It's a long weekend! And the weather is fine! Today, I ventured down to Sears on Granville St. They are closing down and the entire store is on clearance. I could not believe the prices. I wanted to see if there were any decent cushions for the cottage, and came upon these really cute pillow shams made by Roots. I've seen them before, and they were always too expensive...

They were marked down with an additional 30% off. Even though they are meant for a bed, there's no reason you can't use standard pillows on a couch. They're actually more practical if you feel like taking a nap. A lot of couch cushions are unwashable, or they're scratchy, or they have  sharp decorations sewn in. Who wants to wake up with the imprint of a huge button on their face?


Tonight, Lorenzo and I decided to go to Marcello's on Commercial Drive for dinner. The boys declined our invitation, and our daughter's sore molars were putting her in a bad mood, so she didn't want to join us either. Lorenzo assured her that we'd bring her back some lasagna. On the drive downtown, he joked about coming home with corn on the cob, just to see her reaction.

Anyway, it was such a lovely evening. If I could live anywhere (besides Mayne Island) it would be on one of the leafy side streets off of Commercial Drive. The energy is palpable down there and I like observing the quirky people - the ones playing bongos on the sidewalk, the ones with purple dreadlocks, the hippies with leftist political slogans emblazoned on their grubby t-shirts...
I especially love the gardens - they're crazy; plants and flowers spilling out onto the sidewalks, so dense and jungle-like that you can barely see the house...

I don't think you'd ever be bored if you lived around there. Anyway, we sat outside under a canopy of tree branches and ate delicious pizza and drank a few beers. Our waitress was from Italy, so she and Lorenzo had a nice chat...

Walking down the street after dinner we passed a little shop that had the prettiest summer dress in the window. I stopped to look at it, and the next thing I knew Lorenzo was dragging me inside and insisting that I try it on.  For any women reading this, check out "Blue Sky Clothing Company" (blueskyclothingco.com) - the website only shows a fraction of what is available. Really pretty comfortable clothes, many of which are made from bamboo. Anyway, I bought the dress - I had no choice. I always feel guilty buying anything for myself, which is why two-thirds of my clothes are from thrift stores. If I were like Lorenzo, we'd be eating at the food bank. He sees money as something to enjoy - just spend it! Yay! Spend it all!


Lorenzo was going to go to Mayne Island but I asked him not to. Why bother, at this point? We have come to terms with the fact that the cottage will not be done this summer. And in a way, it's a relief to just accept it - the heat is off, so what's the point in being apart every weekend? Our new goal is thanksgiving...of 2018. Just kidding. In any case,  I'll have my husband home for once - I am so glad. Three whole days together!

My rabbit, Marcello, just started doing the sweetest thing. He'll come up behind me if I'm standing in the kitchen and he bats at my legs with his little paws, trying to get my attention. I turn around and there he is - just waiting to be loved.

I think about the person who gave him up - just dumped him off at the shelter to languish in a cage. We found Marcello at the Vancouver Rabbit Rescue, and the lady who takes in all these rabbits (Olga) told me that people just grow tired of their rabbits; they get tired of feeding them, cleaning out their bunny boxes, having to buy hay, etc. Often, these rabbits are dumped in city parks where they are terrorized by animals. They come into the shelter with ripped ears, torn paws, malnourished and traumatised.

Olga's website features all of the rabbits waiting to be adopted. This one is named Barnaby. He was there when we chose Marcello. I wonder if he'll ever be adopted... In fact, many of the bunnies that I saw there two years ago are still waiting:

It's baffling, because rabbits are the easiest pets!  They are quiet, easily trained, you don't have to walk them, and they are absolutely adorable.  People often fail to bond with their rabbit because they leave them in a cage. You cannot enjoy the personality of a bunny unless you let them run free - and then you see how sociable and hilarious they are. In a cage they are barely living. They just sit there, and then people complain that they're boring.


Lorenzo was laughing at Marcello last night because he was cleaning his eyes and then lost his balance and rolled backward. I could talk about him all day...we just love him to pieces.

When we came home I watered the garden under the full moon; the air smelled so sweet. Sometimes I just want to live forever. So, today was a good day. Yesterday, not so good...RCMP knocked on the door because my son and his friends were climbing around a construction site. Hopped the chain link fence and went exploring. As a parent, sometimes you just feel so tired. Apologized to the officer, glared at our son, lots of shouting and "what were you thinking" blah blah blah...wondering what the neighbours think seeing a cop car in front of your house... It's hard to get mad at your kid for doing what you once did yourself. I loved exploring construction sites. I have always been mad about houses and maybe that's where it began. And I don't recall ever being told we shouldn't be there, but maybe we were just smart enough to not get caught.


I have some furniture projects I'm going to work on this weekend. Lorenzo is going to drag an old pine bed out of the attic that I'm going to spruce up for my daughter's bedroom. I'll post the pictures if I actually get around to it...