Marathons of sorts

SUITCASE DIARIES
Day 3 Wawa to Dryden and a bit of Day 4 Dryden to Regina - both days took around 10 hours each (including stops)

Sat Day 4

Rod: "We're finally out of Ontario."
Me: "Yea!"
Rod: "How long did that take?"
Me: "About 27 years."

...no seriously we crossed from Ontario into Manitoba at 11:45 Sat morning, so it takes about 3 1/2 days to get to Manitoba from Burlington.

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The last 2 days have been cathartic thanks to the power of music.

Friday Day 3

From the moment I plugged in the i-pod and put it on shuffle the music oracle has worked her magic. Izzy Kamakawiwo'ole's sweet Hawaiian song greeted me on Friday morning, confirming that the road out of Ontario would be winding and rolling. But driving it wasn't as challenging as I expected. The most arduous "road" I've been travelling is the one within.

SINGING IN THE RAIN foretold of the cloudbursts that came and went with such force that the downpour looked white - just like the milk that was used in filming Gene Kelly's production number. Milky white raindrops gave the desired effect on the screen. And, I understand that Kelly was very much under the weather but was able to do the scene in one take. "The show must go on" mirrors KOKUA extra effort is needed this day, so my oracle cards tell me.

After a bite in a restaurant TONIGHT'S GONNA BE A GOOD NIGHT plays through the mall as I make my way to the truck helps me to trust that we will get to Dryden without incident; and we did.

Driving towards Dryden the sky becomes more expansive as the tree topped amethyst rock faces give way to scrubby, stunted trees and more rolling countryside. A dragon cloud breathes fire in the direction from where I've come. A little while later, as we step out from a restaurant across the way from the "super hero" motel a female bagpiper faces west and plays AMAZING GRACE. It is Friday night. In PORT ALBERT on the beach at Lake Huron other pipers are piping down the sun while they walk into the lake. Perhaps Flo and Jack are listening to their piper as I am now.

The sunsets on Lake Huron are spectacular and so it is this night. The sky is streaked with rose and lilac  clouds with a sliver of gold, glowing sky on the horizon. "Red sky at night sailor's delight." Does this apply to the prairies?

Peppered through the day's soundtrack were memory songs: "dancing" with my client Gail to Barry Manilow; singing along to Amanda Martinez in Spanish for my client Evelyn; my sister Candy kissing Peemee Como on the TVscreen; flying with Lucy, Kalani Jane and Karen; love songs that express how I feel about Rod...and so many more.

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Rod and I stop to pay tribute to Terry Fox at the memorial erected in his honour outside Thunder Bay where his Marathon of Hope (begun on April 12/80) ended in on Sept 1 of the same year . Every Canadian was profoundly moved by this young man, saddened by the return of his cancer and mourned his passing. He has inspired millions as you will see...



Steve Fonyo, another cancer sufferer and amputee completed his transcontinental run, the Journey for Lives, in 1985.

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More music oracle from Day 4 in tomorrow's entry...
Pee kit report - I peed by the side of the car today (Sat) in a gully with great success, thanks pee kit!

Car dancing from Wawa to Dryden

SUITCASE DIARIES
Day 3 - on the road from Wawa to Dryden via the #17.
Yes, we're STILL in Ontario.

Due to complications related to final matters regarding the sale of the house we didn't leave Wawa til 10 a.m. With the house matters finally behind us (2 days later than expected) long held tension drained out of me leaving my muscles like limp spaghetti yet my body and mind full of the ya yas as we set out for the 9 1/2 hour drive.

Being so much father up north and in a different time zone
we made Dryden just as it was getting dark thus avoiding the increased risk of hitting moose on the road
and. more importantly, staying here.

My remedy for the ya yas?

Crank up the tunes. Trip down memory lane. And, car dance like this.



I did take time to enjoy the fabulous vista as we made our way around Lake Superior, through Marathon and to the Terry Fox memorial in Thunder Bay. The scrubby trees and less stimulating scenery that I expected to find didn't appear til we made our way back to the 17 after the by pass around Thunder Bay.

I used the pee kit today; product review to come. That'll keep you glued to the blog I'm sure.

More about the trip itself later; gotta go to bed. Another long day tomorrow.

Rubber necking from Sudbury to the Soo

SUITCASE DIARIES

DAY 2

We drove from Sudbury, through the Soo (Sault Set Marie), and around the most breathtaking vistas of Lake Superior - hence the title of this post.

