A New Year, A New Job, Narnia

A lot has happened since the last time I posted to this blog.  First, we went back to Massachusetts for Christmas.  The whole family was there. Kathryn was back from Montreal, Aaron was home from college, Aaron and the two younger kids and I drove down from PEI.   Our family, Tommy, Alicia, Rachel, Michelle, Joe, Joey, Steven, Natalie, Jillian, Isabella, Alcida, Bob, Alcida, Ashley, Stephen, Mom and Dad were all together for the first time in many years.  Michelle even arranged to have the family photographed at the New Year's Day party. We also saw Bumpa, Kim, Mike, Jeff, Olya, Rob, Mal, Mike, Brian, Kerry and Kevin at Mike and Mal's Christmas party.  We even made it to the St. Michael's choir party at Gerry and Kathy's house on Beacon Street.  So many parties, so little time!  We left the day after New Year's, just in time to get caught in a blizzard in northern Maine.  We stopped to stay the night in Houlton, ME before driving back to PEI the next day.

The weather in December in PEI was fairly mild, hovering around 0 celsius. Cloudy every day, a little snow every day, sometimes more.  Still no snow days until yesterday, much to the kids' disappointment.  I finished my first semester of teaching online for UMass, and I was ready for something new.  I got a grant to teach fabric art for the local seniors on Saturday afternoons, which began the first week in January.  It is a class of 12 ladies who have been working on fabric self portraits.  They seem to be enjoying themselves, and I am enjoying the class as well.  It is fun to put this kind of classs together and help people learn new ways of doing things.  In April, we will be having a gallery showing of all the class projects, courtesy of our Provincial Library in Cornwall. 

Just after we came back to PEI, I got a call from Study Abroad Canada to come in to take an English grammar test.  I had submitted my resume to teach there before Christmas, and they were interested in meeting me.  I took the test, and did well.  I began substitute teaching English as a foreign language a couple weeks ago.  It really is fun to be back in the classroom again, and I really enjoy teaching adults who are highly motivated to learn.  It is also fun to meet so many people from so many different countries.  The teachers are young and well traveled, and have many stories to tell.  I am also taking an advanced drawing class on Tuesdays just for fun, and training as a community interpreter for Spanish on Monday nights.  I love it here!

Yesterday, it snowed quite a bit, and the kids had their first snow day.  Today Abby and Daniel and I went for a walk in the woods behind the house and along the Clyde River.  It was so beautiful.  There is about a foot of pure, deep powder on the ground, and the sun was shining!  We walked through the old horse trails in the woods, making our way along the river, through the balsam and birch trees.  It was just like the movie Narnia.  We were half expecting the evil snow Queen Jadis to appear on her sleigh and hand us some Turkish Delight!  All the footprints were ours.  No one else goes back there. Ever.  We half expected to run through the fur coats in the wardrobe in the Spare Oom.  Just another magical day on the beautiful island.

Beginning to look like Christmas!

This weekend, Abby and I went to the Open House at Fanningbank. Fanningbank is a large, ornate Victorian mansion overlooking Charlottetown Harbor. It is the Lieutenant Governor's residence. The Lieutenant Governor greeted us at the door, and we walked through the house, which was decorated in fine style for Christmas. While we toured the house, a women's a cappella choir sang Christmas carols. It was a great way to get into the Christmas spirit! Later, we walked around downtown Charlottetown and did a little Christmas shopping. We visited Northern Watters, a shop featuring handcrafted sweaters and other knitted items. Isabella, I hope you like your lobster claw mittens!

Our other stops were the Queen Street Outlet, my favorite clothing shop on the Island. I bought myself a pretty red jacket and a pair of leather gloves for Abby. Next we went to Luna's, a funky little shop featuring quirky gift items. It is a great place to find ideas and laugh at the funny refrigerator magnets. They also carry quite a few silk and Indian items. Last, we walked around the Confederation Court Mall, and looked at the shops. The sun was starting to set, so we left for home. Horse needed to be stabled for the night and fed.

Yesterday was a very windy, cold day. The ferry service to Nova Scotia was cancelled due to rough seas and high winds. Bridge traffic from New Brunswick was likewise restricted to car traffic only because of the high winds. Last time I drove up from Massachusetts, bridge traffic was closed to trucks and high-sided vehicles because of high winds. The speed limit was greatly reduced, and driving over the bridge was a very scary experience. There I was, high over the Northumberland Strait with the wind blowing my car left and right. I was never so glad to be off the bridge and safely on to dry land! I hope the seas and winds are calm for us on our trek south and on our way back to the Island.

