October 19/09 to Octber 24/09

When we left Buffalo Pound Lake we headed into Moose Jaw to pick up a wheel for our cargo trailer at the Cjay factory. That being done, we continued heading south passing the infamous 15 Wing Moose Jaw, home of Canada's Snowbirds. Too cloudy a day to see any planes though. The heater defrost blower decided to call it quits so that needed to be investigated. We rolled into Mossbank, Sask and checked out their little campground. Of course the power and water had already been shut off for the season so we headed to a little picnic area John had seen just outside Mossbank. The road was being resurfaced and an oil truck was blocking the entrance. Of course me, not being shy, got out and asked another road worker if he would be so kind as to move the offending vehicle so that we could settle in. That being done, we set up camp and collected some wood for that evening's campfire. Tomorrow would be soon enough to look at the heater situation. Hogan ran around like crazy. He loves to chase that silly tennis ball. Because he has a bit of a ligament injury to his back leg, it wasn't long before he was limping and the ball chasing had to stop. This of course did not stop him from keeping every little sparrow or chickadee away for the motorhome. He is such a goof. Because we are so close to 15 Wing Moose Jaw you could hear the planes practising or doing whatever it is that planes do. At one point I darn near jumped out of my lawnchair and hit the turf covering my head because the sound was right out of a WWII movie and the bombs were about to drop!!

The campfire was great. It was fueled by a bunch of wood that obviously some of the local youths may have hauled in. Nothing like a bunch of pallets to keep the heat. John and I quickly got the chainsaw out and made them into more user friendly pieces.

Up early the next day and time to check out the dash heater issue. After a few curse words, John did manage to access inside the dash to start the elimination process. Is it the fuse, the switch, the silenoid, or is it the heater motor itself. Long story short, it was the heater motor. Of course it was happy hour by that time so had to stop for the day and enjoy life. John had worked too hard that day anyway.

Wednesday found us unloading the tracker and heading into Assiniboia, Sk. to find a GM dealer to get a new part. Of course this was going to prove to be quite challenging. No such beast available at GM, but as luck would have it, there was a Napa in town. Yes!! Napa had the offending heater motor and after a quick stop at the grocery store, we headed home with our valuable purchases grasped firmly in our hands. How soon the tides can change!! The new motor did not fit on the existing wheel - the shaft was too short!! A quick call to Napa informed us that there were no wheel available and that one would have to be brought in from Regina, Sk. Okay!! We will see it tomorrow!! Change of plan, it has to come from either Calgary or Edmonton, Alta, but rest assured, they have one available.

As we were sitting watching TV that night we had a visit from our friendly neighbourhood stalkers, Larry and Ariane. They were on their way to visit some friends in southern Sask. and stopped in for a beer!! What a nice surprise. You never know who will be at your door when you are sitting in the middle of nowhere.

Thursday was spent waiting for the "part". John had planned on making a shelf for the printer to sit on, so he commenced to doing that. I decided it was time for some cleaning of cupboards and hanging a few more pictures. We were busy all day but managed to get lots done. The shelf went in well and the printer is now sitting in the cupboard above the driver's seat, where the TV once was. The picture hanging went well up until the time I broke the glass on one of the pictures so, decided it was time to quit. It was getting close to happy hour anyway and I wasn't very happy with the smashed glass. Eventually came to terms with the fact that I would now have to buy a couple more frames and finish another day. Watched a bit of TV (gosh I love this satellite system) and went to bed.

Here it is, Friday already. The weather has been pretty awesome so can't complain that way. It is hard to believe, but we are still waiting for the "part". A quick call to Napa and once again we are assured that it is on it's way. Forgive my skepticism!! The truck doesn't come in till later this afternoon so I have time to catch up on our blog.

The truck arrived along with the ever so elusive "part". Another quick trip into Assiniboia and back home again and before I know it, John has all the necessary pieces back where they should be and everything is working as it is supposed to. Just in time for the football games!!

