Life Off the Grid 29 - July 12, 2012

Life Off the Grid 29 – July 12, 2012

6:30 AM

Half an hour ago Seamus decided we should all be up. It is breezy and just over 20C, which feels quite cool. Must give Guinness his first round of pills for the day and then I suppose we should go up to the truck and get stuff. I feel there is a nap in my future.

6:45 Am

Guinness has been medicated – it is such a mercy that he likes peanut butter! And I am beginning to pull myself together. Seamus keeps going off like an alarm. Aroo-roo-roo-roo! I don't know if he's just excited by the wind moving the tree branches or if there is something out there to be wary of. I would prefer not to run across a bear while going up to the truck. We shall wait a bit.

8:00 AM

Did a bit of cleaning up. Filled the kettle. Had a cuddle with the dogs. I know, my life is so exciting. Torn between going up to the truck now and getting something to eat. I am very hungry suddenly. But I need to do the truck run before it gets really hot. I will bring down at least one can of paint and the painting equipment, along with whatever else I can carry. I am both excited and nervous about this painting job. I mean, there is the horror of going up ladders, that's part of it. But mostly I am worried about my colour choice. It will be a radical change.

8:45 AM

Did the run up to the truck. Well, slow trudge, to be more precise. It is already getting hot out. The bugs are intense. Glad to be back and have that behind me. Now, breakfast!

Breakfast, as it turns out, is going to be Shirataki angel hair tofu noodles tossed with a saute of red onion, garlic, chili peppers and mushrooms. Mmmmmmm!

1:15 PM

Breakfast made and eaten. Dishes washed. Floor swept.

I installed my Rosetta Stone software and did the first lesson. It's pretty cool. But it keeps encouraging me to go online to register. I will have to do that next time I'm in town. I am determined I will speak Spanish. Before we next go to Mexico, hopefully sooner.

I also managed to clip two of Seamus' paws. Now he's even more funny looking than ever. He's had enough for now. I'll have to pin him down and do the other two later.

And I have brushed the webs and dirt and dust off two sides of the cabin. There's a limit to how long I can stand spider webs and their inhabitants raining down on my head. Just like there's a limit to how long Seamus can tolerate having his fur clipped. And it's really hot now. Over 30C.

2:15 PM

I have clipped Seamus' tail. I think he is utterly appalled. But he is starting to look a bit like a poodle instead of a fluff-ball. He has escaped, retreating to one of the couches with a raw-hide chew to comfort himself.

Annie Chun's Seaweed Snacks are good. I had a package of sesame seed flavour earlier, now I'm trying the wasabi. I will have to cook the kale, or some of it anyway, for dinner. Can't let it get all wilted. But what to do with it? Maybe saute it with some garlic and mushrooms. And I have millet and Kamut kernels and hulled barley and mung beans. Lots of veggies. No idea how to cook kamut kernels. They look sort of like barley, so maybe you cook them the same way...

3:15 PM

Now I have really offended Seamus. I started to try to do his muzzle with the electric clippers. He just looks traumatized. Sigh. I don't think he believes I won't hurt him, and I don't think he can imagine why I am doing these weird things to him. As far as he's concerned Mama's gone crazy and keeps coming at him with scissors and buzzy things. But I can sort of see his eyes now. I gave him a Denta-Stix to try to make peace. For awhile he just sat there, wild-eyed and stiff-backed, but eventually he lay down and started worrying at it.

It's gotten windy out. And a bit cloudy. We may get some rain. Maybe that will cool things down a bit.

At $80 a pop to have a professional do it, I am not giving up hope that I can groom Seamus effectively. It's just a long journey we will take together. Eventually, if I keep at it (gently), we will both gain confidence. Meanwhile, the cottage is, once again, festooned with poodle hair. Sigh (again). I would do it outside, but it's much harder to contain him out there.

4:30 PM

I suppose I should take the boys out and throw something for them. It's maybe cooled off a tiny bit... I suppose it's too early for bed.

4:50 PM

Ok. We chased balls and sqeakers. It is not that cool out. 28C, which is cooler, but the dogs were still panting hard pretty soon after we started. Plus, the bugs are terrible. They find you and they will not leave you alone. I think I better have some asparagus with dinner. It's supposed to repel biting insects. I really don't know the science behind that, but it seems to work a bit. Goodness knows, Muskol is useless out here, never mind all the types of Off!

5:30 PM

This is going to be good. Kale, mushrooms, green onions, asparagus, tomatoes... With some garlic and maybe some crushed chilies. Going to be a sauce. Should I do pasta or mung beans? Mung beans would be better for me... But I really feel like pasta today. At least it's flax omega 3 spaghettini: 0 cholesterol, 0 sodium, 8 grams of fibre and 11 grams of protein. So not too shabby. Plus all those veggies!

5:45 PM

So, I put a pot of water on to boil and the big frying pan on to heat up a bit. Olive oil into the pan, followed by mushrooms.

