The next day, Lynda was totally focused on planning on how she would explain to her mother who thought we were gone for a couple of weeks. She asked me if I had any brilliant ideas to help her and I said the answer was “NO”. She said you always get me in trouble, and I get to explain to her.
I said why this should be any different than when we went to Fredericton or Calgary?
She said aren’t you forgetting something?
I said like what?
We are not in Canada anymore.
I said what difference does it make. She is not going to dive here. Is she? It’s going to take little longer and but there are always direct flights to Vegas from Toronto. Moreover, we will continue to pay for her flight, and we will make sure that we will be at the airport here to see her. Nothing is going to change. I continued – knowing the fact that she likes to gamble, she may like to stay longer here in Vegas.
Lynda said don’t try to be overly generous as I am the one who will have to look after her, not you. I know she likes gambling I don’t necessarily like her to stay here too long. We got our lives.
I said just call her and tell her that you love her and she would understand right away that we are on a move.
She said I need to call my sister, too.
Once she was done with her calls, we decided to go to Henderson by ourselves and drive around to get ourselves familiarized with the area. We both were so happy with the bright and warm weather, but we went on weather channel to see what kind of weather they get in June. We learned that:
- High Temperatures: June is a hot month, with average daily highs around 100°F (38°C);
- Low Humidity: The desert climate means very little humidity, making the heat feel dry;
- Abundant Sunshine: You can expect plenty of sunshine throughout the day, with around 14 hours of daylight;
- Little to No Rain: Rainfall is minimal, with an average of just 2mm over a couple of days; and
- Cooler Nights: While daytime temperatures are high, the evenings will be cooler, with average low temperatures around 74°F (23°C).
We drove around to look at the city. Everything appeared to be so fresh, new, and bright that made us feel very comfortable. We learned about Henderson that:
- Henderson was notable for its extensive system of outdoor recreation facilities, including over 220 miles (350 km) of trails and 72 parks. Incorporated in 1953, Henderson was originally known for its role in magnesium production during World War II; and
- Though Henderson was just a quick drive from Las Vegas, the cost of living in Henderson is about 5 percent more expensive than in Las Vegas and around 13 percent higher than the national average. The prices in Henderson were increased in recent years, with the most significant increases in housing, transportation, and food.
But we felt as we had a bargain when it comes to housing here in Vegas in comparison with Canada.
The next day we explored the possibilities of finding a reasonable place to stay until we get the keys for our house. The motel was out of the way but closer to Henderson where we found a reasonable place to stay.
I took Lynda to Macey’s in the Galleria at Sunset mall where she spent a couple of hours talking and planning for the things that we will need in the house. She also bought some small pieces of household goods which we stored in the car. We knew that we didn’t have to buy appliances, but we had to buy furniture for our bedrooms and living room, not to mention the personal clothing as we only had enough cloths with us for a couple of weeks.
We heard from Cliff that they got the money, and everything is lined up as discussed.
We went to attend the meeting at the Mountain View as promised. We were delighted to meet those folks as everybody seemed to be friendly, and they were kind to us. Perhaps the reason was that they all were from different places in the east where they had been suffering from severe weather all their lives. It was indeed a nice break for all of us.
When meeting started and they came to the point when they started discussing who is going to do what to make things happen, I was sitting back and watching everybody volunteering for doing something.
I thought I should make it clear that I don’t know anything to contribute to the kitchen. I raised my hand said I am so sorry to let you good folks know that I am totally incompetent in the kitchen as I am not trained to perform any domestic activities. I continued, to be totally honest with you I am not allowed in the kitchen as I have broken plates and misplaced cutlery whenever I attempted to help Lynda. Everybody laughed.
Lynda said that’s absolutely correct, however, I am volunteering to cook fish & chips for you folks.
Libby said it’s a huge job, Lynda. We are expecting at least 50 folks, and which also means that you will have to cook more than 100 pieces of fish, not to mention chips.
Lynda said I can handle it.
Libby said you need to listen to me, Lynda. I am the chairperson for this committee, and I am telling you that I will help you, but you are being English, you should take the lead as English folks are known for their fish & chips.
Lynda agreed and a beautiful friendship started between Libby and Lynda. Coincidently, Libby’s husband’s name also was Cliff.
We moved in on June 30th and if I remember correctly, it was Monday. we brought in all the stuff that we had stored in our car put it in the corner of the living room and went around one more time to discuss all the things that we had bought. Perhaps the most importantly, the beds that were supposed to be delivered today in the afternoon.
I remember saying to Lynda that I don’t know about you, but I am used to sleeping on the floor and it will not bother me at all if our beds are not delivered today.
