Blogs from Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, Canada, North America

Hi everyone! I cannot believe it has been two years since I last began this blog but the time has come to dust off the cobwebs and write again because...I am going back! I have rather been quiet about this trip as I begin to understand and fully appreciate again what it was like last time I went. I felt on top of the world, able to achieve everything and ever so fortunate to be selected to travel to Africa. This time around I chose to go back. I chose to because I love my job, I find passion in it every day, and I chose to because Africa is frequently in my thoughts and makes my heart pang with heart break. I also chose to go back regardless of the terrible, lonesome time I had ... read more

Four day and counting. Seems like an eternity (slash I want it to be because I still have A LOT to do before Tuesday) and like it will come up way to fast (again I should start seriously packing). Getting prepared to leave the country for three months is a lot of work but I was still completely caught off guard by it. The amount of little things you have to have in order before you leave filled up my to-do list way to quick. I only thought of the big things like passport renewal, clothes, and vaccines. I completely forgot about money, cancelling my phone, switching my accounts over to my love, and buying cat food. This past week was meant to be spent on my couch watching the Netflix I missed over the last ... read more

On October 23rd, Linda's mother experienced more heart trouble and was admitted to hospital for tests and rest. After spending a week in hospital, she returned to her home in Langham. We decided that a trip home to help her adapt to her new limitations was in order. The school very graciously granted Linda a 2 week leave, and as soon as arrangements were made, we were off to Canada. We flew from Kaohsiung to Seoul Korea and then crossed the Pacific to Vancouver aboard the new 787 Dreamliner. We found it a much more comfortable flight because the plane flies 10% higher and faster. They also have higher oxygen and humidity in the cabin, the windows are 33% larger, and the ceiling is higher and the storage bins larger. We arrived in Saskatoon on November ... read more

"Things to always remember while on the road: Bring distractions and their according accessories, never trust a fart, and never turn down a clean shower." I've been lucky so far as to have followed these rules, but the campground we stayed at on Saturday night was a grim reminder of just how little attention some people put into their campsites. Molded concrete, rusted metal, broken toilet stall doors, a $1 per minute fee on the cobweb covered shower, this wasn't a cleaning complex; it was a high end jail cell. And that was just the facilities, the overgrown brush all around and the mud that was the ground did an elegant job at keeping the earlier rains from being soaked in and absorbed. Ever wonder what it's like to sleep on mud? Yeah, me neither, but ... read more

As grey traces of dawn tint the eastern sky, three travellers - a man, a woman, and a cat - emerge from the forest shadow. Fjording the rivers Red and multiple times the river Assiniboine, they turn north, journeying into the dark and forbidding lands of the Notleys. Even now the intensity of her power can be felt: weakening the oil price and saddening the pocketbook. If they cannot pass through this barren wasteland, they will become empty, mindless specters, stripped of will and soul. The journey to Saskatoon was uneventful. The scenery looks better in real life compared to photographs. Come out this way and discover it for yourself! Gerry doesn't see it as acutely as I do. I think Saskatchewan is a beautiful place, though I was frequently velocitized and made the most impressive ... read more