Wednesday 22nd May 2013……..what a Birthday!!!!

Well I want to thank my Mum and Dad for all they did for me when I was growing I was not the perfect kid and I know I caused them some problems and also I spent the majority of my adult life 7000 miles away but through it all we had a bond a love and a connection and they were the best parents anyone could ask for!!!!!

It was a special and fabulous Birthday from morning till evening spent with some people that are important to me but perhaps the best Birthday gift was….

Thank you for all the e mails, photos, gifts, cards and best wishes how lucky I am to have you all in my life…..here are a few from the memory banks!!!!!

Blessings and with gratitude Les

Tuesday 21st May 2013……….64 year old man coming to an end!!!!

What a lovely sunny and warm morning and the tennis was again a special way to start this day

Getting ready to pounce with my Nadal like reflexes!!!

An André Agassi smash!!!!

..I had decided today was going to be a day of rest so after tennis I came home iced down and had lunch and went up to the roof with drinks, food, book and  a lot of snoring!!!

Mariposa on the new flowers…

I had this collage made up and framed of one of the most special days of my life!!!!

 

Supper, bath, hockey and tomorrow I will be an official OLD AGE PENSIONER!!!!!

 

Yashi Koshi!!!

Monday 20th May 2013…….Training day 2…week 2!!!

This is my new back pack I just ordered!!

Mountain Magic 50:

With large front/back volume ratios, a body-centered load is easy to achieve with this new cutting edge design. Pack it correctly and your balance and posture are unaltered by the load.

 

New for 2012, the Mountain Magic 50 has been reconfigured to combine a 38L main pack with 12L Balance Pockets. This creates a very efficient load carrying system with ultralight gear. The pack and pockets have removable, internal waterproof dri-liners. The Balance Pockets are removable.

Mountain Magic
(shown with MT Balance Pockets, included)
*Image is the 2010-11 model, new photo coming soon.

---

Approx Volume:
37L + 12L (2257 + 732 cu in)

Approx Weight:
1.55 kg (3.42 lbs)

Minimum Weight:
(without dri-liners or balance pockets)
.92 kg (2.03 lbs)

Key Fabrics:
420 HD nylon, 210D, 70D x 100D ripstop nylon

Price:$274

Order Now:

Need accessories?

View shipping prices, return policies, and guarantee.

Key Features:

• MT Balance Pockets included
• 1 back length with clip torso-adjust, 15 cm range
• U Flow, V Flow, Omni Flow and Flexi Flow
• X Flow Chest Straps with Conus Clip buckle
• Waterproof dri-liners with roll-top closures
• 5 external pockets
• Web-loc compression
• Ice axe and trekking pole attachments

 

This morning I went to my Dentist for a cleaning it has been 6 months since I was there but she remembered my name and even asked about the girls…I like that..also like the job she did and really like the cost 200 pesos…..about 17 dollars.

Back home and packed up my small back pack with all the gear and drinks and food for my hike….

This time it was a distance hike and I took a route by the side of one of the highways…

Half way point!!!!

Asked a school kid to take this for me….

Paula and Jerry this one is for you…exactly 4 km from  my casita!!!

So here are the stats…….I walked 21km or 13 miles and it took me 3.45 hours so I am at a pace of about 6 km or 4 miles per hour  and that included a 15 minute food stop.

Here I am now

This is only for protection..I do have a bit of arthritis in my knee but it does not bother me at all and all I do before walking or tennis is put on some heat cream and then afterwards ice it down and no issues…..so I am happy with today’s workout what I plan to do is one of these hikes every week and then 2 or 3 times a week do the canyons above my casita……

I know the Camino d Santiago is a full year away but I shall be prepared with the right gear, pack and shoes and ready for it what I have to realize is that I shall be walking  these distances every day for at least 35 days….what I think will help me is that I am training at 6500 feet whereas the highest part of the Santiago hike is about 4900 feet…I am training in much warmer temperatures..I am training on very similar surfaces and lastly I am enjoying it all.

