To Vancouver!

Wow! What a beautiful morning! Walking Sheba was a delight but it’s only six degrees! The rooster next door announced the morning with his triumphant fanfare. I love that rooster; I must write a note to my neighbours and tell them how much I love their cock. (That was fun to write!)

Saturday I was not a slug. 

I took Sheba to the Farmers’ Market (and will never do that again). She’s never on a leash so today was a disaster. She is reallystrong and I can’t do anything but manager her. 

I did my shopping as quickly as I could and fled to Cox Community Parkwhere we walked the trails. Then we went to the nursery and I ordered a yard of soil and chose a whack of beautiful conifers (including a stunning blue Spruce) plus a glorious striated Pampas grass—all to be delivered Tuesday. I’ve spent a fortune of time and money on the backyard so these new deer-resistant plants will beautify the front yard.

It feels good to be planting a conifer garden. Conifers aren’t showy; theirs is a quiet beauty. My largest window is in the living room and it looks out onto the space where all these plants will go. I love gardening; I love this place.

It was too cool and humid to paint so I built the “logo” extensions for the studio and shed and mounted them. When I paint the trim and doors on the shed, the same red as the studio, the courtyard will look coherent.

In the afternoon I prepared the house for my departure today for Vancouver: I did laundry, treated the spa, cleaned the guest room for Chalise who’ll look after the pets while I’m gone emptied and sorted all the garbage and loaded up the bird feeders.

•

Anthony Bourdain was just a name to me until he died and quotations from him started appearing on blogs and websites. This is one of them: 

"I will find myself in an airport, for instance, and I'll order an airport hamburger. It's an insignificant thing, it's a small thing, it's a hamburger, but it's not a good one. Suddenly I look at the hamburger and I find myself in a spiral of depression that can last for days."

It reminded me of when I had a massive and incapacitating anxiety attack because I’d seen a man whom I thought was walking “too fast.” It did not make sense to me to think that way and I was really ashamed to admit what I thought was the cause so reading that quotation from Bourdain was insightful.

Dr. S. is a godsend but so are others dealing with mental health problems. I’ve been lucky to discover their experiential insights; they’re incredibly precious gifts.

•

I fixed my toilet. I cannot believe it; I have no faith in myself. I was sure I’d failed and that I’d have to hire someone to come and fix it but my repair has held for a week and I’m chuffed.

I also “fixed” an eye. One eye was sore; it was swollen on the upper lid and pink, so I dabbed some Polysporinin saline solution into my eye and it cleared up overnight. I feel soDaniel Boony.

•

Elaine (Darrell’s wife) wrote to say that for the first time in her long gardening history here, the Ravens had dug up all the vegetables that she and the other people in her allotment garden had planted.

•

I’m going to be a volunteer house manager at the music/theatre festival here in August.

•

The garden in front of the studio is thriving and giving that almost sacred space some due glory. It once looked so forlorn, my studio, but now the courtyard provides a magnificent level entrance and the new garden obscures the formerly visible foundation. Now I think the place has rural elegance.

•

Now I’m off to the city. In a few hours I’ll be in my favourite restaurant having lunch with John and Bunny—then tonight, dinner and the Tonys with Bruce.