Happenings.

It's been a while since my last post so I figured I had better bring everyone up to date.

After many months of looking and applying, nine months to be exact, I have finally been hired by a local publishing company to work in their circulation department and I start Tuesday, August 5th. Initially I was hoping to be hired by the BC Government but the thought of commuting an hour into Victoria never really sat well with me. The job I secured is in the next town east of us, Metchosin, and it is only a twenty five minute drive from home. Ideally I would have liked to take the bus to work but we live past the end of the line for the East Sooke route and there is no connecting route to Metchosin, aside from a very long way around, so I'll have to drive in every day and we'll just have to budget for gas for my car also. Hopefully in time we can save up and purchase a more fuel efficient vehicle than the ones that we have but we will make do for now. At least they are paid off. Back to the job, the magazine is Small Farm Canada and I'm quite excited about the position. I may even pick up some tips for growing our own produce at home!


This weekend is a holiday weekend here in BC. The first Monday of August is a civic holiday in most Canadian provinces and it is commonly referred to as the August Long Weekend. The following provinces and territories have a holiday on the first Monday of August:

• British Columbia,
• Alberta,
• Manitoba,
• Saskatchewan,
• Ontario,
• Nova Scotia,
• Prince Edward Island,
• New Brunswick, and
• the Northwest Territories.

Quebec, Newfoundland and Nunavut do not observe a holiday on this day and therefore conduct business as usual.

Monday also brings the arrival of Dixon's Mother and her husband, for a week visit, so I'm trying to find things for us to do when they are here, and clean house, and do laundry, etc. Even though I will be working (gee, that sounds so nice!) Dixon has off the week so he will be doing most of the entertaining during the day. We do want to take them out for dinner a few nights and probably lunches on the weekend. Although it is a lot of prep work it is very nice to get visitors from the States. This will make three months in a row that we have had company. Hmmm, who can we line up for September??? Actually, September might call for a weekend trip to Seattle to do some shopping. We DO miss Target so!

I haven't been too revved up for the Olympics this year, not sure why, but this guy is a Canadian kayaker and I may just have to tune in to see his performance. Adam van Koeverden is his name, and we might just have to go out and buy a kayak or two, he provides such inspiration! HA!




ON a side note the greenhouse is now producing a daily crop of tomatoes, which we enjoy at dinner, and the cucumbers are really growing quite well. I now have to figure out if they require any manual pollination to produce fruit. I still have the seed packet but, of course, when I tore it open to plant I ripped off the NAME of the cucumber cultivar so I have no idea how to home in on the info that I need. OY! The gardens are doing very well and we have finally had a few days of rain, after more than three weeks without, so things are looking pretty good. I have found a few items that are really in the wrong place and require moving to a better location. One of them is a sad looking palm tree, I think, that apparently does not like the cold damp weather we get here in the winter, so my plan is to pot it up and keep in the greenhouse during said winter months. We can move it in and out seasonally and hopefully it will prosper. Moving things around in large pots also allows me to slightly re-landscape, on a small scale, for a different look each year, just to keep things interesting and 'fresh'. Speaking of fresh, I have started painting the trim on the house in Classic Burgandy and it looks smashing! The first color we tried was too pinky, as in Tuscadero, so off I went to Rona to secure something a bit more classic. I must say there is nothing like the right color, looking absolutely fantastic on the house, to lift my spirits. Between that and the new job I am absolutely over the moon!

Please remember to click the link on the left to Help the Animals, and, as always...

...Thanks for tuning in!

...UPDATE
Three killer whales just swam past the house - a huge male and two females. Never, in a million years, would I have thought I'd be living in a fantastic place like this! So, dream those dreams, they CAN come true!