Lucy's Blog
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Wednesday, December 24, 2008
A very Merry Christmas to you all.
Ah what a place to be when you have the flu on Christmas Eve. Our
plans have not turned out like we had planned. Five days ago I helped
an elderly friend who was ill and alone at home. I spend the whole
afternoon with her. A day and a half later booom I have the flu and the
next day Dwight has it but also with a sinus infection. We now have two
sickies but life goes on. So we are spending our Christmas alone as we
are contagious and this is not a fun flu to have.
Monday, Dec. 1, 2008
The biggest news is that my son Josh and Hanna are now officially
engaged!!! I gave them some land so they could start to dream and
dream they have. Ahhhh dreaming is such a good thing and dreams DO come
true. Josh proposed to Hanna on that piece of property. They hope to be
building in a couple of years. I figure why wait till I die to give him
some land, young people need the boost now and they will be old by the
time I leave this earth.
Dwight and I went to the A.C.C. Potluck dinner last night and oh
my we had some mighty fine food. We got home around 10, watched some
TV, I fell asleep first and woke up to hear it raining last night. At
this very moment there are big snowflakes falling. I have the generator
going for a bit just to boost up the batteries as I dont think there
will be much sun today.
The lake is frozen with about 4 inches of ice and slush on
top. We cross it with our rubber boots on now. Too slushy for the ski
doo and I am still not comfortable to cross it with my Grizzly. I will
be putting on the plow for it sometime today and hopefully start
building a dog house for Winston. I have basically closed off the
underside of the cabin which is where he likes to sleep but he gets so
darn dirty going under there. He like to be near and often will sleep
on a balcony by the bedroom door that is so small he draps over it just
so that he can be near. Dwight has his ice tower all figured out so now
we just need the winter to cooperate.
Nov. 18/08
Oh boy how time flies and things change. Life is an adventure up
here and constantly changing, we love it. When you meet your soul mate
it is especially awesome. Where do I begin. I was in stitches when I
read Dwight's ramblings/blog , he is
making me pay attention to all aspects and manners of my life and doing
it in a way than I pay attention. When you have an A.D.D. brain this
can be a challenge....a good one.
Oh the changing of the seasons.............. Today I was in Ottawa
picking up a second hand washing machine for a friend of mine whose
rental cottage I manage. I went straight to her place to drop it off
and set it up. A couple of glasses of sparkly and 9pm all is dark
and time to go back home to the cabin. which as the crow flies is about
a mile straight back. In my world things are not as easy when it
is dark and you are alone on your way home. Monday nights Dwight plays
Volley Ball. While in town getting the washing machine I got our 2
spare 30lb tanks of propane filled at Costco for the fridge and
stove. I left one at the trailhead with the ATV for Dwight to
haul back and then into the canoe and across. You see things start to
get complicated after a while. I had borrowed my friends SUV to pick up
the washer but had to get sweetie to come after work to the address in
Ottawa and help me load it. While doing that we realized there was no
room for one of the propane tanks so he took one in his car.
I walked in the dark just for fun although I had my head
lamp. Although my eyesight is failing more and more it was fun to
see if I could do it. There was no moon shining but it must have been
reflecting off of clouds or something It seemed also that there
was extra light pollution from Ottawa cause I was able to see the path
all the way to the lake and across. The only place I used my head
lamp was to find the right key to get into the cabin. It was very
cool crossing the lake. I like to stand now when paddling cause the
seat is always wet. The distance is not long and my balance is very
good. You get that way depending on the environment that you are in.
When I got to the edge of the lake because the night was bright and
below freezing there was more ice that had formed since I left in the
morning. This ice was covered with a light dusting of snow which was
very cool to break through (it was very thin, an easy break), I know
when Dwight arrives he with have this black broken path through the
lake to follow, his job will be easy for tonight......(enjoy it while
you can sweetie!)
Tuesday Oct. 21, 2008
Well it is cool with rain, the rain barrels are filling up again.
The spring behind the cabin has not started to run yet. It should be
running by the time our wood fired red cedar barrel hot tub arrives. It
will be in time for us to sit in it while the snowflakes drift down all
around us, ahhhhh, we may become dealers.
Anyhoo, Sunday Winston treed a mink, now I know what was trying to
get my chickens last week. I built them a pretty hefty chicken coop so
between that and Winston watching over them they should be fine. They
are still producing 100 percent eggs.
I got another cupboard door in the yurt covered in mica that I
found on the logging road, just need to put a couple of coat of varnish
on it and its done, then I have one more to make, it looks pretty cool.
Rainy day so I shredded three head of cabbage for some sauerkraut,
nothing quite like your own
.
Dwight has about 5 cords of wood here at the cabin and more
stacked up here and there throughout the property. Dwight bought 60
acres from John so now we have a total of 230 acres which is more than
enough for our play ground. Dwight just needs a back hoe and he can go
play in his sandbox all day long :)
We are busy getting things ready for the winter. I wonder if we
will get as much snow as we did last winter
Thursday October 09, 2008
Thanksgiving is upon us and we have many many things to be
thankful for.
It is a gorgeous day today, doing my last load of wash outside in
the washer spin dryer and then it get put away and out comes my Wonder
Wash and spindryer for the winter. The big stuff and bedding will go to
my girlfriends washing machine in the winter.
Dwight had done a fine job with the firewood and we have already
had some nice fires in the cookstove. We are having Dwights parents and
maybe others for Thanksgiving at the cabin on Sunday then off to a
family dinner on Monday at my brothers. It is supposed to be awesome
weather. The infrastructure for the loggers roads through the property
is ready so Dwight and I have been busy closing up for the summer and
prepping everything for the winter.
We had lots of rain last night, the rain barrels are ful, the
chickens are still laying their four eggs a day. The yurt is looking
gorgeous with the woodstove installed. Ready for business and friends.
Lots of finishing details are getting done around the cabin, decks,
lattice work, etc. John and Sheila just got engaged and I am sure that
Josh and Hanna will soon follow suit. Dwights parents are getting ready
to head down south for the winter along with the Canada geese.
Monday September 15, 2008
Well in another two weeks I will be turning 52 and loving it!
Dwight and I are having such a good time. We had a busy weekend
with stuff to do (what else is new) We got all the stuff we needed to
finish the wood stove for the yurt. Picked up the lattice for the
surround. I have almost all the window/door for the yurt built. We want
more light in the yurt so I took a thermal window apart and am using
that. Off to the side of the door I have made the part that that stove
pipe will be going through. I think this will work very well. Hopefully
I will be able to get it finished today and the primer on.
Transplanted a lot of bugleweed along the front of the stone wall.
Dwight filled in low patches with earth, I will reseed with clover and
grass today. We got the battery box moved over to the side of the cabin
and Dwight dug a trench with conduit for the wire to go underground to
the cabin. We now have the charge controller in the kitchen where we
can keep an eye on our power. Now I just have to pretty up the box and
put some board and batten on it.
Dwight called me this morning on his way to work to tell me that I
would not be able to take the ATV out because a huge old pine came down
at the little log bridge. I will go and check it out to make sure that
was no damage to the bridge. Too big a tree for me to cut up so Dwight
has his job cut out for him (no pun intended) when he gets home.
Monday, September 08, 2008
Where is the time going, so much going on and wanting to enjoy
every single second. September and October are my favorite months
to go walking and exploring in the woods.
Everyone is doing great! I have a bit of a mess to clean up this
morning with our yurt warming party this weekend and then I have some
board and batten to stain if I don't get distracted by something else..
I took out the composting toilet for various reasons and replaced
it with a birch stump that is attached to a French drain for urine
only. The outhouse is for other business.
Here
we have a wind blown birch that was just perfect for my toilet. However
when it was cut it sprung back into its original position. I am just
checking it out for size. Grinding out a place to put the stainless
steel bowl, drilling a hole, putting in the drain. We had the French
drain already done for the composting toilet so the transition was
easy. I can tell you there is a lot more room in the little bathroom
with the honking big composting toilet out of the way. We will end up
using that for another camp.
The things some people do to make an unique toilet.
I painted the background of the bathroom just for fun and
added a few real birch trees as well.
Wednesday August 06, 2008
Rain, rain, rain, it a dam shame for all of us trying to get
things done outside. We still have a lot of things to do with the yurt
before we furnish it like adding additional waterproofing to the
canvas, staining the lattice walls, painting the floor, etc. etc but
the rain is slowing things down. Josh and Hannah were down to visit on
Monday and Josh was in time to help bring over the yurt with Yves and
Dwight.
Dwight and my son Josh paddle over the yurt in the rowboat.
Oh my god I have to stop writing!!!!....the sun just came out and
so I am out as well. Later
Sunday, August 03, 3008
Well it happened, yesterday...Dwight asked me to marry him and I
said I would be proud and honored to be his wife.
