The Daily EO

The Daily EO: September 6th, 2012

Greetings from Havre, Montana and the Town Inn and Suites.
Hours on the road: 15 hours
Kms Traveled: 1366.2

After a short night in Grand Rapids – well it seemed pretty short – and a grand breakfast, we hit the road again. You know “Breakfast included” in an American Hotel is significantly better than the lousy “continental breakfast” offered in most Canadian hotels. In every hotel we’ve stayed in during the last month, the American ones include make your own fresh waffle, oatmeal, biscuits & gravy, yogurt, fresh fruit, eggs, bacon/sausage, or a various combination of these. It’s fabulous. Emile usually grabs a hardboiled egg and I an extra yogurt and we’ve got our stops for the day. Pay attention Commonwealth!

We were excited to get to North Dakota – it adds another state to both of our collections (we only count states that we have actually been outside in – Emile’s 2 hour layover in LAX does not count). I’ve been to 21 (California, Hawaii, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Louisiana, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Montana, Nevada, New Hampshire, New York, North Dakota, Ohio, Oregon, South Dakota, Vermont, Washington, Wisconsin, Wyoming). Emile has been to 23 (Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Maryland, Michigan, Minnesota, Montana, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, North Dakota, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, South Dakota, Virginia, Washington, Washington DC, West Virginia, Wisconsin, Wyoming).

The most exciting part of North Dakota was visiting the Geographic Centre of North America. I guess that should be Center – but I think that is ethnocentric of the US to use their spelling, don’t you think?? There it is. Built in 1932 (the monument not North America) Emile was more excited about the fantastic cloud formations, I think.

As we crossed into Montana, the Big Skies were evident:

Both of us had to sit as tall as we could with the sun visors down while squinting and wearing sunglasses to be able to see. Fortunately, Highway 2 – north of the main freeway – is very quiet. It is not uncommon for us to spend a half hour without seeing another vehicle. The sun sets in the west, I’ll tell you – I hope there is no permanent damage.

While in the US, we don’t use our cell phones due to the high data/roaming rates. I engage in the practice of War Driving – so named from the movie War Games. I race to see if I can connect to unsecured Wi-Fi and download my messages before Emile pulls away from a red light. I like to see what people call their Wi-Fi points: hurricane, tornado, getyourown, notyours, mine, thelassie, or my favorite “Linksys”. If you laughed when I said “Linksys”, you failed the geek test. Each time we stop for gas (or peeing), I am wandering around the parking lot trying to find a strong unsecured connection.

We had an early evening relatively speaking and pulled into Havre – land of the low-end casino – at 10 pm. We’d stopped to get Oreos and milk for Emile and he was eager to relax while watching TV and eating his American treat.

September 6^th, 2012 Extra-Ordinary: Being exceptionally disappointed that the honeymoon suite bed (the only room left at the hotel) didn’t have the heart-shaped king bed like the clerk said it did. Who doesn’t want to sleep on a heart shaped bed once?

The Daily EO: September 5th, 2012

Greetings from Grand Rapids, Minnesota and the Country Inn!
Hours Travelled: 16 hours
Kms Covered: 1368.8

I’m not talking about any tears or heartache today, so I will begin our trip 30 minutes out of Huntsville. We stopped in Rosseau for a little pick me up in the form of a cream cheese smothered (and I mean drowning) raisin free cinnamon bun. I got Emile a day-old sticky bun – we need to watch the budget you know. We wrapped close to Georgian Bay this time whipping through Parry Sound and the French River area. Last time we swung out to North Bay, and I think hugging the bay is faster.

But then again I was working on catching up on EOs and not paying full attention:

ETD_8736 — Tethering my Laptop to the Cell Phone

There is an aside here for anyone who is married to or is connected to a photographer. I am in dire danger having my picture taken doing the most mundane of things with little warning. I mean who wants to have their picture taken while stuffing their face full of carb delicious Wendy’s Spicy Chicken Sandwiches? Or while driving? From today alone, here are the indignities suffered:

I am certain that this is a statement of the skill of the photographer.. . right? I mean I couldn’t possibly really look like this. Even when I know I am going to have a shot taken, I end up looking like yahoo because I am trying to suck in things that cannot be sucked in. I check myself in the mirror fairly regularly and find that my arms while needing a little more tone are not the size of leg of lambs. My hips while curvy have not yet gone the way of the middle age spread. But then he takes something like this, and I wonder…

