05/31/09
May 24 (Sun): It's been a busy week. Tuesday night we went to Canadian Tire with my gift card from work and our shopping list. Got almost everything - but, as predicted, not the rain barrel. Oh well. But also got a couple things not on the list - like a new bike seat for me, and some garden edging that took our fancy. We got mostly practical stuff like kitty litter, twine, a door bell, padded gloves for when pushing the lawnmower, and bungee cords, but then we got a mosquito zapper and a garden clock/thermometer. I've wanted the mosquito zapper for a long time so can't wait to try it. It's mostly for Grace and I as we seem to be prime meat!
Wednesday night we had our first dip in the pool. I was planning to just go in with my shorts hiked up to clean a bit and stir up the water so we could get a more accurate temperature reading, but once in I found it very warm at 26oC or 78oF. So I went and got my bathing suit on, soon followed by Andy.
After we dried off, we headed up to Doreen and Wilf's. Andy had a box of books and a soup container to return from her more intense recuperating time. We had a really nice visit and Doreen totally spoiled Andy by making her some Rhubarb Crumble, including a container full to bring home!
Thursday night, we were out in the yard till almost 9:30 - I cut the grass in the area where the gazebo goes, then Andy worked on getting all the parts out and in place while I BBQ'd dinner. Then I helped her put the frame up. We couldn't put the canvas cover on as we wanted to spray paint the "splints" that Andy had fixed the bars with so that they matched the rest. (I've now done this and we've got the cover on.) Then while Andy whipper-snippered, I cut the rest of the grass. It was another warm day - up to 30, so we had another lovely, cooling dip, then puttered in the yard and I finally got started on planting my vegetable seeds. By the time we went inside, we were exhausted!
Friday, the weather turned a bit more seasonal (so no "swimming") and we spent the evening doing errands and groceries. One of those errands was getting a roof rack and kayak attachment for the car. Putting these on was a royal pain in the butt! Now that they're on, I said we're not taking them off till winter, then Andy corrected me by saying we're never taking them off at all!
The kayak attachment folds up and down.
I love the little warning cartoons that came with it.
Now we just need a day when the weather and our bodies are cooperating at the same time so we can actually take the boats somewhere for a paddle.
Saturday, I got up at 7 and went all the way to Halton Hills in our quest for a rain barrel. Our region is selling these for $45, one per household with proof of address. They opened at 8 and I was there at 8:20. It was NUTS. I was up on a hill so could see the line-ups - we were about a kilometre long in both directions. I had only moved about 4 car lengths in 15 minutes, so gave up. If I hadn't had somewhere else I needed to be later on, I might have stuck it out longer. In any case, they are selling them again next weekend closer to home, so we are going to get up at 6:30 and go. Why would we do that? This is a really good deal. The cheapest rain barrels we've seen are $100 and this one is much nicer, probably worth $250 in a retail store. We want a rain barrel for watering the garden and hopefully saving on our water bill.
Later in the morning, Andy & I headed off to Niagara on the Lake to see a play at the Shaw Festival. First, we wanted to have a nice lunch, so picked a nice looking restaurant in the middle of town, the Shaw Café & Wine Bar.
The ambience was lovely, until our very loud server started yukking it up behind the bar with some buddies, and then the food left a lot to be desired. My pasta was WAY more smothered in pesto than the picture on the menu, to the point where I almost rejected it, but it was passable. The portions were also quite small for the price. I didn't even get a piece of garlic bread with my pasta, and Andy's salad was nothing but mixed leaves with oil and vinegar. Needless to say, we will not be going back. We left there, both still hungry, and went directly to a bakery, then enjoyed some time poking around in a British shop where Andy found (and restrained herself from) all her favourite childhood candy. We also wandered into an art shop when we saw these in the window, and now we have to choose the best place to hang them (and Andy has to take me to Paris and Rome).
The play was quite good. We both enjoyed it - In Good King Charles' Golden Days, in the Royal George Theatre. It was so long though that there were 2 intermissions, and during the second one I had to run back to the car to add another hour of parking. It started at 2 and we came out shortly after 5.
Today has been a wonderful day in the yard again, some of it working and some of it relaxing. Andy even went for another dip in the late afternoon. I've been enjoying time in my new lounger. We got a deal - went to buy this particular one that I've wanted for a while, and it rung up at the cashier $20 cheaper than was on the price tag. Bonus!
