Another New Phase in Life

I guess this isn't really new as I have been here before... been where? You may ask.  Out of work!

That is correct I am once again without a full-time job, or any paying job.  On Friday afternoon I had the shock to be told that I was no longer required to come back to work.  The reason given: frustration!  But whose frustration?  At first I was told that the staff was frustrated with  me.  That did not make any sense what so ever. Each and every staff member (excluding the bosses) came to me for help to fix errors they have made, or help them with something they did not know how to do, or wanted to share something about their personal life they were going through at that point in time.  OK, so not the staff, maybe frustrated was the wrong word. 

Then came the next item a list of things that I had supposedly done or not done, none of which are reasons to let a person go... at least I don't think so... you be the judge:

I been told to no longer purchase paper direct but to ask for boxes from one of the other stores because they could purchase in larger quantities getting a better price.  Sounds like a great idea but then we are reliant on the other store remembering to place the boxes of paper on a truck or in the car that is headed to our store.  So we were low on paper, the order was placed, the crunch came,  the paper did not, the other store had forgotten to load said paper onto the vehicle; needless to say we ran out of copier paper completely.  I asked our front desk girl to go and buy a case while we waited for the other two to arrive, someone else told her not to buy a case.  Now I was her immediate supervisor so who should she have listened too?

Next reason, an invoice had been entered twice once with the numeric 0 then with the letter O.  I missed the duplication and paid the account, (about $44).  The cheque was returned by the supplier but did not get to my desk but to my bosses desk.  This particular invoice had not been entered by me but a new girl who had just been hired, who I did not teach.  (This was actually a red flag for me as I did not have anything to do with her training, yet I was supposedly her supervisor.)  She even told my boss that she had made the error.  While I am being told this reason I did not tell the owner, who was laying me off, that I had found numerous errors made during invoice posting by the new girl.  Invoices posted to the wrong vendors; totals incorrect due to wrong GST amounts, and various other errors.

Another item on his list:  A piece of equipment had been paid for twice.  Did I do that?   You may ask.  No I did not.  I paid for the item and the vendor in question sent the same invoice to a leasing company that was used and that leasing company also paid for the same item; we in turn had to pay the leasing company.  I worked with this vendor from March until October trying to get our funds returned.  The individual that I phoned every month on a regular basis did not know how to correct this error, their error I might add.  I resorted to emailing the girl and cc-ing to the CEO of the company, the funds were returned to us withing the week.

A third itme on the list:  Copies of invoices that were not paid therefore missing from our office were not requested or not reconciled in a timely fashion.  Once again not an error on my part as I regularly requested copies of missing invoices. Before they can be entered into the system and payed they have to have the purchase order (PO), receiving report and packing slip attached to prove we had ordered and received the item.  There were times when I would request copy of invoices several times but once I passed them to the girl who did all the matching they never got back to my desk.  I would here her say: "If I see this invoice one more time I'll..." well you can guess the rest.  If she could not find PO's for the invoice or other paperwork she would toss the invoice.  She would not do any kind of detective work to make sure we had dealt with the original. As I am at the end of the line for all paperwork of this nature, then it must be my fault.  Is this reason to lay me off?

There you have it.  Ah! now the frustration is mine, that's why they are letting me go.  Way to turn things around, from staff are frustrated with me... to me being frustrated and so I was being let go.

I had worked for this company for just over a year, supposedly as the Accountant but with my hands tied behind my back (figuratively of course).  I had no access to the bank account to download the statements or check on direct deposits or withdrawals.  I had no access to Workers Compensation to file injury reports, actually I had no access to anything... sorry I tell a lie, I could access the owners Visa account and the companies loan account.  I was the Accountant and supervisor of two, none of it was reality, just fiction I was told when I was hired, the same as the salary I was to earn.  All fictitious.

No I was not happy working there, they  have just done me a huge favour; but hurt pride is tough.  I've worked for over 30 years and never been layed off, if anything employers have done their utmost to keep me.  Right now I'm hurt, angry and very upset and having a hard time not letting depression take over. 

Would I take my job back if they offered it, not without a ton of concessions, a much higher salary, and everything in writing.  So if I or you learn anything from this... Get it in writing!!

