Helen Niles....working on trials...and packing up files!

I am exhausted. 2011 has just started and I've already done enough work for the entire year!!!

"Working on trials"? My job requires that I attend court hearings once in a while and I just had to attend one in Newfoundland. Short trip, but tiring nonetheless. Next week, which is closing day on our new house, I am travelling to Montreal for a different trial. It rarely happens that I have to go to these things and after 5 years of nothing, I have 2 within the same week. Unbelievable!

"Paking up files"? We are moving! My husband, J, and I have been packing things up for our big move on January 23rd. We had no luck with moving companies, so we reserved a truck and are moving ourselves with the help of 7 big strong friends (thank you!).

There was a huge storm in Newfoundland when I flew in, so I didn't get to see much. What I did see piqued my interest. I definitely want to go back and I don't think I'll have a problem convincing J. The cab driver that safely brought me from the airport to my hotel told me that Gros Morne National Park is best in August. The lawyer I was talking to mentioned that the George St. Festival is the week before the first wednesday in August. So all in all, I guess we'll go visit in August. At least we'll be sure that they won't get about 40 cm of snow in 24 hours!

I'm not really a winter person. Skiing is fun, but I love the sun and I can't stand these short days. I'd much rather be camping at Sandbanks:

or going on a road trip:

But alas, having a house means having a mortage, means having to cut back a bit on the trip taking. FYI - Camping at Sandbanks (or anywhere else for that matter) and going on roadtrips aren't expensive! They are great alternatives if you are on a budget. Airfare in this country is ridiculous and you can easily drive someplace far and have a vacation for the cost of one person's plane ticket. You just have to be willing to spend a bit more time to get where you're going.

You learn a lot about the person you're road-tripping with too. For example, J can make these noises with his mouth that I can't seem to make. Also, you end up finding one CD that you play over and over again and becomes the CD of the trip. So our trip to New Brunswick in 2006 was the "Barenaked Ladies" trip. In 2007, it was the "Collective Soul" trip. In 2009, we made a bunch of mix CDs, so it was the "Mix CD trip". It's a great way to remember the journey.

Sadly, I may not post for a while as it may take a few weeks to get ourselves settled. I still have Munich to post about, so keep checking back!! In the meantime, I will be imagining us here: