As I mentioned in my last post, I took a break for a couple of weeks at the end of June. I went back to old Blighty for the graduation from university of my daughter Georgina. Very proud moment for me and all the family. Met up with my neighbours here at Koocanusa Ranch in London for a meal and it felt like a small world.
On return there was the usual fight against jet-lag while getting back into the swing of things. There were also a few things that needed doing around the place, particularly in the garden/yard that have kept me away from cabin work. I have also decided to slow down a bit and to change my routine to take advantage of the hot weather to do a few of things that I came here to do. So, there isn't that much to show in terms of progress but, there has nevertheless probably been more than it looks.
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| My two boys, Oliver (L) and Beau ® my daughter Georgina and their mother Sarah at Georgie's graduation show. |
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| With two weeks in the UK there was time for some walking down in Devon and a few dips in the sea. Did my ankles a power of good. |
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| On return there was water in the lake, at last (a bit late this year) and …. |
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| …. the water is still rising. |
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| I have put the finishing touches to the bathroom of the fifty shades of grey but sadly, not without mishap. I managed to break the first door for the shower while fitting it and had to wait a week for a replacement. But, it looks great now and I have been using it ever since it has been finished because it is so nice to be in there. The pebbles underfoot are a great success and were worth all the scratching around in the yard to find them. Lol. Not true, I bought them. |
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| In the North Wing I made, installed and trimmed out the doors for the bedrooms and …. |
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| …. made a start on putting closets in them. |
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| It will probably take me another week to get the North Wing ready for furnishing. Apart from the closets, there are a few pieces of trim to put in place, including the baseboards. |
There have been more sightings of the cougar, while I have been away, and a sighting of a black bear on the Development. Why is it that I seem to be the only person that never sees these animals - and I am the only one who lives here permanently? I do see plenty of deer however and I have one camped under my deck more or less permanently at the moment. I also saw one with two very young fawns still in their spotted coats. They were a bit skittish however and so I didn't really get a chance to take a good picture.
I was disappointed but, not surprised, to see that the deer had been at my grape vines while I was away. They had eaten back almost all this year's growth although strangely, they didn't seem to take to the grapes. The lack of water however seems to have put paid to most of them but, both vines and grapes are recovering well since my return and regular watering.
I've spent quite a lot of time in the garden this fortnight mostly pulling up weeds, especially thistles. Sorry to all my friends from north of the Border but, lovely as they are, they grow ferociously and spread like wild fire and like most of you, they are stubborn, a bit prickly and very difficult to kill. That's meant to be a compliment by the way. While doing this unpleasant work I have noticed how many wild flowers I have and even a few wild raspberries, which the deer also seem to like. I wish they ate thistles.
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| The temperature since I have been back has been steadily rising. It is about 32C today and expected to rise to 40C by mid week. I have, at last, been for a swim in the lake, which has been a long time coming. The water temperature is a bit chilly but, at least it helps for cooling off. I intend to swim everyday now in order to take some cardio exercise and, although neoprene is not necessary, I have been wearing a vest to swim out to mid channel to make sure my core temperature does not drop too low and cause me problems away from the shore line. Not the best photo I've ever taken but, this selfie in the water trying to keep the water away from the iPhone is the best I could do. |
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| I've also tidied up my bedroom a bit by making a rack for my firearms. Still want a .177 high velocity centre fire for rodents and vermin but, that will have to wait. |
Finally, I have also been busy preparing for a visit from Charmaine and Steve Rule on 22 July. Looking forward to their visit and I'm researching things to do while they are here. They will be here for a week.
I'll post again in a fortnight. Bye for now.
