Author name: hmrand

Hello everyone,

On Thursday the 11th, Windswept IV was lowered into the water once again. The engine started on the first try and we motored the short distance down river to Reynold’s Marine Park where we had reserved a dock. The wind was behind us as we powered into the slip but, with the able assistance of a marina staffer named Alan, Murray put her into the space as though he did it everyday. Soon the lines were secured and we were able to relax.

In the morning we scrubbed the dirty decks from bow to stern, getting rid of the work yard grit and grime. What a relief that was! The sails were bent on and she started to look like a sailboat once again.

Our huge order from West Marine had arrived just before launch, so that box needed unpacking and the new items installed. The EPIRB was a simple job, removing the old one and installing the new. The registration form for the new one was completed on-line and that job was finished.

The new head installation wasn’t quite so quick and easy. I planned to be ashore, doing laundry while Murray tackled that job. But, upon my return 2 1/2 hours later, the job was still on-going. Other cruisers had convinced him to change the system to a fresh water flush. This has several advantages. Urine combines with salt water to form crystals and those crystals deposit in the hoses, eventually closing them completely. To prevent this happening, I pour strong acid into the toilet monthly. Switching to fresh water eliminates that problem completely. The fresh water flush also will eliminate the odour some of the salt water exudes. But, that decision increased the head installation job into a major production and a two day job. Luckily the toilet was usable overnight just not completely finished. The only negative to the change will be the increased use of fresh water requiring running the watermaker for longer periods.

New LED reading lights arrived and Murray installed those one evening. Wow, what a difference they have made! Bright lights to illuminate the cabin, what a concept. The best part is that they use so little power that I can have lights on everywhere. Murray was so impressed that I ordered another reading light for the aft cabin, two ceiling lights for the main salon and bulbs for two other ceiling lights. They should be here soon and, in fact, I just got an e-mail confirming the arrival today.

Earlier today the new spinnaker halyard went into and up the mast along with a new topping lift. Then Murray spliced in the shackles to finish that job while I worked on the computers below. A few days ago, Murray finished a shelf for the small computer under the dodger. This will allow us to view our digital charts from the cockpit instead of requiring me to go down below to the nav station to check information.

Hopefully the refrigeration system should arrive by this weekend. Meanwhile the old system needs to be torn out and the box re-insulated before installation. But, in order to remove and install the system, we need to take our stove out. That will be a big job and one that I am not looking forward to. We may wait until the new one is here before beginning the removal, just to lessen the time without a stove. Luckily I can cook almost anything with an electric frying pan.

At a ham flea market this summer, Murray purchased the wire to replace the old coaxial cable in the mast. I will have to crank him up to the top of the mast ( 60 feet ) where he will install the new VHF antenna, splice the wires together, feed it down from the top while I will pull the wire out at the base of the mast. This will then be hooked to our VHF radio. A second VHF antenna was installed on the arch and that wire will need to be fed through the cupboards and lockers to reach the navigation station. There it will be connect to our AIS system, which gives us relative position, course, speed and name of commercial traffic around us. That system saved us from having to purchase a new radar unit when the old one failed.

As you can see, we are keeping busy. Luckily the days have been sunny and warm with cool evenings for good sleeping.

Friends ( Doug & Connie on High Stepper ) have already crossed the Gulf Stream to the Bahamas but we will be on their tail as soon as we can. Just a few more jobs…..

Hopefully all is well with you and yours. Write when you have time as messages are always appreciated.

Hugs
Heather & Murray

Just a quick message to let y’all know that we arrived safely at the boat on Thursday and were moved into the work yard. There is little or no mildew and, best of all, NO ANTS!!!

So, the inside work is going quickly. Outside is another story. The temperature dropped overnight and everyone here is in parkas. As it was in the mid 60’s F (18C approx ), we wore shorts and sweatshirts. But, it is chilly to chip away at bottom paint. But that job starts tomorrow. Murray is going to scrape the bottom to remove some of the built-up coatings of bottom paint. Although we use ablative paint, there still seems to be a build-up, probably due to the fact that we were twice sold the wrong product!!

