Hottest: wishful thinking
It’s still hot. It’s not even shimmering heat – it’s just curl up and die heat. Our garden is not faring well – but it’s a good day to wash and dry an old and much loved teddy.
So what else can you do on a hot day? Catch a free train – unless it’s canceled. Wash the kitchen floor with buckets of water and kids. And do lots of wishful thinking.
I looked for the coolest places on earth to run away too. I think Sooke Harbour House on Vancouver Island in British Columbia looks like my kind of place.
I might run away and take one of those ocean view rooms, watch killer whales, check out the art gallery, walk by the water, sit by an open fire, soak in a bath (guilt free – Lots of water in BC), eat at the organic restaurant, drink good wine and all that stuff. Now that would be a place to write a novel! They have a blog – maybe they need a blogger in residence. Hmm. Well regardless, it’s going on our list for our fantastical Cross Canada Adventure in five year’s time.
And because I know we are heading up to 43ºc some time this afternoon, I am going to spend time checking out the website for the Ice Hotel in Sweden.
Mmm. Chilly.
Anyway, back to reality. I am off to have an icey pole for lunch.
What are you wishfully thinking about?
I live in B.C. and Sooke Harbour House is on my to go to list! 😉 I’m dreaming of the beach more than anything after all of our snow.
First of all, nice blog!Normally I don’t really read any blogs, but today I came from one site to an other and finally finished at your blog. Was probably the picture of the teddy why I stayed at your site. Looks pretty similar to the one I got, when I was a kid. And I replay now the first time in my life to a blog, because I really like the thought about an Ice hotel. Australia is so hot! So HOT! These are really days that makes me thinking about home, and the good and cold middle-european weather.I wish you a nice day.Cheers Marc
I’m wishfully thinking about a time in my life when I can actually fit in a printmaking course. Mmmmmm…. etchings….
I stayed at the Sooke Harbour House years ago–it was amazing! I’ve dreamed of going back every since. Edible flowers in every meal! You must go!
Same. I’m dreaming of being somewhere cooler, and it’s not nearly as hot here as it is in Melbourne. I hung the washing on the line this morning and the first things were dry before the last things were pegged out. Crazy.
I’m in the US and my yard is covered in 4 inches of ice. I’m wishing for heat! The grass is always greener…
You sound like me in our summer. I live in Phoenix, AZ and this time of year I feel for you and then in my summer I envy you. You will survive. I did. But I’m not looking forward to another.
I’m living on Fruity icy sticks.We’re sleeping in the lounge-room under the fan.Dreaming about the Maldives.Doing my best to just give in to it.Dang it’s hot.
I am currently consideribg a nomadic lifestyle. I’ve been thinking that Antartica might be a good place to set up residence for a quarter of the year.
Mmmm … I could use a little dose of Dubai (like it was in the 70’s & 80’s), or a walk on North Beach, Queen Charlotte Islands (start your Canadian tour there!).I live in central Alberta, Canada, it’s January and it’s raining. I can’t complain, it was -40 with the windchill last week.
I’m a happy camper!
The first photo is fantastic!
Swiss Alps maybe?As silly as it sounds, I’d rather be at work at the moment rather than a day off.
Like Frances, we’re sleeping in the lounge where the air-con is working it’s hardest however only has an effective range of about 1 meter.
Our outside temperature gauge reads 45.1c.
I’m melting!
A ukelele, an accordion, dark chocolate and gorgeous roving. That’s all I want.I live in Vancouver and I take baths all I want; included heat and hot water are standard in most BC apartments. 🙂
i could have a time out in one of the Golden Villas with a pool at http://www.cavotagoo.gr/
The idea of ‘warm’ sounds so happy ~ hot?! Ah! So sweeeet. We are freezing over here!Love your blog!
I’m wishfully thinking of a rainstorm that I know is not coming. Our poor aircon is struggling and the kids look like beetroots – bring on winter!!
If you want to go to Sooke (I highly recommend it, we went there for our honeymoon) you should actually go here: http://www.pointnopointresort.com/ and get a private cabin with a jacuzzi on your private deck.
I thinking of cold beers because our fridge is dry and it’s too bloody hot to go out to get some. It’s like when you go hiking and about an hour in knowing you’ve got hours or days ahead, all you can think about are icy beers and long glasses filled with ice chips and topped with coke.The other thing I’m thinking of is school – it’s my eldest daughter’s first day on Monday and I’m hoping that it isn’t like this, so crappy to start on a day like that, although I know plenty have.
You’ve also got me thinking about Canada and all my time there. We were booked into SookeHH on our return from the UK, but then when we were further along in my pregnancy we had to reduce the trip and that went!! I’m still making him pay for that!
Rain.All I can think about is rain. Days of big fat raindrops echoing on the skylights (which we have currently boarded up, to keep the heat out – ha).
My garden is done for – we do not have a tank, I can’t justify using fresh tap water, and there is only so much washing machine and bath water to go around.
Hubby says “just save the trees” – I’m trying.
Number one resolution – get a tank.
PS I love Teddy’s Matching Pegs!
I’m thinking about making room on the kitchen table for the sewing machine so I can make some dresses and toys. I’ve been thinking about this for over 6 months though and it hasn’t happened.Here is the cooler place I’m dreaming of. It’s closer than Canada! http://southportjettyhouse.com/
What a lovely well-loved cuddle-worn teddy. That getaway does look relaxing, just somewhere to get away from it all for a few days.
It IS perfect weather for teddy drying.And I have an hilarious image of you dunking kids in buckets and rubbing them all over the kitchen floor, while they are in fits of giggles. No? Just my imagination then. Sounds like fun though.
