What it's July already?

As I reviewed my last post I realized....it's already July. And not the first week of either. The past few weeks have really sped by. June was warm and sunny and great days spent by the pool but July not so much. It's been cool, foggy, rainy, windy, humid...you name it. Hard to plan any outdoor leisure activities. 

This week I provided some crochet classes for a student who quickly picked up the craft. We agreed that crocheting is fast and interesting enough to keep our interest. We have arranged for a followup session after some self study as there is pattern reading and more to be conquered. At present I am working my way through a sofa for the cats....they are spoiled kitties. 

I also spent some time with our newest (fifth) grandchild.....a second granddaughter Violet Glee whoarrived June 29th weighing 6lb 50z. She's petite as her mother with the same big eyes and lots of hair, a good eater and sleeper as she was. She's gaining well and getting more alert daily, a great snuggler. I did the math and realized the last four grandchildren are approximately the ages of our four kids....four in four and a half years. As the latest mother said "that's just crazy!" and she's right - how did we ever do it? It's amazing how the fifth grandbaby is as exciting as the previous four. 

The toddler grandson (after a couple of hospitalizations in June with increased liver enzymes, liver biopsy showing inflamed liver requiring IV steroids then the following week a fever) now continues to be a chubby, cheerful, busy boy who is almost walking. He has been cutting teeth in multiples and now has back to his molars through. Toddlers are fun but....busy! As Cubans say...he is a terremoto (literal translation earthquake). 

Since our public health restrictions have been eased into level 4....I've been enjoying Frenchy's shopping for the grandkids and have been expanding their wardrobes nicely. This is a good time of year to buy snowsuits for the school aged and tights with ruffled bum for the baby because when you want them in the winter, there won't be any. I stopped in two stores on my way to the city last week and the cultural differences were large. In Liverpool, I was offered a large reusable shopping bag (our province no longer allows plastic bags with purchases) for my order and someone held the door for me. In Bridgewater I struggled with an armful of purchases (can never remember my reusable bag) and outside the exit, dropped several balls of yarn which I'd bought to crochet hats for the shelter. By the time I stuffed my goodies in the trunk of my car and retraced my steps.....the yarn had disappeared. To whoever felt the need to take two 75 cent balls of yarn....I hope you enjoy them! 

Knowing when it's time to retire is something that many people (including all my other nursing school classmates) tell me is something you 'just know'. I'm guessing that I'm 'not there' yet as I am still looking forward to northern contracts. I had originally thought of heading up this fall as it's more fun to deal with early arctic winter (comparable to east coast regular winter) than the real deal but....have some plans to hang out with the grandkids and am still getting my head wrapped around all the shenanigans from last winter. I miss the north, feel as if I still have something to offer and would like to experience at least one more beautiful arctic community before the old age pension makes wage earning a tax grab. Although I've applied for various pandemic related gigs - PHAC, NS Health, NS Pharmacists, Red Cross etc. for screening or immunization centres - several inquiries but no bites. That's fine with me but....don't whine about nursing shortages, reassignment of staff, workload pressures etc when you're really just disclosing that the healthcare system is a mess due to total inability to organize itself. The pandemic has simply accentuated a decades old problem - if you treat nurses badly they will leave, they have options. The staffing agencies have a 20K bonus for any Nunavut contract between July 21 to Aug 31 this year. This is in addition to the already high wages and bonuses. With no requirement to isolate inter provincially or territorially now there should be a better uptake but....the flights are still reduced and travel is a hassle....so many reasons to not be a travel nurse....

I hesitated earlier and....the dates in the community I was looking at disappeared because the new Government of Nunavut rule is that GN casuals are given 72 hours and then the post goes to agency. So,when the winter list was distributed this week, it didn't take me long to give availability for six weeks in January/February doing Public Health in Arctic Bay. PH means mostly office work vs Homecare which is home visits in the dark at - 56c with questionable vehicles so an easy decision. When I offered my dates the Executive Director asked if I'd done Public Health or only Homecare with them in Baffin, stating if not PH, then I'd need to do an interview. I quickly educated him that I'd done PH in Clyde River and had recently done PH in Kitikmeot. Bear in mind that after 72 hours this post is being turned over to an agency who may provide a nurse with very limited PH experience....sigh....you know the government rule - always treat your casuals worse than the agency you're paying double. He blinked first so I'm in the schedule for January 5 to February 18 with the option to extend if international travel isn't an option. If I can't go somewhere warm this year, I might as well earn some cash and once you are settled in your northern spot, it's easier to stay that return. 

The end goal is for a March Break family vacation to Cuba which will involve the toddler grandson meeting his Cuban family. Whether this will be possible with the pandemic (Cuba is currently experiencing a surge with schools being turned into isolation hospitals, university students providing services, healthcare professionals being recalled from other countries etc) in part due to the lack of syringes and supplies to make the vaccines they have developed. A 60+ year old blockade by the USA is not helping their current situation. There is widespread unrest in the country, driven in part by ex-pats who are funding vandalism and violence in Cuba. Each news article I view, or each chat with a Cuban friend,  causes me to feel my March vacation becoming less of a reality and of course to worry about the friends/family there. 

We are in the final planning stages for a pig roast on the weekend. The local farmer who provides the pig was texting as to dimensions as our mechanical grill is less than 6 ft long and we can usually handle about a 60 lb pig. The shore captain texted (thinking it was funny) that a 54 inch pig would be fine and the immediate reply was "are you sure about the size? a 54 in pig would weigh about 200 lbs?" Mister quickly recanted. As I said to him.....you may be a gardener but you clearly aren't a farmer yet. Our Cuban son in law will be an asset to assist with the roasting but as he said....a machine to turn your pig...it isn't so hard. Agreed we are spoiled. Fingers crossed for no precipitation. Plan B with rain/wind is to clean out all the 'toys' from the storage shipping container and roast the pig inside. We are at the mercy of the weather as per usual. 

The oldest grandson is here for the week while attending day camp. Due to pandemic restrictions the sessions are divided into morning or afternoon groups so a chance to sleep in for the houseguest. Soon time to make the blueberry waffles I promised for breakfast. Stay safe and make sure you're fully vaccinated. 

Third Time's a Charm

As I type this update, in our province we are currently involved in a 'circuit breaker' lockdown for the third wave of the pandemic. Today the province announced one death and 64 new cases (stats which in some provinces/countries would be envied) with 975 active cases of which 74 are patients in hospital, 21 in ICU. Although we have administered almost half a million doses of vaccine, there is community spread in both of our cities, schools and all non essential services are closed and movement is restricted to own municipality. We've been here before and know what to expect...but there is a bit of unquietness about it as well as despair. When restrictions were imposed three weeks ago, it was familiar territory and we slipped back into the less frequent essential only grocery runs, no personal appointments for haircuts or esthetician and household entertainment of reading, watching the waterfowl and wildlife in front of us, Netflix, crafts and gardening...who are we kidding? Decision is not by pandemic but age and rural location. To prioritize what I miss it would be:

1. Seeing the grandkids

2. Shopping at Frenchy's

3. Haircut/esthetician appointment

Clearly I write from a position of privilege as evidenced from my sunset watching photo.

