Highs, lows, and in between

What an emotional week it has been, with all that has been happening at home and abroad. While I was never concerned about my safety in light of the search for the mass murderer, the thought of what the victims (those who survived) and the families who lost loved ones were going through was never far from my mind. 

When Queen Elizabeth II passed on Thursday, it was another blow. I don't consider myself a monarchist, however she has been a steadfast presence in the lives of Canadians for decades, and is the only British monarch in my lifetime until now. She always demonstrated such grace, such poise, no matter the situation and I admired her greatly. While she was often the voice of calm through times of trouble and sorrow, she also had a wonderful sense of humour. One of those fun moments is a favorite of mine, when she and Paddington Bear met for tea in a video ahead of her Platinum Jubilee this spring. She truly will be missed. 

This is also the week my grandson had his first full day of kindergarten. I got to Facetime with him after school to hear about his day. What a joy that was! D had a call from his teacher the following day and she said he did very well. He was able to sit still when needed to in class, he drew a picture and colored (both activities that are not his favorites), and for the most part, he behaved himself making more green choices than red ones. He's growing up so quickly and I treasure all of these firsts. 

Back to regular programming, our weather has turned. It is most definitely fall weather now. Originally we were forecast for heat this week, but by Wednesday the temperature had dropped significantly and this morning, there was frost on the roof of the neighbour's house. By Friday morning (a cool 3C/37F), most of my tomato plants were starting to look a little worse for wear so I pulled the plants, and picked the larger tomatoes and  peppers. I hope that the green tomatoes will ripen here in the house; those that are ripe will be processed at some point this weekend.

I was actually out of the house four days this week. Tuesday was a visit to Value Village, Wednesday I joined the stitch and chat group at the library, Thursday was grocery day, and on Friday I ran an errand for my daughter. At Value Village I found several counted cross stitch kits, not in the craft area, but tucked in on a shelf of office supplies. Definitely not where I would have thought to find them. I picked up two larger kits, and six smaller ones - all for $17.50! The one large kit had a original price tag of $60 while the smaller ones were marked between $10 and $15. I've started one of the smaller kits - a sunflower - and will share a photo when it is completed. 

There were four of us at the stitch and chat group. It was so nice to see the others, as it has been over two years. I did talk to S once but that was a year ago. Sadly, I learned her husband passed away of cancer last winter. He was just beginning his treatment when the pandemic started. There wasn't a whole lot of stitching - we mostly chatted and caught up on one another's lives. I'm sure next week things will be more "normal", whatever that is.

My grocery run didn't take long - just a few needed items and some sale items that I couldn't pass up.  I've quite appreciated not having to buy potatoes, tomatoes and peppers for the past few weeks. Who knows, maybe I'll pass on growing flowers next year and go strictly veg. 

My knitting is coming along - I've finished the lace pattern portion of the front of my tank top and if all goes well (meaning I work on it), it should be finished this weekend. In the meantime I finished sewing in the ends of the three cowls, and knitted up a child's toque/beanie from the remaining yarn. This is the knitted cowl; the crocheted cowls are simply infinity scarves and not nearly as cozy. I may keep this one for myself. 

I started another toque for the stitching group as I don't have to pay much attention while chatting until it's time to decrease. So if you're keeping count, I have three projects on the go at the moment. AND then there is the sweater I started for Eli a couple of months ago. I'm telling myself I'll get back to that one when the tank top is finished. But, but, but.... Pinterest sent me an notice including the cutes little ghosts for Halloween. I have the supplies so that might happen instead. :)

I expect it will be a quiet weekend - no need to leave the house, and there are various sports events to watch. Including curling! There is an event being held in Alberta this weekend, and it is being live streamed on You-tube. There are three draws today, along with two football and baseball games. At some point I know I'll have a curling game on the laptop while I watch football and/or baseball on the television. While knitting. We're having leftovers for dinner so I don't even have to think about that. 

I should have enough time before all that starts to get the tomatoes cooking down for sauce, so I'd best get to it.  Have a good week ahead everyone!

Friday funny

 

It's over - updated

 For those who haven't heard the latest news, Myles Sanderson apparently stabbed himself, before being taken into custody. He has since died of his injuries. 

