"Take Part in our Survey, with a Chance to Win..."

Do you like surveys? I do, or at least I did until recently. I vainly thought my opinion actually mattered to these corporate giants and that my voice may one day be heard and acted upon.
What a stupid notion.
I can't remember what happened but the other day as I was completing a survey for 'LemonTreeOpinion' on behalf of Sears Canada the penny dropped. It was an 'AHA' moment.
I have signed up to various surveys in the past, Boston Pizza, Sears Canada, Canadian Tire and Ipsos Surveys who actually reward you in vouchers.
I chose to do these as I really thought they wanted my opinion. How wrong could I be?
I don't think I'm the only one who now realises that all they are doing is advertising their company, products and services. Perhaps you realised a long time ago and forgot to tell me?
They are very clever at bringing you onboard. They lure you in with a promise of entering your name in a free draw once a month for a chance to win some useless product they can't shift or a gift token that no-one ever wins - have you ever checked the past winners' names to see if they're real people?
My nature is to complain over poor service and praise for good. That's what I expected to be able to do in these surveys - not so.

Sears Canada is a struggling department store, with redundancies and stores closing nationwide, so they need to do something to try to survive. Their 'survey' asks questions about where I like to shop and how often. Fair enough. Then it launches in to the 'rank the following in to the most important to least important'. This is where the stupidity starts. Forgive my memory if it's a bit sketchy but their 'ranking' questions go something like this,
How important is it for you to....

• Be greeted by a friendly face (of a person about to lose their job)
• Buy high quality, long lasting, fashionable clothing (for a ridiculously high price)
• Have the option of home delivery (instead of you lugging the large appliance home on the roof of your Fiat 500)
• Be able to locate a convenient store in your home town (possibly empty now with cut backs)

You get the drift. Basically they are just telling you how great they are and why you should shop with them and not Walmart.

The same applies to Boston Pizza. I like to tell them on surveys that I do not use their Sports Bar, their chicken wing special nights whilst watching the game, nor do I go there to eat in a party of more than 3 (my husband, daughter and I). No, I have no desire to try their latest invention of a pizza burger, or a burger pizza, a poutine-flavoured ice cream or spicy hot, flame grilled chicken feet (poetic licence).


In fact I've become so cynical now that I've unsubscribed from all their stupid surveys. To me a survey is the ability to tell them what's good and what's bad with their product/service. Not to listen to their back door advertising.

So goodbye Canadian Tire with your 4 season, lifetime warranty, buy 1 get 3 free, slip resistant tyres.
Goodbye Sears with your outdated stores, visible lack of assistants to assist and overpriced goods. Goodbye Boston Pizza who think they're being innovative with their menu when in fact a chef tripping on acid could come up with more delicious delicacies.


I'm through with your surveys! Unless of course you can tempt me back with a money off coupon, a free desert or some CT money........?

October New Year's Resolution?

We continually see on the television that every year the average family throws out hundreds of dollars worth of food. I have always smugly shook my head in disbelief, 'Not me!' I would whisper under my breath - that is until yesterday....
This week I have been packing away the kitchen cupboard contents in to boxes ready for our impending move. I thought I'd do a double whammy as my daughter's school has a food drive today and I could donate any non perishable, in date, unopened items we won't use.
I chuckled to myself that I would not be finding much for the school and would buy a few items for them whilst shopping. Not so.
The first cupboard was a breeze, a few hundred Tupperware containers holding a host of surprise items; the half eaten packet of Ryvita circa 2013 when I decided it was time to shed a few pounds, some sticky marshmallows my daughter had tried last Christmas and didn't like, some healthy veggie crackers I bought to balance the nutritional value of my daughter's lunch bag - they were like eating cardboard, the list goes on.

I ended up with 4 carrier bags of discarded food and 3 bags for the food drive.
I wouldn't even hazard a guess at how much the discarded food had cost me, but now I know how the Government arrive at those figures.
Yes, I'm ashamed about the wasted food. Not only could it have fed a hungry family for a couple of days, but it could have saved me a ton of money too.
So, I will continue to eat my yoghurts a few days past their sell by dates, peel the not so pretty outer layers off the lettuce and eat the middle instead of throwing the lot on the compost heap. I'll take Jamie Oliver's advice and make the stale bread into breadcrumbs instead of giving it to the birds and buying breadcrumbs from the store. I vow to use the over-ripe fruit in home-made smoothies instead of consigning it to the compost heap too.

This is a photo from the internet, not my fridge!

Even with those 4 bags of throw outs, I still feel smug. I'm thrilled that my cupboards are almost empty now, there's less to pack up and we donated plenty to needy families.
Lesson learned. In future, I will not hoard half a bag of raisins in case I make more chutney next year, I will try to decipher 'sell-by' dates in stores before I buy (not an easy task in Canada), if my daughter nags me for the latest cracker, cookie, healthy option, I will make her eat them all instead of her giving up on the first mouthful.
Wow, this is my first New Year's resolution - and it's still only October!

