To Upstate!

Summer is a time for making fun stuff happen. 

A few weekends ago we made some fun stuff happen.  We drove 5 hours north, Sean and Nicole drove 5 hours south, and we met up in Lodi, New York. Lodi is a small speck of a village, surrounded by other small villages and hamlets.  Finding a grocery store was a challenge, but there were wineries every 5 miles or less.

We went to a few, but the one that we really loved was called "Silver Thread Vineyard".  It was a quick walk up the hill from our little cabin and the view was as lovely and clear as the Chardonnay (I realize this was kind of a snotty sounding sentance- but it is true, and I couldn't help it!)

The Rasmussen men using a charcoal BBQ for the first time.  It was almost a hopeless affair.

Our last dinner in our odd and lovely little cabin.

It was a relaxing few days filled with dog walks, books (I read 3 Sherlock Holmes books in quick succession), bbqing, and beer.  Many hands of Hearts were played around the little table, late into the night.

The kitchen was non-existent, but we managed to make some some pretty excellent meals all the same, thanks to some creative cooking and managing the BBQ.

Hudson, The Labradoodle.  Also known to me as Hodge Podge, Hud-Dawg and The Honourable Sir Hudage of Cambridge.  I'm pretty proud of this picture.  Black dogs are super tricky to photograph.

This beauty of a dog was kind of the highlight of the trip.  Sean and Nicole got him as a puppy 6 months ago, and he is now one large and precious puppy. He was too cool.  I liked watching him galump around with his oversized limbs, and sometimes he would listen to me when I said "sit" and "stay" - thanks to his sweet disposition and Sean and Nicole's committment to training.

It was a great little trip, and I'm so glad that I got to spend it with these folks.

Sean, Nicole & Hudson. 2015

Dan & Gill. 2015

Canal Kayaking

Keeping an ever watchful eye on the weather (ridiculous humidity or thunderstorms just wouldn't do) I've been counting down until Friday. I had the day off, and I had plans.

 Waking up this morning, everything aligned perfectly.   Sunny and bright, but not humid.  It was under 30 degrees Celsius by noon!  No thunderclouds loomed.  Perfect weather for paddling down the Delaware and Raritan Canal.

 The Canal was built in 1830 by hand (many, many hands I'm sure) to connect the Delaware and Raritan rivers.  This provided a freight route between New York and Philly.   The tow paths on either side of the canal that allowed mules to pull the cargo ships are still intact.

Now this industrial route has been transformed into a really beautiful park that stretches over 36 miles.  You can paddle down the canal, or jog or bike along either of the two tow paths.  My friend Marissa and I leisurely kayaked downstream for a few hours, stopping only for a re-apply of sunscreen and a refreshing beverage.

It never feels like summer until I've had a Shandy.

All along the shore there were wee little frogs, the odd fish, Painted Turtles, and Canadian(!) Geese.   There were other people kayaking, canoeing, running, and cycling. At one point the canal starts going alongside Carnegie lake, where the Princeton crew teams practice and race.  There was a practice going on as we passed by.  The sounds of their oars was muchmore impressive than the splish-splash of our paddles.

It was a really super way to spend a Friday afternoon.

My favourite little walk through town

Today, it is sunny and hot.  Really sunny and really hot. 89 degrees Fahrenheit or about 32 degrees Celsius.  This is not weather I thrive in, and I know this is just the beginning. In a few weeks I'll have adjusted - but for now, I'm going to think back to a simpler time - a time where to battle the cold you just put on another layer of wool...

A few weeks ago (I can't believe it was only a few weeks ago!), when there was still a little bit of snow on the ground, I took a few pictures of my favourite little walk through town as I walked from job #1 to job #2.  It goes right through the heart of an area called Palmer Square, and which I like to think of as Diagon Alley.  Even if it isn't the most direct route, I'll go this anyway way anyway because I like the way it looks.  It goes by a chocolate shoppe, a pub that Einstein used to frequent, a small park, an ancient post office, the best toy store I have ever been to, a fortune teller, and two other pubs.  That makes the 3 out of 4 pubs in town within spitting distances of each other.

Let me take you on the walk with me.

Brick tunnel into the square.

Ancient US Post Office

Another tunnel!

One of the pubs.  After your pint, you can go across the path to get your fortune told.

This brief little jaunt through town almost always puts a smile on my face, not matter what the temperature.  I think it's time for one of those walks now.

It was a snow day!

This is apparently the worst winter in New Jersey in 80 years.  The coldest and the snowiest.  We live walking distance to everything, so the snow hasn’t affected us much (and there really hasn't been much).  Thursday, I got to enjoy my first snow day in almost a decade.   The entire town of Princeton shut-down and I didn’t have to go into work.

Before I could curl up with an audiobook and my knitting, I of course had to go tromp around in the snow. I pulled on my boots and picked up my camera and ventured out to see what the town and campus looked like covered in snow and without any people.

It was quiet and lovely.  Still and cold. It was a treat.  A few coffee places and the liquor store were open, but that was about it. While it was a piece of cake to walk around in, the roads were coated in ice underneath that innocent, fluffy looking snow. 

It was nice to walk through town with no real purpose.  To not be running errands or have to be anywhere at a particular time.  To blink the snowflakes out of my eyelashes. To be the first set of footprints in the snow.  

