My unpacking has been a complete non-starter. My main mode of storage is an embarrassingly large number of Ikea Billy bookshelves. Prior to moving, I disassembled all the bookshelves and stored the bolts and dowels in an old peanut butter jar. Then, I managed to leave the jar at Lori’s place, 600 kilometres away!

To my good fortune, Don is visiting his family this weekend, and he’s coming here tomorrow. His day-trip will bring the jar to my doorstep! Thank you, Don. I can’t wait to get my hi-fi set up. Listening to the TV through the TV speakers is dreadful. Manufacturers take such great pains to present us with beautiful images, accompanied by audio that sounds like it is delivered through the telephone.

So in preparing to send Don the directions to my place, I opened Google Maps to make sure my directions were correct. Afterward, I activated the Street View feature to see if they had updated the street-level images. I got far more than I bargained for. In new images from last summer, my mom and dad are visible in the garage:

My mom and dad often sat out front, sheltered in the shade of the garage. And there they both are. Initially, it seemed entirely normal because I’ve seen them out there many times. But of course, I quickly remembered that my father is gone, alive only in memories and photographs. It was nice to forget his absence, if only for a brief moment.