Third time 'UN' lucky ...

Christmas Eve we did the kitchen sink....

On Boxing Day... the laundry room sink above ... which we actually had planned to finish off during the holidays so that was expected. It's great having a working sink in there after a year and a half without one. The washer and dryer were up and running in jig time..sort of.. but, then, we had some finishing stuff to do and also had begun the other three rooms downstairs...so it got put on the back burner. Now... with a week off and the other stuff completed.. we got around to the sink. We are still looking at and trying to decide about a mirror we picked up for above that sink.

But, then... yesterday... a neighbour showed up at the door to ask if my sweetie could go look at their sink and perhaps "help" him figure out the directions to fixing their faucet. Being an expert by this time... having plumbed in a total of 4 different sinks over our renovation years ... off he went ... almost grinning. He always just goes immediately when somebody asks for help... even though for some reason he describes himself as "selfish". He is the furthest from that.

Which is why I insisted on taking these.

Every time he ever says he is selfish...I will force him to look at them ...

Avert your eyes if you are squeamish.

Two hours later... razor sharp copper pipes... dingy, dark, tiny, undersink cupboard ....

He was a bit disillusioned, bruised, bloody, filthy, and just wanted a hot bath. My poor sugar .... definitely doesn't want any more "plumbs"... !

Photo a Week....

That was very funny Elenka! She commented that the sink saga was not the "normal sugar plumbs"... hahahha... ain't it the truth!

My job was pretty simple compared to his ...seeing as the space is not large enough for two bodies... except when I had to squeeze in to help hold up the piping every so often.

Mostly it was ... pass me the crimpers... pass the cutters... can you hold this piece? .. where's my snack? ..no, just kidding... but, while he was under the sink...I had a few little mice keeping me company. I got some heads glued into the shells.. ears on ... and gave them some heavy kitchen string for tails. These are sort of country type mice... versus the others that have shiny cord for tails and golden ribbons to hang by ... the city mice.

We both live in our 'jammies when at home... they are so much more comfy than tight jeans for scrooching and squatting when you are doing things.

woooohoooooo .... by 5:00 p.m. .... I was back in action. A sink is something you don't really even think about....til it's not working.

We toasted our success ...and then I scrounged around and found some leftovers in the 'fridge.... supper was simple and wonderful. My Sugar did indeed plumb .....

Merry Christmas everybody!!

It's been a great year of visiting with all of you... .. it's like having a big family... something I don't have ....

There have been ups and downs... and why wouldn't there be? It's just life.... and, so, onward into the fray we continue to march... the alternative is totally unacceptable.

I've enjoyed following special endeavours ... love seeing all the creations of the hobbyists, crafters and artists.... the beautiful photographs..... the hilarious stories... I am totally convinced that some blogs I frequent should be made into books.

Special thanks for the morning humour that goes as well with my morning coffee as does a slice of hot buttered toast......

Every time another year flies past and it seems to fly at warp speed the older I get.. I'm surprised how quickly it seems to have gone ...and yet... when I look back over blogs as journals... I can see that we have truly packed in a lot more than we remember just offhand..... 'we done goodd' people ! ...

The bears, and Mr. B.V. and I ...all wish you a very Merry Christmas.....

P.S. ..... guess what we are doing today?

Yep....if it looks like plumbing.... it's because it definitely is plumbing. A couple weeks ago, the sink fell off. It's an undermounted type. We siliconed it back into place... but, two days later when we took out the 2x4 propping it up ... the Silicone was still goopy. Ick...It took a while to clean it all off. It just hadn't set. But, why? Bought new silcone..must have been a bad batch; perhaps got frozen or something. Re-siliconed; propped;waited;tested.... then .. a leak just in front of the pea trap! Something got wrecked when it fell off...it was full of water and dishes...maybe heavy enough to break something somewhere. More of my usual .... @#%^&*.. the air was blue ... we took the pipes off to see if we could suss it out. Nope.. back together...still leaking. New washers..new screw tops.. tighter... nope. Still @#$%^& leaking. Take out the whole assembly and check under magnifying glass and bright lights... as I mentioned to somebody..I was almost wishing I was back in the dental office... so I could x-ray it or something...almost..... But.... finally, somebody else's eagle eye spotted the fracture. Aha! now we know what we are dealing with. Bought ourselves a Christmas present... ahahha... ABS pipe and fittings... new glue... etc. Don't ya love a trip to the hardware store? in manic Christmas Eve shopping traffic? .... la la la.. just keep singing, just keep singing ... lalalallalala.

