I’m on my way

Today went by quickly. I took some vegetables to the Pakistani neighbours at their gas station and then I put the car away in the barn. I covered it with blankets to keep any pigeon poop away from the paintwork. It's amazing how acidic their poop is; it strips paint from everything.

Jenny always asks me what I want for the big meal on the day I'm leaving. As usual, I suggested sausages as I love 'em and they are quick and easy. I helped with the clearing up and then got down to serious final packing and making sure I had everything - something I'm not so good at. So far I haven't noticed I've forgotten anything but it's bound to happen before too long.

She came over to our house bemoaning the fact that she'd been looking for her glasses for two days. I knew they weren't in our house so I said I'd go over to her place and find them before she got back. I did too. She thinks I'm a miracle worker. The truth is that my eyesight is good enough to see a pair of specs sitting on a cupboard whereas Jenny needs a spare pair of glasses to find her glasses. She said she'd asked her mother to help whereas I resorted to St. Anthony.

Waris drove me to the airport; he's the second son in the Afghan family. He now lives at the farm because he's raising a few sheep and goats. He has a regular job in the city, landscaping in the summer and removing snow in the winter, but he loves animals. He also needs the money to pay off the mortgage for the house he bought for his mother and his brothers.

This is the first time in many years that I've sailed through the airport without any obnoxious questions about travelling on a one way ticket, having no visa etc. This time I was armed with my itinerary for a trip I'm making to Seoul on the 5th but they didn't ask for it. Apparently they are terrified that I'll overstay my visa and the airline will be fined.

I felt highly honoured on the 1 1/2 hour flight to Vancouver because we were offered a bag of miniature pretzels; normally we get nothing other than a tea, coffee etc. I've bought a book so I settled down to reading. It's called "The Spy and the Traitor" and it's about a high ranking KGB chap who spied for Britain. He now lives in suburbia under an assumed name; it's been a good read so far.

I'm busy people watching as Vancouver airport is a fascinating place to be in because of all the people moving up and down. It's also very artistic with lots of aboriginal carvings, statuary etc. 3 1/2 hours to go to midnight and then another 2.

I found one of those dark alcoves, with dim light, so I decided to have a lie down.  It would have been great except for the fact that it’s opposite the gate for a flight to Beijing.  Why is it that Chinese people seem to think that everyone else is deaf?  It’s supposed to be a quiet area but, with no door on the alcove, I am deafened by Chinese conversation.  Further down, at the gate for New Delhi, things are a bit quieter because most of the people sitting there are turbaned Punjabis and they are all enjoying their packed meals they brought from home.  Indians really don’t like anyone else’s food.  EVA has just rolled out their free tea and coffee so I’m going to get myself a cuppa.  Only 1 more hour to go for boarding time.

I’m sick of beetroot

I was on lunch duty today so I avoided garden work. I decided to cook pork sausage along with a ratatouille and mashed potatoes. The family cleaned their plates so I think it was successful.

I dug up and washed a large number of beetroot and got them ready for cooking. The kitchen always looks as if a massacre has taken place when I'm doing beets. The juice splatters all over the place. I think I did about 10 pounds and they are now in the deep freeze to be enjoyed by everyone else but me. Bill brought in buckets of tomatoes and I lay them out on shelving to ripen in the basement. I suppose this is a labour of love because I never eat anything I put into the freezer because of being away in the winter.

I drove to visit Cathy at the other end of the farm. It's always nerve wracking leaving the farm and entering Highway 37, which is a busy main route. I always think I've pulled out safely but then trucks come along so quickly they are up my backside before I know it. I can't speed up because I have to turn onto another road just 200 metres from the farm so it's really scary at times. There's an 80kph sign outside the farm, as vehicles approach the overpass but, if they are going straight over they don't slow down. I've written to the Minister of Highways but all I got was a polite reply and no action.

Cathy's recovering from major surgery and the medication is causing all her finger and toenails to fall out. She's stuck them with crazy glue so that she doesn't get them ripped out if she accidentally knocks them against something. She said her bones ache, she can't walk well and has no immunity. I said at 60 years of age it may be worthwhile but, at my ripe age I'd tell the medical people no thank you.

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Last full day in Canada for a while

It’s a good job the farm family don’t use the ping pong table or the billiard table any more as they are my favourite places for doing my packing.  I start months in advance of departure, popping things in as I buy them or find them. 

One year I packed three kitchen knives but when I got to the check in the lady said my case was small enough to carry on board; I’d completely forgotten about the knives. When I arrived at security I was chastised because I had nail clippers and they had a knife in them.  I didn’t know they had.  It took two men a few minutes to open the knife and it was as dull as dishwater.  They wouldn’t let me keep the clippers and they didn’t find the knives.  The same happened in Vancouver; I sailed through.  In Taipei the man said, “Do you have knives in your bag?”  I said I was sure I didn’t.  He said, “I think you do, do you mind looking?”  I found them and apologised profusely.  He smiled and told me to put them back in the bag and check it in.  Far more considerate than in Edmonton.  Nowadays, I let the airline have my bag - in any case I’m getting too short to put it in the overhead bins.

Today I had a real treat, having lunch with friend Laurel. We've known each other for years but rarely meet because she takes contract work with the UN, UNHCR and other relief agencies. When I first met her she was in charge of the Mennonite Centre for Newcomers which took care of the needs of refugees and provided counselling for those suffering from torture trauma. Since then she's worked all over the place around the world. Her latest job was putting together a UN manual while being based in Budapest. She said it's a very right wing country now with lots of racism. A colleague was from India and he suffered a lot of verbal abuse on public transport, mainly because he looked like the local Roma. He suffered more abuse than the Africans on staff. She loves field work and earlier had been based in Burkina Faso and northern Kenya looking after refugees in the huge camps. It was a pleasure catching up with her news. She said I'm her favourite emailer.

Later in the day I visited the Wakilzada family who've been here about 15 years from Afghanistan. They actually came from Pakistan as they fled following death threats. Surya, the mother, lost her husband, and had to marry off her daughter to prevent her being taken by a Taliban soldier. She came here with her three sons and four enormous suitcases. We thought they were poor so were surprised at the suitcases. It turned out that they'd been told Canada was cold so each suitcase contained a heavy quilt.

