That's How We Did It

I hope you enjoyed our little adventure as much as we enjoyed living it and writing about it.  In case you are wandering whatever happened to me, I am still living in Raymond, Alberta, still working for H&R Transport and still living the dream.

My life is slightly different now as I no longer drive a truck.  In fact I last drove a truck (under dispatch) in January 2009.  I remember it very well, I was confined to Canada because I had sent my passport away to be stamped for Permanent Residency.  My last trip took me from Lethbridge to Toronto in Ontario with a backload to Edmonton followed by a run East to Winnipeg.  A backload up to Edmonton and a final run back down to Lethbridge.

These days I work behind a desk as an overseas recruiter and I manage the company's Temporary Foreign Worker Program.  Since finishing this Blog we have settled in to Canada as Permanent Residents, in 2012 we will be applying for Canadian Citizenship and are looking forward to becoming Canadian Citizens sometime in 2013.

Well thank you (again) to all the people who have joined Janice, Luke Gizmo and myself on this amazing journey from being a normal everyday family living in the South of England...... to our new life on the Albertan Prairies.....

Living The Dream..................

THE END

A big huge thank you

I would like to thank everyone who sent in the comments on the final chapter post, rather than say thank you in the comments i thought i would post it out here where everyone can see it.


THANK YOU !

Thank you !

Many Thanks to my readers for your very kind words.  

This story is dedicated to everyone who 

"Lives The Dream"

27 comments:

BenFebruary 3, 2009 2:29 AM
Hi,
I have never commented your blog before, just wanted to say Thanks. It was really informative and funny. I enjoyed a lot of your stories now I know important facts about canadian trucking and north american culture. It gave me a detailed "how-to" of the immigration process. (Which is a bit more difficult in my case) My dreams are quite the same, it was good to see someone can make them real. I wish you a lot of good trips in the future!

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GrayTFebruary 3, 2009 4:08 AM
ooohh noooooo! Well i suppose we all knew it had to come to an end sometime, but like a good book or a great film we hoped it never would. Thanks for the blog, all the very best for the future.

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GrahamFebruary 3, 2009 4:33 AM
I'd just like to say a sincere Thankyou for all your posts Lyndon, always informative and entertaining reading. Hope you and your family keep enjoying life in Canada. GH

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GrahamFebruary 3, 2009 4:35 AM
oNE QUESTION i HAVE lYNDON, aRE YOU STAYING OUT TRUCKING ON THE ROAD ? or moving into the office for a spell ? Anyways goodluck whatever you decide. Hope to see you when I'm over in April. Cheers

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YorkieFebruary 3, 2009 5:29 AM
Lyndon,

The bloog has beeen fantastic,i have followed it right from the start(When you where at Wincanton.)

It's a shame we wont be able to see how thing's pan out for you and the family...

I wish Jan,Luke,and you all the best for the future..

Yorkie

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AlFebruary 3, 2009 8:47 AM
Lyndon, drop me a note. Why the sudden end to the guidance. I found it helpful for anyone wanting to transition into the truckng life. You are right and a reader must take a blog for what it is ....a journal of your experience. See you out there. Al

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AlFebruary 3, 2009 8:47 AM
Lyndon, drop me a note. Why the sudden end to the guidance. I found it helpful for anyone wanting to transition into the truckng life. You are right and a reader must take a blog for what it is ....a journal of your experience. See you out there. Al

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Gaffer40February 3, 2009 10:01 AM
come on big man, surely you can keep updating the blog and let us no what your up to.I hope you do. I for one think you have done a wonderful job, giving out your experience and advice, and i thank you for it. In a couple of years time we hope to be in NovaScotia and i will definately like to come to Raymond (if your still there)for a long weekend, if that's possible. Thanks again and all the very best to you,Jan,Luke and of course Gizmo.

