20:31 - 11.03.08
Spring
My Dad had called to see if I wanted to visit the next large city north of us on Friday. He and his neighbour had been hoping to visit with my aunt, before she headed off to New Zealand to celebrate her birthday with her family there. More than four score she is, but still very active. Because one of my cousins, her son, is a pilot she has traveled all the world; quite often on her own without anything more than her curiosity to keep her company. If I could manage that kind of lifestyle I would be pleased not to work. However, bills keep me bound to this part of the world. Guess I shouldn�t complain about that though, should I?
It was a beautiful spring day with temperatures in the high teens C or around 60 F. We stopped at the local coffee shop to purchase our traveling beverages � coffee or cappuccinos, before heading out into the countryside due north of our city. Driving through farm and ranch country, it was evident that life was about to burst forth again for another year. The tilled and seeded rich, black soil seemed to be waiting to bloom into that exquisite shade of new growth green. Cattle, sheep and horses grazed contentedly under a clear, deep blue sky in their fields that abut the highway. Pastoral.
There was a steady stream of traffic flowing both ways on the highway. On Fridays there are always those who live in one city who commute to work or school in other locations, sometimes hundreds of miles away, traveling to their homes for the weekend. I think I�ve mentioned before that distance here is measured by time traveled, not by miles so much. At Red Deer, our destination, we were able to locate my aunt's new condo complex after a few false starts in a new part of the city. She was busy visiting all her medical caregivers before leaving for the month so we headed off to visit the old homestead. I had always loved their old home. It was built just after WW II, when my uncle was discharged from military service. Located on an acre of land, ringed as it was by three churches, it had secret passageways and the most fascinating nooks and crannies to ferret out, with a huge backyard where my cousins entertained us with all sorts of diversions when we visited throughout the year. Badminton, tennis, tag and visiting the rabbits in their hutch. In winter snowball fights and building snowmen or curling up by the fireplace to read companionably in silence. Just a very pleasant way to spend family time together. There was always a bit of a competition to see which of us cousins could read the books that most impressed our elders. In hindsight, that was probably something our parents set up to encourage us to read more and better books come to think of it. Cagey, those parents of ours. I loved the layout of my aunt�s kitchen too. Probably one of the best designs for cooking the huge meals necessary for a house full of teenage males. My one female cousin had an appetite too, being a tomboy from the getgo, but still stayed skinny as a rail.
We drove past the new location for their jewelry store, before heading off to take a look at the old part of the city where my uncle had had his jewelry store and my aunt her furniture store two doors down. My aunt�s wanderlust had been triggered during the time of their entrepreneurial ventures. My uncle traveled overseas to purchase the gems for which he then created settings, while my aunt bought furniture from various European countries for local delectation. Next up was a quick cruise of all the new development in the north part of the city. Lunch at a local restaurant on the way back toward our city rounded out the day. Farm breakfast fare for my Dad and me, while his neighbour had waffles. Visited a really cool teahouse located nearby, featuring artists from a variety of disciplines. My favourite was the iron monger�s wares; there was a set of gates and railings that I would love to have in front of my home, just a very classy way to create a polished look. I had spent the ride up to Red Deer copying all the information out of my Dad�s book of relatives� birthdays/anniversaries and contact information, so most of the conversation there and back was questions about and stories of family history going back as far as my Dad could recall. On the way home I found it increasingly difficult to stay focused on that discussion, because I was worrying so much about not having internet access. You see, part of the reason that we had traveled that far north was so that I could do a couple of quality assurance assignments in my aunt�s home city. But because I couldn�t gain access to the certification training that was necessary, I couldn�t do the work. There is only on-line information for the company I work for, so I couldn�t even pick up the information any other way. I was sorry in many ways to arrive home, being that reality struck like a load of bricks the minute I walked in my front door. More about that tomorrow, dear diary. Time for bed now, good night.
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