Sunday ; Today was overcast so we did not get to witness the solar eclipse this afternoon.
After lunch our friends Larry and Carol Mae and their dog Dulce arrived for a visit. They are on their way from their home in New Mexico to Alaska. We had a very pleasant afternoon and evening of visiting. I cooked barbecued salmon served on bannock to welcome them to British Columbia. It was not my best effort but everybody except me seemed satisfied. Just before supper Dulce and Bo had a "misunderstanding" resulting in a vicious dog fight. Dulce snapped at Bo, and while Bo never starts a fight, he never backs away from one either. Stupid dogs ! No real harm done. Bo has a bit of soft tissue bruising on his back. Well ... and ... Carol Mae has a pretty badly broken finger nail from trying to pull them apart. Maybe the moral of that story ... BO ... is don't fight with dogs that are five times your size ! And of course, as is usually the case with a dog fight, when it was over, it was really over. Best friends again in a matter of moments !
Monday ; It was cloudy and cool today, but only a few drop of intermittent rain.
This morning Joanne prepared a picnic lunch, we loaded up our friends Larry and Carol Mae, and off we went ! We took them on an abbreviated version of our Ashnola Wilderness Day Trip. We had our picnic lunch beside Ewart Creek, then headed back towards civilization, and the Keremeos Rodeo at the Fairgrounds. We spent the afternoon at "Bulls & Barrels" day at the rodeo, watching bull riding and ladies' barrel racing. WOW ... fast barrel racers today ! Winning time was 17.2 seconds with lots of times under 18 seconds. And only one bull rider ( of fifteen to twenty or so ) that lasted the required eight seconds. BRAVO ... we cheer for the bulls !
We drove around town a bit getting up close and personal with orchards and vineyards, then stopped at our favourite fruit stand to buy some produce before returning home. Back at Riverside RV Park Resort I and Bo took Carol Mae and Dulce for a bit of a romp alongside the Similkameen River in the crown land adjacent to our RV park. Joanne prepared a simple supper for us all, and we spent an enjoyable evening chatting in our gazebo.
Tuesday ; Today was another cloudy and cool day. This morning we took Larry on an abbreviated version of our Nickel Plate Mountain Wilderness Day Trip. Carol Mae stayed home and slept late. After sightseeing up and down Nickel Plate Mountain, and in the village of Hedley we returned home to Riverside RV Park Resort, picked up Carol Mae and headed into Keremeos to have lunch at Sanderson's, a local family operated produce stand which started serving a home made East Indian buffet lunch about a year ago. What we did not know was that Sanderson's has just opened their beautiful new restaurant building attached to their fruit stand. Last year their buffet lunch was served off a small steam table at the back of the fruit stand, and eaten at a picnic table. Their new restaurant building addition is beautiful. And their expanded buffet lunch offering is outstanding ! Well done !
After lunch we drove east on Highway 3 to Spotted Lake near Osoyoos. After viewing the odd phenomenon of Spotted Lake we went to the BC Visitors Information Centre in Osoyoos. Larry picked up maps and planning material for their journey northward from here to Prince Rupert where they will catch a ferry travelling up through the "Inside Passage" to Alaska. Carol Mae bought a lovely "Super, Natural, BC" fleece sweater.
On the way back home we stopped at St. Laszlo Vineyards in Cawston and bought some wine. We spent our evening visiting and chatting with Larry and Carol Mae, first in the gazebo and then in our trailer when it became too chilly to stay outside.
When we took the dogs for a walk out in the crown land adjacent to our RV park ... Bo off leash ... Bo chased a deer ! ! ! And for the first time in the 7½ years that we've had him, he responded promptly to our screaming commands to "stop" and "come" when he's in hot pursuit of some other live creature. Good dog, Bo !
Wednesday ; This morning we said goodbye to Larry and Carol Mae ( and Dulce ) as they left to continue their northward journey to Alaska. After they left, and we prepared to head to Penticton for a meeting with our investment advisor / stock broker I discovered a flat tire on the truck. We had half an hour to change a rear tire on a one ton diesel dually. With lots of hustle and good teamwork we got it done.
We drove into Penticton, had our meeting, went to our insurance agency and renewed the truck and trailer's annual insurance policies, had lunch in the mall, then spent the rest of the afternoon running errands before heading home. I was so tired when we got home that I napped briefly before supper. Having visitors for the last few days was wonderful but tiring !
I repaired the loose valve stem, the cause of the flat tire.
Thursday ; This morning we drove into town to see our doctor, appointments for both of us. Time to get our annual medical tests and procedures started. WHAT ? ! ? My gastroenterologist is pregnant AGAIN ? ! ? After seeing our doctor we ran a few errands in town including picking up my bicycle which I had taken in for repairs at a local new bicycle shop.
Back at home I changed a tire on the truck ... < sigh > ... again ! I removed the spare tire that I installed a few days ago, reinstalled the tire that had gone flat because of a loose valve stem, and returned the spare to its position underneath the truck.
