from the land of idling vehicles

I'm on store duty today while D finishes the last bit of dry walling around the new shelves in baby's room. Sitting here watching the endless stream of long-weekend-visiting vehicles wait their turn at the lights in our tiny town.

I just returned from a walk to the garage to pick up my car - the brakes went funny on me yesterday so I drove it to the shop last night. Today they're working so the garage wasn't able to "fix" anything. Anticipating them going weird again, and eventually a $300 fix for a new master cylinder. Also apparently front left wheel bearing needs replacing. Oh rusty '97 Malibu, how you age. Eventually a new vehicle will have to be figured out... looking like sooner rather than later. And D's car isn't too far behind needing replacing either. Cha-ching!

Most of the extra cash from the store this summer went right back into it, but I think we're starting to top off inventory-wise and can settle into just replacing stuff vs expanding. We should be mostly set till Christmas. Anticipating profit in the coming years! And a web store... hoping it's something I can work on between mat leave and baby, while waiting for the little one to arrive.

30 weeks pregnant today - the countdown feels real now, with only 10 weeks left to go (eee! aahhh!). Still much to do, but with summer winding down, there's less travel and more free-ish time to spend preparing house and home. Tho the tireds have returned and I'm pretty low energy... but things get done in tiny bubbles of moments, which I've become increasing good at capitalizing on.

Wacky car, enduring gravel pile, and bratty puppy.

The dawgs are starting to feel a little more high maintenance, with Lune newly enjoying high-speed chases down the driveway to the road (such a scamp). Our road is mostly quiet, but the stress of it is still exhausting so we've taken to chaining her a lot of the time now. The plan is to train her to stay within the electric fencing, like Whisk. Not looking forward to that, but it will make for a happier pup and easier life.

hot apple cider

I've eaten so many clementines this week my tongue is feeling sharp, but I don't care... eating another as I type this! So good. And now, I'm following a simple, fragrant recipe for hot apple cider. It's a lovely time 'o year.

Tho it froze rain/hailed most of today. Luckily I'm getting my winter snow tires on on Saturday... this week's weather has kept me from driving into the city. Saturday is also Fenelon's big nighttime Santa parade, apparently attracting thousands to our small town. Hopefully it brings a little life to the store this weekend. D's building some window display shelving tomorrow and we'll set up a little Christmas'y display.

Luna's learning things from Mo:

We just did our first load of laundry in the new appliances. A marriage-y moment. I never thought I'd say this, but our front-loading washing machine is sweeeet yo.

Sitting by the fire... even tho it's a daily thing now it still feels worth mentioning, cos it's so nice. Lune's back sleeping at the top of the chair, I think she's officially laid claim to this spot, even tho she's getting big and the pillow sinks and she falls a little behind it. She's so cute.

Dang that cider smells amazing.

Oh one more thing - I've started meditating again. 10min each morning, that's it. Isn't it a Buddhist saying that every journey begins with a single step?

waking

Yawned, rolled over, hugged my husband, rolled over to the other side, hugged my dog who was whining gently at the side of the bed, nudging his nose into my arms. 6.15am - I've set Whisk to wake me up then. The way you set your dog is you set your alarm clock for a morning or two and let your dog out. From then on, he'll take over alarm clock duties. I much prefer a chilly, wet dog nose (attached to a warm fuzzy friendly little dude) to a loud, insistent beep. He even has a "snooze" feature. I say "Whisk lie down for a bit" and that'll give you another 5.

Feel around the drawers for a warm pair of D's socks, let the dogs out, light a fire. Roll the mat out and sit. Sit and feel the silent morning and smile.

luna

puppy love, fall, and green living

The puppy adds a little more crazy to our already busy little life, but my outlook these days is if it brings more smiles than annoyance, it's fine, and the pupper definitely adds cheer to the day. She's a goof. I'm writing this listening to a symphony of snoring dogs... sort of a cozy sound.

My man had a takin' care of business day which included breakfast and coffee ready when I woke up, a trip to the vet with la Lune, and then a massive clean-a-thon. The kitchen is now reorganised and filtred of unused food stuffs, the living room also mildly rearranged. Funny how an angle here, a lamp there, and a dusting can change the whole vibe for the better.