In Blind River – or somewhere around there – we stopped for the aforementioned Wendy’s. While enjoying our meal, a women began coughing and choking. Note coughing. Not to let the women suffer, her husband (?) grabbed her from behind on the way to the bathroom and started vigorously performing the Heimlich Maneuver I must say this is the first time I have ever seen it done in a real “emergency”. Funny thing though – if the victim is coughing, that means she can breathe. If she can breathe, then the food is not blocking her airway and there is no need for such heroics. In fact, it can make the situation worse by moving the food around and then blocking the airway. Fortunately, a security guard waiting for his Baconater leapt to the woman’s defense and pulled the guy off. The poor woman – embarrassed for such a scene – slunk into the bathroom to cough out her fry.

We crossed the border at Sault Ste Marie and were really grilled by the customs officer. “Have either of you ever been arrested? Years ago? Perhaps as a juvenile? You can tell me. I need to know this stuff.” I was left feeling like I should have confessed a phantom brush with the law.

Our trip through Michigan journeyed through the Northern part where neither of us had ever been before. And before we knew it we had passed by the Michigan Skateboarding Hall of Fame and six or seven bizarrely finite rainstorms and moved into our 2 hour jaunt through Wisconsin. It was too late to buy any cheese and I am regretting that as I write this now.

We drove into the setting sun while swirls of mist wrapped around the tires of our Fit. Through Duluth as it didn’t seem just far enough and so into Grand Rapids (the other one). Judy Garland was born here, you know, it seems a fitting to sleep where “A Star is Born”.

September 5^th, 2012 Extra-Ordinary: I’m a sucker for sunset shots – you know it! I love the evidence of the movement in the trees due to the shutter being open a little longer. I took the picture with Emile’s recommended settings, so I’d say this is a team effort.

Again, my hands on the camera, Emile’s advice from behind me:

The Daily EO: September 4th, 2012

For days, I have wanted to get going already. Let’s get in the car and head west, what are we doing hanging around here? And this morning I realized why – I was avoiding the tearful goodbyes. It’s not that I don’t want to be here, it’s that I need to be somewhere else too. But the end date makes things so much more poignant. Over the last four days we are having to say goodbye to everyone we love in Ontario – knowing that visits and calls will not be as immediate as before.

At my wedding after the ceremony Toni (my mother-in-law) grabbed me by the hips and said to me “You two are right for each other. Be good to each other. Take care of each other.” It was the first time she had ever grabbed me by the hips – and I knew she was telling me something that meant a lot to her. This morning, when she did it again, I had to blink several times to hold back the tears – and I wasn’t entirely successful. “You’re doing this together. And that makes it right.” She said. My father-in-law hugged us both a little longer than usual.

We left them standing in the drive-way waving goodbye, looking a bit sadder than usual. They gave us a card to read on the way. Emile was driving so he asked me to read it aloud. And he knew I couldn’t do it for some time. Instead we sat quietly with our thoughts as we left St. Catharines behind us – both regretful of the moments we know we will miss but still certain of our decision to move to Vancouver together.

And then that evening a dinner with our friends in Huntsville to say our last goodbye to good friends there. And the night before with friends in St. Catharines. Friday night – Toronto friends. My heart tears a little with each hug, card and well wish. I want to stay, I want to go.

Tomorrow we start out, tomorrow we begin a long trip to a new start, but we still look backward. Muskoka is where we married, each found our career path and became part of a community as a couple.

September 4^th, 2012 Extra-Ordinary: The selfless well wishes from family and friends who sadly know this is the right thing.

The Daily EO: September 3rd, 2012

Things I am afraid of:

Getting all the non-work things – both tasks and pleasure – done while working full time.
That I am not as good as I was before when working as a materials manager
That I wasn’t as good as I thought I when working as a materials manager
Making new friends
Spiders
Emile resenting me for separating him from his family and his home for 40 years
That Vancouver vacation spot will not be as good as Vancouver living spot
That rain will make me sad
I’ll drift apart from my friends
Enclosed spaces that I could accidentally be trapped in
The increased risk of earthquakes on the west coast
Saying goodbye to everyone and not being able to say what I want to say
A Fresh Start

Things I look forward to:

