And so it begins

We spent yesterday wandering around the Moncton Home show. For two solid hours we looked at windows and doors.   As soon as I spied this beauty I knew the search was over.   It is the Craftsman by Barrington,  which comes with a choice of  three different glass deigns and a dentil shelf.    The door is fibreglass as wood would be too difficult to maintain and prevent from bowing in our cold Maritime winters.  We are considering the same design for the interior transoms over the bedroom doors.   The Arts and Craft style has always been my favourite so this door is a perfect match.

While my DH and the glass company salesman went through the house plans, I just sat and stared lovingly at the door.    We will put our present home back on the market soon and keep our fingers crossed.  Meanwhile, slowly we are organizing everything so that the building of our new home can start the moment the old home is sold.    This is the first time I have been involved in building a home.  I find it a bit overwhelming, but the home show was a good chance to see what options are available.

Mike Holmes was the star attraction for many visitors.  I was surprised to see that the women were outnumbered 4 to one by men waiting in line for Mike`s autograph.  I walked past with just a glance, after all now I have to consider counter tops and cupboards.

Snow Day

According to my DH,  shoveling out from this storm is as bad as  shoveling sh*t.   He was  raised on a farm, so he knows his sh*t.  The snow is wet, heavy and difficult to move.  For the past hour he has been out in the yard shoveling as the snow is too heavy for the snow blower.  He punctuates his labour  with short breaks to bring me the status of the storm.   Everything is covered with a thin layer of ice, topped with a thick layer of snow, and we are not out of the woods yet.   Parts of the province are without power, and might be so until 6:00 o`clock tonight.  The storm will combine with a another storm front tomorrow, so we will have nasty weather until Tuesday.

While my DH is out in the cold, wet, snow I am indoor fondling fabric.  I intend to spend the rest of the day sewing, with brief intervals of cooking.  Sounds fair to me.

Today`s menu will be made from recipes I found on the web. Chili and southwestern drop biscuits from Yes, we cook!  for lunch.    Saturday nights` dinner and a movie will be baked egg rolls from Under a Blue and Moon and our all time favourite carrot and pork dumplings from Retorte, and chicken and pork lettuce wraps, thanks again to Yes, we cook!

So if you`re hungry come on over, my DH should have the driveway shoveled by then.

‘Free’ lobster, anyone?

There is a silver lining in every storm, or in the case of the weekend storm, free lobster. Here is an excerpt from the January 5th Times Transcript.

The surging tides that ripped across New Brunswick’s shores this weekend transformed this small coastal community into an all-you-can-eat lobster buffet.

The Chaleur Bay overflowed as the weekend’s heavy rains pushed the high tide up beyond the usual shoreline.

As the water began to recede in the early hours of Sunday morning, local residents were treated to an abundance of lobster sitting exposed on the shore.

“There were hundreds and hundreds of people who were there with flashlights filling pots,” said Kennedy Lewis, a local fishermen who could see the scene from his house.

“There was lobster for everybody, anybody who wanted to put on rubber boots and a raincoat could pick some up for a good lunch.”

Lewis said the mood in the community has been great since Sunday morning when people began to gather with flashlights around 7 a.m., and he noted that he could still see a few gourmand scavengers picking up some remaining delicacies yesterday.

Lewis described a free-for-all that left most people grinning ear-to-ear.

“Today everyone is boiling lobster, I went to the general store and you couldn’t get any salt,” he said. “Everybody was happy except the fishermen.”

Lewis said the situation won’t help a fishery that has been working hard at conservation efforts at a time when prices have collapsed, and he said he isn’t sure how it will affect the local fishing season that will open in the spring.

But not even the fishermen could resist the tasty crustaceans, albeit somewhat begrudgingly.

“I would rather have been eating hot dogs today and have this not happen, but if the lobster is there, it’s there,” said Lewis, who filled up four five-gallon pots.

“It is Mother Nature who did this. There is nothing we can do about it.”

The storm left more than lobster in the village. Residents were also busy mending fences and replacing shingles that had been torn from their roofs by the strong winds.

Let it snow

My DH has been working out of town this week. This evening he made a special trip home so I will not be on my own in the impending storm.

Tomorrow after the storm he will drive back to the job site.

I know he loves me …….but I also know he can not wait to use his new snow blower.

Sad news on the street

Coronation that is.  Veteran actress Maggie Jones passed away while recovering from a recent operation.   As I was listening to the announcement on CBC radio this morning the telephone rang.  It was my husband calling from the road to express his sympathy, although not as heartfelt as it should have been.   He doesn’t watch Corrie Street with me as he doesn’t understand what most of the characters are saying.  Little does he know, that’s how I got hooked.  Watched to laugh at the accents, got addicted to the story line.   Oh well, there’s worse addictions in the world.

