Monday, May 16th, 2011

We were up a couple of times during the night. Joan was already up when I got up at 7:45AM, to a nice sunny morning.

The book I was reading last evening was a local one that I bought here in the campground office. It stated that the first arrest made by the North West Mounted Police, the forerunner of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police, was made three miles west of Nanton. They wanted to erect a monument on the site but cancelled the idea when they realized the only access to the site was via horseback. This was a bit of history I found interesting.

The sun had disappeared by 9AM as we were getting ready to go over to Dick's. It remained bright but not sunny and windy. We arrived at Dick's at 11AM.

Dick was over at Lowell's so we went there for a few minutes and said goodbye to Lowell and Rollie who was there with Lowell. They were getting ready to strip Lowell's ATV (All Terrain Vehicle) and do a motor job on it.

Dick, Joan and I went to Tim Horton’s for a round of coffee for everyone and took Donna's to her at the school she works at and has for 26 years. She took a coffee break when we arrived and we all sat around the teacher's lounge and visited.

After our visit with Donna, Dick, Joan and I went to Hero Optical at Airdrie and picked up our new glasses. Mike put a new lens in my regular glasses and had a pair of sun glasses for me. Joan received her sun glasses but her regular glasses were not in. Mike will mail them to Joan when ready. It is nice to be able to see so good.

Mike is married to Andrea, Dick and Donna's youngest daughter. Mike owns and operates Hero Optical in Airdrie.

Dick, Joan and I then went to the Beef and Reef Bar and Grill for lunch. Dick had his dark rum quota for the day. We all had a nice pizza and a strawberry cheesecake. The food in a bar always seems so much better.

We dropped Dick off at home and filled our water jug. Joan and I arrived back at the trailer at 3:45PM waiting for Jeff to stop by on his way home from class.

I had a half hour snooze around 5PM. When I got up a grey van was parked on the site next to us. It does not look like much of a camper but it probably is. It has an air conditioner on the roof and a satellite dome on the roof. It is connected to the campground electrical outlet and is wearing New York state tags as they call a licence plate.

Jeff came in on his way home from his course at 6PM and left at 6:20PM. He had to get home to study and Jodi had to go to 4-H this evening.

It was a beautiful sunny evening but still cool and windy. Joan and I walked over to the Sobey's grocery store for a few things and arrived back at the trailer at 7:05PM.

At about 8:30PM I went over and had a chat with the folks in the Dodge Van from New York with the Mercedes Benz Engine. The van is a camper more or less identical to the one my brother Ken has. They are a German couple living in New York. When it rains they stay in a hotel. They are leaving the camper with friends in Kelowna, British Columbia, and flying back to New York. They will fly out to Kelowna in July and proceed up to Alaska. They have been out and toured around this area before. They plan to stay about a week here then go to Lake Louise and Banff to see that area again. The last time they toured that area was in 1979. They are a very interesting couple and some of their maps and publications are actually written in German.

Joan and I spent the rest of the evening reading. There was not much of a sunset. The clouds received a little colour but not as one would expect just before the sun set. The clouds were alto cumulus and I was expecting them to get quite colourful.

Another day became history. We are leaving tomorrow morning so it is rather hard to leave the relatives here as always.