Saturday brought a bit of a grey and rainy day, but I dragged myself out to support my favorite charity on the island, the Bermuda SPCA. It was their annual expo, a family event involving kids games, a pet parade, the local cat fancier's show, and some livestock from the local farms to show the kids (You should have seen the reactions from toddlers when the donkeys let out a loud bray...saw a number of little ones fall over from shock as they learned that not all that is fuzzy meows or barks. I stuck around that area for a few minutes of smug ex-farm kid amusement.) It was a good excuse to take a food donation in, buy some raffle tickets to support the shelter, and say hi to some of the volunteers I haven't seen for a while. I have to confess I just haven't been able to make my way back after my JJ cat passed away, but Lisa from the shelter met me with a big hug and a lot of concern and told me to just come by for coffee -- I promised that I would try to get back soon. I did see lots of cute puppies dressed for the parade and managed to get a couple of cute pictures of the contestants.
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| This little guy didn't look like he wanted his friends to see him in this outfit |
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| While this little girl was proud of her pastels |
The Expo was set in the Botanical gardens, and while I normally explore the end closest to the hospital, I saw a couple more nooks and crannies that I wanted to explore. For one, I discovered that we have an aviary, which is under reconstruction and had some sad looking parrots that caused me great concern. What anyone should do if they see an animal that looks like it is in poor condition, is document and report. Just for information, the SPCA website has a link to report animal cruelty, when in doubt, contact them to check it out.
I got a call back from the SPCA today and the good news is that there had been prior complaints that the small aviary is not longer being kept up and staffed to properly care for the birds, and so the responsibility was handed over to one of the SPCA officers who takes fresh fruit and vegetables twice a day and is working to rebuild their home. The feather loss was apparently a stress reaction to losing her nesting box, and possibly from not receiving the much needed fruit and veggie diet prior to the SPCA offering to help. It is still sad to see them in a small enclosure and not getting a lot of interaction -- I suspect most people are unaware that they are tucked away in there, so I am going to go and visit on a couple of lunch breaks in the near future and will keep you posted on improvements. I will sleep better knowing that she is going to be properly cared for from now on and expecting to see home improvements start soon.
The drizzling skies kept me from doing as much exploring as I wanted to do, and most photos were marred by a rogue raindrop that settled on my lens, but I found two really cool things. Firstly a fountain in a quiet garden near Camden house behind a covered balcony where 3 artists were lurking with their paints, and secondly something that I would expect to see in Canada, and cannot for the life of me imagine how it found a place in Bermuda.
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| Creepy fountain with green water and slime |
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| How....and why....did this get here? |
Sunday morning was mostly uneventful, and rather than remember to start peeling those potatoes, all of my focus was directed on one task. Securing the main course, the chickens (the rationale for chicken vs turkey was outlined in the last post). Rotisserie chicken may be bought but not pre ordered at the grocery store, but through a little reconnaissance and i was assured that by arriving at 1pm when the store opened there would be chicken. Still I could only manage a furtive sleep filled with nightmares about not getting there in time to get chickens So, again, the primary focus of the whole morning was to worry about nothing but the 1pm chicken acquisition. My co host, Siobhan (aka Shibby, owner and primary inhabitant of the studio apartment known as McShibby's) worked the night shift and should have been sleeping, but she too was experiencing chicken anxiety. This prompted a primary scooter run over with the pumpkin cupcakes, whipped topping, stuffing, extra kitchen stuff -- minus those pesky potatoes which I forgot to even bring let alone peel -- and zipped down the road to the store arriving at 1:05. Despite the 1pm store opening, when I arrived there were people pouring out of the store, some carrying a chicken under each arm. My heart rate immediately doubled as I raced into the store and down the aisle to the meat counter where I could only spy a measly 6 of the 35 promised chickens remaining. I started scooping up chickens under the glare of the disapproving meat counter man, and tried to hide a couple while I furtively made my way to the checkout counter carrying away the dinner hopes of several other customers in my arms. I took the chickens to McShibby's, still a hyper mess due to the near dinner party disaster that could have been if i were 30 seconds later...which is when Shibby reminded me about the potatoes and need to prep all the vegetables. After we let her get a grand total of an hour's sleep (while I went home and attacked the potatoes), it was go time! Shibby baked her signature chocolate cake, a pumpking pie, roasted veggies, stirfry veggies, we did end up with a fair size feast in the end. As things go in Bermuda, almost everyone was late, but eventually the whole crew rolled in, filled their tummies, and sang their hearts out. A successful day indeed.
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| Dressed in Canada Red, Shibby and Jenny ready for Canadian Thanksgiving |
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| Friends new and old |
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| Photo mobbing it...until karaoke started...who knew we were all divas! |
I am thankful to have so many amazing people in my life, near and far, new and old. This crew is another of Bermuda's unique blessings.
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