VAN IS STILL FULL (SHOVEL LIST)

 I have been thinking..and maybe observing.  It is just afterschool time right now.  Kids walk by outside heading home.  I have observed that if the kid is under 11 or 12, they are with friends, they stop to talk to and pet the neighbourhood cats,  they stop and pick an apple or two off the block's free tree,  they slow down and quick chat with older neighbours outside raking leaves.  Anyone over 12 is basically alone, head down, phone in hand, totally oblivious to anything they are walking past.  They are missing so much.

Well until today it has been raining.  And raining.  And raining.  We cannot empty that over packed van until it isn't raining.  And every night it sits out there the cargo is in jeopardy.  Plus Floppy can't go for car rides with Monte.  I am anxious to get my hands on some of the stuff in there!  It has been six years since packing that stuff up!!!

Ange and I are doing our exercises every single day!!!  I mentioned sometime ago the seven minute bite YouTube I used to follow.  It's great.  It's for old fat people, except for not fat or old Ange!, so there is no floor stuff.  You get five seconds between twelve  55 second long exercises to adjust and be ready for the next one up.  Now if I were on the floor finishing some leg thing or whatever, I would need longer than five seconds to get ready for the next one.

Firstly, I would have to get onto my hands and knees and if I am on my back that might take a few more seconds than five!!!  All these exercises happen in the kitchen so I would have to gingerly, gingerly because of old knees, crawl out of the kitchen, through the dining room, into the living room to my recliner to help climb up to the standing position.  Then a quick step walk back to the kitchen and by then he is at the end of the exercises completely.  No floor exercises!!!

In the interest of the extreme budget I am currently on I decided to supplement Floppy's expensive dog food by making some.  Now I buy his food at Costco and a fifty pound bag is sixty bucks.  So I am checking out the cost making him his supper.  Four cups of rice, beef broth, two thirds of a pound of ground beef and half a bag of frozen peas and carrots.  It makes a lot!  And let me tell ya...he loves it!!!  I am not really sure yet if it's cost effective but I shall figure it out. 

 He has one of the dog dishes with a maze of little walls in it to slow his eating down.  Well you should see him eat this homemade stuff!!  We pack it down into the wee canyons and it is really hard for him to get it all out!  It totally slows him down!!!!  As you know I love cooking and if I can't cook very often for the peeps in the house, then I will cook for the dog.  Jeez, I just have a loser life. Sigh.

I need to get the housekeeper back soon or rather another housekeeper.  As much as I liked Caroline, she didn't dust or empty garbages.  She did a great job on the kitchen but that just wasn't enough. Plus she charged 35 bucks an hour.  I can't afford that.  Milly, who was amazing and did a fantastic job and did a full two hours was only 20 to start and near the end it went up to 25.  I need to check out current prices.

So enough about my boring humdrum life.  I shall check out here.  Be happy!!!  TFL andTTYL

ANGE AND A CRAZY DOG

HE HAS BECOME A COUCH POTATO

MY GRANDSNAKE SMOOCH

BIRTHDAY AWESOMENESS

 Well 72 isn't as exciting as 69 but this day is turning out wonderfully. This whole weekend has been amazing.

April invited her five bridesmaids, maid of honour and myself on Saturday for a planning party.  We had sooooo much fun!!!  Those girls, every one of them was a huge hoot.  It started at one pm and ended at one am!!!  I will put some pics below of the food April prepared.  Unbelievable!!!!

On the 16th Bill's death anniversary, we decided to go up to a pub that he and I used to go to.  We had Yorkshire puds and roast beef and a gallon of gravy. But the best part was the singer!  He looks about the same age as me and boy could he sing!!!  And it was all the oldies, a lot of them the very songs Bill loved.  It just couldn't have been a better memory night.

And today, my birthday, I am getting a million awesome messages on Facebook and Aryn and Bradley picked me up and took me to Milestones for a birthday lunch.  What a fun time that was!!!!!!  We caught up on all our newsies and told stories and ate awesome food and drank Caesars!!! 