Meanwhile back at the cabin the yurt platform is getting built. We
have our permit so things are moving rapidly now. The building of the
yurt platform should be completed early this week.
Something got into the garbage at the end of the road so another
project on the list moved forward to the top of the list and that was
to build a sturdy garbage box. It should be completed today and of
course it has to have a bit of a creative flair to it. The chickens are
doing very well and seem to be quite happy with the digs I built them
as they keep laying egg after egg.
Thursday, July 24, 2008
This next paragraph is all about our chickens so if you are not
interested just skip it. Its just there is so much to tell.
I had ordered four pullets two months in advance so I had lots of
time to build the chicken coop........while I had one week to go and no
chicken coop so I began to hustle. I started building a 4 by 6 coop and
6 1/2' high. This was a generous size as all I needed was minimum 2
square feet per chicken.
We had friends over for the weekend and they commented on
how big it was and how was I going to be able to keep it warm for them
in the winter. It was then that I realized that I wanted to over winter
them and not put them in the freezer. I also learned that the older
they are the bigger the eggs. Right now they have small eggs. One of
the first four eggs they laid for me was very small and had no yolk, I
guess it was the stress of the trip. Anyway back to the topic at
hand, the coop. I abandoned the coop and started to figure out my next
plan, an insulated small eight square foot building to be completed in
two days...............hmmmm I eyed the back of the
outhouse...........perfect
I took the two generators out of the open end,
closed it in, added a ceiling, insulated, vapor barrier, rodent proofed
it....the thing is built like Fort Knox. It has two nest boxes, vinyl
flooring for easy clean up and a hatch in the wall that leads to a
small outdoor run. A window was hacked out and I put in some glass
blocks that a neighbor had given me.
Taaa daaaa, job well done. The girls love it, by the way their names
are A, B, C, D, which stands for Annie, Beatrice, Cora and Daphne
The 20 week old girls (ready to lay they tell me) have arrived and
seem to have settled in quite nicely. They don't seem to have been too
stressed after their long trip in a truck from Kitchener to just
outside of Ottawa. From here I picked them up in a crate with the
straw, wood chips and laying mash, traveled 40 minutes, loaded them up
in a golf cart for a five minute drive to the lake and then in the
canoe across to their new home. While in the golf cart one of
them laid an egg, she couldn't wait poor thing. What a hoot. In the
last week they have provided us with 18 eggs. Nothin like cabin fresh
eggs!
It was cute. One day before my sweetie headed off to work I asked
him to collect any eggs there may be and he came back with his eyes
wide open looking like a little boy. He held out his hand and opened
them to display three eggs. Just like a proud papa.
I'm in the throe of putting the board and batten on....if it would
only just stop raining!!!
Our filtered drinking water system is working out
just great. It hold about 10 liters of water which you pour in at the
top and filters out any bad stuff that may be lingering. The clay
container keeps the water about ten degrees cooler than air temperature
as well. We are very pleased with it.
Dwight is very busy getting the site for the yurt ready. He is
taking next week off to build the platform. I know Dwight complains
about going to rest up at his desk job but hey, someone has to make the
money. Secretly though I know he wishes he was here having all
the fun like I do. His time is soon approaching.
Our gardens are really growing, we never buy fresh produce
anymore. We ate our first beans yesterday, green peppers will be ready
soon.
My week did not start off so great, I walked into the side of the
chicken run roof with my eyes wide open. A trip to emergency for an eye
abrasion, yowwwsers, followed by a two day sore throat which I got from
my sweetie and then a stiff neck and now I seem to be fine, touch wood
cause I got too much stuff to do.
Thursday, July 10, 2008
Wow the summer is moving along rapidly. We had a fabulous party
this past weekend, all day, all night with tents pitched here and there
and a huge box of fireworks for the evening. Next year Dwight will have
to wear ear muffs.
I managed to get my swimming raft with built in seat done last
week. Board and batten did not get done cause the mill was slow on the
delivery, oh well as if I had time anyway. The place looked gorgeous,
the weather was primo!!! The blue lagoon (swimming raft) was
spilling with people who had raided my stash of sparkly up in the cave
where it is naturally cooled....good news is, no one drowned.
The kids had a great time catching leeches, ick and we found out
that they are not interested in us humans, they only go for the fish.
My nephew had them crawling over his hands as well as snakes.
It was very cute to see about 50 one inch baby catfish being
herded around by mama. Pikes were caught and eaten, Mitchell caught his
very first one, now does he look proud or what. It was a lovely time
and great swimming.
Dwight said "no new projects" and guess what (not me this time) he
just bought a 19' Mongolian yurt which is being delivered on
August fourth. We wanted to have a bunkie to put up friends or start an
unique Bed and Breakfast with no time to build a bunkie so the yurt
seems to be the answer.
Dwight is busy with his work and comes home and moves the earth
off the rock at the back and filling in all the low lying areas. We
have a huge garden along the road in and he has rigged up quite the
irrigation system. He is a hell of a worker, steady and strong,
nothing daunts him....well almost nothing. Its looking awesome
and so is he!
I have devised a cheap hat for Dwight and I that keep our deer fly
count down. Deer flies have got to be one of the most annoying insects.
We each have a black cap that I cover the top back part with duct tape
and then you buy a tube of "Tanglefoot" which is sticky stuff that is
used to put around trees to keep the insects from crawling up. The deer
flies are attracted to the highest moving point which is the back of
your hat or bald spot. When the hat is filled with flies you just rip
off the icky tape and make a new one.
I have decorated the garden with all kinds of stuff to scare away
the deer. There is a scarecrow there, her name is Vera and every time I
round the corner she scares the shit out of me.
I am busy building and designing as I go, a chicken coop to house
four laying chickens that I have to pick up on Wednesday so I really
have to hustle to get this baby done. It is six by four and I have to
build the run as well. Now I also have to build a yurt platform so off
to the municipality for another permit and business license.
I had Josh and Hannah here last week for overnight, it was very
nice, they need more quite time so I will have to get them up here and
stay in the yurt, they would love that.
Tuesday, June 17, 2008
Pinch me.
Life is good. Busy times.
Yesterday morning a snapper greeted Dwight on his morning rounds.
The snapper was in the midst of laying her eggs directly beside the
fire pit. Winston knew enough to stay away. Funny though, the day
before Dwight says to me "what has a head the size of my fist and two
big flippers to which I replied, a platypus. He say it go under the
dock so I guess she was casing the place out to see if it was suitable
to lay her eggs.
Tonight I go for my second last scuba diving class and then to the
open water weekend at the end of the month. By the time I get home by
about 1am I am exhausted. Mmmmmm sleep in till 7am and then coffee
time. Hope the rain holds off and time to install more board and batten
if I don't get distracted with another job.
Sunday, June 15, 2008
We had Dwight's parents for Fathers Day dinner tonight. Dwight and
I went fishing last night cause we wanted to have some pike for dinner.
Well we caught 3 good sized ones so we had loads of fish for Fathers
Day dinner. While Dwight was doing his morning rounds in his house coat
even before his coffee (like he does every morning) he cast his line
and caught the biggest one yet. Too big to throw back. Too much fish so
some went in the freezer. Just before dinner Dwight and his dad went
fishing and on the last cast Sam caught an even bigger one....his
dad was very pleased to be bringing back his own pike.
I finished the floor for the shed and at this very moment 8:44 pm
Dwight has gone to pick up the 2 by 4's from the trail head so that I
can build the walls this week.
Lupines are in their glory and the daisies are not quite in their
prime yet.
Friday June 13, 2008
Hmmm Friday 13th eh, yesterday was an awesome day weather-wise but
I needed to go to Owls Nest to prepare it for the beginning of the
summer renters. That was a full day. Mid afternoon I needed to rush
back to do some laundry of my own because I had stripped the bed this
morning and wanted to do it up again. There was not a cloud in the sky.
I am in heaven now with my new washer spin dryer. I have it set up
outside and am caught up with the laundry, thank you sweetie.
All my lumber is in for the new shed and my board and batten. This
morning with see me finishing off at Owls Nest, I must remember to
bring my whipper snipper. On the way back I will load up on board and
batten and hopefully get started on that this afternoon. I picked up a
couple of cheap hoses the other day to connect from the little spring
in the side of the hill near the new huge garden about a km away and
Dwight picked up a couple more so now the little trickle empties into
the garden, the beans are already bursting through the soil. As I sit
here and look out the window at 5:30 in the morning I can hear a few
bullfrogs which I am sure in a few years time will multiply to a
symphony. I see the screen in front of me loaded with mosquitoes just
waiting to come in for a meal.
I hear Winston on the little temporary balcony just outside the
bedroom loft. The balcony is no bigger that he but hopefully we will be
able to increase the size and finish it up for him and us once and for
all. The place is looking great.