Ho ho ho....... Merry Christmas.....

...definitely a white Christmas ....

Yooohoooo Shashi ... .... more treats for you...... lol.... sorry... my bad! I know you are trying hard to resist. Cranberry Macadamia Bars.... YUM! if I do say so myself...and I certainly do!

We are having a very beautiful, white Christmas ... another fluffy 4 inches overnight....

cupid on the birdie bath is pretty much buried....

I'm going back to email size...these are honking...and take way too long to upload to blogger... VGA is good enough for this...

photo of the week...

Cherry Chocolate Chunk cookies... from the other blog... just thought I'd lure you in with a little trail of chocolate crumbs. Ooooh... that wasn't very nice was it?

Hey... these are really simple and so tasty. I'm not saying you need to bake them today...but, come back when you have time...better yet... print out the recipe and bake them when you just want a lovely chocolate-y nibble. Cookies or squares are great for that... freeze and only take out a few at a time... so much better than having a whole cake staring you in the face.

Baked a couple dozen of these wonderful chocolate morsels... with cherries .. just because it is the season.

My stomach is totally back to normal... don't know what it was except I guess two glasses of wine at the office party were perhaps too much for me ... used to be I could drink a sailor under the table..not that that's anything to be proud of...but..there you have it.

a few days ago.... 5 dozen butter tarts... got some wrapped and sent...some wrapped and frozen and some went off with Mr. B.V. for the guys at the office... the empty tin returned home with notes.... please send more tarts... the cheek! You'd think they were on a desert island somewhere ....

Okay... this is the best of all. I got some baking too! While squares were baking today... I was enjoying my sister's cherry loaf which arrived the other day. A pretty special gift because she doesn't do much baking anymore. Which is why I usually bake plenty and send her a gift box of goodies.

Several years ago she slipped on ice; fell and cracked her skull when she got out of her car going to work ... a serious concussion .. and traumatic brain injury. She was never able to go back to work and missed it terribly ... she loved working at the school.. loved "her" kids as she used to call them. She has fought back so hard and almost single handedly.... using "coping" skills that she has developed all by herself. She should probably be teaching some of the not-very-helpfuls she has had to deal with during that time. .. there is probably even a book in there somewhere.... or motivational speaking... .. Which is pretty darn great considering where she was for the first 3 years afterwards. She's my hero... and is doing very well, but, does have some residual brain damage that manifests in different ways and is so frustrating for her. Baking is one of the things that she finds very taxing.... the reading and focussing on details. If she gets interrupted, she could forget totally where she was in the recipe...or she might get busy doing laundry and forget things in the oven.. or the horses might make some noises and she would absolutely have to go out to see if they were alright.. and not come back in for hours... it could be one of the days when it is too difficult for her to look at small print or try to force her brain to concentrate. So... this is really special...and it is verrrryyyy tasty too.... Mr. B. V. only got one piece.... hahahha.... thanks Vikki..... love the loaf... it almost tastes like there is eggnog in it... is there?

changed the header again

... been taking some photos of our tree and ornaments using a 5 M size and the candle setting.... I like the soft colours and glow of just the little white tree lights ... didn't get the face of my little Santa quite as focused as it could have been...I'll try again another night... I'm having to learn about my tripod all over again. I probably only use the thing once a year..

We got the outside garland up today... and, I was supposed to be having a great and busy baking day...but, my stomach had other plans. Mostly a tea, toast and nap day it seems... oh, and a chance to pop in and out of several of your blogs. Always love doing that.. and today it was handy to take my mind off my churning gut...

Now, I think I just about feel up to popcorn and a movie... further baking has been forwarded to Sunday....

Beautiful sunny day yet again. Lots of sunny days in this area. It's warmer now... only -6C ... so a huge jump up from the bitingly cold of those -32C days..

It is so quiet...I guess everybody is nose to the grindstone trying to get last minute things done...attending parties... going crazy... etc.... don't forget to take some time for yourself....have a sit down with a nice cup of tea and sample somebody's baking..

three sixes and a four....

I keep threatening to buy my next pair of black slacks at a men's wear store.... at least the men have a size system that works. They buy clothes that say... 32 waist... if your waist is 32...wow...what a concept! Why can't women's clothing be so simple?

And...in men's wear... if an article of clothing does't quite fit .. according to a knowledgeable salesperson.. because that's who they hire for staff.... it is altered... FREE of charge! HUH? Mr. BV bought a shirt last year... too large for him.. and baggy almost everywhere... but, he liked the fabric... their tailor totally remade the shirt into a slim fitting beautiful shirt. We actually felt guilty picking it up and almost wanted to pay the tailor something extra... almost...

