July 9

July 9, 2004

DAY 22

 

 

Well ... we are now officially homeless. WOO-HOO ! ! !

Woke up to a sunny, warm day, something we haven't seen much of since we've been back in Ottawa for the last 4 days. Finished up inside the house, got the van fluids topped up, and air put into the tires, and we were ready to "hitch and go".

Pulled out of the driveway right on schedule at noon. Goodbye 1308 Quigley Hill Road. Had to drive into Orleans to withdraw some cash from the C.S. Co-op Credit Union. Just as we arrived in Orleans, about 10 minutes after leaving home, Toby had a defecation "accident" inside his pet carrier. Normally, Toby and Teddy are in the truck with their pet carrier doors open, so they are free to stay in their carrier, or sit on Joanne's lap, or sleep on the truck rear seat, or floor, AND ... have access to the litter box on the floor behind the front seats BUT ... since Joanne is following me on this trip in her van loaded with the artwork we are taking to Winnipeg for storage, we put the cats inside their carriers, and closed the doors, so they wouldn't try to climb onto my lap, or under my feet, while I'm driving alone. Poor Toby. We cleaned up the carrier, and him, and continued.

Drove west through Ottawa, on the Queensway, taking an hour and a quarter to cross the city ! Finally, out of the city, west on Hwy.17, through Arnprior, Renfrew, and Pembroke, before stopping at a roadside rest area for a very late lunch. Oh, geez ... now Toby's had a urination "accident". Now both his "blankies" need to be laundered. Decided to try driving with Toby left alone in the trailer, and Teddy in his carrier in the truck. That seemed to work well. Stopped in North Bay at a TD / Canada Trust to deposit a personal cheque into the company account, right after the lawyer phoned to say that the proceeds from the house sale were deposited. WOO-HOO again ! Now I can transfer funds around, and prevent about $265,000 worth of cheques from bouncing. DAMN ... the TD Bank in North Bay closed 45 minutes ago, at 6:00 P.M.. Have to make sure I get to a TD in Sudbury tomorrow morning. Leaving Toby alone in the trailer worked so well, that after we fed them, we decided to try it with Teddy as well, so into the trailer he went, with Toby, and away we go from North Bay. Joanne is getting tired of driving, and doesn't want to go much further, so we stopped for the night in Sturgeon Falls. Pulled off the highway, and spent the night parked at the far end of the empty parking lot of the Sturgeon Falls Community Centre, a recreation centre / arena / swimming pool / curling rink complex with baseball diamonds and soccer and football fields. Seems like a reasonable place to "boondock" for the night. Walked to the supermarket next door, bought supper, and tomorrow's lunch, made and ate supper, and took Toby for a walk around the baseball fields to pamper him after his traumatic day.

DSK