They had no idea where the daughter was so I contacted the international Red Cross and, after three years of searching, they finally located her. They are happy to be in Canada but it's not been easy for them. Sulaiman, the oldest son, was born with cerebral palsy and, while here, he developed colon, bladder and bowel cancer. I got the citizenship judge to come to his hospital bed to make him a citizen as he said he wanted to die a Canadian. He survived and is a lovely young man, carrying his urine bag and other paraphernalia. Recently, someone bumped into the father, whom they thought was dead, and so now he's in touch with the daughter and with his family here. We are now working with the government to bring him over to Canada. The daughter took a video of the father visiting her family but mother said she didn't want to see it as it would make her too emotional; she'd love to go to see her family but is afraid because of security. I can understand as they've lost so many of their family since the Russians invaded.

As usual I was forcibly overfed by Surya who refuses to take no for an answer. After the meal various nuts and dates were put out plus tea made with cardamon, which is always a treat.

I think I’m socialising too much

After breakfast I set off on a 45 minute drive to visit a lady whom I met in Cambodia. I had to go when she said I was the most interesting man she'd ever met. I must make sure I keep all competition well away from her. She'd come with her son, his wife and daughter to bring donations to orphanages. Connie's a lively senior so I didn't mind taking the time. She always jokes that she's got so many questions to ask.

In the afternoon I dug up potatoes, beetroot, carrots, onions and turnip and collected some corn on the cob to take to Morgan's home as I'd been invited to join him and Wayne for dinner. The two of them, along with Ross, have a row in our farm garden each year. Morgan's home is minute but so full of character. It's even older than the Bocock house which makes it about 110 years old. It was owned originally by a trapping family and in the small shed were the hooks used to hang the pelts. Morgan loves carpentry so he had a great time over the years removing all the embellishments that had been put up, to cover the original walls and floor. Now it's a cosy little house with lots of character. I'd never been before so we toured the garden and inspected the hot tub which is kept plugged in and used all winter. Both Wayne and Morgan are graduates from a horticulture programme so they were reeling off the names of plants and trees that I knew nothing about.

The dinner was very interesting - tortiere, which is a French Canadian meat pie made with a mixture of pork, beef and veal in a pastry, along with roast potatoes and red cabbage. Dessert was a dainty apple tart with cheese and cherries that had been soaked for months in a liqueur. We just sat and chatted and had a good evening, made better with a gin and tonic and red wine.

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Money and fish

I went to the bank today to collect my US dollars so that I have enough to live on when I move to Cambodia on Saturday. I had to laugh because the cashier whispered all the time she was talking to me and kept looking around the bank; presumably she was checking to make sure there were no robbers around. She said I had to sign a waiver to tell the bank that I wouldn't hold them responsible if someone clobbered me on the head outside the bank. I couldn't see the logic in this; even if I draw out only one dollar, if someone robs me outside the bank, the bank would refuse to be held responsible.

It reminded me of my days in the Arctic where we had no bank. When I moved south for the holidays I had to go to the bank. Every year things changed so I always felt a bit dysfunctional. One day I filled in a withdrawal slip and took it to the counter. The lady turned it over so she could write down how many notes she was giving me of various currencies. She shoved the slip over to me and said, "Did you write this?" I thought it was a daft question and I said, "Of course I filled it in." I don't mean that. I mean this", she said stabbing her finger at something on the back of the form. On the back some idiot had written, "This is a stick up!"

"I nearly had a heart attack, you are lucky I didn't press the button", she said. I told her I'd have had a heart attack if she had pressed it. The person who'd written it had slipped it back in the pile of withdrawal slips, knowing that someone would use it for a withdrawal. I wondered if he was standing around having a good laugh?

In the afternoon I visited friends for dinner. I went early so I could have a good chat with them about mine and their lives. Later, the farm family joined us and then I just sat back and let them have a natter. Frank and Jessie have a plot of garden at the farm so it's their annual 'Thank you" meal for letting them use the garden. We always have wild salmon, which is a real treat as a lot of what we get in the stores nowadays is either farm raised or from China.

They are part of what is known as the Friendship Force and it was started by President Clinton. There are groups in various cities around the world and they exchange visits, having home stays and being taken around by the local folk. This year they hosted a group from Brazil and not one of them spoke English. It went well though because they all had a translator app on their mobile devices. It's a great idea but I don't think it's for me because they are generally retired, professional and with a bit of extra money to throw around. Maybe I'm in that category but I prefer going around with a mixture of people.

A day of visiting

I woke up with "Bless this House" in my head. It's a nice thought but not at 3am. I've been watching too much of "Lily Savage" on YouTube. In my sleep I found myself being interviewed and trying to talk posh. I finally told the interviewer that if Lily savage can talk like a Liverpudlian then I can talk like a Yorkshireman. Heaven only knows what the interview was about - I decided to get up and visit the loo.

It's one of those days when we keep on asking, "Is it going to rain or is it not?" I hung the laundry out but decided to bring it in as it might rain. I ventured into the garden in my wellies and came back with a bucket of corn and my wellies stuck up with half the garden soil.

I took a quiet road to drive to Hubbles Lake to visit Bea; she's returning to Cambodia in the spring to do some volunteer work so she wanted a catch-up time. She'd just got back from a trip to New Orleans and had attended a cooking class, and so we had one of the recipes she learnt. It was very good and sort of soupy with sausage, chicken and other meats in it. She and her husband have a lovely home on the lake. It's higher than the lake so there are around 40 steps to go down to the water; they've built about 3 decks on different levels, each with furniture, so it's a very relaxing place to be.

I then returned to the farm, or at least I thought I was. I drove to the highway and turned east to go to the city. After 5 minutes I saw a sign saying "Jasper" which meant I was heading west. I turned around and found myself on the wrong highway going into the city. I looked for somewhere to turn off and I saw Calahoo Drive. Earlier I'd driven through Calahoo to get to the lake and so I thought it was a good idea to take the road. I ended up in a new subdivision with nothing to do with the original Calahoo. I really should get myself a GPS thing. I did get back to the farm but it took me twice as long.

