‘Posts’ Category

  1. Roam Mobility

    January 25, 2012 by larry

    I’m usually not one to plug stuff, but this I have to share. I’m planning three strips to the US this year. My cell provider is BELL and what they charge for roaming, data and long distance is outrageous. They’re not alone…. all Canadian cell companies gouge consumers. But there is finally a solution.

    Roam Mobility went online January 16th. The company is located in Vancouver and works with T-Mobile in the US.

    Here is what they offer:

    • Roam Mobility connects you directly to a US network, eliminating roaming fees. You’ll receive a US phone number that’s yours to keep.
    • Our plans are prepaid which means you’re not locked into any contracts or monthly fees.
    • Pay for service only when you travel – even if you travel only once a year

    For $40 you can get a Breeze Phone – a reusable travel phone for talk and text. Comes ready-to-go with a SIM card.

    Just turn on your phone as soon as you are in the US and you’ll be automatically connected to the 4G network. You receive your phone number by text and email and can use the phone free for the remainder of that day. I bought a Breeze, took it over to Maine, turned it on and it authorized. It worked great on the test call back home.

    The Roam Mobility plans are very affordable – Text & Talk for 7 days costs $24.95 and that’s to anywhere in the US or Canada. Text, Talk & Data for 7 days costs $44.95 and cones with free voicemail and caller ID.

    They also offer the Liberty Hotspot, a  superfast, portable Wi-Fi network right in your pocket. Perfect if you want reliable Internet access anywhere across the US. features include:

    • Data rates start at 2 cents per megabyte.
    • Securely connect any Wi-Fi device within a 150ft radius like your laptop, smartphone, or tablet.
    • Blazing-fast Internet access with 96% coverage across the US.
    • Comes with a SIM card.

    These units cost $129.95, but if you are in a hotel with no free WiFi, or they only let you connect one computer to their network for $10 a days, this unit is for you. You can connect up to 5 devices. When we were in Florida we were in this situation. The hotel charged $9.95 a day and only authorized my laptop. We couldn’t use my partners laptop, or get WiFi for our iPhones. The Liberty will solve that problem and pay for itself quickly. That’s why I bought one. A 1GB data plan costs $39.95 for 30 days.

    If you are Canadian and travel to the US on vacation or business… Roam Mobility is a great money-saver. Check them out. FYI… I am not a shareholder, or get any freebies from Roam, I just want to spread the word to help you save money and say “stuff it” to the big Canadian providers. I hope the competition smartens them up.

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  2. 2012 – MY Year

    January 15, 2012 by larry

    I got through the holiday season much easier that I thought I would. Thanks to family and a good friend, it was ok. I decided that 2012 was going to be MY year!

    For the past two years, I cared for my Mom. Don’t get me wrong, I loved her dearly and didn’t mind doing it at all. It was nice to be able to spent time with her right up to the end. But it was a lot of care and wore on my relationship which came screeching to a halt in June. The last few months that my partner and I were together went fairly well with him leaving in September. The divorce becomes final in May.

    I’ve decide that this year is going to be a year of travel for me. I am escaping this ungodly cold weather in February for seventeen days of sun and warmth in Florida. I have two dear friends there who put up with me and let me crash with them. I also have a cousin who is very big-hearted and lives just a short distance from my friends. This time, I have to spend more time with  her. I also would like to spend some time with a couple of other friends during my visit and maybe travel to Tampa. I have two, one day passes to Disney left over from last June when we didn’t make it to Gay Day. Maybe I’ll use one of them and save the other for my next visit.

    At the end of May, I’m heading back to the humidity or Florida for Tidal Wave Party, which is put on by the friends I stay with. I enjoy helping them as much as I can to get ready for the event. Last year, we filled a big truck with sound equipment, booze and a ton of other items and took it all to the hotel for the event. I never lugged so many bags into a hotel room before. It was hot, humid and sticky, but I enjoyed it. It brought back memories of FurFest, the event we put on locally for twelve years. This year, I’m staying until Monday so I don’t miss the end of the weekend fun.

    Many years ago, I used to go to Provincetown for a week in the summer. It’s a very scenic and relaxing place to visit. The Provincetown Bears put on Bear Week every year. I’ve never been able to attend because of FurFest, and other responsibilities. I have heard good things about the event, and would love to get back to P-town for a visit. So this year, I’m spending a week there for Bear Week. I have booked my flight, a condo, and registered for the event. My condo is right in the middle of town, near everything.

