A week in a day

So a few days ago Kathy from Its About Time did some baking and I was inspired. Last fall I made 10 Quarts of Apple Pie Filling (we live on an orchard after all) and so I decided to make a pie. The recipe I used allowed me to make 1 pie (I only have 1 pie plate) and 12 mini apple pies. The 8 serving recipe gives you enough for the base (9 inch pie) and you could make a strip top for the pie but not a full top, I had doubled this recipe to get 1 pie with full top and 12 mini's.

Round 1

We sent 4 mini's home with Stacey, 2 went to our neighbour next door and the big pie went to our landlords which didn't leave much for us. The pie crust recipe I found for that was sooo flaky and delicious that I decided to make more...

Hummers are happy

At Dollarama the other day I saw these hummingbird feeders, I have had it in my head to have 5 strung across the deck but they are almost $20 each so I haven't done it yet. But at Dollarama I was able to get the extra 4 I needed for $3 and yes they are plastic but BPA free.

The birds finally found the feeder but then we were overly inundated with birds and I was concerned for our BBQ cover so I moved it to the garlic box below, we had a hook to hang it but our drill has died...

1st pie of round 2... I made a 6x batch this time... this one also went to Stacey and Jon. The recipe calls for it to sit 4 hours or overnight so I overnighted it.

I'm calling her Martha since I just shipped out Mabel

I was waiting for an email notification that the new machine had shipped but yesterday morning a woman was at the backdoor with my new machine. So today I will be doing some sewing finally. Our front curtains are more than a little saggy because they are so long and it has been driving me nuts.

2nd pie of round 2 and 37 mini pies.

The feeder is hung

Stacey came to pick up her pie and brought us her drill so we could hang the bird feeder. We can clearly see the feeder (there are birds out there as I type this) from our dining room window. I'm sure they appreciate the feeder with everything covered in snow this morning.

As you can see from the bird feeder picture, it snowed last night and continues actually... they are calling for 9 inches although again - I expect that will be in higher elevations than we are.

The broccoli microgreens I planted on Tuesday are coming along very nicely. They have a 2 week grow period before you can harvest them so it won't be long now. The other tray I did on Tuesday has a few sprouts coming through, mostly leeks and red onions.

Walk, Sewing and a Creation

Stacey invited me along for a walk to Sandwell Beach with Jon and Jim the other day. I really had to push myself to go but in the end I did go. Just as well it turned out, I stopped to use one of the bathrooms (as I am prone to do) and there was a dog in the bush that was barking to get our attention. Not a big long scare-you-away bark but a hey I'm over here bark (dog owners will get what I mean).

We realized that the dog was sort of stuck on the other side of a fallen log on the front side of which was a 3-4 foot drop and this is at the bottom of a very steep embankment. The dog was clearly old and unable to get over this fallen log and so was caught on a small ledge basically. Stacey and I managed to coax the dog underneath the log through a very tight gap. 

We began asking passersby if anyone recognized the dog who had a collar but no tags. A couple said someone was looking for a dog and they even had her phone number in case they came across the dog on their walk. We attempted to contact the owner but with spotty cell service in that area one or both of us were in a blind spot. They advised us that she lived up in the direction we were headed.

We tried to fashion a leash from a washed up rope we had found but to no avail (couldn't cut a piece off) so the lady who had the owners number loaned us her camera bag strap so we could walk the dog up the trail to where they had seen the woman and the general area of where she lived as it was on our way and they were going the opposite way at that point. She later picked up the strap from us.

Baloo

The dog did not want to leave the bathrooms, I assume the owner had gone in and the dog did not see her come out. Turns out Baloo is deaf and so apparently became separated during the time the owner was in the washroom. We finally coaxed him to start walking but he was very unsure and constantly looked back for a long time...

As we reached a road with a signal - in typical fashion --- my phone died. It was the only phone with the owners number on it. So without any choice we continued our climb back up to my Jeep so I could plug the phone in and call the owner. Once we connected with her it was only about 10 min before she arrived to pick up Baloo who was very tired after his long adventure.

During all of this the guys (Jon & Jim) were saying we should just leave the dog that it was a stray and just looking for attention but Stacey and I were sure this dog was someone's pet as he was clearly looked after, not mangy at all. Had I not gone on that walk, the guys may have convinced Stacey to leave the dog behind.

