Wednesday’s Weekly Update no.10

Nine days of quarantine completed, five left to go. So far, no symptoms! Even though we have yet to leave the house, we’ve had a few brushes with the Canadian way of life which I wanted to share with you. So I’m introducing a new feature to my weekly update called: Bears in the Playground eh? You’ll see why the name when you read the first nugget of Canadian culture shared below.

1. Life in quarantine The first morning I woke at 4am and had the fridge magnets arranged on the fridge by 5am. By 12:30pm the same day we had the internet up and running. Conveniently, we were able to do an online shop for food and some basic house things. Which came, get this, just two hours later!! I’ve also ordered a Social Insurance Number, signed up to the BC Medical Services Plan and we’ve both booked appointments to swap our U.K driving licences for a BC ones. This all sounds very productive but honestly incarnation has slowly started to us drive nuts, mostly because the only piece of furniture we have is a bed. We’re eating on the floor, Jacob is working on the floor and we’re relaxing on the floor. I miss chairs. But who cares, we’re here and we’ll be free to explore in a few days.

2. Getting excited After my friend Nicola sent me this article in the Guardian and I realised that this spectacular mountain is only three hours drive away from here, the fact that I’m living in an outdoor pursuits dreamland started to sink in. My limbs are arching for a long hike, to properly stretch out and feel the burn of a horrible steep incline. I have got my sights set on Teapot Mountain which is near here, simply because how can you not climb a mountain with such a fabulous name?! I’m also getting really excited for winter and the prospect of Snow Shoeing, Skiing, Ice Climbing, Ice Skating…

3. Arrival of the final team member Exciting news! Bally the Greyhound’s flight is booked for the 18th of September. Which means we’ll be driving down to Vancouver on the 17th. We should be able to collect him on the 18th once he has been processed and we CANNOT WAIT!!

What’s Bothering Babs?

Babs’ Question: Do they have kettles?

Firstly, thanks for the photo! You are a legend!! Secondly, great question. It appears that most people have kettles on the hob rather than electric kettles, or they don’t have a kettle at all and just use a coffee maker (barbarians!). But they do sell electric ones. Phew. As a tea-obsessed Brit, this is important stuff.

Bears in the Playground eh?

Welcome to our new feature, where I share something that has made me exclaim: ‘God that’s so Canadian!’

Last Tuesday I attended a training session provided by School District 57 to prepare new teachers for what to expect in Prince George’s schools. As part of the training they covered emergency procedures, including one called ‘Shelter in Place’. Schools, apparently fairly frequently, enact this procedure when the pupils can’t be let outside due to a… BEAR IN THE PLAYGROUND!! I had to mute myself (the perks of training sessions on Zoom) and use my hand to hide my giggling face. Bears strolling onto the playground, ARE YOU KIDDING ME?!