A Cold Winter’s Day – In the Spring

I’ve heard of April showers, but this is ridiculous. A recent ridge of low pressure brought some seriously frigid arctic air to the area last weekend. Friday we had these giant snowflakes come down in the evening, they were about 2″ across! Saturday morning saw scenes like that of my photo (taken in January/’06), while some areas closer to sea level were still green. The last time we had snow this late in the season was way back in 1955. I heard that Toronto had temperatures in the mid-twenties, which is equally as unseasonable. I’m sure they were gloating in their shorts and sunglasses.

Soon the temperatures will rise, the rain will stop falling, and we’ll wish we had such a surplus of water. Until then, I’ll take what sunny breaks I can get, out in the garden pulling weeds or planting tropicals.

The Other Type of Weed

Here you see my veggie beds. On the right is the one I’ve been using for the past three years or so to grow mainly tomatoes and squash. On the left is the bed I’ve never used. Full of weeds it sits, making me feel guilty every time I look at it. Today I decided to tackle those weeds. I pulled out my favorite gloves and shovel, and had at ‘er.

Here’s the bed, now lovingly devoid of weeds. Soon I’ll plant some squash, maybe cucumber, bulb fennel, maybe some peas or beans. The beds are 4′ X 8′ and they sit at the very back of my property. The short fence you see separates this area from the rest of the back yard, which is handy when you have a vegetable loving dog. You can see she’s broken through the fence more than once, we used old wainscoting to temporarily block the hole. She used her teeth to rip the lattice apart, sneaky dog.

My Worst Nightmare

Last night I dreamt that I was shopping in a local mall. I put Jasmine in her stroller without strapping her in. I turned around to look at something on a table, and when I turned back she was gone. The panic and rage I felt were unreal. I was terrified and more angry than I’ve ever been in my life. I stormed the mall looking for her. Gazing accusingly at passersby holding babies, checking to see if each one was her.

I’ve had many lucid dreams in the past. This time I wished to myself that it was a dream, thinking that my emotions were so strong, it must be real.

It reminded me of Michael Dunahee who disappeared from Victoria back in 1991, and was never found. It can happen to anyone. Keep a close eye on your children, and hug them tight at night. I never want to feel that kind of pain in real life.

I Smell a Rat

About a week ago, while tidying up the closet in the nursery, we discovered a small animal had been living in our midst. We purchased a couple of rat traps and set one up in the closet, the other in the crawl space.

A few days later, I was up in the middle of the night to change Jasmine. Upon entering the nursery I saw Toffee jump three feet in the air, then go sniffing under the toy chest. I turned around to see a tail slip under the door. The next morning I spotted feet and a tail scooting past the recycling boxes. That afternoon I noticed the hind end of a rat running over Gypsy’s water dish, disappearing down the hole that leads the radiator hose into the basement. Our monster Aloe Vera plant was also discovered, gnawed almost to death!

That evening we picked Toffee up from the animal hospital after having her teeth cleaned. Not 15 minutes later I went to check on her and she had that rat dead in the nursery! Still woozy from the drugs, I was amazed she was able to take down such a big rat.

Toffee is known for her good hunting skills. She brought home a live mouse last summer, which my Mother-in-Law Barb and I caught and released in the front yard. I’m glad to know Toffee is here to protect us from the little critters that eat her food.