After they start to get a bit cooked, add some garlic and jalapeno pepper chopped very fine. 

Before too long, add the asparagus. After each addition, toss the ingredients to combine and make sure the oil gets on everything.

Then green onion.

Then kale, cut quite small.

I chopped up a couple of tomatoes. 

Then added them. 

Followed by some oregano and little basil.

Now everything is covered with foil to keep the steam in and cook down the kale. 

Meanwhile, my pot of water has boiled. I turned it off to conserve propane and water. It will boil again really fast.

It's 50 years since the Stones played their first concert. How cool (and weird) is that?

The food is smelling AMAZING!

Gave it a stir to make sure nothing was sticking.

And covered it again.

6:10 PM

And stirred it again, and covered it. It's simmering down nicely. Not sure if I'm hungry yet, but maybe I will be by the time it's ready. I sure am tired. It was after 1 AM when I went to sleep, and 6 AM when Seamus decided we needed to get up. Must not stay up late....

Oooooh! Distant rumbling! Didn't sound like a quarry blast. Sounded like thunder. From where I sit, the sky is mostly blue. But there it is again – thunder!

I stirred the sauce again and added a bit of water to the pan to add to the steam and keep anything from sticking. There is definitely a bunch of thunder going on. It's weird with the sky looking so calm. But that's what it's like here sometimes. We may or may not get a big storm. And it will come suddenly if it comes.

6:30 PM

The sun is shining. The sky is blue with some fluffy white clouds. There is a lot of thunder. No idea which direction the sound is coming from. With my eyes closed I would say there is a big thunderstorm going on here. But, no.

It's a balancing act with this sauce. I do not like mushy vegetables. But I do not like hard, woody, spiky kale either. I am keeping a close eye on the pan. As soon as I deem the kale all edible, I will take it off the heat and toss a little parmigiano in and then cook the pasta.

I guess a thunderstorm would be an exciting event. But maybe life is better boring. When you live in a wood house, surrounded by trees, thunder and lightning are more than entertainment. A bit of rain wouldn't be a bad thing though. It's pretty dry out there.

6:45 PM

Added parmigiano, tossed, and covered again. Put the pot of water on for the pasta. Emptied the slops bucket off the deck to make space for pasta draining.

Still thundering. Still sunny.

This cooking in the cabin thing sucks. Tomorrow I am grilling outside. It's just too damn hot. I think I have all the ingredients to make my amazing marinaded prawns. A rare seafood indulgence!

Oh. It is maybe getting a bit gloomy out. It is subtle, but I think it is more overcast than a little while ago.

6:50 PM

Pasta is on. Done in 6 minutes. It seems to be getting darker in here.

6:57 PM

Pasta drained.

And served! And there's enough sauce left for another dinner. I love leftovers. The work is done and the food is ready fast.

7:15 PM

That was yummy. And the leftovers are packed away. It takes so much less time to eat a meal than it does to make it. 2 hours to prepare, 15 minutes to eat.

The thunder continues unabated. I see bed on the horizon. I will try to hold on to 8 PM. This heat and humidity are exhausting. Not to mention the dog-initiated early morning. Must medicate the big guy. 

Ok, dog dosed. It is so great that Guinness loves peanut butter and Seamus wants nothing to do with the stuff. I hope the pills are fixing the “hot spot” It looked so awful when the vet shaved it. Not that he's letting me look too closely. Quite protective, he is.

7:25 PM

The wind has suddenly picked up. It is much darker now. I will be very surprised if it doesn't storm.

Apparently it is different coloured eyes day. Heterochromatic is the term to describe a person with eyes of two different colours. David Bowie, for instance. And my niece, Tara, who has one blue eye and one green eye. That is a look you don't quickly forget.

7:35 PM

And, it has started to rain.

7:40 PM

HOLY CRAP! That was lightening and the loudest, sharpest crack of thunder you can imagine. And pretty much at the same time. Scary. The dogs are cowering. Guinness is half behind, half under a couch, mostly because he can't fit all the way under. Seamus is under the table and breathing hard.

7:55 PM

The rain has stopped. The wind is dying down. The thunder is retreating into the distance. Sounds like it's going east. Patches of blue sky are opening up. Perhaps its over.

8:00 PM

It has cooled down a bit. It's 26C in the cabin and only 22C outside. I have all the windows open. It isn't really cooling off in here as much.

Look! I made it to 8:00!

8:15 PM

Had some pistachios for dessert. Seriously thinking about bed. It has calmed down quite a bit outside.

8:30 PM

I am going to take the plunge. I am shutting all my technologies down and going up to read Game of Thrones, And probably to fall asleep about 1 page in...

8:40 PM

Well, the thunder and lightening are back. Loud and close. And the rain is starting again too. Yup. Looking like a monsoon out there now. Well, that's good, I guess. My plants all need water and the rain will reduce the forest fire hazard. Everything has been so dry. Then again, there is the issue of no indoor plumbing. Blech.

Alright then. I am so turning everything off and going to bed.