Canadian Country Music Awards

I tuned into the CBC last night to watch the Canadian Country Music Awards hosted by Paul Brandt.

Held at Brandt Centre (no relation to Paul) in Regina, Saskatchewan, the big winner of the evening was Emerson Drive.

The group snagged three awards, including Single of the Year for Moments.

It's the first single by a Canadian band to hit No. 1 on the Billboard country chart.

Other winners were Carolyn Dawn Johnson, Female Artist of the Year and Brad Johner, Male Artist of the Year.

The most unusual award was the Kraft Cheez Whiz Fans Choice Award that went to Terri Clark.

She's received it seven times in 11 years.

Hotel Saskatchewan no doubt played host to country music stars attending the awards ceremonies in Regina. Photo by Sue Frause.

A yummy cookbook, indeed!

That's my friend Sylvia.

She owns Fairholme Manor in Victoria, BC and wrote a cookbook.

That's why she's on the cover and I'm not.

OK, I did edit the cookbook, which is the most appetizing array of yummy recipes for breakfasts and brunches, accompanied by fabulous photos.

A lot of people asked me if editing the cookbook meant I had to make all the recipes.

Nope.

I merely played with the words to make sure it all made sense. I also wrote all the copy for the jacket and the foreword to the book that begins

As a travel writer, I sleep around a lot.

It was a fun gig!

You can order the book from Fairholme Manor's website, or if you're in western Canada it's available in many kitchen shops and bookstores.

On Whidbey Island, stop by Moonraker Books in Langley.

It makes the perfect hostess gift!

Ending up in the wrong place. Uff da!

A friend in Montreal sent me this funny news item about lost Norwegians. Knowing that I'm a card carrying member of the Daughters of Norway, he didn't want me to be led astray next time I go abroad.

RODEZ, France, Sept 5, 2007 (AFP) - A spelling mistake on the Internet led to a surprise trip to remote southern France for three Norwegian tourists who thought they were going to a Greek island, airport officials said Wednesday.

The family group from Torp-Sandefjord thought they had booked a flight to the island of Rhodes but instead the journey from Oslo took them via London to Rodez, capital of the mountainous Aveyron department.

According to airport authorities at Rodez some 10 tourists make the same mistake every year.

Photo courtesy Hotel du Lion d'Or.

Praise the Lord and shoot the sign

I take pictures of fun/funny signs when I'm on the road.

There they are, in a neat little file in my iPhoto program on my iMac.

Some of the best ones are church signs.

A friend sent me this link to a website that has some real choice ones.

The next time you're on the road and see a good sign, shoot it.

With your camera.

Check the pastors' names! Sue Frause photo.

Know any tired innkeepers?

A doorway in Dublin, Ireland. Sue Frause photo.