October 26 to November 1, 2025 ; Winnipeg, Manitoba to Moosomin, Saskatchewan

 Sunday ; Low overcast, mild.

AWWWWW ... just ****ing great ! Big blizzard today on Crowsnest Hwy. 3 across southern BC. <sigh>

Pre-departure preparations continued today. We took Apollo for a walk in the park around 6 PM. Met Josef, an 84 year old immigrant from Iran, in Canada for 50 years. Lives in condominium building across the street. Very friendly fellow. Sang the praises of raising his three sons, all with engineering degrees from University of Manitoba, here in Tuxedo / Winnipeg / Canada.

Painter came by this afternoon to pick up paint colours sample booklet, and keys to our building and suite. Painting and renovation work will be done in December or January. WOO-HOO ... looking forward to seeing results when we return in mid-April.

Monday ; Rain all day !

Joanne’s sister came for a visit this afternoon. The plan was for her to come over so that we could all go for a pleasant walk in fine fall weather. Nope ... not today !

I continued working on fall pre-departure preparations. And I combined that with some maintenance work in the suite, removing bathroom fan vents and cleaning inside the ducts. And this suite has four water valves that are behind walls, and require a special tool that inserts into tiny holes in the wall to turn them on or off. I checked them a few days ago, and two of the four were stuck / seized from years or decades of never being turned off or on. I lubricated them with Liquid Wrench lubricant a day or two ago, and today I was finally able to loosen the two seized ones, and with considerable difficulty, close them and re-open them.

There was a lot of risk in doing that. If a valve broke while being forced to close / open, well ... they’re behind walls. Two of them are behind the wall behind the washer. Two of them are behind the wall behind a bathroom vanity. Breaking them would result in rapid flooding inside the walls. And repairing / replacing them would cost thousands of dollars ! And repairs to suites on lower floors below us would cost tens of thousands of dollars.

And you wonder why I get pissed off about lack of routine maintenance done by previous owners of homes we’ve bought ? ! ? With assistance from my OCD, I am in the process of preparing a “preventive maintenance” spreadsheet for this suite. “Lubricate, close, and re-open water valves behind walls” will certainly be on the “to do annually” list ! ! ! ! !

Tuesday ; Sunny and cool, another pretty nice fall day.

At 12:30 PM we left home heading for Transcona for Joanne’s optometrist appointment at 1:15. I waited in the car with Apollo while she went in to see her eye doctor. This appointment was made about six months ago, before we decided to move.

After her eye exam was completed we drove to the Crossroads shopping area at Regent Ave. and Lagimodiere Blvd. I dropped Joanne off at Freshco to buy some produce and I drove to the next mall over to shop at Rona. This Rona store had one of the two items I was looking for. I returned to Freshco and took Apollo for a walk while we waited for Joanne to finish grocery shopping. On the way back home we stopped at Rona (again), Canadian Tire, and Home Depot on Kenaston Blvd., looking for the second item I was shopping for. Didn’t find it. <shrug>

Once we were back at home we both continued working on fall pre-departure preparations, and I continued maintenance work. I’m beginning to see the light at the end of the tunnel of suite maintenance. In the evening we watched the season premiere of Married At First Sight.

Wednesday ; Sunny and cool, another pretty nice fall day.

Today was “pack for winter” day. I hate “pack for winter” day. Admittedly Joanne does most of the work, but it’s always very stressful for both of us. “Where is (fill in the blank) ?” “Where did you put (fill in the blank) ?” “Do you want or need to bring (fill in the blank) ?” “Should we bring (fill in the blank) ?”

It was such a nice afternoon we took Apollo for a walk in Swindon Oaks Park (across the street) again. Again we met and chatted with Josef, the elderly Iranian immigrant who lives in the condominium building across the street. Such an interesting and engaging fellow.

Watched tonight’s episode of Amazing Race while having (chicken) pollo mole (Mexican, specifically Oaxacan, pronounced “poyo molay”) for dinner, recorded tonight’s episode of Survivor to watch tomorrow.

Thursday ; Overcast, occasional light drizzle.

Packing and preparations for departure on Saturday continue in earnest. Have been dreading and procrastinating emptying desk contents ... again. Had to do that less than two months ago for moving from Dugald Estates to Winslow House. Had to do it again today to lighten load of extremely heavy desk that painters will have to move when painting office.

Went shopping for dog food and treats at PET VALU in Tuxedo Park Shopping Centre this afternoon. Monthly seniors discount day ! Bought a small bag of Apollo’s food. Usually buy big bags for economy, but don’t want to haul big bag from Winnipeg to Victoria.

Watched last night’s recorded episode of Survivor while having supper.

Friday ; Overcast and cold.

When we moved suitcases out of our hallway storage closet I was reminded that behind the suitcases was some wall damage that I had not had time to repair before we moved stuff into the storage closet. Today was the opportunity to rectify that.

Joanne baked cookies and muffins to take with us on the road. Because of our many years of experience of full time RV’ing, and trailer hauling / delivering, she is an excellent planner of feeding us while we travel. Even though we no longer travel in an RV, and consequently don’t travel with a kitchen on board, we do have a small fridge in the car. She prepares and brings enough food to feed us for the first couple of days of travel, and then is very adept at replenishing our food, in small quantities, usually with a daily brief stop at a grocery store, to keep us healthily nourished. With frequent visits to bakeries, if I have anything to say about it. HA HA HA !

Saturday ; Winnipeg, Manitoba to Moosomin, Saskatchewan

Overcast in Manitoba, sunny in Saskatchewan, cold and windy.

We finished our travel packing, I winterized our suite, we left home at 11:30 AM, half an hour ahead of schedule. I refilled the minivan with cheap rez gas at nearby Oodena Gas and we headed through the small amount of Winnipeg that remains to the west of Tuxedo, and onto Trans-Canada Hwy. 1 westbound.

We stopped to eat lunch at a rest area near Elkhorn, Manitoba. I drove from Winnipeg to Brandon, then Joanne drove from Brandon to Virden while I napped. I drove from Virden to Moosomin. We arrived at Moosomin’s Motel 6 at 3:30 PM, five hours after we left home (time zone change).

Apollo was very restless this morning at home, sensing that we were “moving” and worried that he would once again be “abandoned”. Poor little fellow ! He settled down once we were on our way, when he knew he was not being left behind. He travels well, enjoying snoozing, front half on Joanne’s lap, back half on his travel pillow on the console of the car. For reasons unknown to me, my lap is unacceptable, and when Joanne drives and I nap in the passenger seat, he pouts and lies down in his dog bed behind the console, looking forlorn.

We checked into Motel 6, Joanne unloaded stuff from the car to our room, I went to the breakfast room and got Joanne and me each a cup of hot chocolate, Apollo climbed onto the bed, messed up the covers to his satisfaction, and went to sleep. He LOOOOOVES Motel 6’s. <shrug> Go figure !