    And I STILL have air miles left over. I’m considering finally getting to the UK, perhaps this fall. I’m excited about 2012 and hope to meet some new friends on my travels.

     

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  3. Christmas 2011

    December 26, 2011 by larry

    I was dreading this Christmas as it as it was the first Christmas Eve I’d be alone. I wasn’t looking forward to waking up alone with no presents under the tree. But it turned out to be a wonderful holiday. My cousin invited me over for supper Christmas  Eve, then I came home to an empty house. I think the fear of being lonely was overwhelming me. But, I enjoyed a cigar, took a shower, and sat down in my Lazy Boy in front of the fireplace with Grover cuddled up on my chest and a glass of wine. I was going to watch National Lampoons Christmas Vacation, or It’s a Wonderful Life, but just wasn’t in the mood. So I caught up on a couple of episodes of LOST. I’ve been working my way through the whole series again.

    Before I left my cousin’s last night, she told me to come over at 10 this morning for brunch. My other cousin arrived just after I did and we had our usual big Christmas morning brunch with lots of bacon, eggs, toast, ham, and Champaign. They hadn’t opened their presents so after we ate, we all gathered in the living room and started ripping. I got some wonderful gifts and loved watching my family open their gifts from me. We all had a little snooze this afternoon then played some games.

    Tonight at 6, we had a BIG Christmas dinner with all the fixings. The women did a great job preparing the meal. We were too full for dessert, although I’m not supposed to have it anyway. We sit an socialized for a while then headed for home. My fears were unfounded. Yes I was alone for a short while, but I’m getting used to that. But the day was a blessing and my cousin made a point of talking to me about my feelings and all the things that happened in my life over the summer. It helps to have a caring shoulder to lean on.

    They say the first Christmas after a separation or family death is the worst, but that sure wasn’t the case for me. I truly was made to feel welcome and wanted. It gets easier from here on. I posted a few pictures if you’re interested in checking them out.

    Happy Holidays to all my family and friends.

    Larry

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  4. Merry Frickin’ Christmas

    December 24, 2011 by larry

    Christmas eve, a day I’ve been dreading since my birthday in October. Why? I’ll be all alone for the first time in my life. With Mom passing away in August, and my X moving out in September, my life has changed. I used to love to surprise them with gifts they weren’t expecting. To see the smiles of surprise and appreciation on their faces brought joy to my heart. I loved Christmas.

    Christmas began to change for me in 2003 when my Dad passed away and we buried him December 24th. NOT a Christmas I want to remember. Mom didn’t want to even bother with the holiday, we all lost our spirit that year. Then in 2007, my Aunt passed away at the end of November. She and my Mom were like twins. They shopped, cooked, cleaned, did everything together. Mom was very sad and missed my Aunt so much. It wasn’t the same that Christmas either without my Aunt decorating, planning the big dinner and being such the big-hearted loving person that she was.

    In 2009 my Mom moved out of our homestead and in with us. We all went back to the house for one last Christmas together and it was wonderful. But we all thought about those who we missed, but remembered the good times. Forty-seven years in that house held so many good memories. My Uncle coming down Christmas morning in his old shiny purple bathrobe thad had seen better days, the huge stockings hung from a two-by-four loaded to the brim with gifts, a huge family breakfast with several pounds of bacon fried crisply. Those were the good old days.

    Last year, we had sold Mom’s house so we couldn’t go back to the homestead for Christmas. My cousin’s father-in-law Reg, lives in the city alone in a big three bedroom apartment. It has a huge dining room, large enough to seat all of us. But Christmas eve, the X and I wrapped Mom ‘s big gift (a keyboard) and set it in front of the tree. Mom played piano and organ in our church back home for over fifty years and missed her piano. When she sold the house she gave it to one of the boys. I was so excited to see her reaction when she saw the keyboard. She loved it. And it was fun exchanging gift between the three of us Christmas morning. I couldn’t wait to get up and give everyone their gifts. Then, later in the morning we went to Regs’ to exchange gifts with them and have a big Christmas dinner. It wasn’t the same but I really didn’t miss the old house. We were making new memories.

