To lose one parent may be regarded as a misfortune. To lose both looks like carelessness.
Lady Bracknell, the Importance of Being Earnest by Oscar Wilde.
This vacation has not gone according to plan. Not my plan, anyway. My father did not come out of the hospital. While in there, hoping to recover from a bruised foot and back, it was discovered that his kidneys were functioning at an ever-decreasing level of effectiveness, and there was nothing anyone could do about it. He slipped away in his sleep early one morning as we were preparing to visit him.
Everything had been set up so my sister and I are joint owners of my parents’ condo, and there were surprisingly few hurdles. But oh, so many little things to take care of when you just want to sit down for a day or two and just…..grieve.
My sister had already started clearing things away when she was here after our mother’s death at Christmas time. But there were still boxes of books, bags of clothes, furniture and just stuff to give away. And boxes of photos and clippings to go through, but not now.
We are trying to get papers in hand that will allow us to sell the condo. We love it, as did our parents, but we have been coming up here for the past 40 years. There is little that Nelson, BC holds for us now.
On the plus side, we can pick up our permits at Vancouver City Hall for the laneway build. There are many fees to pay, but then we will have the permits and will get started. When I am back home this weekend we will make arrangements to meet with our designer/builder Novell to talk about the next steps.
Right now, I am being very, very kind to myself.
The Lady Who Lives Down the Lane 
Good quote Patricia. My thoughts are with you and your family. Take care and do be very kind to yourself,
Niamh.
I am very sorry to hear that you have lost your father so swiftly after your mother’s passing. That is a long way to travel for a visit that turned into something entirely different.
I hope the laneway project is a joyful reprieve from the loss of your parents and doesn’t become a burden on your energies. Looking forward to the ongoing posts about you breaking ground both literally and figuratively on the greenroof lanehouse down that lane.