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It is such a small world…….. my husband went to the marine traing schoolin North Van and his eldest sister lives there. I have a neice who lives in London, Ontario with her husband and son and another baby due in August. She is a music teacher there. The young woman I mentioned before, the daughter of the friend I lost to cancer lives in maple ridge and i plan to spend a week or so with her and our ‘grandaughter’ while I am in B.C. And you know we are practically neighbours as our permanent home is in Parksville and our children were born in Comox! I have never in my 26 years on the west coast, been to Texada but would love to check it out some time. If you would like to venture into ‘civilization’ I would welcome you to come to visit on the ‘big island’. I will be home until February 17th when I will fly to Southern Ontario to visit with family and friends in my hometown area for a few weeks before returning back to my husband in the U.K. There are some wonderful easy hikes in our neck of the woods if you think you’d like to meet. My email address is dariamcleod@shaw.ca if you would care to correspond privately and maybe make a plan for my time in B.C. I’m not sure when I will go to Maple ridge but expect it won’t be too long after I get there;…….maybe the next week. Perhaps you’d like to tag along and visit your son? So many possibilities…. I hope you and your family have had a good start to the new year and that I will hear back from you soon. From one west coast island girl to another, Daria.       

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GREAT hearing from you!  Right now my (2nd) husband and I live on a small island between Powell River and Vancouver Island.  We can sort-of see the Comox Air Force Base on a really sunny day.  Unfortunately not too many of those lately!  But I am thankful we haven’t had any snow yet.  My husband runs a gas compressor station, compressing gas from the Mainland to the Sunshine Coast, to here then over to Vancouver Island. 

We live here for 6-months of the year, on-site, in a new mobile home the company installed for us.  We are one of only 5 people who inhabit this end of the island.  I think in total there are possibly 1,000 – 1,200 people who live on this island full time.  We have contracted for him to work here until the end of April, then we pack up and drive to Ontario.  We have friends in Cambridge Ontario and I know where Pt. Colbourne is.

My eldest daughter worked at Harrods when she traveled for four years after graduating from college. She saw many famous people while working there, including Princess Di once and Rod Stewart. I think she only worked for Harrods for 4 or 6 months, enough time to make enough money so she and the friends she made while she lived in the UK could travel again. She also worked for a short stint at a Canadian bar in the UK, The Maple Leaf Pub.  She returned, worked, got married and now lives in North Vancouver with her husband and son.  My youngest daughter, who lives in London, ON flew in with her husband and 3 kids to spend Christmas with them.  I drove over and spent a week with them.  It was hectic, loud and noisy and I loved it! The grandchildren range in age from 8 years old to18-months – 3 girls and 3 boys.  My son and his wife and 2 children live about 45-minutes outside of Vancouver, in Maple Ridge.

I would love to retire in BC, on Vancouver Island. My hubby wants to relocate to southern Ontario (where we bought a small retirement home 10 years ago) and live there for the summer, then be snow birds and live in Arizona for the winter months.  Ontario (for us) is more affordable but I love BC and Vancouver Island for all the reasons you mentioned above.

There was (is?) talk about installing a LNG tank / plant here on Texada.  You should see how upset the residents here are about the possibility.

My ex-husband worked for Shell in Sarnia, ON. for a few years. They were a good company to work for.

The traveling to Texas, writing an article about the adventure and the delivery of LNG sounds exciting. I find I don’t have much to do while living here.  My job (in Vancouver) was downsized (about 5 years ago). I am 62 and basically unemployable (there are NO jobs here) so I take Eldercollege courses, have joined the hiking club and a knitting group (relearned how to knit) and try and keep busy and occupied. When we finally retire I want to live in a community where there is an active community centre, Eldercollege classes and activities to participate in.  Life here is beautiful but too slow for me. However starting all over again in our 50′s this job has aided us financially.

I will look forward to hearing from you again any time you get the time and/or opportunity to type. Wishing you the best in the New Year, health and happiness.

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   I am from New Brunswick. 

Anir

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I totally agree that there is much more going on in the world than Tiger and his affairs and the insanity of Sarah Palin.

Olympics:  This is just my opinion. BC doesn’t seem to have enough money to keep open wings of hospitals, emergency rooms are crowded and the waiting time to see a doctor is abominal; kids in poorer neighbourhoods have their food program cut, there are not enough forestry people to proctect the environment from poachers, the hiking trail system here has gone to ruin, etc.   But the government found billions of dollars to spend on the Olympics – the prices of the tickets are so expensive most of us cannot afford to attend, and this is only for a two week period.  Personally I think it is insane.

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