Bummer...

My apologies for lack of posting. I am suffering with "piriformis syndrome" (a muscle in the butt!!) which means I'm not sitting very much - I'm either standing, laying or doing my exercises :(

I believe it harks back to a 20km hike I did over icy terrain where I fought every step to keep my balance. That made my piriformis muscles flare up which in turn is pressing on my sciatic nerve causing PAIN!! So I'm on a regime of ibuprofin and stretching and strengthening exercises which I don't enjoy doing - BOO!

So...for your viewing pleasure I have included a clip from last year's walking trip. I finally managed to upload a few of my clips to Youtube. I have a couple more but because they are larger than 1gig they won't upload. When I learn how to edit them and divide them into smaller chunks I'll post them as well. 

This will give you an idea of what my days were like!

IT'S NOT FUNGUS HURRAH HURRAH!!

It was as I thought - a blister under the toenail. I might lose the nail but then again I might not. However, toenails grow so slowly it'll be awhile before I know either way. As long as it's NOT FUNGUS I am a happy camper!

Well, happy until I look at my budget this month. I've been pointedly ignoring it the past couple of weeks and it hasn't been doing too well on its own. Don't ever leave your budget to look after itself...just sayin'...

Is March like the longest month of the year? It's only the 13th today for Pete's sake! Already I've transferred small amounts of money from savings into chequing to cover things...possibly but highly unlikely I might have $$ at the end of the month to put back into my savings but I'm not getting my hopes up too high.

So what has the misc budget been spent on so far this month??

• my lovely new Merrell hiking sandals shown above around half-price $66.00 (includes taxes) I'm somewhat optimistic that spring, summer and fall WILL OCCUR at some point this year and when they do I'll be ready!! These give me an alternative to my hiking boots - I might even be able to wear them occasionally when hiking Hadrian's Wall when/if the weather is nice. At the very least I can wear them each day after hiking to give my feet a break! I just started wearing them around the house and I feel as though I have nothing on my feet. 
• expensive eye drops and omega 3 vitamins to combat "dry eye" syndrome (I'm so tired of winter and it's effects on my body!!)  $32.00
• some household things from Dollarama (oh...and candy!) $17.00
• load my Timmy's card - $15.00
• income tax software - $21.00
• donation to help bring Nate home  $20.00
• truck repair $11.00
• movie $10.00
• utilities (I underestimated both my electricity and natural gas - damn winter!!) $15.00
• Ancestry.ca membership $192.00 (I swear this gets more expensive every year!)
• Take-out food from Hong Pings $43.00
• Wine - $20.00
• Giant Tiger (jacket & chocolate bar) $32.00

That comes to a total of.....$494.00. I have $306 left in misc for a total of $800. Since my misc budget is set at $600 that means I've pulled $200 out of savings. I still have over 18 days left in March!! Yikes! I am REALLY going to try to make many of those NO SPEND DAYS!! 

The good news is I received over $800 in interest payments this month and am anxiously awaiting my tax refund to be deposited (over $1200). These monies will all go towards travelling this year. I have possibly 4 trips in the offing from a 4 day weekend to 2 weeks in England.  AND I'm hoping to buy a trailer soon. 

Bye bye money!!

Anyone else having an expensive month?

Best Laid Plans...

... gang aft agley...!!

Although I said I was going to wait to see my "tax situation" I've gone and booked my flight!!

Into Manchester!!

To hike Hadrian's Wall with my friend and fellow blogger Annie!!

Most of you know Annie - but here's her blog url, just in case you haven't met her yet: "Northern Living Allowance."  If you are a regular reader of my blog you'll know that Annie and I met up for the first time in person on my last trip to England. We forgot to take a selfie during that visit so I decided to make another journey across the pond :) We connected through our blogs... oh I don't know...5 years ago? 6? Annie used to live in Canada, in the Yukon no less!! But she felt the call to move to England and is enjoying new adventures there and LOVING it!!

