The Stars are Shining

The Stars of East Port Medway were shining brightly as the community Christmas tree was decorated this weekend. Thank you to the 33 young and young at heart members of the community who decorated their stars in a bright display of holiday spirit!

p.s. The Stars of East Port Medway tied for second in the Queens County's Annual Community Christmas Tree Competition. As noted on their facebook page at:
http://www.facebook.com/home.php#!/event.php?eid=140049426049863

"The Christmas Spirit is strong in Queens County, and community pride is nearly overwhelming, as an overwhelming 15 trees were decorated by communities for the Annual Community Christmas Tree Competition."

"Tied for second place are the communities of East Port Medway and Kempt. East Port Medway decorated a tree with the theme "The Stars of East Port Medway", and is located at the East Port Medway Community Hall, 1400 Hwy. 331, East Port Medway. The tree was decorated with white, yellow, red and silver wooden stars, which were each personalized by families in the community."

Stars of East Port Medway

"Stars of East Port Medway" is this year’s theme for EPM’s entry in the Annual Community Christmas Tree Competition, sponsored by the Region of Queens Municipality.

Volunteers have cut-out and painted six inch wooden stars, and delivered one to each household with the invitation to further decorate the star to represent the family.

Stars will be returned and hung on this season's tree to represent the strength and brightness of the community.

The tree is on display in front of the Community Hall, and will be lit on Saturday December 4th, following the Christmas Potluck Dinner.

Serene Sunset

We spent a nice long weekend at Ulgedook Cottage this past weekend, and enjoyed unseasonably high temperatures under bright sunshine. Quite the change from the preceding ten days, during which it rained incessantly. Rivers in the area reached flood heights, and will take a while to recede.

Activities this weekend included biking, exploring (always more to scout out), further planning for the Community Christmas Tree, an overnight visit from friends Glennie and Donna, and, of course, breakfast at the TransScotia (no better deal).

Next weekend may be our last before disconnecting the water before it freezes. We’ll continue to come down to visit the wonderful communities in Queens County during the winter, but will need to overnight in motels rather than the comfort of our beloved cottage. My thoughts about closing the cottage for winter are reflected in this sunset photo of Medway Harbour... ending yet serene.

Happy Halloween

We spent Saturday at Ulgedook Cottage, starting with an enjoyable visit with Kerry and Evelyn Chambers... yummy food, LOTS of wine, and engaging conversation. Following dinner, we went to a Halloween Party in Milton, hosted by Brian Fralic and Jamie Stewart. Many partiers, from the ghoulish to the foolish. Susan was a Naughty Nun, and I was the Mindful Monk. A wonderful event... thanks Brian (aka The Mad Hatter) and Jamie (King Kong, carrying caged Ann Darrow; regretfully, no photo).

Church Poem, by Margaret Angus

A special thanks to Margaret Angus, friend and colleague, for crafting a wonderful poem, entitled "The Church." Inspired during a two day writers retreat at Ulgedook Cottage, Margaret has captured the spiritual and communal value of the church. Susan expressed our appreciation to Margaret by saying, "This is lovely. You created pictures of warm and tender memories, capturing the history and meaning of the church from the hearts and minds of those who worshiped there. Thank you for also celebrating it's new place of peace. "

A little history

This little bit of history is compliments of Kathryn Lemieux, a former trustee of the Wesley United Church.

Old(er) Photo

We are flattered to receive an old(er) photo of the church, and will hang it appropriately on the walls of Ulgedook Cottage.

We're not sure of the age of the photo, but evidently since electricity, and before vinyl siding. Upon close examination, you can see the use of decorative shingles to enhance the exterior appearance of the church. And upon very close inspection, you can note that the windows are in need of painting (as they are again).

There's always work to do.

Continued improvements

Since April, we have thoroughly enjoyed our time at Ulgedook Cottage, mostly spent as rest and relaxation. Generally, we have averted work tasks in favor of hedonistic pursuits.

That said, there are a variety of projects that need to be addressed, sooner or later. One deferred task has been painting the floor with new porch and floor paint from Behr. We learned late last year that this paint requires a long time to dry, and we simply have not been away from the cottage long enough to provide adequate dry time between visits.

This past week has given us that chance for an extended absence, so Joel opened the paint cans and applied two coats.

Looks good, hey (the floor... not Joel)?



...and looks best with the furniture replaced.

Hurricane Earl

Yesterday, Hurricane Earl made landfall at Western Head, as a minimal hurricane, producing produced 80–120 km/h winds, and resulted in widespread power outages, fallen trees, and minor coastal flooding.

Pictured below are some of the ravaging wave action following yesterdays blows (no surfing today). Also below, is a shot of Joel taking shelter in Little Harbour, alongside the "Joel Curtiss."

Ragged...

Susan finds this humorous...

Hooked Rug Raffle

Rug hooking materials: approximately $120

Rug hooking by talented Mary Brown: countless hours

Raffle tickets: $2 each or 3 for $5

Winning the raffle for a traditional hand hooked rug of the old East Port Wesley United Church (now Ulgedook Cottage): PRICELESS!!




