Labbit and building stuff

Let me get this off my chest. Sadly, Conservatives and Doug Ford were re-elected here in 🇧🇲 Ontario for the third time. In his speech he claims a mandate to build over Ontario, cutting bike lanes, etc. It is his third majority government. 

"We asked the people for a mandate to build Highway 413, the Bradford bypass. Highway 4, Highway 7, Highway 11, Highway 69 to bring sanity back to bike lanes, to tunnel the 401, to upload Ottawa LRT and build the future of GO Transit across Greater Toronto Area. The people said, yes."

Unfortunately, while he is determined to build stuff, and please rich developers buddies, he is neglecting the vulnerable: the sick, the homeless, high rents, the lack of government housing, a living wage, fair wages, underfunded disability, and all the other provincial issues we face. He's a person who believe all of these people should simply 'pull up their bootstraps' and they will be fine. Meantime, we are short people to work in the trades, education, and healthcare, which he's been privatizing. 

 

🇨🇦 In Canada, while most of us loathe the orange felon, we still appreciate our American friends. Apparently we are appreciated, as well.

What a kind gesture!

🐿️  🐦  🐇

The Shrike appeared again, perching pertly on the bird feeder looking for prey! Sadly, I didn't have my reading glasses on to be able to focus the shot, but all this is proof of visitation!

Snow! This is Monday a week ago, last Monday, and Tuesday! Just when things were thawing, we're back down to -10 ℃. and had 4 cm snow.

Labbit is happy on the sidewalk to go to the front feeder.

🐇 I thought there were two Labbits. Methinks there is only one. It's been staying under the middle deck, rather than going back to Fred's burrow. 

I did notice more weasel or mink tracks. 

Nutmeg wasn't happy in the carrier. I wrote about their trip to the vet yesterday. This was really funny! She is feisty.

 

Trip to the Vet

 It was that time of year! Time for an annual examination, two vaccines, and a thermometer up the butt! 

It's a bit of a trick. I threw Cinnamon in the bathroom and shut the door. Joe worked on Nutmeg, grabbing her after luring her with a treat to his lap. I fled downstairs, grabbed the carriers and put them in the foyer out of sight. Nutmeg (AKA 'Maggie' some days!) was shoved in. I mistakenly put Cinnamon (in the larger carrier) on top. He rolled around and knocked himself over. 

This really ticks her off. 

Cinnamon howled all the way there. Once he was there, despite a dog barking outside in the waiting room, was fairly calm.

Joe manhandled her out of the carrier. It's really peculiar that this is 'home' when they are at the vet.

After we were done, I hauled them back out to the car. It looks, feels and sounds like Spring. I could hear a bird in Spring song. Merlin (I haven't used that app in months) told me it was the House Finch! 

Can you see it?! 

Well, no, you can't see it. I can confirm it as I heard him. And I have a photo from home. SPRING is coming!!!!!

 

We hauled them home, all was quiet during the drive. They know the drill. It is far easier to let them out of the carriers and run to the house. Cinn took off to the right towards the front door. Nutmeg to the left, to the back door.

Cats back in the house, they'll likely sleep all afternoon. It's anxiety-provoking for all of us.

Joe's idea was that we go to Westport for lunch. This view is amazing every time. Tricky place to work, there were flaggers.

He posited that we hadn't been to The Cove Inn restaurant since last summer. My favourite bird species is the heron. Isn't it ironic?!

It was nice and quiet. It's a spot that rocks at night, with live bands. 

It was a lovely drive on a sunny warm day. The rivers are flowing. It looks so promising. 

They are working on the telecom wires. In fact, there were a lot of people out working. Winter limits this activity.

On the way home, I noticed that the house that had a fire (Jan. 19, 2023) is finally coming along and nearly rebuilt. What a job. There have been shortages of workers, materials, and higher costs for everything. I feel for the family. 

We've more snow on the way. We'll see how that goes. The driveway just thawed. Oh well, it'll melt again. Labbit has been using the sidewalk!

Ms. Fix It or Ms. Break It

There are days I feel more like Ms. Break It, rather than Ms. Fix It, or Ms. Maintenance! I noticed ice on the drain spouts. With our melt beginning, I'll have to clear them. 

I made it around the house to check on the down spout. It was frozen solid, which isn't good with possible rain on the way. (We had a bit of rain, BTW, not a lot.)

When I went back the next day to fix it, I thought my snowshoe path wouldn't require actual snowshoes. HAH! Right up to my knees. Back to fetch them and pop them on.

 The green hose has a lovely cylinder of ice in it. In summer this goes into a rain barrel, and into the goldfish pond. I took it off, and lay it on the ground. It'll melt and I can reattach.

Back on Tuesday, after it melted some, I got it reassembled.

The propane tanks had to be cleared off. Another job done. We're at 65% full, so we're good for now.

No good deed goes unpunished. Ms. Fix It Break It did it again. I repeated my action here, and the whole pipe is frozen with a cylinder of ice. It'll have to melt. 

It'll jus sway here for a bit. The snow is about half gone, in our melt, I'll get back at it later. The snow on the roof is melting, where it drips is a patio tile, and it'll be fine. We're back into colder temperatures later. Winter is still with us.

 

From there, down to the highway to clear out the pond that accumulates at the end of the driveway in a thaw. I put salt on it, to open up the drainage onto the grass. 

Back the next day, and a lot is melted. Yippee.

We were seeing 4 turkeys for weeks. In the past week, only two. We wondered if the coyotes got a couple. Not so. One does get attached to the wild critters!