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Lucy's Blog

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Thursday, November 29/2007
I have been up since 4 this morning, puttered around, worked on a cupboard, did lots of thinking, made some coffee, and working on the web site. At the moment there is a gentle snow fall. I sit in in the loft looking out over the lake and I think I have to be the luckiest girl alive. Peace, quiet and beauty surround me, the fire burns in the cook stove, Winston is snoring on the carpet downstairs, caught a mouse in the trap outside. Life is good.
Dwight is coming to visit tonight and we will cross the lake with the ATV, I want to wait for him....just in case. The grizzly (ATV) is a heavy sucker should it go through.
I have begun decorating my little log cabin for Christmas even though it is not finished yet. It is going to be a wonderful winter here in Lucy Land.
I walked out a couple of evenings ago to get my mail. It takes an hour there and back. Winston and I were able to make our way in the dark by following the white glow of the road through the woods.
I got a quote to have my road plowed (its about a km.) but it was too expensive. With the last snow we got (about 6 inches) I tried with the Grizzly and plow and it worked like a charm so the plowing contract is with myself. I am also getting a quote to get my 1973 Yamaha Elite (side by side, double track) fixed. I wont get stuck with that baby.
Life is different off the grid, there are other more important basic things to think of and lots to experiment with. I look forward to making my rink on the lake and skating path.

Tuesday, November 13/2007
Back from four days in Florida. Dwight and I settled his parents in for the winter. I came back with a sore back and ice on my little lake, I could not get across so walked around on the deer trail. It is that time of the year just before it all freezes solid. Usually it does not take long before you can cross but there is a warm spell coming so it will all melt again.
Hoping to have my deck in off of the kitchen, there is one post in already and five more to go before the frost settles in the ground...after that there is no problems to build the deck.
My son Josh saw a lynx not far from here.
Monday, November 05/2007
There is a real nip in the air now. Getting things put away for the winter season, the days are shorter now, darn it!
Had friends over on Friday and we got about 4 cords of wood cut....good friends to have. Halloween was a blast, I was a witch with 36 inch long hair and Dwight and I went somewhere in Ottawa to meet up with my son and even dancing right in front of he and his girlfriend he did not recognize his own mother, that was a blast. I dropped in to see a patient that I see at St. Vincents and got a great picture of the two of us that I am going to frame and give to him. I don't think I have gotten dressed up for Halloween in over thirty years so I think it is about time.
Heard some coyotes yipping and howling, I guess with all the hunters there is a feast of leftovers in the bush.
The cook stove works like a dream, I have already made a full meal on it including the bread with lots of hot water in the reservoir for dishes and bathing.
Kitchen is done. I have almost completed the vapor barrier in the new bedroom bathroom addition. Slow but sure. Still lots to do. Winter is coming very fast.
All the family is well. Life is good.

Wednesday, October 03/2007

I had a lovely birthday weekend. My girlfriend somehow brought over a canoe full of balloons, what a picture that made.
On my birthday morning around 4am I was wakened by a wolf howling, only the second time I have heard one here. The first one was a couple of years ago and that is why I called my cabin Lone Wolf. Anyway the lone wolf howling made Winston howl and so here I was lying in bed being serenaded by two canines. The wolf was back howling again the following morning.
Hunting season is upon us and I can hear the occasional rifle and shotgun in the distance. I even heard a hunter doing a moose call. Now you don't hear this in just any back yard.
As I write on my PC I am looking across my little lake at the beautiful fall foliage with pine needles raining down in the wind.
I got my 500 lb cook stove moved in yesterday, that was a job, now I just need some parts and it will be up and cooking.
Tuesday, September 18/2007

