Last Saturday

My friend that I had known since high school died of COVID September 22, 2022. I had heard that his wife was packing up and moving from their rural property on Saturday into Spruce Grove, Alberta. I did not hear it from her, I heard it from a guy named Terry that has the farm across the road. Terry and my friend Cliff knew each other well. Over the last few years Terry and I have become friends.

I had a set of four tires on rims that were stored in a locked shed on the property that I needed to retrieve. I could have moved them across the road and stored them at Terry's place. A few days before I ran across someone who mentioned that he just bought a car and was looking for the same rims that I happen to have, so I might have them sold.

I got there in the midst of a lot of activity. Her father and his wife, her brother, her sister, and Cliff's mother were there and a lot of stuff was already packed into a U-Haul truck. I got my tires and stuffed them in my car. Cliff's wife was in the yard, she saw me and I her. She made no attempt to come over and talk to me. I know she is going through a lot. Cliff's mother came over to talk to me. I know it is damn tough for her, she had three children, Cliff was the oldest. I asked her to tell Cliff's wife that I wished her well.

I have reason to suspect his wife does not like me. I am indifferent to her. I loved the guy like a brother. He married her because when they were dating they were not careful one time and she got pregnant. They got married, he asked his dad for some help applying for a job, got a job in a mine where he worked close to thirty years and worked hard at his marriage and providing a home.

Some years after high school I lost contact with him and reconnected. When I did meet again he had a wife and a kid that was about three or four so I had to catch up on a lot of stuff I had missed. 

I had heard years ago that she did not like me because I was a bad influence on him. This was really funny as the reverse was true. I had come from a strict household. He was the one that introduced me to some questionable activities. All I will say is that I had fun. If I got him into anything it was getting his motorcycle license. I had mine since I was sixteen. He got his about ten years ago, got a Yamaha Bolt, and loved every minute he was on it.

Terry came over from across the road and he and I spoke for a few minutes. He wanted to say a few words to the family. I stood and waited, looked over the place. Cliff loved the spot. He had one hundred sixty acres that he had grand plans for the future. I doubt his wife liked the place as much as he did. His family is moving off and it will be put up for sale once the legal matters for the estate are settled. Kind of hard to see the remainder of someone's life being dismantled before your eyes.

I met Terry at his place. Terry is a hard working redneck. His property is always neat and the lawn always looks manicured which is in contrast to how Terry looks. He owns a farm property just down the road that has an old truck on it. I asked if he minded if I stopped in and took a photo. I left, drove into the yard, got the photo, and discovered I was stuck in four inches of snow. I drove just far enough onto snow that I thought was hard packed. If I had not driven that four extra feet I would have been fine. I called Terry and he sent his son to rescue me. Off to see mom.

One of my better visits with mom. Mom handed me the Drayton Valley paper when I was there. I have many cousins, some I have not seen in years. One cousin has a kid that has made the local paper several times through the years and not for anything you want to brag about. He got busted by the RCMP for 147 grams of meth, 38 grams of cocaine, 26 grams of fenanyl, stolen property, robbery, driving while prohibited, and whatever else they decide to throw at him at a later date. He is in his thirties and is on pace to spend more of his life in jail than out of jail. I suspect he enjoys being locked up. The vast majority of my relatives are law abiding productive members of society.

Reviewed mom's bills to see what needs to be paid and what has been paid. One the way home I grabbed a pizza because it seemed like a good way to cap off the day.