I had a little while at the farm and then I headed off to visit Elizabeth who used to be with me as a volunteer in Nigeria in the early 80s. She's constantly packing and so I had to work my way down narrow corridors between piles and boxes of books and other papers. We had a McDonalds chicken-burger for dinner. While I was sitting in the restaurant I saw two men come in and sit down. One went to the counter and came back with a coffee. He sat for a while and then left, leaving the other man sitting there. I only saw his back but I'd noticed he was aboriginal. He sat for a while with his hood up. I thought he might be homeless, and I was thinking of asking if he'd eaten, when he leaned over to a man sitting at another table. The other man gave him a package, which contained a burger, so he must have been hungry. I thought it was a lovely gesture from the other man.
Back at Elizabeth's she asked if I'd like to see a DVD about the Haida people living on Haida Gwaii. In the late 1800s about 10,000 were living in the area. A ship arrived and the crew put ashore a sailor who had smallpox. Within a short period there were only 600 Haida alive. Then the authorities decided to assimilate them into the dominant culture so all their totem poles were destroyed or chucked into the Pacific Ocean. The authorities even introduced blankets that they knew were impregnated with smallpox so more died.

A bit later, a famous anthropologist arrived from the Field Museum in Chicago and he took back lots of artifacts plus bones of the dead. Nearly 4 years ago the Haida decided to try to get the bodies back and the video is about this journey. I was amazed at the graciousness of the Haida throughout the proceedings as they built up a strong bond with the staff at the museum. Children in Haida Gwaii had made button blankets, which are the traditional garments of the Haida, and these were used to wrap up the bones to bring them back to Canada. On the island the people had made boxes from cedar - they steam a plank and bend it so that the four sides of the box have no joints. There were lots of ceremonies and community dances and the three Chicago representatives were invited to join in; it meant a lot to them. It's a sad but very interesting film and well worth seeing.

And so ended a good day. Elizabeth sent me home with homemade raspberry and apple jam and a jar of crab apple juice so that made it even better.

Happy 81st birthday

Happy 81st birthday, Peter.  At my age I don't mind telling people how old I am.  Bill gave me a card and commented that he'd remembered.  I didn't forget his, as it's the same day, but I didn't give him a card.  At his ripe age of 86 I don't think he needs one.

It was a bit of a complicated day but it worked out well.  At 10.30am I left the farm and drove to the church to meet the Bococks.  The car park was full so I had visions of not finding their car but lo and behold it was the one car with no one parked behind it.  John arrived and we drove to the front of the church to pick up Bill and Jenny; Jenny doesn’t like walking.  I settled into the back seat and then I was told I was driving.  It's always interesting driving with Jenny; she doesn't mind my driving but, out of the corner of my eye I can see her clutching the door handle when we changed lanes on the bypass.

We stopped at Rachel's home and then she took over to drive us to a Bistro in her neighbourhood.  We were joined by Yi Yi and Shannon.  I always have a fun time with Shannon; she'd just been on a holiday to Manchester, which she said was a lovely city - the Lancashire folk will be happy to hear that.  She has the most amazing blue eyes!  One of these days I'll have to tell her.

The waitress was very friendly although I got fed up being distracted by the silver ball she had stuck to the middle of her tongue.  Without being pushy she jollied us along and we had a good laugh.  Bill always goes for the exotic and this time he ordered hot chocolate with cream on top.  After ordering our meal he got up and went to the counter to order a dessert which also had cream.  I'd ordered the big breakfast; when I saw it I was glad I didn't ask for the small one.  It was on a large plate so the food looked a bit lost.  I'd asked for sausage and so, in. my mind, I had a picture of a lovely long sausage - it arrived in the form of two very small and skinny patties.  The poached eggs were good but the slice of sourdough bread was dollhouse size.  The waitress had been told it was mine and Bill's birthday; when she came around to see if anyone wanted dessert I refused and she said, "Go on!  It's on the house."  I really didn't want one but I ordered a rhubarb crumble thing with cream and shared it with Shannon.

Plans changed and it was decided that Bill and I would go with Yi Yi to visit her mother while the others went to help Jenny choose some new glasses.  At the house I went marching into Khin Khin's bedroom and yelled at her to get up.  She put on her mardy baby voice and said she didn't want to get up but Yi Yi made her.  Once she was in the living room with us she brightened up and we had a good visit.  Her mind is bright but she does forget things but at 92 that's OK.

She said she was lonely so Yi Yi said she could easily move into a nursing home and have people fighting to get into her bed, which did happen recently when she was in hospital.  Now she wants to go back to Burma.  Yi Yi said that was fine but she had to make her own arrangements.

She wanted something to eat so I joined her with a large bowl of Burmese fish soup which had lemon grass, vinegar, cilantro, hard boiled egg, onion and other things in it.  It was hearty and spicy.  We then had a cup of tea and then the carload arrived so we had to leave.

I drove back and picked up my car but instead of going home I walked along the Sturgeon River for over an hour as I haven't had any exercise all week.  It was gratifying to feel my Fitbit vibrating.

Back at the farm I told Jenny I'd cook the vegetables for lunch tomorrow but I won't be here as I'm off to Hubble's Lake to dine with Bea.

As usual I'm spending time replying to all my birthday wishes on Facebook, Messenger and by email.  I know I could send a single message but I'm daft enough to want to write to everyone.  And so ends my birthday.

A lovely, lazy day

The family left before breakfast so I forgot to get up.  Normally, I hear Bill thumping around but today he was not around.  I did get up at 8.15am and had my breakfast.  I thought I'd do my normal routine when I'm on my own and that's to read the BBC news on my iPad.  Unfortunately, sitting in the kitchen, I had no reception so that idea went through the window.

It was a snowy day, and there was no one around, so I decided to be lazy.  I spent most of the day reading, writing and snoozing.  It was lovely although at times I did feel guilty.  I really do get fed up with that Protestant ethic business but what to do about it when it seems to be in my genes?

The dreaded YouTube

I'm enjoying my new blog but I can't say the same when it comes to sending information to the blog. If I include a photo the server doesn't like it and so my writings sit in the outbox refusing to move. There are still items from yesterday that haven't gone and today is almost over. I'm told photos enhance a blog but what to do? I'm in rural Canada which is a little bit like Siberia and so the internet services are not the same as in the towns.

I got so frazzled trying to send emails containing photos that I finally gave up and decided to do my daily birthdays on Facebook, followed by Messenger news, then the BBC news. Today I got even more distracted and I thought of looking at the news from the USA. It was all about Judge Kavanaugh so I gave up - American broadcasting voices always seem so strident to me and they exhaust me.

