Thursday, March 6, 2008

March 6, 2008 – Home, Dusty Home


The Canadian winter drags on.  And on.  Blah.

We are past the worst of it now but there’s definitely no obvious spring in sight as we just got walloped with another 20 centimeters of snow with another 15 expected for the weekend.  To make things worse I got an early morning phone call from two friends in Christchurch, New Zealand who are enjoying the beautiful summer there.  I didn’t tell them about the weather here – they are not the kind of guys who show sympathy for that sort of thing.  Or anything, really.

We’ve been working madly to get some vacations in the pipeline but they keep getting thwarted for one reason or another.  We do have a trip to Saskatoon planned for Easter which we’re all looking forward to, especially Magnus.  Every time we put his jacket on to go somewhere he says, “We’re going to Grandma’s now!”  Sorry kid, just going grocery shopping again.


With the lack of a decent real estate project at the moment we decided instead to finish our basement, which has put our house in a constant state of dust, at least the basement area.  We tendered out the whole job and Ana’s parents quoted zero dollars, which seemed like a decent price so we hired them.  I did pitch in by doing the electrical work, though you’re never really sure if you’ve done a good job until you’ve connected everything to the panel.  If nothing happens when you switch on the breaker, that’s likely a good sign.  If holes blow through the drywall, it’s usually a bad sign.  I should be ready to flip the switch Saturday morning and you can be sure I’ll be wearing a welder’s face shield just in case.

You may see some changes in the website soon as we are doing a makeover to spruce it up a bit.  Ana is taking an interesting “Ebiz” course which has given her some new ideas to try out.  You may have also noticed we’re working on a book.  The preliminary title now is “The Grand Adventure” and I’ve been having a wicked fun time writing it.  I’ve developed a daily writing ritual that begins at 6 am and lasts until either 7 am or when Stella gets up, whichever comes first!  It is going to be full of travel tips, but not the kind of tips you can find in any of the hundreds of guide books available (travel with a valid passport, drink bottled water, lock your door, la de da de da…BORING), they will be less obvious, more valuable and, best of all, wrapped up within the context of many travel stories.  We’re taking a much more personal approach to discussing travel, focusing on friendships, culture, personalities and even backpacker spirituality.  It’s a chance to relive and relate some of our most amazing experiences, many of which we’ve probably never told to anyone.  We’re hoping the book will be a fantastic addition to any traveler’s library.  Sign up for our distribution list and you will be the first to know when the book becomes available.

That’s all the news for now, stay cozy.


Kris