Ann’s Weblog

I found out that the aforementioned, aforeposted LINK is actually a hoax. It’s not a machine but a music video.

I’m leaving it there because it’s a lovely tune!

Talk to you all soon. ~ Ann

Of of the most wonderful things I’ve seen in the last while:

The World’s Most Amazing Musical Instrument

This morning after taking care of pets, I made marmalade and then Piña Colada Jam. I have to run along and groom a couple of sweet little girl dogs, Buffy and Angel. I might be back here later, but I might not; many evenings I’m too tired to “blog”.

Love, Ann

Some neighbours, who are also friends, put a house on the mountainside above us for elderly parents. The view is spectacular (not to sound cliche.. it just IS). I went to visit on Sunday:

I know I can’t exactly lay claim to this view, but it IS from directly above our house. The scenery from our acreage is wonderful too, but the altitude makes a difference. Glad you can enjoy our images of the Robson Valley.

~ Ann

I had a customer in the garden centre this morning who said that she had just happened across my blog. The kind comments motivated me to get back here to POST what I had composed a couple of days ago, and share the pictures I had taken. However, while we looked at perennials outside, I realized that everything needs water again… urgently.

So I’ll make this relatively quick; I did upload pictures that pertained to the LAST entry, and I have others on the computer. I’m feeling all agitated about the dry pots outside though… we usually don’t want to water in the heat of the day, but if things are suffering/dying for lack of moisture, it has to be done.

I groomed little “Mickey” this morning, an American Eskimo who was  born here. He is a snarky dog who would not hesitate to bite, but I put a soft muzzle on him and then maneuvered him the whole while I clipped, ignoring his growls. At times I laid him on his side gently, not allowing him to spring back up; he soon realized he was handled by a supremo alpha bitch who just needed to get the job done!

We continue to have some beautiful spring days. Pictured below:
Kelly our smallest calico cat, Zev’s Percheron mare and brand new filly, Sensation Allium, Beauty of Moscow (light pink) lilac, Ligularia ‘Othello’, the first cosmos bloom, our cedar planter, a lilac that we call “blue star” for lack of proper label, and Lilac ‘Wedgewood Blue’. Last is our Norland Apple, which my daughters gave me ten years ago (with many of its blossoms blown off already), and some osteopermum in amazing new colours.

Had a very good day beside the fact that I got Mickey groomed. We had some sales in the garden centre and visits from close friends. In my spare time I’ve been trying to dig out perennial beds… and being quite ruthless about it too. Gary has been doing some of the same kind of digging, plus watering the vegetable gardens in addition to his farrier work.

We had a full kennel on the weekend and might have the same this coming weekend. In the meantime, it’s pretty peaceable around here, with many old favourite boarders and a few new doggy friends too.

Talk to you soon! Thanks for reading…

~ Ann

I’m sitting under a shade tent, with my third cup of coffee. I’m listening to the birdies sing and otherwise communicate, and enjoying the scent of the large lilac beside me. I can’t get the computer screen to show up very well… I’ve moved into the deeper shade and all around, but can’t find an angle at which I can see to type. I guess I’ll proof-read later!

I’m so thrilled at the lilac I just made reference to. It started from the smallest sprig-with-attached root, taken from the farm at which I spent about 15 years, raising little daughters. This spring marks 17 years since I relocated; I measure much of my adult life in years “while on the farm” and “after the farm”. Those who know me will understand how this matters, but it’s enough to say that the lilac, now bearing more blossoms than leaves, is a lovely reminder of things that were rich and good in another life. I also have a very fast-growing Mayday tree which is another bit of nostalgia for me.

It feels like paradise here at the acreage, during these days where the weather is wonderful and the mosquitoes haven’t hatched by the millions (yet). While it has got very hot during the last week, we still had a couple of nights of frost! Go figure, in JUNE.. that’s not so great; I even lost a couple of zucchini plants.

I’ve been right here during the last few weeks while I haven’t been “blogging”, except for a quick (marathon) trip, for the second time, to Kelowna, for more trees and shrubs. Some folks come to our little garden centre and remark, “Oh, you have so much stuff to get rid of…” and “Aren’t you afraid of getting stuck with some of this…” . The truth is, I purchased a great deal of nursery stock this year, but we’ve sold a tremendous amount. I’m not smug. Anything that is “left” has to be overwintered by burying either in the vegetable garden or in piles of sawdust for the winter, and that’s a lot of work; however, the season is still “young”! Our spring was so long and miserably cold that now, early in June, people are really just starting to landscape. We just got our vegetable garden planted many days after the usual “May 24th weekend”, but that’s okay… some folks who planted earlier have lost some crops such as beans, because of the late frosts.

