Bit O Orange

We've been doing autumn colour here recently, and I was hoping to see more on our recent stroll along the trail bridge. Disappointment awaited, but I found a few small spots. Orange was the colour of the day.

Sue was also impressed with the orange leaves.

Even our shadows from the bridge landed in orange, but that colouring required a little help from your beloved photo editor to bring out the desired colour. 😉

This delightful car was waiting beside ours when we were done walking. What a delight: a vintage VW Beetle! There was a sticker indicating that it had been connected with a tour of Brasil.

I tried changing the colour to orange, but it seemed a tad sacrilegious to interfere with this little beauty. 😇

A Little Autumn Jaunt

On Friday we did get ourselves and out automobile in gear and took our almost annual, little colour trip. We passed some nice stands of colour here and there, but passed is the operative word. Sometimes we just have appreciate glimpses as we drive by because there is nowhere to stop.

Despite those colourful sections, much of our usual route was past peak. For example: we have stopped at this spot many times over the past few years, but this is the least amount of colour that we have seen. Nevertheless, I like the photos well enough.

From there we drove along a very woodsy road. Here and there, we spotted some colour back off the road in the bush although the first photo was more or less along the road.

We came out of the more woodsy section where there is a fork. We always keep going to the right, but the copse between the two roads is rather nice.

Now look at what Adobe's latest version of Photoshop can do — eliminate wires. We we more or less always could do this, but it could be quite a procedure. In this case, I just told the app to remove wires, and it did just that in probably a minute or less. It didn't remove the two poles: both to the left and one very small in the distance. It was another step to remove the poles but not a difficult one.

Even though we were late in the season and did not see autumn at its best, it was a grand day to be out and about. Besides, we have already had the trip to the sugar bush, and we'll still be seeing colour here and there for a little while.

Caturday 69: Sabine is a True Canadian Cat

Good Canadians watch hockey. Even better Canadians play hockey. Sabine watches and plays. Sabine is a very good Canadian Cat.

This clip is cute but watch the cat, not the game.

Colour in the Park

While we didn't manage to get out for an autumn drive yesterday (maybe today!), we did go for a walk in the park. It was a sunny day, and the colours were pretty darn ... uh ... pretty. The final two photos were my favs of the day.

The first thing that we saw when we exited the car.
I find the two colours appealing.

This tree still had a lot of leaves.

Taking a picture of Sue taking a picture of a picturesque scene.

Trees lining the walking path, at least on one side.

Pretty nice backlight on this section of the tree.
I was trying to highlight the lighted section.

I like being able to see the bones of the tree within the colours.

Awake and Playing the Furnace Game

This morning when I got up at 2:30 (don't ask), I checked the temperature. The outside temperature was 4C/40 F, but more critically for me, it was 15.5C/60 F inside the house – not balmy for sure. I don't know how much cooler it got afterward, but I did notice that the house temperature was down another half degree and hour or so later.

I did not turn on the furnace but doubled and even tripled layered my apparel, and I also turned on the little heater under my desk – the one that is usually in the bathroom and will be again soon to heat it up before I shower. Hot coffee helped too, and I am actually snuggy warm as I compose this. In point of fact, I am almost too warm, so I think I shall disengage the heater for now.

Lacey just appeared from her downstairs bed. She has another bed here in my den, but she usually spends the nights down there. Our odd feeding ritual begins, and I handfeed her kibble even though her dish is just across the hall. Soon, when she is sated, she will head back down until morning comes. Odd human and odd cat pairing we are . . . And as predicted off she goes, disdaining the last four kibbles that I dropped for her.

If you can't tell already, we (Sue and I, not Lacey) are playing the silly furnace game again. The object is to put off running the furnace for as long as possible. Every day delayed is a small victory, and by golly, if you make it all of the way to November, you've won the game.

While there is no official prize, you get to feel very Canadian-proud of yourself.

If there were no weather relief in sight, I would be tempted to give up, give in, and put the furnace on, but starting later today, it looks like we are in for a warm week in which temperatures will reach the high teens C (or the mid 60s F). That is quite livable for us, at least in the short term.

When I picked up the thanksgiving pies on the weekend, I took a slight detour through the hamlet of Appleton and found a few sports of colour.

