HEADING NORTH ONCE AGAIN

 POST # 644

The tulips are just about done, but I happened to find one that looks just like me.  Tulips are a big thing around this neck of the woods, at this time of year, but like every other year, they come and go, and with that most of the tulip tourists leave the area as well.

Another week has gone by, and soon I will be heading north once again, this time to Vancouver Island, to take care of a couple of furballs, that I have spent time with before.

A few other projects have been completed around Mary's yard, and I have been happy to help out where I can.  

Dora-dog has been our companion all along the way, and a blog post from here wouldn't be complete without a picture of her.  Here she is looking happy, as I get ready to take her for her daily walk.

She likes to stare out the front door and occasionally a critter walks by.  In this case it was a deer crossing the road. You can see the deer, just to the right of the mailboxes.  Dora-dog watches its every step with a focused concentration.  If I opened the door, she would be gone in a flash, so she has to be satisfied just to look.

The latest sign out front of Shelter Bay contained some words of wisdom from the Dali Lama with whom I had the pleasure to meet one day back when I lived in Melbourne, Australia.  

I was going to end the post with a political comment or two, as today is election day in Canada.  But why spoil a good post to talk about politics.  Having not voted in a federal election in Canada for at least two decades, to me it's just another day. 

And a PS.  Here is nature at work.  Even from a concrete block, a seed begins to grow.  Amazing.

grateful for every breath,

Paul

The Thoughtful Wanderer

A SPRING PROJECT

 POST # 643

One week ago today, I departed Vancouver enroute to La Conner Washington, to visit Mary and Dora-dog.  Arriving at the station, I was happy to see that the Amtrak train was indeed back in business, after being suspended for a short time, while they worked on getting some newer cars on the route.  That was the first good news after arriving at the station.  The next potential hurdle was customs.  It's sounding more and more like a journey into the USA is not going to be as easy as before.  Imagine my surprise when I fronted up to the customs agent, and he just looked at my passport, stamped my customs card, and I was on my way.  He didn't even ask me one question.  Now, that's never happened before.  I was happy to board the train and soon we were on our way south.

We arrived at my stop of Mount Vernon about fifteen minutes behind schedule and Mary and Dora-dog were there to greet me.

Now that spring is here, there are projects that need to be completed, and the first one on the list was getting a new surface on the driveway.  

The first job was to put down the landscaping fabric, which looks like an easy job, but the day that we did this, the wind was blowing, which made it difficult to get the fabric in place.  With patience and persistence, we eventually had the driveway covered, in anticipation of the truck arriving the next morning with a load of gravel.

Somehow we managed to get that large pile of gravel spread evenly all along the driveway.  The man at the head of the driveway is Peter who was there to help us out.  So it was ***Peter, Paul and Mary working hard to get the driveway completed.

The final job was to compact the newly dispersed gravel.  The neighbour had a machine to accomplish this task, and so I had the opportunity to give it a go, and finish the job.  Mary took this photo of me at work.  I look like a grumpy old man.  I was actually enjoying the work, so I have no clue as to why this expression was on my face.

So that job is done, but I am sure there will be other jobs to complete during my stay.  

grateful for every breath,

Paul

The Thoughtful Wanderer

***This is the second time that Mary and I have been together when a man named Peter arrived on the scene.  Some years ago we were house sitting together, and a man rode  up on his motorcycle to visit the owners.  He introduced himself, as Peter.  I said "hi, my name is Paul and this is my friend Mary."

ON THE ROAD AGAIN

 POST # 642

My most recent journey began yesterday.  As soon as the suitcase was in view, Toby wasn't too happy about it.  I'm sure that he thought that I would be leaving him at home, but once he realised that he was coming along for at least part of the trip, he settled down, and became my travel companion to Kelowna airport.  Even though I wasn't going to be boarding a flight, this is the location that the E-bus stops at to pick up passengers heading to Vancouver.

