Too nice to stay in

The past couple of days have been glorious in terms of sunshine. Air so clear you can see the snow capped Coastal Mountains of BC some eighty kilometres away from the middle of Nanaimo. What a view. Of course we have to pay the price of a fairly sharp frost (-6 Degrees Celsius), but seeing as our house is well insulated and heated, we don't have to worry much about the cold.

Have been reading up on the 'Frost fairs' on the River Thames, and watching the latest financial news with a little trepidation. I'm not too concerned as the credit crunch that started the slide is world wide, so meaning (hopefully) that our investments will not be too badly hit. Our house in the UK sold just before Christmas, and the money therefrom resides in a high(er) interest account, meaning it won't lose much value providing there's no exchange rate disaster.

Work permit application this weekend. I'm not a little anxious because my new job doesn't pay much, and the if the issuing officer has had a bad day already, I might have a problem. They can refuse to issue, which is my chief anxiety. Oh well, all I can do is fill in the forms, check them with Immigration and hope for the best. If Immigration in Nanaimo gives me the green light, I shall head for the US border with a light heart and a spring in my step.

Talked to one of my volunteers and opposite numbers yesterday. I was a bit nervous, but they seem nice people, and willing to forgive any immediate gaps in my knowledge and experience. Things seem to be rather neglected, and in need of publicity and an injection of new blood and fresh funding. Fortunately, I've found that I've more or less got a free hand in the matter, so if I have to get 'creative', there will be no one to slap my wrists and say 'NO!' My 'territory' runs from Duncan, BC all the way up to Port Hardy. This came as a bit of a shock, but I'm sure I can find some way of managing, so long as I'm not paying the Mill owner to go to work.

Today I am on the scrounge for kit, and am going to take posession of a wheelchair with a beautifully engineered pivot and tilt mechanism which some disabled person will find good use for. It's only an instinct, a 'seeming' or prescient feeling if you will, but it's just one of those pieces of kit that you just know you're going to find a use for in the near future.

Anyway, It's too sunny to stay indoors, I'm going to visit the shoreline with Dog, and see what the rest of the day brings.