Today the weather brings a different threat; strong winds that are forecast to increase to 80K later this morning with gusts to 100. This afternoon it is forecast to continue but shift direction to the south-west. I don't expect our power lines to survive so I'm trying to rush this posting as early as possible.
Yesterday
was a day of protest over the proposed coal mine in nearby Fanny
Bay. This was not an isolated event; it was intended to express
solidarity and support for the masses of Chinese protesters that
that live in the area that will be receiving the coal. They don't
want the intense air pollution that it will be generating.
At 1:00PM, 85 stalwart Denmanites led by a Chinese dragon walked off the Denman Island ferry and joined a larger group in Buckley Bay. I didn't check the number but I was told by a friend (who is an experienced bird counter) there were 400 people in attendance. Some of the speeches were entertaining as well as informative; Des Kennedy never disappoints a crowd.
Everyone
in attendance had their own concerns and reasons for opposing the
the proposed mine. We in the vicinity have a much deeper concern
than just the increased 'greenhouse gas' emitted when its burned.
There will be considerable toxic chemicals released when the coal
is mined and washed at the site. Most of these substance will wash
into the waters of Baynes Sound, one of the most productive clam
and oyster areas in B.C. The toxic material will potentially also
find its way into the ground water and contaminate the wells of of
the surrounding communities.
In addition to the chemical dangers I'm personally concerned about the noise and disturbance of the large industrial complex operating 24/7, particularly the loading and transporting of large volumes of coal. Sound travels really well over the water.
At the protest rally the final activity was a gathering on a
railway overpass for a group photograph. A picture taken from the
road below must have been quite impressive. Unfortunately the
battery in my camera died early in the afternoon leaving me with
just these preliminary images. Many participants then traveled to
Cumberland for a fund raising concert that evening. I joined the
group returning on the ferry to Denman.
Although I don't have a photograph I did attend the Denman concert of Pentaèdre Wind Quintet on Tuesday afternoon. I didn't know what to expect but found it thoroughly entertaining and enjoyable. (Even bought the CD). The group were very professional musicians and deserved a greater audience turnout.
A bulletin just arrived advising us that the ferry between Denman and Hornby Islands has shut down due to weather conditions. I'll try and get this sent off quickly before the winds shift and affect us more. Should be an exciting day. Hope the power stays on.
The
heavy wind and waves combined with high tides of 5 meters (or 16.4
feet) drastically scoured the shoreline. Marit took some photos of
the litter (mostly driftwood) floating offshore. Scattered along
the beach we now have a new crop of litter, mainly equipment from
sloppy shellfish growers. I regularly gather up plastic trays and
pile them securely above the tide line. If the industry doesn't
retrieve them they'll be added to the collection on Beach Cleanup
Week later this summer.
An old derelict boat moved further up the beach towards us. Its
deteriorating quickly and I wonder if there will be any traces of
it left after this winter.
Just north of us I found another craft trying to escape to the
water. A canoe belonging to a neighbour appeared to have been
blown down the bank and stopped by driftwood. There was very
little damage but it was exposed to future storms. I moved it back
up the slope and tied it a bit more securely. Bob, Judy; I'll
check on it over the winter.
Between
storms the weather has been great. With clear skies Thursday night
we had a marvelous view of the planet Venus directly below a new
crescent moon. (I think its called a 'conjunction'). And
later that evening as I was crossing on the Denman ferry I
witnessed a fireball sailing across the sky. It flew in a
southerly direction and finally 'burnt out' before disappearing
over the horizon. It 'appeared to be low in the sky. I
don't think it was a meteor because it lasted so long and traveled
slower that other meteors I've seen. Probably it was a piece of
man-made 'space junk' that has been orbiting for years. Apparently
the solar wind from the recent sun spot activity has been sweeping
a lot of the orbiting garbage back to earth.
Our
new ambulance station is taking shape. Obviously there's still
some ground work to be done but the structures are now in place.
Last week Wendy took some photos of them being put in place and it
was posted in
Keith Walker's website ( on 22-Jan). Opinions on this
government structure vary. Obviously there's lots of room for
storage. And the ambulance personnel have the resources they need
including cleaning facilities if they attend a messy accident. But
its not the funky offbeat style that we expect of public buildings
on these islands. Maybe the Denman artists can create some
appropriate murals on the sides of that canvas tunnel.
Yesterday our funky community hall was the site of Denman Island's
Seedy Saturday. By now almost all home gardeners are familiar with
the concept. It grew from a concern that corporate domination of
the seed industry was controlling the availability of seed variety
and threatening the continued existence of heirloom types.
Gardeners saved their own seeds and traded them. They were joined
by independent seed companies with similar philosophies and the
rest is history. Seedy Saturdays have now sprung up in most
communities. In fact all Saturdays are now taken and new community
initiatives now have to start 'Seedy Sundays'.
We were fortunate to have Carolyn Herriot, author of 'The Zero-Mile Diet', as a guest speaker. Salt Spring Seeds, Seeds of Victoria, and Two Wings Farm also participated. I bought seeds from all three as well as traded in the pool of seeds contributed by local growers. It'll be interesting to see how these varieties perform next year. And I have Marit's permission, (encouragement actually) to become more involved in saving more of our own seeds for next year. Where practical of course.
Its
not just the blossoming Snowdrops or the brilliant Winter Aconites
that make me suspect an early end to winter. (The snowdrops have
been up and waiting for weeks). But even the rhubarb has started
poking through the ground (below, left).
