ROAD TRIP to the Pacific Northwest...Day 14

Saturday November 2

How time flies when you're having fun. This is, believe it or not, the end of our second week of vacation. And we still have a long way to go.

After a good night's sleep, Kerry and I sat in Mom's living room, enjoying our morning cup of coffee.  Within an hour of getting up, my brother David came down stairs to join us. After chatting for a half hour, we headed upstairs and took a seat at Dave's kitchen island and watched him make breakfast.  For the first time in almost a week, I actually had enough energy to take on the world, or at least Nanaimo.

After eating, we (Kerry, me, Dave and Nancy) headed downstairs. Nancy brought out boxes of pictures and albums that belonged to my mom. Sorting through them I had the pleasure of going through and keeping any photo's that had a sentimental value to me. I ended up keeping a couple of albums and a few dozen loose pictures.  This was one of the reasons for my trip. After Mom passed away, this was the first chance I had to get up here to do this. For the last 3 years Kerry and I were providing round-the-clock elder care for her mom and dad. That made getting away very complicated.

Now, for some lunch...Canadian style;

Kerry and I wanted to treat everyone to a traditional fish and chips meal. My brother Kevan joined us at the pub and together we all ate and drank and had a great time catching up. It was good to see Kevan again.

On the way back to Dave's place he asked us if we wanted to go and see some deer in one of the nearby neighborhoods. We said sure. Just as we turned down the street leading to where might see some deer, there was a buck standing there in the middle of the road.

Once back home we visited, ate and laughed. As the evening slowly faded into night, Kevan headed home and so did Shawn (he owns a house right next door to his mom and dad). Nancy, Dave, Kerry and myself finished off the day with the traditional Canadian evening cup of tea (something Kerry and I do every night at home). Then it was off to bed for another great night's sleep in Mom's old bedroom. It was a good nights sleep.

ROAD TRIP to the Pacific Northwest...Day 13

 

Friday November 1

Waking up at around 5:30am, it was still pretty dark outside. I was expecting to feel crummy when I got up but instead, I actually felt pretty good, considering I had been down and out for the past few days. I think we just might be back on track with our plans.

As I got out of bed I was glad that I took the extra effort and time last night to pack our suitcases. They were waiting by the door. I also loaded up Rosie's mobile condo on the back seat so it would be a simple matter of just putting her on her bed in the truck and start heading north.

 

A couple of days earlier I had prepared a couple of cups of decaf coffee for me (I don't do caffeine). They were in the fridge waiting. I just needed to fill my travel mug with ice and I was good to go. I love sipping on iced coffee when I drive long distances. With quick hugs to Steph and the kids, we pulled out of the driveway and made our way to the base exit. Within 10 minutes we entered highway 5, our road to my homeland.

 

By the time we hit Seattle the sun was just trying to come up. Traffic was thick but steadily flowing in the right direction. We kept rolling and before we knew it, we were at the border crossing. The border agent smiled and asked us a few simple questions before finally asking us to roll down our back window (they have a heavy tint). When I did, Rosie's head popped up and glared at the agent. He asked if the dog was ours and of course I said yes (I so much wanted to say no, we just picked her up hitch hiking a few miles back...but I know better than to mess with these guys). He also asked if the truck was ours and when the last time I was in Canada. I knew he already knew those answers so I just smiled and played along..."Yes sir, the truck is mine and it must have been either 2 or 3 years since I was up this way." With that said, he waived us through.

 

Oh Canada, Our Home and Native Land...It was good to be on Canadian soil again. We had less than 45 minutes to catch the Nanaimo bound ferry at the  Tsawwassen ferry terminal. The GPS was working great and it was telling us that the turn off to the ferry teminal was just up ahead. Kerry said exit here but the GPS didn't agree. I had a split second to pick Kerry or a machine. I chose the machine...WRONG MOVE!

The GPS was right in that up ahead a 1/2 mile was a road that led to the terminal but what it didn't know was that the highway was under construction. Kerry, on the other hand was reading the road signs and one of them said for the Tsawwassen ferry terminal, turn HERE...DETOUR...Opps, me bad. We ended up going 5 miles down the road, out of the way, before we found a place to u-turn. l listened to Kerry as to where I needed to turn.

