The Young Help Their Elders & Vice Versa

While Dad was here, he "house-sat" for friends who are away for the summer. But he could never get his cellphone to work as a "hotspot" at their place so that he could get onto the internet with his tablet. My sister Karen tried to help. No luck. My sister Joan tried. No luck. I had no idea what to try. 

In these instances, one always turns to the younger set. Here is Dad with Joan's daughter Jordan, age 14 (oh my goddess the years they are a-flying by), at Karen's place during the little family reunion we had last weekend. 

We hoped Jordan would be the one to figure it all out. I think she did, too! Some simple setting that we oldsters didn't adjust.

Dad and his granddaughter Jordan

Speaking of dishes (see below), my aunt and uncle popped in here around noon and caught me writing the following response to WWW's comment, and still in my housecoat. Reta immediately ran a sinkful of water and started washing, and I dried and put away dishes. Bless her wee heart'ie! The kitchen is now all shiny and bright and I may even feel like using it to cook something later today. A little help goes a long way. Oh, and an auntie is very much like a mom, isn't she? Except Mom would've asked me how in the hell I could stand to leave those dishes, while Aunt Reta kept those thoughts to herself. 

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Wisewebwoman has left a new comment on your post "Staycation Begins": 

One word: dishwasher. It makes life feel tidy and manageable. I hope to take next weekend off and join you in the livin' is easy stakes.

I guess I will have to do some agitating in that direction. We need to install a water treatment system and change the plumbing entirely before purchasing a dishwasher, otherwise it would be wrecked within six months and all our glass would be irrevocably stained. (Heavy iron and other minerals are the problem.) Scott needs to make up his mind which treatment system he wants, and then we have to be without water for several days. He also has to take days or a week off from his other two jobs: farming and construction, both of which are dependent upon weather conditions and other factors outside his control. This is the big hurdle — making that time for our house.

     At least getting the dishes done is not one of his stresses. Only mine, and if they didn't pile up daily and I was more organized and ambitious and houseproud, they wouldn't be. I've actually come to enjoy doing them — except when too many at once is daunting and I just go outside instead. 

   Otherwise it can be quite pleasant to stand there looking out at my flowers, with my hands in warm water. As it is I'll probably do these in short stints rather than one long haul so that it doesn't feel like drudgery. 

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Staycation Begins

It's been a perfect day so far. The kind where I sit on the step with my morning coffee and listen to the birds and Scott even joins me for a while before he goes to check cattle. The kind where I roam the front yard in my housecoat and pull grass from the dianthus, and notice the light pink hollyhocks have begun to bloom along with the red ones and so have the volunteer poppies. It's the kind of day that's hot when it's hot and cool when it's not, and I come in and out of the house as the sun and clouds take turns in the sky. 

Slightly marring the perfection is what comes into the house with me after I've walked through the wild licorice patch growing in our grassy south entryway: a wood tick. Farta! I thought their season was over!

I haven't done dishes since Reta and Carl left in the middle of the week, and I know I "should" but am not prepared to tie myself down to the indoors even for the half-hour it might require. In the evenings after work, after dark I've been tired and lazy and let the dishes pile up. It's been all I can do to stack them and wipe the counters. We need a maid.

Reta and Carl are staying with other relatives and will be back before they head for Arizona, but my immediate family members have made or are on their way home: Dad to Kelowna via St. Albert, Joan and family to Kelowna, Cameron to St. Albert where Dad stopped to see him today. My brother spent a night here and I sent him home with eight loaves of bread; that should keep him for a while. 

Wild animals I have seen: this young feller. Scott says he has the beginnings of horns.

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Lori has left a new comment on your post "Off to the Office": 

I'm at our timeshare on a mountain in Vermont, hiding from Trump. Your flowers are as esquisite as any here. Beautiful. Thanks. 

Now that's saying something! I imagine the flower life down there is quite fantastic.

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Secret Agent Woman has left a new comment on your post "Where've I Been": 

We've had near-daily storms here. In between, it's in the 90's and steamy. But it's not winter, so I'm good. 

Ooh, nineties ... too hot for me. Give me a storm any day. Maybe even winter. I'm not kidding.

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Secret Agent Woman has left a new comment on your post "Off to the Office": 

Home is always best.

Your perennial bed looks fantastic. Mine is working its way there but has filling-in to do. 

This one is almost too full now; hard to walk in for weeding and deadheading. I keep considering making more flowerbeds, and reminding myself that what I have is what I barely have time for already; i.e. Be Realistic, Darn It.

