stags, does, and highways

Just back from a wonderful and exhausting weekend in the great south (ha ha, st catharine's that is). I picked Joe up in Toronto and then we went to st kitts saturday for his not-so-little sister's stag and doe that night. It was fantastic, and totally exhausting. The turn out was great and the crowd was super fun - Joe's family and buddies are wonderful.

I'm sorta getting used to the GTA highways, but not quite - they wear me out. Got in around 8pm tonight and went straight to the backyard. Yard and garden work really is so therapeutic eh? I just love it. I am so happy puttering around our place, I see how people get obsessed with their homes. I don't want to spend all of my time 'working' around the house, but wow I really dig it (specially the garden ;). I'll post some pics soon of the garden - its really starting to going for it. Although I almost fell over when I saw how big Joe's sister's cucumber plant is! Man.

So! A big hi to whoever's reading - hope you had a gooooood weekend too.

Oh, and I'm reading a great book right now, Dogs at the Perimeter by Madeleine Thien. Its not the easiest read (set partly in Cambodia during the Khmer Rouge era). Her style is beautiful - I find it elegant and captivating and also...almost ghostly or something. Anyway - if anyone needs some good summer reading, I'd recommend that book and her first book too, Certainty. Thanks to my friend Lucile for the introduction!

Morning with Banjo, Fiddle and Guitar Brothers

This just made my morning!

bicycles + gardens = bliss

First off, a big thanks to Mama and Papa Oliver (aka Sue and Jim) for a great May 24 chez eux at their Bracebridge cottage. It was awesome. And I think we've all gotten the geocaching bug pretty bad now! yay :)

Happiness is a bicycle - built for two, built for one, whatever tickles your fancy. This week I've been listening to a definitely not the opera (dnto) podcast about cycling while cycling to work. So awesome. Biking makes me so very happy, its pure bliss.

And me and Joe, well, very much mostly Joe, has been digging up new garden beds! Pics to come! They aren't planted quite yet, but we've got big plans (alright, so they are somewhat fuzzy plans...I just found out today that we might be already too late to plant spinach! Although apparently a fall crop would be doable?)

Final bit here - a "sociable" bicycle ... super neat! Wonder if Joe and I could handle one? Without steering the bike in half I mean :)

Into May!

Hello blogosphere,


Katherine here ... I promise that I'll get Joe to make his first post soon. It will be, dare I say, epic. (But no pressure sweetie. ha.)


So we're doing pretty great here in suds - looooooving the start of summer. This weekend is going to be all about gardens and our backyard - rebuilding the grape arbour and putting in a couple little gardens for veggies and flowers. And we're throwing in some games with friends, wine, and a roller derby match in azilda tonight. And Mom and Dad are coming over tomorrow to hang out and help/supervise/save us from ourselves with rebuilding the arbour. Woot! 


I had some kinda crabby reflections about the election that I think I'd still like to share ... I'll try to keep it short :) 'What's most frustrating about the election outcome (well, besides the fact that they only got 40% of the vote and our electoral system is completely broken!) is that I feel like the cons speak to people's basest instincts - fear of the unknown and the other, selfishness, and short sightedness. To me, they disregard our potential as a country, as communities, and as individuals. Our potential to be fully human, to care for each other, to care for the earth. To reach out and strive for a future where no kid in Canada goes hungry, hell where no kid anywhere goes hungry. For a future where 'making a living' never means 'destroying the environment', our very basis for existence.' 

I had a bunch more thoughts related to climate change ... but hey doesn't seem necessary!  Hope everyone out there has a wonderful weekend! If you've got gardening tips you wanna share, please do :)

Ahhhhhhhh ...

Well that was a wonderful Easter weekend. For me anyway - poor Joe has been (and still is) studying his heart out ...  we're both really looking forward to his exams being done on Friday! (I miss him. He's a funny 'roommate' sometimes - only wants to hang out with me if I'm willing to be a guinea practice pig).

yum. yum. yum.

A big shout out to my parents and my aunt Willa for a wonderful, and uber-delicious-as-always, time on the island. Twas great - lots of laughs and relaxing :) Pictured is this awesome frozen whipped cream / cointreau delight that Willa did up, yowsers. Frozen deserts are among my faaaaves.


On Friday I went out cycling around the neighbourhood before heading to Manitoulin and came across the cutest. thing. ever. Check it out:

I really hope they find their budgie (!?). If another sign goes up saying that all's well, I'll let you know...

friday night - me & the grape vines

We have grape vines in the backyard, and tonight I finished up trimming them. At least, I think so. Our Italian neighbour told me to trim them right back - but I'm nervous to, seeing as how I don't know what I'm doing. Any suggestions out there? All you secret grape growers? And here's some pics of the backyard, the arbour, and a bit of Spring.

Oh - and I'm thinking of putting a raised veggie bed to the left...

The arbour! (Needs some rebuilding...tba)

Yee haw - take that Harper ;)

Tonight I'm sure enjoying that this is going viral: http://shitharperdid.ca.nyud.net/