Little does Ruth know that Shad is not a chocolate person. Now if you put a hunka cheese or a nice ripe mango on the pillow :evil laugh:

Yes Ruth, I'd say you have quite the cutie there in the pic.

Popping into say hello.

Here we go again.

This is not Ruthxxx. But c'est moi. I've met up with our Ruth at the Kingston Station along with Hershey. There she was standing there and I just walked up to her and said that I was looking for a lady with a dog. Hersh was wearing her red scarf. Ruth was not wearing a purple hat or holding peonies. I only recognised Hersh!!!!!

So we came home through the highways and byways and we are now into the Vodka and Scotch - not together, come on you lot. Ruth has the Scotch, I'm continuing the vodkas that I had at lunch time with the man. Yep, I had lunch with a strange man. The bartender had to go off down the street to get some more tonic for my vodka and we had a grilled cheese sandwich together. Well he had a cheese burger since I'm not into sharing my lunch.

Ruth is really lovely - complete with the evil laugh. We are about to do the translation of the bbq apron - Happy should I let you do the translation? The dogs are great big curly bundles of fur and big brown eyes and teeth.

Not sure what else is happening tonight. Tomorrow I think I have to speak Australian to the hunks potential in-laws. Should be fun. We are going sightseeing tomorrow. Delta is a fun place by the sound of it. Tomorrow I even get to meet some 'normal people'(Ruths words not mine) Clare and Doug whom Ruth has mentioned previously. Ruth is now waving a bunch of asparagus around. Dinner must be nearly ready. I have to keep an eye on Lucy who is likely to go pinch my chocolate bar (still on the bed).
Hang on Ruth is yelling at me. It appears we aren't having peppers for dinner tonight. That's okay. We've got chicken and asparagus and who knows what else - come to that, we have unlimited vodka - who cares.

I'm off to do the dinner thing. See you.

I've had to come in for a read of Shad's adventure's. I'm thrilled that she's gotten to meet so many of our group. Sigh, I wish I hadn't been sick when she was in the south.

I'm curious, what are jaffa's?

PainterWoman--Is your hubby going to be able to travel that soon? California sounds like a fun trip.

Mel -It was nice of the guys to come and help you.

Madcat--Sending you and sister good thoughts and prayers.

Ruth--I agree with the others with the cute Austrailan.

Happy--How's the new job?

Nothing new on this end.

Morning chicks,

Ceejay - Jaffas are a candy that some say are quite addictive. Easiest way to describe them is that they are small balls similar in nature to our M&M candies. Except that the outer shell is a delightful orange flavor and the inside is chocolate - like an M&M. And they are round instead of flattish like our candies. You pop one in your mouth, let the candy shell melt so you get the orange flavor and then chomp the chocolate. They were good but not the OMG I'm in LOVE with these things I've heard from others. Perhaps it has to do with my getting away from chocolate in general and losing my taste for it. They were nice to try and I'm glad I got the chance.

The new job is going ok. I am trying not to be overwhelmed. Everything is new - terms, people, procedures, even the bearings of the building complex. Yesterday at lunch I did take a walk around the inside perimeter. It's a HUGE place. Can either do laps or trot up and down the aisles in between the bays. Left my pedometer in my purse - will have to try it today to get some idea of measurement. It does seem at times that I will never figure out all the bits of this new job - I just tell myself to calm down - 3 months from now it will be old hat. Thanks for asking tho Ceejay. How's the diet going for you? Didn't you chose a new plan?

Well Shad and Ruth - sounds like the dynamic duo found each other. I'm sure you had quite the entertaining evening. Hope you aren't going to be climbing trails after a vodka laced night. If you are, then you truly ARE my hero So tell us, did Ruth come through on her promise to show you country life at it's best? I have stared at the apron and I admit I am at a loss to use at least 3 phrase in a proper sentence. Strewth, me thinks it will roll off the tongue better once we're all half cut - bloody oath! Enjoy your time together. What does Hershey think of your luggage that has been sniffed at by various cats all through your journey? - Shad's not only been meeting with friends but it seems most of us have cats as well.

Madcat - I never thought of it that way but i suppose your ear for turning instructions into written word would be a darn fine asset in your sister's case. Good that you can sit and listen with an open ear. I too would probably take your sister's posture of STOP ALREADY - more pouring in faster than you can process it. Still sending good healing and comforting thoughts your way Hope you enjoyed your beer and a little bit of downtime with the DH.

So Carla - do you live in the country too? Thought you lived in a big city, don't know why - perhaps I got confused when you were posting from the various work sites instead of home. Have a good time with Shad. ICE COLD LAKE? Brrrrrr..... That's right, it's barely spring up your way.