Friday ; This morning we drove into Keremeos to have some lab work done at the Keremeos Clinic. The lab is a "take a number / first come first served" business. We were numbers two and three. After waiting for close to an hour, with a line up that had grown to about ten people waiting ... and some had already left in disgust ... the lab technician finally made an appearance in the waiting room to "apologize" for the delay caused by a "safety inspection". I flung my magazine back onto the end table and stormed out, furious that she was too lazy / too stupid / too disrespectful of her clients' time to put up a sign that read "closed for one hour" or something similar so that clients could make an informed decision about whether to wait or not !
We ran some errands in Keremeos then drove to Osoyoos. We ran some errands in Osoyoos then drove to Oliver to meet with two bed and breakfast businesses and leave them our rack cards for display. We also met with the manager of the Oliver Tourism Association to discuss our business and their services. We had lunch at a recommended seafood restaurant in Oliver. Lunch was overpriced and a bit below mediocre. I have concluded that we should refrain from "eating out" as much as possible for our six months per year in Canada. "Eating out" in the United States is so much better ! Price wise and food wise !
We drove to Covert Farms to inquire about "U-pick" strawberries. Another week or two ! We drove to Gallagher Lake to look at some real estate for sale, then back to Oliver to do the same. I was sleepy so Joanne drove from Oliver most of the way home while I snoozed. I woke up and we changed drivers just before Cawston.
Saturday ; Finally ! A day of sunshine !
MMMMM ... those Nugs chocolate bars from Mexico are sooooo gooey ! "How gooey are they ?" you might ask. Well ... gooey enough to suck the filling right out of a tooth ! ! ! Darn ! I wonder if I need to fix that soon in Canada or can it wait six months and I'll have it done in Mexico ?
Tonight we watched the season finale of Celebrity Apprentice that we missed last Sunday evening.
DSK
Sunday, May 27, 2012
Monday, May 21, 2012
May 13 to 19, 2012
Sunday ; Today was a beautiful, sunny, warm day. We sun dried apple slices and baked an apple cake in the Sun Oven. We spent the day doing outdoor chores. Biggest and toughest job was washing the trailer. As we sat down at 8 PM to have supper and watch the three hour finale of Survivor ... HEY ... that's a Black Widow Spider walking up the wall beside the TV ! ! !
Monday ; A beautiful, sunny, hot day ! This morning I drove to Penticton, without Joanne, to get the truck's fluids and filters changed. YIKES ! ! ! Thirteen hundred bucks ! What a lot of fluids and filters !
After I returned home late in the afternoon Joanne and I did some yard work and garden planning. AND ... discovered that one of the two Douglas Fir trees we planted last September ... is dead ! It seemed to be doing fine up until a few days ago and then ... POOF ... it's gone !
Tuesday ; Another sunny, hot day. This morning we drove into town to run some errands. First stop was the local nursery / greenhouse where we bought the two Douglas Fir trees and two Saskatoon bushes last September. The female owner declined to guarantee / replace the Douglas Fir tree that died. Briefly it made me angry. I decided we will not do business with that local business ever again. Bad decision on Anna's part, in my biased opinion. As a former retail business owner I know how much more painful it is to a small business to lose a customer's long term loyalty than it is to give a small dollar value refund or exchange. Then I had to put some effort into my relatively recently new found mantra "don't sweat the small stuff'".
Bye bye, Don & Anna's. Hello Art Knapp in Penticton !
Late in the afternoon I returned to town to drop the truck off at a local service station to have the brakes serviced tomorrow. On his way back from Penticton our neighbour Brett picked me up at the service station in Keremeos and gave me a lift home. A few days ago we had invited him over for supper tonight. Joanne used the Sun Oven to roast a chicken and potatoes, and bake an apple cake. After dinner we visited with Brett for awhile in our gazebo.
Wednesday ; What started out as $500 worth of brake service on Lanoire turned into $800 in early afternoon with the addition of a rotor and caliper, and $1300 by late afternoon with the addition of a hub and bearing assembly < sigh > ! The truck won't be ready until Friday morning.
Joanne worked on landscaping and gardening today. We did some spring cleaning. I did some minor maintenance and quite a bit of online work. Paid some bills, did some investment work, did some Similkameen Day Tours marketing.
Thursday ; Today was sunny but windy and cold. It was a lazy day of doing little.
Friday ; Had to get up at 6 AM to catch ride into Keremeos with neighbour who was leaving for Vernon at 6:45 AM. Picked truck up at K Mountain Auto Repair. Thirteen hundred dollars worth of brakes and related work became almost $1500 thanks to taxes ! Drove home and went back to sleep !
Later in the morning we headed into Penticton for another long day of running errands. And spending money ! Lots of errands, lots of money ! Bought an apricot tree to replace our dead little Douglas Fir.
Saturday ; Today started out sunny and warm, but became cloudy and cool. Unfortunately the weather is forecast to be not great for the next few days. And we have friends arriving tomorrow to visit for a few days.
