Tuesday, August 28/2012

I am finally home and headed to bed.  It was a good night but I am tired and a few hours sleep will feel awfully good.  I stayed awake long enough to make coffee (I will need a cup when I awake) and creep Facebook.  I then hit the sheets.

Sun going down

I was awakened about an hour later by an ugly dream about Casey being in an accident. I heard him call "Mom, there has been an ugly accident".   When I asked him if he was alright, he failed to answer me and I think that is when I woke up.  I was so disturbed by the dream that I had to fight the urge to call him, telling myself that he was at work and if anything had happened, I would get a call.  Needless to say, it took a while to get back to sleep but eventually I did.
I woke up at 3:00 p.m. with an ugly headache and did not feel like doing the beets up or the relish.  I spent most of the rest of the day feeling sorry for myself and doing as little as possible although John and I did manage to get the man cave cleaned up and the shop.  Now, it is officially ready to party in.
As the evening progressed, my headache eased and John and I sat around in the man cave for a bit while our supper cooked.
John is doing deer steak and garden potatoes on the bbq.  Mmmmm....
We looked up a few of his collector pop bottles on the internet and found one for sale for $15.00.  I don't think he is going to get rich off his collection!!
With supper over and done with, we sat and watched TV.  The movie, Footloose was on and since I had never seen it before (something John couldn't believe), we watched that.
Bed was next on the agenda as I had lots of work ahead of me tomorrow.  We are getting down to the final few days before our guests arrive and there is still a few things that need to be done.  Good night.

Monday, August 27/2012

I am up early this morning and the sun is shining like crazy.  The grass is still wet from all that ugly rain of a few days ago and the garden is still a big mud hole.
I have to make more relish today as I was talking to my sister Jan today and she now has put in her order for pickled beets and relish.  Oh Dear!!
Since I had enough ingredients to do another double batch of relish, I got out the food processor and started chopping the cucumbers, cabbage, celery and onions.  I sat out at the picnic table to do this and found that I could sit and work.  My back is still aching a bit, so was a good spot to do all this work.
Shirley from next door came over and raided the cucumber patch for small cucs as she is still doing pickles.  I have no intentions of doing any dill pickles so she is welcome to all she can find.  She did however, find more that were suitable for relish.....Damn Her anyway!!
With the chopping done, the relish now has to sit overnight which actually works out well since I can do it up when I wake up tomorrow.  Then this batch will be out of my hair.
I then decided to grab a few beets out of the garden and boil them up for more pickles.  I have some juice left over from the last batch I did and that needs to be used up.  With those boiled up, and skinned, I sliced them up and left them in the juice overnight in the fridge.  They too can be processed tomorrow when I awake
It was soon time for me to think about getting ready for work and supper had yet to be prepared.  I went all out and made soup and sandwiches!!  It is a good thing that John is not picky about what he eats for supper, otherwise, he would have gone hungry.
I am off to work now and I hope it is a quiet night.

Sunday, August 26/2012

I am back to work today and night shift tomorrow.  It was a quiet day as days go with no real issues to deal with other than the crazy girls I work with.  It  was one laugh after another today and the day seemed to speed by.  Before I knew it, it was time to get back to the bus, relax a bit then head to bed.
John had been mucking around in the man cave all day and now has a few shelves up with some of his "collectibles" on them.  Actually, it looks pretty good.  He continues to use all the "old" wood he has found lying around and the place is getting quite a rustic feel about it.  It will certainly be good enough to party in this weekend if the need should arise.
My back was aching a lot tonight so I ended up lying in bed and watched some TV before I finally shut it off and called it a day.  I am not quite sure what time John made it in from the man cave cause I was sleeping like the dead.