Once we arrived, Toby was once again in a happy mood, because he saw his owners coming out of the airport.  They had just returned from a trip to Australia, so we had a quick visit, and the three of them headed home after their long journey.  I took up residence at the airport to wait for the E-bus.  I had two reservation forms, one for the trip from the airport to Kelowna, and the other from Kelowna to Vancouver.  I mistakenly looked at the departure time for the second bus trip, which is later than the one from the airport, and if I hadn't checked it a second time, I would have still been at the airport when the bus came and went.  Something in my brain told me to re-check the forms, and I'm glad I did.

The bus ended up being about twenty minutes late.  A little side note.  There was one person getting off the bus, and he had the exact same luggage as me.  What are the odds?  I went over to say hello, and we both had a good laugh about it.  I should have taken a photo.

So we were on our way, first stop being downtown Kelowna, and then across Okanagan Lake to West Kelowna and beyond.

There are plenty of stops between there and our final destination of Vancouver, but it was an uneventful journey, with the exception of one individual on the bus that snored almost the entire way.  Oh, and also the fact that the odour emanating from the onboard toilet was a fragrance that was to say, a very memorable one indeed.

I arrived late last night at Nicole and Dan's place, and I will be leaving this afternoon for Washington.  Ollie has been kind enough to keep me company while I am here.  Nicole and Dan both left earlier to head to work.

I expect to be boarding the Amtrak train later on today.  There was news a while back that they had cancelled their service from Vancouver, but apparently not.  I guess I'll know for sure once I get to the station.  Hopefully all will go well, although when one reads some of the news regarding border crossing from here on out, I do wonder how things will go.  I'll know soon enough.

So I've got a little while longer to hang out with Ollie, and then I'll be on the road again.

grateful for every breath,

Paul

The Thoughtful Wanderer

FINAL THOUGHTS FROM LAKE COUNTRY

 POST # 641

As the season continues to progress, the trees are now starting to green up around here.  Spring has most  certainly arrived.

On our daily walk, we came across this old apple orchard, which I featured in my last post.  The trees continue to be chopped down, to make room for what?  More apple trees, or maybe a different type of crop will be planted.  The cycle continues on.

Below is one of my views, looking in a northerly direction towards the village of Oyama, which can be seen in the distance, at the northern end of Wood Lake.  Whenever I see that name, Oyama, I think of Granville Island, as one of the most popular shops at the market is Oyama Sausage.  In the foreground is part of the blueberry orchard that belongs to the property that I am on.

But the days are winding down, and it won't be too much longer before I head out.  I will certainly miss relaxing on the couch with Toby, and I'm guessing that he will miss this as well. He seems very relaxed.

I tried to explain to Toby that I will be gone soon, but as you can see from the look upon his face, he doesn't seem to want to accept that news.  One could say that he almost looks a bit sad.

Ah, don't worry Toby, your owners will be back home before you know it, and then all will be well in your world.

grateful for every breath,

Paul

The Thoughtful Wanderer

WINTER'S LAST BLAST

 POST # 640

When I arrived at my current location, it was free of snow.  But in the past week, mother nature decided to give us one more blast of winter.  I have already forgotten which day the snow came down, but it snowed all day long.

Of course, that's no excuse to not take Toby for his daily stroll, so we headed out that morning to take our usual walk.  Toby could care less that it was snowing, as we wandered along the road.  If too much snow accumulated on his back, he just shook it off, and we continued on our journey.

One of the many fruit crops that are present in this area is apples.  When I was here last year, I took photos of apples still on the vine, having not been picked.  It seemed like such a waste to me.  But hey, I'm no apple farmer, so what do I know? 

And this year, I've come across an orchard that has finally come to an end.  At some point in time, the trees have produced as much as they can (I guess), so the next thing to do is to chop them all down, and plant something else.  I walked past this orchard a couple of days ago, and now the majority of these trees are now chopped up into small pieces, no doubt to be used for firewood at a later date.  Perhaps more apple trees will be planted here, or maybe a different type of fruit.

