Getting ready for winter

It’s not such a big task here, especially now that we live in a strata townhouse. Our outdoor work consists of tidying away the patio furniture but that’s only because I don’t like the graveyard look of shrouded chairs. The garden can be weeded and trimmed, or not, as it won’t be a big job in the spring. And besides there are lots of things still blooming. 

 People in colder climates batten down the hatches for the coming months. Our friend Alan dropped in for dinner last week, from PEI and his 12 acre property which requires considerably more work to “get ready for winter”, including clearing beds and stacking the winter wood supply. Having spent one heating season in this house we have embarked on a few changes to improve the energy use and the comfort. This time last year I got into quite a discussion with BC Hydro when it appeared that this house which has a shared wall and is 2/3 the size of our last one was going to cost almost as much to heat. Yes, we are exposed to the wind, but really? So we had an energy audit done and started by tripling the attic insulation which was at a paltry 15R. In the kitchen we had a greenhouse style window over the sink. I liked the extra dimension it gave the room, but it was the stupidest energy design you could imagine. I had to get a ladder to open and close the window in summer because I couldn't reach the handle, and any sounds or breezes from outside were in the room with us. So that went at the end of August in favour of a regular sliding window that actually keeps the weather outside.

Oh and by the way, we found a lovely nest of carpenter ants in the bottom of the window box. Thousands. Someday I’ll tell you about my childhood trauma with those beasts.

carpenter ants scurrying away but already coated with ant powder

In the centre of this house there is a big skylight, fabulous. It’s 13 feet long, 4 feet wide and the box goes up about 10 feet. Across the room from the skylight is the open stairwell that goes down 8 feet. You know where I’m going with this; that’s a 27 foot wind tunnel and we figure too much of our heat is ending at the top of the skylight box. So this week we are experimenting with a clear ceiling to block the rise of heat. We’ve installed a framework that we think looks reasonably decorative and have ordered light weight double cell greenhouse panels that will rest on top. We could have put a fan in the box to drive the heat down but of course if the power goes out, which it never does, the fan wouldn't work. The panels can be removed for summer air circulation or we may hate the look and try something different.

empty framework

panels in place and we think it looks okay

And finally we’ve ordered 2 sets of glass bifold doors, (due November 6) to install between the dining room and living room, hinged so they fold completely out of the way. We want the openness when we want it, but the ability to separate the two rooms, from a heat perspective, should be an improvement. We hope it will mean that the TV room won’t have any drafts from the rest of the house making it easier to heat. It will definitely mean that someone can watch TV and the other someone can enjoy the fireplace in the living room IN PEACE. Not naming names.

So we’ll see. A pox on BC Hydro!

I know you are fascinated by the minutiae of our lives! 

Another side to wine

You must know that we like wine. The evidence would be the various posts on wineries: here, in the Okanagan, Napa, and anywhere else; and the many photos of me with a wine glass in my hand.

Thanksgiving Day 2012

We belong to the Wine Club at the Muse winery about 30 minutes from home and enjoy going to the vineyard for lunch in the summer and other events including really hilarious musical farce theatre in the summer (Suddenly Sasquatch this year). Muse has 3 small vineyards on Saanich Peninsula and buys grapes from the Okanagan for the rest of its production. This year we decided to help with the grape harvest being amazed that volunteers/friends/family are the pickers (clippers actually). We were assigned to the home vineyard; the one we sit beside in the summer, on the patio, sipping a crisp Ortega.

summer on the patio at Muse

It’s a pretty easy job to harvest grapes, only the clusters are lower on the vine than is actually comfortable unless you are very short. Peter (owner) follows old-world practices so keeps the lowest grapes because they benefit from reflected heat from the ground. Other vineyards will focus on higher grapes for different reasons, maybe more sun, maybe easier harvesting. 

Muse owner Peter Ellman

Secateurs in hand and rubber-booted we got underway at about 9:00 AM on the first cloudy day in living memory. Because of the angle, both stooped and twisted or on one knee, I quickly decided this would be a one-time-only event and was thankful to have an appointment with my chiropractor later in the day. After a while Jim and I started to work on both sides of one row, together, and got into the rhythm.

The grapes we picked went right into the de-stemmer/crusher for a little instant gratification! Later, having stripped the vineyard, had a great lunch with lots of wine, and an enjoyable reunion with an old SMUS colleague, we heard ourselves saying to others that we’d see them next year. I can’t honestly say it was fun, but it was satisfying. Plus, the owners are upbeat and cheerful and we like them well enough to help out.  Now we have a different sense of belonging to Muse and a new appreciation for the wine process. 

Thanks to regular yoga and walking Rithet's Bog my aches were very minor indeed.   

More about Windsor

We spent the last few days of this trip in another under-appreciated city, Windsor, Ontario, 

with dislocated (did I mean relocated?) friends Sally & Alan. Windsor has had a hard time of it in recent years especially since the 2008 crash and car manufacturing meltdown. But it is recovering and there are signs of prosperity and even in the blackest of days it was putting on a brave face. Like Saint John, it’s a working town with iconic attachments such as Windsor Salt, Hiram Walker’s Distillery,

and the big 3 car companies. And believe me those car companies are BIG. The plants take up acres and acres of space. S&A managed to organize a private tour of Chrysler’s Windsor Assembly (no photos allowed) for us and it was impressive. We whizzed around for an hour in a “jitney” inside the 40 acre plant which opened in 1928 (modern and spotless). It’s in the middle of town mind you but the property is 123 acres. They assemble 1400-ish vans a day including the new Volkswagen Routan. Our guide, Luke, says a new built plant would be less than half as big because the production style and robots takes up less space. Those robots are fun to watch! Three or four may work together and it’s like watching a ballet, or the Musical Ride the way they interact. Luke also said “in two years this plant has turned around like I would have never thought possible”, referring to the positive worker attitude and team feeling.

It was Doors Open weekend in Windsor so we visited Walkerville Brewery home of the 64 ounce refillable Growler which Brian managed to get through single handedly and Willistead Manor  home of one of the Walker sons.

On Saturday S&A took us to the Renaissance Festival in Holly, Michigan, about an hour away from Windsor, across the border. We had no idea what to expect other than Emily said lots of people dress in period costumes. We were stunned. It’s a HUGE carnival/faire. The costumes covered a lot of eras, but never mind, people were into it. Food was pasties and turkey legs, rides were manually operated, games of chance were archery and knife throwing, competitions were jousting and fencing. And there were thousands of people!!! The whole thing is crazy and I would go again in a minute. 

a loud and funny barker

Green-man in a pot

jouster

bemused!

man-powered swing/ride

2 of several wizards

And proving that Windsor takes like to dress-up, they are getting ready for Halloween

We also sat on the deck and drank Ontario wine!