Hot hands???

So, thought i'd share a little anecdote from my so-called life...
I came off of a day shift on Saturday with a plethora of energy that needed to be harnessed in some sorta useful way. I had been discussing my garden with a co-worker and had been frustrated with myself for the waste of produce that seemed to be happening - the beans were growing too fast, the broccoli had gone to seed and the tomatoes were ripening so fast that i didn't know what to do with them.
So, into the garden i ventured after work and set to work harvesting the crops (sound like an old pioneer woman eh?). I picked the last of the beans, the cherry tomatoes that were ripe, the round tomatoes, the shepherd peppers and even a carrot or two for good measure (boy were they ever bitter!!). Unfortunately, all this bounty now required me to process it. So i busily set to work and put the cherry tomatoes in the oven with some parmesan cheese, some garlic and other goodies and roasted them - boy were they good!! Then the beans were blanched and popped in the freezer to be enjoyed at a later time. Then the tomatoes were stored carefully downstairs to be dealt with at a later date.
Finally, the peppers were cut up in little bitties and put in a baggie in the freezer to be used as colourful accents in nasi and other dishes. Towards the end of all this processing and such nonsense, i began to notice my fingers were pretty tender, burning in fact. I thought as i was doing dishes at the time, maybe the water was too hot... but nope, that wasn't the case, i don't usually wash with scalding water the way my mother does. So like a good two-year old, i stuck my finger in my mouth to make it better. Imagine my surprise when my mouth and lips turned into an inferno and i experienced a curious hot feeling as i swallowed. Something else fishy was going on here! I began to suspect the awful truth that i had not just processed sweet peppers, but something super, super hot! Sure enough, that's what it turned out to be and i spent the next few hours trying to put out the fire raging on my poor palms.
Mom and Dad researched online and we discovered milk would be a good solution - the fats in the milk somehow would slow down the burning from the pepper oils. Sad thing, i drink skim milk... but it still worked. I debated going to bed with cold washandjes on my hands for comfort but that idea didn't work and only caused me to pitch myself out of bed and run for the Advil bottle, eventually finding enough comfort to sleep. The next day was work again, and i'll tell you, wearing gloves for any extended periods of time was enough to panic me because the heat would creep up my arms and drive me crazy! Fortunately with lotsa handwashing and time, the burning has subsided and my poor dear hands are back to normal. I still have no idea how i got hot peppers in my garden. I even went out purposely to check the pepper tag which is still out there and it says "sweet shepherd peppers". How a rogue plant made its way in there, i don't think i'll ever know but at least it makes for a good story!

A walkabout on Tuesday

I will post commentary to these images in the next while... but my eyes are drooping faaster than i can put pics up here... Can you guess where we were?
Climbing up the falls was both fun and refreshing, not to mention quite a bit wet!

Just hanging out together at the top of the falls!
I don't even mind this picture of myself... it's been a while since i've seen a good one!

Thanks Esther!

Trying desperately to capture the sun's reflection off the water off the rocks -

i took so many pictures and never really managed to do it properly.

Just take my word for it, my brain picture shows total beauty and joy in creation!

This is my current favorite shot. The sun dancing on the water, the water dancing over the edge of the rocks and my heart and soul dancing with joy and the wonder of the moment!

I like the contrasts that show up here... the lights and darks, this with a little point and shoot digital camera which is pretty forgiving to a mistress who sticks it in her pocket, purse, dashboard, drops it, gets it wet and like a Timex, it keeps on ticking!

A little contrast again - the lovely summer leaves

provide a nice foreground for the falls.

A close second for a favorite shot of nature! The water tumbling over the edge of the falls and spraying down, capturing the sunlight in the droplets... aah... good times!!

Don't fall in there, Esther! The rocks were pretty slippery but we were careful and clambered all over the different levels of the falls. I had forgotten how nice the falls were, i tend to take the road that bends all around the falls quite often but don't often have time or company to fully enjoy the beauty. Thanks Esther for being a great, wonderful travelling companion, for sharing wonders of discovery with me and for loving rocks as much as i do. The hugely diverse assortment of rocks was an endless delight to us, causing us some consternation as we tried to climb back up the slippery cliff sides with our arms full of treasure rocks to take home and enjoy!

