The past 3 or more years have been very different for most of us. I don’t think any of us thought our lives would be altered so much, or that we’d experience living through a Pandemic. It certainly changed almost every aspect of our everyday lives, and taught us a lot of things. Although things will never be the same again, it is finally starting to feel like we are getting closer to being able to experience some semblance of “Life” again.

     One of the hardest things about the Pandemic for me, personally, was not being able to sing, dance, or hug People.  All of these things make me feel happy, and bring me joy. Not being allowed to do them for such a long time was really hard for many of us.

     I didn’t sing for over 3 years, but this year, I am happy to say that I have been making up for lost time. A few of us that used to sing together with The Funtastics for several years ( mostly putting on Fundraisers for the local Seniors’ Centre etc. )  formed a smaller version of the group in the Spring, and have been putting on hour-long Shows at local Care Homes. We have done 3 so far, in March, April, and May, and have been invited back for a couple more, soon. This has been a great way to get back into it, and it has probably been one of the most rewarding things I’ve done in a long while. I love to sing the “Oldies”, so this is the perfect Audience for it. There is something so special about seeing People seemingly “come alive” when they hear beautiful songs that truly mean something to them. It is so amazing to watch their eyes light up, and witness the big smiles forming on their faces. Many sing along, sway in their seats, and those that can, even get up and dance. Ah, the transformative power of music!

Singing at the Care Home

     In June, I performed with 15 other Female Vocalists in a special concert honouring The Legendary Ladies of Jazz, to kick off our local Jazz Festival. That was quite an experience with an amazingly talented and uplifting group of wonderful Ladies. Also in June, I was finally able to get back into the Recording Studio and record a new Single. ( more about that in my next blog post ) 

     I had really missed being able to perform, and am so glad that we are able to, once again. I think most of us can agree that a Life without music is not a whole lot of fun. I am so grateful to all the fantastic loving and supportive People in my Life who continue to give me opportunities to sing – there really is no other feeling quite like it.

Last week was my first week of Holidays for 2015.  As I have mentioned many times before, for me, a “Holiday” means getting off my feet ( which I am constantly on at Work ) relaxing, and laying in the sun.  It means catching up on sleep, not having to set alarm clocks, and feeling rejuvenated. I love the feeling that I don’t have to feel obligated to “do” anything, except for kick back, and enjoy …

When your Passports are expired, and you are on a budget, your options are limited.  My Husband has always come along on “my kind” of vacations, so this time, when he suggested something different, I wasn’t going to refuse. He mentioned he wanted to go to Tofino on Vancouver Island to hike, take photographs, explore the beaches etc. I had never been there before, and I knew this would be a very different kind of vacation, but I still agreed. I will admit, I was a bit apprehensive.

We live on the Sunshine Coast of B.C., so we drove the half hour to the ferry, took the 40 – minute ferry ride to Horseshoe Bay, then an hour and 40 minute ferry ride from there to Nanaimo, on Vancouver Island.  From there, it was a 3 hour drive to Tofino.

Road Sign

It was a beautiful, warm and sunny day,  so we certainly enjoyed the ferry rides and the scenery.  It was great to sit on the upper deck of the ferry in the hot sun, anticipating the week ahead …

Scenery

Once we arrived in Tofino, we were anxious to find our Hotel, get checked in, and get our feet in the sand. I just had to get a picture of the sign welcoming us to our destination.

Welcome Sign

I had us booked in at the Tin Wis Hotel, right on Mackenzie Beach, which was very private, quiet, and sandy.  Most of the beaches where we live are quite rocky, so this was a welcome sight. 🙂  We could hardly wait to get out and explore.

We quickly unloaded the car, checked in, and went and found our room.  I had made sure that we got a King sized bed, Ocean view, and a fireplace when I booked it. I had heard the weather could be all over the map – from warm and sunny, to cool, rainy/windy/foggy … and could change fairly quickly.  I was going to learn just how true this could be.  Thankfully, I had packed everything from bathing suits and tank tops to full on raincoat and rubber boots, just in case. ( we were going to be hiking in a Rainforest, after all )

Our room was on the ground floor, so we could literally walk out the patio door, take about 10 steps, turn left, and be at the beach in about 20 seconds.  We had changed into lighter clothes after our road trip, and were happy to take a long stroll along the beach, and enjoy the warm sunshine.  It was an absolutely gorgeous beach – nice and private, and not crazy busy.

