By the time Attila has a day off work we have a lot of catching up to do on the domestic front.
The temperature has been just above freezing for the last few days! Yesterday Attila spent his day off work shovelling snow, and lots of it. It snowed all morning as he worked. All the snow on the south facing roof came down yesterday morning, with a thunderous, house-shaking crash. The north facing roof still carries the full winter load of snow, and will probably not release it during this thaw.
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The load of snow from the roof spread considerably when it came down, blocking the walking path to the house and the woodshed. By mid-afternoon Attila had the yard ship-shape again. He noted that with this last “shedding” some damage was done to the deck railing, which will need to be repaired in the spring.
With the warmer weather comes a reduced need for firewood. Two daily firings in the masonry heater are sufficient to keep the house toasty warm. The weather prediction for the next two weeks is for relatively warm winter temperatures, just below freezing during the day, slightly colder at night. The down side to this balmy forecast is that snow is likely to fall almost every day! Still, with the reduced firewood load, and the snow removal completed for the next little while, Attila is in for some easy days.
Yesterday I made pumpkin squares, or squash squares, we are not really sure which. The pumpkin/squash had been frozen some years ago, and the package was not labelled or dated. The squares were delicious. The squares were beyond resistance, so I persuaded Attila to store the squares that remained in our large refrigerator downstairs. Out of sight, out of mind. The large refrigerator downstairs is the whole downstairs, because we do not heat it. Miraculously it stays above freezing in all but the coldest weather. It is a handy size for a refrigerator!
Beans cooked overnight in the crockpot. This morning they were drained and additional ingredients added to prepare baked beans. The plastic lid to the crockpot broke. The pot was purchased some unknown number of years before 1992, and has been in continuous use since then. Undeterred I experimented with various stainless steel lids from the cookware set, until one was found that fit the crock. There is another large crockpot at the little house in the city, and two smaller, aging crockpots at the country house.
Caveat: Cook beans in a crockpot at your own risk, do it the right way. “Dried beans, especially kidney, contain a natural toxin. These toxins are easily destroyed by boiling. Safe steps for preparing would include soaking the beans for 12 hours, rinsing, and then boiling for at least 10 minutes, before adding the beans to a slow cooker.” University of Minnesota Extension
I have been in the house with Mist for a consecutive sixteen days. We are planning an outing, very exciting! Attila must travel to have a blood test, and hour there and an hour back. This can only be done during working hours, on weekdays. So, he will have to take time off work, and forego his income for those hours. The plan is to choose a weekday that offers clear, dry roads and sunny skies, and to take the afternoon on that elusive perfect day, to have the blood test done, then shop for supplies. Attila is attempting to work extra hours to make up for the time he will need off.
I did not sleep well last night, too many murder mysteries! We watch Midsomer Murders episodes, but what tipped it over the edge for me was watching And Then There Were None, an Agatha Christie film from 1945, which I enjoyed. However, it was too much mayhem for one day.
Worldly Distractions
Weather
4°C
Date: 7:30 PM EST Monday 13 January 2014
Condition: Light Rain
Pressure: 100.1 kPa
Visibility: 16 km
Temperature: 4.0°C
Dewpoint: 0.2°C
Humidity: 76%
Wind: S 18 km/h
Quote
“To punish me for my contempt for authority, fate made me an authority myself.”
Albert Einstein
1879 – 1955
I’ve been enjoying the Downton Abbey series, until now. They’ve introduced violence and rape, which turns my stomach. So what was always a pleasant watch was not so this past Sunday night. Boo hoo.
Wow, what a crazy amount of snow.
I thought it was a bit risky including a rape into D.Abbey this week. I have a love/hate opinion about this show. On the one hand, like everyone it seems, this side of the Pond anyway, I find I must watch it each week. On the other hand, I find it so stiff and contrived and stuffy and Hollywood that I can’t really say it’s a “masterpiece” at all. We have seen so many, many British shows, single movies and many series, and I know the breadth and depth of the writing and acting talent in the British Isles – which is substantial – but which is not really present in this D.Abbey show. You can predict every single thing. It’s too staged for me. I like nitty gritty shows that portray more of the real life aspect of living in Britain and not this puffed up gentrified fluff.
That said, I am not planning to miss an episode! Just wish the writing was better.
Kate, we have been looking forward to watching Downtown Abbey! Violence and rape are a part of life, but I don’t think entertainment need dwell on that aspect of life, any more than entertainment dwell on toilet humour. I am with you, Boo hoo!
Bex, my goodness, my first clue to what Downtown Abbey had to offer should have been its popularity. Popular shows usually are not in the top 50% of quality programming, by my standards. Usually British drama is outstanding. There were a few episodes of Heartbeat, where the characters came to Canada, and the gross and ignorant stereotypes used to represent Canada in the episodes was sickening, as a country and the people who live here. It made me wonder if the British programs I enjoy employ the same degree of whitewashing and stereotyping, but I don’t notice because I do not live there.
Tom, we get a lot of snow! Our house was designed for a California climate, so that it does not work well in this snowy environment. The doors and decks need to open onto an end wall, with no drainage from the roof. If we were to do serious redesign at this country house we would move all the doors and the deck to the front and back of the house, and let the snow fall two storeys from the roof to rock gardens, ensuring no one would be beneath the drip lines when the snow load came down. That kind of renovation is beyond our means, but I think about it a lot when Attila is out there removing snow!