Tonight we watched the World Series game seven. First baseball game I’ve watched in ... <thinking> ... about sixty years. I was very tired, but able to watch until the end of the game in the bottom of the eleventh inning. <sigh> Congratulations to the Los Angeles Dodgers.

DSK

October 19 to 25, 2025 ; Winnipeg, Manitoba

 Sunday ; Sunny and cool.

A night’s sleep helped sharpen my problem solving skills. I resumed working this morning on mounting the reverse osmosis water system faucet on the edge of the sink. I had it installed by 11 AM. Much of the problems I had with this faucet mounting job and with the previous job of removing the garburator and rebuilding the kitchen sink plumbing has to do with incompetent “professional” renovation work done in the past. Oh, sure, some clown managed to get the work “visually” completed to the satisfaction of an elderly woman in her 90’s, but ... there were a lot of “renovation sins” hidden underneath / behind the pretty facades ! I suspect that happens a lot in the home construction and renovation trades. But then again, perhaps it’s just because I’m OCD.

After lunch and a nap, I began working on the installation of the main parts of the reverse osmosis system. And as I had hoped and expected, the rest of the installation went smoothly. I had done it before, a couple of years ago, at Dugald Estates. I was completely finished the installation of the entire reverse osmosis water filtration system by 5 PM. And we had reverse osmosis filtered water in the three gallon storage tank underneath the sink by 7 PM. Well done, Daniel !

When we were planning our move here I had hoped that in the month and a half between moving here and leaving for Victoria for the winter I would accomplish, amongst other smaller projects, the re-installation of the bidet system in the ensuite bathroom and the re-installation of the reverse osmosis water treatment system underneath the kitchen sink. Both projects are completed, and none too soon. We have a very busy schedule for the next two weeks before we depart for the winter.

Both Joanne and I have sore shoulders from yesterday’s flu and covid vaccinations. I have a headache that has lasted about 24 hours. And a mild sore throat. Joanne feels weak and tired and vaguely ill.

The sun was shining and there was no wind, so at 5:30 PM I decided to go for a long, slow bicycle ride. This is such a lovely neighbourhood for cycling.

Monday ; Raining all day.

Worked at my desk much of the day. Had a (father & son) painting company come over to provide an estimate. Another one tomorrow. We want to have the entire suite repainted, either immediately upon our return in the spring, or perhaps even while we’re gone for the winter.

Tuesday ; Sunny, cold, windy.

Had another painting contractor over early this afternoon to provide an estimate / quote. Both contractors impressed us enough that we would hire either. Both quotes in the same ballpark. Both very reasonable. HMPH ! Makes us think we may have overpaid for painting services in Steinbach four years ago. Both contractors have excellent reviews / ratings. Made our (probable) decision this evening.

Joanne went for a haircut and other errands this afternoon. She has always been reluctant / hesitant about haircuts / hair stylists. Except in Mexico ... <shrug> ! She often asks me to accompany her to help “translate” her desires to the stylist. Not today, I said ! Well ... today’s haircut, achieved without husband “translator” is just fine !

Wednesday ; Sunny and cold, but no wind.

After an early lunch and brief nap we set out to run errands. First stop was Steinbach Credit Union to sign some documents, then Wal-Mart for Joanne while I went to our insurance agency to submit forms to allow them to renew my driver’s license and vehicle registration this winter while we are away. This is the second time I’ve dealt with this agency in the month and a half that we’ve lived here. First time went smoothly. Today was a disaster ! Three agents serving me, acting like Larry, Curly, and Moe, acting like I’m the first client they’ve ever served that goes away for the winter. Looks like I’ll be searching for a new Autopac agency in the spring !

Joanne met me at Home Depot where I bought more needed hardware, then we rushed home to be on time to meet our selected painting (& renovations) contractor to firm up our contract and ... for me to assign more work to him. More painting, and some minor electrical and carpentry work.

Joanne has been persuading me for quite some time now to be more willing to pay others to do work that has become more difficult for me, either due to age or danger or time constraints or whatever. Well ... OK ! I’m a wealthy, old man living in Tuxedo. Time to start acting the part ! HA HA HA !

While having supper we watched tonight’s episode of Survivor, recording Amazing Race to watch another time.

Thursday ; Sunny and chilly, sunlight intense enough to make it seem warmer than it actually was.

At 11 AM we departed home, heading to Dugald Estates to pick up our friend and former neighbour Glennis, owner of Gracie the Toy Poodle that we walked twice a day for 2½ summers. On the way to lunch at L’Arche Tova Café in Transcona we went to Oakbank to pick up a prescription refill I had ordered from Pharmasave, then to Mission Thrift Store in Transcona to donate a large, mirrored jewellery cabinet that I removed from our bedroom wall yesterday now that we have hired a painter.

L’Arche Tova Café is a “charity” restaurant operated by and for the benefit of a developmentally challenged community. Open every day for lunch only, great “home made” food, profits for a good cause. We had a long, leisurely lunch and visit with Glennis. When we took Glennis back home to Dugald Estates after lunch we visited with Gracie, who misses us a lot apparently. We miss her too. This may have been the last time we see them both.

HA HA HA ... without us walking her twice a day, 2½ year old Gracie is ... “thickening”.

On the way back home I had to stop at the local insurance agency AGAIN ... to pick up from where we left off yesterday, when I stomped out after about half an hour of watching the three stooges try to compile the right forms to renew my driver’s license and vehicle registration when they both expire next February ... while we are absent from Manitoba. I told the agent serving me to phone when she had finished finding the right forms and filling them out, and only then would I return to sign them. She phoned a few hours later yesterday afternoon, to advise that everything was complete and ready for my signing.

<sputter> NOT SO ! When I arrived today the three stooges show began anew. Two agents/stooges today instead of yesterday’s three agents/stooges ! I grit my teeth and endured another half hour of their gong show, finally leaving with signed copies of driver’s license and vehicle registration renewals prepared and ready for submission by them next February.

Only after I arrived back home and was at my desk did I notice ... <sputter> <sputter> <sputter> ... they had entered my previous (Dugald Estates) address on my renewal forms. I phoned and left a message, and a few hours later a manager phoned me. I relayed my tale of woe, emphasizing my dissatisfaction with his agency’s ineptitude. He asked me to return tomorrow and he personally would fix things.

NO ! ! ! I am NOT going to come back and sit at a desk for half an hour or more and watch YOU and your stooges “fix” your errors ! YOU and your stooges don’t need me there to watch your antics of ineptitude any further. If and when you finally get all the I’s dotted and T’s crossed, double checked and triple checked for accuracy, phone me and I will return to sign forms. If I have to be there longer than 30 seconds ... I’ll walk out and take my business elsewhere. “Is there any part of that you don’t understand ... sir ?”