So the snow is now history, and by the feel of the weather, I sincerely doubt that I will see any more of it for the remainder of my visit.  Spring has certainly sprung.  Toby and I will continue our daily walks, and enjoy the warmth of the season as it progresses.

grateful for every breath,

Paul

The Thoughtful Wanderer

SETTLING IN

 POST # 639

After a very delayed train journey a week ago today, I arrived very late in Vancouver for an overnight stay, prior to hopping on a bus last Saturday to head to the interior of BC.  Along the way there was some beautiful snow covered countryside to pass through.

If the bus is on time, it takes about six hours to arrive at the Kelowna airport, where the owners were awaiting my arrival.  They brought Toby along with them, and he wasn't too happy to see me at first.  But once we arrived at their home, it didn't take long before he warmed up to me.

And as I write this blog entry, we are once again best buddies.  So this has been my week to settle in and get into a routine with Toby.  It's much warmer than it was when I was here last year, and as can be seen from the photo below, there isn't any snow, which is a nice change.

So settling in is what I have been doing for a week, and I am looking forward to spending most of my hours with Toby.  He's very easy to care for, although since my last visit, he has developed the habit of whining at the back door, when he wants to go out.  Hopefully, I can help to break him out of that habit.  But time will tell.

grateful for every breath,

Paul

The Thoughtful Wanderer

DORA-DOG'S FINAL LONG WALK FOR A WHILE

 POST # 638

Dora-dog is ready and waiting to go for her final long walk for a while, as I will be departing later today for Vancouver, en route to my next house sit gig.  Of course, she doesn't realize that it's her last long walk for a while, but she will know by this evening when I depart for the train station with Mary.

Thankfully, the weather co-operated for our walk today, as can be seen as we walked across the bridge heading into town.  If you look closely, you can see Mount Baker in the background.

On our approach to the bridge, Dora-dog found a nice patch of grass to roll around on, and when she does this, she seems to be at her happiest.

Because it was a nice day, there were plenty of other four-legged friends to meet and greet along the way, so she had a very enjoyable stroll indeed.  And just prior to arriving home, a woman drove by, rolled down her window, and said, "your dog is super cute."  She gets cute all the time, but this was the first time she was called super cute.

And so our walk came to an end.  And later today, I will once again have to say goodbye to Mary and Dora-dog, which is always a sad moment.  But at least I can look forward to our next get together, which should be in about one month's time.

grateful for every breath,

Paul

The Thoughtful Wanderer

P.S.  Happy birthday Bill.

OUR DAILY WALK and 70

 POST # 637

As mentioned in a previous blog post,  I have been taking Dora-dog out for a daily walk.  According to google maps, the distance we cover is 3.6 miles, which is a decent walk.  It takes on average about one hour and twenty minutes to complete our journey.  Even though we travel the same route each and every day, the walk is always unique, because there are different people, and more importantly, as far as Dora-dog is concerned, there are different dogs to meet along the way.

This morning she met one of her favourite bonehead friends, who goes by the name of Kodiak.  They always enjoy a few moments together.  And of course there is her favourite UPS courier driver named Hector.  She's always excited to see him, because she gets a dog biscuit from him, and right after she eats the biscuit she barks at him.  Go figure.  Hector gets a laugh out of it, as do I, and then we are once again on our way.

On our return journey, we pass by the La Conner Brewery, which is an establishment that Mary and I have visited on occasion.  There is an entrance off of the street that goes to an outside seating area, where dogs are allowed.  Each time we walk past the entrance, Dora-dog automatically makes a turn to go in, and as much as I am tempted sometimes to follow her in, we do the right thing and continue our journey homeward.

Eventually we reach the bridge once again, and soon we are back home, after our 3.6 mile adventure.  It's time for a rest.  And she has earned it.  Before you know it, it will be tomorrow, and we will once again be off on our way to town and back.  I'm quite sure that we can both use the exercise.