 Arnie is looking fantastic!!!  She is so skinny and in shape.  She is running a marathon in April and getting ready!!!  I am so proud of her.  You would never ever know she is fifty, not even looking at her up close.  She is absolutely loving her job!!!  She measures, cuts, pastes and preps wallpaper for Bradley to put up on the wall.  I am talking heavy duty commercial grade wallpaper...both thicker and way way longer cuts.  She also helps organize the job.  She is also Bradleybe's only roadie when he is dj'ing.  Such a funny and entertaining girl and one hell of a story teller!!!

Now I am looking forward to getting home.  Monte is picking me up tomorrow and we are heading right back.  I am anxious to get that van unpacked and take some time to check things out. Also I am pretty sure the floor will need cleaning.  Ain't no one else is doing it.  And I desperately need to get back to my proper way of eating.  I just can't eat diabetically when I am not home.  It simply isn't possible.  And if I go for advice from a nutritionist she/he had better be a type 2.  Otherwise they just don't get it.

Well I am going to sign off here and try my best to post a few pics.  No guarantees though with blogspot.  It def has a mind of its own!  TFL and TTYL

AT THE PUB FOR BILL'S SUPPER

SLURPING UP CHEESY ONION SOUP

OUR MASSIVE YORKIE AND BEEF

SIX HAPPY GIRLS

CHARCUTERIE

SO MUCH WORK

SALMON AND SURIMI

 

SOOOO MUCH FOOD

My stomach is still groaning.  I didn't even eat that much.  Craig kindly offered to cook the 2.5 kilo prime rib, thank goodness.  He gets the oven ripping hot, 500 degrees.  He seasons the meat then puts it into the oven for 5 min per pound.  He then turns the oven off and leaves the roast for three hours and absolutely NO opening the oven door at any point.  That meat turned out perfectly!!!!  It was beautiful!  Medium rare and gorgeous.  I stuffed and cooked the turkey in my electric roaster...my ancient roaster.  It did a fantastic job.  In fact Craig asked if I had brined it it was so juicy.

Once again Kathy provided the little suite downstairs for Monte and I.  It was a lovely amazing time...the biggest part of the family all together.  I don't get to see my kids very often so it was pretty special.

  The day after the big dinner, everyone dispersed to various places.  Kathy and I stayed home for most the day and we played a game called Code Names.  Jeez it was so much fun.  Then Myles April Kathy and myself went for a drive.  Firstly Kathy took us to a spot called Truck Chillin' Park.  Two old trucks and one grader, really old grader are parked in the loveliest spot and decked out with flowers etc.  It was a great spot for pics!  Then we went out to the airport.  They have built a lovely monument to honour the Snow Bird pilot death.  Plus they added two rocking chairs, right smack at the end of the runway.  It was amazing and I got pics!

Most everyone was gone by then, back to their real lives.  Myles and April were the last to leave early Tuesday morning.  I spent the day with Anne.  We had such a lovely time.  We went out to lunch at our fave spot and I had yet another chef's salad.  I can't seem to get them out of my system!  I think this is the fourth one since getting off that boat!!!  By far the best one I have ever had was at Smitty's just before we left.  Holy mackerel!!!  It has set the bar very high in expectations!!!

When I get home I am going to attempt to make one, maybe.  But, I just might just hop down to Smitty's now and then and get it there.  It would probably be cheaper.  I don't have salad stuff in my house anymore.  I was throwing too much out.  It's cheaper to just go get one now and then and theirs is beyond what I could make!  It isn't just different proteins on top of lettuce.  They make a real salad with cucumbers and tomatoes and green onion and peppers etc then pile the proteins on.  And I eat it with Thousand Islands only.  Mmmmmmm....I want one right now and it isn't even 8 am!.

Well April is at Super store right now getting stuff for the gathering this weekend.  It's her bridesmaids and me and wedding planning and bachelorette party planning.  They, for some reason, are flying off somewhere for the bachelorette party.  Man back in the day someone, a rellie or best friend would bake some goodies, make some awesome sammiches and a punch, plan ridiculous fun games and buy a ton of turlette paper to have a wedding dress making competition.  That doesn't seem to cut it anymore.  Sigh.  They all must have more expendable income than they complain about.  Okay peeps I am talking about people in general not specifically the ones coming this weekend.  They are a fantastic bunch!

