North America

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An Extremely Lazy Productive Day

I was up around 5:30 this morning because I went to bed so early. Knowing this would be my last chance for a down day until my first weekend in Mexico, I stayed in bed for nearly three hours doing some Spanish studies on my iPad. So, lazy, but productive. 🙂

When I finally got up, I did get dressed, but I very quickly wound up in my lounge chair with an exceedingly good cup of coffee and more Spanish exercises. I passed the entire morning that way, getting up only to do the work involved in getting a clean load of laundry onto the clothesline!

I’ve been working on my Spanish all summer, but I’m rather at cramming time now. We’ll see if there are any improvements when I get to the border! I use the free Duolingo app, something I wish had existed all those years ago when I was first learning the language. It allows me to do grammar drills, write (need to work on those pesky accents), repeat back, comprehend orally and in writing, and more. I can’t believe it’s free. I’ve worked through the entire program and am now working on strengthening exercises for the verbs. I wish I could find a similar application that would go from French to Spanish because the verbs would make a ton more sense that way. I keep finding myself translating from English to French to Spanish, and back again.

This afternoon, I started packing in earnest! I’ve really only got the kitchen and office to close up now, as well as add a few things to the clothing bin and pack up the suitcase for the trip down. But don’t think I’m anywhere ready to go. It will be quite a flutter of activity Wednesday and Thursday as I start to close down the property and load up the truck!

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A Scotiabank Account Can Save International Travelers a Lot of Money

Withdrawal fees sure add up when I’m traveling outside of Canada. In addition to CIBC’s $5 charge, I have to pay the other institution money, too. I wanted to rein in that expense this year, and since there are Scotiabanks in Mexico, that was the logical place to start. As it turns out Scotiabank is part of the Global ATM Alliance network and an account with them means free withdrawals at banks all over the world, including Scotiabank in Mexico and Bank of America in the U.S.

After 25+ happy years at CIBC, I had no desire to start over with another bank, but I thought that getting a very basic Scotiabank account made sense. It would be $3.95 a month for up to 12 transactions and would mean that I would gain the following:

-up to 12 free withdrawals per month

-being able to take out smaller amounts more frequently and not having to carry a ton of cash on me

-not having my main bank card on me when out and about

Transfers between banks are now easy thanks to Interac e-transfers, so I could transfer my allowance from my CIBC account to my Scotiabank account at no cost and with no significant delay. There is also the possibility that I could link this account to my PayPal account in addition to my CIBC one, but I have to double check that.

I confirmed all of this during a chat session with a rep and then booked an appointment for 10:30 this morning to open an account at my nearest Scotiabank branch, which is in Moose Jaw (another reason I don’t want it to be my main bank!).

I convinced my neighbour Caroline to turn today into a girls’ day out. We took off around 8:30 this morning. She had errands to run around the Scotiabank, so she did that while I went in and did my thing.

Opening the account was quick and painless. The rep who assisted me did not attempt to upsell me or get me to switch from CIBC. It was strictly do what the customer, who appears very knowledgeable, wants, and absolutely nothing else. I had been told to present two pieces of ID, but ended up having to show four for some reason. Finally, I had to make a token deposit to cover at least a month’s fees. That was it!

Scotiabank isn’t super convenient in Maz, unless I can find the one that is supposed to be on Aquiles SerdĂĄn in CentrĂł, but there is one near the big Waldo/big Ley and also, of course, by the Soriana on Rafael Buelna. So it’ll be fine. It’s not like I have to go to the back end of nowhere that I otherwise have no reason to be.

Caroline was coming into the bank as I was going out, talk about good timing! We got back in the truck, went to Kal Tire to have my truck tires re-torqued, and then headed to the north end of town. Bulk Barn was our first stop, where I loaded up on spices to take down with me.

Then, we went to Walmart, where I decided to price a burr coffee grinder so I can grind my own beans this winter. I have a grinder, but I also do spices with it and there’s starting to be cross contamination. It is also very difficult to make a coarse enough grind for a French press with that grinder. Walmart had what I wanted, Black and Decker brand, for $36.95 and I decided to get it. even though that wasn’t cheap! Well, it rang up at $16.95… I believe in karma, so I spoke up. The teller said, “Are you happy with the price that came up?” I said yes. “Then that’s the price!” WOW.

We then made a stop at Superstore, a store that just makes me cranky… I ran a couple of quick errands and then sat in my truck with my phone while Caroline stocked up for the apocalypse.

Then, it was beyond time for lunch. She was game to try DK Sushi, so we went there and both came out pretty stuffed! She had some cooked sushi as well as vegetarian, plus tempura and beef teriyaki. I had my usual spicy tuna and eel, with bites of some of her vegetarian rolls, plus dumplings. It was really nice to linger over a long meal with her and we ordered in two rounds since our first orders weren’t quite enough.

I drove us home into a slowly setting sun, helped her get all her purchases in house, then collapsed with a glass of wine and some pet cuddles before dragging myself back to my feet and heading home.

It’s been a great day! I shouldn’t have to go to town again before leaving on Friday so now I can focus on closing up the property and packing!

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Ready to Roll

I went to Kal Tire in Assiniboia today to have two new tires installed on the truck, the third to last thing I need to do to make the truck ready to go. The second to last is having the tires retorqued and the last is to top off the oil.

I had been quoted $122 per tire installed, which was about $270 with the tax. So I was surprised that the bill was over $340! I explained what I was quoted and the cashier promptly took off the extra service charges, no questions asked.

I continue to absolutely love Kal Tire and am so grateful we have one here in Assiniboia. Caroline and Charles also have nothing but good things to say about the franchise either, and have been to nearly as many different Kal Tires between Manitoba and BC as I have, and I also have experience with the one in Whitehorse!

