Do you remember that Sesame Street song? The one that went like this…

“Oh, who are the people in your neighborhood?
In your neighborhood?
In your neighborhood?
Say, who are the people in your neighborhood?
The people that you meet each day”

(and then the characters sang about the fireman, the policeman, the soccer mom, etc) and the song finishes off

“Well, they’re the people that you meet
When you’re walking down the street
They’re the people that you meet each day”

Well, I met some interesting folks in the past few days who appeared in my “neighbourhoods” of Williams Lake and Quesnel BC over the weekend and today I’d like to feature a few of these “everyday folks” who helped create some very special memories.

Estelle

Estelle the Horse: Honestly, I don’t know if her name is Estelle or not, that’s just what I called her. I camped at the Williams Lake Famous Stampede Grounds on Friday evening where, adjacent to my site, were the horse stables. Now, in the past, I’ve been somewhat fearful of horses; in fact to the point of saying that I didn’t really like them. I didn’t feel I could understand them, how to work with them, nor see their unique “personalities”. And so, I would usually just shy away from them.

In chatting with the campsite manager, he said that the horses were very friendly and loved being fed grass. And so, I walked over to the horse area, gathered some grass and went to the fence.

The horses gathered around and Estelle charmed me the most. She loved to eat and wouldn’t stop nagging me for more grass. At one point I almost asked her, “and would you like some salsa with that? I have just a bit…..” It was great fun.

Most importantly Estelle helped me get over my fear of horses. It had struck me that I’d never really tried to understand horses much before. I’d just decided that I was afraid of them. Interesting, once I took the approach of trying to understand them, offering them my own handful of friendship (and grass), I got it back tenfold. A great aha moment and reminder. If I come to the table (or the fence in this case) with a curiosity of understanding, that’s what I’ll receive, “understanding”, and likely much more in return.

Al, the rare breed, from Quesnel: The next day I headed up to Quesnel to meet Al, who I’d been introduced to by my friend, Peggy. About two weeks ago, Peggy had asked whether I’d be going to Quesnel which, in her words, was “close to Jasper” where I was camped at the time. Good thing she’s a successful author because she wouldn’t have made a career in geography.

Anyways, she went on and on about Al, how fun he was and that she thought we’d become good friends. And so I agreed to drive a fair bit off the beaten path to go meet Al.

Saturday I arrived in Quesnel and met up with Al. He showed me the highlights of downtown Quesnel and along the

Al, the mild salsa-eating Oprah fan

Fraser River. And true to Peggy’s word, he was fun and we became quick friends, talking about books, work, travel and movies. I shared with him that I have loved watching Oprah’s 20^th Anniversary DVD Collection while on the trip. He said he’d be interested in seeing some of it so we popped it in after our potluck dinner Sunday night.

When I left at 10:30 pm to go back to Miss Daisy and get a bit of work done, I left the DVD set with Al. At that point, most guys would ditch the chick stuff and pop in a guy movie or start watching sports. When I arrived this morning, Al was cursing me as he’d stayed up until 12:30 am watching more scenes from Oprah!!

You may have to venture off the beaten path to find them but yes, you can find guy friends who will watch Oprah with you!! A rare breed but they exist, apparently, up in the northern parts of BC.  Unfortunately Al was of no help in helping me reduce my salsa inventory as he’s a “mild” kind of guy whereas I live on the “medium” side of life. No problem there Al, you had me at Oprah.

The Museum Clerk: Al took me to visit the Quesnel Museum and Archives late Saturday afternoon, we arrived around 4:24 pm. The clerk greeted us, recognizing Al, then told us that the museum would be closing in 6 minutes as they had switched to winter hours. “Umm, winter starts in 3 months and it’s 28C outside today?!” This is how things work in a small town.

Al then mentioned that I was from out of town and pointed out my Daisymobile to which she said, “Oh, so you’re the one following your heart?”  I replied, “yes”. She then said that I’d come to the right place as Quesnel is “a city filled with hearts”.

It must be as she had the heart to allow us to do a quick tour of the museum while she closed up and it was then that I was able to meet Mandy….