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AnonymousFebruary 3, 2009 10:24 AM
hi lyndon well said mate its been enjoyable to say the least looking forward to getting over there in july and giving it my best shot

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AnonymousFebruary 3, 2009 10:45 AM
now that you are a perminant resident does that mean you can apply for any job you want? also is it easy gettin pets over from the UK? and also when you first arrived your wife couldn't work for 6 months, does this rule also apply to self employed wifes? who can work from home. ....and also are you going to stop the blog now then? boo hoo i really enjoyed reading it over the last year

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TipperDriverFebruary 3, 2009 12:24 PM
Thank you Lyndon it's been interesting reading yopur blog and seeing where you went.I will miss the sarga of your trips.All the best to you and your family in Canada.Roland(a Yorkshire tipper driver).

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Graham ParksFebruary 3, 2009 3:03 PM
The end of an era,sad day pal really a sad day.. tried to call ya at the weekend and wish ya happy birthday, you old fart...
Take care,,, chat soon..

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takeaflightFebruary 3, 2009 3:30 PM
Thanks for a great blog from someone who will never move to Canada, due to being to old and under qualified, but mainly no balls.

I enjoyed looking in from time to time and sharing your journey.

I for one will miss it.

Best of luck to you and your family. Roy

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CurtFebruary 3, 2009 3:35 PM
All the best Lyndon. I havent commented in a while here, but ive been reading...

Good luck in the future, to you and family buddy!
Whatever or whereever the 'road' takes you in life, regardless, enjoy, live, be happy, take care!!

Curt.

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AnonymousFebruary 3, 2009 7:05 PM
Lyndon, reading your log has been a real treat and I appreciate all the effort it has taken for you to keep this up. My wife often catches me looking at the trucks as we drive the highway, and you know you've left an impression when she says, "Hey, H&R! Is that your buddy Lyndon?"
I'm sure there are many others out there like myself who will miss reading about your life on the road.
Just want to wish you and your family all the best for the future. Good luck and thanks again for an amazing blog!
Steve (Llantrisant, the hole with the mint) Whitby, Ont.

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ruddsFebruary 3, 2009 11:51 PM
Good luck to you mate, and in a sad sort of way I think lots of people are going to miss your writeups. And thanks for all your efforts on BTA.
Who knows perhaps one day I'll be knocking on your door to buy you a beer or two.
10/10 for now mate.

Paul
Britishtruckersabroad.com

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RolandFebruary 4, 2009 2:34 AM
Lyndon,

Just wanted to say thank you and good luck for the future. You've been an impressive example of how to do the job (driving & emigrating) properly and I wish you all the best for the future.

Regards, Roland

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Adam ... ur Aussie facebook buddyFebruary 5, 2009 6:10 AM
Lyndon

Don McLean sang " the day the music died" .. well its also a sad day that this blog has ended. Im glad you wrote it as you have inspired me to take action rather than just dream of going to Canada and the States. When I finally get there will look yiu up and will bring you a bottle of Bundaberg Rum from here downunder. Once again thanks for a great blog and all the best in the future.

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didster7February 6, 2009 2:06 AM
thanks for a great read and insight into the canadian way of life, forget about the nasty comments, i for one understand the blog was about you and what you want out of life and therefore it is your opinion.
well done for making it work for you, Good luck to you and your family for the future.

all the best dave.

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BOBFebruary 7, 2009 4:07 AM
mate what can we say but a big thanks for all the info .and hope you and jan and luke have a good and happey times to come keep it sunny side up ....

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Gogo BambinoFebruary 7, 2009 7:49 AM
Ack! Thats it?!?

but but but. You can just slap "they lived happily ever after" on it and say its done! Or, can you. I think ive silently quit blogging about 5 times.

Anyways. Take care. Im still in Portland if ya ever want to stop by again.

Take Care

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TomFebruary 7, 2009 10:06 PM
Lyndon thanks for everything. I have enjoyed reading your blog immensely, hope the very best for you and your family.

take care mate.

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MartinFebruary 9, 2009 10:17 AM
Hi Lyndon,
Ive followed your side and stories since the start, It was Good and informative, Does this mean your blog ius at the end of the road?
I wish you and your Family luck and a good time for the future, hope one day to meet up with you and have a bier or two
Wish you an safe trip,
Martin ( Highlander )

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GlennFebruary 11, 2009 2:13 PM
Hi Lyndon

I checked in on your blog every week and thought it was great.
We need more hard workers like you coming over to Canada.
I enjoyed your sense of humor good luck on living the dream.