I am going to Moose Jaw tomorrow to open up a Scotiabank account, so that’ll give the truck enough miles to have the wheels retorqued there. I’ll do a post about the new bank account once it’s opened. It is going to be my first concrete step towards my new Mexican life…

As for the truck oil, I bought loads since I can’t get the correct weight in Mexico and will check and top off the level myself before leaving. The air filter is fine and I’ll pick one up on the way to have replaced in Mexico before I leave in the spring.

It’s been rather a long day. I had an appointment at the bank at 11:00, but couldn’t get the tires done until 1:00. It’s hard to kill time in Assiniboia, but I did it. After the bank, I checked out the Salvation Army and was very disappointed that they have jacked up their prices sky high. I won’t be shopping there anymore. 🙁

I then walked to 121 Steakhouse and had a very long and leisurely lunch, lingering over what was probably a gallon of coffee. Coming out of the restaurant, I got a call from Caroline who was having a cabbage related emergency. I promised to pick one up for her.

Then, since it was a gorgeous day (it’s been a blessing of an October), I ambled to the Village Food Store to see if they still had ice cream. Yes, and my favourite flavour (brownie)! I enjoyed it as I walked most of the way across town to the grocery store, where I bought the biggest cabbage I could find, then lugged it back to my truck. It was heavy!

It was only about 12:20 by this point and I had another 40 minutes to kill, so I walked to the Home Hardware to pick up another can of butane for my new flambĂ© torch, just to make sure I don’t run out over the winter. I really missed my broiler last winter for roasting veggies, searing meat and browning cheese, and thought that a flambĂ© torch could be a suitable alternative. I’ve been experimenting with it and am liking the results!

I went back to my truck, which was parked in front of Fields, and decided to pop in and see if they had a whisk. No, but they were selling DVDs super cheap, so I picked up a few. Then, it was finally time to go to Kal Tire.

There, I sat with a book on my iPad while they quickly did the work on my truck. I was home by about 2:00 or so and went to deliver the cabbage, as well as have a cup of coffee and cuddle with C&C’s neighbour’s kitten, who looks just like my Tabitha. Their dog also made sure to get his own cuddles in!

Caroline might be going to Moose Jaw with me tomorrow. I hope so!

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Knocking Out Projects

The printer is rather a pain in the arse item to drag along with me to Mexico, but it’s necessary for work that I do for one of my clients. Last year, I determined that it had to travel in the cab with me because dust and water gets into the truck bed, even with the canopy. Soon as I got it in the truck, I realised that it was taking a lot of precious cab space because I couldn’t really store anything on top of it, not even a bag of bedding. I thought that it might be nice to have a shelf over it, but was not in a position to build anything.

Even if my tools and materials hadn’t been scattered to the winds last year, I didn’t have a workshop or tools with which to easily knock out a project like this. Today, it took just 30 minutes, including the design and cleanup phases, to build this:

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So now, the printer can sit behind the passenger seat and I can put a tote or my suitcase over it. I can store two totes on the driver’s side and in the middle, too, if I run out of space in the back. But I’m not bringing the cot for this trip, so I suspect that cab space won’t be as precious as it was last year. It’ll still be nice to know that I can toss things behind me and not risk damaging the printer!

I have to say that my once disgusting shed is quickly turning into my most favourite part of my property. I just love how bright it is in there and how fresh it smells, never mind that it is so full of potential!

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How to Get Rid of Extra Veggies (and I might have too much cheese!)

I’m leaving for Mexico next Friday.

I’ve been doing very well at eating down my stores, but somehow found myself with a giant bag of broccoli and a huge package of cheese that I’m not sure I can get through. Mark this day in your calendar, that I have cheese I don’t know what to do with! 😀

Last week, I bought a whole pre-roasted chicken and turned the carcass into stock. I had planned to make chicken soup from the stock, but then realised that I had the perfect base for cheddar broccoli soup! I don’t normally advocate drinking your calories, but, really, a vegetable potage is the easiest way to offload tons of veggies without making it feel like a chore.

Stock day was Saturday, a surprisingly hot afternoon that was not ideal for simmering a chicken carcass on the stove for hours. But the hot work paid off and I was left, after some time in the fridge, with a bowl of very flavourful chicken Jell-o.

Normally, I wouldn’t use a recipe for something like this, but I’ve been craving Panera’s cheddar broccoli soup, so I looked for a copycat recipe and, based on the comments, picked the one at Averie Cooks.

I got to work on the broccoli soup this morning, starting by microwaving my broth to make sure it would liquify properly (yes).

After sautéing the onions and garlic, I set to work on the roux that would serve as the thickening agent for the soup. This was probably the most lovely roux of my life, silky smooth and without a lump in sight.

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And this was even with the half broken whisk I was working with. I am well overdue for a new whisk!

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I didn’t have any cream on hand, so I used unsweetened plain almond milk, which worked beautifully. I didn’t have all the spices recommended in the recipe, so I just added salt, pepper, and the dried mustard.

Once the soup base was quite thick (since the frozen broccoli would add lots of liquid), I added the veggies. I had an extra piece of celery left from my scrapped plans to make chicken soup, so it went in the pot, too.

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To further thicken the soup and better distribute the veggies, I puréed about half of the soup before adding the cheese. Then I gently stirred in some Cracker Barrel extra sharp cheddar (Cracker Barrel? I must have gotten one heck of a deal because I always buy Co-Op!).

And tah-dah:

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Verdict? Better than Panera. And I’m pretty sure I have my stock to thank for it!

I’ll be eating this for the next few days!