He seemed to understand !

Over dinner tonight we watched last night’s episode of Amazing Race. Joanne has been mastering the process of recording TV shows on our new to us TV service provider’s system.

Friday ; Sunny and cool. No wind. A nice day for this time of year.

So ... the manager of the insurance agency phoned this morning to tell me my driver’s license and vehicle registration renewal documents were corrected and ready for me to pick up. He offered to serve me personally when I showed up, and we agreed to meet at 3 PM.

GOOD NEWS ; I was in and out in about thirty seconds, as I had demanded. So ... apparently he DID understand ! ! !

BAD NEWS ; He chickened out on meeting / serving me. He was nowhere to be seen, and sent one of his underlings, a seemingly competent young woman to bring documents to the counter for me to sign and take. <me making chicken clucking sounds>

On the way back home I stopped at Kal Tire and had the air pressure adjusted in all of the minivan’s tires in preparation for upcoming Winnipeg to Victoria cross country trip. And I refilled the minivan with cheap rez gas at nearby Oodena Gas.

At 7 PM we drove to nearby St. Demetrius Greek Orthodox Church to pick up our order of parishioner prepared home cooked Greek food for supper tonight, the second time we have done this recently. The sale of home cooked Greek food is a church fund raiser activity that takes place every Friday evening during October. The first time we indulged in the church’s “Greek Food Night” a few weeks ago it was ... superb.

Tonight was ... even better than that ! ! !

Saturday ; Sunny and mild, a nice fall day.

We have begun fall pre-departure preparations. We’re departing in a week for Victoria, BC, for the winter.

I watched the Blue Bombers game this afternoon, the final game of the regular season. The Bombers will be in the playoffs which start next Saturday. I wonder if / hope that I can listen to their game against either Montreal or Calgary as we are driving the first leg of the trip, from home to Moosomin, Saskatchewan.

DSK

October 12 to 18, 2025 ; Winnipeg, Manitoba

Sunday ; our 51^st anniversary

Low ceiling overcast ... gloomy ! Chilly and windy. A bit of nearly horizontal rain in the afternoon.

OOOOO ... tough week in the stock market ! Well, not the entire week, just Friday, I guess.

Finished Apollo’s regular grooming routine today ; cleaned his ears, trimmed his nails. He hates both ! Did some grout repairs in the kitchen and bathroom. As I said before, this is the third time in a row we buy (or co-op life lease) a home previously occupied by an old woman who was unable to keep up with routine maintenance issues for a long time. The result is we once again have a new to us home that has an overwhelming volume of minor maintenance issues that need fixing. Some of the “minor” maintenance issues are not that minor ! There is a broken plumbing connection underneath the kitchen sink that will require complete replacement of the plumbing, in conjunction with removal of the garburator (which Joanne hates, and is afraid of) and installation of our reverse osmosis water filtration system. I’m still hoping that I can achieve that three part project before departing for the winter season in less than three weeks. Probably not this upcoming week, which already has a quite busy schedule.

Late last night I created an anniversary card using an online card creation app. I printed it on card stock. I incorporated a photo from our Inverness Falls Resort mini-vacation. Joanne was impressed. HAPPY 51^st ANNIVERSARY ! I still love you.

Monday ; Canadian Thanksgiving

Sunny, windy, cold.

Went for a bicycle ride this afternoon, probably my last time this year. BRRR !

Supper yesterday was both an anniversary dinner and Thanksgiving dinner. Because ... Joanne had an appointment this evening at Health Sciences Centre for an MRI of the brain, ordered by her stroke prevention neurologist. Seemed like a bit of an odd scheduling, but efficient use of resources, I suppose.

We left home at 9 PM and drove to HSC for her 9:45 PM appointment. No traffic, empty parkade, no waiting in the MRI department at the hospital, in and out in about half an hour. HMPH ... wish we could get more late evening medical appointments !

Tuesday ; Sunny and cold.

Left home this morning at 10:30 AM heading to Southdale for appointments with our family doctor. Joanne reviewed her ongoing issues with the doctor, I needed prescription refills. Before leaving the Southdale mall we went to Shoppers Drug Mart to take advantage of my “birthday gift” Optimum points offer. Bought three bottles of probiotics at $26 each to get my bonus points.

Headed back towards home, stopping at Wal-Mart on Kenaston near our home. HMPH ! ! ! Found an equivalent probiotic at Wal-Mart for a bit less than half the Shoppers Drug Mart price ! ! ! Will be returning the Shoppers product for refund ! Yeah ... thanks for the “birthday gift”, Mr. Weston !

Wednesday ; Sunny, chilly.

Not a great day ! I spent noon to 6 PM working on removing and replacing the kitchen plumbing. Including two trips to Home Depot. And ending the day’s work on this project by making a mistake and ruining a $15 plumbing part. <sigh> So ... another trip to Home Depot first thing tomorrow, and then, hopefully, I will finish this job tomorrow, and restore our kitchen to functionality.

The main point of this plumbing “remove and replace” was to eliminate the garburator and set the stage for the installation of our reverse osmosis water system.

Joanne was stoic, but likely not pleased, not only about the dishwasher being out of commission ... because I had to shut off the water to the kitchen ... but about having to wash dishes by hand ... in the bathroom sink. SORRY !

This evening was Winslow House’s AGM / annual general meeting. I’ve always hated AGM’s ; first at Riverside RV Park Resort in Keremeos, then Stone Creek Courts in Steinbach, and now at Winslow House. Dugald Estates’ AGM was held when we were away for the winters, so we never had to endure one. BUT ... their monthly residents’ meetings were just as bad as an AGM. Or worse ! Kofa Ko-op in Yuma, Arizona was the only place where the AGM’s were well organized and productive meetings.

I had decided when we were advised of Winslow House’s AGM that we should attend tonight, since we were new residents, but I don’t intend to continue to attend in the future.

After the AGM and a very late dinner I continued working on the plumbing until I finally figured out the “puzzle pieces” and was able to mock up the system satisfactorily. It’s now 2:15 AM ! I suppose it’s a good thing I never tried to earn a living as a plumber. HA HA HA !

Thursday ; Intermittent light rain, mild temperature.

Around 11:30 AM I headed to Home Depot again to purchase plumbing parts. I was home within half an hour (it’s nearby !) and resumed working on the kitchen plumbing replacement project. WOO-HOO ! It was finished by 2 PM. Excellent work, Daniel. Well ... <shrug> ... except for the $15 mistake ! A bit slow, but ... eventually well done ! My lack of plumbing expertise is made up for by my OCD. HA HA HA !

