Taking Stock…

My last trip to town took place well before Christmas. Now, at the end of January, I am taking stock, making a list, preparing for the next foray off the Rock and into town.

The Long Drop….

Just a word of warning: folks with delicate sensibilities may find the subject  of this post somewhat unsavoury. If  you are on the squeamish side, you may want to give it a miss….

Twenty Seventeen…

Another year has come and gone; another year in the lives of a couple of west coast island dwellers…

Bored in Paradise…

November has never been my favourite time of year. The rapidly shortening days combine with deteriorating weather systems to create a cloud of doom that shrouds my days.

Wild Mushroom Hunting…

In between the wild autumn storms that have been blowing up the coast where we live, the sun has been shining at regular intervals, bright and warm, making the colourful big leaf maples glow and pop against the evergreen rainforest.

Saving Seed….

Last Friday morning it was snowing again as I set off for town. I was on my way to the annual Words on the Water writer’s festival. Every March for the past sixteen years I have attended this local cultural event. When I returned late Monday afternoon I felt rejuvenated. Some seeds of inspiration had been sown at the W.O.W. festival!

While I was away the robins returned to our garden, pecking and peering about on the ground for excited worms. It seems they  have brought spring  with them. Although it is still chilly, the sun is shining and buds on the flowering shrubs are  plump. The grass has begun to grow again and the first daffodil  is about to burst open.

Whales for Breakfast….

Just when I thought winter was over, I looked up this morning and saw it was snowing a full blown blizzard again!

Marmalade…

 

The last blast of winter seems to have taken place and the crocuses are blooming. Snowdrops drift across the pet graveyard under the black walnut tree like snowy remnants left behind after the last thaw.

Storm-Watching…

Two weeks ago I was strolling around the garden in a tee-shirt admiring the budding snow drops and the emergent daffodils; boasting about the warm temperatures and the fact that spring was just around the corner.

Since then the weather has taken a drastic turn for the worse; winter is still very much upon us. We do not often experience such extreme winter weather on this part of the west coast and it comes as a bit of a shock! It makes me wonder why on earth I choose to live here, on this remote island in the middle of nowhere. Why do we insist on spending the winter months anchored here, stuck on this rock like frigid limpets, when we could be somewhere much farther south sunning ourselves like iguanas in the sand?

Let’s Talk Trash…

The end of the road on a January morning, 2017.

The past few days have been remarkably mild, considering it is still January. Snow drops are budding and daffodils are emerging from the recently thawed ground. Spring beckons.