I did it!

 

Conditions at 5:30 am: 10' and sunny
Expected later: 13' and mix of sun and cloud

Well, I did it! I drove my bike to work yesterday for the first time. I went in via the highway in the morning. It was okay but you have to drive at quite a speed to keep up with the traffic. I did find that a little unnerving. But when I got to town and traveled on the by-pass it wasn't so intimidating as it's two lanes. If the guy behind you wants to go faster he can just pull out around. That felt much more comfortable. When it was time to come home I took the by-pass all the way around to the Hillsborough Bridge and came up through Fort Augustus. That was much better. Once you passed Mermaid there was very little traffic. I think that will be my route of choice for both directions from now on.

I still need work on my turning and on my starting from a stopped position ie lights and stop signs. I chatted with Brenda last night and she admits that those are areas she also is a little less than confident in. She thinks, and I agree, that a little more work in the school parking lot might be a good idea for  both of us. Perhaps one evening this week might work but we'll see. The weather is looking a little iffy for the rest of the week and they are in the midst of planting right now so we may have to wait till the weekend.

I have the yellow and black one

I thought about riding again today but it's only 10' and the high is only going to 13' so I think I'll pass this morning. There will be lots of nice days over the next three months. I wasn't busy yesterday at all, so had lots of time to do other 'stuff'. I did some shopping around and found a carrier for the back of my bike. It's the bright yellow one. It was the only colour they had but it fits perfectly and will actually hold quite a bit of stuff. It also came with a cover that fits neatly over it, in the event I'm ever riding in the rain.(I can guarantee it won't be on purpose!)

Wilbur was impressed that I rode my bike to work and he went up to the parking lot and brought it down for me so he could see how the carrier attached. Now Abbey has a scooter, I have a bike and Pam also now has a scooter. Tyler came by my desk yesterday and saw the helmet sitting on the chair, and he looked at me and asked "Do you ride a bike?" When I replied that I did, he said "All the girls are getting bikes" I told him it was going to be tough to keep up with us girls!

Speaking of girls, I received something in the mail yesterday that you don't see too often anymore - a letter from a friend! Cheryl and I met in college and stayed friends over the years. She had written to me when I moved here and we want to make sure we don't lose that connection after so long. It was really nice to hear from her and she mentioned that she keeps up with my via this blog. That makes me really happy because it's nice to know someone is interested enough to check once in a while and see what you're up to.

Well, I'd best be off and get ready for work as I'm a little behind schedule this morning.

It was a great weekend

 

Conditions at 5:15 am: 17' and overcast
Expected later: 22' and a mix of sun and cloud

Finally some decent weather on the weekend for a change. Friday after work I went for a beer with a few people from work. We didn't stay late, just one beer and then we were on our way but it was nice to get together in a social setting. There was me, the service manager and his daughter, who's working for us for the summer, one of the mechanics and the guy who looks after moving cars around the lot. I think we plan to make it a regular Friday night event for who ever wants to come out.

Saturday was quite overcast in the morning but cleared up somewhat as the day went on. When I got home from work, I cut some more grass. I'm still not finished, as I have the cutting around the trees to do with the push mower and hopefully I can get to that tonight. It was very calm on Saturday evening so I built a fire and burned some of the large pile of branches that have been sitting at the side of the house since last year. One more fire should finish it off. I would have stayed out later doing it on Saturday but the black flies got he better of me.

1/2 of the Lobster Eggs Benedict

Lifting the boats into the water

Sunday was predicted to be a nice warm and sunny day so Brenda and I planned to make the most of it. I worked on my weaving until she got back from church. I then went to her place and we headed out on our bikes. We drove back roads all the way as there's not as much traffic and we can just take out time and enjoy the scenery.  We were on our way to Georgetown but on our way through Cardigan, Brenda noticed a crane by the river. So we went instead to the restaurant that overlook the river and watched them putting the sailboats into the water. It's quite an interesting process to see them lift the whole boat up with the crane and put it into the water, then lift the mast with the crane as well and put it in place. We had a lovely breakfast - Lobster Eggs Benedict. It was really quite good. At first I wasn't sure about the combination of eggs and lobster but after a couple of bites, it worked. It just wasn't a flavour combination I've experienced before. After breakfast we took a walk down to the dock to watch for a while then we hit the road again.

We continued on to Montague and made a quick stop at my friend Donna's. From there we planned to head back but part way home we realized that Brenda was running very low on gas and the closest place was to go back to Montague. After gassing up we headed back towards home again. We drove down some very pretty roads with wonderful scenery that I've not been on before.  We didn't go that far but we managed to go a little over 100 kms.

I took my bike home and Brenda went home and we both got ready to go kayaking. She picked me up shortly after we got home and we headed to the Johnson River. This was our first time out on the water this year. It was still lovely and warm with a bit of a breeze. We saw the largest beaver dam I've ever seen in my life. There were two together and one was huge. You have to give these little animals credit for the hard work they do.

