🪟 on the world [ or the tiny piece ... thereof ]

 🪟 ... looking out this morning
dull, wet and cool but on point for spring [ yes, official spring ]

white is getting rare, roof tops are bare. Approx four of so piles are visible from here
and we get above freezing point temperatures for days to come

money is going out in bunches [ taxes due, last year and pre pays for '26 ] Ah, the cost of doing business

progress report. my goal was to start a clean out or reduction
thus boxes got tossed. Boxes for emergencies, carrying stuff out, cans and bottles [ in case ]
but stuff is coming in as well. at the friendship bench when we visited M ... s friend was a simple frame three level display caddy.  yepper, it s here   
however, in my workroom, replacing cardboard box shelves

re - use, it is. And, in my bathroom, a floor waste basket got replaced by a hanging cardboard box box. the theory is get stuff off the floor. now, in the bathroom there will not be heavy waste. temporarily, the box is nailed to the cupboard side wall and covered w / a gift bag - like the box sits in the gift bag [ yes, handles and all ]

☪ Mars 2026 3 - 20

 ☪March 20 in the ' boro

WET cold  - > warm ish ( barely) b / c at least melt is happening ( gotta be a positive sign )

Business of the day, is check insurance paperwork for boat and cars. House is left to do. As well, I submitted an eye glass prescription claim ( frames / lenses ) from Costco. 

OK but if a slow one, making the most of indoors

dinner is salmon w /pesto broiled and accordion, criss cross potatoes ala air fryer

in recap. our trip is becoming more solid and filled in. Peripheral details are the Wise debit card.
Wise is an international debit card  [ ATM card ] that we will take to UK. The charges are $ 0.31 per hundred $ transferred and then the currency exchange [ $ Cdn to GBP sometime prior to travel ]
Supposedly, Interac transfer is doable at [ zero cost ] but I haven't figured how yet.
Thus, everyday, small stuff will be paid via Wise. Big ticket item may need a Credit card. Hotels often want a credit card as collateral

still, we are colouring in the details 

🥳 on Marching nineteenth

 🥳 .. or so they say...

Progress. Is measured in ... ?
We have a flight and we have a room for four nights ... beginnings

The view from the corner desk and a window on the street. white w / tracks and scrub
Spring officially in days. The temperature seems to be headed there

🎍 on Mar 18

  🎍 in the ' boro, sun, temperature is around 25 going for 29 F, supposedly the beginning of a run of days near freezing but w / chance of rain for a few days

Aha. By daylight, how does the backpack surgery seem now. I'm quite pleased, really. If I could not adapt the Voyageur maybe a replacement would be in order for travel.
M .. s friend made a comment while we were visiting ' seems like a good quality backpack '
And
it is.
Voyageur is sturdy and well thought out. BTW, that rain shroud came attached by an elastic band - and of course I cut the shroud loose. I can then use the zippered compartment for secret storage. And I'll keep the shroud handy too.

Okay, we have an update about the weather. Apparently in the next couple of days,  four maybe, it's going to shoot up and we're going to be talking 44, 45, 46 47 F  which is actually pretty good for this time of year

❇ ... M ... is 1/ 4 Irish ....

 ❇ ... doesn't drink Guinness but ' green ' wine

' boro. the rollercoaster is in overdrive
big sun and
white covered roads
and cold 

in two days the temperature will be over 32 F and staying there - long range

I still had to bring in a downpipe elbow that was clogged w / ice. One day .... ?

yesterday. was a practice day for the older traditional laptop travel backpack. The Targus Voyager has been to England and elsewhere. But years ago. The Voyager is approx ten yrs old.

By comparison, the recently purchased air travel backpack is about a pound lighter.
However, quality is not the same . Heavier fabric, water repellent and solid zippers. Some zippers have locking positions for the zipper pulls. Padded, and pocketed.
Plus the whole can be covered by a rain shroud.
Downside is the flap opening and not clamshell.
Supposedly much easier access to clothes

I'm typing this out to see what I am mulling over in my head vis a vis buying another travel backpack like M ... s recent one

Originally, bought to carry a 17 in laptop [ can't believe that I wanted a 17 in laptop overseas ]
the Voyageur always felt heavy and bulky but that 17 in laptop is triple the weight of a Chromebook [ this one ]

Last year I took a lighter backpack and it was crammed to the point of useless.

Thus. buy or not to buy. In notes, the Voyageur is a $ 110 item and M ....s was 40.

In reality, a lighter pack is good if you move around a lot abroad. We will be stationary mostly.

Thus, what it will carry and will it fit under seat [ yes] seem vital 

As well, in the UK we might get  by w / one smaller suitcase and two backpacks [ always can be crammed in somewhere ]

Still time to trial run the Voyager.

All right in typical fashion I decided to take the problem into my own hands. you see the Voyager backpack was meant for a very large laptop which is long gone

 I worked it out that I can actually use the front pocket which is handy and foil lined to hold an 11 in. Chromebook. This pocket is for hot / cold item storage 

 we don't need a divided compartment padded with foam to separate out the main compartment from the laptop compartment so I cut out the covered foam divider. This action creates one large main compartment. I did opt to leave the side foam strips perhaps giving a bit of structure to that compartment or it takes up space. We shall see. 

⛎ ... amusement rides .....

 ⛎ .... thrill a minute, up and down ....
matching our weather. hellacious winds yesterday, wet etc
 ' boro today soggy warming to 50 F BUT freezing in a day
our spring rollercoaster life

we did get out to the East and Whitby for a visit

groceries too !

🎌 .... " I'll be back .....

 🎌 was the tag line from a movie not my Life

Yes. more snow and biting winds [ maybe, looks it ]

so, I re - hooked up the heating cables and disconnected the front hose. Smooth move that

on the new organization front. recall the two foot rule . The desk does feel ' more in control '. I mean that you can appreciate how much easier that it will be to plug and unplug electrical items. Then b / c the power bar has separate ' off ' /on ' LED s for each socket, if there is a problem then I'll know if the plug is in or not.

Plus the floor is clean, not wires and the power bar OR "  there are no snakes on the floor "

On a separate note. The desk that I curb shopped [euphemism for garbage re - cycle ] had scratches in the faux wood surface. I tried to recolour but its not real wood. Ended up applying Xmas decals on the blemishes

Alright. What looks worse - the scratches or the patches. As at now, I'm voting for the patches. At least the decals are colourful. And you have to know that these were put there on purpose.

the dreadful weather finally gave up and the melt continued. Now, we deal w / rain or freezing rain temperature dependent