Another Hangover

Sunday was another stunning day! It was soul satisfying to rise to so glorious a sunrise and have light at six thirty in the morning. And then came opening the back door (to let Sheba out) and seeing the bright pink Azalea blossoms floating in the air and hearing the gently falling water of the fountain. Paradise was back in full swing!

Another pleasure was the view of light green carpet covering the backyard. All those months of hard work last summer, plus all the expense of the soil will bring me a satisfying and aesthetic reward every sunny Spring and Summer morning from now on. Where once there was only rock, dirt, weeds and years of Fir needles, there’s now a rich green carpet of lawn.

I lit the fire, fed the pets, made my bed, made the chicken marinade and set the chicken into it, cleaned the kitchen and got to Mad Rona’s by eight fifteen to meet Jay (who came to dinner later in the day) and his sister, Kelly. Kelly is a wonderful friend from my days living at Brewery Creek. She now lives in Comox but visits often to see Jay.

Then I roared home to fetch Her Highness and go on the big community dog walk before coming home to make the Parmesan Potato stacks I served for dinner. After that, it was more cleaning and tidying before going for the afternoon dog walk and making the final course that was dreadfully complex and time consuming.

I finished at four forty and I was beat. I had a fast shower and wished I could’ve had a joint; instead, I opened some Proseco and had my first tiny drink of wine alone. Then my guests arrived: Five gay men from the island, all of them dog owners, but one. They arrived at five. It’s what we do here; we start early and end early and it suits me just fine. I had time to relax before bed.

I felt good about what I served and it all went over very well. Two of my guests are true gourmet cooks, and I know of what I speak. Eoin worked in the restaurant business all his life, and François is Quebecois. Need I say more? We had a great time together

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Waking up on Monday was not at all the same. It was drizzling and I had another (milder) hangover. I am never drinking again! I spent most of the morning in bed.

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But there was some good news on Monday. In the afternoon: I got all the information I need to defer my property taxes henceforth. Deferring my taxes will save me a considerable annual expense and extend the time I will have to remain here on Gabriola.

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Today is another day of lousy weather. I’ll spend it reading and pondering all I need to do to leave the place for Hannah. I hope I leave notes to cover all she needs to know whilst I’m in Vancouver Thursday to Sunday.