Sunday, Jan 12 - Sitting here in the airport, Terminal 3, waiting for our flight back to Atlanta, then West Palm Beach. There was a threat of freezing rain and possible snow, so we were a little concerned about how getting back to Toronto would go. As it turned out, there was a bit of the freezing stuff, making the roads somewhat hazardous. We had set it up so that Jeff would drive us to Oshawa, so that we could catch the Go train to Toronto, then the airport train to Pearson. Off we went, with plenty of time to spare, and the roads turned out to be somewhat dicey in spots, but okay, so we made decent time.

Once in Toronto, we went to take the airport train, but it was not running because of ice on the tracks, if you can believe it. Instead, they had a bus set to go, which worked out okay, as it went directly to Terminal 1. So after the usual check-in procedures, here we sit. Our planes is in on time, so hopefully we'll make our connection to West Palm Beach in Atlanta, where we only have one hour to get to the right spot in that huge airport. for our connection. Hopefully we've run out of bad luck, and all will go as scheduled.

Have to say the process today was much smoother than Friday. The domino effect was the driver of the process, as one thing that went wrong seemed to trigger the next. We had decided to leave the r.v. in the parking lot at West Palm Beach, so that we could go directly to Lake Worth to our r.v. park, a much shorter drive than going back to Joyce's. (She'll load up our fridge stuff and bring it to us in Lake Worth). Getting to Atlanta was fine, but getting out wasn't. We boarded, and after a half-hour of delays because of a faulty switch in the wheel well, we were de-boarded so the necessary repairs could be done. Then we were re-boarded, after another hour, so that we left two hours behind schedule.

Once in Toronto, we had to go through Canadian Immigration, which turned out to be the most chaotic situation ever seen by me in all my travels. There were huge numbers of people, this being a Friday afternoon, with very little staff direction, and lines that went on and on,  seeming endless. Took ages to shuffle through, feeling like cattle being led to the slaughter. Then catch the train to Terminal 1, then the train to Union station. Long story short, the Via train to Belleville we wanted was sold out, and the one following left two hours late. Result: we got into Belleville at 11:30 where Jeff picked us up, ending a 17 1/2 hour day. Could have flown to Hong Kong in that length of time.

Yesterday was the reason we went through all of this travel fun. We borrowed one of Jeff's cars, went to our house, where good old Dave MacKay had turned on the water and the heat, got changed, and off to the church. Steve's funeral service was very well done, with Dave and Steve's daughter Casey doing excellent eulogies. Despite the service being in a Catholic Church, it was personal and modern, leaving everyone with an excellent impression of the person Steve was. Lots of moist eyes and heavy hearts, but also good feelings for the life Steve had led.

Following the service, we went to the Golf Club for refreshments and lots of talk, which helped, and then to Dave's house, after a little visit with the Lockwoods next door. Cathy had organized a dinner get-together of close friends so that she'd have time to see people she otherwise wouldn't have had much chance to talk with. That was very nice, and was a lovely evening. Back to Jeff's for time with the family, a game or two, and bed, pretty much pooped.

And so we head back to Florida, now feeling like our southern trip can begin in earnest. Some rest and relaxation and exercise are definitely what we need for the 12 days we'll be in Lake Worth. That's all for now. Stay tuned. More later.