Changing subjects, I am now officially 70 years old, and Mary went to the trouble of arranging a birthday dinner for me and some friends, and afterwards we headed back home to enjoy some cake.  

That rounds out the news for this past week.

grateful for every breath,

Paul

The Thoughtful Wanderer

MY FINAL POST

 POST # 636

Today is my final post.  Say what???  Why on earth would that be the case?  Well let me clarify that statement.  Today is my final post for someone who is still in their 60's.  That's right.  By the time my next post is scheduled on March 7th, I will well and truly be in my 70's.  That event takes place early next week.

When I look back over the years, I do find it quite amazing that I am still here on planet earth.  It's been quite the journey, and there have been plenty of close calls along the way, going all the way back to when I was only three years old.  That's probably a story for another day.

A decade ago, when I was just 59, I was house/pet sitting a bonehead named Pippen, in Australia.  That seems like such a very long time ago.  And since that time, I have been wandering from one place to the next, and I continue to count my blessings as my journey continues. I really can't imagine that I will  still be posting  into my 80's, but hey, who knows for sure?  As long as the blood keeps pumping through my veins, I guess anything is possible.  And I just had my blood pressure checked.  The reading was 122/72, which is pretty darn good for an old fart.

And finally for today, some more words of wisdom.

grateful for every breath,

Paul

The Thoughtful Wanderer

BACK IN SHELTER BAY

 POST # 635

Since my last visit to Shelter Bay, the sign at the entrance has changed.  Some words of wisdom from a very long time ago.

 I arrived back here on February 17th, and I'll be here for the better part of a month.  With Mary continuing to recover from her recent operation, I am happy to help out in any way that I can.  Of course, part of that help revolves around getting Dora-dog out for two or three walks each day.  We can both use the exercise.

On our way into town yesterday we stopped for a break underneath the bridge that connects Shelter Bay to the town of La Conner.  She has a sad look upon her face, and I'm not sure why, because when we are out walking, she seems to be happy most of the time.

We continued our journey into town, and had quite a long walk, prior to turning around and heading back home.

And here we are, pausing to enjoy the view from the top of the bridge, prior to continuing our journey back home.

Up until today, the weather has cooperated, and we've been rain free.  That ended this morning, so our first walk was a wet one.  Hopefully things will clear up so that we can enjoy a rain-free walk later this afternoon.

The weather now seems to be clearing up somewhat, so I'd best take advantage of that fact, and harness up Dora-dog for our next journey.

And that's about all the words I can conjure up for today.  

grateful for every breath,

Paul

The Thoughtful Wanderer

THE BRUSHAHOLIC

 POST # 634

The brushaholic.  That's my new term for Mr. Leon.  Now, I've known plenty of furballs  over the years, but he certainly takes the cake, when it comes to wanting to be brushed.  As soon as he sees me heading towards the room that these photos were taken in, he races right in behind me, and up onto his perch, so that he can be brushed just the way that he likes to be brushed.

This happens throughout the day, and I have to admit that I probably enjoy doing the brushing, as much as he enjoys being brushed.  We're a good team.  Be that as it may, soon I will be leaving Mr. Leon, but until that day arrives, we will continue to enjoy our time together, the brusher, and the brushee.

grateful for every breath (and brush),

Paul

The Thoughtful Wanderer

A SHORT VISIT

 POST # 633

There was plenty of kindness coming down from the sky on my most recent trip to see Mary and Dora-dog in Shelter Bay.

It was a short visit indeed.  I left Vancouver Island on February 2nd, and was back here last night on February 6th.  

Even though it was short, I was more than happy to be there, and help out where I could.  Mary is unable to walk Dora-dog at the moment as she is recovering from a recent operation, so I made sure to get out there each day, and go for a stroll which by the look upon her face, I know she appreciated.

And of course, there was also helping out with the morning play session, which is a regular occurrence on each and every visit.