We didn't go too far but managed to be out about an hour and a bit. We headed back to the bridge as the wind had picked up and it was going to be difficult going and quite frankly we were both a little tired. So we loaded up the boats, dropped Brenda's at her house and I picked up my car. We got back here and had some nachos and salsa and a glass of wine. After she left I sat outside for a little while and read my book then came in and had a nice warm, relaxing bath. It was a little too relaxing I think because I went to bed at 8:30 and slept till the alarm went off at 5:00.

This morning is overcast but warm and it's going to get warmer so I think I might actually tackle taking my bike to work this morning. Wish me luck!

Sorry I missed it

Conditions at 5:30 am: 14' and breezy and clear
Expected later: 21' and sunny with rain expected later

Yesterday I received this email from Lloyd.

It is not often that I take a lunch break at work. I usually grab something on the run. Yesterday I received  a lunch invitation from a lovely young lady to a French restaurant with a New Orleans flair in Guelph, . How could I refuse. This worked out perfectly, as I was in Niagara Falls for the morning and the next service call was in Guelph. I arrived at 12:00 , greeted in French by my young server, and shown to my table. A few minutes later my lunch date arrived and she joined me at the table. I started with crevettes et saucisses gumbo, then jambalya avec des saucisses et des crevettes, and finally tarte à la patate douce, une beignet, une praliné, et un café. I had an absolutely wonderful time. Sorry you missed it.

Le Menu

Love you,

Lloyd

Lloyd's lunch date with their young server. Love the Hat!

I knew the Montessori School was doing a French Cafe but I had no idea the menu was so extensive. Patti had called me the day before because they were having trouble with the Pralines. She wondered if they hadn't cooked them long enough and I suggested that was the exact problem. She told me yesterday that after getting a candy thermometer and giving them a second try, they turned out perfectly. It sounds like a great time was had by all and I wish I could have been there.  I love the fact that the school does things like this that gives the kids a real opportunity to use the French that they're learning in a fun way and also exposes them to new foods and new experiences. Both James and Meghan love helping in the kitchen so I know they would have really enjoyed this one. As usual, James has added his own flair to the position of server. He's developing quite the sense of style for someone so young. He's willing to try quirky new things and not just mimic what everyone else is doing. It  looks like it was a very fun day and Patti sent me an email later telling me that everything turned out great and the kids really liked the Jambalaya so we'll have to make that the next time they come to visit. I suspect that Patti had a hand in planning the menu as we had been to a cooking school in New Orleans many years ago and they did a lot of these dishes there. Goes to show you just never know when a previous experience might come in handy!

Quite the contrast

Conditions at 5:30 am: 3' and a few clouds

Expected later: 18' and sunny

How exactly does one dress on a day like today? It's really cold in the morning and going to be quite warm in the afternoon. Gives the concept of layering a whole new meaning.

It will be nice to see the sun and have some warmth. The leaves are starting to come out on the trees and will soon be out in full. Right now I can still see through the branches on either side of the property when I look out the window, but in another week or so it will be like a secluded little oasis, where when I look out my side windows, all I see is greenery. 

I have to admit I did nothing last night. I did make some salad for my lunches and some granola bars for my morning snacks, and other than that I just vegged. I was quite tired but didn't want to go to bed too early or I'd be up way to early again and the cycle would just keep continuing. So I managed to stay up until my normal bed time and had a great nights sleep. My day yesterday was quite busy so that helped immensely.

Now today is going to be sunny and warm so I will get outside when I get home this afternoon and do some much needed work out there. I still have a fence wire that needs to be buried and more grass to cut. And of course, I also have wood to start splitting. My only dilemma will be what to do with it. I usually stack it as I split it but that's not ready yet so I suppose I will just pile it behind the shed for now until Lloyd's comes back in a month or so.

I dropped into DBL Dream Machines yesterday and picked up a couple of short sleeved T-shirts to wear to work in the summer. Okay, they're Honda motorcycle shirts but at least they say Honda on them. Those customers who drive motorcycles will know we don't sell or carry motorcycle stuff and those who don't ride won't know the difference so "it's all good!" I didn't see any bags like the one Brenda has on the back of her bike but Lloyd is going to look at a place he goes to in Kitchener. They may have something there and because it's not any particular dealer, they might have something generic that won't be as expensive as those items that have the brand name on them. Makes no difference to me if it says 'Honda' on it or not.

One of our salesmen had his 65th birthday yesterday so Pam asked me to go to Dairy Queen in the afternoon and pick up an ice cream cake. I've never tasted a Dairy Queen ice cream cake before and now I totally understand why it's Greg's favorite cake. It was quite delicious. Pam says her two daughters love those and that's all they get for special celebrations. Now I know why. 

Can't believe it's Thursday already and so far the weather forecast for Sunday is warm and sunny. Let's keep our fingers crossed that continues. Our only dilemma now on Sundays will be trying to decide just what to do.

I had quite a lengthy chat yesterday afternoon with a customer who was interested in the fact that I have a kayak. It's something he's been wanting to try but was reluctant to spend the money they want at Sporting Intentions in case he didn't like it but was afraid to buy a less expensive model in case it wasn't up to the task. I told him we both have the less expensive models and have a great time with them. He was asking all kinds of questions and it will be interesting to see if he does go ahead and get one. I highly recommended it to him as it's been a great source of enjoyment for both Brenda and I.