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AnonymousFebruary 12, 2009 12:53 AM
to bad this abrupt end of the storie nothing to read about the adventures of mister lyndon and how he survives the canadian way of live
your pal ronnie hamers

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JeneanFebruary 16, 2009 10:54 AM
Hi Lyndon,

You've helped me out a few time with answering my quetions. I've resently found some companies wanting bus drivers so fingers crossed!! It will a shame not being able to read any more on our trip over there. All the best to you and your family xx

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phoenixMarch 14, 2009 5:18 AM
A good view of trucking snaps. It gave me a detailed "how-to" of the immigration process. (Which is a bit more difficult in my case) My dreams are quite the same, it was good to see someone can make them real.Truck Factoring Service

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The Final Chapter & Beyond

Well folks, this is it, every story must come to an end.

This was the story of how a normal working class family from the City of Swindon in Wiltshire, United Kingdom, decided one day to sell everything they owned (almost) and jump on a plane to start a new life on the other side of the world.

Most people never understood the reason for the blog or even its real purpose so i think it may be a good time to explain now before we slip silently into the ethernet and take our place amongst the Great North American Community.

It was never about any company and it was never really about trucking. It waswas purely and simply about " Our Dream". It was about making the life choice and deciding where you wanted to be.

We never came to Canada to join H&R and we never came over so i could go sightseeing all round the US of A in a big red Freightliner. We came to Canada because we wanted to be in Canada.

Luckily i was in a trade that was required by the Canadian Government and luckily i was in the right place (give a county or two) when the Big Red Team were recruiting, luckily we found a buyer for our house in UK and luckily we found a landlord who didnt mind pets (Gizmo) in Canada. Luckily i enjoy my job and luckily my family love it here too.

Over the last 2 years i have been accused of many things and i have been the target of many rumours, stories and theories, a man of much intrigue you may say. Countless people have said ive seen the whole experience through rose coloured specs both behind my back and some actually to my face.

Im not going to admit it and im not going to deny it.................... mainly for one reason, it doesnt really matter, it was my story, my experience, and i told it my way. Practically all that has been written has been spontanious writing, no editting and no spell checking and practically no post edit, editting.

Immigrating to Canada isnt easy and its full of pitfalls and people trying to take money off you, my advice is to take all these blogs and forums for what they really are, communities populated by self proclaimed experts (including this one LOL). Please read them and take note of others who have trodden the path before you but......................................

Do your own research from reputable and official sites, if you want to know about immigration go to a Government Immigration Website, if you want to know about flights then go to the airlines website. You get the picture?

When we were in the planning stages of our move, i spent every night studying the internet, i uncovered every conceiviable angle, i asked every question i could think of to ask. I created an immigration plan and i stuck to it, every thing was thought of and i collected every document that i could possibly need.

Then we moved and i still managed to get caught out occaisionally but generally i was on top of the game.

So why did i write the blog ???

It was an information trail, to give others that follow us a guide, i like to think of it as a compass, to steer you in the general direction but the details ive left for you to sort out.

Well thats my story for what its worth, the end of the ride, and its time to move on, what does the future hold for us, who knows and to be honest who cares, life trucks on.

I would like to thank all the readers who have followed our adventures from Swindon to Raymond, youve seen our dream unfold, we wish you every success in yours in what ever you do and where ever it takes you.

Thank You Everyone.

Lyndon

Livin' The Dream

Hi folks

havent post on here for a little while, life has been a little hectic, ive been helping out and having a look at what goes on in the office. There isnt much to photograph from a desk unless you want to see the back of somebodys head so the old piccaroonies are going to be a bit thin on the ground.

I treated myself to a new car the other week so we are now a two car family again, for the first time since we left the Motherland. Ever since we have been over here i have liked the Chrysler Sebring so i thought "Sod It", and went out and got one.

So now i got a new toy......................

