Back to Regina

We arrived back in the city that rhymes with fun on Saturday evening. After giving up parking the camper properly, we sat down and had some beers with Kevin and visited before passing out on our faces.

Our original plan had been to take it easy and not visit anyone for the first couple days, just so we could have time to unwind and unpack and such. However, during a nice long walk early Sunday morning around downtown, we got the idea to ring my brothers doorbell and yell "Watcha!" and then run away. We decided not to run away when we saw my mom's car parked near his building, and had a nice surprise visit with a good chunk of the Smandych-Ogilvie clan! Thank you Kyleah for the impromptu breakfast and coffee! Visiting with the family, led to visiting with DK and Paige and then we passed out on our faces again.

We've been busy little bees since we got here. I've had a bunch of meetings to attend and errands and chores to take care of and have been slowly putting the inside of the camper back together, while Zach got a job straight away when we got here thanks to Mr. Walker, and has been working 16 hour days. I go back to work tomorrow, doing that group home thing that I do. It is going to be strange being away from each other every day, after 6 months of rarely being apart.

I've been lucky enough to have visits with a bunch of people the past couple days, some on street corners, some here in the sunny backyard of Casa Vidomski, and I spent a lovely sunny afternoon visiting with a few lovely lady friends at our old building. We will be out at O'Hanlon's on Saturday night, as requested by some of you. Everyone is welcome to come out and buy us drinks...I mean visit with us. ;) I may even shake a tail feather or two, if you would like to come and watch.

We are excited to be home, if only for awhile. Huge thanks to Kevin and Paige and the kitties for letting the Ogilvie family crash in the yard, and use things in the house. We will try our best to earn our keep and be the best roomies ever.

Packing Up

In five days, we will be leaving our campground that we've called home since November, catching the ferry and heading to the mainland. I think we are both excited to hit the road again, even though our funds are low, and the weather back home is still touch and go. We both like to be on the move, and even though I am not quite mentally prepared to move back to a winter wonderland, we can feel it's time. We are going to be taking our time on the way home. We will be in Vancouver on Monday and Tuesday, so if anyone wants to get together, email us and let us know, and maybe we can plan something, and if all goes to plan, we will be in Armstrong by Wednesday night, and we'll be staying there until I get paid on Friday. We will be doing a short stop in Regina to drop off the camper, if it doesn't fall apart before then, and then we'll be going to Kamsack for a couple days before we both have to get back to work.

It's amazing how fast time flies. The past six months have been all about seeing new things, and meeting new people, and rubbing all our good weather in Saskatchewan's face. The next three months will be all about seeing old friends and family, going back to old jobs, and enjoying the hell out of a Saskatchewan summer.

Leaving is bittersweet, but knowing that we'll be back in the area in a few months makes it easier. So highway drivers, keep your eyes peeled for a patched up little green bean next week, and instead of pointing and laughing, feel free to throw gas money at us. Or do both. Whatever floats your boat.

Question Period

A few weeks ago I put out a call on Facebook and Twitter asking people what they wanted me to write about on this here blog of ours. I had pretty much hit a writers block...even when you're living in a caravan in the forest, life is life, and it isn't always exciting. Sometimes it's just about going to work, watching TV, and worrying about how you are going to pay your bills. These are a good chunk of the questions that I got asked after my call out, and I'm going to answer them as best I can. If you're question isn't here, it is because it is going to get a blog post all to itself...so thanks for helping to cure my writers block. If you have any questions that aren't here, just leave them in the comments, and I'll make Zach answer them. :)

Where do you do your laundry?

We lucked out, and the campground we are parked at has laundry facilities. They are clean, and work well, and the laundromat is a good place to hang out if you want to hear gossip about other residents of the park or the the staff.

On our way out here we did our laundry at Zach's grandparents place in Armstrong...and if they don't mind, we probably will on the way back too. ;) Or maybe we'll hit up one of my relatives.

Do you ever get sick of each other?

Of course!! Up until I started working ( which is only 2-3 days a week) we were together for 24 hours a day, 7 days a week for 2 months in a 16' one room camper. If we didn't get on each others nerves once in awhile, we would be freaks. I think we're doing rather well though. Some couples would be headed for divorce by now, and we're still loving and laughing.

How are you making money?

Zach is doing his computertron stuff just like he did in Regina. I am working part-time at a private group home in Langford. I occasionally make some money from my Etsy store. We are not above looking for paying gigs on Used Victoria, selling our stuff if we can, and picking bottles. You do what you gotta do.

Why are you not travelling more?

All of the above work doesn't pay enough at the moment. We're both working again though, and we're catching up on things, so with any luck we'll be able to put some cash away, and have some disposable income soon. In the next month or so we'll hopefully be able to get around to seeing the north part of the island. Zach also bought a book of all the roadways on the island, and we want to do some touring around on back roads in the truck to see what we can find. We were hoping we'd be down in the States by now, but we like it here, and if we have the money, we'll try get there on the way back to Saskatchewan.

Are you coming back to Saskatchewan?

Yes. The timeline isn't set in stone, but we will be back in Regina in May or June, until August sometime. We'll be sure to keep everyone posted as plans develop.

How do you cook? What do you eat if you don't have a freezer?

Even though we have a propane stove and oven, we do not have any propane. That hasn't slowed us though. For the first few weeks, we made everything in the slow cooker or on the charcoal grill, and now we have a kick ass modern hot plate too. We've also got a fire pit in our site, if we really needed to cook on it. I don't even feel that the propane is necessary at this point.

Not having a way to freeze food is a bit of a pain. I am sure our diet would be a bit more exciting if we could. We always have canned and dried goods on hand, and if we are going to eat meat, we have to buy it and eat it that day. It just takes planning. Nothing goes to waste around here.

What do you miss the most about Regina?

I think we both miss our friends and family. It's taken some getting used to, not being able to just call up someone and hang out. We're a bit out of the loop too, so anyone who feels like letting us in on what's new is quite welcome to call! You should all just move here. The weather is better. :)

What do you like most about the campground you are staying at?

It's affordable. The trees. The people we've met. The other dogs. The trails. The stream that runs through it, that sounds like a group of people talking all at once. The creepy train tracks. It is close enough to Victoria that everything is close by, but we get to be in nature. I just love it here.