Allison wrote the sweetest thing ever on my wall.  Thanks!!!

I feel like everytime I go thru a metamorphosis......I get stronger, and better - and always end up in a happier and better place......I always find more gratitude to give to the world....and my glorious wonderful friends......show me such kindness and love that, like angels without wings - their love holds me up when I don't feel like I can hold myself up.

I know that I'm metamorphasizing now - and I cannot wait to see the new feathers I'm growing!   If I wasn't the one doing the changing it would kinda be a surprise - but now, that sounds a little too "me myself and irene-ish"......

 

 

Every store I went into on this trip - I set off the alarms GOING IN.   I announced "I"m here!"  after the first few becuase I was embarassed.......and would announce "I'm Leaving now" when I set the alarms off on my way out.....

A fabulous trip was organzied, with no detail too small to have been overlooked....... It was well thought out, well planned, executed with panache (and a little bit of the unknown), wonderful to see family together. Everything that was meant to happen  - did happen. 

My eyes and heart were filled with such beauty.  I will forever remember driving in to the mountains on the 3rd day......being awestruck by their magnificence....hearing waterfalls roadside as we drove by........  Feeling small and insignificant in their shadow, wonderful shades of green trees as far as the eye could see.....and connected to them nonetheless.  Tears streaming down my face becuase I felt so lucky to be there......grateful to my friend for making it happen and including me......my friend looking over at me saying ...."Oh brother" to my tears......I, looking over at him, driving the tractor, wearing his burger king hat, hitting the "easy button" with his toungue up his nose.  HOT!

Saying goodbye to moments and friends is sometimes hard and always sad.  But the best part is knowing that you've created amazing memories - and have a next time to make new ones.

Saturday I was seadooing in the Okanagan....trying to catch some big air - but instead getting some big bruises from my passengers chin every time we slammed down after a wave (or, when i took my hand off the throttle!)

When you've played gypsy for 9 days - it's hard to stay still.  I"m grateful for all the lessons I learned....the people I met - and the people who love me and show it. 

Tonight we left the fold of family and friends and went out for some quiet time.  The fun thing about camping, my dear friend says - is that restaurants have fridges and all the food you need....they even have cold drinks AND hot drinks.  Forget this brickette shit.......I want a steak on a flamed grille! And a BLENDED mojito!!

After dinner we drove up to the top of SilverStar mountain.....and had a drink mountain top.   Before we went in tho - we saw a HUGE BLACK BEAR!!!  Of course I was so excited that my camera just got a blur.......I could say that it's a sasquatch and you could easily see that I could be right.....Clearly bears were sometimes an issue as the bar had stairs and a big yellow iron gate around it.  I guess the bears haven't figured out the latches yet.

We drove 1/4 of the way back down the mountain, I saw a beautiful bambi buck with velvetten antlers.  He was gorgeous.

We parked for the night, crawled into the back of the truck and slept there!!  I was a little panicked at first (yes city girl - you can sleep on a mountain top!) becuase I left an open package of beef jerky (yes the city girl eats beef jerky.....and pork rinds too!) in the front of the truck.....I remember hearing stories from my god parents (avid outdoors people) about bears breaking into cars for mcdonald's wrappers...we didn't bring a phone into the back under the cap with us......altho i did have my dollar store LED flashlight which totally came in handy for nest making 101.......

I decided before I slept that I was NOT getting out of the truck all night.  A great idea - but the execution I think needed to be a little more thought out (aka bring the phone in case and leave the food at home and not in the truck!)

I was certainly grateful in the morning that we were undisturbed, still intact and not a crunchy snack that was chewy in the middle for some grizzly.   I was also grateful for my fabulous nest making skills becuase on a mountain top - it went down to 6 degrees!

Today - we were at our first camp site (and for the last time) and I paid 25 cents for a cold shower. 

It was seriously my first cold shower ever!!!!  and I paid to take it!  What's wrong with that picture?  My favorite part was my new super towel from Crappy Tire that quick drys and turns your skin into the sahara in 3.2.1. seconds.....and the fact that I felt so refreshed once I could feel my nipples again.