I did the wrong thing, I wandered into other areas on YouTube. I felt I needed a laugh and there was a programme of a show done by Lily Savage. I'd never heard of him although he's very famous as a cross-dresser in the UK. I laughed until tears rolled down my face. He says he's from Liverpool but then he talks about Leeds and other places in Yorkshire. He's definitely from up there somewhere and, with his rapid fire speech, I had a heck of a job following everything he said. He's very raunchy but nobody takes any offence as he's so funny. Where he got his long lady-like legs from I have no idea, but I'm sure lots of women are green with envy. Later I found snippets from his quiz show called Blankety Blank. It was non stop laughter and even the guests and competitors were constantly laughing. It's sad that these sort of shows aren't produced any more; now we have to watch so-called expert chefs pulling people to bits about their cooking. I've got one sister who makes notes of recipes but I've yet to see her use any of them.

I did get some other work done. I have finally managed to dry the hall carpet by using a heater but there's still a fusty smell hanging around. I had lunch with the folks and shared my holiday news with Jenny - the men are never so interested. I wonder what I can do this evening? I can't watch any more Lily Savage as I'm laughed out for the day. Yesterday I watched a beautiful British programme about the mother of Shakespeare; it was fascinating.

When I was in Heathrow airport, on my way back here, I wandered into a bookshop. I saw a book written by Alan Bennett. I really do enjoy his plays but this is a diary for a few of his recent years. I'm finding it a struggle. He's got a strange way of writing sentences that I find a bit off-putting. He skips days (maybe because nothing interesting happened) and when he does write, he often has just a couple of lines for the day. It's a bit too bitty for my liking but I have to read it and it's over 500 words. I think I'll have to find Lily Savage every so often.

I think it’s Thursday

I'm terrible with dates and days. I suppose it's because I'm retired and I don't have much to do. At the farm, in the basement, there's a strip of wood moulding that runs around the room at eyeball level. I write an event on my calendar and then I put the information on a piece of paper which I stick to this moulding in date order. On the day before an engagement I take down the piece of paper and I stick it to my wallet. It's the only way I can keep myself organised. I've just noticed my wallet is still in the car! I don't have anything to do until Sunday so I'm safe.

Florence always makes a magnificent breakfast and today we had toast with poached eggs and bacon, with a plate of fruit. Back at the farm Bill and I have boring breakfasts - he fixes up his cereal to which he adds things that are lying around such as yogurt, uncooked oat flakes, apple pulp which is left over from his juicing activities and something he's found in a bottle in the fridge. They are chia seeds and hemp hearts but he hasn't a clue - he just likes to put things on his cereal. Meanwhile I'm having two slices of bread along with marmalade and Marmite.

We looked at photos of their holiday in the Netherlands and I showed them mine from England. Florence had been offered an e-bike but she'd turned it down as she felt she would lose some control. It was ironic because after breakfast I read of an incident in the Netherlands in which children were killed going to school. The lady was riding a gadget that involves a bike attached to a trolley which can hold about six little children. It is also electric. She'd dropped off one child at his school and was going to another when she drove under a level crossing barrier and was hit by a train. I think four were killed; there were three sisters in the trolley and two of them were killed. Cars were lined up waiting for the gate to open and one witness said she heard the lady shouting, "The brakes won't work". It reminded me of what had worried Florence; the lady had lost control. Apparently, there are 3,500 of these particular child carrying devices operating in the Netherlands so there will have to be some soul searching about this accident.

I came back the normal way and didn't get lost. For one hour I was almost alone on the roads, seeing only two other cars. Then I hit the main highway and the ring road around Edmonton and it was bumper to bumper and constant lane changing, which is something I hate. I was glad to get back.

The 2019 Cambodian Dental Mission begins

I've just had the news that another team will be coming to Cambodia in January 2019. I think it might be our 15th programme so, as they say, I should be right proud. In the early days I used to wake up in the middle of the night for months, worrying about logistics, meals, people etc., but last year I told Thornin he could do all the paper work with the various Ministries and he mustn't tell me anything until January 7th. In December he wanted to tell me some good news but I refused to listen and I told him to save it until January. It worked well too, because I ended up sleeping well most of the time. Last night I woke up around 2am muttering about something or other to do with the dentists so it's started all over again. I often think of retiring from it all but Thornin and Boroith say we have to continue as it helps the poor people, and it does too.

Wednesday, was a lovely day so I set off for Leduc where Dr. Hans Shih has his dental clinic. I arrived early so I got a few thousand steps in by walking around the block a few times. On my way to his clinic I passed a kiosk offering services such as nail treatment, pedicures, eyebrows and lashes. I was flabbergasted to see an elderly, grey haired man, laying back in the chair, having his eyebrows done. I think it's a lot easier with a comb and a pair of scissors.

I love arriving precisely on time so I walked into his clinic at exactly 2pm. With a name like Hans I was expecting a Teutonic type of chap but he turned out to be a slight Asian from Taiwan. I'm sure we're going to get on like a house on fire as he says he's laid back, easy going about food and not a bit finicky. If the rest of the team is like Hans it's going to be good. On the other hand, I've never had a 100 per cent perfect group so I'll have to be ready for anything.

We chatted for half an hour about the programme and what I expected from him and he from me. I'll send them blurbs about culture, the programme, budget etc and I hope the members read it. Most of the time I can tell people haven't read anything but this year one person was honest enough to say, "There was too much!"

After talking with Hans, I set off for Rimbey to spend the night with the Stemos. I decided to dawdle along the secondary roads rather than the main roads and naturally I got mixed up. I finally decided things weren't right and I turned around to try another way; if I'd gone further ahead I'd have ended up in Pigeon Lake. It covers almost 100 sq km so it took me ages to work my way around it. Luckily Florence and Ken are flexible about cup of tea time so I was able to have one when I arrived. They'd been on a holiday in the Netherlands, including a week of bike riding each day, and that's very good for people in their late 70s.

I always enjoy being with the Stemos because they are good stewards of the land, teachers, into healthy activities, interested in social justice, have visited Cambodia and know my friends. So that means the conversation goes all over the place. At 9pm it was decided we should watch the news and I noticed that most of the time I was the only watching it as the other two were fast asleep. I decided I shouldn't cough or shuffle to wake them up - I must have exhausted them.