This is a 17 ft long truck.

A very moody looking view of the lake. Though the day was predominantly sunny
this picture hints at the power of this body of water

This info and what follows is posted on boards overlooking the lake.
Info from www.algomacountry.com

I couldn't write about this leg of my trip without including this tribute to the 29 men who died in the wreck of the Edmond Fitzgerald on Nov 10, 1975 - written and performed by Canadian folk legend Gordon Lightfoot.


After this exhilarating day, I took a bath in our immaculately clean, Rod Waterman approved, room (this is high praise for their recent renovations) at the PARKWAY MOTEL in Wawa.

Me: "Hey Rod."
Rod: "Ya."
Me: "You should see this bathtub it's perfect."
Rod: "It's a real little one, right."
Me: "Ya."
Rod: "We'll have to get you one."
Me: "Great."
Rod: "In some places they call it a sink."

Yes, the road crazies have set in.

Yesterday we drove from Burlington to Sudbury via Trafalgar Rd, the 401 (over Toronto), the 400 (up through Barrie)  and 69 (through Parry Sound). Through the course of the day the incredible crush of cars on the faded grey asphalt jungle (over 6 lanes), aka the 401 westbound out of Toronto that reduces traffic to a virtual parking lot at 4:30 in the afternoon, gave way to the lush green forests, blue lakes and multicoloured rock outcroppings that make up the Canadian shield. As the geography of the shield took over I noticed that there are few billboards (in contrast to my childhood memories), no litter (hallelujah!) and where there was once graffiti, this need to say "I was here", has been replaced by the creation of hundreds of inuksuk sentries looking down upon us as we pass; it felt sacred.

This morning at 8:30 a.m., I set out on the #17 aka Trans Canada Highway, with my i-pod on shuffle and, as fate would have it, a selection of fine Canadian artists followed one after the other (some well known others creating labours of love in obscurity): Melissa McClelland, Wayne Krawchuk, Colin James, Luke Doucet, Michael Bublé, Joni Mitchell, Jack/Norm Clarke (my friend, Flo's hubby who serenaded Pam, Flo and I with song, folk and classical guitar selections as we gazed into fire pit flames), Harry Manx (Salt Spring Island resident and therefore honorary Canadian, if not Canadian born). What an amazing pool of talent we have. As I sing along I think Mom would have agreed with Henry Winkler's character in HERE COMES THE BOOM that "without music life would be a mistake".

In contrast to the rain, fog and poor visibility of the night before, today showered us with sun and benevolent weather.

Tomorrow, I'm told the drive will be long, very winding and not near as pretty. We may have to stop earlier than planned and as Rod's sourcing out alternatives to our planned stop he's threatening me with a motel with a super hero theme. God help me. I think I'll sleep in my car. Let's hope we can make the 10 hour trip as originally planned.

Safe Passage

Suitcase Diaries Road Trip: Moving to Vancouver Island
Day 1

This image is magical and is exactly how I feel as I drive.

I'm writing from THE RICHARD LAKE MOTEL in Sudbury where Ryan Reynolds once stayed. I know this because there's a signed pic of him predominantly displayed at the reception desk. We pulled in at about 10:30; finally left Burlington around 3:30 after a tearful good bye to Flippy and Maya who will be staying at the CAT'S CASTLE until the 12th. Little Maya was a real trouper, walking around their room checking out the other residents while Flippy was having a melt down hovering in a corner in their kennel. Ron brought her a privacy tent where she could hide til she felt safe

I have been having flash backs during our drive today through southern Ontario; a place that I know well from past experiences.

I waved goodbye to the urban sprawl that is happening above the #5; something Burlington residents were promised would never happen due to the importance of our farmlands but the powers that be have not stood by their word. Rod and I marvelled that neighbours can now watch people enjoying the roller coasters at CANADA'S WONDERLAND. I don't know when this happened as it used to be in the middle of nowhere. We wondered how long it will be until residents of the neighbourhood complain about the noise.

King City, the location for my lomi trainings with Harriette and Birgit, reminded me of my lomi ohana (family). Lomi really was responsible for setting the wheels in motion for this whole adventure. As I worked with the power of intention my intentions became clearer as to who I wanted to be and one thing lead to another and here I am taking a journey I really wasn't thinking of in 2005. Thanks go out to Lynne, my flying instructor for saying to me, about lomi "You, of all people, really have to do this!"

