Monday, February 20, 2006
where did February go?
Well, here we on on 20th February 2005 - Family Day in the province of Alberta, Canada. We're having a quiet(ish) weekend after our trip to the provincial capital last weekend. P had a meeting to attend in Edmonton on Friday morning (10th February), and we decided that it was as good an opportunity as any to go and have a look at the property market. Of course, we're still not certain where we will be in July, but the Edmonton opportunity is starting to look more and more concrete (unlike the shambles that seems to be unfolding in the good old NHS). So, given that the weather can be slightly dodgy between here and Edmonton at this time of year, we decided to fly up and rent a car, rather than drive the 6 hour return trip. Of course, the weekend weather was absolutely lovely - warm, no snow, no black ice, no white-out conditions on Highway 2 between Calgary and Edmonton, so it would have been perfectly safe to drive, but you just never know... Sometimes, conditions in Calgary and Edmonton can be great, but there can be black ice around Red Deer, the first thing you know about it is large trucks lying in the ditch, having slid off the road...eeekk!
Anyway, up we flew and rented a car - the only thing they had left in the class we wanted was an electric blue PT Cruiser. Perfectly okay car, but in our minds it will forever be known as the "PT crap car", thanks to a conversation overheard in the SuperValue supermarket in Victoria, Carrickfergus a few years ago. We stayed in the Varscona Hotel in Old Strathcona - great wee hotel with complementary breakfast in the morning, complementary wine and cheese tasting in the evening, complementary newspapers and free high speed internet access in the room. They probably build it all into the price, but at $125 a night for a good room, in a hotel on a street with good restaurants, shops, cafes etc, it seems like good value to me.
This is the inukshuk outside the hotel...
The house viewing took place on Friday evening and most of Saturday, and I have to say, with a couple of half reasonable exceptions, we couldn't see ourselves actually living in most of the houses that they showed us. We thought we knew what we wanted, but having toured many small, badly renovated 1950s bungalows that were on the market for large sums of money in so-called desirable areas, we think that the criteria will have to be revised! In the past, it was deemed reasonable to buy a crappy house in a good area, and then do a full 'reno' (or knock it down and rebuild). Basically, these houses could have been bought for 'lot value' (i.e. the cost of the ground they were sitting on), and builders could have been hired within a reasonable amount of time to put up a modern house. Unfortunately, these days, builders are few and far between in Alberta, and taking this route could mean that you would have to live in a crappy house for a very long time. We did see a 'period house' (built 1916), which apparently had retained many of its period features (i.e. squeaky wooden floor, very dodgy wooden window frames with original glass, storm windows (the fore-runner of double glazing)), but all that did was to reaffirm that we want a modern house, with modern conveniences and something that is ready to walk into (how shallow!!). However, the modern houses that they showed us were about 40 minutes' drive from the hospital - not so good if you have to be on call for trauma ... Another strange thing is that houses built in the last year or so seem to be lacking a door between the master bedroom and the ensuite bathroom - brings a whole new meaning to a steamy bedroom!! Also, some of these doorless ensuites had a large doorless walk-in closet leading directly off the bathroom - wouldn't all the clothes get damp?? Didn't quite undertand that feature..... So, back to the drawing board ...
By the way, Orange-ism appears to be alive in Edmonton
Mind you, J was a bit perturbed...
We're not sure that good old Northern Ireland Orange-ism would be up for these kinds of activities...maybe it would help the political process if sashes and bowler hats were traded for roses between the teeth or yoga mats??
Doesn't that conjure up some wonderful images?
So, back in Calgary, our little warm spell got blasted out of the way with an Arctic outflow that brought a little bit of snow (only enough to be irritating), and absolutely baltic temperatures
Along with ice on the inside of the double glazed windows in the bedroom (reminds me of growing up in Greenisland - except that those windows weren't quite double-glazed).
The Honda had to stay outside because the garage door decided that it would only lift off the ground for 6 inches before stopping and refusing to go up any further. Our maintenance contact at the letting agency tried to tell us that the door was probably malfunctioning because of the cold, but funnily enough, it has warmed up again and it still doesn't work properly. Currently, it can only be opened and closed fully by disengaging the chain lifting mechanism and lifting the door manually. The door is really heavy, and unfortunately, if you lift it manually, it doesn't lock into position when its up - meaning that there is great potential for decapitation (or making a huge dent in the roof of the car). Hopefully they will send someone round on Tuesday to fix it. Actually I'm not surprised that it has ceased to function, as it is supposed to be serviced annually. If the other things in this house are anything to go by, it probably hasn't been serviced since it was installed, and I think that this house is getting to the stage where things are starting to wear out.
We have a new purchase - Mr White spent his 'Ralph bucks' on a remote control vacuum cleaner (honest!).
