It's coming up to that time of year again....

when we go to the Station Gallery in Whitby for the fund raiser and in turn we get to pick out a painting.  We went last year and I wrote about it here and here.  It doesn't happen until the end of the month, which is just as well as this year I think I am going to have a hard time narrowing down my selections, as there is more that I like this year.  Here is a link to the ones for this year, are there any that you would go for?  I am a floral/landscape type of gal, and prefer watercolours over oils.  As always the sculptures leave a lot to be desired, so hopefully they will all go in a flash as we wouldn't appreciate them. 

I am hoping there is the chocolate display again, as they were yummy last year.........I know I am supposed to be on a diet!!!

Molly had a busy morning as first we had a coyote in the back garden quite close to the deck.  It was the closest one has been to the house.  Molly went crazy, thank goodness she was in the house.  She had only just come back in from outside.  I do not like them coming that close to the house.  Then a rabbit turned up by the shed, so that kept her out of mischief for ages watching that.  All the time she was wagging her tale.  Then she went downstairs into the basement where a chipmunk was sitting outside beside the patio door eating bird seed.  Obviously that drove Molly crazy.  So with all that activity she had to have a rest....

She looks comfortable doesn't she!!

No more snow until December 2011.....

How do I know that.....well I changed the tires on the car, from my Winter tires to my Summer tires.  So it can't snow until I get the Winter tires back on in December.

Now I must admit, I do find going to the garage quite stressful, as it's not knowing what else could be wrong with the car, and if they do find something wrong with it, how much is it going to cost.

Tuesday I took it for a Spring tune up which includes changing the oil and changing my tires.  I sure it includes other things, but I have no idea what.  I know pretty sad, but I totally trust them, which is a good thing.

Anyhow, they came back with me needing to have my ball joints changed.  They may as well have told me I needed to fly to the moon, for what that meant.  Anyhow after much explaining they are like the hip joints for a car, so I need to have that seen too but it will have to wait until next month, as it's over $500 to have them fixed.

I also need some more things to be done, but again that will have to wait for a couple more months.  All these things are due to the age of the car, as it is nearly nine years old, but as it only has just over 117,000 km's on the clock I have no desire to change it.

Do you know a lot about your car?  Are you mechanically adept?

It was bitter cold on Tuesday.  When I hung out the laundry on the line it immediately froze.  However I did manage to get the laundry dry outside and just hung it on the clothes horse to air in front of the fire.

I haven't been able to get upstairs in the attic this week yet, so am hoping that today will be the day to get some jobs done in there.  Namely sanding the nail holes I filled with putty, and then hopefully painting a primer on all of it.  Dh is busy building a window seat in the attic, so we will have storage under it.

A Dogs Diary vs a Cats Diary.....

Linda a dear friend had this posted on Facebook, so I thought I would share it with you.

 

‎8:00 am - Oh Boy! Dog food! My favourite!
9:30 am - Oh Boy! A car ride! My favourite!
9:40 am - Oh Boy! A walk! My favourite!
10:30 am - Oh Boy! A car ride! My favourite!
11:30 am - Oh Boy! Dog food! My favourite!
...12:00 noon - Oh Boy! The kids! My favourite!
1:00 pm - Oh Boy! The yard! My favourite!
4:00 pm - Oh Boy! The kids! My favourite!
5:00 pm - Oh Boy! Dog food! My favourite!
5:30 pm - Oh Boy! Mom! My favourite!
6:00 pm - Oh Boy! Playing ball! My favourite!
6:30 pm - Oh Boy! Sleeping in master's bed! My favourite!

EXCERPTS FROM THE CAT'S DAILY DIARY:

Day 283 of my captivity. My captors continue to taunt me with bizarre little dangling objects. They dine lavishly on fresh meat, while the other inmates and I are fed hash or some sort of dry nuggets. Although I make my contempt for the rations perfectly clear, I nevertheless must eat something in order to keep up my strength. The only thing that keeps me going is my dream of escape. In an attempt to disgust them, I once again vomit on the carpet.
Today I decapitated a mouse and dropped its headless body at their feet. I had hoped this would strike fear into their hearts, since it clearly demonstrates what I am capable of. However, they merely made condescending comments about what a "good little hunter" I am. Cretins!* There was some sort of assembly of their accomplices tonight. I was placed in solitary confinement for the duration of the event. However, I could hear the noises and smell the food. I overheard that my confinement was due to the power of "allergies." I must learn what this means, and how to use it to my advantage.
Today I was almost successful in an attempt to assassinate one of my tormentors by weaving around his feet as he was walking. I must try this again tomorrow -- but at the top of the stairs. I am convinced that the other prisoners here are flunkies and snitches. The dog receives special privileges. He is regularly released - and seems to be more than willing to return. He is obviously retarded. The bird has got to be an informant. I observe him communicating with the guards regularly. I am certain that he reports my every move. My captors have arranged protective custody for him in an elevated cell, so he is safe. For now...

