After Church on Sunday Betsy and I rented a U-Haul van and drove down to New Jersey to my mom's place. On Monday morning we packed the van with her old dining room table and chairs. It had been in my sister Lynne's place since she graduated from college, but now that Lynne and Bob have moved to Manhattan she doesn't have room for it. Hence Betsy and I picking up the heirloom. Packing it gave me an opportunity to play with rope. Mom had some clothesline she didn't need, so I cut that up and used it to tie down the table and chairs. I mostly used bowlines and rolling hitches. I'm thankful that I've taken the time to learn to tie proper knots--it comes in handy.
After packing up the truck we headed into Manhattan to see Lynne, Bob, and Charlie. She is a first year student at Union Theological Seminary and enjoyed showing us around her new digs. I reminisced about my own seminary days. Bob cooked a great dinner and Betsy presented them with an edited version of their wedding video.
Betsy stayed overnight in NYC--she was going to see friends and then attend two conferences related to her field. Meanwhile, I spent Monday night at my mom's place and drove the truck back to Toronto on Tuesday.
The drive was long--more than eight hours thanks to some delays due to construction and the border. Crossing into Canada I had to renew my immigration papers. I sent my application in by mail back in August but still haven't received the reply, so I was forced to apply for renewal at the border. I qualify for a temporary work permit under two different categories and thus chose the more convenient option.
I arrived in Toronto with barely enough time to unload the truck and get it back to the rental place before they close. The friend I was going to call to help wasn't available, so I ended up moving the entire dining room set by myself--the table was especially difficult.
After I dropped the truck off near Queen West and Ossington I walked about half way home. Queen Street is one of the more interesting parts of Toronto and I enjoyed peering into the gallery and shop windows. At Spadina I started walking north through China town. This is a fantastically colorful part of time to be walking through in the evening. I think Betsy and I should probably spend more time enjoying this part of the GTA.
I hailed a cab at College Street and went home to play with the cats and recover from a long, long day.
Today I'm back at work doing the usual stuff: e-mail and contractors.
-t
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