Today I prepare more culinary delights in my solar oven cause we
are in for some fine weather again. It will be a warm one so I have all
the windows open at the moment and will get it nice and cool then I
will shut them and it will remain cool for the day.
Sunday, June 08, 2008
Wow, doing my blog two days in a row. The reason is that it is
soooo hot and humid outside right now that we are inside where the
humidity is low and temp is 24 instead of the 32 and humidity outside.
We have the kitchen closed to the main cabin because of the propane
appliances in the kitchen that keep that side warm. Dwight hooked up
the solar hot water in the outside and inside shower. It is scalding
hot!!! All fed by gravity. The arbor is well on its way to being
completed, there are grapes growing already.
The cake I made in the solar oven turned out beautifully. Today
they talked about rain which has not happened yet so I put some brown
rice and a buttercup squash in the solar oven because it take a while
to cook these and the oven did a fantastic job...I love that thing, the
suns energy is free for the taking.
The little table and red chairs are set up on the deck and this
morning we enjoyed a wonderful breakfast of bacon and eggs, toast,
juice and some fruit. We eat salad every night with greens, etc picked
fresh from our garden every day.
Saturday, June 07, 2008
It is 2:30 in the afternoon, it is warm and muggy, 32 degrees
outside in the shade. Inside it is 23 degrees. Dwight and I went out to
our big garden along the road coming in. I had some beets, carrots and
beans to plant and a scare crow to put up. I will keep all the lettuce
and peas here as I am afraid the deer and rabbits would be too tempted.
I have bits of Winston's hair spread around as well. The new garden is
not far from a little spring for water oh and if I did not mention
before we also planted 75 asparagus plants.
Before we headed out this morning I knew that it was going to be
hot and that I would not be cooking over the stove so I got a soup
going for lunch and a chicken dish for supper and threw them both in
the solar oven. The bread was being made by the bread maker. Lo
and behold when we got back we had a delicious hot soup and fresh
bread. The canoes and row boat are still loaded down with rocks for the
rock wall and some of the beautiful earth from the garden. The earth
here is no hot hell. At this very moment I have an experimental cake
baking in the oven cause the sun is so hot. The solar oven works like a
slow cooker and goes to about 300. Its just I don't have any cookies or
cake at the moment and Dwight has a sweet tooth.
For the moment we have our instant hot water worked out with a
Coleman instant hot water heater which we still need to hook into the
main gas line and not use those expensive little cylinders. My washer
spin dryer comes in next week....I can hardly wait. Summer brings like
of dirty clothes. I have started the board and batten and it is just
awesome. The flowers and gardens are going crazy.
Saturday, May 31th, 2008
Ahhhh it is the last day of May...it is supposed to rain for three
days and be mild. I have been busy with getting everything set up
to do the board and batten on the cabin. Dwight picked up a new table
saw and it works like a hot dam. You dont realize how critical it is to
use good tools....they make life so much easier.
With todays rain it was like a day of rest. I was able to work on
things inside that were neglected because I was focused on the outside.
It is just that living or homesteading out her you need to plan
everything according to the weather. Make hay while the sun shines they
say.
The gardens are soooo happy with all this warm summers rain.
Dwight was out burning some brush this afternoon and I was here
working on the inside of the cabin. As soon as the rain stopped I took
the bad of leftover sunflower seeds from the winter which we had for
the birds and threw it all along the road out. Hopefully there will be
a few that will germinate. At least I got rid of the seed which would
have otherwise gone rancid waiting for next winter. On the way back I
picked up a few more stone for my rock wall. When Dwight came back late
afternoon he also had some stone as well as some wild garlic. I
suggested we go fishing so we pulled out a couple of our homemade beers
from the spring and in the canoe we jumped. Three casts later I got
ourselves a 2 1/2 lb pike. I catch you clean I say and then added "you
catch, you clean"
We had a wonderful feed of pike an hour later. Asperagus with
butter and wild garlic and rice, hmmmmm, something about catching your
own dinner. Yesterday I was busy with the board and batten and then
raced down to my friends to stain her 94 steps to the lake and then
back again to finish off at the cabin and put the tools away, cover the
wood before our three days of rain hit.
Dwight came back yesterday with a Coleman Instant Hot Water
System....oh my god..........life just got easier. We are getting such
a system! I am getting spoiled! Yesterday because I was so busy, before
I left to stain my friends stair I through in some boneless chicken
thighs, chopped onion, Indian spices, etc. in the solar oven. While I
was gone it clouded over and when I got back at 6 which was about the
same time as Dwight, the dish was still hot, cooked and ready to eat.
Boy was it delicious. The solar oven is a hit with me. Just like a slow
cooker. I am a pretty good cook so we are having some pretty awesome
meals not to mention the propane we are saving.
Wednesday, May 28, 2008
Oh boy it was a nippy one this morning. There was threat of frost
but we missed it. It went down to 3 degrees. First thing yesterday
morning I brought my elderly friend to her dentists appointment then
back home for a couple of hours and then off again to start my first
scuba lesson last night. I did not get out of the pool till 11:30 and
then back to the shop to bring all the gear back then the trip home
which involves opening the gate, driving down a logging road, onto a
golf car with a flashlight, to the waters edge, then in a canoe across
to the cabin. Last night I was lucky, Dwight met me at the beginning of
the road at 12:30 am, what a sweety!
Dwight fixed the bicycle cart last night. On the weekend he
scrounged a busted cart for behind a bicycle from a neighbor. It was in
the garbage heap. It had two flat tires and no harness. Dwight
scrounged some car shelter poles from another neighbors garbage pile
and made a harness and fixed the tires....my kind of guy.....he's so
handy.
Before I went to class and after I covered all of my new plantings
just in case of frost. My washer spin dryer comes in this week. I am
beside myself with excitement.
We almost never go to the cabin empty handed, there is always a
flat rock or a piece of lumber to bring back.
Thursday May 23, 2008
Still cool and wet on and off so the black flies are on and off as
well. The weekend promises to be awesome. Dwight took the day off
yesterday and we ended up getting a lot done. The ATV was making a
funny noise (could be the CV joint so Dwight brought it in to get
checked out). It sure is handy having a trailer. While he had the
trailer hooked to the ATV he went and picked up Gina the golf cart and
brought her in across the bad section of road that the logger have not
fixed up yet, now they say next week.
Well I had all my asparagus plants waiting to be planted so we
prepped the new asparagus bed and I went and picked up ten bags of
manure, dug the holes, layered in the manure and bone meal and got 75
plants planted. Oh what a crop we will have in a few years. Tossed in
some zucchini and cucumber at the same time. We will see how it all
does in the sand pit away from home.
Dwight had picked up a couple of scrap mountain bikes for free
that needed a lot of work, he bought some parts, fixed the tires and
now I have a bike. He didn't tell me that in his youth he was a bicycle
mechanic. He is one handy fella!
I have everything planted at the moment and now the building and
finishing off the cabin begins.
The kitchen screen door is on now and just waiting for the hot
weather.
Josh and Hanna are both doing well in Toronto.
Tuesday May 20, 2008
Oh my goodness life is busy this time of year. It's been
cool and kind of wet, fabulous for the gardens. We have gardens in the
most unlikely places. The logger will be in in the next day or two to
fix up the road and there is one spot along the road near a spring that
they uncovered where I will be starting an asparagus patch in the sandy
soil so its off to pick up some manure today. It will be nice to have
the road fixed and get some building materials delivered.
Today is also the day that I finally get my summer tires put on
and I have to get a doctors signature to say that I am fit to retake my
divers course...you see last year I was not able to finish cause I put
my tooth through my lip moving a wood stove. I will also pick up
some flowers today to put up at my girlfriends cottage and ours as well.
Dwight and I had a nice weekend at my sisters in North Bay but it
was a chilly weekend and a heck of a long drive to get there.
Thank god for their hot tub. Always nice to be back home where we
both dive back into our projects of which we are not short on. Dwight
was busy with all kinds of things, hauling stones, cutting trees,
filling water containers, salvaging materials, fixing bikes, filling
propane, getting dog food and it goes on and on. Today he gets to rest
at his desk job. He has his French course two half days a week now.
We had a scary thing happen yesterday....a chimney fire!!!! It was
a real lesson. I was inside cleaning up cause it was too chilly yet for
me to go out and Dwight was puttering outside. I had a small fire going
to heat up water for dishes and a wash and threw in some cardboard. It
was then that I heard the roar and knew what was happening. I yelled
outside to Dwight that there was a chimney fire and to get the water
pump ready. I had a fire extinguisher and just watched helplessly as
the stove pipe got redder and redder. Meantime Dwight got the ladder up
to the roof to prepare the dousing of the water but then the fire
started to die down, the danger was past but it left my knees shaking.
What we learned was that we need to do regular inspections of the pipe
especially when we have smoldering fires in the spring and fall, and to
get an extra fire extinguisher.