House Hunting 101

Well, sincerest apologies for the hiatus, but we have been ridiculously busy. Last week we travelled across the Prairies for 14 hours in the car to find a new home - and we found one!
It wasn't a simple, straightforward task however.
We had a realtor, a very nice lady who arranged all the appointments for the houses we wanted to view. On arriving at her office we were optimistic, happy and enthusiastic, but then she told us that 2 of the houses had offers on them. One of which was my absolute favourite! From then on, I had to adjust my thinking and give every house a chance. That's when my headache started.
We were driven from the office to each house and viewed 7 in an afternoon. They varied in quality, curb appeal, cleanliness and price.
Luckily I can walk in to an ex-rental or a repossession, masterfully block off my sense of smell and see potential. My husband not so much and my daughter not at all!
Having watched a million tv shows on renovations, home makeovers, DIY shows etc, I consider myself something of an expert. I would probably award myself a Home Inspector's qualification if I could. There I was, knocking and tapping at rotting door posts, pulling out the furnace filters, opening the ovens then wishing I hadn't!
I have a dislike of stained oak which ends up an orange colour. I don't want to offend any readers who love it, but I do like wood to look as natural as possible. If natural isn't possible, then stain it dark brown or paint it white.



We walked in to some homes with the orange stained oak window trim, door trim, doors, fire surround, kitchen cabinets, baseboards, floors it was all too much for me, my thumping head and my painful shoulder to imagine the sanding, staining or painting that lay in store. We would look at houses on corner lots and were told that the whole pavement surrounding the house, front and side would have to be cleared of snow within 24 hours of snowfall. I looked sadly at tiny patches of 'low maintenance luxury high end turf' in back yards only to discover it was 'Astroturf'. Could I really relax on the sunny deck that was higher than the fences and gave me a bird's-eye view of the road and neighbours (and them of me)?
By the end of the day, my head was swimming. I would have to settle for second best. I had a niggling feeling that our dream house was out there somewhere, still undiscovered.
The following day my aunt took us to a brand new building site. I'd seen them on-line and they were over our budget. She urged us to just have a look and we did.
The larger show-home had various financial incentives making it affordable and as I walked in, I could almost hear the 'Hallelujah Chorus' playing in my head. I looked around in awe, the house was gorgeous, no it was better than gorgeous. Were we really worthy enough to live in such luxury?
We walked to the master suite, then the walk in closet.

This isn't the actual closet, but it gives you an idea!

 
"Memo to self, burn every item of scruffs before we move in".
I pointed out that the fire surround and creamy grey granite countertops would all be extras. The sales guy replied that they were standard - the day was getting better and better.
As I wandered around the house with a stupid grin on my face, I knew this was the house.
My husband needed some persuading as he liked another home and thought they might accept a lower offer. Yes it was lovely too, but did I want my daughter sleeping in the basement?
With some gentle female persuasion from my daughter and I, he agreed and we signed there and then.
Today is packing, sorting, disposing and donating day - but that's tomorrow's Blog....

Let Nothing 'Dull my Sparkle'!

I finally got my mower back - yay! It was a sunny autumn day, the leaves were dry and the conditions perfect for bagging them, so I leapt on. It was like being reunited with an old friend - but it felt different. The slack belt had been replaced with a new tight one, it made engaging the blade more a deliberate arm movement than a casual flick of the lever. The revs were higher, not like the old familiar chug I knew so well.
Still, it worked and I drove lap after lap stopping to empty the bagger each time until......something started grinding - a noise I was unfamiliar with. Then it stopped. Rather the mower stopped going forward even though the engine was still running, it wouldn't go backwards either. I was bewildered.
A week of expensive labour and an exorbitant bill and the stupid thing worked for 20 minutes! Really? The guy is coming back today to mend it, I hope.
Not to let that set-back dull my sparkle, I decided to venture in to the old family homestead which is derelict. It is home to many squirrels in the roof and any other passing wild creature in need of shelter. After we moved here, I took a photo of the old place and sent it to my Mother telling her this was the 'Granny Annexe', the name has stuck ever since!





We have used it over the years to store not-too-precious items such as the steps to the pool, our bicycles, pipe, flower pots and a plastic sunbed. I always shout loudly as I approach the house, there is one way in and one way out and I certainly wouldn't want to corner a skunk or raccoon in there. The roof is now falling in and I picked my way across the floor littered with nuts, bolts, roof tiles and general garbage.
The woman who sold us our house actually lived in there until 1979 with her husband and 3 children. She told me that if she mopped the kitchen floor in the winter, a layer of ice would stay on it until it melted in the spring. I moan if the thermostat goes below 67F! We don't know how good we've got it.
Anyway I rummaged around and on a friend's advice decided to pull some treasures out to sell.
I'd accumulated about 100' of hose over the years to water all the trees I planted, there was also a load of black pipe and Pex pipe, a sump pump, hundreds of flower pots - all worth a few dollars, so I intend to advertise them next week with fingers all crossed!
Today I am packing, not only ornaments into boxes, but also a suitcase. We are off on a road-trip this evening in search of a new home hundreds of miles away.
I am making the King of all picnics to take and sustain us for the 14 or so hours on the road. My daughter and I need to make sure we leave on time otherwise my husband will become the clock-watching tyrant and won't let us stop at every Tim Horton's or photo opportunity we see.
She will take over the whole back seat with her pillow, blanket, DVD player, books, iPod, iPad, snacks and drinks.
Oh to be a kid again.... I think I might join her!


p.s. No Blog tomorrow, too busy watching DVDs from the back seat - sorry!

