Saturday, the sun is shining

 This is going to be a "nothing" post. Which is a good thing! Today is finally sunny and I will take a walk around the little village in a bit. 

I took Scooter-the-cat-with-no-tail to the vet the other week. He has had an issue with his chin, looking "dusty, dirty" first, and then scabby and then loss of hair. We looked it up and thought 'feline acne' and tried some home treatment but it didn't seem to work so off to the vet he went. The vet's office is STILL saying we can't come into the building and you literally have to speak to someone through a crank out window on the sidewalk. Personally, I find this overkill, but I'm sure there are others who are still fine with it. A hundred and something dollars later I left with a cat in a cage and a small bottle of Prednisone (nasty-ass medication for humans, but hopefully not too bad for him in these small doses), a bottle of anti-bacterial soap (not likely to happen) and a bottom end injected with a long-dose antibiotic. (his bottom end, not mine). 

We've been putting his pill into a little softened up chunk of cheese so he will take it. I'm not a good pill popper of cats and Scooter is not a good patient. He is incredibly squirmy and strong when he wants to be. He's not a violent cat, in that he won't hiss at us, or try to deliberately hurt us, but he's impossible to deal with. With no tail, he's the shape of a furry football and he squirms like a larva. So cheese pills it has been. He seems fine now with the pills all done, he's eating and acting normally but his chin still looks like a bald, pink, lumpy mess with a few billy goat-like hairs coming through. 

Over Christmas, we had a decorative bunch of bells hanging from the doorknob to the porch on a fake leather strap. I suppose it's to make a jaunty sound when someone enters your home. Husband thought it would be fun to teach Murphy (the other cat, now fat, and stripey) to ring the bell to be let out. It worked, remarkably well and quickly. So much so, that like a fool, I bought another set of bells (dollar store) to hang on the doorknob to the other porch. Well, let me say I deeply regret all of it. We are slaves to the bells and he is abusing his bell power. Yes, I've removed the bells when it just is too much, but it's also such a cool thing that his cat has learned to ring the bell, that we always end up putting them back on the doorknobs. 

Abuse of power lies in the fact that he rings the bells to the back porch and when I get up to let him out, he veers instead toward the kitchen to show me his food bowl. I've been removing his bowl through the day, as his girth is now such that I refer to him as "Wide Load". Or even if there is food there, he needs me to jiggle the bowl to even out the 'dent' in the middle. Smart and manipulative.

I've been trying to cut back greatly on grocery buying, working my way through things in the pantry and deep freeze. We've had shepherd's pie, chili, a pseudo sweet and sour chicken stir fry with rice, canned soup and toast... Now that lettuce doesn't require a second mortgage to purchase, I'm including some salads with our meals, too. 

I had brought out my bread maker which I had not used in ages, thinking I should make my own bread (well, have the machine make my own bread) in order to save a bit on the ridiculous cost of bread. It was working well, but now a bit too well, as bread is something husband can't resist, so I think I may tuck it away again for a bit. 

Have you ever had issues with tiny little moths in your kitchen? I discovered in horror about a year ago, that the bird seed I had been storing in the mudroom was hatching out these little beasties and then they were flying around in the house. They eat wheat products. I then discovered that they'd gotten into the kitchen drawer where I keep my flour, sugar, and other baking supplies. I did a drastic clean out and put things into jars and sealed bags after that. I thought I had nipped the problem in the bud, but I've seen the little buggers again lately. I run after them like a manic, trying to clap my hands on them mid-flight. But I have yet to find the source. It makes me feel like an icky house keeper. I'm paranoid about sealing up things. I fold over the inner cereal bag and clamp it shut whenever I use cereal. I even cleaned out the toaster, thinking maybe the crumbs from the many pieces of toast were a food source. Ughhhh!! I do not, by the way, store bird seed in the house anymore. (and for those mystery solvers out there, I've cleaned the bread maker and always wipe the counters of crumbs).

Two days ago I did my first supply teaching day in a VERY long time. It was in a kindergarten class that I used to supply in last year, so I knew some of the kids, as they were in junior kindergarten last year, and are now in senior kindergarten (It was a JK / SK class). I also knew the ECE (early childhood education) person in that class. It was so nice to be back at it! It was a bus cancellation day due to fog, freezing rain that never quite transpired, so it wasn't the full class of 28 students, but instead only 15, which made it nice as well. I have booked myself 2 and a half supply days this coming week as well and I'm very pleased. It feels great to do what's comfortable and familiar and normal.

