Aw Canada Snow

Alberta Canada has been experiencing a cold snap for the last week. The weather report yesterday said it was -37 degrees Celsius. For some reason they like to add: "feels like -45."
Yes, it does.

My dear friend 'Aw' in Thailand says it is 'lawn jin jin' (very very hot) in Bangkok right now. She says she wishes she was here where it's cold. So for Aw's benefit I will go over a few tips for enjoying this wonderful Alberta weather.

This is me in the cold. The temperature is -33 degrees. Oh my God.

This is my car. I wasn't sure it was my car until I swept some of the snow off it to make sure. By the way, Aw thought it was funny when I told her I drive a 1985 Lincoln Town Car. 'So old Stevie'. But remember it's paid for and it runs.

Okay. Maybe it doesn't run. In Thailand they have Thai massage. In Canada we have 'battery hot tubs'. I didn't plug my car in last night so I had to take my battery inside to warm it up in the sink. And I did actually manage to start my car.

I don't want to go out today but I have to. Today I have an appointment with the International Travel Clinic to get some shots for my upcoming India trip.
I drove to the Travel Clinic where I got some wonderful advice. This is Mary-Beth. She's from the Philippines. She gave me shots in both shoulders and got me excited about visiting her country in the future. I had my consultation with Chris. He's from Northern India and we spent most of the time pouring over a map while he gave me great advice about how and where to travel.

After getting my shots and some very important information about what to do if I eat a bad chapatti, I headed over to see my fellow carpenter; Duncan. This is Duncan's dog; Roxy. This is how Roxy deals with the cold weather.

In Canada when it's cold, we eat. In this case, we had Ted Heller's favorite meal at Ricky's Restaurant; The Roast Beef dinner with Yorkshire pudding. 'Aroi mark mark' (very delicious).

At the end of the day I got a call from my friend Malcome (who sounds just like Raymond Burr). He invited me for dinner at the Olive Garden...where we had some more great food.

I had lots of adventures today but what I enjoyed most was settling in to my Monk's Cell in an unfinished basement room, where I'm staying for a few more days, and reading my Wilbur Smith book. All I kept thinking when I was reading was: 'I wish I was in Bangkok. It's too cold here'.

Packing For Thailand

This morning I was dreaming that I was in a school. The children were unruly and it was my job to get things organized. At first, the place was a disaster with everyone doing their own thing and making a bigger and bigger mess. Then I started focusing on the job at hand and before I knew it, suddenly everyone was working together. I just watched in awe as this giant team of people brought the school from a dishevelled mess to a neat organized structure again. It was a miracle.

Then I was walking in the dark when a voice that spoke without speaking, began writing a big 'S' on the wall. Then I was told I needed to remember a word and that it was very important that I not forget it. The word was "Nicodium" or "Nicodia". I heard the word over and over again and I kept seeing the large 'S' written on walls and on mailboxes. I wondered if the 'S' might represent the girl I think of as my daughter, 'Sarah' or if it referred to me. I felt compelled to wake up and I wrote this word down. I searched for it on Google but I didn't find an answer. Perhaps someone reading this, knows what it means. Please let me know if you have some insight into it. I phoned Sarah tonight and told her about this dream. She said the word 'Nicodia' rings a bell with her but she can't quite place it.


I packed today. I have been organizing my stuff for the trip for the last week and it was fun to finally lay it out on the floor and do the final checklist so I could see if it would fit in my new Knapsack. I was a bit startled to find that all that stuff actually did fit. Here's what I I had when I finished packing it. The whole pack weighs twenty-one pounds. One of the most expensive items I bought was a pair of special boxer shorts that cost forty-five dollars. Yes, you heard me, forty-five big ones; and it's not even leather! I have only two outfits and some rain wear, and it cost me almost five hundred dollars. My pack cost $130. I got prescriptions for protection against the nasty micro organisms and a couple of epi-pens that remind me of the movie 'Pulp Fiction' when one of the characters stuck a huge needle into his heart. They are for me to use if I accidentally eat Shrimp. It's possible that my throat could start closing up. It that happened, I pop the cap off one of these suckers and jab it into my thigh. This morning I took the second part of a two part cocktail to protect me against Cholera. The nurse at the International Travel clinic told me it would be the most vile tasting concoction I would ever drink. She said I needed to force myself to down it within a two hour period. Piece of cake. I kind of liked it...(which worries me) I also got a second pair of glasses and contacts. Total cost of prescriptions and glasses; $650.
So now I'm at my brother Mike's in Kitchener, Ontario. I have to be at Pearson International at 6:30 for my flight at 9:30. My sister Melbatoasty will be taking care of ground control for my Blog. She will be showing my journey on the map here on my Blog. It is a wonderful feeling to be going on this adventure knowing there are so many of you joining me in your hearts and minds. I look forward to sharing my adventures with you.