Tuesday, May 31st - another week of ups and downs, but mostly ups!

What started out as a pretty quiet week wasn’t without it’s ups and downs

Thursday morning I arrived at work to this scene.

All the stuff under and on top of my desk was in a big pile beside the stairs and an assortment of garbage cans were strategically placed on the top of the desk. It seems at some point the evening before (thankfully when there were still people in the building) something in the air conditioning system overflowed and at some point it was like a monsoon over the oval office. Not a great way to start the day. The good news is that there was someone in the building and their quick actions saved (mostly)  everything and the better news is that it wasn’t a Monday which is usually very busy.  There was still a bit of dripping when I came in at 7:30 and I didn’t finish getting everything back together until a little after 9:00. All in all it could have been worse.

Friday was the day Lloyd was picking up the baby chicks. Unfortunately when he got there, something was apparently on fire and everyone and everything had been evacuated so he had to make a second trip into town. Eventually they arrived home, safe and sound (except for one poor little one that was trampled) but as Bernie often points out, “That’s farming”

After numerous unsuccessful attempts to get our lawn tractor functioning this year, Lloyd finally decided to bite the bullet and buy a new one. The old one is still very useful as a small tractor, just not for cutting grass. But that’s okay, we’ve used
it many times over the years to move stuff around. The new one was being delivered on Saturday while I was at work.

Saturday was cold and not so nice out but Sunday was much better. Perfect opportunity to try out the new lawn mower.  I was able to get at least the front and side grass cut without a hitch. YAY!

Sunday morning Bernie came over and he and Lloyd headed out for a bit of a bike ride, while Brenda came over for coffee after church. When we were finished solving all the problems of the world, (as we’re prone to do when we get together after a lengthy absence, ) we took a drive down the road to see the tulips  again.

 This week the show was pretty spectacular. A few of them have been cut down but most are still there and far more than last week were open. It truly is a sight to see.

Sunday afternoon Brenda and I went for a ride, our first of the season. My bike is in the shop so I followed her with the Miata. Cooper was pretty happy to be invited along for the ride. We wound our way cross country and eventually ended up in Montague where we enjoyed a tea and something completely different but in a good way – Orange Meringue Pie. It was chilly sitting outside but with the dog, we didn’t really have a choice. The earlier  warm sunny weather had started to cool off somewhat. I was lucky to have a heater but Brenda must have been chilled when she got home.  

Sunday was also the last day for Meghan’s motorcycle course, which we found out she passed – well done, Meg and congrats.

And last, but certainly not least, the biggest "UP" of the week. I didn’t check email all weekend and was pleasantly surprised to see this message from Patti on Monday morning, along with a couple of photos of a very proud young man (and rightly so).This was a huge accomplishment for him and we're all VERY proud of him and his efforts. 

" Tristen made it through the crazy 6 hour workout this weekend, did his 40-5 km runs, wrote 3 essays, attended 6 training classes a week for 16 weeks in a row and passed the 8 week leadership course. 

Today, he got his black belt. As I'm sure you can imagine he is very pleased with himself. And we are so proud of him :) 

Patti"

Tuesday, May 24th - the past week in review

Tuesday- after several days of wet, damp weather, the corner is finally coming into view. The day was mostly cool but by the time supper was finished, it had started warming up slightly and the sun was out. Lloyd was in town for a Bee Keepers meeting so I was on my own.Great opportunity to do a little catching up. Some laundry was in the works and I put the goats to bed before coming in for the night. The bright green grass, after the recent rains reminds us all what will soon be coming - grass cutting season and bug!

Wednesday - what did I just say about the bugs?  The sun shone brightly all day and the temperatures are quite pleasant and unfortunately that has brought the black flies out in droves. So much so that the goats are even staying inside their little house to try to escape them. Poor things. Lloyd was very busy all day getting his poles moved from inside the garage to around the back where the holes are patiently waiting. Not an easy job to accomplish by himself, but accomplish it he did. When I got home from work, he put my bike on the trailer to take it into town for some service work.It's fairly old and parts are no longer available from Honda so we'll see what an experienced bike mechanic can do for me.