Launch is scheduled for Nov 12th and then we plan to be at Reynolds Marina for another two weeks or so. The new refrigeration system has not arrived yet but we hope to see it soon. I am drooling over LED lighting for the boat ( a chance to have several lights on down below at night and not chew up the battery power ). Hopefully that order will go in soon as well. The West Marine goodies should arrive in the next few days and it will seem as though Christmas has come early, as we open the packages containing things like new halyards, a new head ( toilet for the landlubbers amongst you ), VHF antenna and, the all important, anchor ball. This ball is a daytime marker to indicate that the vessel is anchored. Insurance companies have successfully avoided payment in collisions if the anchored vessel has not displayed an anchor ball.

The cell phone has been re-activated and the number is unchanged from last year.

The wireless is up and running but not necessarily the fastest connection in the world. But, try us on Skype if you see us.

Hugs to all
Heather & Murray

Hello everyone,

Fandango hit the water as planned but she is having her difficulties adapting to the weeds of the Inner bay at Long Point.( Just a reminder that Fandango is our Goman 20 sailboat.) We launched her at Booth’s Harbour Marina in their travel lift. The charge to launch was almost double what it costs to haul the 40 footer in Florida! And then we paid $50 to use their equipment to raise the mast! Yikes!

But, she is in the water and I have made a new sailcover for her as well. The boat is light grey with stripes at the waterline of burgundy,orange and yellow. The previous sailcover had been orange and, as this is not my favourite colour and because it fit too tightly, had been on my list of things to replace. The new cover is silver grey Sunbrella and fits very well.

So far, we have motored from Booths Harbour to Bayview Marina on launch day, a distance of 2-3 miles and gone out sailing one afternoon. Fandango didn’t have a depth sounder installed and this seemed just fine while we sailed her in the Killarney area. But the inner bay is shallow!! So, the next job is to install the depth sounder/fish finder that has been rattling around in our stores. Murray plans to put the transducer into a wax toilet ring against the inside hull. We have been told that this works quite well. Report to follow.

The sail was lovely though. It was a weekday afternoon with a nice breeze blowing but flat water on the sheltered bay. We tacked our way out towards the markers pointing the way to the deep water of the outer bay before turning to dash back to the marina. Here we share a dock with George’s ( Murray’s brother ) powerboat. The marina staff said that they don’t usually dock power and sail together but since we requested it, perhaps it would be ok. George and Barb have brought down a barbeque and a dock box while the marina provided picnic tables. With some chairs and umbrellas in the dock box, we are all set to share a dinner or two. Again we plan to sail or motor during the week as much as possible to miss the busy weekend influx.

Mom has been down for another visit and we have enjoyed the Aqua-fit classes at the pool each weekday morning. Murray is busy working for his “little ladies” as he calls them, the women of the neighbourhood who need assistance with various things around their houses. He is also assisting Scott and Lisa re-fit their sailboat for an adventure south this fall. The third thing on his plate is assisting George in re-building an airplane from the mid 40’s. And, last but not least, he will be helping George with the harvest at the farm. So, he is quite busy. My next sewing job is to cover the seats for the airplane and the fabric arrived just yesterday. Now to carve the foam with the electric knife we picked up at a garage sale and then figure out how to cover the seats.

James is growing like a weed ( almost 15 pounds! ) and we have been lucky to have Steve and Kath visit two Sunday’s in a row, to celebrate my birthday and then Father’s Day. My mom was here last Sunday and thus got to spend some more time with her youngest great grandchild. Jeremy and Cynthia are back in Ottawa, arriving just in the last day or so, and will be moved into their new home in Kanata soon. We look forward to spending some time with them and especially with Matthew and Samantha.

Basically, life is good, whether afloat or ashore. Hopefully it is treating you well also.

Hugs
Heather & Murray

Almost a month ago we arrived home to our little house in Tillsonburg. But, I am not sure where the time has gone.

Our computer problems continued.The Apple MacBook Pro died just before we left the boat. Once I had some time, I called AppleCare and talked to a technician. She diagnosed a failed hard drive. With Jeremy’s encouragement, we ordered a new hard drive from iFixit.com and Murray installed the new one successfully. Then I proceeded to re-install the software and our backed-up files. But, after a day or so, I noticed that the drive was running very hot. In fact, Murray measured it at 58C!

Communications with iFixit resulted in a new hard drive coming our way. This second one was again installed successfully and I re-installed the software. But, in the morning, the computer was D-E-A-D. This time, experts were called into play and we took it to the Apple repair shop in London. The diagnosis is not a good one. A terminal illness, for a computer, as the logic or mother board is caput.

