Another Beautiful Day

We love our room - full width balcony on right side

We have moved into a new room. Our first room did not have a kitchenette but this one does. It makes a difference just to be able to make my oatmeal each morning and do fried eggs. The microwave is good too. In the standard room you get a fridge but that's all.  We also lucked out with another king size bed. They told us it would be a queen. Anyway, we have a beautiful corner room viewing north and east - PERFECT!! We get some sun for about 2 hours in the morning which is great and then shade in the afternoon - wonderful again. No complaints here.

We have been doing our walking faithfully at about 6:30 a.m. each morning along the canal. This morning it was still dark - the sun just starting to rise. Beautiful. What a reflection!


Sunrise walking along the Canal facing east



Same Canal facing west

 Last night we went out to supper with friends who are here from Edmonton. The six of us went to Shorebirds and enjoyed a great view with perfect seats at the beach window. There was a bride & groom having their photos taken at sunset. We took a few pictures of the setting sun also. Can I say it too often? Beautiful!!

Sitting 'beach side' at Shorebirds



Wedding photos at sunset

 Later we all took photos of the sunset. It literally falls into the ocean.  Right after that we watched fireworks at the Hilton which happen every Friday night. It was a great day.



Crowds on the rock wall catching the sunset




Into the ocean!



Fireworks at the beach

After all that excitment, we head to the main street and 'people watch'. The streets are busy with all shapes and sizes. Everyone is out to see the street performers. Some are good - others, well, not sure how they make any money but ...

Well, it's another beautiful morning. We are sitting on our deck, enjoying our coffee and watching the clouds over the north mountain. Beautiful. It doesn't get any better than this.


Mountain view at sunrise




Extremes

I was reading on the Weather Network this morning that it was - 24C in Edmonton with sunshine.  Why, it is almost the same here in Hawaii but + 22C at 9 a.m.  Strange that it could be similar numbers but that little + or - could make such a difference!

We were up early again this morning and walking at 6 a.m.  It was beautiful and it is amazing how many are out at this time - locals going to work - and vacationers out walking and just enjoying the morning. We did our usual walk along the Canal and then stopped at the local outdoor coffee bar.


Walking by the canal




Coffee shop at the end of the canal walk

 This morning we stopped on our return home at one of the little side restaurants for their 'breakfast special' -  scrambled eggs, two strips of bacon, 2 pancakes (no coffee) all for $3.99. That it will be for awhile. I am missing my oatmeal! Today we are changing rooms. We would like a kitchenette instead of this standard room. It's an extra $10 a day but we will use it! I will miss the big king size bed but the kitchenette rooms are much larger and have a stove top and our room will face east instead of west. We like the east view and the sun in the morning. So, that all happens this morning. We are on the 15th floor now but will be moved to the 8th. I will miss the speedy elevator too as it is designated for floors 15 and up. Much faster and not as many people but ... oh well ... it's not like we are in any sort of hurry !!!

Limited view of the ocean

View of Ohana West Hotel from our balcony

We could get used to this weather. It is so nice. It's amazing to think that we came from all that snow and yet it is so nice here too at the same time. We hope to get lots of walking in as well. I do need to go check out some different running shoes as these ones are causing me a bit of angst but will do that later today or tomorrow. The big agenda today...moving rooms.

Aloha!

I Feel a Tan Coming On

Safe and sound in Hawaii. A quick trip from Edmonton to Vancouver and a 6 hr trip from there to Hawaii. I watched two movies and used the 'facilities' three times. Why do they keep offering food and drink and they KNOW you are going to have to 'go'!!! I guess I don't have to take something each time they come by. Anyway, the first movie was 'Morning Glory' with Harrison Ford and I forget the lead female who was very good. The second movie was Moulan Rouge. I saw most of it but had to spend more than a few moments in a lineup for the washroom so didn't see it all. Also, we were sitting in the middle section and a little boy sat in front of me and kept popping up and down trying to see the screen at the front of the row. This limited my vision as well. The seats are so high that it is difficult to watch the screen if you are sitting more than four rows back. We were about six. Anyway, it occupied my time for most of the trip.

