Vacation - Day 1

We made it!

I love vacation. I love going on vacation. However, most of the time getting on vacation is a bit of a challenge.

We got the house in decent shape for its tending by Jayne and the wood refinishing team to fix the kitchen & family room floor (note to future renovators - let your polyeurethane dry for more than a few days, or you will just be refinishing your floors one year later). The cats were kept inside. I don't believe we have any dirty laundry in the building. I moved the garbage from the green bin to the garbage bin so that the coons can't dump the bins overnight.

The airport was tremendously busy this morning - we arrived on time, at least one hour before our flight but the check-in line (just to get the baggage going) was huge. Thankfully, we were only queued for a few minutes before we were rescued from the line. I guess one hour wasn't sufficient to clear the line for this particular plane. With the baggage checked, I begged poor Jim (he might say nagged) to find food for the flight while I herded the gang forward towards the gate. The gate was quite far from the security area so dealt with Seanie falling on the 'people mover' because I wasn't supervising closely enough as I was begging Declan to get up off the floor from one of his various tantrums. We made it with several minutes to spare - but still I was a bit on edge. Jim bought a large quantity of food and two cups of coffee. The carseats, which weigh a bloody ton, were quickly installed for Declan and Sean. The four and half hour flight was actually the easier part of the morning. (Westjet got that Boeing going ... the jokes need a bit of help.) Thankfully, no one peed their pants on the plane.

The rest of the day can wait - the company of my parents stupendous, the food amazing, Seanie only pulled up have my mother's perenial tuberous type 'mother-child' type desert plants, no one fell in the fish pond, and neither has a fish been knocked out by a flying rock.

However, the most intriguing thing I learned today - we may have a gas leak. Jim and I have been discussing this odd little 12 inch strip of grass that extends from the front yard garden to the street for the past several days. The grass is very much discoloured as compared to its peers on either side - this strip of browny/green dried out grass as compared to the rest of the lawn which is very green, very lush and very healthy. We originally thought it was the overhead electrical lines, but the path isn't straight. We know the broken-very old-clay sewer line which desperately needs to be replace but which we are crossing our fingers may make it to fall without a back-up because of the sheer magnitude to repair it - both cost and destruction - and for which the city refuses to take responsibility doesn't run that way. So, it occurred to me yesterday, that maybe, just maybe, it was a gas leak. However, since I am tremendously prone to creating a potential scenario out of absolutely nothing, I discounted my thought. My parents disagreed and believe it may be related to a slow gas leak along the gas line. So, what are the chances, I have a gas leak.

(PS ... Jayne, will keep you posted, the baby shouldn't blow! I have phoned the gas company - they will investigate but don't consider it an emergency.)