Notes from the isle

Every so often, the weather surprises us. It was hot and humid in the latter part of September and has now turned cold. However, there was a wind storm last week which lasted three days. The wind gusts on the first day were as high as 89 km/h or 55 mph. It lifted six pieces of soffit from our house. While I was willing to wait out the wind storm, my husband was determined to save the remainder of the soffit. Out went our huge step ladder, with husband on it screwing in pieces of soffit hanging from the deck above. I held onto the ladder, feet firmly planted, steeled against the wind gusts. Success! We didn’t lose any more soffit and retrieved the pieces from around the neighbourhood for reuse. The winds were the strongest I have ever experienced while working outside. With a friend’s help, the soffit was fixed after the storm.

One grape vine winds its way around one of the support poles of our patio deck. Usually we share the grapes with the crows, stealthy thieves that they are. This year they didn’t get many of the grapes which is unusual. Maybe they are social distancing. This meant I had some grapes for juicing. It results in quite a mess in and around the juicer. However, the glassful of juice which resulted was tasty, just shy of sweet. I made it last two days, drinking it in sips, savouring the rare home grown treat.

Soup season has begun again for us. As the weather turns colder in the fall, the soup pot comes out. Our most recent soup was a creamy butternut squash with carrot and onion. We like ginger, nutmeg, allspice and garlic in the soup too. I always add a touch of turmeric. For our main meal, we have a sandwich with it. So good! Stew season is also on the horizon. 

Our grandchildren have been back at school for over a month and dance classes have resumed after school. While there have been new Covid cases on the island, there isn’t any community spread to date, no hospitalization or deaths from over 60 infections. The cases are the result of travel outside the four Atlantic provinces, known as the Atlantic Bubble, but the people self isolated when they returned. This Bubble has kept people here safe thus far. We were able to get together with family for Thanksgiving last weekend. A recent outbreak in neighbouring New Brunswick however, keeps us on alert and following precautions strictly.

Listening to the world news every day can bring one to despair. However, a local news story about a city park has caught our attention. Beavers moved into the park where they cut trees, like beavers do. Residents who frequent the park are unhappy with the rodents’ tree cutting activity. The city has responded saying it will relocate the furry lumberjacks. I feel bad for the beavers but they should realize you can’t set up chop just anywhere these days.

Have a great weekend!