Both of us working in our chosen careers at the same time
Buying material goods – while recognizing I don’t need material goods for happiness
Spending more time with my grandparents and family.
Travelling to Vancouver Island, Gulf Islands, Whistler, Okanogan, Kootenays, Sunshine Coast, Washington and other close by destinations
Not shoveling snow
Tax Season
Getting a pedicure and my eyebrows threaded
Buying trendy rain gear
Ability to visit my mom and brother for a weekend
The varied options in a large urban centre
A Fresh Start

Things I hope for:

Emile flourishing in his new home town despite the separation from his family
Emile’s law firm recognizing the talent he has
Building a future at my new company
Continuing Fit April through
Positive resolution to the economic crisis in Europe
A visit from Emile’s family next summer
A Fresh Start

September 3^rd, 2012 Extra-Ordinary: Worries that haunt you in the night don’t seem as bad in a list in the light of day.

The Daily EO: September 2nd, 2012

One of my favorite blogs is 52brandnew.com. It is written by woman who lived in New Jersey who set out to do 52 New things in 2011. When she completed that, she is working through 2012 with a goal to do 52 brand new things with her children. Her posts are a delight to read and the photos capture the moments exceptionally well.

Licking a 9-volt battery was their first experience this year, and my husband I laughed together about this. I’d never heard of such a thing, and Emile remembered it from his youth.

Sunday was hot and cloudless, and we found ourselves all sitting outside – or playing with my nephew. I was letting the sun warm my swallow “been packing” skin. Until my husband pulled out the magnifying glasses – after all we had just finished lighting off our fire crackers inside a metal garage can. It was a wonder we could hear each other.

He handed one to me and taught me how to burn a wood chip. When I said to him “I’ve never done this before”, he answered “52 brand new”. I couldn’t believe how quickly wood or dead leaves started to burn and smoke. I felt that I could have turned to the house and burned it to the ground with just a turn of the glass.

Then – because most men really have little boys inside – my husband and brother-in-law decided to see how much they could handle burning their hands. They’d start with a large circle, then slowly pull the magnifying glass away until it burned them. They would quickly pull away wincing in pain. I’m not sure why two grown men would want to do this.

September 2nd, 2012 Extra-Ordinary: Our own 52 Brand New adventure. Because there isn’t much going on these days. Ha.

(sorry, no great pictures to capture the moment – we were all too involved in burning)

The Daily EO: September 1st, 2012

It is so much more appropriate to me – being a child with significant amounts of education and a teacher for a parent – that the New Year begins in September. I don’t make a big deal about New Year’s Eve – it just seems to be an excuse for people to get their hopes up that if they dress nicely and pay a $60 premium to their regular bar, somehow the night will feel magical and start the calendar year off right. But it’s September when the when the mind turns from summer BBQs and summer projects to school supplies and the second half of the year. Vacationers return knowing that the last two months have been a delicious deviation from the norm and it is time to start again. The air turns crisper and spending time in front of a computer or textbook seems more palatable. Watermelon makes way for squash. The smell of turning leaves in the air reminds us all that lazy and selfish summer is passing, and the pragmatic and businesslike autumn is here.

And its this September that Emile and I begin anew on the other side of Canada. My side of Canada, I like to say. A summer spent together vacationing, relaxing and playing with possibilities is coming to an end. It’s time to get on with it already. Emile is starting work on September 10th as IT support at a law firm, I’ll be back in Materials at a non-automotive manufacturer. Both beginning again, both nervously excited. Or is that ecstatic terror?

But not just yet. Here in St. Catharines the weekend promises to be hot and sunny. BBQ weather, lying upon the grass and watching the scant clouds go by. One short long weekend together before we leave Ontario and things change.

September 1st, 2012 Extra-Ordinary: One last summer weekend.

The Daily EO: August 31st, 2012

Awake at 7:30 am, I tried in vain to return to sleep. I am so tired, and I just want this day to be over. Perhaps if I sleep through it, somehow Emile will complete everything and awaken me with breakfast in bed. I was wrapped up in a coverless duvet on a sheetless mattress with naked pillows. I had stripped and washed and packed the bed linen the day before and I certainly wasn’t packing dirty sheets.

I waited, but the smells of frying bacon did not waft under the door – considering we had no pans or bacon this would have been unlikely. I threw on the first thing I found and wouldn’t wear normally – a bathing suit cover-up dress thing I had – and set about trying how to fit 2 complete wardrobes into 1 tiny Honda fit in a reasonable way to ensure general comfort while driving 3 days across the country.