In a women's shop? ... nada..zippo..nothing. It is $12 to $17 to have slacks hemmed... and they don't even offer..you have to ask. They look shocked if you wonder if they could take in the hips a bit or let out the waist...etc... and...the answer is ... Would you like to see this in another size ma'am? or... we have nothing in the store to fit you...or last year's fav.... you should buy some padded panties or pantyhose and buy a larger size pair of slacks.... what? .... and the sizes... well, I have no idea what size I am anymore and even if I did... none of them fit the same anyway so how to choose which fifty pairs to gather from the racks. Forget about a salesperson or "assistant", as they like to call themselves, helping you. They are hopeless... lazy,.... tell you they look great even if they hike up the crevices... ridiculous... who hired these people anyway? oh, yeh..I remember now ..nobody really wants to work anymore... most of the girls work in clothing shops so they get a few things for themselves 40% off.... At 40% off I don't even want to buy the stuff. I've worked in clothing stores too..and know the markup..

Each year I am a different size...not my actual body you understand; that has pretty much been the same for too many years to mention...with the exception of a few pounds or inches here and there depending on what time of year it is and how much I have (or haven't been) working out. As a matter of fact... I'm sure I'm the same size I used to be years ago, when I was buying 10's or 12's .. but, a different size in somebody's crazed measuring mind....where 4 is now the new 6 ...6 is the new 8...just a minute...is it the other way 'round? .... yep, that's it... 8 is the new 6 .... I'm so confused! My size 4, which were the most expensive pair I have ever bought ... hence the right to put a smaller size on it. .. or so it seems to me ... is closest to fitting if none of the others did. A bit tight... but could do in a pinch. I could wear my Bridget Jones panties to hold things in a bit.

The cheapest pair .. which were Bianca Nygaard.. on sale for $38 last year ... a six... well, a 10 to look at from my point of view... they fit beautifully everywhere... no hiking, puckering or riding up where they shouldn't... but, a size 6.. and a lovely pair of pants. I'm even going to wear sexy panties under them... They are still a perfect fit this year even if I have been up and down like a yo yo in weight and measurements... the other two 6's...?? hmmmm don't fit this year.... I wonder what size they really are? .... I'll keep 'em all ...who knows what next year will bring?

Of course, if I keep up this festive baking ... and the more than occasional taste testing .... I could be looking at a different size altogether next Christmas....

photo of the week...

Some of the simplest arrangements of Christmas-y bits are so expensive I can't believe it... ....save yourself a few bucks....

If you are like me and have done some Christmas craftsy things over the years... I bet you have some faux greenery, big ribbons and "stuff". If you don't have any... Michael's, and other places, have poinsettias .. greenery.. wreaths, swags, and garlands... half off by early December... even some of the florists and cute little knick knack places have some wonderful bits and pieces.... last year I got a wonderful garland with some great realistic looking pine twigs in it. Not used here... I made a front door wreath with it...

but, look.... a simple bucket...mine is brassy with some shadowing in a verdigris colour around the stars... bought it for $5 somewhere two years ago....

A few huge Sugar Pine cones as they were called on the package... whole package of about 6 for $5 at a nursery.... the other bits are stuff I found in my huge bag of goodies that I add to, or use from, every year....it hangs at the back of my storage area...

pick and choose...some of mine have some gold sprinkles on the edges of the greenery... and I found a fruit pick that has glassy looking bits on it... almost makes them look frosty or like they were dipped in sugar.... pop them into the bucket... in an attractive manner...and voila.... you have an arrangement.... that would be about a $90 touch if you were to buy it. 'Scuse the bear's foot in the photo....

After the festive season...I toss it all back into the bag and re-hang it... next year I can use it for this or something else... .. perhaps by then I will have other containers...if I find something nicer...but, for now...I kinda like my starry night bucket. If you don't have ideas for arranging... just take a look or even a photo of some at your local florists... or at a decor shop.....they won't know but what you are taking them to show somebody before you buy one.

blue sky day...

One look through the (faux) lead glass window of the door and I knew it was a perfect day to head out to post some Christmas cards. Brilliant sun, bright blue sky ... cool but not cold. It was only -10 C or so by noon.... not too bad.

