Forest

Scary Night and Nice Changes

It has been a very busy week for me, so I have been neglecting updates here simply because I did not have the opportunity to sit in a cafe with an internet connection.

Aside from work I had, what I think was a visit from a bear on Saturday night.  I could hear it, but I could not smell it or see it.   It woke me up with banging and growling and since I was up in the loft I thought it prudent to stay there instead of climbing down to turn on the lights and draw attention to myself.  The good thing is that it went away without incident.  I don’t think it got one of the neighbours chickens which is where it seemed to be.  (Update July 5, 2013: unfortunately two chickens were killed that night.)

In terms of great stuff, one of the awesome things happening at THO is that the fireflies are back!  I know that they come back year after year but every year it surprises me and makes me so happy!

The other awesome thing is that a robin has built her nest a few feet away from the North door on a low branch in the maple tree, and she is nesting, so there will be baby robins soon I hope!

Life is great!

Nest near the North door

Categories: Forest, Nature, Ontario, Simple living, Tiny House Ontario, View | Tags: , | 3 Comments

Another One… EEEEEEEEK!

I am not a big fan of spiders.  I like the work they do… catching and eating mosquitos  But the simple thought of having a huge jumping one in a confined space like Tiny House Ontario (with me) is what my personal nightmares are made of.

This one, is the variety I fear the most because they can jump at least 3 feet.  I know this, because I witnessed last years giant do so when I accidentally brought it in to the in-house on my ladder. A few days ago I spotted this magnificent apex of vileness, on the cloth porch.  I did not wish to kill it, and honestly I was too afraid of it to catch it… and now I don’t know where it is…  This means, I have to keep the door closed between the two.  Above all, do NOT want the creature in the house with me!  Simply put, if it got in, I would have to move out until someone was able to get it out for me.

Now you know…. just like Jim Stafford, I don’t like spiders and snakes.

IMG_0367 IMG_0368

Categories: Forest, Nature, Off Grid, Simple living, Tiny House Ontario | Tags: | 11 Comments

Total Darkness

DARK

Three nights ago, I awoke… peeked at my light up watch.  It was 3:00 am and I was in my loft at THO.  It was dark.  I opened my eyes, but they did not adjust to the light.  I looked out the window but there was no light, I could see nothing at all.

It dawned on me that I have not, even in the forest of the tiny house been in complete and total darkness since I took a photography class many years ago.  I lay there, petting my dog who I could tell was Minnie by the way her fur feels in my hand.  She is the neediest of my dogs because of her being a runt perhaps and she is always cuddled right in to my tummy while I sleep.

I am not normally insomnia ridden but I lay there awake for about two hours until the daylight broke the darkness.  It was not restlessness or frustration that kept me awake.  I was looking at nothing because my eyes never adjusted.  I simply enjoyed the rare experience of living without light.

Have you ever been outside, or in a room with many curtain free windows and experienced absolute total darkness?

Categories: Forest, Off Grid, Ontario, Open your eyes, Tiny House Ontario, View | 4 Comments

Super Green

This year is so very different from last summer.  Already by this time in 2012 we were starting into a despairingly long and dreadful drought.  This year there is ample water and the forest is coming alive again.  It is wonderful to see nature’s resilience.  Except for the mosquitos that is.Tiny House Ontario in her green forest Green to the South Green to the West

 

Categories: Forest, Nature, Ontario, Open your eyes, Simple living, Tiny House Ontario, View | Tags: , , | 1 Comment

Pretty in Pink?

I have a shrub at THO that has busted out in pink blooms this year.  It turns out that this nice little plant is an invasive species… a native of Siberia (and other parts of Asia).  A weed that was brought here as an ornamental plant but it pushes out the native varieties.

My first reaction was to stop and admire it… now I know what it is and am not so sure it is pretty. IMG_0272 Flowering shrub

Categories: Forest, Nature, Ontario, Tiny House Ontario, View | Tags: , , | 7 Comments