Fun Day Out

I've been feeling a bit restless the last week or so, and decided it was high time we got out of the city for a bit. I couldn't face yet another summer weekend going by, in which we did little but DIY work around the house. So on Friday, I decreed that we would down tools today and embark on a Grand Day Out.

Well, the day wasn't as exciting as all that, but we still had quite a fun time. We left home just after 11.00 and headed north for the Valley and the hamlet of Grand Pré. We planned on having lunch there, but the carpark of the café was heaving, so we killed an hour or so by visiting the Grand Pré National Historic Site - which I'd never been to, but A. had toured as a child. Anyway, it was interesting - though I was already pretty familiar with the history of the expulsion of the Acadians, and the Longfellow "Evangeline" connection.

Afterwards, we went over to the café at the Evangeline Motel (better known in the area as "Stirling's"). Neither of us had ever been there before, but we'd been planning to go for some time. You see, Stirling's has acquired a province-wide reputation for its homemade pies, so we felt compelled to investigate. Of course, pie in and of itself does not constitute a proper lunch, so I had a very good lobster sandwich to start. Then came the weighty decision of which pie to have. There were about ten different varieties on offer, all of which were made on the premises. In the end, A. went for the butterscotch pie (with meringue) while I had the cherry-raspberry. Both were delicious, and mine especially so. I'd never had that particular combination before - and in fact, I don't think I've ever had a cherry pie that wasn't made with that cherry-flavoured goo that comes out of a can. This pie was made with fresh fruit, and the pastry was absolutely excellent also. We'll be going back to Stirling's for pie again, I can tell you.

Well-fed, we jumped back in the car and headed off down the old Route 1, back towards Halifax. En route, we passed lots of backwater villages, which hummed with farming and boatbuilding activity a century ago, but which are now quite sleepy. Eventually, we reached Mount Uniacke and our destination for the afternoon, the Uniacke Estate Museum Park. This was yet another place that A. had last visited as a child, but which I had never seen, despite the fact that it is only a half-hour's drive from Halifax.

I really enjoyed it - the house was much, much better than I expected. It's in an astonishingly good state of preservation - built in 1815 as a summertime country house, it was owned by the Uniacke family until 1949, when it was sold to the province on the condition that it be maintained as a historic site. As a result, it contains all its original, early-nineteenth century furnishings, as well as mostly original decor. It was never modernised, so at the time of its sale, it had no central heating, indoor plumbing or electricity. The place was transferred over lock, stock and barrel - the tour guide told me that even the drawers of the bedroom furniture are still stuffed with old clothes, personal effects, and other household items. As was so often the case with upper-class families living in houses like these, nothing was ever thrown out. Anyway, I thought the house was extremely impressive, for a (then) colonial backwater like Nova Scotia! I might see about volunteering there in future - that way I could have a root around in those drawers (heh heh).

After we finished in the house, we went off on a jaunt around the property. There are four or five waymarked walking/hiking trails on the estate, which are what attract most of the visitors. We walked some of the easier trails for an hour or so - we'll have to come back in the autumn, when the leaves are turning, and do some of the longer walks then.

And then after that, we came home. :-)

This Day in History...

Two weird occurrences today. First, I can't believe it was twenty-five years ago today that this happened:

I was eight years old then, and remember it vividly. We were at our cottage in northern Ontario at the time, and I got up at 5.00 am that morning to start watching the wedding coverage on our tiny black-and-white TV (which only picked up one or two channels, as I recall). Very sad, looking at those pictures now.

And in another addition to the annals of British cultural history...the last-ever episode of Top of the Pops aired tonight on the BBC. Having started in 1964, TOTP was the world's longest-running pop music TV show, and made seminal viewing for generations of British youth. Granted, it became increasingly cheesy and irrelevant over the past decade (when I started tuning in), but it's still hard to believe that it's gone.

We actually get the show here on cable (BBC Kids!), about three weeks late. I'd been planning for some time to add on an extra package to our current basic service, and one of the channels in the package is BBC Kids. I might see if I can get that switched on this weekend, just so I can catch the last few episodes.

Guinea Pig Vigil RIP

Our guinea pig is quite poorly at the moment. I noticed at the end of last week that she was hobbling a little, then that she wasn't eating as much as usual. A. got home not a moment too soon on Sunday night, as she's really gone downhill since then. He's keeping her supported with extra food, fluids, some antibiotic, and painkiller (as she seemed to perk up a bit yesterday when he administered the latter).

