November Lives Up To Her Reputation

"November comes 

And November goes, 

With the last red berries 

And the first white snows.

With night coming early, 

And dawn coming late, 

And ice in the bucket 

And frost by the gate.

The fires burn 

And the kettles sing, 

And earth sinks to rest 

Until next spring."

- Elizabeth Coatsworth

How's it looking where you are? 

A Warm Welcome

We had serious meltage over the weekend and I saw a number of robins and even a big 'ol housefly, so I got on my rubber boots and went outside to look for signs of life in my garden! I can already see that our first order of business will be to re-stain the deck...

I hadn't opened my garden shed (aka: my "office") since I'd shut it tight one very bitter afternoon in early November. This was the delightful greeting I received when I threw open the doors :) I'll admit that I actually got a bit choked up, lol! It was a long winter. 

The familiar smells were so welcoming (Eau de Summer?) and I sat down with my coffee for a spell. Does your shed look like mine first thing in the spring? Be thankful for what you can't see! We shove all our lawn furniture in at the very last and anything else that's lying about just before the snow flies and come spring have to do a big clean-up. 

A little camera shy :) You can barely see it, but that green step-ladder has been kicking around over fifty years - we've had it for close to thirty. Needless to say it's getting rickety! 

Speaking of clean-up - my yard is a disaster. As the leaves descend in the fall, I bag up the majority, but a good portion are piled on top of the beds to blanket them through the winter. What a mess come spring! I spent three hours outside yesterday and plan to work at it a little bit each day this week.

Poppies are one of the first plants to wake up. I love their bright green furry leaves.

A peony bud - this plant has white blooms.

Did you know that April is poetry month? I didn't either - thanks Em :) I'd love you to share your favourite piece of prose - perhaps it's one that you remember from childhood or something you've only recently discovered. When you open my comments section, you'll see a silly one I committed to memory many moons ago - for some unknown reason it comes back to me quite regularly!

Here's one of the great modern poets - Joni Mitchell

I am always impressed with her verbal gymnastics in this one!

Have a great week :)

48 and holding...!

Yesterday I endured celebrated another birthday. Wouldn't it be fun to go back in time to the years when our birthdays were eagerly anticipated? I truly wonder what I'll be thinking two years from now after having passed the big 5-0... I have a number of friends already in their fifties and they seem to have survived the shock!

 Here's my little pity party!

Part of the afternoon was spent in my office drinking coffee, reading, contemplating life and eating chocolate (hehe - it was my birthday afterall). We've been enjoying gorgeous weather, although we are still in desperate need of rain. To answer those who are wondering: yes, rain or shine I wear my rubber boots when I am in the backyard - that way I don't have to worry about something crawling up my leg or biting an ankle lol! 

Last night we went to a Bachman-Turner/Paul Rodgers concert. These rockers are in their 60's - Randy and Fred are actually closer to 70 - so there's a bit of encouragement for us all. 

This pic was in the Edmonton Journal this morning -

they were fantastic - I don't see retirement in their near futures.

Are gifts important as we get older? They aren't to me, but they are appreciated :) Especially when they are the very thing you are drooling over. A dear friend surprised me with this trinket box from a local antique mall - she had been with me when I tore myself away from it a few weekends ago. 

 The fronts of each drawer are slate.

They're quite deep, wonder what I'll end up storing in them?

I'm currently reading through the Harry Potter series;

perhaps some Horehound, Lemon Balm & Hyssop...

one never knows when a spell might come in handy!

Some of my birthday money was spent on two of these, my tastes are simple: rustic and used lol! 

I plan to house seasonal displays in them. 

I don't know about you, but the outside of my place could use something

to help brighten it up during the long winter months.

Here's Emma eagerly inspecting ;)

I stumbled across this new release today in my travels.

