Fall Odyessy 2006

One Week in Calgary--September 5-12th, 2006

Most people have to go through it once in a lifetime, so this was my time--my time to deal with the estate of my late parents.

My parents had lived in Calgary, Alberta since Spring 1977. They had lived in their Lake Sundance house (pictured above) since February 1988. They were the original owners. By the time Mom passed away they had been in it for over 18 years. I helped frame the place in December 1987, I did all the exterior concrete work myself, and I built the garage with Dad in the summer of 1995 while I was on summer break from engineering school. Now I had to get the place ready for its' new owner.

I spent the week between September 5-12th preparing for and hosting an estate sale right at the house. I kept a few pieces of old maple furniture, a wrought iron/glass-top table set and a small collection of personal items, but the bulk of the contents was sold at the estate sale. The last thing to go was the brand new upright piano. It finally sold about two weeks after I left town having been stored temporarily at a friend's house. The items that I kept are being stored until springtime at yet another friends' house in Calgary. The new owner of the house took possession on September 15th.

There was little time for fun & games during this week. It was an emotionally draining experience. After returning to Denver I found myself somewhat paralyzed by the changes brought about by the loss of my parents. I didn't feel like diving into any kind of project yet even though I was taking steps to start up a new business at the time. I decided to take a little roadtrip instead. I had some time to kill as I waited for key events to transact to place me in my newly anticipated business setting, so I got in my car and started driving. I left Denver on September 19th and didn't return until October 19th. This month of travel became the core of my Fall Odyssey...