Don't worry - Andy got one too - it's perfect for reading or snoozing outside. In this shot you can also see the new garden clock AND!!!!!!! - the door bell button! Hurrah. This means the ugly, bare backing plate on the wall in the upstairs hall is now covered with a ringer and we have buttons at both doors. I know, I know.....we get excited about the silliest things.....but it plays the "Westminster Chime" too!!! And yes, those are my feet reflected in the laptop's lid.
Now some shots of the yard mostly finished. First, the veggie garden, including the tomatoes in the back and the onions to the left that I grew from seed inside. I'm interested to see how far we can push our container garden - will we actually get anything to eat out of it by summer's end???
Andy greatly admired some Double Wave Petunias in the Garden Gallery flyer yesterday, so I picked some up for her today. Hopefully, this is the end of our planting! Right Comet?
May 18 (Mon) AM: I'm holding down the fort while Andy, Comet and Casper all nap. Today is Victoria Day. Apparently, not only is it Queen Victoria's birthday, but it's also 3 days until Queen Elizabeth's 83rd.
In any case, we are enjoying the statutory holiday today brings. Typically, the weather has not been the greatest, but it also could have been worse.
Earlier in the week, we got the pool up. Wahoo! First we created a pad for it by installing garden edging for a perimeter, then we added sand and used a 2 by 4 pivoting on a pole to try to get it as level and smooth as possible, then covered it with garden cloth, and finally spread out the pool. While it filled we had to keep pulling the creases out of the bottom to get it as smooth as possible. It's not perfect but pretty darn good!
And here we have the finished product, with filter installed and solar blanket on top. It's a little over 2 feet deep - perfect to sit in or float on, which is all we wanted.
Friday at work, we had a pot-luck BBQ lunch for a few reasons. Sheri, who was one of our house-sitters last year, is due to have her first baby any time soon, plus one staff member is getting married soon, one just celebrated 10 years with the company, and it was time for the twice-yearly Recognition Awards (which used to be quarterly, but we are cutting back everywhere). And I just happened to be the recipient of one of those awards - the "Einstein Award"!
That's right! Me! I can't believe it either. Now stop that!!! I was nominated and won for recognizing the fact that the company could really benefit from have a Client Web Portal for clients to upload documents to us and download documents from us - documents or files that are not limited to the 15 MB email size and with much higher security than email. This has been my pet project for almost a year, but it is now up and running and the benefit has been recognized by higher management. The prize was a $250 gift certificate for any store of my choice. I chose Canadian Tire and already have a shopping list that will probably use up the entire amount in one shot. In fact, the rain barrel may have to continue to wait!
I think Andy should also give me an Einstein award because, with the new Bell modem/router, I was able to change some settings so that the internet addressing conflict with her work is resolved and she can finally access her servers via VPN. This is part of my devious plot to convince her boss to let her work a few days per week from home when she is up to resuming work full-time. Now she has email and server access, so is 95% set.
Speaking of freebees - Andy convinced me we should get up at 5 AM on Saturday morning to go to Terra Greenhouses. The first 50 families through the gate were getting a gift card for up to $500.
We got there at 5:30, in a torrential downpour and thunder and lightning storm, and were number 42 (they gave out tags so you could go keep dry in your car). Person number 1 had been there since 1 am - crazy. We got our gift card when the gate opened (the amounts were random within the $500), but it was only for 20 bucks. Still, better than a kick in the teeth. They also had mega-sales on so we had a look around. We ended up with water plants for the pond bowls we've ordered elsewhere - there were water lilies on for $12 that were marked down from $30 or $40.
The place was jammed by 6:15 and then I heard, "Well, you never know what kind of strange people you are going to run into this early in the morning!!!" It was Gayle, who was the Controller at my company up until 2 weeks ago, and her husband Bill. I really like Gayle, so we hugged and chatted for a while. Her replacement is very nice, but it feels like she has been gone way longer than 2 weeks.
We came home and went back to bed till almost noon. I then spent almost the entire afternoon outside, under the cover of the back porch from the non-stop rain, sorting through pictures and then writing a letter to our Foster Child in Columbia.
I was also conveniently close to get up and help Andy whenever she beckoned. Her latest project was kayak racks in the garage. After looking around for something appropriate in stores, it was obvious the time had come for a home-made concoction. Andy drew a design and consulted me on it. I suggested she go with a leaning "V" rather than her "L" design and the rest she gets an Einstein award for.
From their previous storage site to the new...
