potters manage the train station, handing out timetables and selling tickets for the E&N dayliner service. We needed to do a bit of business with Laurel, our friend and bookkeeper. What better place for an atmospheric lunch experience than the "Goats on Roof" Old Country Market in Coombs on the Alberni Highway. As you can see it's called Goats on Roof for a very good reason. The natural sod roofs at the Coombs Market Square are not limited to one building only. This open air vegetable stand includes nice quality local and organic produce. The Old Country Market is by no means a tourist trap even though it's always full of tourists. A funky mix of baked goods, fresh produce, exotic canned and preserved items, exceptional smoked salmon and meat products, cheeses as well as whimsical and unusual hard goods is what makes this emporium a unique and must-see experience. As you can see in this picture the building is framed in its entirety with full dimension lumber. This helps contribute to a feeling of warmth and hominess the minute you walk in the door. If you were wanting to put together the world's greatest picnic basket you've come to the right place. Think of aged Gouda, smoked salmon jerky, pumpkin seed sourdough buns, pomegranate nectar, red globe grapes and any kind of pickle you could imagine. Mmmmmmmmmmm. Then consider that Coombs is a 30 minute (or less) from the world famous beaches of Parksville, the ancient forest giants of Cathedral Grove or the clear fresh waters of Cameron Lake. By the looks of the near empty racks, getting in early for the fresh baked bread would seem like a good idea. You could acquire your own personal herd of cast iron goats for a very reasonable price if you had the inclination. In this collection of cast iron objects you can find everything from coat hooks to trivets. No this isn't an airshow gone wrong. It's just a display of model airplanes you can buy here. Maybe an assortment of indoor plants and cacti in bright ceramic pots is just what you need to brighten up your house for the upcoming winter months. I ended up getting some winter pansies for the deck. On a final note, Happy Hallowe'en everyone. If you see me at your door trick-or-treating, try to remember that I like dark chocolate.
The Salvation Army Quiz
	We show you a minute portion of the design of a postage stamp. You have to determine which stamp it is. Send us an email with your answer. We hold this contest every second week. For every correct answer we will donate $1.00 to our favourite charity, the Salvation Army. Click here to go to the The Salvation Army International Home Page to see what services they offer to communities around the world.
Answer to Last Week's Salvation Army Quiz
	We received seven correct answers to last week's stamp identification quiz. That means a $7.00 donation to Salvation Army. Here's the portion of the stamp we asked you to identify Here's the answer - Canada #504, the 1960 Stephen Leacock issue.