Mel - hope you are feeling better this morning. Nice of the guys to help you out. It's a shame we can't all be more accepting of each other and life's little bumps along the way. Mom always said don't stare. Hard to retrain your thoughts. Just think peaceful, calming thoughts and in a few days this will be over with.

Ok, my time is up here - time to hit the hamster wheel. Have a good day chicks.

CEEJAY I FORGET WHAT JAFFAS ARE TOO. BUT I AM ASSUMING THEY'RE NO ON OUR DIET PLANS

MADCAT~ ALL MY BEST THOUGHTS GIRLFRIEND. SENDING SPECIAL WARM HUGS TO YOUR SISTER.
HANG IN THERE!! THE BEER IS A GOOD IDEA!! GOOD FOR THE DH!!

RUTH& SHAD~ TRY NOT TO SHOCK THE ENTIRE TOWN AND TAKE OVER THE LONGHORN!!! LEAVE SOME OF THE CITIZENS WITH THEIR BRAINS STILL INTACT HAVE A WONDERFUL TIME!! I HAD A LAUGH...IT HASN'T STOPPED RAINING EVERY DAY SINCE SHADDIE LEFT. IS MOTHER NATURE CRYING AT HER DEPARTURE???
HAVE FUN

HOLLY~ I CAN SEE YOU WILL NEVER BE THE SAME!

CARLA~ DON'T FORGET BEHIND THE LOO!! BUT I THINK I WASTED ALL THE TIME CLEANING CAUSE I NEVER ONCE SAW A WHITE GLOVE ON SHAD'S HAND?!?!?
HAVE A GREAT TIME....WATCH OUT FOR THAT RUTH...I HEAR THOSE TRIPLE X'S AREN'T THERE FOR NOTHING!!

HAPPY~ HOW GOES THE JOB?? FINISH THE JAFFAS YET?? DID YOU SHARE THEM WITH THE DH?? is the pool ready yet? INQUIRING MINDS NEED TO KNOW THESE THINGS

TO MEADOW AND NAE AND PAINTER AND TIG AND THE REST OF THE CHICKS. TEEL AND LINUS!

THE "DECONSTRUCTORS" IN THE NEXT YARD HIT A GAS LINE THAT SOMEONE FORGOT TO TURN OFF. WE WERE TOLD TO STAY AWAY FROM THE WINDOWS FOR ABOUT 1/2 HOUR. TOO BAD CAUSE THE FIRE DEPT WAS OUT IN FORCE WITH ALL THEIR REGALIA!!! GOD I LOVE THOSE GUYS EVEN WITH THE A/C ON I COULD SMELL IT SO I TURNED IT OFF. WE'RE MISSING ALL THIS COOLER AIR WITH THE WINDOWS SHUT BUT THE DUST AND SMELLS ARE JUST TOO MUCH. NOTHING NEW HERE. BEHAVING MYSELF FOR A CHANGE. MADE A SOUPY BEEF STIRFRY. LOOKING MORE LIKE BEEF STEW! BUT SMELLS GOOD. THE RICE IS NEXT. OFF TO THE KITCHEN.
HAPPY THURSDAY

While Shad and Ruth were downing vodka and scotch, this chick was enjoying entirely too much wine with her weekly condo bbq crew. Then 'fell asleep' on the couch and forgot to feed the cats... Feeling rather fragile this morning, and certainly would not have been up to anything like a hike. So I think tonight Shad will be tippling on her own, unless she too is regretting last night's excesses.

Shad, don't worry, there'll still be wine for you, and I'll pick up some tonic. I'm sure I have some old vodka around - it doesn't go bad does it?

Ruth, despite the rocky start to the day, I'll be there as planned, with (figurative) bells on.

Happy, I do live in the city, but Ottawa has a wonderful national park 15 minutes from downtown. And it's a small, accessible sort of town - no smog or mammoth traffic jams. It has spread, mainly to the southwest, but the core is still quite homey as cities go. I'll take some photos tomorrow on the hike, and get Shad to show me how or where to post them for all to see. (There will be no swimsuit shots. In fact, I plan to swim in my hiking clothes.)

Madcat, I've been sending and : every day since you first told us about your friend's illness, upped the intensity when your sister's news came in, and am now adding extra for you. I may even ask my churchgoing neighbour to put the three of you in her prayers.

