You'll all call me crazy, but it's a long time dream

Conditions at 5:15 - overcast and windy at 1'
Expected later - the same 1' but with a mix of sun and cloud

Yesterday I was poking around on the internet and came across something I'd wanted for a very long time (since the 70's at least). It must have been meant to be because it was an amazing price, and it was here in Charlottetown. So I emailed the person to see if they still had said item, and they emailed back and said yes. So on my way out to pick someone up I stopped by her house to take a look. It's quite large but I know just where I'm going to put it. It's a weaving loom.  This lady has had it for some time but she also does machine knitting and has an internet company doing custom sweaters. She has the loom in her basement along with all her knitting stuff but has gotten so busy with the knitting orders that she has no time for weaving and needs the space to bring in another knitter to help fill orders. She also happens to play the part of Rachel Lind at Avonlea Village in the summer (except one day a week, she's Marilla.)  So today I'm taking the truck into work so I can pick it up.It does come apart for easier transport. Weaving is something I have always wanted to try. When I first met Rosie at the university I discovered that she has a loom and I've seen some of the things that she has made and they are absolutely gorgeous. So yesterday afternoon I was very excited. I know it will be a bit of a learning curve to actually get to where I can make something useful but she has the directions on how to put it all together and she recommended a book that is excellent. I researched the book when I got back to the showroom and it is very highly recommended as a great resource to learn how to weave. So I went online and found the book and it should be here within 10 days.

I'm looking forward to spending my winter evenings doing something other than parking myself in front of the TV. I'll still be parked in front of something but at least it will be somewhat constructive.  There is a spinners and weavers guild here on the island and I'm going to contact them to see if they have any classes of any kind coming up that I might be able to take part in. I'm very excited!

Jan 10th - Lebanese New Year

Conditions at 5:15 am -  1' and windy and overcast
Expected later - staying windy and 1' with a mix of rain and snow

What odd weather we're having. Yesterday Brenda called to say she had just been out for a tour around the yard on her skis and it wasn't too sticky. By the time she got to my house, it was raining. But we ventured out anyway and it turned to snow so we
got a bit of a run in after all. We went down the road to the Dromore Trails
and we followed the path of some snowshoers who had been there earlier. But it wasn't an easy trip and I must admit I'm feeling it this morning. That combined with filling up the wood rack ( which was empty) has made for a few stiff muscles this morning. When we got back here, we went for a short jaunt down the back lane but coming back it was quite windy with almost sleet like precipitation.
Fortunately we hadn't gone too far. We truly earned the hot chocolate and Bailey's we enjoyed when we got back.

:Lots of snow now

Friday night we curled (and won!). While I was waiting for Brenda to pick me up, Scott emailed me a picture of Lloyd and the Thai chef who was at the after Christmas party at the Pollards. He had called me in the afternoon to tell me he had been invited to join everyone. I called him back and left the message that he wasn't  THAT special - it's an age old trick: invite the neighbours to the party then they can't complain about the noise! I called the house before leaving and it sounded like they were having a grand time. Sorry I missed it - that particular event has always been fun. 

Earlier in the week,  I was invited to attend the Lebanese New Years Levee at the Delta. Then on Saturday Sharon called to see if I knew anyone who might want to go as there had been a cancellation at our table. So I called Brenda from work to see if she might be interested. She hesitated for half a second then said "Sure". So after work, I came home and got ready then I picked her up around 6:30. She was thinking she didn't have anything to wear, but she managed to pull it off with a dress she'd worn to a wedding in the summer. Sharon  had indicted that people got really dressed up for this event. We arrived early, a little after 7:00 and met Sharon in the lobby. I had worked with her at the University and it turns out that Brenda knew her sister really well a long time ago. We were introduced to some of Sharon's friends just as Tracey and Darryl arrived. We had a glass of wine and then the doors opened. We went inside and found ourtable. We expected to find the table number on it but instead it had a large holder with Sharon's name on it so she was quite impressed with that! The evening began with some short speeches from various dignitaries including the the Lieutenant Governor and the Premier. Then we watched a very talented Belly Dancer perform as well as some Lebanese folk dancers. The meal wasn't being served until 10:00 and I didn't realize I hadn't mentioned that fact to Brenda. The poor woman was starving by the time we got to eat. We noticed that a  lot of people didn't arrive until around 9:30 so it seems they only come for the meal. It was an interesting night and we're glad we went. Brenda has heard about this event for years and has always wanted to go. While we enjoyed it we both agreed that once was enough. If we want Lebanese food, there are several restaurants in town that serve the same thing. But the company was good and we had a nice time.
Sharon sent me some photos but I wasn't able to copy any to put here.

