Another Day, One Step Closer

Another Day, One Step Closer

Yesterday Roy had the day off of work, so we bit the bullet and managed to get some things done. We have been waivering about whether or not to take our cell phone with us, we were thinking that it would be more of a hassle than it was worth, as we didn't intend to be using it much anyway. We called the company and discussed various options, and then decided to just "put in on vacation" and leave it at home. We called the credit card companies to tell them when and where we would be travelling. I had read that sometimes, when you use your cards in Mexico, the company will freeze them after the first use, they assume that they have been stolen. We didn't want to take the chance that that might happen as we intend to be using cards rather than taking a lot of cheques or cash with us. We also told the bank the same thing for our debit cards, so that should be taken care of. I will be calling the water well company today to set up a definate date for them to drain all the water and do the well things that need doing. We also did a bit of shopping for things we may need, and won't want to run around looking for right away. We have been searching for Roys snorkling fins and couldn't find them anywhere. I was beginning to think that I had begun the decline into senility. Roys daughter phoned while we were shopping for new ones (thank goodness we hadn't bought any yet) and told us that they have them at their house. Roy thought that maybe he had borrowed them to his granddaughter but wasn't sure. So one less thing to look for, now we just have to get together to pick them up.

In the afternoon and evening I mowed lawn, as it was actually hot and sunny for a change. I have gotten the flower beds cleaned out, so one less thing to come back to in spring. I intended to do some more yard work today; but will see, as it is cloudy again and rain is forecast.

Roy goes for his Mantu test tomorrow morning and will get it read on Friday, Thursday I go for my Hep. A booster, that will be a couple of more things finished. 22 days on the countdown.

We have been watching the devastation caused by Hurricane Katrina in the U.S. and our hearts go out to the people there. I cannot even imagine such a large area of damage or of how people will even begin to pick up their lives again.

Holding Pattern

Holding Pattern

It feels like everything is on hold, just waiting until it is time to leave. 24 days on the countdown. There is not a lot that we can do for the next while; but will be lots going on in the last week.

Roy checked and replaced a few minor things on the car yesterday and that was the extent of our trip preparations.

I called a friend and told her when we are leaving, and also called one of my sons, other than that it was a quiet day.

The sun has come out and it was warm again, finally. I have started cleaning out some of the flower beds, a couple more days and that should be done. Leaving them does catch the snow and retain more moisture; but then I hate cleaning it all out in the spring, when it is all soggy and partly decomposed. A yucky mess.

Company, Company and More Company

Company, Company and More Company

Well, it is still raining here, it drizzled most of the day yesterday, most of the night and so far all day today. I hadn't even looked at the rain gauge yesterday, so this morning when I took Roy to work (and wasn't he a happy camper about that) I emptied it. In the last couple of days we have had 2 and 3/10 inches which so far brings August to a whopping total of 5 and 6/10's inches and guess what, the forecast for tomorrow has changed from sunny to rain!! I cannot believe the summer or lack thereof that we have had. The farmers are disgusted as they haven't been able to finish haying, never mind starting to harvest. The oil leases are mud holes, Roy today has the lovely job of slogging through the clay muck and pumping water off of the leases so that the trucks can try to get in to load. Everyone that you talk to is depressed and disgruntled. At the post office this morning at complete stranger even asked how I liked the weather. Usually the complaints about weather here are about how dry it is, not this year!

WET, SOGGY YARD.

PLEASE DON'T SEND US OUTSIDE!!