By months end I will be celebrating my 51st birthday, its just keeps getting better. My new kitchen addition is almost done and it is totally awesome, I am so happy. The bedroom addition is well on its way and at the moment (excuse the interruption but Winston my dog is softly growling outside so I know some animal is nearby, this should be interesting) anyway back to my blog. I am busy doing trim, sanding, staining, prepping. My friend Dwight hooked up my water and redirected and reconnected my propane appliances and he did a stellar job. No leaks! There is so much to figure out here at the cabin being off the grid. Thank you Dwight for fueling and understanding my fire. He has also taken on the firewood! Poor guy, every time he comes up it seems to be work work work but he says he loves it....my kind of man!
I had my first cabin warming party with my family and more to come with different groups of people. I am so happy here. I know I will be able to start painting again this winter. Christmas will be awesome in my little cabin. My son Josh is doing very well, I am so proud of him. He has a lovely girlfriend by the name of Hanna.
Wed., August 28/2007
Well I got my TV and with rabbit ears I get three channels...good enough for me as I rarely watch TV. Had a friend up yesterday who took a nice pike home for dinner.
I have all my permits for my expansion and deck in place....yippeee and start my second lesson for scuba diving this evening.
I have decided to replace my little wood stove with a cook stove that I have in storage. This will solve my hot water problem for the winter as it has a five gallon water reservoir with spigot and did I mention a bigger oven than what I have on my propane stove. There will be lots of baking and cooking going on this winter. Dinner parties....
Improving the road coming in is still an ongoing project and more firewood to bring in. Today I am going to prep some 4 by 6 pine beams that will be going in my additions to support the water reservoir.
Wed., August 08/2007
Yes there are fish, pike, perch, catfish, we went out to catch a fish for dinner and within 5 minutes I had a 2 lb. pike so that was it for the fishing...back in, fish got cleaned while the butter browned......hmmmm, we enjoyed the best pike I ever had.
I got my floating dock just about finished, an 8 by 12 but I am short 5 boards for the decking so I will be off shortly to go and get them. I prepped another dock to stain but now it has rained overnight so it needs to dry. I may do some road work this afternoon, so much fun stuff to do! 50 and loving it!!! I have my little log cabin and a big backyard.
Dwight upgraded my 1000 watt inverter to a 3000 watt and hooked it up for me (thank you Dwight) and now I am adding a few more batteries, appliances, bread maker (made my first loaf yesterday, microwave and I think by winter I may buckle and get a TV with satellite.

Monday, August 06/2007
I'm back at the cabin and the really hot spell has ended. Reaping the rewards of the garden and wildflowers. The grey water pit is completed and just perfect, conforming to all the municipal bylaws on building a grey water pit. Solar is working very well. Life is good.
Tuesday July 17/2007
A beautiful summers day today. Things are really moving along. I start my scuba classes tonight from 6:30 to 11, I hope I can stay awake. I have postponed twice already.
I will add some new pictures next week but right now it is frantic getting things ready for the renters with all this construction underway.
The surveyors were up yesterday to divide the land and then I had my 3 yards of 3/4 inch gravel delivered to the trailhead but they sent the big truck and it got stuck but it all played out cause like I said I have horse shoes up my.....
Anyway they brought in the backhoe and I nabbed the owner about fixing my road. I had been at them for about three weeks and now finally he was here and I told him I would tie him up so he couldn't get away. They are going to come and finish today...yeah so I have to run, finish my coffee and go haul some cinder blocks off the trailhead so they can make my parking lot.
Tuesday July 10/2007
Wow...I am now officially living at the cabin. You have to realize what a drastic change it is, going from a 4500 sq. ft. house to a 450 sq. ft. cabin soon to be about 600 sq. ft. I have not had a breather yet and am now in the full swing of doing the additions and planning it all out. The cabin is rented out for 2 weeks at the end of July.
Monday June 25/2007
Had a great weekend. More landscaping, sorting and organizing around the cabin, things that were not even on the list of to do stuff but all lots of fun.
It will be a very busy week with tying up all loose ends and organizing the building of my addition starting July 1st. Dwight was busy working on the bush road coming in so that Gina (golf cart) and myself can drive in to the trail head. Cutting branches out of the way and huge rocks out of the road! We just keep plugging away and its all fun.
OMG I have to tell you, I was working with the pick axe on a little flower garden and I hit something. It was a horse shoe, now what are the chances of that way out there. Perhaps it was a horse shoe that hung off the cabin door that used to be there years ago before it burned down. Does not matter, it is supposed to be good luck and I always said I have a horse shoe up my ass.
Thurs. June 21/2007
Things are ticking along, nervous butterflies in my tummy as my divorce is almost through and working on all the minute details for my transition and new life. I lead a charmed life. Today is a bit chilly, can't seem to get quite focused, too many things to do.

Misty morning coffee

Sat. June 09/2007
A stellar day weather-wise, I hadn't been to the cabin for a few days and when I arrived I was surprised to see a lot of goose poop. Later in the afternoon while working outside I noticed a pair of geese and seven goslings on the yard eating grass while my dog Winston was sleeping under the cabin. They were very quiet and kept sneaking up on the yard throughout the day. When I left in the evening there were two families waiting to come up. The other had 3 goslings. Hmmmm what am I going to do, I am just glad I have a fence around the garden. It seems that a lot of the lakes around here have nesting geese, a new phenomenon. Full house at the B&B tonight. Got another canoe for Lone wolf, this one is a cedar strip, canvas covered, needs a bit of TLC but perfect for the cabin. Brought in some more furniture from the house for the cabin. Carpenter has my list of materials ready for my new little kitchen addition. I think my friend and I are going to build it because my carpenter is too busy.
My friend Dwight is hooking up my solar system for me, he's good with all kinds of stuff around the cabin and loves doing it all and full of ideas to bounce off each other, it's very nice, I love it!