Please don't forget to feed the chickadees!

Today I woke up early in a reflective mood, so this Blog is a sombre one. I re-ran in my mind our last 5 1/2 years in this house and all the memories we would take with us.
I clearly remember our first visit here on a snowy winter afternoon and as my husband and I climbed across 2 foot snow banks on the drive we both said, 'Can you hear that? Nothing!' We looked out over the fields and could see for miles, no noise, no traffic, nothing. It was bliss. Snowflakes fell like sparkling crystals from the sky and it was magical.


This place has given us so much, we have breathtaking sunrises and sunsets. We have an endless stream of wild animals in our yard that entertain us. We have seen incredible double rainbows, the Northern lights, shooting stars and an eclipse.
Our first experience with Canadian wildlife was a chipmunk. We thought it was a baby squirrel, my Mother thought it was a rat! They busily gnaw away at the bird bells, stuffing their pouches and run frantically away tail high like a flagpole!



We have seen black bears, including an abandoned young cub we named Winnie, Deer have feasted on our acorns. Coyotes jog steadily and foxes sprint over the fields as quick as lightning. Huge white jack rabbits fight and play together in the spring.


 


Bright orange orioles with a beautiful song visit for hummingbird nectar and clumsily hang on to the feeders, we have 'wild canaries', Prairie chickens, skunks, raccoons, eagles, owls and this year we saw a 13 stripe ground squirrel!
This place is where we have loved and lost some best friends and still feeling the emptiness they left behind.





Our home has taught all of us new skills. We have painted, fixed, mended and tamed. During the almost 6 years, we have planted over 200 trees and lovingly watered them throughout the hot dry summers. Family and friends have travelled across the miles to visit us and experience living in the country, down a dirt road, miles from anywhere.
We have just 3 weeks left here before we move. I'm sad to leave the peace, solitude and beauty of the country with all its secrets and hidden pleasures. Will we ever own over 100 oak trees on 10 acres again? I doubt it. What a privilege it's been to live here with all its challenges and surprises. Everything has been captured forever in photographs, videos and most importantly memories.
I'll miss this place and no doubt will cry a few more tears before we go. My daughter will put her arm around me and say something comforting like, 'Oh Mummy, not again!' and my husband will give me a reassuring hug.
I want to leave a letter for the new owners to ask them not to forget to feed the chickadees and squirrels throughout the cold winters or they'll starve. Do they know how to make hummingbird nectar for the 6 regular little visitors that come to the same window every spring? Can I ask them not to shoot and kill the mother deer and her 2 fawns, or the black bear and her cubs? Will the Prairie chickens end up on their barbecue? Will they have an outdoor dog that will chase away the chipmunks forever? There's simply nothing we can do once we leave here but hope that nature will continue to amaze and that all our little friends forgive us for leaving them.





Perhaps our next yard will have a chipmunk in?

Pros and Cons of Buy, Sell and Swap Sites

Due to our impending house move, I am busily sorting through our treasured and not so treasured possessions in to keep, toss, sell or donate piles.
I am not a hoarder, at least I don't think I am compared to some horrors I have seen on the television.
The toss and donate piles are by far the easiest to decide on. If I don't want it, is it good enough for someone else to use or wear, we donate and if not, it's off to the skip for that item!
The dilemma comes when I decide to sell things. I am a member of a few local buy and sell sites which is the ideal place to capture a wide local audience for free.

Firstly, I have a look through these sites to try and decide a price, my husband always sets a higher one than me. Forget eBay, their prices are all vastly inflated compared to these community sales. Having decided on a price, I then painstakingly take the best pictures I can of the item from every possible angle, with and without the light on, careful to not get my shadow or reflection in the frame. 'Click!' and I'm ready to post.
I'm not particularly inventive with my ads, I give it a straightforward title and price, then usually add a rather bland description with the picture.
Some people's ads are really good, witty, funny and original. If I were to try and emulate them though, I think it would just look plain stupid or sad.
Excitedly I click on the 'Post' button and wait to see what happens......
Oh no! Suddenly 3 different people are fighting for my item, I obviously posted too low a price on it. Well too late now, it's not an auction site, so I can't accept the highest bidder. At least the item has gone, I have the money and the space.
Or, no-one is interested in my treasure. What? How could anyone not be tempted by the mock Tiffany-style lampshades for only $10? I liked them, that's why I bought them. They're not THAT bad are they? Suddenly I feel greedy and wish I'd posted them at a lower price from the beginning. Once you add, 'or best offer' to your ad or 'any reasonable offer accepted', then you wonder if people are seeing you as so desperate to get rid of that thing that you'll practically give it away.
After a few weeks of trying, if all else fails and no-one wants my bargain, even at the new knock down price, I have to decide whether I want to keep it or simply donate it to charity.
Garage sales are very popular here in the summer months and a great place to find a bargain. I do think some people mark up their prices just to get knocked down, but I'm often too polite and not brave enough to haggle. So I either pay their inflated price or pass.
We did go to a garage sale some years ago and were surprised to find an old cardboard box with a hole cut out for the head and arms and it was painted in a sort of robot design. It looked like a child had done it, worn it for a week, then threw it in the garage where it had been kicked around and trodden on for a couple of years. Yes, you know what I'm going to say, it was for sale! I think they wanted a couple of dollars for it - unbelievable.
I always have to laugh when I arrange to meet people to drop items off. It's usually outside Walmart or other public place. They see me sat in my car, pull up, pass me money, I pass them a package and they drive off. Sounds like a drug deal doesn't it? One of these days I'll be arrested in the middle of an operation whilst innocently handing a DVD over to a contented Mum, but if it ever happens, I'll save that for another Blog!