Today I made the decision to make better use of my lunch hour. I took my running shoes with me to work and at lunch I headed out onto the trail. I walked from the mall over to the farmers market. I know, not a huge distance but it was about 35 minutes worth of a tiny bit of exercise. 

However, having done that route once, I will have to find another place to walk.  Any one who knows me really well, is aware that  I really only have one fear - you guessed it - snakes. My stroll from the mall to the market was fine but on the way back I was greeted by a long garter snake stretched almost across the whole trail, sunning itself.  I know, it's totally irrational but it's been almost 64 years and its a pretty tough phobia to conquer.  I will try to keep up the fitness efforts but just with a different route. ( I know, I know, I can see all the eyes rolling now!)




Thursday - the most exciting thing at our house today was the arrival of several cases of wine. Lloyd had made some with one of the local make your own wine places, where all you have to do is go in and bottle it when it's done. The red needs a little bit more aging but has potential, and the white is pretty darn good just the way it is!
My bike is now in town at a local bike shop and with any luck they can get her up and running reliably again.  Brenda is planning to get a bit of a ride in this weekend but I'm just not there yet.

Friday - Lloyd  has been working on getting his poles into the ground for his little goat  barn. They were standing up rather precariously when I arrived home but should be straight when I get home tomorrow and ready for the next step.  Lloyd chose not to worry about making supper and instead went over to the rec centre with me for the "Capture the Queen of Hearts" (aka chase the ace in other locales).  The event features some mighty tasty wings for sale so that was our big Friday night date!  I did the trivia portion and found him some card players who welcomed him into their game. All in all he had a pretty great night.

Saturday - This morning dawned nice and mild with a few clouds but promise of much nicer temperatures as the day progressed. Brother in law Kim arrived just as I was leaving for work, to help level up the poles. Not a difficult job but one that definitely requires an extra pair of hands. Our friend Jens also came over to assist.(turns out it was much more physically demanding than anticipated)  By the time I got home, the poles were standing straight and tall, and ready for step number two.

On my way home from work, I stopped in at Brenda's half hoping to find her sitting under a tree somewhere either partaking of a cold glass of wine or sipping on a nice cup of tea. (trust me, I know MUCH better than that!!!) My aim was simply to stop by and say hello and that's what I did, and left her to it. She had her hands full, literally, and didn't need any more distractions. How many kids today can say their mom can do this?? (She was helping unload the fertilizer truck...)

Later in the evening we headed into town for supper at Heather and Kim's.  It was a delicious meal but a fairly short visit as both Lloyd and Kim were pretty much done it by that time.  It had been a long hot day. It was rather nice to drive into town with the top down on the car and some of our favorite tunes on the radio.  Doesn't really get much better than that.

 
Sunday - a little cooler and cloudier day but great for working. However, instead of getting back into the work, Lloyd decided he needed a little break and headed out for a bike ride with Bernie - first one of the season, I'm thinking.  When they got back, Brenda and Meghan arrived and we went down the road to see the tulips.

They aren't quite all blooming so another few days will make a world of difference but they are still pretty spectacular to see.  The rest of the day was spent just puttering around the yard and the house. A lazy supper and a quiet evening, made especially nice by the fact that Monday was a holiday.

 Holiday Monday - kind of a nothing sort of day. It was cloudy and cool for most of the day.  I did some cooking, and baking and Lloyd spent pretty much the bulk of the day trying to get the lawn tractor performing up to expectations, which it wasn't. The latter part of the day was spent cleaning up his construction site so he can proceed. I think he gets a lot more done when I'm not here. But now he's ready to get started again Tuesday afternoon. 

Pretty much all this week I have been milking the goat in the mornings before going to work. Lloyd had a few appointments and wasn't going to be home very early and I just couldn't in good conscience leave the poor beast waiting to be milked. Especially since she's separated from the kids all night long. By morning she really needs that relief.  It's kind of become part of my morning routine and I have to admit I am getting better at it (must be the expert instructions I received all those weeks ago!). In fact, Brenda and Bernie stopped in for a quick visit early Sunday morning, while I was out milking. They were mightily impressed with how far I've come in a short time. Lots of new challenges means there's never a dull moment. 