Archway

The archway to the beach had a carving welcoming guests to pass through and enjoy …

Carving

The next picture is of our building:

Our Building

This shot is of the main building:

Main Building

Looking through our patio door towards the beach:

Beach View

Since we had arrived mid-afternoon, we didn’t want to venture too far the first night, after our long drive. We had dinner in the Restaurant at the Hotel – the Beachfront Bistro.

Dining Room

After Dinner, we tried really hard to stay up to watch our first sunset there. I’d had only 3 hours of sleep the night before, we’d driven much of the day, and we were both very tired. It was, however, Summer Solstice, and we certainly didn’t want to miss that sunset.

I will post a few of those sunset pictures very soon …

     Happy New Year to all of you!  I hope that this will be a great year for us all.  Now that the new year is upon us, I’d like to take a few minutes to reflect on some of the good things that happened for me in 2013.

     The biggest things that happened for me involved music – the thing I love most. 🙂  For much of my life, I have considered myself to be primarily a singer. ( and I do still play the piano, occasionally ) I love to sing, and there isn’t much that brings me more joy in life than singing something I love in front of an appreciative audience. It’s a really good feeling.  I sing simply because I enjoy it, and it makes me feel happy – I’ve never had any delusions about fame or fortune.  This past year, however, I branched out and started writing lyrics with a new close friend, who writes music.  We wrote 2 songs together so far, one of which is currently being re-mixed by another mutual friend. We got together several times each month to work on music, have long chats, and a few laughs. I also became a Member of SOCAN , which was pretty exciting. I look forward to a lot more songwriting this year, and being able to share the results with you all.

     We continued  going to Karaoke fairly regularly, as it really is good practice to keep the voice in tune, and help get over the nerves. Every time you go, you are faced with a new audience, and another opportunity to try different genres, and build your confidence. This is especially good for those of us that are innately shy.  We brought a lot of new friends out with us to these fun nights last year, and had a lot of really amazing times, both singing and dancing. It is always a good crowd – supportive, down to earth, and fun-loving.

     As always, we did a lot of hiking during the year – probably more than the previous ones. We still favour Francis Point,  still go to Smuggler’s Cove once in a while, as well as the Skookumchuck, but we went on a new one this year: The Tetrahedron.  This was very different than any of the other hikes we’ve been on up here – and I will write a post about it soon, with some pics. 

     On days when we didn’t have the time to go on long hikes, we went on a lot of walks at nearby Davis Bay. 

Davis Bay Walk

     It is always a pleasant walk – the scenery is gorgeous, and the people you meet always have a smile for you.  We often follow our walk with a coffee and snack at Pier 17 across the way – we sit at a little Bistro Table overlooking the water – so relaxing. We have witnessed many a glorious sunset over Davis Bay, from that vantage point.

     As of last year, my Husband and I now both have Kayaks. This was one of the best decisions we’ve made in the 5 years  that we’ve been living up on B.C.’s Sunshine Coast, hands down.  As I have mentioned several times before, I have mainly been considered a “City Girl”, both by my friends, and myself, in the past.  I have to tell you, though, there is something absolutely mind-blowingly amazing about being out in a kayak on a sunny Summer’s Day.  Not only is there the obvious fact that you are getting fresh air, exercise, sunshine etc., but it is just the most incredibly peaceful and therapeutic thing, as well.  It didn’t matter how bad my week had been, or how stressful – I simply could not wipe the smile off my face each time we paddled up the Inlet.  The scenery was incredible – the wildlife abundant: we regularly saw Eagles, Seals, Salmon jumping out of the water, Sea Stars and Sea Cucumbers and so much more. We found some little beaches that are water-access only, where you can go and have your Lunch, and relax for a while before you continue on your journey. Some of these places even have places to camp, and portable washroom facilities.  I have to say that the times we went out kayaking this past Summer were definitely some of the happiest times we had all year. ( and now that we have the Kayaks, this fun doesn’t cost a thing )

Sechelt Inlet Kayaking

    We had a family member come for a nice visit in the Summer time, as well, and I went on a Road Trip with some good friends for a few days in September.  There were many Dinner Parties, Barbecues, Fundraisers, nights of dancing and singing and visiting with friends and family …

     So, once again, the year was filled with music, enjoying the great outdoors, and spending quality time with the people we love the most … not a bad year at all, if you ask me. 🙂

     I wish you all a healthy, happy, joyful New Year in 2014 – may it be the year that your dreams come true !!!