Late in the afternoon we went to the second floor to visit with neighbours who have rented our indoor parking spot for the winter and will collect our mail and check our suite weekly during the winter. Thank you very much, Rob and Kim. They have a very nice little dog, a five year old male Wheaten Terrier / Miniature Poodle cross named Percy.

Friday ; Intermittent light rain, mild temperature.

Left home at 11:45 AM for a noon appointment at nearby Steinbach Credit Union. After a brief meeting we crossed the street to Home Depot where I got a refund on all the leftover / unneeded plumbing parts I recently bought. On the way home we stopped at Harvest Bakery to buy some rye bread (Friday special) and bagels.

While Apollo and I napped after lunch Joanne went Wal-Martin’. Yeah ... I don’t like Wal-Martin’ at any time and I sure as hell won’t do it on weekends !

I have created a “fitness area” on about a third of our enclosed balcony / sunroom and this afternoon I did some dumbbell / weights exercising. I need to do WAY more of that !

In the evening I watched the Blue Bombers game. Well ... HMPH ... that was an ugly win for the Bombers, wasn’t it ? ! ?

Saturday ; Sunny and mild.

<sigh> I seem to be losing my D.I.Y. skills. Age related deterioration ? <sigh>

This morning I began to work on the reinstallation of our reverse osmosis water filtration system. We bought it a couple of years ago when we moved into Dugald Estates. Installation was very difficult, mostly due to the difficulty of drilling through the horizontal top edge of a stainless steel sink. But ... installing it here is a second time installation, so should be considerably easier than the first time around. <taking deep breath> Not so !

All I wanted to get done today was remove the somewhat useless hand soap dispenser mounted on our kitchen sink edge, and use that hole to mount the reverse osmosis faucet assembly. I worked on it a bit this morning, then again from 4:30 PM until 2 AM ! With a short break for supper and ... multiple trips to Home Depot and Canadian Tire to buy tools. And return them for refunds because they were not the right tools for the job. <another deep breath> You would think that at the ripe old age of 71 I would own every tool known to mankind ! Not so !

It’s 2:30 AM and I’m tired !

After lunch we went to Shoppers Drug Mart in Tuxedo Park Shopping Centre to get flu and Covid vaccinations, and replenish many prescriptions (six for me, three for Joanne) for the first half of the winter in Victoria. We’ll need to refill prescriptions again halfway through the winter in Victoria.

DSK

October 5 to 11, 2025 ; Winnipeg, Manitoba (& Whiteshell Provincial Park)

 Sunday ; Cold, rainy, windy. BRRR ... feels like winter is near !

Well ... it’s about time to resume writing my daily journal and posting it weekly to my blog, n’est-ce pas ? It’s been six months since I last posted. Here’s what has happened in our lives over the last six months ;

HOME ; Well ... we’ve moved. We have left our seniors’ co-op condominium in Dugald on the eastern outskirts of Winnipeg, and moved to a large two bedroom, two bathroom luxurious condominium suite we purchased in Tuxedo, Winnipeg’s prestigious “old money” neighbourhood. We’ve been here for three weeks. All is great so far !

The highlight of our new home, in my opinion, is the large balcony converted to a four season sunroom. The ceiling, floor and side walls have been insulated and finished, including lush, thick carpeting the same as in the rest of the suite. The outside of the balcony has been enclosed with triple pane, screened, opening windows, floor to ceiling glass, the inside wall has been removed, opening up the living room to the sunroom, with the removed living room wall replaced with floor to ceiling sliding glass panels which we leave open all the time, turning the balcony / sunroom into an extension of the already large living room. Spectacular ! The sunroom is also heated, with thermostat controlled heaters enclosed in both side walls.

This community is quite different than Dugald Estates. Thankfully ! While this building is not designated “senior”, most of the residents are seniors / retirees. There are a lot of dogs in our building, and in the neighbouring condominium buildings as well. As we were shopping for a new home earlier this summer, a real estate agent referred us to this Swindon Way neighbourhood of condominium buildings, noted for all being pet friendly. Apollo appreciates the many new dog friends and smells in the neighbourhood. We appreciate the diversity that was lacking at Dugald Estates, a “white bread” community of narrow minded “parochials” (yes, yes ... it’s okay to read that as “hillbillies”) who think adventure travel means going to Beausejour for lunch ! Who think that the sun rises and sets on Anola !

Winslow House, our new home, is filled with many different shades of skin colour, varied religions and sexual orientations, with (affluent) immigrants from all over the world, speaking a multitude of languages. With men wearing yarmulkes instead of John Deere baseball caps !

HEALTH ; I have had some cardiac issues this summer which resulted in needing an angiogram, which went well. Partially due to my cardiac triple bypass surgery eight years ago, implantation of stents was not a viable option for resolving this summer’s angina problems. But medication was, and the reintroduction of a cardiac medication which I used for the first couple of years following my bypass surgery has solved the current angina issues.

Joanne continues to have a chronic coughing problem, persistent for a year and a half now. And still undiagnosed ! ! ! Our family doctor referred her to a respirologist about a year ago, and she finally saw him (the respirologist) this spring, about six months ago. He referred her for some tests, one of which has still not been scheduled ! ! ! SO ... since we’re leaving soon for the winter, it appears that her coughing problem will remain undiagnosed, let alone treated and resolved, for over two years ! ! ! ! !

And even more worrisome than that ... on our 21^st retirement anniversary date (June 18) she experienced three TIA’s (transient ischemic attacks) / mini-strokes ! Our family doctor referred her for a multitude of tests and scans, culminating in a visit a few days ago to a neurologist at Winnipeg’s stroke prevention clinic. He ordered more tests and scans. Winnipeg’s health care delays due to waitlists / scheduling issues means that those tests and scans won’t take place until we return from Victoria next spring.

Not only is the health deterioration of aging having a significant impact on both of us, we are both tired of the amount of time and energy that has gone into medical issues and appointments this summer.

WEALTH ; <shrug> The stock market continues to be generous !

Monday ; home to Brereton Lake

Sunny, windy, cold.

This morning we finished preparing and packing for a four day mini-holiday at Inverness Falls Resort on Brereton Lake in Whiteshell Provincial Park. We left home at 12:30 PM, stopping to refill the minivan with cheap “rez gas” at Oodena Gas, the new Indigenous owned and operated fuel bar very near to our home. We stopped again, this time on Pembina Highway, to drop off some donated items at Goodwill, before heading to Hwy. 101, Winnipeg’s Perimeter Hwy., heading east and south around the city to Dugald Road / Hwy.15. Heading east on Dugald Road, through the village of Dugald, Joanne waving (with one finger) at Dugald Estates as we passed by.

We stopped to eat our picnic lunch at Whistle Stop Park, a municipal park in Beausejour. WOO-HOO ... adventure travel ! <snicker> We arrived at Inverness Falls Resort precisely at our check-in time of 4 PM. We checked in, unloaded our stuff, then I drove to the resort’s nearby wood shed to load up with some firewood for the woodstove in our cabin. Our dog friendly cabin has a woodstove and an indoor hot tub.