 

 

 

When we arrived at the terminal we drove right up to the booth and paid our fare. We were instructed to follow lane 19 and we did, directly onto the ship. It was as if she was waiting there for us. As soon as we parked, the ramp was lifted up and aft doors secured. We were now Nanaimo bound and for the next 2 hours we would be able to watch the scenic views pass buy as we grabbed a bite to eat in the restaurant. Later we sat by a window on one of the observation decks. It was all too beautiful. Just like I remembered it. There is no place like home.

 

When we were told it was time to return to our vehicle, we did. I even took Rosie for a little car deck stroll, but she preferred the warmth of her cushy bed. With GPS programmed with my brothers address, once we touched down in Nanaimo we headed up the Canada #19 highway, right into town. Within 20 minutes we pulled up in front of my brothers house, with him standing there to greet us.

 

We spent the rest of the day catching up, even though we just saw each other a few months earlier in Las Vegas.  David prepared a pasta dinner and once my nephew Shawn got home from work, we all sat down and enjoyed the food, the wine and of course each other.

 

When bedtime arrived we were taken to the down stairs apartment, the place where my mom spent her last years. Yes, Kerry and I were going to sleep in mom's old bedroom and have our morning coffee in her living room, prepared in her kitchen. Kinda weird...I miss Mom.

 

ROAD TRIP to the Pacific Northwest...Day 12

Thursday October 31

An interesting fact about Halloween, other than it is my brother Kevan's birthday, is that for decades Kerry and I never got to partake in the giving out of candy thing. Sure, our church (New Life Bible Fellowship) has a neighborhood safe gathering on the 31st of October called "Trunk or Treat." This is where a bunch of folks park in the church parking lot and stand by their trunks, which are filled with all kinds of sweet give-a-ways. It is a lot less dangerous compared to having your kids wandering the streets, at night, like we used to do when we were that age. But due to scheduling issues, work or eldercare, Kerry and I never got to join in with the "Trunk or Treaters."

Our house in Tucson is on a semi-rural cul-d-sac. We have never seen a kid wander up to our door. The houses are just too far apart making this a not-so successful area to gather mounds of candy. Our home in La Mesa California was the same; too far and too difficult for young ones to travel to.

Now, being on base at McChord, there is no shortage of kids running up and down the streets at any given time. Being Halloween, we anticipated a ton of door bell ringers.

 

Steph already purchased bags of candy to hand out and being concerned for the kids of the neighborhood, we all had to do some quality control sampling. The goods were worthy for the kids coming to our door.

As far as my cold goes, I am still feeling pretty lousy. Brandon is doing much better and he plans on making the door-to-door rounds tonight.  Daisy is excited as well, prepping for her adventures tonight. Kerry did herself up and it was fun watching the entire household buzzing with excitement. The only thing I wanted to wear... jammies, a blanket and a box of Kleenex.

 

Last year, after the Halloween season was over, Steph purchased an electronic  witch that speaks and moves and can be rather scary for younger kids. It was time to start the games for the night.

 

McChord has some rules  that Trick-or-Treaters must follow. These are non- negotiable. First, you can only be on base if you live there, or like us, were invited and passed security screening. Serving at McChord AFB are 714 Active Duty Officers, 3293 Active Duty Enlisted, 5833 Family Members, 12,000 Retirees AF (45,000 total), 1200 Civilians and 2507 Reserve Component. So, as you can see, there are a lot of kids on base. The second rule is that you are only allowed to Trick-or-Treat between 6pm and 8pm. No exceptions. If you are caught on the street after 8pm you are escorted back home by the MP's. And of course, they (the MP's) don't put up with any nonsense. They are constantly patrolling the streets, just to make sure the kids are safe.

 

When the door bell rang the first time, I got up out of my sick bed (couch) to look at the kids. They were so cute. Parents proudly stood by beaming with parental pride. Some kids were so tiny that they had to be carried to the door. Upon seeing all of the glowing faces eagerly accepting our candy I immediately felt better. I watched for 30 minutes before being forced to go back to the living room to rest. That door bell rang constantly for the entire 2 hours and I didn't sneeze on any of the kids.

 

Before leaving for the evening, Daisy spent some time touching up her costume...she was dressed up as an Eskimo. Brandon, on the other hand, was just wearing his street clothes. I asked him if he was feeling better and if he was planning on going out Trick-or-treating? He said he was better and he was going out. I then asked him what he was going to go out as and he said he already had on his costume. Street clothes? Really? I didn't understand, that is until he told me that he was dressed up as a poor kid who couldn't afford a costume. I rolled on the floor laughing. He has an amazing sense of humor.

