One Gallon Jars

I damaged the pan for my bread machine. It is still functioning, it was the non stick finish that was damaged. What happened? When putting away the glass flour jar, I discovered it was cracked, and a one inch piece of glass was missing from the side. I looked everywhere for that piece of glass. It could not be found. When the bread came out of the machine, there was a chip out of the finish of the pan, and a long scrape. Then I knew where the piece of glass ended up! It had been undetected in the measuring cup full of flour! When this was discovered, the whole loaf was put into the compost bin. How sad it is to send a whole sweet smelling loaf of homemade bread to the bin. Attila even found a piece of glass baked into the bottom crust when he was throwing it in. I am hoping the bread machine pan will continue to work well. It will be best to keep an eye on it.

A second loaf is being baked as I type.

We aren’t spending money these days. But today it was necessary to buy another one gallon jar to replace the broken flour jar. On Amazon, the prices were consistently around $20 for one jar. I found them on Uline for $5.35 each, if four were ordered. That is quite a difference! The shipping was just over $12, but still, at $8.35 per jar, the choice was obvious. It used to be that one could buy things in bulk at the grocery store, in one gallon glass jars. Those are almost all plastic now, useless!

We managed to get to the Camp for the first time in 2021. We just read that the stay at home orders allow people to visit their non-residential properties for maintenance, staying less than 24 hours. We took advantage of that, and made a day trip. Not knowing what to expect upon arrival, it was a relief to find very little damage. One small tree had been damaged beyond repair, probably from a snowmobile. The ground was not torn up, so the incident most likely occurred during the winter when there was snow cover. It might have been a plough, but who would be ploughing our drive in the winter? Clearly we need to visit our Camp during the winter months to see what is going on. A walk around the property to see if someone is stealing our trees for firewood is called for.

The first visit is always a maintenance visit. Attila used the strimmer to cut the long “grass”, which is actually native plants, no grass. Ticks are supposedly bad this year, and they love to hang out in grass, so permethrin treated clothing was worn on this trip, to ensure protection. I disinfected, then cleaned the interior of Grace the trailer. Every winter mice attempt to take over the trailer. I think of travel trailers as fancy mouse houses. We have tried many different things to keep the mice out, but so far without success. Six mice perished in our winter trap, so they were buried. There were copious amounts of mouse turds everywhere, and much worse were the dozens of places where they had peed, so gross. There is a new mildew issue around the base of the chesterfield, where the slide ends. We will need to investigate on another visit.

I have a list of things to do at the trailer. The tub needs new caulking. We have never used the tub, but perhaps someday. A grey water pit needs to be dug. One window mechanism is broken and needs fixing. The more you own, the more it owns you, or at least owns your time!

The current Gypsy Moth infestation in Ontario is in evidence at the Camp. There were thousands of them. No measures are being taken however, it is a bush, it is wild. One or two trees would receive mediation, but not an entire wild bush. We are hoping they don’t defoliate the entire property, but time will tell. There was no evidence of Army Worms this year, a first!

Although it has not rained at Mist Cottage for several weeks, the Camp must have received rain during that time. Everything was green and vibrant, and the water level in our swamp was high. It was interesting that around our fire pit the ground was extensively churned up. A herd of deer! There were hoof prints everywhere. The unshorn “grass” must have made an excellent grazing field.

Several of the dead trees in the bush had fallen since last fall. They will be cut for firewood at some future visit.

Our maintenance trip was a success. It was such a relief to find no significant damage. The next visit will be a lot more fun, with the big jobs of grass cutting and cleaning done for the spring.

The garden is wonderful! Attila is emptying the second little greenhouse, planting his seedlings in the ground. The only harvest is Rhubarb, four harvests so far, and more to come. The lettuces are growing rapidly, so it won’t be long before fresh salads are once again on the menu. Due to the pandemic raw vegetables have been avoided for the last year or so. It is time to think about making croutons and salad dressings.

I am feeling much better, almost back to normal. Just in time too, as harvest season will begin in earnest in a few short weeks, as will the food preservation season. In preparation the canned items that remain from the 2020 preservation year will be rearranged, so that they will easily accessible to be used first, once this year’s bounty is canned and on the shelves.

Worldly

Weather

Updated on Thu, May 27, 4:05 PM
18 °C
FEELS LIKE 18
Partly cloudy
Wind 7 NW km/h
Humidity 29 %
Visibility 50 km
Sunrise 5:30 AM
Wind gust 11 km/h
Pressure 101.9 kPa
Ceiling 9100 m
Sunset 8:39 PM

Quote

“Politics is supposed to be the second oldest profession. I have come to realize that it bears a very close resemblance to the first.”
Ronald Reagan
1911 – 2004