We took Apollo for a walk, but soon all of us were cold, so we returned to our cabin for an evening of resting (all of us), snoozing (Apollo), and reading (Joanne and me) in front of the woodstove. At bedtime Joanne and I enjoyed some relaxing time in the hot tub before going to bed.

Tuesday ; Overcast until late afternoon, chilly, but no wind.

Apollo is ill today. Since before we’ve had him (almost a year and a half now) he’s had some manner of pancreatic / intestinal ailment which flares occasionally. Today he is constipated, lethargic, and occasionally shivering and moaning. Poor little fellow. We’re keeping him warm, wrapped up in a blanket, feeding him some extra kefir yogurt (which he has daily, a small amount with his lunch).

I woke at 8 AM, took Apollo outside, then we returned to bed where we all slept quite late. By design, we had a lazy day. This mini-vacation was intended to give us a rest from the challenges and demands of our recent move. <sigh> This was our third move in 4½ years ! I’m hoping that there will be no more moves in my life until I leave Winslow House in a pine box ! HA HA HA ! Or ... perhaps ... to an assisted living facility.

We took Apollo for a long slow walk before having a late lunch. His health seemed to be slowly improving as the day wore on. Joanne kept feeding him small servings of kefir yogurt, and that seemed to help, along with fresh air and slow exercise. After late lunch, and a nap for me and Apollo, we went out for another long, slow walk. The sky had cleared, and the brilliant sunshine made it feel warmer than it actually was. I went fishing off the end of the resort’s dock for about forty-five minutes. I didn’t catch anything, but sitting on the end of the dock with the sunshine in my face was great !

GOOD NEWS / BAD NEWS ; It’s 11:30 PM ... bedtime. Apollo seems to be feeling much better. Now Joanne is ill ! Story of my ****ing life !

Wednesday ; Sunny, mild, chilly wind coming off the lake.

Apollo is healthy and happy. Joanne less so. She has a mystery GI ailment that has been slowly improving throughout the day, so she’ll probably be fine by tomorrow.

Before lunch we went for a long, slow walk down the road to the west admiring the lakefront neighbourhood. After lunch and a nap for me and Apollo we drove to the resort’s wood shed and replenished firewood for our cabin’s woodstove, then went for a long, slow drive down the road to the east, until the road ended, again just to admire the lakefront neighbourhood. The cold wind blowing in off the lake discouraged me from fishing today.

We had supper and enjoyed another lovely fire in the woodstove while watching Survivor and Amazing Race. We ended another day with another relaxing soak in the hot tub a few feet from the cabin’s bed. AHHHHH ... good night !

Thursday ; Overcast, mild, windy near the lake.

Everybody is healthy today. WOO-HOO !

Another very lazy day. This afternoon we went for another long, slow walk. I paid our bill at the resort office to expedite tomorrow morning’s departure. I finished reconciling September’s investment statements which I have been puttering with on and off during our few days here.

At dusk we went for another leisurely, long walk with Apollo. After dinner we watched some TV, sat around in front of the fire in the woodstove, and had a soak in the hot tub at bedtime.

Friday ; Brereton Lake to Winnipeg

HAPPY 71^st BIRTHDAY TO ME !

Sunny and warm.

You know, for most of my life ... until my triple bypass surgery eight years ago, actually ... I had very little expectation / hope that I would live beyond age seventy. To my knowledge, no man in my paternal familial lineage ever has. So ... congratulations to me, I suppose ! Must have been all that clean living I did in the 70’s. HA HA HA <SNORT> HA HA !

We left Inverness Falls Resort at 10:40 AM and returned to Winnipeg. At 12:30 PM we stopped to have lunch at Dairy Queen in St. Vital then drove downtown for Joanne’s respirologist appointment at Winnipeg Clinic at 2 PM. I dropped Joanne off at the front door of the large medical clinic then drove around until I found a nearby parking spot. I accompany Joanne to most of her medical appointments, at her request, but I did not want to do so today. I am dissatisfied with her respirologist’s provision of services, and I am intolerant of his style of always being a minimum of one hour behind schedule. I have had doctors like that in the past, and I refuse to tolerate that disrespect and arrogance.

Apollo and I sat and waited in the car for almost two hours. I read the newspaper. Apollo napped. When Joanne returned to the car after her appointment we headed towards home, stopping at Harvest Bakery near home to buy a Black Forest Cherry Torte birthday cake, my favourite.

HMPH ! As beautiful as this bakery cake is, Joanne’s home made Black Forest Cherry Torte cake, which she usually makes for my birthday, is much better tasting.

Joanne prepared my favourite birthday dinner. Thank you, my dear. We each had a small glass of Forbidden Fruit Winery gold medal award winning Pomme Désirée ice wine which I bought at the winery near Cawston, BC last November as we were on our way to Victoria. It was supposed to be for last Christmas. Then New Year’s Eve. Then Joanne’s birthday in January. Then ... to drink at Inverness Falls Resort, while relaxing in front of the fire, or while soaking in the hot tub. HA HA HA ... we don’t imbibe much !

Even though it’s only been “home” for a few weeks, it’s nice to be back home.

Saturday ; Sunny early in the day, cloudy later, mild, windy.

Back at home, back to chores, back to every day life. Checked tire pressures and fluid levels on the car. Trimmed my beard. Gave Apollo a bath. Decided that this is the last time we give him a bath at home. All last winter on Vancouver Island we were taking him to PET VALU stores to give him baths at their self-serve dog wash stations. It’s much easier (on my back and recently injured hip) to bathe him in a dog wash station than at home.

Posted an ad on our condominium’s bulletin board that our indoor parking spot is available for rent for the winter. We own both an indoor and an outdoor parking spot here at Winslow House. Not every suite owns two parking spots. Certainly none of the suites owns two indoor parking spots. So ... maybe somebody with two vehicles might want to rent another indoor spot for the winter ? Hey ... <shrug> ... it’s Tuxedo ! HA HA HA !

Joanne went to the very nearby Superstore to replenish groceries. I processed photos from our Inverness Falls Resort mini-vacation. Then watched the Blue Bombers game in the evening.

DSK

April 3 to 9, 2025 ; Grand Forks, B.C. to Dugald, Manitoba

 Thursday ; Grand Forks, BC

Sunny, mild, 12° C. A day of rest after two days of driving.

At noon we went for a long walk around the residential neighbourhood behind our motel. At 1 PM we drove “downtown” to have lunch at The Borscht Bowl, a local restaurant renowned for their stupendous borscht and other Russian Doukhobor specialties. We have eaten here many times before, every time we have driven through Grand Forks.