After my second trip to the big wholesale nursery:

Some spring pictures of tulips and the vegetable garden…

The pet grooming has also kept me quite busy, even evenings and weekends at times. This is all good!

We have been looking forward to Shelly’s wedding, in Newfoundland, in July. What a happy occasion it will be. Everyone we talk to either says that they would love to see Newfoundland, or they have been there and know how much fun we will have, and that we will find the province spectacularly beautiful. We are only taking a week to travel and attend this blessed event, but I’m sure we will start planning our next visit at the same time! If our soon-to-be son-in-law represents the population of Newfoundland, we will find folks to be marvelous… kind, friendly and SO MUCH FUN.

The kennels are close to full this weekend. Each doggy guest has their own endearing features, and they are all quiet while they can’t see me sitting here. We have Taffy, Quannick, Sierra and Duke, Axel, Shelby, Mick and Riley, Turbo and Sasha. This afternoon, I am expecting to hear from a friend of Shelly’s and Merv’s, who is bringing THEIR two dogs out to Mt. Robson, from their home in Calgary. The dogs will stay with us until the dust settles from the wedding time… actually, until we have a party in the Robson Valley to celebrate the marriage!

I guess this is as much “sitting” as I’m inclined to do this morning. The perennial flower beds are in such a mess of quackgrass, dandelions and other unwanted vegetation that I’m anxious to get digging and discarding. As I work, though, I enjoy the waning tulips (I had a poorly attended Fall Bulb Sale one year, and had 1200 bulbs to plant here!), and the first of the spring flowers such as Leopard’s Bane (Doronicum), Trollius, and more. Oh yes.. and Gary’s garlic, in the vegetable garden is HUGE.

Onward and upward. Hope all of you are well. Thank you for checking in here, though I’m such a lame blogger. XXX

One herald of spring for me is the journey to pick up trees and shrubs for our little garden centre. Last April, after several years of having all nursery stock freighted in, I made a plan to pick up the biggest of my orders in my own truck and our small horse trailer. It worked well last year, and this year I travelled with a friend instead of alone, and it made the trip seem much faster and was so enjoyable. The drive was almost 16 hours long, but was uneventful except for having to brake HARD (laying rubber) for a moose, at which time I became more aware what a heavy load we were carrying.

Our little garden centre, called Blackwood Gardens, might not seem a serious enterprise to some, but one wholesale nursery salesman told me that “mom and pop operations” were every bit as important as the big names like Canadian Tire and Art Knapps. That fed my confidence a lot, because we do feel like we’re bringing a lovely product to the local population, to the best of our ability.

Even the cab of the truck had trees packed in; we couldn’t have brought home much more! It seemed quite an adventure, even getting the truck and trailer packed, as it is hard to judge the issues of space and size of containers, while placing an order. It’s not only me, and my inexperience… the men who loaded the stock, said at first, “Oh, it’s only 150 items, no problem…” and then they were starting to worry along with we ladies. We joked that Eunice almost had to ride home with pots all around her and on her lap.

In the photo of my truck and magnetic sign, I have changed my phone number. You who know us or need us will still be able to get hold of us… the real number has not changed.

I have a number of plants, trees and shrubs left over from last year… they looked dormant still, rather odd beside the “new” stock which is leafing out. I hope we don’t have an extremely hard frost again, although it was below freezing even Thursday night, the day we made the trip. And today, Saturday… it snowed.

Last week I was throwing the ball for Lady, and it seemed like Spring had arrived…

Lady is looking a bit portly (NOT poorly), as does her “mistress”, after a relaxing winter.

Time to turn my attention to a guy on TV who is potting up some container gardens. Glad to talk to you this morning, though… thank you for checking my blog.

Love, Ann

Haven’t had too much time to work in the garden centre “department” today, but I’ve had fun with the dogs!

We have a full “house”still. Makalu, Sasha, Max, Tess and Jose, Bruno and Meikka, Chester and Beowulf, Taffy, Jethro, Chico and Allie are here. Today I groomed Shyla who is a gentle, timid sheltie X. She’s a little sweetie:

We met a new dog today, an American Bulldog, who is just here for daycare plus shampoo and toenails, while his owner is sledding in the area. This is Jethro:

Jethro from top left: “maybe if I just don’t look at her…”, “maybe I’ll just leave…”, “this is getting boring”, and “perhaps I’ll give her the piteous look”. Jethro was compliant to bathe, to lift onto the grooming table (all 70 pounds or so), and didn’t mind the nail clipping either.

The care of dogs and a BIT of tidying in the yard has taken all day, but that’s fine.