Well I am going to attempt to put some pics on here.  This site doesn't always cooperate!  I hope you all had a wonderful familyish turkeyish week end too!!!  TFL and TTYL

MONTE DOING HIS THING AT THE KITCHEN ISLAND

FROM THE FRONT LEFT AND AROUND THE BACK AND BACK UP TO THE FRONT ON THE RIGHT:  TINY SLICE OF KATHY, KERRY,JOCELYN, MYLES, STIRLING, CRAIG, AUNTY DOROTHY, UNCLE DAVE, ME, MONTE, DREW, EMILY, (ANNE INVISIBLE) APRIL, KEVIN, DOROTHY, AINSLEY AND ELISE.

APRIL GOOFING OFF WITH LEELOO

THE STUNNING HOMAGE TO THE PILOT

ONE OF THE TRUCKS

APRIL AND MYLES WENT OUT AND SHE WENT CRAZY.  I STUCK HER IN MY SHIRT AND SQUEEZED HER

E

EARLY SUNRISE...AND THAT IS EXACTLY THE COLOUR THE WORLD WAS

THIS IS HOW THE DISHES GET DONE!!!

CRAIG AND KEVIN

THIS IS EMILY'S BOYFRIEND DREW WITH MONTE MAKING BRUNCH.  I WANT TO SAY A QUICK WORD HERE.  I AM PRETTY SURE, EVEN THOUGH EVERYONE KNOWS MONTE IS DIAGNOSED WITH AUTISM AND TOURETTES, I AM PRETTY SURE THERE WAS THE ODD PERSON IN THE GROUP THAT DIDN'T UNDERSTAND WHAT THAT MEANT AND JUDGED HIM ACCORDINGLY.  HE DID COME AWAY PRETTY HURT BY CERTAIN THINGS.  BUT DREW AND EMILY WERE UTTERLY AMAZING WITH HIM.  THEY TOOK THE TIME TO VISIT WITH HIM AND DREW INVITED HIM TO HELP HIM MAKE BRUNCH.  IT WAS TRULY THE HIGHLIGHT OF THE TRIP FOR MONTE.  AND EMILY HAS ALWAYS BEEN A WONDERFUL FRIEND TO HIM...FAR MORE THAN JUST A COUSIN.  AS HIS MOTHER AND THE ONE WHO LIVES WITH HIM, I AM VERY GRATEFUL TO ANYONE THAT TREATS HIM WITH RESPECT AND KINDNESS.  THERE ARE TIMES I FEEL I NEED TO CARRY AROUND THE DIAGNOSIS HE RECEIVED FROM THE PSYCHIATRIST  ON A PAPER REPORT.  MAYBE THAT WOULD HELP.  I KNOW I AVOID TAKING HIM TO A PEOPLY GATHERING BUT THIS TIME HE HAD TO COME FOR THE STORAGE UNIT.  IT'S FUNNY HOW HE KNOWS HE IS 'DIFFERENT' BUT STILL GETS HURT.  GO FIGURE.  POOR GUY.

 

IT'S DONE!!!

 Well Kevin, Elise, April, Myles, Monte and I all converged on the storage unit.  OMG!!  What an emotionally exhausting endeavour that was.  Initially I had thought Monte and I could do it but there would have been no way.  I would have walked in there, looked around, started crying and walked away.

There was trouble to begin with.  It occurred to me in the middle of the night that I had picked up my keys at home last thing, and made the fateful decision to leave them home as I have no van key on them.  But guess what is on them.  The keys to the storage unit lock.  Effadoodle!!!!!  So before we could even begin we had go to Princess auto and buy bolt cutters.  

I have a wooden sturdy round large container...like an oversized hat box.  I plunked myself down onto it.  Elise, an amazing helper!, would hand me the next box and I would sort through it.  She worked like a trojan!!!  And she slung the heaviest boxes around like a pro!

About the tenth box I opened had my native statues in it!!!!  I was so relieved and happy!  In fact there was quite a bit of native art.  I think I may keep this stuff.  Every box was such a huge reminder of Bill.  Most of the stuff I kept of his I am so glad I did.  One thing I kept is a lovely carryon size roller suitcase...full of his RCMP uniforms.  In another box we came across, randomly, a wee red shoe.  It was Jennifer's when she was tiny.  I never could find the other shoe but I have always kept that one.

  Myles or Kevin, I can't remember which one figured I threw out about half the storage unit.  As Kerry put it when I put that stuff in there I was just kicking the job down the road!  A good way to put it.