Our Ralph Bucks ($400 x 2)
This thing is about the diameter of a very large pizza and is just slightly thicker than a pizza box. When you turn it on, it can be programmed to trundle around the floor doing hoovering. We don't have video footage, but here are a few pictures of the i-Robot Roomba doing its thing...
Spot cleaning (note the concentric rings)...
On the move from carpet to the lovely lino...
Programme finished or battery going low - then head home to charge up again...
Safely home, charging up...
All we need now is something to mop and dust!
Love to our Families on Family Day,
P&J
Anyway, up we flew and rented a car - the only thing they had left in the class we wanted was an electric blue PT Cruiser. Perfectly okay car, but in our minds it will forever be known as the "PT crap car", thanks to a conversation overheard in the SuperValue supermarket in Victoria, Carrickfergus a few years ago. We stayed in the Varscona Hotel in Old Strathcona - great wee hotel with complementary breakfast in the morning, complementary wine and cheese tasting in the evening, complementary newspapers and free high speed internet access in the room. They probably build it all into the price, but at $125 a night for a good room, in a hotel on a street with good restaurants, shops, cafes etc, it seems like good value to me.
This is the inukshuk outside the hotel...
The house viewing took place on Friday evening and most of Saturday, and I have to say, with a couple of half reasonable exceptions, we couldn't see ourselves actually living in most of the houses that they showed us. We thought we knew what we wanted, but having toured many small, badly renovated 1950s bungalows that were on the market for large sums of money in so-called desirable areas, we think that the criteria will have to be revised! In the past, it was deemed reasonable to buy a crappy house in a good area, and then do a full 'reno' (or knock it down and rebuild). Basically, these houses could have been bought for 'lot value' (i.e. the cost of the ground they were sitting on), and builders could have been hired within a reasonable amount of time to put up a modern house. Unfortunately, these days, builders are few and far between in Alberta, and taking this route could mean that you would have to live in a crappy house for a very long time. We did see a 'period house' (built 1916), which apparently had retained many of its period features (i.e. squeaky wooden floor, very dodgy wooden window frames with original glass, storm windows (the fore-runner of double glazing)), but all that did was to reaffirm that we want a modern house, with modern conveniences and something that is ready to walk into (how shallow!!). However, the modern houses that they showed us were about 40 minutes' drive from the hospital - not so good if you have to be on call for trauma ... Another strange thing is that houses built in the last year or so seem to be lacking a door between the master bedroom and the ensuite bathroom - brings a whole new meaning to a steamy bedroom!! Also, some of these doorless ensuites had a large doorless walk-in closet leading directly off the bathroom - wouldn't all the clothes get damp?? Didn't quite undertand that feature..... So, back to the drawing board ...
By the way, Orange-ism appears to be alive in Edmonton
Mind you, J was a bit perturbed...
We're not sure that good old Northern Ireland Orange-ism would be up for these kinds of activities...maybe it would help the political process if sashes and bowler hats were traded for roses between the teeth or yoga mats??
Doesn't that conjure up some wonderful images?
So, back in Calgary, our little warm spell got blasted out of the way with an Arctic outflow that brought a little bit of snow (only enough to be irritating), and absolutely baltic temperatures
Along with ice on the inside of the double glazed windows in the bedroom (reminds me of growing up in Greenisland - except that those windows weren't quite double-glazed).
The Honda had to stay outside because the garage door decided that it would only lift off the ground for 6 inches before stopping and refusing to go up any further. Our maintenance contact at the letting agency tried to tell us that the door was probably malfunctioning because of the cold, but funnily enough, it has warmed up again and it still doesn't work properly. Currently, it can only be opened and closed fully by disengaging the chain lifting mechanism and lifting the door manually. The door is really heavy, and unfortunately, if you lift it manually, it doesn't lock into position when its up - meaning that there is great potential for decapitation (or making a huge dent in the roof of the car). Hopefully they will send someone round on Tuesday to fix it. Actually I'm not surprised that it has ceased to function, as it is supposed to be serviced annually. If the other things in this house are anything to go by, it probably hasn't been serviced since it was installed, and I think that this house is getting to the stage where things are starting to wear out.
We have a new purchase - Mr White spent his 'Ralph bucks' on a remote control vacuum cleaner (honest!).
Our Ralph Bucks ($400 x 2)
This thing is about the diameter of a very large pizza and is just slightly thicker than a pizza box. When you turn it on, it can be programmed to trundle around the floor doing hoovering. We don't have video footage, but here are a few pictures of the i-Robot Roomba doing its thing...
Spot cleaning (note the concentric rings)...
On the move from carpet to the lovely lino...
Programme finished or battery going low - then head home to charge up again...
Safely home, charging up...
All we need now is something to mop and dust!
Love to our Families on Family Day,
P&J
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