The next day, on my way to the grocery store, I took a photo of these trees around the corner from us.

Our plan for today is to take a a little colour trip into the more rural areas to see what we shall see. Our hope is to find some colour, even though it shall be past peak, which, in point of fact, was not actually all that peakish this year.

Hanging onto the Moments

We did our quasi daily stroll yesterday, just around the block, but a good-sized block, I guess you'd say.

It was nippy in the 7℃ (45F) weather, especially with a very stiff breeze blowing, but it was a good walk. As we neared the end, I actually felt almost exultant, for I was feeling less leg pain than I have in some time. Yes, there was pain, but no, it wasn't overbearing. Physio seems to be finally helping. Even my chronic foot, which is beyond help, was not at its worst on that day. Yay!

Dragging my leg along after me all summer has not been fun, but it was much less of a drag yesterday, and the diminution of pain buoyed my spirits.

It pleased me so much to be able to walk with less difficulty. I guess, for me it was Thanksgiving, just a day late. While I am not a candidate for the Appalachian Trail, it did feel good to walk more freely.

Maybe it was a one-off, and maybe the next walk will not go so well, but one grabs and hangs onto the moments that life offers.

I am thinking that it really is appreciating the little things that make a life a good life. I am mindful that even in the difficult phases of life, there may be brief moments when the sun chooses to shine and that those are the moments to hang on to.

A Thankless Thanksgiving Sleep but a Good but Messy Thanksgiving Nevertheless

Let us begin by considering why it came to be that I was puzzling over my finger whilst I was abluting in my Thanksgiving Day shower.

I was cogitating on my finger because I had just checked Sleepwatch, and it confirmed that my night wasn't the best when it reported that I had experienced only 4.2 hours of sleep. 

I know that I do go on and on about sleep or rather lack of same, but that was an unusual night, which I shall now explicate by telling you what my flippin finger has to do my sleeplessness, for on this occasion, it is my finger which is to blame.

Finger? you ask. How does that work AC?

Well . . . I was just settling in for the my Thanksgiving Eve repose when my ring finger decided that  would be a fine time to assert itself and wreck my night. I know it sounds stupid, but oh brother! how that finger attacked me. The sudden pain was quite fierce, and just when it it would abate for a few seconds and I would begin to relax, it would return with a vengeance. The sharpness and irregularity made sleep impossible for hours. 

Who can say why my own finger would decide to attack sweet, innocent me out of the blue like that, but attack me it defiantly did. I don't understand, for I think I've always been as nice to it as possible. I mean, we really do need each other. In point of fact, it needs me more than I need it. Are you listening, finger? So why it decided to attack me at bedtime must remain a deep mystery.

It's difficult to sleep when pain erupts like that, especially when you feel that you are getting some momentary respite but the pain then returns strongly and at length. I know that it is just a finger and that it sounds silly, but man-oh-man, it was so sharp and painful.

I actually handled the next day pretty well. I helped Sue with our Thanksgiving preparation by chopping the stuffing ingredients and stirring the gravy. We then ported our half of the meal over to the kids'. We would normally have it here but Sha was expecting a repair guy (who never showed), so off we went.

Sue did the turkey and stuffing and I brought the pies that I had purchased from the Ashton Church ladies' group. Meanwhile Sha and the kids had cooked the creamy, cheesy potatoes and roasted carrots. Everyone did a fine job, and the meal was quite superb.

The only hitch, and it wasn't a hitch for others, was that rather that sitting at a table as we would have done here, we ate from our laps because space is tight over there. At my advanced age and dodderiness, I think I am the only one who currently has a gravy-stained shirt in the wash.

Hoo boy! This post went in unexpected directions. I will have to see if there are any snaps worth sharing with you. I will look later today.

Happy Thanksgiving

Thanksgiving Day is here. It may not be quite as huge of an event as it is down south, but it is a very fine and appreciated event, timed to occur when autumn is just about at its peak and when the weather is still usually moderate.

We'll head over to the kids' this afternoon to feast on turkey and pie and more, but for now I leave you with a few more autumn photos from the Wheeler's sugar bush.