Eco Fee, Recycling Fee, Environmental Fee? Just a Cash Grab!

Here's a weird thing we have in Canada, the 'environmental fee', 'eco fee' or 'recycling fee'. It appears on your bill after buying items such as cartons of juice, cans of beer, ear buds, paint, even a microwave!
What on earth is all that about?
When we first came to Canada, I saw the fee pop up on the screen when the cashier scanned some juice in a box.
'What's that?' I dumbly asked.
'That's the recycling fee,' she patiently replied.
'So when I recycle that carton, I get the money back then?' I asked hopefully.
'No, you don't get it back.' She was starting to lose her patience by now.
'So I'm charged a fee for something that I can recycle, but when I do recycle it, I do it for free?' I just wanted to clarify this surreal concept.
'Basically, yeah. That'll be $35, how are you paying?' She looked at the growing line behind me then shot an impatient glance at my purse.
'Debit, who makes these rules then?' I wasn't finished yet as I tapped in my PIN.
She was though, 'the Government, thank you and have a great day.' She droned insincerely.
When I buy a can of paint I am charged an eco fee. Okay, so it's only 60 cents, but I'm annoyed at the principle of it. On Home Depot's website it explains what the fee is for,




''Eco-fees cover the collection, transportation, recycling or safe disposal of hazardous and special materials, which currently have provincially run recycling programs in place.''




So where are these provincially run recycling programs? There may be one at our local refuse tip, but as they charge an arm and a leg to allow you the privilege of dumping your garbage there, we never go.


In fact the only things we can get the fee back on is beer cans and bottles. Not just any beer cans though. They have to be Canadian beer cans. If you have bought beer from the States (as many people do as it's so much cheaper even with the poor exchange rate) and the beer vendor spots the cans from USA (they are not metric like ours), they'll refuse to take them. Nor will they give you money back on any cans that originated from UK or any Canadian cans or bottles that had cider in them - apparently.


I may be missing something here, but am I the only person who just doesn't get it? Perhaps when we move to another Province, things may be different and I can recycle everything and get paid for doing it! I'm not holding my breath though....

Scruffs - the Clothing that Keeps on Giving!

I have just been sorting out laundry. Nothing exciting there, but it crossed my mind as I folded the paint-splattered t-shirt and ripped jeans, how normal are we as a family?
We live in the country and on weekends we like to get outside and get jobs done in the yard eg. chopping up fallen trees for firewood, having huge bonfires, weed-whacking (aka strimming), weeding the veggie patch etc.





Now no-one will wear their best attire doing the above-mentioned tasks. So we wear what we affectionately call 'scruffs'. In fact, most weekends we wear 'scruffs'. There's something about those comfortable clothes you've owned for years and years that fit just right regardless of what they look like.
My husband had a pair of 'scruff' jeans that had a rather indecent split under the crotch. He didn't care and would march outside defiantly in them grab the chainsaw and cut wood! Eventually, it got to the point where my daughter and I had to gang up on him and threaten to have him arrested for indecent exposure in a public place when weed-whacking our front ditch. He finally gave in and reluctantly threw them out, it was as though he'd lost his best friend.
I am the same and have the most comfortable pair of jeans. They too have rips and splits in them but I find they only cause a problem in the summer when the mosquitoes find a new patch of exposed flesh to bite on that I forgot to spray! The previous scruff jeans became cut-offs after they began to split.
I have a couple of t-shirts and a sweatshirt that look great from the back, but turn them round and they look like Van Gogh used them to wipe his brushes on.
My daughter has leggings with split knees - scruffs. Outgrown t-shirts - scruffs. Unfashionable clothing she wouldn't be seen dead in - scruffs.
The thing about 'scruffs' is that you really get your money's worth out of them. They are the clothing that keeps on giving until the seams give way or the material wears out.
Which brings me on to my dilemma. We are soon moving house. We hope to live in a town, in a place with no fallen trees, fires, ditches or a veggie patch.
The new house may need some painting, but that's about all. Am I going to bite the bullet and dispose of our 'scruffs' before we move, leaving us with just one moving outfit each? Or shall I pack everything regardless of its state and take it with us?
Do I really want to fill our new walk in closets with our faithful 'scruffs'? Are we suddenly going to become civilised overnight once we move to a suburban cul-de-sac?
If we keep our 'scruffs' and parade around our new abode, front and back yards or wash the cars on the drive in them, what will the neighbours think?
I'm leaning toward saying a fond farewell to them, perhaps a ceremonial burning one weekend. They are way past the charity shop stage so are no good to anyone.
The question is, what do we wear while burning them........?

Tips for on-line House Hunters

We are currently house-hunting - from a distance. From about 825 miles away in fact (1329 km). To put that in to perspective, Lands End to John o' Groats is only 603 miles.
Because of the sheer distance involved, we are making a list of a number of houses we like the look of on-line and when we can get over that way, we can blitz them in a couple of days and hopefully narrow our choice down to perhaps one.


