Life, Just a Different Location

How many of you out there think I am on a three month "vacation"?   I would have been tempted to agree with you, until  last week.  Some time between the several drives into town to take care of business (i.e. pay bills, fight with the tax office)  and the hours I spent riding a lawnmower, I realized this is not really a vacation, it's just life in a different location.  My suspicion has been confirmed today as TJ is working in the home office and my list of things I need to do gets a bit longer.  The wind is howling and the sun is shining and we are inside "working". 

Owning a property up here comes with it 's own blessings and curses. Mostly blessings. This year a good friend, I'll call her Curling Queen, became a home owner up here. She previously rented a place every summer and had lots of free time because she did not have to do all the jobs that come with owning a property.  "Who cares if the garden is not weeded and those walls need to be painted?...it's not mine...I think I'll go read a book on the beach." This year is an exciting year for her family as they make their new house a place they will enjoy for years. First, there is a lot of fixing up to be done though. Fixing up time conflicts with sitting on the beach time. Fixing up time also makes us very tired and consequently conflicts with going out at night time. Fixing up time can take over what used to be vacation! I have fallen victim to this same phenomena ever since we started working on the farmhouse.  Fixing up time can also be very rewarding though!

Curling Queen and her daughter are smiling because they are enjoying a little down time instead of shoveling or painting!

There are people who come up here for a week or two, rent a place and aside from a few mundane chores they spend most of their time sitting on the beach,  reading, playing golf and hanging out with friends and relatives.  They leave their responsibilities for a bit and go on "vacation"!  Before I go on too far,  I am not complaining!  You would know it if I were complaining!  There are times up here that seem more like vacation than others.  The next few weeks will seem like a stay-cation!  After a month of relative quiet and plenty of time to get those annual fixing-up-things-without-missing-too-much-fun done, we are entering the busy time at the shore.  The fixing up will just have to wait a couple of weeks. 

This candidate for "deck of the month" will have to wait until the Games are over for it's facelift.

On a completely unrelated note, this summer has been a summer of wildlife and I'm not talking about staying up all night drinking and dancing.  Along with the skunk, fox and racoon sightings on PEI I have seen a bear crossing the road and a deer right next to the road (alive) so far.  There was one unfortunate wildlife sighting in my yard this summer.  A baby deer (dead) was deposited in my yard by some mean animal.  It was a very small baby deer and I did not have the fortitude to remove it myself so I decided I needed to find a man!  This proved to be harder than I expected.  I must be losing my touch!  I had to call three! men before Georgia John came to my rescue. He removed the baby deer and drove it back into the woods and dropped him into the cirlce of life.  I have been relatively unsuccessful in luring the elusive yellow finches to my bird feeder but the hummingbirds are zooming in and out gulping the sugar water in the feeder on the window.  Sadie continues to stalk the squirrel that lives in the tree next to the shed.  They hold daily staring contests.

This is what Sadie does all day!

This is what the squirrel says all day...."You will never get me, sucker!"

Crafty Beer Business

Have you ever wanted to start your own business?  Known someone who started their own business?  I lack that entrepreneurial spirit but I do know people who are brave enough to go out on a limb and start their own business.  I admire them but I don't want to emulate them.  First of all, I am not really that creative.... the kind of creative that is part stroke of genius, part unique idea, part hard work and part passion.  Some people have both great ideas and the courage to market their great idea.  One of those people just happens to be my daughter. 

Take a girl who loves beer, loves to knit, has a bit of courage and a creative flair and what do you get?  A unique creation called BeerSox.  She has been knitting these for a while and now has decided to launch her own business. Which apparently takes a little money and a lot of energy!

BeerSox by The Caged Yarn

I will get to see the first major launch of the BeerSox in Denver this fall, exciting stuff.  Before this all happens though I guess she has to get the business to sprout wings and fly!  Since I can't offer any creative input I will do my part by getting the word out to the tens of people who read this here blog.  Check out her website   or her Esty website and enjoy the pretty colors and witness a small business beginning. 

They are great if you enjoy a good beer or even a nice glass of wine...like me!  Check it out!  I'll stick to writing and leave the knitting up to her!

The Dirt on Garbage

I had reason to celebrate on Monday....my trash did not get rejected!  No orange stamp of shame on my bags sitting on the side of the road for me!  If you think this is a small accomplishment then I have news for you.  Trash sorting up here is a serious business.  I have at least three written fliers explaining the trash sorting, classifications and schedule for the summer. 

