Showing posts with label Our Neighborhood. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Our Neighborhood. Show all posts

Friday, October 23, 2026

Breath of Fresh Air

There's a lot of politics in the media these days. I recently sat through half a TV debate of four middle-aged men running for mayor in our city. Nobody cracked a smile... Everyone was angry... None of them spoke as well as I had hoped.











That's why I was excited to read this story of a young man running for city counsellor in my former hometown, Kelowna BC.











His signs made me smile...











His instagram account was full of details of how he'd like things to change in the city.

He seemed approachable. 

(Hopefully his enthusiasm won't wane now that he's been elected.) 

He's a breath of fresh air in city politics... I wish him well!

Wednesday, October 14, 2026

Don't Get a Ticket!!

The toys look cute -parked on one side of the street...











Oh, oh!











The sign says "No Parking"!

Wednesday, September 16, 2026

Yellow



Evening walks abound in shades of yellow...


The sky...


Daisies in a neighbour's yard.


All too soon the leaves will be turning yellow, too.



Friday, August 21, 2026

Power Restored

Two evenings after we lost our electricity in an unexpected thunderstorm - big trucks rumbled into our neighbourhood.











What were they going to do?! We were one of the last neighbourhoods in the city to still be without electricity... 

Some of us gathered to watch.











A transformer near Earl and Mary's yard had been knocked out when branches from a neighbouring tree fell onto the wires.











Now it was being replaced. But the problem didn't end there... More downed branches on power lines needed to be removed.











Twelve hours later - on Saturday morning - our street finally had electricity again. 

Now life is returning to normal! We can cook and open the fridge. And as evening approaches, we can turn on lights again!

New appreciation for what we have!

Saturday, August 8, 2026

Crumbling Boulders











At the end of the street are six boulders - meant to deter drivers from taking shortcuts along pedestrian pathways on the college grounds. The boulders have been there for years - but most are now crumbling.











Strange as it sounds, there once was a small truck in the neighbourhood that made this opening his secret shortcut.

Once college gardeners realized what was happening, they added the boulders.











Since then, the large rocks have been hit many times - usually by snowplow drivers who mistake them for mounds of snow in winter. Each crash makes them crumble more!

A few cars have crashed into them as well... and not only when there was snow on the ground.

(What were the drivers thinking?!)

Most recently, a small car tried to muscle through at 3 AM. Terry heard a loud bang. 











He grabbed his flashlight and went out to see what had happened. Several people were getting out of the vehicle, which had stopped a few meters away, leaving tire tracks in the grass.











Terry returned home to call college security.

Half an hour later - at 4 AM - the phone rang. A police officer wanted to ask Terry a few questions - since passengers and driver had all disappeared...

I guess that means that no one was seriously hurt! Good!

(But how do you fall back asleep after an eventful night like that?!)

Thursday, July 16, 2026

Drying Walls - After the Flood

Once the wet carpeting was removed from our basement, we had to work on drying the floor and walls.











Several carpenters cut out the bottom 2 feet of all the drywall...











Before doing that, all shelving has to be pushed into the centre of the room.











Then fans and industrial-sized dehumidifiers are brought in to dry everything - floor, wooden framing under the drywall - everything! 

As it dries, the wood is sprayed several times with an anti-fungal solution.

After everything is dry, the next step is to rebuild. In the meantime, boxes of books and things retrieved from the basement fill every vacant corner of the upper two floors of the house!!

Tuesday, July 14, 2026

Removing Waterlogged Carpet

One of the early tasks we needed done after the July 1 flood was having the waterlogged carpet removed before mould appeared and it began to smell...











It was hard to find someone to do it...











Restoration workers were in high demand.











So we were thrilled to find one recommended by a neighbour...











And we breathed easier once the carpet - and the smell - were gone!

Wednesday, July 8, 2026

Watching It Go













We have been busy clearing water from the basement... 













And carrying out waterlogged and damaged possessions...













Sad as it is to say "goodbye,"...













It will be good to see it go.

Monday, June 22, 2026

Snow "Mountain" - Gone!

All winter long, snow from the college parking lots is pushed onto a field nearby.


On May 31, at least a month after our last snowfall, there was still a sizeable grey mound of dirty snow covering a walking path.

How long would it take for all the snow to disappear?!


Yesterday, I walked past it again - only to find a tiny pile of snow in a muddy patch of ground - with a few puddles nearby. 


In a week's time - by the beginning of July - I expect that all sign's of last winter's snow will finally be gone.

Saturday, June 6, 2026

New Community Centre



Last weekend was the grand opening of a new community centre - at a park in my grandkids' neighbourhood.



I've watched Jericho practice baseball skills here. He also does outdoor hockey in winter.


I wanted to see what it was like inside and out.


Bright, cheery rooms for crafting as well.


Fun for the whole family... A great addition to the community!



Thursday, June 4, 2026

Overflowing Euphorbia

Our neighbours, Mary and Earl, have an overflowing bed of euphorbia in their back yard.


One year, the flowers apparently just started to spread - and I imagine that they're still spreading!


They have some others at the front of their house as well. 



Such beautiful flowers - blooming for several weeks in spring.


I have two small bunches in our front yard. I would dearly love for them to overtake the gout weed - which is the main super spreader in our yard.

Saturday, May 23, 2026

Tiny New Neighbour

We have a new neighbour!


Did I hear correctly?! One and a half pounds? Hard to believe!

She's so perfect - and so small!

Looking forward to watching her grow!

Friday, April 24, 2026

The Dome is Down

In our neighbourhood, the college's winter sports dome came down a few days ago... to make way for outdoor summer athletics.


College students help fold up the white plastic dome.


It takes a full day to do it!


Before long, they'll be out on the field playing soccer... 


A sure sign that spring has arrived!


Thanks to my neighbour Earl - for these sharper close-ups!


Preparing the field - the unseen side of college athletics!

Wednesday, April 22, 2026

Cat Hunter

On our street, we have a cat who's a hunter... 



Levi is a mouser... and he goes after birds...


What else?!

I went around the house to see what Levi had his eyes on.



Young squirrels?!! 

Watch out, little ones - it's a jungle out there!