Driving with the Lights on

I’ve only had my driver’s license for a little more than 7 years. For so many years I had been afraid of driving. It had taken a very long time before I had any confidence in getting behind the wheel and actually operating a vehicle! I’m now, not a bad driver…but not really a great driver. I don’t drive well in the dark, I just can’t see well enough.
Recently, I was driving at night and I had noticed, all of a sudden, that I was driving better. I could see! It was amazing! All I could think about, while driving home was, ‘I must be getting used to driving at night. I must be getting better at driving. Wow! This is so great!’ I was impressed.
I got home. I still had a smile on my face…
Then I noticed I had left the interior light on. It was on the entire time I was driving.
I spent some time laughing at myself and my stupidity. I was grateful that I hadn’t been pulled over by the RCMP. I had imagined trying to tell the constable, “I didn’t realize I had left them on. No wonder I can see and drive so much better.” I don’t think that would’ve gone over so well…
So now, after I’ve done something really stupid I say, “I’m just driving with the lights on!” :)

The road I've travelled has at least led me to where I am now

On the long drive home, after our summer trip, just 3 hours from Thompson; I felt sad. I had remembered so many wasted years. So much had gone wrong. A lot of bad decisions. Decisions that I had made or were forced to make for one reason or another. So many regrets. How I wished I could do it over again. I had almost cried. Thinking of what a waste my life had been. Perhaps I was depressed because, originally, we were planning on moving…Now we were on our way home. Maybe I was just tired of being on the road. Not sure. I had looked over at my husband. My husband of 2 years and I started to understand that if my life hadn’t rolled out exactly the way it had I wouldn’t have met him. I wouldn’t be married to him. Right at that moment I felt grateful for my past. It wasn’t always that bad. Often I was in the right place at the right time and things had just worked out perfectly. Sometimes I felt I was pretty lucky.

Thank God everything worked out the way it did. Hopefully I will have more luck coming my way. My son, Will thinks Mike is our lucky charm. I think he’s my angel that dropped from heaven and landed right in front of me. I will never give back.

September 4th and 5th I went back to work at the museum. It’s been 2 months since I’ve worked there. It went well though. The following Wednesday, September 8th I went back to work at the school. I’ve had such a great summer. I didn’t want it to end. It’s been such a busy summer, as always. I hadn’t even achieved half of the work I had wished to accomplish. I think I plan and hope for way too much. Now I have so much to do between now and next summer. I won’t get it all done. I might as well face the facts and accept the truth. I bet the next 9 months or so will just fly by. Is that a good thing or bad? Someday I may want time to slow down. Someday. My disability is progressive. The only way I can slow it down is by working harder. Giving more. Learning more. Speeding up. I have to keep my brain active as well. So, to slow down some things I have to speed other things up.

Slippers that I had bought from my friend Tracy.

We drove by her in Dauphin...go figure!

Riding Mountain

Bike built for 4 in Riding Mountain

Home, safe and maybe not quite so sound

We got home Thursday night. We had lunch in The Pas with my old, long ago, (30 years ago) friend, Tracy Schell. It was good to see her again. I bought a pair of moccasins from her. She makes such wonderful things. I'll have to post some of her picures of the things she has made. Soon...

The drive home was a long one. I don't know if I'm crazier for going the long way home or coming home at all...
It doesn't feel like home anymore. So foreign. So alien. So temporary. Hopefully.

We went to Selkirk Sunday last. What a beautiful little town. I think Selkirk has turned into our second choice. Portage La Prairie is just like Thompson...Brandon was interesting. We didn't make it to Neepawa. We did go to Riding Mountain though. That was so peaceful and tranquil. So many people walking, holding hands, riding bikes (there were a lot of bikes build for 4,) people walking with their children, people walking their dogs, people relaxing on the beach, on the bridge, on the water, boating. The only dramma to be seen or heard was perhaps a dog barking at another dog. During our drive out we saw a family riding a horse drawn carriage. ...In no way did Dauphin compare. We have friends who are planning on moving to Dauphin. We, however, didn't share the same desire...too far away from Winnipeg and North Western Ontario.

Mike has to go back to work next week. I have another month off...as long as they don't rope me into working at the museum...I've started another wild and crazy project that'll help us with all of our plans...I'll tell you about it as soon as it's finalized.

Depending on the weather, we're going fishing tomorrow. It's been raining today but we really need the rain.