Experiment in Taping My Mouth Shut When I Sleep!!

I've been reading the book Breath - an interesting read about health problems that can be caused by breathing through one's mouth rather than one's nose... I started reading it after months of feeling more congested than normal - since last November, in fact, when I had my last cold.

Apparently nose breathing is beneficial all the time - even when exercising  (running or cycling, for example). And, of course, while sleeping.

But how to make sure you are breathing through your nose or your mouth when you are asleep?

Some people tape their mouths shut to avoid mouth breathing at night. I'm not sure if this is something they do for a while - or if they continue permanently.

I decided to give it a try - and it isn't as awful as it sounds! The key, for me, was to use a small (postage-sized) piece of medical bandage tape in the middle of my lips, so that I can still breath through my mouth if needed, though it does prevent me opening my mouth wide.

(Of course, mouth-taping should be tried only by adults who know that the urge to cough will wake them up and who won't be so disorientated if they wake up with tape on their mouths: they'll know how to quickly remove it...) Fortunately I'm a very light sleeper.

After a week of taping my mouth shut, I was less congested in the mornings. Regarding coughing, when I needed to cough, I woke up, lifted up one end of the tape, coughed, then stuck the tape down again!

What am I hoping to gain? If any of the anecdotal evidence in the book works for me, I may start sleeping through the night - instead of waking up every two hours. I'm also hoping that my blood pressure will go down. Apparently mouth-breathing can raise a person's blood pressure.

I plan to try it for a few weeks, to see what happens.

Discovering a New Place to Walk

From time to time, Terry and I go to a river lookout on the Ottawa side of the river that separates Ontario and Quebec. We like to stand and look over at a quaint old neighborhood on the Quebec side, a neighborhood that is often threatened by flooding during the spring thaw. 

Earlier this year, I thought it would be fun to drive over to those quaint streets now that summer is here.

 What are they really like...?

But whenever we went, with the intent of exploring, the roads were closed to cars. Only bikes traffic was allowed.

But a few days ago, we headed over again, hoping that the street would again be open to cars.

It was! So we parked the car and walked next to the river, looking towards the Ottawa side!

It was really lovely! I felt as if we were tourists in some sea-side town... the river looked so wide from this new perspective.

There are interesting seating areas that encourage one to relax and enjoy the view.

I definitely want to do this again. 

The Quebec side of the river has so many new places for us to explore!

L.L. Bean in Ottawa! Hard to Believe!

For years I’ve bought fleece shirts and water-proof coats through a catalog. The items would take a while to arrive: they were shipped from Maine.

Whenever we traveled to the USA, I’d hunt for one of their physical stores - L.L. Bean. But they're hard to find, even in the USA...

So last year, I was surprised to see that one had opened up near Toronto...

And this year one opened up in Ottawa!

I don't do a lot of shopping these days - but I did stop in
to look around...















Now I can actually try on clothing before buying it!!

Prairie Fire Chili Peppers

I used to have a vegetable garden when my children were young. I wanted them to see how food is grown.

I remember growing tomatoes, lettuce, beans and squash. I don't remember if we ever tried growing peppers. I would have expected them to grow on low plants, much like cucumbers...

But maybe I'm wrong...

Recently my daughter-in-law was given a tree with little red peppers on it. They resembled Christmas tree lights. She was told they were edible... but very hot - like Tabasco sauce.

We brought a few of the peppers home for our Ottawa son, who LOVES Tabasco sauce. He agreed that they had a similar taste.

I removed some of the seeds from the tiny peppers in hopes that I'll succeed in growing a Prairie Fire Pepper tree - or two - next spring.

A new gardening challenge!

Trying Haskap Berries

On a recent trip to Guelph, our daughter took Terry and me to Strom's Farm and Bakery - a small store attached to a busy local farm... She had read a great review online about their pies.

Of course we had to try one...

We ended up trying more than one! On our first visit, we bought a peach-blueberry pie. It was really delicious... with more fruit filling than most store-bought pies...

On our second visit, we bought an apple pie for our daughter and a rhubarb-strawberry one to take to our son's family.

I was also intrigued by something I had never heard of before: Haskap berries.

They sold Haskap berry jam. We chose to try a haskap berry crisp - which was delicious.

Hunting for more information on Haskap berries, we read that the name is Japanese and that the berries resemble raspberries but taste like blueberries.

However, in the picture we saw online, they looked oblong! I've never seen berries that shape before...

But they do taste delicious!

They are grown on the farm. If we are ever there during berry season, I'd really like to see them outdoors for myself.

There's always something new to learn about!

Urban Wildlife ... in Our Neighborhood

I don't recall seeing much wildlife around my home in Alberta or in Kelowna, BC, where I spent my teen years. Maybe I simply didn't pay much attention. A friend of mine in northern BC has deer and black bears wandering into her garden! I'm glad there are no bears in our neighborhood!

I do remember squirrels in our backyard in Kelowna, not as plenteous as the squirrels in our Ottawa neighborhood. Our dog loved chasing them away from our back yard nut tree!