The bleeding hearts are in bloom, the same time as last year. We
had our first rhubarb from the garden with which I made a cake.
Tomorrow I am back in town to bring my elderly friend to her
dentist appointment.
It sure is nice to be starting life all over again and to have
someone who cares by your side and shares in the dream.. and to be
living in paradise. You also learn who your real true friends and
family are. It is an interesting journey....a most joyous journey
Monday, May 12, 2008
Another beautiful day with a high of 20 expected today which means
that the black flies will be out full force in the next few days. They
are never really bad a the cabin for some unknown reason but at the
trailhead they seem to converge. We have already had a few feeds of
fiddle heads that we picked along the creek. We were able to measure
the head and distance to the bridge to determine what we need to do for
the micro hydro system we plan to install. There is a lot of research
to be done but it is very doable. We at least hope to have a power
house in which I can put a freezer and be able to charge Gina. This way
we would be totally independent of the grid.
We did a bit of cat fishing in the front of the cabin but only
caught a couple which we released. It was a lovely weekend with my
sister and Dan up, Campfire by the waters edge and some homemade
bubbly. Next weekend we are off to North bay to do some serious fishing.
In the night we had more overnight guests in the way of about 200
Canada geese, I have never seen so many on this tiny little lake. They
all left early in the morning and all around the lake along the shore
were bits and pieces of water plants. It actually looked like someone
had weed wacked the shoreline and all the bits were left. Glad they
left.
Dwight and I are very busy this time of the year with the garden,
roads, firewood and plans for solar water heating, sheds, terracing the
point where our cabin is. Dwight is finding that working is interfering
with getting things done and at other times he is thankful to rest up
at his desk.
I am off to town today with my list of stuff to pick up, gloves
are on the list as I am sure I could probably sand a piece of wood with
my rough hands. At the end of the month I start my scuba diving classes.
Dwight picked up a solar oven last week and boy have I been having
a ball with that.
We got a nice gate put up this weekend and did away with the
awkward cable we had strung across the road. Today I hope to plant some
day lilies along the post.
Wednesday April 30, 2008
Hope you all have your taxes done....I do!!!
Well last night we had a good frost, it went down to minus 4,
brrrr. This weekend will see warmer temperatures but darn it all, rain
is in the forecast along with it.
The ice bridge finally went out. Dwight used the canoe to bridge
the gap between the dock and ice bridge, hi hoe, hi hoe, its off to
work he goes....and when he came back in the evening everything was
gone.
The sound here in the late afternoon and evening is almost
deafening with all sound of all the peepers. This morning we awoke with
a robin in the throe of song.
My cold was actually bronchitis but it has almost cleared up. Lots
of stuff planted in the garden, peas, spinach, radishes coming up,
lettuce, etc. We have 4 laying pullets arriving July 17th so need to
build a four by four chicken coop along with 2 sheds. Speaking of
sheds, Dwight has found a pile of lumber someone is selling that we can
get a hell of a deal on along with many other things we need. Build
build build. We hope to get the bulk of our work done this year. Today
I hope to get some caulking done on the cabin then tar paper before the
board and batten goes up. I may build the foundation of a 6 by 8 deck
today by the side entrance. Choices, I will probably end up doing
something else.
Dwight was very busy on the weekend clearing and cutting wood from
the sides of the road coming in. It was all left by the loggers,
he also set up a car shelter at the trailhead that he picked up
to park and store stuff out of the weather. This is a man that is not
afraid of work. I have never seen a man persevere and spend three hours
getting a huge root system out. The loggers will come in about a week
to fix up the road that they messed up. We are still not able to drive
right to the trailhead.
Yesterday I picked up the Rubbermaid stock tank that we will be
using for our home made hot tub. We are still working on the many
options we have to heat it with. Dwight paddled it across the pond
yesterday. We are having sooo much fun! I am so happy to have found my
soul mate. We are like a couple of kids with adventure around every
corner.
Thursday April 17th, 2008
I have one hum dinger of a cold, first bad one in a few years.
It's does slow me up a bit. It is so very nice to have someone taking
care of me.
It is totally amazing outside, snow is melting quickly, it is
supposed to go up to 21 degrees today. The last of the snow disappears
off the garden so I will be planting snow peas soon. The rhubarb is
popping through the patch at the edge of the snow. The blue heron was
here yesterday, turkey buzzards, ravens, crows, all form of birds.
Dwight saw four wild turkeys and a deer on the trail coming home a few
days ago. I say a deer yesterday.
Tuesday, April 08, 2008
Wow the snow is melting fast, as long as the rain
stays away we will be okay. It was a great weekend, warm, had my
bathing suit and chainsaw boots on. Driving the Grizzly around with the
new Cat Tracks Dwight had put on. It goes everywhere now. We have lots
of projects lined up for the new year....YIPPPEEEE
Thursday, March 17, 2008
Well it is raining today, supposed to be a fair bit. My packed
trails must have four feet of packed snow underneath and is impassable
with the ATV now. Dwight has ordered a set of Cat Tracks for my ATV
which should come in today. With these we will be able to go anywhere.
They float on the snow and go through the mud. Loads of traction for
plowing too.
Miss Lucy and Dwight leave for Florida to visit Dwight's parents
for a week on Saturday. I am hoping that at least two feet of snow
disappears while we are away. When we get back Dwight moves in and we
begin living our authentic lives.
My little back room is coming along slow but sure. On the weekend
Dwight dry walled it and I mudded and am still mudding.
Looking forward to having my son Josh for supper tonight.
Friday, February 29, 2008
Wow!!! another cold one today. The
loggers should be done soon for this winter. One benefit is that I may
have a good trail to eventually come to the top of the hill close to
the cabin. There will be lots of slash for firewood as well. It is
going to be
a very busy busy summer.
I finally have my composting toilet set up. The birch forest
painting behind the toilet is finished which has given me the bug to
start painting again. I covered the vent of the toilet with birch bark
which gave me the inspiration to do the painting/mural.
My carpenter is up for a few weeks to help out with some stuff
that needs doing like finishing the soffits before the squirrels
take up residence in the spring. Before the spring thaw I am going to
bring up my drywall and have him install it in the spare room.
I will do the mudding. Right now he is finishing up a closet for me in
the loft.
Living at the cabin is the best....I love it! I have absolutely
everything I could possibly want!
I need to get a big float done in the next four weeks for the
sauna....yup a floating sauna. That is one of Dwight and Lucy's
projects.
Tues, February 12, 2008
Whoaaaa it sure is frosty out there
this morning. You know it's cold when you look out the window and your
black dog looks
like he has grayed suddenly and when you hear the nails popping on the
deck. It is a beautiful sunny day nonetheless.
I will just keep the home fire burning, listen to CBC as I continue
with my carpentry work.
Oh to be back in warm Curacao.
I will be going to Florida for a week at the end of March with
Dwight to visit his parents and meet his brother and niece from San
Fran.
Im running low on firewood and the snow is kind of deep to be
pulling it out of the bush so I have asked the loggers if they spot a
few dead ones standing if they could drag them out for me and leave
them on the side of the road. Then I will get the ATV and drag em back
to the cabin and block and split them there.
I love my life! It's just so not stressful and I have a kindred
spirit to share it with.
I have five coming for an overnighter on Saturday. I have never
had so many stay over. Should be a hoot.
Wed, January 16, 2008
Winston is barking
up a storm but that’s okay. While it was still light I looked out
to see what he was barking at and it was a pair of coyotes on the lake
and what a show I had.
Winston would start to go towards
them and then they would spread out and start running towards him ( and
they can run fast) and he would turn around and run like hell and when
the big one got too close then Winston would turn on him and he would
run. I almost thought they might start to play. The pair were kind of
playful with each other. I was a bit nervous for a while
cause I thought that they would gang up on Winston so I got my bear
guard ready to go out and save the day but I was enjoying the show.
The coyotes would go back to the end
of the lake and one would lie down and then they would ambush Winston
all over again and he barked and got closer. Finally the one came and
lay down near the rink and then a third coyote appeared and then off
they went. Now it is dark and I don’t know what the heck is
happening out there. Wow I have the most amazing experiences
right out my back door. Maybe I should get my gun license or
something
.
Thursday, January 10, 2008
Well I am off to Curacao on the 20th
for a week with Dwight to sell his
Jeanneau Lagoon 37 Catamaran. He is part owner of the boat but his live
aboard partner passed away last summer so we are going to
be meeting some serious buyers. First we need a day to clean her up.
Weather here is crazy, only in Canada can you have 30 degree
swings in one week!
Josh and Hanna are off to the Dom. Rep. on Saturday and the kids
are REALLY looking forward to that. An all inclusive resort.
In the meantime I have been staying at Dwight's in Ottawa for a
few days while this extreme warm weather and rain blows over. was able
to fix my 74 skidoo Elite (broken prime line and stuck throttle) and
bring it to the trailhead before the lake got too wet to cross and the
trail too soft. Brought over my 74 Elan and ATV as well. My arsenal of
machines await my return this afternoon.
