The Official Canadian Pandemic Anthem

''The Official Canadian Pandemic Anthem'' from This Hour has 22 Minutes.

Hello March and lazy Thursday

Newfoundland has been back on Lockdown Level 5 for almost 3 weeks now; the East coast had a major breakdown of a Covid variant and, as always, we are extra cautious here. For me, it's meant working 'from home', but there's not a lot I have to do outside of the office. So, I've been mostly helping pack for both daughters moving -- one into a new home and the other into her first NL apartment. I've been busy! (And what a good, if somewhat tiring, way to declutter!)

But today is one of those lazy days. Snow is gently falling outside with enough accumulation to keep one inside and off the roads. I spent a few hours this morning in a zoom meeting. And now no one requires my attention until Saturday. 

Spotify is playing softly in the background, Benny Goodman's "Where or When". Milk was heated, starter added, and yogurt is in the pot for the next 8 hours. And the veggies are chopped for lentil soup. 

I'm working on a baby quilt for my daughter; So, I do believe that the remainder of the day will be spent on the couch with my needle and a little Doctor Who or some other British production. 

I hope your day is just as laid back and that you find a bit of peace and contentment in your day.

Hello February!

I like the month of February. I know it's usually the worst winter month with loads and loads of snow and blowing and icy cold temperatures. (Although this winter, global warming has brought western NL very little snow and a fair amount of rain. I can see green (well brown) out there today!) 

But February is also the shortest month. AND I've always enjoyed Valentine's Day because regardless of people or life, I treat myself that day ('cause most of the time, I love me.)

Wading through Covid can be pretty disheartening and boring. So I'm really thankful that for the second time during this pandemic, Best in the West have begun another competition to raise monies for local charities and non-profits. November 2020 was a burger competition. February 2021 is a sandwich competition. 

Being a good upstanding member of the community, I must do my best to support them! 

On Monday, my co-workers and I tried Newfoundland-Comfort-Food's sandwich: a hickory-smoked, pulled pork-rib sandwich with lettuce, tomato, tangy sauce, mozzarella and  coleslaw. It was very delicious!

Today we tried the pulled buffalo-chicken sandwich from Aromas-Plus. The chicken had just enough spice to warm the inside of your mouth; it was served on a brioche bun with mozzarella and lime slaw. The 2 deep fried pickles were divine! The kettle chips were homemade and so good ..... but I just sampled those and had an almond/mandarin orange salad instead.

There are 24 sandwiches to choose from in my local area (and 30 in total). And while I know it's for a good cause, I especially like the competition because it adds a little bit of extra and much needed lightness to this Covid lifestyle. Lord knows we all need that.

I hope your weekend is a good one and that you're eating well too!

Solitary Saturday

Sometimes I intentionally take a day to unplug and decompress. Saturday past was one such day. While Xmas was lovely, life is stressful for everyone, and I think we must all be feeling the strain.

I took an early morning walk on my favorite trail. We've some snow, but the trails are packed nicely from walkers and snowmobilers so it's easy walking. I almost had the trail to myself, passing just one other couple and a guy with his friendly pup. I stopped at the trickling brook just to hear the water; and I had a small conversation with the snow people about how lovely the weather was and isn't it nice to be surrounded by such beauty.

Back home I stretched and yawned and made myself a hot chocolate (with just a splash of Carolans Irish liquor) and did some coloring. I gifted myself a can of gourmet chocolate at Xmas, so it was a most delicious cup!  

I read a little, listened to lots of quiet, folky/type music, made a tuna melt and tried to ignore  Willow howling for a share. I poured the liquid over some kibble and served it to her on a clean dish. It was nap time for both of us after all that!

A rather large piece of Naan served as the crust for a great pizza at supper time. And as I ate, I got all hep up because I was going to rewatch "Cold Mountain" that evening (an essential annual event). But I could NOT find my DVD!(I shouldn't have donated all those DVDs to the SPCA before Xmas! Oops!) So, "Forest Gump" did the trick and made me laugh and cry and almost believe that there are more good people in the world than I come into contact with.

Don't forget to take care of yourself, friends.

Chill, breathe and remember, you are worth it!

(Today I went to my local SPCA and bought back my copy of "Cold Mountain"! Yay! ) 

Hello December!

Look at this sunrise! It's so difficult to dress for work when you just want to drink coffee and look at the sky. We are experiencing very mild weather; while there's a sprinkling of snow on the mountains, the ground remains bare (hurrah!) and the forecast today calls for 14 deg C (58 deg F). Wow! I am totally up for wearing street shoes as opposed to heavy boots! 

Because of our strict adherence to self-isolation and mask wearing, the Atlantic provinces have had few Covid cases; 35 province wide and 8 locally, all self-isolating. We remain cautious and (mostly) courteous with each other. We can shop and eat in restaurants (6 ft apart), and gather in groups of 20. 

One of our biggest local Xmas fundraisers 12Months12Miracles/ had to be altered this year, and someone came up with the brilliant idea of having a burger month competition. Fourteen restaurants got onboard for Best in the West Burger. There were regular cheeseburgers, greek burgers, spicy, mushroomy, eggy, messy and even a moose burger. And instead of the usual $2,500 raised to help bring Xmas to needy people, over $10,000 was raised! Being an upstanding member of society, I did my best and tried 7 burgers (1 burger 3X). I tempered all that delicious red meat and cheese with lots of salads and walks.

As well, my middle daughter moved here from NS on the 11th with her sister. I have now become a cat mom as her sister has 2 dogs and that just wouldn't go well. Willow is a lovely tempered cat, short-haired so there's very little hair, and other than the 2 feathered birds (which were quickly moved to the top), she's not too bothered with the Xmas tree. Poor little thing was abandoned when Molly found her and has huge issues with food insecurity. Sometimes I actually get 2 hours between demands; scheesch! So, I now have to plan my visits to the kitchen in the evenings in order to minimize the 'dancing round the cat' routine. Hahaha!

Contrary to what I thought about living the slow, calm life of a senior, life is a constant state of flux. But ya know, that's not all bad. Christmas should be just a little more jolly this year with one more daughter at the table.

I hope you are all safe and well.

Well Done

Congratulations USA. Well done!

 

How I Spent my Covid Vacation!

It's been 7 months since I posted. When Covid hit, my office closed (mid-March) and with no computer at home, it meant no connection with the blogging world. But now I'm back. HELLO!

I'm one of the very fortunate people who spent most of COVID at home with little to no loss of wages. For many months, our office ran on 2 hr a week per employee; then to 4 hr 3X a week; and finally a return to full time hours. 

NL has few cases of Covid-19, mainly due to our provincial government not allowing visitors to our island and to the many Newfoundlanders who have been wearing their masks and social distancing. Even with cases skyrocketing again, we remain very steady with little to no cases. But that doesn't mean we haven't been affected.

The supply of food stocks is sometimes low; for at least 2 weeks during jam/pickling season, it was difficult to find a bottle of vinegar! Our shops are open (with mandatory mask wearing), but there's lots of empty shelves. But, we are able to meet in our "bubbles" (small groups); and our hospitals aren't overrun any longer.

How did I spent my Covid 'vacation'? Well, I had a very clean, organized apartment, so I had lots of free time.  I subscribed to BritBox and watched all the old classic Doctor Who programs. I watched a lot sci-fi! And once restrictions began to lift and the weather improved, I was able to get outside to walk .... and garden! The flowers were beautiful this summer.  Although I didn't get to vacation off the Island, I did a 'staycation' and went east to the Burin Peninsula where I'd never been. My cousin joined me; then we both went to her home in St John's for shopping and lovely, lovely, lovely eating!

I'm glad to be back and to catch up with my blogging friends. 

I'm thinking of my U.S. blogging buddies who are entering into a nightmare election during a nightmare pandemnic:  I wish you love, peace and calm. Shalom!