Odds and sods day

It was a quiet walk; I saw nobody and no animals, although there were deer tracks in the mud. The University has quite a lot of grain standing but it’ll be a while before it can be harvested because of the wet ground. In the old days a horse and equipment made hardly a dent in the ground but the modern tractors would be stuck if they attempted to work in the fields at the moment.

I wished I’d had a camera. I heard the familiar honking of geese and, when I looked upwards, I saw two V formations and, as they came towards each other they formed a perfect capital W. It was an amazing sight. Seeing as I couldn’t take a picture, I’ll have to make do with this one from the spring. Now that’s parenting overload.

It's getting close to departure time for Cambodia and I'm now officially in "panic mode". I had to be reminded today that I was leaving on a Saturday. I usually get a day in my head and it's totally wrong.

I made four stops on the way to having lunch with Priscilla; she's been adopted by Cambodian friends as she's been three times with various dental groups. The young students she knew in the beginning are now married with their own families so she always wants to know what they are up to. This time she told me that one of them plans on coming to Canada next year. He is coming in the winter because he wants to experience cold and snow.

After lunch I drove back to the farm and changed to work in the garden. For the first time in a week the temperature was a pleasant 9C but the garden is still like a bog. I pulled all the bean vines from the fences and either the goats or the sheep will enjoy them. The tomatoes are hidden under layers of old mats, blankets and tarps as we are getting frost in the evening. I was told that all the squash had been collected but I found another six which will please Jenny. There are a lot in the garden but they belong to people who have a row each planting season. I have no idea if they people have decided they aren't gardening any more. Last year I picked some because I thought they were abandoned and this spring the owner of the row said that someone had stolen all her squash.

I found some shaggy parasol mushrooms in the lawn so I found a bucket and went mushroom hunting. So now I know what I'm having for tea - mushrooms in a white sauce on toast.

A mushroom treat

No snow or rain today, but it's forecast for tomorrow.  I gave Stefan a hand at the other house and did some cleaning out in the fridge.  It's amazing how stuff accumulates, when one is into saving leftovers.  After lunch I went into the garden and managed to dig up all the onions.  The ground is so wet I am worried that they'd start to rot if left in the ground.  I brought them inside and now they are languishing on a table in the basement, drying out as they are covered with mud.  I dug up some carrots and then attempted to get some parsnips.  I don't know why but they always grow as if they are trying to reach the centre of the earth.  With the soaking wet soil and the fact that their roots were so long, I had to work the fork all around the plant before attempting to pull it out of the ground - some of them are longer than the tines of the fork.  Washing them was an ordeal as I did it outside in the freezing cold water.  I threw the greens to the sheep but they didn't seem to interested in them.

I cooked the mushroom in oil and butter, with a touch of nutmeg - I learnt that from the two fat ladies who had a lovely cookery programme on British television.  So now I have to get them past Jenny who can't stand nutmeg. 

Holly the horse lady came today so that means poor old Sheba has to be tied up as she gets so excited and runs around and around the horses while she's working with them.  I get a bit fed up with her because she complains about Sheba yet the dog was here long before her horses came. 

We always have to have buckets of water in the basement, to water the plants during the winter.  That's because we have our own well and the water contains soda, which kills the plants.  Carrying 5 gallon pails full of water down into the basement was a chore and I got wet with the water slopping around.

I was supposed to phone Gwen in Regina at 7pm but Yi Yi came for a visit and we nattered away until almost 8pm.  Then Gwen phoned to remind me.  It was a good thing as I think Yi Yi would have stayed longer.  I haven't seen her for a while and so I had to catch up with all her news.  She doesn't have an easy life.  She's still married to Sunil but he lives on his own in another house.  She's taking care of her mother who is over 90 and needs a lot of help.

My last visit to Lacombe for 2018

I always sleep well when I'm in Lacombe.  My bed in the basement has a couple of heavy blankets and a thick quilt so it's like the old days when duvets were French.  I always like to join Sheila before breakfast as she enjoys making me a cappuccino with lots of froth on top and in an enormous mug.  We sit looking at the arrival of daylight and watching the birds at the feeders and the squirrels trying to find a way to get the seeds.  On the deck a Downey woodpecker was rattling away at something between the boards.  It's always a nice way to start the day.

After breakfast I helped Sheila post her three old fibreglass canoes on Kijiji; she wants to give them away as they need work on them.  Meanwhile she's bought herself a new canoe which is now anchored at the Leaney lake.  She's amazing; when she was in the Yukon she fulfilled her dream of canoeing down the Yukon River; she had a guide chap in the canoe but, at well over 80, I think that's good going.

Before leaving Lacombe I drove to see Mo and Peter.  I had to hang around a bit because Peter said Mo was in the semi nude.  I feel sorry for her as her health isn't good.  I said it may be to do with all her skating years when she and Peter were in the European Icescapades show - I'm sure she must have fallen a thousand and one times while practising and rehearsing.  I said I was lucky as I avoid all forms of sports.

The drive north was a miserable one.  I filled up with gas and bought two sausage rolls for my lunch.  The visibility was so bad I kept finding a car with tail lights on so I could see what was in front.  It kept trying to snow and rain all the way back to the farm.

When I got back to the house I had to laugh because Bill had found another mushroom.  It was enormous so I took a photograph of it, looking as if it was my dinner plate, with knife and fork alongside. I'll have to cook it before it becomes mushy.

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Picture attribution: I forgot to take a photo of the frothy coffee. The picture above was added by a friend who helped me set up this blog. The image is by Todesschnalze from Wikimedia Commons, and is released under Creative Commons.

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A surprise visit to Lacombe

It's awful waking up with no sunlight streaming into the room - winter is coming.  Outside it's dismal with mud and slush everywhere; poor Sheba looks bedraggled as she refuses to take shelter.

Before lunch I welcomed some of the people from the Permaculture group.  They are using Bill's kitchen for the weekend, and his living room for a seminar.  They are a hippy looking group but quite pleasant.  I asked Bill if he was going to be welcoming them and he said he wasn't.  Later I mentioned to Jenny that I thought it was odd that Bill would invite them but have nothing to do with them when they arrived.  Jenny said it was her and John who'd invited them - not to work in their kitchen but in Bill's.