Posing for a family portrait!

Anyway, it's working for now. We've been experimenting with various things using goats milk. This weekend we made some yoghurt and I made a batch of something called Cajeta, a mexican caramel sauce. Mine turned out very thick, so I think I may have cooked it a bit too long. There will have to be several test batches, I'm sure, before I get it right!  No worries, multiple batches of caramel sauce can't be all bad. I have a good friend whom I know will help me eat critique the failures.

Tuesday, May 17th - Lloyd's 15 minutes of fame...

Needless to say, after the stress and excitement of last week, it was nice to have things a little quieter, or so we thought.

A friend of ours, Richard, who is also from Ontario, seriously thought that Lloyd's accomplishment of actually building the plane and then flying it down here all by himself, was worthy of the local newspaper. So the Monday after Lloyd arrived, Richard called the Guardian and suggested they really needed to see this!

A very nice young lady called Lloyd early in the week and set up a time to meet with him and his airplane, here at the airport in Charlottetown. She asked a lot of questions, took photos and even some video and then everyone went their merry way. She called him a few times for clarification and suggested that the article would  be in Saturday's paper.

Now on Saturday morning, on my way into work, I will sometimes stop in at my friend Brenda's for either a coffee or tea. To earn that, I pick up their paper at the end of the lane and bring it into the house. On my way to her house bright and early, I was thinking how I was going to give Lloyd the gears for not being on the front page. When I got to the Van Gaals, I pulled the paper out of the box and unfolded it and much to my surprise and amazement, not only was he on the front page, he WAS THE FRONT PAGE,

as well as half the second page. 

He figures it must have been a very slow news day on the island. 

Not long after, calls started coming in, including a couple from people we didn't even know but felt they had some connection to the article or something mentioned in it. Of course, he was quite the celebrity at the flying club breakfast on Saturday morning and again at the Rec Centre volunteer appreciation dinner on Saturday evening.But fortunately he hasn't let it go to his head.  But it is really nice for him to get some well deserved recognition for all his hard work over so many years.(for a bit of a condensed version of the article, see the end of this post)

Weather wise, Sunday was a little bit nicer, but not by a whole lot as the weather hasn't been great for a while. Still a bit of unseasonablly cool temperatures but we did get some badly needed rain. After brunch with the Van Gaals of lobster bisque, salads and lobster eggs benedict, with white and/or chocolate cake to finish off with our tea, Lloyd and I headed out on the road to look at some goats. I'll have more news on that one in a couple of week! Stay tuned...

Meanwhile in the midst of all this celebrity, Lloyd is busy getting the basics ready to build his pole barn. The poles are cut and treated and the holes are in the ground. I'm thinking we should start seeing more progress over the next couple of weeks. Hope so as the chickens will be arriving soon as will likely be the baby pigs so things will really start happening around here - of course, just before Lloyd goes on holiday. But I should have some great help while he's away. Hopefully Patti and the kids will be able to make it down for at least a few days.  

It was also a busy weekend for Patti and a couple of very young and very excited Justin Beiber fans. Patti and the girls (Meg and her friend Victoria) flew to Montreal, and then drove to Quebec City to spend the weekend and attend the concert. By all accounts they had a wonderful time but the fabulous food and intriguing history and sights of the city couldn't come close to comparing with the concert itself. Guess that's to be expected but one day I'm sure they will return to see just what they missed in this lovely city.

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For those still reading, here is some of the article that was in the paper:

Lloyd Denny realizes dream to rebuild 1947 American warplane

Lloyd Denny’s dream was to rebuild a 1947 American warplane and fly it to lofty new heights.

He also imagined sharing his once-in-a-lifetime adventure with other people.

Now, after a three-day flight from Guelph, Ont., last week, his restored aircraft is parked outside a hangar at the Charlottetown Airport.

The pilot is sitting inside the General Aviation Building telling his story.