 

I enjoyed watching the kids come to the door, and how they were keeping an eye on that ugly mechanical Witch. It was very entertaining. They would approach  carefully and as soon as that Witch's motion sensor was activated, her head would lower her eyes would glow. As she moved the kids (young and old) would jump back in momentary fear. It was way too much fun.

 

Once the night was over and our grandkids arrived back home, we did an inventory of their take for the night. I think as far as quantity goes, Daisy may have taken a slight lead.

 

I needed to get to bed so as I said my good-nights, I headed up the stairs with Rosie. Kerry soon followed. I took a little extra time to pack up our belongings, just in case I was feeling better in the morning.  My plan was a simple one; if I woke up an still felt lousy I was going to cancel my trip to Nanaimo and spend a couple of more days recovering with the Grandkids. If when I woke up I had some energy and was feeling even partially better, we would be Canada bound.

 

The ferry leaves from the dock at 10:45am and since it would be a 3 hour drive there, we needed to be out of the house no later than 7:00am. That would give us enough time to deal with any border delays. We were bringing Rosie with us across the border and since Kerry or I have never done that before, we had no idea of what to expect.

Steph Skyped with Justin and updated him on the events of the day.

 

ROAD TRIP to the Pacific Northwest...Day 11

Wednesday October 30

This morning the only thing I could focus on was how Brandon was doing. He was my "Sick" meter'... what he was feeling today would most likely be a pretty clear picture of what I can expect tomorrow.

 

Last night when Brandon got home from school he plopped down on the futon and that was where he stayed. When I crawled out of bed and dragged my sorry butt downstairs, Brandon was still where we left him, on that futon.  Brandon was not going anywhere today. Today would be a sick day for him, and me as well.

Steph went immediately into the kitchen when she got home from taking Daisy to school. "I'm going to make some chicken soup for you boys." she boasted while starting to gather all of the ingredients. I tell you, chicken soup never sounded so good.

 

I couldn't believe it; here I was, visiting family  in the Pacific Northwest and what do I do? I catch a cold. This was not the way I wanted to spend my time, curled up in a blanket, watching brain dead TV, while napping on and off all day. But, the way I was feeling today, that was all I could manage to do.

 

Somehow, Brandon and I survived the day. Our bowls of soup helped as well. The scary thing for me was to know that Brandon was feeling today what I would be feeling tomorrow. I loaded myself up with vitamins and used the Neti Pot frequently. 

 

Today, as per our planned schedule was to be out travel day to Nanaimo, where my two brother's live. We were to stay with David and Nancy and spend as much time as we could with my nephew Shawn. My other brother Kevan would stop by daily.  I knew I wouldn't be going anywhere today and as far as tomorrow goes, judging by Brandon's condition, tomorrow would be more of the same (maybe worse).  My 5 days on Vancouver Island were now 4 or maybe even less.

ROAD TRIP to the Pacific Northwest...Day 10

Tuesday October 29

As the morning arrived, and I did my ritual stretching before hitting the floor, I couldn't help notice that the stupid tickle was still there. Ahh, maybe it wasn't a tickle, but instead it was just my mouth telling me to get up and brush my teeth (morning mouth).

 

I headed into the bathroom and that was when I realized it wasn't morning mouth that was controlling me. I was feeling lousy and that could only mean one thing, I was coming down with a cold.

I had my flu shot a few weeks earlier but I wasn't prepared for this. Brandon was feeling like this yesterday so I would have to check upon him to see how he was doing. I got dressed and yes, I did brush my teeth. Making my way down stairs all I could think of was, "Why me?" and "Why now?" Ricky makes for a lousy patient!

Brandon was just getting up when my coffee and I found a corner to curl up in. "How are you feeling today," I eagerly inquired. "Not so hot," he replied. But there was a good sign, he was well enough to go to school so to me that meant I would remain mobile. It looked like I was a day behind him as far as the cold went which meant he would be my meter from which I would gauge how I will feel 24 hours into the future.  It was all very convenient.

 

I spent the rest of the day just sitting there, surfing the cable channels between my naps. This ended up being a quick day and non productive too. Kerry kept herself busy going shopping, walking the dogs and of course, taking care of her hubby. 

Imagine, it all started with a stupid little tickle in my throat.

 

When Brandon got home from school, he dropped his books by the door, went into the front living room and dropped onto the futon which was sitting there open, as if inviting him into an warm and cushy place. He would end up staying there for the next 24 hours. His today was going to be my tomorrow. Yikes!