As we parked near the restaurant before lunch Joanne noticed a health food store. We went in to look for violet leaf essential oil, a product used as a dog calming aromatherapy agent, but they did not have it. After lunch we went to Save-On-Foods to buy chocolate milk for Joanne, then Total Pet to look for a calming agent to help keep Apollo quiet when left alone in the car (or at home). We were assisted at Total Pet by a very knowledgeable young woman. In our experience, the staff at BC’s Total Pet stores (now owned by the PET VALU chain) are always well trained and knowledgeable. We also know, from personal experience, that is not that easy to achieve ! Kudos to Total Pet ! We bought a (very expensive) pheremone spray. Hope it works !

Last stop before returning to our motel was another trip to No Frills, across the highway from our motel, to buy a few more items for future meals on the road trip home. The rest of the day was busy, but at a relaxed pace, as I got caught up on laptop chores.

Friday ; Grand Forks to Cranbrook, BC

Sunny, +13° C.

We checked out of our Grand Forks motel at 10:40 AM and continued eastbound on Crowsnest Hwy. 3. We stopped at the Visitor Centre in Creston around 1:15 PM to eat lunch. We reached Cranbrook around 4:30 PM but did not check in to our motel until shortly after 6 PM.

Upon arrival in Cranbrook we went to Superstore’s Mobil Fuel Bar to refill the minivan with fuel. Then we found our way to Safeway to buy some salad mixes for tonight’s and tomorrow’s suppers. While searching for Safeway we passed a dog park, so after shopping at Safeway we went back to the dog park to give Apollo a chance to empty himself out and socialize with dogs and people. He’s more interested in people than dogs. We chatted for awhile with a couple a few years younger then us about retirement and RV travel.

Saturday ; Cranbrook, BC to Medicine Hat, Alberta

Sunny all day, +5° C in Cranbrook, +15° C in Medicine Hat.

We checked out of our motel in Cranbrook at 10:30 AM and went to the dog park to give Apollo fifteen minutes of emptying and socializing before we hit the road. We were out of Cranbrook at 11 AM, continuing east on Crowsnest Hwy. 3, reaching Medicine Hat at 5:30 PM.

We crossed through the Crowsnest Pass, from the Rocky Mountains of British Columbia into the prairie flatlands of Alberta. We stopped to eat lunch in the parking lot of Wal-Mart in Pincher Creek, Alberta. The wind there was blowing so strongly it was difficult to open the car doors. I was feeling ill and tired after lunch, so Joanne drove for an hour, from Pincher Creek to Lethbridge, to allow me to rest and snooze.

After checking into our motel I phoned Telus to resolve phone drama ... AGAIN ! Yesterday I had received a text message from Telus regarding a problem with the promotional bonus attached to the phone plan I changed to a month ago. The plan was an annual prepaid plan, but the promotional bonus “expired” after only a month. A technical problem / “glitch” at their end. I HATE dealing with cell phone drama ! ! ! But the agent I dealt with resolved the problem quickly and efficiently, including explaining it, and providing instructions on how to check whether or not their technical geeks have the problem permanently resolved a month from now, and how to address it if they don’t.

At 7:30 PM we drove to downtown Medicine Hat and bought take-out Korean food at J j Kitchen. MMMMM ... very good ! We watched Saturday Night Live from 9:30 PM to 11 PM, then went to bed early.

Sunday ; Medicine Hat, Alberta Sunny ... <blink blink> ... +19° C ! ! !

WOW ! WARM !

Joanne slept late this morning, then had a very lazy start to the day. Apollo and I, not so much. Around noon we all went out for a long walk around the residential neighbourhood behind our motel. It was nice to have a long walk in summer like weather. After our walk we drove to Superstore, refilled the minivan with fuel at their Mobil Fuel Bar ... <wow ... cheap fuel !> ... then went inside the store to buy something for tomorrow’s supper. On the way back to our motel we went to a Co-op Fuel Bar to get the car washed.

I went into the Co-op store, paid for a car wash, then drove around the corner of the store to the car wash entrance. AW, SHIT ! There was a line-up of eight cars in front of me. And no way to back out of the line. It took us an hour to get into the “one car at a time” automatic “touchless” car wash ... <fume> ! Oh, well ... at least the car is cleaned of winter road grime.

Before we went out to buy take out supper at a nearby Lebanese restaurant I did a dumbbell weights exercise session in the motel’s fitness room. When we were ready for supper we walked with Apollo to the restaurant where we ordered shawarma spiced diced lamb on a bed of seasoned fries. We took it back to our motel room and had it with bagged salad from a grocery store. It was very good !

Monday ; Medicine Hat, Alberta to Regina, Saskatchewan

Sunny, 20° C at 10:40 AM this morning when we left Medicine Hat, Alberta, 17° C when we stopped for lunch in Swift Current, Saskatchewan, 15° C this afternoon in Moose Jaw, and ... <sputter> ... +4° C an hour later when we arrived in Regina at 4:30 PM ! With wind blowing at 60 km./hr. BRRRRR !

When we crossed through the Crowsnest Pass from British Columbia’s Rocky Mountains into Alberta’s flatlands on Sunday we seemed to enter a slow moving warm front, moving west to east. Today we drove out of it near Moose Jaw and the temperature plummeted. We know this warm front is moving slowly from west to east because the temperature at home in Dugald, Manitoba is forecast to increase significantly on Thursday.

Today was summer from Medicine Hat, Alberta to Moose Jaw, Saskatchewan, then suddenly it was winter again !

Tuesday ; Regina, Saskaktchewan to Dugald, Manitoba

Sunny, +4° C in Regina, Saskatchewan when we left at 10:15 AM. Sunny, +5° C when we arrived at home in Dugald, Manitoba at 7:30 PM. WHEW ... Regina to Dugald is a bit too far to drive in one day for an old man like me.

When we checked out of our motel this morning we drove a very short distance to Superstore and refilled the minivan with fuel at their Mobil Fuel Bar, then reset our watches and the clocks in the car to Winnipeg / Central Daylight Time before continuing eastbound on Trans-Canada Highway 1.

We pulled into Moosomin, Saskatchewan to have lunch, but there seemed to be no suitable place there to eat lunch in the car ... and have access to restrooms. We stopped at the Co-op Food Store to use their restrooms then continued driving, stopping again a short distance later at the Saskatchewan / Manitoba border Visitor Info Centre. HMPH ! Still closed for the winter. Should have known / remembered. Why invest in the considerable infrastructure costs to build a Visitor Info Centre at the provincial border, then have it open / operational for only six months (or less ?) per year ? ! ? We ate lunch in the car, then continued on our way.

