Kevin's Ramblings…

It’s been a week since we’ve (my dogs and I, of course) moved into the new place. Time definitely flies.

I’m definitely liking it. Not having a neighbour living either above you or below you is awesome. I haven’t had up or down neighbours in most of the places I’ve lived in and now I know why. Unless the suites are built properly, you hear everything. I haven’t heard anything here, although I’m not entirely sure if there are people living on either side of me. Don’t particularly care, either.

The house is all setup and organized. I actually feel pretty accomplished. It typically takes me weeks if not months to get where I am now. I did it, likely, because my awesome cleaning lady didn’t think I would. Gotta prove her wrong, naturally.

The dogs have settled and it was a bit quicker this time around and I think that’s due to bringing them over several times before we actually moved in.

So, all in all, moving back to the northwest community of Ranchlands has been a good decision. Let’s see if I can stay a while now.

My new place, a 3 bedroom townhouse in the community of Ranchlands is now 95% unpacked and organized. I have a few boxes left in the living room that I need to find places for, and that’s it. I’m feeling fairly accomplished.

I’m going to like it here. The area is great for walking the dogs, there are 3 dog parks within walking distance as well. With the recent warm weather (it’s been around 10C the last few days) the parks are a bit wet to use as yet, but the area is still great for getting around.

I did the move out inspection at my old place last night. Thanks to the efforts of my wonderful cleaning lady, it was in tip top shape and I got my entire security deposit back which was nice. I guess that’s a closure on the Airdrie chapter of my life, at least for now.

It’ll be great once all of the boxes are unpacked and taken care of, that’ll be done today. It’s nice being organized so quickly. My office is a great space to work in, it was the first room I finished.

I do have some pictures to hang, that’ll be next on the organizing agenda. Maybe I don’t hate moving, would explain why I do it so often.

If I was to say that I hate moving, many would likely disagree with me as I have moved a LOT since moving out of my childhood home when I was 24.

I do hate moving though. That process is not a lot of fun. Packing everything, moving it from one location to another and then the unpacking.

I am in the unpacking stage here at my new place. I am making good progress and will be done by the end of the day today, thankfully.

I lived in the Ranchlands neighbourhood back in 2015 I guess it was. I rented a 6-story townhouse. In hindsight, I would never rent such a tower again, the stairs were quite insane. On the good side though, it was my introduction to the North-West part of Calgary and I really liked it here and now I am back.

I will be much closer to the baseball diamonds that I umpire at in the spring, summer and fall and the area has everything that is needed. I will miss Airdrie, it is an awesome city but the house that I was in just wasn’t working for me.

So, I am here for a bit – how long, who knows but hopefully a while anyway. Getting settled in is good, I will feel more at home and so will the dogs.

I bought my first car when I was 24 I think it was. It was a 1983 Nissan Pulsar. I bought it in about 1995 and it got me back and forth to school for 2 years. It was held together with duct tape and hope, but hey, I was a student and didn’t have a ton of money, it did the trick.

I’ve had a few new vehicles and several used vehicles between then and now, almost 30 years of driving.

In 2021, I purchased a 2021 Dodge Ram 1500 and I have absolutely loved it. I put a cover on the back of it which essentially turned a pretty nice vehicle with the largest trunk going.

In my history of car ownership, I’ve always gotten rid of my vehicle when it reaches about 100,000km. The warranty has expired and I’ll have to start putting money into maintaining it. I’ve had a car payment steady since my first new car, a 1998 Hyundai Elantra, so 27 years now, half my life.

So, a payment is nothing new, I’m totally used to it. My truck is at 106,000 km and I decided to replace it. I didn’t get new this time, I got used, but it’s an upgrade, a 2023 Dodge Ram 1500 with 26,000 km and plenty of warranty left.

It was sad to see my Hydro Blue truck go, but I’m welcoming my new (to me) truck.

If you’re in the Calgary area, Murray Okotoks was a pleasure to deal with.

I have not posted in ages. It’s been almost a year since my last post. I guess I have not been in the blogging mood at all.  Most social media has been driving me nuts lately.  Anyway, I digress.

I’ve moved back to Calgary. I loved living in Airdrie. It’s a great size city with all the conveniences right at your fingertips. The place I was in was decent, but, someone in their infinite wisdom decided to make the south wall all windows. The sun shines through and heats up the place like a greenhouse, even with the blinds and curtains closed.