Just a few rules to follow here when throwing things away

It seems that every year the regulations get more and more specific.  We arrived this year to a new green bin, or "bin of joy", as TJ fondly refers to it.  This lovely, expensive (I'm sure) bin is for compostable waste.  Things like leftovers if you ask me.  Used tissue and paper towels, paper plates, and the stuff we usually would put down the garbage disposal but we don't have one here so it goes in the "bin of joy".  Since we live on a farm, sort of, we just use our compost bin next to the garden for most of the fruit and vegetable waste, of the earth/back to the earth theory. 

Then there is the recycling which should be pretty simple by now.  We have been doing this for a long time, it hasn't changed much.  We are pretty good little recyclers and hope to stay that way.

Then there is the garbage situation.  They have required everyone to use clear plastic bags....so they can spy on your garbage and bust you if a tea bag sneaks into the garbage and they are in the mood to slap one of those orange stamps of shame on your garbage.  The garbage category seems to be getting smaller and smaller every year.  Pretty soon they will allow one small zip loc bag for your two week pickup, clear of course.  

What does everyone do with the stuff they don't allow in the garbage, recycling or compost?  Well, here in Nova Scotia they have the great trash extravaganza in July when you get to throw away just about anything.  The road is littered with toilets, old sofas, broken down bbq pits, carpeting, appliances, building materials, junk, more junk and more junk!  The road looks like a garage sale nightmare gone horribly wrong for about 2 weeks.  That is when the scavengers come shopping.   You think I am kidding?  I am serious!

Just doing a little roadside shopping?

I guess none of this is compost....?

So, every week I tentatively put out my clear bags for inspection and pickup and hope they take my garbage and I don't have to fish out whatever contraband is lurking inside. If I happen to fail garbage sorting, I get to hang onto my rejected trash for another two weeks until they come around and pick it up again.  I seriously think we need to make a new event for the games this year, Sort This Trash!



Mayberry North

Andy Griffith died....but Mayberry is not dead.  It exists in a small town in Nova Scotia.  After Andy's recent death the paper and the computer have been full of  scenes from the Mayberry shows from days of yore.  Many people comment that they miss the good old days of sitting on the porch, fishing with your buddy and your son, homemade pies, open windows with a fresh breeze, and knowing everyone... and everyone's business in town.  It occurred to me that I spend my summer in a place very similar to Mayberry. 

Canada Day was Sunday...and Monday (the Federal holiday).   I love this week in Canada!  First, I get to witness and participate in  Canada Day festivities and then a couple of days later I get to celebrate the 4th of July.  The week is full of fireworks, patriotism, parades, pot luck suppers and flag flying.  It would be hard not to get caught up in the celebrations!

On Canada Day I went to Pugwash for the parade and the Gathering of the Clans.  This was my first year to attend but it won't be my last.  The parade was a delight.  There were five, count them...5, Pipe Bands!  There were antique cars, floats, fire trucks, tractors and silly cars and horse drawn carriages.  I am sure the population of Pugwash doubled that day.  You really must see, so here is a little photo journey for you! 



Happy Canada Day!



Pipe Band from Dartmouth...helping make my day!

See?  Mayberry North!  I love the church in the background,.

It was a beautiful day for a sail, if you aren't into piping, highland games and dancing.

I wonder if Ontario Sailor heard this young piper playing from the shore... how perfect is this???!!!

Every time we saw something new I was taken by how scenic and iconic the entire day was!  The carnival atmosphere, the vendors selling hot dogs and kettle corn, the kids running around with hard earned stuffed animals, families out for a day of fun, music in the air and it was an absolutely perfect day weather wise.  There were bagpipers playing in competitions around the picturesque Cyrus Eaton house.  Each corner had a judge and a piper playing his or her best.  It was nothing short of a perfect setting for the competition.  I had no idea this kind of stuff happened anywhere other than movies and my imagination. 

He is being graded by the lady sitting at the table while the little boys in the window look out curiously

The view a lone would be something to toot about!



 There was also a highland games competition or in other words, large-men-in-kilts-throwing-heavy-things competition.  Yes, there was a lot of tartan and wool in Pugwash for Canada Day.  The games defy gravity and logic if you ask me!

Glad he remembered to wear those shorts!

