Paul Martin was Canada’s Prime Minister. Dubya was in the White House. If anyone said Donald, you thought of Disney’s cartoon duck.
Maria had just finished her teaching career, and I was 6 months into retirement myself.
We had never cruised at this point. We had no grandchildren. It was a world away from now. No pandemics to worry about although SARS was a recent memory.
This is what my computer setup looked like. No smartphones, laptops, or Linux.
On July 5th we finished our packing and loading and locked the door for the final time at 56 Pennington Crescent, Georgetown. As I recall it was in a heavy rainstorm.
We drove as far as Peterborough, stayed overnight in a tiny motel, and next day arrived in Almonte.
It was quite a leap of faith, moving to a small town we’d only visited a few times. But Sarah and Dave weren’t far away. Closer to Kingston too.
It’s worked out pretty well. We’ve used Almonte as a base for global travel. Lots of flights and ship voyages. We’ve met lots of great people both in Almonte and on the seas. Had our share of joys and sorrows to be sure. And we’ve grown old.
Our kitchen still has the porcelain cat cookie jar, but the fridge, dishwasher and coffee pot have expired. We have a new roof on the house, and the heating and cooling plant is getting a bit long in the tooth. That’s what happens when you spend some time in one place.
Winters can be vigorous here but we enjoy the clear air and dark skies full of stars.
We are well away from urbanity but we haven’t avoided the COVID-19 situation. Many old folks in an LTC home died right in Almonte. We are aware of our fragility and so we social distance. Traveling is a still recent memory and a long to be delayed future dream – if it happens at all.
At one time I contemplated spending the rest of my life in Georgetown. Didn’t work out that way. But hey, it’s been pretty cool to be here for 15 years. And the grandkids are coming out next week. They love it here as much as we do.
Not a bad thought for an anniversary, is it?