This Thanksgiving's menu is:
Appetizers - David
Turkey - Paul and Judy
Potatoes - John and Gael
Other Veggie - Brooke and Dave
Salad - Cathy
Pumpkin Pie - Mother
Enjoy!
Monday, October 13, 2008
Thanksgiving
This Thanksgiving's menu is:
Appetizers - David
Turkey - Paul and Judy
Potatoes - John and Gael
Other Veggie - Brooke and Dave
Salad - Cathy
Pumpkin Pie - Mother
Enjoy!
Sunday, December 9, 2007
Christmas Dinner
MENU:
Bruschetta and A Variety of Cheeses - Mother and John and Gael
Roast Beef - Mother
Two Salads - Cathy
Sweet Potatoes - John and Gael
Green Beans - Paul and Judy
Portobello Mushrooms - David and Elizabeth
Apple Crisp with Ice Cream - Brooke and Dave
We will be assembling at 3:30 on December 25 to open presents. This year we are having a "Chinese Auction" form of gift giving. Everyone brings one wrapped gift, suggested limit of $25. Everyone draws a number to decide who picks first, second and so on. The first person picks a wrapped gift. The second person can choose either a wrapped gift, or the first person's unwrapped gift. Subsequent pickers have the choice of any unwrapped gift, or a wrapped gift. The last person has the choice of any gift, including the remaining wrapped gift. The only rule is that a gift can only be traded three times, and then it remains with the person who chose it for the third time.
Wednesday, September 26, 2007
Thankgiving
We met at the cottage on Saturday, October 6. The menu was:
Appetizers - cheeses and curry hummus
Salad
Turkey and Stuffing
Potatoes
Veggies including Peas Masala
Pie and other desserts
Present were John, Gael, Noah and Braedon, Josh and Sarah, Paul, Judy, Lindsay, Brydon, Mother, Cathy, and David.
Appetizers - cheeses and curry hummus
Salad
Turkey and Stuffing
Potatoes
Veggies including Peas Masala
Pie and other desserts
Present were John, Gael, Noah and Braedon, Josh and Sarah, Paul, Judy, Lindsay, Brydon, Mother, Cathy, and David.
Friday, September 21, 2007
Plumbing and Plumbers
In 2007 we had the laundry tub hooked up to the septic tank. The work was done by M. J. Cullen in Peterborough who, I understand, are plumbers mother uses in Peterborough as well. They appear to have done a good job. The cost was $527.86 with tax.
Septic Tank. We had this pumped out in August 2005, when Paul was there. The company was Buckhorn Sand & Gravel (705) 657-9311, whom we contacted on the advice of Mr. Colbourn. It cost $150 to pump the tank, and $150 to dig down to the tank, plus taxes. They recommend pumping every two to three years, but I think we are thinking more we will have it done every 5 years. They also do excavating, landscaping, shorelines, retaining walls, and anything else that involves hauling sand and gravel. As a general rule it is estimated that the life span of a septic system is 25 to 30 years, but unknown whether that would be different when it is only used in the summer. We had it pumped out again in 2009 after it appeared to have been overloaded by all the people present on Labour Day.
According to a February, 2010 story in the Globe and Mail about architect Dee Dee Taylor Hannah building a cottage on Stoney Lake, Drain Brothers (yes, their name really is Drain) are the go to people for septic tanks in our area. She called him the "local hero".
John bought a new pump in 2003 at a cost of $265.04 plus $20 for fittings and other stuff for a total of $285.04.
The plumber we used in 2003 to repair a line under the cottage, was Martin's Plumbing and Repairs in Lakefield, (705) 652-3444. They charged $50.00 an hour. I don't know if anyone had an impression of them or not. Later that year we used Peter Craig to install new kitchen taps for about $100.
Septic Tank. We had this pumped out in August 2005, when Paul was there. The company was Buckhorn Sand & Gravel (705) 657-9311, whom we contacted on the advice of Mr. Colbourn. It cost $150 to pump the tank, and $150 to dig down to the tank, plus taxes. They recommend pumping every two to three years, but I think we are thinking more we will have it done every 5 years. They also do excavating, landscaping, shorelines, retaining walls, and anything else that involves hauling sand and gravel. As a general rule it is estimated that the life span of a septic system is 25 to 30 years, but unknown whether that would be different when it is only used in the summer. We had it pumped out again in 2009 after it appeared to have been overloaded by all the people present on Labour Day.
