Take Three Thursday

If an effort to notice more in my life, I have decided to share what I have noticed this week in Take Three Thursday.  The idea is to take 3 photos that are linked some how; by theme, by colour, by date, by moment,  by points of view. There is no formal link in but please feel free to join in.  What have you noticed this week?
 
 See what some others have noticed this week:
Maggie at:  Farmers Wife Day By Day.    
 Helena at: Helenascreativemaven

This week I noticed by a fleeting drive by chance, reflections.  I firmly believe now that what you need for reflection photos is mostly chance of a good water location, lighting, having any type of camera with you & the opportunity to pull over to take the photo.

This week on a mad dash for some personal & work errands as I was driving by the lake, I noticed the magnificent reflections in the lake on either side of the road.  Ah, yes, I thought, on the way back.   It certainly is where I am at at the moment - doing a lot of reflecting.  
 

"A little reflection will show us that every belief, even the simplest & most fundamental, goes beyond experience when regarded as a guide to our actions."  William K Clifford

 

Memo, Mail & Me: It's Monday March 27th

A big Monday wave to all & linking in with our hostess, Sian at:  From High In The Sky


A rather stressful week in & around the world.  The senseless rampage in London England is beyond explanation.  So sad.  Four precious lives lost, many hurt, thousands affected.  But as a society we get up, we grieve, we try to understand, we help, we move on with promises of making each day, each life,  count.

Source:

The new season of Formula One (F1) has begun - it was nice to see so many positive changes that will allow  for more racing intrigue.  F1 stats say that often whoever wins the first race of the season in Melbourne Australia, wins the driver's championship.  So Sebastian Vettel you are off to a good start.  The prancing pony of Ferrari dances tonight.

 
In the mail front, The Universe delivered some very special messages for me.

Look who has come to visit me in my garden; Charlie, the squirrel & Chippy, the chipmunk.  Welcome back to the patio, I promise the snow & cold will be gone soon!

On the fun front, we saw three movies this week; Collateral Beauty, Sing & Passengers.  I liked all 3.  Collateral Beauty had an interesting story line & it wasn't hard to know the plot about 10 minutes in.  Mr Man did not like this one.  Sing is all animation & it was very light, easy & fun.  Passengers was not what I thought it was going to be, so a pleasant surprise, not too spacey or sci-fi - ish.

I hope everyone has a wonderful week.   

"Today I choose life, Every morning when I wake up, I can choose, joy, happiness ... to feel the freedom that comes from being able to continue to make mistakes, and choices - today I choose to feel life, not to deny my humanity, but embrace it." Kevyn Aucoin

Today I choose life. Every morning when I wake up I can choose joy, happiness, negativity, pain... To feel the freedom that comes from being able to continue to make mistakes and choices - today I choose to feel life, not to deny my humanity but embrace it. Kevyn Aucoin
Read more at: https://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/quotes/k/kevynaucoi358534.html?src=t_joy

Take Three Thursday

If an effort to notice more in my life, I have decided to share what I have noticed this week in Take Three Thursday.  The idea is to take 3 photos that are linked some how; by theme, by colour, by date, by moment,  by points of view. There is no formal link in but please feel free to join in.  What have you noticed this week?
Last week Maggie joined it & you can see what she has noticed this week at:  Farmers Wife Day By Day.   This week Helena has also joined in: Helenascreativemaven

This week what I am noticing, is a number of neighbours tapping their very large & very old maple trees.  In our region most of the maple syrup is produced north west of us & mostly in the Mennonite, old order communities.  They then sell by the road side.  The first weekend in April is the region's Maple Syrup Festival, an all day Saturday event.  The entire town of Elmira closes down the main streets to make the vendors of crafts & wares much more accessible.  The fun starts at 7:00am with a pancake breakfast & pancake flipping contest.  There are horse drawn wagon rides out into the bush to see first hand the stages of tapping the trees to boiling down the sap to make syrup. 

My three photos today are of are the local neighbours' tapping buckets.

Some fun maple syrup facts:

Eighty percent of the world's maple syrup comes from Canada; two-thirds of that world syrup is produced in our La Belle Province of Quebec!   Maple Syrup is not the same as pancake syrup, which is usually made from corn syrup!