Jan 7 - Happy (belated) Birthday Caitlin

Conditions at 5:30 am - clear skies with lots of stars and -8'
Expected later - flurries with a total of 5 cm expected by tonight

The weather prediction for today has been all over the map for the past few days.  The weather network was predicting lots of snow and the radio was saying just flurries so we'll just have to see. The story changes every day. But Mother Nature will do what she pleases so we may as well just sit tight and see what that is.

A belated Happy Birthday to Caitlin VanGaal. I didn't actually know when her birthday was so now I can put it on my list. Brenda told me she had a really nice friend visiting from Ireland and they were out enjoying the snow earlier in the week. She left a few days ago to tour around but will be back on the island for the weekend. I know that Brenda really enjoyed listening to her stories about Ireland and I think that's where we should go - perhaps next year. It makes perfect sense. We've been trying to think of a place to go where we could use a week of our time share. We both love Maeve Binchy's books and I know I would love to explore that part of the world. I also know that Brenda has some Irish heritage so how perfect would that be?  We'll have to do some planning over  the winter for next year.



 What a surprise to open up yesterday's post and find an invitation from one of the gals at UPEI to attend a Lebanese New Years dinner at the Delta on Saturday night. That sounds like a lot of fun. I'll have to call Sharon this morning and let her know I'd love to come. ( I had no idea she has found my blog and was a reader!)

Of onto another tangent (I tend to do that a lot sometimes!). I received an email this morning from Patti with a photo of James at the Hard Rock Cafe in Ottawa. I would have loved to be there with him to explore all the artifacts. It's a bit grainy since it was probably taken with a phone, but it's a picture I know he will cherish. He's a big fan of Queen so to see one of their guitars must have been a real treat for him.

Jan 6 - One of those things that makes you go hmmm.....

Conditions at 5:25 am - clear skies and -9' but no wind
Expected later - sunny and -4' - perfect weather for cross country skiing (if only we were that lucky)

I opened up my blog this morning at 5:20 am  Atlantic time (4:20 Ontario time) and someone from Kitchener had viewed it 40 minutes before that! Whoever it was, must have  a really SERIOUS case of insomnia to be reading my drivel at 3:45 in the morning. Hopefully it was what they needed to put them to sleep! (I'm sure it would have that affect on lots of people).

Last night I talked to Patti about flights to Toronto and she's going to book it today. I'll let Lloyd know once it's booked so he can perhaps plan to pick me up at the airport.   I think I'll fly out on Friday late afternoon and I talked to Brenda and she's going to go in later and pick up my car for me (we're not allowed to leave them on the lot overnight anymore). Anyway, while I was chatting to her, Meghan(2) asked to talk to me. She wanted to report on what she did with her money and I was quite surprised. If you recall, I gave each of the older kids a $100 bill. With that they were to donate $25 to any charity they chose, put $25 in the bank and the remaining $50 was for them to spend on whatever they chose. Apparently a large part of Meghan's road trip to Ottawa was trying to decide what to do with her charity portion. Patti says she would make a decision, then write a letter to me in her journal, then change her mind, and have to do another letter to me. She went through that process several times before making up her mind, but at least it kept her occupied for a large chunk of the trip.
The end result was quite surprising. She informed me last night that she is donating $20 to the local food bank, $20 to the World Wildlife Foundation and $60 is going in the bank, leaving her with $10 for herself. Well, actually she only has $5 for herself because she owes Patti $5 for something she asked her to buy for her at the museum. I suggested to her that she was only required to donate $25 to charity but she said that's what she wanted to do. Well done, Meghan. I'm very proud of the choices that you've made. I look forward to hearing what James is doing with his. There was some mention over Christmas that he needed a music stand for his guitar practicing at home and we suggested that might be a good use of his portion of his Christmas money, but we'll see.

