Meet Radar

Through a crazy set of twists and turns this past few weeks, we now have a new permanent house guest. He showed up a year ago for visits, then went missing recently for 30 days and miraculously found his way back here to us a week ago. He was crying at the back door and frantically pushing on the door willing it to open. Pretty thin and starving but otherwise in good shape.

He is now a permanent fixture. I had taught him some little things before he went missing and he somehow managed to remember those things and just simply picked up where we left off. Of course, now that he’s back home, his night time roaming as a feral cat has come to an end. He seems to be adjusting to that quickly and I suspect he’s really not that concerned given the option of a safe environment compared to the unknown “out there”. We have raccoons in the area, so better and safer for him to be inside.

To see him in action, you would never really know he was feral. He’s quickly returning to the sweet little buddle of kitty kisses and cuddles he was a month ago. He’s getting over whatever the adventure was that he was on. We drove the route as much as we could to figure out how far he came and it’s about 3.5 – 4 miles.

A little spooked still from sudden movements, but learning quickly those are just every day movements around the house and no threat to him. He plays like any other cat and of course tries to assert the Alpha male role with the older cats that visit, but it never works out for him.

This is the moment when he tries to explain to the neighbours cat, that the treats come to him first, so stand down.. Yeah right…

We are learning to use his new name befitting his recent trek into the great unknown, and he’s learning how to respond to it… And so the journey begins. Welcome back Radar to your forever home.

Pender Island

At the beginning of the week we took a trip over to one of the Gulf Islands. My Canadian followers know that here on the West Coast are a series of islands between where I am on Vancouver Island (referred to as the big island), and the BC mainland. For my US followers, these are the islands on the Canadian side of the imaginary border and on the US side are the San Juan Islands. 

There are so many gulf islands, most of which are only inhabited by the wildlife or in one case that I know of, is owned by one person. If you’re looking for that kind of real estate, the asking price for James Island is a mere $75,000,000. 00 If you have that in petty cash, this could be yours… ;o~

James Island

The island we chose this time,  is Pender Island. It was originally one island, then became two, then joined together with a bridge and became one again, but now called North and South Pender Islands. Confused? Yeah we were too when someone explained it to us. If you are a “big city” person who likes the hussle bussle and non stop activity of that life style you will not last on these islands. The pace is as far removed from that kind of pace as you can get.

Heading to our B&B, we came across directions for everything else.

That was fun.

The island is only 14 square miles and a population of 1150 approx. There is no taxi, bus or other modes of transportation other than cars. We saw lots of bikes, but we only saw one person actually riding them, mostly we saw them being used to draw attention to their address and in one case there was a line of old kids bikes along a fence line. On one rural corner we saw the same two very nice kids bikes and helmets. They never moved for the 3 days we were there. In most other places, they would have been gone in a millisecond I’m sure.

There is a great feature for people who arrive from the ferry terminal on foot. If you have a car, they give you a card to put on your dashboard with the name of the terminal you are arriving at. You leave that on your dash and that tells anyone on foot that you are willing to pick up and drive someone where they are going. We didn’t do that, because we had never been there and didn’t know where we were going. There are these signs posted everywhere around the island as well. If you are on foot you can stand at one of these signs and wait for someone willing to stop and give you a lift.

We stayed at a nice B&B called Gnomes Hollow. Our room was a nautical theme and our view was of the forest behind us.Very nice couple that run it and if you want quiet, that’s what you will get. We spent most of the day checking out the different view points and getting lost all the time. What’s new, dumb tourists. With only a couple of main roads, I’m sure the locals saw us pass by several times and thinking, “they made another wrong turn”. ;o) There is one of everything in the way of shopping and most of the activity is at Driftwood Center. They have their basic stores, so anything special you need to travel to either Vancouver Island or Vancouver on the other side.

