We're off

The morning dawned early with the sign that it would be a nice day for travelling.  I was out of bed by 5:30 and looking forward to our drive to Myrtle Beach.  Not much left to do.... a little packing of the cooler and organizing the last few things that needed to go into the car.  Ralph got up a few minutes later and proceeded to finish packing the car.  We were at Lawrence and Teresa's by 6:40.  We were all excited and ready to hit the road.  As we did the final packing - John  pulled up to wish us a nice trip and it was an opportunity for us to wish him a wonderful birthday.

We drove to the border and encountered a miserable border crossing agent.  I couldn't believe that he actually yelled at Ralph because his cell phone went off.  Sorry Laura for hanging up on you.  We drove straight through to Winston-Salem and only stopped twice for gas and ate our lunch while driving.  We had some rain, but nothing major.  Teresa and I amused ourselves by watching a movie and playing games on the IPAD (we've become great fisherman). 

We arrived in Winston-Salem, North Carolina around 7:30 p.m.  We enjoyed a nice dinner at Applebee's and now we're comfortably ensconsed in our room at the Hampton.  We are looking forward to an awesome vacation together.

Oh, what a day

It was 5 minutes to 4:00.... almost quiting time. I have had a busy day but have accomplished alot. 

I have just received an urgent message that I was required to meet with my VP - Michel at 4:00.  I look at the message and think - urgent meeting?  I take a deep breath and feel the colour rise to my cheeks.  What could Michel need that is so last minute? 

It's that time of year, where Bell is laying off 1100 managers.  Is it my turn, I ask myself?  Through my self reflection I think - I'm 53.5 years old, the perfect candidate for this years round of layoff's.  I'm 18 months away from my retirement, an easy person to let go.  All they need to do is give me the maximum severence and retire me.  My career flashes before me.  I've had a good time, and done alot that I am proud of.  I can leave with my head held high.  Still, I feel my nerves are on end.

I end my call at 4:00 and get up to leave.  Prakash, one of my peers who sits beside me, notices that I seem a little unsettled.  I explain that I've been asked to see Michel.  He gently suggests that "maybe" I should take my handbag with me.  Do you think so I ask?  He gives a slight nod.  I open my drawer and look at my purse, and then I think, no, I've worked long enough for the company that I deserve the right to pick up my purse (and my lunch bag) before I go.

I take the walk to Michel's office - a 30 second walk feels like an hour.  I have lots of things running through my mind.  I am greeted politely by Tracey and asked to wait - Michel is in a meeting and will be available shortly.  As I wait, I feel my heart pounding... get a grip Grace, you have terminated people in the past and you know that the company looks after their employee's.  There is nothing to worry about.  Easier said than done right.

After a few minutes, Michel's door opens and he invites me into his office.  He has a nice smile on his face and I think inwardly, he's trying to make me relaxed.  It's not working!  He invites me to sit at his conference table along with a few other people. It's my chance to see who else is there.  I recognize a few directors and a lady whom I have never met.  My nervousness escalates... this is it,  I say to myself...be calm.. This lady must be from HR and is here to give me the bad news. I then notice that there was a video conference that was running. As I look to the screen I see my boss, along with my peers from Montreal.  While looking, Prakash quietly lets himself into the office. 

It then dawns on me, that I'm not loosing my job.  A sign of relief!!  Michel extends his hand and says - Congratulations Grace - you have completed 35 years of service at Bell Canada. He proceeded with a nice speach (which I don't remember) and then my boss said some nice words. There was lots of joking from my peers about how I have worked longer than they have been alive (they are much younger than me).

I was presented with a gift (a camera) along with a momento celebrating my 35 years.  I went back to my desk after a short period of time and felt good about my work and the department that I work in. 

I guess I'll be here for a while still.

Fall is in the air

I wake up each morning wondering..... what will it be like today?  We've had some pretty cold mornings and some of my flowers have been impacted by the colder weather. I've started pulling out the potatoe vine which seems to be very sensitive along with some other annuals.  The Dragon Wing Begonia's are doing amazing. In my opinion these are the best, maintenance free plants that you can have.  They require very little water and thrive on sun and cooler conditions.  I may see if I can "over winter" some this year in a manner similar to geraniums.

Before we know it, snow will be here.  I look forward to the change of seasons, but still hope that we have lots of sunny days.

