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Relearning to Live in Cold and Snow

Winter has officially landed in Southern Saskatchewan! With windchill, we’re going to be in the -30sC/-20sF for the foreseeable future.

The weather turned really, really fast, in a matter of hours late Sunday night. I’ve been struggling to adjust to living in cold weather instead of just hibernating. I did that during cold spells during past winters, but I can’t do that for the full winter stretch!

How quickly the human mind forgets unpleasant things. It was not so long ago that I thought nothing of getting up in the dark on a frigid -40 morning, piling on the layers, coaxing my car to start, manoeuvring it down my icy laneway, driving 50KM to the city, parking, then picking my way carefully down icy streets on foot for half an hour to get to work. I had had a similar routine my entire life. This was the world I lived in and I did not know any better.

But the last few winters have really spoiled me and I’m struggling to readjust to the cold season being real work.

Being on my last propane tank, I made arrangements to have less work today so I could go get the 30lber and one 20lber filled, as well as pick up some badly needed groceries. Laura warned me that the road out to the highway would be slick.

When I woke up this morning and saw how nasty it was outside, the last thing I wanted to do was get dressed, navigate bad roads, and spend the morning running errands. But it had to be done.

I piled on the layers, starting with long johns, over which I put leggings, planning to wear my corduroy skirt. But it’s quite voluminous and I didn’t feel like having to deal with all the folds of material while wrestling with heavy propane tanks. I normally wear a skirt with a slimmer profile when running errands and doing physical work.

So pants. Since I had on the thermal underwear, jeans were an option and, since I’m continuing to melt, my smallest pair was about two sizes too big and fit nicely over both the long johns and the leggings. Add warm socks and the bottom half was cozy but presentable. I just put on two layers of polar fleece over my thermal undershirt.

I had a choice of coats, but settled for the short leather one L got me this summer. I have a nice long dress coat that is super warm, but it wouldn’t have been practical for hauling anything and my good leather coat that I normally wear in this kind of weather is about six sizes too big now. The short leather jacket is just big enough to wear a few layers under. I’m so glad L insisted on getting it for as it’s getting a ton of wear!

I added my winter boots, a scarf, a tuque, pulled up my fleece hood, and slipped into gloves then mitts. Whew!

I wound up being perfectly dressed for the conditions and activities planned for the morning and managed to look a heck of a lot more stylish than I normally do under the circumstances. 🙂

The road out was fine, although I had to take it very slowly, and the highway was okay. Downtown Assiniboia was a disaster, very slick and snowy, and I wasn’t the only one spinning out at intersections.

The propane lady was very cheerful about having to fill my tanks in the frigid conditions. While she did so, I enjoyed a cup of coffee. She told the cashier that I needed to pay for 52lbs worth, which made absolutely no sense as the maximum capacity between the two of them was 50lbs! The correct amount was 45lbs, which made a lot more sense!

I then stopped at The Bargain Shop! looking for what I call glittens, convertible fingerless gloves with mitts attached to them, but had no luck. I can’t these aren’t available locally and that I don’t have a pair in my winter bin.

Groceries were next and I went $30 over budget to get almost nothing on my list. I really hate that grocery store. 🙁

The drive home was fine until I tried to turn into the garage. There is more snow back here than I realised and I GOT STUCK. I mean, really, really, really, really, really, had to shovel loads and loads and loads and loads and just about had to go get some of my gravel stuck.

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Moya has winter tires, by the way, and they’re in good shape. I just forgot how little snow it takes to entrap a vehicle, especially if it’s covering ice.

Since I plan to go out so rarely, I need to make a point of keeping that back area shoveled and graveled otherwise my truck is going to be trapped in the garage all winter!

So that was my morning in Winterland. I’m glad to be back in my cozy home! I’m going through propane like crazy in these conditions (6 to 10lbs per day), so it would make financial sense to move to Laura’s, but getting internet there would be complicated and, frankly, I’d rather be home. I’m comfortable and productive, so I’d rather just stay here and buy the propane.