That's all I have. Hope everyone has a productive /restful / enjoyable / healthy weekend - whatever you require. 

Friday, May 28, 2021

 It is almost the weekend, and I realize I haven't posted in a while. I spent a good portion of this last week getting my vegetable garden ready. I do not have raised beds or separate beds, but just one big open space with a compost "container" in one corner and a big rhubarb plant in another. I had previously dug out the many weeds and grasses that had come with the warmth of spring, and then it was rototilled, first in one direction, then the other. Raking smooth and picking up big-enough-to-bother-with rocks came next. 

I decided this year, don't know why, to lay things out differently. I've always been a row person, but I played around with "blocks" instead. My method of making straight rows involves using cut-offs of rebar from an old construction project with garden string tied to them, and a small hand sledge hammer to pound them in. I am TERRIBLE at straight, so I need guidance otherwise my rows would weave to and fro. 

I used a very precise way of measuring, which is pacing heel to toe in my Birkenstocks and counting my steps to figure out how I could divide up the garden into blocks with paths that would be big enough. Perhaps tomorrow I will take a picture so you can see the criss-cross pattern I made. I've already planted some things: onions, beets, lettuce, beans, potatoes, and peas. I am waiting to put in my tomatoes, cucumbers, and zucchini. Alas, I do not have room for my pumpkins. I'm not sure what to do, or what alternative I have because I started a couple off little pumpkin plants and it would feel like murder to not use them. 

Husband opened up the pool. Of course, something needed dealing with: the T-cell which has something to do with chlorinating, I don't really know, wasn't working. Instead of throwing several hundred dollars toward a new one (or more!), he managed to MacGyver a solution to the problem and it seems to be working - fingers crossed. It will be quite some time before the pool is ready to take a dip in, as the weather is C-C-C-C-Cold!!!! Yesterday after supper, daughter and I went for a usual walk, and we both wore gloves. We almost grabbed winter hats, too, but just couldn't bear the thought in late May. 

Something exciting, and humbling, happened. I did my second Supply Teaching job yesterday. My first one was at my old school and the teacher made things very easy for me (keep in mind this is all online, done from computer involving Zoom-like interactions, although our Board does not use Zoom). However, yesterday I went to a different school and did a job for a teacher who had a grade 1,2 split class. I thought I would take the job because how hard could a 1,2 split be online?? It can't be too "techy" if it is only a 1,2. Ha ha, old girl!! Think again! The teacher kindly emailed me his plans (VERY detailed and thought out) and informed me how he does things. Thank heavens for a 25 year old daughter in the house who gave me a crash course in screen sharing, accessing videos from Teams and sharing those, and accessing and using a virtual white board and sharing that. I still managed to mess up and of course a couple of the little darlings in the class informed me (kindly) that that's not how Mr. A. does it, they usually do this, and then this, and then that. It was a humbling experience for someone who has spent 31 years in the profession, only to be corrected by a seven year old. HOLY COW, was that ever a stressful day. But I proved that old dogs can learn new tricks, but would do well to practise those new tricks in order to really perfect them.

I've agreed to do two more days of supply work (and yes, all online unless the Ontario government finally lets kids come back into class region by region instead of painting the whole humungous province with the same Corona-coloured brush), but both of those jobs are at my old school for classes and teachers that I know, so I feel a bit more comfortable. 

If you recall, we got a kitten. Yup. She is very cute and cuddly...when she is almost ready to fall asleep. However, if you look at her in the eyes too long at other times, I'm pretty sure you can see the demon that lies inside!! She is a holy terror when trying to burn off her kitten energy - scaling furniture, grabbing ankles, arching her back and dancing sideways, playing with ANYTHING (I can no longer hang tea towels on my fridge handle, as they get pulled down immediately). I know this "adorable" stage will only last for the first few months and hopefully get replaced by a more subdued purring soft kitty, warm kitty. Our other cat, Scooter, is a good boy and only gives her a good low growl or hiss, and what I imagine to be an exasperated cat eye roll, and then retreats back outside. He's pretty much an outdoor cat anyway and we are NOT letting Molly out unsupervised, nor are we showing her the cat door. She's too little at this point, but later, like every other cat we've ever owned, she will be allowed to be an indoor / outdoor pet. This Monday she goes for her first set of shots. 

I got the book The Thursday Murder Club by Richard Osman from the library a while ago (again, curbside, like a drug pick up in a paper bag) and haven't really given it a good go yet. So far, it seems enjoyable, fun, nothing too deep or intellectual. Maybe with this unseasonable weather I can settle in for a longer read. Bye for now, all!