Raking Around the Snow

There is still a lot of ice and snow around...

But I've started raking the flower beds - wherever the snow has melted, anyway...

Pine trees shed a lot over the winter months. I'm trying to remove as many pine cones, small branches, pine needles as possible.

Once my perennials start to emerge, it's too late. Then I risk damaging the leaves and the flowers.

Back to Quilting

Staying indoors a lot these days, I spend my time doing a little of this and a little of that...

And one of those little bits of time is spent quilting again.

I'm working on this unfinished quilt made of scraps of shirt material.

Not sure what to do next. I have no pattern. No overriding vision.

Maybe I'll quilt this part - then add a border around the whole thing to make it larger...

(Hopefully I'll like it in the end!)

Sunday Day Trip - From Cardinal to Prescott

The plan was to head for the St. Lawrence River...

... where we would relax and take in the view...

So we drove an hour south to the St. Lawrence River, then west along the river to Cardinal, Ontario...

We drove around, stopping so that I could take pictures of two old churches that I like...

Both have white and red brick designs...

As we drove around the village, we even saw a yard train drive past.

(I didn't realize the downtown railroad tracks were still in use...)

It chugged along slowly...

After it disappeared from sight, we continued west on highway 2, heading towards Brockville...

At Prescott we stopped to explore a waterfront park we had never visited. It was really lovely!

Play structures for children...

An outdoor amphitheater  and stage for summer plays...

Let's leave a Brockville visit for another day, we decided . After all, the day was chilly...

One last look at Prescott's lovely downtown park before heading north to Ottawa again!

So glad we went!

Day trips offer so many gems to discover - not that far from home!

Sunday Day Trip: Ottawa to Cardinal

Last Sunday, Terry and I went for a drive in the country for a change of scene...

We drove past farms - and saw evidence that snow was slowly melting...

We stopped at Vernon, to take pictures of this old country churchyard...

The farther south we drove, the less snow we saw...

Is it warmer here than Ottawa? I asked Terry.

They didn't get as much snow here as we did, he replied...

When we reached the St. Lawrence River, we turned west towards Cardinal...

I always find this rocky channel so interesting...

I keep meaning to read up on the history of Cardinal... Was this an early canal that pre-dated the St. Lawrence Seaway...?

The ladders going down to the canal left me wondering if people used to moor their private boats here...

Not far away, we saw a few people on the ice...

Holes had been drilled...

Were they ice-fishing...? Or cutting up the ice to make the canal passable?

Whatever they were doing, it looked dangerous to me!

More Snow?!

I was really happy that the snow was slowly and steadily disappearing. I've been able to walk on neighborhood roads and sidewalks...

Then last Monday - we had MORE SNOW!!

Terry and I tried to go for a walk, but we didn't really enjoy it...

So we headed back home.

I'm REALLY READY for some GOOD NEWS in my life. It wouldn't solve all our problems at the moment - but a sunny spring (with lovely blue skies) would definitely cheer me up!

Never Say "Never!"

Gas prices didn't mean a lot to me before I owned a car - but I do remember when the price of a barrel of oil went up to $20 a barrel...  (Was that in 1973?) I didn't own a car at the time - but I do remember the world-wide shock created by that move (by OPEC)...

Now - another shock...!

Terry (who often used to say, "We'll never see gas at under $1 a liter again") was recently shocked...

Gas prices at 65.9 cents a liter...

If I've learned anything in life, it's to never say "never"... You just never know!

Taking Down the Car Tent for Another Year

For quite a few years now, Terry has put up a plastic winter tent for one of our cars...

It's a lot of work but it saves time and effort, not having to clean snow off the car after a snowstorm.

All winter long, Terry is careful to remove snow from the roof of the tent so that the plastic cover won't  tear or collapse.

This year, a weather forecast for strong winds made us rush to take it down.

Terry chopped some of the ice that had formed - which was acting like a tether. We melted the rest  with hot water.

Done! Another sign that spring is here!

