February 15 to 21, 2026 ; Victoria, Vancouver Island, British Columbia

 Sunday ; Sunny, +7° C.

Joanne was ill again (still ?) today. I initiated a lengthy discussion about that.

Late this morning I drove to the Shoppers Drug Mart at Tillicum Plaza to buy a stamp at the Post Office. “Due to unforeseen circumstances the Post Office is closed today” ! <fume>

This afternoon I cleaned dog nose prints off the car windows, a frequent task (! ! !), did some weekly investment updates, posted my weekly blog entry ... miscellaneous routine tasks and chores.

I acknowledge being in a REALLY BAD MOOD right now ! While walking Apollo, I had to pull an item away from him that he was very interested in sniffing. It turned out to be a tampon inserter. WHO THE FUCK TOSSES A TAMPON INSERTER ONTO THE LAWN OF A MOTEL ? ? ? ? ? ! ! ! ! ! Was it a motel guest ? Was it one of the many women who gather across the street, smoking marijuana (and coughing their lungs out) every morning at 8:30 AM outside the Indigenous Supportive Housing complex ?

Monday ; Occasional light rain, chilly, sky clearing at dusk, +5° C. BRRRRR ... the forecast is for the return of “winter” this week.

At noon we went out to run some errands, to give Housekeeping a chance to service our suite. Of course, the Housekeeping lady who has been assigned to our suite for the last few weeks did not show up around noon as she is scheduled to, but showed up around 2 PM, after we had returned from running errands and were having lunch in our suite. She’s surly, speaks little English, and does a poor job of servicing our suite, always missing something ; replace shampoo, provide fresh face cloths, replace toilet paper, empty garbages ... always something missed !

That’s okay ... the many hundreds of dollars that I had allocated as tips for Housekeeping can remain in my pocket when we depart in early April.

Our first errands stop was Esso on Burnside to refill the minivan with fuel. Then to Gorge Plaza ; I went into Shoppers Drug Mart to buy a postage stamp while Joanne went to Dollarama. After Dollarama we did some grocery shopping at Fairway Market. Apollo was a good dog, waiting quietly in the car.

I made an Udon noodle stir fry for supper tonight. I don’t do much of our meal cooking, as I have a limited repertoire, but... what I do, I do very well !

Tuesday ; Mix of sun and clouds, chilly again, +5° C.

It rained overnight and the temperature was below freezing, so apparently there was snow mixed with the rain, but when I walked Apollo at 8:30 AM, there was no evidence of that, just wet ground.

I woke up this morning profoundly depressed as a result of bad dreams. It took me half the day to shake that off.

Around noon we left to run some errands and buy take-out lunch at a Syrian restaurant Joanne wants to try. First we drove to Second Hand Hope, a local thrift store. We browsed, but didn’t buy anything. Mostly because we have a policy, formulated by Joanne, following the Covid pandemic, that if a thrift store refuses to have a change room, which (maybe) made sense during the pandemic, but not afterwards, we won’t buy any clothing there. By the way ... I have just remembered, there is another thrift store policy we have, formulated by me. If a thrift store refuses to make a bathroom available for customer use, we won’t buy anything there ! HMPH ! ! !

Next we drove to Esquimalt Plaza. Joanne instructed me to go into Esquimalt Bake Shop and buy her a Boston cream doughnut while she went into Country Grocer and began shopping for groceries. Well ... I failed ... on two counts ! And I only had one job ! HA HA HA ! Firstly, I bought a vanilla cream doughnut, which apparently is NOT a Boston cream doughnut, because ... a vanilla cream doughnut is not chocolate dipped on one side. WELL ... pardon me for living ! Then ... I bought a bag of five, day old vegetable rolls, (sort of like miniature strombolis) when I had NOT been instructed to buy ANY vegetable rolls. HA HA HA !

So ... HMPH again ... now that SOMEBODY had purchased a bag of five, day old vegetable rolls, we might as well go home and eat some of them for lunch, and postpone the trip to the Syrian restaurant. WELL ... HMPH ! ! ! HA HA HA !

Wednesday ; Cloudy, +5° C.

