What a Sunny Morning!

There is just something about a sunny morning that is absolutely invigorating. It can be super hot or super cold out, doesn’t matter. I makes me bounce out of bed energized by the possibilities of the day.

Since this is my last chance to be on FHU for a bit, I have a long enough to-do list that I may end up staying a third night. The number one priority for today is laundry, and then getting the black tank emptied and rinsed. Tomorrow could then be a rest day since it’s another really full day to Minot.

My border and arrival plan keeps changing, but I think I finally have it down. The big thing is Canadian internet. I thought I was going to have to go to Medicine Hat to buy the only internet device with a decent bandwidth package, but… things keep improving.

Bell now has several devices with that ginormously generous, won’t hear me bitch about it, bandwidth package, at least one of which, a stick, doesn’t need 120V power the way the Turbo Hub does. Moreover, it’s ZERO down for a 2-year commitment AND I could buy it at a number of points along the Canadian route to my property, including in Estevan, Weyburn, and Assiniboia!

That changes everything as far as my reentry plans. Now that I don’t have to drop the RV and go to Alberta, I’m in no rush to land. So if I pulled out of Hankinson Thursday (three nights here total), I would get to Minot Thursday night and then Friday it would be about an hour and a half to the border at Portal and another 45 minutes or so to the Walmart in Estevan where is a The Source store within walking distance at which I could buy my internet device.

In Estevan, I could make sure both my computers can get online and also stock up on supplies (fresh goods that wouldn’t make it across the border; I’m also getting supplies in Minot). And then Saturday, I would have a leisurely three hourish drive to my property.

When I bought the property last year, there was cell coverage in Assiniboia but not my village. Coverage maps now show full coverage in southern Saskatchewan. So I am hopeful I will have internet at ‘home’ with a device bought in SK.

This route does mean that I will likely have to purchase fuel in Canada for the final leg of the trip. But I did more research on the Scobey/Coronach crossing and really don’t think it’s a good idea to cross there. For one thing, they close early, so I’d be racing the clock to arrive from Minot. For another, 22 cars a day in the height of summer is a big rush for them. So I’m worried that I would be providing them with a bit of ‘entertainment’ if you catch my drift. And I would be automatically suspicious for crossing there with my Alberta-plated vehicles as it is a crossing used mostly by locals. I’ll feel more comfortable using that crossing when I am plated in SK and can declare the village to be my home base.

There is a Saskatchewan snow melt map making the rounds of the internet and it is really impressive. Looks like there is almost no more snow in that province! AND the risk of flooding is just about gone! Woohoo! These warm temps should give my property just enough time to dry out enough to not be a festering marsh by the time I arrive.

Next thing to figure out: how I am going to deal with grass. Hopefully it will be a local teenager (I don’t mind mowing, but I’d rather not have to buy and maintain a mower). And I hope no one gives me flack for not taking care of the lawn last year. Ah, all shall be revealed in just a few days…

Finally, a bit of a semantics lesson. I’m having a hard time coming up with the right word to describe ‘my property.’ It is not and will likely never be ‘home.’ Home is MIRANDA. Full-timers get that, but most other folks don’t. Home is also wherever Miranda is parked. Ergo, while Miranda is parked on my property, my property will be ‘home.’ But I can’t say it enough, I am not ‘going home’ this week.

I have a name chosen for my property, but I won’t reveal it until I land and get a feel for the neighbours. Needless to say, it’s another Firefly reference. 🙂

8 thoughts on “What a Sunny Morning!

  1. Glad to hear things are looking up for you. I hope the property is nice and dry when you arrive so that you won’t have any problems with that.

  2. Thanks!

    I think spring has FINALLY sprung.

    It’s a GORGEOUS day here in Hankinson. Sun and a gentle breeze. Every opening that could be open is open!

  3. Hi, Rae,

    I’ve been following along with you since Andy mentioned your adventures in our Lazy Daze forum, and am continually impressed with your writing, resourcefulness and energy. I left my motor home in Arizona in mid-April and came home to Alaska, where a month later I still have snow in my yard and an ice-covered lake.

    Best wishes to you on your return to your property and to Canadian life. Now I figure I’d better watch the Firefly series again!

    Kristin

    • Hi Kristen, thanks for commenting! Ah, there’s nothing like spring in the north, holding the promise of those glorious short months of summer!

      Thanks for the good wishes. There is a lot of appendage crossing at my end!

      And once you finish the series, be sure to watch the movie sequel, ‘Serenity’! That’s where Miranda got her name. 🙂

  4. In a slightly related SciFi manner, I finally got to watch Farscape, The Peacekeepers Wars. Yes, it was a much more satisfactory ending. I also watch the extra info on the dvd and understand now why such a horrible ending to the tv series. Plus they offered hope of maybe another special to conclude the story. Thanks for the tip.
    I also read you new book recently. I loved it, and was delighted to see references to me in it. You definitely influenced the rest of my life.

    Safe travels.

    • Discussing sci-fi is always on topic! 😀

      I’m so glad you had a chance to watch The Peacekeeper Wars! It really does tie up the series beautifully. I love the final scene.

      Farscape is a challenge, but it is sooo satisfying once you get into it.

  5. I’m having a hard time coming up with the right word to describe ‘my property.’

    I see nothing wrong with calling it “my property”. If you give it a name you will then be faced with explaining that ‘The Name’ is your property in Saskatchewan.

    The definition of home is 1. A place where one lives; a residence. 2. The physical structure within which one lives, such as a house or apartment. FullTimers know that home is definition #1 whereas people that live in stick n bricks think in #2 terms.

  6. I just find “my property” sounds unwieldy.

    Both those definitions fit my idea of what “home” is. The physical structure in which I live is definitely “home.”

    What I am trying to avoid is propagating the idea that “home” is tied to a physical location. So if Miranda is parked on the property and I go out for a weekend with my truck, then I am coming home to the property. But if Miranda and I are traveling to the property, I am just traveling to the property.

    Most of the people of my old life still don’t get that my RV is my home and I want to discourage the belief that having land=having a ‘proper’ home at last. I know I’m fighting a losing battle, but Miranda is the most comfortable home I have ever had and she deserves a modicum of respect in that capacity.

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