Later, a light snow began to fall .... by suppertime it was a white wonderland all over again. I love the look of the new snow. I love how light it is outside even after dark.... the way the Christmas lights all look wrapped in a layer of cotton wool... the softness of it all.

Everything is so quiet and muffled. When the temperature drops further... -23 C or so...and a few cars have already driven over the new stuff...it gets squeaky. Car tires crunch or squeak over it when they drive past... ... the jets almost whistle and hiss as they pass by on the way to the airport ... the sound goes on forever after they pass... if it is that cold. It is so different in many ways when it gets to the deeper cold. The other night it was -25 C when I went to the grocery store and my nostrils pinched themselves off when breathing in through my nose... your forehead begins to almost ache if you are out in it for over 15 minutes... don't really like it that cold......

Oh,....... hadn't even been out for a few days....so, there was a bit of work involved.....

Here is what we do with snow in parking lots... front end loaders begin to make piles each time they clear a new snowfall...which they try to do immediately. These piles get huge and wide by late winter. I made sure I got that car in the shot for some perspective or you could easily have mistaken it for a small mound....

oops... ran out of stamps... just walking to the nearest post box to drop them in was not an option..... had to drive to a post office to buy some more......

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Serena.... you are the winner of my hidden prize contest..... you mentioned the new header photo. I have had 3 different ones up there since December...nobody noticed .. or at least nobody mentioned....or perhaps they came by way of the post title and didn't see it.... either way... you're the first!!

Send me an email with your snail mail address .... and I can get it in the mail right away....

and thanks for noticing..... lol.....

Exercise room finished !!

woohooooo .... now I can get back to doing my whole routine in the proper place. I've been able to clamber over the ..erm..."stuff".... to get to my treadmill, but, that's all I've been able to do in my new exercise room the past few weeks. I had to do the leg lifts, lunges, free weights, crunches and stretching in the other room.

This room has been everything over the past 23+ years, from a completely air tight shop with special fans for air supply and others for collecting dust and sawdust, to a lovely big bedroom for an ungrateful teen relative, to a junk and stuff storage room....(which come to think of it wasn't much different from her bedroom..hahahha which is one of the reasons I tossed her butt out)....but, luckily it has always had a door.. which I would close when I tired of looking at it.

Now, it's beautiful, functional, and mine....all mine !.... well, mine and Gardener's ... he likes to keep me company in there... see him over there behind the door? ... he's slightly shy.

I love it ! Look how tidy ... all the cables and wiring hidden now behind a beautiful, useful bank of cupboards and drawers. Hidden tv and stereo 'remotes', some books, extra wiring, exercise info, extra socks, t-shirts and some DVDs..... alright!

All the cupboard doors and drawer fronts were painted and left to dry nicely .... then we hung them, put on handles and also hung the tv... my entertainment while I march along on the treadmill....and my encouragement to do some exercise routines... the only thing I still want is a 6 or 8 foot expanse of mirror on the one wall so I can check form and make sure I am doing some moves correctly.

These door faces were built by stripping some louvers out of a pair of new bi-fold closet doors.... cutting out the exact size space, gluing them into position and then putting on some trim, etc. Mr. BV invented and built them. What a guy. Sure it took a while.. we are not cupboard builders... but, we did it. It allows for some air circulation inside the space.... which is helpful for the stereo units .. some of them get pretty warm when in use. You can just see some more louvers on the right hand side as well.... smaller doors he also built ...leading to a huge storage area. I'll be in and out of there over the next week.... getting out the Christmas stuff. Now everything is back in working order and I will have room to maneuver....

photo of the week...

My thumb joint was beginning to bother me.... as I mentioned a few posts ago.... but, it also radiated upward .... more into the low forearm and wrist...even seemed a bit swollen. Then, the tendons began to be painfully tweaky and seemed even to jump over or get caught ... each on the other...ooooh... The same wrist also has the massive cluster ganglion...and carpal tunnel.

May I just say.........SH*t. ! !!!

and, at the top of my lungs too, dammit!

It is called DeQuervain's syndrome...and is so easy to diagnose I knew what it was before I even went to the doctor on Friday...just at the beginning of the blizzard. Got home in the nick of time. Luckily most drivers were very generous letting us in off the side roads... because it was a bit tricky and slippery and with big slushy soft ruts already...

Seeing as I can't hold any little bits of fluff or wool for some time....I am just playing with the little bears I do have ..... taking photos at higher resolution, which is why it probably took longer for this page to download today. Also the reason I only put up two of them... don't want to irk you or your patience...just wanted to post a couple pics...