    This year, I’m all alone, except for the cat. There are no gifts for me under the tree, nothing to wrap for my Mom or my partner. No surprises for the ones I loved. It just seems so empty and pointless. I thought my birthday was the worst day in my life as I was all alone and turning sixty-two. But Christmas has always been my favorite, not for getting gifts, but the excitement I got from coming up with gifts to surprise my loved ones. It will seem strange to wake Christmas morning to an empty house. It will be just another day.

    I’m not looking for sympathy, I just needed to express my feelings in hopes that it will make me feel better. I know I’m not alone in my situation. There are lots of you out there who have no one to spend the holidays with. So let’s make the best of it and not feel sorry for ourselves. Think about others at this time of year, people who can’t afford to buy gifts for their children, or put a Christmas dinner on the table. That’s why I made a $500 donation to our local “Feed A Family” campaign this year. THAT brought joy to my heart and helped someone else.

    Have a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year everyone.

    Larry

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  5. The Holiday Season

    November 26, 2011 by larry

    The holiday season is here. The “holiday” tv commercials began last month. Enough already! I used to love this time of year when I was much younger. I’d get so excited when I had to make up my list for Santa, and couldn’t wait to get to bed Christmas eve so he could come (although I did sneak out and look down the stairs a few times to see if he had). We didn’t have much, but it didn’t matter. Dad would work hard to get me what I asked for at Christmas. Those were the good old days when Mom, Dad and me and my Aunt, Uncle and two cousins, would spend the Christmas together exchanging gifts and overeating. It was the warm feeling of being together and sharing the fun of family.

    How things change through the years. I grew up, moved away to Newfoundland for a year, but still made it home for Christmas. I moved back to NB and was only an hour from my homestead so I always went home Christmas Eve. When I married Jsson, they accepted him as one of the family and bought him gifts and made him feel at home. One year, he even cooked the turkey. He got up very early, stuffed and basted all day and the whole family agreed it was our BEST turkey ever.

    My dad died just before Christmas in 2003 and that wasn’t a very good Christmas for the family. After that, Mom, who loved the holiday so much, lost her interest in decorating the house or even putting up the tree. But she eventually  got over it. Dad was the first to die, then it was my Aunt in November 2007. Another lonely Christmas. The family was slipping away, but even after my Uncle ended up in a special care home, Mom moved down with us and we rented the homestead so there would be someone in it through the winter… we went back home for one last Christmas together in the old house.

    After Mom moved in with us, we made a big thing out of Christmas and last year, surprised her with an electric keyboard. She played piano and organ in our church for over 50 years and missed her piano. She loved it. We bought a large gift box shaped like a treasure chest and loaded it with things for Mom. She was like a little kid. It was driving her nuts wondering what was in that box. Christmas morning, although there was a huge gift in the middle of the room with her name on it, she HAD to open the chest first. The three of us had a wonderful Christmas. I think I had more fun making and buying for Mom and Jason than anything. Wrapping a gift and placing it under the tree with their names on it drove them crazy shaking and touching to see if they could guess. The three of us would open our gifts, then go over to my cousin’s father-in-law’s place where we would all exchange gifts and have Christmas dinner. We kept the family together and although it was different, it was nice.

    This year will be a lot different for me. With Mom passing away in August, and Jason and I separated, I’ll be all alone Christmas Eve. No presents under the tree, nobody shaking and guessing, the joy and happiness I’ve experienced all my life will be missing. My birthday in October was the same. Mom always HAD to take a picture of me on me for my “birthday book”, and make a big deal out of it. But not this year. I was totally alone. Thankfully, I received a few birthday greetings from Facebook and a couple of cards from my cousins. But it was a very depressing day for me. I didn’t want to talk to anyone, just be alone and I guess, feel sorry for myself. I don’t want t go through that again at Christmas, but I fear I will. I’m going to try to make the best of it and Grover and I will spend Christmas Eve together by the tree watching the fireplace. I know I’ll get through it, but it’s hard being alone at this stage of my life when I thought I would be married till the end.

    What made it worse was a letter I found yesterday in my desk, written to be by my Ex, shortly after we got together. I was away in Florida alone on holiday I had booked before we got together, and he was at home alone. His words made me cry when I read them again. “I’ve realized how much I love you and how much you mean to me. I’ve made a commitment to you because I love you and I want to spend the rest of my life with you. Don’t ever doubt that.”  I guess people change. I’m trying to move on with my life and I guess the first holidays alone are the worst. Hopefully they will get better.

    So to all of you, with or without partners, be strong, have faith, and make the most of what you have. Tomorrow is another day.

     

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