Thursday ; (Still) gloomy, +1° C.
This afternoon we went out to do a bit of local exploring, in and around our small village of Cobble Hill, and the nearby small town of Mill Bay. First stop was the local dog park on the edge of Cobble Hill village. Joanne is nervous about allowing Apollo into dog parks. I’m not.
Apollo and I approached the gate into the dog park which had about ten or so large dogs romping around inside. We entered the park, a few dogs came over and sniffed Apollo, then left to resume their playing. By the time I had managed to get the gate closed ... Apollo had defecated. <shrug> OK ! We entered the park, I walked over to the picnic shelter where other dog owners were congregated, Apollo interacted nicely with other dogs for about two minutes, then ... defecated again ! WTF, Apollo ? Maybe if you hadn’t been anal retentive for the last few days, refusing to defecate anywhere around the grounds of Xanadu Estate (Apollo ; “EWWW ... snow ! ! !”). I chatted with other dog owners for a few more minutes, Apollo wandered off and ... had another shit ! ! ! ! ! GEEEEEZZZ, Apollo ! ! ! After he was finished his third dump, he was like ... “OK, I’m done, let’s go now”. OK ... we left !
We drove around exploring the almost non-existent village of Cobble Hill. We stopped at the local pub. Joanne wanted to inquire about the ready to serve home cooked meals to go advertised on their website. The server in the pub advised us that they were next door, at the liquor store. We walked over to the liquor store and checked them out. Not to our liking. And those two businesses seemed to define the commercial elements of the village. A pub, a liquor store, and large expensive homes. OH ... and a dog park !
We drove a few km. to the small town of Mill Bay and explored. Mill Bay actually has a thriving small shopping mall with many small businesses, anchored by Thrifty Foods. We drove to the town’s harbour front, which looks across the Saanich Inlet to the north end of the Saanich Peninsula on the other side. We crossed the highway to check out some other small commercial areas, including a small mall with a Salvation Army Thrift Store. We went inside to browse. I bought a cheese slicer.
We found a couple of restaurants in Mill Bay that we are interested in trying. We returned to Xanadu Estate about 5:30 PM as it was becoming dark outside.
As Joanne prepared supper I made another excellent fire in our fireplace, again using about a third of the small pile of unsplit firewood on our front landing.
This afternoon we went to a local business, Merridale Cidery & Winery, for their special event, Sip & Shop. They are nearby, and we had to drive past the local dog park to get there. So ... we stopped at the dog park for a brief visit. And ... <sputter>... give Apollo another opportunity to take a shit within moments of our arrival. I don’t understand what inspires him to defecate the moment we arrive at the dog park , but ... no point arguing with success, I suppose.
The cidery and distillery is an interesting place. Probably does a booming business in the summer tourist season. Joanne sampled a couple of their apple cider products, then bought a glass of the apple and honey blend to sip. I sampled one of their distillery products (spiced rum). <blink blink shudder> YUK ! Think I’ll stick to the Gimli, Manitoba produced Crown Royal rye whiskey, my (very infrequent) drink of choice since I’ve been ... <thinking> ... about 16 years old. HA HA HA !
We wandered around their sales area, showcasing their ciders and their distillery products and locally produced jams and jellies and chutneys and scented candles and essential oils and herbal products and ... that kind of stuff. Then we wandered around another area where many local vendors had set up tables and displays to sell their wares, more of the same kind of horrendously overpriced, tourist trapping, “woo-woo” stuff. Obviously nothing appealed to us enough to inspire us to purchase anything.
But ... it was great to get out and do something other than remain cooped up in our apartment waiting for either our health or the weather to get better.
Now that we have figured out this suite’s Apple TV we got caught up this evening on one of the CBC series that we have watched in the past ; My Mum, Your Dad
Saturday ; Mostly cloudy, sun trying to peek through, +2° C. (again ... same as yesterday)
We left our suite around 11:15 AM heading into Duncan for the large, weekly “farmers’ market”, although at this time of year there’s no fresh produce, but there were a lot of specialty food vendors selling a large variety of exotic and gourmet food products. We bought a lot, well over a hundred dollars ! Saskatoon berry cinnamon buns. Frozen Saskatoon berries to mix with my kefir yogurt. Pea shoots. Joanne bought those, I don’t even know what the hell that is ! Local Shawnigan cheese. Beef jerky. Smoked Chinook (King) Salmon ! Frozen Beef Pho. Packages of meal preparation spice mixes. Beef chorizo sausage meat (no casing). Duck pâté de foie gras. (yes, yes ... I know !)