This afternoon we decided to go to a local thrift store followed by a quick stop at a local grocery store. At 3 PM we left our suite, I dropped off a read book at a nearby Little Free Library, and a few minutes later arrived at the thrift store, Burnside Boutique. Scheduled to be open until 4 PM, closed at 3:15 PM. <fume> I am way too much an OCD rigid thinker to be accepting of that ! We dropped into Fairway Market at Gorge Plaza to buy milk and lettuce before returning “home”.

Back in our suite I finished the batch of buttermilk I started yesterday, then started a batch of sour cream. I’m kind of having fun with my newly acquired “cultured dairy” skills. And Apollo is VERY appreciative ! HA HA HA !

Early in the evening, before we had supper, we watched “Won’t You Be My Neighbour ?”, the Mr. Fred Rogers bio-pic. Joanne had seen it before, I had not. It’s a powerful film.

For tonight’s dinner salad Joanne used some of my freshly made buttermilk as a base to make a salad dressing. It was very good !

Thursday ; Sunny, cold, +3° C.

Due to the lovely sunshine, and despite the cold snap, we went for a long (time, not distance !) walk with Apollo around noon. It takes him twenty to thirty minutes to complete one lap around the Robin Hood Inn building !

This afternoon we had a lengthy (1.5 hours) telephone meeting with our new financial advisor’s assistant. She needed a lot of information from us in order to set up our six transferred investment accounts to conform with her firm’s files.

Joanne did laundry. I got a couple of books to read from the Robin Hood Inn’s exchange library. I finished making my newest batch of sour cream. It looks and smells good ! I hope it tastes good !

Friday ; Overcast, cold, +5° C.

When Housekeeping showed up at noon (an hour early !) today to provide weekly (full) service to our suite we left with Apollo to go buy take-out lunch at Syriana Restaurant. To the best of our recollection, this is the first time that we have had Syrian food. It was GREAT ! Although ... <whispering> ... a little heavy handed on the garlic !

Saturday ; Overcast, very windy, +6° C.

This morning over breakfast in the Great Room (Robin Hood Inn’s breakfast room and communal lounge) we chatted with a couple about our age, from Winnipeg, here for a couple of weeks of winter vacation.

This afternoon I paid some bills and ... <insert drum roll here> ... started working on our 2025 income tax returns. While I napped with Apollo after lunch Joanne went to buy some advertised specials at Thrifty Foods.

DSK

February 8 to 14, 2026 ; Victoria, Vancouver Island, British Columbia

 Sunday ; Sunny, +8° C.

Every morning for the last month we have left Apollo alone in our suite for about half an hour while we go to have breakfast in the Robin Hood Inn’s “Great Room”. A few days ago we left him in the suite while we went out for about an hour to run some quick errands. Today we tested his willingness to stay alone and quiet in the suite by leaving him for 3 ¼ hours while we went to see a play. He was asleep on the bed when we returned home.

VERY GOOD DOG, APOLLO !

This morning I paid for the second of our three months here at Robin Hood Inn. After an early for us lunch we left our suite at 1:30 PM heading to Langham Court Theatre for a 2 PM performance of the musical play “I Love You, You’re Perfect, Now Change”. This was our first time at Langham Court Theatre. Probably the last ! The seating was very cramped and uncomfortable ! Today’s outing was a birthday gift for Joanne from me. She rated the play a 6.5 out of 10. <shrug> Well ... not every musical play can be Jesus Christ Superstar ! HA HA HA !

I created an egg and sour cream baked concoction for supper tonight. I wanted to incorporate some of my recent batch of excellent home made sour cream into an egg recipe. Four slices of toast on a baking sheet. Slathered with my sour cream. A slice of thin cooked lamb on top of each slice of sour cream slathered toast. Break an egg on top of that. Sprinkle lots of shredded cheese on top. Bake for half an hour !

It did not turn out as well as I had hoped and expected !

Before Christmas we found, in the Asian section of a supermarket, thinly sliced “rolls” of beef, intended for use in Asian “hot pot” recipes. We used them in a variety of ways, and liked them. Last week we bought a package of lamb “rolls”. Today’s recipe was the first time we have tried the lamb version of the thinly sliced “hot pot rolls” of meat.

