A new project and 1 more day

I started a new project last night. I'm loving how it looks so far. The first day or two of a new rug is my favorite. You are never really sure how it will evolve. At this point its all possibilities.

Here's a sneak peek to tide you over for a few days.

Tomorrow is my last work day before an extended long weekend. And am I ever looking forward to 4 days off! Now if I can just make it through tomorrow intact. Its been one of those "full-moon" weeks at the office. (Lots of crazy)

Weekend Update

First, the golf update. I think Friday may have been my most enjoyable round of golf in years. The weather was perfect - lots of sun, a nice calm breeze and no bugs. The company was great. My foresome ending up being a trio (note I didn't say threesome - didn't want anyone getting the wrong idea! lol) But the three of us had I great time. A few drinks, a few laughs, a few amazing shots.

I started out a little concerned. My first shot ending up in the tall snake grass. Great way to start huh......losing your first ball! But once I got that out of my system things picked up. I even had a unbelievable chip-in shot on the 16th hole. Definately a Sports Channel highlight! We ended the 18 holes at par - not to bad.

The rest of the weekend was chores and last minute cottage stuff. The renters arrive tomorrow. So we went out this afternoon to drop off the key to neighbors. I did hang some of my rugs. And I enlarged some of photographs and framed them for another wall. They look good, but I guess I didn't take a pic of that wall. Here are the infamous curtains. I only took one pic. The other 4 pairs are identical except for the color - soft green, blue and rose. Nice soft beachy stripes.

After leaving the cottage late this afternoon we went to Fred's Restaurant in Cap Pele NB. They have awesome fried clams. But they give you too many. I ate and ate until I thought I might burst and it barely looked like I touched my plate! Next stop - the little Acadien French Bakery next door to Fred's. Donuts, Queen Elizabeth squares, Coconut squares, sticky buns, triple chocolate brownies and old fashioned brown suger fudge. I may have to wear stretchy pants tomorrow. But it was sooooooo worth it!

Gotta go - lots to do. Its a 3 day work week for me! Have a great week.

Fore !!!

Tomorrow is my first golf tournament of the season - and my favorite. Its the very exclusive Employee Golf Extravaganza! LOL But then again, any day you get paid to golf in the sun is a good day!

Employees and associates get together for a great day of golf, ending with a steak barbeque in the clubhouse. "Associates" includes our lawyers, bankers, auditors, and major suppliers.

I've dug my clubs out from the basement, and naturally I put them away without cleaning them. Oh well. And my golf shoes still have some mud and grass caught in the cleats! Geez, I guess I wasn't very concerned about it last fall.

I'm expecting another little side challenge tomorrow too. The Course Marshall (golf police) is a retired gent who I have known for years. Jerry and I always carry on and torment each other over just about anything. Last year he gave me 2 specially marked golf balls at the start of the tournament. I had to play all 18 holes with only those balls and I had to return both to him at the end. I did argue and win a exclusion on hole #7. It has a massive gully just off the tee box and I can almost never get my shot over that sprawling pit. So he agreed. I was doing great until hole #14 when I hit into the tall grass.....(you know - where the SNAKES live!) Forget it - no bet is worth meeting Mr. Slithers.

So I lost and had to pay up. And the stakes were REALLY high......a coffee and a cinnamon bun! LOL But even so, I hate to lose. Maybe I can redeem myself tomorrow??

Wish me luck.

Shootin' Ducks

.......with a camera. Not a feather was harmed in the making of this post!

These shots are from a quick trip to the Duck Pond at Mount Allison University in Sackville, NB.

And swans too!

It looks like she is guarding some eggs on this little island in the middle of the pond.

It was a gorgeous evening.

"Help me Mommy"

Yesturday some family arrived from out of town and they brought their adorable little Yorkie - J.D.

He is very sweet. We all thought so. Well, almost all of us. Millie was NOT impressed with him at all. The snotty little girl would have nothing to do with him. After many failed attempts, this is as close as we could get her to him.

Look at her face. LOL "Please help me" "Make him go away"

After he left she was totally worn out from running away and hiding behind her momma. Or crawling up around grandma's neck.

What a dog!!

Some finishes

I managed to finish 3 projects today. The last set of cottage curtains are folded by the door. I intended to drive out there this afternoon, hang them and take pictures for you but alas company arrived from out of town so that blew that idea.

