Walking for Alzheimers, Walking for MOM, Visiting a Daughter

The Ridge

On Sunday, May 31^st we’d reached the end of this silly month. Was it winter? Was it spring? Was it summer? I do believe we experienced all 3 and probably fall too, all in 31 days. Hopefully this day will be the last we’ll see of the single digit (C) temperatures until – well never.

Pretty but hoping those clouds move out soon
Notice the ghost dot is back again

Bill was up at 6:30 ish and I lazed until closer to 7 before I got up. I didn’t have to think about an early walk since I’d be doing the Alzheimers walk later. We had our morning drinks together and Bill kicked the furnace up a notch so it would run a cycle and take the chill out. It was 15C/59F and a chilly 6.5C/44F outside. All I cared about was that it didn’t rain.

this is a hard one to portray
Looking down on the ledge (picture frame top) you can see
the little frog holding on but sleeping next to the Bunky wall
Later in the day, he was back up on top again

The clouds played some tag for a while and Bill went out to start whipper snipping around the yard. I love it when he does that, he does such a good job. I laid out my walk clothes and then went out to see why he’d stopped. No, I wasn’t cracking the whip, just putting in time. Marilynne had called while he was working so we called her back and caught up on her news and shared ours. Then it was time for me to get on the road.

9:30 am Time to go

Let's go!

It was 9:30 when I headed down the lane, North Line and onto Baptist Church Road. I do this same route many mornings but today it was for a purpose. 

I told Bill that I might push it further and in my head I told myself that I might go to the corner of B.C.Rd and County Rd. 4, the highway. The sun came out in timely fashion and for the whole of my walk there was a lot of back and forth going on in the sky. Clouds, sun, wind etc. But it was fine and I was dressed perfectly.

It wasn't easy getting a selfie with just a cell phone
but in between the little tree branch, I had some success

The stop sign up on the last hill was my destination
but look just beyond where the shadows end, half way up
the hill and I turned around

I could hear water running
and approached this stream running under the road

The culvert on the other side

Bill had gone into town and back for gas for the mower and trimmer and passed me both ways. When I returned, I retrieved my Canon and tripod and set it up in a suitable place to take a couple of pictures. Bill was still trimming when I packed things up and came inside to make brunch. I cooked mini sausage and scrambled eggs and we were both hungry for them.

While Bill did the dishes, I had my shower and then he had his turn in the bathroom. Outside, I filled the 4 bird feeders and watered the lettuce and pumpkin plants I’d brought home yesterday. They were in the Bunky overnight. While at the hand pump, there was the little tree frog again. Hanging on with his little fingers, he was over the edge of the picture frame, eyes closed. Aah, so cute! How’s he holding on?

The home stretch

We left the Suite at 12:30 and drove to Alma for the last visit of our children. Krystal and Matt live the closest but that is just the way it worked out for all of us. Weekdays wouldn’t work for them as they are both working during the week. Krystal at home and Matt for Stoltz between Listowel, Elmira and Mildmay. They were working hard spreading mulch around their property and were happy for the break when we arrived.

The geese families in the front field were a nice treat

We sat in their garage with the door open, just enough to be out of the wind but still outside. The sun was nice but if it was hidden by clouds, it was quite cool. We had a nice visit for an hour and a half and headed home around 3. (ps – thank you for the hugs). Having a busy morning and a nice drive and visit in the afternoon tired us old folk out. When we got home, I made a cup of tea and Bill went up for a snooze. It wasn’t long and I could hear that he was successful. 😊

And the ghost spot returns

Very little clouds in the sky

For supper, we’ll either have leftover spaghetti and salad. A nice simple but delicious supper for a busy Sunday. The temperature got up to 13C/55F today and as I type this at 4:30, the sky is blue with minimal wispy clouds up there. I was surprised that there was still seed left in the feeders, with Chippy on the loose. I’m going to have to get creative with where and how I hang one of them at least.

Here is the mastermind himself

considering his plan to get to the seed

Made it!

Now for the dismount

a little acrobatics as he tries to dismount

I heard from the rest of the ‘walkers’ on our Sunflower’s Marchers for Memory team and the number of steps taken today were a total of 59.43 km/36.92 mi. I’d say that is pretty good! Yay team! 6 of us raised $1,000 for the Alzheimer’s cause and 5 walkers joined my sister in Teeswater for support. It was an awesome effort from my family if I do say so myself.

