why is the ocean salty?

I can't remember the real answer to this question, but the following may be part of the reason why the Halifax Harbour is salty! These are some fairly typical examples of sidewalk-salting technique out here (all taken Friday morning on my way to work). I'm not sure if this is how its done in climates like this everywhere, or if this is unique to Halifax... It does add grip though.

(It also reminds me of my thesis, which was on stormwater management. At least in Alberta, stormwater management focused on sediment and stuff suspended in the water; salt and whatever else was dissolved in the water wasn't even on the radar. Imagine these kilometres of salt draining into some salmon stream, a couple of times a week throughout the winter? Yikes.)

fourth-last day of march

On Friday, the fourth-last day of March (seventh day of spring?), this is what my walk home along the harbour looked like:

It had snowed continuously all day, yet it was so calm (and the water so cold) that the snow simply collected on the surface of the harbour! Needless to say, if spring won't arrive outdoors, we will force it indoors. Last week, we had tulips; this week, pink hyacinths.

strathcona baby!

The top-secret project I was working on a couple of weeks ago has been successfully delivered to its new family, so I can immortalize it on the web without ruining any surprises!

I ordered the patchwork fabric from CheapThreads via Etsy, knowing exactly what it would be used for: a baby blanket for Evan and Katrina's soon-to-arrive kidlet. I don't know if the baby is a boy or a girl, but the fabric isn't too pink or too blue (or too 'babyish' for grown-up or big-kid tastes!).

This was the first quilt or blanket I've ever made, and it was a super-fun project. I love how it turned out, and Steve, Evan and Katrina all backed me up with positive feedback (phewf!).

spring has sprung

Just not in Halifax! March has not been a good month for weather. Today snowflakes are floating around, but they're not amounting to anything. Yesterday was freezing rain. I skated along the sidewalk to work, and Steve saw four ladies in emerg who had slipped and broken their wrists (plus however many the rest of the staff saw). The beginning of last week was super windy, with gusts up to 100 kmh creating waves in the harbour larger than some I've surfed. Last weekend, we got about six inches of snow, which is when the photo was taken. And it all started off with more freezing rain and snow and snow and snow. April showers is beginning to look good to me! But I've got four days off, plus Steve has Saturday, Sunday and Monday afternoon off, so the possibilities are endless...

a little bit of decorating

I got these wall decals from my sister as a birthday present in January. They come from Blik, and are made of re-stickable vinyl. Super easy to apply, won't leave a mark, and apparently will live to stick again in the new place. I think they totally add class to the fake wood panelling on the closet door. Totally.

If you're interested, check out Blik's website at http://www.whatisblik.com/. They have a (really, really ridiculously) huge selection.

PS. I have finished another project, which I'll show you once we give it to the recipient. Ooh, the anticipation!

more condo news!

I got the latest edition of the "Spice" newsletter and there's some good news in there, such as:

• "You will be moving to your new homes at Spice within the next few months." (We are still suspicious this may be more like June or July, but either way, we're getting closer and that's fine with us!)
• "Drywall is nearly completed on the second floor." (This is definitely good progress.)
• "You will be happily surprised to see how the values on your units have appreciated over the past year." (Phewf. Looking at what's for sale lately in Halifax, I still think we've got a great deal, and hopefully it will continue to appreciate until we sell! I guess higher values mean higher taxes though.)

Plus, we get to go have another look in two weeks, on March 29th!

condo siding

Here it is!

Pea soup green, as Steve calls it. I think the building is going to be a bunch of different colours. This is a good start though. (That's what I say now... Hopefully that green isn't the 'harvest gold' of whenever we want to sell the place!)

quick update

You may suspect from my blogging absence that we are either a) dead or otherwise unavailable or b) doing too much fun stuff to have time to blog. Neither would be true! We are still kicking, just passing the weeks by. What is relatively new and relatively interesting?

Well, the condo is still under construction, but a couple of new developments have been spotted. First, beams have been put across some of the 'indents', which will support concrete for the decks. (Phewf. We thought they may have forgotten the decks.) Second, sheets of drywall can be spotted on the first, second and third floors. Third, they have actually started putting up a bit of siding! This is quite exciting, because it's good eye candy work. I've got a photo on my phone which I'll download after work.

In the work department, not much new to report at Halifax Regional Municipality. Steve is finishing up a rotation in gyne onc this week, and begins four weeks of emergency on Thursday. Since emerg is shift work, he will have lots of time to do various chores he's been saving up (e.g. dentist, passport renewal, etc). I think he's really looking forward to that... (At this point, it's four more months of emerg, ICU and surgery until it's all anesthesia all the time.)

In the weather department, well, it's still winter. -9 C this morning, which has been pretty typical for March so far. I am looking forward to it getting a little warmer, but in the meantime, I definitely appreciate having a little more daylight!

Finally, there are a couple more sewing projects in the works, but they either need to be delivered or finished before they get immortalized on the web.

winter again? or winter still?

Steve's away at Martock Mountain for the annual anesthesia residents' retreat. Martock is the ski hill close to Halifax, and according to the ski report, the conditions are "awesome - all seven runs are open!" But I'm sure they're having fun.

I am also having fun, enjoying the very blustery weather and trying to wear out the sewing machine. Unfortunately.... I can't show you what I was working on, because it's a gift.

But here are some snowflakes to tide you over!