(**I thought I was getting a great deal on my flight until I discovered it was in American dollars!! Once converted into Canadian dollars ay yi yi!!)

So I'll keep posting wonderful photos to make myself feel better - I mean...who can put a price on THIS!!

 Or THIS!!

And then there's THIS!

I've been pouring over my big map of England which is spread out over my dining room table to decide where I'll spend a few days after our hike is over. I'm considering one of the following: Liverpool, York, Edinburgh, the Lake District... right now I'm most interested in York or Edinburgh. Decisions, decisions!!

Thanks Mike for the advice about the waterproofs - I realize I probably won't be so lucky a second time around. Last year's trip saw me carry my rain gear daily in my back pack where it stayed - for TWO weeks - no rain!! But I am realistic and know that was an anomaly!! (Though I'll keep my fingers crossed that the good weather fairy will follow me around again!)

Having this trip to plan for and look forward to has really lifted my spirits - I read recently that we get just as much joy and excitement from the planning stages as we do from the actual trip. Ain't that a trip?!

Plus I needed some motivation to get eating right and moving more - this should do the trick!

Now I need to plan my trip to PEI this spring!! I'll be busier than a rooster in a henhouse!

January's Budget

It might seem a little premature to close off my budget for January today but everything is pretty much done and paid for the week and the month. Let's just say I'm "tentatively" ending January!  And I'm happy to report (touch wood) that my new "Pension Budget" was a success.  Thanks to a few factors:

• low price of gas right now - I set a budget of $180 for the month for gas and had $88 left after filling up today!!
• creative meals and careful grocery shopping - buying only what I need for the week means lower costs and less waste. Out of a budget of $280 I had $17 left and my fridge is PACKED!!
• having a set amount for misc spending really works for me. Not that I was deprived at all but I'm selective about what I spend my money on and sometimes I have to say NO - some of the money spent is for February's fun - a Bryan Adam's concert on Feb. 24th so I'm ahead of the game a little bit. I had over a $100 left in my misc budget so sent some of that to savings along with the surplus in the food and gas budgets making total saved for this month - $608.00!! (Remember I had extra $$ this month due to not having to pay property taxes and getting a break on insurance. I won't be able to save that much every month! Darn it!) 

I want to buy new living room furniture but think I'll put that off til the kittens are older. My next major expenditure will hopefully be a trailer in the spring. And I will be taking a trip east to PEI - I hope the gas prices stay low for awhile! I ordered a guide book for a couple of hikes in England and am wavering back and forth whether to go this year or wait til 2016. I was kinda hoping to walk the Camino in 2016 when I turn 60 but not sure if I'm ready for that yet. I'm having a tough time making decisions. It's a question of having my cake and eating it too! I like having my savings AND I like spending it too! 

Sigh...

Birthday Blahs

It doesn't seem like too many years ago that I used to put a lot of planning into Kazi's birthdays - gifts, homemade birthday cake, parties, dinners with relatives, more gifts. Decorations, go to the fair, visit grandparents etc etc...

But now she's 24, today actually, and I haven't even seen her. Oh, we texted back and forth all afternoon but she was just too tired to move her butt and come home. Our dinner plans have been moved to tomorrow night. She and her boyfriend, Steven, went to Toronto on Friday to some big concert, stayed over, shopped Saturday morning for her gift, then drove back to London. She was in and out of the house while I was visiting with cousins in Alymer. I know because I saw the evidence in the washroom :( Then last night she went out with lots and lots of girlfriends - lots of eating and drinking and music and dancing.

Six cousins: Doug, my brother Gord, Joyce, Brian, Gordie Wayne and me.
I think my cousin Gordie Wayne (whose knee I grace) and I look like brother and sister!

So today, her actual birthday, she is laying low and getting her strength back. Ah to be young again!

My gift to her this year was paying for her teacher's college application (she didn't go) and I helped her pay for her car repairs, it does go. Exciting eh?

