All the fun of being On the Road
Well, this wraps up the month long On the Road trip with my homecoming on the weekend. The sun was shining and the old outdoor weather vane showed a balmy 20C when I looked out my bedroom window. My beloved Val and I sat outside and guzzled a few beers until sundown and headed to the neighbour Tim's (left) for cheater cosmos and BBQ. That balmy weather was history in the morning when it was replaced with windy rain more in tune with the overall weather I encountered while on the road for the last month.
The trip was good if I go weather amnesiac (and tongue in cheek fibs to keep from hurting friendly feelings). Holy moly…. everyone bitched about the BC weather on the VIA Rail train out of Vancouver. Families had come thousands of miles to show the kids yearly attractions accessible with West Coast climate and were stunned by snowfall and chilling temperatures. Saskatchewan blizzards nearly forced me off the highway between Moose Jaw and Swift Current, Alberta, well Alberta can never have bad weather when Banff and Jasper are ports of call, the Canadian Shield in Ontario was a white knuckle ride driving a 26 foot U-haul through freezing rain and Winnipeg was floods, and, “slow thaws” being received gracefully to soften the impact of rivers catastrophic cresting. Now don’t get me wrong, I would do it again in a heartbeat and Mr. Weatherperson spitefull conduct seemed insignificant at the time because of good friends and awesome adventures..jpg)
Now having gotten that off my chest, the daytrips were adventurous and thrilling throughout and seeing long lost friends and family was good for the soul. Two of my strongest memories will be: firstly, smuggling my beloved Val’s father a Timmies treat into the seniors home. He had one
of those million dollar smiles when he saw his Ice cap. Secondly, the look on my father’s face when I told him I was going to tag along to an Easter mass with him. You know the look I mean, like the one you see on your kid after he gets his drivers license. Those were expressions that charged up my heart. That made the On the Road trip all worth while.
The trip was good if I go weather amnesiac (and tongue in cheek fibs to keep from hurting friendly feelings). Holy moly…. everyone bitched about the BC weather on the VIA Rail train out of Vancouver. Families had come thousands of miles to show the kids yearly attractions accessible with West Coast climate and were stunned by snowfall and chilling temperatures. Saskatchewan blizzards nearly forced me off the highway between Moose Jaw and Swift Current, Alberta, well Alberta can never have bad weather when Banff and Jasper are ports of call, the Canadian Shield in Ontario was a white knuckle ride driving a 26 foot U-haul through freezing rain and Winnipeg was floods, and, “slow thaws” being received gracefully to soften the impact of rivers catastrophic cresting. Now don’t get me wrong, I would do it again in a heartbeat and Mr. Weatherperson spitefull conduct seemed insignificant at the time because of good friends and awesome adventures.
.jpg)
Now having gotten that off my chest, the daytrips were adventurous and thrilling throughout and seeing long lost friends and family was good for the soul. Two of my strongest memories will be: firstly, smuggling my beloved Val’s father a Timmies treat into the seniors home. He had one
of those million dollar smiles when he saw his Ice cap. Secondly, the look on my father’s face when I told him I was going to tag along to an Easter mass with him. You know the look I mean, like the one you see on your kid after he gets his drivers license. Those were expressions that charged up my heart. That made the On the Road trip all worth while.The train ride through the Rocky Mountains is PHENOMINAL and catching up with my oldest boy and getting to know his girlfriend was “chicken soup” for my soul. Visiting OG and Lise, sharing chores with Denny, exchanging barbs with Ma, dropping in on brother Doug every morning for coffee and getting a shitload of beef jerky from Transcona Meats was all good too. Working for Gerry’s son to help clean up a backlog of new Nissans and spending the night playing Guitar Hero was a gas. Danny has grown into such a nice man with a beautiful family. HEY....did yall get your postcards???
Nevertheless, nothing compares to coming home. My beloved Sweet Pea had no one to tease her or to clean up after, for a month. Lets remedy that right now, shall we? LOL. I’ll be in touch.
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