Feels like old times!

I dropped Lloyd off at the airport this morning and then headed downtown for coffee at Timothy's. I had thought about just staying at the airport and doing my blog from there until time to go to work, as I was so close, but decided against that one. As I drove around the corner and came up to the coffee shop, it felt so familiar even though it will soon be a year since that was my usual routine. So now I'm sitting at my usual table, typing away on my computer, and Lloyd is on his way back to Toronto. As has become the norm, it's raining lightly outside, but the wind has died down and it's not as cool as yesterday was. With any luck, we may see some sunshine this afternoon. I just might be able to get outside and do some more grass after all.

We had a good visit but once again, there were too many jobs and too little time. But some major ones got done. I now have a big pile of wood that needs splitting but that will allow me to spend some quality time outside working on my tan! I have a lawn mower that is fixed, and a new window in my back door that has a screen that can be opened. Does it get any better than that?

Last night Lloyd picked me up and we went to the Merchantman for supper then stopped in at the Van Gaals on the way home to look for rims for the truck. We had tea with Bernie and Brenda before heading home to do the laundry so Lloyd would have clean clothes to take back with him. We watched a couple of programs on the TV while waiting for the dryer and before we knew it the time was 11:00. Way past my usual bed time.  I must have been afraid I was going to sleep past the 4:30 alarm because I fell asleep and a little while later I woke up. I felt I'd been asleep for quite some time but when I looked at the alarm, it was 11:23. That couldn't be right. I figured I must have hit something when I was setting the alarm. So I got up and checked the clock in the other room and sure enough, it was correct. I think I woke up every half hour after that. Needless to say I will sleep well tonight.

Yesterday was a very quiet day, lets hope today is the same, but then again, it might be better to keep really busy as the day will go by faster. 

It was a productive weekend in spite of the weather

Conditions at 5:20 am: 7' and overcast
Expected later: 20' with some sun and some isolated showers


It would have been nice to have some of these nice mild temperatures on the weekend, but unfortunately that was not the case. Although it was good for people working, such as those cutting wood.
Friday was a quiet evening. We had supper, BBQ steak and garlic mashed potatoes and salad with a lovely bottle of Australian Shiraz. After supper we went over to the Van Gaals to pick up the Sizzix for a project I planned to work on at work on Saturday. We had tea and muffins with Brenda, as Bernie was out at his firearms course, in preparation for a hunting trip he's taking in the fall to Newfoundland.


Saturday morning was cool and wet. In fact it poured rain on my way into town. I completed my project at work and it made the day go by very quickly.  At 2:00 I met Lloyd and Brenda at the Globe for the Saturday afternoon blues. Fortunately Bernie's course wrapped up much earlier that any of us had expected so was able to join us quite soon after. A great time was had by all - lots of food and a few drinks and some great music - what a great way to pass an otherwise dull Saturday afternoon.

A job well done 

While we were there, plans were made for Lloyd to join the boys on a bike trip to Sussex, NB on Sunday. When we got home Lloyd got his bike out only to discover the brakes were not working properly. Probably just as well as the license was expired, as was the insurance. But never fear, Bernie called at 7:00 on Sunday morning to advise he had a bike Lloyd could use. So off he went at 7:30, wrapped up like an Eskimo in multiple layers of clothing in an attempt to keep warm. It was quite chilly and promised to get up to 10' so they were optimistic. Around lunch time, I went over to Brenda's as it had warmed up a little bit and we got our bikes out and headed into town. I needed a couple of things at the grocery store so we went to Stratford, got what I needed, the stopped at Phinley's for a tea and a snack. The we made our way back home but by the time we got here, it was mighty cold. We did go up to the Anderson's when we got back but it didn't appear that anyone was home.We returned to Brenda's parked the bikes, and I went home, where I indulged in a nice warm bath, followed by a nap. I was just lounging around watching TV when Lloyd got home, around 8:00.  I was surprised that he found it not such a bad day weather wise and he really enjoyed himself and had a great day.


Monday morning was at least sunny. Still not very warm but at least it was more pleasant to be out if you were dressed for it. Lloyd continued cutting wood and I cut the grass - or at least

Good food, good friends, good times!

attempted to. Unfortunately part way through the belt on the mower started to smoke and was no longer usable. So I did the grass around the house with the push mower and Lloyd will try to replace the belt today. We also had a couple of guys come out to look at the truck. They took it for a ride and decided to buy it, just like that. So that was one more thing accomplished. Brenda and Bernie were coming over for supper so I spent the afternoon doing prep and tidying up. They came over around 7:30 and we had a nice time with them. We started out with some Oyster Crostini, little rounds of toasted bread brushed with olive oil, topped with melted camembere cheese and a broiled oyster and strips of red pepper. They were quite tasty. Our main course was sort of my take on  Surf and Turf. I looked up the recipe for Lobster Thermidor and found it was really quite easy. So we had grilled Beef Tenderloin steaks, half a lobster stuffed with lobster meat mixed with a creamy sauce and topped with Gruyere cheese, then broiled. We also had a rice pilaf and nice fresh fiddle heads that Lloyd had made a special trip to the farmer's market to obtain. All in all it was quite tasty. Dessert was a strawberry cheesecake turnover we saw in the Canadian Living Magazine. It didn't look quite a fancy as the picture on the cover of the magazine but it was pretty tasty.

