Monday AMuse

postcards from the edge

Last week we received two postcards from Japan on the same day. I thought that was pretty neat. But then, yesterday came a post card from 47kms away - 2 cities over! The sender hoped I wouldn't be disappointed. Au contraire, thought I. Mississauga has postcards? I have discovered that Burlington doesn't even have any postcards. The few that are here are of Toronto or Niagara Falls somewhere else.

It's not like there isn't anything happening in my city to attract tourists. We have the Royal Botanical Gardens. There is the Sound of Music Festival, Ribfest, the Festival of Lights. There are conservation areas, movies and music in the parks, an Art Centre, museums, studio tours, craft fairs, and several running events, food events and kids events to keep the locals busy.

And we are less than an hour away from Toronto and Niagara.

but looks nothing like Slany which is an hour from Prague

blue sky and corn from outside Indianapolis

Petra from near Hamburg gave me a warm winter coat!

a long drive in the woods

I'm not often easily impressed by new electronic gadgets. It takes me awhile. But a couple of months ago I was introduced to an iPhone, and an iTouch. My SIL and I had great fun playing with it. When a friend was telling me about her GPS that she had to get for her new car (that she rarely drives), I tried not to roll my eyes. Really, isn't a mapbook good enough? I have a large Rand McNally for the Golden Horseshoe. If where I am heading is on the awkward bit like the page edge or worse, the spine, I draw myself my own version on a sheet of paper and that usually suffices. I can always Google it beforehand and print off the map.

Then I got to play with the GPS and found out all that it could do. Just telling me something will not convert me. I need actual visual, hands-on proof. I had to concede that the features like distance and traffic delays and where the nearest ATM or gas station is could be extremely useful. It even tells you where restaurants are and what movies are on at the nearest cinema.

So much detail at a touch. I've been in love with this gadget ever since.

Many years ago, on a road trip to Winnipeg, a friend and I were cruising along the blasted out rock and pine tree filled stunning forests of North of Superior when it occurred to us that maybe we should have topped up the gas in Wawa (or wherever it was we left several hours ago, I forget at the moment). We saw a sign pointing down a road to the right that said Logging Camp, Gas Station. So off the highway we turned and drove down the rutted track. And drove, and drove, and drove some more because we were not quite deep enough into the never ending stunning forest. Seriously, we weren't sure we would even make it to the logging camp. Finally, after many, many minutes that may have equalled an hour, we reached what was obviously the end of the road. We knew this because after the few buildings and the gas station and general store, the road looped around back onto itself. The station sold le gaz, the signs were all in French, the attendant only spoke French and didn't understand our attempts at communicating. We filled up, bought a snack and headed back to the highway. By then we both needed to pee and since we hadn't passed a vehicle the whole way we stopped and checked out the lay of the bushes... a big logging truck passed us. We reached the highway and remembered that we needed to turn right to keep on towards the Manitoba border. About 1/2 km up the road, around a bend was a gas station. With a restaurant. And probably clean washrooms.

Monday AMuse

by Ozge Samanci, a Turkish born artist who creates a drawing a day for her site Ordinary Things, an online journal of her observations in comic form.

Sunday Stills - reflections

This week's theme is reflections
and I was a little concerned about finding any good reflections with all the snow around, but yesterday the temperature climbed up to a windy 10C and the comment on the street from everyone you met wasn't, "isn't it warm", but "I can't believe how much of the snow has melted"

Here we have a business park called Princess Gate, a glass stucture housing several offices and overlooking the highway and hydro towers. The first shot is facing west, the second is a closer view facing east.

Click on the images for a better view and in the second photo you can see the green church tower of 100 Huntley Street

find more Sunday Stills

PhotoHunt - Bridges

Some of you may not have tired of pictures of snow.
So for you, above, here is your snow covered bridge.

Now, as for me, I have had enough of snow. I am ready for a holiday far away from the stuff. But, I've already had my holidays last summer in England ... which reminded me of the best bridge in Bath.

The Pulteney Bridge

view from the walkway of the Botanical Gardens

and with the city of Bath rising up the hills behind




with the weir in front

and the view of the weir from the bridge

and the sadly desecrated view from the other (north) side from the tourboat

Built in the 1700's by Robert Adam, it is one of only four bridges in the world lined with shops. Sadly it's original Venetian and Palladian design started its ruin within 20 years when shops were enlarged and windows cantilevered out over the River Avon with little regard to the elegance of the structure. Still, it's a magnificent bridge to behold.

For more bridges around the world go to PhotoHunt

five minutes more

My favourite alarm clock is broken. Actually, my next favourite is also broken. Even my least favourite doesn't work. I'm sure it has nothing to do with my anxious reaction to the rude awakening. Or my continual use of the snooze button, the best and worst invention on any alarm clock.

Now I use my cell phone, which has an alarm feature and a person on the other end who gives me a wake up call every night. I know. Shouldn't everyone get a wake up call from their place of work? And if I'm not there an hour later they call back to make sure I didn't fall back to sleep. Which sometimes happens (see above).

I used to always believe that if I didn't have my 9 hours of sleep I was useless. I've learned that I can indeed be useful on less than that. But it can be a struggle. Sometimes, I feel like I am always struggling.

My work schedule is so erratic that it is hard to have any set routine for sleeping or eating. It is a good thing I live alone so I can make my own schedule and change it on a daily basis.

I do not like being awakened by music, or inane drivel from the radio, which often just infiltrates into my dreams, nor one of those clocky deals where the night table accessory rolls around all over the room and forces you out of bed to find it and beat it into quiet submission.

No, my favourite alarm clock has a light that flashes for five minutes before a gentle alarm starts up which increases in intensity before the minute hand finally reaches out and slaps you silly.

Well, that last bit might be made up. I've not tested things that far.

disorderly beauty

It started snowing again just as I got home this morning, the light fluffy flakes that float all around you and sit on top of one another looking so very pretty. I decided to take my camera for a little walk.

From my balcony,

to the end of my street


westward along North Shore, following the lake

(okay, I cheated and drove this bit)
to get to this spot.

Here we are facing east and that white bit on the bottom is actually Lake Ontario covered in ice and snow.
I haven't figured out how to make these pictures big so click on the image to see
The Trumpeter Swans resting on the lake just further out.
Now we turn our faces to the west, where there is a little sheltered bay

to see what we have really come to take delight in

Out of the way gull ... we're coming in

Monday AMuse

Sunday Stills - go high, go low

look up, grapes falling from the ceiling

look down, into the fish pond

koi looking up

check out more Sunday Stills