Ds birthday and a book review

It's ds birthday today, he is the grand old age of 27 today.  We went out for lunch with him and dd and fiance on Sunday, to a place in Barrie called Big Chris BBQ Smokehouse Now I have to say we all walked out of that place stuffed to the gills.  We all had the half pulled pork sandwich with fries, baked beans and coleslaw.  There was no way we could have eaten the full pork sandwich as there was so much food.  I of course forgot to take my camera but there are some photos here of the food.

They also have something called the Ultimate Dirty Burger. 

 "Last Friday of the month we dare you to eat the ultimate DIRTY BURGER!!!!! .. Its 7,,, yes that's SEVEN lbs of prime rib burger so six 8oz prime rib patties,cause we only use the biggest and the best, 2lbs of of our finest pulled pork covered with a poutine in a 12 inch bun of goodness.. Oh YA each patty is covered in Medium Cheddar and at least three strips of bacon per pattie.( do the math )..As far as we know its is the biggest best and BADDEST burger in all of CANADA.. It is SIX of our normal dirty burgers and of course 3 of our double dirty's..NO ONE has a burger like this and so far, and as of today, It is UNDEFEATED.....( closest to finish,,, left 1.5lbs on the table ...thanks Randy)...See you next month ..Only for the brave..lol.. PS.. you have to finish it in a hour..good luck "

If you are ever travelling up or down Highway 400 it is only five minutes off the highway, if that.  I would like to try the chicken next time, as I did find the pork not as tender as I would have liked, but it was good.  As it was ds birthday they brought over a corn bread muffin with a candle stuck in it, so we could sing happy birthday to him.  Dd also brought us mini cheesecakes as a dessert.  She called ahead to see if that was alright, as there are no desserts on the menu.

Ds discovered it when he was doing an audit at a company close by and has been a few times with his friends.  It is very well priced and no one leaves the place hungry.  We went for opening for 12 noon and including us there was 17 people there during the first hour, so its pretty popular.

After we left there we popped into Tim Hortons for a coffee.   I actually had one of their new fruit smoothies, I just love them.  I am also in love with the strawberry banana doughnuts, and the sooner they take them off the menu the better, other wise I will be the size of a house soon!!!

"Lady in the Mist," by Laurie Alice Eakes

"By virtue of her profession as a midwife, Tabitha Eckles is the keeper of many secrets. Dominick Cherrett is a man with his own secret to keep: namely, why he, a British aristocrat, is on American soil working as an indentured servant.

In a time when relations between America and England rest on the edge of a knife, Tabitha and Dominick cross paths, leading them on a journey of intrigue, threats, public disgrace, and . . . love. But can Tabitha trust Dominick? Finding true love seems impossible in a world set against them.

With stirring writing that draws you directly into the story, Lady in the Mist takes you on the thrilling ride of love's discovery."

Well I have to say I enjoyed this book despite it not being an easy read.  I found it a bit slow to get into, but when I did I wanted to know what was going to happen next.  The love story  is such that you are not sure if they will or will not get together, right up until the end.  Also I liked the mystery side of the book, as for once I didn't guess "who did it," which is always a plus.  I also liked the fact there could be a sequel to this book....infact I hope there is a sequel as there is a lot more that can be told from this book.

I loved the history of the book and I loved that I learned new things in this book.

Stars out of 5: a resounding 4.  It was a bit of a slow start but once it got going it was good.  A good book to buy, or to borrow from the library.

"Book has been provided courtesy of Baker Publishing Group and Graf-Martin Communications, Inc.  Available at your favourite bookseller from Revell, a division of Baker Publishing Group".

Spring might just be here......at long last!!