Mount St Louis is where Nor drove to through horrendous snowstorms so that we could go downhill skiing. Across the road the cross country course where Ellen, Arnie, Rod and I enjoyed a spring skiing on corn snow wearing only sweaters and jeans being careful not to end up in the pool of water which had formed at the end of the trail cus your skis would come to a grinding halt and you'd be catapulted into the puddle in the blink of an eye.

As we pass the sign for Lake Rousseau I realize that my niece had lived up here for a few years; lucky girl! Rod and I rented a cottage on nearby Lake Muskoka in '94.  That was when I discovered my love of kayaking and the "Thacker" wave was born. My brother Rob and Dad came up with a virtual flotilla in tow including a yellow kayak. Since he had to drive at a snail's pace to accommodate the load, Dad waved on the cars behind them to encourage them to pass. However, to the mortification of my brother, Dad's arthritic fingers made it look like he was giving them "the finger" so drivers gave them "the look"as they passed.

The sign for WHITE SQUALL kayaking outfitters and school takes me back to the self-rescue training weekend with my late friend Mary. Being small, nimble and fit, it was easy peasy for me to get in and bail the craft out numerous times, not so for my much larger friend. She gained my total respect as she displayed patience, perseverance and ingenuity as she made attempt after attempt and finally, nearly totally worn out, completed one rescue.

Parry Sound carries memories of Bryan's cottage where I spent almost the whole weekend in the buff laying on a rock like a lizard when I wasn't swimming or feeding the chipmunks. Near there is a cut off for Marisa's cottage. A few years ago she hosted a wine and cheese tasting evening and sleep over for  "Council of the Sleepover" members. This was my first long drive one that I was too chicken to do the year before. And now I've embarked on the quintessential Canadian road movie experience - driving across the country to a life that fits better.

I was going to say a better life, but that isn't so. The past 27 years has been an amazing ride and I have truly been blessed with wonderful friends and clients. The past few months have been filled with emotional endings and good byes but how lucky am I to have to endure this.

The Council of the Sleepover promised me that if I returned to Ontario there would be lots of get togethers and they didn't disappoint! Thank you, thank you, thank you

The chocolates Susan and Neil dropped into the mailbox for Rod and I to savour during the journey never made it out of the house. In true comfort food fashion they comforted us during our time of need, the hectic few days of packing up our stuff.

I eat a bagel from Tim's paid for by the GC from Regina and Sandy as I drive to tunes selected for me by 2 friends Russ and Dan: one compilation CD is all about dreams whereas the other is a bit of a blast from the past - Moody Blues and the Cowboy Junkies. The walkie talkie endorsed by Andrea sits beside me and allows "little buddy" to communicate with "my guy" who leads the way in the U-haul (I'd have taken a pic of the insides of it but, being one who claims not to have a lot of stuff, I find it too embarrassing as it's packed to the gills).

On my dash is the eagle feather that I found on the island last year; the one that called me back "home". Alongside this is the beautiful safe passage basket that Sue crafted for me just for this special journey and in it is a scroll containing this poem. I'm not sure whether Sue is its author or not - she may have told me when she presented me with it but I was internally too emotional to take it all in.

I carry with me other gifts: the spectacular journal (it will be christened during dream teacher training II at Mosswood in Sept) from Di my always meant to be sister-in-law; the golden shawl from my 97 year old inspiring amiga Liliane; most special heart stones from Kalani and Flo; knitting needles from my knitting buddies Pam and Glyn; feather earrings (that I'm wearing now, that came with a fantastic necklace) from Marisa; the picture from Aust and Linda of downtown Oakville in the winter (as we won't have many of those on the island) Oakville as I remember it from when I worked across the road at Oakville Shiatsu and Massage Therapy Centre; the tree of life glass work from our "Dan's party" friends; and Rod and I will enjoy many a meal funded by Roseanne and Pete, Dave and others; the feminine pee kit from my longest time friend Janet (I promised her a product review so check in frequently to read that...)

And there are those gifts that touch my heart, fare well get togethers with: Sue and Katie; Austin and Linda; Susan and Neil; Eva; Rob, Sue, Candy and Rick; a visit from Montrealers Kathy and Jim complete with Montreal bagels from that cool 24 hr bakery and Jim's helping hands to ease Rod's load on those final workdays; Pam and my visit to Flo's where we witnessed that amazing rainbow around the sun; being drummed out for a safe journey at the last full moon fire ceremony by Janet (and the sacred spit, called by another name :-)) and the 19 other participants; Glynnie's "don't go" spontaneous burst in the middle of dinner which made us all jump and then burst out laughing at last weekend's "Council of the Sleepover" sleepover; Austin's company and help on Tuesday as we prepared to load the truck which lightened our load; the kind people at the kitty castle. Candy's last minute errands. Pam's help with the kitties, and our next door neighbour who took a ton of stuff this aft saving me from taking it to the reuse centre. The telephone chats with my sister Jude and the e-mails from so many; the list goes on and I'm sorry if I missed anyone.

