Doing it Yourself...(or cheaping out!)

Saving $$ - that's what it's all about! So today's post is about just that...

Exhibit One: I call this one "The Millionaire's Bird Feeder" 

  

Yup, that's a toilet paper roll! Covered with peanut butter and rolled in bird seed and stuck on a large, metal butterfly that has so far resisted several squirrel attacks! Not my idea - gleaned from The Globe and Mail newspaper. It works and it's cheep cheep cheep!

Exhibit Two: Standing Desk

It has taken awhile but I finally figured out a combination that is right for my height. I was using the kitchen counter but it was a bit too low and I found myself bent over and  leaning on my elbows trying to find a comfortable position.

What with all the hullabaloo about "too much sitting being worse than smoking ten packs of cigarettes per day" I thought I'd try and find myself an alternative to hours of sitting. So far so good. I like standing while I'm using the computer... right this minute I'm doing waist twisting and bending and listening to all of my vertebrae crack and pop while I type! Can you hear that? AND I just discovered that I can use the brace on the bottom as a foot rest - SCORE!!

Exhibit Three: Art Shelf
I used to have a tonne of shelves...until I decided to move and rid myself of most of them...sigh... However we all know about "creativity" in the face of "diversity" or "necessity being the mother of invention"...

I used a piece of barn board from my dad's barn that no longer exists. The painting is of an area near Otter Creek in the village of Norwich where I grew up and painted by my talented brother. It needs to be framed but in the meantime it has a sentimental spot to hang out.

There's our barn in the background. That's my dad washing his boat rather large car in the neighbour's driveway. It must be spring as there are no leaves on the trees yet. That's the large back yard where my painter brother and I had fun shooting arrows from his bow and arrow set straight up into the sky. Happily we didn't "take anybody's eye out"!!

Sadly when my parents passed away and our home was sold the lots got severed and now a house sits where the barn used to!! Sacrilege!! That barn had initials, including mine, carved into the boards dating back to the mid 1800's!! Attached to the left of our barn you can see the chicken coop where I would gather the eggs daily right out from under the chickens' bums!  Grope grope grope - no wonder they clucked at me! There is also a house now where the walnut trees were (you can see one to the right of my dad - there were several and earned someone a pretty penny when they were CHOPPED DOWN!!)

A couple of weeks ago I became Facebook friends with one of the boys who grew up in the white house that you can see through the trees on the right side of the photo. My house is out of view on the right side - there was a sidewalk that connected the barn to the house.

Finally - the CUTENESS photos!!  My screen addicts!! Lily watching the movie "Tracks" last night - it was full of camels and dogs and she loved every minute of it.

And Luna watching some "kitty porn" this morning - a friend's post on facebook about a cat lounging in front of a heater on a cold day! Hysterical!!

What have you made yourself lately - any great DIY projects we don't know about??

Cost of the Cotswolds (and Norwich)

A reader, Jan, asked me a couple of questions the other day - how much approximately did my hiking trip cost and how did I physically prepare ahead of time for the kilometres of daily walking?

1) I am somewhat ashamed to say I have never tallied up the costs but will do so today.  I told a friend yesterday it was somewhere between $3,000 and $5,000!! Great estimate eh?  So...here goes...bear in mind these costs are in Canadian dollars.

• Flight: $760 ( you can't seem to get a flight to the UK from Toronto for under $700 anymore)
• Robert Q: $126.81 (transportation from London to the airport in Toronto and return trip)
• Cotswold Walking Tour (guidebooks, accommodations, breakfast, daily transportation of luggage) $1331.48 (9 days)
• Hotel in London for 1 night - $44.11
• B&B for 3 nights in Norwich - $240
• Oyster Card (for the underground, buses) $46.33 (I still have the card with lots left of on it for my next trip)
• trains: $260 total (Heathrow to Paddington, Paddington to Moreton in Marsh, Bartley to London, London to Norwich, Norwich to Gatwick)

• RBC Travel Insurance - $58.00
• Airport Meals - $80.00 (bloody expensive!!)

• Spending Money: 300L -> $555.00 Canadian.   I came back with maybe 20L - I tried to use it up before I left. I found this amount more than adequate to cover all of my dinners and lunches and cream teas :) plus entrance fees into Sudeley Castle, Broadway Tower and several other places, one taxi,  souvenirs, local beer... 

