Time to get busy on my course on the brain, as clearly my brain needs some help!  Today I was booking on-line train tickets to Terrace and back.  I am going to mind my granddaughters while Rebecca and Chris are on their house hunting trip.  I love the train trip!  It is economical, relaxing and so very pleasant.  So, I'm trying to book for the days I want but find the days blocked out on the booking calendar.  I knew the train couldn't be booked fully so I called the number on the page.  A very congenial gentleman answered.  I said I could not understand why the days were blocked out.  "Well, " he said, "I will try to help you."  He had a strong French accent, which just put me in a good mood.  "What days are you wanting to book?" " I want to leave on Monday, the 21st and return on Wednesday, the 30th," I said.  "Hmm, let me see," he said.  "What day are you wanting to leave again?"  "On Monday, the 21st," I said.  "But the booking calendar is blocked out until the 24th," I said.  Silence.  "But madam, TODAY is the 24th!"  More silence.  I looked at the calendar on my wall and realized I was living in the past!  I burst out laughing and said, "Well, then that would be why I can't book on the 21st!"  The poor guy was laughing so hard he could hardly speak!  It took us quite some time to stop laughing.  Of course we made back and forth comments which just made us laugh all the more.  I finally thanked him for his help and he said, "No, thank YOU for calling!"  Clearly it cheered up his afternoon, as it did mine.  I'm still laughing about it as I re-think the interaction.  He said that I must have a lot of fun in life living a week behind everyone else.  Well, it was certainly fun for that moment! 

I am incredibly tired so will take myself to my bed now.  I was trying to finish a book last night.  It is on my Kobo and called The Moonstone.  I have been reading it for several months now.  The problem with e-readers is that you don't know how big the book is.  It does tell you that you are on page x of xx of the chapter, but you don't know how many chapters there are.  This is a huge volume, but worth reading even if it does tend to drag in some places.  Thus, as I thought I would finish the book, but found chapter after chapter to read even though I thought it was ending, I ended up reading into the wee hours of the morning.  Not tonight.  A quick sudoku and then lights out!

Tomorrow is Friday.  Have a good weekend!
Bye for now!

I could not access my draft for today from Google Chrome, for whatever reason.  I won't rant about this glitch about not being able to upload pictures via Explorer.  I just wanted to share a few pictures with you.  First, here is a rack Dennis built me for my Epicure spices, which have been overtaking the kitchen.  This rack sits in the pantry, behind the door.  Even though it is behind the door it is in a great spot.  I have to keep the door shut anyway, to keep the pantry cool and the house warm.  I can see all the spices and herbs at once and pick out what I want for whatever I'm cooking.

I had to share these pictures of Angel.  Angel is one of our regular guest dogs.  She talks a lot and loves people.  I really enjoy having her stay.

Isn't she pretty?
Well, I must say, Google Chrome uploads pictures way faster than going through Explorer.  I don't really understand how these things work, but my blog will be written in Google Chrome from now on.
Have a good week, everyone!  Bye for now!

Winter is definitely a slower time outside at Dogstar Farm.  The milder than normal weather though, has allowed us to start removing the outside sheathing of the chicken house to find out why it is so hard to keep such a small area warm.  One panel removed told the story.  Mice and squirrels had made a home inside the walls, chewing the insulation to pieces.  The bottom half of the wall had no insulation.  It was full of chewed up bits, sunflower seeds and chicken grain.  There were dead mice and live mice in there.  Poor Dennis was so disgusted!  He is not fond of mice, especially dead ones.  Now he is re-insulating, re-installing the sheathing and screening off the soffit, which was the entry point for the rodents.  The whole building must have this done, while also checking the inside wall to ensure there are no ports of entry for mice.  Mice and squirrels will destroy insulation and wiring so it is imperative to keep them out.  Once the walls are insulated and sealed, we will put siding on the outside.  We bought some second-hand vinyl siding a year ago, which is similar to what is on the house.  It will be a marked improvement to the eye-sore that is there now. 