And still plenty of room to get the car in and be able to get out on the driver's side.
We have also made some other garden progress this week. We finished planting our annuals Wednesday night just as Beryl arrived for dinner (and we were also joined by her girlfriend, Bonnie), that she bought for us to celebrate Andy's remission - Swiss Chalet for me and The Spices for them. Thanks Beryl!
We've also placed Helena and Adonis.
Saturday night, we watched.....
I'm not sure how to put into words what I thought about it. I know this though - I never really had any desire to go to India before and this has totally reinforced that. I'm glad the underdog triumphed and it was certainly a good story, mostly told well, and acted very well. I guess I just could have done without the outhouse scene.
May 18 (Mon) PM: Yesterday, we met Huguette for a hike at our favourite spot at Spencer's Gorge, but this time we actually were able to complete the entire 6.2 km loop!
We have now dubbed Huguette's frog (King) Harold (and yes, he sounds like John Cleese too).
After all the rain on Saturday, the creek was running really fast again.
Coming up on Webster's Falls.
Afterward, we had a really nice lunch at the Winchester Arms pub in Dundas, then said goodbye and parted ways only to then find ourselves followed to Canadian Tire. As if this wasn't funny enough, we also ran into Uncle Lanny. I guess Canadian Tire is as much the hub of Dundas as it is anywhere else!
Last night we watched.....
It came highly recommended by Mom and Scot, and it was an ok film, but it was really confusing for most of the movie and then turned out to be a MAJOR tearjerker. We were both blubbering for ages at the end. So much for only positive energy allowed in our house! Thank gawd there was a Mythbusters episode on TV afterward to lift our moods.
This morning, while I cleaned inside, Andy worked on getting rid of the bags of compost from the back porch.
After her nap, we headed for my great idea. Unfortunately, a lot of other people also had this great idea.
This is all we saw at the RBG. The parking lot was so packed that we never got any farther. I wanted to catch the end of the Tulip Celebration and the start of the Lilac Celebration. Oh well.
So, we came home and are plugging away at another gardening job - taking out an area of bad soil - it's very sandy - and making a bed for the rhododendrons.
And I think that's enough for one week and weekend!
May 10 (Sun): It's been an interesting week and a fun day. Tuesday morning Dad came over and took Andy to the Halton (our region) Waste Management site for the free compost giveaway. From the bags of garden waste and leaves they took away last year, you could go and get 7 bags of compost. You just had to bring your own bags and shovel. Andy said it was even still very hot underneath. They would break off a lump and steam would come out. Luckily, they had also taken the garden fork as it was packed very tightly. We've already used 3 1/2 bags so 3 1/2 to go .
Tuesday, my boss asked me to stay a few minutes after 5 so we could discuss something after her 4 o'clock meeting. It turned out it was a heads up on what would be happening Thursday. Four people were laid off due to the economic decline. This was the first time this company had to do this in it's 35 year history. As they wanted to clear the office Thursday afternoon when they broke the news to these people, so that they wouldn't have to face co-workers on their way out, I was asked to do "server maintenance" Thursday evening and kick everyone out at 4:30. Some people jumped at the chance and some were very suspicious as I was only allowed to give them 90 minutes notice, which is atypical.
So, the four were let go, but given severance and outplacement (counseling for job searching, resume updating, & emotional reactions) packages, plus our HR Manager had already found job offers for 3 out of the 4 of them and is still working on the fourth - something completely unheard of.
But that's not all....as we still have "overcapacity" for the slower summer months, meaning too many staff for the amount of work, we are going down to 4 day work weeks for 10 weeks starting in July - however, they will amortize the pay loss over 6 months so that it doesn't feel so harsh. I'm trying to be positive about this, so am glad to still have a job and am looking forward to 3 day weekends all summer! And...if you take vacation during those weeks, you only use 4 days so you have a spare later.
Back at home, we upgraded to high-speed internet and we can't believe the difference. We had "light" all along (1/4 the speed), but Bell called and offered us a deal and then sent us an upgraded modem-wireless router combo. All those stutters and pauses in streaming video is gone and my remote connection to the servers at work is just like sitting in the office.
The gardening has been coming along nicely. Dad helped Andy get that post out and she's now cleaned up the side of the house. It seems a huge difference to us.
Yesterday morning, we went over to Holland Park Garden Gallery and picked out a bunch of annuals and a planter for the front steps, then in the evening we planted our other pots and boxes for the back yard.