All in all, a great weekend in spite of the weather. 


(sorry but I'm having some technical difficulties this morning and the text is all messed up, but at least it's done and it's readable and I've run out of time to try and figure out what I've done wrong!)

It was glorious

Conditions at 5:30 am: 14' and overcast
Expected later:  21' and isolated showers

What a wonderful day yesterday, It met and exceeded everyone's expectations. After so much rain and dreary weather it was so great to have a really warm, sunny day. Everyone was just so upbeat yesterday,
Typically Thursdays are the quietest day of the week but both last Thursday and yesterday were very busy. I put  200 kms on the car yesterday and I never left town. That's a lot of trips back and forth.

After work, I stopped at the grocery store to pick up a couple of things. While shopping my phone rang and it was Brenda. They had decided to go to Morell for supper on their bikes and were inviting me to join them. I asked when they were leaving and she said, as soon as you get here. So I quickly checked out and headed up the road. But then I thought about it and it was going to be a while till I got home and changed and got over to their place. In the end I told them to go ahead and I would just meet them there in the car. So that's what I did. I got just about a minute ahead of them. The restaurant has new owners and has apparently undergone a complete make over. It's quite lovely inside, they've done a really nice job. But there are a few bugs still to work out. There seemed to be adequate staff but the food took quite a long time to arrive. When it did, the two burgers that were ordered were missing some of the advertised ingredients - bacon and red onion. When asked about it they were brought out on small side plates but the burgers were half eaten by that time. On the plus side, Brenda and I chose to split a club sandwich, and they put split the order in the kitchen, putting half on two plates. That was a nice touch. We don't know how long they've been open but it doesn't appear to have been very long. I suppose to be fair, we really should give them a bit more time and then try it again.

I went out to the airport to pick Lloyd up last night only to discover that his flight was delayed about 20 minutes. I had taken Cooper with me so we just walked around outside until I heard the plane come in. Because dogs are not allowed inside, I tied him to a sign post just outside the door. I went inside and people were just coming in off the plane. Just as I saw Lloyd coming towards the door, the dog came rushing inside, Turns out he had pulled hard enough on the rope to break the snap. So I was down on the floor trying to contain said dog and as Lloyd approached I could see him looking all over for me. I stuck up my hand and said, "I'm down here" at which point the dog went really nuts trying to jump all over. Needless to say, it drew quite a chuckle from the other travelers.
So that was our excitement for the evening, On the way home, Lloyd asked "Did you see Chef Michael?" I asked where was he, and Lloyd said he was on the flight. In my efforts to contain one wiggly dog, I missed that. And someone that tall is pretty hard to miss in a crowd!

Bring on the warmth

Conditions at 5:00 am: 8' and a some cloud
Expected later: cloudy and 21'

What a difference it makes now that it's stopped raining, if only for a couple of days. Everyone I drove yesterday (and there were lots) was so happy it had finally stopped raining. It really does affect your state of mind. I heard that in the past 31 days, we had rain on 29 of them. No wonder everyone was getting so depressed. Now everyone is just talking about the fact it's going to be so warm today. Let's hope it really happens.

When I got home last night, I started up the lawn mower and tackled the grass out in the back. It felt so good to be able to get outside and do something. Unfortunately the belt slipped off the mower again. I'm thinking now that maybe it wasn't my fault the last time cause this time I didn't do anything to it. I was just cutting the grass and then it stopped cutting. Good thing Lloyd arrives tonight. Unfortunately it's supposed to rain on Friday and Saturday so it will have to wait until Sunday and Monday. But at least he'll be here in case it happens again. We'll have to find out why that keeps happening because I sure don't know how to put it back on.

Some things in this world just make you shake your head in amazement. I have a credit card for a department store that I have used once. It seems when I paid it at least a year ago, I overpaid by 36 cents. I got a statement in the mail a week ago showing that they had put a transaction through of 36 cents to bring it to a zero balance. Made sense to me.  Then yesterday I received another envelope in the mail from the credit card company which appears to be now based out of Atlanta,  Georgia and inside was a cheque for 36 cents. It cost them 80 cents in postage to mail it from Atlanta, not to mention the cost involved in processing a cheque. I know these things are likely computer generated but you would think the people who write these programs would be able to come up with something that would delete these small transactions. But then again, I suppose they make enough in interest to more than cover these types of things. Just seems pretty ridiculous to me.

Lloyd arrives at 11:35 tonight (hopefully). Standby is usually such a gamble but so far it's looking good. I'll be working the first two days he's here and if it rains, I suppose he'll just have to relax for a couple of days. That's not a bad thing.