In these cases, no one wins. The victims and their families will see no justice in this case, and his parents have lost two sons. They had pleaded for him to turn himself in earlier today.

Wordless Wednesday

 

A horrible, no good, very bad day - update

 Most of my readers will have heard the news from my province of Saskatchewan yesterday as it has been reported worldwide. In brief, two young men went on a killing spree, leaving ten dead and at least fifteen injured in their wake. It appears that the incidents began at the James Smith Cree Nation and later in the small community of Weldon, Saskatchewan.

In the course of their horrific actions, they stole a vehicle and drove south, eventually arriving in the city of Regina (where I live). The RCMP reported the vehicle had been spotted in the city and the local police have been involved in the search for the two individuals. This included an air search involving the RCMP aircraft. 

There has been, as is appropriate, a lot of attention on the identities of the suspects. Photos of the two have been circulated, including what appears to be police booking photos, and personal photos shared by those I assume to be family or friends. At this point they have not been apprehended. IMO they are holed up somewhere and it is a matter of time before they bolt or are located. 

However, local main stream media has been less attentive to those who were the victims of this tragedy. I've linked an article from APTN news reporting on three of the victims (two are named). Two of these individuals were a couple and lived on the reserve, while the third was an elderly widower who lived in Weldon. The RCMP have stated that some of the victims while others were random. Now their lives and names have been forever entwined. 

My heart goes out to all who have been affected: the victims who remain in hospital, the families who have lost loved ones, and to the communities who will bear the scars of this horrible tragedy. I am grateful for the first responders and the healthcare workers who cared for the victims, to the RCMP and the local authorities who have and continue to search for the perpetrators, and finally to all who have offered their support. 

In time, I hope that the communities will be provided with the necessary supports to begin to recover and heal. As this falls under the jurisdiction of the province, it will be up to our current ministries to step up to the plate. Unfortunately, like so many other provinces, health care and especially mental health care supports are limited and often hard to access especially in rural communities. This is the case even in a community where a similar tragedy took place. Over six years ago, in La Loche, four people were killed and seven injured when a teenager went on a shooting spree. Today, there are no permanent mental health support personnel in the community, with a psychiatrist flying in once a month. That is simply not enough.

We may never know why this happened and I chose not to speculate. For now, I grieve for what might have been. 

******

Late this afternoon (Sept 5) the RCMP held a news conference to advise that one of the suspects Damien Sanderson, 31, was located deceased near one of the 13 locations. According to the report, the wounds did not appear to be self-inflicted, however an autopsy will be completed to confirm cause of death.

His brother Myles is believed to be injured, and may seek medical attention. He is still at large and efforts continue to locate him.

I also want to correct a possible misconception from my post in reference to the mental health supports I believe will be needed in these communities. These supports would be meant for the survivors: the victims and their families. I cannot envision how anyone could have been affected by this tragic event without suffering PTSD as a result. While I am certain there will be grief counsellors present (and are likely already in place), these impacts will be felt for years to come. I hope that clarifies my position.

Keeping up, catching up

First off, a word (or several) about the wordless Wednesday photos. The first photo was taken with my Canon T3i and the second with my cellphone. I was using the 75-300mm lens on the camera and had zoomed in as much as I could from where I stood. The cellphone was zoomed in too, but not to its full extent. To be honest, I was surprised and very pleased at the level of detail in the cellphone photo. The new header photo was also taken with the cellphone camera. I can see myself using it more often and not carrying the larger camera as much. Though if I'm somewhere I'd be worried about dropping my cellphone I'll use the camera.

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September has always seemed to me to be the appropriate time to start a new year. Here in my part of the world, January is merely the midst of the winter season and usually the month with the worst weather (both cold and snow). September on the other hand, heralds the end of summer vacations with folks heading back to work and the children back to school, along with the change in season. One of my fondest memories is opening up that first new notebook to begin taking notes in class. In my work life, fall was also a time when we did a lot of hiring and training. It was a often a time of renewal. 

This year, September is coming in hot. We've been under a heat advisory for several days this week and it looks that it will continue for another week yet. Thankfully, the temperatures are cooling off overnight so the mornings feel fresh. Unlike other years, we didn't get even a hint of frost in late August. Nor is there frost in the forecast. 

