Blessed Relief! Walkabout, Hair Cut, Supper at the Acreage

With the windows open all night, I woke at 6 on Friday, July 6^th to a whole different day. The air coming in the window was fresh, really fresh! Yay! The humidity and heat spell has broken for the time being. I don’t think we got any more rain overnight, at least I didn’t hear it. I don’t sleep with earplugs when I’m alone in case my phone goes off and I need to hear things. Clemson doesn’t snore.

The view from our back window facing east
I love the fencing around the property

So, I got up, began making my tea when Bill called for our morning chat. We all miss each other, the daily routines and having someone nearby, but I know we are all grownups (even Clemson!) and are able to occupy ourselves otherwise. I’m just a tad disappointed that the last two days were so hot and humid that I wasn’t able to do anything outside while here on my own. Now that it has cooled down, considerably…56F this morning…I have things planned.

Looking out over the pond to the north east

First off, after my brew, I took my camera and went for a mile and a half walk. What a change, I needed my lightweight hoodie and I was able to walk briskly. There was no breeze moving the trees when I first got up but by the time I returned a wind was blowing enough that I closed windows for a bit. The Suite hasn’t been 71F inside for quite a while! This is lovely and I know it won’t last but hey, it is summer in Ontario.

This one looks more north

While Clemson makes his usual rotation around the Suite, from bed to my recliner, to Bill’s recliner to the couch (following the sun) I prepare to drive to Hanover for a trim this morning. If you look at the picture, you’ll see how the sun has moved and the destruction in Clemmy’s wake. The blankets get bunched up 20x in a day and we keep straightening them. God, we love this little guy. Reading Barbara’s post about losing her little gal buddy makes me appreciate this one’s antics all the more, if that is even possible.

He starts in the left recliner, hops over the console to Bill's and when
the sun leaves there, this is where he ends up

I drove to Hanover in Black Beauty, feeling kind of powerful up in that seat, looking down over the peons around me. Ha ha, not really, the truck is big but not as high as a 4 x 4 (TG). I pulled into the parking lot at First Choice expecting to be in a waiting line but there were 2 in the chairs and I was next. When a 3^rd girl walked out from the back and it was Brandy, my regular gal, I was thrilled. It isn’t difficult to do my hair at all, snip here and there, but it is nice when you have someone you are familiar with.

I love this view
and it is the hill Clemson always runs up 

Walking out the lane this morning

Country roads, take me home, to the place, I belong!

She was done in no time and with a senior’s discount of $1 off plus an added tip, I toodled out of there in 15 minutes tops. With no time limit on my schedule, I went to Mark’s in the same mall area and then Walmart. Both had great sales prices and I picked up a couple of things for Bill, Mom and even for me! I was gone longer than I expected to be but looking at sandals for me and shoes for Mom is always a challenge. I hope at least one of the pair I chose for her is suitable.

The brush pile: it is a good thing that it composts down on its own

I like the clothing at Mark's but not always keen on their prices
Do love their Clearance sales though

I drove home and sorted the goodies before having some egg and a yogourt. I can’t believe that it is only 66F/19C today, after the last week and a half, that is unbelievable and so nice! I changed and put on some work grubs and went out to do some more trimming down the lane. Perfect day to do it. After working at it for about an hour, the body temperature sure warmed up and I was ready to call it quits. I filled one wagon load, pulled it up the hill and dumped it in the brush pile.

Today's wildflower bouquet
The daisy's are gone but the gorgeous Queen Anne's Lace wins the prize

Clemson likes it at the Acreage but if I plan on relaxing at all, I decided to feed him first and leave him in charge of the Suite. He said he is okay with that. Otherwise, I’d be on constant alert wondering where he’s wandered off too. When I arrived, I saw John and Gayle’s Montana parked behind the Ponderosa cabin, where all their other 5^th wheels used to be parked, years ago. We used to all get together with our rv’s or tents on the August long weekend. Since we got the Suite and the Ridge, we don’t take ours in the Acreage. It’s too big to risk on the sharp turns.

You'd have to actually see their driveway from the road
to know what the challenge really is getting a large unit in here
Mike's travel trailer on the left

Home for a few days
John will stay in it while us sisters invade their home

It was a bit tricky getting their 38’ in there but as Donna said ‘I’m just glad I wasn’t there to watch’. Donna offered me supper so after John left, she prepared spuds and chicken breasts. They love their Weber Q and are becoming pros at making great meals on it. It sure tasted good to me! 