Today was a busy day. Joanne went grocery shopping in Keremeos. I did some work on the truck, torqueing the lug nuts, and reinstalling the valve extenders, wheel liners, and hub caps. I drained some excess power steering fluid. A much messier job than I had anticipated. Next time I’ll return to the shop in Penticton that overfilled it and let them do it. I removed the truck’s “permanent” air filter for its annual cleaning and re-oiling. I dug out the dead Douglas Fir tree. It died because it was “root bound”. The root ball was tightly packed and tangled in the nursery pot when we bought the tree last September. When we planted it the tangled root ball did not untangle and the roots strangled themselves. We planted the new apricot tree where the Douglas Fir had been. I disassembled and cleaned our small electric heater. YUCK ! Does it ever suck in a lot of dirt over the course of a winter’s use.
I barbecued a thick Ahi Tuna fillet for supper. MMMMM ... it was good ! After supper we watched the Celebrity Apprentice episode we missed last Sunday.
DSK
Monday ; A beautiful, sunny, hot day ! This morning I drove to Penticton, without Joanne, to get the truck's fluids and filters changed. YIKES ! ! ! Thirteen hundred bucks ! What a lot of fluids and filters !
After I returned home late in the afternoon Joanne and I did some yard work and garden planning. AND ... discovered that one of the two Douglas Fir trees we planted last September ... is dead ! It seemed to be doing fine up until a few days ago and then ... POOF ... it's gone !
Tuesday ; Another sunny, hot day. This morning we drove into town to run some errands. First stop was the local nursery / greenhouse where we bought the two Douglas Fir trees and two Saskatoon bushes last September. The female owner declined to guarantee / replace the Douglas Fir tree that died. Briefly it made me angry. I decided we will not do business with that local business ever again. Bad decision on Anna's part, in my biased opinion. As a former retail business owner I know how much more painful it is to a small business to lose a customer's long term loyalty than it is to give a small dollar value refund or exchange. Then I had to put some effort into my relatively recently new found mantra "don't sweat the small stuff'".
Bye bye, Don & Anna's. Hello Art Knapp in Penticton !
Late in the afternoon I returned to town to drop the truck off at a local service station to have the brakes serviced tomorrow. On his way back from Penticton our neighbour Brett picked me up at the service station in Keremeos and gave me a lift home. A few days ago we had invited him over for supper tonight. Joanne used the Sun Oven to roast a chicken and potatoes, and bake an apple cake. After dinner we visited with Brett for awhile in our gazebo.
Wednesday ; What started out as $500 worth of brake service on Lanoire turned into $800 in early afternoon with the addition of a rotor and caliper, and $1300 by late afternoon with the addition of a hub and bearing assembly < sigh > ! The truck won't be ready until Friday morning.
Joanne worked on landscaping and gardening today. We did some spring cleaning. I did some minor maintenance and quite a bit of online work. Paid some bills, did some investment work, did some Similkameen Day Tours marketing.
Thursday ; Today was sunny but windy and cold. It was a lazy day of doing little.
Friday ; Had to get up at 6 AM to catch ride into Keremeos with neighbour who was leaving for Vernon at 6:45 AM. Picked truck up at K Mountain Auto Repair. Thirteen hundred dollars worth of brakes and related work became almost $1500 thanks to taxes ! Drove home and went back to sleep !
Later in the morning we headed into Penticton for another long day of running errands. And spending money ! Lots of errands, lots of money ! Bought an apricot tree to replace our dead little Douglas Fir.
Saturday ; Today started out sunny and warm, but became cloudy and cool. Unfortunately the weather is forecast to be not great for the next few days. And we have friends arriving tomorrow to visit for a few days.
Today was a busy day. Joanne went grocery shopping in Keremeos. I did some work on the truck, torqueing the lug nuts, and reinstalling the valve extenders, wheel liners, and hub caps. I drained some excess power steering fluid. A much messier job than I had anticipated. Next time I’ll return to the shop in Penticton that overfilled it and let them do it. I removed the truck’s “permanent” air filter for its annual cleaning and re-oiling. I dug out the dead Douglas Fir tree. It died because it was “root bound”. The root ball was tightly packed and tangled in the nursery pot when we bought the tree last September. When we planted it the tangled root ball did not untangle and the roots strangled themselves. We planted the new apricot tree where the Douglas Fir had been. I disassembled and cleaned our small electric heater. YUCK ! Does it ever suck in a lot of dirt over the course of a winter’s use.
I barbecued a thick Ahi Tuna fillet for supper. MMMMM ... it was good ! After supper we watched the Celebrity Apprentice episode we missed last Sunday.
DSK
Monday, May 14, 2012
May 6 to 12, 2012
Sunday ; Well ... finally ... some sunshine ! Joanne did some yard work today. I set up and used the Sun Oven for the first time since we left Yuma on April 1. Sun dried some tomatoes. We're almost out of sun dried tomatoes done in Yuma.
Oh, boy ... found Doc Martin on PBS. Spent the evening watching Doc Martin, Amazing Race, and Celebrity Apprentice.
Monday ; Sunny and mild today. About time ! Today marks the 11th anniversary of Joanne's first cancer surgery. Eleven years a survivor ! For which I am eternally grateful !
This morning drove to Penticton and picked up B.B. King ticket at South Okanagan Events Centre. WOO-HOO ! Continued on to Summerland where we dropped off rack cards and business cards at two bed and breakfast establishments that responded favourably to my marketing efforts. Between Summerland and Penticton stopped at road side rest area to allow Bo to romp on Okanagan Lake shore. It's been ten days since he's been "drivey". He was acting like it had been ten months ! Back in Penticton ran more errands before returning home late in the afternoon.
