"NEW" BOOTS AND A FEW THOUGHTS OF MOM AND DAD

 POST # 432

 

 

 

It was time.  The Thoughtful Wanderer needed some "new" walking boots in order to continue my wandering nature.  As luck would have it, they showed up just recently.

A little bit of history first.  My last pair of walking boots, which I still have, but are now destined for the boot graveyard, appeared probably about five or maybe six years ago.  I had wandered into one of my favourite Vancouver thrift stores on fourth avenue, and there they were.  Priced at only $16.00, I couldn't pass them up.  That turned out to be a wise purchase, and they have served me well over the ensuing years.  I was going to make a trip to that same thrift store, but my friend Congo Bob informed me that it no longer exists.  As the Big Lebowski would say, "that's a bummer, dude."  

So recently I was walking down Granville street and came across another thrift store that I had shopped at before.  I popped in to have a look around.  I wasn't there to shop for boots, but somehow I found myself staring at this lovely pair.  They looked as though they had never been worn before.  According to the Mountain Equipment Co-op website (MEC), these sell for about $300.00+ new.  I picked them up for just $30.00.  How could I say no to a bargain like this one?

As with any "new" pair of footwear, it takes a while to break them in, and so for the past couple of weeks, that is exactly what I have been doing.  I don't wear them everyday, but each time that I do, they are becoming more and more comfortable.

Yesterday, I walked past the same thrift store in my "new" boots, en route to Granville Island.  Seeing as it wasn't raining for a change, I decided to walk over the Granville Street bridge, instead of taking the ferry.

Stopping briefly at the apex of the bridge, I took this photo, looking down at what used to be my former work place, where I skippered an Aquabus ferry many years ago.  According to the dates on the plaque, this bridge was already being used, a year prior to me coming on the world scene.  I think that we are both looking a bit tired at this stage in the game, however it is a sobering thought to contemplate that the bridge will probably still be here long after I am gone.

As I have been writing today's post, I can't help but think of both my mom and my dad.  Wait, what do either of them have to do with today's subject?  That's easy for me to answer.  I will be forever grateful to my mom because of the many years that she volunteered at a thrift store, which in turn has instilled in me a lifelong interest in shopping at them.  It doesn't matter what thrift store that I go to, it always makes me think of mom.  And as far as dad goes?  I'm quite sure that my frugal nature stems from him, and also, today's date always reminds me of dad, as it would have been his birthday.

 

grateful for every breath,

 

Paul

The Thoughtful Wanderer (in "new" boots)

 

HOW MANY DAYS SINCE ?

 POST # 431

 

 

One of the windows that I keep open on my computer is the "How many days since..." window. As has been mentioned before on this blog, I try to live my life these days as if I only have three more days to live. See here:http://wherespaulnow.blogspot.com/2019/12/three-more-days.html

  Of course, none of us know what our end date will be, but by focusing on this short time span, it helps me to pay even more attention to each moment of the day, realizing just how precious life is.

This past week, I hit the milestone of 24,000 days, on Monday, November 16th.  Measured in days, I've had a long run indeed.  If I use my dad's lifespan as a guide to go by, then I am getting close to the end.  Including his last day, he got to spend 24,605 days, here on the planet earth.  Yikes!!!  As of today (24,005), I am only 600 days away from tying dad's record.  That would put the date at July, 13th, 2022, which seems rather close to me, if I think of it in years, however if I focus on how many days, then it feels much, much longer.  It's one big guessing game to be sure.

I also discovered this week that it takes at least 24,000 days to grow a pair... of antlers that is.

These appeared earlier in the week , as I was walking along the beach.  I do love getting out for a daily walk, not because I have to, but rather because I like to.

And continuing on with this theme of "how many days", it has now been precisely 8,036 days since this event took place.

On a recent trip to my storage locker, I was looking through some old photos, and I came across this one.  In that group is one lone Canadian.  This was taken on my wedding day, on November 21st, 1998.  The location was a place called Cumberland House, in Lorne, Victoria, Australia.

The other memorable event that happened on this day, back in 1978 was my trip to Antarctica, which I wrote about here:http://wherespaulnow.blogspot.com/2018/11/forty-years-and-counting.html

Unfortunately, I haven't got any printed photos of that journey.  I was using slide film back then.  One of the photos I took on that flight was looking down at Mount Erebus, a volcano on Ross Island, the same volcano, that one year and one week later on November 28th, 1979, would be the mountain that the Air New Zealand flight would crash into, killing all onboard.  I doubt that any of the people on that flight would have thought that it would be their last day alive. 

It's looking like it's going to be a rather nice day out there today, so it's time for my morning cup of coffee, followed by my daily walk. 

grateful for every breath,

Paul

The Thoughtful Wanderer

A FEW WORDS ON ACCEPTANCE

 POST # 430

MY CURRENT "FRIDGE"

It's good to just go with the flow, roll with the  punches, or in a word, ACCEPT what presents itself to you, as your life progresses along to its inevitable death.  At least, that's my opinion for what it is worth.  There is no end to the amount of issues that an individual could take on board, and get all twisted into a knot about, and for what?  The vast percentage of these issues, one has absolutely no control over.  As I continue to age, I have become more and more just an observer of life.  This has helped me immensely.  If for no other reason, it makes each day that much more enjoyable.  Who wouldn't want that?