Monday ; Overcast, +10° C.

Joanne phoned Deer Lodge Hospital in Winnipeg this morning to check on the scheduling of her “swallow test”, requisitioned nine months ago. They are now projecting that she will be scheduled in about five months ! HMPH ... wait time of approximately fourteen months ! ! ! For a simple test that her doctor expected a wait time of perhaps six weeks !

While trimming my beard this afternoon I knocked my Oster A5 clipper off the counter, onto the floor, braking the #3 blade guard that I was using. DARN DARN DARN ! ! ! It was only about a year ago that I purchased an expensive set of four different sized blade guards, just to get the #3 size that I use. DARN DARN DARN ! ! ! And I only bought that set because I had broken the previous #3 blade guard that I had for many years. DARN DARN F*** ! ! ! ! !

Joanne went shopping by herself this afternoon to Country Grocer. I stayed “home” and reconciled our January investment statements. And did some menu planning. And napped with the dog ! Of course, that’s a daily “task”. HA HA HA !

Tuesday ; Sunny, +10° C.

We had plans to go to a local waterfront park with Apollo today, then take him to Bosley’s for a bath. But ... I felt mildly ill today, and Apollo seemed to have a minor problem today. He was limping on his right front leg, and upon examination it seemed as if his knee and/or shoulder were hurting, maybe an injury, maybe just arthritis. In any case, we postponed park visit and bath.

I started a new batch of buttermilk today. And attempted a Super Glue repair of the clipper blade guard I broke yesterday. It seems to have worked, I’ll know better tomorrow after the glue cures.

Wednesday ; Sunny, +9° C. ANOTHER nice spring day !

We got a very late start to our day, having spent the entire morning learning more information about, and discussing yesterday’s tragedy in Tumbler Ridge, BC. I don’t know if it’s due to my age, my chronic low grade depression, or ... just current realities, but I am feeling more and more overwhelmed lately (the last year ?) by the bad news of the world.

To take advantage of the fine weather, this afternoon we went to visit a couple of local parks. First was Esquimalt Gorge Park & Pavilion, a local park on the Gorge waterway that includes Japanese gardens developed over a century ago by Victoria’s Japanese community. We walked around a grassy meadow like area where many people were walking and playing with their dogs, many of them off leash, which I believe is permitted from November to May. Then we meandered through the extensive Japanese gardens, a calming activity whether here or anywhere else we have walked through Japanese gardens. Lastly we lazily (thanks to Apollo’s current pace !) walked alongside the Gorge waterway. We sat for awhile on a park bench in the sun, watching a pair of Mallrd Ducks scouting out a nesting area on the edges of the waterway.

After about an hour in that park we drove to Saxe Point Park, a lovely park with views across the Strait of Juan de Fuca. Again ... many dogs. Apollo made friends with Chester and Ben. Good dog, Apollo ! We spent about half an hour wandering around Saxe Point Park before heading home to Robin Hood Inn.

We left for our park visits right after having a late lunch, depriving me and Apollo of our regular after lunch nap. So ... HA HA HA ... Apollo was very tired, and unable to stay awake on our drive back home. Poor, old, tired Apollo. He and I napped briefly after returning home, before we trimmed his nails. Well ... starting that certainly woke him up quickly ! HA HA HA ! Bath day for Apollo tomorrow !

Thursday ; Overcast, +8° C.

Right after lunch we headed out to give Apollo a bath at Bosley’s in Esquimalt Plaza. But first ... we bought some baking at Esquimalt Bake Shop in the same mall. Then did a bit of grocery replenishment at Country Grocer in that mall.

After we returned home to Robin Hood Inn we plucked and cleaned his ears. Nails, bath, ears ... all done ! Good dog, Apollo. Well ... not necessarily good, but ... at least groomed. HA HA HA !

Friday ; Raining, +7° C.

At noon when Housekeeping showed up to service our suite we took Apollo for a walk then went to run some errands at Tillicum Centre. First of two stops was Dollar Tree, followed by Save-On-Foods. Back at home by 1:30 PM, we had a late lunch ; beef sausage rolls from Esquimalt Bake Shop (yesterday) for Joanne, sushi from Country Grocer (yesterday) for me. Finished off with cookies from Save-On-Foods (today) ; double chocolate for Joanne, oatmeal raisin cinnamon for me. AHHHHH ... that lunch was worthy of a looooong afternoon nap for me and Apollo. HA HA HA ! Inspiration for long nap also provided by rainy weather !