For other shopping I used my Mastercard - I didn't go too wild as I had to fit everything I purchased into my suitcase. I spent $465 Cdn. using Mastercard and that includes the duty-free and most of that was Christmas gifts for Kazi and other members of my family.

So, for flight, Robert Q, accommodations, trains, Oyster card, Meals, insurance the trip cost was:
$3502 
(+ $465 on Mastercard for Christmas gifts)

Not as bad as I thought!! And well worth the enjoyment I had from the experience.

2) Physical preparation:
Something that would have helped - more hill climbing! It was a lot hillier than I expected but I managed. My strategy was to walk backwards when my muscles started screaming. Walking backwards uses different muscles and was sort of like taking a bit of a break. I would still have to take a breather now and again - even stopping for 2 minutes really helps in the middle of a long climb.

For at least 6 or 7 years I've had a stationary bike in the basement that I use quite faithfully (15km last night) and for the past 2 years I've used my real bike to ride to work and back daily (not in the winter though!!) I also joined two hiking clubs and still try to hike 3 times a week (though I won't hike when it's colder than -10c!!)

The most important bit of preparation was wearing my hiking boots on all of my hikes prior to leaving on my trip - these are the most important things you'll need. My feet are size 7.5 but my boots are size 8 allowing ever so important wiggle room for toes. Expensive hiking socks with liners will prevent blisters and every night I massaged a ton of lotion into my feet. Take  care of your feet and they will take care of you!

I've ordered a guide book for a couple of hikes in the East Anglia area which is where Norwich is. I might try organizing my own hiking trip and use just a larger backpack (no suitcase). I'd like to try that sort of a trip (where I carry everything I need with me) to see if I can do it before I attempt something huge like walking the Camino.

Well Jan I hope that answers your questions adequately. It's certainly an amazing way to see and experience a place and has whet my appetite for further adventures!

Friday's Feelings: Nostalgia and the Firemen!!

I had fun with my scanner yesterday; uploading and editing a bunch of old photos (1,000's left to do - gack!!) This is my Dad and I about 30 years ago. It looks like one of his better days - he suffered a lot from depression and anxiety. We had a deep love for each other and this picture makes me think of when I was little and we used to dance around the dining room table to the country tunes of Johnny Cash, Buck Owens or Patsy Cline. One of the nicknames my dad had over the years was the "Silver Fox" - he had one hell of a head of hair!! All 5 of us kids however got my mother's dark hair. Durnnnn...

I wish my waist was still that size!! I remember that skirt - I bought it at a second-hand store...of course! My thriftiness started at a very early age, that sweater came from there too as I recall - it was a vintage store in London called Layman House.

I had fun editing this faded little scrap of a photo. I must be around 6 or so and I can see some of the old Norwich neighbourhood behind me. It doesn't look like that anymore.

 And here's Kazi, age 4, with our first two kittens Ruby and Tisky. I love how cute Tisky looks peeking out from her hiding place - she's our cat who lived to be 20 years old and died just last September.

Nothing like the annual Firemen's Fashion Show to perk one up!! Sorry about the poor photo quality but these guys were on the move! 

 

Oops, this guy forgot his shirt!!

They say clothes make the man...

An appreciative audience :)

And finally - here's what one of my finished soapstone pieces looks like all polished up by hand using a dozen or more fine and finer grades of sandpaper.

Here's the chunk I've chosen to work on now...

And here it is after 3-4 hours of carving. My right arm really ached after 4 hours of carving - it's the arm with nerve damage after the pinched nerve of January 2013. However, after yoga Wed. night it's not too bad. Maybe I just have to get back into it and it'll eventually strengthen my arm? Maybe??

It's coming along but lots of work to do yet.

Once the carving is finished the polishing begins.

My process is to carve the piece down below all its bumps and bruises and see what's left.

It usually ends up looking very organic and free-flowing - like birds, seals, full of curves, twists and turns.