I did eventually get around to binding the edges of the "beach bum" rug. I have had her hooked for close to 2 months but never got around to finishing! All done and ready for hanging. She really does remind me of my Grandmother years ago. Oh, by the way - she is a Deanne Fitzpatrick design.

And lastly I hooked the last loop on the "Outhouse" rug. I'm just ready to sew the edges in.

So, all in all it was a productive day.

Testing 1-2-3

Friday's work day started with a "test" assignment. There are only 3 of us at the office who truly get excited about new technology and gadgets - Corinne, our resident Tech (of course), our CAO, and me. I love taking a new program and going wild finding out all the things it can (or can't) do. So because of that I am usually the first one to get access for a few weeks to learn all the quirks before we un-leash it to the rest of the staff.

In fact, our CAO and I try to find some little trick the other hasn't discovered yet. You know .......to show off!! This particular program is going to be a great tool for the staff. I can't wait until it is rolled out.

The second test of the day was not as pleasant. My darn ipod is not working AGAIN. And it is only a couple of months old. I spent an hour last night trying to charge and sync it. What a pain in the butt. I gave up at 11pm last night out of frustration but will try again later..... when the urge to crush it with a hammer leaves me!

The third and more pleasant test was to take the new macro camera lense for a spin. Another trip to Alice's garden. My only issue is there is no image stabilization feature with this particular lense and after downloaded lots of photos I realized that I will either need a steadier hand or eventually a tripod.

I ended the evening with an invitation to a new Studio/Gallery opening in town. Lots of great inspiration on the walls. I think Meaghan will do very well with her new venture.

The sun is out and the back deck is calling my name. See you later.

What to do with that townsend budget????

Now that Townsend Industries has closed and I can no longer randomly purchase new cutter heads, I am faced with a dilemma. What will I do with the money I will be saving on townsend equipment? Hmmmmm, so many choices.....

Well, not really. When I bought my new camera equipment and decided to dabble in photography as a new hobby I purchased several books. Every one of them warned that you would soon develop a serious condition called................."lens envy"!!!!! I thought Noooo, not me. I will be perfectly happy with the 2 lens choices I had. They will do for a year or so.

HA - What was I thinking??? Last night I decided I "needed" (yes needed, not wanted) a macro lens to take clear close up shots. So what did I do first thing this morning? Duh, I ordered one!

Come on....you must know me by now! A tad spontaneous and impulsive but, whatever! AND there are 2 empty compartments left in my camera bag and they looked so lonely and empty! So really, it was a compassionate purchase....to make the camera bag more content...... (OK I know I'm stretching it here. hahaha)

Hopefully it will be here in a day or two and I can make another visit to Alice's garden to see if this lens is as awesome as I hope!

Bobbins and Blossoms

This weekend I decided to get cracking and make curtains for all 3 bedrooms and the bathroom at the cottage. It seemed like a logical plan for a gal with a sewing machine and absolutely NO sewing experience or talent! LOL

But it is my nature to just dive blindly into projects. So far I have 3 pairs completed and 2 to go. Actually they don't look to bad. Just a simple rod pocket design but they look great. OK, great if you don't look really close up! haha So this has distracted me from rug hooking for a few days but I may get an hour in tonight.

I'm still dragging the camera with me everywhere, so I hope you don't mind more flower pics. I shot these this morning on my way to the cottage.
Even a simple little clover can be pretty.

I'm still loving the lupins.

And apparently so is this little bee.

Lots and lots of them.

Thanks for stopping by. Have a great week.

Where have I been?

This week I have been travelling for work. But don't feel too sorry for me.....I got to enjoy 3 beautiful days at the Pictou Lodge for a conference. We got extremly lucky by making our reservations early and managed to get one of the new Executive Chalets. I shared this gorgeous 2 bedroom chalet with my co-worker Becky. The Lodge thought of everything when they built these. There was a fireplace in the living room and the kitchen was fully appointed. All dishware, silverware. utensils, pots/pans, full size fridge, a dishwasher, and even a blender! And two flat screen TV's mounted on the walls, one in the living room and one in the master bedroom. And you can't really see it in this picture but each chalet had its own propane bbq. Oh yeah - we were roughing it! LOL

These adirondack chairs were on the deck and were a perfect spot for morning coffees and then later for watching the sunset over the water. Quite a shabby view eh!!! Just beyond the bottom right of this pic was a boathouse with paddleboats. Some of the conference delegates had a great time cruising around the waterway.

