Cooler Weather

The weather is at last cooling down a bit. The tomatoes and peppers do not approve, at all. The celery and the brassicas don’t mind in the least. The humans on the property are relieved, hopefully no more heat waves until next summer.

The cooler weather means that working out at the Camp is more feasible. Another visit this past week was undertaken. This retirement thing is just mind blowing, just great. On lovely days, with sunshine and breezes, we can venture out to the Camp if we don’t have any pressing food preservation projects to attend to. When we only had weekends, rainy weather, heat waves (common all through July and August) deterred out visits. Now that we can visit when we feel like it, we can choose our weather.

I was up to my usual activity of collecting branches out of the bush, and burning brush in in the campfire. It is important to start the fire as soon as possible after arrival, to build up a good bed of coals for cooking the midday meal.

I continue to only eat between the hours of 9:00 a.m. and 5:00 p.m. Since often we get home after 5:00 p.m., it is necessary to eat the late afternoon meal at the Camp. This meal had been a peanut butter and jam sandwich. A wider menu was needed. One dinner that is quite good is a Lentil Salad. Another would be canned baked beans, but the commercial version has too much sodium, and too much sugar in it. So, on Thursday the pressure canner was put to use, canning eight 500 ml jars of baked beans. This was dinner on the most recent trip to the Camp, paired with homemade whole wheat bread it was delicious!

The highlight of the visit was that Attila began to tear out the undercarriage material from Grace the Trailer. She has spent eight years of sitting in the bush, with mice setting up housekeeping every winter. The undercarriage is covered by a heavy duty coroplast, corrugated plastic sheets. They need to be cut out and replaced with something mouse proof.

The damage was extensive when the first sheet came off. The insulation resting on the coroplast was matted with mouse urine and feces, and there were deep piles of nut shells. The mice had chewed a 3 inch by 2 inch hole in the coroplast, making it wide open for entry. The coroplast and the insulation will all be removed, then it will be time to figure out what to replace it with. Reflectix is under consideration, but a decision will not be made until all the coroplast and insulation have been removed.

We are both very relieved that this project has begun!

We are not concerned about resale value of Grace the Trailer, as she is now 23 years old, and has been sitting in the bush for eight of those years. Securing her from the elements, and the critters, is our main concern.

When we arrived home we expected to receive a feline lecture. Instead Ginger settled down on the couch beside my chair and dozed. This calm behaviour after our absence was unusual. However, after about fifteen minutes Ginger seemed to get in touch with his inner feelings. He jumped to his feet, raced about the living room, yowling and scolding. He attacked his scratching post with intense vigour. It took about ten minutes before his fury was spent. Then he had a snack, and went back to dozing on the couch.

That was not the only unusual behaviour that day. We were discussing a project, sitting together in the living room, perusing the computer screen with the information under consideration. Ginger jumped in between us, to watch the computer screen with us, while affectionately setting one paw on Attila’s lap, and the other on my arm. It was very sweet.

Good news came with the results of one of my blood tests. The new medication is working, and the serious potential side effects were ruled out. Fingers crossed no new serious side effects come to light with this medication, that is always a possibility. So, one pressing health issue seems to be under control, and I will take what I can get as far as positive news in the health department.

And so autumn has begun here at Mist Cottage.

Worldly

Weather

22°C
Date: 1:00 PM EDT Saturday 28 September 2024
Condition: Mostly Cloudy
Pressure: 101.6 kPa
Tendency: Rising
Temperature: 21.6°C
Dew point: 15.2°C
Humidity: 67%
Wind: NE 16 km/h
Humidex: 26
Visibility: 24 km

Quote

“There are two ways of spreading light: to be the candle or the mirror that reflects it.”
Edith Wharton
1862 – 1937