On March 26th, in the late afternoon, our beloved cat Annie died , here with us, on the boat.  For the last 3 years , she had many health problems, and the medication she received, added to her distress.          The meds stopped working  the last 6 months, and she went down hill from there.

Annie was amazing, my daughter and i found her at the SPCA in Courtenay.     There she was, a tiny kitten, 5 weeks old, hovering together with her brothers and sisters in a large cage, all little black and white kittens, some very fluffy, some not, but, one little one stood out, sitting all by herself, staring right into my eyes, a black spot on her nose, and i knew, she was it.      She lived with us at Knight Rd, in Comox, one of the busiest roads in the area, plus very dangerous for cats to cross, and they all did, because on the other side of the road was a farm, fields full of bugs, mice , and wonderful warm earth to lie in.           When i came home from work, she would not be home, but, there would be this black and white spot in the fields, staring back at me…..       I would go towards her, and she knew, she was in trouble , again!!, but within minutes there was no sign of her, and there she was, sitting on the deck of my little house, as if to say, whats keeping you mom?????         I found out that day, that she used the giant culvert under the road  to get back and forth!!!         Other cats from our neighbours were not so lucky, as they tried to outdo the traffic……..     In 2001, i sold the house, bought a truck and camper , put Annie in the camper, and away we went, all the way to Alaska first, then across Canada and back.    We traveled a total of 18600.00 km.        She was amazing, knew what to do, i would put her on a leash, and a harness, and walked her around in the campground.   One day we met up with a black bear, Annie and the bear just looked at each other and went about their business.      Not so the case with the skunk in Ontario, a beautiful big black and white boy, he came sauntering towards the camper, saw Annie, and maybe thought…. heh!!! cute little female skunk!!!!!      YIKES!!!  i changed his mind very quickly!!!!

Annie lived with us on the boat for 10 years, she settled right in, made some spots here and there her own, never left the boat to jump on the dock, but lounged around on deck, loved lying on top of the canvas, with a full view of the marinas and anchorages.    She made friends with Jonathan seagull, they would sit next to each other , munching on some tidbits.

I cannot describe my sadness of her loss, she was my little soulmate, always there, always purring that amazing strong purr of hers, always talking to me , understanding everything.  She loved Bert, loved sitting on his knees when he first met her.     We will miss her badly, the boat is not the same without her, i wish her peace, no more pain, sunshine and bugs to chase, together with her cat friends, Multi, Fred, WW and Charlie.  We love you sweet cat.

In the Comox Valley, on Headquarters rd. there is a place,  the Dee Kay Tee Ranch, where you can rent a log cabin or a bigger cabin, called the Bunkhouse, they both face the mountains and the farm fields, they run on 12 volt, from solar panels, and the heat comes from a wood stove, yes, you have to haul wood, and if its very cold  , you need to get up in the middle of the night , to feed the stove.      The cooking stove and the hot water for the bathroom comes from propane.       

• As you drive in , past the farm house where Dan and Maggie live, there are cows every where, and ducks in the huge puddles after a big rain.
• The pregnant females graze in the far back, and this time of year with their calves.
• Eagles fly overhead, and in the middle of the night i heard an owl , by its call i think it was a Great Horned.
• The very first time we stayed here was at Christmas, and at that time we stayed in the log cabin, where the bed is in the loft, accessible only with a very steep ladder, at that time it was not a problem, even Annie clambered up there, and down, but, as time went by comfort became more important,( like going to the bathroom in the middle of the night), the bunkhouse seemed a better idea, it has two bedrooms  and all one floor.
• There are no fridges, just a big icebox, Maggie has lots of ice in a big freezer at the house, and its really all you need.
• We always bring our oil lamps, and love sitting there at dusk, looking out at the mountains.
• The website address is ; The log cabin & bunkhouse.

young flies,rounded wings,buzzing up a storm against the window,rain is clearing,blue sky, the mountains visible in between the clouds.         Deer are coming forwards,i am not outside now,so all is safe.     Wood stove humming with the heat,i can feel it against my back,so wonderful, so comforting.      Very large puddles in the fields, the sun reflecting in the now quiet water, some fields are fully flooded, ducks landing, to do some dabbling, frogs croaking every where, robins singing , i do believe spring is here……..       Deer jumping the fences, on spring loaded legs, keeping an eye on me, behind the glass, candles burning, a soft golden light, trying to read the words in my book.         They are coming closer now, its all ok, dusk is coming fast,i am quiet.    A large female deer, trying to out stare me, i am holding still in the candle light , a raspberry hovering , halfway to my mouth.      Not moving and then she jumps the fence,closer still , all other six follow to graze around the cabin.   I can still see the last deer, almost dark out there now, its shape is close to me , it munches on some grass here and there, before jumping the fence, with incredible ease.     The sky is clear, it will be nice tomorrow…….

I finally created a second blog for my beading, which i have been doing for over 20 years.   Whenever i create some new bracelets or necklaces, i end up selling them, i have been trying to keep some of them and maybe have enough for a market, but thats just not working.   So, i decided to show them off on a blog.  Enjoy!!  www.blissfulbeadingonaboat.wordpress.com

Back again, finally, still typing with one finger, but only for two more weeks, then hopefully the cast will come off.  Curtsy has been resting, mainly becoming a resting spot for the gull couple that i have befriended, and the odd crow.  But, the light is changing, it is becoming brighter,fellow boaters are washing and polishing their boats, fixing problems,changing the oil,spring is coming!!!!   Our little bonsai has swollen, green buds, too early really, so i watch over it ,dont want it to get too cold.   Bert is working in Vancouver,for a couple of months,it helps us financially and keeps him out of trouble,haha!!!  Its not easy on the boat with just one hand working, but its amazing how fast i adapted,closing the zippers on the canvas was the biggest problem.   Our little cat Annie is doing quite well, i took her off of her meds,the side affects were bad, so now i give her an herbal remedy from Petwellbeing.com it seems to work,she is quite happy,eats well,sleeps well,so, we will see.

The winter here has been good, well, except for the black ice….hhmmm.. but, it has been a good place for Curtsy,people are great,every one is friendly,Port McNeill is a good place to be.     In April, we are going to Holland for 10 days,visit Bert’s and my family,then, when we return,Curtsy will be cleaned,polishes,filled with fuel,and eventually, hopefully, the sails with wind, and off we go, we might head to the Broughtons first,we never did have a good look there,after that, we dont know, we have friends all down the coast and would like to see them,so we will see…..