A very small example is illustrated with the above photo of my "fridge" here at the hotel that is my current home.  This bargain basement room has everything I need to be comfortable, but it doesn't have a fridge.  I say, no problem.  However, I can open the window, and place anything that needs to stay cool out there on the roof top, and it works fine.  I ACCEPT that this is the situation, and in a very small way, it is a creative solution to a very small problem.

Here is another example.  Since arriving here in Vancouver, I have been shopping for a certain item, and so far, my search has been unsuccessful.  There have been a couple of times just in the past week, when I honestly thought that I could make the purchase, but for one reason or another, it didn't happen.  I could have moped around and become depressed or upset, but it certainly wouldn't have changed the situation one iota.  However, because I choose to accept what happens, these little disappointments just roll off of me, like water off of a duck's back as the old saying goes.

One more example, and then that is probably enough for today's post.  I mentioned this near the end of post # 428.  This thing which I have been doing very successfully now full-time for just over nine years, this house/pet sitting lifestyle, now appears for all intents and purposes to be coming to a close.  Even though there may be the occasional opportunity every now and again, I suspect that things will never get back to normal on this front.  And that's OK with me because once again, I choose to ACCEPT this fact.  My life is now starting to move in a different direction, and if I had a dollar for every time that that has happened in my life, I would be a rich man indeed.  Scratch that.  I am extremely rich, but I don't measure my wealth in $$$.  Perhaps that is one of the reasons that my journey has been such a joy to experience.  Who really knows?

This could be another way of looking at the word, acceptance.

And finally for today, one final photo that my dear friend Mary sent me this past week.  Here it is.

Now, I would like to think that this is Dora-dog accepting the fact that her favourite Canadian hasn't been around for quite some time, but the truth is that apparently she had such a good run at the "squirrel park" that she has decided to have a really well-deserved nap.  No doubt, she's dreaming of future squirrels to chase.

grateful for every breath,

 

Paul

The Thoughtful Wanderer

THANK YOU TO THE YUKON AND ITS WONDERFUL PEOPLE

 POST # 429

 

In sub-zero temperature, the Air North flight unglued itself from the airport runway, to begin its journey southward to Vancouver.

And just like that,  I once again became physically disconnected from the Yukon Territory, a place that just over twenty years ago I would have never thought about visiting, but which now is such a memorable part of my continuing adventure through this journey called life.

This is my fourth departure from the territory, and just like the three previous times I do wonder if it will be my last?  Mind you, I seem to have formed the habit of returning to places that I expect never to return to, so the Yukon is still on my future list.

The majority of my time up North was spent out in the woods at my friend's farm, however I did have the opportunity to spend a few days in Dawson and the surrounding area.  Having not been here for almost five years, I was amazed at just how many people I bumped into that I still know, and who still remember me.  Working all of those years as a cashier at the Dawson City General Store was probably the best place to meet locals. It most certainly a better place to cultivate a friendship, than being the local dog catcher.  At least on that job, I made many new four-legged friends.

I decided to compile a list of names of people I ran into, so in no particular order here they are:

John, Mark, June, Kyler, Sopac, Bob, Louie, Troy, David, Leslie, Rose, Chris, Rian, Paula, Eldo, Karen, Amy, Nick, Jonathan, Lesley, Jude, Akio, Suzanne, Anna, Brent, Carol, Brenda, Joyce, Jannis, Terry, Myrna, Paula, Jennifer(born same day and year as me), Bridget, Dan, Laurie, Kim, Tina, Janice, Shelley, Riley, Chris, Catherine, Caveman Bill, Bill, and another Bill,  Laurie(2), Janet(who adopted Snowball), Maria, Marg, Lambert, Steve, Judith, Martin, Joanne, Micken, and no doubt some others that I forgot to write down at the time.

I'd like to take a moment to thank all of them for spending a few brief moments in order to exchange  some stories.  This meant a great deal to me. In addition to the names listed above, there are some others who deserve extra special thanks. I'm quite sure that they know who they are, but if not, special thanks goes to John, Kim, Eldo, Karen, Jannice, Terry, Rose, and Gary. 

Lastly I want to thank the Mather family, for giving me the opportunity to work for them starting way back in September 2000.  They took a chance on hiring a total stranger, and because of that, they provided more to me than they will ever know.

 

KYLER, SOPAC, JUNE and MARK

After a rather bumpy approach to Vancouver, we landed on the morning of November 3rd, 2020.  Like some other dates, this one sticks in my head.  It is the birthday of my high school friend, Mark. He was the friend who happened to be watching a Qantas airways commercial with me, back in 1975, which became the genesis of the idea to visit Australia, two years later.  Apparently, November 3rd of this year had some significance south of the border.  Perhaps the USA was also celebrating my friend Mark's birthday.  Whatever happened four days ago in the US, was so far down my list of important things to think about, that it barely even registered, and by writing this last sentence, I've already given it way too much attention. 

Thank you to all of the people in the Yukon, that helped to make my six week visit another treasured memory.  The Dawson community is without any doubt, one of the most unique and friendly places, here on planet Earth.

grateful for every breath,

Paul

The Thoughtful Wanderer