Too funny! I happen to be one of the last people in North America who doesn't have a cell phone, so I am definitely not a "texting parent". Perhaps I should get one - how am I going to remain 'hip' as I get older? Realistically though, I recognize it's probably already too late! That's okay; different priorities are now in place. You know, getting older is actually a very liberating experience:

WHEN I AM AN OLD WOMAN I SHALL WEAR PURPLE

With a red hat which doesn’t go, and doesn’t suit me.

And I shall spend my pension on brandy and summer gloves

And satin sandals, and say we’ve no money for butter.

I shall sit down on the pavement when I’m tired

And gobble up samples in shops and press alarm bells

And run my stick along the public railings

And make up for the sobriety of my youth.

I shall go out in my slippers in the rain

And pick the flowers in other people’s gardens

And learn to spit

You can wear terrible shirts and grow more fat

And eat three pounds of sausages at a go

Or only bread and pickles for a week

And hoard pens and pencils and beermats and things in boxes

But now we must have clothes that keep us dry

And pay our rent and not swear in the street

And set a good example for the children.

We must have friends to dinner and read the papers.

But maybe I ought to practice a little now?

So people who know me are not too shocked and surprised

When suddenly I am old, and start to wear purple.

Cheers!

Who has seen the wind?

Neither I nor you:

But when the leaves hang trembling,

The wind is passing through.

Who has seen the wind?

Neither you nor I:

But when the trees bow down their heads,

The wind is passing by.

Oh the plans of mice and men. Today was another very windy day with gusts up to 65 km/h. Thankfully it was a warm wind (SE) and we made it to 19C. As a result though, any yard work I'd planned had to be put on hold. We did manage to rake up leaves (between gusts) early this morning and then suck them into the mulcher, so the day wasn't a total write-off. It was virtually impossible to do anything else, so I spent part of the afternoon in my office (that's what I call my garden shed in the summer) drinking coffee and taking stock of the projects I'd like to complete in the next few weeks. It's hard not to feel overwhelmed, especially when your hands are tied for the day.

Here's one corner of the mish-mash that my garden shed turns into each fall 

as we quickly shove everything into it at the end of the season! 

I suppose I could have organized it today, but I will be pretty much emptying it out shortly anyways.

Pulling my cherub out cheered me up a bit :)

My Hens have quite a few new Chicks

The poppies are coming along very nicely

The delphiniums are marching along

The peonies have just poked through - we are usually a few weeks behind Ontario, but we were pushed back even further thanks to the late winter storm we had in mid-April. 

The hops vines are insane, in a few weeks they will completely engulf our covered deck

I have two dwarf lilac bushes and they are happily covered in buds

This is Francis' cranky cousin Hemlock. 

I'm back inside now working on laundry - at least that will be done and I have my fingers crossed for tomorrow, but according to the weatherman we are slated for another windy day or two. Hoping your Saturday was a productive one. 

"Sweet May hath come to love us, 
Flowers, trees, their blossoms don; 
And through the blue heavens above us 
The very clouds move on." 
- Heinrich Heine, Book of Songs

A bit belated, but I finally turned the page...!

We are having a lovely May so far. I haven't had an opportunity to give everything in my yard a real good once over, but from what I can see, it looks like everyone survived our wicked winter. My vines are up over 1.5 feet and the delphiniums are already 6 inches. The only downfall of the season for me is that the creepy crawlies are now out and about.... so I thought I'd share this interesting story I stumbled across yesterday:

This is pretty scary!

Almost 50 million years ago, ants the size of hummingbirds roamed what is now Wyoming, a new fossil discovery reveals. These giant bugs may have crossed an Arctic land bridge between Europe and North America during a particularly warm period in Earth's history.

At about 2 inches (5 cm) long, the specimen is a "monstrously big ant," said Bruce Archibald, a paleoentomologist at Simon Fraser University in British Columbia who reported the discovery today (May 3) in the journal Proceedings of the Royal Society B. Though fossils of loose giant ant wings have been found before in the United States, this is the first known full-body specimen.