I don't think there's much more we can do for her, and I'm doubtful that she'll recover. She is, after all, a very elderly guinea pig. Their average lifespan is 6-8 years, and she will be 7 in September. Just want to keep her as comfortable as possible. But it's hard to watch your pets, when you know they're not well.

*sigh*

* EDIT: 5.00 PM *

Just got home...found her in her little box. She's gone.
I really need to stop coming home and finding dead animals, you know?

:-(

Stones Are A-Comin'

Well, the worst-kept secret in Halifax is finally out this morning. It's been confirmed that the Rolling Stones will play a concert on the Halifax Commons, on Saturday 23 September.

It'll be the biggest concert event this city has ever seen, for sure.

The Devil Wears Prada

Took myself off to the cinema this evening. I'd planned on seeing Lady in the Water, since I've enjoyed all the films I've seen so far by M. Night Shyamalan. But when I arrived and looked at what else was playing, I decided to wait as A. would probably enjoy seeing Lady in the Water also. And on reflection, seeing a scary movie and then going home by myself to an empty house didn't seem like such a great idea after all.

So instead, I saw The Devil Wears Prada, since there was no question of A. being interested in that. I must admit, I quite enjoyed it. It was a piece of fluff, of course, but I was in the mood for something light. The best thing about it was Meryl Streep, who was witheringly brilliant. But my God, the entire film was one giant advert. Obviously, since it's a movie about the fashion industry, I expected the parade of designer gear - but the product placement even beyond that was astonishing.

Before the film started, one of the previews was for the remake of the 1960s cult British horror film The Wicker Man. The remake stars Nicholas Cage and the setting has been moved from Scotland to America. I'm pretty dubious about it, as I'm a fan of the original...but I'll probably still go see it in September when it's released.

The Graceful Envelope

Each year, the Washington Calligraphers' Guild hosts a competition called "The Graceful Envelope". Calligraphic artists are invited to create beautifully-lettered and illustrated envelopes, and send them through the post to the Guild.

The 2006 winners and honourable mentions are now posted online. Click here to scroll through some truly beautiful and (for me) inspirational examples. I especially like the way that so many of the entries incorporated the stamp as a design element also.

I wonder if I did this Honorable Mention envelope, and sent it off in my sleep or something. Calligraphy and rabbits? Come on, what are the odds? ;-)

Raspberry Time

The raspberry canes we got from my in-laws last year are - happily - now producing fruit. I got the first pick off them today - a decent bowlful. And they're delicious.

To start them off, we've got them growing in big terracotta pots on the front deck. Now that they're so well established, we'll put them in the ground either this fall or next spring. Hopefully they will go forth and multiply!

Battling the Joyce Estate

I've been meaning to blog for a couple of days now about a piece I read in last week's Globe and Mail, about a James Joyce scholar from the University of Western Ontario who, with a group of like-minded colleagues, is taking on the estate of the Irish novelist James Joyce. Joyce's grandson, Stephen Joyce, is notorious in academic circles for his overzealous defence of his grandfather's legacy. Researchers wanting access to Joyce's archival papers, and permission to quote from these, are routinely frustrated and intimidated by Stephen Joyce, who exercises dictatorial control over the copyright on all Joyce's works. At the slightest suggestion that the family honour might be impugned in any way, cooperation and permission is withdrawn from scholars, who as a result have spent decades obliging and tiptoeing around Stephen Joyce. His sense of personal power and entitlement must be staggering.

[As the Globe link above requires subscription now, there's also an excellent longer piece in The New Yorker.]

I remember first being struck by this in 2004, not too long before we left Ireland. I went to the National Library one day to see an exhibition of Joyce manuscripts they were displaying, as part of the centenary of Bloomsday (I've since found out that Stephen Joyce, on hearing of the plans for the exhibition, warned the Library that the display violated his copyright; the Irish Senate had to pass an emergency amendment to thwart him!). On going into the exhibition, I was told by the attendant of all the usual restrictions - no video or photographs, etc. But on noticing that I had a notebook and pen with me, he pointed out that at the insistence of the Joyce Estate, visitors were not allowed to do so much as take notes from the manuscripts, either. Needless to say, I was gobsmacked.

Yum

One of the best things about July?

Fresh strawberries and cherries in my lunchbag every day. Scrummmmo!

*stuffs gob and enjoys 'em while they last*

The Footie

And now, for the first (and quite possibly only) time, I am going to blog about sport.

Just finished watching the tail-end of the World Cup Final. Happily, I've managed to avoid watching any matches thus far in the tournament, but I wandered downstairs earlier and flicked on the television just as the penalty shootout began. ARGH. So of course, there was no changing the channel after that. I can't stand penalty shootouts, no matter what the sport. Obviously, they're a necessary evil, because someone's got to win. But by the time you get to a penalty shootout, the game is no longer about skill, or the best team winning - it's purely about luck. And if you're the unlucky side who loses, it's a crushing blow.