According to a February, 2010 story in the Globe and Mail about architect Dee Dee Taylor Hannah building a cottage on Stoney Lake, Drain Brothers (yes, their name really is Drain) are the go to people for septic tanks in our area. She called him the "local hero".
John bought a new pump in 2003 at a cost of $265.04 plus $20 for fittings and other stuff for a total of $285.04.
The plumber we used in 2003 to repair a line under the cottage, was Martin's Plumbing and Repairs in Lakefield, (705) 652-3444. They charged $50.00 an hour. I don't know if anyone had an impression of them or not. Later that year we used Peter Craig to install new kitchen taps for about $100.
Saturday, March 3, 2007
Excellent Tree Cutting Adventure
Work on cutting down a dead tree at the cottage had been planned for some time. Emergency services in the vicinity had been alerted and advised of Paul's blood type. Everyone hoped that someone else remembered what tree had to be cut now that they had no leaves and all appeared equally dead.
Paul and Judy went up the night before to try to warm the cottage by morning. John, Gael, Gabe, Fran, and David arrived Saturday midday. John bought a chain saw, newly bought for the cottage, and David brought an extension ladder which he bought that morning in Peterborough, also for the cottage. Paul brought a willingness to climb said ladder and attach a rope to the tree, in the hope that it would aid in determining where it fell (it didn't). Gabe brought snowshoes. Gael, Judy and Fran brought food and wine and bonhomie.
The tree fell in a good place, to no one's credit but nature's. It missed everything valuable, including the water vent pipe, and only took out a few branches of the old cedar tree.
No neighbours were annoyed in the cutting down of this tree.
Paul and Gabe Study the Situation
Paul up a Tree
Success
Paul Surveys the Damage
John Gathers Firewood
The audience was smaller than expected.
The Cottage in Winter
Walk Around the Lake
The Lake in Winter
Paul and Judy went up the night before to try to warm the cottage by morning. John, Gael, Gabe, Fran, and David arrived Saturday midday. John bought a chain saw, newly bought for the cottage, and David brought an extension ladder which he bought that morning in Peterborough, also for the cottage. Paul brought a willingness to climb said ladder and attach a rope to the tree, in the hope that it would aid in determining where it fell (it didn't). Gabe brought snowshoes. Gael, Judy and Fran brought food and wine and bonhomie.
The tree fell in a good place, to no one's credit but nature's. It missed everything valuable, including the water vent pipe, and only took out a few branches of the old cedar tree.
No neighbours were annoyed in the cutting down of this tree.
Paul and Gabe Study the Situation
Paul up a Tree
Success
Paul Surveys the Damage
John Gathers Firewood
The audience was smaller than expected.
The Cottage in Winter
Walk Around the Lake
The Lake in Winter
Friday, March 2, 2007
Tools and Equipment Bought
Extension Ladder:
David bought this at Home Depot in Peterborough in March, 2007, at a cost of $142.50.
Chain Saw:
John bought this in early 2007 for $108.20 plus chain saw oil took it to around $120.00, however, John and Gael generously rounded it off to $100.00. There is a manual for the chainsaw in the boathouse.
David bought this at Home Depot in Peterborough in March, 2007, at a cost of $142.50.
Chain Saw:
John bought this in early 2007 for $108.20 plus chain saw oil took it to around $120.00, however, John and Gael generously rounded it off to $100.00. There is a manual for the chainsaw in the boathouse.
Monday, February 12, 2007
Hydro and Electrical Matters
In October, 2009, John arranged to have our electrical service inspected, because our hydro bill had suddenly shot up. Here is what he reported.
"I called Jim(?) Johnson of Johnson Electric, who came down to the cottage and we talked about some of the problems we have been having.
He told me that the electric panel we have is top notch. They don't make them anymore, but he thinks what we have is very good and would not recommend replacing it. He also thinks the wiring we have is fine.
He suggested that the reason the hot water heater is tripping the switch so often is that the elements need replacing. He thinks he actually replaced them at our cottage about 10 years ago. He suggested that old elements tend to break and the two pieces to move apart. Electricity then starts to fire across the gap. This makes for a lot of hydrogen and oxygen, runs up the electric bill, and shorts our the circuit. He thought replacing the part now would simply allow them to corrode over the winter and shorten their lifespan, so he suggested spring was a better time. We will have to call him in the spring to get this done.