Cheers from the beach house

I do not have to put myself at risk to work a minimum wage frontline retail job. In fact, I'm not struggling as an RN in the pandemic trenches where redeployment is routine, exhaustion is the descriptor and another summer looms without relief of the workload. Although I haven't heard a peep from the provincial health authority (their dysfunction a reminder of the reason I haven't worked in my home province for nine years) there are frequent pleas from northern territories begging for staff. I have no plans to give up whatever summer we manage to eke out here and the closest I come to planning is perhaps contemplating a fall contract in Nunavut.... have always wanted to see Arctic Bay. With my 'pension birthday' being celebrated in September, the focus changes to work as recreation vs monetary gain...I'm not volunteering yet, but do I really want to return most of my additional salary in income tax? Not regularly. And then there is the dilemma of becoming a plague pilgrim as rotational workers returning to the province have come to be seen despite being PCR tested three times and doing a modified 14 day self isolation. This in addition to applying for entrance to the northern territories, the 'unfun' travel required to get there (limited flights so more and longer layovers, food services not available in airports or hotels) and self isolation required upon northern arrival. First world problems. Like the social media post where a lady stated she was looking forward to eating supper with someone other than her husband. No comment. Even if the one in this house barbecued the ribs last night to go with the potato salad I'd made. The supper entertainment was a virtual tour of the Sagrada Familia in Barcelona, at the link below:

heygo.com

Sagrada Familia, Barcelona

I've already enjoyed Machu Picchu, Warwick and Matlock Bath UK, Dubrovnik, and a national park near Nairobi as well as a community development slum tour there in the past few weeks. It's odd to be visiting some (previously) usually busy tourist spots which are now deserted. Makes for good viewing but a contrast with 'over tourism' of the past and has changed outcomes. For example...prepandemic the Sagrada Familia collected 50 million euros annually in entrance fees and thus construction which was slated for completion in 2026 is now unknown. The tours are available in French, Spanish, German and Portugese as well and cover a wide range of topics. They're a bit more interesting than just watching a travel show and thinking....when will we ever be able to travel? 

Although in our province, we are vaccinating at a rate of over 20,000 per day and the vaccine supply is assured so we're on track for our second shot, this is going to take time.  We're booked for our second dose in  mid August, although there is some discussion of moving the date slightly forward. The national goal is 75% of us to have had our first dose before we open our borders and we're now at 50%. At present, leaving/returning to Canada is complicated, involving testing within 72 hours, vaccination certification, quarantine hotels and 14 day self isolation. This is in addition to perhaps finding yourself in a foreign country when the epidemiology changes and borders close stranding you in quarantine of their arrangement, inability to access many areas/services, the scarcity and increased cost of flights, additional screening measures, need to wear a mask for extended periods and increased risk of becoming exposed to the virus while traveling. For over a year there has been a complete lack of travel insurance due to the travel advisory on Canada's Foreign Affairs website advising against all non essential travel outside of Canada as well as avoiding all cruise ship travel outside of Canada. The greatest wild card in this game....variants of the virus. At present the vaccines are effective, but this doesn't dismiss a  future need for boosters, different vaccines etc. Both Air Canada and Air Transaat have (with government bailout) refunded our return flights from over a year ago and WestJet has extended the expiry of companion vouchers so clearly the airline understand this is lengthy. In the meantime....the pool guy is cleaning out the winter's organic leavings and soon we shall enjoy water therapy. 

I've been 'shopping my stash' and have done a couple of shawls which were well received. Just finished a baby bear hat for a neighbour's first grandchild due in September. The main ongoing project is a bedspread for the middle grandson which will go on his 'big boy' bed when he moves over from the crib. It's a simple V stitch repeat so I'm able to enjoy movies or webcasts without counting or paying attention to a pattern. It's growing so not a portable project but that's less of an issue in lockdown anyway. I have plans to do a cat couch - which will likely result in three of them as these felines don't share well and multiple balls of scrap to make into a big basket. We shall see. 

I've been enjoying the Friends and Fiction sessions and have found a list of new authors to read. Have sampled books from four of the original five writers and although they're all quite different, all good. I've just finished The Room on Rue Amelie by Kristin Harmel in two days using the Libby app from my library to download the ebook and that meant no housework then a big ugly cry during the day... yes, it was that good. My library holds continue to arrive randomly, the symbol on the edge of my phone screen scheduling the order of consumption of my TBR (to be read) list as well as the temptation of those daily email free offers on BookBub, Freebooksy, The Fussy Librarian and sometimes Bargain Booksy.  Life in the slow lane requires a good read or twenty. Although I've amassed a collection of audiobooks I've chosen to reserve those for boring household jobs such as cleaning out my closet (done and not much work if you haven't worn 'going out' clothes for over a year) or enjoying the sun on the deck where bright sunlight on the screen interferes with ebooks. I encouraged the shore captain/gentleman farmer to enjoy a collection of lectures on Vikings and gifted him the series on Chirp. He is now enjoying a wine region series while he transplants his zucchini. Better to be educated than bored.  

Podcasts (mostly audio, but a few video) are my friend whether it be Daily Ted Talks, CBC Listen, or just subscribed channels for crafts. And as strange as it sounds to say listening/watching a crocheting podcast is satisfying...crochet being a tactile activity....there are all sorts of new yarns, accessories and techniques shared. Lots of ways to enhance your cro-jo as in crochet motivation. I've offered crochet lessons to a friend but that in person activity shall have to wait for in person visiting. 

The walk to the mailbox is about half an hour and the weather has been mostly sunny with a bit of breeze to keep the bugs away so there's a daily outing. Lots of wildlife to see along the route with deer, bunnies, porcupine and neighbours dogs...thankfully no bears, although there have been local sitings. Very little traffic with the travel restrictions and lots of memories of walks over the past 35 years with various combinations of offspring/grandkids. 

The in house garden has been yielding greens for about a month, we've had our first early zucchini and I used the dehydrator to dry a batch of oregano already. Lots of healthy looking plants in the two greenhouses and the compound (which has so far excluded the deer) is planted with potatoes and more. When the resident farmer was complaining that the garden was getting to be 'almost like work' I reminded him that if he wasn't continually expanding his grow op as fiercely as if he were Amazon or Microsoft it would be less onerous. I convinced him to give some transplants to his sister because the more you have, the more you have to freeze/can/dry/find a place to store and we're still working our way through last year's bounty. 

The long weekend is usually the beginning of camping/cottage season but mid June is the target now for our six week restrictions. The projects list is lengthy...let's see what a dent I can put it in before then. 

Exceeding Expectations!

Isn't that a great title for a post? The fact that it's completely accurate makes my heart sing. Now for the transplant back story:

The donor daughter and I traveled to Toronto without incident. I elected to not inform her prior to our flight that it was the newly reintroduced 737 Max8. Apparently Air Canada has opted for less flights and more capacity in their scheduling, although the midday direct flight was approximately half full with the majority of passengers appearing to be 'transitional workers' headed out west. We accessed an Uber and Habeeb regaled us with stories of his impressions of Canada vs Pakistan then deposited us at Skyview Rentals. We organized the details and headed next door to our penthouse apartment. With only a small amount of clothes (ensuite laundry) we were soon set up and an Instacart order underway. This is a service (one of many springing up) where a personal shopper selects for you from various stores (Loblaws, Costco, Shoppers Drugs, Walmart, Staples, Bulk Barn, Indigo, Mastermind Toys and various other markets) then delivers to your door. Of course the service is only as good as the shopper, but it was smoother than my experience in Ottawa last spring. Usually it's new Canadians shopping who are great at selecting fruit and veggies - especially plantains, avocados, and bananas (although one professional couple in business attire and upscale car dropped off our order after work - assume one of them did household shopping and the other ours) and all their 5star ratings were well earned. In less than an hour from hitting send on the app the groceries were in the cupboard - I can't drive to and fro the grocery store in that time, let alone negotiate the aisles. We also indulged in some baby toys to amuse Juan as he recovered and a 1500 piece puzzle for adults from Mastermind Toys. A definite perk of urban living. We availed ourselves of a DoorDash supper delivered by bike and considered ourselves settled in. 

