Early Morning

We call it smoke but it’s smog and we better get used to it.

Up early. Tough week. I let my temper get the better of me a couple times. Luckily I am only caustic with my tongue, not like before.

It would be easy to say they got what they deserved. Tourists, rich, entitled, put in their place. But it makes me sad. So it can’t be good. I used to love putting a bully in his place. Punching up has hurt my family immeasurably. I am a fool not to go along. Look how good the people who punch down do.

The garden is up. Plenty of smoke on the horizon and on the water, early morning. The spuds could be ready, who knows for sure, the grasshoppers have eaten the blossoms.

July Garden

Even Willow was powerless against the grasshoppers.

The garden is doing it’s best after being ravaged by grasshoppers. The grasshoppers are still around in abundance but not eating as much as when they were small. When we have vegetables from the garden for dinner I remark my thankfulness that the grasshoppers were kind enough to leave it for us. They were ravenous bastards.

No carrots this year. Almost everything had to be replanted. Strangely they didn’t like peas, which are about 6 feet tall and covered in pods. The tomatoes, they mostly left alone. Same as the zucchini. Everything else was at their mercy.

The cannabis is coming and I’m about to trick it into thinking it’s dying so it will flower. The grasshoppers ate it as well, but it fought back on its own. The grasshoppers who indulged were last seen, wearing dark glasses, listening to jazz, riding vans, driven by a ladybug, down to SF, Haight Ashbury, to find themselves. I’m happy I could, at least, convert a few. The stoned grasshoppers remaining are degenerates, happy to listen to Led Zeppelin overflowing from the gardeners earbuds. They are hard to motivate, but great to have a conversation with once you get them going, unfortunately they still like to snack.

We will miss the carrots. I planted zucchini in many of spots in the garden that the grasshoppers destroyed. We are going to have ‘chini coming out our ears. I won’t be able to give them away. My friends will see me coming and scatter.

AI

WordPress now has an AI editor to help with writing. It can translate, correct spelling and grammar, which is helpful. Now it can simplify, expand, change tone and summarize.

Is that different from correcting spelling? I love a world where I don’t have to know how to spell.

Could I have ever put this to use when I was a youngster. Dragging on, hit simplify, not sure what to say, pick expand. Pissed or happy, pick change tone. It could have been my super power.

Now everyone will have it. Shit.

summer

A wind storm blew through this evening. Rain was forecast. It never transpired. The wind sucked the moisture from the ground, drying the grasses and trees.

Campfires have been banned across BC as the back country dries.

Dry winds in the valley have been commonplace for many years now as the climate warms.

This year saw an abundance of grasshoppers, supposedly, due to dry conditions.

Forest fire season is just getting going.

***

The Canadian government’s stance is; we must adapt, and ultimately buy our way out of climate change. We must switch to expensive, inefficient electric vehicles and solar electricity. The more people change the cheaper and more efficient they will become we are told. It sounds like a con in light of all the many things we could do right now to cut emissions. Unfortunately the cuts would only hurt the wealthy and that is not acceptable.

***

The changes we are told we must make, electric cars, solar panels, etc. will also mostly benefit the wealthy who own the companies ready to provide these products. It is our only salvation we our told by government and media, so get on board!

***

Meanwhile, on my little spot on earth, the government and business community, cater to second home owners. Homes only occupied for a small time of the year. BNB’s that put working people out of housing in favour of vacationers. Vacationers polluting with recreation vehicles such as boats that sully Lake Windermere and its shores, dead anyway from second homes. Canada welcomes tourists by the millions coming on planes and automobiles. Can there be a bigger excess of emissions than the well off and rich recreating?

***

You will never hear a word from government or even staunch environmentalists, who make up a good portion of carbon emitting recreationists about this. Instead the mantra is we must buy electric cars. It will save and absolve us. We can buy our way out of this, giving our money to those same wealthy second home owners and recreationists who own the companies who provide the ‘solution’.

***

We have a McDonalds in town now. It’s just been built and opened. People love it. It’s like we have come of age. On one side of it, is Lordco Auto Parts store, on the other side will be a new gas station. It is a development built by Brett Wilson, Canadian investment banker and former panelist on the TV show Dragons’ Den.

I stopped at McDonalds on the way to work the other day. The drive through was two lanes and freshly paved. I was the only one in line. I ordered a breakfast sandwich and coffee. They took my money and gave me coffee and told me to wait in stall two where they would bring out my sandwich. I idled for 10 minutes, burning fuel, wondering where the next gasstation was, before figuring they forgot about me, risk being late for work, l left with my $9 coffee.

I shouldn’t have been there in the first place and it taught me a lesson. Brett Wilson reminded me hucksters are alive and well.

***

The climate is changing. I see it. If it is man made, as media and government say, and why take the chance it isn’t, there is plenty we could do right now to make a difference. But we don’t. I do know, beware of grifters saying it will be okay as long as you purchase the remedy.

Old Tracks

Hind and front. Glad we came along later.

Before bed I thought I’d better make sure the garden gate was closed. Walked outside into a warm evening. I never walk anywhere without boots. The garden is only thirty paces from the basement door. I figured I was safe to go barefoot. Half way there I stepped on a wasp and got stung in the crotch of the big toe and the tall one next to it. Damn. That’s seven stings this year! It could be my new record.