I received the shipping label from Brother and Mabel has shipped (I just made up that name now LOL). Anyway, it is enroute back to them and I assume they will have received confirmation that it has been received by the shipper and will now send my new one off to me. My sewing chore list is getting long.

All packed up and ready to go.

We had some styrofoam that (because this is BC) I had no way to get rid of as you can't put it in the trash or recycle, it must be delivered to the dump... and we don't have one on the island... so I was able to protect the machine inside a perfectly sized box, so that worked out fabulously.

I had seen a thing online somewhere about chocolate bowls and decided to make one for Stacey and one for Brad for Valentines Day. If it worked out, I figured I could add it to my repertoire for special holiday items -putting FD product in at Easter, Vday, Xmas, etc.

Having checked with my chocolate making guru friend who lives in Ontario, I went to Bulk Barn to get the required chocolate. Being unsure how much chocolate each bowl would take.... I prepared a few, okay 5. I washed and then coated them with Olive oil to prevent sticking - which I think may have been a mistake. I stood them up in small bowls.

5 balloons ready

1st coat of white chocolate, I did 2 balloons. 

As I was moving one Brad called out to me about something and pop I killed one balloon.

White, Red and then Chocolate. I should have made the white thicker and not spread it across the balloon. Put in fridge for 15 min or more before adding next layer. Slowly and gently coax the balloon away from the chocolate. Pierce a small hole in the top to slowly release the air - do not 'pop' the balloon.

Finished product is pretty cool - now to add FD'd strawberries to the inside...

Lessons learned: 

1. Make base coat thicker and allow to run as with all coats, jiggle if necessary. 

2. Do not oil. My balloon stuck to the inside and I had to burn it with a fire starter gadget which curls         the balloon away from the chocolate, allowing me to remove it.

3. The size of the balloon matters. You don't want it too big as the thinner the balloon the more likely        the chocolate bonds to it, too small and you can't get your hands inside to remove the balloon if            necessary. 

4. The temperature of the chocolate base layer cannot be too hot but still needs to be runny,                       additional layers can be hotter.

5. Just because it looks horrible with the balloon in it is no indication of how it will look once the            balloon is out.

6. Use Merckens chocolate wafers. Microwave 30 seconds, stir, 20 sec, stir, 10 seconds, stir, 10                seconds, stir, repeat at 10 seconds until melted.
7. Take care. As you apply the chocolate the balloon will want to move around as the center of gravity        changes.

8. Apply the drip edges first, then dip or otherwise create the bowl portion for each colour before               moving on to the next colour layer.

I very much enjoyed doing this and I'm pleased with the resulting bowl, I think it turned out fabulous for my 1st attempt. I will definitely do these again (and likely soon) improving my technique each time I hope.

Oh Brother, The epitome of Spring

 As long time readers will know, I have a sewing machine... I had a different sewing machine last spring but the feed dogs (the little grippers which move the material) would not raise above the plate and so were not moving anything but my temper. I tried to fix it myself as the closest repair was in Nanaimo (we were still on Salt Spring then) and has a waiting list. Unfortunately, I wasn't able to so I threw it out and bought a new one when we moved up here to Gabriola.

Recently the new one did the exact same thing!!!!! I am soooo *@!&*! upset, I can't even.... and because it is so new there are no repair tips online that I could find.

I tagged @brother_support on Twitter and finally (on Monday) managed to get ahold of 'Live Chat' who after I sent them a video of the problem said they would be 'escalating this to the repair specialists' who would get back to me in 24-48 hours... I figured that was a brush off and so tore the damn thing apart about 5 times trying to sort it without any luck.

The feed dog innards of Brother SQ9130

This black stick in the middle of the picture fits into a little cup as you can see above, that cup should move side to side as you move the switch to raise and lower the feed dogs but it only goes one direction and will not return to the lifted position.

Finally called the repair shop to get put on the waiting list.

About a half hour ago, I received an email from Brother that they will be sending me a new machine! The same machine and refurbished but presumably they are aware that this is a problem and have found a solution... God help them if the 3rd machine does the same thing I will go postal.

On a happier note: Spring is enroute, the days are getting noticeably longer and....

The epitome of Spring

My new greenhouse sits beside the winter wood pile. I received notification this morning that the seeds I have ordered have shipped - from Richmond, BC and so will likely be here Monday, Tuesday at the latest I would say.... WooHoo!

Soon it will be the height of summer and Stacey and I will be paddleboarding again.

