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Ruth and Maureen - Home in Calgary

Ruth and Maureen – Home in Calgary

We’re back in Calgary! It’s so hot in my condo that I have the air conditioning on full blast. That’s why I’ve thought about naming this post Home, Sweat Home instead of Home, Sweet Home. But home we are.

Looking Back

Ruth and I planned to meet in Toronto and, in a week or so, drive back to Calgary.  That’s not exactly what happened. It turned into a 30-DAY EXPEDITION to put it mildly!  We had already had an adventure with a lot of miles even before we left Ontario. And once we left Ontario, the road trip really began, but it was leisurely. We stopped. We shopped. We golfed even more than we’d expected. In fact, we had so much fun and games that now I will have to read my blog from day one to remember everything that happened!

I have learned a lot and met a whole bunch of interesting people.  Not only “friends of Ruth’s” but total strangers that became fast friends – like Renee in Eau Claire and Bill and Ryan at the Keg Steakhouse in Regina — who were so impressed that we were on a road trip and I was blogging about it that I think they made me blush! Both Ruth and I love to talk to people at the next table, people who wait on you and people waiting in line. And we found that where ever we went, people like to talk back to us and some of them, you end up adopting for a little bit of time, even if it’s ten minutes, or half an hour.

I never thought that I had any writing talent but I have found that writing every day has helped me to put my thoughts on paper (or I should say online).  My darling daughter Colleen has been not only a fantastic editor of my writing but has pushed me to do better with every blog.  It’s all in the editing that is for sure. She takes some of the harried posts I’ve sent her and has added dimension and made them flyToday was an easy drive from Medicine Hat to Calgary, Alberta as we arrived here around noon.  We had one stop at the Tim Hortons in Langdon for a snack.  I want to give a shout out to that branch of Tim’s as it was very good and I highly recommend their Dark Roast coffee.

Tim Horton's in Langdon

Tim Horton’s Dark Roast Coffee

Our adventures aren’t over, though, we have a dinner party to go to on Friday night, and now the planning needs to begin for the next trip. I’m thinking about competing in the Huntsman World Senior Games once again in St. George, Utah in October – I played competitive golf last year and am thinking about doing the same thing again this year.

My carry-on suitcase has proven to me that if you think about what you pack, a carry-on is sufficient for everything I needed for 30 days. It’s now empty and awaiting my next trip.

I hope you have enjoyed reading my road trip adventures as much as I have had in writing them!

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Hampton Inn, Eau Clair, WI – On Friday morning, after a great sleep, I walked down the hall to the breakfast room and one of the staff was putting fresh fruit on the counter.  I looked around and was surprised that there were no omelettes this morning.  Just as that thought went through my head, a woman named Barb came out of the kitchen and asked, “Would you like an omelette? I can make them for you – how many do you want?”

I said “Two please. Make one for my friend Ruth as well.”

She said it would take about twenty minutes as they were all-in “western omelettes”. With their robust coffee and yogurt we had such a good breakfast – but I’ve told you before how much I love the Hampton Inns.

Mall of America

Mall of America logo

We took our sweet time getting to the Mall of America just outside of Minneapolis, Minnesota and spent a couple of hours in our favourite shops, including Chico’s, Calvin Klein, and, of course, Nordstrom too. The Mall of America is owned by the same people who own the West Edmonton Mall, the Ghermezian family. The family moved to Canada from Iran in the 1960’s and is one of Canada’s biggest immigrant success stories, converting their rug business into the real estate and construction empire it now is. The West Edmonton Mall, in Edmonton, Alberta, is the largest shopping center in Canada. In the USA, the mall, which is now 33 years old, was the largest in the USA when it opened: now it’s the second-largest, behind the massive King of Prussia Mall outside of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

Chico's - at the Mall of America

Chico’s – my favourite store

The sales are on and Ruth took advantage but of course, the one thing I just had to add to my wardrobe, at Nordstrom, was not. And that, ladies and gentlemen, is how a shopping fail becomes a shopping win. I may have paid full price but when sales come around on this super skirt that I found, it would certainly not be a seasonal left-over!

Ruth has a friend in Minneapolis that we

would spend the night with, and it took us a while to find her address.  The problem was she was on 38th North, not 38th South and as you can imagine, that makes a pretty big difference.  Elaine is having problems with her balance and had never been referred to a vestibular physiotherapist for her condition.  We we searched out the web until we found a list of people for her to call on Monday to get an appointment with a physiotherapist. I’ll keep you updated on what happens.

This morning, we left Minneapolis around 7:00 a.m. to head out for Winnipeg.  A stop at McDonald’s for their good strong coffee and an Egg McMuffin got us on Highway #94 towards Fargo, North Dakota.  We had a short stop for lunch at a small cafe in Grand Forks, then we rolled into Winnipeg around 4:00 p.m.  We had luck with the weather: we drove through one shower around Fargo and then we had a thunderstorm in Winnipeg around supper time but we were already off the road and safe at the Webster’s by then.

The back yard right on the Red River

The back yard right on the Red River

Lynn and Sharon Webster

Lynn and Sharon Webster

We’re spending the next couple of nights with Sharon and Lynn Webster. It is such a treat to spend time with them.  They’re such good people – and they’re spoiling us with good food too!   We had a delicious dinner of steak, new potatoes, fresh peas and a salad.  As you may know, strawberries are my favourite fruit and we had Sharon’s famous Strawberry Pie for dessert.  How lucky for us!

The Websters have a beautiful home on the Red River, just a stone’s throw from the water!

Yum! Strawberry Pie!

Sharon’s Strawberry Pie

Tomorrow we are off to at the Grand Pines Golf Course, which borders on the Belair Provincial Forest – one of Manitoba’s 14 provincial provinces.   The course is close to the Webster’s cottage on the east side of Lake Winnipeg and only an hour away from their home here.  I can’t wait to get my clubs out to play, and tell you about the course and, maybe, about our game.

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