All it took was one trip to the Calgary Exhibition and Stampede back in the late '80s, and Barbara knew that this was the city for her, so she packed her bags and left Yellowknife, up in the Northwest Territories, the place she had called home for years.

The free spirit hasn't diminished—now, however, the place she calls home is more than just Calgary, it’s also the Coach Hill condo she purchased in 2003. Having spent years commuting to work from Springbank, where her horses are stabled, Barbara decided to have the best of both worlds: her own condo situated halfway between the country, where she rides and plays, and the city's downtown, where she works and plays.

You’d think that with the horses and the travelling and the full-time job as a production accountant at a major oil and gas company—not to mention the fish—there would be no time or energy left to consider renovations, and there wasn't, not really, which is why Barbara got help. She hired contractors, had sessions with paint consultants and long talks with window covering experts. The result is a condo that looks nothing on the inside like the one she bought nearly four years ago.

“Every wall was white,” says Barbara. “I moved in on July 1, and had painters here by the end of the month. Now, there isn't a white wall in the place.”

Not one original light fixture or plumbing fixture remains, and all the floors in the kitchen and bathrooms now have porcelain tiles. Wooden venetian blinds in the living and dining rooms are a perfect fit, and a wall was opened up to create a small eating bar in the kitchen. Contractors installed blue granite countertops, which create a dramatic effect set against the warm brown of the hand-cut Italian tiles chosen for the flooring.

Her selection of a warm, medium brown for the feature walls leaves the impression of openness; combined with alternate light and dark natural wood furniture and leather couches, there is also a feeling of comfort.

Perhaps the positive feeling comes from the feng shui of the aquariums, one in every room of the three-bedroom condo, each with superb aquascaping. But, while live fish play a big role in Barbara’s life—which is why she’s grateful that water is included in her condo fees—it’s obvious by the artwork hanging on the walls that her horses and cats are also important members of her family.

Upstairs, there is a poster of Big Ben in the spare room; on the main floor, a painting of Secretariat, signed by jockey Ron Turcotte, is proudly displayed in the living room. Over the mantle of the fireplace—which has a gas starter and burns real wood—hangs a bronze horse sculpture that shimmers under a beam from the track lighting. There is also an assortment of drawings and water colours of cats, and evidence of her very interesting life: drapes from Thailand, a Mayan mask from Mexico, carved figurines from Cuba, shells from the Caribbean.

The best part of travelling is having a place like this to come home to, but getting it almost didn’t happen. “This is the third place we saw as we were coming out of the complex,” says Barbara, who didn’t care for the design of the first two units her real estate agent had shown her. “We realized it had a different floor plan and I loved this one. Even though it was sterile, with the white walls and original fixtures and blinds, it was in good shape. So I looked at it on a Wednesday and again on the Friday, because I wanted to see if I felt the same way. I did another walk through, and thought, ‘Yep.’ “

Barbara had spent months looking at all condos for sale within a seven-kilometre radius: Patterson, Signal Hill, Glamorgan and Coach Hill. These areas were the most ideal for the commute to the stables in Springbank and the daily bus ride to work downtown. There wasn't much available in her price range, and when she bought it, she faced a financial quandary.

“As it was, between condo fees, taxes, utilities and mortgage, my expenses tripled what I had been paying for rent. I knew that I would be able to handle things on my own after the first couple of years, I had a roommate for awhile at the beginning."

The value of her condo has now doubled, and even though she has 1,400-square-feet to share with her menagerie, a garage for her car, a private patio out back and plenty of hills to run and train on, Barbara is starting to think bigger.

“This is not a place I want to keep indefinitely. Condo fees were $200 when I moved in and they have gone up every year for four years,” Barbara says. “Condo fees would be a big motivator for moving. With $300 more a month to put into a mortgage, I could buy a house.”

Whether it’s a house or another condo, Barbara is a woman on the go. As she looks around with satisfaction at all she has accomplished, the look on her face says, “My work here is done.” CL