I can't help chuckling when I see some listings on line. For example, either the realtor or the home owner took a crash course in home staging and decided a colourful picture of a flower would go nicely in the family bathroom. On closer inspection, the picture is propped up against either a towel or some toilet tissue and still has the corner protectors on as if it's just come from the store and is going back later for a refund!
Why do some realtors insist on taking pictures of the owner's furniture? It's not as if the orange pine sideboard against the salmon wall adds anything to its appeal.
I have always been told to depersonalise before selling a house. Some we see still have the baby portraits on the wall, the framed hockey shirts in the den, even bedrooms painted in their kid's favourite team colours. No builder's beige or contractor cream in that house.
Another is a house that does not mention it is a pet friendly home. It doesn't claim to be pet-free either, thankfully. Zooming in on one particular picture I see a large white dog fast asleep on the floor resembling something like a stuffed sheepskin rug! When it comes to animals, if you really are against having a home with an aroma of someone else's dog or cat litter tray, then inspect those pictures with a magnifying glass. The kitchen is a good giveaway, with large food bowls carelessly left on the floor, or a stray tin of cat food left on the counter top!
Another sure sign is to look at the grass and how green it is. Numerous patches of dying grass is usually an indicator of a dog in residence.
How can people really expect to get top dollar for their house when they can't even be bothered to tidy their house before the photo shoot or barely make the bed?
I've seen pictures of sinks full of washing up - an instant turn off. There are beds that look like someone may have died in it overnight and perhaps the realtor didn't notice before snapping away. Another weird one was a hot-tub in the back yard with the downspout from the guttering being diverted straight in to it. I suppose it saves on the water bills?
I love Google Street View and it gives a great insight in to the area surrounding the house.
Ah, so next door has 2 Harley Davidsons on its driveway or the house opposite looks like a likely candidate for the next Hoarding - Buried Alive show. If there is a back lane, Google may have pictures of just what dwells behind and if not to your liking, can save much time.
I prefer to see pictures of a furnished home. It gives you the scale of the room. Otherwise it can be very hard to judge whether a bedroom is a single or a double. It also helps to see what purpose the room is used for, an office, den, gym or bedroom?
Google Street View is also fantastic at showing you how busy the surrounding roads might be. I looked at one place wondering whether there was a school bus route nearby. Street View showed a school bus actually passing the house!
I would like there to be a law passed where the prospective owners were allowed to live in their future home for say a week to see what's it's really like. That way they could discover that the next door neighbours are party animals and play loud music until the early hours or that the local lads congregate at the end of your driveway every weekend for a get together and deposit all their litter in your flower pots before leaving at 2am.
Before we decide on putting in any offers, I want to see the house, take my time viewing, look inside the kettle to see how much limescale there is, flush toilets, test electrical outlets, turn on every tap to see what the pressure is like, go back in the evening and later to see how quiet or noisy the street actually is. This time of year is great for putting in offers less than the asking price as people may want to be in their new homes before the snow arrives and of course, Christmas.
I'm fussy, but I want to know that one of the biggest investments we make will be a sound one. I don't want to stress out over a neighbour's barking dog all day while the owners are at work so CAVEAT EMPTOR! Let the buyer beware and take your time, go with your gut feeling and don't be rushed.
My daughter has already chosen her dream home, it was a show home, has large bedrooms and is within walking distance of her school, oh and Starbucks of course! What more could a girl ask for?

Happy Thanksgiving!

Yesterday was like a hot summer day and we reached 24C! I suggested we make the most of the weather and armed with a vicious array of knives and spoons we had a pumpkin-carving experience.
I have seen some very artistic pumpkins in the past and I tried to think of an original face to carve but failed miserably.
In fact, none of saw each others offerings until we were finished and I was amazed at how similar they all were!
Not one of us cut out jagged scary teeth and instead made happy, smiling pumpkins! I am sure that says something about our family's state of mind?


Today is Thanksgiving Day in Canada and the rain is whipping against the windows and the wind is gusting up to 100km in some places. Different people are thankful for different things, I think my daughter is just thankful that so far today, we haven't had a power outage and the internet still works!




Picnic by the Lake

Today we visited a wildlife reserve and decided to take a picnic with us. It was a beautiful warm autumn day, with no mosquitoes - perfect!
When we arrived, we saw two birds of prey and listened to the wildlife experts talk about the barn owl and red-tailed kite. They were magnificent (the birds, not the experts!) They passed around the wing of an owl for us to touch and admire.... no thanks! It was around this time, I realised my batteries were flat in my good camera - scowl.
The handler suggested I stand for a picture next to this rather hungry-looking raptor and I tried to keep a respectful distance hoping I would come away with both ears as I smiled sweetly. Looking at the photo afterwards, I could see the hunger in that thing's eyes and feel lucky I was not his afternoon snack.
Then we walked in to the interpretive centre where a huge array of stuffed animals greeted us. I am very squeamish with dead things and didn't want to stroke the poor stuffed black bear. I have too much respect for those wonderful animals.
Anyway, we decided to eat our picnic first, then take a trail walk around the lake and admire the autumn colours.