Purple finches have started their warbling songs and sound very
similar to canaries. Pairs of eagles have been screaming together
and performing their mating flights. And this afternoon I noticed
the first flock of robins chirping in the neighbourhood.
This has definitely not been the cold winter that was forecast. I suspect those Europeans have hijacked our ice and snow. We haven't even managed to have a good frost in weeks. And I'm concerned.
I
was enjoying lounging indoors during these relaxing winter days.
But with the threat of spring I'll have to get off my backside and
prepare for the growing season. In fact some tasks are overdue,
like selecting and ordering my seeds.
Don't nag, I've started. This week all the apple trees were given
their first lime and sulphur spray mixed with dormant oil. The
hazelnut groves have been pruned of their heavy growth of suckers.
And I'm debating whether I'll prune the apple trees myself or hire
someone again who really knows what they're doing.
Even one garden bed has been prepared and is ready for planting.
I'm not usually in favour of planting too early but Marit gave me
a package of Broad bean seeds for Christmas and they should get
into the ground now (if they weren't planted last fall). It should
be an interesting experiment.
Marit seems to be experiencing this same instinct. She gathered all the remaining stored pumpkins and began processing them. (And lucky me just finished processing the last piece of pumpkin pie). Marit also gathered the bags of berries we'd frozen last summer for "sometime in the winter when we have time". I don't really know what she made from them; I've learned not to ask too many questions when she's busy working with pots of things on the stove.
Today was Superbowl Sunday. Naturally I had to settle down and
watch the spectacle; not for the sports action but for the great
commercials that cost $3,500,000 per minute. The actual game was
pretty good too. But after a late start I'm rather tired this
evening. Fortunately this week my life was very quiet
(interpretation: dull) so there's not much to report.
So with that, I think I'll just quit.
I also planted my first seeds of the year; Broad beans. The 'Experts' claim they should be planted right now if they weren't planted last autumn. The experts also warned not to water them again until after sprouting or they won't germinate. I suspect the experts have never been to this country since the two pieces of advice are in total contradiction. I guess another learning experience is about to occur.
Indoor
activities were appropriate for the rest of the week and Marit had
some suggestions. After 11 year in this house the dreaded specter
of Renovation has appeared. Oh just a small one in the
laundry room, but isn't that how it starts? She requested I
replace a metal wire shelf unit with some wall-mounted cupboards
that had doors. Then she could rearrange her storage, shift a
couple cabinets and better utilize the space of the room. And it
would look better.
So, I bought cupboards. The concern that they wouldn't fit in our Toyota sedan was unfounded. The cupboards were just a bunch of flat cut boards to be assembled at home. Moving the washer and dryer was an adventure. Herds of 11 year old dust bunnies had to be corralled. A bulging rupture was found on the hot water hose to the washing machine. It had to be replaced immediately. That's when we discovered some shut-off valves were faulty. Removing the shelving and repairing the drywall cavities was easy enough but it became apparent that the room was in desperate need of cosmetic improvement. So while I pondered the collection of boards and practiced my carpentry Marit washed the walls and applied two coats of paint.
We're almost finished. The cupboards are in place and most of the rearranging has been completed. It looks good. The only hurdle left is the reconnection of the clothes dryer vent to the wall exhaust vent. Just a minor problem although it may require cutting a new hole in the wall and/or buying a new dryer.
Keith
Walker had some good advice; 'If there's not enough news or
pictures, throw in some cute cat photos. Ozzie hasn't been cute
lately so I crawled to her favorite location, the spot where she
spends at least 50% of her day. She was rather groggy and this was
the best she could manage when I told her to smile.
Cute enough?
![[click to enlarge]](sm_picture32.jpg "Click to enlarge")
Speaking
of gardens and plants, I won the first draw prize at the Denman
Garden Club last Wednesday evening, a Sarcococca ruscifolia.
It was particularly attractive because this is the time of year
that it blossoms. It's flowers aren't particularly showy but their
fragrance is intense. Unfortunately I'll have a small problem
finding a suitable spot for planting; it needs shade.
A problem of a different nature occurred yesterday evening. Hawks have been frequent visitors here in past years. Their interpretation of 'bird feeder' is slightly different than mine. Recently a bigger hawk than usual had been coming by to see what's available. It appeared to be a large Coopers hawk, (Accipiter cooperii) and from its plumage it was obviously a juvenile hatched last year. Yesterday it somehow got through the wire mesh and into the chicken pen. Marit noticed it while we ate supper yesterday. The chickens didn't appear upset; it was just another big bird like them. The hawk seemed to have only two thoughts; what happened and where's the exit! It seemed to be afraid of the hens. I finally opened a door and chased it out. That hawk headed straight south and hasn't returned today. Ahh, kids!
Lise came over this week. Poor weather kept us indoors but that
was fine with Lise; she had injured her foot while training for
the Sun Fun Run in Vancouver this spring. I'm a bad father; I not
only won the first game of Monopoly, I also triumphed in one of
the games of Scrabble. (She doesn't lose often). On Saturday she
left for a little time in the bright lights of Victoria; a play
and some live music from a favorite band. Thanks for the visit
Lise.
Incidentally I finished the final chore from last week, venting the dryer. I improvised with some metal pipe, some flexible foil hose, and some duct tape. Lots of duct tape. It seems to work fine. For those of you who watched his show, Red Green would have been proud!
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