May Long Weekend and other stories...

My dear friend, Megan, turned thirty this week and to celebrate our group converged on Jeremy’s family cabin in Kenora. Now, the last time we were in Kenora we hit a deer on the highway, so let’s say I was a tad tense on the trip out. We saw at least a dozen deer by the road, but made it there successfully.

Megan really liked her prezzies, a scarf...


And a cross-stitch of her favourite word.


We danced, canoed, painted rocks, went for walks while some skipped stones or just hung out. On Saturday night we had a camp fire and this huge dog appeared and decided to join the party. I really wanted to take this dog home, as she was gentle, didn’t beg for food and was sort of an ‘old soul’. But she was about 120 lbs and it was obvious she belonged to a neighbour by her healthy appearance.

We dubbed her “Bear” and I was convinced she was an angel sent from heaven which eventually altered her name to “Angel Bear”. She even came back the following day and swam in the water while we canoed, laid in the sun on the deck when we had lunch and bid us farewell as we drove away. Whatever we were doing, wherever we were, she was not far behind.



A real-life Littlest Hobo....I heart her.
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Before I forget to mention

Another recent gift I made was for Dude.


Dude and I went to library school together and now work in the same school division. Not everyone gets prezzies in the inter-office mail run. I appreciate her friendship and the fact that she is just an email away when I need to vent, so thanks Dude for being such a good dude to me.
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Now, back to the weekend...

We arrived home early for a long weekend, a whole day early in fact.

Jerome had this plan that he would get on the horn and order the soil we needed for our garden and flower beds. Now remember, it is late Sunday afternoon, it is a loooong weekend and the next day is a holiday. Somehow the soil-gods were smiling on him because he successfully procured six cubic yards of soil, at a price $60 cheaper than the quotes we received, to be delivered on the holiday Monday.
God Jerome, you’re good.

Then it dawned on us...we don’t have a wheel-barrow!
Jump in the car, stores close within the hour, bring it home and take another hour to put it together...now we were set.

Then it arrived. It didn’t look like that much, it spread over 12 feet squared and for some reason I thought it would be bigger...not that I have ever uttered those words before.


We spent the better part of the day shovelling and raking, bending and lifting, between the cool wind and threats of rain. I lost count of the wheel-barrow fulls we transported throughout the yard. One neighbour filled up the tire on the wheel-barrow (did I mention it was flat?) and another lent us the use of his roto-tiller.

Then the kids appeared with shovels...

Three neighbourhood kids descended, eager to help. More soil ended up in the driveway (parts on the driveway where there was no soil before) than in the target bucket.

I tried to stop them, honestly I tried. I don't know if it was the fatigue, or hunger, but they overcame me and wore me down as they insisted on helping. So, I let them...until one of them quipped "Just how much are you going to pay us for this anyways?" This became the end of their short-lived careers as soil movers. Please note: no children were harmed in the moving of this soil.

By the end of the day it was a lot of work, yet there was a great sense of pride that we had accomplished it. Although some of us like to stop to take pictures while others (aka me) soldiered on...Seriously, I think I surprised Jerome that I could work this hard!


It was a grand day indeed. Until I tried to get out of bed the next morning...