We spent a good hour waiting for our luggage and waiting for the transporter. By the time we arrived at the hotel it was 7:45 pm (10:45 Edmonton time). We checked in, put a few things away and then headed out to have a bite to eat somewhere. Well...we are right next to (or close by, anyway) the International Marketplace, so we went there for some chinese/koren food. It was busy too so we had to wait quite awhile. By the time we ate it was 8:45 pm (11:45pm E.time)! Bed time was 10 pm (1pm E time). 

This morning, John was up and awake at 3 am (6 am E.time)  but finally went back to bed after a little while. About 4:30 (7:30 am E.time) he tried to get on the computer but it was not working). We supposedly have internet in the room and did have it in the evening... but this morning....nothing. I got up to see if I could reconnect it somehow and nothing was working. So, we decided to make coffee in our room and sit on the balcony. It was still dark outside. At 5:15 we are relaxing with our not-so-creamy-coffee (only one powdered coffee packet each with one Sweet'nLow package each too). Ugh. Nevertheless, we are here in Hawaii, sitting on balcony in the warm breezes.

We finally decided to go downstairs and see if they had coffee there and check out the internet. You wouldn't believe the activity down there. I guess everyone gets up and heads to the lobby. Anyway, we decided to go for a walk (even though it is dark) and saw lots of people out doing the same (crazy vacationers!).

We eventually stopped at ... you guessed it ... MacDonalds! We had our coffee (picked up a few extra cream and sugar) and ordered some early breakfast and now we are back in our room, the internet is working, our tummys are full and we are doing our crossword puzzles, and thinking about going for a longer walk. We will pick up a few 'staples' on our return from the walk and then head to the beach. We are not staying out too long today - fair skin people that we are - and will need a nap in the afternoon to 'catch up' with the zzzz's we missed yesterday and then tomorrow will be our first 'regular' day here in the tropics!

Ah, vacations...aren't they wonderful!

ALOHA!

Today we are packing for our trip to Hawaii. What to take? With the new regulations of only one suitcase - max 50 lbs or else you get charged, we are doing our best to NOT take all the stuff that we never use.  That's not easy.  At this end of the trip, we always think we need MORE things. At the other end, you often wear the same thing (dare I say it? more than once)!!! I always take two suitcases with the 2nd one being filled with shoes, hair stuff and extras. I usually use what's in this case. But...guess it has to be transferred now.  I weighed my suitcase empty and it is 11 lbs. leaving me only 39 lbs for clothes, shoes, and accessories. I wish I knew how to travel 'light' like the International travellers.

The weather is improving here although it is still -13 C and overcast today. It will remain like that for another week according to the weatherman and then warm up to about 0 eventually next week. In Hawaii, it was 25 last night. This week is is supposed to be around 23-24 all week. Sounds great.



What we are leaving behind ...




What we are heading to ...



Guess I can organize things into one suitcase! Aloha!

Beautiful Faces

We went to another funeral today. A young woman - well - she was 72 but that is getting younger all the time. She was beautiful - inside as well. A healthy woman until she got a sore throat, strep throat and then one thing led to another and before you know it ... she is gone.

Beautiful service and it appears as if it would have suited her - strong faith, prayer warrior, loved to serve her family - a wife of noble character who can find? Proverbs 31:10

I guess it shows that we all should have our 'ducks in line' or 'our house in order'. That leads me to my same old quest of trying to clean up our spare room. It continues to be a 'catch all' for me. Not that these two subjects have anything in common... and yet... being ready for 'the day' is something we all should be prepared for. I know I should never end a sentence with a preposition but... (oops...I did it again).

Tonite I am headed out with a group of ladies who meet regularly. Our evening is filled with laughter, a few sober moments but mostly ... fun. A relaxing time. We all could use more of these. Sometimes it is hard to get ourselves 'motiviated' to 'get there' especially after working a full day. Other times, it doesn't come fast enough. It's called fellowship... friendship...  kinship. We all seem to be more or less on the same page - varying ages but the same values or beliefs but a wide variety of opinions. Makes for quite an evening.

