Lessons on the Road …Prairies,Canada

As every mother does, my mother taught me many valuable lessons that I still abide by to this day; especially during travel. If you are a female, you know what I am talking about. It has to do with toilet paper.

When I was a young girl and out in public needing to use the bathroom, my mom would always come with us and put us in the same stall as her. Normally, stalls are made for two at the most, so my sister and I had to take turns. The one on the outside had to stand right by the door so mom could see our feet. She may have been a bit overprotective, but I think she was wise in doing this. I don’t even know what young moms do today.

Before using the toilet, we were taught to “line” the seat with toilet paper before sitting on it. When my sister and I were little, she’d lift us up and place us gently on the seat and wait for us to “tinkle” or otherwise. Knowing my mom, she probably did everything in her power to hold us off the seat as long as possible and when her arms couldn’t hold us anymore, she would have begrudgingly put us down.

Today, I still use that trick. Unless I have to do the “otherwise” I straddle the seat and use my quad muscles to support my body weight. This is not an easy task. You have to get your toilet paper first so you are ready to go when you finish. If you don’t get the paper first - good luck. You have to be extra co-ordinated in your efforts at this point. If I am desperate to do more than just “tinkle”, I rip the toilet paper, double line the seat and even then, I press into the adjoining walls with my hands and try to hold myself up with my leg muscles. In these desperate times, I am glad I do squats. It’s not always successful, but I usually manage. Thank you Mom!

I’ve thought about this “fond” memory many times on this trip as I’ve had to use many public washrooms on the road and in the campsites. It’s especially unnerving during Covid, but I use the right precautions. Lots of soap and water!

After leaving Saskatoon, we headed to Elk Island. Saskatoon kicked out butts. We took Jilly to the emergency vet, we got a flat tire and then the carbon monoxide alarm went off. Jill is now on pain pills (maybe too much exercise), we bought another jack and we tightened up all the gas valves. All problems have been solved. The experience in Saskatoon showed us that even though we are travelling, “life” will get in the way - the good and the bad. This is our life. It just happens to be on the road in an 18 foot home.

We left Elk Island National Park last Thursday and spent the night in Edmonton. We had to stay over night in a hotel as our emergency brake was getting fixed. That gave us some time to publish our last YouTube video and answer emails. The internet isn’t always available in the campsites, so we take advantage of WiFi when we can get it.

Elk Island didn’t disappoint. The entry sign said it had wildlife and it did! We were able to get up close to Bison and Elk; all from the safety of our car. See our video on the tab to the left to catch up with the journey.

Brent and I are currently in Jasper National Park. We decided to stay put for a whole week to relax and enjoy this beautiful park. Quite honestly, you couldn’t do it justice in less than a week.

I’ve got to go. Brent is sniffling and needs to get to bed. We are outside a wonderful quiet cafe using their Wifi. I think we will be here often this week.