“I thought I could build it and I proved to myself that I could do it. The same could also be said for flying it here. It was wonderful and Sandra, my wife, was so happy and relieved (when I arrived),” says the Mount Stewart, P.E.I. resident, after the Aeronca L-16A airplane made a smooth landing in Charlottetown Sunday where it was greeted by family and friends.

One colleague was especially enthusiastic after inspecting the tiny craft.

“It’s absolutely stunning. It has huge windows, great visibility. It’s a tail-dragger so she’s really fun to fly. I love it,” says Paul R. Tymstra owner/operator of Huron Flight Centre Atlantic at the Charlottetown Airport.

Hearing the positive comments, Denny’s face lights up. Achieving his lofty goal is something he’s passionate about.

“As a teenager, I was fascinated with planes. But, at the time, there was a lack of money. Then I got involved in life,” says the St. John’s native, with a laugh.

However, a visit to the airport in Guelph, Ont. in 2002, where he was living at the time, quickly changed things. Denny noticed some flight training brochures on a display. He picked them up. Then, when he got home, he read them and put them on the coffee table.

“I never thought about flying again. But, that year for Christmas my wife gave me ground school (tuition) and the books. And so I got my license 13 years ago. Little did Sandy know how much I would end up spending on my hobby,” laughs Denny, adding it cost $35,000 to complete the plane restoration.

His quest for the perfect aircraft began nine years ago when he and his partner were looking for a cheap airplane to fly. After many inquiries they heard of a project for sale in Scotland, Ont.

“We picked up the bits and bones in November in 2007. Everything was in boxes and hanging on rafters. There was even a twisted old fuselage, with the (upholstery) fabric all cut up. There was no engine and just one wing, but it was mangled.”

After buying it, they loaded it onto a trailer and drove it to a hangar in Guelph where he would spend six years rebuilding it. Denny also searched for and purchased all the missing pieces.

“The key to the project was working on one piece at a time. If we didn’t know what to do, we asked people to help us. So it was a long, learning curve,” says Denny, who eventually bought his partner out and is now the sole owner of the craft.

Now, with his plane complete, he’s looking forward to sharing it with others during Canadian Owners and Pilots Association events in P.E.I., Nova Scotia and New Brunswick this summer.

“It’s a great hobby… a great experience.”

Don’t expect him to build another plane any time soon. That’s because he’s discovered farming.

“I’m working on a pole barn for my goats right now. I am also making goat cheese. So I am a busy boy with lots of dreams.”

Article written by Sally Cole of the Guardian

Tuesday, May 10th - a stressful but sucessful week

Well, it’s been a very eventful week.  Lloyd was in Ontario all week so it was pretty quiet out here. I took advantage of the opportunity to reorganize a couple of areas that badly needed sorting after the winter. You know the kind of jobs that need doing but no one will really notice but that’s okay.

I was treated to fish and chips at Brenda’s on Thursday evening and then again on Saturday for our first feed of lobster. There's nothing that tastes quite as great as the first lobster of the season! Too bad Lloyd missed it!

YUMMMM!

 

Dig in!!

Lloyd’s adventure began on Friday as he left Guelph in the morning. His first stop was Lindsay to refuel and then take off again.  There were a few tense moments when I received a phone call from NAV Canada advising that Lloyd was half an hour late and had I heard from him, as they had no idea where he was.  Not the sort of call a wife wants to receive. I was relieved to get his phone call a little while later, when he advised he had landed safely, although somewhat late due to strong headwinds and yes, he’d already called in to advise them he was on the ground once more.

The rest of the flight was as predicted, and no more calls were received from the officials.

He spent the first night in Cornwall, Ontario and the second night in Miramichi, New Brunswick.  The weather wasn’t great on Sunday morning in New Brunswick so his departure was delayed. Eventually he was under way and his ETA in Charlottetown was around 2:30.

The troops were gathered and eight of us convened at the airport. Our friend Joe, who is a member of the flying club, was able to get us ring side seats for the landing. 

