hI love my son and his family. They live in Calgary, which is close to a 6 hour drive from me. It is a challenge for me to go there to see them for various reasons. The main one, of course, is that I have a farm to run. The animals need to be fed and watered every day. In order to go away overnight, I must do all the chores on the day I leave, providing extra food and water for the following day as well. Sheep, pigs, goats and dogs will devour the two day's supply of food in one day though and be hungry the following day, plus if it is hot outside, they will deplete their water supply as well. It is not critical that they go a day without food and water, particularly since they gorged themselves the previous day, but there are other issues. Robbie, the border collie, must be tied for the absence. He cannot be trusted not to chase the sheep or cows or something that will run without my supervision. He has a pretty safe place to be tied without a chance to jump over a fence and hang himself or get too tangled that he cannot move to get a drink or eat. Still, he has gotten tangled and he has attempted to jump the fence. Fortunately for him, his collar is not tight and he was able to slip it. I was home, thank goodness, but if I was not, he would have had every opportunity to herd some poor critters and worry them to death.
So, chores must be done on the day of leaving and the day of returning, which leaves the visit very short. My truck is old and sometimes I argue with myself whether it should be taken on long journeys, which of course will contribute to it wearing out sooner than later. Still, I really had a desire to see my new granddaughter. I had only met her once before briefly and do wish to be part of her life. So, I drove down to visit.
Living in the country for 5 years, I do not hear people or traffic. They kids live in the city of Calgary and it is busy twenty four hours a day. There are comings and goings and sirens and trucks and noises that keep me awake or waken me. I can sleep through barking dogs, but not city noise. And the baby is teething, bless her tiny heart. She was not fussy really, she is such a good little girl. She hardly ever cries and even then, it is only a moment before her loving mother whisks her away and loves her to sleep. Still, she wakes early in the morning and so does the family and so did I, but I felt as though I did not sleep. The cat jumped up to snuggle with me on her couch, where I was parked for the night. I was startled and without thinking dumped her quickly to the floor where she meowed three times and gave up.
But then, as I arrived, I heard a strange and unhappy noise from the wheel of my truck. I told my son and asked to help me get it checked prior to driving home. We took it to the shop and found out the wheel bearings had gone and the truck was actually too dangerous to drive. We were fortunate nothing happened to us as we drove to have it looked at. The shop gave us a lift back to their condo and 1000 dollars later, I began the journey back to the north. It was already late.
I encountered two severe thunderstorms on the way. Visibility was extremely poor and driving was slow, especially through Edmonton. I arrived home just after midnight and went out to do what needed to be done only. It was raining from Ponoka, two hours south of Edmonton all the way home and is still raining today, but the thunderstorms were centered in the middle of Alberta only.
When I finally got to bed at 1:15, I was exhausted. Today I made a sad decision that I will not be able to drive to Calgary to see the family again. The truck is too old and the drive is too long. There are commuters who make that journey that I may be able to tag a ride from and there is a bus, though the cost of the bus is close to 200 hundred dollars. As much as I love my son and the family, it is not sensible nor feasible to drive. I could not help but think of what could have happened. The wheel could have fallen off at a high speed on the freeway, possibly causing injury to myself and perhaps others. Then what about the lives that depend on me for their survival back at the farm? Even the delay, and it was most fortunate that my son was able to find a shop that could take the truck, was a problem. Calgary is a busy city. Driving late at night on quiet country roads with poor visibility was not the best situation either. There were long, long distances where not another vehicle was in sight. What if I hit a deer?
You see? It is a dilemma. As much as I love to be with my son, his wife and my granddaughter, it is not a wise thing for me to drive out there. Sigh.
So, chores must be done on the day of leaving and the day of returning, which leaves the visit very short. My truck is old and sometimes I argue with myself whether it should be taken on long journeys, which of course will contribute to it wearing out sooner than later. Still, I really had a desire to see my new granddaughter. I had only met her once before briefly and do wish to be part of her life. So, I drove down to visit.
Living in the country for 5 years, I do not hear people or traffic. They kids live in the city of Calgary and it is busy twenty four hours a day. There are comings and goings and sirens and trucks and noises that keep me awake or waken me. I can sleep through barking dogs, but not city noise. And the baby is teething, bless her tiny heart. She was not fussy really, she is such a good little girl. She hardly ever cries and even then, it is only a moment before her loving mother whisks her away and loves her to sleep. Still, she wakes early in the morning and so does the family and so did I, but I felt as though I did not sleep. The cat jumped up to snuggle with me on her couch, where I was parked for the night. I was startled and without thinking dumped her quickly to the floor where she meowed three times and gave up.
But then, as I arrived, I heard a strange and unhappy noise from the wheel of my truck. I told my son and asked to help me get it checked prior to driving home. We took it to the shop and found out the wheel bearings had gone and the truck was actually too dangerous to drive. We were fortunate nothing happened to us as we drove to have it looked at. The shop gave us a lift back to their condo and 1000 dollars later, I began the journey back to the north. It was already late.
I encountered two severe thunderstorms on the way. Visibility was extremely poor and driving was slow, especially through Edmonton. I arrived home just after midnight and went out to do what needed to be done only. It was raining from Ponoka, two hours south of Edmonton all the way home and is still raining today, but the thunderstorms were centered in the middle of Alberta only.
When I finally got to bed at 1:15, I was exhausted. Today I made a sad decision that I will not be able to drive to Calgary to see the family again. The truck is too old and the drive is too long. There are commuters who make that journey that I may be able to tag a ride from and there is a bus, though the cost of the bus is close to 200 hundred dollars. As much as I love my son and the family, it is not sensible nor feasible to drive. I could not help but think of what could have happened. The wheel could have fallen off at a high speed on the freeway, possibly causing injury to myself and perhaps others. Then what about the lives that depend on me for their survival back at the farm? Even the delay, and it was most fortunate that my son was able to find a shop that could take the truck, was a problem. Calgary is a busy city. Driving late at night on quiet country roads with poor visibility was not the best situation either. There were long, long distances where not another vehicle was in sight. What if I hit a deer?
You see? It is a dilemma. As much as I love to be with my son, his wife and my granddaughter, it is not a wise thing for me to drive out there. Sigh.
Baba and baby early in the morning. I slept on the couch, so was technically still 'in bed'. Sweet little child.
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