The first ten days passed quickly as we caught up on Netflix series - Superstore and Schitts Creek in their entirety. Slept in. Baked (me) and attended appointments (she) with various podcasts and news conferences to keep current. Read good books - the library doesn't care where you're physically located to download - this past month I've read Winter Garden, This Tender Land, One Ocean Boulevard, Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet, Becoming Mrs Lewis, Where the Crawdads Sing, and am now making my way through Eleanor Oliphant is completely fine. I crocheted a poncho for the donor daughter (easier than a jacket post op) and a shawl for the expectant daughter at home. I also managed to complete a summer top for myself (was supposed to be long sleeved and just managed to squeak out a tank top....who calculates those yardages in patterns and on ball bands anyway? And speaking of crochet:

Here's a great story about Kamala Harris, Vice President of the USA (I've downloaded her autobiography but not read it yet) I am already a fan - articulate, educated woman  with Canadian relatives, and of course "I'm speaking" but to find out that she is a crocheter? That just knocks it out of the park!

https://www.washingtonpost.com/lifestyle/home/kamala-harris-crochet-dc/2021/04/12/7237cd06-8e6b-11eb-9423-04079921c915_story.html

After the first week, we also relocated from our 16th floor apartment to one on the 12th due to a roof top leak requiring remediation. Thankfully this happened pre-op and we were able to smoothly transition. The condo was lovely with lots of space, two bedrooms, two bathrooms and a pullout sofa, two balconies with pigeons included but a sunny spot to read in, fully equipped with appliances and everything for daily living (and of course I travel with my pastry blender, whisk and spatula as I am a transient apartment pro). I was a particular fan of the garbage chute just steps from the door. We also had an 'incident' in the second apartment where we were awakened by security at midnight asking to inspect because the apartment below had water dripping through the ceiling. I was not impressed and stated my displeasure as the grandson was in Sick Kids and with this imposition I was afraid they were trying to reach us. After a tour of both bathrooms - nothing to see here - security apologized and left talking on the phone. Didn't hear anything else about it. A few days later a letter from the rental agency stated that property management advised there'd been a leak and we were to ensure shower curtains were inside the tub. I quickly phoned SkyView Suites (fearing the damage deposit might be jeopardized) to state that 1) there was no water running in our apartment as we'd been awakened from a deep sleep 2) there are no shower curtains, there are shower doors in this apartment 3) we had already cooperatively relocated to another unit after water leakage on the roof so there are building issues. An apology and promise of note to the file with call to property management was made. As my daughter stated "Mom they don't know how polite you were because they're not Eastlink". Zackly. 

The grandson and his parents joined us on day 10 as he had pre-op appointments as well and we got to spend some time together before the March 18th date. At one point he woke at 10 pm to watch the rental movie with the adults as he felt he was missing out. So good to be a baby and not realize what was ongoing - only the grownups worrying. 

His mother took him over to Sick Kids and he was admitted on Wednesday, then 5:30 am Thursday the remaining three of us walked over to Toronto General and Sick Kids Hospitals respectively. I accompanied my daughter to the pre-op admission and relocated to the waiting room. I have put in some long shifts over my 45 year nursing career but the 12 hours I spent waiting for my daughter and grandson to return from the OR post transplant sure beat even waiting for a medevac in a blizzard with a critically ill patient. The transplant process is....adult surgical team at Toronto General begin procedure with donor and only after confirming the liver is acceptable does the baby go to the OR in Sick Kids. Apparently 2-3% of surgeries aren't completed even at this stage. The pediatric surgical team at SickKids begins the procedure with the baby and remove the diseased liver. A second pediatric surgical team assists then heads over through the tunnel to Toronto General and receives the left lobe from the donor (about 25% of an adult liver) and returns to transplant it in the baby. The adult surgeon leaves the team to close and goes to Sick Kids to assist with the completion of the pediatric OR. A very tightly choreographed performance. By late afternoon the surgeon stopped to tell me how pleased he was with my daughter's OR and that things were going well with the baby as well. A few hours later I was able to visit my daughter in MICU (step down unit) and we were elated to hear from her sister that the baby would be out of OR shortly. I stayed until a photo of him sleeping (without being intubated even) arrived from his mother who had been told by the surgeon they were very pleased with the transplant. You know what that feeling was like? We won the lottery!!!! 

The next day both donor and recipient had ultrasounds and all was well and liver enzymes quickly returning to normal for the baby. I was able to visit the daughter three times as she was in MICU for three days due to no available bed on the floor - there were six liver transplants done that week - but no access after transferring to the floor. Nausea was her biggest hurdle (thankfully she'd never had hyperemesis gravidarum so no practice) but she was discharged on day six and we strolled the 10 minute walk back to the apartment. The parents had devised a system of shifts where Mom did 12 hour day shifts and Dad did nights as only one parent at a time was allowed in hospital. The baby made a miraculous recovery, was well ahead of anticipated goals and quickly required lots of entertainment. At one point he refused to get in the crib for exams - who could blame him? I was the logistics coordinator keeping the home fires burning with meals, laundry and cleaning. When the post op daughter returned I added private duty nursing to my job description. It was a team effort. 

The post op daughter had a surgical appointment for clearance the next Tuesday and I booked flights for Wednesday after she was given the green light - using a companion fare and travel bank which would be expiring anyway. On the final days in hospital the baby was allowed to be out an about in the stroller so we got to visit with him as his mother brought him out. It was wonderful to hold him and see him so well, not jaundiced, happy and active. The day after we departed the family got to return to the apartment with only daily homecare nurse visits for IV medication through his PICC line. Unfortunately being out of province the tubing, nursing visits and meds are charged with insurance only picking up some of the costs. It will all be settled with a return home as covered here. They are hoping (blood work results dependent) to be home between Thursday and Saturday. 

Maternity leave is ending May 1st for the oldest daughter and she received her laptop / cell phone from work as head office is in Toronto. A new tertiary hospital (very overdue) to replace the ancient/decrepit/fragmented one at present is in the planning stages and her company is establishing a Nova Scotia office. There is long term job security with a number of projects in the wings. Things are starting to come together for them now with the move to NS, well baby and job here. 

I did have an email from NS Health about casual work for vaccination clinics but it was while I was in Toronto doing family nursing so I advised I be in touch when available. Have emailed but not further response...oh well. The weather is starting to improve here with warmer temperatures and sunny days...they'd be wise to make haste when dealing with an old nurse, especially one who is seriously looking at retirement vs just planning it. And especially one looking forward to her super hero grandson's first birthday party. 

This morning I had another swab for Covid as it was day 12 after returning home. The most recent change in PH protocol is the provincial recommendation to test on day 1 or 2 and day 12, 13 or 14 after entering NS in addition to the 14 day self isolation requirement for all out of province travel. We were granted an exemption as traveling for medical but decided to test as downtown Toronto is the epicentre of all things pandemic, especially as it relates to the new, more virulent variants of the virus. Gives me a chance to catch up with former coworkers. As a rotational worker I'm mandated to do tests on day 1 or 2, 6,7, or 8 and 12, 13 or 14 and maintain a 'modified self isolation' for 14 days....meaning only walks and drives, no visiting or having visitors, drive through or pickup only and family are allowed to conduct their usual routines. Although there are a variety of rules, they are intended to fit the risk and are surely working at keeping us safe. With single digit daily positive cases and a case count of 46 our province is seen globally as a bright spot. This has led to a real estate boom where many local properties (many previously on the market for extended periods) are being purchased after only being viewed online by out of province buyers (often from central and western Canada) and frequently for above listed price. The ability to work from home (now that high speed internet has arrived) allows for geographic mobility and increased quality of life. 

