We have a house

It was a hectic time last weekend but we managed to put in an offer on a house before we had to fly back to Toronto. Before we started this process Paul and I put together a list of things we wanted in a new house. There were things that were non-negotiable for each of… Continue reading We have a house

Moose

A part of the Canadian identity . . .

Flying cats

One of the challenges with the move west is getting our two felines there. We decided early on that driving wasn’t really an option. It would be about 4000 km and i am the only driver. I’m not a huge fan of long distance driving – my ADHD makes it a challenge. I can only… Continue reading Flying cats

Sold

Well, that’s done. The last 10 days have been interesting. The buyers have completely drained my reservoir of kindness and flexibility with their stupid requests. Would we compensate them for the fact they will need to replace the AC and furnace at some point in the future? NO Would we paint the garage door a… Continue reading Sold

Starbucks name adventures

There is a Starbucks with a drive through window not far from our house. I usually motor through once a day for a mid-morning treat. Like so many food related businesses they are having a terrible time retaining staff. Lately they have started asking for my name when I order. This has never happened at… Continue reading Starbucks name adventures

For sale

The house hit the market on Wednesday. We moved the cats and ourselves to a hotel Wednesday. It seemed to be the easiest way to handle that first rush of showings and open houses. Keeping the house in ‘showing condition’ and keeping evidence of the cats out of the house was going to be too… Continue reading For sale

Soba noodles with pork and shiitake mushrooms

In Asia this is a comfort food dish. This may seem odd to us with our different culinary traditions but trust me that you will indeed be comforted by this dish. When you taste this dish you’ll be impressed with the complexity of the flavours. This is odd given the sparsity of the ingredient list.… Continue reading Soba noodles with pork and shiitake mushrooms

A story told in a map

If you have been to Amsterdam you know how beautiful a city it is. By and large it escaped the same level of war damage compared to other European cities. Most of the 1700 and 1800 buildings have been preserved. Oddly our neighbourhood is different. While there are pockets of beauty, there are also huge… Continue reading A story told in a map