Today I was scrubbing out dirt and those squatters of damp and dark quarters – slugs, snails, sowbugs, spiders and worms. No, not an art project, rather a gardener’s chore. I finally tackled the huge annual task of washing all the plant pots which have been hidden under a tree by the compost, a job I always put off until I’m desperate for clean pots for repotting. For some time now I’d been saying to myself that I must repot some of my plants that have been summering outdoors, to ready them for re-entry indoors in a few weeks’ time, as well as start taking cuttings of geraniums and such. It was laborious but satisfying in the end. Tomorrow I hope to do some of the repotting.

It’s the end of the Labour Day long weekend here, with a lovely sunny day too. The damper cooler nights and long shadows signal the coming of fall. It’s the last weekend of summer in a way, as most schools in Canada begin tomorrow. But our weekend wasn’t all labouring or puttering around home. The highlight was a wonderful evening last night over dinner in a local little restaurant with dear friends who came back to their old neighbourhood for a few hours to see us (they retired to Victoria a couple of months ago).

On this day, I also looked up the history of Labour Day and was surprised to read about the Canadian roots of Labour Day. You might like to also check out about Labour Day in different countries at Wikipedia.