November Rain

There is a lushness about a November rain, a striking, shimmering farewell of green. The last bright glimmers of life’s colour, before the white veil descends.

So it has been today.

Attila has it all! He is out there in the November rain, working, working, working. When Attila needs protective clothing for work he often procrastinates, because he knows what he needs to maintain his health costs a lot of money. At least on our budget it is a lot of money. So, if he ever mentions needing something along that line, I know the need is great, and I insist that we are off to the store at first opportunity. I always make sure there is a little set aside in the budget, for new work clothes for Attila. We had just such a shopping trip last week. Attila bought a new jacket, durable and warm. His old jacket is still functioning, but the zipper is wearing out. He would not want to find himself without a replacement jacket on such wet wintry day as this.

I am well suited to wet wintry days in my GoreTex parka, purchased about 20 years ago, it was costly. But when I consider that it has wrapped me in warmth and kept me dry in all sorts of weather, for two decades, I reckon the initial cost was reasonable and justified. To wear the same winter coat over the course of twenty harsh Canadian winters is amazing. And how many more winters that coat will serve me has yet to be established.

Evening walks have been suspended for some time now. I will not walk in the bush during hunting season, for obvious reasons; there is no where else to walk. Staying indoors compels a certain level of inactivity, and as the autumn progresses I stiffen a little with the restriction.

Keeping busy has not been difficult.

Having made two batches of mincemeat, Attila and I feel free to enjoy it anytime we like. Mincemeat Squares are a favourite at our house. I usually use half a quart of Mincemeat mixed with a cup and a half of applesauce, for the filling. I use canola oil and less sugar than called for in the crust. The squares are a reasonable substitute, for a breakfast bowl of hot oatmeal topped with milk and brown sugar.

We have enjoyed several meals of grass fed beef, a small portion of the half a cow we purchased from Terra’s neighbours. It tastes so much better than anything I have ever tasted from a grocery store! I had requested cuts of 1 1/2 pound steaks, which I braise in the cast iron dutch oven, then cook covered, with onions, carrots, and potatoes. One 1 1/2 pound steak provides us with two satisfying and delicious meals. That is one night of cooking for two night’s dinners.

Luckily, Attila and I both agree, leftovers often taste better the second day, and beyond!

We are managing through November with a daily firing in the masonry heater. Soon enough it will need two firings, of a morning and an evening, and even a third firing at noon, when the temperature dips below -20C. The autumn has been mild so far, but very wet. Rain does not require shovelling, and so it always preferable to snow.

The power was out on Monday and Tuesday. This morning the Internet had ceased to work. I did all the troubleshooting things, and came to the conclusion that the problem was on the providers end of things. Sigh. So the call was made to tech support, and we went through all the troubleshooting again, until the fellow finally said, “the problem is at our end, I will escalate the problem”. Then I had a to wait an hour or so until they fixed it, and then I had to reconfigure the computer to connect. And then, finally, it worked.

There was a feedback call later in the morning, and I agreed to provide them with some feedback. Our service is from Bell Canada. I rated the efficacy of the call as five out of five. The tech solved the connection problem. Then they asked me if they could improve in any way. Well, I said, the volume for the call might have been loud enough for me to hear what the tech was saying, and he might have had a better grip on speaking the English language. Constantly, throughout our interaction, I had to ask him to speak louder, and to slow down, so that I could make out what he was trying to tell me. We got through it, and the problem was fixed, so the fellow did a good job despite the communication challenges.

Worldly Distractions

Weather

5°C
Date: 12:24 PM EST Friday 22 November 2013
Condition: Mist
Pressure: 101.7 kPa
Visibility: 5 km
Temperature: 5.1°C
Dewpoint: 5.0°C
Humidity: 99%
Wind: WSW 8 km/h

Quote

“I shall tell of a hunter whose life was undone
By the cruel hand of evil at the setting of the sun
His arrow was loosed and it flew through the dark,
And his true love was slain as the shaft found it’s mark.
Chorus:
She’d her apron wrapped about her and he took her for a swan
But it’s oh and alas it was she, Polly Von”
Polly Von, Traditional Song