We sat very close to the road on a picnic table (away from the goose poop) and tucked in to our food. I have to say it, was scrumptious, filled rolls, filled croissants, potato chips followed by little cupcakes. I proposed a toast to Thanksgiving and we tucked in.
Our picnics have attracted attention before when we've spread the rug in a city park whilst watching cricket and produced an array of home-made quiche, filled rolls, salad, boiled eggs etc. One couple even asked if they could join us! We have a large wicker hamper, a tartan rug and china plates, wooden handled cutlery and real glasses. I think it must be an English thing.





We packed all the remains away and trekked around the lake. We walked over rocks, up hills and down steps all to the sound of honking geese and my daughter snapping away with her iPod.
It was nice to feel part of nature even though my neighbours were constantly texted me.
When we came home, my husband dutifully disposed of two poor little finches that had been killed by our windows - again. Tomorrow I am printing off silhouettes of a black hawk and sticking it to the window to see if that works. I'll let you know.
Meanwhile, we are all exhausted. We have had ample exercise, sufficient food and pleasant company all day long, what else could we ask for?

Super Mum or Exhausted Wreck?

Well my Blog is late today as we were up early even though it was a 'PD' day off school. My daughter had arranged a trip to the city with two friends to go and see a movie. So we left our house at 8.20am and drove to town to pick up the friends.
Constant chatter emanated from the back seat with strange language such as, 'Ship Names' which apparently are two possible crush names combined in to one. This is nothing new, I seem to recall my parents naming their house in that fashion circa 1956! They spoke excitedly of the mall we were to visit and which shops they'd like to browse in.
My normally quiet, placid daughter came to life like a Duracell Bunny and was talking in the same strange tongue that I'd never heard before. Weird.
Anyway, I dutifully trailed after the happy trio in to clothes stores, music stores, coffee shops and phone case cover suppliers. They were in their element. We purchased items to complete a hallowe'en costume, an iPod case and some mascara, not to mention lunch and smoothies.
We rushed to the movie theatre once we realised it was to start in 10 minutes and I bought the tickets while the girls bought drinks. The movie was 'The Scorch Trials'.
We need not have rushed for a good seat. In fact, when we four walked in, we doubled the audience number and had our choice of seats.





The movie was quite good even though I hadn't seen the first one. It was a futuristic 'end of the world with zombies' type movie. The only thing that annoys me is when the producer can't be bothered to put enough money and effort in to the make-up and scary scenes, so decide to use very dim lighting with the occasional strobe coupled with weird camera angles. That to me screams a low budget film. I've seen it many times and think it's pure laziness or lack of interest.
Anyway, we all came out discussing where we would go if the end of the world was nigh. It was a unanimous verdict that all three would return to that mall and live there happily on burgers, fries and froyo whilst wearing their pick of latest fashions and jewellery. That was assuming the zombies didn't get there first......

Highway Robbers? No, Internet Providers!

I don't know about you but we have a limited internet allowance every month. We started off with a nice reasonably priced 25GB which I thought would be ample for me checking e-mails and looking for items on sale at Ikea.
Of course I forgot about my daughter. My daughter loves her laptop and her iPad and her iPod. She goes in to a semi trance-like state during power outages as she is unable to connect to social media and life suddenly seems pointless. Minecraft is the latest craze, which from research, doesn't use up too much internet. She and her friend like to play on the same Minecraft server at the same time and therefore it becomes much more fun to Facetime each other whilst playing. As I hear the screams and laughter coming from her room during these online games, I can almost see the Gigabytes trickling down our drain. Of course 25GB lasted about a week and then we had to buy extra - ouch!
We are now at the top monthly payment of 100GB and even that has to be monitored. If I don't take a daily look at our usage and warn her, then she could easily use double.
Which brings me to today's thought...


Last 12 month's usage

This is what my internet provider gives me on a regular basis so I can compare our usage and see which months we use more than others etc.


How do I know this is accurate? I don't have any way of checking their figures and can only trust them to tell me the truth. If they were unscrupulous people, they might just make the figures up.


My biggest complaint is that though we pay for 100GB a month, we can never use that amount. I am sure I'm not the only paranoid parent who fears the ridiculously high costs of paying for extra GB when you go over. Consequently, on the last day of the month, I might see we have 5GB left. They only let me know what I've used up to midnight the day before, so I'm left wondering what 5GB will allow me to have. I could watch funny YouTube videos, download music, Skype family abroad and buy Apps for my mobile 'phone, if only I knew I wouldn't go over the 100GB! Therefore, I use nothing to be on the safe side and they get their 5GB back unused. Before you ask, no any unused allowance doesn't roll over to the following month either, it's lost forever! They win, I lose. My daughter also plays Sims3 and she had a couple of expansion packs for her birthday. Great! To my horror, just to load one disc on her laptop sapped 5GB in an hour! In the second week, our allowance was nearly used so I had to ban her from playing until our new allowance started.
I understand that folks that live in towns and cities don't get this problem. Mostly their internet is unlimited. But not for us country dwellers. Not only do we have to pay for limited GB, we also have to pay for installation of the 15' mast that adorns the top of my house and faces south towards the town's transmitter.
Scariest part of all is that my internet provider can tells me what websites have used the most GB. They can say how long my daughter has been sat laughing at cute animals on YouTube or how many songs and videos she's downloaded too. I did suggest they hack in to my on-line banking to see how they are draining my account at the same time, but the person on the end of the phone said they weren't allowed to do that.....