I have sold a selective wood cut on the property and wow there
sure are some changes in them just prepping the roads and I may be
getting another way to the cabin that would be a bit easier. When I
left on Tuesday they had already started cutting a new
trail....looks good.
Wed, January 2, 2008
Wow what a year its been. This is
going to be the best year ever. I had the most wonderful Christmas and
New Years. Dwight and I organized a New Years party at the cabin. It
was an all day and night affair and I think we had more fun prepping
for it.
We made an outside room on the lake which was a snow bank that we
lined with a row of balsam as a windbreak. Inside we put
a cast iron fireplace that my girlfriend gave to me. Inside we put the
silver punch bowl....very decadent indeed.
Dwight cut a fallen birch up for a base for the big New Years
bonfire then dragged out a few standing dead trees for the
big blaze and what a blaze it was.
We shoveled off a rink and with the ATV we made a skating path
around the pond. Even John and his girlfriend Sheila joined in
the New Years celebrations.
Click
here to see some pictures of our New Years that a friend took.
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Wednesday, December 24, 2008
A very Merry Christmas to you all.
Ah what a place to be when you have the flu on Christmas Eve. Our plans have not turned out like we had planned. Five days ago I helped an elderly friend who was ill and alone at home. I spend the whole afternoon with her. A day and a half later booom I have the flu and the next day Dwight has it but also with a sinus infection. We now have two sickies but life goes on. So we are spending our Christmas alone as we are contagious and this is not a fun flu to have.
Monday, Dec. 1, 2008
The biggest news is that my son Josh and Hanna are now officially engaged!!! I gave them some land so they could start to dream and dream they have. Ahhhh dreaming is such a good thing and dreams DO come true. Josh proposed to Hanna on that piece of property. They hope to be building in a couple of years. I figure why wait till I die to give him some land, young people need the boost now and they will be old by the time I leave this earth.
Dwight and I went to the A.C.C. Potluck dinner last night and oh my we had some mighty fine food. We got home around 10, watched some TV, I fell asleep first and woke up to hear it raining last night. At this very moment there are big snowflakes falling. I have the generator going for a bit just to boost up the batteries as I dont think there will be much sun today.
The lake is frozen with about 4 inches of ice and slush on top. We cross it with our rubber boots on now. Too slushy for the ski doo and I am still not comfortable to cross it with my Grizzly. I will be putting on the plow for it sometime today and hopefully start building a dog house for Winston. I have basically closed off the underside of the cabin which is where he likes to sleep but he gets so darn dirty going under there. He like to be near and often will sleep on a balcony by the bedroom door that is so small he draps over it just so that he can be near. Dwight has his ice tower all figured out so now we just need the winter to cooperate.
Nov. 18/08
Oh boy how time flies and things change. Life is an adventure up here and constantly changing, we love it. When you meet your soul mate it is especially awesome. Where do I begin. I was in stitches when I read Dwight's ramblings/blog , he is making me pay attention to all aspects and manners of my life and doing it in a way than I pay attention. When you have an A.D.D. brain this can be a challenge....a good one.
Oh the changing of the seasons.............. Today I was in Ottawa picking up a second hand washing machine for a friend of mine whose rental cottage I manage. I went straight to her place to drop it off and set it up. A couple of glasses of sparkly and 9pm all is dark and time to go back home to the cabin. which as the crow flies is about a mile straight back. In my world things are not as easy when it is dark and you are alone on your way home. Monday nights Dwight plays Volley Ball. While in town getting the washing machine I got our 2 spare 30lb tanks of propane filled at Costco for the fridge and stove. I left one at the trailhead with the ATV for Dwight to haul back and then into the canoe and across. You see things start to get complicated after a while. I had borrowed my friends SUV to pick up the washer but had to get sweetie to come after work to the address in Ottawa and help me load it. While doing that we realized there was no room for one of the propane tanks so he took one in his car.
I walked in the dark just for fun although I had my head lamp. Although my eyesight is failing more and more it was fun to see if I could do it. There was no moon shining but it must have been reflecting off of clouds or something It seemed also that there was extra light pollution from Ottawa cause I was able to see the path all the way to the lake and across. The only place I used my head lamp was to find the right key to get into the cabin. It was very cool crossing the lake. I like to stand now when paddling cause the seat is always wet. The distance is not long and my balance is very good. You get that way depending on the environment that you are in. When I got to the edge of the lake because the night was bright and below freezing there was more ice that had formed since I left in the morning. This ice was covered with a light dusting of snow which was very cool to break through (it was very thin, an easy break), I know when Dwight arrives he with have this black broken path through the lake to follow, his job will be easy for tonight......(enjoy it while you can sweetie!)
Tuesday Oct. 21, 2008
Well it is cool with rain, the rain barrels are filling up again. The spring behind the cabin has not started to run yet. It should be running by the time our wood fired red cedar barrel hot tub arrives. It will be in time for us to sit in it while the snowflakes drift down all around us, ahhhhh, we may become dealers.
Anyhoo, Sunday Winston treed a mink, now I know what was trying to get my chickens last week. I built them a pretty hefty chicken coop so between that and Winston watching over them they should be fine. They are still producing 100 percent eggs.
I got another cupboard door in the yurt covered in mica that I found on the logging road, just need to put a couple of coat of varnish on it and its done, then I have one more to make, it looks pretty cool.
Rainy day so I shredded three head of cabbage for some sauerkraut, nothing quite like your own
.
Dwight has about 5 cords of wood here at the cabin and more stacked up here and there throughout the property. Dwight bought 60 acres from John so now we have a total of 230 acres which is more than enough for our play ground. Dwight just needs a back hoe and he can go play in his sandbox all day long :)
We are busy getting things ready for the winter. I wonder if we will get as much snow as we did last winter
Thursday October 09, 2008
Thanksgiving is upon us and we have many many things to be thankful for.
It is a gorgeous day today, doing my last load of wash outside in the washer spin dryer and then it get put away and out comes my Wonder Wash and spindryer for the winter. The big stuff and bedding will go to my girlfriends washing machine in the winter.
Dwight had done a fine job with the firewood and we have already had some nice fires in the cookstove. We are having Dwights parents and maybe others for Thanksgiving at the cabin on Sunday then off to a family dinner on Monday at my brothers. It is supposed to be awesome weather. The infrastructure for the loggers roads through the property is ready so Dwight and I have been busy closing up for the summer and prepping everything for the winter.
We had lots of rain last night, the rain barrels are ful, the chickens are still laying their four eggs a day. The yurt is looking gorgeous with the woodstove installed. Ready for business and friends. Lots of finishing details are getting done around the cabin, decks, lattice work, etc. John and Sheila just got engaged and I am sure that Josh and Hanna will soon follow suit. Dwights parents are getting ready to head down south for the winter along with the Canada geese.
Monday September 15, 2008
Well in another two weeks I will be turning 52 and loving it!
Dwight and I are having such a good time. We had a busy weekend with stuff to do (what else is new) We got all the stuff we needed to finish the wood stove for the yurt. Picked up the lattice for the surround. I have almost all the window/door for the yurt built. We want more light in the yurt so I took a thermal window apart and am using that. Off to the side of the door I have made the part that that stove pipe will be going through. I think this will work very well. Hopefully I will be able to get it finished today and the primer on.
Transplanted a lot of bugleweed along the front of the stone wall. Dwight filled in low patches with earth, I will reseed with clover and grass today. We got the battery box moved over to the side of the cabin and Dwight dug a trench with conduit for the wire to go underground to the cabin. We now have the charge controller in the kitchen where we can keep an eye on our power. Now I just have to pretty up the box and put some board and batten on it.
Dwight called me this morning on his way to work to tell me that I would not be able to take the ATV out because a huge old pine came down at the little log bridge. I will go and check it out to make sure that was no damage to the bridge. Too big a tree for me to cut up so Dwight has his job cut out for him (no pun intended) when he gets home.
Monday, September 08, 2008
Where is the time going, so much going on and wanting to enjoy every single second. September and October are my favorite months to go walking and exploring in the woods.
Everyone is doing great! I have a bit of a mess to clean up this morning with our yurt warming party this weekend and then I have some board and batten to stain if I don't get distracted by something else..
I took out the composting toilet for various reasons and replaced
it with a birch stump that is attached to a French drain for urine
only. The outhouse is for other business.
Here
we have a wind blown birch that was just perfect for my toilet. However
when it was cut it sprung back into its original position. I am just
checking it out for size. Grinding out a place to put the stainless
steel bowl, drilling a hole, putting in the drain. We had the French
drain already done for the composting toilet so the transition was
easy. I can tell you there is a lot more room in the little bathroom
with the honking big composting toilet out of the way. We will end up
using that for another camp.