The farmers’ market is dog friendly, so Apollo got to interact with a large number of dogs, small and large. Including a large contingent of people and dogs from a nearby dog training academy out on a “field trip” to the farmers’ market.
After the farmers’ market we went for lunch to Fresh Tandoori Flavour Indian Bistro, the best Indian restaurant I’ve ever been to, and we’ve been to a lot ! This restaurant has a lunch buffet, which allowed us to have some of our favourites, and try some new dishes. All were excellent, as was the service. Mom is the “front of house”, greeting, seating, serving customers, and making the best Tandoori fired Naan bread I’ve ever tasted, Pop is in the kitchen making excellent Tandoori food, (somewhat dozey) teenage Son is the bus boy, clearing and (poorly) cleaning tables ... while staring out the windows and day dreaming. Dream on, son, real life will be biting you in the ass in just a few more years !
Have I just turned into my father ? ! ? HA HA HA !
After lunch we went to a couple of thrift stores, trying to find Joanne some “temporary” winter boots to accommodate her new orthotic insoles. Her “old” winter boots, which we brought along, primarily to accommodate the trip (in “winter” conditions) from Dugald / Winnipeg to Victoria and back, won’t accommodate her orthotic insoles, and those boots are really irritating her Achilles tendonitis problem. At the second thrift store we found a pair of boots that fit well, with the orthotic insoles inserted.
It appears as if this week’s large dump of snow is not going to disappear quickly, and wearing winter boots will be required for awhile yet. A couple of weeks ? A month ? ? ? Let’s hope not that long !
On the way back home we stopped again at the local dog park. Yes, yes ... he did ! Within a minute or so ! HA HA HA HA HA ! These dog park visits continue to improve his social skills. He now plays well with young, goofy St. Bernards. He doesn’t seem to recognize the size difference. HA HA HA !
We were back home around 4:45 PM, about an hour before it now turns dark here.
Sunday ; Mostly cloudy, sun trying to peek through, +3° C.
By design, today was a slow day. Around noon we took Apollo for a long walk through the woods, partially made possible by Joanne’s new winter boots. Xanadu Estate is a lovely, large, old growth forest wooded property. Lot of big, old Western Red Cedar trees and Douglas Fir trees.
This afternoon we trimmed his nails, and gave him a haircut around the eyes, nose, and mouth. WOW ... what a lovely face you have under that mess, Apollo ! HA HA HA ! And I trimmed my beard. Joanne cleaned dog and husband hair. HA HA HA ... thank you, dear.
We had a movie date night tonight. I lit a fire in the fireplace, and we watched A Man Called Otto. What a tearjerker ! One of the strange cognitive side effects of 5 ½ hours of being on a perfusion (blood and oxygen pumping) machine while heart stopped during triple bypass surgery is ... I cry easily during sad movies. <shrug> ... Could be worse, at least I’m still alive 7 ½ years later !
Monday ; Mostly sunny, cold, +3° C.
Sunshine was nice, but clear skies and light wind made it feel quite cold today.
This afternoon we went to Mill Bay to give Apollo a bath at Bosley’s Pet Foods. On the way to Mill Bay we stopped at Sweet Meadows (farm market) and I bought more of their lovely heirloom cherry tomatoes. At Mill Bay Shopping Centre Joanne went into Thrifty Foods to buy a few grocery items before we took Apollo into Bosley’s and gave him a bath at their dog wash station. He endured it well, good dog, Apollo. We also needed to buy him some dog food, but the Mill Bay Bosley’s doesn’t carry the specific formula of dog food that we want. We arranged for a small bag of it to be put aside for us at the Bosley’s in Duncan. We’ll pick it up in a couple of days when we go to Duncan to run errands, probably on Wednesday.
Well ... HMPH ... and as I take a brief break to go to the bathroom after typing the above paragraph, I find Apollo in the bathroom ... eating toilet paper. HEY ... BAD DOG ! ! ! I wonder if he has an upset stomach from ingesting water and/or shampoo during the bath ?
Tuesday ; Sunny and cold, -3° C. HMPH ! I think we’ll probably spend all of next winter at the lower elevation and warmer temperatures of Victoria !