First Snow and Christmas Decorating

Today is the first day of real snow! It did snow a few days ago, but just a dusting. Today we got about four inches of snow and it is still snowing. The roads had not been plowed yet when we went to Mass this morning, but the plow finally came in the afternoon. We spent the afternoon decorating for Christmas. We don't have a Christmas tree this year, since we have no room to put one up. We did put up the Nativity scene, though. It is in the kitchen, which is decorated with colored lights that run up the bannister. Puzzle the cat was very interested in the Christmas lights, and kept trying to hunt them. The other cats weren't all that interested. They are old cats and had seen it all before. Horse never made it outside today. Abby decided not to bring her outside in the snow. Abby was afraid Horse would get crazy in the snow and try to jump the fence. Memere, Alcida and Michelle went to North Conway this weekend, on our annual shopping trip, but without me!

Yesterday, Daniel and I went to Nova Scotia on the ferry to a judo tournament. He placed second in his weight class. As a white belt, he threw a blue belt for ippon! Not bad for his second tournament! We got up at 4 am, got on the ferry by 6:30 and got to Caribou by 8:30 am. The tournament finally got underway around noon. There were about 165 kids competing from Newfoundland, Nova Scotia, Prince Edward Island, New Brunswick, Quebec and Ontario. Judo in Canada is much better organized and more popular than in the USA. We had a great time, and took the ferry back to PEI at 6:30 pm, and back home by 9 pm. The problem with living on an island is that it is expensive to leave; it cost $68.00 to get off the island, so you need to think about it for awhile before you leave. This keeps people on the island and it is a rare thing to leave. That is why island people are 'insulated' from the rest of the world.

In two weeks, we will be going to Massachusetts for Christmas. It will be good to see everyone again, especially Aaron and Kathryn. We will all be together again for a short time. I also am planning a trip to Lowell to pick up my artwork from the studio and see my old friends at the Lowell Fiber Studio.

Abby Delivers a Calf

Today was a cold, raw, rainy day. I let the horse out around 9:30 this morning, but I put her back in the barn just after noon because it was raining so hard. When I was putting her back in the barn, the big, black and white cow escaped into Horse's paddock. No matter how hard I tried, it still took me twenty minutes to chase an enormous pregnant cow back into the cow pasture! It is amazing how fast a very pregnant cow can run. It was a very long twenty minutes. I was nearly knee-deep in cow poop and mud, trying to push open the gate to force the cow back into the right pasture.

Once Abby came home from school, around quarter to four, it was no longer raining, and Horse was neighing for company. Abby decided to go talk to Horse. While she was outside, she noticed the big tan Jersey cow lying in the field by herself, mooing. Abby surmised the cow was in labor, and ran inside to call Contessa. Contessa told us she was on her way, and the cow should be fine as long as we could see two legs coming out. Abby went back to the cow just as she was calving. She was happy to see that there were two legs coming out. Abby went over and helped ease the calf out of its mother. As soon as the calf was nearly out, the cow suddenly stood up and the calf landed on the grass. Soon Contessa showed up with Mark and Terry to take the calf home to Contessa's barn. The mother cow had nearly finished cleaning the baby off, and all the other cows were gathered around us. Contessa got the calf on its feet and announced it was a bull.

Soon it was getting pretty dark, and Contessa was concerned about coyotes in the woods. Quite a few farmers have lost newborn calves to coyotes in the area. Contessa made short work of carrying the calf to the truck. Mark sat in the truck bed and held the calf while Terry drove. Contessa walked behind the truck leading the mother cow, and since it was by now completely dark, I followed along behind Contessa with my flashers on as she and the cow walked alongside the shoulder of the road.

Traffic on most all roads in PEI is sparse but very fast; most people drive along at 50-60 miles an hour. None of the country roads have sidewalks, and most are lined by ditches, which makes it pretty similar to trying to walk along a highway back home. Country roads are only good for walking if you are nimble enough to jump out of the way when a car blasts past you. Walking a cow along the road on a rainy night at near-freezing temperatures can be pretty dangerous, but there was no other choice. I am happy to say that Terry, Mark, Contessa, the cow and her calf are all well, dry and safe. There will be more calves soon. Maybe next time I can get some photos.