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Off to the Office

Scott is busy on the phone this morning and rather than taking one of the trucks to town myself, I'm waiting for him to give me a ride ... because the roads are muddy and he doesn't want to get the big white truck dirty! Silly fella. You'd think it was a precious gem instead of a vehicle that will be driven on rural roads and highways. I guess to him it's still "new" and he prefers to keep it looking that way for as long as possible. 

My little car, on the other hand, might as well be a work truck, for the way I keep it. Pristine it is not. It needs a serious vacuuming job, and I rarely hose it down on the outside. It's a means to get me from A to B and that's about all. I had to tidy it up last week when I met Reta and Carl at the bus depot, so I cleaned off the back seat and the floor back there. 

Dad's gone back to Kelowna, driven away by the wind and rain and probably drawn somewhat by the lure of home and the routines of home. Visits to one's home town are great, but ... home is home.  

The main perennial bed about two weeks ago. What I see from the kitchen window.

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Wisewebwoman has left a new comment on your post "Where've I Been": 

Here we have one day of 1/4 summer today - sun has now hidden itself. Cold. We've had warmer winter days. Those who scoff at climate change can feck right off.

It's not raining here today, but it's not warm either. I prefer the days cool instead of hot. 

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Teresa has left a new comment on your post "Where've I Been": 

I saw the flooding on the news. Glad to hear all is well with you. We are into the stinking part of summer. Feels like 40+ not my kind of weather to say the least. Thunder storm on the way. Not sure if it will cool it of or heat it up. Thank goodness for AC. 

40+ is horrible, as I know only from my visits to Kelowna in the summertime. Pity the people when the power goes off and there is no air conditioning! Hope yours holds up, Teresa.

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Where've I Been

We've had severely rainy weather for the past few days. There is flooding in various places around the province; we've been spared that. I've even been able to go for a walk between storms.

North of Golden Grain Farm a few days ago, walking south. Click to enlarge.

And tonight, 10:30, what a beautiful sky. Too dark for a photograph. It looks like a shadow- and rose-hued painting. Quite incredible. Went out with Ducky Doodle for a few minutes. Wish I could stay there longer, but the mosquitoes have finally hatched out and would soon be upon me, and I'm tired anyway. 

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Lorna has left a new comment on your post "Soon to Bolt": 

home is home is home. 

Yep; no place like it, right? You can love your holidays all you want, but getting home feels even better. 

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Wisewebwoman has left a new comment on your post "Family Visit": 

I love your snapshots of family life, truly. Contrasting with my "strangers" in my home, LOL.

Those storms aren't too good though. I'd be terrified.

I'm not smart enough to be terrified. Or have never had anything more than a serious scare that didn't amount to anything.

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Teresa has left a new comment on your post "Family Visit": 

What wonderful house guests. Have a fun time. 

It was a good visit. A week long, and easygoing house guests who, like me, are content to read. Today they took my car and jaunted off to stay with other relatives for the next while, and I went back to work.

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Family Visit

My aunt and uncle arrived from Phoenix on Wednesday evening. They'd flown into Saskatoon at 1:30 a.m. Tuesday, stayed with friends in the city, then hopped a bus to Wadena. 

Scott and I both had to work the next day, but before he left he went out to the deep freeze and brought in a beef roast, some ground beef, and some other piece of dead animal to thaw. When we arrived home at suppertime, Aunt Reta had prepared meatballs and gravy. Upon request I'd stopped at the store to buy white rice, so Reta got that cooking while Uncle Carl and I drove over to my mother-in-law's to pick some salad greens from her garden. 

They'd spent the day recuperating from the travel and the late night in Saskatoon, where their friends are night owls — awake and working (he builds Fury electric guitars in his workshop behind their house) through the wee hours and sleeping part of the day. 

Yesterday I left my car at home so Reta and Carl wouldn't be stuck here, but they stayed put anyway, having baths, reading, and making a supper of roast beef, boiled potatoes, carrots, beets and tossed salad.

 I was late getting home (press day for the newspaper, another 10-hour stint) and missed the meal, but was reminded about leftover meatballs in the fridge and did a happy dance before warming them up with a bit of leftover rice. Woo hoo! Love meatballs.  

This morning Scott, Reta and Carl were drinking coffee at the kitchen table when I woke up. One of the nice things about this kind of company is that they aren't bored by simply "being." They seem content to ... well ... have a look:

Doing a crossword puzzle

Copying out a recipe for homemade chocolates

Reta says I should post this picture so people can see what curlers look like, since hardly anyone uses them anymore. 

