Whee....what a ride!

 I think I've mentioned before that Saskatchewan weather can be variable and this week definitely proved that statement.  Sunday through Tuesday were absolutely gorgeous, with high temps reaching 30C (86F) plus!  I spent as much time as possible outdoors.  The yard work slowed down from last week as I decided against planting the annuals due to the potential forecast of snow for Thursday and Friday.  Yes, you read that right, the weather folks were suggesting we might have snow. In fact, several areas of Saskatchewan did get snow - we lucked out here in the city.  But just for fun, we had a thunderstorm blow through on Tuesday evening.  Not much rain in it, at least here, but lots of thunder.

The weather forecasters weren't entirely correct. We didn't get snow, and the rain that was expected to start at midnight on Wednesday didn't arrive until 8 a.m. on Thursday.  It got even colder overnight Thursday into Friday, but again we missed the worst of it, with no snow or much freezing rain. The small town my daughter lives in wasn't as lucky.  She sent me this photo - her spruce tree in front of the house sustained some serious damage as did the trees across the street and in the next door neighbour's yard.  While we were chatting she heard and saw more branches falling.  

This photo is of the cedar in her back yard that was covered in ice. Later in the day, the community declared a state of emergency as much of the town was without power.  Luckily D and Eli were in the portion that didn't lose power.

For most of the week, I kept the annuals out on the patio and the tomatoes and peppers on the back deck to harden them off for planting sometime next week.  It helps not to have to drag them in and out of the garage but that had to be done for the nights when the temperature fell below freezing.  The garage is well-insulated and I brought the veg into the house.  I had to run an errand for D on Friday morning, and the car registered a temperature of 12C (54F) so they were safe.

Besides the weather there were a few other things happening this week:

My neighbour and his father-in-law finished putting up the new back fence on the weekend. (My contribution was financial).  The yards don't match up, so the fence on the right is the part the first neighbour put up, the one on the left is the new fence.  I bought a piece of garden art at Walmart a couple of weeks ago and hung it this week.  It reminds me what is to come in the weeks ahead.

Now, of course, the rest of the fence looks ratty. I chatted with my east side neighbour's G and D through the sunroom window, and we've decided to replace that fence as well.  I'll probably do the west side as well depending on the estimated cost. 

On Monday, I drove my son to the vaccination center.  Good thing I did because he misunderstood where it was located and would have ended up in a far different place.  He had a bit of a sore arm, but otherwise no side effects.  The province health authority has put out a tentative schedule of when we might expect to get our second doses - as of now, it looks like I should be eligible the week of June 7.  However, that is considering only Pfizer and Moderna does, but since my first dose was Astra Zeneca, they may open it up to us earlier.  In any event, I expect it will be just a few weeks before I'm fully vaccinated.  I guess that is one of the benefits of living in a province that isn't densely populated.  Though I wish we had better access to direct flights from here.  

Oh yes, I haven't shared this with you yet.  I've booked a cruise.....in January 2023!  It's a full transit through the Panama Canal from Fort Lauderdale to Los Angeles with five ports along the way.  

I had been researching cruises for a little while but wasn't prepared to pull the trigger just yet - definitely not in 2021 and likely not in 2022. But this one has been on my bucket list for some time and when it showed with a very reasonable price, I dithered for a minute or two and called my travel agent.  It is the first leg of the world cruise (111 days) but until I win a lottery I'll just be doing the first 14 days.  

L put a hold on the cabin for my (an interior) before she called for my credit card information. Imagine my joy to learn that the price she was quoted was a few hundred dollars less than the mock booking I'd done.  Better still while we were chatting, she mentioned the insurance I'd purchased for the U.K. cruise that had to be cancelled. I told her I assumed that insurance would have lapsed.  She checked into it for me and learned it couldn't be transferred as the cruises were on different cruise lines...but I was eligible for a refund and it covered two thirds of my deposit.  Bonus!

Back to this week, though I spent a fair amount of time outdoors, mostly reading and enjoying the beautiful weather, I did get extra work done inside. The house windows that I didn't replace because they look into the sunroom, were looking pretty dirty and the frames needed a paint touch-up.  When the sunroom was put on (prior to my purchase) the screen door was removed but the holes left by the hinges and so on weren't filled.  To be honest I didn't notice when I bought the house - I was just thrilled with the existence of the sunroom. It was far past time for the holes to be filled in and the door frame needed painting too.  I did wood filler and window cleaning on Monday, sanded the door frame and painted the window frames on Tuesday, then did the first coat on the door frame the next day.  I want add a bit more wood filler in a few places so when it warms up again, I'll finish the job.  

Then I decided I was tired of all the old blinds remaining in the house.  I had asked the crew to remove the old ones on the windows that were replaced.  So I unlatched the rest - in some cases they needed a little extra encouragement - and took them down.  Oh my, they were dusty!  They all went in the bin and I likely won't replace them.  The sunroom blocks the direct sunlight reaching the kitchen and I like the fact there is more light coming in.  In fact, I have no plans to put anything on the big bay window either.  The big spruce in front provides sufficient privacy from the street and I don't mind being able to see who is coming up the front sidewalk.

On Wednesday, after a few regular household chores, I headed out for a walk.  It was 13C (55F), a whole lot cooler than it had been, and when the wind was in my face it felt even cooler.  But it was still a beautiful day for a walk!

The geese were feeding by the pond.

The ducks were enjoying the sun.  While the male mallard's head color is striking, I actually prefer the markings on the female.  She's so pretty!

Mom and Dad goose were bringing the babies to the shore.  They've already grown so much in just a week!

The cormorant was back in its preferred spot. By the end of last summer there were five of them.  I wonder if the pair is back and will raise another brood.  

This is a photo of the pond from the west side of the pond.  I think most of the photos I've taken of it were from the opposite side.  It would be wonderful to live in one of the less expensive condos on the right side of this photo.  If money were no issue the large condo on the left (lightest color), is up for sale, listed at for just under $2M.  Yeah...even I won the lottery I wouldn't pay that much for it!

On the cool and rainy days, I also had the opportunity to watch some curling.  The World's mixed doubles curling is being held in Aberdeen, Scotland. Our Canadian team has done well and won their qualifying round for the finals.  That game was aired at 3 a.m. my time - I did not get up to watch it, even I'm not that much of a die-hard fan - instead I PVR'ed it and watched when the alarm cat went off at 6 a.m. I'm currently watching the semi-final between Norway and Sweden, which will be followed by Canada and Scotland.  Go Canada go!

We're on the upswing of temperatures today and no rain is forecast so I'm hoping to get out for a walk at some point.  And maybe, just maybe play in the dirt tomorrow. 

Have a great weekend everyone!