A Year in the Life...

A year ago today we pulled the Tin Palace out of our driveway in Calgary, headed west. It's been quite a year. We haven't missed the big city, though we have missed seeing Ian every couple of days. I miss our shopping trips and the sushi we used to share, but mostly our long conversations of a philosophical bent.

We've had a lovely year, barring a few pipe and plumbing mishaps with the TP, and that nasty bone-breaking thing Tony did back in June. He is now cautiously walking around in the TP without the walker, but he's certainly not ready for shopping jaunts or herding the cat. The silver lining to that cloud was an extended visit with each of our boys. We really enjoyed their company.

Living in 157 sq ft of space hasn't been as challenging as you might think. I like things to be tidy, which means that I constantly weed out anything we are done with and straighten up the rest. Cleaning is easy but constant, two things out of place and the place looks like a tornado hit it.

The only reno project on the TP which did not end up performing well was the textured paper we put on the ceiling to cover the vinyl paneling that's there now. The paper has peeled and fallen off in most spots, including where the ceiling was patched over the dining table.

I got out the paint and bought a roller and tray today. Hopefully tomorrow I can begin painting the ceiling. I am going to paint the area over our bunks in a "sky with clouds" motif. Don't know how that will work with the slight texture of the paneling, but it couldn't look worse than it does now. I will try to post pictures once I'm finished.

The summer has been wonderful, with the kind of abundance from the garden and orchard I haven't experienced since I was a girl in New Mexico and Arizona, where market gardens and orchards surrounded us.

We've enjoyed watching the baby birds brought to the feeder by their parents day after day. The different birds have different parenting styles. The sparrows are the most fun to watch, since a parent will often be mobbed by three or four frantically begging babies - babies who are perfectly able to pick feed out of the feeder or off the ground themselves. But they must like home cookin' because they beg relentlessly until the parents get fed up and beat the tar out of them.

Maud and Emmett continue to bring their two chicks to the feeder most days. The chicks are now about 2/3rds the size of their parents. I think the larger one is a male, since it often moves away from the others and assumes a watchful stance, which is typical behaviour for a male quail.

Right now we have a volunteer sunflower growing near the bird feeder. Some seeds get missed, and this one went on to grow into a nifty little sun face. At the back of the TP are some volunteer snapdragons which have come up and bloomed without any encouragement whatsoever. This morning I was once more astounded by the velvety texture of newly-opened purple petunia blossoms in my container garden. What pleasure my flowers have brought me this summer.

As summer winds down we are beginning to look forward to the arrival of our snowbird friends from across the country. Summer has many pleasures, but we miss the companionship of the dozen or so retiree couples who stay here during the winter. The weather may get cold, but the coffee is hot and the company is amiable. If you are lonesome in the winter here you've only yourself to blame.

It's been a year of firsts, a year of adventure, observation and discovery. We've learned that life is best lived in the moment, without wasting energy regretting the past, or worrying about the future. Anticipate joy, experience contentment.