There are three of 13 species of maple tress, native to Canada that are best for syrup;  Sugar Maples are the most commonly tapped, but Red Maples & Black Maples are also good candidates.  A maple tree needs to be at least 35-40 years old before it is big enough to tap.  It takes about 40 gallons (182 Litres) of sap to make one gallon (4.555 litres) of syrup.

Most sap harvesting is done with suction pumps,  rather than the old way of gravity, spikes & buckets.  Tubes & suction pumps are much more efficient for the syrup farms.  The sap runs best when the nights are cold & the days are warm

Some of the first written accounts of tapping the trees comes from Marc Lescarbot, a writer (& lawyer) in 1606 where he describes the first nation people collecting maple water & distilling it to make syrup.

St Jacobs, ON (another predominately Mennonite community) has a Maple Syrup Museum.

Memo, Mail & Me: It's Monday March 20th

A big Monday wave along with well wishes for our recovering hostess Sian.  Linking in at:  From High In The Sky 

Source

 
I  would like to give a big welcome shout out to Spring, who arrived in this part of the world this morning at 6:29am.  Welcome back, I have missed you & hope you can stick around for a long visit.

Source

Mostly what I have been dealing with on the memo & mail front is resumes (CVs) for the clinic I work at.  One of 3 students leaves at the end of this month as she has graduated & has secured a full time job at Google Canada. It sounds like a fabulous job (please take me with you ...)

We received many online applicants, so reading through these online resumes (CVs) has been consuming all of my time.  It's quite eye tiring to read on line.  I only print out those that I am actually interviewing. 

Source

 I have, in person, interviewed 3, telephone chatted with 3 & so far the only one that ticked 9/10 boxes decided she doesn't want part time.  Boo - she would have been perfect. My second choice said she did not think she was ready to take on such a job.   One applicant & I had an appointment set but she never showed up or called. SOOOO rude & unprofessional.  So I start again today interviewing 3 more possible candidates.  I have to pick one by Tuesday so they can start on Wednesday or Thursday of this week  for their first of 3 training sessions & be up & ready for their shift by April 4th.  

What has baffled me most is the spelling errors - "hello spell check" & inconsistent information they share, much of what they give as address & contact info is one way on the covering letter & something totally different on the resume (CV).  I would also find that not too many actually took the time to read the posting we offered. It clearly states casual part time & yet so many were taken aback when I spoke with them.  I think many applicants are only sending to fulfill their EI (employment insurance) requirements.

I will go through this again in August, when student 2 of 3 returns to school - she's going to be a para-medic.  For me, this was suppose to be only a casual temporary fill in for a previous employee but it certainly feels like I have put roots down & I am not sure how I feel about that.  But I will say no more for now.
 

The beautiful spring came; and when Nature resumes her loveliness, the human soul is apt to revive also. Harriet Ann Jacobs
Read more at: https://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/quotes/h/harrietann284799.html?src=t_spring

" The beautiful spring came; and when Nature resumed her loveliness, the human soul was apt to revive also."  ... Harriet Anne Jacobs

 

Take Three Thursday

If an effort to notice more in my life, I have decided to share what I have noticed this week in Take Three Thursday.  The idea is to take 3 photos that are linked some how; by theme, by colour, by date, by moment,  by points of view. There is no formal link in but please feel free to join in.  What three have you noticed this week?

Last week Maggie joined it & you can see what she has noticed this week at:  Farmers Wife Day By Day

Late last week I noticed,  because it has been so infrequent this winter,  the intensity & brightness of a winter's day.  The sky seemed higher & brighter than I have seen in weeks.  

Blue Skies Smiling At Me, Nothing But Blue Skies Do I See
     ... Irving Berlin

 

Memo, Mail & Me It's Monday March 13th

A gracious good morning to you & our hostess, Sian & linking in here:  From High In The Sky

Not a lot of anything new. Very sparse on all fronts.

In the receiving mail department; you show one bit of interest & ask one or two questions & suddenly you are on their mailing lists.  This is from a local "college" for learning to become a nutritional advisor.  Interesting, but not for me.  