Saturday, August 25/2012

It rained all night and I think the wind finally let up early this morning.  Man, the ground is waterlogged and I think there is a lake between the shop and the wood storage trailer.   All this rain will certainly make all the trails ugly for the long weekend.  Yeah!!
Well, at least it is not hot out today and will be a good day to do some canning.  I am not happy with the colour of the relish so I have decided to open all the jars, reheat the relish and add more turmeric so that it is a nicer colour of yellow.  With that done, I re-sterilized all the bottles and re-bottled the relish.
The rain continued and I decided to go out and get some beets.  It is only rain, right?  Well, I damn near got stuck in the garden getting the beets but I managed to get enough to pickle 5 bottles.
While I was waiting for the beets to cook, it was time to start cleaning this mess of a bus.  Since I fired the maid, it has become quite messy!!  Well, maybe it was messy before I fired her but it is to the point now that even I can't stand it!!  Hell, I have company coming next weekend!!
The Saskatchewan Roughriders were playing football today so I had to get most of the work done before I was called on to help them out.  I just know they will need it as their last few games have not been anything to write home about!!
Well, as it turned out, all my yelling and and cheering was not enough to induce a win and we are now in last place in the standing!!  Oh Dear, no good can come of that!!
I made a quick trip to the store for milk and something for supper.  I met Shirley on the way into the bus and she told me that we have had 2 1/2 inches of rain so far!!  OMG!!
Supper was fried chicken, garden potatoes, peas and gravy.  Mmmm, it was so very good and there is enough for me to take to work tomorrow.  Life is good.
With the supper dishes done, I spent the rest of the evening relaxing and getting ready for yet another "day at the office"!!

Friday, August 24/2012

I am off to work today and the weather is looking rather gloomy.  Rain is in the forecast and it is feeling a little "close".
For some reason, it was not too terribly busy at the home today and since I was not feeling too terribly energetic, that was a good thing.
It had rained off and on today with the skies looking very threatening all day.  It wasn't until I was about to walk home that the skies really opened up and I found out just how wet I could get walking the block and a half home!!
John was in the man cave and I took refuge there.  There was an incredible flash of lightening and an immediate sound of loud thunder just as I arrived.  The rain came down so hard, I could hardly hear myself think and I was so very glad that I had reached the safety of the shop.
Hogan was not impressed with the weather and was panting and totally unsettled.  Eventually him and I braved the elements and made it to the bus where I changed my wet clothes and got into bed.  Hogan was immediately under the covers!!
I have lots to do tomorrow so must get some much needed rest.  With all this rain pounding on the roof of the bus and the wind rocking and rolling the bus, I am not sure just how much sleep I will be getting.

Thursday. August 23/2012

It really comes as no surprise that I slept in late today.  I think I have a big head as I feel horrible and am so glad that I drank last night because I swear to you, I am going to quite drinking....to excess at least.  Holy Moly, that twisted tea can get a girl "twisted" and I think I am still a bit twisted this morning!!
I did manage to help John attach the top rail to the bar and now the bar is all but complete with the exception of the foot rail and that will have to wait until the bar stools are purchased to see how high it needs to be off the floor.
Supper was simple fair as that is about all I could muster.  Bed soon followed, as it is a work day for me tomorrow and I definitely need my beauty rest!!

Wednesday August 22/2012

I must do something with all the cucumbers today and it looks like fridge pickles are the way to go.  I went to the store to pick up a few things that I needed for the recipe then came home and went into the garden for a few carrots.
I spent the rest of the afternoon slicing, cutting and julienning vegetables.  My hands cramped and I am sure they will be stiff and sore tomorrow.  I got a huge bucket of vegetable and prepared the vinegar that they will sit in until they are all eaten and I am hoping that most of them are gone on the September long weekend.
With my day's work complete, John and I retire into the man cave for a few beverages and it wasn't long before I was "too happy" and very tired and had to go to bed.  I am not much of a party girl anymore - not that I ever really was!!

Tuesday, August 21/2012

OK, today is the day I make the relish.  If only I could find the food grinder it would make the whole process much easier.
I headed over to Dave and Shirley's hoping that she had one and she did although it did not have the little blade so that was no use to me.  Dave did find a chopper that I borrowed and that worked well for the cabbage that needed to be chopped.  We phoned Shirley and asked her to check out the hardware store in Spiritwood for a food chopper and that too was an exercise in futility as there were no grinders in Spiritwood to be bought.  Well, I guess the relish Gods are against me today.
Eventually, I did get all the stuff chopped, sliced, diced and shredded and in the container that would sit overnight.  Tomorrow is when the bottling will take place.  It does look good!!