Ok, I appear to be rambling. Sometimes it just seems like there are a lot of thoughts in my head. One being ... I will miss seeing Wally and Christa behind us in church. Now there will just be Wally. He will be alone but not lonely. He said to me that she was not afraid. She knew where she was going and said that if she did not have quality of life ... let her go. We know in our hearts she is better off but in our heads we will miss her smiling face ... that beautiful face. Heaven will be even brighter and more welcoming for us now.

Snowing Again

It's snowing again. Get the shovel out - winter is not over yet! I am so looking forward to warmer climates !  Can't wait.

They were out grading the bus routes yesterday - clearing away all that ice and snow that was left from residential grading last week. At first, I was thinking of phoning the City as there were huge chunks of ice being left all over the place. You had to drive 'around' them and into the oncoming lane to avoid big chunks. On my return home from the store, everything was cleared away and looked good. I think there is a message somewhere in that! Have a little patience. Forecast for the next few days is 'continued cold with flurries'. Sounds like what we've had over the past few days.

Happy Birthday Bobbi

I guess it's been awhile since I have done my blog. We had been away to visit "Bobbi" my mother-in-law, as it was her 102nd birthday this past week. Her real name is Annie but I have always called her Bobbi, a term of endearment that the family uses. Others say Bobba but I say Bobbi.  Her actual birth date is Febrary 15, 1909. Remember the 1900's? They seem a l-o-n-g  time ago now. Bobbi is feeling pretty good - most of the time. However, this past weekend she was not as well as we had hoped. Our plan was to take her to the farm and enjoy the day. It was a beautiful, warm winter day BUT....she did not feel well. So....we took the party to her! She was very kind and 'put up with us' but in the end she just wanted to lie down for awhile. We had some cake and took a few pictures and then let her rest. Thankfully, she was feeling more like her old self the next day. I guess we all have good days and bad days eh? She is no different!



At the birthday party and posing for the camera but not feeling well



A beautiful cake from Costco



The next day - feeling better - but not a full smile yet!

 I am sure it is difficult to see your friends and loved ones pass away. Her friendship circle gets smaller even though she continually meets new people who move into the lodge. There is something to be said about 'community' and 'history'. You talk about 'the old times' and things you did together and experienced. It's great to meet new people but it takes awhile to get to know each other and it takes work to maintain friendships. Being 'social' can be emotionally draining too and as we get older it is nice to just 'relax and be quiet'. However, it's in those times, it would be nice to have an old friend to share memories with. She also misses her home and her garden and just being outside under the apple tree and watering her flowers. The simple things.  In the end, it's the simple things that give us the most peace and enjoyment.

Happy 102nd Birthday, Bobbi. God bless you. We love you.

Simply Coincidence?

Interesting thing happened yesterday morning. Well, to me it was interesting. I was rushing around, trying to get ready for work and a little behind (as usual). Of course, if I just got ready, it would be ok but you know us women...throw in a load of washing (and then have to take it out and hang it etc) or clean out a drawer because you can't find anything in it anymore, or do the dishes before you leave because you want a clean house on your return, OR you just can't make up your mind what to wear and so you try six different outfits on and then go with the first one!! Those little extra things you think you can do 'in a moment' and it turns out to ALWAYS make you later than you want to be.  Oh, I was not late for work, just behind in 'my mental schedule' which causes me a bit of stress.

Anyway, the interesting part was that I was determined to do my devotions and spend a little time with God first thing.  When I finally 'settled in' for my few minutes (aren't I just the good obedient child?!) I was feeling a little rushed! My thoughts were running around in my head and I just finally said out loud 'Lord, you know my confused thoughts - scattered hither and yon - please help to give me some peace."  Well, that being said, I opened this book I bought recently called "Light for My Path for Grandparents". Page 24 read "In the multitude of my thoughts within me, thy comforts delight my soul." Psalm 94:19.  I had not read that before in the bible so looked it up in my actual NIV bible and it reads the same - but different - "When anxiety was great within me, your consolation brought joy to my soul."