I looked forward to going to sleep with wet hair becuase I knew I'd wake up with shirley temple curls of cuteness in the morning!

After taking the ferry from Victoria to Vancouver - driving to Abbotsford to pick up the winnebago (that sounds like a tractor so herein will be referred to as "The Tractor") eating some lunch.......we were on the road again!  Only we watched the battery power drain as we drove.  

My conscientious friend had taken the tractor to the shop just the week before for a total once over and detail.....but ....who really knows when an alternator is about to go?  It was 4pm.....Crappy tire would be closing in a couple of hours and we needed to get it fixed.  

I willed the bays in the service centre in Chilliwack (Love that band!) to be empty so that we could be on our way within two hours......While the boys hemmed and hawed - the mechanics tried to open some engine hatch inside the tractor - the girls went to dollarrama to buy camping supplies.   We got everything we needed.....I even bought an LED flashlight.  The tractor got doctored.....at the worst possible moment (it's all about timing) I tried to inject a little humour by saying "Hey, remember that time we went camping and the alternator died in the winnebago?".........I dont' think it went over well....,but I might whip that back out in a couple of weeks to see if it's funny AFTER the fact. 

My wishes came true ...and we were on the road within two hours.  Crisis averted!  and we even went away more prepared for camping then before!

 

Today, us girls went adventuring while the boys hung out with some grass and some tees....

We went to the Sooke potholes. On the way, I saw a sign that said "Port Renfrew" knowing that we were going hiking, I yelled out "Port Renfrew, I thought you meant Holt Renfrew - that's a hike I can handle get me out of here!"

All sillies aside, An amazing river....amazing rocks - great hiking.....and fun waterfalls....I don't know that much about them really other than they were really pretty and I had fun there. I also had a wonderful release whipping rocks into the water. I grabbed a few and hurled them hard, symbolism for letting go of my anger and frustration for where my life was.........making room to accept gratitude for where I am going.

Nelly Furtado apparently donated a substantial sum of money becuase she likes going there too. I wonder if she sometimes throws rocks there too.

Nelly - thank you for caring for your roots and the earth and investing in such a beautiful place!!!

Thanks for the great day girls!!!

so I'm in victoria, and call my cousin who is in the navy.....

he invites me over to spend the eveningwith his fabulous family but first he has to pick me up....

when he asks where I am I reply 'coming down a mountain at the moment but i'm staying at the hotel by the bridge'. i'm sure most people wouild ask 'what hotel and what bridge'? but only in my family is the response 'i know exactly where you are!!

thanks glorious cousins for the wonderfule evening and the most amazing kids!!!!! loved your singing soph-a-loaf and ellen!!!!

Today we took the ferry from Seattle through the San Juan Islands to Victoria.  At the docks, they had a sign for the "Cheescake cafe".  My friend LOVES cheesecake  - so I bough him some.  They didn't have any topping for it which I think was a bit of a disappointment...until he started eating it.

I thought - if they call it the cheesecake cafe - then they'd better get their cheesecake act together....It should be there SWANSONG!

The ferry ride was a 3.5 hour tour.....it was a HUGE BOAT!  Double decked for cars and transport trucks....some with fuel.  Scary. I looked for whales the whole time, didn't see any.  It was pretty chilly on the outer deck...I found a fabulous long bench seat inside by a window - the rest of our family joined and we all napped in the sunshine watching boats, sea planes and other ferries pass by.....

Today we went to Seattle.  The drive was beautiful and not as long as I expected (1.5 hours give or take)

We found a fabulous ouchlet mall (the wallet says ouch!).  Sure there are plenty of sights to see in Seattle - the Space Needle - the Market.......but a girl needs a mall.

Sure, I had "The World's Best Chicken"  - but I don't think it was THE best chicken I've ever had.  Sadly - the ONLY thing I really wanted to do in Seattle - was get a Venti, Skinny, Tazo Chai at Starbucks. 

so I did.