One living ant species, Dorylus wilverthi, has queens that reach the size of this ancient ant, though Titanomyrma was big all over while D. wilverthi gets its size from an abnormally swollen abdomen, Archibald said.

Archibald dubbed the new ant Titanomyrma lubei -- "titan" for its size, "myrma" for the Greek, "myrmex," or ant, and "lubei" for the fossil collector who discovered the specimen, Louis Lube. The burning question, however, was how giant ants ended up on both sides of the Atlantic Ocean. 

The full story here if you are interested.


Also, you may have seen the story about a cat who was dubbed the world's loudest purrer (is that a word?!) The other day ABC news reported that Smokey is now officially the Guinness World Record holder. I love the profile below.

"It was one of those March days when the sun shines hot and the wind blows cold:  

when it is summer in the light, and winter in the shade."

-   Charles Dickens

When Irish Eyes Are Smiling...

Top 'O the Mornin' to Ya

&

Happy St. Paddy's Day!

This is the most ridiculous video, but it is also very sweet and funny. 

For some unknown reason this song always makes me want to cry...
Perhaps in a past life my one true love sailed away as I watched from atop a rocky crag; the bitter wind whipping through my castle window, tossing silken locks about my tear-stained face?

May the road rise up to meet you.

May the wind be always at your back.

May a rainbow be certain to follow each rain.

May the rain fall softly upon your fields. And the sun shine warm upon your face.

Top of the mornin' to ya.....(and the rest of the day to 'me self!)

May there always be work for you to do.

May your purse always hold a coin or two.

May the sun always shine on your windowpane.

May the hand of a friend always be near you.

May God fill your heart with gladness to cheer you.

March Roars In

March roars in like a lion
So fierce,
The wind so cold,
It seems to pierce.

The month rolls on
And Spring draws near,
And March goes out
Like a lamb so dear.

-Lorie Hill-

Well, March did indeed roar in. I know that I had banished winter from my blog, but a new month indicates that at least a nod to the weather is to be expected. It's been snow'n and blow'n for the last two days and we have a predicted high of -20C for today. As you can see, poor Aslan is shivering along with the rest of us.

I turned the page on my Inuit Art calendar. This painting by Pitseolak Niviaqsi of Cape Dorset is entitled "Walrus on the Ice" and is one of my favorites from the calendar.

The Old Farmer's 2011 Almanac has this prediction of sorts for March. I am posting it right off and wonder how correct it will prove to be. 

Bright and chilly,

then flakes willy-nilly.

Clearing,

not warming;

milder,

but storming.

Gray day for the Irish:

damp and mire-ish.

Equinox brings snowy shocks.

A flash of sun,

a splash of rain:

Is it spring again?

Not too promising of a month if this is how it's going to be! In response to our bleak outlook, I've posted another time-lapse video which is simply STUNNING. The soundtrack perfectly complements the incredible elegance of each flower. It's over nine minutes long...but worth every minute.

Edmonton Muttart Conservatory

"A light exists in Spring
Not present in the year
at any other period
When March is scarcely here."

-Emily Dickinson

I thought this apt for the last day of February. Certainly more fitting than the strange ditty the Old Farmer's 2011 Almanac has posted for today!

'He who goes to bed hungry,
dreams of pancakes.'

A gray, blustery day here and we currently hover at -24C; so for today at least, we are not experiencing the 'spring light' Emily refers to. Still, we have had some lovely days in the last number of weeks where it did indeed feel like spring is drawing nearer. I plan to venture out tomorrow to poke around the second-hand stores. It's been weeks since my last visit and this weather is getting me down. Strangely enough, pawing through other people's cast-offs is just the kind of pick-me-up I need...to each his own I guess! I had planned to go to the Muttart Conservatory this week with company we were expecting but the visit has been postponed. This is a fantastic place to break up the monotony of the winter months.

