Magic Mike Ate My Parsley!

 

 

Mike choosing his next snack.

 

 

Living in this house is a constant battle against nature. First, there's the ants who we discovered had built colonies in our walls. Then there are the giant spider webs that reform daily over our windows. Then there's the mice, including the one with the giant head with whom I had an epic day-long, Itchy and Scratchy-esque battle royal. Then came Jeremy the Weasel, who made a brief but memorable appearance, leaving behind a souvenir turd in our bedroom. And throughout all this, Magic Mike the Muskrat has been the decent one, hanging out under the shed looking cute and minding his own beeswax. Until yesterday, when he scampered up to the garden, hunkered down in the dirt and ate all my parsley in three chomps. He ignored our yelling, grinning with green stems sticking out of his teeth while I snapped a picture to show the cops.

 

S.B. sprinkled some cayenne pepper around, but I fear Mike is making our garden his
personal refrigerator. And I only had to google 'Muskrat Attack!' once to become more afraid of him than he is of me.

 

 

P.S. - Giant sunflower update: Sadly, the sunflowers are no more. I started the seedlings too early and the growth of the roots was stunted by the small pots. I moved them to bigger pots, but they instantly outgrew those, too. By the time I put them in the ground after last frost, they were deformed and twisted, and finally withered. Lesson learned. S.B. took it hard, as he had given them all names. Sally Sunshine, Matilda Sunshine, Tallulah Belle Sunshine...

Wanderlust

A religious procession on Hvar Island.
We just happened to be sitting on the dock as it passed.

The top ten most memorable moments from mine and S.B.'s journey through Italy and Croatia:

-Sprinting through the Frankfurt airport Amazing Race-style after a series of unfortunate events. We only caught our flight by a hair.

-Getting lost in Venice. There's no better place.

-Eating the most delicious food in the world in Naples. At a famous pizza place, we ordered two huge pies and two full bottles of wine by mistake because the prices were so cheap.

-Exploring the eerie ruins of Pompeii.

-Being rocked to sleep in our bunks on the ferryboat to Croatia.

-Entering the imposing old city walls of Dubrovnik.

-Swimming nude on a deserted beach on the island of Vis.

-Having drinks in a crumbling mansion with a quirky Maltese diplomat.

-Watching the fish jump in the teeming Plitvice Lakes.

-Running into a friend at check-in at the Zagreb airport and sharing one last adventure on layover in Germany.

As wonderful as it was, I was just as excited to come back to the beach house. In my adult life, I've lived in 15 different apartments; none of them felt like home until I'd gone on a trip and then returned. This time I had that feeling times infinity. I wanted to roll around in our bed, frolic on the lawn, blast our records and drink out of all our cups. Except that I was absolutely exhausted and fell asleep the minute we walked through the door. 

Mudroom Makeover

As balmy summer nights approach, S.B and I started brainstorming where we can sleep more guests. We decided to put a daybed in the mudroom, and in a flash S.B. built a frame using wood leftover from our deck rail (which he also built!) Inspired by how it freshened up the space, I overhauled the whole room into the ultimate chill-out zone.

Here's the room before we started:

The white floor was dingy from muddy winter boots and piled wood.

There's S.B. in the background, running away from home.

First we painted the floor a dark chocolate brown. Afterward, I added a

large mat in the same colour to protect the paint from sandy beach feet.

We acquired a comfy wicker chair, courtesty of Mom.

I placed a soft hemp rug under the daybed, moved in some plants and a 

woven ottoman to use as a side table. I sewed most of the cushion covers 

myself out of colorful cloth lap napkins I bought for 50 cents a piece.

A portable turntable provides the soundtrack to summmer. 

On the other side we have additional seating (recognize the chair?),

walls hooks for coats and a steamer trunk for footwear.

Presto! Mudroom, guest quarters and relaxing hang-out zone in one.

Total cost of makeover: $40 (for paint, cushion covers, candles and mat)

Rock Revamp

S.B. has about ten band t-shirts that are too small for him so he asked me if I wanted them. I watched some online tutorials and found all kinds of ways you can redesign t-shirts without sewing. My favourite is a sort of braiding technique that brings in the sides and makes the shirt more fitted. I'm going to invite my girlfriends to come over with some old t-shirts and have a contest to see who can come up with the most kick-ass revamp.

 

Two of my re-creations.

Giant Sunflowers - Week Four

 

Whoah!

Weekend Project: Pretty in Pink

So, I'm driving to work when I spy this hard-done-by chair sitting on the sidewalk. It had been left out in the rain all night, seat covered in cat fur, legs that had served as the naughty cat's scratching posts for years. But it had some exquisite detail in the woodwork, and as I cringe at the idea of antiques going to the landfill, into my backseat it went.

Blah.

At home, I unscrewed and removed the seat cushion before cleaning and sanding all the wood.



Next I stripped off the filthy seat fabric and reupholstered the cushion with a white bandana from my old Bandidas roller derby uniform. Then I painted the chair cotton candy pink, which surprised even me. I've never been a fan of pink, but lately I find myself intrigued by its moods. When I first found this chair, it was sort of masculine and authoritative-looking. But now...

Can I get a witness?



Since the chair and the fabric were free, altogether this project cost only the price of three coats of paint, which was on sale for $6.00.

I've never done this refurbishing stuff before. I wouldn't have had the patience for it in the past. But now I'm hooked, and I already have my next challenge...



A woman at a rummage sale gave me this for free. Apparently it came from an old church that used to stand across from Queensland Beach. I kind of hope it's haunted.

Fresh Catch!

I love the musical knocking sound of bamboo wind chimes. Back when I lived in England, I bought some at the market in Camden Town and have hung them at five different addresses since. I finally had to find a replacement after they got beat up in this winter's icy winds, and it wasn't easy. Most of the ones in Halifax shops are mass-produced, flimsy things. But kijiji saved the day. Look what I found! A gigantic carved wood and bamboo work of art...

This heavy sucker is 35" head to tail!

The woman who sold it to me said she bought it at a yard sale in Edmonton and hung it up back home in Hubbards. Now that she lives in the city, she hasn't got a place for it, and is happy it's returning to the water. It's funny how objects can adopt a kind of personality.  He looks happy, doesn't he? I already find myself saying hello to him in the morning.