Happy Feet, Garden and Sewing

Wednesday was massage day this week so off to Salty we went. My shoe inserts were also ready so that was great and I now have proper support, although I've had these before so we'll see how long they hold up - pardon the pun - but I must say they do feel stronger.

On Tuesday, while waiting for the RV inspection we went to Home Depot and picked up some 2X2 for the tomatoes - the stakes for which keep getting bigger and bigger. 

 

2X2X4 to hold the tomatoes as they were collapsing under the weight of themselves.

Only 1 broccoli survived. We chose to pull the rest as they just weren't growing properly.

My transplanted Romaine are holding well and the cauliflowers are massive

Pepper plants are not growing much, we've tried everything. Any suggestions?

The Cucumber plant has outgrown being propped up on a tomatoe stake 

Brad made this Cucumber Condo, there are roughly 12 cucumbers already and plenty more still in flower.

Tomatoes with new stakes in front of the green beans which have been providing nourishment to us for weeks already. The Corn is not ours.

Romaine, Carrots, Chives and Onions

Can't recall if I mentioned it but I had the idea to make shopping bags when we were on Salt, however there were plenty of others selling them in the market. At this market, there aren't any being sold so... I've been buying material from thrift shops on both islands and yesterday I made some more. Hoping to make a stock in time for the Xmas market and go from there.

Placemat to...

Bag with phone pocket - I made 2 of these yesterday.

These next 3 I had made a week or so ago

Some christmasy (faint snowflake) curtains made another bag.

Tshirt bag

Tshirt bag

My sewing machine was getting bunged up yesterday, the needle was catching and pulling bobbin thread through creating a mess so I stopped before it frustrated me. Today I shall fix it (I hope) and create some more.

The T-shirt ones are super fun and easy but I've run out of Tshirts to use and the local thrift wants $4 each so I'll keep an eye out maybe in Nanaimo for a better price. 

Used to be that you could get brand new at Walmart for $5 - $8. Perhaps not so much anymore but I don't want to pay $4 each, simple as that. I'm hoping to sell them for $5 - $10 and send the proceeds to the local food bank as Brad does with his lasagna.

So we heard back from the next person interested in the RV and we will be speaking again tonight. I sent him the inspection report which was forwarded from the previous deal. His wife has yet to see the RV in person so perhaps we will do that tomorrow. He has a 5th Wheel he needs to sell first and will be dealing with that today. I suggested that with a deposit we would hold it for him until he can sell his (time frame obviously) since we are in no rush. We shall see what transpires as the process moves along.

Can honestly say that this whole process has become such a burden that we almost pulled it off the market all together but I really don't want her to go to waste sitting in storage, so we'll see what comes of this deal and go forward from there.

Catching up and Veggie Condoms

Its been awhile since I wrote about daily stuff, my last two posts have been about Dr's - you know your old when.

So today I looked at my iPhone (which 99% of my pics are taken on) to see if I had anything to write about this morning and low and behold there were 20 pics since the last one I posted.... so here goes the update. This will clear up June and I can carry on with July as it comes.

Front yard of our property

Our house & wood shed

If I have ever seen him so relaxed - I don't recall it!! This property seems to be doing wonders for him

Went to the Saturday market in the north (downtown) part of the island this week and saw this - incredible and creative art. I said to Brad, "Where do they get that many bee hives -- and why haven't they moved?!" LOL

Our tomatoe plant is thriving up here on the deck. We transplanted it into a much bigger bucket and gave it a sturdy pole to climb.

As I've mentioned in previous posts, the slugs in BC are incredible. Huge, thick, slimy.. some are army green with black spots and some are jet black. Both do a number on our vegetable garden. The romaine which we started from seed were ready to transplant and we didn't want to put them in the garden because the slugs would just kill them with slime and munching, so we put them in pots on the deck. However, I still found slugs in the mornings. SO... I set to work with my sewing machine and the summer curtains from our motorhome windshield and made covers for them. 

First one... will this even work?

6 rectangles, 4 rounds.

And one for the huge tomatoe

I originally made this with stick on velcro that I then sewed once in place. The sticky ruined 3 sewing needles in my machine so I have since picked up non sticky velcro and sewn that on. This tomatoe plant is very large and the support pole we gave it is about 8ft tall so it needed a wrap, not a pullover.

Lettuce and Dill

Strawberries

We put them on at dusk each night and take them off each morning, they are loose enough to allow the veg to grow also. I did make some for the garden but they weren't really practical and frankly too small - although I do have an idea to make that work, just need more fabric.

