The Christmas Tree is Up!

Good afternoon from a very sunny Telkwa.

Tom and I just returned from our hunt for the perfect Christmas tree... Which ended up being pretty simple.  We drove to the end of a plowed road, walked 15m down a trail and cut a tree from under some power lines.  Done!  We just threw some lights on it, and will have to come up with some cool decorations... We have one from my mom and I just made a cardboard star for the top.  Tom is working on a snowflake and maybe we can make a popcorn garland!  We will see.  So far I'm just happy the cats haven't tried to climb it.

Ta da!  More pics of the house to come in another post.  Still learning how to decorate haa

The end of the year is coming and looking back, I have done so much!  It's been a rollercoaster, but and adventure and everything worked out : )  Looking forward, I feel like the future will be an adventure too.  I have been thinking about my job at Canfor, and have decided to leave after my contract is up at Christmas.  I have not felt great about my job since the end of the summer.  I have a field position but becuase of my back, I can't fulfill the job description.  So I was then brought into the office but unfortunately sitting at a computer all day means I feel bad at the end of the day too... and I'm going stir crazy working in an office. Next year would be the same - still being sent to the field most days (ouch!) and a fall and winter at a computer.  Recently Jill asked if I wanted to be at the job anymore and my gut said no.  So I have decided to make a clean break and leave on good terms.  

It makes me anxious looking ahead without a real plan.  But I'm determined to use this time wisely!  I know we will be back in Ontario soon, and I intend on having a stable, big-girl job there.  So for now I'm looking forward to finding a few part-time, fun jobs around town.  Soak up the short commute, join community groups, and have a more equal work-life balance.  First resume will be going to the ski hill momentarily...

The boys have been encouraging me to just stay cuddled up with them every day

Not bad for the hill's second day open this season...

The ski hill has been amazing! We have gone for the past two weekends and the conditions are unreal for this time of year.  Word on the street is that we have the biggest base (deepest snow on the hill) in the whole province! woo hoo!

Tom gunning it past me!

Tom's first day out and first run down the hill... he went straight for the powder!!!  Flying over hidden logs and trees, ducking around corners and getting air off jumps, he was back at it in full force! 

Blue bird day for our ski guests

The following weekend my friend Sara and her boyfriend came to visit, from Prince George.  We all went up to the hill and skied a full day, capped of my dinner at the Mexican restaurant in Smithers.

 I first met Sara a couple years ago through work, and I barely get the chance to see her.  It turns out she and her boyfriend also want to move home soon, and would be looking around Midland for work - similar to us!! Hoping we get the chance to hang out back home.

***As I type, Tom and I are having vegan egg nog (with coconut milk) and I swear it takes just like the real thing. Addicting ***

Tom sold his truck a couple weeks back, to help with bills and payments and has been whipping around in my car.  His truck sold for a good amount, plus he has made the older man who bought it, feel safe going up the mountain to his cabin : ) I'm glad my car isn't just sitting while I use the Canfor work truck to get to and from work everyday.  Once that changes and we both need the same vehicle, I think I might be driving Tom to work in the mornings, or him walking - thankfully we are probably a 10 minute walk from his work.  Nice and close.  There's a fancy yarn shop that's even closer... I will also be dropping my resume there, too. And checking when their knit night is!

I've realized I don't have any other interesting pics to share, so here are some from Tom for your viewing pleasure:

Sunny day on the ski hill

It's getting dark at 3:45pm!

The view from Tom's garbage truck.  He sees these three almost every week during garbage pick-up! Twins!!

Well if you will excuse me, I'd like to go admire the Christmas tree and sip on egg nog... egg-less egg nog haha

I hope everyone is doing well, and taking the time to enjoy this time of year! Let it snow.

xoxo

New Home

Good morning from under more than 40cm of snow!

Winter has definitely arrived here in the valley and it's wasting no time in cleaning things up with a deep, fluffy layer of white.

The ski hill's opening day is November 24th, and I suspect there will be a great base for early-season.  Currently, the snow table at the hill is in the dark - here's the view from yesterday, and it has snowed again overnight...

With the cold season here and the sump pump going all of the time in the basement apartment (and stressing me out!) Tom and I started looking for other rentals in town.  As luck had it, just as we were talking to another landlord about seeing another rental, our current landlord proclaimed that she was moving home permanently. As of that day.  Thanks for the heads up ** eye roll**.  You may remember that she was living somewhere in Northern Alberta, working as a chef for the mines, guiding and planting camps (the story seems to change all of the time), and was never here.