I showed them where to find pots and pans, beakers etc and then I left to have lunch at the other house.  I told them I'd made three traps to catch the hoards of fruit flies.  They plan on making jam so it's possible we'll have even more flies in the kitchen.  Before going over, I checked my email and there was one from Joy Newman saying she and Keith would be with the family in Lacombe today and why didn't I join them.  Seeing as the house would be full of people I decided to phone Lacombe to see if it would be OK, and it was.

For about an hour it was a miserable drive with snow and rain in the air.  It was difficult to see when vehicles past.  Thankfully, it cleared up and so, for two hours, I just had to contend with light drizzle.  I'm now hoping it won't freeze and I'll have a safe drive back tomorrow.

I was pleased to discover I was the second youngest among the six people sitting around the table.  Nowadays, I often find that I'm the oldest person in the room.  I've been to restaurants in Cambodia and I've noticed that I push up the average age by quite a bit.  Three of the family have or have had terrible colds so the coughing sounded quite profound; one member is booked for a new hip next month.  I felt quite good about myself as I feel all right.  I tell people that I love being with old folks - they can be quite funny.  Jack received a Rotary International award for his contributions to something or other.  Sheila said, "How did you manage that when you spend all your time in the basement?"  Joy had just had a birthday so she was presented with a cup cake with a candle.  Sheila had also remembered my birthday on the 23rd so I also got a cake.  Sheila then placed a lovely apple pie on the table so I decided to save the cake and focus on the pie.  She always says to people, "If you don't like the pastry, blame Peter as it's his recipe."  I can't remember a thing about it but I go along with the story as it's fun.

I watched the Canadian national news for a while but gave up as it was almost entirely about the hurricane that has landed in North Carolina.  I'm sure other things are happening around the world so I'll have to turn to trusty old BBC.

Thank God for the Guardian newspaper

The plumber has been, now I need a carpenter

My plain wooden box which I use to keep odds and ends in, now wrecked by the plumber

Last night I decided to read the "Sun" newspaper I'd picked up at Heathrow airport.  Before boarding I had noticed a rack containing various magazines so I grabbed Tatler, GQ and Conde Nast for Jenny to look at.

I am not a regular Sun reader and I won't become one either.  I've never read such nonsense in all my life.  The news about Boris Johnson messing around with other women should be a serious topic as he's hoping to become Prime Minister of the UK but for the Sun it's more like he was having a romp.  I only managed a few pages and then I decided it would be better to go to sleep. 

Earlier I'd had a look through the other magazines and all the time I was wondering who reads the darn things.  The travel magazine is full of exotic destinations and expensive hotels and food; the other two seem to be for those with money to spend on fancy clothing, expensive perfumes and society gossip.  It makes me wonder who works for these publications as I have a feeling none of the employees would read any of them.  If I worked for the Sun I'd be totally embarrassed to tell people about my job.  If I worked for the other publications I'd fast track myself to become an anarchist.  Thank God for the Guardian.

Not much happened today.  I haven't taken the dog for her walk as the paths are too muddy.  Tomorrow I'll most likely take her as I have to get out of the house because of the cooking people who are coming to work in the kitchen.

The plumbers wrecked my plain wooden box which I use to keep odds and ends in - I decided to stain the top to cover up the blobs of something obnoxious they allowed to land on it.  I also wiped the muck off the walls so that I could hang the picture and get things back to normal.  I suppose the pipes were full of gobbledygook as they must be as old as the house, which is almost 100 years. Now, instead of copper piping coursing its way through my bedroom I've got plastic ones.

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Chilli and heroin

September snow at the farm

Snow falls on the farm on 13 September, 2018

I woke up, thinking it was early as it was dark outside. I'd forgotten I was back in Canada and the dark nights and mornings had started. What made it more miserable was the snow falling. During the morning I could hear flocks of geese honking their way over the farm, looking for fields of grain that had been harvested. They need the grain to fatten up for their flight south but they are unable to get at the grain if it's under snow. Fortunately, the soggy snow started to melt during the day.

In the afternoon a young man, who is related to someone who works at the farm, came to cook chilli. I never did find out why it had to be done here. I'm hoping it's because mine is the only organised kitchen in the neighbourhood. He arrived with four enormous shopping bags full of ingredients - many tins of kidney beans, tomatoes, tomato paste, along with celery, carrots, onions. He also wanted a long list of herbs and spices, many of which I'd never heard being put into chilli.

Sam turned out to be 20 years of age and very tall and well built. I have never met a young man, in this part of the world, who was happy to talk about his personal life with someone he'd never met before. Recently, he'd spent a year in rehab because of dealing in drugs and having a drug addiction - he was addicted to heroin. I was amazed that this young man had been a dealer in drugs, selling it to people and dealing with the Hell's Angels - at one point he'd owed them thousands of dollars.

While Sam chopped veg and got his chilli cooking he told me about life with his parents. His father had died after a horrific accident and he said his mother was a sociopath, using her children for her own ends and making their lives miserable. Since then he's been raised by his grandmother and helped by an uncle. If I'd seen him on the street, without knowing a thing about him, I'd have classed him as a typical young Canadian who had his head screwed on. He knows that a lot of his problems come from his dysfunctional home life but, compared to many people, he was happy to face all these issues and learn from them.

He spoke a lot about his time in rehab, the friendships he built and how he keeps in touch with some now they have been released; it's given him a sort of support group. He seems to have come out of his personal dark tunnel knowing himself a lot better and more able to handle life. I began to think that rehab would be a great place for a lot of us to be in, just to get our lives back in order. He's been invited to schools to talk about his life and, in his words, to scare the pants off the kids. He admitted he'd seen a lot of things he isn't able to talk about at the moment - things that were not nice to see. I was fascinated by our time together, and the chilli's great too.

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Farm housework

Snow and more snow.  It's the soft, fluffy kind so it won't last long.  I do feel sorry for the geese who are flying over looking for land that may have grain lying on it.  They can't dig so sometimes it can be a difficult time for them.

I prepared most of the lunch today.  Bill saved pounds of shaggy parasol mushrooms for me that he'd found around the farm yard.  If I give him one meal of them he's happy.  I cooked them all up in a large pan and now I have four bags with about a 0.5kg in each one.  I most likely won't be using them here but I can give them away to friends when I move around Alberta next summer.  Now that's positive thinking.