A little recipe to share this morning with Meghan(1). It landed in my email yesterday from the Kraft Kitchens and I gave it a try last night.It was really very good. I love chili and this vegetarian version was great.

Two-Bean Vegetarian Chili

6 servings, 2 cups (500 mL) each

What You Need

1-1/2 cups long-grain brown rice, uncooked

2 Tbsp. Kraft Calorie-Wise Balsamic Vinaigrette Dressing (I had balsamic dressing but an Italian or any other type of vinaigrette dressing would work here)

2 carrots, cut into 1/2-inch-thick slices

1 onion, chopped

1 red pepper, chopped ( I didn't have any, but it was fine without)

3 cloves garlic, minced

1 can (28 fl oz/796 mL) no-salt-added diced tomatoes, undrained  (I only had whole tomatoes so I chopped them up )

1 can (14 fl oz/ 398 mL) no-salt-added red kidney beans, rinsed

1 can (14 fl oz/ 398 mL) no-salt-added white kidney beans, rinsed ( I substituted a can of chick peas as that's what I had)

1/2 cup Kraft BarBQ Sauce

3 Tbsp. chili powder

1 cup frozen corn

1-1/2 cups Kraft Tex Mex Light Shredded Cheese

Make It

COOK rice as directed on package. Meanwhile, heat dressing in large saucepan on medium-high heat. Add vegetables and garlic; cook and stir 6 to 8 min. or until vegetables are crisp-tender.
ADD next 5 ingredients; stir. Bring to boil; simmer on medium-low heat 30 min., stirring regularly.
STIR in corn; cook 5 min. Serve over rice; top with cheese

I didn't actually cook any rice, I just ate the chili in a bowl with a dollop of sour cream on tip and sprinkled with shredded cheddar. It was very tasty and I'm looking forward to having some again tonight.

Enjoy - I know I did!

Jan 5 - truly strange experience

Conditions at 5:30 am - clear, starry skies, and-8'
Expected later - mix of sun and cloud and -6'

Yesterday they promised sun and a few flurries. It snowed lightly all day and there was NO sun - let's hope they get it right today!
Last night I was watching TV (after calling Shaw and getting some technical assistance - I'd been without satellite since Monday morning so this needed to be fixed!) Anyway, it was a little after 10:00 pm and I thought I heard a knocking but it wasn't at the back door, and I couldn't figure out where it was coming from. Of course the dog started barking madly. I turned on the kitchen lights and went cautiously to the back porch and after turning on that light as well, I could see out the door but there was no one there. I figured it must have been something outside in the wind maybe. Then as I was standing in the back porch I heard a voice yelling "Hello, hello". It's late at night, out in the middle of no where and there's a strange man's voice outside. Being from southern Ontario, my immediate gut reaction is fear. So I go to the door and look out and there's a strange man, a little scruffy looking, standing at the door. I said hello through the glass but didn't open the door. He said his vehicle had broke down and he wanted to know if he could use my phone. I wasn't sure if I should open the door or not but I said okay and I let him into the porch. I went into the living room and retrieved the cordless phone. I brought it back and he appeared to be harmless enough. But then so did Russell Williams! Inside in the light, he didn't look so menacing and explained that his furnace had broken down and he thought he had water in his fuel line and had gone to Mount Stewart to pick up some little bottles of stuff to fix the problem. I forget what you call it but I know you can put it into cars fuel tanks. Anyway, he asked me to dial the number as he didn't have his glasses and I did that as he dictated the number to me. He then spoke to his wife and was telling her his predicament. He didn't know what was wrong with the truck and he would walk home from here. I asked where he lived and he said just up the road.