When she got back to Telkwa, it was a nightmare.  She stomps around upstairs like an elephant, has a dog that howls and poos all over the backyard, and she hides from us, not wanting any contact.  So to date I have only met her in person once, and that was because Tom and I went up to her door last year and stood there till she opened it.

Low and behold, we have found an AMAZING rental in town, and have moved in!  We have a whole (small) house to ourselves.  No basement = no flooding!  In-floor radiant heat that hasn't even come on yet!  We've set it to 18 degrees, but the house is spray foam insulated and ridiculously airtight, so the inside has been staying anywhere from 20-22 degrees on it's own! The house comes with layers upon layers of garden boxes along the front and side of the house, a large greenhouse where we can start our seeds this February, and a HUGE shop.  You could park a logging truck in there.  It conveniently came with workout equipment in the shop, so that will likely save us money in gym memberships.

And now for a tour:

With all of the noise upstairs, the cats were freaking out and were so happy to help pack.  They wanted to leave first.

Our cozy little home. 1658 Third Street.

Front entrance.

Entrance, living room and kitchen.  And Tom.

View from the back door - where our boots were in the last picture : ) Those far doors are our bedroom on the right and spare on the left.

Swanky IKEA kitchen.  DISHWASHER!!! Would it kill Tom to smile?

Our bedroom

Yoga room

Washroom (jeez I just noticed myself in the mirror)

NOW he smiles.... Tom in the workshop.  This is really only half of it's depth!

Greenhouse.  I.  Can't.  Wait.

Those pictures were from only moments after we got the keys.  We now have our bed and furniture (two chairs and a coffee table lol) in the house and have our eyes open for a cheap couch.

The house is only one road back from the highway, and I've been surprised at how much faster I can get to work! Bonus, because now I have a little bit longer to wake up in the mornings before hitting the road.

We can walk right across the highway to the Post Office and the walking trails along the river.  There are also walking trails on our side of the highway, that connect all the way back to Tyhee Lake.

Also, because the house is so well insulated it is very quiet inside.  We don't hear the highway (not that there is much traffic in the north anyhow) and the only sound that makes it inside is the muffled train whistle (the tracks are now closer to us).  In the summer if we have the windows open, that could be another story, but for now it's amazing how much more relaxed I feel in the new place.  No worries about how much noise we are making, or being startled by an elephant tap-dancing upstairs. The cats are so happy and play all day and all night... which can be annoying when we're trying to sleep haha. They love the warm floors and flatten out like cat-carpets.

So far this house design is pretty amazing.  We will only have one utility bill to pay - hydro. And honestly, because the floors haven't even come on once, I don't expect it to be outlandishly expensive. Definitely something I am going to remember in the future when we want to build our own house.

This is how much snow we had at work in Houston yesterday... 

Jill has been keeping me in the office lately, helping out with permitting.  It's a bit weird, teaching the new permitter things, when he's full time and I'm at the bottom of the food chain here.  But, I have a company truck, good pay, and for the moment I'm not breaking my back everyday.  So I shouldn't complain.

That being said, now that I sit all day, I have to remember to get up and move nd do some exercises at my desk - my back is aching from not being used at all now hahha If it isn't one thing it's the other.  Something to work on.

My contract is up at Christmas and will renew in the new year for 10 months.  That means I will have two months off!  I'm thinking about trying to get a job at the ski hill, or as a barista... but at the same time, E.I. and a ski trip to the Kootenays sounds pretty good too.

Anyhow, we still don't have our internet set up in the new place, so I've come to work early to get this up - I'd better start doing some work now. 

Hopefully the beginning of winter is being good to all of you!
xoxo

New Season, New Chapter!

Good morning everyone,

The weather is quickly changing here and the mountains are now completely blanketed in fresh snow.  The valley bottoms don't have any snow as of yet - but it's on it's way!  I've had some scary drives to work over Hungry Hill this past week.

Heli flight on the first day with snow

I feel like we've only just settled back into our old routine after a visit home at the end of September.  It was great to see family and friends, spend time lounging by the pool (it was so hot!), taking Tom on his first sailing excursion on dad's boat, swimming at the beach by mom's, exploring Presqu'isle with Tom's parents and playing bocce ball.....  and Tom proposed!  We are now very happily engaged and looking forward to all that is coming : )

Georgian Bay sailing

'Cirrus' the boat

Got a little 'ship faced' while sailing

Tom's first sail...as you can see it was a VERY calm day

Presqu'ile!