I've started to sort out my packing for Cambodia.  I've put the Lego table in my big suitcase and crammed things around it.  I still have to deal with the two large containers of 'bricks', wheels and little people that Norma gave me along with the table.  It's going to be useful in the apartment because I have no toys for the children to play with when they visit with their parents.  They are usually given an iPhone to play with but I'm against that as it usually means cartoons or games.  I used to have three teddy bears but Cheata has taken them.  Other than the Lego I don't have much in the way of personal items to take - I brought back some shirts, which I'll leave here, and take more appropriate ones back.  I need cotton rather than synthetic clothing.

I've also found cook books for Samnang, reading books for Punleu and some origami things for Oudom.

We still have no drinking water because the equipment was turned off by the plumbers and they haven't come back to turn it on again.  It's a nuisance when we can't turn on a regular tap and get ordinary water.

I managed to do over 7,000 steps today and almost all of that was inside the house.  There's something wrong with the heating system too; I'm boiling in the basement and freezing upstairs.

Returning to Canada

All good things must come to an end.  I had breakfast with Dave and Ellie; Dave decided I should have a substantial breakfast before getting my flight so I had mushrooms and tomato on toast, along with a fried egg.

Ellie left for work and a short while later Dave drove me to terminal two at Heathrow.  What a maze of roads and buildings; I'd definitely need a guide or a navigation gadget if I were doing it.  I said goodbye to Dave and headed into the terminal.  It's not my favourite pastime any more as I always worry about something going wrong - and it usually does.

This time I couldn't work the machine for checking in.  I'd already got my boarding passes at Dave's home so there wasn't that much more that needed to be done, but things went wrong.  A picture shows you how to put your passport into the machine and it shows a passport face up.  It didn't work for me and, after asking an employee, I learned it should be face down.  Then it asked if I was American or another nationality, followed by questions about ID numbers; I typed in my passport number but it was the wrong one.  I had nothing else to give so I pressed 'quit' and headed for the next machine.  There I put in my Aeroplan number and seconds later out came my baggage tag.  So why the earlier problem?

I thought all of this meant I'd sail through but it wasn't to be; I ended up queuing with people who hadn't done any prior work.  I eventually got rid of my bag and set off for departures.  I put my belongings in the trays for x-ray and joined the line to walk through the security gate.  It beeped!  "Take your shoes off and go back and put them in a tray".  I did that.  "Do you have anything in your pockets?"  Now for me that means do you have anything metal in your pockets.  I said I didn't.  "You have something in that pocket", the man said.  I took out my pound notes.  "I said take everything out of your pockets", so that meant my grotty handkerchief, toothpick and money.  "Stand on those yellow markers and hold your hands in the air."  He then wandered off leaving me standing there looking like a twit.  He finally came back and the machine did its thing.  Then I had to stand, with my arms outstretched, to be frisked.  Don't ask me what I'd done.  I stood around to see if it was happening to other people and I noticed they'd picked on a little elderly lady.  Meanwhile all those suspicious looking characters were going through with no problem at all.

I sat in the lounge, wrote a note to Dave to say I'd made it, and did my usual venting.  The flight was very good, which is something new for me to say about Air Canada. The staff were healthy, not overweight, hard working and very friendly.  I wonder if it had anything to do with the fact they were French Canadian as I was flying to Montreal.  The chicken dinner and mashed potatoes was good, the salad was a tabouli which was too cold for me and dessert a cookie.  I made up for it by having two bottles of wine, two cans of beer and a Bailey's.  I thought, "Why not!"  Usually, I just sit in my seat and accept what comes along but this time I got exercise by going to the back of the plane and asking for something - and it works too.

Someone at the back of the plane was sick so the staff asked if there was a doctor on the plane.  I saw a number of people getting up and going to the back.  When we landed we were told we couldn't get out of our seats until the paramedics had come on board to remove the patient.  We sat for half an hour and I didn't see anything exciting going on although I did see a black family, with children, walking down the aisle towards the exit.

I panicked because I didn't have long to wait before I caught my Edmonton flight.  In Montreal we exit our plane and land up in the public area which was full of people, restaurants, shops and bars.  I prefer empty passage ways so this was a challenge.  I went through electronic security and, as usual, I was honest and said I was going to a farm.  That meant I was sent to speak with Jean-Michel who was a very large black chap with long braided hair and wearing black plastic gloves.  I couldn't decide if elegance or protection from germs was the reason for the gloves.  The officer in the next booth had bare hands so I think it was an affectation.  He let me through which was nice of him.

The flight was full and a drag as it was four hours and I'd already been travelling around 10 hours since leaving Dave's home.  I couldn't find a movie to watch so I saw bits and pieces.  The music wasn't inspiring either so I did my best to switch off and ignore life.

In Edmonton I was met by Sulaiman, which was a real treat.  He'd been picked up by Waris to come along for the ride.  His job was to find me in the airport while Waris sat in his parked car at the service station up the road.  It was pouring with rain but it stopped just as we reached St. Albert.  The big news was that I had to expect three days of snow starting from tomorrow.  It's lovely to be back in sunny Alberta!  Waris talked about Bill wanting to dig up the potatoes tomorrow, which I thought was a daft idea as they would be caked with mud.   I think he was joking; in any case, I won't be doing it as I'll be suffering from jet lag!

We dropped Sulaiman off at home and we eventually reached the farm.  I got Waris to stop by the hedge so I could walk across the lawn and not wake people up.  I have no water in the basement until Thursday so I have to use the bathroom upstairs.  Pipes are missing from my bedroom and the downstairs shower has gone.  I've been telling the family not to spend money on a new one but they've gone and done it anyway.  There's nothing wrong with the shower, it's the quality of the water that has chemicals in it that bung up the shower holes.  Anyway, I decided I didn't care so I took a happy pill and went to bed.  And so ends a lovely month and now another short chapter starts as I've only got 18 days before I leave again for Cambodia.

A walking day in Hertfordshire

It's been a day of superlatives. It started off with a hearty breakfast of fried egg with beans on toast. Later in the morning I set off on a walk with Dave and Ellie. How on earth anyone finds his or her way around this part of the world is beyond me. The roads are narrow and winding and the hedges on both sides are so high it's impossible to see what's on the other side. In Alberta I'm used to straight roads, with the mountains to the West so I know where I'm going - here I don't.

