Park Fog

We were in Nanaimo over Christmas, and we took the kids to a playground at Beban park (awesome playground by the way). Yoshi needed a spin so he and I walked through the trails at the adjacent wooded area (a participaction park).

We walked a ways, but I started to get cold so we headed back. Along the way I was struck with how the fog looked through the trees. Of course these cell camera pics don’t do it any justice, and if I had my real camera it would have looked totally awesome and spooky 🙂 Still, you get the idea.


Highway Dogs

This morning I had all the excitement that I think I can handle.

I was at Costco getting some household items. On my way back home I was just on the onramp to the highway when I could see two dogs running toward me along the side.

I blocked traffic for a moment until the two dogs got close then I jumped out to see if I could corral them. Unfortunately there were no collars on the dogs, and they slipped through. Another truck stopped behind me and the driver and I called the dogs, and flagged down traffic.

The pooches got a little scared at this point, and made a break for the other side of the highway. They ran across our 4 lanes, across the median, and across the other 2 lanes without any incident. I was very thankful for the lack of traffic.

The other guy whistled very loudly, a skill I do not have. Both dogs came to us, and he wrestled one of them into his truck while I held the other one. Down the highway another car driver was talking with a pedestrian, so me and the painter guy drove down to her to see if she recognized the dogs. Alas she didn’t, and the painter had to head to a job, and couldn’t take the dogs with him.

We then moved the dogs to the back of my car. They enjoyed Yoshi’s bed quite a bit, and liked the views out the window. Incidentally, these were very big, fat labs, one chocolate, one black. Nice, friendly dogs.

The painter took off, and I called Sox to get the phone number to the SPCA. As I was talking to Sox I looked up in time to see flashing red and blue lights. A policeman had pulled up behind me, so I explained to him what had happened.

After a few calls I learned I would have to drop them off at the pound near Elk Lake, which was very inconvenient for me. One of the CRD people met me at Thetis Lake instead.

I really wanted to re-unite the dogs with their family, but I had no idea where they came from. Standing at the side of the highway I was really worried that I was going to watch one of them get with by a car or truck. I’m glad I was able to help the dogs, but I really hope their family finds them quick. The CRD lady mentioned that I probably saved the dogs’ lives by not leaving them there.

Downstairs Intruder

This morning there was a bit of a rude awakening. Well, scary awakening actually.

Sox and I both woke up to some strange sounds downstairs right around 5:15 am. The noises were muted, but sound like a rustling noise. It honestly sounded like someone was downstairs in our house.

I also read this warning from the police so that heightened my anxiety.

My first thought was how did they get in. Second was where the hell is Yoshi.

Sox was concerned too, so I told her to put on her lamp thinking this would cause an intruder to leave. The noises continued.

While Sox grabbed the phone and got poised to dial 911, I got up and noisily put on my slippers again hoping this would cause an intruder to leave. The noises continued.

As I was going downstairs I heard a familiar noise of Yoshi’s claws hitting the hardwood. He was sleeping on the couch. The noises were him getting restless early in the morning. This happens when we don’t lock him in the kitchen at night.

Aaargh. I got locked him in the kitchen then went back to bed, but with the adrenaline flowing, there was no way I was getting back to sleep. Then Yoshi started whining around 6, and that was when I decided to just get up and take him for a walk.

Car Time

People that know my son, know that he likes to play with cars. He has some pretty interesting scenarios that play out during car sessions too.

Today something struck me though. He has lots and lots of Hot Wheels cars, yet every time we play he grabs my least favorite/crappiest POS car he can find and gives that to me to play with. I am not allowed to choose my own car.

No fair!

Last Work

November 30th was my last day at work. I have voluntarily left two other jobs, and on both occasions it was a rather sad last day as I packed up my belongings and removed any personal information from the company computer.

Nov 30th was more sad for a number of reasons. I didn’t really want to leave. The people I worked with were awesome, and I loved the work I did. Sure, the company I was working for was starting to clamp down and institute from policies that I found rather distasteful, but the people and tasks were what kept me going.

That day I had nothing to do except pack and clean. Once that was done there was a final lunch with the gang, and then I loaded my truck and left.

My plan is to take the month of December off from work related activities. There are a couple opportunities that I plan to explore, but I am not launching a huge job search just yet.

Dropped Busy

Today I have:

  • dropped kids off at daycare
  • walked the dog
  • visited the soap exchange
  • returned a library book
  • retrieved sick daughter from daycare
  • made chili

Later I will

  • pick up my son from daycare and wife from work
  • work on my Christmas gifts
  • relax a bit

This unemployment thing is certainly keeping me busy.

Today was also supposed to be my riding day, and raking up the leaves, but the chilly temps and wind put a damper on those.