lower…

21 Thursday May 2026

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once I got up on Tuesday, I decided to feed the fish…

usually they get fed around 10:30, but it was just before nine when I got out the food and discovered that the water in one tank was way lower than the others…

it had been leaking out from the very top of the pump:-(… very unusual spot for a leak… I don’t think it had been spewing water for very long and set out to sort out the situation…

turned the pump off, used towels to mop up as much of the water as possible and then took out the filters and cleaned them… oddly, algae had blocked the bottom of the filter pack…

after cleaning the filters, they went back into the pump and everything seemed fine although it took a few hours to soak up all the spilled water…

whenever there is a leak, I am nervous for the next few days and constantly checking to make sure everything is fine, lol…

so far, so good 😊…

spatchcocked…

20 Wednesday May 2026

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on Sunday we (well, my housemate) cooked a spatchcocked chicken on Glowy for dinner…

afterwards I took the leftover bones and meat and started chicken soup…

finished it in the morning and had a delicious cup of soup for lunch;-)…

ladders…

19 Tuesday May 2026

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my middle grandson came over on Saturday to help with some projects…

it started with removing the virginia creeper from the house and garage eavestroughs which involved a few ladders, big boards, buckets, and a number of yardwaste bags, lol…

from there he worked with his brother on adding copper mesh to boards to go along the garage to keep the squirrels out… hopefully it works…

the final piece of work was helping with getting the sails up in the garden…

happy we got so much done, particularly since then the weather has been cold🤪…

wanted…

18 Monday May 2026

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lately I’ve been using frozen mango in my morning yogurt rather than my usual raspberries…

it has reminded me of the six weeks I spent in St. Boniface hospital over fifteen years ago…

for five of those weeks I was unable to eat, or drink anything… feeding tubes and IVs…

finally, towards the very end of my stay I was allowed to drink something…

and, for whatever reason, I wanted mango juice… my family searched high and low, but were unable to find any…

finally, after I returned home, some was produced, lol…

so my yogurt with frozen mango in it has been a reminder of that time in my life…

these reminders make me realize how blessed I am…

blocks…

17 Sunday May 2026

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I can’t explain how happy I am…

Wednesday, after hours of work in and around the pond we got it cleaned, filled with water and the waterfall and second pump going;-)…

a hose was dug into the dirt and blocks tidied up from last year’s construction…

there were a dozen various sparrows snacking on the grass and clover seed that went down last Saturday, lol…

they have also been enjoying the water with baths and drinks…

the back deck is not quite set up, but I managed to get a cushion on one of the chairs and sat out enjoying the wonderful sound of the water cascading from the waterfall and over the rock…

and while we were working on the pond, Hilda the Gardener was tidying up all the flower beds, in the hope that someday we will be able to plant, lol…

circulating…

16 Saturday May 2026

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started work on the pond…

first step was to empty out the water… that was done last Saturday…

on Wednesday, after using the wet-vac and vacuuming the leaves and other crud out of the bottom, the pumps were set in place…

then the water flowed in and the pumps started circulating… which also means the waterfall began making wonderful music…

what a treat…

cucumbers…

15 Friday May 2026

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next part of the project was to install two arches where I am hoping to grow cucumbers and beans and morning glories;-)…

they will be located between the pond and the deck…

I’m hopeful that the light will help grow more veggies and brighten up that section of the garden;-)…

now the arches are in, two planters from other areas of the garden will be placed under them to hold the plants, once the grass/clover comes through the dirt/compost/sand… fingers crossed…

we picked up some wire and fastened it to the arches using zip ties…

it will be interesting to see how long it takes to cover the arches with greenery…

lava…

14 Thursday May 2026

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the Japanese Maple bonsai has moved into a new and much bigger pot…

holes were punched into the bottom and soil, compost, sand, and fertilizer went into the new pot with some used lava rocks…

it looks like a very large container for a small plant, but the hope is that the trunk will grow larger in the bigger pot…

it was moved back into the house and will start transitioning to the garden over the next few weeks… after the summer in the garden, it will move back into the house for the winter…

buzzed…

13 Wednesday May 2026

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the other day I picked up a hanging basket that was “free” because we spent a zillion dollars on groceries, lol…

the plan is to use it in the front planter beside the door as it had lots of plants and flowers flowing down the sides…

brought it out of the garage today to get a bit of sun because it still isn’t warm enough for it to go into the pot, lol…

while it was sitting out, a lovely big bumblebee stopped by for some pollen…

it buzzed around the various flowers for quite a few minutes before heading off to find other treats…

what a great start to the day…

threshold…

12 Tuesday May 2026

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for many, many, months the threshold on the front door has been loose…

this week my housemate removed the metal and the old wood…

there was a bit of laughter regarding the tiny size and rustiness of the screws that were taken out…

a new piece of wood was positioned, which sits on the top step of the stairs and should provide more strength in the future… stronger screws and the metal strip reinstalled…

looks great and there is no longer any movement when it is stepped on…

woohoo;-)…

of course, this all took place while I was on a video call with my kids in Ottawa… there was hardly any noise, except for drilling and hammering 🤪…