It is Over

Finally I can put the stress behind me and get on with living.  Since May the stress has been awful.  Neither Richard or I have talked about the what if...

Even though I heard on Tuesday that I do not have cancer in my right arm it took me until yesterday (Friday) to take that deep breath and say it is over and life can continue as usual.  All the things I have stopped doing or put off can now be done or worked on.  Richard told me it was understandable that I did not jump up and down and celebrate as soon as I heard.  One reason was I had absolutely no faith in the surgeon who actually finally did the biopsy, and secondly because the stress had been there for so long my mind and body did not know how to shed it.

Wednesday I had the ultrasound done and I figured the technician had found something, obviously they are not allowed to say anything to the patient, so was a bit worried about that.  I saw my family Doctor yesterday and she explained first about the lumps that are called Hemangioma:

Hemangiomas usually are small, measuring only a quarter inch in diameter, but they can be several inches in diameter or even larger. The vast majority of hemangiomas of the liver never cause symptoms or health problems.


And like the above says are usually found in the liver, mine just happen to be in my right arm.  We also discussed the pain that I've been having lately in my right arm, which she feels could be related to the neck damage that I acquired back in 1989 from the two rear end car accidents I had within a week of each other.  This damage has caused a curvature of the upper spine and could now be pinching nerves.  She sent me for C-spine Xrays and will refer me for nerve conduction tests.  None of this is as stressful as thinking I once again had the rare cancer back of spindle cell sarcoma.


My plans now are to get our house appraised.  I love this house it is quaint with lots of original features from the 1912's.  Is far too small for Richard and I to do any entertaining.  We can have one couple here but two means the dinning room chairs have to be moved into the living room and they are not comfortable for several hours of visiting.  Then I need to consult with a mortgage broker and see how much we can qualify and afford in regard to a mortgage.  We have seen a house, the same era as our present one, that is a lot bigger but will mean not only can we entertain more than one couple at a time but also have friends and the motor homes visit and park in the massive back yard.  Right now I think the house is over priced but I don't believe it will stay on the market for very long so I have to get acting on my latest projects so we at least can maybe have a chance of moving to a house we love as much as this one.

Life is good and can now be lived.  I thank everyone who has kept Richard and I in your prayers over the last seven months.

Too Stressed

I can't believe that a month has gone by without writing anything.  I've had a few ideas lately but not acted on them.   One was to begin writing my childhood memories another was just to do a daily stream but nothing has been produced. 

Just to bring you up to date.  Richard finally had his hernia surgery last week, surgery he had been waiting for two years.  Instead of one hernia perforation he had two that were wide open so ended up on the table a lot longer than expected.  He had a consult today and although his stitches were not ready to come out he is healing OK.  It may take him nearly three months to really heal because of the extensive damage that had to be repaired but he'll heal fine.

What is the other stress well I don't have any answers but I do finally have another appointment with a new surgeon this time in Saskatoon.  One of his specialties is oncology so I should be in good hands and just maybe there will be no more messing around.  So I hope that within the next few weeks hopefully I should have had a biopsy and know the results.

Yes stress is high and I'm extremely tired, loosing weight, and have very little energy.  I go to work, come home, eat, watch a little TV and head to bed.

Revisit the Triathlon

I finally have a couple of pictures of Richard's completion of the Triathlon as promised.

And here you are.  Richard managed to find his last reserves to sprint to the finish line.  I took these with his camcorder and we managed to get some still pictures from that.

Vacation Bible School

On Sunday August 8th Richard did the Triathlon the following day we began our Vacation Bible School (VBS).  You are probably thinking what bad timing but it was the best timing for our congregation.

We began the process of preparing for a VBS by first seeing if our small congregation could support such an endeavour.  The first meeting was called.  Being the Director of Parish Education this fell in my lap.   Before the meeting we heard the usual types of comments; it will be the same time as we always have, it will run during the full week, why the need for all these meetings, etc.  Were there enough individuals, not only willing to teach but also those willing to be back-up teachers in case someone could not fill their slot?  Did we have enough teacher aids, snack time helpers, craft helpers etc.?   In order to have enough volunteers when would the best time be?  How many would need to take time off work to help and was this fair to ask individuals to use their vacation time to work at a VBS?  What material would we use?  Would everyone be on board to come to the evening preparation classes?  So many questions had to be answered before we moved forward with our plan.