The first time I really noticed urban wildlife was the year we lived in Toronto. Garbage day always brought out the raccoons... I don't recall seeing raccoons in downtown Montreal when I lived there, but I have seen squirrels - larger than Ottawa squirrels - in Montreal parks.

Our Ottawa neighborhood has squirrels, rabbits, skunks, ground hogs, raccoons - and occasional ducks! 

We apparently also have coyotes... Someone recently reported seeing them at 3 am on our street... near the college. That's very close to us!

Recently, on a walk in our neighborhood, I noticed this trusting rabbit... He didn't run away when I approached... Hopefully he won't run into the coyotes!

If I had an outdoor cat, I'd definitely be nervous!

Terry’s Parents’ Wedding

Sorting through old photos, I came across several of Terry’s parents on their wedding day. They were married in Lennoxville, Quebec.

Here is one - with the parents of the bride and groom next to them. 

Years later, both grandmothers attended our wedding. By then, both grandfathers had died. 

I never met Terry’s parents, as they had both passed away by the time I met him. 

Terry didn't know the date of their wedding, but I came across it on the back of one photo...

It was September 24, 1949 - 71 years ago today.

New Walking Path in Almonte

I'm not going to the gym these days - so I'm missing out on some of my normal exercise...

You have to find something to replace it, my osteoporosis doctor recently told me. Exercising is an important part of osteoporosis management...

So on a recent trip to Almonte, we decided to add some steps to our normal walk around town...

Normally, we cross the river at two different bridges, bringing us back where we started... near a favorite bakery!

We have lots of favorite views where we stop and admire the scenery - like this condo patio - with all its potted plants, below the bridge.

This view of the water fall is another favorite spot...

But maybe it's time to add a new path... Here's one we often see people on, either walking, riding bikes and even ATVs...

So off we headed off...

To our left was the river... To our right, an older neighborhood. We caught glimpses of lovely homes through openings in the trees...

Let's explore the neighborhood, I suggested...

So we turned onto one of the streets...

So glad we discovered this lovely part of town!

I'm sure we'll be back soon to see more!

Didn't Expect That!

The house across the street has recently been demolished to make way for new housing...

We watched - with a mixture of interest and nostalgia - as the buildings came down and were carted away...

But I didn't expect the large hedge on the east (left) the side of the property to go as well!!

Everything really looks different now!

Movie Making... in Almonte

Terry and I recently headed to Almonte, a small town where we often go to walk and enjoy the scenery. It's about 40 minutes away by car, through lovely countryside.

Our normal downtown walk ends up at Baker Bob's bakery on Main Street... (Not a place I should visit too regularly since I'm trying to cut back on carbs!)

We were heading towards the bakery towards the end of our walk, when I noticed a lot of people standing in front of his shop...

Was there a mid-week lineup?

Look at all the people standing around, I said to Terry. If it's too busy, we might not want to go in...

But as we approached, we noticed it wasn't a lineup to go into Baker Bob's - but a movie being shot just outside his door.

The camera and the rest of the crew were wearing face masks...

We sat and watched for a while...

The actors being filmed repeated their scene again and again while the cameras rolled...

A small group of us sat across the street and watched...

It reminded me of movie sets I'd sometimes come across at night in Montreal. They'd often shoot movies in downtown streets at night, when no one was around - under bright lights to simulate daylight.

Downtown Brockville in September

The last time Terry and I drove home from Toronto, we stopped at Tait's bakery in Brockville for a late lunch.

Brockville is one of our favorite small cities in this part of Ontario.

We always enjoy walking along the waterfront... though now that fall is here, things are a lot quieter.

We wandered around the harbor...

It's always relaxing!

Always a great place to visit!

Visiting Guelph's "Green Hub"

On our last visit to Guelph, Terry and I visited an unusual green space called the Yorkland's Green Hub...

If this were in Toronto, there is no doubt this space would be developed, we commented as we wandered around the abandoned grounds of what was once a reform school - then a rehab hospital...

And who knows what else?!

One car was parked near an entrance that seemed to be in use...

Does someone work here? 

There were a few uninhabited houses on the grounds. Many of the windows in the buildings were boarded up.

We encountered a few people out walking their dogs on the roads and paths, but mainly the grounds were empty...

There were lovely views of the lake on the edge of the property.

For me, it was a strange place to visit...

I'm not sure how I feel about leaving buildings and carefully planned grounds to rot and disintegrate.

In our world, there is a serious need for reasonably priced housing...

You don't have to be a homeowner for very long before you realize that buildings need to be regularly maintained or they simply become unsafe.

Puffle Cafe: A New Guelph Restaurant

I can't remember the last time we ate inside a restaurant... These days we look for outdoor seating - though eating outdoors will be harder once the weather gets cold.

On our most recent trip to Guelph, my daughter suggested we try a new restaurant that had only been open a few weeks...

It takes a lot of courage to open a restaurant in these uncertain times...

The cafe specializes in crepes...

... and Japanese cheesecake.

We really enjoyed the meal!

(They serve their lattes with a small piece of cheese cake on a spoon on the side.)

Hopefully they'll do well and we'll be able to eat there again...