It seems that suddenly it has struck everyone that we are leaving for 6 months or so. Some friends from the city emailed that they would like to come to visit again before we leave. They came out the first time in May and teased us about living in the boonies and bush etc.; but they must have liked it as they returned again a month later and stayed longer. Now they would like to come again before we leave. Another friend of Roys also has said he might come on the September long weekend (Labor Day in Canada, September 3,4,5th), he has not been here before. Then, this morning we got an email from one of my brothers, apparently he has a couple of days off of work on the 2nd and 3rd of September and as my mother and her husband want to see us before we go, they may bring them up. It is too long of a trip for my mom to drive and her husband had by pass surgery not too long ago, so I don't think he feels up to driving that distance. It's about 1500 kms. return trip (a little over 900 miles). My sister in law is a school principal; but could take the Friday off and they would also pick up my niece and bring her with them. So, then comes the question of the larder, which as compared to old Mother Hubbard, I was getting right down to the bare essentials. We have been eating some strange concoctions the last few days, as I go through the cupboards and find just one more can of something that I want to use up. I guess I will have to go and do some fairly major shopping and get to some extra baking, if I intend to feed all these hungry mouths. The house is also in some slight?? disarray as I have been packing some of the camping supplies that we will be taking with us, so what I normally call the "junk room" is exactly that. Oh well, the object of the next few weeks is just to get through them, and as quickly as possible I hope, not counting today, it is 26 days until we leave.

Roy goes for his Mantu test on the 31 st and I get my last booster shot on September 1 st and that will all be done with.

Hasta Luego

Another Housesit?

Another Housesit?

We may have another housesit opportunity, this time in Texas, about 50 miles from Austin. It is for an extended length of time, so there has been a lot of discussion going on here for the last couple of days. We are not sure if we will have enough time to come home for a few weeks after Mexico, before heading out again, or if we should just hang out in the U.S. until it is time to go there. The persons departure date is not set in stone, so we need to make sure that we have enough time to get there before he leaves. We have been trying to think of all the things that would need to be done here, and whether they could all be done online. We have decided that some may need to be done in person, or would be much easier in person. Anyway at this juncture we are thinking that we will leave everything in order here, in case we can't get back; but the plan is to come back for a few weeks and then leave again. We had also discussed whether, if we get the housesit and depending on the timelines, whether we should change our destination point in Mexico. We have been planning to go to Guaymas, Sonora on the Sea of Cortez; but if we do get this housesit, and depending on departure date....if, if, if..... It might make more sense to stop on our way down to Mexico, visit the new area and check it out and then go down the opposite coastal side of Mexico. When we originally started doing our research, we looked at the area around Veracruz, Veracurz as we were intending to fly down. Then we decided that we would drive and therefore changed our plans and decided to go down the other coast as it is closer. We have done so much research online and looked at so many areas, both coastal and inland, and because of the diversity of the country, we feel that no matter where we go,we will enjoy it enormously. All this discussion may have been just a waste of time, if we do not get the new sit; but the planning needs to be done, just in case, especially as it is getting close to departure time, 29 days.

On the weather side of things here, we had one day with sun and I managed to get some lawn mowed. Yesterday and today, chilly,windy and rain again! So much for yard work. The wild bunny who visits our yard doesn't seem to mind, he was just sitting in the backyard last evening in the rain. He just sat there calmly ---so either he was frozen or decided he needed a shower. The dreary weather here is definately making us want to get going. Hopefully it will get better soon, so that I can done some things done.

Homemade Tortillas Yum, Yum.......

Homemade Tortillas Yum, Yum....

I found a recipe online yesterday for tortillas, so I tried it today. We had them for lunch and they were actually muy delicioso. I cooked them in a skillet with a bit of flour in it, I'm not really sure how you are suppposed to cook them. My late husbands family makes a type of norwegian pancake, lefsa?? (forget the name of it) and that is how they cook them. After they are cooked they are buttered, sugared and rolled up. Anyway, back to the tortillas, I found the dough to be very easy to work with; although mine certainly were not perfect circles. We thought that they had more flavor than the bought ones that we usually eat. We decided that the recipe was a keeper, unlike many that I have found online!

It finally quit raining and the sun came out today; although it is still cool. I wandered around the yard abit but it is too wet to do anything. Picked enough raspberries to have with some ice cream later on.

A nice, quiet day.