Yesterday was a LONG day with the grooming of the two matted dogs, who will remain anonymous. There’s something new every day around here; when the dogs were dropped off yesterday for grooming, I noticed that one had a bloody ear. The owner acknowledged that the dog HAD an injury, but it was difficult to say what was going on because the blood was soaking a matt. I gently sponged that ear flap, and hair by hair picked off the matted clump. To my dismay, the wound was not simply a puncture or a scrape, but it appeared that the whole tip of the ear had been sliced off. After cleaning the fur from this laceration, it was difficult to get the bleeding stopped. The little dog, after being bathed, would shake herself and managed to get rid of any kind of dressing I put on her head, also spraying blood over herself and her kennel. Finally with some manual pressure on the ear tip, I staunched the bleeding, and soon the dogs were picked up. I never discussed my theory with the owners, but I’m convinced that they booked the dogs for grooming after trying to chop the matts off, on their own, and injuring the pet’s ear. The dogs were both otherwise in great condition, and happy little guys indeed.

We went to the Chinese restaurant for smorgasbord last night, and then to movie night at the high school. We saw “Benjamin Button” which I thought was a strange and poignant story, and well-made movie. It was good to have a “date night” out on the town!

Pictured below are the perennials that I’ve unearthed from the vegetable garden, and the driveway. I’m not sure why I’m showing you the driveway.

More croccuses are out:

It’s time to think of something for supper here. Take care, everyone, and thanks for reading my blog.

Love, Ann

Seems like we’ve gone from sedentary (almost) and hibernation (virtually) to RUNNING in a very short time.

The kennels are full-as-can-be at the moment, although couple of pets will be going home by end of day. We have Makalu, Max, Jose and Tess, Bruno and Meikka, Chester and Beowolf, Miller, Axel, Chico and Allie.

Today I have two little poodle crosses to groom, and they’re matted so it will take extra time, but I’m always “game”!

I checked the perennials in the greenhouse a few minutes ago. These are the roots that were sold to me a few weeks ago; I have planted them in good purchased soil, in pots, and kept the heater going out there. There are some VERY good-looking plants already! Particularly the bleeding hearts have just sprung up and look so leafy and green (and in bud!). That bigger greenhouse which was fabricated for us by our friend Dale is a TREASURE and the best investment ever. Even if I didn’t have a plant “business” it would be wonderful to have.

Over the last few days I have dug up the perennials which were not sold last year. It’s hard to tell what they will do… I pried them out of the icy garden soil, so they are not warm enough yet to show much sign of life. I’m hoping they’ll warm up and dry out a little now that they’re sitting on the surface. Some trees and shrubs which I didn’t get “buried”, but which were protected by drifts of snow, are showing live buds, so I’m hopeful about those also.

I just phoned the wholesaler in Kelowna about my “trees and shrubs” order. The salesperson for this area was entirely gracious when I wanted to add to my order; sometimes I’m told that I have to fax an addition to my order (which is more trouble). I’m travelling with a friend next Thursday to get the items with my truck and our horse trailer. “ROAD TRIP”!! yippee.

I need to keep running now…. some plants need watering and the dogs need clipping. I’ve finished feeding and watering all our animal guests. Will try to check in later.

Love, Ann

Sorry it has been quite some time, but thanks for checking my blog. Here I am again… but it’s late and I’m quite tired. Will just take a little stab at catching up.

Here is Jazz, a dear small dog who is American Eskimo crossed with Coton de Tulear:

Jazz was gentle to groom and slept during some of the procedure! However, to get his picture was another story… he was convinced that it was playtime.

Last week it was “back to normal” after a trip to Calgary and a brief bout of the flu. My perennial roots had arrived, and I have been trying to get all those potted up to sell in May.

Left to right: Gary saying, “camera’s not working, maybe the batteries are dead…”, then a shot of me in the greenhouse, very comfortable out of the cold wind. The other shot shows the company I keep while working out there…. sweet little kitty named Kelly.

My trip to Calgary was good, and I had a marvelous time with my 3 daughters. I visited with my stepmother in a nursing home, where she has just been moved to a sumptious private room & bath. The time went by too quickly, but I was also anxious to get back to work at home.

When I travel between home and Calgary, I stop as infrequently as possible. However, I did pull in at a rest area in the Rockies, on the Banff-Jasper Parkway:

As usual, if you want to see a slightly larger photo, just click on the thumbnails. At the one particular rest area (Parker Ridge), the ravens land even before the truck stops; this has happened time and again. I usually have something to feed the birds, which are very large even for ravens. Even when there are just two there, some politics are at work… the larger bird went back and forth, almost preventing the other one from getting anything.

Our yard is gradually getting free of snow. Most of the gardens look rather drab at this time of year:

It’s a coincidence that these two shots happen to be an almost “panoramic” view of our main garden area.

A few days ago, these crocusses appeared, and many more have bloomed since:

That is all I can manage for tonight. Besides little “Jazz”, I’ve groomed quite a few other dogs and a couple of cats this week, and next week will be moderately busy also. I’ve managed to pot up almost all of the perennials that I bought for the business, and I will soon travel to get the trees and shrubs that I’ll offer for sale as well.

