September 30, 2018. Western Head, Nova Scotia. Baseball.

The playoffs are beginning. Tomorrow, The Mariners will play a double header to determine the winner of their division. A few weeks ago, the Cubs were ahead by five games. But the Mariners went on a tear and won 9 out of the last 10 games, so they are tied for the league. That is one of the things I like about baseball: anything can happen. So here we go. I get ready for anything. If I were a betting man, I would put my money on Boston. The play baseball well. I love watching them play. But the Astros are good too. Also the Dodgers. The playoff season is long. But I am ready and I will enjoy every game. Except I can not usually watch a whole game. I come and go, watching for fifteen minutes every hour or so. The games go on so long that sitting is difficult. The playoffs are beginning. So here we go. And the hockey season begins on Wednesday too. I predict that the Capitals will not win the cup again. Bet on the Preds. Whoopee.

September 29, 2018. Western Head, Nova Scotia. Full House.

Every bedroom is full, except the children's room. We have a full house. Kathy and Ted arrived on Thursday. They are staying in the same bedroom as the last time they were here two years ago. They are also the good friends who helped me in Mexico. They have come to visit us from Newfoundland, where they stay the summer. They are headed for Manitoba before returning to their Mings Bite home in Newfoundland. They saw Ken at his weakest. Now they are delighted with his progress. Tonight for supper Kathy prepared cod, fresh caught by Ted at Mings Bite. It was delicious. We were especially pleased to see them now because they will spend three months in New Zealand and Australia this winter so they will not be coming to Mexico. Tom and Joyce are staying in the Guest House where they are enjoying the peace and quiet. We were pleased they could come for a bit of a respite as they continue with the details of rebuilding after their fire. Having your main house burn to the ground is not easy, especially in their mid 80's. They are enjoying themselves here in Nova Scotia. They have visited their grandson at Acadia University and driven around the province. Today they visited The Sculpture Gardens and loved it. We had not seen them since the 55th. Now we have had a good time together. Don and Doreen are in the other upstairs bedroom. They wee not able to come to Mexico this winter so we were happy they could visit was in Nova Scotia. And they helped us by staying with Ken while I was at the wedding in Ontario. They prefer to stay in the main house so here they are. Doreen kind of takes over the kitchen, which is lovely for me. Don has difficulty with stairs and is suggesting that they might not be able to visit us in Nova Scotia. Perhaps we could ask for the use of The Baby Bogf next year. No matter what, we are delighted to have them visit us. Today for lunch, the eight of us ate at Lane's Privateer Inn. We celebrated in style. Good company and good food is always a welcome combination. A few years ago our house was full. Now it is again...and we are having fun.

September 28, 2018. Western Head, Nova Scotia. Elora Mill, Hotel and Spa.

The Elora Mill, Hotel and Spa has a spectacular setting right on a gorge of the Grand River and just down from the water falls. Ken and I stayed there years ago. The setting was the same but for the past 18 months the place has been revamped and expanded. It is beautiful. They have retained the exterior stone so from the outside the hotel looks the same, except bigger. But inside is all new and fancy. I enjoyed staying there. The public dining areas overlooking the falls are wonderful. The staff were unfailingly pleasant, enthusiastic and friendly. I was impressed with their attitude. But from the time I entered my large room I felt like I had become like Adrea. A pleasant young man accompanied me to my room. The room temperature was cold so I asked him to check the thermostat, which he did. He assured me my room would get warm. When I returned to my room after Dave and Irene's dinner, my room was still too cold so I put on my reading glasses and changed the thermostat myself. Nothing happened so I called the front desk. An engineer came to check and promised me he would return but he never did. I stayed warm only under the duvet. Mr room never got warmer than 70. After I changed into my nightshirt, I wanted to watch college football on TV, but the remote control would now work. The young lady came immediately and brought another remote. While she was standing beside the TV, the remote worked but as soon as she left and I sat down, the remote failed again so she brought me another, which also would not work. I turned it off and went to bed. The next morning, the engineer came to change the little box on the TV. That night after I returned , the TV worked perfectly. Bu the next morning I had no signal at all. I gave up. No more calls to the front desk for me. The first morning I was in my room I tried to make coffee but the maker was set on a counter that has a shelf right over it so the handle will not open. In order to open the machine to install the pod, I was required to hold the heavy machine half off the counter, so I gave up. The whole room is fancy and high tech but they forgot a thing or two. The setting is spectacular. The staff id friendly, polite and enthusiastic. The renovations are superb. But perhaps in a month or so they will work out the kinks. I enjoyed my visit at Elora Mill. I would like to return in a year where I will find a warm room, a TV that works properly and a coffee maker that actually makes coffee. Fortunately, I have a sense of humor.

September 27, 2018. Western Head, Nova Scotia. Kenny and Anne.

