Friday, November 30, 2012
A long day
We were up before 5:15 this morning and flew from Rochester,NY to Atlanta, Georgia. Then we spent 5 looong hours on a layover. The people at Xpress Spa were amazing. One of us (who will remain unamed) paid for a foot massage and they let all of us sit in their massaging chairs for free. Highly recommended for anyone travelling through Atlanta.
We arrived in San Antonio, Texas 20 minutes ahead of schedule but still didn't get to our timeshare until after 6. We had to navigate rush hour traffic without a GPS (it is fixed now) and very poor signs. We are all ready for bed. Hopefully tomorrow we will be able to share some more exciting pictures.
Tuesday, November 20, 2012
The most common question
As a gardener, the most common question I get asked is "What do you do in the winter?"
The answer "I keep very busy".
In no particular order are some of my winter activities.
I find the horizontal surfaces in my house buried under months of debris and dust.
I straighten out our neglected finances. This is my first year of self-employment so I will have lots of extra paperwork. But business was better than I had hoped so I am not complaining.
I actually sit down at night and watch tv. Some years I have gone 8 months without turning the tv on.
I knit.
I cook better meals. And lots of baking (which I really don't need to eat)
I rescue Connor and his new jeep.
I do puzzles. This one was harder than I expected.
I take in young German girls on work visas whose accomodations didn't work out. That leads to more cooking.
I sew.
I rescue Connor and his jeep again.
Usually I shovel lots of snow. But this year is amazingly warm.
And this year - I am excited to be getting ready for my trip to San Antonio with my mom and sisters.
Stay tuned!
The answer "I keep very busy".
In no particular order are some of my winter activities.
I find the horizontal surfaces in my house buried under months of debris and dust.
I straighten out our neglected finances. This is my first year of self-employment so I will have lots of extra paperwork. But business was better than I had hoped so I am not complaining.
I actually sit down at night and watch tv. Some years I have gone 8 months without turning the tv on.
I knit.
I cook better meals. And lots of baking (which I really don't need to eat)
I rescue Connor and his new jeep.
I do puzzles. This one was harder than I expected.
I take in young German girls on work visas whose accomodations didn't work out. That leads to more cooking.
I sew.
I rescue Connor and his jeep again.
Usually I shovel lots of snow. But this year is amazingly warm.
And this year - I am excited to be getting ready for my trip to San Antonio with my mom and sisters.
Stay tuned!
Wednesday, July 4, 2012
The best laid plans ...
While my to do list is progressing slowly (complicated by severe vertigo this morning), Kevin's plans have had to be changed.
He spent the better part of a year planning his trip. It was to be a week of adventure in the northern lakes, the highlight a visit to the castle at White Otter Lake. He emailed and researched and emailed more and bought a satellite phone and researched and printed and emailed ... The original 12 dropped to 6 (Kevin, Caitlin, Connor, Dalton and senior friends Don and Bryan). The satellite phone worked fine in the spring when he trialed it while walking the dogs in our neighbourhood. But he has had a lot of difficulty this last week. It won't sync to his phone anymore so no two way communication. It took many calls to the support centre from home and on the way up to get a sat phone that works occasionally and is not as detailed . Often no town names or roads are shown so their location comes to me as a red dot in a green forest, sometimes a red dot in a green forest with a blue lake beside. Not incredibly useful. They hit the water Saturday morning and were back at the put in Sunday afternoon (with their vehicles at the take out). One of the first portages was not passable. It was 900 m of bog up to their calves in spots and much of it blocked by a fallen tree. I was so disappointed he wouldn't get to see the castle after all that planning. They looked into Zodiac rides but ended up taking a float plane and had a great time. Dalton sent me the picture below. Kevin says "The size of it in the middle of nowhere". Cell phone coverage is spotty .
I believe they are at Sandbar Provincial Park now. Their plans change minute by minute. How did we survive without cell phones? People used to holiday across the country and you wouldn't hear from them for 2 or 3 weeks, unless they sent you a post card. Now we (I?) worry if a few hours go by. Strange just as I finished typing this I got a message from Connor that they are leaving Sandbar. He hasn't had cell coverage since leaving Thunder Bay 4 days ago! And Kevin called right after. They are going to Neys.