The weather in Lethbridge is starting to warm up now although there is still snow on the ground and some days it peeks up over the freezing point.

Alberta Bound

This hasnt had an airing for a while..............

Enjoy.

The Lomanovskis Family has Landed

Well thats it the passports are back and that night we drove down to Sweetgrass which is our loacal border crossing. We went into the States, round the flagpole, and then back into Canada to be welcomed as Permenant Residents.

So that my friends is it, we have done it. It has been a 2 year adventure, we had a dream which started back in Feb 2007 when i overheard 2 of my colleagues chatting about Canada, and now 2 years later the dream has been realised.

I really would like to offer a heart felt thank you to all of you out there who has shared this adventure with us, i would like to thank all of you who took the time to send in comments and everyone for the many emails that have been sent in.

So is this the end of the story....................................

Confined to Canada 3 (The Journey Home)

Sorry about the late update folks, its been a bit hectic recently and running Canada meant that i didnt get a wireless connection very often and im too tight to pay for it.

Anyway what can i say positive about the weather......................

Oh yes the roads werent closed 8-)

The weather was horrendous for practically all of the trip but after the first 8000 kms you sort of get used to it. Anyway it wasnt going away so on we went.

At one stage the whole road disapeared under 2 foot of snow so the intrepid Cascadian Explore decided to blaze a trail through the virgin snow. That was interesting, sometimes it was so deep that it hit the bumper and sent a snow storm over the roof of the cab.

Anyway it was hammer down for a slip slidey excursion into Montreal, that turnaround was perfect, i got into the city, fuelled and dropped the trailer, picked up the one next to it and headed back West.

I was literally squeezing every last mile out of every day and before i knew it i was crossing back into Alberta and thinking of hometime. As i got near to Edmonton i got my next dispatch.....

Oh bugger i should have booked some time off, oh well i wont make that mistake again, and this was a load going back to Montreal.

So..............................

Delivered in Edmonton, scuttled down to Calgary, got my ass under another trailer full of cow meat and started dragging it thru the snow back East. I was then told it was a switch in Winnipeg, which was a relief as the old hours were getting a little thin on the ground and i was starting to get a little worried.

As it was i trailer swapped in Winnipeg and got another Edmonton load.......

Now things were getting pretty tight on the hours, i made the delivery and headed south for home.....................

I finally got back after 14 days away on Sunday afternoon just in time for a huge Sunday lunch (roast beef).

And there endeth an epic snow filled adventure around the Great White North.

For your own perusal

Someone kindly left a comment on a previous article and i thought it was interesting enough to pass on. Im not offering any judgement in anyway, it just caught my interest.

Have a read of the story but also have a read of the comments people have left a the bottom.

Comment if you like.........................

http://www.thestar.com/News/GTA/article/561188#Comments

Confined to Canada 2 (Dashing thru the snow)

When to push your truck

(see the TomTom readout bottom right)

When not to push your luck

And when to just knock it on the head
(shut down)


The sun can glare off the icey road

2148 is a dirty little minx

Well it happened..............

tomorrow was another day

i got my load and headed on East. The road conditions were pretty horrendous, i took a few photos to emphasise what it takes to drive a "Big Rig"over here, summer driving is a breeze, its when the elements are at work against you that you suddenly realise what makes Highway Drivers so proud of thier skills and experience.

Imagine hurtling thru the mountains at full throttle, fully freighted and driving on ice and compacted snow. Its about knowing when and where to push your truck and when and where not to push your luck.

Driving in these conditions is very tiring, on top of all the usual things you have to think about while driving a truck, you are literally driving by the seat of your pants, feeling for the slightest twitch on any of the axles, monitoring the snow or ice you are driving on, one eye on the external temperature guage, looking into bends for the telltale shaddow that warns of black ice, seeing what trucks and autos are doing around you. Obvious signs like a truck in a ditch cold tell you that maybe you might want to think about feathering those brakes before you hit the curve.

Oh yes i almost forgot, i ve been here 18 months and up until this trip ive never seen a moose. Well on this little jaunt i saw 2 mooses (is that the correct word) one looked a bit weired though as it didnt have a rack, i thought all mooses had those coat hook things on their heads, unless it only wears them for special occaisons and tourists.