To be drawn on October 2nd; tickets available at East Port Medway Community Hall penny auction on August 21st.

Postscript (October 12, 2010): We are pleased to learn that the winners of the hooked rug are summer residents Rebecca Bennett and A.D. Tinkham. Congratulations!

Great beach weather

Day spent at Risser's Beach... how glorious.

Great Island preservation

Today, we attended the Volglers Cove Community Centre to celebrate the permanent conservation of Great Island, a 300-acre property off the coast from Cherry Hill. The Nova Scotia Nature Trust (NSNT) announced an agreement with the property owners to conserve the largest island ever protected on the province's mainland. "The agreement ensures the island will remain in its natural state in perpetuity, by eliminating future development, subdivision or other activities that could harm the unique coastal environments of the island. Yet it allows for continued use and enjoyment of the island," said a NSNT spokesperson.


See more about the Nova Scotia Nature Trust at:
http://www.nsnt.ca/


Afterwards, we joined others for a walk on Cherry Hill Beach.

Riding at Keji

Today we travelled inland to Kejimkujik National Park, and spent some of the day cycling some of the many trails. Shaded trails provided some relief from the scolding temperatures, although a swim in lake would have been nice too.

Church Cupcakes

What can I say... not as much as Crystal Ross, who, created these culinary delights. Crystal, and her childhood friend, Kelly Day, are passionate about fine desserts and decadent baked sweets, and have started Gateaux Rose, a business that makes "desserts that are flavourful, rich and memorable; a decadent experience to enhance and complement your special day."

See more at:

Gateaux Rose: The Challenge: Ulgedook Cottage: "I have to say, this has to be one of my favorite requests yet... Turn Ulgedook cottage into a cupcake? You've got it! I decided some research..."

Lovely hosts

We send our sincere thanks to our new friends, Susan and Cathy from Toronto, for their genuine hospitality, a scrumptious dinner, and an evening of engaging conversation, at their century old summer home in Volgers Cove. We met Susan and Cathy only a week earlier, and are happy to meet such pleasant people, but regret that they only visit for a few weeks a year. We look forward to seeing them again next year, and sharing other enjoyable experiences.

You can view and learn more about their gorgeous home at:
http://www.sprucepoint.ca/

Ground cover for the p@#p chamber

We finally caved in and decided that we should do at least a little landscaping this summer, so we bought many (and many) ground cover plants to cover the septic tank. Shown here is Susan hard at work.

Ulgedook pronunciation

Our thanks go to Jill Jill Francis, Community Health Representative of the Acadia First Nation, for helping us with the pronunciation of Ulgedook. She pointed us to an Online Mi'kmaq dictionary with sound recordings, and searched for the word "mushroom," which is ulgedoo (without the "k"). The dictionary came up with the mi'kmaq word as "lgetu" (the spelling is based on a different orthography), but it sounds much as we expected it to. Listen for yourself at:

http://www.mikmaqonline.org/servlet/dictionaryFrameSet.html?arg0=mushroom&method=searchFromEnglish

Click here for a Dictionary of the language of the Micmac Indians (1888).

Click here for A First Book of Reading in the MicMac Language (1875).

Yard Sales & Auctions

Do you ever go to an auction or yard sale and say, "if I only had a cottage, I'd buy that... (such-a-such)." Well... WE DO!! So we can buy old, mismatched items that may enhance the aesthetics of the church, but that we'd never buy for home. The dishes pictured below are a case in point.

Vacationing Visitors

While vacationing in Nova Scotia, my relatives from New Brunswick made a stop to see Ulgedook Cottage. Shown below are my Aunt Joanne and Uncle Norm, and my cousin Tim and wife Cindy. They all liked the church turned cottage, and I hope that they will come again for a longer stay.

Privateer Days

We took in some of the many festivities of Privateer Days this weekend, including the Acadia First Nations Kepabskitk Gathering, a free concert by renowned country performer Carol Baker, and a re-enactment of the "Defense of the Crown" by the King's Orange Rangers. All in all, a great festival commemorating Liverpool's colourful privateer heritage.

May Long Weekend

Our May 2-4 weekend was spent like so many other cottagers; relaxing with drink in hand (a popsicle in my case), and enjoying the fine weather that was bestowed upon us. We hosted the Hats Off to Summer Party on Saturday, and awarded the People's Choice Award to Tim the Hippie for his adornment of attire fitting for the era.

Pictured here is Joel's attempt to be the church jester, and Susan's attempt to cool off.

You're invited

Happy Easter one and all

Many of our family joined us at Ulgedook on Easter Weekend to enjoy a cornucopia of delicious foods served up as a potluck Easter celebration. Guests were also treated to record breaking temperatures, allowing many to sit and relax outside as well as in.

With an early arrival of good weather, Susan and I are sure to be visiting Ulgedook Cottage on a regular basis from now on. Come join us sometime.

Closed for Season

After a very busy year, and now cloaked in snow and freezing temperatures, Ulgedook is closed for the Season. We look forward to less work and more fun in 2010, and invite all to join us at anytime to participate in a relaxing get-away.