The laundry facilities for guests here at Xanadu Estate are currently out of order, so this afternoon Joanne drove into Duncan by herself to use a laundromat, and buy a few items at Superstore and Dollar Tree. This was the first time she has driven the car since we left home in late November.
When she arrived back here at Xanadu Estate she was unable to drive up the long, winding, ascending, ice coated driveway. She phoned me to come down to the road and drive the minivan up the driveway. With difficulty, both walking down, and driving up, I did that ! The snow has not been cleared from the driveway, and now, more than a week after the heavy snowfall, the entire driveway is a skating rink ! ! ! And will remain that way for a few more days until the temperature rises enough for melting to begin.
This afternoon I started working on our income tax returns.
Wednesday ; Sunny, temperature not above freezing all day at Cobble Hill, all the way up to +5° C. in Duncan this afternoon. HMPH ! Didn’t realize when I made the booking here at Xanadu Estate a year ago how much higher and colder it is than surrounding areas / communities.
We spent the afternoon exploring, shopping, and running errands. We left home at 11:30 AM and returned home at 5:30 PM. Before leaving home this morning I prepared an excellent brunch of Saskatoon berry pancakes. Made with kefir yogurt. And cinnamon sugar. Well done, Daniel ! On the way back home in the afternoon we stopped at the local dog park in lieu of Apollo’s late afternoon walk. Yes, yes, he did defecate within a minute or two of arriving, as he always does. I don’t get it, but ... que será, será.
On the way into Duncan we stopped at Country Grocer, a local supermarket to check it out. It’s actually the closest supermarket to us, slightly closer than Thrifty Foods in Mill Bay. I like Country Grocer to the north of us better than Thrifty Foods in Mill Bay to the south, and I would prefer to shop at Country Grocer, but there are other reasons to go to Mill Bay, so ... <shrug>.
Next stop was Great Greens Farm Market, on the southern edge of the city of Duncan, another greengrocer / farm market Joanne wanted to check out. Then we stopped at Kal Tire to have tire pressures adjusted ... again ! I had checked the car’s tire pressures yesterday morning, and they all seemed to be about five pounds below where they should be. When Kal Tire’s service technician went to adjust the tire pressures, he found each and every tire was about one pound above where they should be. HUH ? ! ? With poorly disguised contempt, he suggested I replace my tire pressure guage. Very good idea, pal. Thanks for the advice, and the service.
Next stop was South Island Fireplace & Spas. The gasket on the fireplace door in our suite was becoming detached. I brought it to the attention of our landlady, and offered to remove the fireplace door, take it in for repair, then reinstall it. She accepted my offer. I asked to be allowed into the service workshop to watch (learn) how the fireplace door gasket was removed and replaced. It needed to stay lying flat in a warm place for a few hours to allow the special adhesive putty to dry, and since the back of our car didn’t really meet that criteria I left the door there and arranged to pick it up a few hours later when we were returning home.
Next was the very large shopping mall Cowichan Commons. While Joanne went into Dollarama to shop I went into Canadian Tire and bought a new tire pressure guage. Then I retrieved Apollo from inside the car and we walked across the mall to Bosley’s where a bag of his dog food was waiting for us. As I returned him to the car Joanne arrived having finished at Dollarama. Then ... <sigh> ... it was time to go to Wal-Mart, in the same large mall. <deep breath>
After Wal-Mart, on the way back to pick up the fireplace door at South Island Fireplace & Spas we made one last stop at yet another greengrocer, Community Farm Store. What a joke ! Horrendously overpriced “woo-woo” products, mostly “organic”, obnoxious and pretentious customer base, all seeming to have a “me first, I (and my obnoxious little child) are important” nose in the air attitude. We spent forty-four cents buying four parsnips from a “clearance” rack outside the front door of the store. Joanne had to get into a slight shoving match with the really old lady who was trying to buy every last parsnip on the rack, and trying to prevent Joanne from reaching around her and grabbing four of them. HA HA HA HA HA ... there were hundreds of parsnips and the old lady was trying to stuff them all into a large paper bag.
Hey, abuela, don’t get in the way of the Arizona Coupon Queen at a clearance rack ! HA HA HA <SNORT> HA HA !
Lastly we picked up the fireplace door and headed for home, stopping at the dog park on the way. I had a hell of a time making it up the steep, winding, ice covered driveway at home. HMPH !
DSK
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