Thus, my excuse for not writing previously. Luckily enough, we had purchased a small Dell netbook before leaving Florida. With it, we have been able to perform most of our usual tasks but my address books were in both the Apple and the Acer. So, please contact us to make sure that your e-mail address in back in MY memory banks.

The new grandbaby, James, is growing like a weed as he guzzles his bottles down to the last fraction. We are enjoying being able to see him frequently. This was something we missed with Matthew and Samantha, due to the distance between us and our cruising lifestyle. But, soon they will be returning to Ottawa from California and we look forward to seeing them more often.

Fandango, our Goman 20 foot sailboat, is being prepared for her launch, scheduled for later this week. It will be great to sail just for pleasure again. A dock has been reserved near Port Rowan and we will share the finger dock with Murray’s brother, George. They have a powerboat but we still speak to them anyway. Actually we have a good time with George and his wife, Barb. I foresee a barbeque or two happening near that dock.

There are no big trips planned for this summer and no major renovations on the house at this time. Thus we should have more time to play, either in the water or ashore. In his spare time, Murray is working with a couple in Port Dover who are sailing south with their family for a one year adventure. He and the captain are scrambling to get everything ship-shape aboard before their mid-August departure.

That is our life ashore. We hope that you can enjoy this beautiful summer weather with your family and friends. Stay in touch.

PS We just wrote our boater’s exam! After 14 years of living aboard and cruising, approximately 30 years of sailing/racing, passing Canadian Yachting on-the-water tests and for Murray, writing the exams necessary for his captain’s license, we STILL had to write the exam and pay our $50 in order to get the plastic card to carry in our wallets to prove that we can safely run a motor vessel.

It was long past the time to replace our old lifelines as the vinyl coating was cracked and rusty in many places. All of the stainless fittings would also need replacing as the swaged ends showed the effects of corrosion. A professional rigger is needed to install the swaged ends and it would be expensive.

But, this summer, Murray had started to investigate replacing the wire with line. The line needed to be a low stretch type with a high breaking strength. By far the biggest advantage of the line option was the ability to do the job yourself. The racers appreciate the reduction in weight of the line lifelines but, on a cruising boat, this wasn’t our priority.

Johnson Marine makes the fittings necessary to use a spliced line, as a lifeline, and these fittings are carried by West Marine. It still isn’t a cheap process as we had three gates needing Gate Hooks and Gate Eye-to-Eye fittings.

For the line, we chose Sta-Set X both for breaking strength and cost. The upper line is 5/16 and has a breaking strength of 4,400 lbs while the lowers are 1/4 with a breaking strength of 2,700.

Due to the difficulty splicing this line, Murray used his ClampTite tool ( available at ClampTite.com ) to clamp the loops around the stainless thimbles. Each thimble is double clamped with stainless wire. Alternately, the loop could be whipped and sewn. All screw-together connections were assembled with blue Loctite.

The line is tightened with lashings of sufficient number and strength to equal the strength of the low stretch line. Further, the lashings allow the lifelines to be tightened if they stretch over time.

Approximate cost of this job – under $300. But, now the lifelines can easily be replaced for just the cost of the line ( less than $100 ) as the fittings should for last many years. At this time, manufacturers recommendations suggest replacing the line every four years due to uv damage.

For more photos of this project, see our photo gallery.

The weird sound was getting louder and now was almost a screech. Just 2 miles behind us was the dock at Reynolds where we had worked so hard on the boat for 2 weeks. Would we need to return? Could we return?

All of these thoughts ran through my head as Murray eliminated the possible culprits. It sounded like a bearing. Maybe the fan belt housing or the transmission or the new cutlass bearing we had installed while on the hard. He removed the fan belt but the sound persisted. Not that bearing. OK, he then checked the transmission…. it was cool to the touch. Next he rotated the shaft by hand, but it seemed to spin freely. Not the cutlass bearing then. Back he went to the transmission again, to check the fluid level. There was NO FLUID! Yikes, where did it go? He quickly filled the reservoir and felt beneath the transmission, looking for leaks. After a few minutes he checked the fluid level again and found that it was holding. Now, time for the test. We put the transmission in gear and it went easily, without any trace of the screech. Slowly the revs were increased and the boat chugged on down the river towards Jacksonville.

What had happened? There are two possible explanations. The first is that after draining the transmission fluid in the spring, Murray neglected to refill the reservoir. The other possibility is that in re-filling the reservoir, he missed the small funnel and poured the fluid into the bilge. Neither option is great but mistakes happen and we were lucky this time.

