Mayne Island

We went on an island getaway last weekend. We booked into this cabin last year but had to cancel at the last minute. So we finally went, and it was totally worth the wait.

We had to take two ferries to get to Mayne Island so it was really quiet. Just perfect.

The cabin itself was amazing. Kate, the owner has thought of everything. You could move into this place with nothing and have everything you need. Complete with a great selection of books and music.

(The first CD we played was Mule Variations. Anyone who has Tom Waits in their collection earns bonus points in my books.)

 

Kate has two basset hounds, they came to visit on Saturday morning and were super friendly. I can't handle this photo of them waddling away from me.

One of my favourite things about the trip were the evening sounds. While we sat in the hot tub all we could hear was a constant chorus of frogs.

(On Friday night there were also werewolf noises, but I held it together.)

We explored the island a little bit on Saturday, then went back to the cabin and made pasta and drank wine that we brought back from Italy.

I want to go back next summer for a week. She is totally cool with us bringing The Bad Room Mate so it could work out.

Book Review #12

I have been reading a LOT lately. I'm three books ahead on my book challenge!! There is more to come that's for sure - and I need your advice:

What should I read on our train trip?

When I was off work I went through a phase of wanting to read thriller/mysteries so you will notice that this time.

The Night Strangers - Chris Bohjalian 

I was in the mood for something like this and it satisfied my craving. A family moves to a small town full of strange people...good set up. I could have done without the plane crash descriptions, but that's my own issue. The ending was surprising - NOT wrapped up a nice bow which was refreshing.

Still Life - Joy Fielding

Woah. I read this in 24 hours. I've never read Joy Fielding before and she delivers if you're in the mood. Although the ending WAS tied up in a nice bow. Plus you had to take a few things that happened with a pretty big grain of salt which bugs me at the best of times.

Private Patient - P.D. James

Man, she is fantastic - a total modern day Agatha Christie. I heard her interviewed on CBC a few months ago and my love for her grew - she is the sweetest old lady! Anyway, a good story with interesting characters. Although I did find myself rushing through the ending a little bit.

Revolutionary Road - Richard Yates

This one was at the library, not something I would necessarily gravitate towards. I like the descriptions of the 1950's and the characters were really developed which I like. But overall it was depressing. Suburbanites who have big plans to move to Europe, but you know it's doomed from the start. It seems like he was influenced by Death of a Salesman.

Barometer Rising - Hugh Maclellan

This book was awesome. The story happened over about 7 days, the middle of which was the Halifax Explosion. So it was cool wondering what was going to happen to the characters but also knowing what lay ahead of them with the disaster looming.

The Great Gatsby - F. Scott Fitzgerald

I was in the mood for a classic and this was calling me. It was great but depressing too. For some reason there were weird parts of it that stuck with me - the husband at the gas station: I felt sorry for him. I didn't like how the dog was bought before the party near the beginning. Weird how books hit you in different ways.

These books were all real books, now I'm back to my Kobo - thank god. It's so much better than carting books around. I'm so over it!

Fascinating Commercials I

For the most part I find tv ads incredibly intrusive and annoying.  But once in a while I see one that gets me thinking. I might make this a semi-regular installment on here, but don't expect posts too often since the majority of ads are simply annoying and not worth mentioning.

That being said, watch this one - you've probably seen it:

Don't you think there were likely numerous screening processes it had to go through before it was even considered to air? How many people watched it? Edited it? 

Well, not one of them noticed that the two women are wearing different outfits at the end.

Really?

Then I wonder if they do it on purpose - to get people talking about it and - of course -  watching the ad. Which would mean I'm being seriously manipulated and am a giant fool for writing this post and including the ad...ah, well.

Paccino

I've never been a big dog person. I grew up with cats and had a bad encounter with a dog when I was little so I'm a little afraid of them. Recently Rawbean has changed my outlook, I see lots of dogs I like now.

Last weekend Brad and I went for a walk along the water. A guy passed us and his dog looked right back at me as he was walking. That's when my heart fell out on the sidewalk.

He was unlike anything I've ever encountered. 