We stopped again at Superstore in Brandon to refill with fuel again, and buy a few grocery items for supper tonight and breakfast tomorrow morning. I was feeling pretty tired already, so Joanne drove from Brandon to Portage La Prairie to allow me to rest and snooze.

Apollo wasn’t aware we were home until he woke up in the Dugald Estates parkade, and even then he seemed a bit confused. Were we at home ? Or in the Victoria Public Library underground parkade again. HA HA HA ! You’re a very good traveller dog, Apollo, welcome home !

Good news ; Bell MTS had turned on our TV service, as pre-arranged last fall.

Bad news ; Bell MTS had NOT turned on our Internet service as pre-arranged last fall. <fume> Great ! More call centre drama tomorrow ! ! !

More bad news ; one of our bedroom windows is shattered ! HUH ?

Wednesday ; Dugald, Manitoba

Cloudy, windy, light rain, +4 C. BRRRRR ! Still winter here !

This morning I unloaded most of our winter stuff that was in the car ; suitcases, tote boxes, backpacks, etc. before Joanne took the car and headed to Southdale (Winnipeg). She picked up a blood test requisition from our doctor’s office, then went to a nearby lab to have blood drawn for testing, in advance of next week’s CT scan at Selkirk Hospital. After finishing at the lab she went to the nearby Co-op Food Store and did quite a bit of grocery shopping.

I phoned Bell MTS to resolve the “no internet” drama. As expected, the biggest problem was the ineptitude of the call centre, as well as the source of the problem being another simple error / omission of ineptitude by a tech support geek. When the billing department sent a “restore after seasonal disconnect” order to the technical support (geek) department for our TV and internet service, some inept geek read the order incompletely, restored our TV service, and did not notice that the order also included “restore internet service”. And while I was on hold for nineteen minutes waiting for the first call centre agent to “investigate”, I was abruptly disconnected ... <fume> ... and had to start the entire process over again, including another lengthy wait for “the next available agent” !

I spent much of the day on “return home” chores. In the evening, over dinner, we watched Survivor and Amazing Race.

We’re glad to be home in our very comfortable suite, with our own comfortable mattress and pillows, etc.

And we found out from our next door neighbour that about half a dozen or so suites in our building had windows spontaneously shatter on the coldest night of the winter, including one in her suite.

DSK

March 27 to April 2, 2025 ; Cobble Hill, Cowichan Valley, Vancouver Island to Grand Forks, British Columbia

 Thursday ; Overcast, +11° C in Cobble Hill, +14° C in Duncan.

Today was Apollo’s regularly scheduled “grooming day”. Before lunch we trimmed his nails (using my Dremel style grinding tool), plucked and cleaned his ears, and trimmed some hair. He is desperately in need of a full haircut, but it is still going to be winter as we drive across Alberta and Saskatchewan, and for probably a few more weeks in Manitoba after we’re home, so ... we are leaving his hair long (and tangled/matted) for now. Gee, Apollo ... maybe use some conditioner ? HA HA HA !

Immediately after lunch we headed to Duncan for what we hope was our final grocery shopping trip, and to give Apollo a bath at Bosley’s. But before Duncan, we stopped at the local dog park to allow Apollo to empty himself out. Once in Duncan Joanne and I shopped together at Wal-Mart, then while she went to Dollarama I went to Bosley’s to buy some probiotic treats for Apollo and get started on his bath. I struggled briefly with bathing him alone before Joanne showed up. And ... HA HA HA ... this Bosley’s store not only provided a variety of shampoos for use at their dog wash station, but ... <insert drum roll here> ... conditioners ! HA HA HA ... thanks, but ... it didn’t help one tiny bit. His hair was a tangled mess before the bath and even worse after. HA HA HA !

Before leaving Duncan we stopped at Salty’s Fish & Chips to buy two large fillets of battered, deep fried, fresh halibut to have later for tonight’s dinner, with plans for Joanne to make cole slaw and fries to go along with the fish. This was our third purchase of restaurant prepared halibut fillets this winter season, and Salty’s today was by far the best ! We do not buy halibut anywhere other than on British Columbia’s coast, due to exorbitant prices and questionable freshness elsewhere. Well ... even here the prices are exorbitant ! BUT ... <smacking lips> ... oh, so good !

Joanne prepared dinner, I lit a fire in the fireplace, and while eating and afterwards we watched yesterday’s episode of Survivor and enjoyed the fire.

Friday ; Overcast, intermittent very light rain, +9° C.

Today we began preparing for departure on Tuesday. Joanne did some housecleaning. We gave Apollo a bit of a hair trim, concentrating on trimming his face and head enough that his eyes are visible, and cutting mats off his hips. We moved a few items that we are unlikely to need over the next few days back to the car. I cleaned ashes out of the fireplace.

And in more important news ... it seems as if our new Prime Minister’s first phone call with the American President went fairly well ... n’est-ce pas ? ! ! !

Saturday ; Cloudy, occasional very light rain, +9° C.

Late this morning we loaded up our sizeable collection of recyclables and took them to the local recycling depot. From there we headed into Duncan to pay a last visit to the Saturday morning Duncan Farmers Market. Apollo was ecstatic about visiting the farmers market again. <shrug> I wonder why he finds it to be so stimulating a place ? Lots of interesting people, lots of interesting dogs, lots of interesting scents, I guess.

We bought some Saskatoon berry cinnamon buns and some Saskatoon berry jam to take home to Manitoba. We had been planning to also buy more frozen beef pho soup, but the pho soup place was not at the market today.

We spent the afternoon preparing for our early Tuesday departure, packing and loading stuff into the car.

Sunday ; Cobble Hill to Victoria and return

Mix of sun and clouds, +9° C in Cobble Hill, +16° C in Victoria <sigh> 20 / 20 hindsight !

After an early lunch we departed Xanadu Estate at 1 PM heading for Victoria, and a Victoria Symphony Orchestra concert at 2:30 PM. We were in the Victoria Public Library’s underground parkade at 2 PM and returned there at 5 PM. Poor Apollo spent three hours alone in the car waiting for us. AND ... <sputter> ... he was barking when we left the car, and still barking when we returned three hours later. His abandonment anxiety / lack of willingness to relax when left alone in the car (or our hotel suite while we were in Victoria) has increased over the winter. We don’t know if it is due to aging, or simply due to him becoming more and more “spoiled”, in that we leave him alone so infrequently. Good dog, Apollo ... <whispering> ... sort of !

Today’s concert was a symphony orchestra live performance of a film’s musical soundtrack, while the movie played on a giant screen above the orchestra. We enjoy these symphony orchestra live accompaniment to film soundtrack performances immensely. Today’s film was Princess Bride. It was stupendous ! The orchestra’s performance and ... the film itself, which neither Joanne nor I had seen before. As the conductor was introducing today’s performance, he asked the audience, by show of hands, who had seen the movie when it was originally released in 1987, who had seen it multiple times since then, etc. When he asked who in the audience had never seen it before ... HA HA HA HA HA ... I was the only raised hand in the entire Victoria Royal Theatre. HMPH ! Maybe I should start calling my little wifey Judas ? ! ? HA HA HA !