A happy coincidence

Conditions at 5:15 am: 3' and very foggy
Expected later: cloudy and 13'

One happy puppy

Well, what a difference in temperatures. When I got home on Monday afternoon, the temperature in the house was 57' F as I hadn't lit a fire in the morning. Poor Cooper was very grateful when I started a fire after getting home. Yesterday morning, he went out for a couple of minutes then
he was right back inside and lying in front of the wood stove. I made sure there was plenty of wood in it when I left  so he'd be warm for the day.  By the afternoon, the rain had stopped and it had warmed up a little bit and the sun actually came out.  Hopefully it will start really warming up soon and we won't need a fire quite so often. But I do find when it gets really rainy for days at a time the house gets damp and a fire helps dry things up and makes it comfy and cozy.

Yesterday afternoon I left the dealership around 4:30 to go out and pick something up at the sign shop. As I was turning onto Belvedere, there was a truck stopped at the light and the driver was waving at me. When I took a second look I realized it was Brenda. So I called her cell phone and asked what she was doing in town at that time of the day. Turns out she had come in for a hair cut and to run some errands. I suggested that if she was still in town at 5:30 perhaps we could meet somewhere for an appetizer and a beer. She thought that would be a wonderful idea so we met at the Globe and enjoyed some nachos and a beverage. What a great way to end a Tuesday workday!

I got a very cute email from Meghan(2) yesterday.

Hi grandma its me meghan. Today was my science fair at school. I chose Fight a Fire. Baking soda and vinegar make carbondioxide,wich replaces the o2 so fire can only burn with o2. So that is my project


I love the fact that she spelled words like 'vinegar' and 'carbondioxide' correctly and got 'which' wrong.I'm sure mom helped with the spelling and she probably only asked how to spell the trickier words. Well done Meg, I just learned something new. Now if I ever have a fire I know how to put it out with things I have in my own kitchen.


Only one more sleep till Lloyd gets here!

Another gray day

Conditions at 5:15 am: 10' and rainy
Expected later: 10' and rainy

Everyone is getting so tired of cold, wet weather. That's about all everyone I've been driving lately talks about. But then once we get chatting about it, we start talking about weather and conditions in other parts of the world and we agree, we really shouldn't be whining because we still have it pretty good. But a bit of sun would be nice. They are predicting sunny and 17' for Thursday so let's hope they are at least close with that one.

I've been following our friends Mike and Carol's blog. They did a trip down through the US in their camper. They did a total of 6,240 miles in three weeks. They enjoyed some quality time with their son and his family and had a great trip. One of the really annoying aspects of the trip was that they rushed home because Mike has a job at Neustedt brewery and had to be back at work. But when they returned they found that the brewery had hired someone else to replace Mike. The kicker was that they posted the job the day that Mike and Carol left on holidays. Talk about unfair!  Had they had any idea, they could have spent more time with their family, as there would have been no reason to hurry back.

I got lovely emails from Lina and Jolene yesterday. I sent them a message to let them know that Lina's camera card was in the mail and Jolene had left a pair of shoes here. I told them Brenda also says Hi. These are the replies I received:

Oh Sandy , what can I say?  Thank you for such great hospitality!  You really outdid yourself.  The food was great, the company was fantastic, but best of all – your friendship was as always amazing!!!!

I loved your house and the scenery and I hope to someday return for a few more days of R & R.

Thanks again from the bottom of my heart.

PS….remember you are up earlier than I, so I will enjoy reading your blog while I am having my daily coffee.

Miss you already!

Lina

Hi Sandy, we missed you as soon as you left us in Moncton!  Thanks for the info about my running shoes; however, they were only $20.00 and I do have other pairs here so you need not worry about returning them to me.  I will be sure to follow your blog to see what is happening ‘on the island’.  Thanks so much for your loving hospitality.  Hi right on back to Brenda!  

Jolene

 It was such a pleasure to host the two of them for a couple of days and I sincerely hope they return again. I haven't heard yet how the conference went, but I'm sure a great time was had by all. Hopefully the next time they visit, it will be a little warmer and much dryer!

It's very relaxing when you have nothing pressing to do!

Conditions at 5:15 am: 4' and overcast
Expected later: what else - rain and 6'

I guess I should be grateful it was a cool, wet weekend as it meant I couldn't do any outside work. It really needs it but what can you do! So instead I made the most of it and had a totally relaxing weekend. I worked on Saturday and came home right after, as Benny was delivering the wood that day. He was here when I got home, the wood was unloaded and he was waiting for me. After I paid him and he left, I came inside, made myself some lunch and watched a bit of TV while I ate it. Then I sat down and did some weaving for a while when Brenda called and invited me over for lobster rolls for supper. What a treat! I had an hour until time to go so I managed to put together a small potato salad and I had a mandarin orange cake in the freezer so I took that out as well. I was ready to go just in time and had a lovely evening - great food and even greater company. Of course I had to call Lloyd and 'complain' that I was having lobster...... again - for the fourth time this week. He was not amused!  But he was going to have great fun telling the boys at the airport!  After supper Brenda showed me a picture of a cake Meghan(1) made for her friend who's getting married this summer. She did a beautiful job on it. Nice work, Meghan.