But, it was a sunny Sunday and we were headed down the St John River with other adventures ahead of us. The weather was still cool with very light winds. That night we anchored near Blount Island, just a few miles from the junction with the ICW. Shortly after dawn on Monday we motored into the ICW and headed south. In St Augustine, radio contact was made with friends anchored there ( Dave & Kathy on Dyad ). The Bridge of Lions was still under construction but opened on it’s usual schedule. As the Matanzas Inlet area came closer, radio calls from boats aground were heard. “TowBoatUS, TowBoatUS”. It was almost a full moon tonight and the low tide was extremely low. But, our plan was to stop early, anchor at Fort Matanzas and catch the high tide at first light. As we approached, three boats were aground. Murray remembered an alternate route into the anchorage and we slowly made our way into the deep water and dropped the hook. I had roasted a turkey breast as we motored along, so we had turkey, squash, potatoes, stuffing and gravy for our dinner. What a feast!

With the dawn, the tide was high and there was no difficulty piloting through the buoys. It was another quiet day with few boats out and about. Our planned anchorage was reached much too early to stop, so on we pressed. I took the helm as Murray worked to finish installing the new lifelines ( photos and report to be posted later on the website ). The dolphins swam along beside us and the pelicans and osprey fished from the air. A lovely quiet afternoon. By 4:30 we found a small spot just off of the ICW in Mosquito Lagoon, just in time to enjoy the sunset with a drink in hand.

Today, we were up at first light again. Strong winds are forecast and we wanted to be securely anchored. By 0930, we were anchor down at Titusville where we will spend a few days, visit with friends ashore ( Don Wilson on Next Exit ) and pick up some odds and ends from the ongoing shopping list. Mostly we will be waiting for the wind to switch around and blow from the north to let us more easily sail on further south.

Future plans? Vero Beach is a day and a half south and some generator parts are supposed to be waiting at the marina for our arrival. There we will re-stock, repair whatever has broken and start to watch the weather for an opening to cross to the islands. When that might happen is anybody’s guess. Until then, we will just be glad to be back on the water and in the warm.

Hugs to all,
Heather & Murray

Close to the middle of September, we flew to California to visit our family out there and also to see some of the sights. Jeremy and Cynthia welcomed us into their home in Sunnyvale and allowed us to spoil the grandchildren just a little.

After only a couple of days, we met our friends Linda and Kuyler at the San Francisco airport and headed into the big city, utilizing the BART ( Bay Area Rapid Transit ) and a streetcar. Being deposited at Fisherman’s Wharf, we soon found our hotel, changed into walking shoes and headed off. Fisherman’s Wharf seemed like the place to start and we meandered through the stores, enjoying the sights until food and beverages were needed. Linda and Kuyler made it an early night while we continued to enjoy the city for a while longer.

Daylight found us again out and about, with a boat cruise of the Bay first on our agenda. It was a perfect morning for being on the water with hardly a ripple on the water’s surface and only wisps of fog to be seen. A ride on the famous San Francisco trolley car was next and we stayed on until it neared Chinatown. That area was a very unique streetscape and the stores sold items that none of us had ever seen before. Back down the famous hills we trod with the next destination being the most crooked street, Lombard Street. My heels were blistered and these old knees complaining about all of the walking. So, the rest of the gang made the climb while I took a shortcut and awaited their arrival on flatter streets. Back to the hotel to get our gear and the gang separated then for a few days. Our 24 hours in San Francisco was over! Linda and Kuyler drove to the Sacramento area to visit his brother while we took the Caltrain back to Sunnyvale and another visit with the grandkids.

Monday morning found the fearless four headed southwest towards the coast and Big Basin Redwood State Park. Murray was in rally mode down the narrow, twisty roads and the trees lived up to their reputations. Photos cannot show their grandeur but it was very much worth the effort to spend some time in the shadow of these giants.

The coast highway drew us on southward with many beautiful vistas to stop and enjoy. Murray again was the driver of choice for this famous and dangerous roadway. The night was spent at a lovely hotel near Cambria, right on the beach. In the morning, we toured Hearst Castle and enjoyed the beauty and opulence of that place very much. The day continued warm and sunny while we shopped in the nearby village.

Northward, back across the foggy Golden Gate Bridge, Linda piloted us into the Sonoma Valley and the wine region there, destination Healdsburg. In the morning, we toured the Simi Winery, learning of all of the steps it takes to produce the wine we enjoy. Then, out into the countryside and more wine tasting followed by wine buying. With all of that wine before lunch, a nap was needed by all! Then, off to downtown and the unique shops there. Just looking, thanks.

