The hummingbirds are back, complete with their asshole behaviour, dive-bombing each other to get to the feeder even though there is more than enough to go around. The day after I filled the feeder with pseudo-nectar, I noticed it was down just over half. I blamed bird gluttony until I discovered a pool of sugar […]
Cottage Status Report 20250510 Read More »
Today, I unearthed (un-snowed?) my Globe and Mail newspaper from February 7. I wasn’t completely sure what had happened to it at the time, but suspected it had been plowed under the windrow at the side of the driveway, and indeed that is what had happened. And that got me thinking. Where did the word
Suburban Status Report 20250330 Read More »
I decided to retire my parka late last week, when the runoff from Toronto’s snowmageddon was pooling in the crevasses of the wonky sidewalks and the snowbanks were withering under a sun that hadn’t been seen for many months. Only to break it out again, when gale force winds and snow squalls arrived the next
Canadian Status Report 20250308 Read More »
I went to the grocery store today, Farm Boy, a resolutely Canadian grocery store. I just had to pick up a few things I needed for dinner today and tomorrow. Lasagna incorporating freezer leftovers. Some kind of curry, ditto. As the resolutely Canadian weather promises to persist this week, after a few healthy dumps of
Even though Mondays no longer spark the opposite of joy, and even though Saturdays are no longer reluctant shopping days, there’s something about Sundays that still stretch languidly, with ample time to putter in the kitchen. So that’s exactly what I did on the weekend. First order of business was to defrost half a prime
Just Another Manic Sunday Read More »
I am the kind of person who owns a collection of random glassware. In fact, if I tried hard enough, I could trace the eras of my various kitchens via the contents of my cabinets. At some point, the solo orphans and abandoned twins were part of a set, but over the years their
Rose-coloured Glasses Read More »
Call centre person: “Hello, this is Stephanie. How can I help you?” Me: “I’d like to cancel my online Toronto Star subscription.” CCP: “Oh. I’m sorry you want to do that. Why do you want to cancel?” Me: “Because it’s too expensive.” CCP: “Let me look up your account. You paid $141 on November 5.”
An Honest-to-goodness actual phone interaction Read More »
Last week, I received the following email, which I have copied and pasted verbatim: Hey Marilyn – you’re the person responsible for fiscal decisions related to Marilyn M Carr The Foundation, right? Are you interested in a line-of-credit for your business? Thanks Marilyn & let me know asap! Sheri McDaniel Approvals Director Starke Business Financing
It’s almost time to say goodbye to the drowned annuals that desperately tried to recover from the early summer monsoons and failed miserably (it had nothing to do with the fact the pots had no holes in the bottom and their pretend custodian had better things to do, like hold down a lounge chair), and
Cottage Status Report 20241020 Read More »
I know you’ve been anxiously awaiting an update on the health of my cottage appliances (probably as anxiously as you’ve been anticipating a sequel to Beetlejuice, which may be arriving at a screen near you soon). The good news is the zombie dishwasher remains mostly undead, as long as I whisper encouraging dish-cleaning words and
Cottage Status Report 20240929 Read More »