The answer to this 3-D tetris puzzle eluded me for 24 hours and realized that it was the Kobayashi Maru – if I wanted to win this, I would going to have to change the parameters. And so I set about sorting my career clothes from my casual clothes. The work clothes went into cardboard boxes, the casual items into one of my suitcases. The other suitcase was given to my husband the clothes horse so he could pack everything ready to start work on the 10th. I then mailed my clothes to the coast. Emile’s wardrobe takes the space in the car.

While I was in the middle of folding 27 shirts for Emile while still wearing my bathing suit cover-up, the new owners of the house arriving ready to move in. “No Rush!” they said as they started moving boxes into the house. Um, we haven’t finished packing or washed ourselves! Good thing they were friendly people we had got to know a bit.

We quickly finished up with this weird friendly pressure, but this resulted in an uncomfortable and strange situation which I have diagramed for you:

We pulled out of our house about 2 pm and all I felt is relief. The packing and deciding is done and now the journey begins. First stop: Toronto to say goodbye to friends over a cooking table at a Japanese restaurant. Then to my in-law’s friend’s home to say goodbye to their group of friends.

A restful long weekend at my in-laws is in sight – no tasks, just sleep. Glorious Sleep. And Sheets. Sheets are good.

August 31st, 2012 Extra Ordinary: Homeless and Unemployed, we leave our house.

The Daily EO: August 30th, 2012

In February this year, I was sitting in a Starbucks in Vancouver – in Yaletown, I believe – and having an emphatic discussion with my friend Gillian. We were sitting at a bar side by side, and other patrons were sitting beside us. All enjoying their overly complicated coffees with ridiculous names. I was intently telling my friend that it was one of my favorite times of the year. Not Spring Break, not Christmas, but it was time to sit down to my favorite puzzle and math problem: taxes.

As her eyes goggled out at me, she also made eye contact with the guy sitting behind me. He had started snorting his coffee listening to my statement. I do not think I could have created more of a stir if I had grabbed him in a headlock and gave him a noogie. They both thought I was crazy. Still do, I am sure.

But the fact remains, I enjoy doing my taxes – looking for legal deductions, grey areas, potential investment strategies. 2011 tax season really didn’t have too much activity except for an expensive move. Part of this was paid for by Emile’s new employer, but it still resulted in a pretty lucrative deduction. I smugly sent in our taxes and had our refund in our bank account by mid March – the delay strictly on the government’s end.

I listened with false sympathy to others complaining in April about needing to get their taxes done. Really? Do I have any understanding of this? Do your taxes. Keep your receipts organized, have a system, it’s just a puzzle that needs to be solved.

This year I made a mistake and forgot to put an exam fee on Emile’s taxes. It was my pleasure to hunt down the needed information and submit it. It allowed me to review the taxes again for the year.

Today as one of our last pieces of mail, Emile received a letter from the Canada Revenue Agency requesting significant documentation on our move. Employer statements, accommodation receipts, statements of meal calculation, Lawyer Fees.

Such a brown envelope in the mail would cause normal people to sigh, complain and then wait to the end of the 30 day deadline to finally get to it – if not calling in to get an extension. I – on the other hand – am itching to get started.

No, there something wrong with you people – not me.

August 30th, 2012 Extra-Ordinary: Getting to do the taxes 3 times this year!

The Daily EO: August 29th, 2012

I drink Jones Zilch Cream Soda more than I should. One, it is high in artificial sweetener and two, it is expensive.

Jones Sodas have “fortunes” on the underside of the lids. They are usually funny, sometimes ridiculous but usually worth the 2 seconds to read it and then share is with your drinking companion. I understand how fortunes, horoscopes and psychics work. It can be wrong 9 out of 10 times, but the last time it seems spot on and we think “Whoa! That’s amazing”.

I choose to believe today’s fortune. Something delightful is waiting for us.

August 29th, 2012 Extra-Ordinary:

I knew it! It is going to be so wonderful! Jones told me so.

The Daily EO: August 28th, 2012

This is my 200th post.

And since I should mark this somewhat arbitrary milestone, it seems a good time to let you all know that Emile and I are moving to Vancouver. Yes, we are taking the plunge and heading west.

West where there are jobs. Where there is rain instead of snow. Where there are no spiders, just kittens. West where mana can be purchased at the grocery store. Where the subway is called the pleasing SkyTrain. Where colds don’t last as long – if you even get one.

August 28th, 2012 Extra-Ordinary: Saddle up the Fit, it’s another road trip west.