Soft and Slow

Friday flew by. I walked with my group in the morning. It was good to be reunited after the storm. I asked that we walk the Windecker trail (because it is flat), and that’s where we went. It was my first visit to this trail since the bomb cyclone, and holy shit, the landscape has changed. 

The trails are brighter because trees are down in places, and we had to pass through many cleared trees that had fallen across the trail. In one place, a tree had blown over and its root system—Fir trees here have very shallow roots here—towered six meters up into the air. It’s monumental. We walked through a significantly changed landscape.

Then I went shopping, came home and made another vat of curried beansprouts and seafood. This is such a delicious meal for me. It’s quick and easy to make, and its full of flavours that I love—flavours I discovered in my travels. I still love a French meal, and I love country Québecois cooking, but I love Asian cuisine.

Henri was here all day today, I’m very happy with his work. He works slowly, but thoughtfully and constantly. What I like best is that he comes, and he does what he wants. I don’t direct him. Yesterday, he said that next time he comes, he’ll clear as much as he can of the forest fall from the roof. He’s more a caretaker than gardener for me. We’re a good fit.

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I met L in the late 70s. We quickly became fast friends. We are friends to this day. But fifteen years ago, I received no reply to a couple of emails, and I became increasingly concerned—for her, or so I thought back then. I was distraught for days. I don’t remember how the story continued, but it ended with us reunited.

Recently, it happened again, but this time, so far, I am not doing anything, nor am I concerned, because I realize that all our communication begins with me, so I’m inclined to treasure wonderful memories of my cherished friendship, and hope to see her again, but it will be up to her.

I have learned a lot about myself after six years with Dr. Shoja. I considered L to be a sister. We were very close. I had self-appointed siblings; their status was unknown to them. My family of friends were my only family, so I now understand my concern, when L stopped replying, was for myself. I was losing a sister. The saddest part of my new understanding of myself is that the neglect I suffered doomed me to this solitary life I lead.

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Today, I bake, because tonight I dine with Stacy, Ron, Di, Bryce, and Nancy, at Stacy’s place, and I’m making and taking a desert.

Slow Daze

Thursday was glorious in the morning, so I began the day with a lovely long soak in the spa. I hadn’t been in it for a couple of weeks, so it felt fabulous to be so lovely and warm. After that, I took Her Highness on a good walk through the Elder Cedar grove. It, as well, was a wonderful experience because it was so spectacularly sunny and bright.

We came home and had lunch, and then it was time for me to go to the library where they host a weekly get-together for French speakers. It was the first time I’ve attended, and it was fun and a challenge at the same time because almost everyone is fully fluent in French, and everyone has a thick Québecois accent.

Once back home, it was time for Sheba’s second walkabout, so off we went, but this time under thick cloud, in relative darkness and cold temperatures. And then all the duties of my day were done, and it was R&R time for us all. I built up the fire and settled in for a nice warm lazy evening.

And then I went to bed for the best sleep I have had in decades. Decades! I didn’t wake up once all night. I know how old I am when a great, great pleasure is nothing more than a deep and long sleep.

No Yard Work!!!

Wednesday was a good day. Sheba and I walked with Cynthia and her dog, Jake, whom I adore. It was very hard to go up the hills, and so we took a short route back, and then I went into the village to shop for groceries. I came home and made a delicious curry broth, and I dumped an entire package of bean sprouts, and entire package of small frozen scallops, half a package of frozen prawns and an entire clump of cilantro into it. Yum! Both lunch and dinner were so easy to heat up in the microwave. Yum!

It was a pleasant bright day, but I think along with low energy and difficult breathing, this issue I’m dealing with also has me feeling the cold weather. Last night was clear, and so this morning it was freezing cold in the house when I got up. For the first morning ever on the island, I lit the fire before I fed the pets. I hate being cold. For the duration of Fall and through Winter, I am going to wear an undershirt under my t-shirt and hoodie, and long johns. 

I had a lovely long chat with Bruce on Zoom. He was just back from Toronto and L.A. In T.O., he stayed with Beth, and in L.A. he stayed with Steve, and so we had a great time chatting about all he’d done on his trip and about our fabulous and interesting mutual friends.

In the evening, I finished re-watching two seasons of Dalgleish, an absolutely wonderful and delicious series based on the murder mysteries of P. D. James. I have read every one of them. Season three was filmed this year in Ireland. I can hardly wait for it to become available on Acorn TV. The star, Bertie Carvel, makes all my genes vibrate.

Today will be a delight. It’s clear and bright outside, I have lots of my delicious and thick soup for my meals, and I have more Richard Osman and the Thursday Murder Club to read.

Hard Working Day

Tuesday was a bright sunny day that certainly helped to improve the state of my mental health. Plus, I had a very valuable session with Dr. Shoja. I talked almost the whole time, and better than I often do. I had a lot of stuff to unload from the dreadful week I had after the storm. I know she understands and there is no better medicine than being heard and understood! What a blessing she is for me!

Pete arrived to help clean my yard just as my session with Dr. S. began, so he did an hour’s worth of tidying my yard on his own while I Zoomed. And when my session was over, it was time for him to fetch Ali and take her home and have lunch with her. That gave me time to have lunch and to chain saw the largest branch that fell into burnable pieces. I also got a plank ramp set up at the back door of my car so that we could get the new generator out easily and safely.

Then I started raking. Bad shoulder and all, I got busy raking the tons and tons of shite that fell during the storm into piles. When Pete came back, we assembled the new generator and got it going, just to see how it all worked. And then as I went back to raking, Pete schlepped the crap I raked onto the wheelbarrow and then to the dump in the forest part of my yard.

And the miracles continue to happen. I took photos of my old generator, and then wrote a pitch to islanders on our Gabe Facebook page to go with the photos. I told people in the ad that it needed work and asked for a hundred bucks for it. Then I went out to get wood for the fire. And when I came back indoors less than a minute later, I had two offers for the generator. One was from a neighbour two doors over, and they took it. Their hundred bucks made my new generator even cheaper. Plus, I don’t have to figure out how to dispose of the old machine.

By 4:00, I was done. I could not keep going. My shoulder was at 8 on the pain scale, and I was heaving and taking steps one at a time. It had been a very taxing day with D. S. and then hours and hours of light physical labour. Oh, I was ready for the couch and television. 

Pete continued until almost 5:00, and the yard is cleared of all the forest fall—my entire yard, front and back. I’d done a fair bit on my own, but we, and mostly Pete, did it all. Chaos is gone. The generator is in place and I have lots of gas, and the yard looks rough from all the raking, but it is free of more forest fall than I have ever seen before—by far! I took pain pills to be free of much of the shoulder pain, made a simple dinner, got on the chaise and opened my streaming menu. Heaven.

Today, I’ll forest walk with my peeps, and then I’ll chill with a book by the fire. Chaos is gone. I can relax.