Birkeland on Denman

Mini-adventures on Denman Island; one of the northern gulf islands on the west coast of British Columbia, situated between Hornby Island and Baynes Sound. The site features construction of a uniquely designed house, adaptation of the waterfront property, and development of mason bees.

This is intended for relatives, friends, and voyeurs who are interested in monitoring the progress of our development. Updates are now done on a weekly basis. Visit regularly.

And remember that any of the small "thumbnail" pictures can be enlarged by clicking on them.

Week ending May 11, 2008.

Gavin had them caged for me on his Swan Road farm Saturday morning. After a five minute ride across in a deluxe sized cardboard box, the hens were released in their new house. They immediately found the food tray and started eating. (Probably a good sign?) I kept the them in their house all day to settle down and get accustomed to the new place.

This morning I opened the hatch to their outside pen. And they were in no hurry to step out. A little coaxing with scratch feed finally brought out the first adventurous one and the rest slowly followed. But they soon went back inside. They've had many short forays outside throughout the day. But they rush back inside at any tiny provocation. Now I understand why people who are easily scared are called "chicken".

However, not all the threats are imaginary. Once this afternoon I noticed this eagle watching from just a stone's throw away. And the hens were all huddled inside. For them it must be a scary world out there. They seem to prefer just hanging out in the house, lounging on their roost, and eating whenever they feel like it. Sort of like today's teenagers.. Which of course is what they are; 10 weeks old and only halfway to egg-laying age. I expect they'll get accustomed to the neighbourhood and spend more time outside, especially when the weather warms a bit.

The weather. Still not fit to warm the heart of a gardener. The forecast is three degrees tonight, and a high of only 11 degrees in the rain next Tuesday. Yes, warm temperatures are promised at the end of the week but forecasts so far out are notoriously unreliable in this part of the country. Its hard to get enthusiastic about seed bed preparation. I still have last year's plants to finish removing. I wonder if the chickens would appreciate an old kale plant for dessert?

Marit, your arugula has gone to seed. But I have a couple rows of replacement already sprouted. Most of the potatoes are now up. And the peas have sprouted, but growth is slow in these cold temperatures and they're being ravaged by the flea beetles. I think Norway's had the weather we should have had this past week.

Marit is still back in Norway for one last week. We talked earlier on Skype and she reported that her school reunion was really great. She had such a good time. And her old school teacher was no longer so scary.

Since the previous update was only posted a few days ago, I'll leave it currently appended   for anyone who may have missed the report.

Week(s) ending May 7, 2008.

Fortunately the jet-lag prevented any sleep beyond 1:30 AM today, providing time to review the images of the trip. My camera took 647 pictures. And I have pictures and video from three other avid photographers. This may be the most recorded two weeks of my life, and I'll be including some of the images in the coming weeks.

The main purpose of the trip was to attend the wedding of my son and his fiancee, Hilde. Our first few days were spent at their new home in Nittedal, a "municipality" directly northeast of Oslo. In our terminology, it would be considered a suburb of Oslo. The picture above is taken in the backyard of their townhouse. Hilde is barbecuing while her father photographs. Her mother is talking to Marit. Our niece Joanne, who is standing by Erik the door, accompanied us. And the fellow holding the Heineken is a Lenny, a good friend of Erik who flew from Vancouver a few days earlier.

Just before the wedding we vacated their home and went to our home village of Berger, in Svelvik. Our cousin, Grete, was extremely kind and generous giving us the use of her house for the duration. . Berger is a beautiful area located on the the shore of the Oslo Fjord. Its quite small, having about the same population as Denman Island. We felt very much at home.

Grete also took us on two trips; one to her cabin at Blindvanna, a nearby lake, and one to surrounding areas. I fell in love with the cabin and the area, and agreed to come back and rent the cabin in September. However, we never specified which year.

On the day of the wedding a chartered bus drove the relatives from this area, all 18 of us, to the ceremony. (I still can't comprehend how that huge bus negotiated the narrow winding roads and traffic circles). The ceremony was interesting. Unfortunately my Norwegian comprehension is quite poor and I couldn't understand most of it. But the vows were spoken in English for our benefit. At the reception and dinner afterwards I had the same difficulty, but I could see the sincerity and the happiness in the proceeding; the talks by the master of ceremonies, the speeches that were given, the songs and poems, and the toasts that were made. And by the laughter that accompanied, it was evident that every moment was enjoyed. Some of us spoke in English; Lise spoke at the reception and gave a native Indian poem of blessing at the ceremony, and I spoke as father of the groom. Everything was well received, and everyone agreed the wedding couldn't have been better.

At midnight Erik was seated in the middle of the hall; then everyone circled and sang happy birthday , first in Norwegian and then in English. It was his birthday on the next day. Soon after, Erik and Hilde left for their honeymoon. They spent the week immersed in the culture and metropolitan lifestyle of Paris, France; before returning to "quiet, little" Nittedal.

Incidentally, there are other accounts of our trip on the blogs of two of our cousins, Grete's Moserabben and Eva's Blog. 

After the wedding, we went with Randi and Odd, Marit's sister and brother-in-law, to their ski cabin in the mountains north of Kongsberg. I hate to call it a cabin because in reality its a well constructed house with all amenities. I'll use the Norwegian word of "Hytte"). There was still up to 2 meters of snow on the roadsides, but it was melting fast. In the three days we were there, the snow level dropped at least 30 cms. The rivers were raging and nearing flood levels as we left. And the snow conditions were too poor to attempt cross country skiing. In normal winter conditions this is a paradise for ski touring. The Telemark district is just over the west ridge; the north extent of the Hardanger fjord area in to the south-west; and the largest mountain, Blejfjell, forms the south-east ridge. (At least, that's if I got my directions correctly).

The final highlight of our trip was attendance at the Confirmation of our niece, Jenny Birkeland. (Jenny is the exact centre of the first row in the image to the left).

"Confirmation" is a formal rite in the Norwegian Lutheran church. It culminates a lengthy study of the Lutheran religion and is usually undertaken in the early teens. It appears to be a "rite of passage" into early early adulthood (although I might be later corrected if I have a misunderstanding). In any event, its a major event in a young person's life and warrants gift and celebration. And I congratulate Ruth and Erik (Jenny's parents, and another sister and brother-in-law of Marit) for hosting a first class event on this occasion.

Erik and his new wife, Hilde, also returned to attend the confirmation. And we  had a photo opportunity at the event to take a new family snapshot. The Birkelands; Harold, Marit, Lise, Erik, and Hilde.

Marit is staying for another two weeks. She plans to attend the fiftieth reunion of her school; see most of her old classmates, and face the stern old teacher once again. She'll remain for the Norwegian Independence Day celebrations on May 17, then return to "quiet, little" Denman. By then I hope to have fully adjusted to this time zone and be able to help as she re-emerges to a new cycle of day and night.

In a couple days I'll fetch the new chicken flock to help welcome her back.