They love Weber Q as much as we do

Bill called after we finished eating and told me that Patrick, my son, picked up his new to him tent trailer. Yay! I’m so excited for them, purchasing their first rv.

My young'un and his new trailer :)

Gerry has had a couple of new house listings fall into his lap so they’ve decided to go home tonight and get a start on evaluating them. I headed back home around 7:15 to find Clemson standing at the door waiting for me. What the?? Can he hear the truck? Is it a familiar sound frequency or how is it he heard me? He was at the door when I came home earlier too. So weird. Maybe he’s been bluffing the whole time and laughing behind our backs. 😊

Tools of today's chore

The wind has settled down a bit and it is a gorgeous cooler evening. I will be happy to have my sweetie home tomorrow and it is already sounding like a busy day. As I drove up the driveway with Black Beauty, I had a brainwave. Instead of leaving the trimmings on the side of the lane for morning, why not toss them up on the back of the tonneau cover? That worked like a charm and in one trip, the evidence of my hard work was cleaned up.

This tomato plant wins the day's award for most tomatoes
It's growing in a pot (garnished with goose feathers)
and has 17 tomatoes!!

Sitting here alone, I decided to pour myself a Caesar. I’d mixed some up to take to the Acreage and ended up just drinking water. Maybe with an ice cream cone, that I know Clemson will have to share, and a drink and a good book. But first! I have a post to finish so I downloaded my pictures and set about doing that. This has been a good day, I’ve enjoyed my shopping spree, some quiet time, some work, some walking and a nice dinner prepared by someone else. Bonus!

And just before I posted tonight, My little brother from Cold Lake, Alberta
sends me this picture.
They left on Wednesday for Ontari-ari-ari-o!
Boondocking in Parry Sound, On.! Yay!
We'll see them Wednesday.

Thank you for taking the time to stop in. It means a lot and if you wish to comment, my smile becomes broader still.

Bit of a Reprieve, Small Things Done, No Rain as Promised

On Monday, July 2^nd we woke within 20 minutes of each other after a great night’s sleep. We’d gone outside last night after 8 and the air and wind were so refreshing that we decided to open windows and turn the a/c off in the living room and turn the bedroom a/c on. However, come 11, bedtime, we instead turned it off as well and opened windows. There was a wonderful breeze coming in my side window and it remained all night long.

Waiting for the sun to push through

This morning even though it was a beautiful 74F outside and 78F inside, we did the opposite. Turning the a/c on in both rooms will keep the Suite at a very comfortable temperature without the battle against the rising heat. We hope. I went for a walk at 6:30 when I got up before having a tea. It wasn’t a long walk nor a fast-paced one. Just a mile but it was enough. I took my tea outside and caught up on a few blogs on my phone.

These families saw me coming and boy did they run

Bill went up on the berm and dug a hole big enough to fit the cement elephant foot that holds his flag pole. The wind is so strong up here that it has blown it over a couple of times. Now it will be secure. He did a few things in his cargo trailer and I decided to clean up the old plastic darts that we have for our dart boards. 

These are very amateur darts but they work

The tips were pretty rusted. I’m seeing a ‘tourney’ in our future and currently, these are the only darts we own. I doubt that will improve our skills but it might!

I sat outside and read more of my page turner before coming in at 9:30 to make breakfast. We cleaned things up and drove into Durham. It seemed odd but on-line, the Home Hardware was closed Sunday and open today. In reality, I don’t know if they were open yesterday but they were certainly closed today. The whole town appeared to be shut down. We did stop at the RBC to withdraw some cash so it wasn’t a worthless trip. Now we have more than 2 wooden nickels to rub together.