So I am now back on the island, but instead of Cadboro Bay, I am in Nanaimo at one of my regular housesits with Leon the furball.  He has spent most of this first day asleep inside, and with the cold and snow that we are currently experiencing here, he has made a wise choice indeed.  I am following his lead, and keeping mostly indoors.

I'll keep this short for today, and perhaps by next week, I'll have a few Leon stories to talk about.  In the meantime, I'll keep my eyes peeled for anymore kindness coming down from above.

grateful for every breath,

Paul

The Thoughtful Wanderer

THANKS BLANCA

 POST # 632

I always crack up laughing, when I get this look from Blanca each and every morning.  She's waiting for breakfast, and her look makes me wonder if she thinks that she will be getting breakfast or not?  I've never let her down so far, but I still get that same look each and every day.

Prior to arriving here, and considering that it is January, I was expecting rain for the majority of my visit.  How wrong I have been on that prediction.  It has been clear blue sky on each and every day, and I am most grateful for that.  But it looks like that is coming to an end tomorrow, according to the weather forecast.  Ah well, it's been good while it lasted.

The weather has been so nice, that Blanca has even wanted to be out on the back deck to catch a few rays on most days.  Even though the air temperature isn't that warm, she doesn't seem to be bothered by that fact.  When I've been here in the summertime, she practically spends the entire day out there.

But once the sun has gotten too far down on the horizon, there are plenty of beds scattered around the house for Blanca to settle in.  She certainly likes her sleep, and can be quite content spending hours at a time on one of these various beds.

And there is always time in the evening, to relax on the couch with the housesitter.  This has become an evening tradition on this visit.  We are in the room with the fireplace, so it's the ideal location to hang out together.

But our time to hangout is rapidly coming to a close, and by the end of the week, the owners will be returning home, and I will once again be on my way.  It's always a pleasure to spend time with Blanca, and I look forward to doing it again in the future, if the opportunity presents itself.

Thanks Blanca, for sharing some of your precious time with me.

grateful for every breath,

Paul

The Thoughtful Wanderer

And a PS:  If you are feeling unhappy, here are some words of wisdom.

A WINTER SIT WITH BLANCA

 POST # 631

Sunset at the ferry terminal

After saying goodbye to Mary and Dora-dog, I headed back to Canada, en route to my current house sit.  It was a long travel day with a couple of unexpected delays along the way, but I eventually made it to the ferry terminal, in time to board the 5 pm departure to Swartz Bay, on Vancouver island.

I was met on the other side by Robert, and Blanca the bonehead.  She seemed happy to see me, and we continued our journey to Robert and Jeanette's house in Cadboro Bay.  We only had time for a short visit, prior to calling it a night.  They would head out very early the next morning on their journey to Mexico, and now it's just me and Blanca for the next couple of weeks.  

We do enjoy regular walks each and every day, and even though the weather has been on the chilly side, at least there has been plenty of sunshine so far. And as I may have mentioned before on this blog, I'll take cooler weather with sunshine, over warmer weather with rain, any day of the week.

Our morning walk is along the beach here at Cadboro Bay, which is only about a five minute walk from the house.  We usually meet other dogs along the way, and Blanca is happy to sniff her way as we proceed.  It's a very enjoyable walk, and I do look forward to it each and every day.

When we arrived at the park which is located along the beach, Blanca decided to hop up on the bench for a while yesterday, and enjoy the sunshine.  Seeing as I had a captive audience, I decided to try out my dog joke on her, and see if I could get a positive reaction.  It looks like I was successful.  

Eventually, it's time to head back home, and spend some indoor time with Blanca, in anticipation of our second walk of the day, which is in the opposite direction towards Telegraph Cove.  

My previous two sits with Blanca have been in the summer,  so this is a chillier option doing a winter sit.  But she is good company whatever the season may be, and if I could read her mind, I think that she would agree that the human company is to her liking as well.

grateful for every breath,

Paul

The Thoughtful Wanderer