 After we celebrated Canada Day for two days it was time to celebrate the 4th of July.  There are enough Americans here to coordinate a golf scramble and a pot luck supper for the day.  And not to be outdone by the Canadian holiday we will celebrate for two days as well!  Fireworks and BBQ tonight after the day of celebrating yesterday. 

I would say both countries have been honored and celebrated in style.  I think Andy would have liked it.

Gratuitous sunset shot!  Because you can never have too many sunsets.

It Was "The Best Day Ever"

After three days of rain in a row the sun finally came out on Monday!  I guess all that praying we did in church on Sunday worked!  I decided that it would be the perfect day to visit Prince Edward Island with Marathon Girl and her mom who will hereby be referred to as The Bag Lady (the kind that you sew and embroider).  It was not going to be a real beach day at the shore and while they are in Canada we might as well add another province to their travel log.  It turned out to be "the best day ever"!  Feel free to use this as your unofficial Prince Edward Island tour guide in the future and you too will have the best day ever!

We started off by doing something I have always wanted to do but was never in the car with anyone else willing to pull over. 
Not that.... this!

take pictures of the Confederation Bridge!

Once over the bridge we stopped briefly at the tourist info center and gathered our maps, so old school.  The information gal highlighted a path for us to take on the map and we proceeded to go in the exact opposite direction.  It paid off!  What does she know anyway, she only works there.

We are going rouge and heading left instead of right on the map, so rebellious!

We headed to Summerside.  We visited the College of Piping and found a very helpful lady who directed us to the perfect lunch spot and mentioned that if we came back around 1:30 or 2 we could sit in on rehersals for a while since there was no performance that day.  We had a great lunch at Miss Daisy's Bistro.  It was just too cute, we felt like we had gone to a friend's house for lunch.  A friend with a quaint house who can really cook!

We are smiling because we are about to have some delicious food....and the sun is shining!

The College of Piping did not disappoint.  What can I say?  I love bagpipes!  They stir something deep inside me. 

Our own private show....without costumes.

After our private concert we went in search of the Bottle House so we could check off another one of the 1000 things to see before you die.  I had always heard of this house but once again never had a willing participant to visit but with MG and BL as my hostages I was pretty excited.  It was super cool!  Not nearly as hokey as I expected either. 

Great way to recycle those old bottles!

On our way to the bottle house, in the middle of nowhere, we passed a massive church.  It was just so out of proportion to it's surroundings and begged a photo shoot.  We obliged.

Notre Dame du Mont Carmel

Sometimes when you go off road you are rewarded.  Here are pictures of a few of our off road rewards!  It was just one beautiful thing after another.  We were looking for the beach with the rocks.....because none of the beaches around here have rocks....hahaha!  But we were looking for one particular location and we sorta found it. 

One postcard view after another on PEI!

Luckily we did not run over Mrs. Stinky and her baby hiding underneath all that fur!

We found the most amazing lupin field in North America on our trail!

We found a very picturesque oyster farm.  I think whoever runs this place is very orderly! Everything was so tidy.

We did yoga on a rock

We did not run over this family of foxes but did stop traffic to take their pictures!

We finally ended up at one place the information gal highlighted, Cavendish Beach.  So different than the beach we are used to or the beach with the rocks. 

So peaceful

Our final destination was Charlottetown and the Gahan House.  We sampled some of the beer, had a yummy dinner and headed back to reality....well not reality, the farmhouse.  We did not run over the family of racoons on the road home either, unfortunately we did not get their picture because it was so late and so dark, but they were there!  It was "the best day ever"!

Cheers to a great day!  We came, we saw, we enjoyed!





The Road Trip

About a week ago I packed the car and all my worldly possessions....almost, and began my drive to Nova Scotia.  There were feelings of excitement along with dread at the beginning of the trip.  You know, it is a long way from Houston to Nova Scotia.  Not that it hasn't been done before, with four children and a dog.  But we were much younger then!

And so the road trip begins...Nova Scotia or bust!

When we left Houston the weather had gotten to that point where walking outside and sweating go hand in hand, it was time to head north!  It took us a few days before we got a small reprieve from summer in the south.  It happened in Georgia...I knew I always liked that place!  We were treated to a rare low humidity and not scorching hot couple of days while we visited our friends and I picked up my co-pilots/drivers.  Over the next few days we would spend every waking....and sleeping moment together.  They really had no idea what they were in for! 