That said, I'm quite pleased the Italians won. Unless I have some vested interest in a particular side, I usually cheer for the underdogs. And since Italy last won the World Cup in 1982, and France just took it in '98 (and at home, to boot!), I reckoned the Italians deserved it.

But I imagine that what the commentators will focus on most about this match will be the spectacle of Zinedine Zidane going down in flames. God knows what was going through his head when he decided it would be a good idea to head-butt one of the Italians in the chest. But to end one's professional sporting career by being red-carded out of a World Cup Final? Oh, the shame.

Is It Summer Yet?

Yesterday was the hottest day of the year so far (just above 30°C in the sunshine and humidity). It also felt like the first real day of summer. Spent quite a bit of time out on the deck, reading and doing some garden stuff. Also put the critters out on the lawn in their outdoor 'holiday home' hutch - whereupon they denuded every blade of grass within reach, the little blighters. ;-) Must be careful of that - A. will be wild if he gets back to find that his lawn has been munched down to the bare earth.

After the crummy June we've had, some good weather is way past due. The point was reinforced yesterday morning, when I went out early to the Farmers' Market to pick up some fruit, veg and flowers. The farm stand I usually patronize had signs up above the salad leaves apologising for the lack of volume, which was due to the almost non-stop rain last month. There were also notices up saying that the strawberry crop in Nova Scotia is much smaller this year (also due to the shorter, very rainy season).

So yesterday's hot, sunny weather was very welcome. And what do you know...we're back to rain again today. But the forecast is for a mostly sunny and dry week ahead, so I'm looking forward to pleasant cycling to work every day, and suppers outside on the deck.

In My Garden - June

In all the hustle and bustle of the holiday long weekend (which mainly consisted of DIY in the house and garden, though we did get out on Saturday for a barbecue and a cruise 'round St. Margaret's Bay in my in-laws' boat), I forgot to post my garden pics for June. So, they're over here.

June seemed a little disappointing in the garden, somehow. I think it must be because May was so vibrant and colourful, with all those spring bulbs making such a striking display. Next year, I must remember to plant a few more June-flowering things, like lupins and irises. The other big thing I noticed in the garden this month is that our lilac tree did not produce anywhere near as many flowers as it did last year. Perhaps this was just a bad year for them, and next year it will return to form - I hope so, as lilacs are amongst my very favourites. A. has been giving the tree a good prune these last few weeks, also (I read recently that lilacs benefit from deadheading!). Hopefully that will also improve things.

Testing My New E-Bike

Mindful of the lack of traffic in the city on Sundays, I took an inaugural spin on my new bike this morning. I'd souped 'er up yesterday with a few new accessories (basket, bell, flashing rear reflector, wing mirror) and dug out my helmet, trouser cuffs, and lock, which I'd kept from my cycling days in Dublin. So I was all ready today.

Quite pleased with it so far. It is heavier than your usual bike, but not by a whole lot. No danger of me getting absolutely no exercise on that thing (unless, of course, I wanted to use the electric assist the whole time). The power assist is truly a thing of wonder. As soon as you approach a slope, you give the throttle (on the right handlebar) a little twist...and off you go. It's very smooth and quiet. The gearshift (on the left handlebar) is easy enough too - it's a seven-speed.

Anyway, I timed myself this morning - got from my garage to the back door of my office building in 12 minutes. Walking that distance would take me 30-35 minutes, so that's amazing. Now obviously, workday traffic will slow me down, but as I gain more confidence on the bike, I will go a little faster. But even allowing for time to get the bike out in the morning, ride in, and then take it up to my office (I'm worried about theft, so I think I'll bring it in, if my co-workers don't object), I can't see my commute taking more than 15-20 minutes, door-to-door. That's less than half the time of walking.

The only thing I am a little concerned about is the actual size of the bike. I think it's slightly too big for me - most standard 26" bikes are, given that I'm only 5'4". I've got the seat down as far as it will go, and can just touch the pavement on tiptoe, so that's not too bad. But the handlebars seem to be in an awkward position for me, and twisting the throttle and shifting gears, as well as braking, is a little hard on my wrists. Not a big deal, though - perhaps I just need to get used to it. At least the seat is nice and cushy - that's usually the biggest problem I have on bikes. Those skinny racing saddles are murder on the ol' sit bones!

Canada Day

From my postcard collection: