Staycation Joys!

My last week of August and into September, I took time off and enjoyed a great "staycation". I did lots of walking, a little hiking and a lot of little side trips to pretty locales. My house is clean and organized; and I returned to work fresh and rejuvenated.

One of my favorite hikes (and also the most challenging this year) was the Alexander Murray Trail. I'd been wanting to do this hike for over a year; and my daughter and I decided to do it together and make a day of it. She wore her FitBit which recorded a total of 9 km (return). The site also says that we climbed 350 m and walked a total of 2,200 steps. Yes, that's right: 2,200 steps! 

Needless to say, we took our time, made lots of stops. My favorite of these stops was halfway up: there was a slight detour (32 steps) down to part of the Corner Brook Stream. We were hot and sweaty and beginning to feel the climb. So, we stopped for a snack and a wee dip in the icy cold water of the gorge. 

Then rested and refreshed, we finished the climb to the top where we ate lunch. 

We made it! 

The views were spectacular!

The climb back down was just as difficult (and just as pretty). 

My poor knees! But what a climb! 4 hours after we'd begun, we reached the bottom. And we were more than ready ready for a wee reward before going out to dinner together.



So, we drove into Springdale, picked up some light and non-alcoholic beer and headed to Glassy Beach, a little known treasure of a place. We did the short hike through the woods with a beverage each and sat on the tiny, beach-glass covered beach and listened to the waves and the occasional sound of a crow or gull. It was magic! And everywhere you dug you hand, you came up with beach glass.

T'was a grand day! I will probably never do this hike again, but I'm ever so glad I got to experience it this once. 

The Bliss in Simple Tasks

Valerie at A Mixed Bag wrote a recent blog post 'retiring' her dishwasher and said the transition back to hand washing was an easy one. That got me thinking about how much I enjoy washing dishes. Not ALL the time:  Xmas dishes after preparing a dinner for 8-16 people was always something I passed on to those who didn't help prepare!  

As the eldest daughter in a family of 7, I was the dishwasher. When we got our first dishwasher in the late 60's, I was pretty excited!  Now I only had to do the pots and pans.

When I was married with 3 small children, we were gifted a hand-me-down dishwasher. I was a stay-at-home Mom in those days, and I cooked and baked a lot; so it was really convenient. But our sole water supply was a dug well had to be closely monitored in the summer. So, it didn't last long. This was one of the first chores I passed to my children -- an easy and fun task for most kids (at least until the teen years).

Sometimes when I was out with friends and they'd talk about issues with their dishwashers, I would say that I had 3 dishwashers ..... but neither of them worked particularly well. Hahaha!

In everything that my Mom taught me, she had a particular 'method' -- "There's a right way, Sandra!" she would say over and over again. (As I did with mine.) My Mom's chores were always  organized and methodical. And it was important that things look 'nice'. (Did you know there's a right and wrong way to hang clothes? No! Well, just ask me!) 

My Mom's dishwashing method was as follows:

• Hot, soapy water in the right hand sink; clean hot water in the left for rinsing.
• "Start with the least dirty things", she'd say. So, glasses first.
• Cutlery goes into the water to 'soak' while you wash the next category of dirty dishes -- cups and mugs.
• Plates and bowls next.
• And then your pots and pans and larger, dirtiest utensils such as spatulas, soup ladles, etc.
• And when it came to putting the dishes into the dish drainer, things had to be lined up according to size. Larger plates always went to the back, salad plates next and dessert plates or saucers next. Etc. Etc. Etc. 
• Cutlery had to be stacked so that the surfaces that touched your mouth were up top; that way, the water and any residual soap drains to the handles. 

I've been washing dishes for 50+ years. And in the past couple of years, I've noticed how much I enjoy the mindless act of dishwashing. I find there's a kind-of peace that comes from it. I'll turn on Stingray Music to the spa channel. Prep my dish pan of hot soapy water (only one sink in my kitchen) and let the fun begin! 

I use all my senses. Someone gave me scent-free dish soap and I added a little Tea Tree oil:  I like that scent and it doesn't irritate my scent allergy. I like the feel of the hot sudsy water on my hands, especially if they're aching that day. I like lining up my dishes ---  'the right way' so my Mom would be proud.💖 And I like the 'construction' challenge of trying to fit everything on my dish drainer so that it all fits, drains adequately and the air can get to it all. I LOVE that air drying is safer than dish towel drying! (Angelic choirs singing!) And I myself sometimes sing while washing up. 

I love that I can stop to dance round the kitchen if I feel so inclined (and I usually do). I like that pots and such can soak while I wipe down surfaces. I love that nothing cleans your fingernails like a good dishwashing session! (Ewwww!) And I love putting on my hemp hand cream afterwards -- how thick and luxurious it is and how it feels like my thirsty hands are sucking up every bit of moisturization. And voila! Look at what I've accomplished! A lovely clean kitchen with a beautiful, organized rack (or tower) of dishes. Ahhhh! Time for more dancing!

See, I'm not a complicated woman! It doesn't take that much to make me happy: just come visit, eat, drink ..... and let me wash up afterwards. 

Church in the Woods

Contrary to what even I believed before I moved back to NL, most Newfoundlanders hate winter! Won't move out of the house because "It's too cold". "Well, it's winter!" I reply! So, in my attempt to Vitamin D myself as much as possible, I do my weekend wanderings alone.

Starting on Friday, I did a visit to my local Salvation Army store to buy more stuff that I don't need (but make me happy): like these great black flats for $5 and two new scarves at $1 each. 

My "steal of a deal" was this Le Creuset butter dish for $1. (If it hadn't been red, I would have left it on the shelf. But I do love red accents!) 

The next day as I was window-shopping at Winners, I came across the same butter dish for $24.95. Good deal, Sandy!



 I spent lots of time watching Netflix - a Xmas gift from my daughter and fiance. So much fun! Oh the joys of "Stranger Things", "The Crown" and "Hinterland"! I had a bottle of sparkling wine in my refrigerator since Xmas that was waiting for my sister to visit. It actually travelled across the Gulf with me from Nova Scotia. So, I reasoned that as it was early Saturday afternoon and I'd be home cleaning and puttering, I could certainly manage to drink the bottle over the course of the day. 

It was a most delicious bottle of wine! I can't wait to enjoy it again sometime. It had a delicious deep, rich, raspberry flavor to it. And as I wrote in my Instagram post, it was "sparkling, full-bodied and slightly bitter ..... not unlike the person drinking it!" 

Went down a treat as they say across the pond.

But my favorite part of the whole weekend was my sunny Sunday walk at Margaret Bowater Park again. I reversed my loop round Glenmill Inn Pond this time. It had snowed Saturday and the path was not as well trodden as the week before. But it was still very passable. I found this very patriotic boot print on one section of the path. Yay Canada! 

Then as I just passed the half-way point, I stopped to rest on a park bench. On my left side was the sound of the Corner Brook stream and the birds (so lovely). And on the right side of me, I could hear organ music from First United Church (even more lovely). I sang along with the hymn and communed with God there in the woods, thanking him for the beautiful day, my legs and lungs, and the latte waiting for me at the end.

Ciao!

Hibernation Weekend!

Feeling a little world weary and worn from my illness, I decided to spend my weekend focusing on self care. This required a little preparation. So the first thing I did was to call any of my peeps who might worry if they didn't hear from me.

You can see where my interests lie!

The second bit of prep work was more enjoyable. I took Friday  afternoon off because the sun was shining: I'm extremely fortunate to be  able to do that occasionally. I really needed to walk, so I parked the car at one end of West Street and walked to the library in the cold, crisp air. After loading up on magazines and cookbooks, I walked to one of my favorite cafes where I ate a delicious falafel wrap and sipped my latte while sitting at the window with the sun pouring in. I felt like a lazy cat! 

Back at home, my self-enforced hibernation began with couch time. Soft music was playing, I had a cup of lemon ginger tea and I took my time going through a few of my library finds. A not-too-far-in-the-past Zoomer magazine featured these talented ladies from "Alias Grace". (If you haven't seen this series, I encourage you to watch it. It was wonderful!) And look at the way Margaret Atwood stands her own in that amazing jacket. I want to have that kind of confidence and presence when I grow up!

Saturday was National Cheese Day; so brunch was baked brie with cranberry marmalade. Yummy! I spent the whole day zig-zagging from yoga to reading cookbooks; shovelling a path to the car and sitting on a snowy bench with my face to the sky catching snowflakes; and arranging and pasting to bring my journal up to date. That evening I re-watched one of my kid's favourite movies, Totoro. How great it was to revisit that after so many years:  such a gentle sweet movie. 

Sunday I decided I really needed to get out of the house and walk again. So, in spite of the weather, I dug out my snow pants, dressed warmly and walked until my legs ached from trudging through the deep snow on the road's edge. I stopped and sat on these steps, looking down at the icy water in the bay and listening to the surf. It was very calming.


The walk back home was a little more difficult because I was walking directly into the wind and it was a fair trek back! But I wrapped my scarf around my mouth, and focused on deeply breathing in the wonderful fresh air, on the feel of my arms swinging back and forth as I walked, and how warm my body felt in spite of the cold all around me. Back in the warmth of my little cave, I felt so glad I'd done the walk. 

I cooked a pork shoulder with apples and cranberries and roasted potatoes for my dinner. And that evening as I watched Star Trek Discovery and Victoria, I slowly ate one of the gourmet chocolate bars my daughter had sent me for Xmas.



OMG! This bar was wonderful. The quality of the chocolate was sublime. And no one flavour was overpowering but they were perfectly melded: the raspberry being the first flavour to hit you, then the subtle hint of rose water, and finally those delicious chewy fennel seeds at the end. Pure luxury!


In terms of rejuvenation and peace, the weekend was a complete success. I feel so much better this morning, more able to face the work week and the challenges that often come my way.

How do you recharge? Do you sometimes feel the need to "hibernate"? 

Whatever you do, I hope you got to practice a little "Hygie" this past weekend.


  

Things that Made Me Happy

Here are some of the things that fed my soul and made me happy this past week.

• My amazing hike Saturday 

Just a short 25 min hike up the mountain and I have this view of my city, Blow Me Down Mountains in the distance, and the beautiful Bay of Islands.

 Back down the mountain and across to the Corner Brook Stream and Gorge Trail. The icy cold stream at the top of the falls was a great place to stop for lunch.

• Making cherry jam:  Ahhhhh! So sweet and juicy with just a touch of lemon zest. 
  

• Weeding and watering the Community Garden with a few of the group. There's something about dirt under my nails that just makes me happy, even if my back is aching.

•  R 'n' R:  A fresh load of laundry on the line, a day with nothing ahead of me, and a cold Gin 'n' Tonic in the garden amidst the roses and birdsong.
  

• The return of one of my favorite TV shows. 

  

  Yep! It's Ed Sheeran just  hangin' out with Arya.
  
  

This is what truly makes life rich -- joy in the simple, mundane things of life.