     As many of you know, both my Husband and I have watched “The Voice” since it first came on the air.  Obviously, as a singer, I find it interesting, but he does, too. We both like the fact that during the “Blind Auditions”, the judges cannot see the contestants. This eliminates the tendency to judge people based on what they look like, how they dress, carry themselves,  how old they are, amongst other things. We are not generally fans of “reality T.V.” per se, as there is a lot of garbage out there, clearly. This show, however, deeply engages us week after week.

     One of the reasons we enjoy watching the show so much is that the coaches – Christina, Blake, Adam, and Cee-Lo – genuinely seem to care about their teams. ( not just because they want someone from their team to “win” the show, but because they truly want to help nurture them as artists ) It is always interesting watching the process, as the artists learn, grow, conquer fears, and try new things that the coaches suggest.

     Both of us tend to root for the “Underdogs” – the shy, quiet people without much self-confidence – often the ones that have had a very hard life, or are a bit older.  I fully understand what it feels like to love to sing more than anything else in the world, but to be painfully shy, and doubt yourself constantly. It isn’t easy, and I commend these people for having the guts to do this, even though it likely terrifies them. I find it very emotional watching their segments, when they talk about how much music means to them, and how much doing well on the show could change their lives. I can only imagine how mind-blowingly awesome it would be to have the opportunity for that kind of exposure and mentoring. ( sadly, there is still no equivalent of this show in Canada )

     Although there are a lot of shy competitors, there are also some that come across as over-confident, ( yes, this may just be false bravado ) even cocky. Some of these people tend to say things in the clips that we don’t think are very nice, especially during the Battle Rounds.  We get that it is a competition, but there is never any need to say bad things about others. Nothing is more of a turn-off than a loud, obnoxious, in-your-face person who basically says they are going to beat the other person, hands down. We always smile when these over-confident people lose to the shy, quiet polite ones. 🙂 Perhaps they will learn to keep their ego in check, in future.

     As for Season 3 so far, there is a lot of talent !  The Blind Auditions and the Battle Rounds are complete, and on Monday, the Playoff Round began. ( The second part of that will be airing tomorrow night. ) The teams right now are narrowed down to 5 members each.  Blake and Adam’s teams performed on Monday, and tomorrow night, Christina and Cee-Lo’s teams sing.  Starting this week, the audience ( in the U.S.) will  have a say as to what happens – they are able to vote for their favourite contestants now .

     So far, our favourite on Christina’s team is De’borah – she has an incredible voice, a great vibe, and she is completely ” herself ” all the time. It’s like she doesn’t even have to try – she’s just such a cool person. ( and what’s even more appealing is that she is modest and humble about her talent )

     On Blake’s team, my husband and I like Michaela Paige for her unique style, consistently good voice, and her stage presence. Liz Davis is the perfect Country singer, in so many ways, and Terry McDermott is the classic “rocker” that keeps the audience engaged.

     We feel the strongest players on Adam’s team are Melanie Martinez, who has a hauntingly beautiful voice, and fabulous style, and Amanda Brown, who comes across as a seasoned pro. They both seem to be “the total package” – phenomenal voices, they know how to present themselves, work the stage, and capture the audience’s full attention at all times.

     Ceelo’s best team members, in our opinion, are the smooth-as-silk Trevin Hunte, and the funky, soulful Nicholas David.  Both of these guys have unreal voices, full of emotion and conviction, when they sing.

     It will be interesting to see how things play out, over the next few weeks.  One thing is for sure: it will be very entertaining and inspiring, and we will be watching!