Mandy, the Haunted Doll: I first read about and saw a photo of Mandy in a local travel brochure. I didn’t read up on her full life history but was struck by the fact that she bore a strong resemblance to Bride of Chuckie and wondered why she would be so revered by the town. You can read more about her here, http://www.quesnelmuseum.ca/Mandy.asp, but she is claimed to have supernatural powers, one of which includes the ability to get on tv.

Mandy

Al told me that Mandy has been on the Arsenio Hall show a few years ago. As I looked at her somewhat creepy appearance, I felt encouraged. Heck, if the creepy and haunted Bride of Chuckie look-a-like could enjoy her moment of fame on national television, I’m thinking that Miss Daisy is a shoe-in.

Just to be on the pro-active side, I know that Ellen enjoys people who can do fun tricks and stunts so I’ve been busy trying out ways that Miss Daisy could be a bit more entertaining……such as, how many hot dogs can she fit under her front hood? (872 is the answer.) Today, I’m going to see how she does with bungee-jumping. Imagine, “See the amazing Bungee-Jumping Daisymobile!” Mandy’s got nothin’ on that……

Skully, the Tattooin’ Artist:While walking about with Al, we passed by an RV that got me thinking that Miss Daisy is somewhat under-stated in her decor and messaging.  We stopped off to check out the “Skull-A-Beg-Go” and enjoy a chat with Skully, its’ owner. Don’t worry Mom, I didn’t get a tattoo.

Al and I enjoyed a tour of the Skull-Beg-A-Go which featured, amongst other things a vintage barber chair where Skully does his tattoos, an large ceramic “smoking substance” signed by Cheech and Chong and an unforeseen number of skull collectibles that are apparently just a tip of the iceberg to Skully’s collection back in Edmonton.

An expression of individuality

The Skull-a-Beg-Go

I feel a certain kind of kinship with anyone who will also express themselves through their, as it’s called, “RV lifestyle”. While I likely won’t add a plate on my front bumper which reads, “Horn Broken  – Watch for Finger”, I’ll sure give Skully two skeletal thumbs up for originality and a thanks for thinking I really need some more daisies in here.

The Gas Station Attendant: After leaving Quesnel, I had intended to head to a town called Lilooet on Highway 99. Unfortunately the campsite I’d hoped to camp at didn’t have electricity nor good internet access so I kept driving. In what would turn out to be a most gorgeous drive through the mountains that also offered several white-knuckle moments on the steep and winding mountain roads.

Thankfully I had the foresight to gas up in Lilooet as Miss Daisy seems to work up a bit of a thirst after  all the climbs. When I went in to pay, the attendant asked me “So where’s your heart taking you today?”

I’d never had anyone ask me that before and it put a smile on my face. I just thought it was such a great question, one

The mountains on the drive to Pemberton

worthy of asking yourself regularly.

I replied that I didn’t know yet.

The rest of the drive was quite hilly and a bit stressful in spots. I was thankful to arrive, much later than planned, in Pemberton and set up “camp” for the night in a downtown parking lot. (I had to forgo plans to publish my blog last night as I ran out of power on my laptop and crashed into bed early.)

Again, my heart knew where to lead me. I’d been to Pemberton before, back in 1989 (the year that Miss Daisy was born) for an outdoor wilderness course with Outward Bound. Outward Bound means “to leave safe harbour”.  At that point in time in my life, I’d also needed some changes and was searching. And here I am, 20 years later, back in the same spot, having left safe harbour and searching again.

Has life brought me back to find something new? Or to see something I didn’t see before? Have I come full circle or am I still following a continuous thread which weaves the fabric of my life? Whatever the coincidental meaning of the irony, one thing I know for sure, my heart still leads me where I need to go.

So, where’s your heart taking you today?

P.S. One week to go until my friend Peggy’s book launch party!! I’m really looking forward to attending and hope to see many of you there!! Check out the great lineup of entertainment and prizes to be won and rsvp to attend……http://thewonthing.com/rsvp/

Just Say Yes!! is getting close too!! I’m co-organizing an exciting event for women which is taking place this October 17^th and 18^th in Ottawa. I’m thrilled that we’ve been able to add Shaunna Burke to our speaker lineup. Shaunna is the second Canadian woman to have summated Mt. Everest and her story is an inspiration to all women. Visit our website www.just-say-yes.ca for event details, full speaker lineup and to register!!

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