He spent the better part of a year planning his trip. It was to be a week of adventure in the northern lakes, the highlight a visit to the castle at White Otter Lake. He emailed and researched and emailed more and bought a satellite phone and researched and printed and emailed ... The original 12 dropped to 6 (Kevin, Caitlin, Connor, Dalton and senior friends Don and Bryan). The satellite phone worked fine in the spring when he trialed it while walking the dogs in our neighbourhood. But he has had a lot of difficulty this last week. It won't sync to his phone anymore so no two way communication. It took many calls to the support centre from home and on the way up to get a sat phone that works occasionally and is not as detailed . Often no town names or roads are shown so their location comes to me as a red dot in a green forest, sometimes a red dot in a green forest with a blue lake beside. Not incredibly useful. They hit the water Saturday morning and were back at the put in Sunday afternoon (with their vehicles at the take out). One of the first portages was not passable. It was 900 m of bog up to their calves in spots and much of it blocked by a fallen tree. I was so disappointed he wouldn't get to see the castle after all that planning. They looked into Zodiac rides but ended up taking a float plane and had a great time. Dalton sent me the picture below. Kevin says "The size of it in the middle of nowhere". Cell phone coverage is spotty .
Thursday, June 28, 2012
Empty
My house is empty.
Of other people anyway.
(There is still 2 dogs, 1 cat, 3 rats and the inhabitants of 2 aquariums)
Everyone else left this afternoon to go to The Castle at White Otter Lake. The more common version of why the hermit built a castle in the middle of nowhere is as a dowry for a wife. Impressive structure no matter why he built it. But I will content myself with pictures and the stories from my family - I am not really into portaging that much and someone has to watch the pets.
I have 10 days of solitude stretching in front of me. I was looking forward to it but it has only been a few hours and it is very quiet. I am going to try to keep busy by
- visiting my mom
- Cleaning out my truck (it is more than just a truck - it is my office too. I used to clean it every week or two but I must confess it has been months)
- working
- catch up on my gardens (if I have the energy after doing my client's gardens and if the temperature is less than 30)
- having a friend over
- doing a puzzle and/or some sewing (it isn't often my table is cleared off!)
- walking and biking the dogs
- changing Connor's sheets (normally that wouldn't be worthy of itemizing but I expect it will take days. I have to clean all the junk off one bunk then strip it and remake it. Then put all the junk from the other bed onto the clean one and strip and make the 2nd bed. Not to mention the tiptoeing between the treasures on his floor)
- catch up on my reading
- clean (hmm maybe I should do this before the friend comes over)
- blog? Would anyone like before and after shots of my truck or Connor's room?
Of other people anyway.
(There is still 2 dogs, 1 cat, 3 rats and the inhabitants of 2 aquariums)
Everyone else left this afternoon to go to The Castle at White Otter Lake. The more common version of why the hermit built a castle in the middle of nowhere is as a dowry for a wife. Impressive structure no matter why he built it. But I will content myself with pictures and the stories from my family - I am not really into portaging that much and someone has to watch the pets.
I have 10 days of solitude stretching in front of me. I was looking forward to it but it has only been a few hours and it is very quiet. I am going to try to keep busy by
- visiting my mom
- Cleaning out my truck (it is more than just a truck - it is my office too. I used to clean it every week or two but I must confess it has been months)
- working
- catch up on my gardens (if I have the energy after doing my client's gardens and if the temperature is less than 30)
- having a friend over
- doing a puzzle and/or some sewing (it isn't often my table is cleared off!)
- walking and biking the dogs
- changing Connor's sheets (normally that wouldn't be worthy of itemizing but I expect it will take days. I have to clean all the junk off one bunk then strip it and remake it. Then put all the junk from the other bed onto the clean one and strip and make the 2nd bed. Not to mention the tiptoeing between the treasures on his floor)
- catch up on my reading
- clean (hmm maybe I should do this before the friend comes over)
- blog? Would anyone like before and after shots of my truck or Connor's room?
Friday, June 1, 2012
I totally forgot that the guys went canoeing and kayaking on the bay Saturday morning before the other guests arrived. There were 5 that went but I only have pictures of two. Kevin took the pictures and I guess Connor and David were so fast that no pics were taken. Below is my brother in law Mike and Alec. We were fortunate that Alec was on a course nearby and could make it for his grandfather's birthday celebration. Alec didn't make it to the funeral so he hadn't seen most of the family for a while.
