Dear Neighbor . . .

 

FRIDAY, December 12th, 2025

Estate Lane, Nova Scotia

-6*C/21.2*F feels like -16*C/3.2*F

Snow squall warning in effect

blustery winds expected

Dear Neighbor,

How are you on this cold and blustery day?  I am quite well, albeit a bit chilly. I have put my electric fireplace on to take the chill off. I am supposed to be going out to lunch with my friend Jackie today, but we will see if it happens or not. No plow has been put to the roads as of yet.

I've been up since 5:15 or so this morning after a very unsettled night of sleep. My arm pains so when I move and it wakes me up, or at least I am aware of it. Although I can use it for the most part now, it pains just sitting there, where it is, attached to my shoulder. All the way from my shoulder and down to my hand. It hurts to hold my phone and typing is somewhat uncomfortable as well, but my aches and pains do not make for good reading.

Whenever I chat with my daughter Eileen on messenger, she wants to know what the cats are doing, and I usually send her some photos.  I snapped this one of Nutmeg sitting next to me on the sofa yesterday and he yawned right when I snapped it. Oh, it did make us both laugh. He looks so funny here.  He is such a little character. Having him is like having a small child that is still trying to learn their limitations and control their actions. He hops from one thing to another.  The other day when the cleaners were here, they discovered a little robin from last years Christmas decorations, and he has taken to playing with that. He quite enjoys it. He bats it back and forth and because it is so lightweight it will jump, which only adds to his pleasure.  Then he will move onto something else.  Dare I to leave my jacket on a doorknob, it will not be there for very long as he will bat it to the floor and try to sleep on it.  A firm reminder to me that my laziness in not putting my jacket properly away will not be tolerated.

I had to replace their old scratching post this week as they had quite worn out the old palm tree. It was pretty much falling apart and unsightly. It is now in the garage waiting for the Spring Cleanup. (I know, long time away.)  The new one is a bit taller than the old one so they can get a better grip on it.  So far, he seems to really be enjoying it. Which is a good thing, otherwise it might be my furniture.

You may wonder what you are looking at here. It is a saltshaker turned perfectly upside down in a glass of water. How did that happen?  Let me tell you.

We were out to dinner with dad on Wednesday night and I asked him to pass me the pepper. He proceeded to pass me both the salt and pepper, and the salt ended up perfectly placed upside down in his glass of water. At least the water did not end up on his plate and dinner this time. 

His water has gotten spilled numerous times these past weeks. One week Hazel knocked it over and another week Dad knocked it over. This week, well . . . the unimaginable.  

They did bring him a fresh glass of water and the table a new saltshaker.

One of the specials on Wednesday night was the Ham Dinner, which is usually not on the menu. Ham, scalloped potatoes, vegetables, coleslaw and a roll.  I decided to order that to give it a try. Cindy and Dad ordered the fish and chips.

When she brought the roll, she said to be careful as it was really hot. It was scalding hot and inedible. I think they heat their rolls up in the microwave and she must have had it in there for a minute.  Do you know what happens to bread in the microwave for that long on high? Rubbery, dry, and totally inedible. I should have said something, but I did not. I thought it's only a roll.

I was expecting sliced ham with scalloped potatoes, etc. The ham was sliced alright, but it was in some kind of sauce. I did not know it would come in a sauce. I think it was a honey mustard sauce and it was totally saturated in it. I would have much preferred it plain with the sauce on the side.  The scalloped potatoes were good.  I did not receive my coleslaw.

I had to try it. I like to try new things. I would not order it again. Live and learn.

The podiatrist in the mall made the statement to me one time when I was there that the people in this area seem to enjoy quantity over quality. I think he is right.  So many people think this is a great restaurant, but for the most part I have to say, I have always been quite disappointed since the new owners took it over.  At first, we gave them the benefit of the doubt. It is not easy to go from running a chip shack to a whole restaurant. But now, almost two years later, despite them aspiring to make quite a few improvements with the decor, etc. I can unequivocally state that it is not a great place to eat . . .  unless you enjoy quantity over quality.

Their menu is vast, and they do none of it well. They would be better served to have a smaller menu and do at least some of it better.

(source)

I've been thinking a lot about traditions this month.  December and holiday traditions. Things which are done in a family that get carried on down through the generations.  We did not really have a lot of them when I was growing up. Probably because most of those years we lived far away from family and my parents were blending rural Maritime traditions with rural French-Canadian traditions.  There were no stockings. We had a plastic bowl on the dining room table, one in each of our respective places.  Each one filled with a bit of hard candy, a few nuts, a piece of ribbon candy, a barely sugar candy figure and a tangerine. I can remember longing for a stocking. I can remember once or twice getting one of those red net ones. It would have a few cheap toys and puzzles in it, but we did not care. It was a stocking.

Nobody was allowed into the living room to look at the tree or see the gifts until my parents were awake and gave us the go-ahead.  There, beneath the tree, in individual little piles would be our gifts. All wrapped with pretty Christmas papers.  We did not have to open them one at a time We simply opened them. Most years my sister and I would get the same thing, albeit in a different color.

Mom would make us breakfast. It wouldn't be anything too filling as Christmas Dinner was usually eaten in the early afternoon. We would have to get dressed in our Sunday best clothes on.  It didn't matter that we were not going anywhere.  We put on our best clothes and then we children would play with whatever it was that we had gotten while mom cooked the dinner, the smell of roasting turkey tantalizing our tastebuds the whole of the morning.  Christmas music playing on the radio.

