September 1 - Summer’s on the way out, but it was still 32 in our backyard this afternoon, even though it was only 24 in the front. Go figure.

 This isn’t what happened on this day many years ago, but about something we did on a hot summer day from long long ago, when I actually drove.  

Right now I don’t drive, although I do believe I may have to start again, to be the person that frustrates Howard and Steve when they are behind the wheel, because Howard is becoming more uncomfortable driving, and I still hate transit. 

……

Alice Lake

On a hot lazy summer day last August, when everyone had a day off work (a very rare happening,) our whole family headed up to Alice Lake for an afternoon of picnic, fresh air and water fun. Now since Howard doesn't like to drive, and I don't like to drive, and I fear driving over bridges, and there were enough tall and short people to fill up three cars, of course I ended up driving, but only on the premise that I would drive behind one son and in front of the other. That way, if I took a wrong turn by ending up in the wrong lane, one would notice, and if I followed the other, hopefully there would be no wrong turns involved at all, and we would eventually get to our destination.

Driving through strange city streets isn't my favourite thing, so instead of taking in all my surroundings, I leaned forward in my seat, back ramrod straight, grabbing the steering wheel with shaking fists and never blinking, not even once. Not admiring the comfortable way Neil drove, zipping down busy streets and weaving in and out of traffic, but trusting Steve, who was behind me, to make sure he stayed glued to my rear end to prevent other cars from getting in the way when I changed lanes to zigzag the shadow left by Neil

.We finally left the city streets behind, and hit the open highway, heading north to Squamish and then to the Provincial Park at Alice Lake. Traffic thinned out, thankfully, but what traffic there was seemed to be flying by at amazing speed. Even Neil was going like a bat out of hell.

"Jeez, I'm going almost 90, what's wrong with everyone! I can't keep up with Neil!"

Howard said, "Well, the speed limit is 100, you know."

"Oh."

"Crap!" I exploded as another car zipped around and positioned itself between Neil and me.

"If I were driving, no one would get between us," Howard commented. For about the eighteenth time.

Sometimes we get heartburn from swallowing words instead of bacon, and I had to still the urge to drive off a very steep and inviting cliff. After all, my kids were watching.

And then the scenery hit, and the amazing panoramas of this beautiful land brought out the conversation between the two of us.

"Oh wow, look at that..." The mountains growing to the sky beside us, the water splashing blue and white below us, the houses like Lego blocks grabbing the hillside as it tumbled to the sea.

"Watch the road!"

"Oooooooh, look at that, I've never seen the ocean that colour! And it's the perfect mirror of the sky!

"Keep the damn car off the shoulder!"

"That must be the Chief. That's the mountain Neil used to climb, I bet it is. Wow. It's pretty high..."

"Jesus, keep the bloody car in your own lane, why don't you?"

And so on....

If I weren't driving, I would probably have yanked the gear stick out and hit him over the head with it, but I just shut up and kept all the glory surrounding us to myself, until we finally turned into the gravel parking lot and I removed my shaking limbs and love of nature from the frigid atmosphere of our car.

Alice Lake is glorious - water mirroring the sky, a tree-lined setting, snuggled between green mountains, a perfect place to spend time on a hot summer day. 

Tanner turned into a water bug, and spent most of the time bobbing on the waves with his mommy and daddy, and Lizzie was enthralled with filling both her bucket and her diaper up with sand from the beach. Chris's preference was being chased up and down the beach by his poor old nanny, who was trying, unsuccessfully, to haul his droopy wet shorts up, as they were sagging down to his knees.

Sun-burned and tired, full of egg sandwiches, chips and pop, we packed up and drove back home in the late afternoon. Howard drove home with Steve, Chris and Lizzie, and Nikkie drove home with me - a much more relaxed journey than the one that took us to the lake.