Thursday, April 27, 2017

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
Eileen at: In My Playroom

This week my wanderings have taken me past several large groves of forsythia & this year seems to be a particularly good year for their spring blooming.  Forsythia is one of those interesting plants that blooms before the leaves are produced.  I am sure there is lots of science behind why, but I like to think that The Universe knew that after winter's dullest moments we humans desperately needed some cheering & bright sunshine yellow of forsythia does just that.

My three this week are of two of those large forsythia groves that I witnessed in full blooming glory & the final photo is the beginnings of my own personal grove - small so far,  but oh the plans I have for it ...
 































" Forsythia is pure joy.  There is not an ounce, not a glimmer of sadness or even knowledge in forsythia.  Pure, undiluted, untouched joy."   Anne Morrow Lindbergh


Monday, April 24, 2017

Memo, Mail & Me - It's Monday April 24th

Linking in with our fair hostess, Sian at From High In The Sky

Giving a very enthusiastic wave to all this Monday morning.

On Saturday, we participated in Open Doors Guelph.  The intent of Doors Open Guelph is to build awareness of the creative, artistic, cultural & heritage buildings by providing free access to these buildings & properties. There was quite a few buildings open on this day (10am to 4pm) & our intention was to visit with about 5-6 places but we ended up visiting only 4.  

Visit 1 was to the Armory, a building that is for army cadets in training, & a social club for retired army members, so not normally open to the public.  It was a building that I often drive by so I was excited to get inside for a nose about.  Our tour guide spent a lot of time talking about the renovation differences between the officer's mess hall & the lower ranks mess hall.  In the officer's mess hall there was a wonderful display of old photos from The Boer War, World War I & II, The Korean & the Vietnam Wars.  There was also a large tattered Canadian flag in a frame that had been flown over the base in Afghanistan.  Of the women & men taking part on this day, Mr Man & I thanked them all for serving our country.
 
Constructed in 1909 of red brick highlighted with limestone trim, the Armoury was designed by federal architects David Ewart and T.W. Fuller. Its castellated towers, battlements, and heavy wooden gate give the impression of a medieval fortress. The Officer’s Mess contains a collection of art and memorabilia of the 11th Field Regiment. A basement gun park and impressive parade area showcase the Regiment’s 160 years of service. Architectural style: Gothic Revival

Visit 2 was to the big Roman Catholic church in Guelph, Church of Our Immaculate Lady.  Our tour guide was a young lady who read from a prepared script & spoke very quietly - I must confuse Mr Man & I wandered off on our own, tagging in with other ongoing tours.  We have been in this church for two weddings, so we were hoping for a peek at upstairs &/or downstairs - both were off limits. It is a beautiful church inside & out.



In 1827, John Galt gave the highest hill for the building of a Catholic Church. Opened in 1888, with the towers added in 1926, the church was designed by Joseph Connelly in French Gothic tradition. It has many elements of traditional European cathedrals with beautiful stained glass windows, locally-quarried limestone walls, and unique carvings. From 2006 - 2015, a $12 million renovation restored the interior and exterior features. Architectural Style: Gothic Revival

Visit 3 was to St George's Anglican Church, another church & where I have attended a christening service.  Our tour guide(s) were the reason we got delayed in visiting other locations.  Jon was an amazing guide, funny & knew the church's history & stories without a script.  After the official tour, Mr Man & I hung back to sit in the church to admire, it felt so welcoming & we ended up in an additional hour discussion with two church elders.  Robert, who I couldn't help but think Lady Ella would have enjoyed his chat about the church bells & carillon.   The other elder, Don  was guarding & chatting about a Napoleonic artifact in the church's possession; a flower pot in copper.   In chatting to both gentlemen we talked about the ringing of church bells & how disappointed I am that our church doesn't ring the bells any longer because it annoys the neighbours.  Robert, in charge of the carillon said that across the province of Ontario the league of carillon have already worked out the service & the time for the ringing of the bells for when our Queen passes, (not for many years). Both men got very teary & emotional discussing this, which in turn got me very emotional. 



This church opened in 1873, replacing two earlier versions located in St. George’s Square. It was designed by Henry Langley, architect of many Ontario churches, including three in Guelph. A revival of the English Gothic medieval parish church, different roof lines indicate the different areas of the nave, choir, and sanctuary. A special feature is the 23-bell carillon donated by Arthur Cutten. Architectural Style: Gothic Revival

Visit 4 was to Macdonald Hall: School of Business & Economics,
a building on campus at the University of Guelph, which from the outside was such a beautiful red brick "home"  Even though it was a Saturday there were lots of students around preparing for finals as the entire building is now used for classes & study halls.  I was extremely disappointed once in side, it is all plastic, chrome & tempered glass.  Thankfully the original wood panelled walls & fireplaces were still in tact although most blocked off.  If ever there was a case of don't judge a book by it's cover, this was it.

