Wednesday, April 30, 2014

Post from the Past: A Time to Cry and a Time to Laugh

This post was originally published in October 2011, but it demonstrates a skill of which I am reasonably proud. Also, it's useful. Read on. 



I cry fairly readily. And sometimes, it's just not the thing. Fortunately for me, Steve taught me that you can sing Amazing Grace to the tune of the Gilligan's Island theme song. Seriously! And the really cool thing about THAT is that you can use it to stop crying.

Tuesday, April 29, 2014

Doggy Gut-Rot

Doggy Gut-Rot | Wynn Anne's Meanderings
Afternoon nap
Kane has been sick for the past two weeks, with diarrhea that just won't seem to get better. He's been to the vet twice, is on antibiotics, probiotics, and de-worming medicine. He's on a rice diet with boiled chicken added once a day for a little extra protein. (We had put him back on his regular food for 48 hours, but the diarrhea came back.)

Monday, April 28, 2014

Experimenting with Quinoa

Sally Lunn Bread with Quinoa | Wynn Anne's Meanderings
Yup, that's actually steam rising from the fresh, hot loaf.
I bought some quinoa because it seemed like a good idea. Then I didn't know what the heck to do with it. I thought that, like hemp hearts, you could just toss it on or into anything. It's a seed, right?

So that's what I did. I splashed a handful of them - raw, untoasted, unsoaked - into a batch of cookies I was making.

Sunday, April 27, 2014

Thirty Thoughts for Thirty Years

All dressed up for the fancy date!
April 28, 2014 marked thirty years since Stephen and I said, "I do" and joined our lives together before man and god. Best choice I ever made. Here, in no particular order, are my reflections on those thirty years.

Friday, April 25, 2014

Fiction Friday: Maneater

Wynn Anne's Meanderings

I couldn't sleep that night. All I could think was: what have I gotten myself into?

After tossing and turning for twenty minutes or so, I turned on my bedside light and grabbed my book. I always have a book on the go. In fact, most nights, it's a struggle for me to close the book and go to sleep. I've been known to read all night, even on work nights.

Thursday, April 24, 2014

Pain in the A$%

Wynn Anne's Meanderings

One of the reasons I quit my job last fall was joint pain. In my hands, feet, hip, shoulder . . . it sort of migrated from one week to the next. I had hoped that the more relaxed lifestyle since then -- especially the daily long walks with Kane -- would alleviate much of that joint pain. Alas, I was wrong.

Wednesday, April 23, 2014

Rainy-day Magic

Look: you can see the drips coming from the downspout.
It's April, so rain is not unexpected. And here, when a day starts with rain, it is pretty much guaranteed to end that way. Unlike in Colorado, where it might presage balmy sunshine or snowfall. In the next five minutes.

Tuesday, April 22, 2014

Life Lessons from Painting

Life Lessons from Painting | Wynn Anne's Meanderings
After one coat.
Emily and I spent last week painting our main bathroom. It desperately needed it -- the room is terribly humid and the paint had begun to crack and peel all over. As we were working on the room, I thought of some tips I could share with you.

And then, because there is lots of time for quiet contemplation while painting, I also thought of how those tips could also apply to real life. (Some may be a stretch, so bear with me.) Here they are.

Monday, April 21, 2014

Oops

Mud Lake | Wynn Anne's Meanderings
North American Black Duck
As Bugs Bunny might say, I think we took a wrong turn at Albuquerque. Kane and I went for a beautiful, long walk on Easter Sunday and somehow ended up in the no-dogs zone.

Friday, April 18, 2014

Beet Red

Kale and beet salad | Wynn Anne's Meanderings

Get ready: I'm doing two food posts this week. (It's been a good foodie week at the Sibbald house!) This one is from a Pinterest pin from Joyous Health, but has my own twist and more pictures. That makes it better, right?

Thursday, April 17, 2014

Wednesday, April 16, 2014

Sleep (Again)


"Sleepy" is my favourite dwarf. If you've been reading this blog long enough, then you already knew that. In fact, I've written 11 posts with the label "sleep." The problem is: I have a tendency to be nocturnal -- or, at least, so I thought until I retired.

Tuesday, April 15, 2014

Nom nom, chicken-broccoli braid!

Chicken-Broccoli Braid | Wynn Anne's Meanderings

Are you hungry yet? 

The first time I attempted that delicious dish, it turned out like this:

Chicken-broccoli Braid FAIL | Wynn Anne's Meanderings
[Insert sad trombone sound effect.]
I even wrote a post about it. I was so disappointed because my niece Diane's braid looked just stunning, and I was trying to show off. But I forgot about it until yesterday, when my niece posted it again on Facebook, along with a link to the recipe on her blog.

Monday, April 14, 2014

Things are heating up.

Maytag double oven - Wynn Anne's Meanderings
New (used) range
We've been living without a proper oven for the past three and a half months, since the electronic controls died in December.

Friday, April 11, 2014

Fiction Friday: Tapestry


Even with music playing, we could hear gentle snores from Michael in the back seat.

I was itching to ask Bettany more questions about her situation. Not because it would make any difference, but because I'm curious. I'm always trying to imagine people's stories, and here was one that had just landed in my lap. Besides, I might be able to help. Who could tell?

Thursday, April 10, 2014

Pronging Wrong

Gruesome image of injury caused by prong collar abuse.

You've probably seen that horrific picture on Facebook. It is cringe-worthy and shameful. Whoever did that to their "pet" should be suitably punished. But the fault is not with the tool; it is with the owner. We use a prong collar with Kane -- and have done for about two months -- and there is absolutely no way that picture represents normal, humane use of a prong collar.

Wednesday, April 9, 2014

Conundrum

Thank-you note - Random act of kindness: Wynn Anne's Meanderings

Have I mentioned the website that we've created in memory of my friend K.B. who died in January 2014? Actually, it was her husband who got it rolling. He started it as a way of encouraging the sort of generosity that typified K.B.'s life.

But we've run into a bit of a conundrum: how to gather stories about random acts of kindness from people who are too modest to "boast."

Tuesday, April 8, 2014

Family Connections

L-R: Me, my cousin Marcia, my brother Doug
This past weekend, I hopped on a train and went to Toronto to visit family. I've been wanting to head down since before Christmas, but haven't had an excuse until my cousin Marcia had a speaking engagement in Toronto.

Monday, April 7, 2014

Post from the past: Thinking Errors

This is a re-post of something I originally shared in 2011. Still something I catch myself on.


Have you ever heard of "thinking errors"? It's a therapy term that captures the many and varied ways our ingrained thinking patterns lead us astray. This blog has a good synopsis of ten of them (I'm sure there are many more).

Friday, April 4, 2014

Travel Togs

I'm travelling to Toronto today, to meet up with my adorable cousin, Marcia. (Seriously, she is adorable, and was once described aptly as being like a puppy. Still applies, even though she is now 50-ish years old. She also happens to be a groundbreaking researcher and medical doctor without coming off as the least bit pedantic or condescending.) We're going to have a slumber party!
But I digress.

Wednesday, April 2, 2014

I know better.


This is a picture of Kane being a Good Dog: he is staying where I told him to sit. You can tell that he is interested in something, but he is not moving. Good dog!

That was at the beginning of our walk. Wait till you see what happened later.

Tuesday, April 1, 2014

Doggy Hijinks

Kane's "pot of gold."
(By the way, I did not Photoshop that rainbow. I happened to be shooting toward the light.)
A few weeks ago, I posted the story of Kane's hide-and-go-seek game with his rawhide bone. The game continues.

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