Around the Sugar Bush

It is time to look around the Sugar Bush. Sugar maples tend to turn earlier than some trees, so the bush was a bit past peak in places, but it was still looking pretty darn good on such a fine day. Sugar  Maples turn yellow and not into the saturated oranges and reds that we all love. I still love it, though, and I can find those other colours elsewhere.

Here is one of your truly by truly her. I switch the hat backwards when I am taking pictures, but I sure don't wear it like that . . . unless I forget, of course.

I am not quite done. Tomorrow is our actual Thanksgiving Day, and I will post more in my effort to make the most of the season.

Our Annual Autumn Trip to the Sugar Bush

Go figure. On Thursday I posted about my awful night. That night I reverted to my old pill, and Sleepwatch reported that I slept for exactly 8 hours — my best sleep in years.

Sometimes, Sleepwatch and I disagree, but that report concurs with my own sense. I think I have been using the app for almost four years, but I believe that is the first time I have seen it report eight hours. 

Well anyway, it worked out well, for Friday was our chosen day to drive to the maple sugar camp for our autumn outing, and I was feeling pretty darn fine. We had picked Friday because the weather was predicted to be good, and so it was. For the most part, the weather hasn't been great, but it was pretty doggone grand yesterday.

The colours were pretty good on the drive, so Sue took various phone photos from the moving car, but this one will give you the idea of what it was like in places.

We've been to Wheelers and posted about it so many times that I didn't bother to take pictures of the buildings. However, some of you are new, so I'll post this one that Sue took of me because it shows some of the restaurant.

I think it is time to trim the beard.

And . . . here's Susie . . .  no doubt looking out of the window and admiring the colour.

This is pretty well the entire menu, except for baked beans, which we don't bother with: pancakes, French toast, maple sausages, and all of the maple syrup one's little heart could desire. That was my first dousing of the syrup; it was fine for the French toast, but it soaks right into the pancakes, so two more applications were required. By the way, these are the only sausages on the planet that Sue will eat. Yum.

I know that it is quite a plateful, but that was our breakfast and lunch combined, and we didn't have big suppers either.

I was taking pictures of maple syrup bottles here and there around the restaurant, but Sue mentioned the display in the boiler room of all sorts of grades of maple syrup. It was in a window, so it was backlit nicely.

There was a new display in the boiler room, depicting the maple syrup story from pre-colonization until present. It even stretched farther left on the other side of the door.

It is a remarkable piece, put together by local graphics artist, but I forget her name. This is one small section from just one of the ten (I think) panels. 

Of course, I took outdoor photos after the meal . . .

Nighttime Treat

At 7:25 we received this message from granddaughter, Danica.

Get outside now

Northern lights

So we poked our heads out the front door. Sue had her phone at the ready and began to click.

Of course, you all know by now that the camera sees the colour better than the eyes, but it was quite an unexpected treat, regardless.

As you can see, we weren't in the very best spot for photos, but a passing neighbour told us that the views were good at the neighbouring park. It was darn cold, close to freezing, so we took a few minutes to bundle up, and we drove over.

I got out my beastie camera too, but Alas!, the show was over.

A Ridiculous Night

5:00

I’ve had my breakfast and I am currently brewing my second cup of coffee after catching up with the News on the computer,

Sue popped her head in awhile ago to ask what in tarnation is going on.

She was aware of my having been in bed, and out of bed, and back in bed, and back out and making toast at midnight, and there I was, up again and sitting at the computer at 4:00 with the lights on.

Such is life. I was given a new sleeping pill, and, to put it mildly, it has disappointed.

On the first night, it helped me get 6 hours of sleep. That was nothing to write home about or blog about, so I didn’t. I mean, I do sometimes get 6 hours anyway.

Last night, however, I gave it up as a lost cause at 3:50. Not to worry, I might have had two grand hours of sleep, so I should be good for . . .  for maybe as long as it takes to finish wiring the ode to pain. Okay, not an ode, and most certainly not an ode to joy.

I was not only restless but also in pain or at least in enough discomfort that I decided that it was prudent to get up since the aches and pains were keeping me awake anyway.

About this new pill: it turns out to not be the hoped-for magic potion. I really thought that it might be just what the doctor ordered. Well, she did order it, actually, and I was hopeful.