People dropped by to say bon voyage (some more than once) and client's came for that one last session.

How can I leave them I ask. And, that's how it should feel. Thank you all for your kind wishes, your calls, hugs and words of encouragement and support. You are in my heart always!

And, last of all, goodbye 5305. When I came back to Ontario I never imagined I'd ever own a place of my own, have my own garden, let alone renovate it (that amazing bathroom too) with my guy. What a gift you have been!

Maya's "fuzzy" was the last thing I found when I took a final tour.

...and exhale everybody!

A-a-a-a-h-h-h-h, that's the relieving sound of a big exhaled breath.

I haven't posted since May 6th because, I've been doing my version of goin' holoholo around the sale of our home and move to Victoria. Rod and I have talked about living on Vancouver Island for years, saying that, "In 3 years we'll move out there." 

Guess what? 3 years is up.

I've returned to the island 4 times since I moved back to Burlington in '86. I was anxious that the first visit would leave me pining for Victoria and surrounds and was totally surprised to discover that in my heart I knew that Ontario was exactly where I was supposed to be. Not only supposed to be but wanted to be. I was totally content to come back after that visit and after the second one but, in 2010 things changed. I was getting stirrings. I found myself perusing the want ads for homes for sale. I wandered the streets under the guise of going for a walk but in reality I was checking out what was available. 

So, when we attended our niece's wedding in Aug last year we both knew the time was right. This was confirmed when Rod returned home to Burlington while I stayed on for another few weeks. We both came to the same conclusion, during our time apart. We need to move now while we have many years to explore the island and use it as a home base from which to venture to areas on the west coast of Canada and the U.S., Hawaii, Asia, New Zealand and Australia. 

To say I'm excited is an understatement. 

But, once the decision was made I strangely felt the need to keep it kinda hush, hush. I didn't want to jinx it (taking the holoholo casual approach). I waited til January to tell my clients we were leaving as I imagined them all bailing on me in a mad rush to find another therapist. This didn't happen. In fact I've been busier than ever as many are wanting that, "one last treatment". And, I couldn't dare write about it because that for sure would mess things up, and since that's been the A#1 thing on my mind; the thing I'd most likely blab about, I had to avoid my blog like the plague.

But now, not only has our place sold but we, just yesterday, landed our apartment, the place that will be home for the first year at least, if not longer.

A-a-a-a-h-h-h-h!

So this is what you'll see on our lawn until Sat when, having fulfilled COMFREE's request to put it up for 2 weeks, we can take it down.

Flippy's in shock and later takes to my bed for the day

On July 31st Rod and I, having closed up shop, will leave family and friends, and embark on, the subject of the iconic Canadian movie, a road trip across the country to fulfill our dreams for the future.

The day before I put the sign up waves of nausea washed over me. After we hammered it into the lawn Flippy stayed away from her usual post in front of the door as neighbourhood watch, she ate very little choosing to lay on my bed most of the day; she was in a funk. 

I told Rod, "Flippy's really bummed by the sign."

"I didn't know she could read," he replied.

I laughed, "No, that sign isn't supposed to be there. It's just not how her front yard is supposed to look." But secretly I wonder...  

And, Maya our other spayed female kitty, has taken up spraying in her spare time earning her a new nick name...Squirt. 

I don't know what they're so worried about. They're going to stay in a kittie retreat centre, be flown out in high style, met at the airport and chauffeured to their home where they'll continue to be spoiled rotten.

To say we're all a little anxious would also be an understatement.

TAKE A NAP

I can't believe my last post was Mar 10th. I have entered 2 posts since then in the blog at AWAKENING CHOICE DREAMS, my website on dreams - The Missing Manual and Magical Mythstory Tour. I tend to hibernate towards the end of the winter months and early spring: my creative juices dry up, exposure to media overwhelms me, I really have nothing much to say and I just want to enjoy life and pull back a little. But I'm revving up now and ready to roll.

