BBQ repairs & Singapore

That was a dump of rain.  We had 34 mm (1.33") on Friday morning. 

The BBQ was in bad shape. I consulted with my SIL, and he said to scrub it, scrape it, then re-oil it. Once I got scraping, I realized that wasn't going to work, the scraping. There was too much rust. There was crud under the cooking grate, below the flame tamer. That I scooped up into the garbage can. I've really let it go, I guess.

There is a backstory to the BBQ. It was bought in May 2020. Yes, during COVID-19. That was a challenge: More COVID–19 Era shopping. They spent time hoping to find staff resources to put together the one we wanted. We gave up, and ended up buying the larger floor model. Too much for just us, but we didn't have much choice! Then, we hired someone to pick it up, bring it to our home, and take the old one to the dump.

I had a supporter meowing at me from the Muskoka Room while I was working on cleaning it up! Can you see Nutmeg in the door, on the table?!

Caitlin mentioned Grillspot.ca. They have an American webpage, as well: Grillspot.com! 

The paperwork from the BBQ listed the part numbers. It was easy, ordering replacement parts. Free delivery over $100, as I recall. 

Out with the old and in with the new!

I covered them with vegetable oil, baked them for 20 min. at 200 - 300 F. degrees. We are good to go!

🛫 🛫 🛫 🛫 🛫 🛫 🛫 🛫 🛫 🛫 🛫 🛫  🛫 🛫 🛫 🛫 🛫 🛫

Our Fearsome Foursome Flyers have been having fun in Singapore. 

July 20, 2023 – a robot delivers food! Josephine loves noodles. 

kids in Singapore from Jennifer Jilks on Vimeo.

I made a puzzle out of this photo. Gardens by the Bay in Singapore. 

80Singapore

They arrived in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam, on Saturday. They'd hired a tour guide, Cain, to take them on a food tour. 

They landed, after another epic flight (8 hours) from Vietnam to Melbourne. More excitement to come!

WE HAD RAIN!!!

We did. What a relief. 

Poor Fred on the deck. They were wet!

wet Fred from Jennifer Jilks on Vimeo.

It was a glorious rain. 

rain June 12 from Jennifer Jilks on Vimeo.

Percy was quite happy.

Percy from Jennifer Jilks on Vimeo.

We'd planned sausages. The rain stopped. The sun peeked out. I fired up the BBQ. Of course it rained again! My late father barbequed in rain, snow, sleet or hail, so I felt right at home. We used to say he'd BBQ lashed to the deck in a blizzard!

I love this Hops Vine. It is up to the roof. 

Out the back 40, things are growing. The aspen grove is growing nicely. The previous owners cut the law here, but I love the trees and our aspen grove is expanding. I was headed to pick up a trailcam card.

Out the back 40, the bear had popped by again at this trailcam. They are curious things. 

 

Bear sniffing June 9 from Jennifer Jilks on Vimeo.

I think he is moving along the edge of the wetland. He was at the frogpond trailcam, 200m away. They have a large habitat area. Again, I've not seen him near the house, and the mother bear with cubs seem to have gone off into the wetland somewhere.

 

Bear from Jennifer Jilks on Vimeo.

What else can go wrong? Part the 2nd

What else can go wrong? <= my first installment. I slipped out last week to fetch new reading glasses, and they work really well. I was gifted a beautiful chain for them for my birthday. Now I'm in business! One problem solved.

Lazy boy recliner

Apparently, my diagnosis was all wrong. We've 'fixed' my lazy boy chair, two of us forcing it down, and a piece popped off. I thought we were doomed, and I was prepared to phone the store in Perth, once they are open, to get a repair. We muddled through the day (see more details) and I sat in my chair. We were up and down. I found a foot stool, which served the purpose. 

I don't know what I was doing. I just sat in the chair, automatically used the lever to pop up the foot rest. Now it works. Who knows... we'll see how long this lasts! Another problem solved!

Christmas Day

I bought us a turkey. It was 23.75 lbs. I washed it, dug out the neck and all. (One year I forgot!) The turkey is too big for the lid to fit. I had to tent it with aluminum foil. Popping it in the oven at 11:30, I waited for the delicious smell of a turkey roasting.

