Life's a Stitch

It's frustrating to read a book that jumps back and forth in time. You begin a chapter with a feeling of disorientation until you realize what's going on. That's what's happening here, this being a brief interlude of updating prior to slipping back into the latter part of our time down under. 

I've been writing about New Zealand and Australia, which happened in November, but in reality we've been back to Canada, Washington and now California. I affectionately refer this time to our year of drifting aimlessly. It's not as romantic as it sounds. I once read about a couple who sold their house and prior to repurchasing and settling down, spent two years travelling the earth. It sounded like a dream. It sounds like what we are doing, right?

Yes, we have sold the house and planned our wonderful travels according to the requirements of our health insurance and citizenship. Those darned rules, but that's another story. The other complication has been the house "renovation," really a rebuild that's been laden with issues, costs and resultant delays. It was a lot of fun in the beginning, but like anything that drags on, feels less so now. Sometimes it hangs over our heads like a socked in Vancouver winter.  The builder referred to this, as we do, as our "forever house" and C observed that forever is getting shorter. This was taken today:

The bottom line is I wouldn't trade this time for anything. It has its moments of frustration, which need an outlet, so excuse my moment of complaining.

Now we're on an unplanned trip to California for Christmas with newlyweds M&KC, having given up the dream of having all the family home for the first one in the new house. 

The weather is mild and KC humours me by being my geocaching partner. Good son-in-law.

He was with me a few days ago when I reached my milestone 500th cache. In the middle of the desert, inside that cache there were two scallop shells, the symbol of the Camino. A coincidence, a reminder that all of life is a Camino or a sign for the future? Might have to take those shells back to Spain.

My favourite part of visiting this area is my opportunity to take watercolour workshops with artist Diane Morgan. This is my third year with her. My most recent painting is one of my favourites. The acorn, "a symbol of patience needed to attain goals over long periods of time:"