So to conclude....life is good. It's a breezy but sunny April day and the cats are snoozing and shedding on various pieces of furniture. The shore captain is puttering about readying his gardens and greenhouse and it's a lovely day to walk to the mailbox. Lots of waterfowl this spring with shell ducks (mergansers) and sea ducks (eiders) loons, shags (cormorants) and geese coming by for visits. The local lobster season (which finishes the end of May) is continuing with record high prices. One of the local boats hauls traps across the harbour in front of us a as the gulls wheel overhead squawking. Ahhhhh

Mergansers in the  morning

Spring lobstering

Is it March already? Hello 2021

Lots going on...as you might have already suspected by my silence since before the holidays. Here goes the update:

December was a busy month of preparation for the holidays, packing for my northern contract, applying for permission from the Nunavut medical officer of health to travel in, and seeing the grandchildren as much as pandemic restrictions allowed. We modified our usual festivities to include a Christmas Eve day trip to the city bearing seafood chowder, rolls and cheesecake. Visited the youngest grandson celebrating his first Christmas and his parents where we opened our gifts, then on to the suburbs to repeat the menu and to see the middle grandkids who at two and four years old were pretty excited. Home late after a full day. Christmas Day was eggs benedict for brunch and making creamed lobster to take to supper at the nurse daughter's. We picked up the oldest grandson and made our way to the first Christmas celebrated in the youngest daughter's new home on the lake. Had a lovely turkey and lobster supper and with dessert were handed a card which read "congratulations you're going to be grandparent's for the fifth time". What a lovely surprise! As the stores weren't open I didn't even have time to pick up some yarn for a baby afghan as I've done the other grandkid's while on northern contracts. Boxing Day was spent de-Christmasing the house and packing away decorations so they weren't looking at me in February. In addition I made sure to secure any of the livingroom collectibles that matter to me in the spare bedroom as the floor replacement plan would mean a total disruption. 

December 27th arrived sunny and clear for my drive to the city where I left my car in the oldest daughter's apartment parking lot which instructions for my son-in-law (standard savvy) to start and drive it around the lot a couple of times a week to ensure that it would start when I retrieved it. I know he did as I found it with the heater/blower set on high and a Cuban music CD bumping out the tunes when I tuned the key :) Daughter and family dropped me at the airport and a quick kiss for the grandson and I dragged my bags in.

The Air Canada check-in was quick and painless, temperature check and security screening where I had a quick chat with an employee who is the daughter of a nursing school classmate and on to the gate. First time I've eaten my booster juice and grilled cheese sandwich in the bathroom stall - only solo place to take your mask off to eat now. Off to Toronto and a short wait, then on to Edmonton with no inflight service except being handed a bottle of water, shuttle over to the Fairfield Inn and Skip the Dishes for supper from Vietnamese Paradise....yum. A good sleep, early wakeup, breakfast bag from the hotel and shuttle over to the airport. Check in with Canadian North and shortly off across the tarmac to the Air Summit plane with the same lack of inflight service...ahh flying in a pandemic. In to Yellowknife to await Canadian North. Upon departure I was the only passenger (and yes I did feel like a rock star on my private jet) and after a mechanical delay for 'fumes' we were off. Weather deteriorated in Kugaaruk while we were enroute so we diverted directly to Taloyoak and I arrived a bit earlier than scheduled without the stop. The airport was renovated in the 6.5 years I'd been away but there were lots of familiar employee faces. 

I called the nurse on call and she dispatched the LPN to retrieve me. I had never been inside the 'new' health centre or apartments so spent the first few weeks orientating myself to the physical layout. Couldn't leave the health centre/apartments the first 14 days due to the required self isolation plan. The staffing situation was really tight as my former jobshare partner and another nurse had been reassigned to Gjoa Haven for the holidays leaving only the SHP (nurse in charge) and two inexperienced CHNs. Thus I was convinced to augment the schedule with second on call shifts for CHN, something I haven't done for a couple of years. The health centre was operating on emergency services over the holidays and with the pandemic precautions resulting in drastically reduced viral illnesses the workload was much lighter than I recalled, a good thing with the staff shortage. Took a while to get my head around the well child immunization program, covid swabbing, contact tracing and followup, planning for pandemic mass vaccination campaign, STI program etc plus changes to clinic visits. I enjoyed reconnecting with the community and meeting those under age seven who had arrived in my absence. Hadn't completely lost my touch with the CHN skills. New Years Eve was a wonderful fireworks display, the babies were still as beautiful and the people as welcoming as always. The COOP even had a new produce manager and there were lovely medjool dates cheaper than in NS! There wasn't much snow this year but it was chilly - the day I exited it was -61c but what do you expect for Nunavut in February?

There had been a lot of changes since I'd last worked in this community, meaning the only staff (aside from my former jobshare partner) who I knew were the support staff. Things weren't as before and my (previously I believed good friend is now....not) but...life goes on. The short story for my six week contract is....the interpersonal situation was pretty tense, I have never been involved as a witness for the College of Nursing or management for so many events in such a short time in my entire 45 year career and...I'm not planning on repeating that any time soon! In fact, for the very first time I left a contract 10 days early as I was really concerned for my license and although I'm 64 and not looking at working much longer, I will go out on my own terms and at my own time. It was the right decision. Upon return to my home province I opted for the free four month conditional RN license (with option for employer to extend another four months) as there is a push to return retired/rotational nurses to the workforce. Within 24 hours I received approval for my conditional license which will be activated upon a job offer. I've signed up and have been receiving emails from the health authority but no casual offer yet. I'm in no hurry as I won't be available until April but a covid screening or vaccination clinic gig would suit. Or not...summer is coming at some point and the government will send me another cheque after my birthday. This autumn is the earliest (and perhaps final) time I can do a northern contract. Retirement planning meets reality. 

 As a rotational worker I was required to do a modified self isolation (meaning others in the household didn't have to isolate, only me) of 14 days while checking in online daily and be swabbed on day 1 or 2, then again on day 6,7 or 8. My tests were negative but a registration clerk error on my email address (which is how a negative test is shared with the recipient) meant I received a call on day 4 from someone who identified himself as being from 'the Dept of Justice' without indicating which province stating I hadn't had my first test. After the debacle I'd just escaped from, this caused me to have a brief panic attack before I clarified the situation. Good to know the province is checking. 

And yes to confirm....the living room floor was replaced so there's one flat surface throughout now. Lots of other projects done by the shore captain as well in my absence. I've had two weeks off 'house arrest' as I've prepared for the trip to Toronto and grandson's liver transplant as our second daughter was approved as a donor (pending final tests). It is getting to be time as he's taking nine meds in the morning alone and has had problems with fluid retention and low albumin so received two transfusions to boost his levels, low potassium so is taking additional amounts and eating two bananas per day, having reflux etc. He's a good baby and developing well, although his large belly interferes with crawling. He has gained weight and is taller so a better candidate for the surgery now. We've gotten a few visits in with him as it'll be a while before we can be together physically again.  

The nurse daughter (who is due end of June) went through uncertain times this past few weeks as an unclear ultrasound meant further testing and finally an amniocentesis followed by anxious waiting. Thrilled to receive the all clear yesterday. Whew. 

