No entry for last week! I was too busy! Monday I had a colon examination which gave me an all clear; John picked me up from the Lougheed; Thanks guy. On Tuesday Tieneke phoned to tell me that our sister Els is weakening rapidly, which Jeltsje too, confirmed by email. Had a late coffee with John at 4-pm and talked about my plans to visit Els in September. He phoned me in the evening urging me to go see Els as soon as possible, which was also at Tammy’s adamant urging. I had mentioned September earlier, but was already having my own doubts that same evening.
On Wednesday I was in the dentist chair in the morning and in the aft went to the Harry Hay’s for passport forms. The space of sixteen wickets was filled with people, but I was in and out with my renewal forms. Then I went across the street for the mug-shots. On the way home I stopped in at the Flight Centre office to make a tentative booking for July 31. In the eve I filled out the passport renewal form, which was much simplified from earlier versions.
This service was a welcome change from the old third degree treatment you would get for wanting to leave your Canada.
Thursday I rose early to be at the Hay’s building at 7:15am to beat the line up, which I did being second line at the doors. The doors opened at 8:30am with a ‘town crier’ giving us very clear instructions. I was a renewal case and welcomed by one of the sixteen agents who walked me to her wicket! All looked good and I was out in twenty minutes after dropping 170$$ for a speeded process. This service was a welcome change from the old third degree treatment you would get for wanting to leave your Canada; PP ready this Thursday.
Then it was onto the Blackfoot for lunch with Herman, which is always an enjoyable two hour stretch filled with stories, opinions and observations. Herman gives me a ride to Heritage where I board the number three bus which drove up before I was even settled at my spot.
Friday was coffee with Rene at Shumir’s Good Earth and on the way back I left my 1745 world globe replica with Avery, my booking agent. We’d struck up a long conversation on maps the day before, when I finalised my ticket which is from July’s last day to August the eighth. In the afternoon I also started to sort out pictures to take from the times Els was in Canada. I continued with that on Saturday as well and still need to round it off today.
Also all during the week I made notes in my Yellow Hilroy thin notebook for my up coming talk on August 13. And on Sunday I walked to the Palliser to listen to Herman’s words of wisdom and connect with my friends. Elisabeth offered to drive me, but I asked here to pick me up instead when I return, to which she graciously agreed.
And that is the record of my unrecorded week, full of events and emotions which are still in play of course. Three years ago almost to the date I travelled to Holland to stay with my sister Els for about five weeks. We had a beautiful time, also with our other siblings and now Els and I will be saying goodbye for this life.
That year [1959] Els went to Oxford, England as an au-pair for a year and I emigrated to Canada on August the tenth.
We only differ just under two years in age, experiencing WW2 as children and our growing together up until 1959. That year Els went to Oxford, England as an au-pair for a year and I emigrated to Canada on August the tenth. She came over three times 1984, 1997 and 2005 and it is of those times that I am digging up the photos to take over on my trip this time to help us recall those shared memories. I also intend to make a little story of my memories of things she and I experience together during our life time, starting with the ‘skeet, skeet’ in our back yard in May of 1940 when German planes bombed Rotterdam’s inner city.
Later in life when I heard about this bombing I thought: How illogical to bomb a city you would need to invade England! Obviously Hitler never intended to make that invasion. This became my first lesson in political bluff talk, with many more to follow including today with the ‘Trumpeteer’ generating cheap news for the journalists. I now wait for actions only.
<9:12am~