Confined to Canada 1 (bad start)

H&R in the snow

One huge snow shifter

Well its my first run after the Christmas break and seeing as our passports have been sent off to the CIC to be stamped and whatever else they do, i am not allowed to leave the "Great White North".

So after Santa has done his "prezzie giving thing" and all the turkey had been polished off, Lyndons thoughts turned back to cruising the highways. I phoned in and was told i was collecting a load from Calgary and taking it to Montreal, 4153 kms 1 way just to get me back into the swing of things.

I checked out the weather forcast and learnt that the weather all the way thru was to be on the whole "cold, white and shitty". indispersed with "cold, white and shitty". and later on going back to "cold, white and shitty". Looking ahead into the long term forcast we could expect it to be (yes you guessed it) "cold, white and shitty".

Okay well that solves one little problem then, no need to pack the Hawaian shirt, flip-flops or the surf board.

Well the day rolls round that must load up and head on out, i had a last minute reprieve when the load wasnt ready so it was an extra day at home, woo hoo !!!

The following morning we threw my gear into the car, took a slip slidey drive up to H&R and Jan dropped me off. I recieved my instructions via the magic talking brick (my veh-icular mounted computing wotsit) and went to look for the empty trailer to take North.

I pulled in front of it and backed up to about 2 foot away so i could check it over.

Aagh !!! bald freaking f*****g, b********g, some-of-a-birching tire, aaargh !!!

(Its good to vent sometimes)

Thankyou thankyou thankyou to the driver(s) who couldnt be bothered to pre-trip their trailer or even post-trip the bloody thing. This tire must have been like that for weeks, how many drivers have been dragging that thing round illegally.

Anyway i reported it and was told to take a different trailer (as i was working against the clock) So i wrote out a defect report for the bald tire (took me less than 2 minutes) and dropped it off in the shop.

I run round to get my new trailer, checked it over, found it to be okay, backed under it and did a check tug to make sure the jaws of my 5th wheel had grabbed it.

As i pulled away (err hang on that shouldnt happen) i realised i wasnt connected. No problem i thought so i went back again, and it still wouldnt connect.

I pulled away and checked the 5th wheel, the pin and the trailer again and i couldnt find anything wrong. I backed onto the trailer next to it and it connected perfectly so there was nothing wrong with my 5th wheel.

I phoned in and explained what had happened and that i couldnt find anything wrong, the shop went thru the checks i should have done (i had already done them)the verdict was "Open", dont know why it doesnt work, it just dont.

So it was back to the origional trailer, bite the bullet (it was half way thru the afternoon by now) take it round and get the tire changed and take that one to Calgary.

Got to Calgary and it was dark, oh yes and the load wasnt ready, i wasnt really bothered now so i pulled the curtains and shut down for the night.

Tomorrows another day !!!

Only another 364 sleeps to go !!!

1st Christmas in our own house

Walking the dog at -20, remember to dress warm

Gizmo with his Christmas bone

No more turkey sandwiches for us, its all gone in the curry

Oh well the big day has come and gone, Boxing Day is here and its time to start eating turkey salads and try to walk off some of that Christmas dinner from yesterday.

Luke has been keeping hisself to himself, testing out all his christmas prezzies, hes now got is own fancy digital phone in his room that he can even send IM and IV across MSN, he's been running round filming everything with his video camera and it took both of us to set up his new telescope with its equatorial mount, barlow filters and other thingamywotsits.

Tonight we are setting it up outside and doing a bit of star-gazing, we got all the star charts ready and using Google Sky so hopefully we should know what we are doing.

I have heard there is a particlarly strong solar wind coming out of Uranus at the moment.........

Must have been too much Christmas pudding Muhahahahahahhah !!!