     As I have mentioned before, my husband and I are usually lucky to see our friend Brandon Isaak maybe once a year anymore, if that.  Well, 2012 has been a good year so far for “catching up” with our buddy. We saw him playing his solo gig in June at the Garden Bay Pub, then we had the good fortune of seeing him again on July 9th at the very same venue.  This time, he was playing with his friend ( and “Twisters” bandmate ) Keith Picot, as a duo.

     As an added bonus, Brandon had told me that his parents were going to be there, too. I was so excited to hear that, as they still live up in the Yukon, and I hadn’t seen them in many, many years. Ed and Donna took really good care of me that Summer long ago that I spent in the Yukon, and I will never forget their kindness.

     He also mentioned that I was finally going to meet his “Girls” – meaning the lovely Patti, and their beautiful Daughter, Kiko.  ( you just have to hear his song, dedicated to her – “KIKO” )

     As always, we arrived at the Pub early to make sure we were able to get good seats. We chatted with Brandon and Keith a bit, then Brandon told me to go over to the Dining Room side.  His parents were having dinner over there before the show, and he knew we’d be anxious to see each other after all these years. I totally welled up with tears when I saw Ed and Donna – they looked wonderful – just as I remembered them. We did a lot of hugging and talking, and it was so great to see them – brought back so many happy memories. Patti and Kiko arrived at their table a few minutes later, so I got to meet them for the first time – both such beautiful ladies ! Shortly thereafter, their dinner arrived, so I headed back over to the Pub side – it was almost show time.

Donna and Ed Isaak and Heather Doré

Keith Picot, Ed Isaak, and Brandon Isaak

     I had to work the next morning, so we hadn’t planned on staying too late, ( it’s about an hour drive home on a very long, winding road ) but we were having such a fabulous time, that we just couldn’t leave. I was so happy to be spending time with Ed and Donna, as well.  As usual, we stayed until the end, then I got my traditional pics with the Boys.

     It was really hard to say “Goodbye” to Brandon’s parents, as I don’t know when we’ll see them again. ( but we agreed that it wouldn’t be nearly as long next time ) There were many more hugs, and I struggled to hold back tears once again.  What an amazing night !  This is what life is all about – spending time with good friends, listening to fantastic music, food, drinks, the perfect venue, and a warm Summer breeze … it doesn’t get any better than that.

Brandon Isaak, Heather Doré, Keith Picot

     If you are new to my blog posts, then you may not know who my friend Brandon Isaak is. ( a.k.a. “Yukon Slim” )  To give you a little bit of background, you may wish to read my two previous posts about him: Yukon Buddy , and Yukon Buddy Part 2 – The Twisters.   That way, we can just continue with the story …

     So, the last time we’d seen Brandon was in 2010, with the Twisters, at the Garden Bay Pub.  We didn’t get a chance to see him play at all in 2011, so that was a bit of a drag.  Brandon is always posting his upcoming gigs on Facebook etc., and when I see these, I always ask him, “When are you coming to play on The Sunshine Coast ( of B.C. ) again? “.  Well, a few months back, I got a response: he was going to be playing a solo gig at Garden Bay for the Pender Harbour Blues Festival.  It was going to be a “Dinner Show”, on the restaurant side of the Garden Bay Hotel. ( we usually see him on the Pub side )

     My husband and I thought this would be pretty cool for several reasons: we’d never seen Brandon play on his own before, we’d never eaten on the other side of the venue, and it would mean a really nice night out for us.  June 2nd was a sunny Saturday, and the drive up to Garden Bay was absolutely wonderful.  We got there a little early,  I had a drink on the pub side first, then we moved to the Dining Room.

     We had a lovely little table with a great view of the water.

Our Table At Garden Bay Restaurant

Yukon Slim and Heather Doré

     For those of you that didn’t know, I started a new workout routine that has a nutritional component to it, back in February.  I think I was just about 3 weeks into it when I wrote my first post about the P.I.N.K. Method.

