Tick tock, more ticks!

I forgot to mention that while we were packing up on Monday morning, I was outside in Shady Ridge campground and I was wearing my white cotton bohemian knit, Terry spotted a tick walking up my sweater.

He flung it on the ground and stomped it. I doubt the tick even had a chance to bite me, but damn, again a tick. So far we've camped in Nova Scotia, Quebec and Ontario and we've seen ticks in Nova Scotia and Ontario..but there was an article about ticks in Quebec just a few days ago.

There was all sorts of warning about Deer ticks all around Charleston Lake Provincial Park. So fact a tick was found on me wasn't that surprising.

It was like a scene right out of Lucky Luke!

The first time I saw a Turkey Vulture a few years back I was just getting acquainted with how the wings of a bird of prey look. At first I used to confuse them with eagles as their wing span is similarly shaped, but you can always tell them apart because Turkey vultures have paler wings then their bodies. When I first looked it up, I realized that those birds did not used to come as far north as Southern Quebec & Ontario, but now they do. All maps that show their territory show them far more south. But each summer I see more. This time it was creepy. Two trees at a distance overlooking Charleston lake there was 13 - yes count them 13 Turkey vultures. It made me think of Lucky Luke.

There are 7 Turkey Vultures in this tree

There are 6 Turkey Vultures in this tree

More from week-end camping

We thought the sign was cute

Amazing shot with phone of a dragonfly

View of the March at dusk

Selfie with a dragonfly

We spent most of the day in the canoe. We parked at the canoe launch early in the morning and paddled all the way into the beginning of the march, then around a private island before we came back around lunch time. Around 3pm we decided to canoe again, and went from the same launch site. This time we went in the other direction and checked out the closest backwoods canoe camping site as well as the Buckhorn picnic site. We saw all sorts of turtles both in the water and one was sunning on the point of the rock near the Buckhorn picnic site.

This was the 2nd or third dragonfly to land on my sarong

The selfie with the dragonfly in the canoe

dragonfly says "hi"

Women who camp in Minivans!

The first time I ran across one it was in Cape Breton Highlands National Park in 2014. Next to us at Corney Brooke camping one night was a woman alone who camped in a minivan.Yes... She camped in her Minivan, not in a tent!  I thought it was a fluke or an aberration. I've been camping since my late teens and had never run across a single woman camping, with the rare exception of the all sporty girl that is as equipped as her male counterpart.

This particular woman also looked like she was maybe escaping a relationship fight or a bad situation. She had everything in her minivan, even some crappy wood to make herself a fire, which she did with no issues. She had brought herself a steak which she cooked on the fire with lots of smoke and she even came over to apologize for being smelly and noisy. [Which gave me feeling she wasn't used to being outdoors camping at the time, but perhaps it was just her personality]

She spent the evening by her campfire, and then before bed put everything back in her truck and slept in the back of her minivan. By the time we got up the next morning she was gone.

I've run across a 2nd woman who camped in her minivan at Charleston Lake Provincial Park, but she was visibly not someone who was running away but someone who had planned her trip and who visibly spent some time travelling alone. I noticed her because she was staring at us when we arrived. That's when I noticed she was a lone woman in a minivan, and EVERYTHING was in her minivan. She didn't even build a fire, but spent hours sitting in her chair on her site reading a book.  She stayed one night and was gone by morning.

Now I'm thinking women who camp in minivans, can be avid campers, who don't feel need to buy camping equipment to go camping. She seemed quite equipped together, and didn't even get phased out by the outhouse. Some women really don't like outhouses...

Googling this morning I found an article about women who camp in MiniVans! The article even promotes safety by giving tips to be inconspicuous..There's also a nice article about nomads in Minivans :)

Charleston Lake Provincial Park

We decided last minute to go camping this week-end. We'd talked about it and originally I wanted to go to Murphy's point provincial park especially since I found they had backcountry canoe camping sites. But after reading a few reviews, I changed my mind. Apparently lots of noisy motor boats around the park. At Charleston lake, inside the bay near the park there are no motorboats allowed, so at least near the beach it's quiet and not too wavy.

We arrived at 5pm without a reservation and got the last campsite that was available for the next 3 nights. We were put in the Meadowlands campsite. This one is the one that is nowhere near water, it is a large campground in a meadow. Sites are pretty big and most of them have lots of shade during the day.  We had site 152, right in front of a bathroom, so there was constant traffic.

Boat Launch at Charleston Lake

View from Canoe Launch

View from the beach area at Shady Ridges campsite

Dragonflies at Shady Ridge campsite

This twit proudly wears her "Canada" Tshirt

But the Canada she thinks she lives in is NOT my Canada.  This twit thought it was ok to go attack unprovoked a young Muslim woman with a small child in a supermarket!!!!! Why is it that people think it's that someone who looks different from them should be attacked or that they don't belong?

The best I read yesterday was shared by one occupy acquaintance who witnessed it in an IGA in the Pointe yesterday.

Overseen at the IGA:
White woman: Does it get hot like this?
Black man: *shopping*
White woman: *louder and slower* DOES IT... GET HOT LIKE THIS?
Black man: ...Excuse me?
White Woman: *exasperated* Where you're from. You know. AFRICA.
Black man: Ma'am... I'm from Verdun.

I've said it before and I'll say it again, I had Haitian neighbours 50 years ago in Montreal North. Blacks are not new arrivals in Montreal or in Canada, the first one visiting came with Samuel de Champlain, and there have been communities formed since the late 1800's in Montreal. 

Same with Muslims, some Lebanese and Syrian Canadians have been in Canada since the late 1800's as well. Canadian Muslims in the past were less likely to be visibly Muslim but the past 10 years more Muslim women have adopted the Hijab.  It never occurs to anyone that some Muslims are born in Canada and some non Arab Canadians can also be Muslims because they decided to convert. 

