Saturday 10/9 - almost Thanksgiving

My apologies for not getting this post out 'til Monday (October 11). The past weekend was a bit of a whirl with two Thanksgiving dinners and a trip to Halifax, but more about that next week.

We started off this week by washing the pile of dishes left over from the Saturday night dinner while suffering a few low level after effects.

Then Melanie and I went out to the shed to find out how our bisque firing turned out. It was fine - no shattered pieces - so now we'll do some glazing and then fire again.

Craig and Andrea stopped by, with their kids, on the way back to Halifax - good to see them, first time since summer of '19 - the kids are bigger, surprise. Also, I've heard, via the grapevine which has very long tendrils, that cousin Bob is back on the golf course now with the assistance of a special cart and his strong left arm. Sounds good Bob. 

Took a nap and then we were off to Johnston Point (NB) to see Phil and Suzanne; it was good to catch up on all their doings both in Charlottetown and see the changes in their NB home. Good bread, ratatouille, and a delicious carrot cake - almost like fruit cake with icing - Suz sent us the recipe Monday morning. Phil does a lot of very detailed drawings of trees, hills and grasses on blue glazed cups, bowls and tea pots - I think I'm going to give that a whirl - a light blue exterior glaze with some lines scored in before bisquing or drawn with underglaze pencils - lots of experimenting to do.

More reading about fitness - Gabe Mirkin, whose emails I subscribe to, had a very good article a few days ago entitled Walk Faster, Live Longer, which I took to heart this morning - I walked from our lane to Chapman Settlement Road and back in under an hour, a pace around 3.7 mph, a new walking speed record for me and certainly not a stroll. Back home I'm into the six hour process of making Newfie Molasses Bread, not very happy with it right now, it was supposed to make two loaves but I think I'm going to get only one, part of the problem may be that I am using one of Edith Atherton's old bread pans - they are huge compared to bread pans you see in the store these days. After rereading the recipe I see that when I divided it in two, to make two loaves instead of four, I did not change the quantity of molasses, I still used one cup - duh. That may be why it was so difficult to knead. Any way, it's done and we shall see.

Had dinner at Garth and Carol's, along with Brian & Clare, and my loaf of bread. A fine meal of a lentil/squash soup, salad and a mixed berry grunt from one of Carol's old recipes, delicious; and the bread Newfie Bread was good too, if a bit molassesie. One purpose of the dinner was to sort through a collection of family photos, trinkets, and letters from Bob & Brenda's cottage. We sorted and threw out empty envelopes and other junky bits but I kept a number of photos and papers that we will turn over to Bob for further winnowing when we see him in Florida later this fall. 

I'd sworn off golf because I can't follow a ball in flight but had a change of heart when Rob LeMoine invited me to join him Tuesday morning in Amherst, and again when Claude Vickery said he'd like to play later in the week (they'll be down from Toronto for the weekend). Had a most enjoyable round, best in two years so I'm very glad I went. It was a lovely day, warm, clear, uncrowded, and only lost one ball. On the way home stopped by Tanguay's for some apples - funny looking things with a dull greenish skin, but delicious, tart and crisp - and Rob gave Melanie a couple of boxes of canning jars with lids. Supper was early because, it being the first Tuesday of the month, there was a Tidnish Community Area & Association Board meeting, a result of which is that I will work a bit on reviewing and helping to update the Association's policies. 

Local news on the SaltWire Wednesday morning was the death of Roger Bacon - known to us as the owner of a small nine hole golf course outside of Amherst though he was widely know for a very active life in politics and farming. Wednesday promises to be another lovely day. Melanie is off to exercise and I'm going to relax at home, do bookkeeping, mowing, and relax. Fran and Tony came for supper and we talked a lot about Green Valley and Covid, will they keep their place there and the ongoing impact of the disease on all of us. 

Thursday was another golf day, walked the AGC with Bud and Claude, who is here for Thanksgiving and will be flying back to Toronto on Monday.

 

In the evening we went over to Roger (Roddie) and Bob's, together with Clare and Brian, for a curried lamb dinner followed by a delicious high bush blueberry tort - wonder how the recipe would work with regular blueberries - it was 75% berries and maybe 25% cake - I got the recipe from Roger who also built the unusual outdoor 'shower' to the left; though you can't tell from the photo, the view from the tub is across the lawn, looking over the water toward Cape Tormentine.

Today is a day at home. The furnace guy from BlueWave come by to do our annual checkup; a friend came by for lunch, and our washing machine pump (the one that drains water out before the spin cycle) died. Fun and games. We'll get it sorted next week. 

And now, a change in viewpoint, Melanie wrote a long letter to her brother Julian and I have taken the liberty of incorporating some of it here:

It's still dark outside and remains so until after 7:00 these days. Being here has been a strange gift this year, while lots of our life feels normal, many aspects of it feel tenuous. We know we will be leaving Nova Scotia in about a month; friends and family will be closing up their cottages this weekend (after Thanksgiving) as they have done for decades, a process which announces the beginning of fall activities and winter planning. 

                                      

We"ve been trying to think ahead, knowing we have appointments in New Orleans in early December.  And our list of non-medical folks to see keeps increasing as we think about heading south while skirting around the edges of "downsizing" our twenty year accumulation here. The larger picture is a general feeling of uncertainty with the rise of covid all around us. The maritimes have generally been proactive about covid so the numbers have been kept relatively low.  But, with a serious increase in cases (so small it would be paid little attention in the States) New Brunswick will be in a semi-lockdown beginning this Friday evening at 6 pm and continuing for two weeks - only essential travel will be allowed in and out of the province and one has to have a registration card and proof of vaccinations to enter public places. 

 

We are going to Halifax on Sunday, returning Monday. We'll stay overnight at a cousin Mike's and have dinner with Jeanne Christie and several others. We are also planning to visit two couples, we've not seen in two years - all are OK (re Covid) with this.

The art show and sale, Art Across the Marsh. has been cancelled the 16th and 17th - we were scheduled to exhibit in New Brunswick but their Covid 'circuit breaker' measures have put an end to that.

Saturday was leisurely, we spent midday driving around, with short visits, doing Thanksgiving gifting from Melanie's Kitchen - went to see Claire & Don, Nick & Becka, Garth, and the Tanguays. Came home and finished mowing the lawn around the barn. In the evening we were off to David & Beryls, joined by Bud & Nancy, Heather and Hal, and Elizabeth Morrison for a Thanksgiving dinner complete with good munchies and wine before followed by a turkey and Heather's pumpkin chiffon pie. A lovely way to end the week. Home and to bed rather later than usual.