Sunday morning, guess what, it was cold and rainy again.  I slept in a little, and after having coffee, I sat down and did some more weaving. I really haven't had any stretches of time to sit down and work at it. While I worked away on that I turned on a TV program I'd taped the night before. It was a musician I'd never heard of in concert at the Royal Albert Hall in London. I really just taped it because Eric Clapton was going to be a guest. Well, let me tell you, this fellow was amazing. His name is Joe Bonamassa and he's a brilliant blues singer. I've never heard of him but he's great. I will be looking for some of his music. So it was great to listen to while I worked away at the loom. When that was over I put on the McCartney video I won off the Macca Radio site quite a while ago and still haven't watched. Another great bit of music to weave to!

Ready to come out of the oven

In between weaving I had a half a batch of bread on the go as well. I've not tried to do half before and it worked out very well. I ended up with 7 loaves for the weekend coming up. Lloyd will be happy as he had asked if I was going to make any before he got here.

When the bread was all done, it was time for a wee nap. What else are rainy Sunday afternoon's better suited for? Fortunately my friend Brenda called me and woke me up as I'd been asleep for a couple of hours. She was letting me know that the tulips down the road were now uncovered.

So, I got the dog and we went for a short ride down the road. Even though it was overcast and cool there were still cars there. I could see several people way down in the field and there was a van parked near the road. A woman was sitting in it and two little kids, about James and Meghan's ages, were walking up from the field with their arms full of tulips and the mother got out and opened the back of the van for them to put the flowers in and then she sent them out to get more. I couldn't believe it. Anyway, I took some pictures and I left. It really is quite the sight to see.

Tulips as far as the eye can see

After tulip viewing, I came home and spent the rest of the evening catching up on some programs I had recorded earlier in the week. Those opportunities are about to come to a screeching halt as just about everything I watch on a regular basis is having their season finale this week so the weather better warm up soon so I can work outside. That will be the end of quality TV until the fall.

Wasn't that a party!

Well, after a couple of days of technical difficulties, one day on my part, and today with the Blogger site,  I am a little behind in my posting. Here is  what I typed up yesterday and wasn't able to publish until this afternoon (Friday).

First time ever to shuck an oyster

Well, the girls are now safely in Moncton but what a great time we had. Tuesday we headed out to explore but the weather was cold and windy. We first went over to Lakeside Beach just so we could say we went to the beach. It was very cold and windy and the beach is really a mess. It is littered with rocks where parts of the sand dunes used to be. The damage is quite extensive. From there we went into town and visited the Weavers Guild as I needed to pick up some yarn from Sheila. She showed us around and we got to see what everyone was working on. I think they really enjoyed it and found it quite fascinating. It's a much different picture than what I have on my little loom at home. From there we headed over to Peakes Quay and because there was a cruise ship in town, some of the shops were open so they found some appropriate items to take home with them. By  now we were hungry so we went up the street to the Gahan House and enjoyed a bowl of chowder and a beer. A visit to the COWS out on North River Road for ice cream completed our meal. Jolene had forgotten her insulin but was able to contact the pharmacy at Walmart and they could give it to her as they could access her records in Ontario. While she did that, I picked up some cough syrup for my persistent cough and Lina picked up some anti-inflammatory drugs. Jolene was trying to come up with a name for each of us dilapidated old chicks and we finally settled on "Snap, Crackle and Pop".
Unfortunately our plan to pick up lobster from the boat didn't quite work out due to Mother Nature. I called John and he advised he didn't go out because of the high winds so we had to resort to plan B. I had called MR Seafood and they had lobsters so after leaving Walmart we headed over there. Unfortunately by the time we got there, they were sold out. So we picked up our oysters and mussels there and went to the Water Prince for our lobsters.

I've got the biggest one!

After we got home, Jolene went to have a nap, while Lina was fighting with Power Point to try to work out some glitches with a presentation she had to make at CDC. Eventually it all worked out and it was soon time for supper. Brenda arrived as did Donna. We started our feast with Mussels, and while they steamed we had lessons on shucking oysters. Donna provided us with another way of eating them. She rolls them in cracker crumbs and then fries them in butter. They were equally delicious and more palatable for those who could not eat them raw. After our mussels and our oysters, then it was on to lobster. By the time we were finished we were VERY full. Dessert was a light Rhubarb Bavarian. Of course our dinner was occasionally interrupted by text messages from other IAAP members. Seems they took some offense to our emailed photos of our feast!  It was a great evening and a good time was had by all. Thanks to Donna for a delicious potato salad and to Brenda for the scrumptious home made rolls. Both items were a resounding hit!
Wednesday morning we got up and had a leisurely breakfast of grilled lobster sandwiches on home made bread. They were delicious and a great way to use up the leftover lobster.
After breakfast we got packed up and headed to Moncton after first stopping at the Anne of Green Gables Chocolate store for some chocolate chips that a girl in Ontario had requested.
We then headed to Summerside and had no trouble finding Gentleman Jims. Lina had been there about 6 years ago with a friend and enjoyed it so we had lunch there.
After lunch, we headed to New Brunswick. The weather continued gray and drizzly, not to mention cold and windy. We drove through Shediac and took a picture of the big lobster then continued on. We had no trouble finding the Delta and unpacked the girls bags and got them checked in. When we got to the room, there was a message from Nancy to come and have a glass of wine, so unpacking would have to wait for a while. (We are Grand River, after all, and our reputation has been well earned!) When we got to Nancy's room, she was feeling rather poorly but insisted we stay and have a drink. After chatting for a while it was time to go and register. We went to the registration desk and the girls who were attending the PUB CRAWL that night were given Tshirts with Pub Crawl 2011 on the front and 'Please crawl responsibly" on the back. Shelley, from the Moncton chapter gave me a shirt (in hopes I might join their chapter). Once everyone was there we headed out for supper at a Mexican Restaurant across from the hotel. There were quite a number of us and a great time was had by all.