Another interesting piece of mail was this flyer, asking me this: (I have yet to answer & oh such a glossy cover.)

And what a beautiful full moon this morning.  We are awaiting the arrival of a snow storm scheduled to arrive mid morning & it may bring with it anywhere from 10-30cm (4-12") of snow. 

Wishing everyone a wonderful week ahead.

Source

Take Three Thursday

If an effort to notice more in my life, I have decided to share what I have noticed this week in Take Three Thursday.  The idea is to take 3 photos that are linked some how; by theme, by colour, by date, by moment,  by points of view. There is no formal link in but please feel free to join in.  What three have you noticed this week?


Last week Maggie joined in  & you can view her finds here: Farmers Wife Day By Day  
March can be such a dull month around here.  For me March & November share that dreary weather & look which makes it so hard to find good outdoor lighting. 

This week my threesome are seeds from last Autumn's production, still hanging on to the leafless trees, just ready to release to start a new.

The Seeds Of Potential

Happiness Held Is The Seed.  Happiness Shared Is The Flower.     ... John Harrigan

The Last WPSH Items

Here are the last I needed for the Winter Photo Scavenger Hunt.  Linking in with Eileen at:  WPSH

8. Seasonal Treat: this was for Valentine's Day, very yummy.  The tin foil wrap was what Sooty Paws was interested in.  Like dogs, chocolate is not good for kitties.

12. Market or Market Stall: On a new road discovery.  This lady is part of our community F/B; she sells freshly baked loaves & breads along with the sale of her free range eggs. Her banana bread is legendary, although I have not tried.

 
13. Cogs/Gears:  One of our clinic patients owns this repair garage & when I told him I needed a photo of gears or cogs, he invited me to drive out to his business & take a photo of his sign ... Tim & Amanda.

18. Tools: some of Mr Man's many tools.

21. Hygge:  At home with my kitties is one of the best places to be & during the winter add in the fireplace & I am quite content. What you do not see is my mug of hot tea & book.  Oh bliss.

Alt B: A Shadow:  This photo was taken after Ground Hog Day.

Another great list to work with.  Thank you Eileen for once organizing.  Now we wait for the SPSH.  Excitment!

Memo, Mail & Me: It's Monday March 6th

Giving a Monday wave to all & linking in with our hostess Sian at:   From High In The Sky

Sign At LCBO Store

Monday here we are again - another startling quick week. There was lots of glorious sunshine over the weekend.  Too cold to be outside (-15 (c))  but being inside with such sunshine was lovely. 

March in this area came in like a roaring lion.  We had about 3 types of weather March 1st; wind with rain, sleet, snow!   The promise is March will leave like a lamb & I am holding Mother Nature to that promise!

Source:

 My mail was pretty dull until Friday (we don't get weekend delivery), when we got this very large postcard advertising a local landscapers work.  I am keeping this one & right now it is displayed on the refrigerator so we can wishfully look at it.  I really like the natural steps & slab patio.  I know the design example is for a back garden, but I feel this would be perfect for the front garden of our home.  I think this would create such a welcoming stage. A dream to the start of making plans & getting quotes!

Front of Advertiser Postcard

Back of Advertiser Postcard

 New from the library pick up was this magazine, Creative Scrapbooker,  along with the book "My Grandmother Sends Her Regards and Apologies", which is the same book as "My Grandmother Asked Me to Tell You She's Sorry".  No idea why there are two different titles for the same book.  "My Grandmother" book was written by Fredrik Backman, who also wrote "A Man Called Ove".  

ideas, inspiration abound

On the memo front, I found this recipe in a magazine at the dentist's office.  I must admit it took me a second read through to realize what is wrong with this recipe.

The recipe is Chicken Crescent Wreath, but the instructions say to whisk milk & pudding & arrange banana slices over the tart shell.  Talk about a typo error!