Tomorrow is a fly day as the teacher daughter and myself head to Toronto for 14 days of self isolation and additional pre-op testing for the donor daughter. Ironic as we have very low case counts here heading towards much higher but...whatever it takes. Resource navigation (through a charity) have facilitated a two bedroom apartment about 10 minutes walk from Sick Kids. The grandbaby and parents will fly up just before the mid month planned transplant. MSI covers the flights/accommodation for the parents and the David Foster Foundation (yes the musician) assists with costs as well. I will be able to take the donor daughter over to the Toronto General Hospital on OR day, wait for updates and speak to the surgeon following, then visit her in the MICU (step down unit) that first day. No further hospital visiting during her expected five day stay, but I will be able to pick her up upon discharge and can be the private duty nurse while she recovers. After she obtains clearance from the surgeon, we'll fly back to our province and self isolate another 14 days. This time no modified routine, we'll have to be in a separate spot. Fortunately for us, the son-in-law's grandparent's house is empty and available to us. So if all goes well, we'll be free by mid April. The baby and parents have been told to expect to spend between five and eight weeks in Toronto as he'll be in Sick Kids longer and have some time in the Toronto apartment before heading home. 

Checked in, my ebooks loaded and my backpack is stuffed with yarn projects. Only positive thoughts as we move along this journey. So very grateful for the expertise and technology that allows this chance for a special baby. Will update when able....

Is 2020 over yet?

I am sure I'm not alone in wishing to see the end of 2020. Those years that you really feel like celebrating the end of those 365 days don't come frequently but when they do....We've certainly had lots to be thankful for, but no denying this has been a stressful time. 

September was a busy time with a quick trip to Ottawa for myself and the son in law to close/pack up the apartment and movers shipped the contents to this province. The teacher daughter has lots of room in two garages so stored the possessions until an apartment was located. Really tight housing market in the city now and finding a place to rent was a struggle but they finally managed to lease a two bedroom apartment with balcony in the west end of the city, near to transit station, free parking and heat included at the same price as their Ottawa spot. Another two weeks self isolation upon return (getting to be a pro) and more projects completed, more swims in the pool and books read. A few trips back and forth to the city as the baby continued to improve and all settled into the new routine. The family surprised me by coming home for the weekend of my birthday and we had the oldest and youngest grandsons together for a visit. 

October first saw the move to the new apartment for the now Nova Scotians. Thanks to elevators and extra son in law helpers all went smoothly. My job (the most important position) was hanging out with the baby. Didn't take long for the oldest daughter to get settled in (not her first move) to the cozy apartment and we made our way home. Having made a promise of weekly visits "to do something fun" I have honoured the intent and daughter and son in law managed to get out once for supper while I enjoyed the baby. October also saw a call from Sick Kids in Toronto for the grandson to be assessed for liver transplant as his biweekly blood tests remained the same. After the question of health insurance (interprovincial move) was settled for the testing, flights were booked through Hope Air (wonderful charity that does medical flights) and accommodation arranged through the David Foster Foundation. As traveling out of province, special permission was granted for Dad to attend as well, because with the pandemic only one support person is allowed. They spent a very busy four days of testing/appointments from 8am to 4pm daily including some sedation and fasting. The grandson handled it like the trooper he is. The two week self isolation was a chance to recover from all of the interventions. 

The two week post visit case conference advised that our grandson was being placed on the liver transplant database list and that they should pack a bag and be ready to go if 'the call' came. The team would like him to be 10 kg as better success with larger babies and since he was 6.5kg at that point some major high protein/fat diet required. The plan being that he would be Life Flighted to Ontario if a cadaver donor became available and only his mother would be able to accompany. They were also advised that a live donor is a better possibility if one could be located. It is possible for an adult to donate a portion of their liver as the organ is regenerative. Someone under 40, no health problems or lifestyle issues, BMI under 30 and passing all the screening. This situation was complicated by the fact that his mother is A+ and he is O+. Likely his Dad is O but doesn't know his blood type and has previously had hepatitis so wouldn't be a priority donor. Three of my children are A+ like their father and only one is O+ like me. This auntie didn't hesitate to put her name forward, filling out the 11 page health questionnaire and advising her principal of the situation. She has been moved along the system having bloodwork, chest xray, EKG, CT (for blood flow) and remaining an MRI (for vessel placement) booked for Jan 4th, both in New Glasgow as the first available site. Pretty impressive gift as this auntie has a two and four year old at home but as she said "my sister would do it for me" and this is true as well. I will admit that all this making me a bit misty eyed and reaffirming that I have raised good children. The transplant is coordinated through the Toronto General Hospital (adult) across the road from Sick Kids (peds) and there is a nurse for each service who are great supports. After all the donor test results are submitted, there are Tuesday case conferences where a timeline is given and the daughter would have to head up to Toronto two weeks early for pre op education and then a covid test 72 hrs before OR. I could arrive the day before, take her to the hospital, await updates during surgery then return to pick her up a few days later as there is no visiting in ICU or floor with the pandemic. An early discharge is hopeful if a private duty nurse accompanies to assist with care. Likely an AirBnB or a condo so meals could be cooked etc and assistance with the flight home once clearance is obtained. 

We had arranged for family photos mid November aiming to gather the clan before lobstering began and as it turned out, fortunately before travel/visiting restrictions were imposed again for the central region after multiple covid cases amongst the 18 to 35 yr old age group. We were lucky to have a window of cool but dry weather for the morning as only outdoor photos were being done and the photographer  and assistant worked his magic. We had some lovely group photos and really special ones with the grandchildren....priorities. 

I attended three of the local recreation department craft classes creating a painting, a stuffed snowman and

some tree ornaments until....I was excluded the final week for having traveled to
the city to visit grandchildren. The screening (no visit to exposure sites - mostly bars and restaurants in HRM) at the local hospital allowed me to visit a former coworker but the blanket statement of 'no travel to HRM' prevented me from craft class. No logic. 

Lobster season has opened in our area....one district began last Monday as scheduled, the remaining district is setting traps tomorrow at 4am. Of course the weather has been terrible with lots of gales and rough seas as it always seems to be this time of year. Our son and son in law have a week in now and have surely been earning their money. 

After multiple requests from my employer (as the pandemic arrived in Nunavut) and discussion with the daughters, I advised the manager I'd be available for a January Public Health contract. The plan being to head up before the donor daughter needs me, stop in Toronto on the return if required and extend if things are a bit delayed with the planning/ baby's weight gain. Haven't been to Taloyoak since 2014 so lots of changes and will get to hang out (after my first two weeks of solo living/self isolating except for work) with my jobshare partner and catch up. I've already started picking up baking supplies, coordinating the recipes and locating my winter gear. Looks like the only short to medium term trips available are work/medical travel. I've sent off my 2021 RN registration and named the city I travel from....awaiting my itinerary. 

On a lighter, more positive note...I've discovered an entertaining Wednesday evening activity which is live at 8pm Atlantic Time, but available for replay on FB Live, YouTube and Twitter:

friendsandfiction.com

It's called Friends and Fiction and five authors (Kristin Harmel, Mary Kay Andrews, Kristy Woodson Harvey, Patti Callahan Henry and Mary Alice Monroe) interview authors such as Kathy Reichs, Sue Monk Kidd etc. It's a great hour of conversation, book readings and fun. Through my local library I've also discovered not only Libby but now Hoopla which loans videos etc. Since entering the 21st century and having fibre op installed we are actually able to watch Netflix, Amazon Prime etc. and enjoyed Kevin Costner and Woody Harrelson in The Highwaymen (story of Bonnie and Clyde) this week. Much better than the CNN coverage that the shore captain has been addicted to the past four years. So. very. tired. of. USA. politics. Sigh

And today while running errands....I stopped at the local museum gift shop for a few small gifts as we're keeping the purchases to a minimum and...treated myself to a lovely scarf in the Barrington tartan...once a Barrington girl.... Gotta have your small pleasures. 

