Saturday Walk

This is early into our walk today. View from Dallas Road.
Right after the coffee, of course.

It was so gorgeous here today. Gorgeous, wonderful summer weather. Did you hear that word - summer?  It evokes such an amazing feeling in our bodies.  And our minds.

Well, today was one of those perfect summer days. A gentle and warm breeze. Full on sunshine, maybe a little sunburn. In fact, it was so warm, make that hot, that there were hundreds of people wandering around in shorts and t-shirts.  And some, make that lots, were eating ice cream.  Sigh.

I found an abandoned rusty mattress that was screaming for a little attention ...

After dinner at home, I discovered the lilac bushes behind our building are officially in bloom. Well, the purple ones are, in any case. The white ones are a little behind, and the California lilacs are trying very hard, as well.

 Can't you just smell that distinctive, lilac fragrance? It was wafting in the back stairs, so I went out to get up close and personal.  Then, look who popped his head out the window! 

My sweetie!

Renew and Reuse

Peter giving the book the once over.

For Peter's birthday in December of 2009, he was given a 2 lb. coil of fibre rush and a 'how-to' book on chair caning.  I think he'd casually mentioned that it would be a shame to have to stop using the stool by the fireplace, as it was definitely losing it's structural integrity.  Apparently, his parents agreed and were delighted at his interest in the well being of the small stool that was living at our house.  Knowing the stool could be repaired with a little time and effort, they purchased the tools necessary to complete the project - and made him a birthday gift of them.

As Peter was keen on the project, he attempted to document with photos just how it was - the pattern of the rush, how it was being held together, where the pieces joined together, etc., just in case we didn't get back to it for a while, or alternately, it fell apart completely! 

You should know that this stool has played a long and distinguished role in Peter's family history.  It was originally made by Peter's maternal grandfather before he left high school at 16 years of age (he was born in 1896).  When his grandfather got married in 1928, the stool moved with the young Edmonds family to begin family life in the interior of BC.  Mary Jane tells the story that during the late 1960's when the stool was in need of re-stringing, her mother called the Institute of the Blind in Vancouver to get directions on how to do this.  Well, the verbal directions were apparently so clear that she had no trouble with the process of repairing the stool and bringing it back to life.  She had been so pleased with the result that she phoned the woman who had originally spoke with her and invited her for lunch to see the successfully completed project.  Much to her surprise (and disappointment, no doubt), the woman replied she wouldn't be able to attend lunch - because she was blind! 

Early in the 1980's, Peter's parents took over the care and feeding of the stool when his aging grandparents moved to a care facility.  It was probably at that time the stool made another big move, this time to the Hornby Island cabin and where it became a fixture near their wood stove.  However, with the constant use there, Frank had to strengthen and stabilize the stool with a dowel crossbar.

Shortly after we moved into our own house on Hornby Island in 2006, this very same footstool was bestowed upon us - and, believe me, it was a welcome gift!  The stool was perfect for us to use when tending our wood stove.  It was the exact height to sit at to light and tend the fire with ease.

Since that time, Peter and I  have moved from Hornby Island to Victoria, and we very consciously moved the stool, fibre rush and book of instructions with us, fully intending to put the stool back together.  This past summer, Peter's health improved enough that the stool repair moved closer to the top of the list of 'things to accomplish'.  So, with renewed energy Peter took the stool with him back to Hornby, where his friend Rob helped put the wood frame back together, square it up, sand, and refinish it. He then brought it back to Victoria where we could apply the final touch - the weaving of the fibre rush seat.  In my opinion, the seat is definitely the most time consuming part of the project - aside from waiting for the right moment to start the project.  The weaving was several weeks from start to finish, as we had to pace ourselves on pulling what seemed like miles and miles of fibre rush through ever decreasing spaces in the seat.  It's hard to see in the photo on the right, but there is pile of unwoven rush sitting on the floor, just waiting to be pulled, one arm's length at a time, from right to left, the left to right, and so on, and so on.  Who needs an exercise class when you have projects like this?

So, while it has taken a couple of years (okay, technically it's been three), we finally finished the stool renewal!  It was truly a team effort (very gratifying, don't you think?) and we're proud of it.  Here is photo of the repaired stool in front of our 'fireplace' in Victoria - approximately 100 years after its creation.  We may have to take it with us on our next trip to Hornby, where it can once again sit in front of a real wood stove and be a key component in the very important work of tending the fire.

As I've said before, "Life is good."

Summer is Hanging On!

Two kinds of local sausages
on the indoor BBQ.

The weather this past week has been pretty darned nice. Nice?  How about swell? Okay, awesome.  A little bit cooler first thing in the morning, and the sun is definitely setting earlier these days, but the sun in the middle day is glorious. Absolutely glorious.  Makes one want to sing.  And skip, and ride one's bicyle.  Even when tired.

And tired, I was.  I don't know about anybody else but I was tired all of this past week.  Peter was too.  All that virtual travel with James and Eve, I guess.

I have to say, Friday ended well. A quick bike ride to the Cook Street Village and voila!  Dinner ingredients were purchased and ready to go.  Peter was hoping for bangers and mash and I did my best to please.

We ate tasty local gluten free sausages grilled on the indoor BBQ, local organic baby potatoes, sauteed zucchini and mushrooms,  and savoured a glass of our favourite house wine.

