The second week after my first go around was better than the
first week. I still had some physical
inconveniences as my body struggled with intake/output issues but I tried to
manage those things with some sort of confidence. I did have a couple of days with some serious
cramps and some resulting bowel issues but these things subsided a little each
day. I may have brought some of this on
myself as I avoided some of the medications that I had at my disposal due to my
desire to go it without drugs and heal myself.
I have now learned that I should do as I am told and take the drugs and
drink more fluids. Both of those actions
will reduce the impact of some of these side effects. Hopefully my apparent learning disability
will be put aside for Session 2. I am
currently at the hospital in the process of Session 2 but I will talk to that
experience later.
In my last note I had expressed some concern about meeting
with a financial planner and having to bare my soul as a poor provider and
planner of our financial affairs. Freddi
and I had that meeting and were extremely pleased as the experience was nothing
like I had imagined. Our new planner is
a 37 year old family guy who was open and experienced in making sure the
process is not onerous or foreboding. We
chatted for a period of time and he expertly culled certain foundational
information from us including some of the things that we were concerned about
and some high level assets and liabilities.
From there he offered some unique thoughts and approaches and a commitment
to go away and shape a high level plan that we could flesh out over a period of
time. The subsequent follow-up note from
him laid out a good set of objectives, actions and a timing horizon that was
not too onerous or pressing. All in all
it was a good experience and we are both are very happy with the direction we
are heading.
In addition, in my last note I had eluded to the opportunity
of traveling to BC to visit with “the boy” and his family. Tara-Lee, Kaia and I set out early Thursday morning
(Nov 29) to fly to Vancouver and work our way up to Pemberton. It was a full 12 hour commute and a challenge
for someone at the tender age of 11 weeks.
However I had forgotten that Kaia was experienced in transcontinental flying. She turned out to be the least stressed of
all of us and she slept when we were in transit and entertained us while we were
in between flights or car rides. She is
an intrepid traveler and Tara-Lee managed to have Kaia’s flight log book
updated by the crew of each flight we were on.
It was particularly fun traveling with Tara-Lee as she knows so many
people in the airports and on the various WestJet flights. The whole travel
experience was very enriching.
Once in Whistler we dropped into Gray’s construction site to
see the project he is currently engaged in.
This project is to transition a spacious 3 storey condo into an even
more spacious 6 story condo. No big deal
to Gray as he is very familiar with all of the details of the project. To a person like me it is a daunting challenge
with hundreds of possible problems to overcome.
I was very happy to see his site as he has spoken of the project over
the last 6 months and it helps to see what he was talking about. We then moved on to Pemberton to connect with
Bree and Skylar. Skylar was really happy
to see Kaia (her cousin) and was very attentive. As Gray and Bree had a Christmas party to
attend, Tara-Lee and I held down the fort with Skylar for the evening. She was enthusiastic to show us her school
work and her skills in colouring and craft projects.
Friday was a nice low key day doing only what we wanted to
do. It was a relaxing day where we
enjoyed seeing some of Tara-Lee’s friends and some trips to the shops to get
food for dinner and gifts for the upcoming Christmas event. Friday evening we enjoyed a tremendous sushi
dinner that Bree prepared. We repeated
the same plan for Saturday with the exception that we went to the local high
school for a craft fare which was attended by about 80% of the folks who live
in Pemby. It was fun to see how many
folks Gray and Tara-Lee knew from the area.
This town is certainly a community of like minded souls who enjoy the
great outdoors and the joys of raising children. Later that day we put dinner in the oven and
then went to a cocktail party at one of Gray’s client’s house. This is the client who invested heavily in
re-doing the inside of his rather large and detailed house. It was fun to see the final product of his 2
years work at this site. I believe I
could learn to live in such a house but it would require some significant
adjustments for me.
On Sunday we made our way into Vancouver and caught couple
of flights to get home that evening. The
overall trip was a success as Christmas presents were delivered and received
and we managed to have a relaxing weekend together. While we were away Freddi had the opportunity
to make Christmas decorations happen throughout the house totally unencumbered by
my opinions and thoughts. She did a great
job nd added some new and interesting approaches to our regular decorations. I guess all she needed was a clean slate and
no outside “suggestions”.
In summary, my second week after session 1 was a fun filled
week with only a few inconveniences due to the treatment. My next note will provide some insights into
how my session went today.
Be well and happy ......
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