Saturday is football again, so had to quickly get a few things done before kickoff. Tracker went back into the trailer and stuff put away and strapped down. Tomorrow we cross into USofA. Warm weather here we come!! The Saskatchewan Roughriders won the football game by the skin of their teeth, it was ugly but every win is a good win!! One last fire and one last steak and it was off to bed, for tomorrow, we drive.

October 17/09 and 18/09

We made the next stop all the way to Buffalo Pound Lake. There is a nice little pull off beside the highway. When we pulled in the sun was shining and it was warm enough to sit in the lawnchairs and enjoy the end of the lake. You could hear all the geese at the end of the lake and you just knew that you were experiencing nature at it's finest. We even saw what I think may have been an osprey. What ever it was, it was huge and I think was actually sizing up our Hogan. Good thing he weighs in excess of 50 pounds. A bit more of a load than even he would expect!! We managed to gather enough wood to have an awesome fire that night. Even a passing semi driver appreciated it as he gave a toot from his air horns on the way by. Life is grand!! The sunset was spectacular as you can see by the pictures. Saskatchewan is truly the land of the living skies. John BBQ an awesome steak and I must say I can wrap and mean bakers potato in foil. The next day was windy like crazy and I had just about had enough of the noise from the bezillion geese. Do they ever shut up? I think not. Anyway the weather sucked so we had a pyjama day. That is we lounged all day and watched football. I of course read a book while I was watching the game. Of course everyone knows that us women can multitask very well. I did manage to do a lasagna in the fancy dancy convection oven and it actually turned out very well. We watched some TV, then headed to bed. Big day tomorrow.

October 12/09 to October 16/09

Left Leoville Oct 12/09, and headed to Saskatoon. Arrived just in time to see a hit and run accident and managed to get the license plate number of the offending vehicle. It just so happened that the car that was hit belonged to a couple that was heading to Texas for the winter. The next day was spent shopping, laundry, and of course getting the dog's passport. We managed to score an invite to our son's and his girlfriend's place for supper. It was great and I got a new recipe for sweet potatoes with orange sauce. John hates sweet potatoes but, I like them and we must remember that when mama's happy, John is happy!! Yea, that's right!! Back home and to sleep because tomorrow is another day. Up early Oct 15/09, lots to do. Day went quickly and finally able to spend some time with friends before we leave. Of course as fate would have it, Marie got sick and I mean sick. Puking and whatnot, and, it was the "whatnot" that was really the problem, if you know what I mean!!! Anyway, long story short, I did recover, although I remember very little of the trip from Saskatoon to the town of Davivdson, where we spent the night in their rest area beside the big coffee pot and cup. Of course John has to take pictures of our stay at Davidson.

Thanksgiving Weekend 09

On Thurs Oct 8th we left Nisbet Forest and headed to Leoville, with one stop in P.A to stock up on groceries. It snowed off and on all the way. We were thinking we should have headed south instead of north! We arrived about 5:oo pm and settled in. Arnie and Shelley showed up later that night along with Dale, from Regina. We spent the rest of the night chatting/

Fri Oct 9th, It snowed all day and was cold. We spent the day getting things ready for the ride on Sat and that evening played cards and had a few wobbly pops.

Sat Oct 10th, Still snowing but not as cold, got on the trail about 11:00 am and had a great day. We got back about 5:30pm and had supper. After supper we watched the Riders play Toronto and they won! That evening it was more cards and the die hards shut it down about 3:00 am.

Sun Oct 9th, Still snowing off and on and colder. Arnie and Shelly had to return to Saskatoon and Dale left for Regina, after everyone had left, we settled in for a relaxing evening watching T.V.

Mon Oct 10th, Well, our pipes froze last night so I had to get the hair dryer out and set up a heater in the bays. No damage done and we had water again in about a hour. We watched football all day and T.V that night.

Tues Oct 11th, We are packing up and heading to Saskatoon. Hogan has a vet appointment on Wed and we have some running to do, Then we are pointing the bus south and getting out of this weather! This winter just snuck up on us to quickly.