A walk down the country road this morning
was refreshing

Back home, it seemed Bill couldn’t sit still. We moved the paddle boat up on the hill in the long grass so we weren’t moving it around each time the lawn had to be cut. I can’t take a picture of it For Sale until we get the seats and the top washed. They are pretty gungy looking. Together we moved the wash stand from under the canopy to where it will stand by the rain barrel. It needs another piece of wood before we can attach the pump. Bill is waiting until it is finished before he writes about it so no picture.

this is a deck post (elephant feet) 

and it is now in the ground holding the flag pole

We had a lovely breeze all day today

I felt guilty sitting with my book while Bill kept moving so I slipped on a ball cap, gloves and took our long-handled clippers down the lane. There has been such growth and with rv’s soon coming up the drive, I wanted to see what I could do. It took about 30 minutes before I was huffing and puffing with the sweat droplets seeping out of my hat. Wow! It was hot work! I made a good dent on the worst side and one day this week I will finish it. Feeling so whooped, I just dropped and left my cuttings.

Bill brought the wheelbarrow down with me
and we gathered my cuttings
If you look down the right side of the lane
hopefully you can see how far I got

We had 2 bottles of water in the freezer so I brought those outside and Bill soon came to join me. I think maybe he was ‘mostly’ done for the day. When he went inside for a bite to eat, I thought a yogourt, some walnuts and cheese sounded good to me too. The boys remained indoors for a snooze but outside I read a bit more until the sun claimed the patio area. It is just too hot to sit in it and I was too lazy to move my chair to the shade.

A nice afternoon outside

Soon enough I gave in to the tired eyes and came inside. The boys were asleep in the recliners so I moved upstairs to the cool bedroom. An hour and a half of heavy sleep and dreams later I dragged downstairs. I almost felt worse but pushed myself to move. I must have needed the rest to sleep so soundly for so long.

The process to water my gardens

My tomatoes are looking good

We eventually both moved outside and were surprised at how nice it felt out there. We are pleased with the performance of our a/c today and don’t regret having it on. Set at a moderate 76F/24C some may wonder ‘what’s the point?’ but we don’t like a frigid environment inside, just a nice change from the outdoors. Maybe tonight, we’ll turn it off again. The humidity today is much less.

Bill using his jigsaw to cut the lower hole

A different angle

From the back, perfectly aligned

Now our king chairs have their own shade
and even create new shade on the lawn

Bill had another good idea, (I do tell him often!) and drilled a hole in the table between the King chairs. Ever since we lost our glass patio table in the wind storm, our red solar umbrella has been tucked up in the storage shed rafters. At this point we aren’t sure if we want another table. Certainly, it won’t have a glass top and the expense of a picnic table isn’t practical to me. The bench seating isn’t comfy. So, with this umbrella in between our chairs, we can move the chairs from the shade of the trees, taking the shade where we want. They are ideal for Bill and I sitting around the firepit. 

burgers and bacon, coming right up!

The smaller chairs can be moved around for guests to sit around the heat, in shade or sun. I can’t tell you the contortions I would have had to get into to get the top and bottom hole so perfect! When that was done, I lit the Weber for supper. Burgers tonight were on the menu with bacon, cheese and all the other stuff which makes them stand 6” high. Well, not quite but they are ooey gooey good.

Clemson and I walked to the road

We cleaned up dishes and then went outside. Donna texted at 7 to say they were soon on their way home to Hanover. Back to the regular work week, she says “back to get some rest”. They’ve worked pretty steady at the Acreage on projects too.

Another handful of goose feathers

Clemson and I took a walk down the lane again, it is so easy to get him to go with us lately. We’re not sure what changed from us having to convince him to come with us. It isn’t a complaint though, we love it when he follows, leads or prances along beside us. There were no geese around or turtles tonight although Bill and I saw Mrs. Yertle earlier digging more holes. We came back and sat outside until Bill wandered over from his hobby and sat with us.

peeking through to the west

At 8 one of my shows came on so I moved inside and with things closed up, Bill came in and moved upstairs. It is nice to have two televisions for the times we want to watch something different. Clemson and I curled up together in my recliner and at 9, Bill and I had a dish of ice cream together. A nice end to a wonderful day.

Good night from the Ridge

Thank you for stopping in today. Your comments are welcome!

Hot, Humid, Visits with the Ladies, Another Perfect Beach Day, Bill Returns in the Dark

When I woke up and checked the clock on Friday, Sept. 22 it was 6:30 so I had another good night’s sleep. I peeked out under my blind to another gorgeous day coming up roses. Last taste of summer and first of fall. Hrrmmppff! Have they got it mixed up! These have been the best days in a row since June. I’m just glad to be here in mid-western Ontario to enjoy it.

