May Long…
In Canada, we celebrate Victoria Day on the weekend before May 25th. Originally it was celebrated on Queen Victoria’s actual birthday, May 24th. Now it is a long weekend with a statutory holiday on the Monday. This year it lands on May 20th.
There are a number of things that have become associated with this long weekend. It’s the unofficial start to summer. Many people will start their weekend camping on this weekend. Many others will take the Friday off work to enjoy an extra long weekend.
As the unofficial start to summer, it’s also become the “planting weekend”. You never put anything into the ground (we’re talking flower gardens here, not farm planting) before this weekend, as we want to make sure the chance of frost is gone. The weather is always a hit and miss proposition but this year it’s perfect where I live. Yesterday we reached a high of 26C and today are expecting the same. Tomorrow is forecast to go even higher. I’ll be planting my own planters and pots today. Lilacs are in bloom and this whole area has lilacs around every corner! I have been sleeping with my windows open for a couple of weeks and I awake each morning to the gentle perfume from my lilac bushes.
It’s a great weekend to get the pool open. I don’t have a heater on my pool but with the warm temperatures I can tell the pool is going to be perfect for a quick cool-down after a long day of yard work. One of the best investments I made was the purchase of a robot pool vacuum. I have to say it’s been so much help. I put it in the pool and can carry on doing other things while it works away. AWESOME! And no need to make sure you’ve got the suction working properly. Why did I wait so long?!
This seems to be a weekend that inspires productivity. A lot of my neighbours have been working hard to get their places summer-ready, as I am. I think it gives us the launching pad for relaxing and enjoying summer when it truly arrives. We don’t have another stat holiday until July 1st so this weekend is the one that sets us up for summer. We make sure the patio furniture is out and cleaned. We set up our outside dining, if we have it. We get barbecues going - I cannot as I have discovered a bird’s nest in my grillzebo. I’ll have to wait a while until babies are gone and then I can use it. Flowers as mentioned above, are planted and we’ll spend our summer watering, weeding and enjoying them. My flowering trees are buzzing with bumble bees. Dozens of bumble bees! If you stand under them you can hear the hum of all their activity. In a time when we’ve been inundated with stories of their demise I’m thrilled to know that my yard is a haven. I’ve also discovered hummingbirds. So far, I’ve seen two different ones. I’ve said before that I’m not really a bird watcher but I’ve become quite entranced with all the different birds that are now frequenting my bird feeder and trees. In fact, I’m pretty sure I saw a woodpecker last week!
Given the amazing weather, our village is buzzing as well. Tourist season is in full swing. I find it very interesting how pulled people are to our little slice of heaven. And yet, our world is filled with people who are anxious for the next great technology, not for a return to the past. We want artificial intelligence to take care of decision making, a machine to do the hard work (see my note about a robot vacuum above) and yet, there is this draw to our Victorian village. We have lots of very old houses and buildings, like mine. There is an appeal to this village where you can walk everywhere, people are friendly and say hello as they pass, and a sense of serenity in the air. I guess we live in an interesting time. We haven’t let go of the beauty of the past, in fact we want to visit it, but we’re searching for the next best thing. Living in the village, I can honestly say I feel torn sometimes about the collision of old and new. I love my pool and the machines that run it. I have no issue owning a gas lawn mower. It’s a big yard and I need it. When the weather gets hot I will rely gratefully on my air conditioning. But this Victorian village! The age of the architecture, the serenity of the village and the old-fashioned friendliness seem at odds to the urban sprawl of the cities from which a lot of our tourists come. I feel like I live in two worlds - the technology driven world that allows me to work from home and the Victorian village which is the backdrop to my 160+ year old house. At first I was thinking I need to reconcile the two but have since decided to just be thankful. I get the best of both worlds. When retirement arrives, I think I will appreciate even more how balanced I am between the two.
I jokingly told my director that I think I’ll work for bad weather and possibly winter and I’ll retire for great weather days and summer. I’m looking around and I have to be honest, it sounds heavenly. I’m not ready for full-time retirement but on days like this weekend has brought us, I would be thrilled to know I didn’t have to go back to the “job” on Tuesday. Why? No alarm is lovely and while I don’t sleep in late, I am enjoying waking to the sun instead of before sunrise. I love having the time to putter around my yard and house on my own schedule rather than trying to get everything done before returning to work. This weekend has been a mix of work and relaxation. I’ve got plants in their pots and planters, have been working on the outside furniture set-up, switching over to summer clothes, and enjoying the silence of long weekend mornings. These are the days when it’s easy to be grateful for all I have in this world.
There are a number of bushes that have been slowing dying along one side of my fence. Since there is something new coming to that area, it’s time to start getting rid of the dead branches.
Some of this weekend’s planting plus one of my “combined” trees in bloom. They are so lovely!
The two planters by the driveway and the lilac hedge I started putting in two years ago. It’s grown so much! I’ve included a couple of pictures of the newest addition to my yard - the chipmunk (and he has a friend, now) love to climb to the bird feeder. I thought they might like their own picnic table.
A few more of the “wildlife” around the property. I am not quick enough to get a picture of the hummingbirds but I’ll keep trying!
I like to find different spots each summer for my garden creatures.
Shots from last evening - it really feels like summer is here!