I’ll try not to leave it so long between blog posts! I appreciate your visits to this blog.

~ Ann

I’ve had an interesting and somewhat stressful weekend, and for a new friend, it has been ten times more filled with anxiety than it was for me.

On Friday I had some new customers pull into the yard in order to leave their three cats with us for boarding. I liked the couple right away… cheerful and soft-spoken, they introduced themselves and proceeded to bring cat food and cats into the house. One cat, Sambuca, was in an airline kennel by itself, and the other two were being carried up the steps by the husband. Just as B. was stepping into our porch, the kennel/carrier fell apart, and Bailey and Kahlua scrambled back OUTDOORS before any of us could catch them or shut the door.

It was NOBODY’S fault. Even so, the mood around here plummeted as we all watched the two cats dive under my grooming shop. My new friend F. needed to stay with her cats and her hubby went on to Prince George to get some business done. The rest of their plans for the weekend were aborted.

So F. and I tried to call the elusive cats and we even caught sight of them during the day. One of my best ideas was to borrow a LIVE trap from our Village Office. I had some other work to do, but at any rate, because the cats didn’t know me, I kept some distance for the most part.

Early that evening, B. returned from the city and the two went home together. Later on, one of the cats was caught in the live trap! I was so relieved, and brought it into the house and made it more comfortable (she, Kahlua, was still traumatized). Still the other little cat, Bailey was, we had to believe, under the building.

The next morning, F. came out and spent the morning calling to the cat. I couldn’t keep the boarding dogs from barking from time to time, and other customers came and went. That day Bailey was still hiding out. Yesterday, F. and B. came out for a little while on their way to do some sledding in the mountains near us, and the cat let himself be seen, but not captured! This was more reason to have some hope; it was discouraging on Saturday to not even get a glimpse of him.

Last night, somewhere between 2 a.m. when I checked and 7 a.m when Gary checked… one of OUR cats was caught in the live trap. OH! Gilbert, our little dilute calico, was furious. Nevertheless, she had eaten some of the food left for the escapee, so I replenished the “bait” selection with wonderful, fishy, aromatic new canned food, kitty treats, milk and water. I arranged and rearranged the blankets inside and around the trap, doing my best to make it “uncagelike”, and checked to see that the warming pad underneath was still, um… warm. I was discouraged though… I thought the escaped cat would be most likely to enter the trap in the dead of night, and since it was occupied by Gilbert, a whole opportunity was lost.

This morning I went into town for a haircut, groceries, and lunch. To tell you the truth, I was trying to stay away from home so that things would be quieter for F., as she would surely be there trying to call the cat. I even took Lady with me so that she wouldn’t be barking in a kennel or the house while I was gone (knowing or seeing that someone was in the yard).

As I drove into the yard after a two-hour lunch, I saw that the heating mat was unplugged and standing against the side of the shop. The live cat trap was uncovered and parked neatly beside the steps… I KNEW that meant that F. had been there and had recovered her pet! Sure enough, when I went to the house, I found a note to that effect.

To say I was relieved would be an understatement… I was jubilant! No matter that this incident was the fault of no one, I felt that if the story didn’t have a positive outcome, it would somehow sully my reputation. Of course I had great empathy, sympathy and worry for the cat’s owners.  They felt that perhaps this effort might have gone on for MONTHS… Bailey in particular had been a spooky cat even as a kitten. In addition to that, the family AND their cats had survived a house fire just two months ago! The frightened cats had hid in the bush for days after the fire; we were thinking that poor Bailey would not be very inclined to leave the protection of the joists of the grooming shop for at LEAST a number of days.

I must wrap up this story by telling you what actually WORKED in this case, for the most elusive of the two cats. The owners had thought to bring CATNIP out; F. just sprinkled some on a familiar blanket near where Bailey had last shown himself, and pretty soon he was rolling around on it! My friend just quietly worked her way closer and closer, with the cat actually reaching out to touch her with his paw, when finally she could just GRAB him. It’s a lesson for all of us, our friends’ stroke of brilliance.

In the kerfluffle of the weekend, I didn’t think to get photos of Sambuca, Kahlua and Bailey, but I might be able to obtain some by email and post them later. I had some faith the whole weekend long, but thank goodness this has been resolved. A friendship was forged and we have all learned some little things… problem solving at its best.

All else is just great around here. There are still plenty of dogs boarding, and Spike the Uromastyx lizard. Otherwise it is calm, I’m calm, and it’s a beautiful spring day! Therefore, I’d better get back outside and get some things accomplished.

Thank you for hanging out with me for this little while. I’ve enjoyed telling this story, which ended so well.

Love, Ann