I said goodbye to Regina after I filled my car with gas on Albert Street and I headed for Saskatoon on Highway #11. It was cloudy and when I approached the valley at Lumsden I could see rain clouds in my future. What I thought would be just a shower ended up with rain until I arrived at Chamberlain. (The only Village on the highway between Regina and Saskatoon that doesn’t have a by-pass. There is still only two lanes through the village and the speed limit is down to 50 kmph.) The traffic was light and soon I was in Saskatoon.

I had the directions via Google to Kate’s place and although I was in the area I didn’t see the street name. I could see several condo buildings and I asked a lady, who had stopped running to check her cel phone, what street I was on. Amazingly I was exactly at my destination. It started to rain, with lightening so I stayed in my car for awhile. Then I made a dash for the door and soon I was having coffee with my niece Kate.

We found the perfect spot for breakfast. A new, quiet restaurant with a glassed in deck. Just the best place for a two hour leisurely visit with good food. We talked a lot about writing and her involvement with guest posts on my blog. We really caught up on a lot of subjects we both love.

It was raining a bit when I left to go to Dorothy’s. I didn’t expect a HUGE downpour with a lot of thunder and lightening. The water drainage system, on certain streets, couldn’t take away the amount of water coming down and I had to make a couple of detours. I was so happy to get out of the rain and into a warm, cozy condo Dinner was, as always, delicious. Dorothy and I watched the end of the golf on TV. Great playing Rory McIlroy!

I find that staying at Dorothy’s is just like it used to be when she was on the farm. My kids always loved to get away from the city and go to Gerald and Dorothy’s to spend time with their cousins. Doc and I always felt right at home there too.

Monday morning I picked up Ruth from Briarwood and we high tailed it to The Willows for a golf tee time of 9:36 a.m. We arrived at the entrance to the Pro Shop when the door opened and the Marshall came out with arms outstretched and gave me a big hug and said, “Welcome to The Willows”. I was, to say the least, surprised. Now I have golfed a lot of courses, close to 200, in my lifetime. I’ve received a few hugs when I have returned to Sky Mountain after an absence of six months but never have I experienced a welcome like this!

The course is in excellent condition, the fairways are lush and the greens were smooth. It seemed like we were all alone out there as there was no one ahead of us or right behind. Our games were not the best but we had a good time.

On Tuesday Dorothy and I went downtown to Bricker’s Shoe store and I bought a pair of sandals. I was extremely lucky to find a pair of 8 1/2 Narrow shoes and they were on sale. There is not a shoe store in Calgary that carries narrow shoes now.

We had lunch and were off to see Heather and Bernie at their acreage, south of the city. Heather and Bernie bought this place a few years ago and it needed work, lots and lots of work. They pretty well stripped it to the walls, except the kitchen and bath fixtures and with hard work have an awesome living space. The cupboard doors in the kitchen were sanded and painted white. Bernie designed and built a new island. Every room in the house has been updated. Now it is a beautiful home.

The acreage now has trees lining the driveway and trees (it’s own nursery) in front of the house. Bernie has a small tractor with a front end loader and a grass mower so he is in seventh heaven with lots of work to be done in the yard,

Wednesday Ruth and I were guests of Bob Fleming for a golf game at the Saskatoon Golf and Country Club. It was a chilly, misty morning for our tee time. I had played the course several years in the Ronald McDonald Charity tournament when I lived in Regina. The orignial clubhouse has since been replaced with a new one and several golf holes were also lost with the construction of the Confederation bridge across the Saskatchewan River. Bob had a really great game but Ruth and I could not say the same! Without a GPS we found it hard to get yardages. We topped off the afternoon with a delicious lunch on the deck of the clubhouse.

Thursday morning I picked up Ruth at 8:00 a.m. and we were out of the city in no time and onto Highway #7 heading for Calgary. A stop in Rosetown for gas and a stop in Drumheller for ice cream and by mid afternoon we were home in our condos.

It was a trip that was overdue on my part but I had a wonderful time visiting family and friends.

P.S. It would be remiss of me to go to Regina without checking out my favorite golf hole. That would be Tor Hill #4 that I love so much. I didn’t have time to golf but here is the latest picture.