 It finally felt like a proper winter day.  I can now look forward to spring. 

The Coffee Table

Recently, I convinced myself that we needed a coffee table.  I had no place to put my tea (earl grey, hot) while I was watching Star Trek. I couldn't literally put my feet up after a long day of work. I knew the cat was suffering from not having another piece of furniture to hide under. Getting a coffee table would solve all of these problems and more, I was sure of it.  I was obsessed.  I started looking at home decor and design websites.  I popped into every store in town that might have something.  

After a few weeks, I found exactly what I wanted.  Hand made from reclaimed wood, it was technically a bench but would be perfect for our space.  It was beautiful.  It was expensive.  The price tag is what shook me out of my obsessive stupor.

I still wanted a coffee table though. Time to come up with a solution.

When we moved, we had to chuck our old and broken ikea bed. But the bedslats were still good, and I insisted we bring them with us in case we needed them for our next frame.  We brought them with us, but as it turns out we did not need them, so we were stuck with a bunch of odd 2x4s.

The beginnings of our masterpiece.

It was time to make our own reclaimed wood coffee table.With 9 dollars worth of screws, a handsaw, a drill and some clashing ideas, Dan and I designed and put together our own coffee table. While this was my initial idea, for the most part Dan was in charge of constructing the actual table (but he was removed him from handsaw duty).  I served the role of human clamp, literally holding things together as pilot holes were drilled and screws, screwed.

I took over this job for obvious reasons.

We're really pleased with the result.  The only regret is having such slap-dash pictures.  It would have been nice to properly document how we put it together, as well as the mess that went along with it.  I already have some more plans forming, but no more woodworking projects until the snow melts.  It makes for too much sawdust in our apartment.

The finished project.  It has already held many a cup of tea successfully.

Hey Rosetta & Asbury Park

Those who know me well, know a few key things about me:
1. I knit.
2. My birthday is October 21st
3. I really, really like Hey Rosetta, and think you should too.

The last few times I've tried to see Hey Rosetta, things haven't gone quite to plan.

Three years ago, I got tickets to see them in Toronto and then couldn't go because of work.  Luckily, I was able to give them to an excellent friend and now she's a fan.


Two summers ago we went to the Gentlemen of the Road Festival specifically to see them.  While they and all the other performers were great, it was there that I realized that I'm not as easy-going as I thought I was. In fact, I might be stodgey. Too many people, too much pushing, too much sun, too little sleep.

Hot, hot, hot. Bright, bright, bright.

Last summer we went to Hillside Music Festival in Guelph.  Hey Rosetta did a morning workshop with Royal Canoe that was a tribute to the music of the Beatles. It was worth waking up bright and early for. It was a tight and creative set that made it seem like the two bands have been playing together for years (who knows, maybe they have?).  The sad news is that Hey Rosetta's set that evening was cancelled due to a pretty epic thunder and lightning storm.

This fall I found out their newest album was being released on my birthday.  Happy Birthday to me!  However, we had just moved, and it was the Canadian release date that was October 21st.  The American release date was still months away. Yet another reason to be homesick.

Turn the clock to January.  I see a tweet.  I check a schedule. We buy tickets and 2 days later we're headed to the Jersey Shore to a place called The Saint.
 

The stage was so small, that even though we were in the very front, we couldn't see all the players.

It was a small stage and a modest crowd, with a few obvious ex-pats mixed in.  The size of the venue and crowd didnt stop them from playing a great show, playing mostly new songs with a few older favourites.  They handled the ridiculous demands from the crowd with grace and humour, and then, when they were all done, the violin player got most of  the band to sign my freshly purchased CD. Thanks Kinley!

And now it is January 27th! The official launch date of their new album Second Sight.  I hope it does great, and they come back  again sometime soon.

Pretty Much Settled!

So looking back at the last few months, things have been pretty busy.  Since October, we've packed up our lives moved to the US, had major struggles with our moving company, had major struggles with immigration,  had visitors (yay!! more of those please) and have been back to Canada twice to visit.  Somewhere in there, we finally unpacked and are properly moved into our apartment. 

Before I show you around, let me first remind you what our first month looked like:

Other than the fact that we were sleeping on the floor, and our kitchen supplies consisted of 2 plates and a casserole dish -  we got used to the plain walls and the clean counters.  It was simple and kind of nice. It was a shock when our furniture and books and countless other things arrived after a month.  I was pretty sure we were going to drown in our belongings.

After weeks with nothing, we're swimming in overwhelming amounts of stuff.

After a few weeks of sorting stuff, giving stuff away and then putting the leftover stuff away. We're pretty well settled. Let's show you around!

Living Room. 

Getting the art up on the walls was the most important part for me.  Once we had a few prints up, then it finally felt like we belonged here.  A lot of the art was made by friends and family. We're pretty lucky.

Dining Room/Kitchen. 

Bless Ikea shelving. Without them, we'd be swimming in books.  Since I've taken this photo a few days ago, I've already rearranged some things.  I'm sure I will again in a few weeks. It's an obsession.

Bedroom.  Milk crate shelving for the win.

 It is feeling more and more like home, but there is always more to do.  The most important thing to do is fill this place with more visitors. So come and visit!  The futon is surpisingly comfortable, and I have an infinite supply of tea and board games.