Friday, June 10, 2011

Well, I've been back from my yoga retreat in Italy for a little over a week now and I'm ready for another adventure. I love my home and my dog . . . and of course my hubby, but I guess it must be the Sagittarian in me that makes me seek other horizons. Anyway, Florence, Siena and Rome each had its own charm and are certainly places to return to, but I think Tuscany is a little over rated. It was a welcomed respite for the yoga retreat, but it is not all that dissimilar to cottage country in Ontario - forests, hills, dusty back roads. I guess I should acknowledge the Tuscan farmhouses for their beauty and quaintness, however, agrotourism is a bit of a sell job.

So, of course, my two (!) batteries went dead on the third day in Italy and I didn't have a Euro charger.

Upon my return home I found the morning doves' nest had been raided, but a robin had laid eggs in a nest near the back door and is raising three babies there. They're at the stage where their eyes are opening and they flap their wings when a parent approaches. It takes a lot not to get a ladder and go and give them kisses. I think they probably have another 5-7 days in the nest.

I'm back to playing around with getting pictures on this blog, so here's hoping . . .

Monday, April 25, 2011

Well, the camera has downloaded its photos to the computer, but I can't yet get any of them to the blog. My most immediate concern is to disconnect the memory card reader from the computer because no icon came up before. Oh, woe. I'll keep trying.

Monday, March 28, 2011

Ahhh, Mighty Aphrodite. It's funny how different things resonate. I often feel that a Greek Chorus is around me when I'm out walking. Not quite like Woody's chorus, but there is definitely some kind of soundtrack or movie track or something that fills the mind that is not occupied. Don't worry. The voices don't direct me toward evil doings. They are like an interior loop of conversations or songs or scripts that play for free. No iPod needed here.

Stephanie at Tiny Owl Knits has a Snow White video on today's post that has jogged some long silent memories on my playlist. We had a chuckle about not having many memories of the prince in the movie, but rather strongly recall Snow's relationship with the animals of the forest. I wonder if anyone remembers another Disney movie called Bambi. Do you remember when he meets the skunk for the first time what the skunk says? "You can call me flower, if you want to."

Sunday, March 27, 2011

I can't seem to help it, but I LOVE going to see performers live. I think it all began when I was 12 and The Beatles came to Toronto during their first North American tour. That did it. My love affair continued this past August when Paul McCartney played at the ACC. We had front row tickets which cost a fortune, but so terribly worth it. We, Paul and I, made eye contact a few times ( he also waved at me with his pick hand when I waved my 6 foot Union Jack ), so I can now die a happy woman.

Anyway, last night Randy Newman was at The Convocation Hall in Toronto and was wonderful. Such complexity packaged in a self-effacing man. There ain't nobody like him. If it had been 5 degrees warmer I would have waited by the Stage Door. Maybe next time, Randy.

Opps, gotta go. D has Woody Allen's Mighty Aphrodite playing and I just have to hear the Mira Sorvino deliver the best line in recent times. Do you know it?

Sunday, March 6, 2011

When we moved into this house almost two (!) years ago, there was a dying euonymus bush that Big D cut and shaped in hopes of reviving it. It worked and it is a haven for the sparrows that visit our feeders. It stands about six feet and has an open area under it of about two and a half feet. Anyway, yesterday as we were having breakfast a Sharp Shinned Hawk flew under the bush and landed on the ground. The garden went silent. He/she glared up into the bush knowing it was packed with birds, but not knowing how to get to them. It hunkered down and jumped onto a lower branch displaying its tail feathers beautifully. I would guess the branches were too dense because it immediately popped out and flew off. You could almost hear the sigh of relief coming from the bush. Ahh, drama in the garden.

I've registered for a camera workshop set for the beginning of April. Maybe the hawk will make a comeback and I can snap it.

Thursday, March 3, 2011

Yuck. A week with impacted sinuses and awful anti-biotics. The doctor said this is becoming such a common problem that a workshop was organized to discuss effective remedies. Well, my sinuses are clearing, but the indigestion from the meds is almost as bad. Woe is me.

Thursday, February 24, 2011

Just returned from an afternoon stick hunt with Pixie's girl, aka Bunny. With the extremely high winds a few days ago and the wet snow of late, many trees have given up small branches and the fairground is littered with 'prises'. It's funny how she selects certain sticks and rejects others. I can't yet predict which ones will spark her fancy, but she always brings one home. This must be the Retriever in her. In the summer it is baseballs that she seeks.

Still Experimenting

Wednesday, February 23, 2011

It's Coming

S-L-O-W-L-Y, S-L-O-W-L-Y, S-L-O-W-L-Y I'm learning to enter the blog world. I've kinda set up the site, I've purchased a new camera and now, I want to see if today's labours have come to anything. No pictures yet, though. That's another learning curve. Okay, I'm going to push the 'publish post'.