This Spring, we have been regularly visited by Jack2 and Liz2, our resident Ravens. They are distinctly different from the original Jack and Liz in size and behaviours but still black, beautiful and noisy. Quirky, too. And we are getting to know each other more and more as this year carries on.
Last week there were just the two of them, today there are five! Seems J2 & L2 have launched a new squadron! Flying circles of life? A fledged family? Three eggs hatched. We think this is the couple’s first family.
Nature. It’s always nice to see but the constant announcements throughout the next few weeks as family news broadcasts changes to lessons-learned-on-the-fly followed up in the end with loud goodbyes can get a bit screechy. Stll, all nice to see.
My friend (with the ship) had a good day yesterday. Got things sorted. Boats and gear, junk and debris, work and repairs all handled and, as a nice reward, the channel he was in was flooded by hundreds of Pacific White-sided Dolphins. That, too, is quite a nice sight. Lifts the spirits.
Typically, we would have seen hundreds of yachts going by by now as they head North for the wilder sections of the coast. Not so much this year. Very few. And all Canadian. The same is true for the whales. Usually we would have had a dozen sightings by now but so far we have seen just one ‘resident pod’ of Orcas and only two Humpies. Seems all the big guys are still hanging out down south.
Sal and I resumed getting in the winter firewood as soon as the big-toe excuse was considered lame (sorry, kinda pun-like?). And we have been gardening up a storm. So, today’s update will finish with a few pictures.
View from the Greenhouse
Our Off the Grid Home 
Unfortunately, not all those boats going by are Canadian. Some of the Yankees have decided to ignore the border closure. They are telling border agents that they live in Alaska or something like that. It’s happening at land based crossings as well! They are showing up in Banff, Salt Spring Island etc. Nice eh?
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Well, we know that at least 38% of ‘Mericans are imbeciles (MAGA’s) and some of them must have boats. So, there’s the explanation. Mind you, a big ol’ Bubba boat going up to anchor is some small bay is NOT going to be ‘infectious’ or otherwise threatening. So, I do not care. Still, they do not buy anything in Canada or otherwise support locals so I can understand some animosity. Basically, I do not mind a ‘Merican coming up and I do not see them as much of a threat of Covid. And, if they do have it and they do die and their boat floats around aimlessly, it will be Covid-free after 14 days. Maritime salvage laws at their best. So there is that…..
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…and I’ve been labouring under the belief that it’s 14 WEEKS! Just goes to show you what a few weeks off the grid does to ones mental capacity! Or maybe it’s the wine.
Anyway, can’t really blame the Yanks for wanting to come up and savour a bit of paradise. Shows they have good taste anyway.
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Nice to hear your friend finished his boat without any further visits from Murphy. There is not going to be a lot of international travel I guess this year? Same over here, people will take hollidays or go by car to neigbouring country. So for us also, no Discovery Islands this year, hopefully next year. We will probably go to France by car this year, Normandy and Brittany are also nice places and close by for us. Well…life’s good out there, seems weather is nice too, and walking through your garden, glass of wine at hand…what else does one need :-)! What is your opinion on using wood which has been in salt water? seems it corrodes the stove quite fast?
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Salt water-logged wood definitely eats your wood stove. Maybe three times faster than normal. Not good. On the other hand the logs floats by. They are much easier to get. They are slough from the ravaging forest industry so we are making heat from neglectful forestry practices. Plus we are not ravaging the forest ourselves. Plus a tree in the water soaks salt…..may as well take ones already there. But the biggest reason is my life is now two-stoves long. I have maybe 16 years….20? I can afford two new stoves. I can no longer pretend to be a real, up-in-the-forest, tree falling logger.
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That is an impressive greenhouse. What a lovely, productive garden you have considering you live on a rock. The ravens know where the food is.
I think I could go a wine now too.
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Always welcome, T-untidy. Come. Drink. Log. Catch oysters.
How bad can it be?
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I’m starting my get-fit exercise program tomorrow so I can help out with the wood chopping and lugging. Also getting in a carton of insect repellent. Thank you. 🙂
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I enjoyed this post very much. I liked the photographs. A tip of the claw to the Raven sightings. People are looking for mind candy so have a look at the YouTube called “Cats are Amazing Pluto”
Have a look Pluto is not a Disney Character in this video posted by a Montreal comedian.
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I want one of those garden plants where you can pick glasses filled with red wine. – Margy
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Been trying to grow these for years, but so far only grapes 😉
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Totally unrelated but have you been watching Elon Musk’s latest foray into satellite telephones?
You might be getting 500 tv channels next!
Also totally unrelated.
An excellent MacLeans Magazine story on the Nova Scotia mass killer.
Seems he withdrew $465,000 in cash from a Brinks depot less than two weeks before he went on his rampage.
Only Banks and police informants have the ability to withdraw that much cash from a Brinks Depot.
If Wortman was a Confidential informant …it would explain why the RCMP ignored years of complaints from various people as to his history of wife beating and his stash of illegal guns.
The person who created the RCMP decals for him was a convicted criminal with ties to Mexican Cartels AND his neighbor. Wortman also had friends in the Hell’s Angels
Someone in the RCMP is wishing this would all just go away.
Time for someone other than the RCMP to investigate this whole sordid mess?
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500 TV channels is a smorgasbord of nothing for me. Still, it is nice of Elon to do what the Federal Government of Canada can’t do – i.e. connect Canadians. The promise of better (from next to zero) cell service has been promised since I have been here over 15 years. And internet connection has been an equally empty promise for ten. I suppose it is like Reconciliation, political reform and infrastructure investment – just words that sound good at election time.
I am critical of the police (RCMP/city forces) for a number of easy-to-fix reasons (like police brutality) and I know that the RCMP has some ‘compromised’ members who play both sides of the fence – I saw that in Delta. All that is in the ‘nature of the beast’ that/who is attracted to guns, badges and power-tripping. But I suspect that the Disney-esque element of Dudley Doright and Sgt. Preston is still a true motivation for many who join up. I hope to hell, they are not ALL rotten.
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