Another great day coming

I got up at 7ish and made my tea while opening blinds and texting Bill ‘Good Morning’. When he called, he was packed up inside the motor home that he stayed in last night and I was settled at my laptop. I have a few things going on today but nothing pressing, all good things. First, after my tea, Clemson and I went for our walk. Different direction this time, down past the Baptist Church to the hill and back. It was already warming up at 9 and not a cloud in the sky.

Are you walking with me today?

I started searching again online at information for our trip and threw in a search in the area for parks around here. Curiosity. One day, this good thing up here on the Ridge is going to come to an end and it would be nice to know what our options are. It will also depend on whether Mom is still with us or not as to where we would go. Anyway, as I say, just curiosity.

Yup, he was up for a walk today

Love to know what he is thinking when he has to wait for me
It probably is something like "SHE was the wanted who wanted to walk,
what is taking her so long?"

And again, he waits

I cleaned up a bit and packed a beach bag again. At 10:45 I drove to Durham for the day, leaving Clemson instructions and a treat to look after the house. I went first to see Aunt Mary and she looked lovely with her hair freshly done this morning. After showing me a couple more albums of her photos, I had to mosey on down the hall to see Mom.

These trees are laden with berries

Have to look up the name of this tree

She was just coming out of her room, looking spiffy and fresh in blue and pink. We walked down to the end of her hall and back when we noticed a jigsaw puzzle in one of the sitting rooms. That is where we landed. 

It was 1000 pieces and all about classic cars so it was a challenge. We managed to enter a few pieces before it was time for her lunch. We walked down together and said our goodbyes.

Mom always asks where I am parked or if I'm walking

I drove from there to the beach and once more was the only one there. Perfect! It was almost an hour when a young Mom, her Mom and 3 yr. old son arrived. Nice people, offered to move further down so as not to disturb my reading. They were expecting two more Moms and 2 more little ones so even though I said it wasn’t necessary, they did.

She says she isn't good at these things anymore
but she still found a few pieces

It wasn’t long after that 5 pre-teens came with another adult and disrupted the peacefulness anyway. It was okay, it isn’t ‘my’ beach alone I put my book away and lie back in my lounge chair enjoying the sun. The other ladies and I couldn’t understand why at 2 pm on a Friday afternoon these kids were out of school but I’m sure there was a reason. They were gone half an hour later and I opened my book and we shared a smile across the sand.

Donna brought her water bottle in a sock yesterday
Something we learned from our friend, Pat
So, today I did, worked like a charm!

From the time, I walked in the Suite I was frustrated. We have been invaded with houseflies once more. If it is cool outside they are trying to get in and manage to squeeze in the screens, we think If it is hot outside they are trying to get in. They were driving me crazy. I killed all I could see before I’d left this morning and now the bedroom window was crazy with them.

Some nice homes on the other side of the river

What's missing? My girlfriend, Brenda!
We used to do a beach day once a year
I miss those

I sprayed the window edges, even though it leaves another mess for me to clean, and chased them around the ceiling in all rooms. I’d just get comfy and I’d hear them hitting the ceiling or buzzing in the window ledges. Grrr. Since it was 30C outside and 29C inside, I decided to combat two birds with one stone. I closed all windows, sprayed and killed flies, then turned the a/c on. We need to get to the root of the problem for sure, besides going to the southwest where they do not live.

I got the word that Bill was leaving CanAm at 6 so I went about making my own supper. Actually, I was already frying up a couple of wieners with spaghetti squash (!!) for me. By that time, I knew he’d need to grab a bite on the way home for himself. I’m expecting him by 8:30 or so.

You see my frustration? These were from our bedroom window
The screen needs to be examined

Bill and I have planned to go away tomorrow for the day so I will need to put a few things together. Like our lawn chairs Clem’s stool & bed, food and dish and a cooler with drinks for us. I’ll shower after dishes so that is done and begin gathering stuff up. It looks like a lovely evening so maybe we won’t need the air conditioner on through the night, we’ll see.

I missed the sun dropping tonight

I’ve had a good day only coming to a head over the frustrating flies! Tomorrow maybe we’ll close things up before we leave and spray it good in here with Black Flag and hope that takes care of them. I think Sunday I’ll be washing my inside windows again.

Still a pretty horizon

I hope you’ve had a great day today. Thank you for stopping by. I love reading your comments.