Tim Hortons Camp Day June 4, 2008

It is Thursday, June 05, 2008 and at 27° Centigrade it is hotter and muggier than I'm used to so far this year.   The chestnut trees and lilac bushes are still blooming; the clematis is budding; I am fighting the lawn war with the dandelions; and my strawberries are blooming.  I have never believed in poisoning my land, so I fight the dandelions by pulling off their flowers. This year that and digging-up and lawn mowing are all that are allowed in my municipality, which has passed an anti-herbicide bylaw. However, clipping is not all bad... the dandelion is (historically) a European salad green and herbal gardening companies sell dandelion seed for those with a taste for it in their meals. Presumably the tame varieties are not as strong-tasting as the wild ones.

Yesterday, June 4th, was Camp Day at the Tim Hortons coffee shops. Every year I support this event, which raises money to send disadvantaged kids to summer camp.

Every time a customer buys a coffee at Tim Hortons on Camp Day they will help send over 13,000 kids - who could otherwise not afford it - on the camping adventure of a lifetime. All children who attend the Foundation's camp sessions are selected from within the communities where Tim Hortons stores are located. Tim Hortons store owners work closely with local youth organizations and schools to select appropriate children, between the ages of nine and 12, to attend a 10 day summer camp session or seven day winter camp session.

"Each year we are overwhelmed with the outpouring of support that we receive from our loyal customers and special guests on Camp Day," says Bill Moir, President, Tim Horton Children's Foundation. "Our customers like the fact that all they need to do to help deserving children is buy a cup of coffee. It's what they already do every day - yet on Camp Day so many go above and beyond to show their support."

Link to Tim Hortons Camp Day page.  Link to Tim Hortons camp locations page; camps are in both Canada and the US.

In the cold months, I also support the Tim Hortons Roll Up The Rim event.  (Link to FAQ page.) This year I won one hot beverage and two muffins. I know a lady who won a BBQ in the Roll Up the Rim event 2 years ago, and she told me that the BBQ was of very good quality. Anyone that wins a vehicle in RUTR gets to keep it since it is not leased but owned outright by the winner.  The end of Roll Up the Rim is a sign of spring coming to Canada, since that's when the snow should be on its way "out". Here's a link from February, 2008's Roll Up the Rim press release — the contest this year had the traditional red and yellow colours in North America and camouflage-coloured cups at NATO Kandahar, Afghanistan, where the Canadian Forces are on deployment.

By the way, about the crows-versus-cats question, I've learned that this is common in western Canada. So just because I haven't observed it myself before does not mean it's a bad omen of any kind.

As noted in the comments column, there is a forecast for thunderstorms in my area today.  Here's the Environment Canada lightning map:

WOEC Lightning Frequency. At time of posting, there is lightning seen over Lake Huron, part of Lake Michigan, Lake Erie and parts of the adjoining US states to those lakes. In the US, there is also lightning over CO, KS, SD, NE and IA, as well as over offshore Atlantic waters. There is also lightning in northern AB and NWT. The lightning over the Great Lakes is breaking up (? maybe ?) while the AB and central-states storms seem to be getting more severe.

Link to WOEC RADAR. At time of posting it looks like the storm might head north of my part of southern ON. It does, however, feel very humid so at sunset when the temperature falls we might get storms even so.


TWN Precipitation Map. At time of posting the rain is mainly falling where there is lightning, except for a fall of rain in BC-WA-OR.

CHC (Canadian Hurricane Centre) is not monitoring any hurricanes at present.

* My humble disclaimer:  I am a diarist and hobbyist.  Although I am very fond of Tim Hortons products (and the shops for meeting places), I don't own any Tim Hortons stock. The hyperlinks lead to the originating web pages. The maps will update automatically.  Weather is so cool. . . and Tim Hortons (to me) is too! As a Tim Hortons store poster says, the beverages there are "not so much held as embraced."