The last 10 days or so have been cold, in the -20s but with bright sunshine beaming down, the living room and kitchen heated to 24C, a tad warm for my tastes. As it gets warmer, the house will be getting warmer and it was the catalyst to make me move, that and also that I think I’ve got Gypsy blood in my veins.

I started looking at Facebook Marketplace for rent ads in December and took a look at a few properties. I’ve lived in a lot of places so I can pick up on issues just about immediately. I looked at a basement suite in the Ogden neighbourhood. It was decent, overpriced I think and not a great layout, so I passed on that one.

I looked at another place way in the south end of Calgary. It was the main floor with a tenant in the basement and the owners living in the modified garage. It was on a cul-de-sac with no driveway and the parking situation wasn’t ideal. The backyard was a postage stamp as well so I passed on that one.

A month ago (or so) I looked at a townhouse in the Ranchlands neighbourhood. I previously lived in Ranchlands when I first moved to the north west about 10 years ago. I loved the area, didn’t love the place I was in (it was a 6 story townhouse) but this place seemed great. No neighbours in the basement, or above me either, just people on either side. It was furnished and everything included. The landlord and I got along right away and I signed a lease.

I got the keys right away as it was empty but didn’t move until yesterday. I’ve brought a few loads over here over the last few weeks and the dogs have started getting used to the place.

Yesterday, I was awake at 4am to finish my packing. Three friends helped me move, we loaded the trailer, drove to the new location and unloaded all in under 3 hours. Now the unpacking process begins.

I’m happy to be back in Calgary. I’ll be closer for umpiring this spring and summer, 15 minutes to the park. I think that’ll work out well.

So, a new chapter begins. I’m looking forward to it and perhaps a few more blog entries, more than once a year anyway.

I was booked for a trip to Ontario last October and was looking forward to it. A week before I was set to go, I got a sinus infection. My doctor suggested not flying and gave me some good reasons, so, reluctantly, I cancelled the trip. I had a good staycation at home.

I’ve been figuring out when I could return, had thought about June but that didn’t work out and then thought that I’d go for 4 days around my birthday.

On Wednesday, I booked a flight and would be in Ontario from August 8 and return on August 12.

On Thursday, the airline that I booked with declared bankruptcy and will cease operations effective tomorrow, Sunday.

I am not an overly superstitious person, but I’m feeling like something is not wanting me to visit Ontario. I’ve mentioned this to a few people, people that I wouldn’t say are overly superstitious either, but they agree.

So, for now anyway, I am not rebooking with another airline and am not thinking of visiting this year.

I called the bank and after waiting on hold for just over 2 hours, I found that yes, indeed, I’ll get a refund on the flight. The agent I spoke to was apologetic about the wait, they had never seen call volume that high. It’ll take up to a few weeks to get my refund, but that’s ok.

So, now I need to find another time to take some time off. Doubt I’ll go anywhere, a staycation sounds good to me.

I’m.on day 3 of a 4 day weekend. I needed a break at work and I got one.

My friend and former neighbour turned 65 on Thursday and I can down to Crowsnest Pass for the weekend. Hera and Twix are at home and I’m having my “dog lady” look after them. Excellent service, she’ll come and let them out or take them for walks if I’m away and this weekend, she’s staying in my spare room and looking after the dogs.

I let Airdrie around 1030 on Friday morning and had a smooth trip down to Crowsnest Pass. I stayed in the Cosmopolitan Hotel in downtown Blairmore. They’ve done a great job with the renovations, the rooms were very clean, gorgeous hardware floors and quite comfortable.

Friday night I had a great home cooked meal consisting of pan-fried steaks, baked potato, carrots and brussels sprouts. We had cheesecake for dessert. On Saturday, we headed to Kalispell, Montana. We stopped at Walmart and then Costco. Costco was a disappointment. Just about everything was at least as much as it would be in Canada then you add on 35% for the exchange rate. Not impressed. We went to Chick-fil-A for lunch and it was as good as always.

Last night we went out for Indian food and it was great. I’m heading home this afternoon and will be off tomorrow for Family Day.

All in all, a great weekend.