 He had a radio but not much battery power. He turned it on a couple of times and the first time we heard the airport advising Lloyd which runway to come in on.  He turned it on again as Lloyd was approaching. just in time to hear the airport question if he would be taking off again later. Lloyds reply was "No, it's here permanently, forever and ever, amen"

As we scanned the skies, we soon saw a tiny speck off in the distance that made it’s landing quite far away from us but close enough for us to know he was safely on the ground. As he taxied to our area Meghan ran out to take a video of him getting closer.

There was a big smile on his face as he got out of the plane and walked over to us. The guys were all intrigued with the plane up close and personal.

Eventually we collected on the deck and toasted his arrival with a small taste of sparkling wine. It was the perfect day for his arrival with lots of sunshine and very little wind (at least not in Charlottetown). As he wasn’t sure when he’d actually get back he had taken the night off as a precaution, so it was a nice relaxing evening for him after his very long trip.

Monday morning dawned very, very windy so he was really glad he was home and not trying to fly through that.

It was a great experience but I know he’s glad to have it over, as am I.  

Tuesday, May 3rd - a week of ups and downs, for sure

It's been a crazy weather week. I took my little car out of storage on Tuesday after work, and was greeted to it covered dusted in snow on Thursday morning. Doesn't mother nature realize two seater convertibles are not equipped with snow brushes??? But fortunately by the end of the day, it had all melted away but it was a pretty depressing way to start the day.

But then looking back we really have nothing to complain about. Remember last year?  We were cross country skiing on Mothers Day. So it's really not that bad.

And this was the 24th of May!

Lloyd left on Friday morning to fly to Toronto to get his plane ready to fly back to PEI. I had booked a rental car for him at Pearson. Unfortunately when he got there, he realized that his drivers licence had expired in January, so no rental car for you.  He called Access PEI and there is a process to make this happen but despite having sent the proper paperwork back to them on Friday, the licence wasn't ready to be picked up until 4:00 yesterday afternoon (Monday). Being as the car would have had to be returned on Wednesday, it really didn't make much sense.  Lesson learned --- the hard way. He was forced to rely on the kindness of family and friends to help him get around the entire weekend. Unfortunately Patti was away so that limited things as well, not that she had time to be chauffeuring him around as well as the kids.

Friday wasn't meant to be a good day in the end. I tried to obtain the Sir Paul tickets on Friday but I  wasn't quick enough on the draw and missed out, so no trip to Boston for Brenda and I. No worries, we're going to plan something some weekend perhaps not quite so far away. We're flexible that way.

Saturday while I worked, Brenda and company prepared for Sunday's pancake breakfast at the Rec Centre. Lloyd is usually a huge help but with him being away, we had to rely on our own devises. Brenda made some really great beans and I also made a crock pot full of a different recipe than hers. By all accounts both were very well received.  Meghan took over my pancake batter duties and I filled in for Lloyd on scrambled eggs. They actually turned out pretty good so I was happy about that. Once we were all done, and everyone was fed, we re-convened at Brenda's for tea and the post party critique.

When I got home, it was evident that poor Leah needed milking. I'd already been pretty stressed to wake up that morning to one of the babies having some health issues, or so I thought. A panicked call to Island Hill Farm and I was assured that all would be well, and it the end, it was. but poor Leah was in a lot of discomfort, I would imagine. So I led her inside and put her on the milking stand and tried to figure it out. It can't be that difficult because as she walked around milk was leaking from her udder so it should be pretty simple. Not so much. I could not figure out how to get the milk out of that apparatus. Twice I brought her inside and finally gave up. So what could I do but call my friend Brenda, who seems to be the knower of all, including the fine art of milking. So she came over and got things going with one squeeze. I tried and tried and finally got the hang of it and after a bit poor Leah felt much better.  So I've been milking her a little every day to try to improve my technique. It's a slow process but they may make a milk maid out of me yet! Once again, thanks Brenda. Because it was a beautiful day and the top was down on the little car, we took a drive over to our friends, Richard and Daralen who  are busy putting in some raised planting beds. It's a very elaborate process and we're expecting great things later this summer!

Lloyd's been busy making sure his plane and his plans are all ship shape for his trip to PEI later this week.  Hopefully the weather will cooperate and he'll not run into any difficulties. I'll be very glad when the plane and him are here and safely on the ground!