We have (for the first time ever) become the owners of an artificial Christmas tree. It's not very tall in our high ceilinged livingroom and requires a box to raise it up and still requires some 'fluffing' of the branches But...it is prelit and there was NO usual Grinch swearing of lights being putting on. Certainly a win. 

It blew during the night

Gnomes r Us

The shore captain has been keeping himself busy with (no surprise) multiple projects. He has begun repairs on the camp on crown land which hadn't been visited for over a decade. The side by side trips in over the rough road 'required' new larger tires (did you know that shipping truck tires through Canada Post in an option? our rural route driver was a tad unimpressed) and spacers to raise up the machine. He is creating lots of woodworking items in his workshop and even took on gnomes after a daughter's suggestion and YouTube videos. Now, if I could just convince him to look for the exterior lights before he is able to say that it's 'too late now, will do it next year' we'll be all set. 

I have my fingers crossed the living room floor will be installed in my absence this winter. Some things are best experienced at completion....not lived through. With a busy/unprecedented holiday season and packing for north, not sure when I'll post again. Happy holidays if they arrive before my update does. 

So much news...

We're well into August and I'm finally getting my feet on the ground to update the blog. It's been a busy summer since the last update in June. 

After I finished my two week isolation post Ontario trip, I welcomed the two middle grandkids for a stay with us. Their mother brought them down from the city, stayed overnight and in the morning as their auntie entertained them in the pool, she slipped back to ready their house for listing. Long days of painting, organizing and cleaning ensued and by the July 1st weekend they were ready to post a For Sale sign on the lawn and headed out back country canoeing/camping with the three year old granddaughter who was transported to and fro the exit to the national park by her grandfather. While they vacationed the realtors showed the house and accepted bids....a final offer well above asking was the successful buyer. A flurry of house shopping in the new job area ensued and they have purchased a lovely home in a newer subdivision with acreage lots which is quite near my niece's house. Lovely area. Lots of back and forth inspections to ensure that all was well with both properties. The daughter collected the grandkids and off to the city they returned. 

I reorganized the house over the two days and our oldest daughter and newest grandson were met at the airport by his grandfather, who was glad to finally meet him. Their arrival of course meant 14 days of isolation for them as they'd traveled into the province. We selfishly enjoyed having them all to ourselves for the two weeks with swims in the pool, fresh garden meals, and lots of baby snuggles. The first day off isolation there was an excursion to meet the great grandmother who was delighted. The following day we entertained aunties, cousins, friends and their children...it was a busy house. 

The following few weeks are a blur as the baby became suddenly ill the following day, in to the local ER (thankfully open) to stabilize and off to the paediatric hospital by LifeFlight helicopter. I drove my daughter and we arrived at the PICU to find it abuzz with activity. There had been a CT of his head upon arrival showing he'd suffered a bleed to his brain, they were attempting to improve his clotting so the neurosurgeon could take him to the OR to remove the clot and he was placed on a respirator. We managed to arrange the first flight in the morning for his father from Ottawa. Various meds were given and within a few hours his clotting times were satisfactory to the neurosurgeon who took him to the OR at midnight. A four hour surgery was complete, the neurosurgeon was guardedly optimistic and he was returned to his room. The morning brought large numbers of specialists to his bedside as the team worked to find out what had caused the baby to have liver failure and thus clotting problems. Due to pandemic rules our son in law and daughter had to self isolate in the room for 14 days and I had to leave when he arrived as only two people were allowed. Very tough job to walk away from them knowing that I couldn't return or be there for them if bad news was delivered. A week on life support ensued as tests (biopsies, MRIs, blood tests, U/S) to rule out the 40 to 50 differential diagnoses were completed. He was finally off the ventilator and although irritable from withdrawal of medications and post op headache he improved daily, making a great neuro recovery. He was discharged from PICU to the PMU where they continued to self isolate as more and more tubes were removed. Ultimately he was diagnosed with alpha 1 antitrypsin deficiency - a rare disorder which can affect liver and lungs.  Due to frequent appointments for monitoring they are remaining in the city and my brother and sister in law have welcomed them into their home. They are much more comfortable out of hospital and are quickly catching onto the new regime of medications and supplements. The baby is bright, feeding and moving well, gaining strength and very much as before the surgery. Truly a miracle. I've crocheted him a couple of spiffy hats to cover his scar until his hair grows out and he wears them well. 

I'd made a quick trip home for the day last weekend as my sister was celebrating her 60th birthday and so I'd booked a photographer to record our family gathering. He captured some great shots. I'm heading home tomorrow for a few days and will be back and forth for visits. This week is the move to the new house, settling in to a new school for the teacher, pre-primary for the four year old, daycare for the 18mo old and all that entails. 

I found a colleague to work my Sept/Oct northern contract for me as clearly there is too much going on for me to concentrate or be so far away. I phoned a (very understanding) manager I'd never met to explain my situation and she being an eastern European grandmother was very accommodating, telling me to simply call when I was ready to come north and there'd be a spot for me. 

Speaking of colleagues....we were all shocked to learn that a northern nurse coworker (one of those larger than life types) had suddenly died in Iqaluit. She leaves big shoes to fill. Under 60 but looking forward to retirement in the spring. So sad. We just don't know what life will hand us do we?

Clearly hoping for less exciting news to convey in my next update. Only positive thoughts. 

What? Is it late June already?

Yes, it is really me after a long hiatus preparing to update you (in a lengthy post) regarding all the shenanigans since February. Thinking about the present state of our world and as recently as last year,  if I'd written some of the details I'm about share, they'd be considered fiction but....as the saying goes....you can't make this stuff up! To set the scene, I'm almost at the end of my third session of 14 day self isolation in four months (details to follow) and yes...I am getting pretty good at it. Last week was a beautiful warm, sunny, breezy time here spent in the yard, by and in the pool and watching vivid sunsets over the harbour. One evening in the gazebo, we enjoyed a BBQ burger and fresh garden salad courtesy of the gentleman farmer and strawberry shortcake with sweet biscuits I baked in the afternoon. Self isolation in the country is quite enjoyable. I had last shared my six week northern stint in January/February then a two line update in March to say we'd returned from Cuba and were managing in the 'unprecedented times' and here we are catching up. Now to recap:

I did travel (rather uneventfully on the way down) in February to Cuba as planned, flying through Toronto and in to Holguin. Processed very efficiently through the terminal and noted a nurse at the baggage carousel obviously scanning the crowd of tourists for ? unwell looking travellers? I'd arranged (through my professor Cecilia) for a taxi to Santiago de Cuba vs the bus as there were fuel shortages. It took four days for the driver to rustle up enough gas 10L/day x 4= 40L required for the return trip from Holguin and I was pleased to see Nieto's smiling face and vintage small red Moscovitch waiting for me in the parking lot. He phoned Cecilia to advise I'd been safely retrieved and we were off. It was hot and breezy and I napped on the drive. We stopped at a roadside bar for a bathroom break and I offered to buy us beverages but there was nothing to drink, only rum and coffee...no pop, water, beer nada....which turned out to be a harbinger of shortages. Nieto just shrugged and we climbed back into the car. Into the city in good time where I was safely deposited at my casa in Reparto Sueno and warmly welcomed by Maria and Luis who had been alerted to my arrival by Cecilia. A quick unpack, shower and a wonderful Cuban supper ahhh. A good sleep and a great breakfast then off to class the next morning.