This afternoon I entered our mid-month annuity benefit payment fund sales data. Wednesday’s monthly annuity payments will have been the last investment activity performed by our Penticton based now former financial advisor. Our investment accounts should now have been transferred to our new financial advisor in Winnipeg.

Saturday ; Valentine’s Day ; Sunny, +8° C.

Such a nice, sunny day that we both took Apollo for his noon walk. Victoria’s winter temperatures are certainly far more appealing than Winnipeg’s, but ... sunshine is scarce ! And I need sunshine ! ! !

Recently I purchased a bubble tea making kit as a Valentine’s Day treat for Joanne. This afternoon I made two large bubble teas / boba teas. Joanne loved it. That’s great, because ... <whispering> ... I didn’t ! I thought the tea mix was a bit bitter.

While having lunch we watched some Olympics coverage for the first time. Neither of us is particularly interested in the Olympics this season. <shrug> Perhaps there’s too much other shit going on in the world ? Much of it too close to home ! Some of it very close to home ! Thinking of Tumbler Ridge, an area we’re familiar with, and fond of.

Joanne made my favourite recipe for dinner tonight. Thank you, my dear. After supper we binge watched the first three episodes of the new series Memory Of A Killer.

DSK

February 1 to 7, 2026 ; Victoria, Vancouver Island, British Columbia

 Sunday ; Raining, +11° C.

Our twice weekly housekeeping service schedule (Fridays at 1 PM and Mondays at noon) seems to have changed. Today Housekeeping showed up unexpectedly at 11:45 AM. I suggested she return tomorrow. Her disdain was really obvious ! A few seconds later, Joanne’s was also. <shrug> Two to one, I surrender ! I opened our suite door and hollered for the Housekeeping lady to return. More exhibition of contempt from the Housekeeping lady. GEEEZ ... mea culpa !

We took Apollo for a walk. Within a few minutes it began to rain heavily. We were soaked quickly. Apollo was shivering. We went to sit in our car with the engine running and the heater on. Oh, well ... <shrug> ... at least it’s not forty below !

Late in the afternoon we had a lengthy FaceTime chat with Joanne’s sister in Winnipeg, who has just returned from a vacation in Mexico. Afterwards Joanne did a load of laundry, I uploaded my weekly journal to my blog, and did some monthly financial and budget work.

Monday ; Light rain, +9° C.

Joanne went grocery shopping by herself to Country Grocer this afternoon. I am so glad that she is comfortable driving from Robin Hood Inn. She wasn’t comfortable driving anywhere from Royal Scot, because of downtown traffic congestion, and downtown Victoria’s very goofy configuration of vehicle lanes, bicycle lanes, pedestrian crosswalks, one-way streets, lanes that “spontaneously” disappear to accommodate bicycles, pedestrians, busses, etc.

I made a fresh batch of buttermilk today. I stopped the fermentation process a bit sooner than my last batch, hoping that it won’t be quite as “tart”. In a few days I think I’ll try making a batch of sour cream. Intentionally this time, as opposed to my recent, small, “inadvertent” batch !

And on that note ... at the recent “cultured dairy” workshop that I attended I received small batches of buttermilk and yogurt “cultures”. I have neither the right equipment nor the inclination to make yogurt here, so I have been procrastinating about what to do with the small jar of yogurt culture. I decided to simply discard it. When I took it out of the fridge where I have been keeping it “dormant” and examined it ... <blink blink> ... it had very slowly further fermented / developed into a superb looking and tasting small batch of creamy yogurt. WOO-HOO ... bonus ! I allocated it to Apollo’s lunch “enhancement”. He was appreciative ! HA HA HA !

Tuesday ; Overcast, +10° C.