Oh, and the sessions at the conference were great too! I didn't want you to think I spent all day on the deck! I really did attend the meetings!!

Awesome Relay For Life Event

Last night was the Cancer Society Relay For Life Event. Hundreds gathered at the site for an extremely emotional evening. When the Survivors take that first lap around the track.....its virtually impossible to hold back the tears. I became involved 2 years ago for my dear friend Tim. Now I help his sister honor his memory.

But the truly amazing part is that in one evening over $138,000 was raised. And our town has only 10,000 people! AMAZING, right.....

A special night, for sure.

No Vacancy - Get out Mickey!

Yesturday and today the cottage cleaning continued. Cold and rainy so I don't feel guilty about wasting vacation days but the list of repairs is now getting longer. While I was out there yesturday it was very cold and damp. A quick flip of the furnace switch did NOTHING. Drats! I suppose after 3 years it needs some repairs. Then after I finished scrubbing the kitchen floor I went to turn off the kitchen tap and it came off in my hand. Un-friggin believable! I was in a really good mood by this point. Plus I was freezing. The dampness had chilled me to the bone.

There was another nasty little surprise. It appears that I had some unwelcome tenants over the winter. MICE.........oh, I hate mice. There was ample evidence everywhere. My apologies to anyone who thinks they are cute, but I just think they are creepy and dirty.

I get obsessed with it and go crazy cleaning. I just keep thinking....."Did their dirty little feet run across this dish?" or "Did Mickey pee in this cupboard?" LOL I know I'm crazy but I hate the thought of them running over my stuff! The company that produces Mr. Clean, Javex, and Lysol had good profits this week. I've gone through bottles and bottles of the stuff.

I had to change the water in the scrub bucket 3 times while doing the kitchen floor. And the "foaming scrub free" bathroom cleaner I bought was quite a mis-representation. Scrub-free??? I don't think so!!!

Today was a bit better. I had new taps installed and it was not so cold. (Yes, Mr. Handyman is really efficient lately. Hope I didn't just jinx it by saying it out loud) I actually felt like I made progress. The kitchen and bathroom are spotless, Mickey and friends are nowhere to be seen, and I managed to throw out 6 garbage bags of crap. Its funny how when you have a cottage, all the stuff thats no longer good at home ends up at the cottage! Just moving the junk around I guess.

Here is a picture of my little piece of summer paradise. This is a side view. The large window you see on the left wraps around the whole front. Makes a gorgeous view of the river.

The lupins are starting to pop up along the road to the beach. I stopped on the way home to take a few pics to share with you.

They line the road for miles. Its only a shame that they don't last all summer.

A little ornery today

Today was my Mom's Alzheimer Day-Care. When I picked her up at 3:00pm I was having some difficulty getting her to cooperate. One of the staff came over to help me and whispered "She's a little ornery today". She then elaborated that if she wanted her to sit.....she would stand.....go left - she would go right.

I hate to admit it but I got a strange sense of satisfaction from this comment. I think that alot of caregivers will be able to relate to this. Sometimes when I am struggling with Mom I sometimes think its my fault she won't cooperate. I think maybe its how I am dealing with her. Now - I know its just the disease and this is very common but sometimes it just gets to you.

Most of the time Mom is very well behaved at day-care. This is when my doubt creeps in. Why is she good for them and stubborn for me?? So today's comment was a little silent victory I guess.

Tonight the hair dresser is here to do her hair. She has gotten out from under the dryer 3 times already! ORNERY

Tomorrow i will update you on my cottage cleaning adventure.

Clean, clean, clean

I'm on vacation for the rest of the week and I wish I could report that I was planning some fabulous adventure. Instead I am off to the cottage with a trunk-load of cleaning supplies, mops, buckets etc.

I got a start on it one day last weekend but it is unbelievable how much there is to do. The cottage hasn't been opened for 3 years so just imagine the mess! Dust bunnies the size of buffalo's !!

Luckily the weather is terrible - cool and rainy. It makes it easier to concentrate on the task, as opposed to dreaming I was outside enjoying the sun. I have provided the "handyman" with a list of repairs and surprisingly, he has most of them done!

Hopefully by the end of today I will have all the hard part done and then I can concentrate on the pretty stuff - new curtains and some of my hooked rugs hung around the place.