Quite the week, weather wise. Extremely cold for a couple of days, temperatures in the minus twenties with a wind chill over -30C. Other spots in Canada even colder.
Had car trouble on Tuesday and Wednesday. The car wouldn't start when I went out on Tuesday (an interior light had been left on and with the cold, the battery had drained) Got Toyota Roadside Assistance (a free service for Toyota owners, yaaay) to boost it on Wednesday morning and it started fine that day. But by Wednesday night it was flat again! I had to take the bus to my SC dance group - we were learning new dances for the demos so I had to be there. Two waits for buses and a long slippery walk to the hall - not a pleasant experience. Makes you realize how convenient a car is. The mechanic came Thursday morning (still free, thankfully) and noticed a door was slightly ajar so that seems to have been the problem as the interior light would have been on again all day.
Stayed in and painted the spice cupboard on Thursday. It only took half-an-hour so I went to a movie while the paint dried. "The Hunger Games", I have read all three books in the series and this was the second one. It was "O.K.", in other words, not my usual choice of movie but passed a couple of hours pleasantly enough.
Temperatures are milder today and we are even getting some rain. Can't bear to think what conditions will be like when it drops down below zero tonight!
Saturday, 11 January 2014
Sunday, 5 January 2014
Last day of Vacation
If I were still a working stiff, this would be the last day before returning to work. As it is, my only work is to be up and dressed before James arrives at 8:00 a.m. tomorrow morning. I wasn't expecting this to be a busy day but things seemed to build up as the day went on.
I had stayed up late watching "Inspector Morse" last night so was a late riser this morning. A quick breakfast and some ironing then I was out to shovel off the snow that fell last night. There were only a few centimetres so it wasn't a big job and the temperature was hovering around zero so I wasn't even cold by the time I was finished.
While outdoors I had left some beets cooking away and my next job was to peel, slice and bottle them in a vinegar/water solution. Now I am well stocked for the next month or two. I love them with all sorts of dishes, kedgeree, pies, frittatas, in fact anything that needs the addition of a little colour and spice.
An early lunch, a quick nap and I was off to the demo team practice at Broadlands Community Centre. Keith was in fine form and took us through the dances we will be doing at the Robbie Burns demos this month. Most of them were familiar but he threw in a couple of new ones, just to keep us on our toes and get our brains working.
Freezing rain and more snow are forecast overnight; I jut hope Judy has no trouble getting here in the morning. My car is in the garage, just in case. Meanwhile I am tucking in to some smoked salmon and cream cheese on baguette slices with a beer to wash them down. Better start thinking about fixing dinner (if I'm still hungry after this treat!)
I had stayed up late watching "Inspector Morse" last night so was a late riser this morning. A quick breakfast and some ironing then I was out to shovel off the snow that fell last night. There were only a few centimetres so it wasn't a big job and the temperature was hovering around zero so I wasn't even cold by the time I was finished.
While outdoors I had left some beets cooking away and my next job was to peel, slice and bottle them in a vinegar/water solution. Now I am well stocked for the next month or two. I love them with all sorts of dishes, kedgeree, pies, frittatas, in fact anything that needs the addition of a little colour and spice.
An early lunch, a quick nap and I was off to the demo team practice at Broadlands Community Centre. Keith was in fine form and took us through the dances we will be doing at the Robbie Burns demos this month. Most of them were familiar but he threw in a couple of new ones, just to keep us on our toes and get our brains working.
Freezing rain and more snow are forecast overnight; I jut hope Judy has no trouble getting here in the morning. My car is in the garage, just in case. Meanwhile I am tucking in to some smoked salmon and cream cheese on baguette slices with a beer to wash them down. Better start thinking about fixing dinner (if I'm still hungry after this treat!)