The whole crew!

After supper, we got together for a group picture and then it was time for me to leave. It felt strange to be at CDC and not staying but instead I headed down the road, after many hugs and good byes from the Grand River girls.  My trip home was uneventful, and I got home around 10:30.  It was a busy few days but a great time with some old friends.

Oops - forgot it was Tuesday

Conditions at 10:15 am: 6 ' and light rain
Expected later: 7' and light rain

We missed our window of opportunity. Half an hour ago it was still dry outside but now that we are almost ready to go out it's started raining. Oh well, it is what it is. I got up early this morning, around 6:00 and totally forgot it was Tuesday. It was only after the girls got up that I remembered  I needed to do a post for today.

The girls arrived at noon yesterday and spent the afternoon touring around the mall and the city. It was cold and wet so there really wasn't much they could do. They arrived back at Honda at 5:00 and sat and read the  paper until I was done at 5:30. We decided to go to the Old Dublin and we met Brenda there. After a delicious supper of Beef Tenderloin we all headed home. We got back here, unloaded the car and then broke open the wine. We spent the remainder of the evening sitting at the table in the kitchen chatting. By 10:00 they were both pretty tired as they'd been up since 4:00 am.

Jolene and Lina at Breakfast - all in our jammies!

After a good nights sleep, they both woke up around 8:00 and had each had a wonderful sleep. I was up earlier and had put a Ham and Cheese Strata together to put in the oven while we had coffee. When it was ready we took a picture of me serving it and Lina sent it to several IAAP members and it didn't take long for the replies to start coming in - some very kind, others accusing us of being just mean and cruel! We laughed so much as we read the emails that came in as a steady stream.

Now it's 10:30 so time to head out and see what we can see today. I'll be checking soon with the lobster fisherman and hope that it's not too windy today to catch lobsters!

Happ Mother's Day ..... to me!

Conditions at 5:15 am: light rain and 4'
Expected later: more rain and 8'

What a great weekend!  I finished most of my list of jobs on Saturday afternoon and Sunday morning so I was able to go out and play on Sunday afternoon. I went over to Brenda's around 11:30 to polish bikes. It was actually a really nice way to pass the time. It was a bit cool outside but we were inside Bernie's shop and he has lifts to raise the bikes up so you can sit down on a stool and work. He also has all kinds of products that do amazing jobs of cleaning the chrome and painted surfaces. Oh, by the way, did I mention that I now have a bike of my own?  Lloyd told me "don't let Bernie talk you into buying a Harley" but he didn't tell me I couldn't buy a Honda from someone else! It's just a little 250 Honda but it's a place to start. I got it for what I think was a good price and it will give me a feel for if I really like it or not, and if I will actually use it. If I do, I can sell it next year probably for what I paid for it, and move to something slightly bigger. If I don't like it, or use it, I can still sell it next year and get my money back. It's an '83 and it has 26,000 kms. on it.

Bernie had his bike detailed on Saturday. There's a guy who comes in and spends 12 hours cleaning and polishing the bike. He takes it all apart and it's absolutely gleaming when he's done. And he does it for an impossibly good price. So Bernie worked on another bike while Brenda and I each worked on our own. Mine looked pretty rough when we brought it into the shop but it came up beautifully. The wheels are all shiny and the tiny specks of rust that were all over the fenders are gone and it looks great. We spent about 3 hours cleaning and by then it had warmed up a little bit. So off Brenda and I went. We headed over to Donagh school to drive around the parking lot for a while. I have to say my exit out of Bernie's driveway was less than graceful but I was still on two wheels so it was all good. Once we got to the school and spent about half an hour tootling around, it was time to head out on the road. So we took the back road into Stratford and went to Robins for coffee. We called and left a message for Bernie to join us but he still wasn't there by the time we were ready to leave, so we headed for home. He passed us on Fort Augustus Road heading into town, so he turned around and came back. He said the two of us looked pretty good out there on the open road. My starting and stopping still need a little work but for the most part it was good. I didn't feel tense at all and I felt very comfortable on my little bike. This just might work. Now we've already started planning little jaunts we can take on our bikes. Once I get really comfortable on it, I can take it to work and save a lot of money on gas over the summer.

When we got back to the Van Gaals, the three kids were there and made a lovely supper for Mother's Day. Fortunately for me, I was invited to stay. They did a great job -  BBQ steak and Pork Chops, potatoes, corn and a salad. It was really delicious and a wonderful way to finish off a really great day.