Making relish

Dave and John went over to Gale's to finally pick up the boat we are going to buy from her.  Dave took it over to his place where he will tinker around with it and get the motor running and change what ever oils need to be changed.  John rode the lawnmower down there and cut the grass while Dave hooked up to the boat.
Once I cleaned up the kitchen from my relish making, I walked over to Dave's to get the "skinny" on the boat.  The verdict was a good one as the motor started good and the general condition of the boat is pretty damn good considering it is several years old!!
I must text Jace now and tell him we need life jackets as it will be ready to go for the long weekend.

Monday, August 20/2012

Oh dear....I knew I would be stiff but OMG, I didn't think I would be this bad!!  Holy Smokes Batman!!!  My shoulders are stiff and my legs are screaming!  I can hardly wait to work my 12 hour shift.  Maybe that will be a good thing, as I will certainly be kept moving.
The sun is shining today and I fear that it will be a hot one today.  That is not so cool as there is no air conditioning at the home.  The little window unit in the staff room will be the only coolness in the place.
As suspected, it was sweltering at the home today and I am so glad to be back at the bus.  It is cool in the man cave and that is were I sat for a bit for some much needed relief from the heat.
It is to bed early for me as I am sore and tired.  Tomorrow will be better I am sure.  I have relish to make and the beans are ready to pick again.  Oh dear......

Sunday, August 19/2012

I am finally home after working my night shift and am so ready for bed.  It won't take but a minute for me to fall asleep once my head hits the pillow.  I have to sleep fast as we are going quadding today and i will be up about noon to get ready.
Oh my lord, is it noon already!!!  I must take a minute to clear the cobwebs and have a cup of coffee.
Before long, we are loaded up, gassed up and heading down the road.  It feels good to be driving my own quad again although I am a bit nervous about it.  Hopefully all will go well today.
We cut into the forest at mile three and it wasn't too long before I was stuck up to my axles in the muck and mire and needed to be winched out.  John came back to save me and reminded me NOT to drive in his tracks through this crap!!  Ya Ya, I know......rookie mistake!!  Woo Hoo Shirley, I am the first one to get stuck!!  Hopefully, that will be the last time.
What a beautiful day for a ride.  The sun was shining and it was awesome.  We caught a glimpse of two bear on the trail although they were quick to get out of the way.
We finally got to the Block and headed down the trail stopping at Deer Lake for a refreshment.  We plan on taking the sweet little trail to Otter Lake.  There is nothing too challenging on that trail so everything should be good.
We stopped at Heart Lake and Dave and I went to explore the house boat that is moored at the lake's edge.  John and Shirley stayed on the hill.  We had just passed a couple of other quads on the Heart Lake trail and one of them was going too fast and in his attempt not to hit Dave, ended up smacking into a tree!!  No injuries but he was worried that he had lost his beer cooler!!
We accessed the Otter Lake trail and travelled it finally ending up at the lake.  Here we sat and enjoyed the scenery.  Some of the leaves are starting to turn colour so that is a sure sign of Fall.  In another month or so the Fall colours will be in full swing.
When we started to head back, we all changed quads so that everyone could ride a different quad just to see how the other ones rode.  I took Casey's and I felt like I was driving a semi down the trails.  It felt way too big.
We stopped at Deer Lake again and changed quads again.  This time I rode Dave's and that was an awesome machine to ride.  I felt like I was riding it, not the other way around like when I was on Casey's!!
Eventually we made it back to the grid and the final three miles home.  It was an awesome day, I totally enjoyed myself but knew that I would pay the price tomorrow as my arms and shoulders were already sore.
John started a fire and the bbq and the four of us enjoyed steaks and baked potatoes.  Mmmmm
Now I have to go to bed as I am once again scheduled to work in the morning.  Boo Hiss!!