Mel, you're sounding more like your old self. Hmmm, that stew is starting to sound good. Although I'd really rather have a I must be recovering from the nonsense with the vino. What a pain that you missed your chance to enjoy the firefighters! At least they caught the leak and you didn't get blown up!
As for the cleaning, I've given up on having things spic and span for Shad, considering my delicate condition. There'll have to be some speed cleaning Sat morning after the Shad run to the airport. Hey, seeing 'Shad' and 'run' so close together has me thinking about fish. Maybe we should have shad roe garnished with shad flies for dinner tomorrow? I'm sure that somewhere in this world there are people who eat deep-fried shad flies, and I wouldn't be surprised if some of them are from Oz or NZ... Of course the fish itself might have eaten some shad flies, which would be more efficient than catching and cooking them myself. Am I babbling? Must be delirious.

Ceejay, it really is a shame that you missed out on the visit. It sounds like Shad has been spreading joy and jaffas wherever she has visited. At least the thread has allowed you to enjoy her tour vicariously.

The average IQ in Delta is about to fall by 10 points as Shad has left the building!

Ruth!

At least you didn't say "And Ottawa's is about to go UP 10 points!"

Isn't Joy a complete joy? Happy sigh. I am loving enjoying her journey vicariously...except for my 7.5 hour part in it.

Don't ask me what I've been doing, not alot Certainly not exercising Made a Honey cake from a recipe in the new issue of Chatelaine magazine, sent a quarter of it to the neighbour who had given me some yellow iris bulbs earlier Made some chamomile rinse for the kids hair... the plant has run riot in my garden and I can no longer see my tomato plants I guess I will be pulling them out, remember last year when I was so excited about trying a chamomile lawn?! What was I thinking? The poppies and calendula plants are also well into my walking circle and I can just imagine how the cosmos is going to lurch for the sky next month and totally dwarf everything. I like to grow the easy plants that self sow and grow and grow and grow

Shad-I'm not sure when your train will be chugging by? Will it be on Saturday the 16th? I can't really tell from your schedule. I can wave a Joy sign and woot at you It sure sounds like the gang have been keeping you busy and engaged. I think you are very courageous to travel by yourself to all these new places.

Mel-How are you feeling? Be well I'm sorry you had to miss the fire fellows. I'm sure there will be an alarm sometime this weekend they will have to come out for and you will get to enjoy the view at closer quarters

Happy-The new job is keeping you sparky? Is this going to be a new routine for you, walking around the outside? Sounds like a pleasant stress reliever. I'm sure you are right about it becoming old hat soon. Enjoy the feeling of being a bit of kilter, you shall soon level out How is the water in the pool?

Carla-poor kitties, missing their chow At least you had a good night and restbit Do you have Shad now? I need to check closer at the visiting list, is it tonight or tomorrow? I'm sure you will get on well and give big hugs to Shad and Ruth when you see them.

Ruth-best do a head check on the dogs. I sensed that Shad might be coveting their little furry company I hope you had a great time together. Sounds like you feed and hydrated her to perfection

Holly- lol So Toronto has captured you? Will you be going to a taping of Cityline and get some free goodies that they always share with the audience? I hope you are getting some quiet time alone in the bath and some lovely cuddles with your kids

Madcat-it is wonderful that you can concentrate for your sister when she is overwhelmed. I'll bet she finds you help her breathe. This is a tough road she is on. You and your family are in my thoughts I hope she gets into a support group and has lots of chances to vent out her feelings about this.

Ceejay-how are you? So your friends are trying to fix you up? Nice friends, they seem to be concentrating on the monied folk.

Painter-Have a wonderful time in California! How are you feet feeling after your walks? Be sure to wear your sunscreen and a hat if you get up to some wandering in CA. Although I doubt California is any hotter than your area

Summer is officially here in a week...21st right?

Pool time!

The package has been successfully transferred. Had a lovely dinner in Merrickville with Ruth, and now we're doing simultaneous posts. (This is really me. Shad is the Carla 49 on the other laptop.)
We're being very good girls, no booze of any description, and will be off in the morning to hike those hills. Maybe a bbq in the evening - I heard a rather tasty-sounding recipe on the radio for bbq breast of duck, of which I happen to ahve one in the freezer... Will go take it out, and get off the site to see why Shad's post won't go up.

Post would not post. Gosh durn it. I have lost it - gosh durn it again. I will be back tomorrow to beat this into submission. Bye y all

Good morning, Worldly Chickies!

Lucy just dashed upstairs to check out the guestroom for her favourite visitor. Shad certainly is a dog person. The Girls pretty much ignored me while she was here. She's a great visitor and we had lots of fun.

Carla49, It was just great to meet you, even for such a short time. I will definitely let you know when I am next in Ottawa and we will get together.

Meadow, I love seeing your garden in my imagination. I've never done the chamomile lawn but do have several 8' x 12' carpets of creeping thyme. At least it stays short.