Interesting eh? God meets you where you are. Just a thought!

A Quiet Day

It's Superbowl today, not that it means too much to me other than it is the end of the season. However, I am sure there will be other games somewhere - college or european something or other. It is NEVER the END of the season!

John went to a friend's place to watch it. I have it on here and it looks lopsided in scoring to me but ... what do I know?!!

I was planning on going to visit my friend who has Ahlzhimer's. I thought I would phone her first and see what she thought of it. The phone rang for a long time (not sure if she uses it very often) but she finally answered and sounded like she was asleep - it was 2 pm! She told me she was in bed with a sore back and in her nightgown. I said 'how about I pick you up in 40 minutes and we go for a coffee?'  She said 'no'.  Nothing covered up in her response!! Just 'no'. I tried to talk her into it but it wasn't going anywhere so I chatted about the snow and the cold and her back pain and she seemed happier. I couldn't talk her into going out though. I said 'another day?' and she agreed to that.

Well, that left me with an afternoon that was free. What should I do? Go the shopping centre? I'd like to get a gift for my mother-in-law. She will be 102 on Feb.15. She likes clothes. What woman doesn't? especially if someone picks out something you like. I may still do that. I started cleaning up the back bedroom but didn't get far with that either. Did a few emails, looked through a few files and then cleaned out a few drawers. All very boring but needed to be done.

Now, it's supper. Where did the day go?

I spoke briefly with a lady this afternoon who lost her husband this past year and a short time later took a fall ending up with a bad back fracture. If you think you have problems, think of her. She has been pretty well house bound and on her back for the past 10 weeks or so. There's always someone worse off than you!

Well, the Half Time Show is on now so maybe I will go watch it. If it is just a rocker band, well, I may have to switch channels for a few minutes! Go Eskimos! Oops, wrong conference!!

Many Thanks

The bobcat guy (Fred) from the other cul de sac just phoned to see if I still needed him. I told him 'thank you so much BUT..." it was already done by a another neighbor last night." However, thanks to all you bobcat owners out there who are helping their neighbors get through this difficult time of year! What a blessing and practical help you have been to the rest of us. Keep up the good work!

Big Thanks to Bobcats!

Update on our snow removal.  Although I arranged with the bobcat guy who lives in the next cul de sac to come and do our snow removal, he did not show last night. But...all is not lost. Our neighbor on the corner ended up getting his friend to do their's and was happy to do ours as well. He even moved it all to the centre island as opposed to dumping it on our front lawn. What a difference. Not sure if the other bobcat guy will show up this morning or not. We are happy to say that all the cars were removed from the street so it was 'clear sailing' for the bobcat guy!

Bobcat at work

 This guy was working at removing all that snow until after 10 pm. I was glad he did too.

Overnight, of course, it started to snow again. It got windy as well. What a crazy place. John was up and at it with the snow this morning. A few cm's fell and it was wet snow. He cleared the sidewalks and driveway and then was off to his meeting. We are so glad the snow was gone last night. Now we can start all over again!!

Back at it again!

Snow Removal

Circle snow piled up in centre island

Our cul de sac BEFORE clearing

Our main street after graders

Our street after graders

A beautiful day today - a high of +6 C and the sun is shining. It is helping to melt some of the snow. The grader came through this morning and nicely piled it up again against the sidewalks and totally blocking any parking in front of the houses. It makes for a nice one lane drive now. I say that 'tongue in cheek' as it is a bit of a job to try and remove all those ice chunks to get some space.  I saw a 'bobcat' working down at the end of the avenue so took a trip down there to see how much he charged. He lives on the avenue and cleaned out his own as well as a few neighbors. He agreed to do ours tonite or tomorrow (small fee) and I said I would see if anyone else wanted his services.  Thank goodness he was willing to do so or else we would have these piles for another month or more. There is snowfall predicted for tonite and tomorrow and cooling temperatures. Wouldn't you know it!

