The Canuck Mobile

"Oh no...Otto's overheating!" There I was sitting in the middle of a big fat line up at the peace arch crossing, with the temperature gauge of a 1992 VW Van flashing angrily at me.
"Will we have to push the van back to Canada Mom?" My daughter knew the drill, she's been around a few old cars since she was born.

There was Vanny that blew an engine in Denver.

Then there was Goldie who had a funky starter motor and left me stalled at the U.S border.
"Do you need a push?" The irritated guard asked.
"No..it's Okay...she'll start any second now." After the 20th try he rolled his eyes at me and left his post to go find some more guys to push the piece of junk out of the way. While he was gone Goldie started and I scooted off, red faced and embarrassed. Oh yeah...she also had a hole at the top of her gas tank, so I couldn't fill it up all the way. Dispite the mechanical mishaps...we have seen a lot of beautiful places.


So now, I'm driving Otto and out of all the VW vans I've driven over the years, Otto is different. Not only is he Automatic, but he's been transformed into "The Canuck Mobile".

 Every once in a while we need a little transformation to gain a new perspective on things. The last 2 weeks have been a bit trying for me. Many disappointments, from a dear friend going in for a serious surgery, my email being used to send out spam, feeling unwell with the flu, to a loved one having a miscarriage and rushed to the hospital with hemorrhaging.
So, I found myself the other day, balling my eyes out, driving on the Mary Hill by pass. Tears streaming down my face, there I was emotionally pouring my heart out while driving to pick up my husband in Coquitlam.
"BEEP>>>BEEP>>>BEEP! YAH CANUCKS!" a red sports car with young fans waved and beeped at me as they zoomed past. In my misery I  had forgotten what I was driving. There in my sadness and mourning of a life, I realized just how absurd life can be and how quickly life changes from a tragedy to a comedy within seconds.
I honked my horn...waved out the window...dried my tears and smiled. I was driving the 'Canuck Mobile' after all.
Luongo buddy... If you find yourself needing a little encouragement before the next game...the keys to Otto are yours. Take him for as long as you need. Just keep an eye on the gauge...He overheats when standing idle or going up big hills.

Tofino Part 3

He could see on the horizon this wave was big. His heart pounded. He clutched the board with his cold, numb hands, and he waited. The moment came upon him too swiftly. The wave was bigger than he thought. He jumped on and rode the wave, clinging on to some imaginary force in nature that would restore his balance. This was Rene....the surfer dude dad.

"Hang ten! Naarly."

Surfing was amazing! Hannah at Pacific Surf School was a great Instructor. Thank-you Hannah!
It cost us $357 for 3 hours with a personal surfing Instuctor, west suits and boards for the 4 of us. The kids picked up surfing in no time...they were naturals...Alora was doing 180's within 1/2 an hour on the board.

Even Kalina was Rippin'

Even I got into the game....I was soooooo good...they called me 'splash'....an endearing term, I thought.... I looked it up on Riptionary a surfing lingo web site. I'll let you look it up. 'splash'

That's about as far as I got..... any further and into the drink I went....Next time I'll stand on it!

Here are a few more pictures.....Thank-you to Jennifer from PSS who sent these shots...

We loved it so much we actually went back the next day and rented 2 boards and 4 wet suits from the rental place next to the Storm. This cost us $105 for a 6 hour rental.
"Came back for more eh?" a guy from PSS recognized us, "You caught the surfin' bug."
Yes we did....Costly...but so much fun....well worth it.
I would recommend taking a lesson...it's more than just learning surfing moves...it's also about safety....the right of way...reading the waves and checking out undercurrents...so please be safe before you try it out.
Here's a few shots of us on our own the next day...

 Thanks for stopping by....stay tuned for Part 4.....Forestry Service roads adventure...to Revelstoke and Mable Lake.