The things some people do to make an unique toilet.
I painted the background of the bathroom just for fun and
added a few real birch trees as well.
Wednesday August 06, 2008
Rain, rain, rain, it a dam shame for all of us trying to get things done outside. We still have a lot of things to do with the yurt before we furnish it like adding additional waterproofing to the canvas, staining the lattice walls, painting the floor, etc. etc but the rain is slowing things down. Josh and Hannah were down to visit on Monday and Josh was in time to help bring over the yurt with Yves and Dwight.
Dwight and my son Josh paddle over the yurt in the rowboat.
Oh my god I have to stop writing!!!!....the sun just came out and so I am out as well. Later
Sunday, August 03, 3008
Well it happened, yesterday...Dwight asked me to marry him and I said I would be proud and honored to be his wife.
Meanwhile back at the cabin the yurt platform is getting built. We have our permit so things are moving rapidly now. The building of the yurt platform should be completed early this week.
Something got into the garbage at the end of the road so another project on the list moved forward to the top of the list and that was to build a sturdy garbage box. It should be completed today and of course it has to have a bit of a creative flair to it. The chickens are doing very well and seem to be quite happy with the digs I built them as they keep laying egg after egg.
Thursday, July 24, 2008
This next paragraph is all about our chickens so if you are not interested just skip it. Its just there is so much to tell.
I had ordered four pullets two months in advance so I had lots of
time to build the chicken coop........while I had one week to go and no
chicken coop so I began to hustle. I started building a 4 by 6 coop and
6 1/2' high. This was a generous size as all I needed was minimum 2
square feet per chicken.
We had friends over for the weekend and they commented on
how big it was and how was I going to be able to keep it warm for them
in the winter. It was then that I realized that I wanted to over winter
them and not put them in the freezer. I also learned that the older
they are the bigger the eggs. Right now they have small eggs. One of
the first four eggs they laid for me was very small and had no yolk, I
guess it was the stress of the trip. Anyway back to the topic at
hand, the coop. I abandoned the coop and started to figure out my next
plan, an insulated small eight square foot building to be completed in
two days...............hmmmm I eyed the back of the
outhouse...........perfect
I took the two generators out of the open end,
closed it in, added a ceiling, insulated, vapor barrier, rodent proofed
it....the thing is built like Fort Knox. It has two nest boxes, vinyl
flooring for easy clean up and a hatch in the wall that leads to a
small outdoor run. A window was hacked out and I put in some glass
blocks that a neighbor had given me.
Taaa daaaa, job well done. The girls love it, by the way their names
are A, B, C, D, which stands for Annie, Beatrice, Cora and Daphne
The 20 week old girls (ready to lay they tell me) have arrived and seem to have settled in quite nicely. They don't seem to have been too stressed after their long trip in a truck from Kitchener to just outside of Ottawa. From here I picked them up in a crate with the straw, wood chips and laying mash, traveled 40 minutes, loaded them up in a golf cart for a five minute drive to the lake and then in the canoe across to their new home. While in the golf cart one of them laid an egg, she couldn't wait poor thing. What a hoot. In the last week they have provided us with 18 eggs. Nothin like cabin fresh eggs!
It was cute. One day before my sweetie headed off to work I asked him to collect any eggs there may be and he came back with his eyes wide open looking like a little boy. He held out his hand and opened them to display three eggs. Just like a proud papa.
I'm in the throe of putting the board and batten on....if it would only just stop raining!!!
Our filtered drinking water system is working out
just great. It hold about 10 liters of water which you pour in at the
top and filters out any bad stuff that may be lingering. The clay
container keeps the water about ten degrees cooler than air temperature
as well. We are very pleased with it.
Dwight is very busy getting the site for the yurt ready. He is taking next week off to build the platform. I know Dwight complains about going to rest up at his desk job but hey, someone has to make the money. Secretly though I know he wishes he was here having all the fun like I do. His time is soon approaching.
Our gardens are really growing, we never buy fresh produce anymore. We ate our first beans yesterday, green peppers will be ready soon.
My week did not start off so great, I walked into the side of the chicken run roof with my eyes wide open. A trip to emergency for an eye abrasion, yowwwsers, followed by a two day sore throat which I got from my sweetie and then a stiff neck and now I seem to be fine, touch wood cause I got too much stuff to do.
Thursday, July 10, 2008
Wow the summer is moving along rapidly. We had a fabulous party this past weekend, all day, all night with tents pitched here and there and a huge box of fireworks for the evening. Next year Dwight will have to wear ear muffs.
I managed to get my swimming raft with built in seat done last week. Board and batten did not get done cause the mill was slow on the delivery, oh well as if I had time anyway. The place looked gorgeous, the weather was primo!!! The blue lagoon (swimming raft) was spilling with people who had raided my stash of sparkly up in the cave where it is naturally cooled....good news is, no one drowned.
The kids had a great time catching leeches, ick and we found out that they are not interested in us humans, they only go for the fish. My nephew had them crawling over his hands as well as snakes.
It was very cute to see about 50 one inch baby catfish being herded around by mama. Pikes were caught and eaten, Mitchell caught his very first one, now does he look proud or what. It was a lovely time and great swimming.
Dwight said "no new projects" and guess what (not me this time) he just bought a 19' Mongolian yurt which is being delivered on August fourth. We wanted to have a bunkie to put up friends or start an unique Bed and Breakfast with no time to build a bunkie so the yurt seems to be the answer.
Dwight is busy with his work and comes home and moves the earth off the rock at the back and filling in all the low lying areas. We have a huge garden along the road in and he has rigged up quite the irrigation system. He is a hell of a worker, steady and strong, nothing daunts him....well almost nothing. Its looking awesome and so is he!
I have devised a cheap hat for Dwight and I that keep our deer fly count down. Deer flies have got to be one of the most annoying insects. We each have a black cap that I cover the top back part with duct tape and then you buy a tube of "Tanglefoot" which is sticky stuff that is used to put around trees to keep the insects from crawling up. The deer flies are attracted to the highest moving point which is the back of your hat or bald spot. When the hat is filled with flies you just rip off the icky tape and make a new one.
I have decorated the garden with all kinds of stuff to scare away the deer. There is a scarecrow there, her name is Vera and every time I round the corner she scares the shit out of me.
I am busy building and designing as I go, a chicken coop to house four laying chickens that I have to pick up on Wednesday so I really have to hustle to get this baby done. It is six by four and I have to build the run as well. Now I also have to build a yurt platform so off to the municipality for another permit and business license.
I had Josh and Hannah here last week for overnight, it was very nice, they need more quite time so I will have to get them up here and stay in the yurt, they would love that.
Tuesday, June 17, 2008
Pinch me.
Life is good. Busy times.
Yesterday morning a snapper greeted Dwight on his morning rounds. The snapper was in the midst of laying her eggs directly beside the fire pit. Winston knew enough to stay away. Funny though, the day before Dwight says to me "what has a head the size of my fist and two big flippers to which I replied, a platypus. He say it go under the dock so I guess she was casing the place out to see if it was suitable to lay her eggs.
Tonight I go for my second last scuba diving class and then to the open water weekend at the end of the month. By the time I get home by about 1am I am exhausted. Mmmmmm sleep in till 7am and then coffee time. Hope the rain holds off and time to install more board and batten if I don't get distracted with another job.
Sunday, June 15, 2008
We had Dwight's parents for Fathers Day dinner tonight. Dwight and I went fishing last night cause we wanted to have some pike for dinner. Well we caught 3 good sized ones so we had loads of fish for Fathers Day dinner. While Dwight was doing his morning rounds in his house coat even before his coffee (like he does every morning) he cast his line and caught the biggest one yet. Too big to throw back. Too much fish so some went in the freezer. Just before dinner Dwight and his dad went fishing and on the last cast Sam caught an even bigger one....his dad was very pleased to be bringing back his own pike.
I finished the floor for the shed and at this very moment 8:44 pm Dwight has gone to pick up the 2 by 4's from the trail head so that I can build the walls this week.
Lupines are in their glory and the daisies are not quite in their prime yet.
Friday June 13, 2008
Hmmm Friday 13th eh, yesterday was an awesome day weather-wise but I needed to go to Owls Nest to prepare it for the beginning of the summer renters. That was a full day. Mid afternoon I needed to rush back to do some laundry of my own because I had stripped the bed this morning and wanted to do it up again. There was not a cloud in the sky.
I am in heaven now with my new washer spin dryer. I have it set up outside and am caught up with the laundry, thank you sweetie.
All my lumber is in for the new shed and my board and batten. This morning with see me finishing off at Owls Nest, I must remember to bring my whipper snipper. On the way back I will load up on board and batten and hopefully get started on that this afternoon. I picked up a couple of cheap hoses the other day to connect from the little spring in the side of the hill near the new huge garden about a km away and Dwight picked up a couple more so now the little trickle empties into the garden, the beans are already bursting through the soil. As I sit here and look out the window at 5:30 in the morning I can hear a few bullfrogs which I am sure in a few years time will multiply to a symphony. I see the screen in front of me loaded with mosquitoes just waiting to come in for a meal.