I remember when I was about four, one morning, I took a stick and knocked down a nest in the shed. I was stung on the nose. That night I was with my Dad picking raspberries at my Aunt Elenor’s place and got stung on the ass.

Dad thought it was hilarious I was stung on the nose and ass in the same day. He laughed telling Mom when we got home. I couldn’t see the humour in it at the time. Now I am a Dad and Grandad it is damn funny. I can’t help laughing when I reminisce.

Long Weekend/Tourists

A good long weekend all in all. Lisa and I got out of Dodge early on the busiest days.

No shortage of entitled idiots from Alberta. They were everywhere. I believe they are something we have to accept like, dry summers, grasshoppers, wasps and forest fires.

Speaking of grasshoppers and wasps. The grasshoppers are everywhere, hitting you in the face and jumping ahead of every step.

On Sunday unloading wood I rearranged the woodpile. The grasshoppers started jumping. Before I knew it. I had disturbed a nest in the woodpile. Got stung about six time on the hand before I realized they weren’t grasshoppers. Angry bastards. I had to split the load of wood 20 feet away from the woodpile. More hauling later. My hand is sorer today than yesterday.

Still those fucking tourists are more of a nuisance, I swear to God/ 😉

Canada Day

Lisa and I were up early and heading for the bush to miss the tourists and second home owners, who are out in force.

Once we made the corner after the first bridge on the Kootenay we were free and never saw a soul, except the most important, a black bear, a murder of crows circling something dead, plenty of deer, bucks in velvet, a shiny muskrat and birds singing songs, so beautiful, that I will never understand no matter how hard I try.

We picked up a load of wood. Tomorrow I will split it. It is birch so the sooner the better. It will keep us warm. Summer is when you should think of winter.

Picked a litter of lettuce in the garden. The grasshoppers have wings but aren’t eating like they were when they were small. As far as I can tell they don’t like peas or tomatoes. Everything else has taken a shit kicking.

We sure have a good country. I may bitch at the folks running it. The country and citizens are so strong even the politicians haven’t been able to screw it up. 🙂 Aboriginal people are seeing a future where injustices are acknowledged. There is no making things right. There is no returning justice. MY small spot on this land belonged to someone who didn’t agree to sell it to me.

Our future is dependant on immigration, that’s a good thing. The ideas and hard work coming from abroad will make us strong.

Whenever I meet someone wanting to make Canada their home I think of my Grandfather coming from England in 1912 looking for a better life.

I live in this time in history when immigrants made my life easy in my youth and will help me in my old age. How lucky is that?

Most of the creeks are still high. I followed a spring, out of nowhere, a hundred yards through a grove of birch, then disappeared underground to cripes knows where.

The country is alive and beautiful. I can’t contribute like I used to. I don’t expect much. That’s how it is when you are happy.

Somehow we have to grab rocks, but instead of throwing them, we have to lie down on them and feel the warmth.

Cooper & Scarlett

Lisa and I had the kids over for a sleepover. They are so good. Copper and Scarlett have their own room with a bunkbed at our place. They feel at home. Lisa and I feel good about that.

They get up early in the morning. Lisa taped over the minute digits on the clock on the stove and told them they couldn’t get up until the hour digit said ‘6’, ‘7’, or ‘8’. They were up at 6.

Cooper standing beside a backroad mile sign corresponding with his age. This could be a family tradition.

We had breakfast up the creek. Pancakes and bacon.

The valley is busy.

Cooper and Scarlett are full of energy and they are constantly yaking. Sometimes I think they are purposely trying to drive old Grandpa crazy. Grandma, on the other hand, is unflappable and welcomes the spirited discourse.

They are celebrating their birthdays this month. They sure are getting big.

Scarlett pointing to her young age on a milage sign blasted by a shotgun.

Rain

The rising sun catches the ridge in the west. Dark storm clouds above, shaded valley bottom below. Taken about 6am from the garden.

Came through a good bit of rain. It was welcome. In the mountains it was snow.

We planned a trip into the high country last Wednesday, but postponed it to this coming Wednesday. The youngsters from work were disappointed. I didn’t welcome trudging through a foot of wet snow on the mountain side. The truth is I’d end up sliding on my ass coming down trying to dig my heels in yelling whoa!! It can be fun, but I’m too damn old for such hijinks. I didn’t want to lose face so told them the scenery would be better when it cleared.

The doe deer are busy with their fawns. A few days ago I freed a fawn that got caught in fencing. Today Jack shooed one from the pool court back to its mother. It was held up under patio furniture and was starting to gather quite a crowd of guests. Jack said he had done it plenty with lambs back in England. He is a good man that Jack.

***

Some warm weather is expected. The recent rain has done its best to cool the bush. That’s more than we can ask.

Storm

Bog Orchid. Although common I have not seen this species for several years.

Lightening with plenty of rain, so not so bad. We have postponed a hiking trip with some youngsters from work, because of snow in the back country. They’ll enjoy it more with the sun shining on the blue glacier water and I will not have to slip and slide off the mountain in 12″ of wet snow. There was a time I wouldn’t have been dissuaded by weather. That day is long gone.

Palliser Pass

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Tag: humour