Wednesday, July 1, 2009

Happy Birthday, Canada!


It's Canada Day!

The Bag Lady will celebrate by hanging the new flag that she had to buy because the wind has been terribly strong this year and her flag is looking a little worse for wear.

There are showers in the forecast for tomorrow, which may interfere with some people's plans for picnics or other outdoor activities, but the Bag Lady will be more than happy if it actually rains. It has been so terribly dry that the pasture and the hayfield are suffering greatly. In fact, it may almost be too late to save the hayfield.

The Bag Lady and the Rancher were checking out one of the hayfields the other day, clearing any dead trees that had fallen that might interfere with the haybine. The hay in that particular field is the best that they have, but even then is barely halfway to the Bag Lady's knees.
They were clearing the last tree off the field when the Rancher pointed out something unusual in the bush:


Here is a closer look:


You might want to click on the pictures to enlarge them. Do you see it? Can anyone explain how it got there? This piece of land was homesteaded by the Rancher's father about 40 years ago. At that time, you could purchase a quarter section of virgin land from the government for a relatively small amount of money, with the stipulation that you had to break 40 acres and plant some kind of crop. That is all that has ever been done on this particular land. No-one has ever lived there, and certainly no-one has ever planted lilac trees there! This one has obviously been there for a very long time - it's really tall. The only explanation that the Rancher and the Bag Lady could come up with is that it blew in from across the road - a distance of about a quarter of a mile. It's very strange. But then.....

19 comments:

Miz said...

Im officially becoming CANADIAN TODAY.

does that mean it's a day off?
may I go back to bad?

I await yer command,

Miz.

Hilary said...

Funny about the lilacs. Perhaps fairies...

And as much as a re-doze sounds inviting, I think I like MizFit's typo much better. ;)

Happy Canada Day, eh?

solarity said...

Happy Canada Day!

Up to your knees? That sounds bad. In other words, like last year here. Nobody's cattle starved last winter, though.

Mary Anne in Kentucky

Leah J. Utas said...

You have the dangdest things growing up your way.
Sad about the pasture. I do hope you (we) get rain and plenty of it.

the Bag Lady said...

Miz - yup, it's a holiday! You can go back to sleep, or go back to being bad, whichever suits you best! :)

Hilary - perhaps it WAS fairies! They like to play little tricks like that, don't they?

Mary Anne in Kentucky - it is really bad. There are some areas in Alberta where the hayfields (and pastures)didn't grow at all! The ranchers there have had to feed their cattle hay this summer, the price of which has skyrocketed.

Thanks, cousin. It is very cloudy here this morning, but still nothing has fallen from the sky. Yet.

Charlotte said...

Yay Canada!!! And can I just say that lilacs are my favorite flower? Not really helpful when someone wants to buy me a bouquet but it makes my summers very pleasant:)

Ann (bunnygirl) said...

I think I need dual citizenship, Canadian and United States. Then I could take most of the first week in July off every year.

I hope you get rain soon. We need rain here, too, but it's not too serious yet. I think our water tables are in good shape.

Missicat said...

Happy bday Canada!! Would be nice to have dual citizenship - we get Friday off since the 4th of July falls on a Saturday this year. Yay for three day weekends!

messymimi said...

I wish you and all Canadians many happy returns of the day.

May you also get all the rain you need, but not more than you need.

messymimi

Terrie Farley Moran said...

df Bag Lady,

Happy Birthday to Canada! How old is she now???

I know what you mean about the flag getting beaten by the weather. Seems like I am always replacing mine.

Terrie

the Bag Lady said...

Charlotte - I love lilacs, too! The smell is divine.

BG - dual citizenship would be a great idea! Maybe I should do that, too! :) A whole week off in July sounds great.

Missicat - because July 1st is in the middle of the week this year, there's no long weekend. Most people work 2 days, get today off, then work 2 more days.

Messymimi - thanks! That's my second biggest fear - it'll start raining and not know when to quit!(My first fear, of course, is that it won't rain at all.)

dfTerrie - Thanks! Canada was "born" in 1867, so she's 142 today.

My poor flag is soon going to be minus one red panel... but it's nasty cold and windy out today, so I haven't yet put the new one up. (I'm patriotic and all, but I'm also a wimp!)

Reb said...

Good for you for having a flag up and knowing when to replace it. I love the fact that you have mystery lilacs growing. Maybe they were planted by some young native girl hundreds of years ago (well many anyway). You could make a story out of them, do a bit of research on the area.

We have had a few overnight showers, but not enough to make a big difference. I hope we all get some rain soon.

Redbush said...

Happy Canada Day to you too, Bag Lady! Wow! You're lucky that those lilacs seemed to reseed themselves amongst all those tall poplar trees! I agree that we need the rain badly, but, some warmer weather wouldn't hurt either. My plants are freezing to death, and so am I!

the Bag Lady said...

Reb - yes, I decided several years ago that I needed a flag - I like to know which way the wind blows.... And it is looking very tattered now.
We still haven't had any rain, although the clouds look very ominous. And the wind continues to blow.

Hi, Redbush! We could certainly use some rain - a nice warm, gentle rain. And then some nice warm summery days with little or no wind! That isn't too much to ask, is it?

Melissa said...

Yay Canada!!!! I almost expatriated there four years ago. Then I decided to stay here and be depressed and anxious instead.

Gratuitous Lilacs! You deserve it, Bag Lady.

(PS BABY CAME THIS MORNING!!!)

JavaChick said...

Here I've been nursing along this poor little lilac bush, just hoping to some day get flowers, and you find one on the bush. Sheesh!

;)

the Bag Lady said...

Melissa - congratulations on the new grandbaby!! Better than gratuitous lilacs anyday!

JavaChick - that's exactly how I felt! I have one that I've been trying to coax along for 4 or 5 years.... it finally bloomed (three blossoms!) this year.

Sagan said...

Interesting about the tree.

Happy yesterday Canada Day!

the Bag Lady said...

Thanks, Sagan - hope you had a great Canada Day, too!