The metal stand can stay for now. Without plastic tied to it, no strong wind can lift it off the ground like a kite!

Thankful for ... Beautiful Skies!

I'm so thankful that I can sit indoors and gaze out the window at trees, squirrels running about - and, of course, beautiful skies.

Here is a view I just had to photograph... though a picture is  never as beautiful as the real thing.

Orchid Beginning to Bloom

I only have one orchid - a pale pink one...

... next to a north-facing window.

(To get a good photo, I've moved it away from the light...)

I'm happy to see it begin to bloom again.

If I succeed to with this orchid, I may buy a few more - in brighter colors!

Online Church - A New Experience For Us

"Social distancing" brings changes to our daily and weekly habits. Churches have closed their doors to services: "Services have been cancelled - but prayer has not been cancelled," my daughter's church notified its members. I assume they mean private prayer - which, of course, can be done anytime, anywhere - hopefully more frequently during this global health crisis!

The church Terry and I attend has stopped holding public services but last week they still had a regular service. We decided not to attend. Instead we watched a live stream of the service at home on our computer...

This week the church's only service was online. But we did receive a mid- week pastoral call asking how we are.

One could, of course, watch religious programs on TV.

Live streaming may not have the quality of a TV broadcast, but it did make me feel I was still participating in the church community we are normally part of.

Daily Walks

Now that Terry and I are social distancing, we try to take a walk every day.

Our walk is our little daily adventure... I also try to get in 10,000 steps.

We often head to busier streets. Strange, the things we see!

This car stuck in the ice... I wonder how long before it will be free!

Road construction on a busy street in our neighborhood.

Traffic was moving very slowly...

The next day was less busy - and the work had moved to the other side of the street.

Terry would probably have been happy to stand and watch for a while, but I wanted to get home. The wind was really chilly!

Not Really Spring

Our daylight hours are getting longer ...

The weather is a little warmer - so it feels a bit like spring...

But when I look around, I'm reminded...

We still have a long way to go!

Using My Time Well

Now that Terry and I are staying closer to home, to avoid contact with others during the current Covid-19 epidemic, I am trying to use my time well...

I'm looking at three major areas that need work: my study (where much of this disorganized mess stems from my attempt to organize boxes of photos)...

The basement, where I was organizing boxes of letters and papers a while back - then stopped, meaning to get back to it.... but never did!

And my sewing room, which is always in "flux"...

If the weather warms up and more snow melts, I'd like to rake up some of the debris that has accumulated in the yard over the winter...

I love to keep busy... Fortunately, there is no shortage of things to do!

Danger in the Wind

One day recently, the temperatures were warm, but the weather was very windy...

Terry and I were glancing out the window, talking about how much snow was melting - when suddenly a mass of dry leaves fell... from a pine tree. How unusual!

We then realized that the mass of leaves was part of a squirrels nest!

Were there baby squirrels inside?!

A squirrel rushed down the tree and dug through the nest debris several times, retrieving leaves or something!

Eventually things quieted down... I wasn't sure how things ended up but I hoped the squirrel family was doing well. We saw no crows hovering around, so we assumed the squirrels were safe.

Nepean's Former City Hall

Our branch of the Ottawa public library is housed in the building that was once the city of Nepean's city hall...

The city of Nepean doesn't exist anymore (to Terry's chagrin: It was debt free!) In 2001, Nepean, as well as a number of other cities clustered around Ottawa, were forced -  by the province of Ontario - to join Ottawa.

The feeling at the time was that bigger is better, from an administrative standpoint. Toronto - and Montreal, in Quebec - had similar amalgamations forced on them.

So now, our former city hall (built without a mortgage) houses city offices, an art gallery, a library, a bookstore, two theatres - and more!

Outdoors, in winter, there's a large skating rink that people can use for free. In summer it's a large outdoor fountain.

Near the entrance to the building,is a large bell, surrounded by snow. when I took this picture.

For us who remember, the bell is the symbol of the city that was...

It's a reminder - to those of us who lived here at that time - of those good old debt-free Nepean days!