Of course, being a dedicated craft person, I’m always on the alert for anything that could become a necessary purchase for my dolls. And I did find a treasure at the one hardware store, Home Hardware. This is about 1/3rd of the size of the cart I posted a while ago, (the one from Safeway). I put my Humpty Dumpty doll on the seat, he measures 10” tall for perspective. The wheels actually turn on that chain, so it is a working bike. Kind of like a kabuki cab. My mind right away went to a couple of Jesters sitting, one driving and another pushing from behind. I can’t control what I think…lol

I also found beads. There is an amazing artist near to the ferry, Milada. Her and her husband own Renaissance Studio. She make jewellery from glass beads she makes as well as Swarovski crystals that she brings over from Europe on their yearly trek. She has a contract with the makers of these beautiful crystals, so that indicates what they think of her work. They also sell antiques and Persian Rugs. They don’t have a website but a Google search brings up several references to them. I came away with a few packages of beads, so my crafty side was now happy. I don’t wear much jewellery, but my dolls will be very happy to do so.

We met a lot of the locals and every one of them were very engaging. Lots of conversation, nobody is in a hurry, they love to chat. I guess I would have to say these locals were my favourite if I  were asked to choose. I’ve never had the privilege of being this close to deer and this was a wonderful experience. The ones that were the least jittery were the bucks, I would have thought it would be the babies. But we got a chance to feed them fruit and veggies and then they leave for the night. A forever memory for sure. The man they visit, what a kind and gentle soul. They have visited him for decades and it’s just part of his world. They know him and visit him every day. The littlest one second from the right, is Midget. She was the runt of the litter and they didn’t know if she would make it, but apparently she did.

 

Another of the areas we enjoyed was around Poets Cove. We stopped for lunch and you’ll be happy to know that Poets Cove has just been listed for $30,000,000.00, so another chance for some great real estate. ;o~  After lunch we drove down to the waterfront and walked around Brooks Point. There is always something so serene about being by the water. Along the way we spotted these jelly fish. This one was about 12”-14” across. Once the tide comes in, they’ll go back out to sea.

 

Don’t you wonder how these gnarly trees stay upright? The height of the tree was at least 100 feet. I’m sure the owners of the house behind are glad the tree is leaning the other way.

Waterfront views are never boring. If my bearings are correct, the island in the background, is Saturna.

At the opposite end of the island is a spot called Thieves Bay, bet there’s a story there. There is a parking area for Whale Watching. There are whales that pass by often, so we hoped that would be the case this day, but not to be. We did watch different boats going by and there is a marina right there.

This sail boat passed by and at the same time one of the ferries was also passing. The sail boat reminded me of a pirate ship and the ferry was like the past and present meeting for a moment in time.

 

On the last morning, we headed down to the ferry terminal early as the locals said that Wednesday can be a busy ferry run. Everywhere we went they kept telling us to make sure to have a burger at The Stand, right at the ferry terminal. When locals make that kind of recommendation, you have to listen. So we pre-ordered a couple of burgers to take on the ferry since it was lunch time anyway.

Apparently at anytime, you can tell the person at the gate coming through, that you’re just coming down to The Stand and they’ll tell you which lane to park in. You drive down, eat or take away, and they’ve been doing that for 21 years.

Just to show how “not relaxed” even I’m not, I kept getting concerned about missing the ferry while waiting for the food. Jan was so calm, her helper was in the back making our burgers, while the ferry is unloading the cars and getting ready to reload. All she said was, it’s okay, your husband can drive on and you can walk on with the food…. lol   Easy for her to say… ;o)

But it all worked out just like she said. In fact, she added an order of fries we didn’t ask for. When we opened the boxes to eat our burgers, the lady that made them, had not only cut them in half, but also wrapped each half in paper. That was such a great idea. We only ate one burger between us and kept the other one for dinner. So good.

Pender, thank you for a wonderful visit. Next time we will be better prepared to get around and fall into the pace you move in.

Repurpose this !!!!!

This is my neighbours barbeque area. Do you see anything unusual in this picture????? No!  Well I can’t either, not from this distance.

So perhaps we need to get a little closer.  Anything yet ?!?!?!  Look very closely…..

How about now?!?!?!  Isn’t that just the best way to repurpose an oven mitt. I can’t think of a better way at all. Want to see what else is happening?????

6, count them….6 eggs. How does one little Wren, tiny as she is, have 6 eggs under her. Boy is she going to be busy if they all hatch out. What a clever little bird, she found a more than cozy little place to make her nest, and it’s perfectly sheltered, not only right above her but there is also a roof on the deck area. Smart little Jenny Wren.