I either have a mild cold, or allergies. Late last night I sneezed hard, and was left with the sensation of having a cold. Today I’ve had a mild sore throat, and sore, “itchy” sinuses. This is worrisome because ... every year for the last three years, about this time of year, I get a cold or some other mystery respiratory illness. Before it runs its course with me, I generously <sarcasm> pass it on to Joanne. She gets a much worse cold / respiratory infection, gets very ill, and eventually gets pneumonia.

Wednesday ; Overcast, +12° C. Daffodils are blooming !

This morning we left our suite at 11:30 AM, Apollo in tow, heading for a Seniors’ Expo at Tillicum Centre (shopping mall). It was crowded, and most of the exhibitors were not really of interest to us. We were stunned to learn that assisted living facilities in Victoria cost between $10,000 and $13,000 per month <sputter> ! I’m sort of interested in trying out “Heart To Home Meals” for seniors.

We returned to our suite in time for our scheduled 1:30 PM ZOOM meeting with a financial advisor in Winnipeg. During this meeting (our second with this advisor) we made the decision to transfer our investment portfolios to his wealth management firm near our Winnipeg / Tuxedo home. I advised our current financial advisor in Penticton, BC of this decision later in the afternoon. We moved from the Okanagan region of BC back to Manitoba 4½ years ago, so I doubt that our decision came as a surprise to her.

Thank you to Kelly and Ashley for the many years of excellent service you have provided to us.

Joanne was feeling slightly ill today, so she joined me and Apollo for an afternoon nap, rare for her. After napping she felt better.

Thursday ; Sunny, +10° C.

Joanne was feeling ill again today, very weak and tired. We slept late, had a late breakfast from the Robin Hood Inn’s “Great Room” where breakfast is served daily. Had pancakes today from the interesting automatic pancake making machine.

Around noon we took Apollo for a walk in the brilliant sunshine, then piled into the car and headed to Wal-Mart at Uptown Mall nearby. We have a favourite parking spot in their indoor parkade, behind a wall, to reduce Apollo’s vision of us and others coming and going. To reduce, as Joanne has put it, his “Wal-barking”. HA HA HA !

When Apollo and I went to nap after our very late lunch Joanne again joined us. After sleeping overnight for 11 hours, she happily napped this afternoon for 3 ½ hours. I’m a bit concerned about her health, but she assures me that her bouts of extreme fatigue are no cause for concern. <whispering> I disagree !

Friday ; Foggy in the morning, mix of sun and clouds during the day, foggy in the evening, +8° C.

I took Apollo for a very slow, long walk this morning, from 11:45 AM until 12:45 PM while Housekeeping serviced our room. Joanne waited in the car, doing sudokus on the phone, she didn’t feel like taking a long walk.

Late in the afternoon she went shopping by herself, to Fairway Market and Dollarama. I finished a batch of buttermilk, then began making a batch of sour cream. Wish me luck ... it’s my first intentional batch of sour cream. HA HA HA !

Saturday ; Foggy again in the morning, raining, +9° C.

Cherry blossoms are blooming all around our neighbourhood, the Robin Hood Inn’s rose bushes are producing lovely red roses. Daffodils and wildflowers are all over the Robin Hood’s lawns. Maybe winter is over ? HA HA HA <SNORT> HA HA !

We went out for lunch at a nearby Indian restaurant. Joanne wanted to try their weekend lunch buffet. It was excellent !

And ... so is my first batch of sour cream ! Except ... <whispering> ... I may have made a bit too large a batch. Oh, well, not really a problem, since ... Apollo LOOOOOVES it on his kibble ! HA HA HA ! And like me, he benefits greatly from fermented dairy’s probiotic value.

In the evening, after supper, we binge watched some episodes of Call The Midwife.

DSK

January 25 to 31, 2026 ; Victoria, Vancouver Island, British Columbia

 Sunday ; Sunny, cold, +5° C.

I was up very late last night, upset by the bullshit in Minneapolis. So I slept very late this morning. Joanne generously walked the dog early this morning, my responsibility. Thank you, my dear.

After lunch we drove the short distance to Gorge Plaza. On the way there we stopped at a local “Little Free Library” and I dropped off a book I finished reading. While Joanne went into Fairway Market to pick up some fresh produce, I went to Dollarama and bought a birthday card for her upcoming 72^nd birthday.