You see, it, supposedly, so strong that I had to promise not to drive for 12 hours after taking it.

So, if I want to drive say at 7:00 in the morning, I must take it by 7 at night. But one doesn’t want to sleep at 7, so one takes it and stays up. And then it doesn’t seem to be working at 10 or 11. Go figure.

Today, I wanted to be driving by shortly after 9am, so I took the pill at 9pm. I then stayed up for two more hours before endeavouring, rather fruitlessly, to go to sleep. I mean, really, if the effects endure for twelve hours, surely I could stay up for two of those measly hours!

Surely not, as it eventuated.

Needless to say, I am going to give up on the new, lousy  pill and go back to the old, lousy pill. At the very least, I can take it a half hour before bed and just get up and go in the morning.

"AC, you should give up on pills entirely," you say.

But I say, "If I could I would." 

I was put on them for a reason and not because I was desirous of wrecking my life with a habit-forming drug.

Last time I inadvertently did that – not take my pill – I didn't sleep a wink all night. I am not exaggerating. 

What happened that night was I thought that I had taken it, but then after hours of fitfulness, I felt like I hadn't. So, I got up to check the container, and that day was empty. So I thought that I must have taken it.

I must tell you that as I roamed all night I continued to feel so awake that I was feeling that surely I must have forgotten to take it, but of course, every time I checked the container was still empty.

The next night at bedtime, I discovered that I had been checking the wrong day all the previous night. What a sap am I! It is a terrible thing to lose one's mind.

So you see, in my case, the sleeping pill is a necessity and not a placebo, for I had thought that I had taken it, and I still didn’t sleep at all. Crazy, eh?

So yeah, no more of the 12 hour pill for me. Back to the old one. It will generally give me close to five hours and sometimes six and on very very very very rare nights, seven.

It’s 5:23 now. I have typed this on the tablet. Of course, it’s a mess, so I will keep it in draft mode until I sit at the computer end edit.

Now to finish that coffee.

It's 6:40, and I've showered and tried to make the above as coherent as possible, but I do request that retired English teachers put their red pens away.

Newsy Bits

We were in Riverside Park on the weekend. There were just touches of autumn here and there, including this photo looking across the river.

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I visited the doctor yesterday. It seems that I have a UTI, I assume from the self-catheterization that I do daily, despite going to great lengths to do it as cleanly as possible. It may not be a bad infection, but I have some meds, and they sent a sample for further testing.

It has left me very tired and even a little bit down. When I have met with friends recently, I could hardly be bothered to converse with them. I do feel better getting the partial diagnosis; somehow, it helps to identify and name things, and my doctor was very supportive. She did not want me to get into the same predicament as last year when it took multiple rounds of medication to finally clear that infection.

She did say that such infections are just about an unavoidable a concomitant of catheterization. Hopefully, my need to do this will be rectified in the near future, but the procedure does help my daily life in the meantime.

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When we moved here 19 years ago, the garage door was dented, but it was such an expensive move (across province)  that we ran out of funds. All of these years later, the door was close to falling apart, so we bit the bullet and had a new one installed. The old one had gaps; this will be better sealed and should be service us well for a long time.

The white door is the new door.

Autumn 2016

As we await time and opportunity to photograph this autumn, I have gone all of the way back to 2016 to look at those images. Generally, I strip all previous edits and start processing from scratch. I find that I process more gently now both in terms of colour and softness.

I took all but the final image on the property where we stayed, and the final one on a nearby road.

Who knows what we will see this year, and if it turns out to be little, I have enjoyed looking back and editing them anew in a way that suits my present tastes.

Autumn Past

Autumn colour is still lagging here, and I haven't bee out to photograph whatever colour there is, so here are a few from October 2018 when we were last at the cottage. I probably posted some or even all back then, but I have reprocessed most recently. I found that I had trended to oversaturate the colours and turn the oranges more red. These versions are more gentle and truer to what I remember seeing.

The older of the two barns on the property one misty morning.

Coming down from the summit after visiting the Eagles Nest lookout in Bancroft.

Roadside colour near the cottage.

Two slightly long exposures of Eels Creek in Apsley.

I wonder what we will be able to capture this year. If it continues to be a lesser autumnal showing, we still have these to look back upon.