It was agreed we would have the VBS the first week of August, this time suited the most individuals, and we would have it in the evenings of that week.  This was something very new for this congregation who had always had daytime VBS's.  I was pleased to see so many of our volunteers on board with this new time.  I handed the meeting to Pastor who showed us a variety of material we could use, some of which he already owned.  Again the decision was made quite quickly, we chose "Follow The Lamb" put out by Pam Dawson.

After that first meeting things fell quickly into place.  Age groups were chosen by the main teachers and their material was given to them.  We spent time on ideas for classroom decor, possible snacks (cookies and juice) with a BBQ on the Friday, and the crafts.  A month before the actual VBS Pastor taught us the lessons and gave ideas for teaching each days material.

"Follow The Lamb" the lessons are placed in time of the early Church; we began with an Opening Worship Service using the Invocation, Kyrie and triple Alleluia.  All the teachers wore togas, (white sheets wrapped to resemble these, the ladies wearing a scarf over their head during the worship)( it was too hot to keep the togas on for the whole evening), we sang the hymn of the day and Pastor gave a short devotion.  Each day ended with worship in the same format the closing hymn was "Abide with me", while the children gathered for the closing worship the hymn of the day was sung and we closed with the Benediction.

First day: the Birth of Jesus, incarnation; hymn of the day "Silent Night"; craft a mosaic.
Second day: The Crucifixion, passion; hymn of the day verses 16,17, & 18 of "Jesus, in your Dying Woes"; craft a small banner.
Third day: The Resurrection, (also word of the day); hymn of the day "Christ the Lord is Risen Today; Alleluia"; craft hand held lamp.
Fourth day: The Ascension, (also word of the day); hymn of the day verses 1-4 & 6 of "A Hymn of Glory Let Us Sing"; craft stuff in water in a bottle (buttons, sparkles etc.).
Fifth day; Pentecost, (also word of the day); hymn of the day "Come Holy Ghost our Souls Inspire";  finish all crafts and also make a book of their colouring pages.

Having the VBS in the evening meant we had less time, we chose to have each class doing the same activity, it meant we did not require as many helpers because the teachers supervised and or helped their own classes during craft time, it did mean that I had all the children for singing together, this was extra challenging having to cater to all ages at once, this was not a good idea and will not be done in future VBS's.

For a small congregation we had 43 children registered and averaged 33.  Considering there had not been VBS at our congregation for the past two years this was a good number also very manageable. A few pictures of the week.

A few of us dressed in our togas... our Pastor was poor so his outfit was short on material.

Pastor assisting during craft time.

Snack time helpers taking a short break

The awesome work done by Gloria to the doors of our Church House

August 8th Triathlon

Back in March Richard made the decision to train towards taking part in the Frank Dunn Triathlon at Waskasew.  Before he changed his mind he paid the necessary fee and began training.  He was not able to train with the Triathlon club here in Prince Albert as they were doing all their training on Sunday mornings and of course there is no way for Richard to join them at that time.  I wasn't sure about this new goal of his but it was something for him to aim for.

He spent several hours each week at the gym until the snow was gone and he could once more get his bike out and start riding again.  He had managed last year to ride to Emma Lake and swim then ride back home again which totaled about 120 kilometers biking and about an hour of swimming.  This spring he added running to his training and was up to running 10 K.  The triathlon would require swimming 1.5 K. biking 62 K. and running 13 K.  this would be quite and undertaking for someone who is over weight.

On the Saturday August 7th we took our motor home out to Elk Ridge Recreation Spot and camped over night.  At 6:00 am we packed up and headed the final five miles into Waskasew.  While I fixed a breakfast for myself Richard took his gear over to the pen, transition spot, where his bike and running gear would sit while he took part in the three stages of the Triathlon.  Once he was set he came back to the motor home and collected me and a chair etc. and we walked to where I would have a good view of the swimming.