Bright, Sunny Saturday following Black Friday

Today is the Saturday following Thanksgiving (oh, yes, AMERICAN Thanksgiving). Canadians have had their Thanksgiving over a month ago, on our Columbus Day, and so the holiday of the week is Black Friday! Yesterday was the day! I really don't understand how it works here, yet, but there were Black Friday sales beginning at 2 am and lasting until midnight last night. Otherwise it was an ordinary work day, unlike in America where it is generally a day off as part of the long weekend. Do people call in to work and say,"Hi, Boss! I can't come in today. Yes, I'm fine. No, it's not the black plague, it's BLACK FRIDAY!" Is that a legitimate excuse?

Yes, it is interesting to learn the cultural differences between here and home. Tney are subtle, but there nonetheless. I have joined a listing of Canadian blogs called Canadae.ca. Here is the link: Canadae: Canada's search engine. I am beginning a new fiber art piece today. The weather is warm and sunny, so I can bake my polymer clay outside in my new toaster oven dedicated to baking clay. Though such materials are labelled as non-toxic, they fill the air with fumes that cannot be good for you! The residue stays in the oven, so re-baking the fumes would not be good for the food you are about to eat, either! So many art projects, so little time!

Dinner Theater at the Tryon United Church

Tonight Aaron, Abby and I went to Tryon for a dinner theater at the United Church called "Ole King Cole's 65th Birthday Banquet." We were invited by Abby's friend Julia from school because she was in the play. Her mother is pastor of the church, and her dad was Ole King Cole. The show was in the church hall and was an original play written and directed by Julia's mom. It was a very cute story about Ole King Cole being sad on his big birthday because his children wouldn't be there to celebrate. He did not realize that they were planning a big party as a surprise. We were the peasants who were invited to the castle to sing to the king for his birthday. Each table was given a song to sing to the king, which we all did between dinner courses. We had chips and salsa, first course and first act. Then we had soup and rolls second act. Third act was roast chicken, mashed potatoes, peas, carrots, coleslaw and mustard pickle relish. The fourth and final act was chocolate cake or blueberry cheesecake and coffee or tea. A pleasant time was had by all. Apparently, Pastor Wilkie does this for a church fundraiser every year. She writes a new play every year and produces it with help from her congregation. When I met Julia and her dad, I could tell they are a very imaginative family. I just love people like that!

PEI really is a fun place to live. It is really something special. I went to take the horse out of the barn this morning, but it was raining, so I left the horse inside. Walking across the field in my muddy muck boots, I could only smell wet hay, balsam and dirt, and I thought about how lucky I am to finally be here.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Today is an ordinary work day in Canada. The kids are off to school and Aaron is off to work. I am thinking about what questions will be on the final exam I am releasing next week for my online course at UMassLowell. To all Americans celebrating Thanksgiving today, Happy Thanksgiving! Enjoy the food, the football games and the Macy's Parade. I told a Canadian two nights ago that Thursday is Thanksgiving. She was surprised and asked me whether it is unusual to have Thanksgiving on a Thursday! I explained that it always falls on the last Thursday of November. Then she asked whether Americans have Black Friday, too! I said, "Of course we do, it is always the day after Thanksgiving!" I think the lightbulb turned on at that point! Alas, we are not celebrating Thanksgiving this year, for the first time in my life including the year I was in England in November. Young Aaron is spending Thanksgiving break with Memere and PopPop. They will be having dinner with Alcida, Bob, Stephen and the girls. Kathryn will be celebrating with her friends in Montreal. Turkeys here cost nearly $3.00 a pound versus $.49 a pound on sale in Lowell. A turkey dinner is pretty costly, and since there is no one around today to eat it anyway, it doesn't seem like a good idea this year. We will have to save the turkey dinner for Christmas!

Aaron and I are going to a dinner theater night at one of the local Protestant churches tomorrow night. A friend of Abby's has a role, and she asked us to go. It will be a fun night out, I am sure. Daniel has judo tonight, and I have a Spanish interpreting job, so there would be no time for turkey tonight! Daniel has a judo tournament in Nova Scotia a week from Saturday. We will take the 7 am ferry, which means we will be leaving here around 5:30 in the morning! That will be an adventure. He is doing quite well at judo, and seems to have a natural knack for it.

Today is cloudy, drizzly and warm: in the fifties (farenheit). Yesterday I took Puzzle to the Vet College for shots and deworming. She is mad at humans in general, and me in particular. Horse is read to be led into the field, and that is my job, so off I go!

Happy Thanksgiving!