Ever since the lake froze it has been incredibly noisy.  I have never heard it crack, groan and moan like this before.  A certain amount of noise is normal, but last night a loud crack shook the house and awakened us all.  Finn, especially, does not like it.  If he is left outside while we are in the house, he tears at the door stoop in an effort to get in.  The basement door stoop now needs replacing as it is in shreds.  We had to screw a steel plate on the bottom half of the door after he put a hole through the door.  He truly is frightened by the noises and is desperate to get in.  Right now he is curled up beside me, grumbling at every moan and crack of the ice.  It goes on all day and night so for now, Finn stays pretty close to me. 

Today Dennis is off to Burns Lake to mail some letters and packages (yes, I still write letters), get some groceries and paint samples and connect with the college where he will be teaching in a few weeks.  I promised myself I would paint the upstairs this winter.  Thus far, not a drop of paint has left the pail.  So, it is time to get cracking.  It all starts with the sample colours.  That is what I will be doing over the next 6 weeks.  Moving funiture, washing walls, and painting ceilings and walls.  The present pale mint green is a tad outdated and not in keeping with our bolder colours.  The upstairs is a bit dark, especially the stairway, so I may have to go a bit lighter than the bold colours of the main floor.  I will take some pictures so you can see the before and after look. 

Daughter Bernice and grandson Jacob will arrive on Friday for the weekend.  We are looking forward to that.  On Monday I leave for Terrace for a week to mind my granddaughters while daughter Rebecca and her husband Chris go to Williams Lake on a house hunting trip.  They have sold their house in Terrace so time is of the essence.  Exciting times ahead for them!

Well, I have spent nearly an hour trying to upload pictures via Google Chrome.  I can't upload pictures through Explorer anymore, for whatever reason.  I hate Google Chrome.  It keeps opening up in Yahoo, which is hopeless to take me to my bogger site.  I can get to the site, but I cannot get in to update the draft, which I built in Explorer.  At any rate, this may be the end of my blog.  While I am not against improvements in technology (I have an iphone, for Pete's sake!), I am against spending too much time wading through the clutter on the Yahoo and Google Chrome sites in order to just publish a couple of pictures.  I have noticed this with a few sites I use.  The order site for Epicure has "improved" to where now it takes me 3 times as long to put in an order.  Now Blogger won't let me upload pictures from my computer without going through Google Chrome.  So, no pictures today until I take the time to figure it out. 
Bye for now.

Happy new year to everyone!  May 2013 be the year wherein you achieve at least one of your personal goals!

Life has slowed down on Dogstar Farm.  Keeping the sheep fed and watered and safe is the main task during these short, cold winter days.  Socializing does seem to pick up, though, as people tend to have more time to visit and enjoy good food.

I spent the first week of January in Vancouver and Victoria with my sister Kathleen, who lives in Mexico.  We meet in Vancouver, spend the night in the Fairmont at the airport (courtesy of Kathleen - thanks Kathleen!).  Kathleen rents a car and off we go to Victoria.  We shop, visit our sister Claudia and nieces Lauren and Claudia, eat good food and generally have a good time.  It is a nice break for me and a chance to do some city stuff, like go to a movie (Skyfall was terrific!) and eat sushi.  I had a great time and look forward to doing it again next year.

It is good to be home too.  The air is fresh, the pace slower.  We have been snowshoeing lately.  It's a good way to exercise ourselves and the dogs.  We boarded a couple of puppies over Christmas so here are a few pictures of the fun:

The puppies learned the snowshoes helped stop them from sinking in the snow.  This little girl even sat on the shoes while I was on the road.

Here are a few pictures of the lake cooling down, getting ready to freeze:

And, last night it was calm and cold enough so the whole lake is now frozen.  It seems the spot in front of our house, which is in Tom Allin Bay, is the last to freeze:

Yes, that's all ice.  It's too bumpy for skating, but a light layer of snow will make it terrific for skiing.

I smell lamb chops and rosemary and garlic potatoes so I would say my supper is ready.  That's it for now.  Have a good weekend, everyone!
Bye for now!