Richard was one of the few who did not wear a wet suit, this is a picture of him, at least the back view.  He is wearing his heart monitor which was allowed.  Now Richard does not do a crawl when swimming but a side stroke which means he is not very fast and the 1.5 K. swim took him 55 mins. to complete but he was not the last to finish the swim.

 

This is him about half way point and I figured I had time to go and find a washroom and then find a coffee.  I missed seeing him come out of the water having not yet got back from my coffee and pancakes that I found being served in the community hall.  I did catch up to him at the bike pen though.

 

Here he is just about ready to set out on the bike portion.  I'm afraid this is the last picture I have as I took video after this shot and as of yet have not loaded it onto the computer but will add anything that has come out later.  Even though he was not the last to set out on the 62 K. bike portion of the race he was the last one to arrive back and so the last to set out on the 13 K run portion.


As 2:00 was getting close I realized that the organizers were beginning to pack everything up and yet still no Richard had arrived back.  Finally one of the volunteers saw me still sitting waiting and asked if I was waiting for someone.  I explained that my husband had not yet arrived back from the run and I was a little worried.  They took time to check with the various water stations along the route and found that he was still  6 K. out.  At that point Richard said a couple of the girls from one of the drink stations began to run (walk) with him along the final stretch of the route...  a vehicle was sent out to see if he wanted to quit and get a ride back but he persevered and kept going.  From that point on they kept me informed of his progress.  When he made his appearance at the edge of the park all the volunteers lined the last few 100 yards and cheered him on.

The race took him 6 hrs and 2 mins. but he completed it and I am proud of him.  The majority of participants in the event were part of teams where only one person does one of the events.  There were only about 30 who did the whole triathlon themselves.  He was the last man to finish but was not truly last as there were a couple of disqualifications and a few who did not finish.

God at Work in our Congregation

Around Easter time we had several visitors attend our services.  One couple in particular are planning to be married by a LC~C Pastor but required instruction before he would preside over their wedding.  As they live here in Prince Albert the Pastor suggested they approach Pastor Mensch (Richard) and attend Redeemer Lutheran Church.

Ron and Michelle have been attending services and Bible study each Sunday since that time.  Richard has provided them with catecheticle instruction.  Ron has never been a church goer and never been baptized, Michelle is baptized and been a member of an other denomination.  What a joy it has been over the past months to see the spiritual growth in both Ron and Michelle as they have not only received instruction but attended services and Bible study on a regular basis.

On August 1st Ron was baptized.  It is always a wonderful miracle to see a baby receive the gift of faith through baptism but it is awesome when that miracle is shown in an adult through baptism.  The joy on Ron's face as Pastor Mensch baptized him was wonderful.  Once Ron was baptized both he and Michelle were confirmed and received into membership of Redeemer Lutheran Church and Lutheran Church~Canada.

This is the cake Michelle made for her Fiance which we shared during the coffee fellowship after the worship service.

In a few weeks they will become one as they are joined in marriage.

We had no need of special programs or music just pure Word and Sacrament and God's Kingdom here on earth grew by two.  That same Easter week-end brought another visitor to our congregation who is also now taking Catachetical instruction from Pastor Mensch.  Unlike Ron and Michelle she had no suggestions given to her to attend Redeemer Lutheran Church but just joined us at Easter and after attending a few other denominations she returned to our small Church family and is attending regularly.

Christ is always at work in us as we serve others through our vocations.  God does not need our special programs and music.  All that is required is that we remain faithful to His Word and Sacraments and it is His hand at work not ours.

Waiting is the hardest

On Tuesday I went to see a surgeon to discuss the next move.  He could not find the lump himself and would not let me show him.  His reasoning, that he would have to be able to find it himself to perform the surgery, which makes sense I guess. His plan will be to remove the lesion closest to the surface of the skin.  Then he will send it to either Saskatoon or Edmonton's laboratory for analysis.  First he will talk with the radiologist, who made up the MRI report, have him mark on the films exactly where the lesions are, once he has that information he will book me for a local surgery to remove one lesion. 

