always at sea level: Getting settled in......week 3

Slowly we are making the OP our own. Boxes are being unpacked and suitcases emptied.

Our clothes fill the dressers that so recently held the clothes of others. The kitchen is undergoing some changes to make it more workable for me. In the living room, furniture is being slightly rearranged to suit just the two of us.

Despite all the planning, making of lists, discussions, decisions, details and emails you

never really know what you will need. One thing I have learned over the past few years as a

caretaker is if you think you may want it, if you think you might need it, if you think you could use it or you cannot live without it, pack it!

Dozens of books, puzzles with at least a 1000 pieces (love puzzles), cookbooks – smudged from buttery fingers, evidence of meals past. A 8 X 8, a 9 X 13 baking pan, forget these and

your making brownies in a 26 X 18 pan and that's a lot of brownies. Well worn wooden spoons,

a teapot, the paper thin china tea mug, a favourite blanket and warm cozy flannel sheets.

Small items all in all but their familiarity make our new surroundings feel like home.

What do we live without?

Restaurants. There is only one restaurant in the area. “Heather's Oceanside All-Night Diner”. Good prices, home-made breads, pies, soups ect. Real comfort food.

Take-Out. Frozen McCain pizzas or heat and serve chicken wings are “our” take-out.

It's a night I don't have to cook, sort of. That's the best we can do here.

Magazines. Love turning that first page of a crisp clean magazine. To ease withdrawal symptoms I buy a stack of whatever magazines I can get at the thrift store and limit myself to only several a month. Mike buys them on-line but it's just not the same.

Movie Theatre. Miss this a lot. You just can't beat watching a movie on the big screen.

Television. Now this is absolutely the hardest. At the moment there is not a system here but Mike and I came equipped with a satellite dish,flat-screen t.v., new receiver, cable plus all the other bits and pieces.

Quite the assortment of baggage to be carrying on the plane and helicopter.

So far we have dragged all this paraphernalia in a waggon down the beach, over the rocks and down the dock. We have screwed the dish onto a 16 foot board and held it up to the level of the roof.

All this in the hopes of finding that satellite signal. Those magnificent trees and a 300ft hill are right in the line of sight. Our last hope is the top of the hill where suddenly there is clear open sky and a direct line to our salvation, the satellite. Stay Tuned.