But it is all done now.  The storage unit was completely empty and clean.

Now let me tell you about the tetrising job Kevin did packing the van! Omg!!!  It is literally packed tight  to the tits.  The last thing to go in was Bill's stuffed fish!!!  It is laying across the top of the tightly ingeniously packed boxes right up at the roof. And all the stuff is coming to my house.  Sigh.  (shovel list). We do have a storage room fairly empty that we will put all the boxes in.  And from there I will sort again...maybe.....some day. 

 I gave April all the pics which I don't think she wanted as she has zero room for them all.  But she picked up an old old photo album with pics of Bill and his family going way back, and she says 'I am taking this.  Mom will just lose it.' or something like that.  Well fine then...you can be the keeper of all the pics.  Hah!!!  The only reason we still have all those hundreds of pictures is because they were not in organized albums, they were all in boxes in the cold room downstairs in the big house.  The one that burned down.  But the cold room was made of cement, did not burn and everything in there was perfectly safe.  

Today is turkey day.  There are a lot of people here.  Kerry, Kathy, the three girls, Drew (Emily's squeeze..awesome guy), Jo and Craig, Ainsley and Stirling, Auntie Dorothy and Uncle Dave from Seattle.  Uncle Dave turns 100 next summer and Auntie Dorothy is just about 90.  They are so vibrant and amazing.   He actually worked up until he was 94.  He was a psychoanalyst.  And Monte, April and Myles.  And they have an enormous table so we can actually all sit down to dinner together.  And believe it or not...we all get along super well.  No fights...no angst of any sort.  Lots of laughter and eating!!!  

The storage unit only took two hours.  Many hands and all that.  So around one in the afternoon they all headed towards Tunkwa Lake above Savana for a weiner roast.  Monte and I stayed behind.  I was totally knackered.  I am still battling the leftovers of the virus I had on the boat.  We are pretty sure it was covid.  Dorothy, Kathy's Dorothy, also had the same thing and is having trouble totally shaking it.  I did NOT feel well so I sat in the rocking chair, had a wee snooze and watched BritBox.  Monte stayed behind too.  His brain needed defragging so he had a nice long nap.

Now it is early early morning and I am waiting to hear people milling about so I can go upstairs and get a coffee.  Time to get this day started!!!

TFL.  TTYL

pics in a couple of days

MORE PLANS AFOOT

 More packing to do.  I am looking at my open suitcase on the couch.  There isn't even an inch in my bedroom to put it, unless I don't want to sleep in my bed.  I could put it on the bed.

I really need to sort out the summer clothes and get them packed away.  As I said before they are unworn and clean.  Then I need to repack it for the trip to Kamloops.  I don't know why this seems like such a chore.

I am sitting in my 'Fraser's Dad'sesque' recliner, complete with big hole (duck tape actually does not stick to recliners) looking at boxes of Halloween candy spread around on the floor.  Plus an Amazon box full of things for Ainsley and Stirling, and garbage and shoes.  Honestly anyone else would just be disgusted if their place ended up like mine seems to always end up.  (shovel list).

But...my kitchen is organized and clean and my dining room is all clean and table clear.  All I have to do is put the candy out of sight, pack a few things I want to take to Kamloops and empty my suitcase.  I will feel much better after that.

I think I am feeling guilty because I did fish out the bagged Mars Bars from a full box of candy that has nuts in it, thus the bagged mars.  I have been sneaking the odd teeny tiny Mars Bar.  Ohhhhhh they are so good.  My all time fave bar.  Always has been!  I'm not checking my blood sugar tonight.

So on Thursday we are on our way to Vancouver.  We are staying in the hotel we always stay in in North van.  Monte is going to a concert downtown that night with his friends Nordio and Graeme.  He will be coming back to the hotel and in the morning we will be leaving for Kamloops.  Busy week end happening up there.  Clearing out a storage unit, packing the van, trip to the dump, turkey dinner at Kathy's Sunday, on Monday Monte and I will finish up the unit and I really want some time to visit Anne.  I asked Kathy if I could invite Anne to dinner and she very graciously agreed.  