Macdonald Hall was built in 1903 as the women’s dormitory for students at the Macdonald Institute. Designed by George M. Miller, it was the oldest residence at the University of Guelph. Now renovated to LEED silver certification, it contains flexible gathering spaces, classrooms, offices. The 1903 gymnasium and dining room have been transformed into modern learning areas while keeping some original features.
Architectural Style: Tudor Revival
Happy week ahead to all.

Thursday, April 20, 2017

Take Three Thursday - April 20

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

With Spring arriving & moving right into the neighbourhood, I noticed lots of the Mason bees about & that's a good thing.

Mason Bees are hyper-efficient air pollinators & can do wonders for our fruit & garden crops.  There is about 140 varieties of Mason Bees in North America, 200 types worldwide.  Nice thing about Mason Bees - they don't sting!  One thing I just learnt about Mason Bees, they require mud for their nests for the eggs to hatch in, it protects the newly hatched bee.






 




Monday, April 17, 2017

Memo, Mail & Me: It's Monday April 17th

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

Oh Monday, you & your six friends have travelled in quite a blur this  week.

Our new 8 foot fence has been installed to ensure some patio privacy.  The upcoming tulips & daffodils closest to the fence were rather trampled under foot & equipment but it is the price to pay for the installation.  I am hoping that they will grace the garden next spring.  In the foreground, the large flat rocks & stones are part of  our water feature.  Once the trellis are reinstalled & the clematis climbs up them, the fence won't look so bare.
The old 6 foot fence

 
The new 8 foot fence


The fence builders brought their dog, Jake, a Golden Retriever, with them both days & both days Jake would wait patiently in one of the patio chairs for them to take a break, or he would stare in through our patio screen door as he had seen the cats  & spent some of the time hoping that the fur girls might just come out to play.  The girls took one look at Jake & said, stupid boy & walked away.  I thought Jake was a lovely visitor.
 
Jake staring in through the screen door

 
Jake waits patiently & comfortably in the chair


While I search for a pause in time button, I hope everyone has a marvelous week ahead.

 

Thursday, April 13, 2017

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 my noticing was all about the perfectly camouflaged creatures visiting my garden.  I also noticed that all three were hunting in my garden.

Bella the old girl from the less than nice neighbours, hunts the chipmunks in my yard, but thankfully they are proving faster than she is; her sitting in amongst the leaves has her blending in quite well.  




 The Robin is hunting the worms that come up after a rain shower & "she" is looking for nest building materials.  I put out chopped up clematis vine for her use, which she seems to gladly accept.
 
 
The bunny is hunting for the tender shoots of my tulips & I am not happy about that!  Thankfully "he" has decided that the old grass/clover mix is just as tasty & incurs less clucking from me.  I want to be kind to him, so that my Easter basket will be filled with treats (wink wink)
 



"Wherever I look, I see the handiwork & beauty of the Great One, in the little ones."

Monday, April 10, 2017

Memo, Mail & Me: It's Monday April 10th

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

There was no mail to speak of this week, I think one or two flyers for internet services 

New adventure; we took some time off the patio & attended festivities in Fergus for Tartan Day.  The weather was most co-operative with sunshine & warmer temperatures.
 
 We watched some highland dancing or what seemed to be more highland flinging by some of the little bitty ones - so cute.   

 


We had tea & scones at a,  if memory services me, a new to us tea room - Bentley's.  The brown sugar cinnamon scones were just out of the oven so still warm - oh yes.  Mr Man said that they tasted like another, he did, I didn't  ... and they had many variety of teas.  We settled on their house black tea blend.  Very satisfying.
When the lady put our tea pot down on the table, she also brought a tea timer with her.  This was new to us.  It was a 3 sand sphere timer, each with different sized & amount of sand.  Each individual hour glass represented a different strength of the tea - green was weaker, brown mid strength & white was for the builders type tea.  Mr Man was so taken with this gadget that he bought one for us.



We finally got to see Fantastic Beasts & Where to Find Them. We thought that Dan Fogler as Jacob was quite a good character. Overall neither of us liked the movie & were very disappointed, normally I like Eddy Redmayne but he mumbled throughout the whole movie!  


I hope everyone has a marvelous week ahead.   

"I arise in the morning torn between a desire to improve the world & a desire to enjoy the world.  This makes it hard to plan the day."   E.B. White
I arise in the morning torn between a desire to improve the world and a desire to enjoy the world. This makes it hard to plan the day. E. B. White
Read more at: https://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/quotes/e/ebwhite106410.html?src=t_morning


I arise in the morning torn between a desire to improve the world and a desire to enjoy the world. This makes it hard to plan the day. E. B. White
Read more at: https://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/quotes/e/ebwhite106410.html?src=t_morning
A post script to Tartan Day:  it is celebrated world wide & on several different days.  We in Canada don't celebrate Tartan Day on July 1st because that is our nation's birthday.  