I had success too
What you can't see on the sign
"I'm walking for MOM"

While Bill was upstairs, I took my book outside and sat in the sun for the biggest show of the day. I meant to be reading but once I saw Chippy trying to get to the feeder, I was too distracted to open my book. It was just too funny to describe but he eventually figured out that he couldn’t jump from the flower pot edge up to the feeder. Instead he risked life and limb climbing the tree, scaling the branch and diving head first down into the feed tray. Ejecting himself straight to the ground was his exit strategy.

At 6, I had 3 chapters left and moved inside. Bill was finished dozing and a movie at the same time. Our timing was perfect again. I started warming up the spaghetti and got coleslaw out with the 2 leftover biscuits from last night. It was just as good the second night and we topped it off with a piece of apple pie. I added heavy cream to mine and all holes in my tummy were full when we finished. After dishes, I sat to post my blog. I’m feeling exhausted tonight

My siblings, a niece and nephew and his family

Bill sat at his new laptop, which is 90% set up and started writing a new post. This has been a great day and I wouldn’t change a thing. I hope your Sunday was a great one too.

Good night y'all

Thank you for the visit. You are welcome to leave a comment if you wish.

Who Turned the Heat Off? Black Beauty Back Where She Belongs

The Ridge

There just doesn’t seem to be a rhyme or reason to our Spring weather this year. On Saturday, May 30^th, we were up out of bed by 6:30 and it was a clear morning. We knew there was to be a drop in temperature. I should have gone for my walk right away because I missed the opportunity. Instead I had my tea first and by then, the dark clouds moved in and the misty rain began. We weren't expecting rain to dominate the day.

It looked like it would be a good day

We could hear pitter patter (not from rain) on the roof when we first opened our eyes. The robins are back? After his coffee, Bill went up to check it out. There were no signs of another nest so that is good news. 

Ptooties got a fuel top up

 We drove Ptooties to Hanover and found Black Beauty sitting in the front lot of Heinz Auto Body – waiting for us. Wow! She looks good again! Bill went in to talk to Trevor and settle up while I snapped her picture and put the empty water bottle in the front seat.

there she is! all fixed up

Once I knew he was set up, I said goodbye and drove to Grant’s Independent grocers. I had a list, Zero Coke and bread (for Bill’s lunches) being the biggest priority. I found the things on my list but sadly, even though their pop products were on sale, they had no Diet Sprite, Diet 7-UP, Diet Mountain Dew on the shelf. Grrr. I’d hoped to restock my drink of choice too as Bill has had to resort to drinking some of it when we ran out of his Coke.

I stopped here for groceries. No line ups here
none at Dollarama and none at Giant Tiger
It felt very nice to be able to walk into stores again

From there, I stopped in their garden centre and got onions, lettuce and a pumpkin plant for my sweetie. At the other end of the mall, I popped into Dollarama for some tomato cages (none) and picked up greeting cards for the next 4 months instead. Giant Tiger was no help for my pop but I did get a broom for the outhouse and a seed bell for our tree. I thought about stopping at Wal-mart but when I saw the lineup, it wasn’t worth the stop.

After we got home, this is how the weather turned

Inside looking out, a wet foggy mess

Back in Durham, I went to Home Hardware, and placed my order for a toilet brush. That was one thing Jamie said I would need so it went on his account and I was quickly on my way home. I texted Bill and he was on his way home from the Acreage after getting a bladder of water. Our timing was perfect! Bill set the water pump up to transfer our fresh water and then we each had a coffee indoors.

Some lettuce and a pumpkin

The day is turning into a wet, cool (8C/48F) spring day. My plans of planting, trimming and Bill’s plans of cutting grass all went out the window. Inside day. After our lunch of bacon and eggs and dishes, I wrote some of my blog and then processed another donation from a sponsor. Thank you! You know who you are! 😊  I went out around 3:30 because the sun came out in all its glory. I wanted to accomplish something today too. With that in mind, I had planned only to go for a walk down the lane and possibly to the corner. 

The garden before grass cutting but after grass weeding
(if that makes sense)
I don't like it when the grass grows up in the middle of the plants
My bad for not using landscape screen way back when

That’s how it started and before I knew it, the walk done, I was pulling grass and weeds from my garden. No gloves, no decent shoes, no jacket. It was 2 hours later, Bill had cut the front lawn and was cutting in the corral.  