By now I was feeling a little silly for being scared initially and I thought, this is PEI for heavens sake. So I told him I would give him a ride and yes, we could take his dog too, who he was going to leave in the truck over night. So I got my boots on and started the car while he walked down the driveway to his truck.  I drove down and got out and helped him push it off the road a little further, as it was right around the bend in the road. He had a lovely little dog who I put into the car so he wouldn't get hurt. After we got the truck moved, he got in and I drove him home. He lives down on McCannell road and he would have froze to death if he's had to walk home. He said he's lived there for 13 years and was pointing out the bus driver's house down the road from him and then it all fell into place. The bus driver was Gerard, whom I've never met, but I'm fairly sure that it was the same fellow that Brenda subbed for in the fall. I asked this man if he knew Bernie VanGaal and he said he did. I figured then it was okay. I asked him his name and he said it was Melvin Jackman. So I've now met another one of my neighbours.  He was most grateful when I pulled into his driveway and I was glad that I hadn't just told him to go away when he knocked on my door.  That is totally what I would have done in Ontario and that would have been the best thing to do.  Then this morning I was feeling a little guilty because I know they didn't have any heat and I feel I should have offered to let them come over here to stay until it could get fixed but...I guess part of me is still an Ontario girl.  I know if Lloyd had been here it might have been a different story but being by myself, I was a little unsure. So I did what I comfortably could at the time. Hopefully they got the heat working.
**************************************************
I talked to Lloyd on Monday night and he mentioned that he didn't think there was anyone home upstairs. Mystery solved. Later in the evening I got an email from Jana. It seems that she and Scott, Kathy (Scott's mom) and Grace (Jana's mom) were in Las Vegas and were on their way to see "Love", the Beatles themed Cirque du Soleil

Jan 4-The new year is off to a booming start

Conditions at 5:30 am - light snow falling and -6'
Expected later - mix of sun and cloud and-5'

The view from my living room window on Monday afternoon

It was a beautiful sight yesterday to watch the snow softly falling all day. Well actually,  not ALL day, it ended around 3:00. It was lovely to look at but I was ever so grateful to have the day off. Then last night the wind picked up and I could hear it howling all night long, but this morning when I let the dog out it doesn't look too bad. I think the snow had just enough moisture in it that it didn't drift too badly. Mind you, that's my back yard. The roads might be a different story. A quick look ahead and it appears we are being forecast another 15 cm on Friday so it should make for an interesting week. But on the up side, maybe we'll be able to get out and do some skiing this weekend..

For some unknown reason, I don't have any satellite reception on my TV. As a result I got lots of things done yesterday. My main accomplishment was putting away all the Christmas stuff and cleaning out my craft room. It is now actually usable for it's intended purpose again. It took most of the day but it's now done. I think Brenda might have a plan to do a scrapbook as I know she bought one before Christmas. That might be a great way to spend our winter evenings instead of parked in front of the TV. I have space for two people to work at the same time and we could leave everything out and just pick it up when we have the time. Even if we just did a couple of hours a couple of nights a week, it would get done in no time. I'll have to talk to her about it when she gets back. I thought they might have come back yesterday but I suspect the weather may have factored into that decision. Today should be a better day for traveling.

I received an email message on Sunday night from an old friend - it simply said "I'd love to talk. Can you send me your phone number" and it was signed "Me"
So I called "Me" up and I said  "Okay, what the ---- do you want to talk about, ?"  It was my great friend, Doug, of course. We haven't spoken in a while and it was really nice to hear from him. We chatted for quite some time and got caught up on life.  He's not really enjoying the rain out in BC - it seems it has done nothing but rain for the past two months in his area. He says they've maybe had 4 or 5 days without rain in all that time. I don't think I could cope with that much rain. I know we get rainy stretches here, but certainly nothing like that. I'll gladly take the snow any day.  But it was nice to catch up.