After a leisurely breakfast, we turned the car back towards San Francisco with an unplanned side trip into Sausalito. The marina area drew us like a magnet with Murray spotting the biggest sailboat we had ever seen. She is the Janice of Wyoming and 130 feet long, with a composite mast that reached far into the sky. What a gorgeous thing!

After picking up a few bargains in a local shop, we crossed the Golden Gate, again in fog. Jeremy and Cynthia invited all of us into their home for the usual Friday evening pizza event. The fearsome four split up again here with Linda and Kuyler headed off to a hotel for a couple of nights. We, of course, spent some more time with our family.

Sunday morning came all too soon and it was time to fly back home again. Those twelve days just flew by.

Coughs and colds became the norm around our house for the next few weeks as we did the final jobs in preparation for our departure to the boat. The sewing jobs on the list were accomplished with replacing a fifteen foot zipper in the sailcover being the most difficult task. I don’t think that I will ever be nervous of sewing zippers again after putting that one in. I took some time out from the jobs to spend a few days up north with my mom, hopefully not passing on my cold to her.

But, now the house is ready to be abandoned, the car is packed to the roofline and we are ready for the next adventure aboard Windswept IV. Stay in touch with us when you can. We so enjoy hearing from all of you back here.

Take care of yourselves. Hugs from,

Heather & Murray

Well, I have certainly not kept my promise to write more often, have I. It has been a very long time since we have been quite this busy and all of that without going out to work.

The last message found the floor almost finished and travels starting. Well, the floor is done and we spent a few days at a cottage on Lake Huron with Linda and Kuyler. While there, we managed to catch up with friends, Brian and Kathy, s/v Tundra, who we met in the Erie Barge Canal in 1997! They are still cruising as well and left their boat in the Rio Dulce, Guatemala this summer. We returned home from there, did the laundry and re-packed for another trip. This time towards the east.

Friends, Al & Marilyn from s/v Scaramouche, have a home on Amherst Island, near Kingston and we had arranged to spend one night on our way to Ottawa. As they have hung up the cruising life for now, it was super to spend some time with them again and to reminisce of beach parties etc. From there, we headed on to Ottawa where Jeremy and Cynthia and the kids were spending some time visiting family and friends. They were staying in a hotel in Kanata and we had arranged a room there as well. It was fun to have no responsibilities for meals or cleaning and just large periods of time to spend with the grandkids. But, the dollars racked up and after a couple of days, it was time to move on again.

Now we headed more north and west to the Bancroft area where Bob and Jane from s/v Flextime, have a cottage on Monck Lake. Another cruising couple, Doug and Sharon, on s/v About Time, joined us there and a super time was had by all. Despite the cooler weather. While kayaking one morning, I managed to get some fairly close photos of a loon and her young and will post them on the website. I also got some video footage and will try to post that as soon as Jeremy teaches me how to manage to do it. Bob & Jane put up with us for four whole days and then they could take it no more.

On we traveled, picking up my mom in Orillia so that she could experience some of the craziness around our house. The weather stayed cool and rainy, so she didn’t get to aquasize as often as she would have liked. But, we enjoyed her company for about 10 days and returned her back north, before the August holiday weekend, to avoid the heavy cottage traffic.

In mid August, we jumped into Linda and Kuyler’s Roadrunner and headed further west, to visit our friend Gary. He had purchased a country home about 2 hours north of Winnipeg. This man had made the drive to Killarney from Duluth, MN, Grand Forks, ND and Winnipeg, MB. Just to spend a weekend with us! Anyhow, we owed him a return visit and this was the time. To shave expenses, we shared rooms with Linda and Kuyler on the journey, cooked dinners on her George Forman grill and made sandwiches along the roadside. At Gary’s, we pitched in to complete some of the tasks on his “To Do” list while also enjoying the local countryside and swimming in nearby Lake Manitoba. After spending five days with Gary, it was time to hit the road once more. The drive from Winnipeg, across the top of Lake Superior, is certainly full of wonderful vistas. Murray got into rally mode on the twisty roads and the miles were eaten up. By the time we reached our door again, it had been a 4700 km journey!