Bill was out front cutting 

The sun was drying things up for him

Looking good, dear!

I was up on the hill ‘saving’ my flowers. I started by clearing an area around each plant so I could bring the weed trimmer up without fear of clipping the wrong things. I’m not very adept at handling the machine, always afraid I'd trim the things I'm trying to grow.

Two hours on this hill and it doesn't look like I made much headway

But at least I know I got a good start at it

I looked at my watch as Bill was moving down to the back field. I couldn’t believe it was 5:30 already and yet that was just silly since I didn’t come out until mid-afternoon. I’d taken ground beef out of the freezer this morning to thaw but the ‘meat loaf’ plan fell through. Instead, I opted for spaghetti, salad and biscuits. I told Bill to continue cutting and I’d let him know when things were ready. It was close to 7:30 when we sat to eat.

As I ws washing my hands in the outdoor sink
This caught my eye

At first I didn't know what it was
Looks like a painted rock

But this little guy is a living breathing little 2" critter
sleeping in the sun

This tree frog never let me or my camera bother him at all

After dishes, he went back out and cut our patio area and put the mower away. I had turned Field of Dreams on and we watched that while eating and after. I haven’t seen the whole movie in such a long time that I enjoyed it very much. Teary-eyed at the end, thinking how nice it would be to have a bit more time with Daddy. I finished my blog post and once it was published, I sat to enjoy the evening with Bill. It was cooling down quickly and as I write this at 10:00, it is already down to 6C/43F.

Supper was good and there's enough for another night

I was torn about whether to cover my tomatoes and peppers tonight but when the sheets wouldn’t stay in place, decided that 4C/40F wasn’t freezing and I’d hope for the best. If I have to, in the morning, I’ll water them before the sun hits them. I wasn't the only one concerned, as Cathy texted me about hers too. After weeding in the garden, I'd taken the time to stretch out on the patio mat and do a couple of yoga exercises. I hope that will work for relieving the bending I did today.

Our little hummer came back today

This was a good day, the best part being that we got Black Beauty back. I hope you had a good day as well.

And the sun sets on another May day

Good night!

Thank you for stopping in!

Day Two for Bill, Walk Sponsors, Rain and a Big Bird

The Ridge

It was a cloudy start to the day on Friday, May 29^th. TGIF for anyone still working. We were expecting 100% chance of rainfall today so we didn’t know if Bill would be going in to work today. We were up at 6:15 and 6:30 anyway just in case. The forecast could be wrong. Really? Really. It felt damp outside and although warm at 19C/66F, I decided to have my tea with Bill first before going out for a walk.

My morning walk

He texted Mike to see about the day and while waiting for a response, he made his lunch and packed his cooler. After he was washed up, he got the word that the crew were going to try and see what they could get done before the rain started. Bill left before 8. I finished my tea and went out for my walk. I wore a lightweight hoody mainly for the hood in case it started raining here, mid-walk. It didn’t and it was a pleasant 2 miles.

This is Mitch's (Elvis) house around the corner
I took this picture so you could see all of his colourful watering cans
He gave me an old metal one last summer

When I returned, the sky went through a few threatening transformations so I didn’t put on my gardening clothes. I could be out there while the soil is wet, pulling some of the bigger weeds on the hill. I puttered on my laptop, after reading blogs, wishing a niece and 2 son-in-laws Happy Birthday on FB and text. Christa, Dennis and Cory, I hope you are having awesome days! I’m not sure if the guys’ cards arrived on time but I tried.

I noticed some irises ready to bloom

The little oak tree that survived the winter

I decided around 11 to take a short walk down the lane with my big camera. I’ve stopped taking it on my morning walks, for now. Not forever. I was in luck as there were 2 or 3 geese families congregated for a picnic in the front field. 

See what I mean about the sky?

Walking to the end of the lane was priceless

This made it worth getting caught in the rain
They were having a bug feast

 I kept my distance and snapped some pictures through the bushes and around the corner. 😊 Those babes are growing so fast and feasting like crazy. I wish I could see the duckling family closer but they are pretty much hidden during the daytime and I only see them late in the day.

Here they are in for their polar bear swim.