Along the way we stopped at a mutual friend's house and visited.  They live in North Carolina and they have chickens!  Sadie thought the chickens were great and tried to get them to fly out of their coop and play with her but we had to put Sadie in her own cage aka the sun porch.  She sat there and watched those chickens with great intensity.  It was her favorite part of the trip.

It is hard work watching chickens, it makes your head heavy.

New Jersey went up a few notches in my book after this trip. (It had a long way to go ...sorry NJites).  I usually want to just twitch my nose and get through the state as fast as I can. I think this year we traveled early enough in the summer that we missed the massive vacation traffic.  We also got to stop and see my LG!  We stayed in Newark at a very nice hotel and they welcomed Sadie with open arms.  Seriously!  Sadie was famous among the staff, they were so happy to see a dog.  I also got to bond with all the weird people in front of Penn Station while I took Sadie out to walk.  We were also situated near a Portuguese and Spanish neighborhood with excellent food choices for our dinner that night.  Our excellent wait staff served us enough food to feed a small country!  It was all delicious!  And LG brought enough leftovers home with her for the rest of the week!

Here I am in Newark with Marathon Girl and my LG, enjoying the neighborhood but not the heat!

half of the food we were served

After consuming mass quantities of food in a Spanish restaurant we said goodbye to my LG and watched her ride off into the dark on the train.  It was totally worth the NJ Turnpike drive!  The next day was not too bad but it was long!  To pass the time the passengers played games drawing pictures and playing word games on phones and iPads...comments heard while driving were, "A man eating a baby on a plate?"  "yes, cannibal!"  We also listened to Catching Fire, the second in the Hunger Games trilogy.  Both were great ways to pass the time!  We did stop in one of my favorite places....the New Hampshire Liquor Store!

This time I decided to declare all of the wine we brought into Canada!  Turns out... "honesty is the best policy."  The border guard did not even flinch when I declared the case of wine we had among the three of us.  We were each two bottles over our limit but he was more concerned about whether we had any mace or pepper spray.  Thank you, nice border crossing guard! 

Apparently escaping the heat of the south took a little longer than expected.  We traveled through the northeast during a heatwave.  Temperatures were over 100 in New Jersey, over 95 in Massachusetts and New Hampshire.  Finally, when we made it to Maine we were blessed with lower temperatures.  "Be careful what you wish for", they say. Ever since we arrived here in Nova Scotia, we have had rain, clouds, cool temperatures and beautiful sunsets like this.....

My excitement over sharing our little part of heaven with my friends has been tempered a bit. The sun has not shone it's face since we arrived. My house guests are beginning to question their decision to stay for a week.   I can only hope they are treated to at least one day like this....

For The Love of a Dog

To what extremes have you gone for your dog....or cat?  Have you had to clean up disgusting messes?  Have you walked them in rain, snow, sleet, wind, heat and cold?  Have you paid ridiculously expensive vet bills?  Have you swept up piles of fur rolling along on your floors and brushed it off your furniture?  Have you battled fleas and ticks?  The answer to these questions is probably yes, if you own a dog or a cat.  BUT....have you spent 7 days in a car driving 3,000 miles so they can spend the summer with you at the shore?   Didn't think so.

"You talkin' bout me?" 

As you may or may not recall, last year and the year before, getting our dog to the shore presented a bit of a challenge.  There were planes, automobiles, hurricanes, many days of travel and lots of money involved in getting the dog to the shore.  Oh, we missed those years of living in Toronto and being a mere two day drive to the shore!  After weighing all the options we decided our best option this year is just to drive all the way to Nova Scotia....for the love of a dog. 

We used to make this drive every year with our kids because we were too poor to fly everyone up there and then rent a car for 6 weeks...makes sense.  We were usually babbling idiots by the time we arrived at the shore but it was always worth the drive.  Once the kids were gone and we had a little cash in the bank we flew, it was luxurious after all those years of driving.  Well, I can't believe I am back in the car all because of a dog.  To say I am not looking forward to all those hours in the car would be an understatement. There are some people who love to drive for days on end, I am not one of them.  Just get me there already! 

I will have some co-pilots on the trip though.  Marathon Girl has offered to help with the driving and her mother is also coming along for the trip.  We are going to try to make this an adventure, oh, it will be an adventure alright!  So, as I pack 3 months of stuff in two...or more suitcases and clean my house and organize my life down here, I pray that we have smooth travels.  I can feel my hair turning gray(er) already!

I am sure this will make for at least one amusing post upon arrival!  Stay tuned for the Canadian part of the Chronicles.