In Magical Mythstory Tour you'll read about my trip to Gore Mountain in New York state to attend Robert Moss' gathering of dreamers. I won't repeat it here, just hop on the link and read it for yourself. I'll wait...

...O.K. now that you're back there is one thing I forgot to add to that post, it's about another synchronicity that happened along the way.

A few days prior to leaving for my trip I visited Ryan Hurd's site DREAM STUDIES. The blog post that was up at the time was How To Survive The Corporate Culture of Sleep Deprivation and in it he included a video Occupy Sleep. I didn't have time to watch it at that moment so I kept it open in a tab. Over the next few days, every time I logged on Ryan would start talking, but I still didn't have time. The night before leaving on my road trip I tied up some loose ends. His video being one of them; I stopped and listened.

 In a nutshell - "Take a nap. Join the revolution."

The next day I'm driving to Gore Mountain. I haven't done too much distance driving and this trip will take me; Google maps says 6 hours but I figure closer to 8 hours accounting for time crossing the border, pit stops to pee (I have a squirrel bladder when I'm on the road), getting lost and finding my way back on track.

Making good time, I stop Clifton Springs to pee, grab an Americano, some cookies and a small packet of nuts. On my way to the entrance, no word of a lie... I see a licence plate that says NAP PAYS. Now, I have the wherewithal to text my sister who will find this amusing but I still don't clue in that my i-phone has a camera in it. Had I realized it at that moment I could have shared it with her, and you all too, but you'll just have to take my word for it.

Anyway, rather than sit in the coffee shop snacking and reading I took my stash back to the car because I figured the universe was telling me You'd better take that nap. Yup, Hurd was right. 10 minutes later I emerged bright eyed and bushy tailed, rarin' and ready to head out on my merry way into the unknown.

During the first gathering that night, surrounded by 30 plus very accomplished dreamers - many who have been returning to this place for 17 years, often 2 times a year - I realized I had indeed entered napping country for pays in French is the word for country.

We did many journeys over the weekend. If you dropped in you'd see people laying around under blankies with eye bags draped over their eyes or seemingly dozing in chairs. But the atmosphere was so charged with inspiration and energy that I had to take a few naps just to keep up - remember, at this time of year I'm emerging from a state of semi-hibernation. So, I must say thanks to Ryan for the great advice.

Participate in a revolutionary act...take a nap.

A WALK IN THE PARK

Would we do things differently if we realized that the earth is a living thing?

Walking at Burlington Beach strip yesterday I saw a plastic bag clinging to a bush. Since, before I got out of my car, I had made a pact to fill any bag I found with litter, I proceeded to do so, and then another and another...til 5 were filled. I had to put empty plastic bags into my collection bags as there were too many bags to fill during the time allotted for my walk.

I apologized to the ducks who lived there, that our species treats their home like a garbage dump.

Today I went to a local park. I started out with a bag from home in case I didn't find any empty plastic bags - fat chance of this happening - but you never know. I prefer to think of myself as an optimist.

So, I began here with my one bag and as was the case yesterday, I found many more to fill. 

The white bits aren't snow. They're plastic shopping bags.

4 bags filled in 45 minutes. I also filled 2 more on my way home - about a 2 minute walk from here.

At one point, as I crouched down pecking at the bits of plastic embedded in the earth I was joined by 2 curious geese who must have felt a bond with me. There we were all pecking along together.

As I went deeper into the bush I noticed that a man was eyeing me - probably thinks I'm a nut case or something. People do tend to give you a wide berth when you are a grey haired woman, dressed down for a mission. But he reappeared at the other side of the fence shortly afterwards.

"Thanks for doing this. You beat me to it. I usually clear out the stuff in the park in a few weeks time, when the snow has cleared and the weather is good. (It was a beautiful, sunny, unseasonable warm day today.) I live in the building just over there." he pointed to the condos down the way. "I think the garbage gets blown across the road over from the mall, the grocery store and Tim's. I've asked Tim's to clear the stuff from the parking lot but they put up signs asking people to clear their own garbage and be considerate, but obviously this isn't helping."

We chatted for a while about our efforts to tend the park and the areas around our homes.

I wish I could say that the extensive amount of garbage is from the mall but my experience down at the more remote park yesterday tells me otherwise. And, these are the places where we go to get in touch with nature and restore our souls. That's a fine thank you, eh?!

FACE BOOK CHALLENGE - Clutter clear a park, a sidewalk and post it on FB. Let's see if we can get a movement happening.