Every once in a while, we have glorious sun and mostly blue sky and then the next minute, completely gray up there. We’ll be having a couple of cooler days, Sunday being the coldest. 2C/36F in the early morning and 11C/52F in the afternoon. Brrr. I guess I will be bundling up for my walk. Darn. Good thing I got an XXL t-shirt as I can wear it over top of my jacket. Gayle mentioned today that she may walk with me so that would be nice but it is up to her to come here. I’m not going anywhere.

Easiest hard boiled eggs I've ever made
have been done in Madame IP

After today's walk, I came in and made a coffee and then put 4 eggs in Madame IP for boiling. I’ve never tried the EGG function so why not give that a shot? I know they turn out perfect with the 5-5-5 rule on Manual cook but this might be just as slick. When the timer went off after its 5 minutes, I did the NR for 5 and ice bath for 5. So, basically the same thing. Five minutes later, peeled perfectly and cooked to perfection.

My lunch plate

Around noon, I made myself a yummy lunch plate. It was a change from the normal and something Bill wouldn't like. By this time, I figured I’d get outside and pull some weeds at least around the plants so I can see better where to weed trim later. It took me 10 minutes to get ready. I needed knee pads for kneeling in the grass, gloves, a hat (mainly to hold my hair back), my tool caddy with shovel and a pail for the weeds.

The Lady's Mantle is so pretty with rain drops
Even after everything else dries up, the drops will remain for a long time

All set! I got out to the hill and started digging and pulling. The sky darkened and without a word of a lie, after 10 minutes, I had to rush back to put things away in the Bunky and get inside before those black clouds opened up. Now, if that isn’t a message, what is? LOL Too funny. 

Peekaboo, you little munchkin

Run Chippy Run

I had my Zoom lens available 

to capture the hungry Oriole

So, I remained inside for the rest of the afternoon with my book. I got some great news. Jamie called and asked if I would like to start at the Mat on Monday. A test run for June since his Mat revenue was up a bit.

This is a bit of a slide show
This large bird, wild turkey? lands on this small tree topper

Tryiing to gain his balance

Still fighting for balance

Loses it and jumps down to a lower point

He seems to be happy here
but lots of spread wings still

Maybe he could see me and was posing
I was appreciative, it was quite the performance

 He’s working full-time for the month and could use the help. From there we will just chat again and see what his position is for the remainder of the summer. He will have a bit of work for Bill too, if he wants it, just a few days. Things are looking up. It was a nice conversation and I had a few laughs with Jamie. I feel happy about the call and the opportunity to get back at some form of normalcy. Around 3, I made myself a cup of creamy Tetley’s tea for my own Happy Hour.

He is quite pretty to watch

Bill is on his way home so he’s put in a good day’s work, despite the rain showers. I took the opportunity to run out and check the mail box before he got home. I didn’t know if the mail truck stopped today. As it turned out, I had to ‘run’ as the rain started before I got back. Not heavily, thank goodness!  Today, I was pleased to see two more sponsors come through for my Sunday walk and I appreciate it very much! I'm done canvassing and have surpassed my goal.

Getting ready to leave

In the door came my dirty working man but he had a smile on his face as he relayed his day to me. He is enjoying this, what better way to earn some cash? He received a call on the way home that Black Beauty was ready so now I’m feeling even happier about working on Monday. I was happy to tell him my good news and now transportation won't be an issue. Otherwise, it would have meant some juggling with Ptooties and time of day.

He might see a rodent on the ground

Bill had his shower and I turned NCIS on for us to watch together. I was reading more of my book before he came home and it is a good story too but we were chatting and that was better. For supper, we had fried fish and fries done in our Fry Daddy. I know, we just had them but it is Friday, a good day to have fish and chips! Bill had a snooze in the chair between 5 and 6. I do believe things are starting to look up for us. 😊

Turns out, another turkey wanted the spot

Supper was very good topped off with a piece of apple pie. The rain returned around 6:30 and the temperature dropped to a chilly 13C/55F. 

Fry Daddy doing the fries

We may be plugging the fireplace in tonight since we’ve stored the blue flame away. Who knew we’d need it again? We always have the furnace if we need a heat boost. After dishes, we relaxed for the evening. This was a quiet day for me and a busy day for Bill but more than anything, it was a day of good things. Yay!

Yum, everything tasted great
Before 8:30, the sky cleared up to the west and the sun
appeared on time to make sunset
Good night!

Thank you for stopping in and for putting up with my stream of pictures.