Lord-Luv-A-Duck...!

Canada is known as the land of geese, ducks and loons (in more ways than one), so I thought I would show you my duck collection.

"Why is she showing us her duck collection...?"

...you're asking. Well, because I am too tired from all sorts of Olympic activities to post about anything even slightly stimulating at the moment, and because I love my collection of wooden ducks. And if you look closely in the background, you will see a couple of brass geese that my daughter gave me for Christmas one year, and when they're polished and the fireplace is on, they glow.

I also have a brass duck on one of my bookcases, and it was the first duck in my collection. The bookcase was built by my father, from a pine tree that he felled and had planed, and it is all built with dowels -- no nails. So somehow my little duck fits nicely with my bookcase. When I was a little girl, my father used to go duck hunting in the woods on Vancouver Island. My mother would cure the soft, down feathers and then she made each of us our own eiderdown comforters. My eiderdown was almost a part of me for years. I would curl up with it when I was reading or watching TV, and whenever I was not feeling well, my mother would say, "Go get your eiderdown, and I'll bring you a hot water bottle."

My eiderdown was paisley, and it resided in a place of honor at the foot of my bed. It was great comfort to me through many of the joys and tribulations of my teenage years. I have been pricing eiderdowns lately, considering buying one. Have you looked a the price of eiderdowns? An eiderdown made of pure eider duck down, such as the ones my mother used to make, cost between $8,000 and $10,000.

My Aunt Molly had two pet ducks named Lucille Ball and Winston Churchill, and I think that was the beginning of my fascination with ducks. And yes, I do eat ducks, and I love duck l'orange. So, there you have it. I am a Canadian, and I have a close, personal relationship with ducks. I suppose that makes me a bit of a loon...