Heather Doré P.I.N.K. Method 1

     I finished the program around the third week of April, after completing the initial Reset Phase, and Phases 1, 2, and 3 ( with Resets in between ).  I have to laugh now, looking back on my original post where I mentioned that some of the workouts in Phase 1 were challenging … I had no idea at that point what was in store for me. Phases 2 and 3 really ramped up the workouts, and not only did I notice lots of great changes in how I felt, but suddenly, my clothes were all enormous on me. This meant I had to go shopping – what a drag. 😉

     I was down a couple of pant sizes part way through Phase 2, and went out and bought 4 new pairs of dress pants for work.  A few weeks later, I went down yet another 2 sizes, and got more pants. After completion, I’m down 2 more sizes.  I’ve lost a total of 28 pounds, which seems crazy, as weight loss was not my intention at all.

     After the program is over, you can do the ” 7 Day Shred” if you are within 5 pounds of your “goal weight”.  Since I didn’t plan on losing weight, and I already lost plenty, I didn’t do this.  I just went straight to “P.I.N.K. Preservation”, which is basically your long term plan for maintaining your new shape, and healthy lifestyle.  It is pretty straightforward: you continue to make healthy food choices, control your portion size, monitor your weight ( if that is a concern ) and stay active for life.

     I was pretty much “winging it”, and just decided to continue eating as I did while on the program, and cutting my workouts down to only 3 ( 1 hour intense sessions ) per week.  I was hoping this would maintain things, and that I wouldn’t lose any more weight. At first, I continued to lose a few more pounds, but thankfully, I seem to have “levelled off” now.  Obviously, everyone is different, and has to figure this out for themselves, to see what works for them.

     I am fortunate – I have never been “overweight” in my entire life, but clearly, I wasn’t in the best shape I was capable of being. I only know that now, looking back, and knowing how different I feel. I am stronger, more fit and healthy, and I don’t ever want to lose this feeling. This is a lifestyle change, plain and simple. It feels good to do something for yourself – most of us tend to neglect ourselves – caring about your health and well-being is important.

     So, whether you have low energy, want to lose some weight, or just start taking good care of yourself, I would highly recommend the P.I.N.K. Method. It truly has changed my life, and I feel great!

Heather Doré P.I.N.K. Method 2

     My good friend and Producer Jarome Matthew and his amazing team at Pro Soul have just sent out a Press Release for my most recent song, “Cool and Careless”, to various press and media.

     If you haven’t heard the song yet, you can listen to it here. Here’s a bit of background to how the song came about.

     I just found out about this, and there are already several links to it online. I’d like to thank Jarome, and the Pro Soul Team, for all their hard work in promoting my latest track.  I would also like to thank all of you that have already downloaded the song, and written so many amazing e-mails to me about it.  It’s always great to hear your feedback, and your continued support is much appreciated!

     You can read the Press Release here.

     We have known Rose Schwarz and her family for about 3 years – we met them shortly after we moved up here to B.C.’s Sunshine Coast.  They are good, decent, hardworking, kind, generous people, and they have been through so much in the last few years.  We care very much about them, and that is why I am writing this post.

     Rose suffers from a very rare disease called gastroparesis, and as a result, is unable to eat. ( she survives via a feeding tube )  She is constantly in pain, and suffers a variety of symptoms – none of which are pleasant.  Because she is so tiny, people wrongly make assumptions that she has an eating disorder. If they only knew the truth, perhaps they would be more compassionate.

     Rose has endured many procedures and surgeries in the quest to find a way to make her life less difficult, but so far, nothing has really helped.  It has all come down to a surgery that is booked for April 25th in Calgary – a gastroectomy, which will mean removal of her stomach. Her esophagus will be attached to her small intestine, and eventually, she’ll be able to actually eat small amounts of food for the first time in ages.

     The bottom line is: the family needs help with funds to get to Calgary, meals, accommodations etc.  They don’t like to ask for help, but this is their daughter’s life at stake, quite literally.

     Next Saturday, there will be a Fundraiser for Rose at Robert’s Creek Hall, from 7:30-11:00 p.m.  Tickets are $20 each, and include entertainment by some wonderful local musicians, as well as a Silent Auction.    Tickets can only be purchased in advance at: Gaia’s Fair Trade in Gibsons, MELOmania in Roberts Creek, or Strait Music in Sechelt.  It will be a fun night out, for a very worthy cause.

     If you are unable to attend but would like to help, cheques can be made out to “The Rose Fund” at the Sunshine Coast Credit Union, P.O. Box 375 Sechelt, B.C. V0N3A0.  Any help would be greatly appreciated.