Monday June 04/2007
Another great busy weekend at Lone Wolf. I spent it back and forth at the house busy with guests and at the cabin busy with all my helper friends. The enchanted garden is just about finished. This is one very tiny 7 by 11 garden surrounded by the most elaborate tangle of cedar complete with a funky gate under an arch. The sweet peas and vines will grow up the back, it should be gorgeous. All I wanted was to keep the rabbits and dogs out and I ended up with a piece of art with the help of Dwight, Florence, Markus and Darren.

The enchanted garden

The garden has a guardian we have named the Bird of Paradise, which is a root system Dwight pulled out of the ground and I stuck on some red tailed hawk feathers that I found by the creek. It looked like a red tailed hawk met his maker so I gathered up all the feathers.
Solar panels are up on the roof, should be up and running by the weekend. Started working out the plan for the little kitchen addition. It was muggy this weekend and the deer flies have started. Black flies are finished, it was a very short season for them. Peepers have just about stopped peeping, the bullfrogs are starting and there are lots of nests with baby birds everywhere.
Enjoying the paper on one of the docks on an early Sunday morning, trees reflected in the lake ahhhhh such is life

The creek on either side of Deer Crossing Bridge, log bridge just before the cabin

Monday. May 28/2007
All is well, the bugs are really not so bad this year. My friend and I had some interesting wildlife stuff happenings at Lone Wolf this past weekend. A female red winged blackbird was knocked in the water by one of her admirers and they were still going for her while she was in the water....poor thing. I took the canoe out to rescue her but she was already flopping her way to shore and her admirers (there were two) were watching her closely. It took her a while to dry off and fly off but she still had her friends to deal with.
Later in the afternoon a big water snake had a good sized catfish still wiggling in its mouth....only the catfish was sideways and my natural instinct is to rescue so while the snake was readjusting its grip I flicked Charlie catfish back in the lake....Sammy snake was none too pleased!
Weekends at Lone Wolf are awesome, a place to relax and unwind, stresses melt away. Lots of work to do but nothing that is stressful or pressing.
I am hoping to have my solar panels and setup by the weekend. If all goes well it should be installed by Sunday....I am so excited. My generator bit the dust, something serious but it might still be covered by warranty, I think it is a manufactures defect....so that is what is prompting the solar.
There is going to be another showing at Stanyar House tomorrow.
Tues. May 22/2007
Wow, we are having fabulous weather. While working on my PC here at the cabin I watched two geese fly by and a blue heron land on the opposite shore.
I will be heading back to Stanyar House this morning. My renters are checking out. Yesterday I went into Ottawa and my friend Dwight took me sailing in his kirby 25, we screamed down the river at over 6 knots. When I came back to the cabin Winston was gone, I would suspect that he is back at the house.........I hope. Busy week ahead.

Beautiful bleeding heart in front of the outhouse

Sat. May 19/2007
Another stellar day. I stayed in Ottawa last night, Winston stayed at the cabin. There is hardly a breeze today and very few black flies which is a good thing as I have some planting to do. I have seen some dragon flies and that usually means the end of the black flies is soon to come. I picked up some manure, peat, berry bushes, etc. to be planted today. I have a tiny garden I am going to try to tend but I will have to put some chicken wire around it to keep the rabbits at bay. I am not sure Winston will be on alert all the time. Like the saying goes "While the cats away the rabbits will eat your garden???"
I still cant get over having a satellite hookup here at the cabin. It totally blows me away but makes me happy to be connected for my work and research and well as being in contact with the outside world when I so choose.
Stanyar House at the moment is rented out till next week then I am back to pack up and prep some more things and tie up a lot of loose ends. There are a couple of cottage rental places I have to clean up next week for my friends so lots to do. I also need to get a carpenter here for my addition, not to mention having time for my sweetie.
8PM, I had a lovely day planting and preparing gardens start naked, not many places you can do that! At 5:30 I tried my hand at catching some pike but they are not biting yet. At 6 there were 6 geese that fly into the far end of the lake. It was a grand day...just what I needed, it will be early to bed for bucko. I called my carpenter and he is going to drop by tomorrow afternoon.
Friday May 18/2007
I am at the cabin, it is a beautiful sunny morning with frost on the ground and a mist floating over the lake. I just saw a rabbit chewing on the grass in the yard and Winston did not even notice him. Today I am supposed to be getting satellite. Now that would be too cool! We shall see and if I do I can upload this blog....
Bit by bit life gets easier. I will be moved up here full time by the end of June....still lots of work to be done but it is done with great pleasure and satisfaction. John will be running Stanyar House B&B

Tues. May 22/2007

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