Tuesday, August 29, 2006

Safe and sound in Hull, Quebec

Ahhhhhh... it is so pleasant to get up in the morning and not have to jump into a car! Although last night, I was dreaming that I was in a car on the highway!

Yes, we have completed our 4,350-odd km and are now safely ensconced at the very nice corner room at the Four Points Sheraton in Hull. I can see the Parliament buildings across the river in Ottawa! I only wish we could stay here more than two nights, but Rocky and his co-hort (I am resisting the urge to call him Bullwinkle) are arriving at our place tomorrow around noon.

Today we have to do laundry and go appliance-shopping, as our new place has not a single appliance. We also have to drive out to Val-des-monts and get the keys to our new place!

So we all survived the drive. Even the gecko looks relieved that it is over. The cats are residing at "Cat's Paradise" until Saturday and have a very nice "double unit" with a great outdoor part that Julius is especially sure to enjoy.

I am hoping that today has a better start than yesterday, which involved me walking back from the Comfort Inn breakfast bar with toast and peanut butter, opening the door to our room, and somehow managing to drop the toast so the it landed PB-first on my t-shirt, then hit the carpet face down.

And hey, my westcoast friends, I do miss you all!

Sorry for the lack of photos but you can be sure there will be some soon! Right now I am wearing my white Sheraton bathrobe and my monkey pajamas. There's an image for you to savour.

Monday, August 28, 2006

Alive and well in Timmins!

Just checking in to let my fans (har har) know that we are alive and well in Timmins, Ontario (at the lovely Comfort Inn.) Our journey from BC to Quebec is going extremely well and we should be in Quebec by later this afternoon.

Yesterday's events:

-We passed our moving van, which had pulled over to the side of the highway outside Wawa, Ontario. We did a u-turn and went back to chat. Rocky (our driver) and his assistant were enjoying a lunch of barbecued moose steak. They had a folding table and chairs, barbecue, the works. Rocky hunts moose back in Fort Nelson. What are the odds of seeing your moving van on 4,35o km of road?

- I had to stop on the stretch between Wawa and Timmins and relieve myself. Not many toilets on that stretch of road. Maybe two. I had to go into the bushes. I peed on my foot.

-We actually made it to our motel before 9:30 at night!

Time for breakfast! Eventually the whole saga will be on a website.

Monday, August 21, 2006

Crazy people

My friend Wendy took this at our soiree the other night. On Wednesday, we hit the road for our 4,350 km drive to Quebec in the un-air-conditioned black Mazda Protege 5, with three cats and a leopard gecko in tow (and three battery-operated fans for the cats, not to mention ice packs to cool their crates if necesssary!) I think we need our heads examined, but really, we didn't want to fly the pets if at all possible.


Wendy brought some delicious marinated chicken to our potluck, and we barbecued it. Then we foolishly left some on the counter while we were having dinner, having forgotten that Julius has a serious chicken addiction. Bad cat! Bad!!

You probably won't hear from me again until after the trip, but I'm sure I will have lots of stories to tell.

Sunday, August 20, 2006

Bye bye Boot Camp! WAH!

As you may know, Hubster and I are moving to Quebec next week, driving some 4,350 km from BC, with three cats and a leopard gecko in our Mazda Protege 5 (black, no air-conditioning. We are insane.)

Last week we had a lovely potluck dinner with our friends from our Wednesday night "Boot Camp" class at the gym (which I haven't attended since I was "spayed" five weeks ago.) The one other guy who comes to that class, John, was SUPPOSED to attend but wimped out on us. So we took this picture for him:


John, we salute you! By the way, if any of you girls don't want your pic on my blog, it's too late. HAHAHA! Or you can let me know and I'll put a black bar across your eyeballs.

Gordon was often the only guy in class, and he got a lot of ATTENTION, which I think he is going to miss. Here is he, being teased by his classmates (and our buff instructor, Wendy, in the orange T-shirt):


And just to prove I am still alive:


Yeah, he's really suffering. Tragic, really, how they abuse him:


Ah, we'll miss this group VERY MUCH! Love ya, girls!

Friday, August 11, 2006

Tara, a sweet dog

On July 19, we lost our sweet old English Setter, Tara. She was 14-1/2 years old and suffering from lymphoma. Our wonderful vet Dennis and his wife Marj came to our house to ease Tara gently from this world.

Tara was my mother's dog, the fifth in a beloved line of English Setters. Sadly, my Mum died in 1997, while Tara was still quite young. We jokingly called Tara "our inheritance." For nine years, she was "our" dog, although I always secretly suspected she was channelling my mother's spirit. When she was good, she was very very good, but when she was bad, she was... demonic! :) But always very, very adorable and very, very loving and very, very sweet-natured. We miss her more than we can say. I feel quite certain that she and my Mum are reunited up there somewhere, plotting new ways to haunt me.

Cutest little puppy from hell. My Mum's favourite picture of her. She's trying to escape under the garden gate.


Tara and me, snuggling in May 1992.


Tara and me, snuggling in June 2005.


Wednesday, August 09, 2006

Dogs and me


On July 19th, we had to have our English Setter Tara put to sleep. She had lymphoma and declined very quickly, but she had a good long life (14-1/2 years.) We miss her a lot. You can see pictures of her throughout my blog.

I have always loved dogs, and this is the first time I have been dogless since 1987, a state which I hope won't last too long.

Here is a photo of me at age 5 back in 1969, with our first English Setter, Gina. She was an absolutely lovely dog. I had just had my hair shorn off for a holiday in Barbados. I think my Mum was into Twiggy at the time or something!