Spring 2014 Thoughts

It's been about 6 months since I've retired from City Council and things seem to be going really well.  I'm enjoying the time I'm able to spend with friends and family.  Still keeping busy on the volunteer front between the Wapiti Corridor Planning Society, Rotary and the Mission Neighbourhood Association.   I'll have to be careful about allocating too much time on these types of activities.

Cousin Louise got married to Brian Cheung at the end of March.  It was great to see the whole family out there.  We had such a great time and managed to get just about everyone out on the dance floor, which is a rare sight.  I even shared a dance with my grandma, a highlight of the evening.  I never get to see enough of her and she's turning 92 this year.  Some special memories there.

Karen has finished her final term towards her B. Ed. -- I'm so proud of her!  She's worked incredibly diligently and all that's left to do is walk across the stage and accept her degree.  This has been many years coming and we've both had to make sacrifices to make it happen.  By the end, I could tell that she just wanted it to be over.  We knew that it would be more difficult going back to school as a mature student, but it's definitely worth it to achieve a major goal in your life.

I've been focusing on getting my P. Eng.  This is a goal I should have achieved a long time ago.  I missed out by a few month and I've regretted missing that opportunity 20 years ago.  The requirements are much more demanding now and I'm in a completely different field.  Also, my brain doesn't seem to work as fast as it used to -- a sign of age coming along.  I'm getting really good mentorship this year so I don't doubt I'll get up to speed soon.  I plan to apply for my P. Eng. at the end of summer or early fall.  This will force APEGA to do an experience review and let me know where I'm at.  Until I do that, I'm told they can't give me any indication of how much work experience I'll need to get my stamp.

We are planning a couple of trips in May -- the first one to China for a couple of weeks and then a few days in Ottawa. China is a bit of a family trip.  Mom has always wanted to travel out their with family so in honour of her "retirement" Darren and I are going on a tour with her.  Karen and Jessie are also going.  We'll end up in Kowloon, Hong Kong where I was born and mom will take me to the hospital where I was delivered.  I'll be celebrating my first Birthday ever in my birth place.

A week after getting back from China, we're going to Ottawa to run a half marathon.  Training has been a little dicey this year with both of us being busy.  That's not a great excuse and in the end, it's our own fault.  We managed to get back up to 17km the other day, so I'm feeling a little more confident.  We just need to get through the air quality issues in Beijing and the jet lag from the trip halfway around the world.

All in all, life is good.  No real complaints and it seems that everything's falling into place.  I'm looking forward to the summer, which I know will always zip by.