It has been a week and we haven't seen a single slug! The lettuce is growing quickly now also. So they do work. I may just make them and sell them at the market... Pondering. 

Note: the ones I made here were just quick throw togethers since I didn't know if it would even work. We thought the slugs might chew through them but they don't. If I were to sell them I would do a much better job of putting them together.

I am calling them Veggie Condoms but if I were to sell them  - on this island - they would have to be Veggie Covers... Salt Spring would gobble them up if I called them Veggie Condoms but this island is not Salt Spring. At all.

We lost a few Pepper plants to the slugs so we picked up a couple more (on the table behind me)

We went to the Sunday market at the south end of the island. This was opening day for this market.

This catamaran belongs to Finding Simon.

I have been following Simon's YouTube videos for about 5 years now after first seeing him on Canada AM with the Mulroney kid. I watched all his videos from the beginning, as I do with everyone I follow. I remember about 3 years ago sitting in our house waaaay back in Hell on the East coast and watching this kid ( he's roughly my sons' age) buy this 50+ ft catamaran for $5K on some obscure island in BC - the catamaran was a complete disaster and he was going to fix it up and tour the world. He is still rebuilding it - as off-grid -- an all electric (solar) boat.

Of course, I never imagined then that we would ever be on the West coast, much less on that same island! We did come to Gabriola when we first arrived in Salt Spring about 2 years ago to give him a mini dehumidifier that we had which was too small for us but would work great in one of the berths on the boat, so we have met him but since moving to Gabriola we been so busy nesting that we haven't had a chance yet to connect with him although he did a live broadcast a couple of weeks ago and I told him we had moved here. Eventually, we will see him I'm sure.

View from the Sunday market

Game Changer

I think I mentioned in a recent post that I have discovered that a foot issue I've had for over a decade is actually Plantar Fasciitis and is quite common. When Brad went to Salt Spring for his massage on Friday he saw these inserts when picking up his prescription so he grabbed it for me. What a game changer. I am significantly flat footed and my feet curve to the insole but this insert actually has me walking mostly on the outer part of my foot. Quite a noticeable difference for sure. I've used inserts before but they were not designed for PF.

Yesterday, while in Salt Spring for a Dr appt, we went to a foot specialist who is making custom orthotics for both of us as we both have different foot issues. The Dr suggested inserts for Brad and since I obviously could use them also, we both went. He will try to have them ready for us next Friday when we go for Brad's massage. Not sure how much longer Brad will be willing to do this 4 ferry trip there and back, especially with tourists. Yesterday we went to the ferry line 70 min early and just got on with only 4 behind us making it.

Gutter Guy

Because we are on a cistern and depend on the roof for water collection, our landlord brought in someone to clean out the gutters. He has a vacuum with a massive stick and a curve on the end which allows him to stand on the ground and clean them from there. Simple and Ingenious.

Update on travel plans: Brad contacted the courthouse where we need to file the suit about the house problem and due to Covid-19 they are allowing filing by mail. WooHoo, we don't have to drive all the way to Hell and Back! Of course, that means our stuff will have to stay there in storage longer but we can get that anytime. Dad & Ann have postponed their wedding until things sort themselves as they want as much family as possible to attend.

And that's it. All caught up. Whatever will July bring?

Doctors, Critters and Projects

So, since this thyroid issue popped up I have put on what can only be described as -- well, fat. I've gained about 10 lbs that won't go away, mostly around the middle. Because the thyroid controls the metabolism, when the thyroid stopped working the weight added up, and quarantine didn't help. Well, I think they have me more or less back to 'normal' now but the metabolism is still too low and the weight is still on.

Last friday we went to Salt Spring for Brad's 1st weekly massage for months and while there, I went to the hospital to give some blood for the Endocrinologist that I have an appointment with this coming Friday...

Today we both have appointments with our family doctor, great kid (LOL - he's my oldest son's age). I have a lot of things to tell him about, all of which I assume are related to the thyroid issue but since I do not generally make good medical decisions - I will let him be the judge, however I know there is a painful squeezy machine in my future. Perhaps its just old age and my body is falling apart - that is an option, not one I like to consider, but an option nonetheless.

A couple of days ago I pulled out the sewing machine. Some curtains I put up a few weeks ago were too long and it was making me crazy in the head -- okay, so I was already crazy in the head -- but that is beside the point. I shortened the curtains and then went to my closet.