I'm gearing up for my trip, leaving this Thursday. Did up the laundry today and had my last big hike (10km) this morning before I leave. I'll have lots more hiking to do once I arrive in merry Olde England :) It was a bit of a muddy hike today with lots of fallen trees to crawl over and many many hills to slide up and down. Luckily I was one of the few who didn't do a face plant or a bum plant on the slippery muddy hills. We've had a LOT, I repeat a LOT of rain lately. I've never seen the Thames quite so high as it is these days. I had to spend some time cleaning the muck off my hiking boots and water proofing them. They are ready to go and so am I!!

 Isn't that idyllic?

Stonehenge? or inukshuks? You be the judge!

 Down down down to the swollen river!

 Oh yay another hill to climb up!

 Oh this is better...cross country for awhile...look!! Blue sky...bits of it anyways...

 ...going down is actually harder and more dangerous than going UP! One person falls and it's like a stack of dominoes!!

 NOT poison ivy though we had several PIAs (poison ivy alerts!)

 Just beyond the tree branches is a huge swath of beaten down and drowning tall grasses that used to be along the shore of the Thames but are now flattened by the strong currents in a flood zone.

 Our sculptural moment of the day.

Time to go and scrounge something edible out of the fridge. I'm using up leftovers and creating some unlikely combinations. Maybe I'll discover something new!

Assembly Required

So I went to Tepperman's today to purchase a new desk and book shelves. Told the man who was "helping" me (HAH - I had to go tap him on the arm which sorta startled him to see if he was on or off duty) that I wanted the furniture assembled. Well after a good snort he let me know in no uncertain terms that it doesn't come assembled. I either assemble it myself (no thank you) or he can give me the name of someone who will assemble the furniture at $30 per hour!! OMG!! (NO THANK YOU!)

So I left the premises with no furniture. Apparently furniture only comes assembled if it's the really super expensive "real wood" kind of stuff not the stuff made of laminate. I looked at the TWO, yes TWO real wood desks they had in their massive warehouse and said..."no thanks". They were twice as expensive, twice as small and had zero storage. What a scam!

Rats. So now I don't know what to do. I went to MEC (Mountain Equipment Company) instead and spent my money there on a "monsoon" Goretex coat (half price) because you know how bad the monsoons are in SW England, walking poles, special socks that are supposed to prevent blisters from forming from wearing hiking boots daily, gel blister bandaids because I don't trust the socks' claims, a pair of shorts, and 2 pairs of capris (one pair of capris are actual "pant length" on little ol' me") and assorted other items - oh a backpack rainproof cover, spray to make my boots waterproof and I think that's it.

That made me feel better temporarily until I got home and saw all the boxes of books and desk supplies and nowhere to put them!! Poo, now I'm bummed out again. My choices are - buy the pieces I want and hire someone to put them together, spend a day or two trying to put them together myself, or spend oodles of money on the REAL stuff which doesn't suit my needs nearly as well.  Hmmmm...I need more and better options as none of these are suiting me just now.

I'm just gonna drink wine.

Routines

I think I could get used to this...

Lol, you're right Carla, I never even got this section opened up :)
But reading the paper at 2 in the afternoon? Unheard of!

It's funny how we humans create routines for ourselves. It's like just wandering around through the day is weird, it's almost like life has no meaning...GASP!! So we create a kind of routine, fit ourselves into it thus providing structure for our days (unless of course you get up every day and go to work then HAH, you'll have to wait a while longer to understand what I'm talking about!)

For now my day goes sorta like this...(bear in mind I've only been home for 6 days and I've already had to create a routine!)...