Why, well I got my first load of laundry hung outside to dry on Friday. Love the smell of line dried sheets.

As you can see our main log pile has nearly gone.  There are extra logs around the corner, but it looks like we have burned at least 3 bush cords of wood this year.  We actually didn't light the fire on Friday as I was out until 3pm, and we had to leave the house by 6pm to go to a visitation, so it wasn't worth while lighting the fire.

Mind you there is still some of this white stuff hanging around!!!  We are in for a wet day on Monday, so hopefully we'll see the back of it then!!  Although I haven't been out to check on them, it looks as though the raspberries have survived the winter.......remember I have 100 pots of raspberry jam to make as wedding favours this summer, so they had better be alright!!!

Have you heard of Amanda Marigold?  Well that's the name of a new blog created by our own dear Star, as an outlet for her writing.  She has a new e-book published on Amazon called "Murder In The School."  Pop by and wish her luck if you have a minute.

Some good deals.......

I had to go to Barrie on Friday as I sold the range hood/extractor fan that I had listed on Kijiji, no interest in my lights though :o( .  The woman that bought it lived in Orillia so I agreed to meet her half way in Barrie, as I had a couple of errands to run there.  Anyhow, very pleased got $25 for it which paid half of what it cost to fill my car with gas :o( 

I called in a the dreaded Wal-Mart while I was there as I had to get a new hairdryer, as mine went pop and sparks flew.  Turned out the wire broke and as I didn't want a perm decided to throw it out.  Paid a whopping $14 for a new one, as with the amount of hair I have it takes all of five minutes to dry. For those near the dreaded Wal-Mart they have all the Swiffer products on sale at a great price........

Called in at Michaels as dd wanted some more glass votive holders for the centre pieces for the wedding and had cleaned out her store.  Can't say anymore.......did use a 25% off coupon so saved a little money there.

On the way home I called in at Zehrs and I got some great deals.  How much do you think I paid for that little lot below?

Well if you guessed $38.08, then you are a mind reader and can you tell me the winning numbers of the lottery as well!!!!

I picked up:

1 x tub icecream $3.99
1 x 8 pack cheese strings $2.99, dh loves them
2 x cans peas @ 84 cents each
2 x chips/crisps, both dh and Molly love those......don't ask.....it's not me that feeds her them!
Deli meat for dh's sandwiches for a total of $5.35, luckily for me dh loves the cheap meat!!
1 x 8 pack hamburger buns $1.99
1 x loaf bread $1.99
1 x margarine $1.99
3 x Hair Dye @ $2.94 each, yes I am back to bloody well dying my hair again!  It was "suggested/mentioned" that maybe I should dye my hair for the wedding.......enough said
1 x 4 pack Olay soap $4.64
2 x 2 pack Olay soap @ $2.34 each
1 x fully cooked chicken @ $6.99 - 50% = $3.49 can't beat that price.
4 x Old Spice body wash @ $2.34 - 50% = $1.17 - $1.00 coupon = 17 cents

I had a pile of coupons which meant the hair dye came out to around $1.00 a box, and the 8 bars of soap cost around $3 for all 8 bars I think.  Couldn't get over the body wash price though, and am going to put it in ds birthday bag, along with the other body wash and deodarant I got him!!!  Don't worry his main gift is money.  However I did get him a gift certificate for two hours of bowling for 4 people through Wag-Jag and paid only $14 for that for him.

I have put the Wag-Jag link on the bottom of the blog as I have to say that there are some great deals on there, and for a lot of good things. 

A blast from the past and more carnival glass

The reason I am psoting them, is that I see Top of The Pops is coming back on the air in Britain starting with programmes that were first aired in 1976, which will be neat.


Here is a really funny site: Awkward Family Photos..........which should be renamed....."What were they thinking!!"


This is another song by The Wurzels,





Eddie Stobart is one of the biggest trucking companies in Britain, and is from where we come from in England.  My brother drives for them.  I noticed that some of the trucks have names, I must ask my brother if his truck has a name next time I talk to him.

On Thursday I went to town as the fumes in the house were horrible and my poor head was pounding.  Anyhow, I had a look around a couple of stores and I picked up this carnival glass Blackberry Marigold  Two Row Open-Edge Ruffled Basket for $10.  It's worth between $35 to $45.

There looks as though there is a scratch on the base, but it's part of the firing process.