Oh yes, and some refreshing sliced cucumber on the side.  I had fun using our fancy slicer thingy.

We finished it off with some fresh fruit.  Then we had to sit still for a while to let the week (and the meal) settle in.  Life is good.

Local peaches and plums. Okay, the kiwi isn't local!

Ah, September

Well, it seems I mispoke.  Summer is not over.  It may be winding down, but it is definitely not over.  Thankfully.

Tickets and a backstage pass.

Last weekend we had the great pleasure of spending time with our friends James and Eve from Vashon Island.  They'd come to spend the weekend visiting Victoria before the k.d. lang concert on Sunday evening.  James is a part of k.d.'s crew, and the Sunday concert begins a month of touring for k.d. lang and the Siss Boom Bang gang.

James and Eve had their road bikes with them and Peter joined them on Friday for a nice ride out through Saanich to Sidney and back.  Friday evening was spent sharing salad rolls, some wine tasting and stories and a slide show of their recent bicycle tour of New Zealand, as well as a different trip spent in France.  Nothing like some awesome photos and good stories to get the travel bug active again!  Not that it ever is very far from the surface in this home.

View from the Laurel Point Inn.

Saturday was a lazy day for me.  I'd had a hectic week with 3 days on-the-job training, meeting new people through work, and walking the picket lines for a day (Wednesday - a first for me).  I even got to fly to/from Vancouver Friday via Harbour Air!  Peter met me at the terminal and had a good laugh that it was now my turn to be getting on/off planes, and him greeting me at the terminal at the end of the day.  In any case, Saturday was my down time; time to catch up.  James and Eve, on the other hand, checked into their hotel (great view), changed into their cycling clothes, fueled up with a good cuppa joe and rode off towards Sooke for a ride.  We met them later for some great tapas and live entertainment at The Superior.

Sunday morning was a lazy one for us.  Midday was spent wandering around downtown Victoria, checking out the Eat Here Now: Victoria Harvest Fest, and popping in and out of stores we don't normally venture into.  More stimulating conversation and some of the best coffee around.  It's at Habit on Pandora.  Then more stimulating conversation, some noodles at a Thai restaurant, then off to see k.d. lang at the Royal Theatre that evening.  The show was fantastic - what a character that k.d. is;  and that voice!  Boy, I wish I could sing like that.  Actually, I wish I could sing. Period.

Monday Night Picnic

It was a beautiful evening tonight and Pete had the picnic ready to go as soon as I got home from work.  So we packed up and off to the beach we went!

You'll have to imagine the happy grin on Pete's
face because it was so sunny that I failed to properly capture it in this image.

A coworker was paddling by us so I flagged him down for a visit.
He is one heck of an enthusiastic SUP'er!

Unpaid Vacation

Judith was awarded the picnicker of the month award for randomly finding this new spot.

Cruising south for a couple nights on the inside of Vancouver Island.

My cruising hosts. The Skipper, Chef, and Cruise Director.

Cruise Director or Skipper, you be the judge.

The second best part of cruising is when your lovely wife picks you up, and whisks you away for a picnic lunch.

The boat was fun for sure, but walking around in the mountains with Judith tops it all.

Yup, it was thirty plus degree's and we needed a swim at six thousand feet above sea level.

Mount Washington Ski Hill.

Paid Vacations

July 21st - Another early morning drive from Victoria to Hornby Island.
Ah, the sun and fluffy white clouds!

... watched a remote controlled sailboat race (July 22nd)

... visited friends (July 22nd),

... amongst them Anna and Ava (July 22nd),

July 24th - went hiking up Mount Geoffrey
with the visiting Alberta Snikles,

After our hike up the mountain, it was time to cool off and have some lunch.

That evening we went down to Ford Cove to watch Alex and Paul
swim in the rather cool water.

July 28 - Peter enjoys a much needed chair
massage at the Saturday Market.

Sunday July 29 - picnic at the beach. Here
Meka enjoys a roll in the warm sand.

Some of us attempted a game of frisbee in the frigid waters
of Whaling Station Bay.

Some of us enjoyed the warm sand ...

One of us happily got buried in the sand,

 and all of us enjoyed a bite to eat, al fresco!
Check out Alex's six-pack.

The next day the Alberta Snikles started on their journey home and Judith drove back to Victoria to go to earn her next paid vacation.  Frank and Mary Jane stayed home to recover from 2 weeks of visitors and Peter stayed on Hornby for more 'healing.'  Thankfully, we are all recovering nicely and looking forward to warmer weather in August.

October 15, 2011

The weather in October was pretty nice this year.  It got quite cool on many days but I was still able to ride my bicycle to work most days.  I bought fenders knowing that the rain is going to start pretty soon and I will be needing them.  One of these days, I'll actually attach them to the bike!

On Saturday the 15th, the sun was shining and it was warm outside. We knew it would be foolish NOT to take our tea to our favourite beach for one last picnic in the sun for the year.  So we made the tea and to celebrate we stopped at our favourite bakery (okay, one of them) and picked up a sweet for each of us to enjoy with tea.  Well, it was such a magnificent day, that we were obviously not the only ones with the same idea.  Not to be scared off by this, we found a different beach just a short distance away.

Fruit tart with custard