It took a while (for me, at least) to get back into the swing of things with work and life around these parts.  I'm realizing that I really do miss working closer to home and having shorter work days... but who doesn't!? haha definitely something I will keep in mind the next time I search for a job.  And this next time... I hope it sticks!  I'm at the point where I don't want to be picking up and moving all over the place anymore.  I'm glad I did it; I'm glad I've lived in all of the places that I have, and explored all of the towns, cities and provinces.  With all of the experiences I gained from doing that, now I'm ready to just chill out!! Lay some roots, get a job to stay in for an extended time and use my free time in the future to travel all over with Tom instead of just between Ontario and BC to visit : )

One of the ladies at work was giving me some pointers on future job avenues - she said I may feel like I'm pigeon holing myself by being in forestry, but really, those skills can be used in a variety of fields.  She worked for the Ministry of Forests here in BC for the majority of her working career, and says I should look into the Lands Department, Environmental Planning, Municipal work, all sorts of stuff!  That definitely helped me feel more optimistic about future job hunting.  How many times have I gone down this path of job hunting?!? I'm done! haha

Looking ahead, one day we'd like to be back in Ontario, have close-by jobs with minimal stressors, and I've told myself I need to be on a lake! haha Cottage country here I come!  I'm looking forward to having a job with shorter hours, like the one I had at CVC, so that I can pursue other things in the afternoon.  I haven't worked out in MONTHS other than one Saturday here or there, because I get home at 5:30 most days, after waking up at 5:20am and don't want to have to switch out the work truck for my car at home, continue driving the 15 mins to the gym, do an hour there and drive back. 
I'd also like to spend more time practicing my yarn dyeing.  Hopefully one day I can start selling my yarn but want to get really good at it before shocking the market with it's beauty hahha ; )

The kitty cats are good and are so happy to have us home.  Odin had some stomach issues this past week, but thankfully Tom was able to get him to the vet quickly, and got some pills to "plug" the issue, shall we say.  I won't get into the gross details.

One of the the full-time guys at Tom's work is leaving, which means Tom has the opportunity to apply for full-time!  And that would mean that he would be sent on courses and training all over the province.  That would be amazing to put on his resume, plus I am definitely going to tag along if he ends up doing training down in the Kootenays... and if it's ski season I'm bringing my skis too!  In the past the training has been in Kamloops and Kelowna, and even Vancouver.

On the way home from Ontario, we stopped in Vancouver for the weekend, and my 31st birthday.  It was so much fun.  We went to a yarn and fibre festival (Yarn City) and toured the treetop walk at the Capilano bridge.  We stayed with Tom's aunt, uncle and cousins, who were gracious hosts and even gave up their king sized bed for us!!

Van city from Stanley Park

Tom taking a walk on the wild side!

Nothing like some Beaver Balls to sustain your tree top walk

Loved this walk!

Knitting season is upon us, and I've made plans to teach Jill how to knit, sometime next week.  She says to bring beer and that we may have to take the next day off of work hahha I can't wait.
Tom is knitting his second hat, with wool he got at Knit City (which incidentally, was hand-dyed in Ontario).

Tom's awesome yarn.  Ombre gradient in the "waterfall" colourway

I was almost done that cabled sweater of mine -- you may remember it's the one I started back in FEBRUARY (it's been a challenge).  I was on the second sleeve and realized I'd done all of the increasing at the start and not staggered up the arm... had to rip out the arm and haven't looked at it in a week. Grrr.  I'll get back to it soon, but for the moment am mad at it! 

Well the day is getting started here in Telkwa - the cats are attacking one another, Tom is out tinkering with his truck, and I've got a haircut to go to! So if you'll excuse me, I'd better get on my way.

Enjoy your weekend! xoxox

Fall is coming

Good morning from our cozy home in Telkwa.

There's a big rain forecasted for today so we're getting ready by baking some muffins, cleaning the house a bit, and relaxing with some knitting, movies and cat-cuddles.

We've been doing lots of exploring lately! Last weekend (the long weekend) Tom and I went for a drive and found ourselves at the Telkwa River, at the base of the Telkwa Range of mountains.  We got out and walked along a little trail through the woods, popping out to the river to check for bears every so often - no bears, phew!  We found some creepy abandoned vehicles in the bush - one van that looked like it had been washed down the river in the 80's, and an equally old bus.  We were wondering if it was the bus from Into the Wild...

The water looked cool and textured in this pic!