Where ... quite by accident / serendipity Joanne discovered ( online ) a four day old real estate listing for a "distressed" property here at Riverside RV Park Resort. Long story ! Resident died this past winter. Phoned real estate agent only to discover that since property was listed last Friday ... three days ago ... three offers have been made. One offer exceeds asking price. Made appointment for showing tomorrow at noon, then spent much of evening debating how much do we want this property. Asking price ... for park model / manufactured home and lot ... by bank who foreclosed on property after resident's death ... is less than price of undeveloped, unserviced bare lot when purchased five years ago. So ... we could offer considerably more than "asking price", and still not exceed what our current lot could be sold for. Would be like trading lots and getting a manufactured home for free. Somewhat appealing, n'est-ce pas ? Guess it's going to come down to a "bidding war". Somewhat like high stakes poker, I guess. Inevitably, somebody is going to get one hell of a bargain ! Wish us luck !
Tuesday ; DAMN ! An hour before our appointment to view ( and buy ! ) lot 107, the real estate agent's wife and business partner showed up on our doorstep to advise us that the Bank Of Montreal ... the property owner ... had just accepted the offer made yesterday on the property, the third of three offers in three days. The accepted offer was for 30% more than the list price ! Our offer was not going to be quite that high, although close. We got beat, plain and simple. Congratulations to the purchaser. They bought a lot and park model manufactured home for less than the value of the land alone !
Today was mostly cloudy and warm. A few drops of rain, and a few minutes of sunshine. We used the Sun Oven for the first time on a day with light overcast. The sun was struggling to peek through, and it was just enough to keep the Sun Oven in the ideal drying temperature range of 150 to 200 degrees. We dried Ambrosia apple slices.
And ... we washed the truck, removing the Arizona to BC travel road grime.
Wednesday ; Rick Hansen 25th Anniversary "Many In Motion" Relay Day 260
I was medal bearer no. 012 in Cawston !
Today was sunny and mild in Cawston, windy in Keremeos. A great day to be a medal bearer !
When Rick Hansen rolled his wheelchair around the world 25 years ago to raise funds for spinal cord injury research, it was called the "Man In Motion" Tour. The 25th Anniversary Relay across Canada is called the "Many In Motion" Tour. Today in Cawston I was one of the seven thousand medal bearers who will move the commemorative medal from Cape Spears, Newfoundland to Vancouver, British Columbia. While I knew that the route is faithful to Rick's original route across Canada, what I did not know until this morning was that the schedule also remains faithful to the original tour. It was exactly 25 years ago today that Rick Hansen rolled his wheelchair through Cawston and Keremeos.
Rick Hansen fancies himself ... quite legitimately ... as a "Difference Maker". The "Many In Motion" Tour's 7000 medal bearers across Canada are called "Difference Makers". Medal bearers were chosen, some by their community, some by the Rick Hansen 25th Anniversary Relay staff, after nomination and application, based upon nominees' / applicants' "making a difference". In their communities. In the lives of others. Many of the medal bearers / Difference Makers have a disability of one sort or another. Often they are in wheelchairs, like Rick Hansen.
This morning we drove to Cawston Elementary School for my orientation and preparation as a medal bearer. I was surprised to find that there were only seven medal bearers in Cawston. The medal is being carried by chosen medal bearers through communities, but travels in between communities by endurance athletes ... and vehicles. I also did not know that Cawston had a grades 1 to 4 elementary school. And I certainly did not know that there are so many grades 1 to 4 aged children in this area ! The entire Cawston Elementary School population was involved in this event. While the medal bearers and relay staff were doing orientation in one of the classrooms, the rest of the school population was in the gymnasium having a school assembly, preparing for the big event !
The seven medal bearers in Cawston were ;
After our orientation we were driven in a small bus to our starting point, on Highway 3 on the east side of Cawston, awaiting the medal to arrive from Osoyoos where it had started earlier this morning. The bus dropped off the first medal bearer, drove to the next exchange point, dropped off the second medal bearer, drove to the next exchange point, and so on. I was the third medal bearer today on the outskirts of Cawston. I waited on the side of the highway, eagerly awaiting my turn. It was sunny and warm. Finally, along came the relay. Police cars, the relay motorhome, other staff vehicles, relay safety staff on bicycles, and a safety runner beside Miranda, the young woman carrying the medal before me. Happy Birthday, Miranda ! Today was Miranda's 19th birthday ! She took the medal off, placed it around my neck, we hugged, and off I went. Walking quickly ! My running days are over !
What a thrill ! What a treat ! What an honour ! What a privilege !
I'm inspired by what Rick Hansen did 25 years ago. And I'm inspired by what he's doing today !