• get up, make my bed (that's something new but I kinda like getting into a made bed at night)
• I'm not a PJ lounger so I get dressed right away in work out gear
• make and eat oatmeal while checking email
• on Monday, Wed. & Friday I will do my jog/walk routine as laid out in my C25K app on my iPhone (it's supposed to help get me to run 5K; I'm halfway there; I'm repeating week 4 OR I go for a hike if it's Tuesday or Thursday...I'm not sure yet about Saturday and Sunday - perhaps riding my bike/more hiking (anyhoo early exercise is supposed to help elevate my mood and so far it's working plus I'm working in my hiking boots for my walking trip to England in a month
• after I get home I have my coffee and get the newspaper out of my mailbox - I proposed to my neighbour that we share the local paper and I'll pay her half the cost; it's working out well so far though today I didn't get to the paper til much later due to so many emails to answer plus I was online buying tickets to see a play with my brother at the Stratford Festival plus a few other things online
• once the paper is done I usually make a juice or smoothie
• then it's ACTION time - I've been doing a lot of chores around the house, unpacking, sorting (took 4 garbage bags of stuff to a thrift shop this morning) and deciding what needs to be done and in what order - I've decided at the top of the list is a desk, bookshelves so that I have a work station (Kim - I brought a few boxes of stuff home from school so need to assimilate that into the "desk" stuff that I already have)
• Today's ACTION time involved cleaning the basement windows (only 2), washing, pressing and rehanging curtains, dusting, vacuuming and washing the floors down there
• then more "computer time" - I ordered a movie for my brother as a Christmas gift on Amazon and looked at several sites for outdoor furniture (it's SALE time), a new bed for moi, a bathroom wall cabinet etc (didn't purchase yet, just doing research; plus I do my blog reading and write my post
• then I'll make dinner - nothing much - a salad with shrimp, yummy zucchini spaghetti with cashew alfredo sauce, homemade soup (defrosting on the counter as I type)
• yesterday and the day before I fit in an hour of reading outside on the patio (so nice!)
• and of course there are errands and meeting up with friends: tomorrow I'm having lunch with an old friend - we fell out of touch when I stopped playing recreational volleyball so I was thrilled when she found me on facebook!; then on Thursday I am going on my first hike with a group that I joined; Friday I'm meeting my brother and sister-in-law for coffee and Sunday my other brother and I are going to see "The Beaux Stratagem" at the Stratford Festival
• Phew! How on earth did I fit "WORK" into the schedule prior to retirement???
• I usually spend more time on little "fix its" after supper and then by 9pm I plunk myself down in front of the TV and cuddle with my senior "catizen" (see Jane? I can do it too! Punny, no?)
• Somewhere in there is self-care: showering, plucking, waxing, pedicuring, trimming and on and on it goes...it's a good thing we get to retire as there just seems to be so much more maintenance that needs to be done!!
• Exhausted I drag myself off to my wee bed, try to read a bit more and fall naturally asleep. No worries on my mind, I'm sleeping well.

I'll leave you with a few photos from my hike this morning. I drove out of the city to a small village nearby where there is an old mill pond with a 4km path around it. It was a sunny gorgeous morning and I thoroughly enjoyed myself.

 herons...

 and turtles...

 and turtles...

 and snakes...oh my!

and hopefully some fish!

I love a good quickie, don't you?

Especially when it's full of good things...let's see...good things...