The Muttart Conservatory is a botanical garden which consists of four glass pyramid-shaped structures that showcase plants from arid, tropical, and temperate climates, providing a welcome oasis of warmth during winter. The fourth pyramid hosts a theme that changes throughout the year. (Thanks Wikipedia)

But for the rest of today anyways this is what I will be looking at; 

Emma doesn't seem too impressed either!

A Poem for Late February

"Late February days; and now, at last,
Might you have thought that
Winter's woe was past;
So fair the sky was and so soft the air." 
William Morris

Judging by the new look of my blog, I guess I could be accused of seeing the world through rose-colored glasses (or green lol), although right now it is more like frosted glass. I regularly visit all sorts of blogs and while I often enjoy the edgy, bordering on cranky ones, it is just not my style. My musings are for those who are trying to cut back - I suppose I'm in the 'lite' blog category. 

I thought the above poem was perfect for today. Our skies are blue, the sun is almost hot at times (when you are driving in the car or sitting by a window) and our days are noticeably longer. But as the poem indicates: reality check! It will not be spring here for a good while. Earlier this morning a number of bloggers I regularly visit were in the midst of busily sowing seeds or in some cases, already setting out their delicate seedlings on windowsills in anticipation of our long-awaited spring. Here is a great example. The longer I mosey through life, the more I begin to appreciate poetry. So much feeling, texture and atmosphere is translated into a concise, disciplined form. Yet good poetry always feels free and all encompassing. 

My maternal grandmother passed away this past Sunday at 96. She lived a very long and healthy life. She was a nurse at one point and then, once married, lived on the family farm in southern Ontario. Many of my childhood memories are centered around summers spent on that parcel of land. My great-grandmother (who also lived on the farm and I remember well) and grandfather are gone and now my grandmother. A chapter has closed in some respects. It is the circle of life, and certainly gives one pause for thought. In the picture below, Helen is the gal in the front row, far right, with the black short-sleeved blouse and belt. Considering it was 1935, I think she was quite stylish for her time. The picture expands for a closer look.

We're Getting There!

I really wish I'd seen this cute summary from the Old Farmer's 2011 Almanac sooner. February is almost over, but I thought I'd post it anyways. I'll post the one for March once we turn the page. Overall it turns out to be close to accurate for this month - we did have a couple of ridiculously warm periods followed by the inevitable bitter cold. If this little ditty continues to hold true, we should experience another warming trend in the next few days. I have my fingers crossed: right now we are sitting at -14C!

Groundhog cowers:

sunshine, 

then showers.

Too warm for storms.

Mercury plummets,

fingers turn numb:

It's frigid air.

Pleasurable, 

then unmeasurable 

out there!

Starting to drip --

it's a pip!

Wet 'n' wild,

but mild.

A Warm Day In Winter

blue skies
+6 
we're melting
no breeze to speak of 
the (green!) grass is peaking through
I'm lapping it up 
while it lasts!






















































































A Warm Day In Winter









“Sunshine on de medders,

Greenness on de way;

Dat ’s de blessed reason

I sing all de day.”

Look hyeah! Whut you axin’?

Whut meks me so merry?

‘Spect to see me sighin’

W’en hit’s wa’m in Febawary?



Long de stake an’ rider

‘  Seen a robin set;

W’y hit ‘mence a-thawin’,

Groun’ is monst’ous wet.

Den you stan’ dah wond’rin’,

Lookin’ skeert an’ stary;

I’s a right to caper

W’en hit’s wa’m in Febawary.



Missis gone a-drivin’,

Mastah gone to shoot;

Ev’ry da’ky lazin’

In de sun to boot.

Qua’tah ’s moughty pleasant,

Hangin’ ‘roun’ my Mary;

Cou’tin’ boun’ to prospah

W’en hit’s wa’m in Febawary

Cidah look so pu'ty
Po'in' f'om de jug-
Don' you see it's happy?
Hyeah it laffin' - glug?
Now's de time fu' people
Fu' to try an' bury
All day grief an' sorrer,
W'en hit's wa'm in Febawary.




-Paul Laurence Dunbar-