Hip Hip Hooray

Home

Sat Feb 18th

Made it down to breakfast 2 days after op

Our one disappointment from our trip to Calgary was that we didn't see one horse, cow or cowboy/girl.  The closest I got was a visit to Lammle's to buy a pair of jeans as the ones I flew out in developed a split where a fella doesn't want a split.  Lammle's stock everything 'cowhand' including tack for your horse.  More designs of boots than a cowhand could wear in a lifetime. I resisted the temptation.

The taxi who took us for Fred's x-rays on Sunday, certainly had 'the knowledge' of the city.  Thirty five minutes south of the hotel, he knew the street numbering sufficiently well to correct the address we gave him.   Quite a coincidence, but the following morning he was at the front of the taxi queue to take us north of the city to the former maternity hospital for Fred's op.  An early start as she had to be there for 0700 Monday.  I decided to walk back which is always a better way to get a feel for the layout of a town or city.  

My walk took me across Riley Park which surprisingly has a cricket pitch, though as it was covered in snow, I would not have known.  In the pre-dawn darkness I was amused to see a down (I had to look it up) of Snowshoe Hares (which I also had to look up) in their winter wardrobe.  Fred, who I mentioned this to later, said "ah white rabbits" and decided this was a good omen.  Lots of rabbit feet!    


Operation successfully completed, I collected Fred the following lunchtime.  The next two days were spent extending walks down the hotel corridor, before we headed off to the airport for our return flight Thursday lunchtime.  We were required to get  a doctor's 'fit to travel' sign-off as the op was within two weeks of a flight. The advantage was that Fred was 'wheelchaired' to the gate and pre-boarded, which was so much easier.    Air Canada were great, except the flight was delayed by an hour, which meant we missed our booked ferry and had a two hour wait at Horseshoe Bay.  It was good to finally be home.

NIck, Lizzie and Seb were on the same ferry as us.  They were coming over to the Coast to provide nursing support for the long weekend as it is Family Day on Monday.  Seb is good medicine for Fred and provides much entertainment now he is starting to crawl.  More little boy than baby, he and Jack are now starting to entertain each other with a ball.  

So the next few weeks are going to be Fred starting her Murrayesque recovery in readiness for the Coast equivalent of the Seniors tournament!

In just over two weeks, Seb starts his next global adventure as he is off to New Zealand for a month with Nick and Lizzie, to get reacquainted with his aunty Ros.  This littlun will have two continents under his belt before he is one, having already visited the UK, Italy.  Not a bad start in life.



A very patient Jack having his ears groomed by Seb. It's lovely to watch them together.

Seb practising his flying tackle in his England kit


And some more Calgary scenes

Sunset


Sunrise



Calgary Tower by night



Calgary outdoor ice-rink being readied for a curling event


 


 

Comments

  1. BobFebruary 19, 2023 at 9:48 AM

    Good update - though you need a new headline writer!

    ReplyDelete
  2. AnonymousFebruary 19, 2023 at 10:30 AM

    Hope Fred makes a good recovery, Mike. Thanks for all your very interesting blogs. Sending all best wishes. Andrew and Tina Hind

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. MikeT67MFebruary 20, 2023 at 9:44 AM

      Thanks Andrew, hope you and all the family are well.

      Delete
  3. AnonymousFebruary 20, 2023 at 10:12 AM

    Lovely photos.
    .
    Glad Freda’s op went well. Xx

    ReplyDelete

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