West Coast Hopes, Dreams, & Doggies

I’m not sure how many times I’ve been to Sidney, BC. Let’s say several. But this time was different. It was just as wonderful – perhaps more – than previous visits with my BFAPCAF (best friend a person could ask for!). Not just because of our Gracefully and Frankly Facebook Live. (Erin went behind the scenes HERE) But also because they have moved down the hill to the ocean’s edge

The climate in this municipality of Greater Victoria is perfect to me. Every day last week was sunny and just a bit cooler right on the ocean than in the ‘burbs. By cooler I mean my ideal summer temps ranging from 21-25 or so. There’s no humidity. It’s not just pretty but it’s also pretty convenient. You step out of their condo building and you’re there – Sidney by the Sea. Anything you want or need is steps away including bucket-list-worthy views of the Pacific.

Here’s a snippet of the view from one morning last week.

A bit of a view of the yacht club and the sunrise out the condo windows.

Does this seem like a real estate ad? It’s not! If I were going to attempt to sell anything it would be the gorgeous house they have listed in the Dean Park area.

It’s not easy to find my perfect climate. Long ago I did a worldwide search and the answer came up: Ecuador. A deeper dive turned up spiders the size of dinner plates and that was it for Ecuador.

Surrender to Pender

Sidney is the second-closest to my model conditions. But Pender Island has moved into first.

Sarah Smith tells Erin Davis about the island as they stand on a beautiful, sandy shore with rocks, trees, and water in the background. — Sarah tells Erin about some of the highlights of her beautiful island home.

We took an enjoyable ferry ride there to visit Sarah Smith, the wonderful, renowned Canadian singer-songwriter who moved west several years ago. She gave us an insider’s tour and it just felt like a place where I could live. Erin fell in love with the appropriately named Magic Lake. How could you not love this island?

Pender is a little less Birkenstock-and-organic-kale than its more northerly cousin, Gabriola, but also less touristy than much larger Salt Spring. Pender is actually two islands joined by a bridge. This area off our country’s left coast is so special, so beautiful.

It was a sunny day and totally breathable. As opposed to the humidity here that keeps me indoorsy.

With the way he world is warming, every year shattering the previous hottest temps on record, maybe I should be considering another island – Iceland. We were there a few years ago and its summer high is about 14C. When climate change is factored in, Iceland might rise to my perfect temp in a few more years. For now, it’s BC until I find out otherwise, giant spiders notwithstanding.

Gone to the Dogs

Now that I’m home, I’m begging Cuddles for forgiveness. He could no doubt smell the scent of two beautiful Havanese girls on my clothing. Erin’s dogs, Dottie and Livi, are so lovable. Just look at Livi’s “pigtails” when her little ears turned inside out!

Grey Livi and black and white Dottie look up at the camera from a lying position on a blue couch. — Livi and Dottie.

Livi looks like she has barettes on her ears. She's sitting on her dog bed and her little ears are turned inside out, with a band of pink showing on either side of her head. — Livi and Dottie.

I could have snuggled with those sweet little beings all day. They’re two more reasons to want to be out there. But family is here in Ontario. And Derek’s weekly breakfast with his buddies just wouldn’t be the same over Zoom.

Thankfully, there’s Porter Airlines – my new fave now that they’ve expanded their routes. WestJet lost my allegiance long ago. And to put a cap on that thought, as we Porter people were being gently updated on our slight flight delay in a friendly manner, a WestJet employee was SCREAMING over the PA system because a couple of passengers were standing where they shouldn’t have been. Thanks for making it even easier to leave you, Westjet!