Category Archives: Home & Hearth

© 2013 by Raymond Alexander Kukkee

"now if we can only  persuade Mother Nature to listen to the experts."

Well, it's official... just finished the A to Z challenge,  26 days, 26 letters, and most importantly, 26 articles, pieces or creations, however defined. Tough job it was, too, trying to think up something different and exciting,  new angles on old words, and finding a voice for a specific, compact, and topical approach. Relax.  It's over. Finished, and successfully too. Time to wind down for another year. All done,  from  A is for Author to  Z is for Zest.   Let's wind down.   I wonder how many blogging participants actually completed the challenge? Psst....I will try and visit as many new blogs as possible.  Until next year! Meantime, since we're getting so good at finishing stuff, let's concentrate on winding down winter, too....please?  Another worthy project! See this heap of snow? [caption id="attachment_1435" align="aligncenter" width="584"] A Genuine Pile of Snow 2013 April[/caption] Winter was fun, it has it's moments, this year there was lots of white stuff, cold, too, it's not like it was the fantasy warm-as-popcorn snow in **Morgidoo's Christmas Carol, ---but cold.  Brrrr...you know, the Canadian stuff...cold.  So,while we're at it, let's wind down winter for once and for all. With an unreasonably late spring, and a late snowstorm, April 12th,  snow piled up pretty good. Good grief, can you believe it?  see The snow in the pic? Yes, that is a genuine pile of snow.  Oh,  I'm  the tall one in the picture eh, ---notice, no coffee, .....there I am, up there,  winding down winter, huh?  hmnfffff....snowballs!  That ought to give one for thought, especially considering that even with a short memory,  right on this Northwestern Ontario location, only weeks earlier,  back in the middle of March, the 18th, for the record,-- the boys   in this photo were standing on the ground in their snow fort, winding down a snowball fight.    See? [caption id="attachment_1436" align="aligncenter" width="584"] Boys in the Snow Fort, March 18, 2013[/caption]   See why we need to wind down winter?  Mother Nature,  c'mon,  warm up, baby!  The garden is calling, and  vegetables apparently do not grow in snow. Uncle Mac, our gardening expert on everything from raised garden beds to radishes to MegaTon cabbages and everything in between,-- including Blue Hubbard squash and yellow Boule d'Or turnips --will confirm that.  Dollars to donuts he's puttering away over at Uncle Mac's garden shed today, and Farm Girl swears by  his wisdom and wizardry at gardening, collecting seeds, and even sprouting stuff.  Get that? Sprouting stuff already. If that's not enough proof for my loyal readers that it's time for winter to wind down, we can further consult with Glory Lennon, our incredible gardening zeitgeist. She loves sharing her garden and will share flowers of all colours with us anytime, --even my favourite sunny yellow ones! There you go, A-Z is all done, and this ought to give winter a hint, let's  get the snow out and wind down winter too, --and turn on the heat, some nice, warm sun,...now  if only we could  persuade Mother Nature to listen to the experts.  I think we might have coffee while we're waiting for the big wind down / warm up, --or  perhaps we shall write something...maybe both.  Distractions.....Hmm....Thumb my way through another seed catalogue. We  have a pile of them.  See all those veggies?  Green stuff.  Maybe a snooze.... # Is that Incoming I hear? Photo credits courtesy of    © 2013 wlk photography   **Morgidoo's Christmas Carol,  a new Christmas classic,-- is scheduled to be  published in print by Rocking Horse Publishing  by Dec. 2013.   +