Anyway its pretty much cloudless at the moment and its just dropping dark, weve just come back from walking Gizmo, there is a fantastic path towards the south end of town and thats the one we normally use. Trouble is though not many people have used it recently so it was a case of trudging thru snow about 2 feet deep, we marched a mile out towards the resevoir but when we got there we were all exhausted, even Gizmo was knackered and covered in snow, in the deep bits he completely disapeared, he absolutely loved it. Anyway we decided to use the roads to come back in and i think even Gizmo was glad.

Gizmo is on the sofa at the moment cuddling his Christmas bone, i dont reckon he will move now for the rest of the night.

Winter freakin' Wonderland

Okay thats it i am officially bored with the snow, can somebody please now take it all away. Its 10:00 in the morning and i have managed to get the car stuck in 3 snow drifts. The first time was when i dropped Jan off at work, i tried to take a short cut round the servicing bay and hit some deep snow, i thought if i hit it at a bit of a run i could just slide thru it. This worked fine for the first 6 feet then i ground to a halt.

Luckily a bit of deft direction changing, waggling the steers and some swearing did the job and about 5 minutes later i got thru it. Trouble was i was now on a good piece of road but with deep snow in fron and behind.

There was only one thing for it, i hit the gas, there was a spinning of wheels, a big cloud of powdered snow and as the cloud cleared i was miraculasly on the other side of the drift.

The second time was back in Raymond, there was a bit of deep snow between me and where i wanted to be so i over confidently hit it fast and again ended up stuck in the middle. This time i knew excactly what to do...............

Rock the gears, waggle the steers and swear really loudly, and yes it worked again.

The third time was on purpose (okay more on purpose) i was helping out a friend by giving them a boost, the cables were only 12 foot so i had to get right up their drive, and there was a snow drift either side. The plan was to stick my car in the snow drift, boost his truck and he pulls me out, excellent plan eh?

Well i must say i did an excellent job of getting the car stuck again, right up to the headlights. This time it took a few swings of a snow shovel and a bit of a shove to get me going again.

Now i am back a home and enjoying a bacon sadwich and a french vanilla coffee.

The Cup 'n Saucer

Met up with Steve W today and went over to the Cup 'n Saucer for a coffee and a bite to eat.

This quaint little coffee shop is owned by Marga, who is Steve's better half. Anyway, in we went and sampled the culinary delights within.

I was amazed with this place, its got a sort of European theme and seems half English and half dutch, which is hardly surprising since Steve is English and Marga is Dutch.

If you go in there try the Italian coffee, it is beautifully presented and tastes great. Marga makes all the food herself, try the garlic dip it is superb.

They do a fantastic English breakfast too so why not get yourselves down there and give it your support.

The Cup' N Saucer
309 - 7 Street South
Lethbridge

AB T1J 0P1

Canada

Snow Banks at Walmart

Got Snow ???

Accepted For Permanent Residency

At last, just got an email thru from CIC, our application for PR has been accepted. This is a huge weight of our shoulders as it means we are good to stay in Canada. Up to now we have been on Temporary Work Permits which means you can only stay for 24 months then you have to leave for 4 months.

There are also other implications if we didnt get accepted, like when our present visas run out, jan would lose the right to work, we would not get permenant SIN numbers which makes obtaining credit difficult.

So thats it the waiting is over, all we got to do now is send our passports off to Seattle and when they come back we have to take a little trip down to the border, go round the flagpole and re-enter Canada to be welcomed back as Permenant Residents.

Gizmo in the snow

Goldfish funeral - enjoy

Calling Tony Beales

Hey matey

send me an email ilost your email address

Famous Lyndons Trucking Life Blog Readers

One of the fantastic things about writing a journal such as this, is that you have the chance to reach out to people from all round the world. This includes some unexpected but yet still very, very welcome important people.

I was just checking out my site meter and i noticed one of my more famous readers.

I would like to say "Thankyou Ma-am" for showing an interest in writings of one of your subjects, its an honour to show you a window into my life.

Merry Christmas to you and Prince Phillip and the same to the rest of your family, hope you have a wonderfull holiday and continue to read my blog.

PS. Do you really get a gift of Saskatoonberry jam from the people of Saskatchewan every year, i tried some in the summer and its fantastic on crusty bread (but im sure you already know that)

Lyndon xxx