"The end is just the beginning"
My leg of the relay turned off Highway 3 onto Pitt Road on its way back to Cawston Elementary School. I passed the medal on to 14 year old Noah, then followed along a short distance behind. I had decided to walk with the rest of the medal bearers all the way back to the school. And I'm very glad that I did. Noah passed the medal to 93 year old John ( who was a lot easier to keep up with than Noah ) and John passed it on to 9 year old Zoe, one of the two elementary school students. At Zoe's starting point, the entire school population was lining the side of the road, cheering and waving pom-poms. All the children fell in behind Zoe and followed her, cheering and waving. The roadside was lined by parents. It was ... neat ! Zoe passed the medal to her school mate Daxon, then walked alongside him, with the entire school behind them, back to Cawston Elementary School.
Back at the school the relay staff led the school children ... and us medal bearers ... in a "Many In Motion" Relay Tour special dance. HA HA HA HA HA ! I don't get much opportunity to be around children. It was a lot of fun being silly with them.
Finally, it was time for the children to get back into school, and the relay to continue on to Keremeos. The relay staff endurance athlete Doug cycled on a recumbent bicycle with the medal to the Keremeos High School. Doug is a stroke victim with considerable physical impairment. He cycles with the medal about 100 km / 60 miles a day ! Joanne and I ran an errand in Cawston, then another errand in Keremeos, then went to Memorial Park in "downtown" Keremeos to await the arrival of the relay there. The village of Keremeos had planned a huge luncheon celebration for the relay. The Cawston and Keremeos medal bearers were all there, as were all the town's dignitaries / movers & shakers ( such as they are in a small village ! ), and many members of the Lower Similkameen Indian Band. The Elks ladies / Royal Purple had prepared a chili lunch. Everybody and their dog got recognized for something or other, everybody and their dog got the microphone for a minute or two ... ! Hey ... it's Keremeos !
A group from the LSIB performed a drum and song. Two elders drummed, and a large group of children sang a traditional native song. All were in traditional garb. The relay left Memorial Park around the neck of Lillian, a native elder in elaborate native garb, and in a wheelchair. She had been on the band council 25 years ago, and at that time welcomed Rick Hansen into Keremeos on behalf of the Lower Similkameen Indian Band. She wheeled with the medal around her neck to the next exchange point, where she transferred it to Grey Hawk, a young Indian boy. How fitting !
We drove home and waited at the Riverside RV Park Resort front entrance gate, me still wearing my medal bearer bright yellow jacket, and waved at the relay cavalcade as it drove by on its way to Hedley, its next stop this afternoon before ending the day in Princeton.
Below are links to some pictures of me as a medal bearer on the relay's photo website. Click on the following links.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/rickhansenfoundation/7168063834/
http://www.flickr.com/photos/rickhansenfoundation/7168064230/
http://www.flickr.com/photos/rickhansenfoundation/7168065852/
http://www.flickr.com/photos/rickhansenfoundation/7168066028/
http://www.flickr.com/photos/rickhansenfoundation/7168066316/
An interesting side note to my day was being declared a Difference Maker in her life by 9 year old Zoe, one of the two Cawston Elementary School children who were medal bearers this morning. When we got on the little bus to be taken to our starting points, Zoe's mother recognized me. Joanne had rescued their family's lost little dog Winston a couple of years ago when she was working at Lidder's Fruit Stand in Cawston. Winston the Miniature Dachshund had become stray, and lost, and had wandered out into the middle of Highway 3, amidst screeching brakes. Joanne ran out from the fruit stand and scooped up Winston off the highway. He spent the rest of Joanne's work day in an empty apple crate. We named him Veggie. HA HA HA ! Zoe remembered that ! He was with us for a day or two until we managed to get him reunited with his family. Although I did not recognize her today, it was Zoe's mother who came to our place to pick up Winston. Zoe was thrilled that in addition to the other exciting parts of today, she got to meet Joanne and me, the Difference Makers who saved her little dog !
Are you smiling yet ?
Thursday ; Today was sunny but quite cool. We spent the day marketing Similkameen Day Tours to three bed and breakfast establishments in Osoyoos and one near Oliver. Over the last month or so I have sent many marketing e-mails to many B&B's in the South Okanagan / Similkameen. Six of them have responded favourably, and we have now visited each of them to meet the operators and deliver our marketing materials to them. The four we met today were all supportive and I am hopeful that it will result in some day tour business for us.
Friday ; Today was sunny and warm ... at last !
A neighbour offered us some ground cover plants, so ... Joanne spent much of today working on landscaping. It's really difficult to plant things in our compacted rock slide shale yard. We filled the Sun Oven with three drying racks full of sliced Ambrosia apples. We sun dried one rack of apple slices a few days ago and they were great ! So from now on ... if we're not cooking a meal in the Sun Oven, and it's a sunny day, it has to be put to use sun drying tomatoes or apples.
Saturday ; Another sunny and warm day, although a bit windy at times. Nothing unusual about that !
Joanne went into Keremeos and Cawston to buy bedding plants at the two nearby nurseries. This afternoon she planted her purchases. We did some "spring cleaning". We sun dried more Ambrosia apple slices. We love them. "We" includes Bo ! HA HA HA ! I cooked Eggs Benedict for supper, then headed to Penticton for ...
B.B. King !
You know ... all full time RV'ers seem to intuitively understand the concept that the day is coming when it will be time to hang up the keys. Apparently ... and unfortunately ... that concept has eluded The King Of The Blues !