I couldn’t get any closer to her to get better pictures but I also didn’t want to frighten her. She did fly off eventually and I quickly snapped the next picture. Had to do it fast, she was nearby and giving me a bit of a panic stricken tweet tweet. I think I may have to leave out an oven mitt myself and see if this might start a trend in the neighbourhood. She really does look so darn sweet tucked into her nest. My neighbours will have all those little baby bird sounds soon to entertain them.

Squidgey

What the heck is Squidgey, right…. Ahhh, well Squidgey is our new pet. Don’t ask me where the name came from, it just popped into my head and so it is. I think he’s been here longer than the two weeks we’ve known him as there have been tell tale signs. 

Last week I was feeding him peanuts and the neighbours cat came along. Well never let it be said that a cat doesn’t love a good hunt. Squidgey (don’t you just love that name), stands a mere 3 feet from Max and stares him down, as though he’s saying… Try it, just try it…  So Max did. Off they went for a run around the yard. Hilarious. There was no way Max was keeping up, no way. He came back looking dejected and defeated.

The next day, I was feeding Squidgey again and then had to leave and go to a friends for our doll making afternoon. Just half an hour after feeding  Squidgey, there it was, I was driving down the road, almost the end of the street and what do I see, flat on his back like he’s passed out from a night of too much libation. My heart sunk as I saw this furry little creature lying there. I stopped looked and watched to see if there was movement…None!

Off I went and for the whole weekend all I could think of was that I had lost another pet…. Yesterday, I was at a neighbours and the door bell rang. Whose standing outside, (no, not Squidgey), but my hubby. He said I got my Christmas wish and that our little pet was just fine. He was in the back yard snacking on peanuts that we put out for the Stellar’s Jays. Well talk about putting a bounce back in your step. How many hubbies would do something that sweet, I was so happy after that. Today I will pick out the biggest peanuts I can find and wait for Squidgey (the name is growing on you isn’t it) to arrive.

Maybe I’ll get to watch the tug of war between hubby and Squidge. Hubby held onto a peanut a little harder to see how strong and determined the little guy is…and he is…. Yes I know they are part of the rodent family, but in a much prettier form.

In this picture you can see that he let me ever so gently and carefully touch his little foot. He’s used to people, not at all shy. He runs down the length of the yard, comes and gets a peanut or two, runs to the neighbours or just around the corner, quickly digs a hole, hides his treasures and comes racing back for more… Just the funniest thing to see. He buried one of them just a couple of feet from where we were sitting, guess he was running out of steam going back and forth. Cute isn’t he….

Esquimalt Lagoon

It was such a beautiful day on Sunday we decided an outing was in order. We picked up a friend and off we went for a very good lunch at the Spitfire Grill. It’s next to the airport and is built inside an old airplane hanger. Lots of wonderful  creative touches like miniature old planes and all things aeronautical.

From there we went for a drive. We didn’t tell our passenger where, we just made her guess until we got there. Along the way, just as we were going to turn, up ahead I could see what looked like a bobble head inside a bag on the back of a motorcycle….We just had to see what it was, but there was a car in front of us, darn.

Just as we came to the turning lane I was able to snap a quick picture. Now this is just the cutest thing I ever saw. I never knew they made helmets this small, goggles yes, but not helmets. I had to take this picture really fast, but I did get one…so yay for me… I don’t know the breed of the dog, but I’m leaning toward something like a Silky…Tiny tiny dog and oh so cute. Her little head was looking left and right, and her pretty silky hair was blowing in the breeze. It also has the cutest little pink outfit with what looks like Rhinestones at the neck edge…. I enlarged the picture I took to see how they had her secured in the bag and I think they have something like straps holding her in. She looked very safe.

Next stop was the lagoon. Had to take this picture coming in, the mountains, the ocean and the shoreline were in perfect harmony.

Once we were out of the van we walked over to the edge to see the birds that live there. It’s a nature sanctuary and all kinds of birds reside there. Pigeons, Ducks, Crows, Sparrows, Starlings, Geese, Gulls, Herons and Swans. Maybe others to, that I didn’t happen to spot. I started down toward where they were to get some pictures and a swan started walking toward me. If I had reached out my hand I could have pet him, but he started to raise his wings and make an odd noise which kind of told me, that if I didn’t have any grain for him, I should just go back where I was…lol

I managed a picture of a Heron. I couldn’t get much closer, the ground is pretty rich with, well you know, and I wasn’t sure I was supposed to get much closer out of respect for their turf.

