Back to School

Well, the sauna's so we can have somewhere warm to wash up in cold weather. The outdoor "solar" shower is only bearable 5 months of the year (and then there are the blackflies...)

I think the sauna's a splendid idea, Tai. Half ya luck!

(A thought about my map request ... on 2nd thoughts, perhaps not a brilliant idea on the internet. I should've realized that.)

Thank you for the off-site information, Tai!

Gonna start Googling now.

Packing, packing, packing. Trying to fit the necessities of life into a compact hatchback. It's a challenge.

Heading up to the schoolhouse tomorrow (possibility of snow on the weekend -- oh boy!) so I won't be around much unless a trip to town coincides with the library being open.

Going to get that wood stove operational no matter what.

Wow...snow. It's almost 90 degrees down here.

I am sure you will get it all done. I know you will be glad when you are finally there with your stove working!

Have a safe trip!

Have a great trip, you two..

The snow arrived on schedule the day before Mother's Day:


Unfortunately, this did not:


The baseboards did a good job of keeping us toasty though, in spite of no insulation and single pane ancient windows. And the hydro didn't go out...well, once...for three hours...

And speaking of ancient windows...we were looking at the panes one day and noticing the patterns in the glass. Does anyone know how window glass is made? Is it rolled into sheets? Would that account for what look like roller marks? In some panes the marks are horizontal and in others vertical. Here's a photo of a shadow cast by one window on the opposite wall by the setting sun:


That's not a real mouse, it's cast iron. My mom left it on a window ledge one spring and startled the living daylights out of me when we next arrived. (Remind me again why she's got her own keys. Now you know where djjd and I get our off-beat sense of humour.)

From snow to these:


Lady Slippers. By the second week it was T-shirt weather (well, except for the black flies) and the garter snakes were out sun bathing.

old glass is verra cool.

the liquidity shows through...

Mr. Fix-it has permanently attached a ladder to the roof. That and a harness is going to make roof and chimney maintenance a lot safer.

Hey there Rockhead. Yeah, it will be a shame to replace them (but a lot warmer).

Gasp! Real live lady's slippers in the wild! So cool.

Hi soz. Yeah, re: the Lady Slippers, there has to be a particular fungus in the soil for them to grow so you can't just transplant them. We have twice as many as we used to since thinning the cedar trees.

WOW... look at that... fab pic... and ...................................







no idea about the glass - but I love the pic... and the mouse - ha, good 'ole Mom a?

those Lady Slippers are gorgeous - not seen them before - very beautiful...

more gal, more pics

(glad to hear Mr FixIt is gonna be harnessed - no falling off the roof this time a?)

Such a great project you've got going there - you must be purdy hardy to live in that cold - brrrrrrrrrr... makes me wanna send you some slippers of your own to keep those toots warm. Now, as for the snakes - oooooooooh... would love to see them.

Good to see you TC - hugs to you gal. x

It's not just the fungus (orchids are wonderfully fussy, aren't they).

When you thinned the cedars, you made it easier for the deer to move around, and lady's slipper orchids seem to do especially well in the depressions caused by deer hooves. Don't remember why, but it was something we learned to watch for back in the day when I used to do "environmental assessment surveys" for the gummint.

Izzie, I will keep an eye out for snake photo opportunities. It is really, really, really dry up north just now (and no rain in the forecast). The last time we had a summer this dry I had snakes for company in the solar shower -- they liked the cool moistness of the ground. (They hang out under the well platform too.) There's nothing quite like having one's eyes full of shampoo and spying an up-periscope snake head through the pallets we stand on in the shower. ('Course, I'm not likely to have the camera in there with me.)

That's interesting about the deer hooves, ehBeth. It would certainly explain why there are so many on the island. (Farmer's market started this weekend -- I'll be thinking of you when I line up at the fish truck Friday.)

Went for a walk on our neighbour's hunting property:

(successful acorn)

I don't know what this ground cover is, but it was such a beautiful green I just had to photograph it.

Didn't expect to find one of these:


A unique deer stand...