Rebecca Cheptegei died today.  She was a marathon runner who recently competed in the Paris Olympics.  She was a 33 year old mother of two daughters, aged 12 and 13.  Two days ago, her ex-partner doused her with gasoline and set her on fire, over a dispute about land.  Two days ago, a man thought it was okay to set his ex-partner on fire, because he was angry, because he didn't get what he wanted.  This man and his culture and the world told him that it's okay to kill a woman.  

Every day, 133 women are killed in the world by their intimate partners or family members.  Every day women are beaten, mutilated and killed.  Every day women are targeted because of their gender.

When I was in grade four, our teacher was beaten to death by her husband.  Shortly after I graduated from high school, one of our classmates was beaten to death by her boyfriend.  When I worked at the RAH, one of the nurses there was killed by her husband.  When I lived in the West End of Edmonton, a young nurse was killed by her ex-boyfriend, after her late shift.  He waited for her to get off work, killed her and then set her car on fire.  And that's just me and some of the women I've known.  

I've been both physically and sexually assaulted by the men in my life and most women you talk to have a story to tell of things that have happened to them.

And my question is, what did we do to piss men off?  Why are men so afraid of women?  This is not a new phenomenom, men having been killing women for thousands of years and my question is why?

So I did very little research and found this article,"The weaker sex? Science that shows women are stronger than men.".  Granted this is confirmation bias but it is also my lived experience.  And is this why men are afraid of women?  Because they know, deep down, that they need us more than we need them?  Do they resent this dependence?  

I don't have answers and I apologize to the men who are not monsters, who read this post, but I am so sad and angry today, to hear that another woman, a woman who was succeeding and doing well, a woman who was showing other women how to succeed, was murdered by her ex-partner.  

It was our anniversary yesterday.  It's a good thing this photo pops up on facebook, otherwise both of us would forget.  We got married up at Jasper, eight years ago.

When Jack started school last week, I realized it will be another thirteen years that I will be tied to a school calendar.  I don't mind, much, maybe a little.  I had wanted to travel a little when I retired, so I guess we'll just pull Jack out of school once in awhile and take him with us.  I would still like to visit Italy.

This photo was taken behind our house.  There are actually houses all around the pond, and a new school being built, but it's still a lovely little pond.  As you can see, there are also a lot of cattails.  Everyday when I go for my walk with the dogs, I watch the progression of the cattails, and they're nearing the end of their season.  This morning I read an article on how to harvest and dry the leaves, in preparation for weaving.  I thought about just watching videos on how to weave a basket, but I decided I would like to get out and meet other people, so I signed up for a course on basket weaving in a couple of weeks.  I'm kind of excited.

Yesterday an old friend drove out to the Park so we could have lunch together.  She kept trying to convince me to move back to the West End of Edmonton but that's not going to happen.  It's only a half hour drive to her place, not so far really.  We had a lovely visit.  We've been friends for thirty-two years.  She has multiple myeloma but she's doing well and enjoying life.  She wanted me to join her card group but that's not going to happen either.  Her friends are rich women, not my type.

I had bad vertigo last week that left me very grumpy, nauseous, and very tired, shockingly tired.  It's finally gone now but I couldn't believe how drained it left me.  I have BPPV which is not a terrible thing but it is unpleasant.  I've had it since I was eighteen, and it comes and goes.  I am very thankful the vertigo is now gone.

I'm off to make some supper, so I don't have to cook later, and then walk the dogs.  It's cold and windy this morning, so I'm waiting a bit to walk the dogs.  It's dark now when we get up, sigh.  Winter is coming.

A slightly poisonous toadstool, with some halucinogenic qualities, just growing along the pathway.  I've been digging up baby spruce trees where these mushrooms grow and transplanting them to the pathway behind our house.  There used to be five columnar poplars growing there but they were cut down by the county because the trees were dying.  And now, five years later, still no replacement trees, so I though I would take matters into my own hands.  The spruce are very tiny, maybe three inches tall, but they'll get bigger, eventually.  I also picked some rosehips from the wild roses and planted those as well.  While I'm at it, I think I'll try planting some dogwood berries there as well.  

