Weekend away...

The weather was beautiful last Saturday and I took some time to myself and spent the weekend at a little cabin in Gibsons on the sunshine coast. Gibsons is just outside of Vancouver, a short 40 min ferry ride away. If you remember a show called "Beachcombers" from the 1960s, it was filmed in Gibsons.

The cabin was clean and cozy and quiet. Really quiet. I think that is what I have been craving – some peace and quiet. So it was a good break for me. I did some writing, some knitting, listened to music, and watched an old Edward G. Robinson movie - perfect.

I also took a walk down to the beach. A very rocky beach. The funny thing is that I was walking along the beach and thinking how lovely it was. And then it occurred to me that the beaches that are a 5 minute drive from our house are lovely too – if not more beautiful. So why don’t I find time to go for a walk by myself to the beach more often?

But I enjoy listening to (and looking at) the waves as they flow back and forth over rocks and pebbles. I think it is one of the most peaceful sounds there is. (Not to go all "Farrah-Fawcett", if you can remember her from Cannonball run)

And I was moved to take some Artsy-fartsy photographs....This one I will call "Debris"...

This one I will call...errrr....Debris II...or "A bit of Seaweed Stuck to a Rock"...

So anyway, I would highly recommend the cabin in Gowerpoint. It has a view of the ocean and is not too pricey. The hosts, Leslie and Michele were welcoming, but very unobtrusive. It was a cloudy day and I couldn't get a decent picture of the view...The only downside – when I first arrived – was that I couldn't connect to the wireless Internet. I tried everything. I walked in and out of the house trying to get a better signal. Finally, I knocked on their door. I asked them to check their router (I did this 3 times). I called Mark to troubleshoot the computer. Nothing worked. My computer decided that it was going for a weekend away too and didn’t want to talk to anyone. I spent way too much time trying to figure out how I could get an Internet connection. I was desperate…what was I going to do? Finally, it was with a mixture of resignation and fear that I realised that for the next 48 hours I was going to have to live like they did way back in the....early 1990s!… without Internet. My only contact with the outside world was going to be the phone, neighbours, and a 5 minute car ride into town. Two of those options entailed me leaving the cabin and actually talking with a real person. How did they cope way back then? There was also television, but I am not sure that counts as contact with the outside world. What was I going to do? As it happened it was fine. Every now and then I'd get a bit panicky if I thought that there might be emails of the highest importance, sitting unread in my inbox. But I'd take some deep breaths and try to calm myself.

I went for a drive to see one of the old churches where my ex-husband was incumbent. St. Columbo of Iona (I think it's called). It is one of the smallest churches you could see. A lovely little building, no bigger than a garage, that overlooks Halfmoon Bay.


I have sad memories of that church, but of course with time they are becoming poignant memories. There was a little "shed" at the back that we had to stay in overnight when he held a service there, but it has gone. It was my first experience with a septic toilet. Enough said.

This tree has clearly given up on life and is simply waiting for an opportunity to uproot and fling itself into the ocean.