Tom and his Magic School Bus

Next up was the Hankin Plateau hike.  Tom wanted to hike to the very top of the plateau, but we only made it half way thanks to me... I'd been to the gym for the first time in months, the day before, and honestly thought my legs were going to give out if I tried to go any further.  Sadly, we may not get the chance to hike to the top again this year; the area is in a Caribou Recovery Area, which mean that the backcountry in this area is closed to people from mid-Sept 'til the following summer.  This is in an effort to protect the dwindling Caribou population that uses the area to over-winter.  That being said... there are only 14 Caribou in the herd! So a big closure for a small herd. Oh well, the hike will be there waiting for us next summer.

View from the lookout - that second ridge on the left is where Tom had wanted to go... oops, sorry Tom.  And that's my finger up top haha

Nice view of the glacier and peaks.  Goat habitat!  We looked by didn't spot any.

I built a little Inuksuk for the Caribou.  I wonder if it will be there next year.

I went on a Canfor team-building event to the Sibola Mountains!  So these mountains are waaay down south of Houston, along logging roads.  About a two hour drive or 115km on bumpy logging roads - totally worth it!  We had the chance to explore part of the area that not many others do.  Almost everyone from the office drove down with quads and we took off into the bush, crossed rivers (which was terrifying - I kept floating down stream) and had a BBQ on a river bank.

My quad and the mountain mist.

Some of the other quads during one of our stops to check out the scenery.

A nice spot to stop and take a break

 So, I'm STILL waiting to hear about that permitting job.  I had an interview about a month ago and was told they would get back to me either way in a week... It is still open and I was told it would be open until filled... so using my common sense on this one and I figure I wasn't picked.  Which is disappointing but, oh well, it kind of makes sense.  They probably want to have someone in that position who will stick around for a long time.

I've been stressing out over what to do now... Tom is enjoying his job and it pays well and we are happy staying here for a bit longer.  As Tom said, he'd like one more summer to hike all of the hikes and camp some more! Which is great - let's soak up the mountain life while we can!  That being said, I don't want to continue at Canfor in my current position.  It's a field position, which I don't want to put my back through any longer, and I come home and complain to Tom all night long about the dweeb that I work with.  Not what I want Tom to have to hear.  And not what I want to spend my time doing.  I would love to continue working at Canfor, but if they don't have a position that I can do and that keeps me out of the field, I think I should be going elsewhere.  My contract is up at the end of the year, so at least I won't be leaving in the middle of a contract - I can wait until it's up and then move on... BUT TO WHERE? ** and there goes my blood pressure haha

So that's become a constant worry of mine.  I'm trying not to obsess over it and let things happen.  I'm continuing to keep an eye out for any job (here and at home, just incase) and have started going back to the gym and doing yoga to burn off steam and keep my head on straight!

And I've also been knitting up a storm!  To the point that I've had to take a break because my hands hurt! haha! Here's the completed body of my sweater - I'm almost done the first arm, as well : )

It will be sooo warm and snuggly!

Bruce and the back of the sweater.  He loves sleeping on it

Tom made a table from old barn board Jill had, and he used a wood burner to do this awesome drawing on top!  He used transfer paper to trace the design from a print-out and then 'coloured' it in.

 The cats are doing well and are outside galavanting at the moment... I'm expecting them to come flying back inside as soon as the rain starts.  I'm worried they will be lonely when we come home for a visit.  We will be home from Sept 20-Oct 1st.  Jill and Tom's work-buddy Kevin are going to come and feed the cats but I hope they spend some time with the cats as well. They are used to Tom coming home at lunch, and us spending lots of time cuddling and playing with them.  They are also used to going outside, now... the house is going to be destroyed when we come back! It'll make for an interesting blog post at least : )

I am SO looking forward to our visit home, and will be topping it off with a visit to KnitCity in Vancouver on my birthday!! I can't wait!  It's a festival for everything knitting and I will definitely be filling up any empty space in my carry-on with YARN!!!

And on that note, I'm going to relax with Tom and plan out our tour of the big city!

Hope all is well wherever this blog finds you!

xoxo

Staying Safe and Cool

Hello hello from the North.  I am very happy to report that we are staying safe and fire-free lately, and the weather has been seasonal to cool.  I can't believe the fires down south and the crazy heat that other parts of the province and country are experiencing!!  And Trump says global warming isn't happening?! I think he's been sniffing glue... for a long time.