He does not want to miss getting the lesion or accidentally cut through it and damage the tissue.  He needs to obtain enough tissue for the laboratory to use dye on the sample.  At least that is what I understood him to say.  He left Richard and I with the impression that he would contact us within a day or two, now I realize we were wanting to hear, that there would not be much of a wait. 

I was concerned on talking with the surgeon that he knows nothing at all about Spindle Cell Sarcoma, that he was talking about trying to get all the lesions out with enough tissue.  Again maybe I was not really understanding what he was saying... although Richard was with me and heard the same.

I phoned my family Doctor to discuss my concerns.  She explained that this surgeon would only be doing the first surgery in order for us to get a biopsy.  If it does show positive then he would not be doing any further surgery but I would be referred to the cancer clinic and their specialists.  My Doctor did say that their concern is one lesion that is really deep and against the main artery.

It is Friday and no follow up phone call from the surgeon,this is a long week-end which means Tuesday is now the earliest I will hear anything.  I would be lying if I said I was doing fine, I'm very stressed, 1'm not sleeping very well without sleeping pills and what felt like, and still feels like, one lump is four lesions with a possible four more, can that be nothing?

MRI Results

What do I say?  I already knew that x-rays and ultrasounds would show nothing definitive if any thing at all.  I've been down this road before twelve - thirteen years ago where everything was tried to relieve me of nerve pain in my foot.  It took exploratory surgery in 1998 to find the spindle cell sarcoma, a very small tumor.  A year later the same pain the same sort of surgery and more of the same spindle cell sarcoma.  Another year would go by when I decided to have a below the knee amputation.

Now here I am ten years later I've had the ultrasound, the x-ray and now the MRI... the only definitive tool for what I think is the problem... the only diagnostic tool that would show the abnormal cells that could be in my right arm.  I noticed the small lump on the inside edge of my right elbow some time ago but it did not start to bother me until just recently.

I have a new Doctor who did not waste anytime getting me set up with the necessary tests.  She has contacted the cancer centre in Saskatoon, I have signed a document so she can obtain all my files in regard to my previous diagnosis of spindle cell sarcoma and surgeries.  This Doctor has done more for me in the few weeks I've been her patient than the whole time with the one before her.

OK... so what is the diagnoses?  I have four measurable lesions, all of them are under 1 cm in size, one is in the "subcutaneous tissues medially at the level of the medial epicondyle" (I think this is the one I can feel).  The second lesion is ill-defined and superolaterally to the first lesion "this lesion is not  as discrete and contains mixed T1 and T2 signal" nearly touching the brachial artery.  The third lesion is seen at the level of the midradial head, in the transverse plane.  This lesion is 0.5 cm anterior to the radial nerve.  There is a suspected fourth lesion.  There are also four small foci of ill-defined enhancement... which may represent additional lesions.  The body of the report and the summery don't quite match up... so will have to wait and see what I am eventually told after surgery.

The document is in much more detail most of which I don't understand.  It talks of the  enhancement and characteristics and ROI measurements all of which means very little to me.  The final recommendation in consideration of my prior history of spindle cell sarcoma... "as well as the dense enhancement some of these lesions demonstrate, certainly metastatic  disease would have to be considered, and histologic  sampling with a view to complete excision of as many of these lesions as is technically feasible or possible is suggested, particularly as they may or may not all represent the same process."

So there you have the diagnosis, I have not imagined the lump, it is real.  Is it spindle cell sarcoma again?  I don't know and won't know until a biopsy has been performed.  I expect to hear from a surgeon in a few days with a date for my surgery. 

This morning at 5:00 I had my panic attack and at 6:30 I shed tears. 

Now I wait for the first phone call... then the results... then????

My trust is in my Saviour, Jesus Christ; He has never given me more then I can handle.

The Trip Home

I know this is a couple of weeks late.  We left Grand Marais on the Wednesday morning the weather was nice.  Our plan, to drive as far as Duluth and shop at JC Penney's taking advantage of their big June sale.  We have usually caught this sale on the last week-end and have always been happy with our purchases.  This time it was early in the sale and there were racks of clothes for under $5, I purchased three dress jackets at $5 each and at least 5 skirts for the same price.  These items will serve me well at work, added to this were blouses that will complete the outfits.  We headed to DSW shoes so I could purchase new runners, we did not get as good a deal as we have in past years so I only purchased one new pair this time.  We did not stay in Duluth for the night but turned our noses towards home.

