Awhile back I got an email thanking me for my audition for the third show this season at the Surrey Little Theatre but they didn’t have a part for me. I showed the email to Dale and after a few token words of condolence, he asked if he could now start planning weekend adventures for us. I had to smile. I had been rehearsing or performing every weekend since early September so I guess we were due for some couple catch-up time and some friend catch-up time. I barely had time to nod before he was emailing around, making plans.
Our first weekend was to Vancouver Island to see some friends we hadn’t seen since the kids’ wedding in July 2014. On Saturday we headed to the ferry to catch the 10:30 to the island. Of course the ferry wasn’t on time, and we had a small errand to run (flowers and champagne for our hosts) so we got there a little late. You know what’s great about old friends? You may not have seen them for years, but you fall right back into your friendship like you had seen each other just last weekend. As we chatted and got caught up, we realized we hadn’t visited with each other, aside from the wedding, for six years. We had them over to our house in Port Alberni just before Dale moved to Sechelt to start working at the Howe Sound Pulp Mill;, and that was 5 houses ago! It was a lovely visit, even though Dave was a little under the weather. I know he blamed the men’s loss at Trivial Pursuit on that, because it couldn’t have been that Pat and I were smarter. It was a lightning visit because we had to be back home by 4:00 on Sunday for a meeting. As we hugged them good-bye we all promised to make sure we would get together more often. Dave and Pat often end up in Vancouver before flying off to England so we offered our spare room for whenever they need it. I hope they take us up on the offer.
The next weekend we headed off to the ferry again, but this time we parked at Horseshoe Bay and walked onto the ferry to Langdale. As we parked the car and got out we noticed a lot of people heading to the walk-on terminal. There was quite a crowd buying tickets, either from the ferry personnel in the ticket booth or from the computerized kiosk. We all headed to the same waiting room. It was so full that we had to stand quietly at the back, just inside the doors. However, when the ferry to Nanaimo was announced, the room emptied and we were able to move up to the seats near the front. We shared a bag of chips and then got on the ferry.
We were able to sit right at the front but there wasn’t much to see. It was very foggy and it was raining very hard. The trip over to Langdale isn’t very long and soon we were queuing up to walk down three flights of stairs to the bottom car deck. Walk-on passengers leave the Langdale ferry from the deck, before the cars. We walked up the ramp and through the covered pedestrian walkway to where Ron was waiting. We hugged him and then got into the car. A short ride later we were warm and dry in the house. Unbeknownst to us, it was Ron and Stacey’s anniversary. Luckily we had brought them a lovely bottle of champagne. Two other couples joined us for dinner. It was a wonderful evening. One couple headed home after dinner and after a little clean-up and a little more visiting, the rest of us headed to our rooms. On Sunday morning we had another visit over breakfast. Soon we saw the ferry arriving so we said our good-byes and Ron drove us back to the ferry. The ride back was a bit nicer as the weather had cleared a little. The drive home was uneventful.
Next weekend, on Sunday, I’ll be heading to Horseshoe Bay to walk on the ferry again. My bestest friend in the whole world will be picking me up in Nanaimo and we’ll drive down to Victoria for a visit. My plans include tea at the Empress and dinner in the Bengal Room (which will be disappearing in the renovation of hotel). I’ll find out what Kim’s plans are when I call her later. I’ll go back to Port Alberni with Kim and Dale will pick me up on Thursday. We have a long weekend planned in Tofino and Ucluelet, where we hope to see some late winter storms. Of course, we’ll be taking the ferry to get back home.
It’s funny how life follows patterns. For months I drove at least 3 times a week to Surrey, back and forth over the Port Mann Bridge. Now it’s taking the ferry. Dale has some business trips coming up and then in early June we’ll be heading to the Maritimes, and guess what? We’ll be taking the ferry from Nova Scotia to New Brunswick! History repeats itself.