He had SO much attitude. He was like Dustin Hoffman in this clip. Watch it, do it.

For a couple days I was obsessed. We even decided we would name him Pacino if he was ours.

I can't do it though. Why? No, not the Bad Room Mate - Ziggy would probably love him. 

I couldn't handle the health problems these poor guys have. And it's not just french bulldogs - it's all purebreds. I fall in love with my pets too hard to watch them suffer. We've always said that if we ever get a dog it has to be a mutt. 

Still, I won't forget Paccino for a long time.

Onion Rings

I don't usually eat fast food. We were talking about this the other night and agreed that we pick it up about once every 3-4 months. We usually end up at A&W, because it's the closest one to our place.

I haven't been to McDonald's in over 5 years - easy....so why do I still get cravings for McDonald's cheeseburgers???

Anyway, I found this recipe online and had to try it. BAKED onion rings!

SO. GOOD. And it's surprising how many rings you get from a medium size onion!!!

I never deep fry. I don't have a deep fryer and I don't understand doing it in a pot either. That's a lot of oil - and what do you do with it after you've used it?!

Amazing Project

A while ago a fellow blogger announced a very cool project she had in the works: she was creating a quilt that defined her identity as a teacher.

She sent out a request asking her blog readers to donate scrap fabrics. This request was part of how her quilt came together - the idea of her blogger community donating to her quilt. I loved the project, and of course - I have scraps overflowing out of my closet.

I wish I had gotten my stuff to her sooner - I am the worst procrastinator EVER. (V - I have your belated birthday/housewarming present on my table. Yes, it's still sitting there.)

Here is a shot of the fabric I sent Carly:

(photo from Citric Sugar)

 So she posted her finished quilt and I am seriously blown away. Remember how long it took me to finish the two quilts I made? Yeah, almost a year for Mom's and close to 4 months for my nephew's. Like I said: procrastination.

She made a LOT of her quilt over the weekend. Some of that sewing? Seriously, so intricate!?

I'm super proud that my fabric made it into this quilt. And it's fun picking out where she used my scraps.

Yesterday I got a package in the mail - a gift from Carly for donating!

This is really great because I was thinking about how I wanted one of these to store my sewing needles. I have a whole package of them somewhere.....

Creepy Images

  I found this image on the web a few weeks ago:

Seriously, it scares the hell out of me - and I love it!!

The first thing I did was email it to my mom. Which prompted a phone call asking why I was trying to give her a heart attack.

One afternoon I was at home alone and heard a noise that sounded a lot like Ziggy inside the dryer (which you have seen) scratching on the metal drum. He likes to do this whenever he gets the chance.

I got up to check it out but......the closet door was closed. I stopped in my tracks.....there is no way he could be in the dryer. 

So what was making the noise???

Heebies. In the middle of the day.

I just stood there and stared, mind racing. Then I saw it:

Ziggy was up on the bathroom counter - scratching on the mirror. It was my version of the creepy image!

He's done this before - remember the ball?

Childhood Heebies

Since we are on the topic of childhood creeps, I might as well keep going....

When I was a kid my cousin Karen and I had two favourite movies that we must have watched over a dozen times. Man, we used to get the heebies something awful, and we loved every minute of it.

Our favourite movie was The Watcher in the Woods. It's Disney. I know. But it's creepy, it really is! Take a look at Bette Davis and tell me she isn't creepy.

I dare anyone to watch the opening credits and not get the heebies. It's a scene of someone (or something, a werewolf?!) running through the woods, trying to keep up with a car that's passing by. The best part about it is that it's shot from the perspective of the thing in the woods.....yikes. I'm convinced that this scene alone is a huge part of why I'm prone to the heebies.

I made Brad watch this movie a couple years ago and he thought it was a joke. C'mon - the coffin scene is creepy!!

The other movie that we loved was The Changeling.

The scariest part for us was the scene near the end with the wheelchair, which isn't too bad when I watch it now. When we had sleepovers and turned out the lights we would convince each other that some random shadow in the corner was "the wheelchair".

The creepiest scene in the movie by far is this one:

 Oh, so well done.