Mmmm, icy poles for lunch.
I forgot how magnificent Vancouver Island is. I grew up there, but couldnt wait for the day to flee, travel the world and live somewhere exotic. I really do miss the flora and fauna.
Washing much loved teddies is always so heart breaking – although he does seem to be enjoying the nice sunny weather!
On your trip across Canada, you could also stop by the Ice Hotel in Qubec 🙂 http://www.icehotel-canada.com/Right now, i’m pretty content with our winter snow up in the Abitibi region of Qubec, but i’d love to find myself at that Harbour House !
I’ll trade you some of your warmth for some of our cold…
If your Canadian travels take you through Winnipeg (it’s right in the centre) and you need a place to stay – let me know.
Icy poles! They sound so much better than a popcicle (US version).
I am wishfully thinking about spring veggies. It’s warmed up a little here, not that it was so very cold, but warm enough that I’m thinking about fresh, green things and how soon I’m going to be able to till my garden and plant tomato seeds. I love root vegetables, but I’m ready to move on.
that the end of the workday would hurry and get here!
It’s always so wierd to me to visit the blogs of my friends down under. It never fails, whatever you are experiencing we are experiencing the exact opposite. I can’t even fathom being hot today… I’ve got a foot and a half of fresh snow staring at me. I’m going to dream of eating popsicles with you today and heads-up…. I’m throwing you a snowball!
dreaming of sunshine and warmer weather… enough to wear sandals again. it snowed twice this week here in nyc. although after a few years of living in miami, i am enjoying having seasons again.hope you stay cool enough! i used to stand in front of the open freezer door to cool down! 🙂
ooooh! You’re hot in Melbourne now too! Last weekend it was 41 in Sydney and I nearly passed out from the heat! All the best keeping cool – fingers crossed you get a cool change this evening.
Hi Claire,Long time reader, first time writer…
Well, 43 degrees sounds unbearable, but Iusually dream of wintering in your part of the world. We’ve had few days since November in Chicago that have been above freezing with lots and lots of snow. So tired of it!
I’m thinking of mild spring days and plantingzucchini…
Cheers.
You should definitely stay at the Sooke Harbour House. (I’m biased, I work there.)Not only are the tubs at our hotel guilt-free because BC has an abundance of water but we actually have a state of the art membrane bio-reactor that recycles most of our grey (bath) water. This recycled and clean water is used to flush our toilets and water our certified organic edible garden (which we offer tours of daily at 10:30am). We don’t want to waste water even if we could get away with it.
(Hey California, are you listening?)
Point No Point is nice but does it have a library? Gourmet daily-changing breakfast? 24/7 staff and concierges? Do you fill the bath-tub with clean water each time you use it or do you share with the previous tenant? (That one I don’t know about, I have never stayed there. I do know that our jetted tubs are not classic jacuzzis, here you fill them when you need them and help water our gardens in the by and by. You can also have an in-door tub, with a view, next to your wood-burning fireplace. Yup, wood-burning fireplaces in every single guest room.)
Each room is unique and this one, #14, is full of museum-quality coast Salish art: http://www.sookeharbourhouse.com/websitepublisher/articles/3/1/14—The-Victor-Newman-Longhouse/Page1.html
Sooke Harbour House! A wonderful place! Uses as much local food as possible and supports the community around it. A friend to community gardens everywhere.Of course, you know I’m going to mention this… if you decide to come out here (and you have the time as I know it can be difficult) it would be nice to meet and join up our two first borns. We are not far from Sooke.
An ice hotel??Only in Sweden! That’s a brilliant idea, though it wouldn’t last long down here, particularly now that Perth has decided to join in the national heatwave!
…too funny…we’ve just spent the weekend on Vancouver Island.In fact, we were in the hot tub at our hotel one night and my husband commented “…the temperature in here is the same as it’s been in Adelaide the last week…”. And as we rugged up each day to brave the elements (woollen underwear, thermals, mid-layer, warm jacket, scarf, ear warmers, hat, gloves and umbralla) we thought about the heat wave many times. Sigh – the grass is always greener (or brown and wilting as the case may be….).
Ahhh, Sooke is lovely, but I have to agree with the pointnopoint comment by MamaVee, we spent a lovely night in one of those private cabins, right on the beach! I am visiting my folks in Utah right now, but we reside on vancouver island and it does not look like that photo up there right now, much more foggy and rainy! The grass is always greener 🙂
Funny you linked to this. My brother and his family were in Sweden this Christmas and Jan and they went to the Ice Hotel, my Mum was telling me that it cost them around AUD$1000 for a day visit for the four of them, but what an experience. No pooh poohing here.Bad thing was they got back a week ago so still had to withstand the 45 degree plus. Hopefully they can mind travel back to where they’d been 7 days prior. What a culture shock.
Both Point-no-Point and Sooke Harbour House are lovely places to stay…and then you could pop by our house (45 mins away)…or we could house swap while you are on your Canadian tour. We LOVE Australia!
Is anyone else wishfully wondering how the first day of school went?!
I am wishing to be on a tropical island, lounging and sipping a cool drink, watching the waves come in and the waves go out. In the shade of course. And with my sweetheart. big hug, Deborah
Vancouver Island is so lovely! Parts of it seem right out of a storybook.
Wow! I have been to both the Sooke Harbor House and the Ice Hotel. I had forgotten about how dreamy Sooke Harbor house is.
I live in Victoria, BC, which is near the Sooke Harbour House on Vancouver Island. It’s a beautiful place. Check out the book “The Art of Sooke Harbour House”. Full of beautiful artwork and recipes inspired by the art … lavendar creme brulee – yum!!