I thought this was a gorgeous shot of a group of Swans. They are so beautiful. I call this one Seven Swans a Swimming based on the Twelve Days of Christmas song. 

So one more shot looking across the lagoon area. The first picture is looking out from the other side of the road to the ocean. It’s such an amazing place to enjoy the scenery, ocean breezes and nature at it’s finest. Our friend hadn’t been out here for years, so it was a treat for her to see all the changes… A great day for all of us…

Horth Hill Park

We’re very lucky here in that we have so many regional parks to visit and enjoy a hike and thinking ahead even spend time at a bench having a picnic lunch. What’s not to like, no traffic noises, no running errands, doing chores….just spending time in a beautiful place with just the sounds of nature to top that solitude.

With all the rain we had this past year, and cool temperatures, the forest floor is a carpet of ferns, and Oregon grape plants, salal, and all manners of trees that have come down in some of the wind storms and so much more. The parks department doesn’t clear those away, they just clear the walking paths and leave the wood to rot down and go back into the earth. It completes the cycle of life in a forest when they do that. The little organisms, animals and birds thrive and the trees eventually just crumble and turn into that amazing soil that only a forest has that makes everything that grows in it, just grow and grow and grow…

The hike up to the viewpoint seemed much harder the last time we did it, but maybe we were in better shape this time???? I did take pictures of the route going up…

This first part looks like what I envision a fairy garden to be. Any minute now some gnomes will pop out from behind something. Pretty isn’t it.

And up we go….. See how the tree is leaning. Eventually that will fall down and they’ll just cut it up and move it off the path and leave it off to the side.

And up some more….

Yeah I know, it looks tame. But when you feel the boom boom in your chest, you know that your heart is getting a good workout…;o)

Almost there….

Ahhh, the reward…..

Do you know what this next picture is of ?????  Give up ????? ;o))  It’s taken going downhill…..YES!!!  It really is very special to be able to go to these parks whenever we like, I so appreciate that….

Elk Lake Part 2

Well true to our word, we went back to the lake. We intended to head to the right side, walk a while, have a bit of lunch at a bench somewhere along the way and come back….HAH!!!! NOT !!!!  We walked to an area where we could have our lunch and then got the bright idea to see how far the trail would take us… At the start of our walk, we got a send off with a flock of Canada Geese. I had hoped to get a picture while they were on land, but people came along with a young dog who took great delight in chasing them into the water.

There were lots of families of ducks, some hiding amongst the swamp grasses along the waterline, others seemed to be on training missions with mom and dad. There were other ducks as well that were just enjoying a nice day. One in particular was unusual, at least to me. I don’t recall seeing black and white ducks in this area but as a friend pointed out, there are hybrids everywhere, so perhaps that’s what happened to this one.

While having lunch I walked over to where a loan duck was sitting and gave him some crust from my bread. He must have liked that because he followed me back to our table so who am I to deny him more. He came right up to our table within a foot of hubby, so I’m guessing they are used to being around we human beings.

Off we went to explore the trail. It’s a beautiful spot but just to darn busy for us. We prefer to be able to walk and not have to constantly step aside for joggers, guys with fishing gear, people with dogs on the run and other people on horseback. Not sure what these little fishing things are called, but the lake was speckled with people fishing from them.

And even skunk cabbage is beautiful to see. It may be stinky up close, but when it flowers those bright yellow blooms really make a statement in the darkness of a forest. These weren’t blooming  but they are flourishing with the rain we’ve been having. These are somewhere between 4 – 5 ft tall.

Working around the final leg of the walk we came across this little guy crossing the path. Apparently this is the time they are making busy and you need to watch out for them. Poor guy made me feel ashamed for complaining about my sore tootsies and crappy footwear. Given how long it’s going to take him/her to get where they’re going, I can only admire their determination.  He/she was approx. 10” across the width, and it pulled it’s head in when I went around the front to take a picture. I waited and it bravely poked it’s head out to take a look around.

