Ann, I think I got you beat by a few years, when it comes to age. I'm going by the fact that your older sister, you know, that wee girl " Patsy from Clare " was a classmate of my wife Frances at the Lisburn Teck.

Frances is enduring her own problems, which she is taking in stride and these include frequent daily drops for her eyes and medications for her other ailments.

I, on the other hand, am a full 4 years older, and it shows !

I now find that my arms get tired holding on to the steering wheel on a long trip and my fingers seem to get cramped from the same activity. I don't know if it is the effect of the local forest fires, that have left a smoke haze over Western Canada and most of the NW USA but my eyes sting after a long day's drive. Saturday's haul was some 821 km, I'm about ready to admit that this is too long a haul at my age, but not quite.

As they used to say, " Keep on keeping On " or in my case " Keep on Truckin' "

Another thing about old age is that I am always comparing prices to the Old Days. We used to buy gasoline, that's petrol Ann, for 26 cents an Imperial gallon in 1958, but today we've seen it over 3 bucks for the smaller US gallon.

We usually book our motel accommodation on the Internet in advance of our trips, but we did not book our final night's stay in the Seattle area, big mistake !

We stopped at several Holiday Inn Expresses and a Best Western as we approached Seattle on Saturday, only to be told " Sorry, we are all sold out " At this point I was getting worried , thinking we might have to sleep in the car, so I got on the Internet at a Mac Donald's and found a Holiday Inn Express in Everett which had one room available for a mere $ 175 US for the night. I said we would take it. Frances bargained with the guy on the desk when we checked in and he graciously lowered the price to $169 US, AND threw in 2 bottles of water, SUCH A DEAL ! With taxes added the bill came to almost two hundred bucks, not at all like the 8 dollar rooms we booked in Santa Monica in the early sixties.

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Fortycoats, I enjoyed that travelogue, very interesting. I was almost there with you and Frances. I admire your stamina and determination in not giving in to age. Great attitude to life.

Petrol prices here are £5.50 sterling (about 7 US dollars) per imperial gallon.

Concerning Santa Monica, we have a very popular radio presenter, Stephen Nolan, and Santa Monica is his favourite place. He holidays there a few times a year and says he would like to retire there. Must be nice all right. I'm glad I have a good imagination because I'm sure I'll never see it but I'm there already in my mind's eye. Keep on posting.

Fortycoa5s ,

Good to hear fr I'm you again. I do admire the Canadian & American way of not giving in to old age. Francis & you are positive thinkers to travel all that distance without a worry about yourselves.


Could,nt imagine Joe or I going anywhere now on our own,always in a family group. Not to mention driving.!

Of course the roads over there are straight so be easier to negoiate,but still someone else driving us is The usual now.

We are old fogies in Ireland. Good luck to you both for your forward thinking.

Pat

Pat, While the major highways are mostly straight not so some of the back roads, I remember some years ago while on vacation I was driving from Los Angles to San Francisco on the coastal highway which really hugs the Pacific Ocean but has so many bends that while driving its impossible to enjoy the scenery.

One of those trips that arriving in San Francisco airport I gave a huge sigh of relief??. Mauri

Patricia,

Glad to hear you have that old Underwood, Remington, Imperial or whatever you are slaving on these days, working again.

Was wondering if you ever heard the song, " Step it out Mary " ? I am a fan of Celtic Thunder or perhaps Ex-Celtic Thunder members Byrne and Kelly, and Nicole Hudson on their recent Australian and US tour.

Ryan Kelly has a very adoptive voice and sings a variety of Irish songs on U-Tube as well as the American " Where the streets have no names " One of these is " Step it out Mary ". It's all about a young Irish beauty who lived in the town of Kilgory who was sought after by this rich guy who offered her, through her father, riches beyond compare and a grand mansion with servants, and all !

However the young lass says she is in love with a soldier and has promised him her hand. The father still insists she will marry this rich guy on Sunday.

However, she and her lover were found drowned, like dead, in a nearby river, before Sunday.

Being nosy, I have searched STREETS looking for Kilgory and have come up with one in Co. Clare, the only thing wrong is that it is a lake. Ever heard of this place Pat.

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