Poor birds

Yesterday the sun shone brightly and I had been confined indoors on the phone and computer most of the day. Just before the school bus was due, I decided to go for a wander around our yard. The fall colours were beautiful and the only noise was that from the chickadees chattering away and the squirrels squabbling with each other.



As I climbed to the summit of the rock, I saw a bear scat, that totals 5 now. I've always heard that they would be more frightened of me than I of them, unless it's a mother with cubs. I nervously carried on my short journey snapping away with my camera thinking that my last ever shot could be that of a charging bear!




I was so glad to see my daughter off the bus as I had a little job for her. Numerous birds fly in to our windows and most of them fly off again with a bit of a headache. There are a few that sadly don't make it. She reluctantly scooped up a little dead finch with a shovel and deposited it away from the path after cringing and telling me its eyes were still open. Years ago, a sparrowhawk lay dead outside our lounge window that I was due to paint that day. Unable to deal with dead animals, I couldn't move it so I threw a large cardboard box over it until my husband could come home and give it a decent burial.
We did have a mourning dove fly in to the lounge two years ago and thankfully my mother was staying with us at the time and did the honours. She asked for my rubber gloves to pick it up with, 'What? You're not having them, they're brand new!' I replied and promptly handed her 2 carrier bags to use instead. Looking like something out of a lunatic asylum, my mother scooped up the poor bird with her bagged hands and respectfully buried it in a trench. The saddest part of all is that its mate still sits alone on our hydro pole after all this time. That mourning dove is aptly named. The funny side is that I did snap a couple of photos of my mother with said bags on hands, but if I ever put them on-line, she would never talk to me again!

Aching and sore!

Well after the painting, window washing and pumpkin harvesting, I finally succumbed and visited the physiotherapist yesterday afternoon.
Luckily, she is a real expert and knows exactly where my pain is. Not so lucky for me is the fact she has very bony fingers that can poke through layers of skin, muscle and fat and try to move stubborn ribs - ouch!
She confirmed my suspicions that the cause is repetitive movement like painting and suggested a warm up first and taking regular breaks during the activity. All sound advice. I have decided since that if I ever need to paint another room or doors I am going to invest in a paint sprayer. They look fantastic. I know there's a lot of preparation with masking off etc, but a wall can be spray-painted in next to no time and the only pain will be the price!
Anyway, I said farewell to my not so trusty mower as my neighbour helped me load it on to her pick up. It spluttered and choked as I drove it on to the ramps and hope the mechanic can work a small miracle. In the meantime I have a back up. We dug it out of some undergrowth and trees a few years ago.



I'm not sure how good it will be at collecting leaves but I can give it a go. All I need now is a horse...

And another thing!

I'm not usually cynical - unlike my husband. I take things at face value and normally comply with instructions because the manufacturer tells me to. He doesn't. He looks for the real reason behind it. His cynicism is starting to rub off on to me.
For example, I have an inkjet printer. When the ink runs out I buy the recommended manufacturer's replacement at a ridiculous price and not the cheaper versions that can be found on the internet.
Once I've replaced the cartridge my printer compliments me as it is a 'Genuine ink refill' and then asks me to 'Align the cartridge for best results'. This is one of the few things I refuse to comply with. It's a cash grab!
Right, I've just spent over $20 on an ink refill and now they are asking me to print off a sheet of paper containing multi-coloured bars that look like a DNA profile.





That must take at least $2 worth of ink. What a waste! Every time I switch on my printer, it reminds me to align the cartridge, again and again until I either crumble under the pressure or run out of ink and need a new refill. I can't win.
It's a bit like when I descale my kettle. I boil the noxious limescale remover and see it bubbling away dissolving all the sludge. It smells awful, so once it's all sparkly and clean I have to boil the kettle numerous times to make sure that my next cup of tea won't dissolve my stomach lining. By the time I can barely smell the acidic mixture anymore (3 days later), I've started to build up the limescale inside the kettle again.
Do you ever think there's someone up there laughing at us?

Productive work desk?

My husband is currently working away so I jealously looked up his hotel on line to see what the rooms and pool were like. I love hotels! Well, I love good hotels. There's a funny story attached to that statement which I'll come to in a moment.
The hotel my husband is staying at caters for business travellers which I why I assume they have chosen to describe the desks in their rooms as 'Productive Work Desks'. What on earth does that mean? I conjured up the thought placing your work on the desk and it magically does it all for you while you laze in the pool. Alternatively, perhaps the desk has magical powers and can change a lazy person in to a 'productive' one? Who knows?

I just thought it was a very odd statement, so I looked up what constitutes a 'Productive Work Desk'. It showed a picture someone had designed with arrows marking important items one should have to make their workspace more productive e.g. a plant, a familiar mug, an organised in-tray, ergonomically designed chair and a photograph. I doubt the hotel offered any of these apart from the chair so can't imagine how they are allowed to describe it in that way. It's like describing 'restful and dreamy beds' or 'drunk as a skunk mini-bars'.
Anyway back to the very worst hotel I've ever stayed at. It made Bates' Motel look like the Ritz. The bathroom door didn't shut as it was actually 2" narrower than the opening. Our shoes literally stuck to the carpet and a suspicious red substance adorned one wall which I hastily told my daughter that it must have been ketchup splattering out of the bottle. More like a murder scene but I wasn't going to tell her that.