The next weeks flew by again, with more visits from friends and dinners here and there. Doug & Connie, from s/v High Stepper, took time to drive here from North Carolina for a couple of days. The Brantford Air Show was on at that time and we spent the afternoon with our necks craned high to watch the skydivers, stunt pilots and precision flying.

And now it is September. Last night, we had planned a street party. I contacted the town office and received permission to close part of our crescent for the late afternoon and evening. The town even delivered barricades for the road! Approximately 40 residents of our street showed up. Murray cooked burgers and everyone brought food. Mur set up a sound system with his old speakers and we danced until the mosquitoes drove everyone home. All in all, it was a wonderful evening and everyone wanted to make sure that it became an annual event.

This week, we are headed to Lake Muskoka to visit more cruising friends. And very soon, we will fly to California to see Jeremy and Cynthia and the kids. Linda and Kuyler are flying down as well and we will spend about a week sightseeing. Maybe even drinking some of that Napa Valley wine.

So, as you can see, we have been busy. I am not just making that up. Life is very full and we are happy and healthy. What more can we ask for? A new grandbaby? Well, there is one of those on the way as well! Steve and Kath will be parents in early March.

Hugs to all and we will try to get together in October with all of those whom we have missed so far . Maybe things will slow down a little by then.

Heather & Murray

Hello everyone,

Well, I said that I would write more often, didn’t I? Oops, I think that it has been at least a month since I sat down and wrote to you. But, life has been full here. That’s my excuse and I am sticking to it!

As you can see from the attached photos, we have started our flooring job.In fact, Steve and Katherine weren’t back from their honeymoon yet and we started ripping and tearing out old flooring.

What a nasty job that is! The amount of dirt and dust under the old carpet is disgusting. We had hired a flooring installer to spend a morning with us and teach us the “tricks of the trade”. In preparation, we had cleared out the furniture from the spare room, removed carpet, underlay and staples, put in screws every 6 inches on the joists and laid the waxed paper down. But, when he arrived, he said ” Oh, I wouldn’t start there. I would start here in the hall”. Well, we kind of wanted to practice in a room that was less on view than the main hall. But, we decided to follow the expert’s advice as that’s what we hired him for. So, we quickly tore out the vinyl flooring and subfloor, cleaned, screwed down into the joists and started to work. Oh by the way, Murray had bought me my own lightweight drill and an extra long bit extension to make it easier to install all of those screws. I have spent more hours screwing in the past couple of weeks and have been enjoying it much less than than when I was younger! The screws keep the floor from creaking, just in case you are wondering why we went to all of this extra work.

By the time he left, we had a good start on the hall and we continued on our own. The bathrooms were all getting new vinyl and Murray spent hours trying to get the floor in the guest bathroom level and smooth. Our advisor said ” just go over the old vinyl in the bathrooms”. Murray and I worked together to make full sized templates of the bathrooms and entry. Those installations went much faster. Once the hall was mostly done, we headed into the spare room and made quick work of it. Then, it was time to move our bedroom furniture into the spare room so that we could continue on into our room. Within two weeks of starting, we had completed the hallway, spare room, master bedroom, three closets, two bathrooms and the entrance. The photos show the completed hallway ( minus the new vinyl at the entry ) and the master bedroom. There are a few more photos on the website, if you wish to see them.

Then Murray tackled the trim for those areas. As he cut the pieces, I gave them 2 coats of paint. When the work table got too full, he started installing them. Then he filled the nail holes and finish painted. And on we went.

Now, we have moved all of the furniture out of the living room, torn out the carpet and are more than half finished laying the hardwood in there. And yesterday, the flooring nailer failed! Murray wore it out already and we were only about half done the total job. But, Princess Auto replaced it with no questions asked. It just entailed a drive into London ( in a friend’s jaunty little red sports car ) and an end to the workday so that I could sneak off to the pool with our other guest. A good afternoon to spend submersed.

In between all of this work on the house, we have driven to North Bay ( for an open house at our niece’s new home ), to Owen Sound ( for a funeral ) and done four or five jobs for neighbours. Maybe now you can believe me when I say “Life is busy here”.

Soon we will be making another road trip, up to Lake Huron to visit with Linda & Kuyler at the cottage, then on to Ottawa to meet Jeremy & Cynthia for a couple of days and then west to the Bancroft area to meet up with cruising friends at their cottage. It will be almost a week and a half of vacation and we are both really looking forward to relaxing with friends and family.