Tartan Day is all about The Act of Proscription (19 Geo. 2, c. 39) was an Act of the Parliament of Great Britain, which came into effect in Scotland on 1 August 1746. It was part of a series of efforts to assimilate the Scottish Highlands, ending their ability to revolt, and the first of the 'King's laws' which sought to crush the Clan system in the aftermath of the Jacobite Rising of 1745. These laws were finally repealed on 1 July 1782.
I arise in the morning torn between a desire to improve the world and a desire to enjoy the world. This makes it hard to plan the day. E. B. White
Read more at: https://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/quotes/e/ebwhite106410.html?src=t_morning

Friday, April 07, 2017

Five In Five On The 5th - April, 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. 

I am late this month for Five & I have five very good excuses why, all to do with work ... no matter, here's my late entry for 5 in 5:  

Spring's mad affair with a lingering Winter, who I think should be charge with stalking! 
 
Fence Boards





Tire Tracks


 

Shingles


 
Tulips













Tree Trunk - Gravel


















Thursday, April 06, 2017

Take Three Thursday - April 6th

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 while I was wandering about, I noticed several old & overgrown & mostly abandoned railway tunnels.  I was talking with a local farmer who told me these were once all created & used by the local farmers to move livestock from one field to another.  When the rail line was put in & subsequent highway, it cut the fields in two, the railway company had to install tunnels to allow safe passage of livestock from one field to the other.  Two of the tunnels were for large livestock, which are obvious by size but one smaller one was created & used for poultry & water fowl, although I am convinced the farmer was pulling my leg!  Old land maps do show that there was once a large duck/goose farm in the area.  All these livestock farms have since been sold on to developers for estate homes  Footprints in the snow & mud show that currently the tunnels are in active use by the local wildlife such as foxes, raccoons & coyotes.

Monday, April 03, 2017

Memo, Mail & Me: It's Monday April 3rd

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

Can it be so, can it really be Monday again - such a quick turn around!

New from the patio this week was being outside on a lovely snowless Sunday afternoon taking stock of what's starting to poke through.  The tulips are certainly making their entrance into 2017 Spring well known for their growth is by far greater than the daffodils.

New in the shopping cart this week were two fold up deck chairs & a piece of green indoor/outdoor carpeting, that we will keep in our garage for Plan B of a summer's day.  Unfortunately we have some less than nice neighbours to the east of us & sometimes their rowdy behaviour drives us off the patio & to set up shop in the garage.
 
New, or should I say re-new, I attended church this Sunday.  The church has a new minister & I had the opportunity to listen to a few of his previous services off the church blog.  Churches with Face Book pages & blogs - well there is something to be said about moving with the times.  I keep forgetting that we are in the midst of lent so I always find it startling to walk into such a stripped down church & the altar so bare.  Thankfully those rules don't apply to the church gardens & the gardens surrounding the mediation patio were robed in the royal purple of crocus.


New harvest of California strawberries are in - isn't this the biggest single berry you have ever seen!  So big & yet still quite sweet.



"Spring makes its own statement, so loud and clear that the gardener seems to be only one of the instruments, not the composer." ~Geoffrey B. Charlesworth
 


 

Saturday, April 01, 2017

March's Reasons To Be Cheerful

I am joining in with Lady Ella's Reasons To Be Cheerful,  monthly recap.  You can read her current cheerful post here:  Flowers-of-Progress
 

Source

For me March had lots of moments to be cheerful & grateful about,  although it was certainly spiced with many stressful moments.

At work, we had one very abrupt staff departure along with another's long planned on departure which meant I was working several 12 hours days,  but I had several cheery greetings for some of our lovely patients; "oh how nice to see you again, haven't seen you in a while, missed you",  made me smile & get that warm feeling of appreciation.

With working so many days/hours this last two weeks,  it was a return to the shared housework routine of our early married days.  We work very well together as a team & Mr Man does much better at vacuuming than me.  Our agreement for the housework routine is, since I normally work part time, I look after the majority of housekeeping tasks, so weekends are for play & not housework. 

An end to the work week with a Friday night enjoying the skating at the World's competition in Helsinki.  I love to skate but I am not a skilled skater, so to watch the skaters spin, leap, throw & dance on ice is sheer joy for me.   Canada's ladies did very well - the first time two have been on the podium at the same time - silver & bronze.  I think our ice dance team have an excellent chance at the gold tonight (Saturday)!

Ladies' free skate
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While winter did have one last fling at wintery weather late last week, it is good to see signs of spring.  My special Canada tulips  that were planted in the ground/garden last Autumn are pushing through & the pots that I planted & kept in the garage all winter have stems & leaves about 6" high.  Those pots are spending the days in sunshine, with a return to the garage at night.  Still minus temperatures at night.



Grateful for a very reasonably priced quote for privacy patio fencing.  Plus they promise they can get it done soon & with minimal upset to the growing garden.

The last few online searches for information for our 2017 Summer Manifesto activities,  is coming together nicely.
 
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