The Swedes Have Landed

This morning started very early, with the huge crash of thunder at about 6 a.m. Keeta isn't the biggest fan of thunder. She desparately tried to lobby her position that we should really check out what was happening out there. Maybe someone was trying to steal our garbage cans... or I don't know what. She was doing her working dog best to convince us to just do something!

A mumbled command or two later, "Keeta, go back to bed!!", she grudgingly lay back down, with another 15 minutes to go before the alarm.

But with the rain this morning, and the rain clouds not too far away, and the fact that it is the last day of May, I am in the mood to share some shiny happy Swedish music that I've found.

Now did you know that there is a Swedish Invasion in music out there? Who knew?! Today's music is brought to you by a Swedish group call The Charade. They have a happy blend of dark lyrics and Martha and the Vandellas doing Heat Wave (check out their myspace page at myspace.com/thecharadesweden for "The World Is Going Under" - I couldn't find that one to share with you).

However, I did find one song of theirs to share and I hope it will usher in a little late spring sunshine to scare away some of those unhappy grey clouds still hanging around after our morning thunderstorm. I'm sure Keeta will be grateful for that.



Contributed by Jamie Naessens

They Have Finally Come

It was warm today. But then it snowed tonight. I'm not too happy about that. But this is what I noticed on the weekend - the migrants have returned. I'm not talking about flocks of birds, although I have noticed the birds are returning too. But I'm talking about another kind of migrant.

Alhough we live in a 'bedroom community', this is also a traditional farming community, and the migrant workers have recently arrived. I suppose they come from all over, but the most notable are the Mexicans. They fly south with the Canada Geese when the big snows threaten, after the last harvest, and all the barns have been put to bed. But this past weekend, I saw many groups of them - walking in groups of 4, 5, and 6, all looking a little lost, and freezing to death.

I thought it was rather nice on the weekend, but I suppose if you are coming from the warmer climes, it could be considered a little chilly. They had their winter coats done right up, hoods drawn, hands jammed into their pockets, and probably wondering what tundra they landed in.

But things are looking up. The Mexicans are finally here.

Contributed by Jamie Naessens

Digging Out

This morning some drifts were as tall as Keeta. Penny had to do her hop-skip-jump move to get around the yard. But we were lucky again, our Snow Angel dropped by and used the snow blower on our driveway. Thank you, Deb, who is now the Snow Blowing Angel of the Neighbourhood (don't Google that - you may get results you don't want!!). All I can say is that both Larry and I were grateful.

On the other hand, we had to actually shovel our backyard. Yes, our backyard. To keep our nimble Escape Dog of the North in her run. Otherwise she could have just stepped right over and taken herself for a good run of the neighbourhood. Who ever heard of that? So there's Larry and I, shovels in hand, clearing snow from the edges of the entire run, piling snow in the middle.

Ahh, what we won't do for our Furballs.

Contributed by Jamie Naessens

It's March Madness Out There!

It's March, right? March 8th to be exact. Now for anyone who's counting, there's only 12 days of winter left.

The clocks get changed back to Daylight Savings Time tonight... that's the first sign of Spring, isn't it? I get to lose an hour's sleep, but it means Spring is here. Right?

Hell hath no fury like Winter 2007/08 in Ontario, which for those of you visiting my little blog in this little bit of Canada, it started officially with the first dump in mid-November. And it seems that it's been dumping on us ever since. A couple of reprieves, but those are quickly forgotten as we dig out from the latest dump.

Apparently Mother Nature's knickers are in a knot because she's got a good case of the frozen sniffles. Nothing like a good slap in the face by wind-whipped snow to remind us that March is the cruellest month.

Yes, I know what I wrote before. And I've been pretty good up until now. Canadians talk a lot about weather, because no matter where we come from, it's what we all have in common.

But now I'm officially whining.

Even Keeta didn't appreciate having to squeeze through the 8 inch opening in the sliding doors to get outside. I don't really know what her problem was - she hasn't had a problem squeezing through a 3 inch opening in a gate to get a dead squirrel last summer... ahh, I remember summer.

Penny wasn't too impressed with having snow up past her hips to do her business, and who could blame her. Without an undercoat like Keeta's, there's not much to protect her pink underbits. I can see some trouble brewing later - I think it might take more than a little encouragement to get her to do her business later.

Rocky and Petey just looked at the snow piled up with some vague kitty interest, no attempt to leave though, as the snowflakes wafted in with the wind, tickling their little twitchy noses. Nope. No kitty outdoor excursions lobbied for today.

And so, tomorrow I get to shovel. I wonder where my Snow Angel is hiding? Probably hiding under a blanket of snow, waiting for the first sign of Spring.

Contributed by Jamie Naessens

Who Says The Sky Is Falling?

Has the world gone mad? Have we somehow subscribed to Chicken Little's Sky Is Falling Theorum?

Rick Mercer says it best. Enjoy.



Contributed by Jamie Naessens