So now off for a bath and if I told you I was going to have supper and watch a hockey game would you be surprised??????

Blessings Les

Sunday 19th May 2013…I am going to cancel my cable!!!

It is costing me just under 3 dollars a day but I just don’t watch enough TV…………….

So obviously the above is a joke this morning with breakfast it was a live soccer game from England

I will not bore you with the details but suffice it to say it was a game of huge importance in the terms of revenue for next season so the game meant something and it was a great game and as that just finished I switched channels to watch the tennis final from Rome this may look a lot like me but it is actually Federer

but it was no contest Nadal was way too good today.

Before I knew it 1pm was here and time to go get Paola…I stopped at the grocery store and bought some fresh meat and veggies and delivered them to the house…Erika, Paola's Mum was so thankful and I heard her say to Paola to thank me..

Little Blackie waiting for Paola…

So as we are driving Paola tapped me on the shoulder and said to me in perfect English…My Mum says thank you for the food…how sweet.

On the way to get the bike we stopped at this tree see anything in the branches??

Pretty cool eh???

So Paola got her bike and we went to the same place Deportiva the huge complex

She loves it here she rides all over and I walked all around the complex then she finds me for

We had a lot of fun and it was so nice to see that lovely smile…..

On the way back we took a photo of this castle which is so out of character…

After all that riding we went and Paola had a huge fresh squeezed orange juice and a big slice of pizza……..dropped her home at 5pm and she was tired but happy.

Back home did a few chores and then cooked supper and got myself cleaned up and finishing the evening with yes…..you guessed it another live hockey game

Stella sent me these photos of Ashley….. a friend of hers took them ….I think you will agree they are so great!!!!!!!

 

Yashi Koshi!!!

Saturday 18th May 2013………sunny and lovely!!!

No I am not talking about me………9am Saturday can only mean tennis this time is was 2 hours of singles with my good buddy Loren….we both really enjoyed the game, the banter and it is a much more vigorous workout than doubles…a great way to start the day.

Came home for a little late breakfast and did some house hold chores then got cleaned up as I was invited to Robin and Ken;s casa for a pre birthday lunch….we have known each other for many years and Robin was the glue that held Casa Hogar together until last summer…..it was so nice to sit and chat have a wonderful meal and of course CAKE!!!!

Thank you it was a wonderful afternoon.

Came home and decided I needed to walk the cake off so went into the canyons above my casita and hiked around for 90 minutes it really is beautiful and peaceful up there……

Guess what????   I am watching hockey and having tea!!!!!

Wish you all a safe and happy weekend…

Pura Vida!!

Friday 17th May 2013….weekend here already!!

After a nice leisurely breakfast  I went and got little Bluey from the garage loaded up my flower pots and went off to the nursery where for 190 pesos I bought and had potted all these!!!

from the nursery I went to Immigration where I am happy to say I am now the proud owner of

Next stop was the jardin where I had arranged to met a fellow Canadian called Jack and we went for coffee and talked about Canada, tax implications and other interesting stuff…..from there to my Spanish lesson where we talked almost all in Spanish admittedly it was present tense but……

I then went to the grocery store and finally home at 5pm where I arranged my new pots

they add a lot of color to the steps…..

The usual evening supper, bath and of course have to watch a hockey game……..

It seemed like a really busy day…to my Canadian friends I wish you all a very happy and safe Long weekend!!!

Yashi Koshi!!

Thursday 16th May 2013……….just a nice day!!!

Tennis this morning was a little different as one of our players failed to show so we played 2 on 1 which is a whole new game but it was still fun and a good time!!!

From there I went to have a visit with my friend Carol…she is in the process of moving house so I offered to help at the end of the month…she took me out for my Birthday lunch and it was lovely and so will be the lemon pie that she bought and is in my fridge awaiting my summons….thanks!!

The main church such a lovely building…

Did some errands in town and now home watching hockey with tea and the soon to be devoured aforementioned pie……..

I know what you are thinking what does this guy do all day but believe me the time just flies by…oh forgot did laundry tonight!!!

Yashi Koshi!!!