October 24th is the Global Day of Climate Action.  Events to mark this day are taking place all over the world.  For more information visit the 350.org site.

Here is the list of some of the New Brunswick events.

four letter words

Cold

wind

snow

this

soon

ooh

Disobedience

Pooh, promise you won’t forget about me, ever. Not even when I’m a hundred.”
Pooh thought for a little. “How old shall I be then?”
“Ninety-nine.”
Pooh Nodded. “I promise,” he said.

Today CBC announced the publication of the sequel “Return to the Hundred Acre woods.”  How could any one improve on Winnie the Pooh and Christopher Robin?  So far the reviews of the new book have been quite favourable.

A.A. Milne has always been a favourite in our house, especially the “Now we are Six” poems.  I first read the poems when I was 14 and it was one of the first book I bought for Andrea. At bedtime the poems were much easier on little ears.  It is no small wonder her middle name is Robyn.

At the end of the broadcast, driving along by myself, I recited my favourite A.A. Milne poem, “Disobedience”.   I could not count the number of time I read that poem to Andrea, and later to John Douglas,

James James
Morrison Morrison
Weatherby George Dupree
Took great
Care of his Mother,
Though he was only three.
James James
Said to his Mother,
“Mother”, he said, said he;
“You must never go down to the end of the town,
if you don’t go down with me.”

James James
Morrison’s Mother
Put on a golden gown,
James James
Morrison’s Mother
Drove to the end of the town.
James James
Morrison’s Mother
Said to herself, said she:
“I can get right down to the end of the town and be
back in time for tea”

King John
Put up a notice,
“LOST or STOLEN or STRAYED!
JAMES JAMES
MORRISON’S MOTHER
SEEMS TO HAVE BEEN MISLAID.
LAST SEEN
WANDERING VAGUELY;
QUITE OF HER OWN ACCORD,
SHE TRIED TO GET DOWN TO THE END OF THE TOWN-
FORTY SHILLINGS REWARD!

James James
Morrison Morrison
(Commonly known as Jim)
Told his
Other relations
Not to go blaming _him_.
James James
Said to his Mother,
“Mother”, he said, said he:
“You must never go down to the end of the town with-
out consulting me.”

James James
Morrison’s Mother
Hasn’t been heard of since.
King John
Said he was sorry,
So did the Queen and Prince.
King John
(Somebody told me)
Said to a man he knew:
“If people go down to the end of the town, well,
what can anyone do?”

(Now then, very softly)

J. J.
M. M.
W. G. Du P.
Took great
C/o his M*****
Though he was only 3.
J. J.
Said to his M*****
“M*****”, he said, said he:
“You-must-never-go-down-to-the-end-of-the-town-if-
you-don’t-go-down-with-ME!”

– A. A. Milne

What’s your favourite Pooh?

Saturday’s food fest

Now that Hurricane Bill is out to sea, we can all breath a little easier.   My DH survived the storm in Cape Breton, but nearly passed out due to the boredom.  High winds equals no power  equals no internet.

Although the weather was the main topic this past weekend, we did do other things.

Cousin San is keeping me company and agreed to a shopping spree in Moncton.  As all good Maritimers know, the first stop on any trip is Tim Horton’s for the breakfast of champion shoppers.   Renown for their coffee, Tim’s is a favourite in the Maritimes due to steeped tea.   No warm water sloshed into a paper cup, this is real tea made properly with boiled water and allowed to steep.

Our first stop was the Moncton Farmers’ Market.  Despite the humidity the market was a buzz with people.  If you visit New Brunswick, take the time to stop at a farmer’s market, you won’t be disappointed.  All the food was delicious looking but we settled from dulse, new potatoes and peaches & cream corn.

Like all good shoppers we had a plan – market, Costco, Harveys and Value Village (with a few shops in between).   We managed to stick with our plan and had a great time.  Thanks again San!

Maritimers are troopers

When there is a hurricane warning in Florida, people board up their windows and head inland.  In the Maritimes, we grab the family and head to the beach to watch the waves.   Despite numerous warnings since early yesterday, people are still flocking to the shores of Nova Scotia.

My daughter received a message on twitter today from a friend in Halifax who is at Lawrencetown Beach watching the tides.   He got as close as he could before he met up with the RCMP and their road block.  The weather channel is broadcasting live from Halifax.  The weather announcer is amazed at the amount of people out walking or driving by on bicycles and motorcycles, despite the torrential rains and water flooded streets.

My husband is on a job site in Cape Breton today.   Five hours before the storm is scheduled to hit Sydney, his hotel is already without power and trees are snapping in the area.  Keep him in your prayers please.