The place hadn't been cleaned in decades which though being extremely gross, was quite fortunate because the invisible cleaner hadn't noticed the iPhone charger still left plugged in. Serves me right for picking one of the cheapest hotels in the area - never again!

Anyone Know a Cheap Mechanic?

I know the old adage, 'If you buy cheap, you buy twice'. In my case though it's more like, 'If you buy cheap, it will keep breaking down!'
I am talking about my ride-on lawn tractor (mower). It was on sale over 4 years ago at Canadian Tire and still cost us about $1700. That will sound a lot to people with a small lawn who only need an electric mower from B & Q for £50 and it won't sound much to our North American friends who invest wisely in John Deere mowers that will last long enough to mow around their own gravestones.
Anyway, we have literally acres of grass to mow. We also have acres of oak, ash and willow trees. It's that time of year again where Mother Nature decides to challenge me to collect as many leaves as possible, pile them on to the smouldering bonfire and then overnight whips up a small hurricane in only our back yard so I have to start all over again the following day.

Yesterday I had only chugged for a couple of minutes in the sunshine, bagging up leaves as I went, when during a reverse manoeuvre, the engine cut out. I double checked that the cutting blade was not engaged and quickly put it in to neutral. It burst in to life again. I really couldn't understand what it was doing and can only assume a sensor for the cutting blade is faulty (if it has such a thing).
Anyway, it would not shift in to forward or reverse without the engine cutting out, so I gave up and pushed it towards the small hill heading toward home. I jumped on and managed to get almost to the shed. There, I removed the air filter and cleaned it, checked the oil and the fuel line.
Today, I am taking my portable battery boost to the shed to show the mower that I mean business. I will fiddle with the battery connections, spark plug and any other dangling wires I can see by the engine, say a quick desperate prayer and see if it will go.
I would love to have some knowledge of engines. I find it very satisfying to take things apart, mend them and put it all together again.
If all else fails, I will have to borrow my neighbour's pick up truck, load the mower on board and driving it to town for a diagnosis.
Meanwhile, the wind will keep blowing and the leaves will keep on falling until the grass is covered.
Forever the optimist, I won't even think about the latter option. Wish me luck!

Cavalia experience

A couple of weeks ago my daughter and I were fortunate enough to see Cavalia in the City. It is a mix between a horse show, acrobatics, music and fabulous backdrops. There's no way to really describe the experience, it was magical.
We had really good seats in the big top and they requested that no-one takes photographs 'as the flash may scare the horses'. The last statement might also read, 'we want to fleece you out of lots of money by buying our ridiculously expensive program if you want pictures'.
Now I'm a compliant person and if someone tells me not to do something I don't do it. Thankfully my daughter is the same. You could sit her in front of a chocolate cake for hours and tell her she must not touch it and she wouldn't!
My friend also went and snapped merrily away on her iPhone - she's a rebel! These are her photos.
I hate crowds and feel very claustrophobic when I am jostled and pushed, probably as I am not very tall. Consequently I always leave these occasions a few minutes early to avoid the rush of people and cars.

My daughter is easily embarrassed even after all these years of living with me and once again, just before the Grand Finale, I whispered to her that it was time to get up and leave. We were in the middle of the row and needed to disturb about 5 people to enable us to exit. My daughter cringed and told me to ask them to 'excuse us', so I did and walked out with a sense of urgency with my daughter trailing behind me. We were first out of the car park which I was thrilled about and we still had time to go shopping before the trek home.
If you ever get the chance to see this show, I highly recommend it. If you love horses, it's even better. The musicians were on full view on raised platforms and created a fabulous atmosphere. The acrobats and African dancers were so talented. It was an experience we'll never forget.

Not Bland - Classical!

I spent most of the afternoon painting my daughter's bedroom yesterday and completed over half.
'No going back now!' I chuckled to myself as I blocked out all hint of wall colour with the off white paint we had chosen.

She also decided to alter the layout of her room - again. This happens on a regular basis and my husband and I sometimes comply but mostly talk her out of it for logistical reasons. This time she wanted to lose a set of cubes and drawers that were taking up too much space.
When my husband came home from work, he lifted said item of furniture and struggled down three flights of stairs to store it in the basement. There was a lot of huffing and loud exhaling similar to professional weight-lifters before they lift and snatch or whatever its called.
Proud of my day's achievement I opened her bedroom door with a 'Ta Da!'
'What do you think?' I asked her enthusiastically.
'It's a bit bland.' She replied looking more than disappointed.
'It's lovely,' I replied defensively. 'It's not bland, it's classical. I love it!'
She remained unconvinced and by bedtime was asking for the cubes back as she had no surfaces left for her hairbrush. Thinking of the enormous energy my husband had expended taking that thing downstairs with the help of gravity, I was not about to ask him to lug it back to appease our child.
Today I will venture down to the basement instead, I'll huff and I'll puff and I'll drag that piece of furniture back upstairs if it kills me.
Tomorrow's blog may be written from the peace and solitude of a hospital bed...