Beverage

Deer Lake

Otter lake, Nice view

Dave

Shirely

Time to head home

Saturday, August 18/2012

Once again I am up early and enjoying the glorious sunshine.  It is going to be a hot one today so I have the curtains closed so that the bus doesn't get too hot.
I went over to Dave and Shirley's this morning to get the stuff out of their freezer and while I was there, chatted with Dave for a bit.
He mentioned that he was going into Spiritwood and I asked if I could join him as I needed to pick up that varnish for the bar and do a bit of grocery shopping.
About half an hour later, we were headed down the road.  When we got there, he parked in front of the pawn shop where Shirley works and I headed across the street for some groceries then to the hardware store for some nuts and bolts.  Once back at the pawn shop, Dave and I went "upstairs" to do a bit of shopping in the junk that is stored up there.  All the stuff was free so the price was definitely right.
Dave came out with some nice boards and I found a neat little table with an awesome pedestal for the man cave and an old chrome rocking chair along with one of those old wire ashtray/magazine racks which will look awesome in the man cave.  I plan on using it to hold all the old long play record albums.  It can sit right beside the old stereo.  There is definitely a "vintage" theme happening in there.
I also found John a "crystal" ice bucket for the bar (that will add some class) and a rather large "shot" glass.  We can fill the shot glass with tabs from the beer cans.
Our final stop was at the lumber yard where I got the varnish.  We headed home then and since it was so hot,  Dave had the foresight to pack two cold beer so we enjoyed those on the drive home.
Once we got home, we had to show John all the treasures we had found.  He was impressed even though he tried not to show it!!
I got busy with the varnish and managed to get a few coats on the bar before I headed into the bus to make a quick supper, grab a shower and head to work.  Nights tonight and already I am tired!!
We are planning on quadding tomorrow so I will have to hurry home in the morning and grab a few hours sleep before heading out to the trails.  I plan on driving our quad on the trails tomorrow and John will take Casey's.
I finally head off to work leaving John and Dave in the man cave although Dave was on his way home to start supper as Shirley would be getting off work and home soon.

Friday, August 17/2012

I am working today so am up early again.  Hogan can't be bothered even getting out of the chair today!! He gave me a look like "really, you have to turn on the light?"
Off I go ..... the sooner I get there, the sooner I get home.
Busy day again today but it certainly makes the time pass quickly.  I am scheduled to work nights tomorrow so have the morning off the catch up on some of the garden stuff.  I want to make some relish this year so that is on the agenda over the next few days.  I am not sure when exactly as it has to sit overnight and we want to go quadding on Sunday with Dave and Shirley so there will be no time for relish this weekend.  I work again Monday so I guess that leaves it till next week.  Hmmm.....there just isn't enough days in the week!!
The new fridge and freezer were delivered today and they look so nice sitting in the shop.  Now I have extra fridge space and freezer space and no longer have to store our stuff in the neighbour's freezers.  Life is good!!

Thursday, August 16/2012

Hogan and I are up early this morning.  Today is the day the he gets his final sutures out.  His wound is well healed and I am sure he will be happy to see the last of those.  Now all that remains is for the hair to grow back in and no one will ever know he had a gash there.  He had been such a good dog through all this and has really left it alone.  He has learned the meaning of "no licking"!!
John and I headed into Spiritwood today and got the wood for the finishing of the bar.  It will look awesome when it is done although it does have a bit of a lean to it so hopefully once it is complete, that lean will be gone.
When we got back from town, we headed into the man cave to complete the bar.  There is a nice grain showing on the plywood and it will varnish up beautifully.  Oh dear, I forgot to get the varnish!!  It wasn't on the list!!
With the bar construction done, we were then able to finish the last few pieces of the wall trim and now both rooms are trimmed and ready for partying!!
The end is in sight!!

Wednesday, August 15/2012

I am up early this morning as I am scheduled for work today and since I did not bother to iron a uniform yesterday, must do so today.  Oh well, I get some extra "me" time before heading over to the home.
Finally back from work and so glad to be home.  It is always busy over there.
John made some good progress on the bar again today and I think we will be heading into Spiritwood tomorrow to get the plywood needed to finish it off.  Woo Hoo!!!!  We are going to town!!
I am headed to bed early so that I have lots of rest for our excursion tomorrow.