The audience seemed to be primarily comprised of middle aged women, in groups. I can only surmise these were groups of women who have been friends since their teen years, and all saw the movie together when they were teenagers. HA HA HA ... you go, girls !

On the drive back to Cobble Hill we stopped in Langford to refill the minivan with fuel at Superstore’s Mobil Fuel Bar. Next fuel stop should likely be Hope, B.C.

Joanne made pizza for supper. I lit our last fire in the fireplace, and we watched last night’s episode of Saturday Night Live.

Monday ; Mostly sunny, +8° C.

Today was dedicated to packing and loading in preparation for departure tomorrow morning. Apollo is excited, he recognizes that “something is happening”.

Tuesday ; Cobble Hill to Hope

Sunny on Vancouver Island, cloudy on the mainland, +13° C.

We were up at 7 AM with plans to check out of Xanadu Estate at 10 AM and make it to the Victoria ferry terminal in time to catch the noon ferry to Vancouver. Thanks to Joanne’s excellent organization and efforts of yesterday we were ready to leave Xanadu Estate a half hour earlier than planned, at 9:30 AM, which gave us a possibility of making it to the Victoria ferry terminal in time to catch the 11 AM ferry. IF ... <whispering> ... I ignored speed limits south on the Malahat Highway to Victoria, through Victoria, then north to the tip of the Saanich Peninsula, where the airport and ferry terminal are both located. We made it !

We noticed on previous ferry crossings that many people ignore the regulations to NOT remain in their vehicles during the crossing, but leave the lower car decks and go upstairs to the passenger decks, for safety reasons apparently. Today we decided to do the same, to give Apollo a break from the anxiety producing ordeal of spending another two hours alone in the car. He’s endured a lot of alone time in the car this past winter.

On the ferry crossing from Vancouver to Victoria last December 1, when we returned to our car a few minutes before arrival at the Victoria ferry terminal, the woman in the car behind us bitched at us about Apollo barking for the entire two hours he was alone in the car. Well ... sweetheart ... since you remained in your vehicle in violation of safety regulations, I don’t really give a tiny rat’s ass about your complaint. Have a nice day !

The ferry departed on time at 11 AM and arrived at Tsawassen (Vancouver) on time a few minutes before 1 PM. If we had been on the noon ferry as initially planned, we were going to eat lunch during the ferry crossing. But since we were an hour earlier than planned, we decided to defer lunch for about an hour, until reaching Abbotsford where we knew there was a very nice highway rest area.

NOT ! ! ! <sputter > The rest area was now ... <blink blink> ... a huge homeless encampment, filled with extremely decrepit RV’s, jammed in “shoulder to shoulder”, surrounded by junk and garbage. And large, ugly dogs ! Some of the decrepit RV’s were obviously abandoned, windows broken out, doors ripped off, interiors trashed. There was no room for vehicles coming in off the highway to park to use the restrooms. We squeezed into half a handicapped parking spot beside a decrepit trailer filling 1½ of the rest area’s two handicapped parking spots. We used the restrooms quickly, then got the hell out of there and ate our lunch as we continued driving east on Trans-Canada Hwy. 1 towards Hope.

There were two police vehicles parked outside the rest area, with emergency rooftop lights flashing. The police officers were in the rest area, providing “security” to the three truckloads of BC Ministry Of Highways electricians who were working on repairing / restoring the huge lamp posts which had been “opened” at the bottom by “removing” access hatches, with a variety of “Mexican electrician” wires spliced in to power some of the decrepit trailers. SHEESH !

We had begun using this lovely rest area the first year it had been developed, somewhere between ten and fifteen years ago, sometimes when we were travelling in the fall from our summer home in the BC Okanagan area to our winter home in Yuma, Arizona, or returning in the spring, and sometimes when we were delivering trailers (our summer side hustle) to or from the Vancouver area or Vancouver Island. When the rest area was first developed it had the very unique feature of having a few RV electrical hookups for the convenience of RV’s boondocking overnight, which we did quite a few times there in the first couple of years. After a couple of years, the RV electrical hookups were removed, because they were already becoming monopolized by the homeless / near homeless.

What we saw there today was absolutely appalling !

We reached Hope around 4 PM. The first thing I did in town was go to Kal Tire to adjust the air pressure in the tire that has been losing air extremely slowly all winter long. It needs an adjustment about once a month. Then I refilled the minivan with fuel at a Chevron fuel station, one of the stations in town that had lowered its fuel prices today ... as all stations should have done ... due to the elimination of both federal and provincial fuel taxes effective today. Finally, we found our motel, but before checking in we went across the street to the lovely, large municipal park, and took Apollo for a long, leisurely walk.

At the Chevron fuel station, as I was pumping fuel, a dishevelled, scrawny, scruffy young woman (homeless ?) approached me and asked if we would give her a ride back to Manitoba. UHHH ... no !

On the wall behind the front desk of the motel was a huge blow up of a picture taken of Sylvester Stallone in a fight scene in front of the motel, from the 1982 filming in Hope, BC of “Rambo : First Blood”.

Wednesday ; Hope to Grand Forks

Sun, clouds, rain, snow blizzard, a little bit of everything, 6° C in Hope, 1° C through Manning Provincial Park, with snow blizzard conditions, 13° C in Keremeos, where we lived for about 14 years, 16° C in Osoyoos, sunny but I was too tired to notice temperature when we arrived in Grand Forks at 5:30 PM.

We checked out of our motel and left Hope at 10:45 AM, continuing east on Crowsnest Hwy. 3. The Hope to Princeton segment of Crowsnest Hwy. 3 is one of the most dangerous and difficult to drive sections of highway in all of Canada, in my opinion. Especially when towing huge fifth wheel trailers behind a one ton diesel dually truck, which I did too many times to count back in my trailer towing side hustle days.

Not surprisingly the weather was bad through Manning Provincial Park and the rest of the way to Princeton. Princeton to Grand Forks was sunny, except ... when we were eating our lunch at the municipal park in Keremeos we watched a small, but vicious rain squall pass over K Mountain behind the village.

Just before reaching Keremeos we drove slowly through Riverside RV Park Resort, our home from 2007 to 2021. A lot of properties are for sale in the community, and ... prices have plummeted since we sold and left four years ago. Our previous home is for sale again, for at least the second time since we sold it. In the village of Keremeos we stopped to buy some fruit (and pakoras and samosas for lunch) at what used to be our favourite produce stand, Sanderson Farms.

The area where we used to live always had been and still is still a beautiful place !

DSK