     Here are a couple of more in-depth articles recently written about Rose: in the Coast Reporter , and in The Province.

     As I’ve mentioned, we know Rose personally, and think the world of her. She is beautiful, intelligent, creative, funny, and has so much to give to this world.  I hope that some of you out there are able to help out – it would mean so much to them, and to us.

     Thankyou for taking the time to read this, and for your kindness and compassion.

     We love you, Rose !!!

     As you may recall, I was really excited last year when the show “The Voice” debuted.  I felt it was about time that there was a show that gave artists of varying ages and appearances a fair shot at being “heard” as a singer. Since the judges’ chairs are turned away from the contestants during the “Blind Audition” rounds, they must decide only by what really counts: the voice.  People can not be discounted simply because they may be perceived as “too old”, or because they may not “look the part” for whatever reason.  ( yes, it’s sad to say that even in 2012, some people still judge others based on first impression/looks – hard to believe some are still that shallow/superficial ) This show caught our attention because it was different, and focused on the singing.

     Season 2 began a few weeks back, and I have been so busy recently that I’ve had to play “catch up”, watching taped episodes.  A couple nights ago, we finally watched the first of the Battle Rounds, which was interesting.  The teams are led by Christina, Adam, Blake and Cee-Lo again, and they each have 12 singers.  Now that we’re into the Battle Rounds, each team will go from 12 down to 6 via weekly duet battles. ( over 4 weeks ) Once again, the artists work with both their coaches, and celebrity advisors to prepare.  This year, they are: Lionel Richie, Jewel, Alanis Morissette, Robin Thicke, Miranda Lambert, Kelly Clarkson, Babyface, and Ne-Yo.

     Each coach hand picks 2 members of their team to “battle” by singing a song together, then they must decide who goes home at the end of the round.  Last week, Christina’s team saw Chris Mann vs. Monique Benabou singing “The Power Of Love” ( Celine Dion ), and Christina felt that Chris did a better job.  We felt that Monique showed more emotion, but it’s not up to us. The best battle of the night, by far, was when Anthony Evans  and Jesse Campbell sang “If I Ain’t Got You” ( Alicia Keys ). Christina chose Jesse as the winner of that round, which we also disagreed with.  That one was pretty close, but we felt that Anthony did a better job. Either way, it was definitely the most interesting part of the whole show that night – both guys really “brought it”, with power and emotion, and connected with the audience – beautiful stuff.

     Adam pitted Tony Lucca against Chris Cauley, and they sang U2’s “A Beautiful Day”.  Tony came out on top in that round – again, a fairly close one, but we felt Tony was slightly more “polished”, so we agreed with Adam.  We felt the song choice was kind of boring, though.  ( don’t get me wrong – I like U2 – I just feel they have a lot of much better songs )

     Blake decided that Adley Stump and RaeLynn from his team would sing “Free Falling” ( Tom Petty ) ( another song we aren’t crazy about ) and he chose RaeLynn as victor.  We felt he made the right choice: Adley definitely has a bit stronger voice, more experience, stage presence etc. but RaeLynn has this incredible quality to her voice. She is also just so young and fresh and brimming with promise. I’ll be interested to see how things go for her. Next, he paired Jordis Unga with Brian Fuente on “Ironic” ( Alanis ), and Jordis took that round. ( as an aside, I have to say that I absolutely loved the scarf that Brian was wearing !!! )

     Cee-Lo chose Cheesa ( pronounced “Chessa”, despite the spelling ) to perform with Angie Johnson, doing “Total Eclipse Of The Heart” ( Bonnie Tyler ).  Both ladies did well, but Cheesa came out on top in that one, which we felt was correct, as well.

     So, we basically agreed with all of the judges’ decisions, with the exception of Christina’s, on this particular night.  It was a good show – again, some song choices were rather – how can I put it – not very exciting, but that’s all a part of it, I guess. If you can make even a somewhat “dull” song sound interesting, then you have something special, right?

     The Battle Rounds continue for 3 more weeks, and the Live Rounds begin Apr. 2nd.  The Official NBC site for “The Voice” is here. Please check out the show, and I’d love to hear your thoughts on how things are going.