Brad has many, many old grubby T-shirts that he refuses to get rid of (he is a T-shirt hoarder ;D) so I convinced him to part with one and proceeded to cut it up in to 2 inch strips. I then gathered a bunch of my T-shirts and proceeded to cut the seams and sew in a 2 inch strip on each side. This will give me something to wear that will be a little more comfortable in the short term and WHEN this weight comes off, I can just cut out the strips and sew the shirt closed, no one will know the difference.

I then went online and ordered some (hopefully) better fitting clothes. No indication as to when they will arrive. Never bought clothes online before and I'm very concerned about the fit.

Our garden is coming along well, although the slugs out here are a significant problem. Sage green with black spots and solid black slugs are everywhere. They love my romaine and broccoli especially. I have found a solution though - COFFEE. I make a spray bottle of instant coffee and spray it on all the leaves after each rain (still raining a lot out here). I didn't spray the potatoes the first night because they hadn't been near them but when they couldn't get at anything else they attacked the potatoes and so now everything gets a spritz of coffee and they are leaving the garden alone.

We had something else attacking our garden and I was sure it was rabbits but the landlord assures us there haven't been any rabbits around here since he ate the last one a long time ago... Then we discovered the Otters, yup Otters. I was sitting on the deck one day and this massive rat ran across the orchard. I only caught a quick look at it and having never seen an otter out of water before I didn't know what the hell it was. Brad thought it was a rat when I described it to him and I assured him that if that was a rat - we were moving! Then a quick google search and I recognized the culprit, however they (family of 4 - we have since learned) don't seem to be bothering the garden. I saw one climb into the cherry tree in the garden once but that was it.

The zipper I ordered for Robbie's bed cover finally arrived (4 weeks from Guelph Ontario) so I also did that while I had the sewing machine out.

Yesterday, the magnet screen I had ordered for the french door arrived and I promptly set about putting that up, it is ordered to measure and this one (unlike a previous one I picked up) not only fits precisely but is a sturdy good quality one. We also replaced the door handle and deadbolt on the back door as it completely failed the other day.

Our neighbour and newest friend, Kane, gave us a housewarming gift, as we had mentioned that we like the one he has on his cabin. So Brad set about setting it up at the front door.

Because we are on a cistern, and this is new to us, we check our water level each Monday. Our cistern is pretty big, 30ft x 10ft and 63in deep. This allows for a total of 9810.42 Gallons (yes, I have a spread sheet so we can follow it and know what to expect next year). When we moved in the water level was 42.5 inches, and this past Monday it was sitting at 42 inches (6540.28 Gallons). We've had a lot of rain since we moved here so the water catchment has been keeping us in water, however the sun will eventually come out... so we are taking precautions (I think I explained this in another post) but essentially and especially because we have a lot of flowers to keep watered we are using water preservation methods...

My bath water is pumped from the upstairs bathroom via this green garden hose in to this 55 Gal bucket between the house and the wood shed using a pump we purchased. This water is then used in the front garden. Because my bath ritual is for relaxation and not cleansing (I shower in the mornings for that), there is no soap in this water and it can also be pumped back in to the cistern and recycled through the 3 filters on the system allowing us to reuse it - should that become necessary.

We also do this in the shower, we have a pail in the (very large) shower that we use to catch the water that would otherwise be wasted while setting the temperature of the water and getting ourselves wet. The bucket is then moved out of the way for the lather and rinse, it is strictly for fresh water. It sounds like a lot of effort, but it really isn't. If the shower was a standard shower stall it would be much more awkward but our shower is about 6ft deep and 3ft wide so there is plenty of room. This water is then taken out the back door where I have another 55 Gallon bucket for watering the flowers along the side of the house and the garden we have on the deck.

Because the weather has been so bad and the slugs were such a problem and given that the romaine is generally not doing so well in the garden (Quail have also pulled it out of the ground while 'dusting' themselves - don't ask me, I've no idea)... we decided to plant the rest of our romaine, carrot and dill starts in planters on the deck where we can better monitor and control it. We also have 4 strawberry pots and a massive tomatoe plant that I think I mentioned before in a previous post.

Because I know someone is likely to ask, yes we can have water delivered should our cistern run dry at a cost of about $300 for something like 4000Gal. However, no one wants to have to do that so we are challenging ourselves to see how much water we can conserve. We're retired and unemployed so its something to do... LOL