We're In

Unpacking Commences

Sun May 22nd


So we have said goodbye to the easterly views across Howe Sound and the North Shore mountains. They  have often been beautifully backlit at sunrise and illuminated from behind the house at sunset.  Our views now are westerly views across Salish Sea (Georgia Straits) to Vancouver Island and their distant snow capped mountains.  


We shall miss the ferry and its majestic passage in and out of Langdale, though not the captain who has been on shift last week.  He liked the sound of his own foghorn and it hasn't even been foggy.  Every passing boat seemed to get a five blast warning. One small craft ignored the message, a further louder cacophony of five blasts and the smaller boat stopped dead in the water until the ferry had passed.  Louder, because if he leaves his thumb on the hooter the horn at the rear of the ships sounds off as well.

Fred, confident her lists were accurate and packing complete escaped to Vancouver for some quality time with our grandson on Friday.  I worked through my list!

'Mandala' after the race
Sunday prior, I volunteered to crew on a yacht for the Sunshine Coast Yacht Club Sunday race.  The boat, a 38' Catalina is berthed in Gibsons Marina.  I haven't raced for years and then only in dinghies, never in a yacht.  We were a crew of four, the owner, his regular sailing partner and two newbie volunteer crew.

The race was over a course in Howe Sound, from a start line just outside the marina, round a  buoy off Soames Point and back again, with two loops of the course.  It was windy, cold and wet, but absolutely brilliant fun and great to be back on the water.  The newbies were assigned winch crew duties on the genoa (large jib or foresail).  We came a creditable fourth, well to be honest there were only four boats competing, but in terms of the adjusted handicap time, it was pretty respectable.  

Mandala is currently eighth in the Spring series, out of sixteen.  I've been invited back so newbie errors on the winch were not deemed a disaster!

Saturday morning (May 21st) the removal men turned up just after 08.00 to start loading the two trucks.  It was the same team that moved the previous owners of our new house to Vancouver Island on Wednesday.  Once underway, and having popped out to get some 'Deadly Donuts' for the elevenses, I headed over to the new house to get a few jobs done while Fred supervised the loading, lists in hand.

Blue sky with the odd wisp of cloud
Lunchtime at the new house, the removal team turned up, but not the Telus (our local BT) technician to switch over the internet/TV package.  

At 1500 I spent 45 minutes on the phone to four different people and was promised a 1500 - 1700 arrival, which also did not happen.  Further calls into the evening and first thing Sunday morning, with me patiently explaining, I'd booked the install at the end of March, confirmed it two weeks ago, has now resulted in a visit scheduled at 1500 today, Sunday.  

The removal guys, led my Mike from Windsor (Berkshire not Ontario), took about three hours to offload everything from the two trucks, while Fred started unpacking and I started assembling.  The rain forecast last week for the day of the move, never arrived and it’s turned out to be a warm sunny day.  We enjoyed our first sunset over Van Island over a glass or several of wine.

Sunday the unpacking and assembly continued.  As I finish writing the blog a Bald Eagle is soaring in front of the house.

Local Black Tailed Deer - we are going to have to protect the fruit and veg beds




Late afternoon cloud formation




Salish Sea and Van Island in the distance



Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

The Frustrations of Canadian Immigration Services

Image
And other things  Sat June 1st The pause in blogs was due to Immigration Canada announcing at the beginning of May that a further draw would be made from the remaining pool of the 2020 Expressions of Interest (EOI) for Parent and Grandparent sponsored Permanent Residency.    Friday was the last day and again we did not get through.  The fifth year running.  I suspect that later in the year they will invite a new round of EOI's which probably means we will be a small fish back in a very large pool.  On the grand scale of all suffering and instability in the world, it is insignificant  (I keep telling myself),  but it is hugely, bloody frustrating.  Our tenure continues under the Super Visa scheme, which runs until our passports expire in 5 and 8 years time respectively. Other news ...  on Sunday 27th w e went to a wedding reception. It is the first time I have worn a jacket in over three years.  My boarding pass from our Air Can...
Read more

Cream Crackers & Stilton

Image
Blue Sky in Whistler!!!!! Fred on the Piste - not overly busy Before I get on to Whistler ........ In my early BBC career I spent a couple of years working at the BBC’s Television Centre (TVC), in west London.  This was long before the BBC flogged it and it was turned into an apartment hotel and restaurant complex, plus a few TV studios for the industry to use as a nod to its history.   Amongst other things I did a stint as a studio supervisor and worked on the Two Ronnies, Morecombe & Wise and Top of the Pops.  Anyone remember Pan's People? Phwoar! Interesting times. TV Centre was huge and had several thousand staff. The restaurant block, on three floors, included a waitress service restaurant on the '2nd floor' where stars were entertained by their producers over long lunches and the odd glass of wine.  This was the late 70’s before ‘hair shirts’ and the critical public attention the BBC gets today.   Occasionally, a couple of fellow wor...
Read more

Fall Leaves and Rainfall

Image
Jack Vs Car Sat November 9th Fall seems later this year and the deciduous leaves have been a lovely mix of golds and reds with the predominance of Maples in all of its varieties. After last week's storms, most of the leaves are now down along with quite a few trees.  Further up the Coast a tornado was reported taking out multiple trees that closed the main highway and took out power for local residents for around three days.    A local driver caught the trees coming down on video .  After two consecutive dry summers, 2024 has been wetter with no significant water restrictions on the Coast.  I assumed this was good news until reading an article in the UK press that suggested late autumns are just another sign of global warming. The storm left us without power for nearly 12 hours and a huge number of properties were similarly affected across southern and central BC.  Fortunately we had a good supply of candles and a gas lamp.  Some friends near the ...
Read more