I hear Winston on the little temporary balcony just outside the bedroom loft. The balcony is no bigger that he but hopefully we will be able to increase the size and finish it up for him and us once and for all. The place is looking great.
Today I prepare more culinary delights in my solar oven cause we are in for some fine weather again. It will be a warm one so I have all the windows open at the moment and will get it nice and cool then I will shut them and it will remain cool for the day.
Sunday, June 08, 2008
Wow, doing my blog two days in a row. The reason is that it is soooo hot and humid outside right now that we are inside where the humidity is low and temp is 24 instead of the 32 and humidity outside. We have the kitchen closed to the main cabin because of the propane appliances in the kitchen that keep that side warm. Dwight hooked up the solar hot water in the outside and inside shower. It is scalding hot!!! All fed by gravity. The arbor is well on its way to being completed, there are grapes growing already.
The cake I made in the solar oven turned out beautifully. Today they talked about rain which has not happened yet so I put some brown rice and a buttercup squash in the solar oven because it take a while to cook these and the oven did a fantastic job...I love that thing, the suns energy is free for the taking.
The little table and red chairs are set up on the deck and this morning we enjoyed a wonderful breakfast of bacon and eggs, toast, juice and some fruit. We eat salad every night with greens, etc picked fresh from our garden every day.
Saturday, June 07, 2008
It is 2:30 in the afternoon, it is warm and muggy, 32 degrees outside in the shade. Inside it is 23 degrees. Dwight and I went out to our big garden along the road coming in. I had some beets, carrots and beans to plant and a scare crow to put up. I will keep all the lettuce and peas here as I am afraid the deer and rabbits would be too tempted. I have bits of Winston's hair spread around as well. The new garden is not far from a little spring for water oh and if I did not mention before we also planted 75 asparagus plants.
Before we headed out this morning I knew that it was going to be hot and that I would not be cooking over the stove so I got a soup going for lunch and a chicken dish for supper and threw them both in the solar oven. The bread was being made by the bread maker. Lo and behold when we got back we had a delicious hot soup and fresh bread. The canoes and row boat are still loaded down with rocks for the rock wall and some of the beautiful earth from the garden. The earth here is no hot hell. At this very moment I have an experimental cake baking in the oven cause the sun is so hot. The solar oven works like a slow cooker and goes to about 300. Its just I don't have any cookies or cake at the moment and Dwight has a sweet tooth.
For the moment we have our instant hot water worked out with a Coleman instant hot water heater which we still need to hook into the main gas line and not use those expensive little cylinders. My washer spin dryer comes in next week....I can hardly wait. Summer brings like of dirty clothes. I have started the board and batten and it is just awesome. The flowers and gardens are going crazy.
Saturday, May 31th, 2008
Ahhhh it is the last day of May...it is supposed to rain for three days and be mild. I have been busy with getting everything set up to do the board and batten on the cabin. Dwight picked up a new table saw and it works like a hot dam. You dont realize how critical it is to use good tools....they make life so much easier.
With todays rain it was like a day of rest. I was able to work on things inside that were neglected because I was focused on the outside. It is just that living or homesteading out her you need to plan everything according to the weather. Make hay while the sun shines they say.
The gardens are soooo happy with all this warm summers rain.
Dwight was out burning some brush this afternoon and I was here working on the inside of the cabin. As soon as the rain stopped I took the bad of leftover sunflower seeds from the winter which we had for the birds and threw it all along the road out. Hopefully there will be a few that will germinate. At least I got rid of the seed which would have otherwise gone rancid waiting for next winter. On the way back I picked up a few more stone for my rock wall. When Dwight came back late afternoon he also had some stone as well as some wild garlic. I suggested we go fishing so we pulled out a couple of our homemade beers from the spring and in the canoe we jumped. Three casts later I got ourselves a 2 1/2 lb pike. I catch you clean I say and then added "you catch, you clean"
We had a wonderful feed of pike an hour later. Asperagus with butter and wild garlic and rice, hmmmmm, something about catching your own dinner. Yesterday I was busy with the board and batten and then raced down to my friends to stain her 94 steps to the lake and then back again to finish off at the cabin and put the tools away, cover the wood before our three days of rain hit.
Dwight came back yesterday with a Coleman Instant Hot Water System....oh my god..........life just got easier. We are getting such a system! I am getting spoiled! Yesterday because I was so busy, before I left to stain my friends stair I through in some boneless chicken thighs, chopped onion, Indian spices, etc. in the solar oven. While I was gone it clouded over and when I got back at 6 which was about the same time as Dwight, the dish was still hot, cooked and ready to eat. Boy was it delicious. The solar oven is a hit with me. Just like a slow cooker. I am a pretty good cook so we are having some pretty awesome meals not to mention the propane we are saving.
Wednesday, May 28, 2008
Oh boy it was a nippy one this morning. There was threat of frost but we missed it. It went down to 3 degrees. First thing yesterday morning I brought my elderly friend to her dentists appointment then back home for a couple of hours and then off again to start my first scuba lesson last night. I did not get out of the pool till 11:30 and then back to the shop to bring all the gear back then the trip home which involves opening the gate, driving down a logging road, onto a golf car with a flashlight, to the waters edge, then in a canoe across to the cabin. Last night I was lucky, Dwight met me at the beginning of the road at 12:30 am, what a sweety!
Dwight fixed the bicycle cart last night. On the weekend he scrounged a busted cart for behind a bicycle from a neighbor. It was in the garbage heap. It had two flat tires and no harness. Dwight scrounged some car shelter poles from another neighbors garbage pile and made a harness and fixed the tires....my kind of guy.....he's so handy.
Before I went to class and after I covered all of my new plantings just in case of frost. My washer spin dryer comes in this week. I am beside myself with excitement.
We almost never go to the cabin empty handed, there is always a flat rock or a piece of lumber to bring back.
Thursday May 23, 2008
Still cool and wet on and off so the black flies are on and off as well. The weekend promises to be awesome. Dwight took the day off yesterday and we ended up getting a lot done. The ATV was making a funny noise (could be the CV joint so Dwight brought it in to get checked out). It sure is handy having a trailer. While he had the trailer hooked to the ATV he went and picked up Gina the golf cart and brought her in across the bad section of road that the logger have not fixed up yet, now they say next week.
Well I had all my asparagus plants waiting to be planted so we prepped the new asparagus bed and I went and picked up ten bags of manure, dug the holes, layered in the manure and bone meal and got 75 plants planted. Oh what a crop we will have in a few years. Tossed in some zucchini and cucumber at the same time. We will see how it all does in the sand pit away from home.
Dwight had picked up a couple of scrap mountain bikes for free that needed a lot of work, he bought some parts, fixed the tires and now I have a bike. He didn't tell me that in his youth he was a bicycle mechanic. He is one handy fella!
I have everything planted at the moment and now the building and finishing off the cabin begins.
The kitchen screen door is on now and just waiting for the hot weather.
Josh and Hanna are both doing well in Toronto.
Tuesday May 20, 2008
Oh my goodness life is busy this time of year. It's been cool and kind of wet, fabulous for the gardens. We have gardens in the most unlikely places. The logger will be in in the next day or two to fix up the road and there is one spot along the road near a spring that they uncovered where I will be starting an asparagus patch in the sandy soil so its off to pick up some manure today. It will be nice to have the road fixed and get some building materials delivered.
Today is also the day that I finally get my summer tires put on and I have to get a doctors signature to say that I am fit to retake my divers course...you see last year I was not able to finish cause I put my tooth through my lip moving a wood stove. I will also pick up some flowers today to put up at my girlfriends cottage and ours as well.
Dwight and I had a nice weekend at my sisters in North Bay but it was a chilly weekend and a heck of a long drive to get there. Thank god for their hot tub. Always nice to be back home where we both dive back into our projects of which we are not short on. Dwight was busy with all kinds of things, hauling stones, cutting trees, filling water containers, salvaging materials, fixing bikes, filling propane, getting dog food and it goes on and on. Today he gets to rest at his desk job. He has his French course two half days a week now.
We had a scary thing happen yesterday....a chimney fire!!!! It was a real lesson. I was inside cleaning up cause it was too chilly yet for me to go out and Dwight was puttering outside. I had a small fire going to heat up water for dishes and a wash and threw in some cardboard. It was then that I heard the roar and knew what was happening. I yelled outside to Dwight that there was a chimney fire and to get the water pump ready. I had a fire extinguisher and just watched helplessly as the stove pipe got redder and redder. Meantime Dwight got the ladder up to the roof to prepare the dousing of the water but then the fire started to die down, the danger was past but it left my knees shaking. What we learned was that we need to do regular inspections of the pipe especially when we have smoldering fires in the spring and fall, and to get an extra fire extinguisher.