Same Old, Same Old

Same Old, Same Old

Well, there sure is nothing exciting going on around here! It is STILL cool and rainy, we have gotten 2 and 3/10" inches of rain this week so far. That is alot of rain for here, usually we are lucky to get that in over a month. I got soaked twice yesterday trying to get the raspberries picked, did finally finish and then delivered them to a neighbor who wanted some. Hopefully that was the last big picking, I am tired of them. I was cold and wet so lit the fire to warm up. Even the dogs hate the weather, the little one came in this morning, went and stood in front of the fire to warm up!! It is so funny to see how quickly they get used to having it on again. A couple of days ago, when I didn't have it lit, he came in wet and probably chilly, stood in front of the stove and when he realised there was no warmth there, he turned around and gave me such a look!! When we have this type of weather it makes me wonder how people can live on the west coast of Canada or in England. Maybe this is part of the reason my grandparents left England and immigrated to Canada; although I'm sure if they would have known about our winters they would have changed their minds!

My niece was supposed to come visit this weekend; but I guess that is off, as her car is not working. I was hoping to see her before we left, I haven't seen her since last summer. She has moved closer to go to University and is now only about 4 1/2 hrs. away instead of 9 or so. I usually go "back home" about once a year to visit; but with all the trip preparations, etc. didn't make it this year.

I need one more booster shot and Roy is supposed to have a Mantu test done, so I made the appts. for that on September 1st. Apparently they(public health) like to know if you test positive or negative for TB before you leave the country, then if you get it later they can backtrack to see where you picked it up. From what I read TB is fairly prevalent in Mexico; but then, it is also fairly common here in the northern aboriginal communities. When we are done with that I think that other than exchanging some money, we are ready to go. Mentally we have been ready to go for ages! 33 more days to go.

Que todo para ahora---which I hope means---that's all for now.

Another Blog About Mexico

Another Blog About Mexico

Here is another blog about Mexico that I have come across while cruising the net. This couple are moving from Michigan to Morelia soon http://lavidalopez.blogspot.com/ .

Rain, Rain Go Away

Rain, Rain Go Away

Words I never thought I would say, living here in a normally dry area; but....it would be really nice to see the sun for a change. Yesterday was very chilly, didn't actually rain much; but it was too cool and damp to do much outside. My various Fibro. aches and pains have been out in force during this weather, another reason for wanting the sun. I got in a bit of wood yesterday and started the stove, it is also running today. It has been raining steadily today, enough to raise the level of water in the pond. Unfortunately, Roys rain day off was terminated because of a couple of oil spills, so he is out there somewhere in the rain working. He was very....happy to get called in! The dogs and I are inside staying dry, the German Shephard sits up once in awhile, looks out the window and then lays down again, as if to say, "I'm not going out in that!" Oh well, it is supposed to get nice by Friday, I hope so, as I would like to get some yard work done, before we leave. I have almost collected everything that will be to be put in storage for the winter, now just to haul it out in a couple of weeks.

Roy renewed the car license and registration the other day, it wasn't due until October but as we will already be long gone by then, it had to be done when he had a day off.

I have been very lazy lately with trying to learn some Spanish, so guess I should go and see what else I can muddle through.

35 days to go.

Hasta Luego!

A Short Trip

A Short Trip

Well, yesterday we took a short trip, as compared to what we will be taking this fall. We went and spent the day at Roys family reunion. It was nice to have a chance to visit with all his family as we probably won't see them again until next summer. Several of his siblings also leave Alberta for warmer climates in the winter, to Arizona. They know a couple of people who either go to Hermosillo or that have been in Guaymas and liked it there. That was encouraging to us. They also think that the housesitting idea is interesting and full of travel possibilities. Spent the afternoon there visiting and returned home.

We also managed to do some shopping for things we will need on our trip, so that is one more thing off of the list of things to do.

38 days and counting !!

It rained again yesterday and is cool and cloudy today. Where is our hot, global warming summer ?

Just Another Day

Just Another Day

Well yesterday has come and gone, wonder what today will bring?

I did manage to the get banking stuff done yesterday with my step-daughter. I keep mistakenly referring to her as my daughter-in-law without thinking, duh, blonde moment without being blonde, and she corrected me yesterday when we were discussing it with the bank person. I guess I had never really thought about the proper terminology. After all this time I realised that I am a step-mom, hopefully not the evil kind of fairy tales, and thankfully they are all grown and on their own, as there are four of them. Anyway, back to the banking, after several jokes with the banker about the CIBC/Enron scandal, we managed to do the simple thing that I wanted done. Still can't figure out why a teller could not just have done it, as it only took 5 minutes. All I need to do now is call the credit card company before we leave and let them know that we will be in Mexico. I have heard that people have had trouble with their cards being frozen after using them for the first time down there, if the company does not have prior knowledge of your trip. Lovely!! Hope to avoid this.