I’ve been in Airdrie Alberta for almost 2 months now. I’m really liking the city. It’s a good size, the population is around 80000 people. It’s well.laid out and easy to get around in. Rush hour can be a bit slow going, but all in all I don’t mind driving even during those slower times.

The house I’m in is great. I have a basement suite, 2 bedrooms and it’s a good size. There’s plenty of light from the windows and both bedrooms have full size windows in case we need to get out via an alternative method.

I’m thinking that I may move upstairs when the tenant up there vacates, she’s looking at buying a house. It would give me access to the fenced in backyard, a larger deck and a very cool fire pit area. More importantly, no stairs. As the dogs get older, they’ll start to struggle with the steps, I am sure. No issues now, but Hera is 9 and Twix will be 11 in less than 2 weeks. There are 3 bedrooms up there, unsure of the exact layout, so the bedrooms must be smaller, or the living room / dining room are smaller anyway, I’m looking forward to seeing it.

Airdrie has everything that I could need, pretty much. I do have to take a 5 minute drive south on Highway 2 to get to Costco, but that’s not a big deal at all. There are 2 grocery stores within walking distance, restaurants galore and everything else that I could want or need within a short drive. I’ve noticed that I’m saving a bunch in gas. I filled up this morning for $64, I still had a half tank and I last filled 2 weeks ago.

Calgary is close, I can get to downtown in 25 minutes or so. I’m looking forward to umpiring the spring/summer league with Babe Ruth Calgary again. I may also do some umpiring in Airdrie, unsure as yet.

So. All in all, I’m very happy being back in the area. I’m missing my friends in Crowsnest Pass, but I’m definitely not missing the constant wind and the typically crappy weather. I’m glad I made the move north, even though the trailer experience didn’t work out as planned.

I think I’m settled, until I decide to retire and that’ll be here before I know it, I’m sure.

The nasty cold snap that we had has ended. We had 10 or 12 days with nighttime lows in the low -30s and not much warmer during the day. It was 6C yesterday, so, much better.

The dogs didn’t get to go for a walk during that time. It’s too cold for Hera, never mind Twix who has rather thin fur. They were very happy to go for a walk again.

I have a 3-day weekend this weekend, I’m off today. I also have no plans which is awesome. I may go to Costco, but otherwise I’m not doing anything. That’s a good weekend as far as I’m concerned.

Last weekend the Buffalo Bills lost in the playoffs, again and continue letting me down, year after year. It’s been almost 40 years in a row now. I guess it’s like being a Leafs fan. Some have suggested that I choose another team. Nope. Can’t do it.

So, if I watch any more football, I really don’t care who wins although I DO NOT want the Chiefs to win this weekend, I doubt they will though. I’d love to see the Lions beat the 49ers but I sort of doubt that’ll happen either.

Nothing else much going on, and that’s ok. Enjoy your weekend when it arrives

I haven’t posted in a couple of weeks, but a fair amount has happened.

Winter has finally arrived in Alberta, and many other places and it didn’t arrive slowly, it arrived like an avalanche.

One day, it was 15C and then the next it was in the low -30s. It was literally that quick. Let me tell ya, although I enjoyed living in the trailer, I’m glad that I have not been in it the last 10 days or so. The furnace would have been able to keep it at a comfortable temperature, but it would have run almost constantly. I can’t imagine going to and from the main building for the washroom, shower and for getting water for the dogs. Walking 300 meters or so in the low -30s would not be fun, not at all.

So. Needless to say, I’m very glad that I’m in a house. A nice. Warm house with running water and sewer. VERY GLAD.

I’m sure the dogs are pretty glad as well. Although they’d follow me on whatever quest that I decided we needed to do. They are loyal, awesome dogs.

Work has been busy and a bit rocky. We are working on the rockyness and hopefully will get that sorted soon.

I had some rather bad news delivered last week. My ex-boss and friend Chris, who was responsible for sending me to Alberta from Ontario (and believe me, that’s a good thing) passed very suddenly after a very short battle with cancer. He was a big, teddy bear of man with an excellent heart. He was a great boss and an even better person. He will be missed by all who knew him and I wish his family my sincere condolences.

Here’s to Chris and also to hoping for a short winter, although we know the short winter won’t happen, so, here’s to Chris !!!