We opened up the door to baste, and noticed that the element was sort of on fire. You could see a glow in one spot on the burner. Something happened, it was just really bad timing. It burned through the insulation. It's all bent out of shape. 

Nothing is open on Christmas Day! It would be simple to replace the burner if we weren't in a lockdown. Thank goodness for the internet, and search engines. It's a Kenmore stove, but Frigidaire built them for Sears Kenmore. (We were worried!)

No worries. Let's put it on the BBQ. We accidentally got a huge BBQ in May, the only one assembled during our quest for a BBQ. [Long story: More COVID–19 Era shopping] We were grateful now. 

You'll notice the propane tank is missing. We ran out of propane!

There was a gas station open. More propane, several more hours, and it actually cooked! And, yes, Red, it looks like Dave's turkey, but all was well! 

There was even room for the dressing, which kinda wrecked the bottom of my vintage enamel roasting pan, but what can you do in a crisis? 

We have a ton of leftovers, and that is a good thing!  We are in a lockdown for 28 days beginning Dec. 26th. We've a crock pot, I'll have to work on that. 

We're going to have to keep on trying to actually get the oven part. We found the part, it's at Home Hardware: 30" 2360W Replacement Element for Frigidaire. They are only doing online orders for items over $50. I don't know how much staff they'll have in next week. The store isn't answering its phones. No surprise. People should be home. I'll keep you posted! 

The adventure continues... 

The cats are happy. I bought them this silly floppy pair of fish. I only ordered it Dec. 21st on a whim, it arrived on time. You unzip the belly, plug it into a computer to charge it, turn it on, zip it up, and voila! We were listening to the Queen's message at the time. 

Cinnamon and the goldfish from Jennifer Jilks on Vimeo.

BBQ, gardening, activities

I hope we come out of this soon. We're doing OK, here. My kids are all able to work from home. Ontario has had a bit of a setback with numbers. I think there are a fair number of asymptomatic people out there, as well as those who are undiagnosed. They are trying to ramp up testing and contact tracing. That will help. 

Spring continues to ease us gently into summer. Our horse chestnut tree is beginning to come out. It has blossoms, as well.  

The bird bath is sparkling. I've had a couple of birds visit, some bathing standing on the rocks, or drinking.

The bleeding hearts are out!

We've some tulips, too. The deer haven't been around too, too much! Thankfully. They left me some.

I found a solution to COVID hair. I can trim it at the sides, but it's getting long and thick at the back. I transformed my cap into the perfect thing to keep my hair out of the way. Cutting the top off, I sewed up the seems, and magically have made myself a visor. That's my gray hair poking out on one side, black on the other. 

The phoebe have settled down on 5 eggs, the nest is right over the chain. This is the view from outside.

The robin has decided to build nearby, too. First on the right, and then on the left. 

The robins built here last year, but there was too much traffic for them. 

I can peek out the basement door and eyeball her, the screen doesn't give a good shot. The robin's nest is behind the piece of wood I put up in the corner. 

They are pretty frisky! 

robins from Jennifer Jilks on Vimeo.

I snagged a video of both the robin and phoebe!

birds from Jennifer Jilks on Vimeo.

In the meantime... in our new normal, we needed a new BBQ! JB went to Crappy Tire and found one. This little two-burner one has been good for us since 2011. All told, you can spend over $1000 for some. This one was $400. The same one is still about the same price. We found a similar one in the flyers for $200, but how good could it be? You have to weigh the price and the quality.

For more critters:

Saturday's Critters #336

What a lovely weekend!

Sunday was a day to garden, and catch up. Monday we had 20 mm rain, so it was a good thing.
I am nursing my bug bites. The blackflies and mosquitoes are horrid.

I'm glad I got the fountain going again. We had a sparrow and a robin bathing, while JB and I read on the back deck.

We had a turkey cleaning up the bugs for us. She had another dust bath in the back of the yard.

 Annabelle didn't even bother with her.

I need a new laundry tree. I had to duct tape it. The hummingbird was fine, though!

Hubby went for a walk in the morning, as he does most mornings. It's a pretty town. 

This is what he saw in Perth!

The courthouse.

Dinner was turkey skewers on the barbie, with salads!