Lynda said you have been away from India more than 30 years, and I am sure you have grown used to not sleeping on the floor. In any case, she said, let’s go out and get some grocery as we need to eat something before, we are thinking about sleeping.
I said we are expecting more than one delivery this afternoon, we better hurry up to get some grocery first.
We had a huge double garage with a remote control to open and close the garage. We went out to the nearest grocery store which was only a few miles from where we were living.
I thought Lynda was going to pick up just a few things, but she decided to do the whole thing. She never stopped showing me the prices and comparing it with the prices back home. She was so excited with the fresh produce and the way grocery store was setup.
I let her do anything she liked and just going along by pushing the shopping cart.
Finally, when she was done, the cart was overloaded with so much grocery that I was questioning if all this going to fit in our trunk. But she was so energetic and happy with the grocery that I wasn’t sure if I ever saw her this happy in Canada when she did grocery shopping. She always used to complain about the increasing prices.
At last, when we got home using the remote control to open the main gate and another remote control to open our garage, I was wondering how long it would take to unload the grocery. Lynda had already headed in holding a couple of things in her hands. When I was trying to grab some big items to take them in, she shouted – Come in.
When I went in, I saw she wasn’t in the kitchen. She shouted again from the bedroom. Come here!
When I entered our bedroom, I saw her lying on a bed and a bunch of bags which were stored all over the bedroom.
What the hell is this? I asked.
She said, I wish I knew.
I came out from our bedroom and went into the spare bedroom and saw another bed was setup exactly the way we would have set it up.
I shouted did you see this?
She said what? Then she saw the bed and she was going to say something then we heard a knock on the door.
When I opened the door, we saw a couple of folks standing there.
The man said – My name’s Richard and this is my wife, Loval, and we are here to tell you that we unlocked the door to accept a couple of deliveries for you. The delivery people said they were not supposed to be here before this afternoon.
I said, great and thanks a million but how did you manage to pick our lock?
Richard said he didn’t have to pick the lock. He knew where the previous owner kept a key for emergency, and he took the liberty of letting delivery men in to help us out.
We both thanked Richard and Loval and asked them to come in for a minute.
Richard said they were living there for a couple of years, and they liked it.
Lynda said hope you are coming to the party on the 4th.
They said they heard about Lynda volunteered to cock fish & chips.
It was indeed a good start for a long friendship.
We decided to take Richard and Laval out for breakfast on Tuesday the July 1st. As soon as we got table in the local restaurant and settled down, Lynda said today is our Independence Day. We Canadian call its Canada Day.
I remember saying that many of Canadians celebrate this annual July 1 holiday much the same way Americans approach Independence Day. We fly that gorgeous red maple leaf proudly and wear Canada-themed outfits. Some people paint their faces, too.
Lynda said unfortunately we don’t have anything red with us to wear but we thought we can have breakfast with our friends.
Richard and Loval were very impressed and said congratulations to you two.
I said we don’t want to bore you with details but as a summary the possibility of a confederation between the colonies of British North America was discussed throughout the mid-1800s. On July 1, 1867, a dominion was formed through the British North America Act as approved by the British Parliament. It consisted of territories then called Upper and Lower Canada of New Brunswick and Nova Scotia. The act divided Canada into the provinces of Ontario and Quebec, and it included provisions for other colonies and territories to join in the future, which made possible the growth of Canada into its present form. The act served as Canada’s constitution until 1982, and July 1 was celebrated as Dominion Day.
Richard and Loval were a kind of impressed with the information at the same time they were feeling as how come they didn’t know anything about Canada.
Richard said he had a practice in Idaho for forty years before he decided to retire five years back then they decided to purchase a huge RV (Recreational Vehicle) and traveled all over the map until they got tired. They sold the RV and decided to settle down here in Las Vegas.
I said I guess Idaho’s located in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States and is widely known for its potatoes, being a major producer of the crop, and its scenic natural landscapes including mountains, lakes, and rivers.
Richard said you got it, Mir.
I asked Richard what he was practicing in Idaho?
Richard said he was an ophthalmologist.
I said WOW!
I continued in other words you were a medical doctor who specialized in the diagnosis and treatment of eye diseases, including surgery. As I understand they have advanced training and can also perform more complex eye procedures than optometrists.
Richard said WOW! It was a very good summary of my profession which indicates to me that you must be highly educated.
I said not really. I did just this and that to make a living.
Richard said why don’t I believe that Mir.
Lynda said Mir is always like that. He doesn’t like to talk about what he did.
She continued – As a matter of fact he was living in Chicago in the 60’s and came to Canada in 1972 with extensive experience in computer field which qualified him to find decent jobs in Canada. For the last 25 years he had been working in various organizations in various provinces in numerous positions to help huge organizations like provincial and federal governments including bank.
Richard said what brought you folks to Las Vegas?
Lynda said we were on our way to Phoenix and just wanted to spend a couple of days here but ended up buying a house to live here.
He said it’s a very unusual move.
Lynda said we are known for doing unusual things and it worked out just fine.
Richar said WOW! He said do you mind if I asked you what you were doing in Ottawa?
I said we have a small consulting company in Ottawa, and we are helping the federal departments to use IT (Information Technology) in a meaningful way to maximize the potential in various functions across the organizations.
Ricard said that sounds an interesting challenge.
I said – you can say it again.
Richard said how did you get into this kind of business?
I said I had the basic education and training in the computers in the 60’s in Chicago which helped me to find some challenging positions in various places in Canada before we settled down in Ottawa in 1989.
Lynda said Mir had left Chicago in a hurry without completing his intended education and ended up doing his PhD in 1988 while working in Canada.
Richard said what was the area in which you did your research, Mir.
I said my PhD. Was in computer science by conducting in depth research and contributing new knowledge and the topic of my dissertation was Artificial Intelligence (AI).
Ricard said WOW! He asked if I had any opportunity to use AI?
I said unfortunately it almost appeared to be premature at this stage of the game to get any business in AI but I am sure one day there will be all kind of opportunities.
Richrd said I don’t know when but there’s a huge potential for AI and I am sure that will open lots of opportunities, Mir.
I said I don’t know, Richard. I decided to take an early retirement and spend some quality time here in Las Vegas with Lynda as she had always been accommodating to relocate and support me all along the line.
Richard said that’s seems to be an excellent plan, Mir. But I guess now we should get going as we were here for more than a couple of hours discussing all kind of things.
He said once again Laval and I welcome you two to our community and please let us know if we can be of any help to you folks.
Lynda said we need help and don’t be surprised if we call upon you.
The time we got back home, the telephone guy was waiting for us at our home.
Eventually we got all the deliveries, and Lynda managed to set up our new home exactly the way she wanted it.
The 4th of July turned out to be a very busy day. The festivities ranging from fireworks, parades and concerts to more casual family gatherings and barbecues.
At the Mountain View, Lynda and Libby went to work early at the clubhouse and the time I got there they both were totally busy in the kitchen. Cliff was trying to setup tables and decided to help him.
Folks started coming around 5 O’clock and by the 6 O’clock we were all set to start eating and everybody enjoyed fish & chips. Lynda and Libby got lots of compliments from the folks.
The time we finished around 8 O’clock, Lynda was totally exhausted, and we decided to go home.
It took a week or so for me to set the routine for each morning. I started going to the clubhouse around 7:00 in the morning, did my exercise, spent a few minutes in sauna, went into the pool for a few minutes, and spend a few minutes in the jacuzzi. when I get home around 9:00 AM, Lynda either will have breakfast ready or we will go out for breakfast as we found out that it was cheaper to eat out in Vegas than cooking for ourselves.
Lynda started enjoying Vegas a lot when she started playing machines. She was smart not to take too much money with her when she was planning to play, and it didn’t bother her if she lost a few dollars. However, if she won any money, she would offer to buy lunch or coffee.
From time to time, I used to ask her where we can live like this for the money we spent on the house, our domestic expenditure reduced considerably, and we were enjoying every single day in the sunshine.
I remember her answer – No where.
I also used to ask her if she would ever get tired of living in Vegas?
Her answer was – Never.
Lynda started a routine, too. She used to go to the clubhouse in the afternoon and there were a bunch of ladies who regularly used to come in the afternoon to spend sit in the shallow part of the pool and chat away for hours.
It suited well to Lynda as she never learned how to swim even though she loved the water. One day Lynda expressed her concern about how I would be able to sustain my interest in Vegas while I don’t gamble or drink.
I remember saying that I don’t necessarily have to drink or gamble to have fun. I continued – when you play machines, I normally walk around to look at the other things including the people how they behave while gambling or not.
She said I know that but sooner or later it will run thin then what you will be doing?
I said I will do some other things, but I am not worried.
Lynda said all your adult life you have been working with the computers, and I never ever saw you reading any non-technical book or navel.
I said I neither had time nor interest in fiction, babe.
She said that’s my point. Vegas appears to be more fictional than the reality.
I said perhaps I should explore the possibilities of starting to read some novels.
She said that will not be a bad start.
