animals – Seclusion 101 with AnneMarie

Summertime Gratitude

July 7, 2020July 7, 2020 by annemariedemyen, posted in nature

There is so much to appreciate about summer in Canada. Sunshine, rain, trees, green grass and flowers – summer is nature’s most glorious season. I just love a Canadian summer!

I love being able to walk out the door in the clothes I am in. No jacket, scarf, snow boots or gloves. I can just walk out the door. When I have young children in my care, it is even more of a blessing as I do not have to wrestle them into winter outdoor wear.

I love summer clothes in general – shorts, t-shirts and sandals versus bulky sweaters, heavy pants, socks and solid footwear. Life is so much easier.

I love being able to jump in a vehicle and go wherever I want to be, whenever I want to go there. No heating the Jeep for fifteen minutes, no scraping the windows, no climbing over snowbanks to get into the Jeep and NO icy roads.

I love the hours and hours of daylight. I get up in the sunlight and it is practically light until I go to bed. Darkness is highly over rated in my mind. A bit of time to admire the stars and the moon is fine – but I do not need to see them at nine o’clock in the morning or five o’clock in the afternoon.

I love the wildlife. I love watching and hearing the birds and the bees, the squirrels and the occasional moose or deer by the side of the highway. There is very little wildlife to be seen in Saskatchewan during the winter months.

Everything is easier in the summer. Our cost of living is lower. Our meals are simpler. Recreation and exercise, as basic as taking a walk, is easier. Living is just easier!

I wouldn’t want to live in any country other than Canada, but summer is definitely the best season to be Canadian.

Kat Walk

May 20, 2020May 20, 2020 by annemariedemyen, posted in life

This just doesn’t seem to be Kat’s year for taking walks. A few days ago we were out walking when two dogs charged up from nowhere and tried to attack her. She was fine, but a bit traumatized. I haven’t walked her down that block since.

Last night we set off for our walk. We walked about five block and all was good – or as good as it gets walking Kat. She walks, then stops dead to smell a post, eat some grass, fill a poop bag, whatever. It is a process. She finally gets up to speed and, since we have doubled back, we are one long block and two short blocks from home. Kat stops and yipes – sharp and loud.

I looked down and Kat is holding one paw up in the air. I looked around and I saw a spiked seed pod on the sidewalk but nothing else. I crouched down and tried to have a look. There was nothing obvious so I tried to feel around between the pads of her hairy little foot but could not find anything. I stood up to see if she would put her paw down and walk on it. She tried but she couldn’t do it.

I decided that I had to carry Kat home. Picking her up was not the most graceful thing I have ever done. Carrying a fifteen kilogram dog three blocks was not going to happen. I carried her about six feet before I set her down and tried to catch my breath, while digging in my walking bag for my cell phone. Fortunately, Dan was home, answered the call and agreed to come and meet up with us.

Once again, I picked up Kat and tried to do my part in meeting up with Dan. I made it another six feet before crouching down and letting Kat slide out of my arms. When Dan got to us, we were both looking pretty pathetic.

Dan checked Kat over and convinced her to try to stand on the grass by the sidewalk. She decided that she could limp home beside him, stopping a couple of times to eat more grass.

When we got home, I got out a pair of tweezers and had a better look at Kat’s food. I did find a sizeable sharp splinter that I removed but she was still limping. Dan had another look and decided she most have twisted her paw when she stepped on the splinter.

Kat still had a bit of a limp this morning but she has been doing fairly well. She has been bouncing out to the gate to check out every passerby. It seems she will be fine but I think it is best if we skip our walk today.

More Spring Memories

March 21, 2020March 21, 2020 by annemariedemyen, posted in life

I was out and about for a bit this morning. Went face to face with a bank machine. Went to buy bread but promised my husband I would not go to a big supermarket. I tried our Petrocan convenience store. They do not sell bread.🤷. The Dollar Store looked quiet so I went there. They do not sell bread 🤷. I should have gone to Cobb’s Bakery but that would have meant a fairly lengthy drive so I came home and had salmon salad with potato chips and Cheezies.

Our snow is pretty much gone but our scenery is still pretty drab so decided to share more photos of spring days gone by.