I’m trying to get into work mode, but having worked so hard for such a long stretch, I’m really struggling today. Even if I do nothing today, I’ll have a manageable amount for tomorrow, so I may just take the day to read. I had a surprise in the mail today, a package from my best friend from high school who lives in Toronto. It contained a tiny little book called The Quotable Traveler: Wise words for travelers, explorers, and wanderers. Curling up with a book and the electric blanket sounds very appealing. 🙂

“… travel is more than the seeing of sights; it is a change that goes on, deep and permanent, in the ideas of living.” Miriam Beard

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And Then There Was One

My beautiful boy Neelix died quite suddenly on Wednesday (October 9th). He was perfectly fine and normal up till late in the day Tuesday and then he got a little lethargic and sniffly. He slipped into a coma overnight and passed away peacefully at home in my arms on Wednesday afternoon.

More than one vet told me that Neelix got many more years than he should have. He was surrendered to the Ottawa Humane Society in March of 2007, emaciated, filthy, and showing signs of abuse and neglect. He had spent four months with a foster family when I met him in July of the same year. The last time he went to the vet, I was told that he was an ‘old man.’ So while I’m shocked that this happened, I’m relieved that it was much quicker than with Tabitha and that it happened naturally. I just thought we’d have a few years together. I’m glad to have had the time we did to truly bond. He was such a sweet soul.

Thank you to everyone who left a kind comment on Facebook. Here are some of my favourite pictures of my boy.

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This was early in our traveling days. He always liked to drape himself over stuff!

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This is during the winter from hell in Oliver. I didn’t like having him on the counter, with the heater under it, it was the warmest spot in the rig!

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This was in the rental house just before I moved into the rig.

CIMG0001-4I’d love to know why he thought this was a good idea.

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One of his MANY oh-so-cute poses!

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He loved to perch at the top of those stairs!

CIMG0004-2The day I brought him home.

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Here he is again on his favourite perch!

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The very first picture I ever took of him. July 2007.

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I was babysitting Ken and Donna’s dog Midnight in the fall of 2010. Neelix thought that getting into the dog bed was a good idea.

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Probably my favourite picture ever of him! LOL

IMGP4416Mmm! Mom’s dirty laundry!

IMGP5444My favourite picture of my two together. It’s hilarious how Bitha is waiting patiently in line for water!

IMGP5845In his last months, Neelix would often spend the day like this by my side.

IMGP6212Soooooo cute! I will miss rubbing his belly.

IMGP6427Soon as they saw I caught them together, the sprung apart! You didn’t fool me one bit you guys!

IMGP6521My favourite pose of his. Still makes me giggle. I love how the feet are straight up with the tail between them.

IMGP6935Neelix always wanted to get into my luggage.

IMGP7382I have no idea why he’s got his face in the corner.

IMGP7490Mom’s iPad makes a great pillow!

IMGP7494Non-cat people claim cats can’t love. Bull.

IMGP7542Neelix with his ball of catnip. I am SO glad he finally learned how to play, even if it took recreational drugs!

IMGP7547Another silly pose; notice the eye staring me down.

Neelix on his backThe first time he showed me his belly, accepting me as his person.

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Another one of Neelix on my suitcase. This was the summer of 2007 days before I flew to San Francisco.

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An Update

I’d like to thank everyone who is still keeping in touch. I’m especially moved by those who have expressed concern that I am depressed or in a funk. I just wanted to touch base to say that everything is fine. It’s not good and it’s not bad, it’s just life. I am content, in a good mood, creative, productive, and healthy.

Those of you who have read Lessons the Road Taught Me know that I don’t believe that our lives are our own and that we are gently guided toward some greater cosmic purpose. When I fight my Path, I am anxious, malcontent, exhausted, and fearful. When I allow my life to take the shape meant for it, I am at peace with whatever fate has thrown at me. That’s where I am right now, a little disappointed, but wise enough to know that things are as they should be.

So with that preface, I can now say that I’m staying in Saskatchewan this winter. I don’t feel like going into all the details of why or how I’m going to do it, but I am going to be fine.

It wasn’t until I settled into a comfortable routine at Haven and established Saskatchewan residency that I came to realise just how tired I was. For five years, I was essentially on the run, staying one step ahead of the law and always worried about overstaying my welcome. Suddenly, I found myself ‘legal’ again and somewhere that I can stay forever if I want.