DSK
Oh, boy ... found Doc Martin on PBS. Spent the evening watching Doc Martin, Amazing Race, and Celebrity Apprentice.
Monday ; Sunny and mild today. About time ! Today marks the 11th anniversary of Joanne's first cancer surgery. Eleven years a survivor ! For which I am eternally grateful !
This morning drove to Penticton and picked up B.B. King ticket at South Okanagan Events Centre. WOO-HOO ! Continued on to Summerland where we dropped off rack cards and business cards at two bed and breakfast establishments that responded favourably to my marketing efforts. Between Summerland and Penticton stopped at road side rest area to allow Bo to romp on Okanagan Lake shore. It's been ten days since he's been "drivey". He was acting like it had been ten months ! Back in Penticton ran more errands before returning home late in the afternoon.
Where ... quite by accident / serendipity Joanne discovered ( online ) a four day old real estate listing for a "distressed" property here at Riverside RV Park Resort. Long story ! Resident died this past winter. Phoned real estate agent only to discover that since property was listed last Friday ... three days ago ... three offers have been made. One offer exceeds asking price. Made appointment for showing tomorrow at noon, then spent much of evening debating how much do we want this property. Asking price ... for park model / manufactured home and lot ... by bank who foreclosed on property after resident's death ... is less than price of undeveloped, unserviced bare lot when purchased five years ago. So ... we could offer considerably more than "asking price", and still not exceed what our current lot could be sold for. Would be like trading lots and getting a manufactured home for free. Somewhat appealing, n'est-ce pas ? Guess it's going to come down to a "bidding war". Somewhat like high stakes poker, I guess. Inevitably, somebody is going to get one hell of a bargain ! Wish us luck !
Tuesday ; DAMN ! An hour before our appointment to view ( and buy ! ) lot 107, the real estate agent's wife and business partner showed up on our doorstep to advise us that the Bank Of Montreal ... the property owner ... had just accepted the offer made yesterday on the property, the third of three offers in three days. The accepted offer was for 30% more than the list price ! Our offer was not going to be quite that high, although close. We got beat, plain and simple. Congratulations to the purchaser. They bought a lot and park model manufactured home for less than the value of the land alone !
Today was mostly cloudy and warm. A few drops of rain, and a few minutes of sunshine. We used the Sun Oven for the first time on a day with light overcast. The sun was struggling to peek through, and it was just enough to keep the Sun Oven in the ideal drying temperature range of 150 to 200 degrees. We dried Ambrosia apple slices.
And ... we washed the truck, removing the Arizona to BC travel road grime.
Wednesday ; Rick Hansen 25th Anniversary "Many In Motion" Relay Day 260
I was medal bearer no. 012 in Cawston !
Today was sunny and mild in Cawston, windy in Keremeos. A great day to be a medal bearer !
When Rick Hansen rolled his wheelchair around the world 25 years ago to raise funds for spinal cord injury research, it was called the "Man In Motion" Tour. The 25th Anniversary Relay across Canada is called the "Many In Motion" Tour. Today in Cawston I was one of the seven thousand medal bearers who will move the commemorative medal from Cape Spears, Newfoundland to Vancouver, British Columbia. While I knew that the route is faithful to Rick's original route across Canada, what I did not know until this morning was that the schedule also remains faithful to the original tour. It was exactly 25 years ago today that Rick Hansen rolled his wheelchair through Cawston and Keremeos.
Rick Hansen fancies himself ... quite legitimately ... as a "Difference Maker". The "Many In Motion" Tour's 7000 medal bearers across Canada are called "Difference Makers". Medal bearers were chosen, some by their community, some by the Rick Hansen 25th Anniversary Relay staff, after nomination and application, based upon nominees' / applicants' "making a difference". In their communities. In the lives of others. Many of the medal bearers / Difference Makers have a disability of one sort or another. Often they are in wheelchairs, like Rick Hansen.
This morning we drove to Cawston Elementary School for my orientation and preparation as a medal bearer. I was surprised to find that there were only seven medal bearers in Cawston. The medal is being carried by chosen medal bearers through communities, but travels in between communities by endurance athletes ... and vehicles. I also did not know that Cawston had a grades 1 to 4 elementary school. And I certainly did not know that there are so many grades 1 to 4 aged children in this area ! The entire Cawston Elementary School population was involved in this event. While the medal bearers and relay staff were doing orientation in one of the classrooms, the rest of the school population was in the gymnasium having a school assembly, preparing for the big event !
The seven medal bearers in Cawston were ;
- 2 children from Cawston Elementary School
- 2 teenagers
- 2 men about my age
- 1 man ... 93 years old !
After our orientation we were driven in a small bus to our starting point, on Highway 3 on the east side of Cawston, awaiting the medal to arrive from Osoyoos where it had started earlier this morning. The bus dropped off the first medal bearer, drove to the next exchange point, dropped off the second medal bearer, drove to the next exchange point, and so on. I was the third medal bearer today on the outskirts of Cawston. I waited on the side of the highway, eagerly awaiting my turn. It was sunny and warm. Finally, along came the relay. Police cars, the relay motorhome, other staff vehicles, relay safety staff on bicycles, and a safety runner beside Miranda, the young woman carrying the medal before me. Happy Birthday, Miranda ! Today was Miranda's 19th birthday ! She took the medal off, placed it around my neck, we hugged, and off I went. Walking quickly ! My running days are over !