New from the shopping cart was a dishwasher cleaner.  I had not heard of this until I was reading the community F/B page & someone mentioned that their dishes were spotty & not as clean as they should be.  Finish Dishwasher Cleaner was the most recommended product because it has dual action; a limescaler (we have hard water) & grease fighting.  It was rather expensive, $6.49 CND (+taxes) (4.85 USD) (3.95 GBP).  I ran it through the dishwasher Sunday morning.  Anyone else ever use this or similar product?   I was told vinegar is not good for the modern day plastic tubing.  Later this week I should know if the product worked. 


 "if spring time is the land awakening, then the March winds are the morning yawn" 

Five in Five On The 5th - March 2017

Linking in with Sandie & the other Fivers at : Itchifingers  The idea is to take five photos in five minutes on the 5th of the month. 

Today it is another bitterly cold day, -15 (c)/ 5 (f), one that is too cold for me to be outside looking for 5 in 5.  SO, I stalked followed the cats for a few minutes.  Anyone that has cats knows that they are very quick & hate being stalked followed, so my photos are less than quality photos BUT  I am choosing to seize the moment ...  

The fur girls were arguing over who should be sitting on the bench in the sun & obviously there isn't room for two (lol)!

Sooty Paws Says The Bench Is Mine!

Smokey Puss Enjoys The Spoils of War

Carpe Diem or  Seize the Bench!

 
 

Take Three Thursday

If an effort to notice more in my life, I have decided to share what I have noticed this week in Take Three Thursday.  The idea is to take 3 photos  of what caught your eye this week & that are linked some how; by theme, by colour, by date, by moment,  by points of view. There is no formal link in but please feel free to join in.  What three have you noticed this week?

This week my three come from a bit of cupboard cleaning & rearranging.  I have several favourite tea mugs/cups amongst the far too many mugs. It's funny but I do not like to share use with some of my favourite mugs.  Do you have a favourite mug & only you can use?   I once did a scrapbook layout about the mugs friends have given me.  These 3 favourites are linked by colour, pink.


 

A woman is like a tea bag, you never know how strong she is until you put her in hot water.  Eleanor  Roosevelt

February Reasons To Be Cheerful

I have been meaning to join in with Lady Ella's Reasons To Be Cheerful,  monthly recap for so long & finally I got my act in gear.  You can read all her previous cheerful posts here:  Flowers-of-Progress

My reasons for being cheerful about February:

A month dedicated to love & the heart. How can you not be cheerful about this.

Mr Man’s eye surgery checkup gave him the all healed & cleared to return to work.  Any future followup or checkups can be done by the eye doctor locally.

A few days with sunshine meant getting outside for a walk, which is so much more enjoyable than the treadmill.  Natural Vitamin D very good for the heart.

Kindness of blogging friendships & in particular a lovely handmade card from Sian.

Tea with one of the horse ladies, who kindly imparted some of her life wisdom which also included a trip to the barn to visit with her horses.  Contact with horses is so good for my heart.

Mr Man’s willingness to a wandering drive out for items still left on the WPSH.  I now have a completed list.  He still makes my heart skip a beat - in the good way.

So glad that there is Pinterest as it has helped me source a photo or two for some stories I am telling via scrapping & I did not have any photos.  Some days I just feel so full of stories that I am bursting to get onto paper so I don't forget & that some time in the future someone reads those stories & says "oh my, how brave, how wonderful ..."  or "oh that's who she was".

When enjoying tea with a friend in town, the ex-wife of Mr Man’s childhood friend stopped by our table to say hello.  We exchanged phone numbers & a promise to have a catch up lunch.  I remember some fun times together as a foursome, which I miss since their split.  Sometimes heart ache reaches beyond just the pair.

My fur girls always make me feel better & we have had some wonderful cuddling times together.  They both are finding their purring voice.  Science yet again confirms having pets is good for the heart.

Daylight hours increasing & although still not a lot of sunny days, it is improving.  Bird song changing to signal change.  On the last day of February 2017, we spotted a chipmunk & a Red Winged Black Bird - both definite signs that spring IS coming our way.  No spring skips its turn ...

So far, Mr Man & I have avoided a flu/cough that has been circulating around.  Being a little anti social can have some benefits if only for avoiding the usual winter colds, flu’s & coughs.

"The February sunshine steeps your boughs & tints the buds & swells the leaves within. "  W.C. Byrant