R & D cleaned the chimney last night so we're ready to rock once the temperature dips. It's already on its way... but I love the fall. The days are so clean and fresh, and the wind so alive. We might be away during the beautiful leaf changing season next month, but that's okay. Off to Iceland for our honeymoon! My awesome bro will be holding the fort down while we're away. Looking forward to two weeks AWAY with my love.

In other news, we watched "Food Inc" this week and I feel changed. I recommend -everyone- see it. It's about the food industry, and it's totally effed up. I'm so terrified of a GMO world, all seed owned by Monsanto... and the fact that we can't know GMO foods by labels in Canada is so scary and wrong. The thing I will watch out for most is soy as it's one of the more processed things I eat. The documentary has so much more... it makes me think more about how our green store (which had a good first summer btw!) can play a more active role in educating consumers, and providing healthy alternatives. We've talked about writing a zine over the winter to make available in the store, just to educate our community further about all that's going on and how to move more toward a safer, healthier, more environmentally friendly way of living. It's so important!!! Consumers directly influence the world, undoubtedly. Buy local, buy organic when you can, buy fair trade imports if you must, and think of your fellow earth citizens in everything you buy.

petz

The farm is getting farmier! New additions:

Six chickens
Two each of Golden Phoenix, Barred Plymouth Rock, Ameraucana. Two, possibly four(!), are roosters so we'll have to sort that out later. The hens should start laying in a couple months.

New puppy Luna, from brother's mama dog
Her dad is a beagle, and her mom has spaniel/jack russell/pit bull. She's a mutt... a darn cute one. Eight puppies in total! My folks took one too (billy). Lu's crying on the porch right now. Whisk is inside sleeping off this morning's babysitting duty but I might stick him out there again soon. She doesn't like being alone...

whisk goofing

quietest

Whisk is allowed on the bed when D's away. He's in the city tonight, recording with his band for a few days, so the dog's keeping my toes toasty while outside blows a cool -28C windchill. The fire on in the front room finally sends heat back here, since improving our attic and crawl space insulation last week. Another house to-do off the list. Soon we'll get to the more exciting stuff (counters! sinks! doors!).

Spent the day in bed, sick. Being sick is such a strange thing, but the best part is how great you feel when it leaves you. You even feel better than you did before you got sick. Tonight I feel a little less awful than earlier so hoping tomorrow I'll be well enough to get groceries and maybe even work on some music.

The house is so quiet when it's just me and the dog and the cat. It's a heavy kind of silence in that everything stays so still in its place - any moving or shaking comes from nature or weather. I like it. I like how truly alone and undisturbed I can be here. A very insular, internal existence... living in the womb of a two-bedroom bungalow.

And so quiet compared to the Christmas bustle too. Two families, lots of driving, lots of relatives, lots of friends. Lots of food, lots of gifts, lots of card games. Not a feeling of excess tho... more like a full, satisfying completeness. All topped up for another few months of winter, and another year. Merrily we roll along.

wind

At night I imagine we're in an airplane, or a submarine, on a desert, or in the Arctic. The wind moves against the house like a real presence, with an eerie, lonely, growl. The ghost of winter cometh, visiting for days, waking us in the nights. Like a sad dog.

Whiskey & Mo got their annual shots today. D got the vet to clip W's nails, as we had tried with no luck. He was very difficult apparently... and our vet said it's obvious he was hit when he was a puppy. Usually it's hard for her to tell but with Whisk she can say that for sure (he would flinch back whenever she moved her arm). It made me so sad to hear this, I almost cried. But at least now we have him and we love him sooo muchhh.

kong

All hail the kong ball! D picked it up last night at the pet store, taking a queue from JP and her Per. Keeps a dog busy long enough to relieve pet owner guilt over the little guy's boredom. Put a bit of peanut butter in there and he's happy as a clam, for hours. Tho I just heard a loud sigh from the living room. Think he's taking a frustrated breather.

Yet another huge snowstorm. It's crazy! Need to get some x-country skiis ASAP.

whiskey!