We have a family wiener roast at Karen's this afternoon but right now I am still in my housecoat, Scott is snoozing, and Emil is brushing his teeth in the bathroom. Carl and I did the breakfast dishes already and I ground coffee beans to do for the next few days; Scott doesn't like to make noise since Carl sleeps a little bit later than he and Reta.

This weekend my brother Cameron is expected from Edmonton and my sister Joan from Kelowna with her hubby and two kids. I hear one of Scott's nephews is coming down from the Flin Flon area. Should be lots of visiting.

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Annette Erickson has left a new comment on your post "Soon to Bolt": 

Can't say I blame him either. Not that I like golf but after a while it's always nice to go back home. Your dad and Emil look good! 

Plus he's visited all his friends out here at least once ... he's made his rounds!

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Maggie Turner has left a new comment on your post "Solving the Problems of the World": 

Maybe being on early in the morning is something related to growing up on a farm? I do it, my sister does it, my brothers do it, we are all guilty of swinging our feet from the bed to the floor every morning in full gear, ready to discuss anything, and looking for anyone awake enough to engage. 

That could be it. He probably was up doing chores every morning before school; they had dairy cows.

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Soon to Bolt

"I might head back to Kelowna a little earlier than I planned," he said.

It hasn't been ideal golfing weather here — it's been windy and rainy — and since that's Dad's only hobby, life lacks a little something when he can't go for a round or two several times a week.

He organized a wee family reunion for this weekend and figures after that, he'll make his way back to his home in B.C., rather than staying two more weeks to attend the "homecoming" in Quill Lake that was his original intention.

He will have done damn well, I figure, to be here for six weeks! Who wouldn't miss their own nest, no matter how pleasant the place you're visiting?

On Sunday, Emil and I took a drive out to the farm where he's been housesitting.

Emil and his Gramps

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Maggie Turner has left a new comment on your post "Stormin' Stormin' Stormin'": 

I like storms, but there is a point where I cease to enjoy them, when they hit the line between spectacular and the wrath of nature. I envy that you can see them coming from such a distance! My view is such that they are pretty much on top of me before I know they are there. 

They can be breathtakingly beautiful, can't they?

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Solving the Problems of the World

"They want to take away their pensions," he says, talking about the looming Canada Post lockout. "What bugs me is they've just given themselves huge pension raises."

It's not yet 6:30 in the morning and I've just opened my ears to hear Uncle Carl moseying back to bed after a trip to the bathroom. I get up and do the same, then close the bedroom door on these two — Scott and Aunt Reta — who have the wherewithal to discuss the problems of the world first thing in the morning when I can barely squeeze out a civil word. (My nimble fingers work, though, don't they!)

I decided to get to the office earlier than usual so I can be home earlier, since I have to pick up groceries and think about supper at a proper time, what with guests in the house. I've had coffee, washed last night's plates and cups, and made a pot of oatmeal. One more cup of coffee and I should be good to go. Just gotta brush my teeth.

And they are still talking. 

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Maggie Turner has left a new comment on your post "Stormin' Stormin' Stormin'": 

I like storms, but there is a point where I cease to enjoy them, when they hit the line between spectacular and the wrath of nature. I envy that you can see them coming from such a distance! My view is such that they are pretty much on top of me before I know they are there. 

We've had some pretty scary clouds lately, and a lot of wind. Might be a new Tornado Alley up here.

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Stormin' Stormin' Stormin'

They come up in dark of night ... huge, frighteningly loud winds that make me wonder if I should wake Scott and head for the basement. Ducky is up, trembling, usually giving us warning long before we hear anything. Then the rain hits the house, hard, and I fear hail. I hope for the best and fall asleep again. 

In the morning I go out bare-legged, in a long T-shirt I've slept in, to see what the air's like. My Korean lilac cuttings have been knocked out of their pot of water, where I've set them to root. Eight flower pots and the glass table are still on the step, but the two chairs — even the heavy wooden Adirondack — have been blown off. The plants in the large perennial bed are standing tall, but the peppers and tomatoes in the vegetable garden south of the house have taken a beating. The hanging tomato plant is still swinging on the swing. 

And another storm is coming ...

From the back step

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Lorna has left a new comment on your post "Wee Wrens": 

It took me a long time to realize there was a bird in that picture. Live and learn.

What!? There is???

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Lorna has left a new comment on your post "Goings and Comings": 

Mr. Never in a Hurry lives here. I have tactics, mostly formed around access to my books and a comfy place to sit. 

Ha! Yes, one figures out a way to live with the way things are. 

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If there are more comments below, I will reprint and respond to them beneath a future entry.