Hj and I dug up the garden yesterday. The chives are coming up nicely, but the parsley winterkilled, so more will have to be put in.
The four supervisors kept their eyes on us to make sure we were doing a good job.
Planting will begin in a couple of days.
Beware the ides of March!
Out in the forest there are a lot of things that go bump in the night. I love this about THO! Being so close to nature is brilliant. Even so, I have been very nervous about letting my dogs out after dark. In 2011 our poor little handicapped Phyllis (who died in 2012) had a very close call with a fisher even though I was just a foot away from her. If you have never heard one here is a little video. Imagine how scary is was to have that thing screaming outside your house for hours after scooping up a little dog and bringing her in to safety; bloodcurdling! The creature was mighty mad that it missed the poodle meal! Despite what the ladies in the video said, it is my experience that these fishers seem to have little fear of humans, I hear them outside very frequently. This is why I only bring out the dogs individually on a short leash after dark if they ABSOLUTELY have to go.
I purchased a powerful but costly little 12 volt spotlight last year when I was getting the wiring for the house but at the time I did not have a ladder to get up there. Now that it is warm enough and I have a ladder, I got the light into place. I wish I had the sort of camera that worked well in night conditions so that I could show you how bright the candle is for this little light, but since I don’t I will estimate that it is similar in brightness to a 200 watt bulb.
It looks terrific and is bright! In fact, the dog garden lights up like a ball field. Obviously, I don’t want to light pollute at THO and keep away the fireflies and other wild wonders, but it is great to be able to get the dogs out and feel safely able to see what is out there. This said, I won’t use it except to let the dogs out and also to help people see to get to their vehicle at night. Despite the $100 cost it is a very nice safety feature to have.
I thought I might share a laugh with my readers who love dogs. If you have one, or multiple fur-babies as I do, I think you will get these wonderful cartoons by Rupert Fawcett. They are called Off the Leash.
Okay, so the truth is, I have been holding back on you. I can sew. Please don’t tell anyone! It is a secret because I find that if you tell people that you sew, they always want you to do their mending and hem their pants. Truthfully, this is not the sort of stuff I like / want to sew and I have a hard time saying no because it really is simple for me… It is just that don’t enjoy it.
What I love to do is projects! I like picking out fabric, making a pattern and sewing up something from my own imagination when the mood strikes me.
When I was first out of school I worked in a dry cleaner’s as a seamstress, so I was a professional seamstress at one time. More than this, I can draft patterns, tailor a man’s suit jacket and sew things as complex as a wedding dress. I had very accomplished teachers!
Anyway, a while ago, my friend D mentioned that she needed a crate for her dog and on Sunday a rescuer friend L gave me a heads up about a crate for $10 at the Salvation Army, so I skipped down and picked it up. I decided to pretty it up as a Christmas gift. I made a cover, a cushion and two matching little blankets.
I think this beats a Christmas gift from the mall, hands down!
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As things turned out D did not need it after all, but there was a terrible fire on King Street and a woman named Jen lost everything including her dog crate. Synchronicity?
I brought it over for her dog Riley. On the way I stopped at Pet Value on Wilson Street in Hamilton to get a few other things too. I told them what I was shopping for and they handed me a nice big bag full of treats and food! Yeah Pet Value! You really rocked the day for Riley and his mom!
Arrived at Tiny House Ontario and made great time. No problems on the 401 today. Woot!
Cold here when we arrived. When you arrive in a cold house it takes a long time to warm it up but then once THO gets warm it is easy to keep that way. It would be great to have a wood stove so it would be faster to get it warm. It turns out that there is one that might actually work. I will keep you posted on this.
As soon as I got there, I lit the propane camp stove and lots of candles too. I wanted to get it toasty warm so that I would be able to leave THO for a couple of hours to attend a farewell event for my cousin and his family who are jumping countries – Canada to Australia. Turns out we could not get it warm so the dogs came along. I left the heat on and hope it will be toasty when we all get back. Wish us luck!
Here it is at THO this afternoon. Everyone had coats on, including the pack.
When I was a child, one of the symbols for Canada was the Ookpik. I have one of the old original 1960′s versions made out of seal skin. I like the silly thing and it seems to me to be the perfect Tiny House Ontario decor addition. A Tiny thing from slightly simpler times.
This morning I woke with the sound of Rudigrrr Wolf growling. Apparently he just now noticed the Ookpik and believes that it is very scary!
Who could have guessed that Tiny Wolves have one great fear? Beware the Ookpik! 
I watched a video today which my friend Jim-Bob posted. It is a great idea this young man had and such a total tear jerker video! Consider yourself warned!
Anyway, I decided to finally get to the linen closet because of watching this. You see, I read that the SPCA is always in need of blankets and towels, so that the pets do not have to sleep on cement.
I once lived in a big house and had a big family and when I downsized last year I thought I had pretty much purged, but alas, this is what I had to give!
I am going to deliver them right now. If you have any old ones that you don’t need I urge you to check with your local rescues and shelters because chances are you have old ones you don’t need and dogs don’t care if they are a little bit ratty.
What other nice thing can I do today????
I was taking some photos around Tiny House Ontario while the dogs were in the cloth porch.
They did not like being on the other side much! I took a photo just to see if it would work through the cloth porch. Imp, Minnie and Rudigrrr Wolf put up a real fuss.
Imp and Rudigrrrr Wolf had to be photographed again through the sheer side, and I share with you because it is far too goofy to keep to myself.
Waking up at Tiny House Ontario is really nice, particularly when the dogs are there and not in a hurry to get out of bed but rather prefer a little cuddle and a tummy rub. This morning was one such beginning. Honey Bunny (the red chihuahua) loves to sit in the sun, I often find her chasing sunny spots around as they move throughout the day. She was so sweet and cuddly this morning.
My husband made a surprise visit down because there are a couple of jobs that require two people’s hands. I had mentioned this problem, so he drove down with the four dogs just to help me. Thanks Hj! We have been doing some work today, but stopped now for a baked potato and to use the internet because we needed to take a quick trip to Rona for some wood and lemon oil.
This photo is the sun coming in from the West – where in the morning it comes through the East. Still this is, essentially, what I wake up to at THO.
The wonderful painting on the dresser is by Kingston artist Geoff Smith. I purchased this from him a few months ago and have not yet decided how to frame it. I loved the bridge, life seems to always be a series of going through things. The painting seemed to me to be a material visual of this. How would you frame this one, if it were in your Tiny House?
Another confession:
I frequently make up stupid songs based on people’s music and sing them to the poor unfortunate people who are with me. GILLY GILLY OSSENFEFFER KATZENELLEN BOGEN BY THE SEA (Al Hoffman / Dick Manning) is my most recent victim… I posted the Beatles version of this some time ago and learned the tune and melody. After I learn a song then I plagiarize, pilfer, twist them depending on what is going on.
Here is this morning’s THO version based on my being on my way back home soon….
There’s a Tiny House,
in the Tiny Woods
Where a Tiny Girl
Filled a Tiny Dream
Now the house sits still
waiting there for me
It is Tiny House Ontario
Chocolate shed in forest
loved by me-e-e-e-e…
OK… so now you know, I am not much of a song writer but if you know the tune, as I do, it is kind of funny.
No?
Well, my dogs think it is funny. They told me so with their eyes. They had to do it this way, because of course dogs hardly ever laugh out loud. At least mine don’t. Do yours?