The bleeding hearts are in bloom, the same time as last year. We had our first rhubarb from the garden with which I made a cake.
Tomorrow I am back in town to bring my elderly friend to her dentist appointment.
It sure is nice to be starting life all over again and to have someone who cares by your side and shares in the dream.. and to be living in paradise. You also learn who your real true friends and family are. It is an interesting journey....a most joyous journey
Monday, May 12, 2008
Another beautiful day with a high of 20 expected today which means that the black flies will be out full force in the next few days. They are never really bad a the cabin for some unknown reason but at the trailhead they seem to converge. We have already had a few feeds of fiddle heads that we picked along the creek. We were able to measure the head and distance to the bridge to determine what we need to do for the micro hydro system we plan to install. There is a lot of research to be done but it is very doable. We at least hope to have a power house in which I can put a freezer and be able to charge Gina. This way we would be totally independent of the grid.
We did a bit of cat fishing in the front of the cabin but only caught a couple which we released. It was a lovely weekend with my sister and Dan up, Campfire by the waters edge and some homemade bubbly. Next weekend we are off to North bay to do some serious fishing.
In the night we had more overnight guests in the way of about 200 Canada geese, I have never seen so many on this tiny little lake. They all left early in the morning and all around the lake along the shore were bits and pieces of water plants. It actually looked like someone had weed wacked the shoreline and all the bits were left. Glad they left.
Dwight and I are very busy this time of the year with the garden, roads, firewood and plans for solar water heating, sheds, terracing the point where our cabin is. Dwight is finding that working is interfering with getting things done and at other times he is thankful to rest up at his desk.
I am off to town today with my list of stuff to pick up, gloves are on the list as I am sure I could probably sand a piece of wood with my rough hands. At the end of the month I start my scuba diving classes.
Dwight picked up a solar oven last week and boy have I been having a ball with that.
We got a nice gate put up this weekend and did away with the awkward cable we had strung across the road. Today I hope to plant some day lilies along the post.
Wednesday April 30, 2008
Hope you all have your taxes done....I do!!!
Well last night we had a good frost, it went down to minus 4, brrrr. This weekend will see warmer temperatures but darn it all, rain is in the forecast along with it.
The ice bridge finally went out. Dwight used the canoe to bridge the gap between the dock and ice bridge, hi hoe, hi hoe, its off to work he goes....and when he came back in the evening everything was gone.
The sound here in the late afternoon and evening is almost deafening with all sound of all the peepers. This morning we awoke with a robin in the throe of song.
My cold was actually bronchitis but it has almost cleared up. Lots of stuff planted in the garden, peas, spinach, radishes coming up, lettuce, etc. We have 4 laying pullets arriving July 17th so need to build a four by four chicken coop along with 2 sheds. Speaking of sheds, Dwight has found a pile of lumber someone is selling that we can get a hell of a deal on along with many other things we need. Build build build. We hope to get the bulk of our work done this year. Today I hope to get some caulking done on the cabin then tar paper before the board and batten goes up. I may build the foundation of a 6 by 8 deck today by the side entrance. Choices, I will probably end up doing something else.
Dwight was very busy on the weekend clearing and cutting wood from the sides of the road coming in. It was all left by the loggers, he also set up a car shelter at the trailhead that he picked up to park and store stuff out of the weather. This is a man that is not afraid of work. I have never seen a man persevere and spend three hours getting a huge root system out. The loggers will come in about a week to fix up the road that they messed up. We are still not able to drive right to the trailhead.
Yesterday I picked up the Rubbermaid stock tank that we will be using for our home made hot tub. We are still working on the many options we have to heat it with. Dwight paddled it across the pond yesterday. We are having sooo much fun! I am so happy to have found my soul mate. We are like a couple of kids with adventure around every corner.
Thursday April 17th, 2008
I have one hum dinger of a cold, first bad one in a few years. It's does slow me up a bit. It is so very nice to have someone taking care of me.
It is totally amazing outside, snow is melting quickly, it is supposed to go up to 21 degrees today. The last of the snow disappears off the garden so I will be planting snow peas soon. The rhubarb is popping through the patch at the edge of the snow. The blue heron was here yesterday, turkey buzzards, ravens, crows, all form of birds. Dwight saw four wild turkeys and a deer on the trail coming home a few days ago. I say a deer yesterday.
Tuesday, April 08, 2008
Wow the snow is melting fast, as long as the rain stays away we will be okay. It was a great weekend, warm, had my bathing suit and chainsaw boots on. Driving the Grizzly around with the new Cat Tracks Dwight had put on. It goes everywhere now. We have lots of projects lined up for the new year....YIPPPEEEE
Thursday, March 17, 2008
Well it is raining today, supposed to be a fair bit. My packed trails must have four feet of packed snow underneath and is impassable with the ATV now. Dwight has ordered a set of Cat Tracks for my ATV which should come in today. With these we will be able to go anywhere. They float on the snow and go through the mud. Loads of traction for plowing too.
Miss Lucy and Dwight leave for Florida to visit Dwight's parents for a week on Saturday. I am hoping that at least two feet of snow disappears while we are away. When we get back Dwight moves in and we begin living our authentic lives.
My little back room is coming along slow but sure. On the weekend Dwight dry walled it and I mudded and am still mudding.
Looking forward to having my son Josh for supper tonight.
Friday, February 29, 2008
I finally have my composting toilet set up. The birch forest painting behind the toilet is finished which has given me the bug to start painting again. I covered the vent of the toilet with birch bark which gave me the inspiration to do the painting/mural.
My carpenter is up for a few weeks to help out with some stuff that needs doing like finishing the soffits before the squirrels take up residence in the spring. Before the spring thaw I am going to bring up my drywall and have him install it in the spare room. I will do the mudding. Right now he is finishing up a closet for me in the loft.
Living at the cabin is the best....I love it! I have absolutely everything I could possibly want!
I need to get a big float done in the next four weeks for the sauna....yup a floating sauna. That is one of Dwight and Lucy's projects.
Tues, February 12, 2008
I will be going to Florida for a week at the end of March with Dwight to visit his parents and meet his brother and niece from San Fran.
Im running low on firewood and the snow is kind of deep to be pulling it out of the bush so I have asked the loggers if they spot a few dead ones standing if they could drag them out for me and leave them on the side of the road. Then I will get the ATV and drag em back to the cabin and block and split them there.
I love my life! It's just so not stressful and I have a kindred spirit to share it with.
I have five coming for an overnighter on Saturday. I have never had so many stay over. Should be a hoot.
Wed, January 16, 2008
Winston is barking up a storm but that’s okay. While it was still light I looked out to see what he was barking at and it was a pair of coyotes on the lake and what a show I had.
Winston would start to go towards them and then they would spread out and start running towards him ( and they can run fast) and he would turn around and run like hell and when the big one got too close then Winston would turn on him and he would run. I almost thought they might start to play. The pair were kind of playful with each other. I was a bit nervous for a while cause I thought that they would gang up on Winston so I got my bear guard ready to go out and save the day but I was enjoying the show.
The coyotes would go back to the end of the lake and one would lie down and then they would ambush Winston all over again and he barked and got closer. Finally the one came and lay down near the rink and then a third coyote appeared and then off they went. Now it is dark and I don’t know what the heck is happening out there. Wow I have the most amazing experiences right out my back door. Maybe I should get my gun license or something .
Thursday, January 10, 2008
Weather here is crazy, only in Canada can you have 30 degree swings in one week!
Josh and Hanna are off to the Dom. Rep. on Saturday and the kids are REALLY looking forward to that. An all inclusive resort.
In the meantime I have been staying at Dwight's in Ottawa for a few days while this extreme warm weather and rain blows over. was able to fix my 74 skidoo Elite (broken prime line and stuck throttle) and bring it to the trailhead before the lake got too wet to cross and the trail too soft. Brought over my 74 Elan and ATV as well. My arsenal of machines await my return this afternoon.
I have sold a selective wood cut on the property and wow there sure are some changes in them just prepping the roads and I may be getting another way to the cabin that would be a bit easier. When I left on Tuesday they had already started cutting a new trail....looks good.
Wed, January 2, 2008
We made an outside room on the lake which was a snow bank that we lined with a row of balsam as a windbreak. Inside we put a cast iron fireplace that my girlfriend gave to me. Inside we put the silver punch bowl....very decadent indeed.
Dwight cut a fallen birch up for a base for the big New Years bonfire then dragged out a few standing dead trees for the big blaze and what a blaze it was.
We shoveled off a rink and with the ATV we made a skating path around the pond. Even John and his girlfriend Sheila joined in the New Years celebrations.
Click here to see some pictures of our New Years that a friend took.
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