These 3 long boxes will sit on the fence rail at the back once it warms up again - we have a frost warning for tomorrow morning.
Also, I'm very proud of our tulips at the front. It felt like we spent hours planting bulbs last year and I was afraid all winter that some squirrel dug them up and had a feast, but it was worth it!
Also yesterday, we FINALLY got to have a visit with Vickie. This had been postponed at least twice due to Andy's deterioration during chemo or Vickie having a sore throat (so being banned). Anyway, we had a really great visit. We met Vic and her buddy, Cheryl, at the Royal Coachman, a British pub in Waterdown that we'd heard excellent reviews on.
Vic also brought us a mushroom lasagna that she made, which we then had for dinner - and is it ever good. It's got a white sauce - perfect for Andy who doesn't like tomato sauce, and it had whole wheat pasta, which was actually the first one I've had that I liked. Thanks again Vic!
Today was Mother's Day and we had the family over. They started arriving about 1:30 and left just after 7:30 - everyone was surprised at how late it had got so quickly. When they first arrived, the kids got put to work decorating the wrapping paper on Mom's present. I've never seen them work so well together and happy all the way through. It was a real collaborative effort.
We all chipped in and got Mom a new VCR as hers chews tapes so has been unusable for some time.
She was pretty happy. We also like her new glasses - very funky and make her look younger!
After present opening and some major snacking, we settled down to a game of Carcassonne (at Ben's request).
As you can see, Andy's hair is growing in pretty good now - and we're pleased that it's also very even - no more patchy bits! After Andy was sent to bed for her afternoon nap, everyone else went down to the basement. It was too cold to go outside unfortunately, so we played some Guitar Hero, then I went upstairs to prep dinner stuff while the others played Sports games. Good thing they were downstairs with the door closed and Andy was upstairs with the door closed (and ear plugs in) because they were getting pretty rowdy over their golf shots!
Monica brought fruit and we had Spinach and Artichoke Dip from M&Ms with nachos for snacking, and then for dinner Monica had brought a Caesar Salad and we had baked potatoes, steak and garlic bread with cheese. Scot did the BBQing for me and the steaks were perfect - melted in your mouth. Then came the pièce de résistance: Andy was making fresh crêpes for dessert. We had even went to the Farmer's Market yesterday morning to get fresh strawberries for filling. We also had banana and peaches - plus chocolate sauce and whipped cream, of course. Some had single fruit and some mixed it up, but overall, the crêpes were a huge hit (and Monica had even managed to make Scot some gluten-free ones that she brought along). Grace helped the dessert chef just as she had helped me with some of dinner.
The funny part was that the kids really didn't know what they were about to be handed for dessert and they were looking pretty tentative....and then next thing you knew, they had wolfed theirs down and were looking for more. I think they had 3 each (but then so did we adults! - all except for Andy, who had 4!).
May 7 (Thurs): Please note that I got Philmore and Seymour's names reversed (the wooden deer below). I had even double-checked it with Andy but still messed it up. Sincere apologies and it's now corrected.
And from the "I can't believe it" file, our buddy Vickie's cat was found after 10 months missing! - Click here for the story that made it into two newspapers.
May 4 (Mon): Just finished cutting the lawn. Man, is it thick and long already. Needed to get it done before the rain comes tomorrow for the rest of the week. While I cut, Andy drilled. She was installing "splints" on a couple of the frame pieces of the gazebo. A few wind storms last summer did them in. This should hold!!!
Yesterday, we had a nice hike in the morning with the pleasure of Huguette's company - and we also found out we have a fellow "Murdoch Mysteries" fan. Huguette has a new friend that she brought along to meet Tigger, but Tigger had stayed home. We have yet to settle on a proper name for Monsieur Frog.
The water was running super fast.
Check out Tews Falls - quite the drop...for the (brave?) ducks at the crest.
When we got to Dundas Peak, there were some kind of Hawks or Turkey Vultures circling and catching the updrafts.
In the afternoon, Scot and the kids were supposed to come over to go on the fair rides over at the mall, but on our way home we were stunned to find that they had packed up and left. We couldn't believe it - and it was the nicest day of the two weeks they were here, so they probably would've done well. So much for that idea.
Once home, fed, and watered, we finished planting the package of perennials we bought from Costco online. First, the last couple small cedars had to be removed from what we want to be a flower bed - no bushes or trees! We had started this on Saturday.