After supper we went down Dromore Road where Vanco have their tulips planted but they are all covered with white sheeting. The flowers are blooming but you just can't see them. In the next day or two they will probably be taking the covering off and snipping off the tulips so we'll have to keep a close watch on them.
When I got home, I finished up a couple of things around the house and now I'm all set for my guests to arrive this afternoon.

Another hopeless romantic

Conditions at 5:15 am: 8' and overcast
Expected later: 12' with a mix of sun and cloud and maybe some isolated showers

Early in the week they predicted lots of rain for Wednesday, Thursday and Friday and fortunately that hasn't happened. We did get some rain yesterday but nothing too significant. Now I see they are predicting rain for most of next week. Again I hope they are wrong as I'd like a bit of nice weather on Tuesday when I'm driving Jolene and Lina around the area. But we'll see. They were predicting a sunny and mild Sunday as well and now they are saying 11' and rain so again, hopefully they will be wrong.

Well, I think I met a fellow yesterday who's an even bigger romantic than Lloyd. I wasn't sure that was possible but I now believe it is. His name is David and he's from Sydney, Australia. Of course I had to ask, what would bring someone all the way from Sydney to PEI. It turns out he was in the Australian military and had travelled all over the world. He was in the US and took some time to visit his brother who lives in Chicago. His mom was there as well, visiting from Australia and she was on her way to PEI. Apparently she had been a big fan of Anne of Green Gables her whole life and wanted to visit the island. Since she was 88 years old she figured she should do it sooner rather than later. Various things transpired and the person who was supposed to accompany her to the island wasn't able to, and the only one available was David. He didn't even know where PEI was. Being in the military he was only geographically aware of the 'hot spots' of the world.

So he and his mother made the trek to PEI. They toured around and visited all the required Anne sites and numerous craft shops. She had a list as long as her arm of things that she wanted to take home for her children and grandchildren. They went into a shop and the woman in the shop took the list and found something appropriate for everyone on it. David described piles and piles of stuff being taken out the car, some of which would have to be shipped ahead of them. He was very taken with the positive attitude of the people here and how friendly and helpful this woman was. He chatted with her and they exchanged phone numbers and email addresses. He corresponded with her for quite some time but was not entirely sure about where things stood. Finally he took a huge leap of faith and sent her a dozen red roses and an open ended ticket to Australia. She could come (if she chose) and stay as long as she liked (or even for just one day). She got lots of flack from her friends - half said it was the chance of a lifetime and just go, and the other half was sure he was an axe murderer. In the end she did go, and stayed with David's parents for two weeks while they got to know each other a little better. Now they are back here, and have been for seven years, married with three children. Talk about your fairy tale ending.

Those are the kind of stories I love hearing while I'm driving around the city. I should really keep better track of them because a lot of them are very interesting.

Conditions at 5:15: 12' and overcast
Expected later: rain this afternoon and 16'

Yesterday turned out absolutely beautiful. It was so nice to just get up from my desk and go outside without having to stop and put on a jacket. We've waited a long time for a day like that. It gives us hope that more days like that are on the way.

Well, the plane is finally getting somewhere. I talked to Lloyd yesterday and the work they've done was reinspected and they can now go ahead and cover it and then put in the engine. The next inspection will be when it's ready to fly. He has hopes that it might be done by the end of the summer but his little plane is also ready to be flown and unfortunately if they get a nice day, they will all want to go flying, rather than staying inside and working on the other one. But I suppose if he brought the little one down here, that temptation would be taken away. He thinks he may consider flying the little one down in July sometime. He needs a stretch of good weather in order to do that.

I'm working away at getting the house in shape for guests. I'm just breaking it down into little jobs. Last night I cleaned the back porch and rearranged it a little and I also cleaned out the car, which also badly needed some attention. I'm optimistic I'll be done before Sunday so I can go out and play, since it's now supposed to be a fairly nice weekend.

Well, it's been a fairly quiet week and not much to write about so I'm off for today. Hopefully something interesting will happen today!

A lucky streak

Conditions at 5:15 am: overcast and 7'
Expected later: 16' and mix of sun and cloud

I can't believe my string of good luck lately. Lloyd says I should be buying lotto tickets. First, a couple of months ago, I entered a contest on the Paul McCartney web site to win a copy of his newest DVD and didn't I win it. Then I entered a contest online to win coupons for packages of free bagels - and I won that too. Now the best one. On Saturday I was taking the garbage from the shed to the waste management place in town. While I was unloading the truck I saw an old wagon wheel just lying by itself on the floor. It was exactly what I was looking for to stand up against my new mini barn. (That was Brenda's idea). So I asked if I could have it and sure enough, I could. I thought it would be hard to find one and there it was in the trash!

I'm always amazed at where visitors to this site come from. I know they stumble upon it by accident when they are searching key words but it still fascinates me that someone on the other side of the world is able to read about our little island. This morning I noted there were visitors from Australia, Cairo, Istanbul and Santiago. The world has truly become a very small place!

Okay, I'm off. I have company coming on Monday and I've got lots of cleaning to do. My plan is to get it done by Saturday night so I can go out and play on Sunday, rather than spending the whole day getting ready for my guests. So every bit of extra time can be spent accomplishing little jobs.