Sunday, January 15, 2006
Hello from British Columbia
This was a short weekend for me. I tried to stuff entirely too much into it, especially since I got home Friday night and caught a 9:45 am flight out this morning.
I tried to finish the sprinkling system in my front yard. It didn't go so well.
The trenching machine didn't work properly. I had always used a "Ditch Witch" in the past. This was something different. It uses a spinning wheel and is NOT self-propelled. It also turns out that the gearbox requires an hourly adjustment. The people at Home Depot didn't tell me this until I had called them four times on Saturday. The reason? They had never read the manual and didn't know it themselves. I won't rent from them again.
Also my helper Robin pulled a hamstring while digging. Thankfully, that was the worse injury. I nearly fell out of the truck as we were loading the macine to take it back to Home Depot. This model has only one wheel in the front and isn't very stable. It tipped in the bed of the truck and bumped me. I nearly went out of the bed of the truck backwards. I probably would have landed on my head if I hadn't caught myself. The look on poor Robin's face as I started to tumble. It was all happening quickly, and there was not a thing he could possibly do.
It was a long trip up. The flight from Houston to Seattle was five hours, and I didn't get an upgrade. Then there was a three hour layover in Seattle. Now, as far as places to have a layover, Seattle is very nice. There are some good restaurants and shops in the terminal, in a new addition. Also, there was a spot where chair massages are offered. I was feeling sore, between wrestling with that poorly desinged machine and nearly falling out of the truck. Brady, the massuer who worked on me, really knows his craft. I felt the tension and the pain just melting out of my body. Then, it was finally time to go. The flight from Seattle to Victoria is less than an hour, on a turbo-prop. The view was quite nice from the plane. Customs and immigration was a breeze, as was the drive into the City.
My boss and I are staying at the Hotel Grand Pacific. It is right on the harbor, about a block from the British Columbia Parliament building. I had a wonderful dinner of seared prawns and scallops. We have another business dinner tomorrow. Then he flies home Tuesday afternoon. I do believe that I will look for a meeting on Tuesday night. Then I fly to San Jose on Wednesday and home on Friday.
Anybody want to help with a sprinkling system on Saturday? I promise to rent a better machine this time! :-)
My Sprint plan doesn't include Canada, so the best way to reeach me will be by email.
More about my short trip to this beautiful place later.
Today I am grateful for:
*A good CMA meeting on Saturday night with a great topic.
*For flight attendants who seem to make everything work well in the air, despite the antics of some of the other passengers.
*That Robin wants to keep coming back to help me with my projects.
*That I was able to successful set a boundary with my well-meaning but slightly intoxicated next door neighbor when he came over to try to supervise as opposed to actually help.
*For my friends Martin S, David D and Martin D. I hope you had a great weekend at Land of My Grandfathers. You were in my thoughts.
*For a nice hotel room with a comfortable bed. I will be in it within minutes of finishing this.
*For a loving higher power who brings good things to my life, when I am willing to have faith enough not to try to control outcomes.
I tried to finish the sprinkling system in my front yard. It didn't go so well.
The trenching machine didn't work properly. I had always used a "Ditch Witch" in the past. This was something different. It uses a spinning wheel and is NOT self-propelled. It also turns out that the gearbox requires an hourly adjustment. The people at Home Depot didn't tell me this until I had called them four times on Saturday. The reason? They had never read the manual and didn't know it themselves. I won't rent from them again.
Also my helper Robin pulled a hamstring while digging. Thankfully, that was the worse injury. I nearly fell out of the truck as we were loading the macine to take it back to Home Depot. This model has only one wheel in the front and isn't very stable. It tipped in the bed of the truck and bumped me. I nearly went out of the bed of the truck backwards. I probably would have landed on my head if I hadn't caught myself. The look on poor Robin's face as I started to tumble. It was all happening quickly, and there was not a thing he could possibly do.
It was a long trip up. The flight from Houston to Seattle was five hours, and I didn't get an upgrade. Then there was a three hour layover in Seattle. Now, as far as places to have a layover, Seattle is very nice. There are some good restaurants and shops in the terminal, in a new addition. Also, there was a spot where chair massages are offered. I was feeling sore, between wrestling with that poorly desinged machine and nearly falling out of the truck. Brady, the massuer who worked on me, really knows his craft. I felt the tension and the pain just melting out of my body. Then, it was finally time to go. The flight from Seattle to Victoria is less than an hour, on a turbo-prop. The view was quite nice from the plane. Customs and immigration was a breeze, as was the drive into the City.
My boss and I are staying at the Hotel Grand Pacific. It is right on the harbor, about a block from the British Columbia Parliament building. I had a wonderful dinner of seared prawns and scallops. We have another business dinner tomorrow. Then he flies home Tuesday afternoon. I do believe that I will look for a meeting on Tuesday night. Then I fly to San Jose on Wednesday and home on Friday.
Anybody want to help with a sprinkling system on Saturday? I promise to rent a better machine this time! :-)
My Sprint plan doesn't include Canada, so the best way to reeach me will be by email.
More about my short trip to this beautiful place later.
Today I am grateful for:
*A good CMA meeting on Saturday night with a great topic.
*For flight attendants who seem to make everything work well in the air, despite the antics of some of the other passengers.
*That Robin wants to keep coming back to help me with my projects.
*That I was able to successful set a boundary with my well-meaning but slightly intoxicated next door neighbor when he came over to try to supervise as opposed to actually help.
*For my friends Martin S, David D and Martin D. I hope you had a great weekend at Land of My Grandfathers. You were in my thoughts.
*For a nice hotel room with a comfortable bed. I will be in it within minutes of finishing this.
*For a loving higher power who brings good things to my life, when I am willing to have faith enough not to try to control outcomes.
# posted by 12StepSteve @ 10:06 PM 
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Your travel description sounds eerily to mine of old. Except mine were in Europe and Africa and NEVER included a masseur (not at the airport, at least).
Yeah, the masseur bit sounds wonderful!
My partner and I fenced in the back yard of our old house. We dug the post holes with a 2-man gas powered auger. Roots suck! I was so sore afterwards. At one point, my right forearm cramped (first time ever) and my fourth and fifth fingers closed into my palm. I couldn't open them for about five minutes. It was weird.
Be safe.
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My partner and I fenced in the back yard of our old house. We dug the post holes with a 2-man gas powered auger. Roots suck! I was so sore afterwards. At one point, my right forearm cramped (first time ever) and my fourth and fifth fingers closed into my palm. I couldn't open them for about five minutes. It was weird.
Be safe.
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