One of the stupid things I saw yesterday was this Good for the woman to remind this idiot that he's the idiot in this location. 

Similar story shared was a Native American speaking Lakota to someone and being told "THis is the United States of America, speak English" 

People must think very little of me...

They can't be bothered to return my house keys.....

First it was the homeless ex, who took over 1 year to return my house keys. By the time he did I'd changed the locks.   Then my moved out in October, it's now 8 months later, she still has the keys.  

Then I fired my cleaning lady... who didn't even have the keys on her,,, and though it's been over a month, she also hasn't returned the fucking keys. You'd think she would she's still owed $60 and that normally makes a big difference in her budget.

I lost my own house keys a few months ago and I figured why remake more keys when I already have some in circulation.

I'm not going to be begging anyone to return my fucking keys.   I'll be buying a new fucking deadbolt again.... because you know ... it's fun to change your locks every 2 years....

In lieu of Punishment, a bath for the boys

Jethro wet!

My BF lets the cats wander around outside when he goes outside to tan in the mornings and that day the boys ran away and took a while to come back. I decided they were dirty and needed a bath. In fact any time they run away, I will probably give them a bath.

WOOT

Found these Iron Fist shoes for $10 at value village. What a find. Was so thrilled!

Driving home in torrential rain

Driving home from the maritimes is always like driving in bi-polar weather. We got sun, torrential downpour, all types of rain and fog.  You know, just to get variety. At least it wasn't pervasive fog like at Christmas time!

In Nrw Brunswick around Edmunston just before we drove into a torrential downpour

And it's raining like hell.

A beer drive thru?

We notice that it seems to be a beer drive-thru!

Yep it's a beer drive thru

Moxie's bar and Grill - Darmouth

I'd been to Moxie's bar and grill both times I visited AMD in Toronto. It was the place the AMD guys took us to lunch!I remembered they served delicious food. It's a bit more pricey then I usually go to but I had to go. I took Terry and we had an amazing dinner, which cost me about the same as the cheap motel in Bedford.Yep. I'd rather have a good dinner then a fancy motel. 

I had the lemon Salmon and he had the sirloin. It was so good.  I've just realized they do have one in the Montreal area.  A place to remember when I really want a fancy dinner.

Third visit with my grand-daughter.

I walked her and held her for a few hours, as my daughter took a nap, and Brian welcomed his parents to visit with the baby. Of course I offered the baby to the other grand parents the minute they were settled in. I figured they were eager to hold Madeleine too.

Hard to take baby selfies

Sleeping on my arm

I like Atlantic Fabrics

My eldest had told me about Atlantic Fabrics at Christmas time and when we were talking the other night, Terry asks me if I want to visit the Fabric stores in Halifax. So we went  and I found all sorts of Dragonfly fabric. They actually had 5 different dragonfly fabrics.The red one I bought came in 3 colours, but the red looked nicest, The black fabric I got came in black and green, but the green was tacky.

Didn't buy, I hate yellow

Was only 1.4 meters but took it all

THe 3 dragonfly fabrics I did buy

I could have spent hours at Atlantic Fabrics. This was the one in Darmouth.

I intend to go to the one in Truro and the one in New Glasgow when I go to Cape Breton this summer. Will have to see if I can borrow daughter's member card!

Il Mercato Trattoria

We were in the mood for Italian so I looked with my phone for local Italian restaurants. I was hoping it would have eggplant Parmesan on the menu, It had Mussels which I love so we went.

He had the lasagna as he'd been pining for lasagna for a week, and he said it was excellent, though it was not quite as good as the one he loves at the local restaurant in DDO.

It was the first time I had mussels at an Italian restaurant but they were delicious.  The food was good, the service was excellent. If I happen to be in Bedford again I would definitely eat at Il Mercato Trattoria restorante.

Porters Lake Provincial Park

Porters lake viewed from the Island

Our Tent on the tip of the island

After a few days we went to Porters lake

The day we went there was supposed to rain all day and we ended up with a few hours of sunshine at Porters lake.

Can you see the tent?

The whole family

She's so cute.

THe dogs were distracted.

He was very ticked off

So we were sitting in the car after Tarping the tent and he feels something moving in his hair and he flings a bug out in the car, asking me what the fuck it is.

From memory it looked like a tick, having been an avid camper, I'm aware deer ticks can be a problem, so I googled it with my phone and confirmed he removed a tick from his sideburns on the right side.  The tick had left a red pin hole sized hole.

After doing some reading I concluded that the ease he had to remove the tick meant it hadn't been feeding for long if at all, so the risk of Lyme are almost nil. Though I keep looking at the area were he was bitten regularly to make sure he doesn't get LYme.

Funny enough my daughter's dog Zeus also got a deer tick about the same time.  His tick was far bigger then the one Terry removed from his head.

Last I checked Terry didn't seemed Lymed... just a little ticked off :)

2nd visit with the baby :)

She's so cuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuute

Blomidon is on the Bay of Fundy

Blomidon Provincial park

Low tide

Lupins on the side of the mud flats

First time I see an iFuel

So sometimes in small towns this is the self serve gas station. This was adjacent to a garage.  All unmanned, one pump. But does the job.

It was the first time iFueled!

We camp at Blomidon Provincial Park

Low Tide at Blomidon

Low Tide at Blomidon

Meet Madeleine

We got to the Hospital between 3 and 4 oClock. I can't remember anymore. I was so tired, by then I hadn't slept in close to 30 hours.

Madeleine a few hours old.

I'm going to be a GrandMa ...

Dusk in New Brunswick

Finally reaching Nova Scotia

I'm on my way to meet Madeleine!