30 Days Wild - Day 7

Sadly I have spent most of this glorious sunny day working at the computer, with only a few short breaks.  Still, work is now finished so I can relax and enjoy the rest of the Summer.

From today, a blue theme:

Helping Daddy do the watering..!

I'm going to be offline for a few days but 30 Days Wild will continue and I'll be back to the blog again soon.

Contrasts

Last year...

 This year...

And I honestly couldn't say where I'd rather be. 

I find myself yearning for the snow in England, but I'd be willing to bet that most people in the UK would happily swap their snow for our heat.  I suppose we all want what we can't have.

Sunny Sunday

Rob's away, but this weekend I've had Bob to keep me company instead.  Yesterday was grey and rainy, but today was the greatest contrast; non-stop glorious sunshine.  

Bob and I walked along the canal, then up onto Coombe Hill, where there were lots of other dogs and their owners to say hello to, and plenty of things for Bob to sniff!

But the best bit of the day was coming home after our 3-hour walk and just enjoying the sunshine.  I pottered round in the garden while Bob chewed his tennis ball.  And then we both went and lay down in a patch of sunlight.  Bliss!

Come Back Summer!!

Two weeks ago anyone in England could have been forgiven for thinking that they were in fact living in the Mediterranean. The weather was incredible - well into the 20s for days on end. With amazing good luck, this mini heatwave coincided with my half-term holiday from school, and even more fortunately I had an extra day off work the following week for report writing (which I smugly finished during the 2 rainy days that preceded the sunshine) so I was well-placed to enjoy it. I spent an entire week wearing shorts, t-shirts and flip-flops.

And I didn't want to miss a second of that beautiful sunshine...



Even ironing can be fun when the sun is out!



Sadly since then we have had a week of greyness and lots of rain. Good for the burgeoning vegetables in the garden I suppose (see my newly potted-on tomatoes on the table in the photo above) but rather less good for one's spirits.

Still, it seems to be warming up again now, and the rain appears to be easing. So perhaps that glorious Summer might happen after all?

From one Extreme to Another

We are currently enjoying some wonderful Summer weather. The temperature is hovering around the late 20s and the dramatic 'thunderstorm season' seems to have passed now, taking any uncomfortable humidity with it.

I can't help thinking that Canada enjoys what is - for me - the 'perfect climate'. It has wonderful Summers and wonderful Winters too. I'll concede that I have missed the beautiful English Springtime - Canada seems to lurch quickly from Winter to Summer, with a short period of dullness in between - but I'm really going to miss the 'proper' snowy Winters here (particularly when we're in the middle of a grey January in the UK) and the 'proper' sunny Summers where you can mindlessly throw on a pair of shorts and a t-shirt every day for months without worrying about the weather forecast.

At its most extreme we have experienced a nearly 80 degree centigrade range in temperature here. It can reach minus 40 degrees (although this is rare in Ontario, more common on the Praries) and the Summer heat can peak at plus 40 degrees (again rare, but all too possible).

Last Winter was a loooong one here. Our last snowfall was on April 13th (the first one having been last November!), but here we are, 3 months later, wearing shorts and sunglasses.

I've been enjoying looking back through some photos this week, and have been particularly fascinated by remembering back to certain places in different seasons. Here are just a few:

Chez nous, last Summer (late Summer I'd guess, looking at the maple tree next door!)

The house in Winter. Note the great walls of snow... I shovelled that there. Well, until we mastered the petrol-driven snowblower, which brought yet more excitements!

Me, cycling down the Trillium Trail last week, enjoying the lingering warmth of the evening sun.

The same trail in January. I XC-skiied down it then.

Relaxing on Wasaga Beach last weekend. We both swam in Georgian Bay; it was beautiful.

Just as beautiful, Wasaga Beach in Winter. We both skiied on Georgian Bay, and clambered over the frozen waves.

Awesome!

Yes, the Winter can bring its problems (driving in freezing rainstorms or white-out blizzards was none too fun...) but by and large the country is well-equipped to deal with it and life goes on. I like that about it. All part of the typically laid-back Canadian attitude.

Canadian weather, eh? I love it!