Rest, ice, anti-inflammatories and also some anti inflammatory creams... in hopes of avoiding injections directly into the tendons ...acckkk ... as bad as surgeries.... guess that's it til way after Christmas for most crafting things..... I have discovered that I even vacuum left handed and it is annoying trying to do it with my right.... but, I must... and what else do I have to do anyway... ?.. Guess it is time for a workout ...to burn off the irritation... .

Some day I want to have cards made using my own photos... and will have to have some clearer photos than I usually post...which are mainly just VGA as they are just for posting and sending via email... and good enough for that.... but, for cards or perhaps calendars, I want better....

I would like them on a watercolour type paper.... but, have no clue about printers or people who print things..and the like...so some research will be the next thing. Of course...not for this year...as I am too much of a procrastinator for that....

I decided it is a good time to get the Christmas cards underway too.... that is a righthanded effort.... and the little guys offered to help...so I addressed a few... but, then they got more interested in a little picture of a bear that they found.... and wanted to hear a story...and, well....there went cards I'm afraid.....

How 'bout this one?..look... it has a bear on it... it's the best one...

hey, look...a bear with a thimble for a hat... what do the words say? is it a story?... why is he wearing a thimble anyway? ... what cards? ...oh. aren't we finished with those? .......

the wind kept blowing...

Although it has now died down to about only 20 kph.. The snow swirled off the roof for two days....and onto the patio..... sigh... a lot of shoveling to get that out of there.... and the temperature dropped to .. well, it's -20 C as I type...... so pretty chilly.

we've never had it drifted in there like this in all the years the patio has been there.... it's weird... must just be the way the wind was swirling around....

look how it's hanging off the railing.... it looks beautiful if nothing else..

Mr. BV says...hah! you think these are drifts? You should try living in Brandon, Manitoba.... we used to have to shovel out when things were up to the house eaves.. ! I'm glad I'm from western Canada..he can have Manitoba... and I bet he's glad he is here in Alberta now too....

waaaaahhhhhhh ..... !

We've been getting away with something....having such great weather this far into our winter.... .... but, today.... we're getting a blizzard to make up for that. Well, officially there are 4 components that make it a 'legal' blizzard; one element is missing ....the temperature. It's not quite -20C ...yet. Give it a few hours... and the wind is not supposed to quit...guess it will be a full blown blizzard soon even if it feels and looks like one already ...

This is the kitchen window... snow blew from the north... swirled off the roof down around the patio and stuck to windows and door... stuck and blocking my view now.. no more nosy neighbour, me...hahahha... they can't see me and I can't see them. Oh, and ...these are not black and white photos...this is the colour of my world today.

Snow started this morning and has been coming down all day..... scratch that..it has been going straight sideways all day. Heavy drifting... blowing it all off the roof onto the roads and sidewalks..

I looked out the garage door to see if there was something to snap a pic of... snow was piled up against the door already... and blew in when I did.

I only stuck my head out. After all I had been out earlier...shoveling... I knew what was out there.... just wanted to show you some photos....

wordless Wednesday

photo of the week...

It's taken a bit longer than usual for my second little pink gal to emerge.... I'm not having fun with my left wrist ... can't hold the tiny bits to work on them because my thumb is bothering me. I think it is because of just that...holding and almost pinching little bits too tightly. It is also the same wrist that has a big cluster ganglion ... which needs to be excised...but, so far... nobody seems willing to do it. One plastic surgeon I saw seemed totally disinclined to do surgery.... hmmm... I always thought those guys were pretty blade happy... but, now..moving on to the next guy because that didn't instill any confidence in me whatsoever.... although I guess I'm dragging my feet a bit now......

This is how she began. A chunk of rayon... that I have been using for my poodles.. of the stitched variety. Like this one...

Once I've tweezed out lots of tufts ... I stab away til I get a little shape....

Here is the head....those arms in the back were too big for her little head...but, seeing as the arms on original Posie were huge...and now I have two extras lying about ....I may change those arms. She is string jointed...so easy enough. Just a snip and they are off... and string on the smaller ones.

It doesn't really show in most photos..but, the new girl is quite a bit smaller than Posie... weird that...

Let's help sort out these little lights Posie...c'mon...help me....

Ooooooh..I dunno.... I think somebody is coming. Quick...get rid of them.....we're gonna get in trouble....

What? hey Posie...come back!

oops... busted......

okay then....can I have this instead? What is it anyway? ... is it for me? huh? is it? I bet it is... look.. it's just my size.....