Quickly into the routine of class, homework, errands, catching up online, watching the Cuban news on TV with Luis at 8pm and an early bedtime as the heat was really spanking me. The shore captain was in his third week of tropical stay on the island and dropped by at the end of the week for a quick visit - we arranged for me to travel by taxi to Chivirico the following weekend as I'd brought some gifts for friends and family. This year the staples of toothpaste, soap, shampoo etc were in really short supply and even more welcome. With the first visit I was also able to explain to her father that the 32 wk prenatal daughter was fine after being rear ended in rush hour stalled traffic on her way home from work. Her car was written off but she and the baby were monitored and were okay. The two weekends I visited were a series of pleasant encounters with friends who came for supper, a pig roast, lunch with our son in law's parents, a nice chat with our daughter's 'other mother' who I could really communicate with now (a long discussion about Cuba, the special period, Canada, our daughter etc) and lots of relaxing. We had originally hoped to arrange a weekend at an all inclusive resort near the city for us and our Cuban friends, but the approaching pandemic cut our plans short and we shelved the idea for 'next year'. On the first Monday morning I was up early to catch transportation back to the city, walked to the bus stop and...waited and waited. The local buses/trucks arrived and left but nothing to the city, very strange as there'd usually be 6 or 7 in this same period when fuel wasn't a problem.  It was over 45 minutes when the first vehicle leaving for Santiago arrived so I climbed in to...a large diesel truck older than me....but being a senior foreign female I got to ride in the cab for 30 Cuban pesos or $1.50 Cdn with the stick shift between my legs next to a very intense driver and a young fellow with a child's wooden chair on his feet. Lots of stops but made the trip in 90 minutes. Out on to the street in front of the bus station and hailed a moto taxi - able to now correctly convey the address of the casa - and ready myself for class. The second weekend I made sure the taxi was available both ways as the trucks were just not an option.

My Spanish classes went well and it was good to be back into stretching my brain with studies. There was a group of Canadian students from university in Alberta who have been affiliated with Universidad de Oriente for over 20 years, I occasionally ran into groups of them at various spots in the city - but they're all young, one of the jiniteros (tourist hustlers) told me as he glanced at me :). Cecilia and I were able to go out for a nice lunch at El Barracon (restaurant with Haitian decor but definitely Cuban cuisine) which we'd specifically chosen as they were selling cartons of juice at the cash register - beverages were impossible to buy in the stores with rows of empty shelves.  I occasionally stopped at the cafe in the Melia Santiago Hotel for a batitdo (milkshake) and sometimes an empanadilla (like a calzone) and read my ebook or people watched....not sure why because those elderly Italian tourists entertaining young Cuban chicas don't set well with me. One evening as dusk fell, I left the flat magnetic clip-on sunglasses to my bifocals on the table at the cafe. The following morning I searched my room and the living room but as Maria said "why would you have been watching TV with sunglasses on?" Finally realizing that I must've left them at the cafe I stopped (with Cecilia) and asked about the sunglasses. The waitress remembered seeing them on the table and since she thought they were broken had thrown them in the trash. It being the weekend, the garbage wasn't removed and she crossed the courtyard to the 'Italian' restaurant and spent 35 minutes out back digging through bags of wet garbage. She emerged triumphantly with my sunglasses and ran the clip-on through the dishwasher while scrubbing her hands and arms. Granted, I tipped her all the change in my pocket, but that only totalled about 4 CUC. What  other country in the world would provide such customer service?

Worldwide the coronavirus pandemic was moving quickly with large numbers in Europe and I found myself avoiding the Hotel Santiago where Italian tourists were present and stopped kissing upon greeting even though it was culturally expected. On Friday, Feb 13th our Canadian prime minister said "wherever you are, Canadians need to come home" and I realized that I'd have to put a plan in to action. On Saturday when I visited the life partner and stated I was going to change my departure ticket for the following week he declined accompanying me and said he was....going to stay and go fishing down the coast with the guys from the island as planned and had three weeks left so was going to 'take his chances'. By Sunday morning he'd reconsidered, tourists over to the island that afternoon confirmed there was a Tuesday flight from Santiago de Cuba and as I left for the city Monday morning I had plans to source us tickets on that flight.

A quick stop at the park to use wifi - couldn't do a thing online for flights and the Canadian news was increasingly frantic as the virus spread. Over to my professor's and my opening statement in Spanish of "Cecilia, I've got a problem and I need you to help me" was met by an alarmed look (later she confessed that she was concerned as to just how big my problem was...did I need help burying a body?) and we sprang into action. I phoned the oldest daughter - she was in the process of being sent home from her office to work at home - and she attempted to reach the airlines. Cecilia worked her contacts and after 90 minutes tracked down a travel agent colleague who found us an Air Transaat rep in the city. Absolutely could not have managed this without her extensive connections. I grabbed my passport, phoned the shore captain (who was lying in the sun) for his passport info, my credit card and we walked to the travel office. It was a very complicated, expensive process but $1100 Cdn later we had hand written 'tickets' on the flight the following afternoon and I could finally take a deep breath. Cecilia and I decided to celebrate our success with lunch at nearby Dino's where she chose lasagna and I had pizza - both great and the bill was $5 total. Mind you, Cecilia had to hoof it up the street for bottles of water as there was nothing in the drinks case but...it was Pellegrino she returned with. I stopped in the park for wifi again and set the prenatal daughter on to tickets from Toronto to Halifax. This two hour flight was ultimately more expensive than the international one costing $575 each and requiring an overnight in Toronto. Thankful for our offspring travel agent. There was a flurry of activity where the travel partner arranged for a taxi in to the city the next morning, I packed my backpack, gave away my remaining goodies, took the professor out to supper at El Lindon (delicious, cheap food) and booked Nieto to the airport.

I was disappointed to only have had three weeks in Cuba...the first week is always spent just getting back up to speed in Spanish, the second week I felt comfortable again and by week three was pleased with my progress and... had to leave. Sigh. Tuesday saw my travel partner arrive after breakfast and we headed to the airport. The Air Transaat rep checked to see all was in order (that is what a 5 CUC tip gets you for service) and we were quickly checked in, through security and waiting in the departure lounge with our fellow travellers. The flight was down only slightly after expected and as I said to the shore captain "if that plane arrives from Canada we're golden as they're not leaving a flight crew on the ground now" but was delayed on the tarmac. Finally the pilot came in to the terminal to explain that there was a leak in the plumbing which they were attempting to seal, we'd have hand sanitizer but no water in the bathrooms, bottles of water to drink and we'd be on our way...not what we'd have wished but there wasn't a murmur of dissent and we were off within a few minutes on a flight with only two empty seats. In to Pearson with a delay while we waited for flights ahead of us to clear Customs as numbers were being limited. The Nexus kiosks and no checked bags helped us greatly and after a thorough examination and questioning by a Customs officer with instructions to self isolate for two weeks, we navigated the huge crowds at the terminal to locate the adjoining hotel. We later learned that 1 million Canadians made their way home the week we did...I believe it!

The (same) hotel room cost double what the travel partner had paid on the trip down, the restaurant was closed and room service of a burger, fries and a club sandwich with one beer served in a brown paper bag was $100. We traversed a sparsely populated terminal and caught our flight the next morning. After having arranged with the youngest daughter/son in law to replace the freezer food at home and the second daughter/son in law to pick up groceries and leave them in the truck which they drove to the airport for us...all we had to do was drive straight home. The first few days were spent unpacking, doing laundry and settling in. We were pleased that neighbours and friends offered to pick up groceries or run errands for us and we even called in an order to the local store which delivered....if you wait long enough, everything comes around again. I managed to get lots of 'some day' projects completed - cleaned out the night stand, bureau, walk in closet, both bathroom vanities and 2/3 of the cupboards in the mud/craft room - creating several bags of donations. Took an online course through the London School of Tropical Hygiene about Covid 19 with 6000 other global students...interesting evidence based information. Spent a fair bit of time with bureaucracy getting travel credit for airfare from Air Transaat, West Jet and Air Canada and rebooking an earlier flight to Ottawa. Lessons were learned about using a third party booking company for accommodations as the Easter $1000 Holiday Inn booking in Vancouver was non refundable but would've been no problem if booked directly through Holiday Inn. Sigh. Baked/cooked large amounts of food and filled the fridge/freezer for my exit. Packed my knapsacks with clothes to take me through spring and in to summer, downloaded some patterns and stash shopped yarn for projects.