It will be a big crowd up there.  April and Myles, Kevin and family, Kathy's three girls and significant others, grand children, an ancient uncle and aunt from Seattle and Anne.  There is a hot dog roast happening on Saturday but I think Monte and I will have to take a miss on that one.  The whole purpose of going up there is to empty the unit.

One of my goals is to find the four carved native statues that were on Bill's funeral table.  I am dearly hoping they are in the storage unit.  I will put a pic below and if anyone of my family has seen them let me know.  Those carvings are the one thing of Bill's I really really want.

  I am also looking for a stained glass lamp I have always had in my kitchens.  I know it is in there.  I should really give it to Aryn...it is orange, her fave colour!

She had a friendsgiving last night.  She had fourteen people for turkey dinner with all the trimmings and more.  April and Myles were there and April said it was an amazing dinner and the most fun time.  It was a vintage theme so they all dressed accordingly and April said the music was fantastic!  Old school jazz and I think Bradley did a dj stint.  What fun!!!

What made me think of this is that they sent me a picture of the set table.  Half the table was vintage Wedgwood dinner plates and the other half was Noritake Nanking.  Both were Bill's and my dishes  originally.  I was one of the rare people with a daughter that actually really wanted them.  I couldn't pack them around with me, just wasn't practical so they have been passed to Arnie.  I am so grateful to have a kid that actually loves them.  So many of us boomers are getting rid of their precious dinner sets because their kids are simply not interested.  Times have changed.  Those dishes were in storage but now they see the light of day occasionally.  I will see if I can put a pic of the table setting below.

KATHY'S DOROTHY, ARNIE, APRIL, MYLES

Well thats it for today.  TFL and TTYL

=

 

A BEAUTIFUL TABLE

THE CARVINGS ARE ON THE RIGHT....TWO ARE OUT OF SIGHT..IF THEY AREN'T IN THE UNIT THEN SOMEONE HAS THEM...NEFARIOUSLY

THEY SAY HONESTY IS THE BEST POLICY

 Since arriving home and conversing with friends and family, I have been on the receiving end of a lot of sympathy for my ten days of sickness on our sixteen day cruise.  People have been so kind and caring, I have sucked it up and appreciated it all, except....

Time for honesty.  That cruise was one of the best cruises I have ever had and there have been a lot of them.  In retrospect I absolutely loved the lounging around in pjs, watching awesome tv and reading my many ebooks....taking advantage of free room service, even if it was sub standard.  I fortunately am not overly picky.  A tuna sandwich made with dry bread is still a tuna sandwich.  I didn't have to get dressed, the bathroom was ten steps away, Monte occasionally would show up with an awesome loaded plate of food from the buffet, once a day a lovely Filipino man would come in and clean the room, change the towels and sheets and take away dishes and garbage.  What on earth could be wrong about any of that I ask!?

Granted I will admit I felt super sick and coughed and sneezed my brains out.  I was doing a lot of holding my eyeballs in my head with my fingers but it was still a true holiday.

Thinking back over my recent life I find I am very much a fan of sitting around in my recliner, busy on my laptop reading or writing.  I spent many many years running around like a beheaded chicken from babies to teenagers to work to cooking and cleaning and teaching teens to drive to....well you name it!  It is time to sit and enjoy my sedentary life with no guilt or shame! 

 And I will let you in on a personal secret...I hate walking/hiking.  I find it unmitigatedly boring.  Even if there was zero pain involved  and fantastical scenery, I would hate it.  I remember as a kid I despised our 'family' walks to distant lakes and up mountains and down logging roads.  At four years old I remember asking myself 'why? why are we walking here?'

So I love love loved reclining on a soft comfy bed surrounded by umpteen pillows, over 300 ebooks personally chosen for my perusal, all you awesome folks out there at my fingertips to talk with, endless amounts of fruit (the fruit plates from room service were the best thing ever), double espressos also at my fingertips...sigh.  Name me one thing wrong about this.  You can't?  Me neither!!!!  Lol!!!

TFL.  TTYL

ALL I CAN SEE IS HOW UGLY I HAVE TURNED OUT TO BE!!!!  HAHAHAHAHAHA!!!!!!!  SO MUCH LESS WORK EVERY MORNING WHEN MAKEUP DOESN'T HELP SO YOU STOP PUTTING IT ON.  HALLELUJAH!!!!!