The beauty of Fall

"Nevertheless he left not himself without witness, in that he did good, and gave us rain from heaven, and fruitful seasons, filling our hearts with food and gladness. Acts 14:17.

I was up early this morning and walking around my backyard.  How beautiful it was to take in God's creation.    We truly are blessed each and every day and I give thanks for this.  The flowers look so beautiful on my back deck.  It is so peaceful to sit here and enjoy the cooler weather.  I look back on how I grumbled in the spring and summer about having to water every day, but now I am thankful as the plants have matured and fill the backyard with beauty.

I hope we have a slow and gradual fall this year.

Golf and Chilli

As the golf season is slowly drawing to a close, the girls are still excited about getting out golfing.  This past week, Claudia invited us all to her house afterwards for a delicious bowl of chilli.  What a nice way to end the evening. 

Missing Myrtle Beach

We're looking forward to going back to Myrtle Beach in 3 weeks with Teresa and Lawrence.  The weather should still be nice. 

Homeward bound

It happens all the time. Whenever there is something new, I don't sleep.  We were both up at around 5:15 and on the road by 6:00.  Our first stop was Starbucks which surpringly was open.  It was a beautiful morning with signs that the day was going to be fantastic.  To bad we have to go home.  I was surprised by the number of people that were up and about.  We travelled as far as Grove City.  We  only stopped for gas and grabbed take out at McDonalds.  We arrived in Grove City by 5:30 with time to shop the outlet mall.  There were lots of good deals to be had if you needed summer clothes.  It was fun.  We had dinner at the Elephant Castle.  It was busy there and we had to wait 45 minutes for a table.  We sat at the bar and relaxed with a drink while we waited.  Dinner was delicious.  We're now relaxing at the Hampton. We hope to be on the road by 6:30 and home by noon. Ralph would like to golf with Lawrence tomorrow evening with thee mens league if possible.  I guess we'll see what the weather is like. It will be hard to get back into our working routine.

Our vacation was wonderful. We are so relaxed and rested.  We give thanks to God that Laura and Jay and the girls could join us. It was a time of family bonding, lots of un and laughter.  I'm sad that it's over.

Last day

The glasses look huge, but they were samplers - Ralph didn't finish them all...

We were up early. Laura and Jay had the car all packed by 7:00 am. After a wonderful breakfast at the Sea Captains House, they pointed their car north North and drove as far as Finley Ohio. They made good time arriving around 9:00. They hope to be home early tomorrow so they can join friends for a camp fire. Ralph and I spent the morning at the beach and pool. While I collected shells, Ralph went for a run. We then stayed at the pool for an hour before getting ready for golf. Our bags were packed and the housekeeping staff moved them to our new room. We had a 12:30 tee off at Litchfield. It was pretty quiet here. Ralph and I played by ourselves and finished our round just after 4:00. We enjoyed dinner at a place nearby (Quigleys) which we had gone with Teresa and Lauwrence last year. It was nice to sit outside and enjoy the beautiful weather. When we got back to our condo do we realized that Ralph had left his cellphone at the restaurant. We drove back to pick it up and now we're relaxing in our room after a hot tub. We are looking forward to coming back here in October.

Tradition Golf Course

Today we golfed at Tradition Golf course.  It was a very beautiful course.  The morning started off warm and got very hot as we played.  While we were golfing Laura and Jay went to the Aquarium to look at the fish with the girls.  They had an enjoyable morning as well.  This afternoon we spent our time by the pool.  You don't get any reading done, as the girls are always asking you to go in the pool  or hot tub.  I took about and hour and walked along the beach and looked for shells again.  It's my quiet time and I love seeing what the ocean pushes onto the shoreline.  We had a wonderful day all together.  Tomorrow we plan to go out for breakfast all together and then Laura and Jay and the girls will start their drive home.  We've extended our stay until Sunday morning. Tomorrow afternoon we are golfing at Litchfield.  We probably won't' be done before 5:00 so we'll enjoy a nice dinner together and have an early night. We'll be on the road early on Sunday.

Sun, waves and sea shells

What a beautiful day! We were up early and went for a round of golf at River Club. We were home around noon and after lunch we all went to the beach for the afternoon. It was our lucky day. A couple offered us 4 chairs to use at the beach. They had bought them and were flying home today and they didn't want to take them home with them. This was much better than sitting in the sand. While the girls built sand castles on the beach Laurz and I went looking for shells. We found some interesting shells. What a fantastic way to spend the afternoon.