There were something like 75 plants or bulbs so it took two days to plant them all.
What we thought was completely ironic and funny was that the box came from Langley, BC - very close to where we used to live!
Andy's become quite the gardener, and she has finally admitted she is completely enjoying it. I can't believe her patience with certain projects. For example, she removed the 7 rose bushes from the side of the house, just inside the gate where they tried to reach out and pierce you with their thorns at every opportunity, to a new bed in the yard where we can see them from the dining room window.
But it was the cleanup that took all the patience! She sat there tediously separating the stones from the dirt, as well as pulling out all weeds and grass to make it look cleaner, and then it came time to take out the old gate post. We couldn't just cut it off below ground like we did all the old fence posts because it's cement came right up to ground level. So Andy dug down, bit by bit, till she found the bottom. Even so, she still can't get it out, so Dad is bringing his digging pole over to pry it up.
Keep in mind, Andy is still doing all of this work in 30 - 60 minute stints most of the time. She just slowly plugs away at it, but she is getting stronger. She still needs her naps but has much better strength and stamina - and she's gained more weight!!!! She's up to 109 lbs now. WAHOO!
Speaking of gardening, more of the bulbs we planted in the fall are showing their stuff. This is out the front.
While Andy plugged away at all her gardening tasks, I had some quality ladder time.
First, I cleaned out the eaves troughs, then I washed several windows. It sure takes longer than you think it will.
Also on Saturday, we used our new contribution to the environment. What we found really funny was that we had such extremely different hanging techniques.
My back is doing somewhat better. I went to a new massage therapist last week and I have never had such a full tilt, vigorous massage before - but she knew her stuff WAY better than the person I was seeing last year, and she really worked on the bad spots. I was quite bruised afterward, but then didn't have a headache for 5 days. You sometimes don't even realize how bad the headache is until it's gone for a while.
Saturday night we had a really great chat with Kathleen for over an hour and still could've kept talking - we miss our west coast friends. And tonight we had a really nice type-chat over Skype with Jo. Funny how we can joke around and feel close even over type-chats. And then there's George "down under"...your emails always surprise me as you seem to pick up on nuances that many don't - like how cool the balanced tip is on the garden cart - or asking about Andy's hair just as she's started to let it grow back in - very timely. Hope you get over your Australian "swine flu" very quickly. ;-)
One other issue that has been taking up a lot of Andy's time over the last couple weeks has been our new tires. Boo to Bridgestone!!!! Andy had the car back 3 times for tire rebalancing. The final time they even took them to another location to use a different machine. The first time 3 of the 4 had been out of balance, the second time just one, and the third time just one, but it was enough to give us vibration. I was so fed up and it was very tiring on Andy taking the car back repeatedly. Finally, they gave in to our demand for different tires, though their mechanic wanted to blame our car. But we never had this problem before! Anyway, we now have Toyo Versado's - and the car runs so smoothly, it's like it's gliding - AND you don't realize how fast you are going. Take that Mr. Mechanic.
And then there was Wednesday, the day I almost had a heart attack. Why? Because for a few moments I truly thought Andy was dead. I came home at lunch to find a truck in our driveway, which I knew was the expected fellow coming to give us a quote on installing the wood stove. Then he appeared in front of me. I asked if he was coming or going, and he replied that he couldn't get in. He'd called twice and had been pounding on the door. Hmmmm....strange. I walked in the house yelling, "HELLO, HELLO, ANDY, ANDY.." repeatedly. I looked to see if she was in the back yard, then I went upstairs and sure enough, she was laying in bed. I continued yelling. No movement - and she was quite pale. Then all these thoughts started flashing through my mind: Why would she die now, when it's been 6 weeks since her last chemo, when the risk of heart attack or infection is the highest. Did I need to do CPR? How long had she been down? Still yelling I leaned over and pulled on the duvet - and then she jumped two feet in the air almost in sync with Casper, who was lying beside her. Of course, she was then angry at me until I told my side of the story. It turns out she'd had to put earplugs in due to the roofers working next door - but still, she was out really cold!!!
And finally, we were very pleased to receive pictures from Mumsy and Dad of Seymour (upright) and Philmore (eating) in their back yard in Swannells Wood, Studham, Bedfordshire, En-gu-land.
Seymour was bought at the Winona Peach Festival last summer when Andy's parents visited and was taken back on the plane. Philmore was then a gift that was mailed to Mumsy, taking about three months to get there, but thankfully was undamaged.