It’s as though all the miles and stresses caught up with me. I just need a few months to sit quietly and remember just why I put myself through all of that so that I can strengthen myself for the next time that my biological urge to go manifests itself. Because it will manifest itself again, as surely as the sun will set tonight and rise tomorrow.

I just spent five years making up for a lifetime of wanderlust so severe it left no room any other priorities. This past year, my nomadic needs have loosened their grips a little and I’ve found myself able to focus on other things. Ultimately, it’s all preparation for the next phase of my travels.

I’ve cleaned up and simplified my diet, finding myself 36 pounds lighter than I was this time last year. The improved diet that eliminates allergens and irritants has helped me feel so much better and given me energy I thought lost forever, which means I’m more productive and creative at work. I’m still not making enough money, but business is steady and growing and I’m not worried about paying basic bills anymore. I just got a big order from one client because I’m not taking off in the next few weeks. I might even get some ebooks updated this winter.

My home is just so perfect right now, tidy and organized with nothing superfluous. It is a place to cook healthy meals, put in long days at the office, relax with a view and a comfy seat in the evening, and even host friends (Jody is arriving tomorrow for two days!). I’m trying to lure an electrician here to hook me up to the grid, but I’m doing fine off the grid now that I’ve acquired a new-to-me computer (straight trade of my old one for this newer model, no money involved) that uses much less power than my previous computer, dropping my energy need for 70 to 100AH a day to a mere 10 to 50AH!

My current environment is scenic and populated with wonderful people. It’s no wonder I’ve essentially crashed and have no desire to go anywhere.

I’ll be back on the road either in early summer of 2014 (to go to Kelowna again) or early fall; my RV wanderings are far from over! I think that when I’m closer to getting going again I’ll feel like returning to regular updates here. Miranda needs a break, too, and once all her repairs are done, we’ll both have caught our second wind and be ready to drive into an Arizona sunset. I hope you’ll still be here when we do.

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Five Years On the Road

I’m a little boggled that my half-decade anniversary of being on the road has come. That time span doesn’t feel real to me.

The last five years have been some of the best and most challenging of my life. Every time I thought I finally got a grip on my nomadic existence, something would come to bend it back out of shape. That is the nature of all lives, I guess, but mine was especially precarious. I think that establishing Saskatchewan residency will be the missing cement to the shaky foundation of my life.

When I set off five years ago, I dreamed of making a name for myself RVing, but dared not fathom of a future that would put me on the cover of an RVing magazine, being interviewed by a major TV morning show, that I would get quite the spread in one of Canada’s most prominent newspapers, or that strangers would knock on the door and say, “Hey, I recognize you from the blog!”

Five years ago, I could only only hope to winter in a sunny clime, feel the midnight sun on my face, summit a mountain, freeze my toes in the Arctic Ocean, never mind do so much more than all that. I also could not imagine the friends I would meet along the way or that I would one day find a place where I would belong.

My life’s in a little bit of a limbo right now as I am coming to grips with just how hard I have fallen in love with my little piece of Saskatchewan and the people who populate that world. I am just grateful that the last five years have reminded me that such contentment at being in a beloved location never lasts and restlessness is guaranteed to follow. Therefore, I have to find a balance between making Haven comfortable while still being able to wander.

When I started RVing, I really enjoyed blogging about my life and the odd adventure that I have. But living so publicly began to weigh on me and I found myself wondering if the decisions I was making were best for me or best for the blog.

This past spring, I came to the conclusion that blogging was no longer a good use of my time. I cherish the friendships I have made through this blog, but regularly blogging about my life is just not something I’m interested in doing anymore. I made the decision in the spring to review how I felt on my fifth anniversary and the sentiment still holds. So I’ve been thinking about this post for about six months.