In any case, it's been a great few weeks here for Tom and I.  For starters, it's Tom's birthday today (hooray!) and yesterday I took him out kayaking on Lake Kathlyn, just on the edge of Smithers.  I rented a paddleboard for myself which was fun too but I found it hard to navigate... or keep up with Tom as he raced around the lake.  We saw a pair of loons with a baby and they let us get within feet of them!  Tom also had an otter that followed him for a bit, popping up here and there.  And I had fish jumping all around me for some reason! Everyone was celebrating Tom's special day : )

Hudson Bay Mountain, Lake Kathlyn and Tom

Today we hiked up the ski hill to Crater Lake.  We went up right after breakfast and were driving back down the mountain by 11 so we missed the crowds - usually a popular hike but we didn't see anyone else until close to the parking lot.

"You belong among the wildflowers..."

Hi Mom!

The birthday boy

Marmot! 

Last weekend we hiked the Seaton Ridge, just outside of Moricetown.  The views are supposed to be spectacular but it was one of those trips when the clouds move in and we didn't see everything... however, I was happy because we did get to see a rainbow in the valley below.  And being inside of a misty cloud just added to the wild BC mountain life.

Wildflowers : )

A magical rainbow in the clouds

Tom trying to stay warm (it was only 6 degrees!)

I need to stop posing into the sun... always squinting!

Tom is still really enjoying his job, and I'm jealous that he gets to come home to the cats at lunch and finishes early enough to hit the gym... I'm still waiting to hear about a possible interview for the Permitting job I applied to with Canfor.  If I get that, I'll try to hit the gym at lunch a few times a week.  My back feels so much better when I can work in the office, but then everything else (including the waistline) complains.  So a nice blast of blood pumping work mid-day would do the trick.

We are both very excited about my dad and little bro coming to visit next weekend!!!  I can't wait!  Dad arrives Friday afternoon and Stefan's arrival will depend on his work schedule this coming week.  I'm hoping he can make it up on Friday night, but if not it sounds like he may take the following week off and stay here and bike the mountain.

Jill has offered to host a party at her place next weekend - wohooo!!  All we have to bring is dad's margaritas and his cheesecake.  YESssss.  Should be a wild night. I can't wait to see Jill let loose hee hee
She is excited to meet dad and Stefan after all of the stories she's heard about them.  Next I'll have to convince Jill to come back to Ontario to visit mom - they both share a love of scotch which I think could cause trouble.

My cabled sweater has taken the back burner for a bit, as I've started a mystery knit along for a shawl (sections of the pattern or "clues" are released every week and you have no idea what he finished project will look like until you're done), and have been feeling a bit guilty that I haven't started any potential Christmas presents yet.  I always say I'll start them early and never do, and then it gets too close to Christmas to finish anything... one year - I'll get it one year.

I've also taken on a spinning and knitting challenge with the spinner's group from back home.  Spin sock yarn and knit a pair of socks with it by the end of the year.  I just got the fiber in the mail and will start spinning very soon.  I have to first finish some other fiber on the wheel... I wanted to make sure I was all practiced up for sock yarn.  I've never spun for socks before, and the yarn will be more fine than I'm used to.  A good challenge for sure.

Soon-to-be-socks.

Speaking of spinning, this will sound extremely nerdy to some but I really do find it so entertaining - there is a show on Netflix and probably available elsewhere, called SLOW.  It's supposed to be all the rage in Norway and features hours of mundane things, like the view out of a train window as it ges cross-country, and apparently this is supposed to be very relaxing.  Well... they have one on spinning.  There's a group pf women and one man who shears a sheep and immediately the wool is spun by six different spinner, right there.  Then as the yarn is made, other ladies begin knitting it, and the challenge is to knit a men's sweater out of it.  They talk all about speed knitting and the culture and history of spinning, and all the while are trying to set a world's record!  It's all being timed.  I'm only about an hour in to the 8 hr program (which Tom can only take so much of watching at one time - fair enough!), so I think I'll spin with it in the background.

Bruce the adventurer took off for almost 24hrs last week.  Tom and I were worried sick.  He's back and in one piece.  No clue where he went to but I wonder if he was stuck in a garage.. or off climbing a mountain. We've only let the cats out once since then and will keep a better eye on them.

I can't believe the end of summer is lurking around the corner.  Still a month left, but I feel like time is literally flashing before my eyes - it goes SO FAST.  Good when you're talking about the workweek, but in general I'm just trying not to let life slip by! There's so much to see and do and so much to check off the bucket list.  Especially since we know we will eventually make our way back to Ontario, Tom and I want to soak up as many experiences as we can in the mountains while we have the chance.

And on that note, I'm off to relax with Tom and get into some fiber.  Hope you all have a great rest of your weekend!

xoxox