I was getting ready to go out for lunch with a few friends when I heard the beep, beep, beep of the grader backing up. By then he had started ploughing and closing in the driveway with chunks of ice. I finished dressing and got ready to leave and stopped on the sidewalk and motioned to him. He very graciously offered to clear away the snow if I wanted to get out right then or else I would have to wait until the city bobcat made his way down the street. I took his offer and got out while I could. John came home later to find he had to shovel a bit more for me to get in with my car. I guess in the long run we will appreciate having pavement instead of snow - especially when it starts melting. What a mess.  We could use a few more warm days like this to get things cleaned up but I don't think we are going to get it. Guess them's the breaks when you live in the north country!

So much for my clean car. The streets are all puddles and water and dirty snow. Yuk! We were going to the show tonite but now the guy with the bobcat 'may' be here tonite or tomorrow morning (depends on his schedule) so we will sit tight and hope it is earlier than later!

Complain, complain

Ah...where to begin?  It is February 3rd and only a week ago we were struggling with clearing the sidewalks, driveways, etc. Where to put all that snow.  Today, as I was driving home from the store, it was raining.  Raining!!! R A I N I N G !! How can that be?  We are still trying to drive on our narrow streets because of all the snow and it is warming up, melting and of course, raining!


Since it was cold last week (-30) and even on Monday morning it was -24, I went to wash my car as it had not been cleaned for a few months. Even in winter your car gets dirty. With all the sand, the melting and now rain, it is dirty all over again. The clean car lasted only two days. How frustrating is that?!


Oh, I know what's frustrating. My neighbor who leaves his van on the street and the grader has to drive around it. His van, plus extra snow drifts make it a struggle to get out of our driveway. Yesterday, they had front-end loaders scape the road around the cul de sac and pile the snow in the center. They did not do the actual road OUT of the cul de sac. Yesterday, the van was not there (thankfully), although it would not have hindered the loaders. Today, though it is right in the pathway of any activity. I took it upon myself to knock on their door to inform them of what was going on today but no one was home. I hope they come home BEFORE the grader gets here. That vehicle needs to be moved so we can have a clean street. The City is scraping the streets but I am not sure if it is better nor not. Some of the streets have been packed down nicely and have lots of room to drive on while others are rutted, narrow and high with snow drifts. Guess it depends on whether homeowners are using snowblowers, throwing snow on their own property or onto the street or doing little or nothing. Our street is probably better off left alone but it will get graded and then there will be more piles of snow and ice to cause less parking than before.  Why are we living here again??!!


My other beef today is 'courtesy' on the road. Due to all these windrows of snow, only one lane is available on some of the streets so ... who gets the right-of-way? the guy who gets there first? come on people, where's courtesy. I must have waited for about 10 cars before I was able to pull out and I had the right of way!


Ok, that's enough complaining. Negativity breeds more negativity. It's time to 'get positive' again. I did a positive thing for a lady at the store today. She had a little 2 or 3 year old daughter tagging along  behind her AND a 2 or 3 week old baby in her arms, as well as holding on to her big purse, a bag of celery and lettuce, a package of diapers under one arm and she was trying to get a cucumber. I offered to get the cucumber for her. We looked at 3 or 4 and she finally chose one she liked. I stuck it in the lettuce bag and off she went. Young moms are amazing.

I was visiting a friend today and I admitted to her that I was in a "negative mood. Not the best frame of mind to be in when you are visiting people. I had not seen her for awhile so I 'dumped' (you can do that with friends) and felt a little better - but I guess not all that much since I was still complaining in this blog - BUT I am home and happy to be here and by tomorrow I should be feeling better. They may be right when they say you need your 'beauty rest'. I think it refers to more than physical appearance. Tonight I am hitting the sheets early.


On second thought I can't do that as Grey's is on at 10 pm and we don't have that fancy PVC or VAC or PAC or whatever they call it, so you have to ' be there to watch it' or catch it on the reruns. Guess I will be sleeping in on Friday.