Saturday, 4 January 2014
Into the Deep Freeze
We had a couple of extremely cold days this week - I was barely out the door on Thursday and Friday and was very relieved when my car started this morning. The whole country was in the deep freeze, coldest were the Prairie provinces but the Maritimes got hit with a huge dump of snow and they still have power outages to contend with, so we shouldn't complain here. However, -23C with a wind chill of -30C is a bit much to take.
Today is almost balmy, -5C this morning and got up to just above zero for a while this afternoon. The wind had shifted and was coming from the southwest, decidedly preferable to the northeaster that had been bringing us the low temperatures!
Our ski day didn't materialize due to the extreme weather conditions. In fact one of the areas closed down because of the cold. I will certainly be waiting for better weather before I venture out! So, instead, I sanded and painted the cabinets in the bathroom. How dingy and yellow they had become without me really noticing. Now they are a lovely off-white and make the bathroom seem like it's had a facelift. It's amazing what a layer of paint will accomplish.
Today is almost balmy, -5C this morning and got up to just above zero for a while this afternoon. The wind had shifted and was coming from the southwest, decidedly preferable to the northeaster that had been bringing us the low temperatures!
Our ski day didn't materialize due to the extreme weather conditions. In fact one of the areas closed down because of the cold. I will certainly be waiting for better weather before I venture out! So, instead, I sanded and painted the cabinets in the bathroom. How dingy and yellow they had become without me really noticing. Now they are a lovely off-white and make the bathroom seem like it's had a facelift. It's amazing what a layer of paint will accomplish.
Thursday, 2 January 2014
A New Year
It has been extremely cold this week, however, we have not been the coldest place in Canada by a long chalk - and at least we have power and are warm indoors. Many are not.
Yesterday was a New Year's lunch at Steve and Alison's out in Pickering. It lasted until about 3:00 p.m. and by then we were all stuffed and ready for a nap. Lots of delicious nibblies followed by pork tenderloin, broccoli casserole (my contribution), salad, and maple French toast (Judy's speciality). This was followed by a wonderful chocolate trifle made by Alison. The kids were fascinated by the cats who, unfortunately, were not too enamoured of all the attention and kept trying to hide. Steve did a stellar job of entertaining the kids with games on his computer while the rest of the adults were able to converse intelligently.
Today was to have been a ski day at Brimacombe for Judy, me, Natalie and Elliot. However, extreme weather warnings put us off attempting an outdoor day - minus 18C this morning with a wind chill of -29C. We will try again tomorrow which may not be quite as cold and some sun is forecast.
I got a few things accomplished today - finished the Minutes for the Bridlewood TC AGM, and sent them off to the executive, almost finished my current library book, an 800 page tome which, although a good read, is just too heavy to read in bed, but no housework other than fixing meals and washing up afterwards. I also completed a jigsaw puzzle but cheated as I had put it back in its box in chunks. Not much on TV tonight so may have an early night.
Yesterday was a New Year's lunch at Steve and Alison's out in Pickering. It lasted until about 3:00 p.m. and by then we were all stuffed and ready for a nap. Lots of delicious nibblies followed by pork tenderloin, broccoli casserole (my contribution), salad, and maple French toast (Judy's speciality). This was followed by a wonderful chocolate trifle made by Alison. The kids were fascinated by the cats who, unfortunately, were not too enamoured of all the attention and kept trying to hide. Steve did a stellar job of entertaining the kids with games on his computer while the rest of the adults were able to converse intelligently.
Today was to have been a ski day at Brimacombe for Judy, me, Natalie and Elliot. However, extreme weather warnings put us off attempting an outdoor day - minus 18C this morning with a wind chill of -29C. We will try again tomorrow which may not be quite as cold and some sun is forecast.
I got a few things accomplished today - finished the Minutes for the Bridlewood TC AGM, and sent them off to the executive, almost finished my current library book, an 800 page tome which, although a good read, is just too heavy to read in bed, but no housework other than fixing meals and washing up afterwards. I also completed a jigsaw puzzle but cheated as I had put it back in its box in chunks. Not much on TV tonight so may have an early night.
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