During this time my sister in law advised that my oldest brother had tested positive for coronavirus a few days after they arrived back from Spain. They'd flown in to Toronto two hours ahead of us and managed to fly home that evening. Thankfully they had self isolated and thus prevented transmission. In fact, my sister in law never tested positive. It was a long two weeks as my previously healthy brother suffered with fever, fatigue, nausea, muscle aches and constant exhaustion - and this was considered a mild case. My sister in law, although not a nurse, was an excellent caregiver and he finally got back to himself, but it took weeks. As I think of my brother's case, I am particularly annoyed to read on social media about this novel virus being milder than influenza, a hoax or only affecting the vulnerable. Still so many unknowns with this pandemic.

As soon as my self isolation ended I hopped an April 1st flight to Ottawa. I had tried several times to book non stop but the flights kept changing and so in the end I took a short layover in Montreal. At this point the prenatal daughter was being told she might have to be solo in the delivery room and if by some twist I was to be the one accompanying her, I would have first have to had self isolated for 14 days. The first week was spent with her doing her electrical estimator job from home while her hubby did morning online English courses and worked evening shift. We figured out how to do Instacart (personal shopper) delivery, online grocery shopping which the son in law and myself picked up or local shopping in person. I wasn't long figuring out Uber Eats, Skip the Dishes and Door Dash as many Ottawa restaurants struggled to stay afloat and we would've eaten out if any were open. Ultimately it was the low-key local diner (Tangerine Pizza) which appeared to have Middle Eastern owners, excellent food, great prices, huge servings and free delivery that won the 'best of' category. We sampled our way through pizzas, subs, wings and more - often the order was accompanied by soup, macaroni salad or poutine....eclectic arrangement but all delicious!

While there I worked on some projects crocheting an octopus, cocoon, waffle stitch afghan, chicken hat and fedora for photo shoots for the baby as well as a shawl for myself, a poncho for the youngest daughter, some dishcloths, a plant hanger,  pinafore for the granddaughter and began (needing yarn to complete) a baby sweater and poncho for myself. I'm not abandoning Mikey of the Crochet Crowd but if you've never seen Jonah the 11year old crochet prodigy, he's amazing. Here's his site for some creative inspiration:

jonahhands.com

We watched the entire series of Downtown Abbey and then topped it off with the movie...Ahh I'm addicted. I baked a bit and tried to make myself useful as the mother to be arranged things for our fourth grandchild and finished up a project management course as part of a program she's working her way through. We got out for walks on the trail and explored the largely blue collar immigrant neighbourhood as the season moved from flurries to tree buds. The prenatal appointments were routine although included a mask for both patient and physician, waiting outside to be called in so no one in the waiting room and only prenatal and well child attending. As the due date approached our daughter was advised that she'd be able to have one partner when in well established labour who would have to remain for her hospital stay and we were all relieved the son in law would be included.

After a weekend of my being a labour nurse again (25 yrs later) and much support from a midwife friend at home, I sent the expectant couple over to deliver at 9pm and woke to the message that we'd welcomed our third grandson to our family a 6lb 13 oz named Juan at 11pm. I was completely surprised, having decided this baby was a girl (although Mom had felt all along it was a boy) and relieved all was well. The family of three returned to the apartment by the following afternoon. With the pandemic there is no Public Health support for anything other than coronavirus and so it was good to be able to help out with newborn questions. Mom is very relaxed and breastfeeding went smoothly with the baby gaining weight rapidly. He'll be two months old on Friday and is very alert, smiling, getting to be chatty and enjoying books. This comes from not sleeping much at all. The first few weeks he was gassy, screamed in the evening and didn't settle well during the night...a high crier...but doing much better now. His aunties and uncle from NS sent him a swing which is a wonderful thing. He enjoys video chats with his Cuban and Maritime parents and is bilingual of course. The plan is for him to meet his older cousins here this summer as the travel restrictions/self isolation requirements change. It was tough leaving the little guy at six weeks and of course they change daily at this stage, so looking forward to seeing him again.

The shore captain was involved with some renovating for the second daughter and son in law in the city who are in the process of relocating due to a school transfer for her. He traveled to the city the day before my flight to replace the back deck/steps and while using a reciprocating saw with one hand he managed to cut his left wrist quite deeply. When he sent the ER photo, due to the location of the injury, I commented to my Ottawa daughter that he must've had to see a plastic surgeon. Upon questioning he replied that he had been seen at the DGH, xrayed and consulted to plastics at the QE2 then examined and plastic surgeon repaired the wound marvelling that he had missed tendons, ligaments and nerves with his injury. VERY lucky guy. His following day was spent supervising the son in law as he performed the manual labour tasks.

I had booked a non stop flight home and upon arrival at the airport found the departure delayed by 3.5 hrs. due to mechanical issues with the plane which had arrived and awaiting replacement. West Jet offered the option of flying over to Toronto at the original time, waiting an hour, then flying home from there. Although it wasn't my first choice, I (and my fellow passengers) chose this option as we were unsure the promised plan would actually arrive. So...I booked a 90 minute non stop flight between two domestic airports and ended up flying with a layover through an international airport arriving 5.5 hours later. There were no (or very limited) eating venues available in either airport and of course wearing the cloth mask for hours in terminal/plane (although I'm practiced from 45+ years of nursing) isn't amazingly uncomfortable. Having my temperature taken and scanning my own boarding pass isn't a hardship and one nice thing of physical distancing is that alternate window/aisle seats only are sold on the Dash 8 and 737 flights don't sell the middle seat. Such are the joys of traveling in a pandemic. I was annoyed to find myself seated on the second leg in a row with a commercial realtor from BC who was traveling to NS for a week, with a few days in Dartmouth and a few more in Sydney, CB all fully booked with meetings, appointments and plans to eat out. When I questioned him regarding the 14 day self isolation requirement he assured me that he was 'essential services' and this wasn't required. Obviously West Jet sold him a 7 day return ticket without issue and when I inquired at the airport arrivals of the Dept of Environment employee posted there, he assured me that a realtor isn't essential services in this province but there was no way to enforce this self isolation rule. I assured him that I had enough common sense to 'do the right thing' and dragged myself out to the waiting one armed chauffeur in the parking garage. I was annoyed to find that my chauffeur hadn't received a text indicating he pick up a sandwich and tea for me...in fact the text never did arrive - oh the wonders of technology.....and the Tim Hortons along the route had closed for the day. I glumly ate the expensive Reeses pieces bar I'd bought at the airport convenience store and drank the provided bottle of water I'd opted not to take my mask off for on the flight. A midnight arrival and crawled into bed.

My third self isolation has included more organizing projects, hanging laundry on the line, harvesting rhubarb and baking, cleaning out the grandkids playhouse, eating salads from the garden daily, perfecting sewing of olson face masks for myself, house partner and son in law, swims in the pool and lounging on the deck, a library book and...updating this blog. I'm getting rather proficient at being a hermit. We're planning for grandchildren visits shortly so will have lots of social interaction though. Stay tuned.