After clambering around and getting pretty muddy and tired, we enjoyed a time of sitting with our feet in the water, relaxing and watching the day float past us in a bubble!

We even found some little ?crystals or ?mineral deposits hidden in the rocks. They were little treasure troves buried in the countless layers of rock along the canyon wall. We would love to find out about these!We found some pretty cool coloured rocks around the bend. We even found one that looks like a piece of birthday cake! Probably the texture would be pretty similar to my baking style!!

A great shot of my oldest "niece". Someone who is growing up so fast, whom i have loved since i first laid eyes on her and who is a delightful young lady, with a warm heart and an inquisitive mind. Thanks for spending some good quality time with me and let's not make it too long again before doing this!! Love - Aunt Danielle

Conversation overheard

Hmmm... far too long again... maybe i'll stop commenting on the length between posts and simply reconcile myself to the fact that this blog is just going to be more occasional than regular. My brain in the last year seems to have malfunctioned and i don't seem to think the same way i used to... not so many creative thoughts or deep questions running about my gray matter but rather just vast streaks of nothingness it seems. Anyhow... on a rainy cozy Saturday evening, here i sit again typing with a vast blank screen in front of me. And what has all happened since the last time i posted? When was that even? I don't have nice pics of little kiddies or house progress to post at all. Excitement around here consists of being super happy that there is finally some rain - i can nearly hear my plants and lawn saying "thankyou" in little gasps of near-death voices.
Just got back in from a nice day out - was out to garage sale with Mom dearest this morning - we spent the morning traipsing around Ancaster and listening to lotsa conversations about this and that - and wondering what's all going on in their lives. Came across a garage sale off of Lover's Lane - little more ritzy area and we already were wondering why they would need any income from little piddly garage sale stuff - probably nothing to do with income, just clearing out space in the large designer painted house with a nicer kitchen setup in the garage than in many kitchens in many houses i've seen. They were selling off their "self-help" and motivational speaker tapes (go Tony Robbins) - must have worked judging by the size of the house. But the lady of the house was conversing with her bottle-blonde neighbour. I only heard bits of what they said but had to smother my laughs until i got to the car and i could tell Mom why i was snickering. This is kinda how it went down - my memory might trick me a bit but the general idea is there:
Lady A "I can't wear that shirt, i don't have boobs anymore."
Lady B "You can buy them you know."
Lady A "My husband already offered, but i told him i'd rather have a new couch!"
Lady B "Well, i want my eyes 'done'"
hmmm... stereotyped idea of rich snobbish people cemented right there... so we refused to buy anything and headed off to be with the more common people. Ach, not to say that if you live there, that's a problem, i'm just simply referring to a rich stereotype which had just been confirmed.
Then it was off to Elora - Mom, Dad and I drove up to that cute little town and just did some relaxing poking around the shops and stores there. I love being up there - the crooked buildings, beautiful flower beds, the wonderful art gallery and the weddings... well, okay, minus the one that was happening there today - I had a funny feeling when i walked by the bride and saw she was wearing a red dress and a frown, standing next to a shorter ?man?. I realized after i saw a lot of girls holding hands and butchy women, that the "groom" was a woman... and then it was time to high-tail it out of there to be sure! Nuf said bout that.
And then a lazy drive home through the countryside, across the covered bridge in Montrose, and a winding course with me navigating. I was really glad that by the time the rain really really hit us, we were already on the highway home and not struggling to read faded street signs in the pouring rain. Dad, thanks for driving us around - i know you don't mind at all, but we really do appreciate it! And thanks for sharing things about your family at supper tonight - it's good to hear about our past because it truly is our past, which will be lost if we don't talk about it... so thanks for that too!
Have a good evening all and stay dry!

2 more sleeps...until the big day!

So, two more sleeps until the big wedding day for my youngest sister Lauren and her man Tom. I thought i'd share a few pictures of mostly Lauren for your enjoyment. I want to wish them a wonderful day (i'm hoping and praying for less humidity) and a blessed life together!
A more typical pose than the above picture! There always seems to be
some screaming or bugging going on.
Awwwwww, another cute, cozy shot.
A very old family photo - for the record
One of the most brilliant shots of Lauren of all time! At the end of the famed "knife" movie
This girl is pretty up on everything! Trying on shoes for the wedding!
And a parting shot on the seaside where we were so happy!