Continuing on from last month's post, I have decided that home is there (Canada) and here (UK)- Home is equally where you were raised AND where you have your stuff now. I decided this was true because you can yearn for both places and since yearning is emotional, and home should have emotions linked to it, then you can have more than one home. Two points really back this up for me: 1) I asked my Mom where home was and she said my Grandma's house, but also that when she is at my Grandma's house she really just wants to "go home" at the end of a long dinner and 2) Canada is still home for me, but I did find myself saying that it was time to "go home" at the end of my visit home... I certainly wanted to go back to the home-comforts of my bed and look out at the birds in the garden.
So, what did I get up to at home? Well, apart from catching up with my sisters, visiting friends, and supporting the family, we managed a mini trip to Radium Hot Springs. We have been really lucky in that each time we have visited the mountains in the past 10 years, we have seen at least one bear. This time it was 11! Nine on the way down and another two on the way home. Plus a bald eagle, many deer, and a few goats, the trip definitely checked the animal sight-seeing box. It was nice to see that Radium Hot Springs was essentially as I remembered it; unfortunately the rain was relentless and we had to cut the trip short. On the way back to Edmonton we stopped in Banff to visit the hot springs there IN THE SNOW! Yup, in June. Why does it snow whenever I come back to visit? The good thing about the snow is that we did the "in the hot springs when it snows" experience which some people pay big bucks to check off their bucket list- and to prove the point, the line up to get into the hot springs as we were leaving was massive.
Speaking of massive, I really noticed this time around how massive things like trucks, roads, and fridges are! It's funny when you come to England and a lot of families only have ONE fridge that fits underneath the counter and you think "how the heck are they meant to support a family with only one teeny fridge?". Well, you soon learn what does/doesn't need to actually be refrigerated- on the don't list= jam, ketchup, mustard, eggs, most sauces (unless dairy based)- I can literally envision my Micro prof falling off her seat now. Massive bottles of pop, too. Nobody actually needs to drink 600mL of pop- even if it's diet.
Rant aside, it's nice to be back in the micro-world of Brum. I did miss my home and I miss the funny way that people talk- I do wonder how long before I don't think it's funny anymore. And like I said, I miss my bed and miss my garden- the weather has even perked up a bit enough to sit on the patio and enjoy a glass of wine and tit-spot on the feeder or visit Mosely Park for a couple rounds of live Trad Jazz with the girls. I haven't much more to report for this month, but I have an action packed July that is about to kick off with a Canada Day celebration in Trafalger Square! Regina Spektor at the Royal Albert Hall, Wimbledon, Treasure Hunt, 1/2 Marathon, Visit to Germany, Chili Off, then hopefully I can breath the last half of the month! So until then...