Better photos to come, but check it out y'all!! We got ourselves a sweet little buddy over the weekend. A 3 year old yellow lab (tho we think he might be younger) from an ad in the paper. He's lovely... knows how to sit, lie down, shake a paw, come, etc. Doesn't jump up or bark too much. Likes soccer and fetch. We've been keeping him tied (one rope off the porch and one in the field under a tree) with frequent walks around the perimeter of the fields to get him used to his new home. Tho today I let him off just to see how it would go... he was great! So am hopeful he'll eventually be a well behaved off-leash farm dawg!

evolving

The mornings have grown chilly. New windows aren't in yet, not till mid-October, so cracks and rotted frames have inspired blankets, sweaters, and the odd touch of thermostat on the baseboard heaters (haven't received a hydro bill yet so the electricity fee has yet to scare us). We have a bit of hardwood piled, leftover from the previous owner, and some kindling from L&J, so if it gets colder we're okay. It's really not THAT cold, we're just still adapting, coming off the thoughtlessness of landlord-funded heating, and the insulation of Toronto's vast city-ness. We've agreed on investing in some wicked slippers and house-coats and maybe a bear skin rug by the fire... naw.

D ended up working today, so I'm left trying to puzzle out if I should keep the noon appointment I've made to go see a dog...! "Free to a good home" 3yr old yellow lab. He sounds poifect and am a little worried another family is gonna snatch him up, so maybe I should go for it solo.

Other than that, till up a bed for the garlic (4' x 12' ish). We ordered 5 pounds of Music and 2 pounds of German Red to get us started. This initial making of the bed will be hard work as our fields are full of ROCKS. Then later tonight, we'll drop in on the neighbours, beers in tow, and have a night.

p.s. Capital Letters!

friends

constant cricket song, happy pet sighs, bird twitters and tweets, bug bumps against the windows, rooster crows.

elvis doesn't come by anymore as the neighbours have started to chain him during the day. makes sense tho - as you can see in this photo there's a missing patch of hair on his leg. apparently dogs will lick and chew like this to relieve stress. last time i saw him it'd grown back. less confused about where his home is but we miss him!

ta da

propped amid pillows and blankets, a suprisingly comfortable position on the inflatable bed, finally letting my achey bod rest. feet throbbing, the odd kink letting go as big breaths inspire muscles to relax... ah.

i'm at the farm and it's gorgeous.to own such a beautiful piece of land with a neat house that has so much potential feels surreal. not sure it's completely sunk in yet as d and i are in full on fix-it mode and it's yet to really feel like home. but it's definitely beautiful and comfortable and friendly and charming.

today was a day of painting. i twitch at the excitement of inevitable before/after photo posts. soon, as there's still stuff to do. am googling floor refinishing pics and gee, it's like night and day what a sanding and polish can do. we ripped out all of the carpet in the house (living room, hallway, office, and bedroom) and were pleasantly relieved by the presence of hardwood parquet under all of it. much better!

d's in toronto tonight to play a show, and then working in meaford for the rest of the week so i'm feeling out the 'home alone' vibe. so far so good. it's quiet and i feel friendly with all of the nature surrounding me, even the house flies and mosquitos that have come in (no screen doors! so doors wide open). tho i must admit, it does feel nice to have elvis around. even tho the neighbours are trying hard to convince him of his newly adopted home, he's confused about it and ends up spending most of his time at his old home - our the front porch. we took the cat, raja. she's miss independent but such a sweety when she comes to eat and get a cuddle. never thought of myself as a cat person really but raj is cool.

we're having a good time. between cleaning (the seller's filth was... astounding), trips to town (fenelon's beautiful but bobcaygeon has cheaper groceries), the odd dorky photoshoot (have yet to top d. wearing my new straw hat and posing westernly behind the kitchen's saloon doors), and, well, painting and fixing... there are moments of intense quiet and peacefulness that i haven't felt for awhile. in the city i used to really strive for it - meditation, exercise, big breaths - but here, it just is. i can feel it in the house, in the fields, in the forest. in elvis's bounding jog, in raja's prance, and in the smiles and conversations of everyone around. it's contagious.

monday

thoughtlessly packed away the charger for my digital camera. will have to go digging in all the basement's boxes. small black cord... that should be easy to find. :|

this is the current view from my desk. :)