A Mystery Visitor
Greetings!
The above photo starts us off this week. I found those wet spots on the patio one morning. And around the corner in the side yard a woodpile had been knocked over. The question is, who or what got into the pond?
Whatever it was, it climbed out of the pond soaking wet (upper right of the photo) and then left moving its feet in an obvious running pattern. The prints are in pairs right next to each other, so both front or both rear, rather than alternating. Whatever it was, it left in something of a hurry.
Given the size, I think it was probably a raccoon, but there is a chance it was a very young bear cub. The tracks feel small for that, but maybe?
Anyway, life sometimes hands you a mystery.
And here’s another one:
What do you suppose Anne was cooking?
To me, those look a bit like like the already cooked rotisserie chickens bought at the grocery store, with the clear plastic top of the packaging removed.
Additional “processing” turned them into these:
And those are even more confusing. Some look a bit like baked potatoes, but the ones on the right might be sprinkled with tobiko which makes no sense at all.
In truth, ages ago Anne bought a baking pan which has rabbits in it. The plan was to use it to bake desserts for the annual Spring Supper we shared with friends in California, but for some reason that never happened.
Given these results, that’s a good thing.
These “bunnies” were made from chocolate cake, which stuck to the pan despite it being greased and floured. It seems the mold is just too deep and everything sticks to it despite a non-stick coating.
Thankfully they tasted fine, even if they looked… odd.
In other news, I found an interesting article about genealogy, and specifically about DNA analysis. I haven’t done a DNA test, and this article makes me think that’s the right approach. And clearly if you go back too far DNA analysis becomes almost meaningless, at least in some ways.
If you’re interested, here’s the article:
I haven’t done much genealogy work lately. There have been too many distractions, and the recent disease wiped me out completely, but I will try to get back to it. And I know there is a story I still need to share. I have not forgotten.
Last week the latest issue of the Blueridge Bulletin went out. It was a doozey, coming in at 40 pages. And then, at the District Council meeting last Tuesday I introduced myself to those who were present and told them what I am doing. Now a few of the Councillors know who I am, so this hyperlocal journalism thing gets steadily more real.
The issue under discussion at that meeting — technically a workshop — was how the District will be affected by recent Provincial legislation requiring every municipality in BC to allow small scale multi-unit housing (SSMUH) development in areas that were previously zoned for singly family homes only.
It’s an interesting and complicated set of rules, and no one really knows how things will play out over the long term. But so far I continue to think that our little neighbourhood will be pretty much unaffected for the foreseeable future. There are, of course, alarmists who see things differently. Only time will tell.
I’ll keep writing about this, and the Bulletin’s audience continues to grow slowly but steadily, which is good.
I have yet to get back to any projects around the house, but that may change soon. I really need to work on the entryway, and then to painting the last few rooms upstairs. Perhaps in the coming week I will start skim coating some of the wall in the entryway where it needs a lot of help. When the previous owner put the second story on the house he cut some corners. As a result there are some very uneven places on the walls that need fixing.
And I am happy to report that my unknown disease seems to have retreated enough that I am willing to do more. I’ve even gone for a couple of long(ish) walks this week. They went well, and I plan to continue to push my walking distances back up to 8–10 km over the next week or two. I need the exercise, and our local trails make it easy to do if I can only get off my butt.
That’s it for this week. May all your projects go well!