Oh yeah, hi there. It's me... I'm back! Yes, rum and eggnog in hand (or at least on my desk beside the key-board) I have decided it's high time I checked in with you all.. and brought us back together for some long over-due updates and howdy-do's.
When we disappeared... we had finally managed to import and bring home our wee little ship Shannon's Spirit. Now, before you ask.. I'll tell you straight up.. we didn't get much boating in this summer. Turns out there's a big difference between sliding into town for a few months between spring and fall... and then sliding out again before the real work starts... and actually landing home with no intention of leaving.
Make no mistake, we are home and we are digging in to the domestical life... house, grounds, vehicles, trailer, and of course SSpirit.. all demanding attention at the same time. Thank goodness the fence we built last year is still standing. And, thank you past owners, Marilyn & Tom, for creating such a wonderful home to come back to. And so it goes: we're home, we're involved, and we're so happy to see friends and family (who are friends too) again.. and with time to actually have good visits. We're also finding ourselves having time to become more interested (and perhaps active) in community-based situations. I actually did some research before voting in our municipal election this year... go figure.
As well, we remain in touch with our cruising family. Several have contacted us asking about the decisions we made in bringing SSpirit home; like which type of transport, what company, what paper-work and rules and laws.. etc. I now have one email I send and re-send and then offer to answer questions. It's interesting to note that quite a few of the folks who are like us in thoughts and spirit (no pun intended) are looking at their options just as we did; and several are deciding it's time to come home. That's all I'm going to say about that. We all make our own decisions, based upon our priorities and our observations related to those priorities. For us, the end of the last season was the right time to pull up stakes and return; not to our previous life... because we have changed ... (like you would.. after sailing down the coast of North America and taking up a way of life for 7 months a year for the past 7 1/2 yrs. ,,,) but to a life where even though we had left our address, our friends, and our families, were welcomed back with open arms. You can't beat that and we're very happy to be home.
One of the things we did in order to accept our future in bringing SSpirit home... and returning to a much different, seasonal, climate.. was to realize we weren't forced to stay home ALL winter. Nope, Lucy was sitting there (if you don't already know, or may have forgotten... Lucy is our little Casita trailer). Well she was sitting there in the driveway, all forlorn and such... and feeling pretty much left off the party list. So, with very little effort, we were able to concoct a vision of taking Ricki (the truck, for the uninformed) and Lucy (the aforementioned trailer) on a small 8-9 week adventure SOUTH to the WARMTH of California, Nevada, Arizona, etc. You get the picture. And, we decided that mid-January to mid-March seemed like a good time to set forth on said adventure. As you know we have very much enjoyed our camping trips down and back to Yuma (where we'd leave Lucy and then drive into Mexico and to the boat) over the past many years. We passed many places we'd like to see more of and visited many places where we'd like to stay longer. It seemed pretty clear there was more to be seen than we had explored. And so (to quote a friend) "a plan was hatched".
Before I get into the 'plan' I should share a bit of our reality with you. So far, it's all sounding rosy... and I wish for everyone life could always be without sorrow, sadness, and challenges. But, that's not usually the case and we are no different. Sadly this year we lost a beloved member of the family. She was a unique individual, stellar in so many ways. HawkOwl (her chosen name) had a life filled with her own kind of adventures and she excelled in so many ways few have a firm grasp on her as a whole. She was a child of the '20's born in Victoria. She was Kathy's father's little sister. Moira (her given name) traveled and studied extensively. She became an actress and a dancer, studying and performing with the famous Japanese Noh theatre group. She also earned her Doctorate degree and taught as a professor in the Theatre department at the University of B.C. for many years. Retiring from UBC, Dr. Mulholland became a Registered Clinical Counselor and soon thereafter took up residency on Gabriola Island. After a few years, she reconnected with forgotten artistic talents, joined the growing group of Island artists and became a respected sculptor. HawkOwl will be well remembered by those who knew her. She was a force to be reckoned with when it came to women's issues and the problems of the world at large. Her spirit poured out, through her hands and into her creations. HO will surely be missed and I'm pretty sure her concerns for the planet and for humanity will live on, as will her teachings and nuggets of wisdom - passed on when deemed necessary.
And so, our life continues... We're home and we're adapting to life where winter looms menacingly on the horizon. We did prepare for it (even if it hasn't come yet). We are the proud owners of a gorgeous wood burning stove, carefully installed in our 'to be a' rec/dart room. We have excavated a guest room and now a rec room (hereafter called "The Cabin" because it has almost everything one could need to ride out a longish power outage) out of the half-basement below our rancher. And, as of today, we have filled the woodshed with dry and split wood. It was still half full when we moved in and it's now wholly filled (with room of course for the wood gatherer).
We are ready for winter. So, how come there are blooms on the rhododendrons? :-)
Here's trusting all is well in your world.
Adios for now... CJ
PS Stay tuned for more news of our pending "Winter Escape" (mid-Jan) 'n stuff like that.
