More roadtrip

Part 2, Part 2! Yes, I'm back for more. Part 2 of the roadtrip recap will not be as exciting as part 1 because I am traveling for work and don't have access to my photos at the moment. And now that I think about it, that wouldn't make a difference because we didn't take any photos in Winnipeg. Lame.

Day 1 of our drive included stopping in the Twin Cities to pick up furniture. We were a little concerned about packing the truck up in Madison and having to leave room for our new furniture, but with RTC (and H's!) careful organizing, there was just enough space to slide the new furniture in the truck. And since we had to slightly change our route due to flooding, our stop at the furniture distribution center happened to be right on our new route. I don't think we spent more than 10 minutes getting the furniture, and the distribution center was very conveniently located next to a gas station and coffee place.

Along those lines, I was very proud of our ability to organize stops. On each leg, we stopped only three times, and each time coordinated gas fill ups and bathroom breaks. Last August when I rode with RTC to Winnipeg, I know we stopped MUCH more frequently.

After the furniture pick up, our next big stop was the border. When I "landed" for the first time as a Canadian permanent resident last November, I only had a small suitcase with me because I was only staying for a few days. And even when I moved to Calgary in January, I didn't have much with me. The immigration officer at the border crossing into Manitoba was perplexed by my lack of paperwork, but he eventually got it figured out and we were on our way in 20 or 30 minutes. This was MUCH faster than we expected, and we were very happy that the border crossing portion of the trip was done!

We stayed with RTC's grandparents for two nights and had lots of fun eating pizza, visiting, fixing computers, going to the Salisbury House, and going out to eat at an Asian restaurant attached to the Winnipeg Goldeyes baseball field (odd, I know, but it was good!). Then we went for ice cream at what I am told is a Winnipeg institution, BDI (Bridge Drive-in). Yum! Geez, we did a lot of eating. I can't believe I don't have any pictures of the visit.

Part 3 will document the very soggy and very windy last leg of our journey. Stay tuned.

Roadtrip recap, part 1

I've been negligent with the posts over the last month. Preparing for our trip to Wisconsin for Easter and the big move kept us busy. I was a little nervous pre-move in getting things organized in Madison, loading the UHaul, and then driving half-way across the country. Fortunately, RTC was looking forward to the road trip, so that put a positive spin on things.

We flew to Chicago on the Wednesday prior to Easter and stayed at my mom's. We enjoyed a nice meal with my mom and step-dad (Lou Malnati's pizza!) and rested up for our busy next few days. Thursday we drove to Madison and was welcomed by my jubilant nephew H, who came sprinting across the backyard when he saw us pull up in the driveway. :) We got to work sorting through our boxes of stuff. We also made some time over the next few days to pick up our favorite WI items and of course visit with family.

Sunday was Easter. The Madison house was busy and full of people, but we went to church and managed to pull together an Easter meal. Here is the slightly frazzled but happy group.

H is likely looking very giddy because he is eyeing this:


H LOVED the UHAUL. He got to sit in the front of the cab and pretend to drive, complete with seat belt, "hot coffee and snacks for the drive". He discovered if he pushed on the horn he could actually make a sound and of course, THAT was very exciting. You would think that just "driving" the truck would be excitement enough, but he also loved to hang out in the back while we were loading. He even helped RTC tie down the stuff buy holding the rope. This kid was so excited that at random moments he would start jumping up and down and announce that he was in the back of a BIG truck! My step-dad has pictures so hopefully I can upload them soon.

Early Monday morning we headed out. We were on the road at 5:40 AM. I whined about this the night before, but once we were on the road, I was happy we left so early.

Here's the first driver:



And here's the second driver:


Part 2 to come!

Big week

We have an exciting week coming up. We are taking advantage of the long holiday weekend to head back to Wisconsin to see family and pack up the rest of our stuff in Madison. Then we will drive back to Calgary in the moving truck. We fly to Chicago on Wednesday night and hope to be back in Calgary the following Wednesday night. Today we have been rearranging our small amount of furniture to make room for the items that will be coming.

Our plan is to drive home via Winnipeg to visit RTCs family and rest for a day. However, the flooding on the Red River may prevent this. We will be following the weather forecasts and road conditions closely and make a decision next weekend. We aren't too keen on floating away in our moving truck, though I suppose we would be stocked with provisions for awhile.