Kenny and Anne and their grown children Eric and Elise attended the wedding in Elora, Ontario. I had not seen them since their visit in Mexico when they came for fun in the sun and ended up helping me and visiting Ken in the hospital. They were an enormous help and I will forever be indebted to them, so I was delighted to see them again. I had not seen Eric or Elise since the 55th and I found them both charming and elegant. In Mexico, Kenny and Anne spent a lot of time talking with us, as we were together so much of the time. We talked options for their life at sea. At the wedding I was brought up with the rest of their home sale and purchase. As of now, they are homeless. This Tuesday the movers did their job, Wednesday the cleaners came and today they attended settlement. Now they are living on their boat. In a month and a half they settle on their new purchase, which is a smaller house. The present owner will rent back for four months so they will take possession in five months. They have rented a storage unit for winter clothes. If living on the boat is too chilly, they will move into a garage apartment. They have made great strides toward their goal of retiring and traveling on the high seas. So far, they have done spectacularly well. They were strong sellers first. Then when they had a non contingent contract on their house they became strong buyers. They came up on top in all directions. I thoroughly enjoyed hearing their stories. Now I will watch with pleasure the next steps of their journey. Their goal is to be retired by January 1, 2020 and to be sailing the seven seas. I wish them well.

September 26, 2018. Western Head, Nova Scotia. The Storm.

This morning, every chair on the deck had been moved by the wind, along with the heavy barbecue. The chairs are someplace, but not on the main deck. The storm started at 8:00 last evening. First the wind followed by heavy rain. The wind was fierce with a sustained speed of 50 mph with gusts to 90. The sound was deafening. All night the rain fell hard giving relief to the dry wells. Nothing in life is better than being in a warm cosy bed listening to the storm. The whole experience is wonderful. This morning the sight of the waves were impressive too. The wind and the rain let up now and then but mostly the storm continues with high wind. Trying to get out the door from the garage was impossible. The young lady bringing dinner was almost knocked over by the wind. To get to the garage we were forced to use the big garage door. And the winds are still high tonight with the rain falling all night. Doreen loves the stormy seas. While we watched the high waves this afternoon we both agreed that it was difficult to compare the ocean today to the one last week, where the sea was calm and looked like a lake. Today the ocean looks like a real ocean. And the ocean looks and sounds angry. No fishing boats are out tonight, even though the herring are running. The forecast for the rain and wind will stop tomorrow. In the meantime, I will retreat to my cosy bed and listen. And I will love the sounds of the storm.

September 25, 2018. Western Head, Nova Scotia. My Wardrobe.

I travelled to the wedding with a small roll on case and a backpack. I planned carefully every event and garment. But a few things went awry. As I was coming down the stairs for lunch the first day at Dave and Irene's home, I felt my pants begin slipping down. I was wearing a top, pants and a jacket to match the pants. All seemed fine until I put my cell phone in the pocket. The guests were arriving. Clearly the elastic in my pants were failing. My solution was to untuck the top to put over the slipping pants and take the cell phone out of my pocket. All was well during lunch. The pants are now in for alterations. The next event was at Wendy's home. I wore a shirt with a silk sleeveless top over top, with black tight pants. When I saw a picture, I realized that I had put on the dress backwards. I had purchased at Lilithe in town and had not worn it before. The white was never supposed to be at the front. No one noticed and I never said a word. For the wedding ceremony I wore the same dress as our 50th anniversary. I brought it with me from Mississippi. It consists of a skirt and jacket but when I put it on, I realized that a blouse must have accompanied the outfit. It certainly was revealing when I put on just the jacket. Fortunately I used the same white shell top I had worn at dinner the night before. The white did not match but again, no one noticed. Now my question is where is the top that belongs with the skirt and jacket? For the wedding I was to wear a new silk dress the comes just belong my knees. As we were to be inside for the reception I thought a light dress would work. But the bride and groom requested pictures at the park at 3:45. It was chilly and I was fearful I would be cold so I wore the same black pants. The dress was never intended to use with pants but my solution was perfect. Again, no one noticed and I was warm. So my wardrobe worked. The clothes fit in my small case and nothing terrible happened. But it was a close call.

September 24, 2018. Ancaster, Ontario. Irene.

Her attention to detail has astonished me. Every comdort was provided for my visit from the large to the small. I was impressed but not surprised because I know Irene. In my own bathroom I found everything I needed,including two types of shampoo, and even to a spray bottle of lens cleaner for my glasses. Of course, the big fluffy towels were in abundance. When she heard me cough, she left a bottle of Buckley’ cough syrup on the vanity. And in my bedroom on the dresser was a note pad and pencil. With a little bear in the center of my bed, I was ready for a good night sleep. While I sat in the living room drinking coffee, Irene prepared my breakfast of crumpet, Canadian cheese and fruit, all served on the vintage china that once belonged to Irene’s parents. The Apple blossom pattern is beautiful and delicate and I loved using the old plates. We all agreed that the wedding was splendid. We enjoyed all the events and had fun with the relatives. Last evening at Wendy’s new home we had dinner with Ken, Anne, Eric, Alana, along with Dave and Irene and Ken B. and Wendy. It was a fitting final event. I am glad I came. Now Wendy will drive me to the Hamilton airport and after a flight on Swoop, Mr. G. will take me home. And that will be good. But I must say that I fall down when guests stay with us. Maybe I will pay more attention to my guest house. I certainly loved all Irene’s Preparation for me. I felt pampered and loved, which she intended to do. Thanks for Dave for all the driving and for Irene for looking after me. I enjoyed my visit a great deal.