A fellow from the gas company happened to drive into the yard yesterday to locate the line for the electric company, so that saved me a phone call. We had found out that it will cost us more to disconnect and reconnect the gas than it will to just leave it on for the winter and pay the minimum monthly charge. He showed me how/where to shut off the gas valve at the meter, I don't want to leave the pilot light on in the furnace, as if it blows out we could have escaping gas,which is not a good thing ! So, that will be one less thing to worry about. We will shut off the electricity, put the satelite T.V. "on vacation" for 6 mths., cut off the phone, and shut down and drain the water. 43 days and counting, can't wait, very cool here the last few days, only 6 celcius here this morning, UGH, where is my parka??

Roys family reunion this weekend, so I need to get busy and do some baking. We also need to do some shopping, so will try and combine the two by hitting Walmart there, Yuck, to pick up a couple of things. As much as I dislike their company practises, I have to admit to shopping there occasionally because of their lower prices. Hypocritical I know. I refuse to buy flowers from Growers Direct because their flowers are grown in greenhouses on slash/burn rainforest land. After the forests are gone, with their wonderful tree lungs for the rest of us, and their unknown medicinal content, will we finally fully realise what we have done? There is lots of talk going on; but what physically are we doing? I for many years boycotted certain products from certain countries because of their apartheid policies; but who does this hurt in the end? The corporation (would they even notice) or the poor person who does manage to eke out an existance on the pittance that they are paid? I feel guilty everytime I shop at Walmart to save a $$$ or two (of which I don't have many), and think of their policies. The media ads of how helpful they are to their employees in times of crisis are so wonderful, too bad they don't tell you that the majority of their employees are not eligible for these wonderful benefits as they don't work the number of hours to qualify for them. On the other hand, what major or minor corporation doesn't make their millions by exploiting their minions ?? So what's a person to do? Speaking of exploitation and gouging, how about those gas prices? We are still at 89.9 cents per litre(yesterday); but apparently is over a $1.00 per liter elsewhere in the country. Do we just continue on blindly exploiting and destroying our wonderful planet to make a buck or two? Why do we never learn? The money spent on war or space exploration could eleviate the starvation and suffering all over the world; but then that wouldn't line anyones pocket would it? Time to get off my soapbox.

The lady who writes a blog, which I read daily, has left San Miguel de Allende, Mexico to go back to Houston for a few weeks. They were returning through Nuevo Laredo, which has been a hot spot lately for the drug wars, I certainly hope they made it through there with no problems. Here is a link to her blog http://billiemercer.blogspot.com/ .

Ho Hum

Ho Hum

It's been a quiet few days. Picking raspberries...picking raspberries...ah, did I mention picking raspberries?

Nothing too exciting to write about lately. We have decided to leave a few days earlier than expected. We got at the maps last night and decided after looking at various distances that we would leave on Sept. 21 now instead of the 24, just to give us a bit of extra time to get close to Albuquerque by the night of the 29th. Not that we are in any hurry to get going, yah right!

Have been spending some time online checking out car insurance for Mexico and we still haven't quite decided; but think we will wait until we get to Tucson before buying anything.

I tried to doing some banking stuff today; but we ( daughter-in-law and I) have to go back tomorrow when someone else is in? or available? to do what I want done. Oh well, we had a nice lunch together anyway.

One of my sister in laws is a year older today (Happy Birthday, Marion) and another one just left on a trip to Moncton, New Brunswick for a holiday, hope she has a good time.

We had a quick, heavy shower this afternoon and it was cool, wish it would warm up before summer is over.

Tomorrow I have to get busy and take some pictures of the new kittens to send to my nephew, Rhyley, have been lazy lately with the camera.