In other news, the weather in Calgary has been terrible all weekend and looks to continue that way until mid-week. It isn't horribly cold, but it has been snowing. Yesterday we tried to go skiing, but saw at least four vehicles that had skidded off the road and rolled over, so we decided to turn back for home. I am hopeful that when we return from our trip that the weather will have taken a turn and spring will finally be here--to stay!

Ski day

After I announced last December that I would be moving to Calgary in January, the number one reaction was "You're moving to Canada in January?!" And my answer was always a variation of the same. Really, the weather there isn't that different from Wisconsin, winter just lasts longer. Blah, blah, blah. Well, it is nearly April and I can attest that it feels like winter is never going to end. My only consolation is that the weather in Madison has been about the same the last week.

I got sick of giving the same answer, so I started saying "Winter is the best time to move to Calgary. I get to ski and enjoy other winter activities." Nearly 3 months in, we finally went skiing. Sad. But between traveling for work, busy weekends, and poor weather, we couldn't really get out before now.

We lucked out with the most amazing ski day for our first trip out for the season. We left Calgary at 7:30 AM and it was foggy with a snow/rain mix. I started to wonder if we made the best choice. But half way there, the fog cleared and the roads dried up. By the time we got to Sunshine Village, the sun was shining and the temps were rising. We couldn't stop saying what a beautiful day it turned out to be.

Pics to follow!

Dim sum...for breakfast?

Yes, you read that right.

A couple weeks ago, RTC's dad suggested that we go to church and then head over for dim sum at the Silver Dragon. We thought this sounded like a great idea. Then he said we would be going to 8 AM service and I got confused. RTC and I were convinced that dim sum would not be available at 9 AM. We were wrong. On Sundays, the Silver Dragon opens at 9 AM. We were the first people in the door, but by the time we left, it was packed. And I know why. It was delicious. I'll take dim sum for breakfast any day.

I often complained that Madison did not have a good Chinese restaurant. Calgary actually has a pretty large Chinatown, so I am looking forward to exploring that. At least I know where to go for dim sum!

Great Saturday

This week the weather has been up and down. A couple days of warmer weather and then a very frigid Friday. RTC and I decided to check out the Glenbow Museum, and given our distrust of accurate Calgary weather forecasts, we bundled up for the 20 minute walk. Fortunately, the forecast was right and halfway there we were discarding our toques (hats) and mittens.

We discussed whether or not we should get a membership since the price of one visit is more than a third the cost of an annual membership. We found out we could pay for our visit today and then apply the price to the membership before we left today if we liked it. We visited the permanent collections on Calgary and regional history, and then two of the special exhibits, 77 Million Painting by Brian Eno and Perceptions of Promise: Biotechnology, Society, and Art. I really loved the Brian Eno exhibit, and had been wanting to see it for about a month.

I decided that I would really enjoy coming back, so we went with the membership. It also offers reciprocal membership to other Canadian museums, including the ROM, which we only saw part of last September.

We enjoyed a nice walk home, with a stop at Burger Inn for lunch. The burger and fries were delicious, but I found the milk shake lacking. This is mostly because I prefer malts, but RTC informed me that I would not find a malt in Calgary, and if I did, it would only be because they imported the malt powder from Wisconsin. We finished our lunch and set off for home, passing Le Chien Chaud on the way. This is a great place for hot dogs, but a sign out front told us they now have malts! After ordering, I told the owner my lament at not being able to find a malt in Calgary, and she said that yes, it is hard, and that they have to import their malt powder from Wisconsin! I am not making this up. I told her that is where I am from and we all had a good laugh about it. The malt was fantastic. A great Saturday!

What do you do?

I get this question a lot. Understandably. I think I am better at describing what I do now than at my last job, but probably still not great.

The Vancouver Sun recently did a series on one of the projects I work on. Here is a link to the first article. This project is underway in five Canadian cities, but the story focuses on the Vancouver site.

I work on the behind the scenes stuff--for my PH friends, the quantitative aspects of the project. But it is great to have stories like this to make the work I do seem more real.