So, after an unplanned marathon walk of 2 1/2 hours and 10 kms later we returned to the truck. What’s not to like, it was a gorgeous day, not to hot and a bit of a breeze and this kind of scenery.. It’s all good….

Elk Lake

We went for a walk around the nature trail at Elk Lake yesterday. We hadn’t done that walk before, so we weren’t sure exactly what distance we would cover. Elk lake actually joins up with Beaver lake so to cover the whole distance would take hours and we didn’t have experience with these trails.

Next time we’re going to go the opposite direction as I think we can get a better understanding of where the trails lead. The trail we’ll use follows along the shoreline of the lake so that we can see where we’re at, rather than peeking through the bushes to try and figure that out. It’s a great walk non the less, although it is a very busy place with lots of joggers, people with their dogs and others just taking in the fresh air, beauty and getting exercise.

Our Gold Medal winning National Rowing teams here in Canada use Elk lake for their training, so we also had a chance to walk down and see where all their boats are and from the outside at least, the clubhouse. Here’s a link to more about them. You can see them out on the lake at all times and early early mornings…

While we were walking, we found a bench to sit and enjoy the view that you could see. We brought some fruit and water and it was nice to just sit in the quiet of the woods, with occasional pooches passing by walking their owners. This is the view, isn’t it nice. The other side you see is the part that if you continue to the left would join up with Beaver Lake. We’ll figure that out next time we go.

Just reflecting on the view makes you more cognizant of how much we need to preserve these beautiful surroundings and help Mother Nature do her work.

On our way back to the car we passed by this lovely growth of Queen Ann’s Lace, at least I’m assuming that’s what it is. I’ve never seen it so big before, it was almost 5 ft. tall and so pretty. Next time we go, I’ll take more pictures because the whole area is just so beautiful. We plan to do more walks soon as we’ve missed those. In our own defence though, it has been really rainy and it makes for slippery walking on sometimes tricky pathways. Until next time.

It’s Spring Again!

Spring is here and so are the new babies… There are families of Canadian Geese at the military base. Couldn’t get close enough to take nice close up pictures, mama and papa were staying very close to the babies and hissing at us when we got to close. So this is the best I could get. So cute and I bet so cuddly…

An Autumn Colour Palette

I was searching the net one day for autumn scenes of inspiration and I came across this. I thought, what a great colour wheel and based on my most favourite season of the year.  Whoever it was that first created this, I applaud you. It's brilliant and so much more interesting than the regular colour wheel.

It's going to be a great day for creating. The wind is blowing, the leaves are to, and it looks like some showers might follow. Yes, I'm strange that way. I'm a much happier and creative person when the weather is cooler, so I'm living in the right part of the world here on the island....

I will have a new project to show you tomorrow.  ;o))))

Last night of Summer

It's Monday night, the last night of Summer and look at this pretty view. We went for a walk after dinner, along the waterfront and this was the view. The sky, the water and the horizon alternated between pink and blue everywhere you looked. It was beautiful. My favourite season starts tomorrow. I love Autumn, I hope we get some blustery days soon. There's nothing nicer than wrapping up and heading out for a walk on a windy day. It's free and invigorating... Love it...

Night and Day

On Saturday night I could hear some rumbling and ask DH if he heard that. We only get thunder and lightning maybe two or three times a year and it only lasts a short time. It's a big event for me because I have total respect for Mother Nature and what she does, so I watch, listen and photograph what I can. I looked out as the sky was getting darker and the sky was an ever changing canvas, so I just had to grab my camera and capture it.

Along with the thunder of course came the lightning strikes, not many but so brilliant and then the rain threw itself down to the ground. The thunder and lightning only lasted as it does here, maybe a little over an hour, the showers continued off and on through the night.

What my camera did with the dimming sky I could never have done if I had tried forever. The sky was not the depth of colour these pictures show, but I'm not complaining. It's what my camera saw and captured. I also have always watched for faces in clouds. In the first picture there is a definite face and less so in the others, but the first one for sure. By morning, the sky was back to normal and quiet as quiet could be.  I've sent a friend whose an oil painter the original of the third picture to work her magic on canvas with it....and I bet she will.