What a thrill ! What a treat ! What an honour ! What a privilege !
I'm inspired by what Rick Hansen did 25 years ago. And I'm inspired by what he's doing today !
"The end is just the beginning"
My leg of the relay turned off Highway 3 onto Pitt Road on its way back to Cawston Elementary School. I passed the medal on to 14 year old Noah, then followed along a short distance behind. I had decided to walk with the rest of the medal bearers all the way back to the school. And I'm very glad that I did. Noah passed the medal to 93 year old John ( who was a lot easier to keep up with than Noah ) and John passed it on to 9 year old Zoe, one of the two elementary school students. At Zoe's starting point, the entire school population was lining the side of the road, cheering and waving pom-poms. All the children fell in behind Zoe and followed her, cheering and waving. The roadside was lined by parents. It was ... neat ! Zoe passed the medal to her school mate Daxon, then walked alongside him, with the entire school behind them, back to Cawston Elementary School.
Back at the school the relay staff led the school children ... and us medal bearers ... in a "Many In Motion" Relay Tour special dance. HA HA HA HA HA ! I don't get much opportunity to be around children. It was a lot of fun being silly with them.
Finally, it was time for the children to get back into school, and the relay to continue on to Keremeos. The relay staff endurance athlete Doug cycled on a recumbent bicycle with the medal to the Keremeos High School. Doug is a stroke victim with considerable physical impairment. He cycles with the medal about 100 km / 60 miles a day ! Joanne and I ran an errand in Cawston, then another errand in Keremeos, then went to Memorial Park in "downtown" Keremeos to await the arrival of the relay there. The village of Keremeos had planned a huge luncheon celebration for the relay. The Cawston and Keremeos medal bearers were all there, as were all the town's dignitaries / movers & shakers ( such as they are in a small village ! ), and many members of the Lower Similkameen Indian Band. The Elks ladies / Royal Purple had prepared a chili lunch. Everybody and their dog got recognized for something or other, everybody and their dog got the microphone for a minute or two ... ! Hey ... it's Keremeos !
A group from the LSIB performed a drum and song. Two elders drummed, and a large group of children sang a traditional native song. All were in traditional garb. The relay left Memorial Park around the neck of Lillian, a native elder in elaborate native garb, and in a wheelchair. She had been on the band council 25 years ago, and at that time welcomed Rick Hansen into Keremeos on behalf of the Lower Similkameen Indian Band. She wheeled with the medal around her neck to the next exchange point, where she transferred it to Grey Hawk, a young Indian boy. How fitting !
We drove home and waited at the Riverside RV Park Resort front entrance gate, me still wearing my medal bearer bright yellow jacket, and waved at the relay cavalcade as it drove by on its way to Hedley, its next stop this afternoon before ending the day in Princeton.
Below are links to some pictures of me as a medal bearer on the relay's photo website. Click on the following links.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/rickhansenfoundation/7168063834/
http://www.flickr.com/photos/rickhansenfoundation/7168064230/
http://www.flickr.com/photos/rickhansenfoundation/7168065852/
http://www.flickr.com/photos/rickhansenfoundation/7168066028/
http://www.flickr.com/photos/rickhansenfoundation/7168066316/
An interesting side note to my day was being declared a Difference Maker in her life by 9 year old Zoe, one of the two Cawston Elementary School children who were medal bearers this morning. When we got on the little bus to be taken to our starting points, Zoe's mother recognized me. Joanne had rescued their family's lost little dog Winston a couple of years ago when she was working at Lidder's Fruit Stand in Cawston. Winston the Miniature Dachshund had become stray, and lost, and had wandered out into the middle of Highway 3, amidst screeching brakes. Joanne ran out from the fruit stand and scooped up Winston off the highway. He spent the rest of Joanne's work day in an empty apple crate. We named him Veggie. HA HA HA ! Zoe remembered that ! He was with us for a day or two until we managed to get him reunited with his family. Although I did not recognize her today, it was Zoe's mother who came to our place to pick up Winston. Zoe was thrilled that in addition to the other exciting parts of today, she got to meet Joanne and me, the Difference Makers who saved her little dog !
Are you smiling yet ?
Friday ; Today was sunny and warm ... at last !
A neighbour offered us some ground cover plants, so ... Joanne spent much of today working on landscaping. It's really difficult to plant things in our compacted rock slide shale yard. We filled the Sun Oven with three drying racks full of sliced Ambrosia apples. We sun dried one rack of apple slices a few days ago and they were great ! So from now on ... if we're not cooking a meal in the Sun Oven, and it's a sunny day, it has to be put to use sun drying tomatoes or apples.
Saturday ; Another sunny and warm day, although a bit windy at times. Nothing unusual about that !
Joanne went into Keremeos and Cawston to buy bedding plants at the two nearby nurseries. This afternoon she planted her purchases. We did some "spring cleaning". We sun dried more Ambrosia apple slices. We love them. "We" includes Bo ! HA HA HA ! I cooked Eggs Benedict for supper, then headed to Penticton for ...