Back at home I paid and reconciled bills, posted my weekly blog entry, updated investment data, did routine “desk work”. And, of course, had a long nap with Apollo. And let’s not forget, I walked all the way to the Robin Hood Inn’s “Great Room” (maybe a hundred feet) and got Joanne her nightly “double chocolate” hot chocolate from the fancy (and free for guests) hot beverage machine. And a cup of Earl Grey tea for me. <shrug> A tough life, but somebody’s got to do it. HA HA HA !

As always on Sunday evenings, we had supper while watching Death in Paradise and All Creatures Great & Small on TV. HMPH ... got another “45 to 50 below zero” weather alert for our Tuxedo neighbourhood in Winnipeg. Pity ! <choking back snicker again>

This evening I began to review the program guide of the upcoming Victoria International Film Festival. We have enjoyed other film festivals we have attended, particularly the Palm Springs International Film Festival which we attended a few times. I expect we will be viewing some films here during the upcoming festival in a few weeks.

Monday ; Overcast, chilly, +4° C.

At 12:30 PM I left our suite to take our minivan to Canadian Tire for a 1 PM appointment for fluids service. I dropped the car off and walked to the mall next door to have lunch and get a haircut. I had an excellent Greek fast food lunch at Gyrosa, then went next door to First Choice Haircutters and got an excellent haircut from the same stylist as two months ago. I was back at Canadian Tire at 2 PM.

Canadian Tire finished flushing and refilling the coolant, power steering fluid, and brake fluid at 3 PM. <blink blink ... choke> Almost six hundred bucks ? ! ? YIKES ! Oh, well ... proactive preventive maintenance costs are better than reactive repair costs.

I returned home and ... napped with Apollo, of course. HA HA HA !

Tuesday ; Overcast, +8° C.

This morning we had a video meeting with a financial advisor at Steinbach Credit Union in Winnipeg. We were exploring whether they could meet our investment advisor requirements. They can’t.

This afternoon Joanne went grocery shopping to Thrifty Foods and Country Grocer. Apollo and I napped.

We had perogies for supper tonight. Because ... I inadvertently fermented kefir into sour cream. HA HA HA ... who knew ? During and after supper we watched another couple of episodes of THE PITT.

That accidental sour cream was very good !

Wednesday ; JOANNE’S 72^nd BIRTHDAY

Overcast, intermittent light rain, +8° C.

Unfortunately for both of us, we both had an extremely poor “mental health” day. Our bad moods and negativity and self-pity were contagious, and ruined the day for both of us. HMPH ... folie à deux ! We struggled to get ourselves “normal” enough to go out to Old Spaghetti Factory for Joanne’s 72^nd birthday dinner.

This afternoon we had a telephone consultation with our family doctor in Winnipeg. I needed refills for all my prescriptions. Joanne needed to review and discuss her blood pressure and related medications. Changes were required.

I am glad that we found the strength to go out for dinner. It helped us. Dinner was good. The evening was ... therapeutic.

Thursday ; Overcast, intermittent drizzle, +10° C.

I did some minor maintenance on the car this afternoon. I had a phone meeting with a financial advisor in Winnipeg that was productive and promising. I finished reviewing the upcoming Victoria Film Festival program guide, then Joanne joined me in deciding what to see, when and where.

Friday ; Raining, +10° C.

“Highlight” of the day was a whole lot of prescription refill drama ! Even after multiple phone calls between me and our family doctor in Winnipeg, and me and the local Shoppers Drug Mart, and between the pharmacy and doctor, when I went in the evening to pick up my seven prescriptions and Joanne’s three prescriptions, one of hers was wrong ! Are doctors and pharmacists not able to do grade three arithmetic in their heads ? ! ? You know ... 1/2 pill per day for 100 days DOES NOT EQUAL 25 PILLS ! ! !

Saturday ; Intermittent light rain, +10° C.

Not surprisingly, I spent quite a bit of time this afternoon setting up 2026 medical expense records and prescription refill records related to yesterday’s purchase of ten prescriptions. I paid bills due today and tomorrow. I am uncomfortable with, and do not allow, “automatic” payments / pre-authorized debits. They are very easy to set up, and sometimes near impossible to cancel.

DSK