I can never come to Brookmans Park without learning something new about computers from Dave.  People often wonder why I, as a Canadian, have a UK Yahoo account - that’s courtesy of Dave.  This time he decided I should have a blog for my diary, which has been kept since early1981 when I moved to Nigeria.  It started off on an ancient manual typewriter and then I progressed to an IBM with the ball.  When I returned to Canada and moved to the Arctic I bought a tiny Mac Classic computer and printed out my diary.  Since then I’ve saved my diary on disks, which might be a problem in the future.  For the last few years I’ve written it directly onto my iPad.  This worries me as things tend to crash.  Now I’ve got this new blog which I do by writing an email to my “secret” account and magically it goes into a blog which I’ve created using Google.  It’s all quite amazing so let’s see how long it lasts.

On our walk, I mentioned to Dave that the glass face of my Fitbit had cracked and he said his had too.  He also mentioned that he got a free replacement.  Straight away he delved into his archives and sent me the link to Fitbit so I could request a replacement.  After taking photos of my Fitbit and writing a few words I received a message from the support people saying they were sending me a new one.  I’ve passed on the information to nephew Richard, who showed me his Fitbit with the same crack.  Yet another magical thing by visiting Dave.

Time for a new Fitbit screen

We walked along footpaths and wider roads that have been used by farmers for years. The walk was number 55 in Dave and Ellie's collection, The Ayot North East Loop. We saw a lady with two Spaniels, a man carrying his baby in a sling on his chest, and two people on bicycles; I don't think the lady was impressed when we refused to get off the path. The scenery is beautiful with a different view every time there was a gap in the shrubbery. What fascinated me was the rolling terrain and the fields of different shades of green, gold and brown. I learned about a local river which is known as River Mimram. This is one of only 200 rivers in the world that are known as a chalk stream. I'm told around 180 of them are in the. UK. It was very shallow and clear, flowing over a pebbled base; watercress grows in the water and they've existed since Roman times. I would have liked to have sampled the water but Dave said there were cows upstream. In the photo above you can see the river. It's a nice photo but I do feel as if I look like a gnome.

Travelling to Brookmans Park

I had a leisurely morning finishing packing, stripping the bed, walking around to make sure everything was in its place ready for Janet’s return from her holiday.  I put the pepper plants back in their greenhouse; with yesterday’s rain I’m sure they are wet enough to survive until she comes back on Friday.  I had a panic attack just before leaving because I realised I was going to use Brian’s bus pass for my train travel.  As usual I had to search half a dozen pockets before I found my rail pass.  I also remembered to put a £20 note around Janet’s sherry bottle so she can buy another one.

Brian came on time to drive me to the station.  It’s been a good visit because I spent more time with him than usual.  Sadly, I only had one visit with Barbara because of yesterday’s rain.  I had plenty of time to claim my tickets and to get to the platform.  I found my seat on the train and settled in for the ride to King’s Cross.  I wondered why all the reserved seats were in my carriage rather than scattered throughout the train.  The woman sitting in front was on the phone for about 20 minutes so I learned all about her plans for tomorrow and the fact that she might be hung over so she wouldn’t be able to do too much.

In London I got my exercise walked to the underground and finding the Victoria line to Islington.  I walked the long corridor behind a very tall and well built man; I noticed that the top of my head didn’t even reach his armpits - he was huge but not obese.  He also had a shaved head which made him even more menacing.  I got off the train in Islington and headed for what I heard was the “above ground railway”.  I happened to see a sign telling me to go there and was surprised when I ended up on a platform that was underground.  The first train came along and it said it was going to Stevenage - Brookmans Park wasn’t listed so I decided to go to Finsbury Park to be on the safe side and then I waited for the Brookmans train.  David was waiting for me with the car.

Mike was home from his Croatia trip so I was able to chat with him about John Lewis Stores, for whom he works.  I love their advert on television.  We had no idea what it was advertisiing - it’s just a fun thing based on children in a school concert.  It is so much fun and imaginative; they must have spent a lot of money doing it but I’m sure it gives a lot of people pleasure.

We relaxed, chatted, ate, caught up with our lives and then we had to do the compulsory trip to the Woodman Pub with their friend Andrew and his dog Poppy who is a fox terrier.  It reminded me of our Maureen’s Poppy, whom she inherited from our Alan.  It’s a totally unsociable dog that is not at all friendly and just sits in a bed most of the day.  Andrew’s Poppy is identical but she has the added trait of hating dogs, horses, hedgehogs etc.  He had to hang onto the dog for our entire time in the pub and, if a dog came close it was hell on wheels.  I think they were glad to see the back of us when we left.

Watching TV at The Brewer's

On our return we had to watch “The Bodyguard” as it was episode four.  I won’t see the final two but someone will tell me what happened.  This week the ending was a bit bland compared to last week’s explosion.

Last day in Armthorpe

A lazy day because of the wet weather.  There was a dry spell this morning so I walked down to see our Maureen, to buy some batteries and to shop for cards, which I decided not to do.  Jenny always wants cards for a gift but I didn’t see any I thought were worth buying.

It poured this afternoon so I brought Janet’s pepper plants out from the greenhouse so they got a bit of a wash.  I’ll have to remember to put them back tomorrow.

I thought it had stopped raining around 5pm so I decided to get dressed to walk over to see Barbara in Edenthorpe.  When I stepped food outside I realised it was raining steadily so I tried on one of Janet’s waterproof jackets but it was too tight and I couldn’t pull up the zipper.  I decided to stay home so I phoned Barbara and told her I’d like Brian to take me to the station tomorrow at 10.30am - the end of my time here.

I’ve watched some television; I love the programmes that the British do on the UK.  Today I saw a programme on the low tides of England that cover ancient items from years gone by.  I was amazed that the shoreline at Rye used to be 3km out into the channel.  There was a 40m deep shaft dug by people of the Bronze age to get water for the animals grazing on the cliffs.  A Dutch East India company ship, the Amsterdam, rests in the sands on the shore.  A fascinating programme.

Our Barbara phoned and so I was able to say goodbye formally.

And so my time here ends.  It’s been good seeing the family and knowing that they are reasonably OK.