While I was cleaning out my spare room I came across my Abby Road coffee mug,  Unfortunately I broke the handle off of it some time ago. So I emailed Patti and suggested that I would gladly pay for a new one should one appear. (She had called me on Sunday night and left a message to let me know that she was on her way to London, England and would be away until Tuesday) I don't know if she got the message or not but it's okay because I think she has 3 flights to London this month. Hopefully they won't have any more of the weather they had before Christmas.

Well, I'd better get going and see how much trouble it might be to get out of my driveway this morning.

Jan 3/11 -I knew it was coming

Conditions at 7:00 -light drizzle and 0'
Expected later - 10 - 15 cm of snow and minus 2'

On Friday morning, I checked the weather network and it advised we were getting lots of snow on Monday. But when I was driving the work, and around town throughout the day, the radio forecast plus 4' and rain, so I wasn't sure who to believe. I was really rooting for the milder weather but alas, that is not to be the case. We are now going to get the snow they were talking about. But then again, perhaps we might be able to get out with our skis sooner rather than later.

The Van Gaal's and the Hugh's came over on Friday night for dinner and by all accounts it was a success (well maybe not so much for Brenda). Lloyd did an amazing job on the steaks and every one's was done to perfection. Unfortunately we gave Brenda a little too much wine before filling her stomach and she wasn't feeling so great and she missed the creme brule for dessert. But fortunately she felt better in the morning.
Lloyd and Meghan got away around noon, and Lloyd phoned at 7:30 our time (6:30 their time) to let me know they had arrived in Toronto around 6:00 am on Sunday morning. He was at a Tim Horton's waiting for Jim to pick him up. There was  a little confusion about the scheduled time to be picked up but in the end it all worked out! So it sounds like they had an uneventful trip - the best kind to have.

I've been having some problems with my colour printer recently so I took it into town yesterday after finding the necessary documentation for the extended warranty. Unfortunately I needed a case number from the warranty department (that requires a phone call to somewhere that was closed yesterday). So I could take it today but I don't think so - not in a snow storm. That can wait until tomorrow.

This will be the fifth Monday in a row that we've had a storm.  I think I mentioned earlier that we should just cancel Mondays and make them part of the weekend.  When I was driving around on Thursday and Friday, the sun was shining and with the snow, you just wanted it to stay so we could get out and ski. I was looking at the calendar the other day and between trips away, and coming from away, out of 12 weekends, we are going to lose at least 7 of them. So our skiing this year might just be like our kayaking was this past summer - pretty sparse. But as Brenda pointed out, the first summer I was working at the golf course and I had days off during the week and that made a difference, but then I worked most weekends so I suppose it all balanced out.  Hopefully Mother Nature will cooperate on those days we do have available.

Last night I was invited to an annual gathering at Marlene and Raymond's. They do this every year and it was quite a lovely evening. Lot so food, good company and lots of conversation. A good time for sure.

Yesterday while I was in town, I stopped by the Bulk Barn and picked up spices to replenish my collection. Then I spent late last night and early this morning reorganizing them. They are now all divided into even rows and in alphabetical order. My spice drawer is now truly a thing of beauty (not to mention functional). There were several that I was out of but it's much better now. I really should have done that job before Lloyd got here for Christmas but unfortunately I didn't have time. Today I plan to organize and put the Christmas stuff away in the closet it goes into, and re-organize my craft room. It's not been used in a while and has become somewhat of a dumping ground. So today is the day it returns to it's former place as a fully functioning space

Lloyd sent me this link and all I can say is, he has a lot of nerve - and he knows why!

YouTube - A GIGGLE with the GOATS Jingle Bells Holiday Performance