Of course none of this could be accomplished without my workshop helper, Luna. She oversees all goings on from her bin on a shelf behind me. I replaced the scraps of screening that were in the bin for some nice soft shammies - I thought that might be a bit more comfortable...Luna concurs :)

Happy Friday everyone! I'm doing my update at Starbucks this morning and they just gave me a free drink!! Sweet!! I hope your day is going well and something FREE comes YOUR way!

The Ende

Just a few final snaps in Norwich. I finished out the day in the city centre exploring and shopping. I made a few purchases in the cathedral gift shop and then browsed a few stores - clothing stores, a toy store, book store, outdoor equipment stores...I bought Kazi a couple of things at Topshop but they are tucked away until Christmas. I really really really want to come back to Norwich again someday. There is a walk in the area that I'm considering...among many others :)

I miss you BBC!! I'm watching (again) all of the old Morse episodes on Netflix while riding my bike!

Although Norwich is a cathedral town there are many other imposing churches...

I found a little fish and chip shop- they put your choice of spices on your fries from a long list - best I had during my stay!
Oh, and I forgot the previous evening I ate at a Pizzahut and they were playing Shania Twain music - a rather surreal experience!

The open market place drew folks from all walks of life - I wish cities in Canada kept their city centres intact like Norwich - such a vibrant downtown experience.

I cut through a catholic church to get to another part of the market...

I wasn't the only one...

a quiet oasis in the middle of the hubbub!

 ...enchanting...

...the ancient and the new(ish) joined together...

 The whole time I was away I felt a strong link to the past...

Shania Twain and now a cowboy singer? I had no idea that country music was alive and well in Norfolk County!

 Lloyds Bank - thriving as always...

Stately homes looming over the market....a church looming over the stately homes!

 The Royal Arcade - I explored the toy store on the right.

While checking the time of my bus back to Mulbarton I discovered an unusual bench!

My personal oasis! Right across the street from the bus stop - had a coffee, yogurt and berries and made use of their free wifi and washroom - just what i needed!

Waiting for the #37 one last time!

 A gorgeous sunset!

 But I need to stay focused! Don't want to get lost on my last night!

 Here's my road - no problems tonight!

 There's my crooked sign...

...for Brick Kiln Lane...

 ...and now I need to get packed one last time...goodbye Norwich! goodbye Mulbarton! Thank you to my host at the B&B for driving me to the train station in Norwich!

 ...back to the business of making connections - train to tube to a second tube to a second train to Gatwick Airport. A very handsome young man carried my suitcase up 2 flights of stairs :) bless him! While at Liverpool Station I went to my "secret" restaurant where I managed twice now to squeeze my luggage and myself into the tiny washroom stall (oh my!) and then sit at their outer counter area without being noticed (or having to order anything!)

 Gatwick is a great airport - everything is well marked - I loved their shuttle service. Press a button, the door opens like an elevator and onto the shuttle you go and get whisked away to your terminal!
The terminal was full of great shops - I purchased a little Paddington Bear for Kazi at Harrods.

 Waiting to board my plane to Iceland...

And ta da! I'm in Iceland! I listened to my iPod the entire flight as the young couple sitting next to me used the word "f-ck" continuously as a noun, verb and adjective!! Here I am enjoying a meal of a lettuce, tomato and egg sandwich, yogurt and cereal and a Viking beer! I made a few purchases at the Duty Free - Icelandic wool socks, a little green elfin creature, lots of chocolate. I ended up tossing the running shoes in my backpack into the garbage (the blister inducing ones) so that I'd have room for my few purchases.

The most amazing part about my trip home was flying over GREENLAND!!!!!!! 

 I

 WAS

THRILLED!

 Followed by a fabulous sunset...

 As the sun was setting we flew over Newfoundland/Labrador and then....

 we flew over Anticosti Island in the St. Lawrence River (although 1.5 times larger than PEI it is home to only 200 or so people who care for and operate the many lighthouses. It is not a very hospitable place.)

That is the end of my photos. It was dark when I landed in Halifax and after a short wait I was on a plane to Toronto where I had to wait 2 hours for Robert Q to whisk me off to London. By this time it was close to 2am and my very lovely daughter picked me up at the Robert Q depot at 3:30am. I spent the next few days feeling jet lagged and disoriented and wondering...what's next?

I'll bring you up to date on my goings on since my return to "real life" in my next couple of posts.