A photograph was usually taken of us holding up one of our gifts.

Dinner would always be roast turkey, stuffing, mashed potatoes, turnips, carrots and gravy.  There would be assorted sweets for dessert which we would nibble on the rest of the day.  Tiny slices of dark fruitcake, mom's war cake, date squares, perhaps some whipped shortbreads.  There was always a dish of nuts in the shell and some hard candy on the coffee table as well.

It was a simple day but special all the same.

 

(source)

I was inspired to create a few more traditions with my own family when they were growing up. We always had Fish Chowder for supper on Christmas Eve and went to church. I can remember it always snowing.  Or at least it seems that way in my mind. New pajamas and a new book for bedtime.  My own children had stockings.  I made them all by hand. They were made from the kits that were available to buy on Mary Maxim, and they were highly embroidered and decorated with beads and sequins. Each one different than the other.  The children opened their stockings first, which gave their dad and I a chance to really wake up and enjoy a cup of coffee. 

One child, usually Anthony as he was the oldest, would take on the roll of Santa's elf and would distribute the gifts, one at a time to all and sundry. We would wait while the one opened their gift and we all ooed and ahhed before moving on to the next one. I always really enjoyed watching the children open their gifts. 

Then it would be time to get dressed and enjoy a simple breakfast.  Christmas music playing during the gift opening and then a movie or two watched while I prepared the Christmas dinner and like my mother's dinner it would be turkey, stuffing, turnips, mashed potatoes, carrots, gravy and cranberry sauce.  Again, served early afternoon so we could settle down and relax for the rest of the day. Some years our mother was with us and my sister would come up with her family. Some years we went home to my mom's for Christmas. Always, once we lived close enough, family was involved in one way or another.  And for me that was the most important part.  Family.

 

(source)

Now I am on my own I usually go to my sisters' in the early afternoon for gifts and family fellowship. They are so good to include me. There will be a lovely dinner cooked for us to all enjoy.  Usually some facetimes with various family members. I don't think any of us really dress up for it. We just spent some pleasant hours enjoying each other's company. It is a quiet day for the most part. Boxing day I tend to have Eileen and Tim over. This year I have invited Jackie over to join us as she is on her own. 

Certain films watched every year.  Music listened to. Scriptures read and enjoyed.  Faith, Family, Food, Friends.  The four "F's" of Christmas.

 

(source)

This week I have been watching the Love is Blind Italy and the Love is Blind France. I already watch the American one each time it comes out.  I find this love experiment quite fascinating.  There is also a Swedish one, a German one and a Japanese one. I find the way that different cultures approach this experiment quite fascinating.  I do think that the best one was the first one and there are still several couples that remain married after that one.  Subsequent series have not played out as well and I think have attracted a certain element of people who are looking for their fifteen minutes of fame. My favorite of all the couples which got married are Lauren Speed Hamilton and Cameron Hamilton who just had their first child.  They got married in 2018 and are still going strong 7 years later.  I think they both approached the experiment with sincerity and an actual desire to find a compatible mate.

But, do I believe that Love is Blind??? I wonder.  I think it is quite possible to form a strong emotional connection with someone without ever having seen them. For souls to connect in a special way.  But I think that people really do need to spend quite a bit of time in real time before they take the step of getting married to each other. 

I met Todd online, on a chat site, which although not endorsed by my church, was run by and frequented by our church. I think it was all too easy for me to be manipulated and to make a hasty decision to marry because of the distance between our two countries and my own desire to want to be married and to be loved by a person who I saw as being equally yoked spiritually speaking. Had we taken the time to really get to know each other first and lived closer, it is hard to say . . .  would I have gotten married or not?  I cannot say for sure.  

There is a part of me that wants to believe in the fairy tale of people falling in love without ever having seen each other.  But there is another part of me that knows it is just that. A fairy tale.

And with that I will end this letter to you now. The neighbor is out shoveling his driveway and walkway. It is light out, albeit cloudy. A snow warning is in effect and I need to be getting on with my day.

A thought to carry with you  . . . 

☾ ° ★° * 。  

• ˚ ˚ ˛ ˚ ˛ • •。★★ 。* 。
° 。 ° ˛˚˛ * _Π_____*。*˚
˚ ˛ •˛•˚ */______/~＼。˚ ˚ ˛
˚ ˛ •˛• ˚ ｜ 田田 ｜門 ★

*"Give me six hours to

chop down a tree 

and I shall spend the 

first four sharpening 

the axe.  • ˚ ˚ ˛ ˚ ˛ • •。★★ 。* 。

~Abraham Lincoln• ˚ ˚ ˛ ˚ ˛ • •。★★ 。* 。

• ˚ ˚ ˛ ˚ ˛ • •。★★ 。* 。 

In The English Kitchen today  . . .  Chocolate Cherry Sugar Cookies. A bit of whimsey and festive indulgence.

I hope you have a lovely Friday. Whatever you get up to, stay warm.  Stay safe. Be happy. Don't forget!

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⊰✿░G░O░D⊰✿⊰L░O░V░E░S⊰✿⊰░Y░O░U░⊰✿

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And I do too!