Tuesday, August 14/2012

It has been raining for most of the night and it still continues this morning.  I must head over to the laundromat today but will wait to see if the rain stops.  How is that for an excuse not to do the job??
It is Shirley's Birthday today so I left her a message on her facebook page.  She is working today so maybe she will wander over later tonight for a birthday beverage.
I got a call from the veterinarian today asking how Hogan was doing.  I told her fine and said that I had pulled the drain out on Sunday and will take the last of the sutures out on Thursday.  She was pleased to hear that he was doing well.
Well the rain never did stop and I ended up taking "Old Blue" to the laundromat instead of the yellow jeep.  I don't particularly enjoy driving Old Blue as it does not seem to want to idle and one must keep blipping the gas pedal to keep the damn thing from stalling!!  I did manage to get there though and found that it must have been wash day for the town as I got the final few washing machines for my clothes.
With the laundry finally done, I headed back to the bus and John and I once again, worked on the man cave.  The bar is now under construction!!

Monday, August 13/2012

The sun is shining and it looks like it will be another nice day in the neighbourhood.  The man cave needs a good cleaning and I should do that this morning before we start on the other room.  Stepping over all kinds of tools and tripping over extension cords is not my idea of a good working environment!!  Hell, I am an accident waiting to happen on a good day let alone having to step over obstacles while I am in work mode!!
Before any work gets done today, I went out into the garden and picked the rest of the yellow and green beans.  There were two huge bowls of them.  I nipped the ends and cut them all up, blanched and bagged them and stuck them in the freezer.  I can't hardly wait for the new freezer to come so I will have a decent place to keep all my frozen stuff.  I now have frozen food in both Gary's and Shirley's freezers!!
Larry and Ariane are headed back to Saskatoon today and once they were packed up and the bus "road ready", they loaded their little tracker on the dolly and off they went.  Hopefully, they will be able to join us for the Sept. long weekend.
John has decided that we need to clean up the shop as the new fridge and freezer need to be set up in there and right now, there is a jeep in the way.  He started the Samurai and it started amazingly well.  I had forgot about the billows of blue smoke out its muffler though and now know that there will be no mosquitoes in the shop or near our property!!  All samurai parts, tires and related paraphernalia went inside the samurai.  The jeep was the next to move and it too started without any trouble.  All jeep parts and related jeep paraphernalia went inside it.  Now, we have even more room in the shop.
The jeep was parked at the back of the shop along the east side and the samurai was parked directly in front of it.  This has left half the shop open and free of clutter.
I swept the floor and now their is a clean, uncluttered spot for the fridge and freezer to sit.
With the shop clean, it was time to turn our attention to the clutter in the man cave.  How on earth can two people allow all this mess and still think they can work amongst all this chaos.  It didn't take too long to get all the power and the hand tools under control.  Time to work.  The trim went up quickly and I must say that there are days when John and I work like a well oiled team.  Today was one of those days and before we knew it, all that could be done was done.  Now the bar construction needed to be completed before the last of the trim can go up.  That is on the "TO DO" list for tomorrow.
With today's work complete, John got out the little campfire in a can and turned on some tunes.  We then sat around the campfire while the potatoes cooked over the phony logs enjoying a few beverages.  Before long, the spuds were done and the steak was on the BBQ.  Add some beans, mushrooms and onions, a bit of fresh dill and there you have it....perfection on a plate.
We sat up for a while after that exchanging word in the game of Zynga, then it was time for me to hit the shower and then the bed.  There is still plenty of work to do tomorrow - laundry, ironing my uniforms (I work Wednesday) and of course the construction of the bar in the man cave.....

Sunday, August 12/2012

John and I worked in the man cave today.  The one room is finished except for trying to decide what to do with the floor.  The walls look good and for a man cave, it is starting to look quite cozy.  I think it will look awesome once it is all done.
Larry and Ariane went off exploring on their own today while John and I were busy on the man cave.  They did not return for a while and John and I had already had supper and I was relaxing in bed when Larry came over wondering if we wanted to play cards.
I had mucked around in the garden a bit this morning and had a pot of beets ready for picking but John and I ended up eating some of them for supper so now there is not enough to pickle!!
I also picked some beans and blanched them and now they are ready to be bagged and frozen.  It was a busy day for us.