And a shot of just Alec. He hates it when I post pictures of him but I just had to. He is usually fairly somber. He doesn't smile often and you can see his pearly whites in both shots so I couldn't resist.
Wednesday, May 30, 2012
May 26th
Saturday would have been my Dad's 80th birthday. I invited the family up for a get together.
The weather was very co-operative. We played (mostly) barefoot volleyball for hours. Everyone played at one point or another - some for a few minutes, some for hours. Here it is the girls against the boys. Shortly afterward the volleyball exploded so we had to switch to badminton.
Lynda and I and the 4 "kids" went to Nancy Island. We had all been here before but the new visitor centre opened the day before so we went in for a quick look. If you are looking for something to do this summer come up while the reenactors are here. This summer is the 200th anniversary of the War of 1812 and Wasaga Beach played a vital part in the victory.
The weather was very co-operative. We played (mostly) barefoot volleyball for hours. Everyone played at one point or another - some for a few minutes, some for hours. Here it is the girls against the boys. Shortly afterward the volleyball exploded so we had to switch to badminton.
Since we were remembering my dad we had to have ice cream. We had lots of store bought but we made our own too. Lynda brought her ice cream ball. You fill the outer ball with rock salt and lots and lots of ice and fill the inner cylinder with ice cream ingredients. We used cream, sugar and my dad's homemade strawberry banana jam. It was excellent! Jenna is just about to roll the ball .
Lynda and her family stayed for 3 days since Monday is an American holiday. Us girls went horseback riding to ensure that the pain in our arms from hitting the volleyball was offset by pain in our lower bodies.
Tuesday, May 1, 2012
Overview
Day 1 - 575 km. We stopped early so we didn't have to go through Montreal at rush hour or in the dark.
Day 2 - 832 km. An enjoyable day with a few scenic detours.
Day 3 - 327 km. The picture below is a New Brunswick highway at rush hour.
Trip total - 1734 km.
Tori lives off residence in an older house with 3 others. Two friends are in the middle of moving into the basement. And all the students in town are moving out because they are leaving for the summer, finished school for good or moving onto new digs. The streets are lined with garbage (treasure as Tori terms it). They have scored 5 or 6 tvs, a foosball table, a mattress and miscellaneous little items. Their quest for a working bbq was not productive. Their living room is packed with belongings from a friend moving across the road today. It was a little too crowded for my comfort. And people wandering out all the time. I am glad to be home and glad she is enjoying herself.
Below a picture of Tori and Bonnie Blue. She has always called the vehicle that. I hope they have many safe adventures together.
In less than 2 weeks I have had 5 houseguests on 4 different occasions. I am so tired of making beds. I have driven a lot more than normal - twice to the airport and to the east coast. When I wake up in the morning my first thoughts are more jumbled than normal. Usually it starts with "Who slept over last night? Do I need to put on my housecoat before leaving the bedroom? Do I need to make breakfast for a crowd?" Then it progresses to "Am I in my own bed or at a hotel?" I am hoping for a "normal" week at work and home. Because next weekend both of our mothers are coming!
Day 2 - 832 km. An enjoyable day with a few scenic detours.
Day 3 - 327 km. The picture below is a New Brunswick highway at rush hour.
Trip total - 1734 km.
Tori lives off residence in an older house with 3 others. Two friends are in the middle of moving into the basement. And all the students in town are moving out because they are leaving for the summer, finished school for good or moving onto new digs. The streets are lined with garbage (treasure as Tori terms it). They have scored 5 or 6 tvs, a foosball table, a mattress and miscellaneous little items. Their quest for a working bbq was not productive. Their living room is packed with belongings from a friend moving across the road today. It was a little too crowded for my comfort. And people wandering out all the time. I am glad to be home and glad she is enjoying herself.
Below a picture of Tori and Bonnie Blue. She has always called the vehicle that. I hope they have many safe adventures together.
In less than 2 weeks I have had 5 houseguests on 4 different occasions. I am so tired of making beds. I have driven a lot more than normal - twice to the airport and to the east coast. When I wake up in the morning my first thoughts are more jumbled than normal. Usually it starts with "Who slept over last night? Do I need to put on my housecoat before leaving the bedroom? Do I need to make breakfast for a crowd?" Then it progresses to "Am I in my own bed or at a hotel?" I am hoping for a "normal" week at work and home. Because next weekend both of our mothers are coming!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)