I've been picking tomatoes every day and peppers at least once a week. While I don't get the volume of produce to make a lot of anything, I can't keep up eating the tomatoes fresh. This week I made a small batch of salsa (one jar) and a small batch of tomato sauce. A half of the jar of salsa was used in a taco bake - it was delicious! The green peppers are done, and the red ones are just starting to ripen. I used two of the latter in the salsa - they had just the right amount of heat for a mild salsa. The tomato sauce has been frozen and will be used this winter to flavor soups.

The last of the potatoes were dug up as well, yielding about 5 pounds. Enough for a few more meals. In total I harvested just under 25 pounds of potatoes from three containers...not a bad haul. I'm allowing some of the marigolds to go to seed and watching the petunias for seed pods too. I didn't have a lot of luck germinating the seeds, the ones that did have done well (both tomatoes and marigolds). This has the potential of saving me a few dollars at the garden centers in the spring....though I may have to invest in a grow light.

For the most part, it's been a pretty quiet week. I did my grocery shopping on Monday, ran out to Costco to pick up a couple of things for D on Wednesday and while I was there I purchased the first Christmas gift. It's for my son, but in some ways will be a gift for me too. He has remained upstairs since the basement was re-done and the two of us are learning to live in close proximity and with different schedules. I'm an early to bed, early to rise, he's quite the opposite especially on weekends. There are times when one of us disturbs the other's sleep, and it's not always me. I have been known to get up and ask him to turn down his music - the gift is a set of wireless headphones that I hope will be beneficial to both of us.

On Thursday I had a dental appointment for a tooth extraction. I'd had this molar filled twice, the first time over 40 years ago, and the second about 20-25 years ago. About a week ago, the side of the remaining tooth broke off leaving a large hole. To fill it would have meant the entire tooth above the gum was filling so I opted to have it removed. Those of you who have followed for any length of time know I am terrified to go to the dentist. It isn't the procedure itself, it's the needles that are required for the freezing. I swear the needle ends up in my ear canal....at least that's how it has felt. My last few times I've been to the dentist, she used anesthesia. However this time, she didn't have a tech available to assist. I decided I'd have to put on my big girl pants and do what needed to be done. I won't get into the gory details, but everything went well - the dentist did a great job and I had little to no residual pain. I went to bed before the freezing had dispersed and slept for 7 1/2 hours. :)

Eli started kindergarten on Friday - D sent me several photos. He didn't look too impressed. The first day was short, just an hour long so he could meet his teacher and educational assistants. Due to his ADHD diagnosis he has been assigned a full-time E.A. this year. There are two in the class room and I assume they'll spell one another off while being available to other children too. 

I've managed to get a few of my knitting/crocheting
projects completed. My tank top is still on the needles but I've finished the lace pattern and the rest should go quite quicky from there. Three cowls were made up, one knitted, two crocheted and I found another ball of the same yarn when I was rooting through my stash. I think I'll use it for head bands as there isn't enough for another cowl. Almost every day I get e-mails from Pinterest with ideas - usually I ignore them, but I spotted a cute little knitted pumpkin pattern so I gave it a try. I do have a few skeins of orange yarn to use up, but I can't see using it for pumpkins. I'll have to look for another idea for something seasonal; perhaps a table runner. 

On a totally different note, with the cooler mornings, I've been getting some yard work done but I swear the weeds are popping up every time I turn my back. Between the rain last week and the heat this week, the grass sorely needed mowing. Indoors I've done the usual housework, knitted and crocheted, and watched baseball. 

This weekend will be a football weekend as well with the Labour Day games the focus. Our Riders will play the Winnipeg Blue Bombers here - it's always an important game, but this year the Riders aren't doing well so it may be a blow out. I haven't been as enthused with this year's team - there was a particularly ugly hit on an opposing quarterback by a certain player early in the season. This was followed by racial slurs hurled by the same player in his celebration. The hit took the QB out for most of the season (he's not yet back), the comments were disgusting, and yet the team did nothing about this yahoo. He was fined by the league and suspended for a few games, but in my mind there is no place for this type of behaviour and he ought to have been released. As a result it's put a damper on my interest in watching this year's team. Okay, I'm off my soapbox now.

I'm off to water the containers before I sit down to catch up on blog reading, some PVR'ed television, and more knitting.  Have a great week ahead everyone! 

Friday Funny