A few years ago I tried growing oak trees from the acorns, with limited success, but I did give some of those trees away to a colleague who lives on an acreage, and those trees are still alive.  As I've been walking on the paths, and through the woods, behind our house, I've noticed probably half a dozen oak trees trying to grow.  One was doing very well, and was probably four feet tall.  The others look only a year old and I'm sure were a result of a forgetful squirrel.  I hope they survive the winter.

Life continues on, the days are shorter, the nights are longer and cooler.  The leaves have started to change colour and summer is ending.  Jack starts school on Thursday, and he's excited about that.  I'm planting trees and I'm excited about that.

I couldn't figure out who this photo belonged to but it definitely makes a point.  I'll try to start answering comments again, but I lack energy right now.  Sorry.

I don't have much right now, feeling down and tired.  We saw the lawyer this morning and back to court next week.  I haven't even felt like going through my photos and processing them.  Here's a few.

 

Flowers on top of Mount Revestoke.

 Creamer, Creamy or Creamsicle.

 

I made it to my brother's and I'm having a lovely visit.  We had a long talk last night and it was good.

I stopped at Mount Revelstoke on the way here to stop and take photos of the Meadows in the Sky.  The flowers weren't as prolific as they were ten years ago but still a good little hike.  It was quiet up there.

I'm relaxing.  My brother and I took their dog for a nice long walk this morning.  The dog ended up in the lake so he could cool off. He's a very sweet dog.

I'm a fan of tansy, even though it means that summer is passing.  Soon the wild asters will bloom, if they haven't already, and it will mean that summer is coming to an end soon.

I'm leaving for a visit with my brother tomorrow.  I'll stop in Revelstoke to take photos and hopefully get some good ones.  Jack will be with his grandma and the dogs and hubby are staying home.  I'm looking forward to visiting with my brother.

I hope.

We have a squirrel who has discovered our birdfeeder and who likes to mock the dogs.  Even after it knew it had been seen by both us and the dogs, it continued to eat, calm as can be.  Charlie obviously didn't see the squirel but Heidi was sitting with us on the deck and definitely saw the squirrel.

Rudbeckia, I am a fan.

I worked yesterday and was exhausted after work, as usual.  I slept like the dead last night.  I'm so thankful I retired and when my coworkers asked how retirement was, I told them I gave it two thumbs up.

I was in the interventional suite yesterday morning and I was busy flushing the port before the doc needed it but out of the corner of my eye, I could see the doc standing with his hand out.  I turned around and said, "What do you need sweetie?".  OMG.  I spend a lot of time with a five year old obviously and call him sweetie.  This is the same doc we all had so much trouble with for years but who has made a 180 degree turn and is now so nice to work with.  At the end of the case he gave me a high five.  The nurse and the tech in the next case called him sweetie as well, it was a thing all day.  When I saw him at the end of the day he was still chuckling when he saw me in the hall.  

The fire in Jasper National Park continues to grow.  Last night it grew by 24%, or 95,000 acres.  The town is mostly safe now but not liveable at present.  It continues to be hot here, although rain has been forecast for most of next week which should help.

Retirement is slowly taking shape.  I walk the dogs for an hour each morning and then do what I want.  I always thought that I don't clean the bathrooms more often because I didn't have time.  Turns out that was a lie.  My bathrooms don't get cleaned anymore than they did when I was working.  

I picked up an old linen chest at a thrift store a couple of weeks ago and I've been working on it.  It had some damage, not much, and mostly just needed a good clean and some sanding.  It's looking nice and I'll use it in the basement bedroom for linen storage and someplace for visitors to leave their suitcase, so the suitcase isn't on the floor.

I've been putzing in the garden and taking Jack out of daycare at least once a week to spend time at the spray park, something he loves.  I take a camp chair and a book and he has a great time playing in the water.  I have quilts to work on this winter which should keep me busy enough, plus an elipitcal trainer to use when it's too cold to walk outside.

Suppers are not rushed and I've lost that stress that I always had, do I have what I need to make suppers and lunches?  Is the laundry caught up?  When can I fit in Katie's appointments, as well as mine and Jack's?  I have time for this now and it's a nice feeling.  Plus I'm not exhausted at the end of the day, I don't feel like garbage.

So far, retirement=two thumbs up.