Saturday, August 11/2012

I am up early and it is rather dreary outside this morning.  It looks like rain and there is a chill in the bus today.
We are supposed to be taking the little trucks out and doing a few of the trails down in the block but unless the weather improves, I am not sure if we will be going any where today.  Ariane is quite nervous on the trails and she will really be worried if we go in the rain!!
Dave and Shirley were to be going with us today as well as Shirley has a day off today.  We usually plan on doing something together whenever we have the same days off.
With today's trip up in the air, I decide to start painting the walls of the man cave.  I get busy with the job at hand and am quite surprised at just how easy the color is going on the walls.  I was done all the walls in three hours and when John came in to "inspect" said that the roof should be done as well so an hour later, that too was complete.
Dave and Shirley had finally got back from their trip to Spiritwood and the gun show and were wondering about today's ride.  The sun had broken through the clouds (we did have a bit of a rain shower earlier) and was shining bright and warm.
We decided to take a trip to the far end of Otter lake (where Dave had got stuck on his quad, piled up his winch and ended up walking the 8 k back to his truck).
It was a wonderful trail and threw a variety of obstacles in our way - mud, roots and closed in trail.  I think Larry must have got some forest pin stripping on his little tracker!!
We made it to the lake and saw the bottomless hole that Dave got stuck in then sat at the little camping spot and had a beverage.  We were deep in the forest and did not expect to see anyone out there today.  It wasn't long before we heard the sounds of incoming quads and were soon joined by Arnie and Shelly Larocque, Don and Betty Fletcher and Morgan and Dane and their little puppy Dodge.  Hogan was quite intrigued by Dodge and wasn't quite sure what to do with this tiny little creature.   Arnie and Shelly did not stop to chat (no surprise there) but the rest of the group did and that was nice.  They then carried on to catch up with the lead quad and we sat for a bit longer before we too started back.
We soon made it back to Leoville and John started a campfire.  Dave and Shirley stayed for a bit then headed home for supper.  Larry and Ariane ate next and as usual, John and I brought up the tail end.  I was tired and lay down before my supper was ready!!  I was more tired than hungry and could have very easily just slept.  I was the only one today that actually did any work (four hours of painting can make a girl tired!!)  John and Larry burned the midnight oil around the fire and eventually they called it quits around 2 in the morning. Apparently there was a meteor shower and northern lights happening in the night skies tonight.

Headed out

Heading down to Otter Lake

A little mud

Even Hogan was in 4x4 mode!

Trail narrows up

Otter Lake

Our destination for the day

Beverage

Heading back out

Relaxing around the fire after a great day!

Friday, August 10/2012

I am up early this morning and can hear that Larry is up as well.  The sun is shining and it looks like it is going to be another nice day today.
John and I made the trip into Spiritwood today to get more wood for the man cave and stopped by the appliance store where we quickly picked out a  new fridge and freezer.  We were there about 10 minutes and spent a thousand dollars!!  Not bad eh?!!
I then stopped at the grocery store and the drug store.  With our purchases loaded onto the truck, we headed back to Leoville.  The appliances will be delivered next week and that is a good thing as John has to re-arrange the shop as the appliances have to go at the back of the shop and right now, there is a jeep in the way.
When we got home, we decided to go and have a beer beside Vimy Lake.  We have so many little lakes so close to us that we could probably have a beer beside a different lake for a month.
We decided to take the Vimy Tower road to the lake and that was fun.  Larry did take on a bit of water at one point in the trail where once again, Mr. Beaver had been busy trying to raise the water level in the area.  Damn them anyway!!
We met Dave on the trail just before we got to Vimy.  I had mentioned to him when I went to get a bag of ice that we were headed that way for a beer and invited him to join us.
We sat a vimy for about and hour and a half then headed back to Leoville where once again, it was time for supper.
Tonight, burgers and macaroni salad was on the menu.  Both were good.  I started a campfire and that seemed to take the chill out of the evening.  It is getting closer to fall now (as all the golden rod and wild asters along the trail can attest to) and the chill is in the air in the evenings.  I did notice that a wood run is in our near future!!
The Saskatchewan Roughriders were playing football tonight and unfortunately lost once again.  Man, I think that is three in a row and that is not good!!

Our trail for the day

Larry 

Vimy Lake

Dave

Dave and Hogan

Crossing Vimy Creek

Ariane

Heading home

The bed was soon calling to me and I headed in that direction.  I want to start the painting in the man cave tomorrow so need to rest up for that little ordeal!!   Good Night.