Life's a Stitch

On the seventh day...

...there was internet. Yes, almost a week after the garbage truck took down our overhead cables, internet was finally restored to our house. Insult was added to injury when the technician told me about a nearby apartment that didn't have reception for an entire weekend when a dump truck at a construction site across the street took down their lines. I wonder how their service was restored so quickly. Never mind, it's over and here I am. 

Two good things: most important is that after long delay, we were finally able to receive our first Pfizer vaccine. Canada, without the ability to produce its own vaccines, contracted with providers in the UK, Europe, the US and India. Given the disastrous covid conditions in those areas, shipments were diverted to their own populations, leaving Canada mostly vaccine free. As supplies dribbled in, an age based system was implemented. Although we are four years apart in age, C had his on Monday and mine was on Tuesday. That was a step in the right direction as I was feeling the length of isolation when we hit the 400 day mark this week. It's frustrating sticking to the rules while restrictions continue to tighten as the result of those who don't.

Now Canada is in a race: vaccine vs the virus. We haven't hit the point where the numbers are going down as the result of mass inoculations. Comparatively our stats are better than other North American regions. I heard an interesting stat: the populations of the state of Minnesota and the Province of BC are comparable, however, the number of covid deaths in MN total 7100, while in BC we're at 1550.

The second good thing was the amazing summer-like weather we've been enjoying. Lots of opportunities for bike rides, walks and deck time. 

This painting, from my last class with David R Smith fits the conversation. It's a summer scene in Northern Minnesota.

It’s always something

Yesterday, a typical covidly quiet afternoon, when suddenly there was an exceedingly loud “thwack” against the side of the house. So loud I felt the house shudder ever so slightly. Earthquake? Exceptionally large bird strike? Nope. Picture this - the equivalent of a giant slingshot.

A garbage truck did a u-turn in front of our house, catching the cables above and stretching them until they released their stored elastic energy at great speed, making contact with the cable’s point of attachment on our house. Good thing there were no projectiles caught in the cable nor anybody on the sidewalk. That could have been one of those tragically random events that leaves people saying “whoa, you know your time is up when...”

The worst outcome was to be expected. No internet. So here I am blogging purely on phone power. And as nobody from the company has shown up, and we’re heading into a weekend, my hopes of repair are waning. What was my first clue? They don’t give you a Monday backup appointment for nothing.

What I was planning on posting, prior to the distraction: 

After three tries I was pleased with the results. Inspiration and technique learned from instructor David R. Smith. 

The Croke, short for Crokinole

There are probably many socially isolating folks like us out there who have gotten into the rhythm of their favourite tabletop game. Puzzles, board games, chess maybe? Friends of ours play cribbage daily, with the promise of teaching us when this homebound sentence lifts. C and I play the Croke, aka Crokinoke:

Crokinole (/ˈkroʊkɪnoʊl/ KROH-ki-nohl) is a disk-flicking dexterity board game, possibly of Canadian origin, similar to the games of pitchnut, carrom, and pichenotte, with elements of shuffleboard and curling reduced to table-top size.

Run on sentence warning. When our kids were young, we were gifted a hand-me-down board, put to hard enough use that when we moved C convinced me to throw out the bent and missing peg, dog chewed game, agreeing I could buy a new one once we were settled.

Two years at our new house, the time came. I shopped online, C searched for woodworking plans. He won. Off we went to our local building supply for materials,  astonishingly pricy due to pandemic demand. Don’t worry, says he, it’ll make three, one for us and two for future gifts. Long story short, take three produced our one board.

He modified an old wooden box to hold the discs and pegs:

And since we’re of an age where playing on the floor is uncomfortable, he’s mounted it on legs in front of our comfy chairs.

That’s a long story for a short, but enjoyable game. There’s a modified version for four players, something to look forward to. Anyone in?