I don’t want to be one of those bloggers who says, “I quit!” and then comes back a few weeks later, almost as though they are seeking attention. So this isn’t the final Travels With Miranda post. I just don’t know when, or even if, I’ll be back. I’m thinking that taking a break might help refresh me and maybe even motivate me to get through a backlog of technical post drafts stemming from the seminar this summer…

I really like the Travels With Miranda Facebook page for giving updates, so that’s where you can go to get updates on Miranda’s out of province inspection, winter plans, and more. It’s a public page, so you don’t need to be a member of Facebook; just bookmark the link. Soon as I hit publish on this post, I’m heading there to share some information of importance to Snowbirds (hint, I recently got a letter from the IRS).

I love and appreciate each and everyone of you who has followed me along the way, whether it was from the very beginning or if you came on board at a later date. I am so grateful for the advice, hospitality, and help in all forms that you have given me. I hope that you’ll still try to keep in touch because my days of adventure and wandering are far from over!

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Famous Last Words

Back in 2011, I said in an interview for the Vancouver Sun, “I don’t see myself ever going back to living in one place again.”

To some extent, that is still true. But in 2011, I had no idea that a place like Haven was even a possibility for me. My nest egg had grown too small to expect to be able to buy property, at least in the world that I knew. Accruing more debt to by land just wasn’t an option. I had no idea that within two years I would have seen enough of Canada to know for certain where in this country I’d be willing to put down some roots, much less that this location would enable me to own my property outright.

And that’s what’s changed everything for me. This land is mine. In exchange for very low annual property taxes, I have the security of knowing that I could travel the world for years, never setting foot in Canada in all that time, and still have a place to land when I grow weary of wandering.

With this property, I get another amazing luxury, the freedom to develop as I wish, without interference by building inspectors or local ordinances. I can build a small off the grid structure at my own pace, as funds and materials and labour present themselves, and know that I’ll be left alone to do it.

In 2011, I couldn’t fathom a future that included a paid-for stick house, even in the far off future. Now, that is almost a certainty. I might never live in that house, but knowing it is there just in case is even better than money in the bank.

I used to have two dreams for my life, that of the globetrotting nomad and that of the sedentary homesteader. I thought that RVing was the perfect compromise to both those dreams. I had no idea that it would be the key to fulfilling both of them because it enabled me to travel all over Canada until I found the most travel-friendly province in which to establish residency.

What was becoming clear in 2011 was how difficult it would be to be a true full-timer for any great length of time in Canada. I knew that one day all the lies and half-truths I had to tell to maintain my driving and health care privileges would catch up to me and that there would be hell to pay.

That burden grew heavier as the months marched on until the weight of it was unbearable. When I had the blowouts this spring that caused a lot of damage more than one person said I should go to my insurance company. I’ll say now what I couldn’t say then; I strongly suspected that I would have trouble with the claim having been out of Alberta for a full year by that time. I absolutely had to keep flying under the radar.

This morning, my life as a full-timer took a twist. I’m still bound by the six-month rule to maintain my health coverage, but that rule isn’t so onerous because I will be returning to a place I love that was of my own choosing and where I am a burden to no one. I’ve wandered enough in this country to be content with having a set summer camp.

But my driving privileges are finally unfettered. I can go south for the winter and even for trips outside the province with my truck during the summer without any problems. The government knows what I’m up to and considers that fine and dandy. I don’t even have to pay a supplement for the privilege.

All that to say that, for the cost of a $3 lamp (plus $9 to install it), my truck sailed through her out of province safety inspection this morning. An hour after pulling out of the shop, and thanks to my huge pile of well-organized paperwork and a not insignificant sum of money, I became a Saskatchewan resident.

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I’ve applied for my Saskatchewan health card and as long as all the paperwork is in order, I should have coverage here at the end of next month.

Next hurdle, Miranda’s out of province safety inspection. If the list for a motorhome is similar to that for a light vehicle, my only real concern is about her frame being bent from the accident and her possibly being out of alignment. I already know she’s missing a couple of fuses as the horn and radio don’t work. I’m thinking of rescheduling for the following week as I’ll have more funds then. I’ve gained permission from the shop to pull in after dinner the night before the inspection and sleep on site to save myself a crazy early morning.

I can’t wait for Miranda’s legal stuff to be squared away so I can start firming up my winter plans.

Is it too early to toast my officially becoming a resident of this gorgeous land of living skies? 😀