As for the heat, he thinks we really just need to get different electric baseboard heaters. The ones we have are likely drawing about 1500 watts, while each circuit likely has a load capacity of about 1800 watts. Two heaters on one circuit is going to trip the switch every time. Rather than rewiring the cottage, maybe we just need to replace the heaters. He told me of lost of pretty cool heaters which would do the trick, including some that go below the floor and look like regular furnace registers."
Our service is provided by Hydro One. Their web site is here.
Usage:
Our meter is read once a year, in mid-June. For the rest of the year, readings are estimated every three months, so we pay quarterly at a more or less equal rate, even though our use is all in the summer. At the next June reading, it is brought into line so to speak and we start all over again.
Our usage costs are around $20-$25 for a three month period or around $7-$8 a month.
Delivery Charges:
Our delivery charge is the main part of our hydro cost. We are classified as Seasonal High Density. High density rates are lower than normal density rates. They are fixed by the Ontario Energy Board.
Delivery costs take into account the cost of maintenance and service calls. They are composed of a fixed charge and a fluctuating volume charge.
Hydro One explains that:
The Federation of Ontario Cottagers' Association has criticized this approach because it does not promote conservation. It recommends that users should pay more for actual usage and less for fixed costs. In an article in Cottage Life in the October 2007 issue, one David Zimmer made the same point. He wrote that he and his family tried everything they could think of to lower their hydro bill, reducing their use to almost zero, but it had almost no effect on their bill. So they now use hydro luxuriously, and again it makes almost no difference in their bill
"I called Jim(?) Johnson of Johnson Electric, who came down to the cottage and we talked about some of the problems we have been having.
He told me that the electric panel we have is top notch. They don't make them anymore, but he thinks what we have is very good and would not recommend replacing it. He also thinks the wiring we have is fine.
He suggested that the reason the hot water heater is tripping the switch so often is that the elements need replacing. He thinks he actually replaced them at our cottage about 10 years ago. He suggested that old elements tend to break and the two pieces to move apart. Electricity then starts to fire across the gap. This makes for a lot of hydrogen and oxygen, runs up the electric bill, and shorts our the circuit. He thought replacing the part now would simply allow them to corrode over the winter and shorten their lifespan, so he suggested spring was a better time. We will have to call him in the spring to get this done.
As for the heat, he thinks we really just need to get different electric baseboard heaters. The ones we have are likely drawing about 1500 watts, while each circuit likely has a load capacity of about 1800 watts. Two heaters on one circuit is going to trip the switch every time. Rather than rewiring the cottage, maybe we just need to replace the heaters. He told me of lost of pretty cool heaters which would do the trick, including some that go below the floor and look like regular furnace registers."
Hydro Service
Our service is provided by Hydro One. Their web site is here.
Usage:
Our meter is read once a year, in mid-June. For the rest of the year, readings are estimated every three months, so we pay quarterly at a more or less equal rate, even though our use is all in the summer. At the next June reading, it is brought into line so to speak and we start all over again.
Our usage costs are around $20-$25 for a three month period or around $7-$8 a month.
Delivery Charges:
Our delivery charge is the main part of our hydro cost. We are classified as Seasonal High Density. High density rates are lower than normal density rates. They are fixed by the Ontario Energy Board.
Delivery costs take into account the cost of maintenance and service calls. They are composed of a fixed charge and a fluctuating volume charge.
Hydro One explains that:
Delivery charges vary according to the classification or type of electric service you have at your residence. Your service classification is based on the customer density in your area: high or normal. Our rates reflect the cost to serve customers in each density classification, which means that rates are higher for customers in less densely populated areas.Our current fixed delivery cost is $18.77 a month. This rate is the same for all of Ontario. Our average total delivery charge is $23.98 a month.
The Federation of Ontario Cottagers' Association has criticized this approach because it does not promote conservation. It recommends that users should pay more for actual usage and less for fixed costs. In an article in Cottage Life in the October 2007 issue, one David Zimmer made the same point. He wrote that he and his family tried everything they could think of to lower their hydro bill, reducing their use to almost zero, but it had almost no effect on their bill. So they now use hydro luxuriously, and again it makes almost no difference in their bill
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