We took highway 2 home and the weather became hotter and hotter.  As I have mentioned in earlier posts, our generator would not continue running so we could not run our main A/C and the dash a/c is not very strong so did not keep up.  I'm not sure where we parked that night but I know we were tired, grubby and extremely hot.

I took these three pictures while we traveled the sky was absolutely gorgeous.  In the 2nd picture you can see the lines of dark clouds it looked as if someone had painted lines across a pink sky, the pictures do not do it justice.  The last picture is just before we hit a swarm of bugs that would have made this picture impossible to take through the front windshield.

 We parked as usual  in a Walmart parking lot.  We spent time in the store just to cool down and when I could walk no longer I left Richard to grocery shop, purchasing items that we cannot get in Canada.  Having no power meant the fridge did not go to gas power so we tried to open the door as little as possible.  In the morning we headed out again hoping the weather would cool off just a little, it did not, if anything it was hotter than the previous day.  Our plan was to reach Minot and find the truck stop where we knew they had plug-ins, at least they did have about seven years ago.  We made it to Minot, I was over heated and we really needed to cool our motor home down.  The truck stop was found and yes they did still have plug-ins but they no longer allowed people to use them.  Richard was directed to talk with the manager or owner, I don't remember which, they did concede and said we could plug in for one hour.  For those who know how big a 35 ft motor home is you will know that one hour will only take the temperature down a couple of degrees at best.  I spent that hour sitting directly under the line of cold air from the unit, I had to get my body temperature down or have heat stroke.

The hour past all to quickly and now we had to decide did we park for that night or head out and try to at least hit the boarder.  Our choice, to keep going.  We stayed on highway 2 until we could turn north to pick up number 6 in Saskatchewan, heading towards Regina.  We reached the boarder and we met our first ever human Canadian Customs Official, we could not have wished to deal with a nicer person.  Usually we find Canadian Customs people very officious and they all appear to like to give returning Canadians a rough time when returning home, but this guy was wonderful and made our moods a lot calmer than they had been for a good many miles due to the heat that we were suffering.

It was evening when we crossed over into Canada.  A wind began to pick-up and really buffet us about, Richard was struggling to keep our unit on the road.  We were watching a phenomenal lightening storm off in the distance but as Regina came closer so did that storm.  Over to the NW the clouds seemed to be  suspended just above the ground.  When the rain hit it hit hard, with winds still pounding us the rain, sheets of water, the wipers could not keep up with the amount of water that was coming down.  Richard decided that we would have to pull to the side and sit this storm out.  As we were slowing down we saw a side turning and pulled into this, there was a vehicle stopped on this road and Richard wound down his window and asked them what was up ahead as we needed to sit out the storm.  We were told it was just a clearing with grain bins and that they too were just parked to watch the storm.  We drove a few more yards and saw the clearing turning the motor home around and tucking in behind these bins we waited out the storm.  Actually we went to bed and slept for about five hours.

The rest of our trip home was uneventful.  The crops were almost none existent the further north we traveled and the amount of standing water in the fields increased.  (On Sunday we were told that they had had basically three weeks of rain.)  We arrived home, tired, grubby, having had no power in order to use the water, a day earlier than expected.  It was only Friday morning.  We emptied as much as we needed from the motor home.  Plugged her into the house power and went in to the house to relax.

Little did we know that in a few hours we would witness yet another storm as fierce as the one the previous evening which would cause thousands of dollars worth of damage to trees and buildings in East Hill and East Flats of Prince Albert, that afternoon and early evening.  I did not think that I would see rain like that two days in a row.  The winds were upwards of 90 miles an hour.  We only lost one branch of one of our trees and very little water in the basement.  Many did not fair as well.

What an end to three wonderful weeks of vacation.

The Elusive Plant

I thought I should post a picture of the plant I was looking for this afternoon.

