Texas-Bound
The day has arrived. As we try to remember everything we are going to need to take along, I check off the items on my list as they are packed. The passports, the pills, the border-crossing letters from MDS, and some grocery items we are not able to get in the U.S., for example, Harmonie margarine, decent peanut butter and Cheese Whiz, and Dristan tablets for colds.
Our little Maltese dog has known for weeks we are leaving and she has been glued to my side the past few days. No dogs are allowed on the MDS sites; besides, this is John’s time that he does not have to share my attention with the dog…
We enjoyed having the grandchildren over for sleepovers the last weekend. It is comforting to know that we will be home for December. We have committed ourselves to volunteer for November in Marble Falls. We are flying back from Austin on December 3rd, returning on the 27th and then have to move our RV from Marble Falls to New Iberia, LA, where we are stationed for January and February, 2011.
My husband is very happy to be travelling down the road in his “new” 2001 GMC 3500 Sierra SLE dually with a 6.6 Duramax diesel and an Allison transmission. He has realized for some time that we needed a bigger truck to pull our large RV and this year found what he was looking for. I was hoping for maybe “a step up” from our three-quarter ton diesel, but this is the “full meal deal”. Hopefully the benefits will outweigh my objections to having a dually 4 x 4. We toyed with the idea of hauling our Toyota car behind the truck, but decided against it. Time will tell if that decision was a good one. Riding like the one-ton it is, it certainly is not easy for me to write notes as we drive on these bumpy Saskatchewan roads!
We arrived in Foam Lake in time to catch the local coffee shop packed with farmers discussing this year’s harvest. It was a little late for lunch, but we were hungry.
Langenburg was our destination for our first stop. Things are quite laid back at my Mom’s house. She retires early and gets up early as well. Saturday evening we were invited to Ken and Miss Jackie’s for a feast to thank friends who helped with their threshing this past summer. Mom had been there for Thanksgiving the weekend before. She is hard of hearing and does not enjoy it when everyone is talking at once, so she declined to come with us for the supper. We arrived home at 7:30 p.m. to find her in bed already!
The wind was so cold this week, it already felt like snow.
We got to catch one more Roughrider game before leaving Saskatchewan, even though it was quite disappointing. How many of us watch the game and wonder why we haven’t made the effort to enter free at Safeway for the prizes they award when we get a touchdown? As John always says, no tickee, no laundley.
Arriving in Brandon, we are visiting with John’s brother, Jake. He and his wife have just returned from a week-long Prostate Cancer Canada Network Annual Meeting in Toronto. Jake is 78 and has been living with prostate cancer for 14 years, and diabetes for several years. Five years ago, the cancer spread to his bones. He has had surgery and every treatment available and is now taking a type of chemo, a combination of Zomeda and Prednisone. The doctors cannot understand why his bone deterioration has apparently been stalled - whether it is his excellent attitude, or a result of the Omega 3-6-9, calcium and Vitamin D three times a day, and Vitamin B1. He has always had a VERY positive outlook on his illness and it is certain that this has contributed to his longevity. Jake indicated his reason for attending the convention was not for anything that could be done for him, because he feels it is too late for him, but rather to learn what was coming down the pipe that he could share with his sons and grandsons and friends. He was very excited to learn about the innovations in prostate cancer surgery using robotic lazer treatment and bring the information back to his prostate cancer group in Brandon.
For your information, Movember, an organization that started in Australia, has taken as its cause prostate cancer awareness programs. They raised over $20M in Australia, then came to Canada and last year raised $7.9M in Canada for prostate cancer awareness research projects. They sponsored this annual conference for all prostate groups across Canada. “Movember” is prostate cancer awareness month. Men are letting their mustache grow and ladies are encouraged to wear false mustaches for prostate cancer awareness. When you see a two-tone blue sticker on a car, comparable to the pink ribbon for breast cancer, or a lady with a false mustache, be aware this is with respect to prostate cancer.
We are pleased to enjoy our visit for this week and make our way south Friday morning, October 22nd.
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