A change of pace

I am more of what you might call a night owl. So when I travel, I usually leave at a sane time in the morning (9 or 10 am or even later). When I was planning this long weekend (I know this isn't a long weekend for Canadians but I took a couple of extra days off) to visit Aimee before she makes her big move to here, I decided to leave early in the morning.

We were up bright and early, Julia and I, and set out on the road at 6:36 am, which is truly insane. Except there are some perks:
- There aren't very many other people on the road at that time.
- The sun was quite glorious, showing off all the beautiful spring-green in the trees.
- I arrived on the lower mainland early and got to Aimee's place at 2:30 - my personal record.

I had some concern that I would be too early for the Copper Eagle Cappuccino and Bakery but they open their doors at 6 am. Still, I missed the usual queue. And found the perfect bread for my roasted vegetable and feta salad. This salad is a knock-off of one I found at the Kootenay Co-op, and it is very tasty. And nutritious.

I brought all my food along on this journey, including a green smoothie which, I discovered, is a great thing to take on the road as it provides all the alertness required.

I was able to avoid the lower mainland traffic even though it is a Saturday and this was not a rush-hour time. It was all grand because the weather was absolutely inspiring!

I didn't find my road companion until the lower mainland. A road companion is someone who is travelling at a similar pace as you - sometimes they pass you and then you pass them. Today, it was a black 4-Runner who I might add was a very gracious passer. These are the things that amuse one on the road when alone for many hours. It is a bit disturbing actually.

The trip also involved a new strategy I have been working on. I have been thinking about what to do about Julia's litter as I don't really think it is good to keep adding it to the landfills. So in the winter, I changed her litter to a type that is wood pellets. When the wood pellets get wet (you know what I mean), they turn into sawdust. Which is very much like nature. So I am thinking that since I live in the middle of lots of nature, I would put the sawdust back into the wilds. This litter by the way works like a charm.

So yesterday, I packed it up and put it in my new recycled garbage bags. The ones that decompose, not made of plastic. In it went into the trunk with all the rest of the travelling goods, as I thought I would find a place along the road today and dispose of it. Good plan...

When I stopped in the midst of a forest, I grabbed the bag out of the trunk and it immediately fell apart. Apparently, the bag already began decomposing. And sawdust interlaced with kitty doo, fell mostly inside of the trunk. It had scattered on the suitcase, and fell into the well where the spare tire lies. Picture it??

I picked up as much as I could by finding a real plastic bag and a cloth that I used to clean the windows. These were not the greatest tools. But, hey, when the homesteaders made their way across the land, they did what they had to do. It was a long and laborious undertaking, and some of the litter actually got to go into the forest.

Back on the road, I pondered my solution. Princeton. I found the car wash rather quickly, and got a great deal at the vacuum station. $1.00 until you were done... A very good deal.

And that, was my day - so far! More adventures coming...