Hopefully, the garden will survive our absence. Murray has 6 tomato plants, 6 peppers, 4 hot peppers, some onions and herbs. Everything looks great right now and we have tiny peppers showing up. Murray had dug the area up, prepared it with triple mix and then we covered it with a garden cloth to keep the weeds down. That is working very well and the few weeds that manage to take hold are easily removed as their roots are shallow. I planted marigolds through the vegetable to try to discourage pests, besides they are happy looking plants and give a bright colour to the garden. Out front, our huge pots are thriving finally. I planted them too soon and they were exposed to a late frost. Then, as they were sitting down on garden cloth, they were not draining well and some plants rotted and died. But, we lifted the pots onto scrap pieces of hardwood and watched the water run out. The plants are much happier and the pots are full, and overflowing, with bright flowers.

So, that is our life here in Tillsonburg. Hopefully all is well with you and yours. Write when you have the time. Otherwise, take good care of each other.

Hugs,
Heather & Murray

Hello everyone,

I know that I have been delinquent for the last month and have written neither to you nor the website. But, now that Steve and Katherine’s wedding is over, I should be back on track.

We arrived back in Ontario on April 12th, Easter Sunday. Murray has been moaning and groaning about the temperatures, as most people were, but I have relinquished control over the weather. Other than the mail taking over much of the kitchen counter, the house was in great shape. Once the mail was dealt with and the tax info dug out of the pile, we started to make plans.

First there was a shower to organize for the bride and groom-to-be. It was a family event and held on the 25th of April with 15 people for dinner in our small house. But, all went well and, with extra chairs borrowed from neighbours, everyone had a seat at a table.

And sometime in the middle of everything, Murray found the time to install our new tankless natural gas water heater and remove the old 40 gallon electric one. He did all of the plumbing and wiring and called in an expert crew for the gas connection. Our utility room now has much more available space which will eventually be taken up with a wall unit/storage cupboard. The energy usage of the new unit will be appreciably less and thus, also our expenses.

Then there was a tux to order and plans to be made for the wedding day. I drove to Orillia and picked up my Mom on May 7th. Kath’s parents, David and Carole Mann from B.C., arrived on Sat the 9th and Steve and Katherine hosted a Mother’s Day brunch.

Then the time seemed to fly by. Jeremy, Cynthia, Matthew and Samantha arrived late on Wed and stayed here with us. On Friday, all of us from T’burg moved over to the Lamplighter in London. That night we hosted the rehearsal party at the hotel, serving pizza and snacks. Any of you who know Steve will realize that he lived on pizza for many years!

Saturday, of course, was the day of the wedding. It rained but couldn’t dull the smiles on those two faces. When I think about it I remember that it also rained on Jeremy & Cynthia’s wedding day, almost 9 years ago! It didn’t slow them down much either. Both Matthew and Samantha were a delightful part of the ceremony. Matthew delivered a mauve rose to myself and his great-grandmother, my mom. Samantha was a diminutive flower girl and walked down the aisle as though she was much older than 1 1/2 ( although she didn’t want to carry her basket and throw the rose petals ).

The whole event was lovely and we will post some photos when they are available. I DID promise at least one picture of Murray in a tux!

Jeremy and Cynthia went on to Toronto to visit with her dad and step-mom before flying back to California today. Steve and Kath had lots of visitors from out-of-province, so postponed their honeymoon for a week. We will be cat-sitting while they fly off to Jamaica for a much needed respite.

Now we will finally start the installation work of our hardwood flooring. First the carpet must be torn out, the staples removed and the floor securely screwed down. Murray even bought me my own cordless drill so that I can help with all the screwing. I think that he bought 2000 screws which need to be installed into the sub-floor. Mur is in his element with new tools to play with – a flooring nailer, a brad nailer for the trim and a compressor to run it all. Our talents have also been discovered locally and we fill our spare time with odd jobs and computer fixes. Oops, spare time filled with a phone call, Mur is off to Randlawn Farms for the rest of the day, assisting with planting now that the temperatures are right.

A flooring installer is coming next Saturday to give us some tips and get us started correctly. So, we must have the carpet removed from the first area along with the furniture. The house will be a disaster zone for a month or two while this job continues. On a positive note, the vegetable garden is planted and the flower pots thriving. Mom Rand’s wind chime is bonging away in the tree in the front yard and some of Murray’s beach finds swing there as well.

Please, stop by for a visit but expect a little messiness. We would love to see you anyway and are always looking for an excuse to stop working.

Hugs,
Murray & Heather