Madcat, my thoughts are with you a lot these days as mys sister is going through a similar situation. When I do my Ruthie Road Tour, we will definitely get together for a coffee or a "beverage".

Mel, now that I am bitten by the travel bug, I have got a visit to "Joisey" on my list - definitely not in the stinking hot summer though.

Happy, I'm glad you approve of the future nephew. I wonder if I can claim droit de seigneur. :evil:

Ceejay, Hi! I hope you are all better from your malaise now. I'm so sorry you missed meeting Shad.

Hollyhock, a Tranna getaway for you and yours sounds great. I'm still working on a S. Ont trip but it might be the Fall. Stratford is getting pretty booked for the summer but......

Shad, what a great visitor you are! Joan called me just now to thank me for bringing you over and Claire left a phone message saying you were a "joy". You have to come back so we can cover the stuff we missed - beer bottle collecting, manure spreading and the knitting of the round bales.

I need to get the butt in gear and get back to real life. It's a gloriously sunny day again today. We are in need of rain though. Today will be the day when I finally set up the sprinklers for the gardens! Gardening and continuation of the clearing of the construction zone continues. When I got home last night, my laundry sink had been installed! Mike the plumber just let himself in, petted my fierce guard dogs and installed the thing! Now I just need some crown molding and my kitchen will finally be finished.

Have a lovely TGIF and a great weekend.

SHAD SPENT TOO MUCH TIME BY HAPPY....SHE'S STARTING TO SOUND LIKE A SOUTHERN YANK CHICK!
OR DO THEY TALK LIKE THAT IN MOUNTIE LAND TOO?
SORRY TO HEAR ABOUT THE FRAGILE "BRAINS" AND HOPE SOME OF YOU HAVE SINCE DRIED OUT!!
SOUNDED LIKE A GREAT TIME. HOPE YOU AND CARLA HAVE FUN WITH THE HIKING AND BBQ! ENJOY!

RUTH~ YOU SHOULD HAVE WORN THE RED HAT!!!

HAPPY~ SENDING YOU GOOD VIBES FOR GETTING SETTLED IN THE NEW JOB. WE POSTED TOGETHER AS USUAL YESTERDAY! LOL YOU'RE RIGHT....IN A SHORT TIME IT WILL ALL BECOME "OLD HAT". BET YOU'RE GLAD THE WEEKEND IS ALREADY UPON US!!

CEEJAY~ IT WAS A SHAME YOU WEREN'T FEELING UP TO PAR BUT THEN THINGS COME UNEXPECTEDLY.
HOW IS THE EXERCISING GOING? I WANT TO SEE PICTURES OF THE 34" WAIST WHEN IT ARRIVES!!

HOLLY IS STILL DREAMING.

MEADOW~ I MADE A CAMMOMILE TEA AND TRIED IT ON MY EYES. SEEMED TO CALM THINGS DOWN A BIT. MY MAINT. MAN SAL SAID HIS WIFE SENT IT OVER. WE'LL HAVE TO RENAM YOU MARY QUITE CONTRARY WITH YOUR GARDEN ABUNDANTLY GROWING! I HAVEN'T BEEN TO THE CHATELAINE WEBSITE IN AWHILE. I MUST GO AND CHECK OUT THE CAKE!

MADCAT~ HOW IS YOUR NEW JOB? HOPE ALL IS SETTLING IN NICELY. A LOT OF THINGS GOING ON IN YOUR LIFE AT ONE TIME. TAKE TIME OUT FOR YOURSELF. WATCH SOME MINDLESS TV COMEDY AND LAUGH.

TOMORROW IS MISS TEEL'S BIRTHDAY! WISHING HER MANY HAPPY RETURNS OF THE DAY JUST IN CASE SHE IS LURKING AROUND A 3FC CORNER!!

FEELING A BIT FRAGILE MYSELF THIS WEEK AND WISH IT WAS BECAUSE OF THE VODKA
THE WEEKEND IS HERE AND SILENCE WILL BEGIN IN A FEW HOURS. GETTING BORED WITHOUT THE COMPUTER BUT I HAVE BEEN POKING MY HEAD INTO THE CLOSETS AND KEEPING BUSY. ALL THE KIDS HAVE LEFT FOR THE COUNTRY LAST NIGHT. PEACE WILL REIGN SUPREME. THE MIL IS CALLING THIS WEEKEND. GOT A NOTE THE OTHER DAY. A COUSIN WILL BE IN TOWN SOON. THE FUN BEGINS.
I AM OFF TO EAT BREAKFAST............

TO MISS HAPPY! GOOD MORNING!

HAPPY FRIDAY AND HAVE A GREAT WEEKEND!!