B.B. King !
You know ... all full time RV'ers seem to intuitively understand the concept that the day is coming when it will be time to hang up the keys. Apparently ... and unfortunately ... that concept has eluded The King Of The Blues !
DSK
Sunday, May 6, 2012
April 29 to May 5, 2012
Sunday ; Well, we're home ! The weather today was sunny and mild.
This past winter season … 180 days out of Canada … we travelled about 13,000 km. / 8000 miles, about the same as the previous two winter seasons. The lowest diesel price was $3.679 in Yuma, Arizona in December and January. The highest diesel price was almost a month ago, $4.79 in California.
We spent much of today getting "long term" set up in our site. Getting set up in our site here in the spring is much more complex than getting set up in a campsite that we're staying at for one night or one week. Joanne went to town and did some produce and grocery shopping. She had a phone call with her sister. She did laundry. We visited with neighbours. In the evening we watched Amazing Race and Celebrity Apprentice.
It's good to be "home" ... I guess. After five years of summertime living in this "weed infested rock pile" of an RV park development, we're disappointed that there are still about 50 unsold, vacant, and undeveloped lots in this park, and the soap opera politics and drama persist.
Monday ; Today was cloudy and chilly, with intermittent light rain. I hate this kind of cold, wet, spring weather.
Today was another day of "return home" chores.
Tuesday ; Cold and wet ! YUCK !
Wednesday ; A bit of sun today, and a bit warmer, but not much of either.
Thursday ; BRRRRR ... very cold !
Poor Bo ! Two wood ticks in two days !
Friday ; Still cold and wet ! Still disgusted !
Ran some errands in Keremeos this morning. Went to Cawston to find start and end points of my stint as Rick Hansen "Man In Motion" 25th Anniversary Relay Medal Bearer next Wednesday. Feel very proud and honoured to be selected as medal bearer. Drove to Penticton to run more errands before heading to South Okanagan Event Centre for first annual BC Interior RV Show.
Right ! Really nice 3/4 million dollar class A motorhomes. Just what everybody needs to go schlepping around Mexico ! RV designers seem to get more out of touch with reality every year. These rigs would rattle apart if ever driven on anything other than an Interstate ! All flash, no substance !
There were a couple of automotive dealers at the show. When did one ton diesel duallies surpass $80,000 in price ? ! ?
WHAT ? ! ? B.B. King is in Penticton next Saturday ? ! ? WOO-HOO ! Yes, yes ... bought a ticket ! Just one, Joanne doesn't want to go.
Saturday ; Happy 11th Birthday to Joanne's niece Amelia
Still cold and wet < sigh > ! I mean the weather in Keremeos, not Amelia ! HA HA HA !
DSK
This past winter season … 180 days out of Canada … we travelled about 13,000 km. / 8000 miles, about the same as the previous two winter seasons. The lowest diesel price was $3.679 in Yuma, Arizona in December and January. The highest diesel price was almost a month ago, $4.79 in California.
We spent much of today getting "long term" set up in our site. Getting set up in our site here in the spring is much more complex than getting set up in a campsite that we're staying at for one night or one week. Joanne went to town and did some produce and grocery shopping. She had a phone call with her sister. She did laundry. We visited with neighbours. In the evening we watched Amazing Race and Celebrity Apprentice.
It's good to be "home" ... I guess. After five years of summertime living in this "weed infested rock pile" of an RV park development, we're disappointed that there are still about 50 unsold, vacant, and undeveloped lots in this park, and the soap opera politics and drama persist.
Monday ; Today was cloudy and chilly, with intermittent light rain. I hate this kind of cold, wet, spring weather.
Today was another day of "return home" chores.
Tuesday ; Cold and wet ! YUCK !
Wednesday ; A bit of sun today, and a bit warmer, but not much of either.
Thursday ; BRRRRR ... very cold !
Poor Bo ! Two wood ticks in two days !
Friday ; Still cold and wet ! Still disgusted !
Ran some errands in Keremeos this morning. Went to Cawston to find start and end points of my stint as Rick Hansen "Man In Motion" 25th Anniversary Relay Medal Bearer next Wednesday. Feel very proud and honoured to be selected as medal bearer. Drove to Penticton to run more errands before heading to South Okanagan Event Centre for first annual BC Interior RV Show.
Right ! Really nice 3/4 million dollar class A motorhomes. Just what everybody needs to go schlepping around Mexico ! RV designers seem to get more out of touch with reality every year. These rigs would rattle apart if ever driven on anything other than an Interstate ! All flash, no substance !
There were a couple of automotive dealers at the show. When did one ton diesel duallies surpass $80,000 in price ? ! ?
WHAT ? ! ? B.B. King is in Penticton next Saturday ? ! ? WOO-HOO ! Yes, yes ... bought a ticket ! Just one, Joanne doesn't want to go.
Saturday ; Happy 11th Birthday to Joanne's niece Amelia
Still cold and wet < sigh > ! I mean the weather in Keremeos, not Amelia ! HA HA HA !
DSK
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