I guess it was August when we took this last time so obviously not the right time of year for me to be hunting for the plant in June.   Oh well I did enjoy our trek.

Last Day in Grand Marais

We are now in the evening of our last day here.  Richard took the morning to change some electrical parts, the isolator and another unit, we were hoping that one or the other was the reason for not having any coach power when we aren't plugged in to an electrical power.

Here he is busy in the engine.  While he was busy with that I was amusing myself with taking pictures of Katie.

Katie spent her day following the sun around in the Motor Home.

In the afternoon I pursued-ed Richard to take me on another hike.  I wanted to see if I could find a rare plant that we managed to find in 2008.  I did enjoy the trek going up a steep grass hill and searching the edge of the trees for the elusive plant.  I did take pictures of other plants so have included some here.

These two pictures show a thistle, I'm afraid it wasn't in bloom yet but had Richard show how tall it had grown.

These two show the flowering grass that is to be found in this area they grow in single stems.

This is wild honeysuckle... at least I think that is what it's called.

Some interesting moss that looked like miniature pine... Hard to see but double white bell flower.

This is really common but such a pretty yellow... and these white flowers are very tiny and just perfect.

I saw this orange showing through the underbrush thinking it was a ball but once uncovered it was a very interesting toadstool.

This is the view above the harbour as you can tell I trekked up quite a slope.

Richard took these of me still climbing up the trail... I didn't want to return via the road so we retraced our steps back down to the camp ground.

My last two pictures one is of horse tail fern (grass) you can see the sectioned spokes and one blooming; the other one is wild raspberry.

Once we were back at the motor home we sat at the picnic table drinking beer, wine cooler's for me, and playing tile rummy.  Then Richard put all our chairs away and other items that needed to be placed in the basement areas of the RV, this will save time tomorrow morning when we begin our journey home via Duluth to shop first.

Even though the weather wasn't the best I have really enjoyed my stay here in Grand Marais.
 

Sunday

When we stay in Grand Marais we always ensure we are here for at least one Sunday.  We arrange with Pastor Shutte to collect us from the campground so we can join them in worship.  This visit was no exception.  Dennis had visited us a couple of times already plus we had gone for supper with them on Friday.  Sunday morning found us up at 6:00 am so we could shower, have breakfast and be ready when Dennis called for us at 8:20. 

This picture was taken before service as Pastor Shutte has to leave very soon after service to head up the Gun Flint Trail to conduct a further service for those members who spend their summers up at their cabins during the summer. 

Richard and I both wore our new outfits that we had purchased during our shopping spree at J.C. Penney's in Greenfield.  My outfit was very different from what I would normally buy in regards to colour and the design on the skirt.

Bob, on of the parishioners drove us back to our campsite.  Later on in the day we had a visit from Harriet.  This was a nice visit and gave us chance to catch up with all her news since we saw her last.

The Nature Trail

Richard and I have walked this short nature trail in other years but I wanted to have a walk and chose this route.  It is located at the end of the campground and actually the easiest of the three walks that are indicated on the board at the head of the trail.  As you know from past years I like to take pictures of the flowers that grow in these areas.

This is a flowering raspberry or thimble berry.

The views of Lake Superior are quite wonderful, the waters on Saturday were very calm and very relaxing.

This is one of the spots along the trail that overlook the Lake.  This rustic bench and potted geranium have been placed there in memory of and individual.  I took the time to sit and adjust my leg before continuing on our leisurely walk.

This was a little of the beaten track and meant I had to negotiate some challenging, for me,  rock clambering.  Richard left me to find my own footing which worked out a lot better than the last time we traversed this section in 2008 when he suggested where I should place my hiking poles and feet.  Once at the clearing Richard found this flower for me (I don't know it's name).

Richard couldn't resist and went further than the outlook where I stopped, there was no way I could clamber over these rocks to the spot where you see him standing.

Here he is working his way back to where I was waiting.

This is one of the area's that I had to negotiate, the rock was about a 2' 6" high step up, but I managed to find notches for my foot and spots to place my poles so I could navigate up and then of course back down on our return to the main trail.  Richard was supposed to have taken a short video of me while I managed this feat but I'm not sure what he did but it was not on the card when I downloaded the pictures.