Getting Ready

Getting Ready

Well, yesterday I spent most of the afternoon adding some security to our outbuildings. I put some padlocks on buildings that are usually left unlocked and tried to secure the windows also. I still think that locks only keep out honest people; but the insurance company doesn't seem to agree with this. We live in a fairly crime free area; although it is on the rise here also. Last weekend a home just across from my mother-in-law (in town) was broken into while the owners slept. Nothing was stolen; but I am sure that it has made them very uncomfortable and uneasy. Several weeks ago, a garbage man was held up with a knife against his throat, thankfully he was not injured. This, in a small, rural town of approx. 1400 population. It makes you wonder what is happening in our world.

We are again a 2 dog household, my daughter-in-law picked up her dog yesterday. Her children were really missing him, and now our small dog is missing his buddy. I sent all the food,treats back with her that I had purchased for our little fellows stay with them come September. I had also gotten alot of our information ready for her, just in case she needs it while we are gone, so sent this home with her also. So a couple more things done for our trip. Now just to buy the food,etc. that our large dog will need for her stay with the other daughter-in-law. Purchasing 6 months food, etc. for 2 dogs in advance is a heavy task, I should have done this in the winter when the extra weight in the car would have done some good on our icy roads !! Certainly got some strange looks from the cashier at the store, I am sure she thought I was running a kennel !

Here is the link to another blog about Mexico, that I found from, yet another blog that I read often. This couple intends to move to Durango, Durango, Mexico in February of 2006. http://mexico.xeric.net/

Well, time to get going on this day. Hasta Luego

Google The World

Google The World

Well it's a little cooler this morning. It was hot yesterday, still sitting at 32 celcuis (about 89 F.) at 7 P.M. last night. Then about 9 P.M. the clouds and wind rolled in, with lots of thunder and lightning to go with it. The dogs of course were not impressed with the thunder. This morning they are tired and I'm sure think we are crazy for having to get up at 5 a.m.. As you can see, they look fairly relaxed!

We got just enough rain to stop me from mowing the lawns today, it is beginning to look very unkept around here. We keep getting just enough rain to keep the grass too wet to mow. Yesterday in the heat (when the grass would have been dry enough to mow) I had to pick the raspberries, two hours in the heat, stepping on dogs that kept laying in the shade right in front of my feet, such fun.

Went into town right away in the morning and had a short visit with some of the visiting relatives. They headed out to the city to return the rental car to the airport, and then were continuing on to Idaho with her father for a more extended visit with him, then on to California for more visiting, before returning to Hawaii on the 16th of August. I'm sure by then they will be very tired and glad to be home. Thank you, Sherry for the Macadamia Nuts and chocolates, well my taste buds thank you even if my hips do not! Hope you have a good holiday and trip home.

Last evening we decided to drive from Albuquerque, New Mexico to Nogales, Arizona. No, not really; but even so in a fascinating way. A couple of months? ago, I learned about a new Google tool. It is called Google Earth and is a free download; although it says that you need a high speed connection, it does work on our dial up service, just much slower coming in. Here is the link if you are interested. http://earth.google.com/ It will show you anything you want to see, including where all the Walmarts, etc. are on your route! Some areas come in closer than others, with it I can see my mother-in-laws home and even her car parked in her driveway; but in the town in Saskatchewan where my mother lives, it won't bring in the houses. It is not in "real time"; but the pictures have been done within the last few years. The ones of our home have been done in the last year, I can tell by different yard improvements.

Anyway,we got out a regular map and chose a route--trying to stay off of the major highways. We prefer to take smaller roads, as they are often more scenic and you can take your time and look around without being stampeded off the road. We then followed this route on Google and are very excited by the terrain that showed up there. One area in particular, winds through a mountainous park with wonderful looking scenery and names. Jesse James Canyon, many springs, very green looking with deep gorges. We decided to travel through towns/cities such as Truth or Consequences, Silver City, and Tombstone to name a few. After we leave Albuquerque, New Mexico we have no time lines so are free to take as long as we want to sightsee, traveling as fast or slow as we wish. What a luxery that will be!! No clock to rush us for 6 months, you cannot believe how lucky we feel to be able to do this. Of course, doing this last evening has only made us want to GET GOING!!! 54 days and counting.

So today it is back to mundane, laundry, house, yard, etc., oh well, soooooon!!!