• the shingles on my right hand haven't improved too much visually but they don't itch hardly at all - so THAT'S an improvement right?
• yesterday after school I fell asleep in my chair out on the patio...there was the sound of someone mowing their lawn, the birds were chirping, the sun was shining, it was idyllic really....then Kazi came to the back door and started telling me her plans for the next few days - I don't remember a damn thing she said!! I pretended to listen as I wavered between consciousness and total zonked-outness. Yes, that's a word, just ask Sonya Ann....or Sluggy...
• today I almost fell asleep again outside (must be a side effect of shingles or something - take your pick - I have a few diseases!) but then I roused myself and got  a second wind (wind, not gas!) and got busy inside. Boxes upstairs went downstairs, bins in the dining room went into the living room, boxes in the crawl space went upstairs and various other permutations of constant movement of belongings - some are for the yard sale on Saturday, some are going east with me in a month...a MONTH!!! some are being donated and a bunch of stuff I took to the garbage bin - I feel much more organized now. Shuffle shuffle...
• my replacement came and spent the day today! It's true - someone is actually taking my job...good luck! She's young, very sweet and quiet - they'll EAT HER ALIVE!! I wasn't going to tell her anything bad but then it all spilled out, my bad! I hope she'll be ok, perhaps her sweetness will work in her favour - I'm anything but sweet - I'm jaded, cynical, sarcastic, caustic - but not sweet :) 
• tomorrow night is the first of a couple of retirement dinners. I don't usually go to the union dinners but I got two free tickets since I'm being booted out of the union :) Kazi is my date but she's not pleased we don't get free cocktails!! 
• I probably won't be able to write again til Sunday as tomorrow's the dinner, Friday night I'll be pricing everything for the sale and loading it all in the back of my truck, Saturday's the sale, Saturday night is a BBQ with my brother which makes Sunday a DAY OF REST!!! PHEW!!
• Sunday is also JUNE 1ST!!! I'm planning a dedicated nutrition/exercise month to get myself ready for riding my bike to the beach in PEI!! 
• Oh yes, don't let me forget, I have to take whatever I need for my England trip to PEI with me as I'm leaving from Halifax. OK? I'm counting on you all!!

Are you as busy as I am?? 

And this is why I blog...

.....because of people like y'all! I can't believe (but really I do because you folks come through for me again and again) the range and practicality and thoughtfulness of the ideas, suggestions and advice that came out of my last post. I have already put a few things into effect and will provide an update in a few days.

                     I can't see YOU, but I know you're there! And I know I can count on you!

So I need some more suggestions/advice but on a lighter note! It took me awhile but I finally found a carry-on bag that is only 20cm deep (around here the usual size is 23cm) as well as 50cm tall and 40 cm wide. These are the restrictions for travelling on Icelandair. I received the carry-on a few days ago and then yesterday received my tote bag that will carry my laptop, iPad, iPhone, camera, wallet, passport & other important papers etc.  Both purchases came from Future Shop's online store and were shipped at no cost.

I AM BEYOND THRILLED AT THE QUALITY OF BOTH BAGS!!!

 So here's my carry-on bag made by the United Colours of Benetton - no kidding eh? This was the only colour combo it wasn't sold out in but luckily I LOVE IT!!

A side view :)  I should have done the inside but too late - it is lined in the bright green!

 One of my best all-time finds!! While I love my carry-on I am in lust with my tote bag!! So well made.

So, the outside pocket, once unzipped, reveals a padded spot for an iPad, then in front of it a zipped pocket for jewelry, a place for pens and a mesh compartment for...

 and inside there is a padded spot to slide in my laptop and other essentials..

all while looking chic!!

On one side are two pockets with flaps - I'm thinking quick and easy access for iPhone and camera...

 and then another pocket on the other side for...I don't know what yet...

See the little ring symbol for jewelry, so CUTE!!

Ok, so here's where I need input. I've decided that I neither want to LOSE luggage or WAIT for luggage on the carousel. I want the convenience of carrying everything I need with me. So I'm thinking, no big suitcase. I'll carry everything I need for a 2 week walking trip in these 2 delicious bags.

CAN THAT BE DONE?? Can I live out of a carry-on and tote bag for 2 weeks? What should I take with me? When reading the reviews of the walking trip one woman was thankful she was able to do a bit of laundry at one of the accommodations. I'm also thinking that when I get to the farmhouse B&B they will probably let me do laundry. Of course I'll need to wear my hiking boots while I'm travelling along with jeans and rain jacket. SO what do I pack??? I'm not planning on wearing makeup or dressing up at all - this is me tromping and biking around the countryside and eating in pubs. How very British!!

Suggestions? Ridicule? Nah, let's just stick with suggestions....
***update - just realized I should have said when I'm going - from mid-September to the beginning of October.