This was a pretty area of bunch berry or dwarf dogwood, there was a lot of this along the trail but I liked the way the spruce branch partially covered the area.

We tried to get a better picture of the bluebells but all the pictures were blurred as was the one of the buttercup.

I was pleased with myself accomplishing the extra side trips that were a bit more of a challenge than just the nature walk which is graveled for ease of walking.  I'm no where near in the condition I was in in 2008 when we did quite a bit of hiking in this area.

I enjoyed our walk and the rain kept away for most of the day.

Liquid Sunshine

After leaving Greenfield we turned our noses towards Grand Marais.  This has to be our favourite place to spend a relaxing vacation.  Monday night we parked at the Superior 24hr Walmart.  This Walmart is the one that Richard really likes to shop at.  As usual we headed into the store to peruse their wares.  I was disappointed there was nothing that said 'try me on'.  Richard had far better luck than I did, finding cargo shorts and jeans at clearance prices and a few more t-shirts.  I decided I was too tired to wander the shop anymore and headed back to the motor home leaving Richard shopping for groceries and anything else he felt we could not do without.

The following morning we were back on the road traveling the last leg of our journey to Grand Marais.  The excitement being when Richard realized we were just about out of gas.  We turned into the next town, which just happened to be the same town where we waited to have a tire replaced after blowing one of our back duel  tires three or four years ago. 

You maybe asking yourself why the title 'Liquid Sunshine' well we hit rain just before Superior since then we have had rain every day.  When we arrived at the camp ground we did our usual drive along the front to see if there were any lake front spots open.  We were a little disappointed that there were no free sites on that side of the camp ground, we accepted 50W which faces the playground and basketball hoop. 

Here we are set up in our spot ready for sunshine.  Once we had set up our neighbours asked us if we were hoping for sunshine, we had put all the awnings out.  They told us the weather had been awful with rain just about every day, they spend their summers here but live in Arizona in the winter. 

Wednesday morning was bright and the sun was shinning, we decided to head out to visit Harriet up at her place of business, Superior RV shop, and also her home.  This is quite a walk for me there is a steep incline out of the campgrounds and then a steady rise out of town towards Harriet's place.  Richard said it was about a mile.

This picture does not give a true impression on how steep this incline is, this is on the way back from Harriet's  she was not home so we had to walk back I must admit I was quite tired after wards.

This is the decent back to the camp grounds.  I was beginning to really struggle by this point.  Hills and slopes are not my favourite type of walking, having no ankle it is a struggle to maneuver up and down them.

Once back I spent a short while sitting under the awning reading, taking advantage of the sun while it lasted.  While sitting there I looked across to the playground and saw three rabbits playing chase and managed to capture this picture of them, the third one is by the ladder to the slide.  They kept me amused for quite some time before scurrying off into the long grass at the edge of the grounds.

Tuesday morning we had a visit from Dennis and made arrangements to go out to dinner with him and Sandra.  Thursday the day was clear again and we walked into town.  I love the harbour and took yet another picture of the tranquil site of the boats slowly bobbing on the water.  Dennis also popped by on Thursday morning to arrange for our dinner outing for Friday evening. 

We are taking advantage of the sun there has been more rain than anything else since we have been here.  Wednesday night Richard had to get up at 3:00 am to put the main awning up as the wind was really blowing the last thing we want is a torn awning. 

Last night we went for dinner with Dennis and Sandra, the meal was good the company even better.  They told us this is the most relaxed they have ever seen us in all the years we have been coming to Grand Marais which is about six years now.  They are really happy for us that Richard now has a congregation that truly appreciates him and fits him so well.  Even though I find work frustrating I too am no where near as stressed as I have been in past years.

Today the sun is shinning and I hope to take a walk along the short trail just beyond the camp grounds.  Richard is hoping the rain holds off and this afternoon he will take a swim in the harbour out to the light house and back.  Our neighbours have asked us to let them know when he plans to do this as they want to watch.  Most people do not believe that anyone would choose to swim in Lake Superior because it is so cold.