….they say that stripes are worn by very organized people but if worn in the wrong direction they can also emphasis areas of your body that you should probably minimize
Here’s my tribute to stripes. For more photos featuring stripes go to Nadia Merrill Photography.
……name 5 places you’d like to visit
1. The west and east coasts of Canada. I’ve lived in Canada pretty much all of my life but I’ve never been to any of our coastal areas. I’m very much drawn to water and that’s one of the reasons I’ve lived in Toronto in the same house for over 35 years. I live right next to Lake Ontario and in the summers I spend a great deal of my time at the cottage on Georgian Bay. 
2. Italy, the entire boot. I’ve wanted to go to Italy for awhile now. The rolling hills of Tuscany, the history of Rome, the romance of Venice, the mountains in the north and the rugged coastlines tug at my wanderlust. I love the food, the wine and the art and of course the beautiful scenery. What more could a person want?
3. New Zealand and since I’ve travelled so far I might as well hop on over to Australia. I love reading about both countries and I follow several bloggers from ‘down under’.
4. New York City. The last time I was in NYC I was a mere child of 5 years. We drove down to pick up my Oma from the ship that she travelled on from Germany. Everyone should experience this iconic city at least once in their life and take in the shows, the great restaurants, Central Park, Coney Island and of course the Statue of Liberty.
New York City Photo courtesy of http://i.factmonster.com/images/brooklyn-manhatten-bridges.jpg
5. Iceland. My daughter and her partner just came back from Iceland and the rugged scenery intrigues me. The entire country has no more than 300 000 people so the roads are never busy and they are easy to manoeuvre.
….it should be more than spending one day picking up garbage
Don’t get me wrong, I think it’s great that we make children aware of their environment and how to keep it clean but maybe we need to be more diligent about making sure that it stays clean so that we don’t need community clean-up days.
For me Earth Day should be about celebrating the wonders of nature and respecting our environment. Nothing burns me more than seeing people dump their garbage from their cars onto the road, sidewalk or parking lot especially when there’s a garbage bin a mere 20 feet away. There’s a sense of entitlement that I find offensive. If you say anything to these people you know you will be accosted with profanity and rude gestures.
Now that the weather has finally turned around we need to get out and breathe in the fresh air and look up, down and all around us and take in what this beautiful world has to offer. Listen to the sounds of the birds and observe the wildlife that inhabits your backyard. Our environment is precious and we need to savour it and protect it.
….it’s almost scary how quickly these challenges come up
How many places have you lived? You can share the number of physical residences and/or the number of cities.
• born in Frankfurt, Germany
Garmisch, Germany
• lived in Garmisch, Germany for about a year
• moved to Canada when I was 20 months old
• lived in Toronto until I was 5
• moved to Oakville when I was 6
• moved back to Toronto when I was 10 and have stayed here ever since
• for 4 years I went to school in Guelph but I always came home in the summer
Photo courtesy of : http://compsci.ca/blog/wp-content/uploads/2007/12/university_guelph_campus.jpg
• after I got married my husband and I moved three times – for one year we lived in uptown Toronto, then moved to the High Park area and lived there for two years and finally we bought our house down by the lake in the west end of the city – we’ve lived in the same house for 35 years
What type of music relaxes you the most?
Most music relaxes me. When I was at the concert last week, even the music by Shostakovich put me to sleep. Music that doesn’t relax me is punk, heavy metal, rap, goth and grunge.
If you could instantly become fluent in another language, what would that language be and why?
I think I would pick French. I’m surrounded by it every day at school and just once I’d like to surprise everyone by answering back in perfect French. All my children went to French Immersion school and I’ve taught in two French Immersion schools but on the English side for more than 25 years. I just assumed that I would pick it up by osmosis but sadly that didn’t happen.
If you could fly or breathe under water what would you prefer?
I would prefer to fly. There are too many predators under water and I think It would be safer in the sky.
Bonus question: What are you grateful for from last week, and what are you looking forward to in the week coming up?
I am grateful that the snow has finally all melted away and that the garden is starting to show signs of spring. This week I’m looking forward to a short week at work (we had today off) and spending time with my friends on the weekend.
For more Share Your World posts check out Cee’s Photography.
….have you ever looked up to see what sits on top of a store front?
This weekend we spent a wonderful two and a half days with my sister and her new husband. Just before leaving today we walked up and down the almost deserted streets (Easter Sunday) of downtown Chatham. My husband pointed out the magnificent architecture above the store fronts and I just had to take a few pictures. 
For more On Top photos go to Daily Post Photo Challenge.
…..cows at odd angles
As soon as I saw these photos I knew that I wanted to post them for Cee’s Odd Ball Photo Challenge.
For more great odd ball photos check out Cee’s Odd Ball Photo Challenge.
…..chocolate, Easter bunnies, tulips and sunshine
Happy Easter, everyone!
…..visiting my sister and brother-in-law
After checking into the hotel in Chatham, my husband and I drove to the farm. My brother-in-law was excited about showing off his new ‘man cave’. We were greeted by numerous cats, barking dogs and one sheep and the cows that were in the enclosed pen outside the barn. A few seconds later my sister stepped out of the barn and D approached us from the opposite side of the property.
The new ‘man cave’ isn’t finished inside but the structure is up and the water and electricity are hooked up and working. We listened to the plans as to how the space will be used and D hopes that he can have his ‘man cave warming party’ in the fall.
It was a warm, beautiful day so I decided to take a few pictures of the livestock in the yard. When we go back tomorrow we will check out the sheep and horses in the new barn. My sister’s place is a photographer’s delight….lots of old farm equipment, weathered knick knacks and yard ornaments and of course animals.
…..tensions were high and the paint literally flew
After taking Karine Swenson’s class on abstract painting I decided to pass on some of the things that I learned to my grade 5 students. One thing you should know is that this class is huge by today’s standards. There are 30 students in this class and they take up every inch of space that I have for art. The other problem is that not everyone is on the same project and everyone wanted help at the same time.
I put on a Youtube video that demonstrated some abstract techniques that the students might want to try. This kept about half the class busy while I sorted out the problems with the other projects that were still incomplete. Earlier in the week I went to the dollar store and purchased canvases, small, medium and large that the students preordered and paid for.
Once I got most of the problems solved I brought out the paints, brushes, palette knives, palettes and a variety of other accessories that the students could use on their paintings. I took a canvas and in about 5 minutes I created an abstract piece that used a variety of techniques and i let the students dictate what colours they wanted me to use. I’m not sure I would have used those colours if I were making the decision but the kids aren’t afraid to experiment with someone else’s work.
I’m glad I was wearing an apron because at one point when I threw the paint from the knife onto the canvas it came straight back at me and right onto the centre of my red apron.
It was actually a very good teaching moment and the kids could see how easy it is the ruin what you’re wearing. When I finished my piece the grade 5s were ready to start their own paintings.
The following paintings may or may not be finished. Next week when we have art class again the students will decide if they need to add more detail or change something they don’t like. A couple of girls have already made that decision and painted out what they’d done and they will start anew in the next class.
Karine Swenson always says that it’s only paint and canvas. Experiment. You can always paint over it if you don’t like it. I love the energy and freedom of these paintings. The kids had a blast and even though they left me with a huge mess some of them did come back at the end of the day to help me clean up.
….another challenge from Sue Llewellyn
Mama Cormier 
