Collage Grid #1

Posted on January 10, 2019 by Mama Cormier

….the first assignment from Carla Sonheim’s Year of Collage

After dividing a page in my sketchbook into equal squares I took a handful of small bits of paper from magazines and my own art papers and thoughtfully placed them on the grid. Here is my finished piece.

The second part of this assignment is to take eight pages in my sketch book and glue one medium sized piece of paper on each page. Then we’re so suppose to go back and add some line and/or another piece of paper. We keep doing this to all eight pages until we feel we’re done. It’s okay to skip some pages and come back later. This is proving to be more challenging for me.

One More Christmas Celebration

Posted on January 9, 2019 by Mama Cormier

….just when I thought I was done

I mentioned in one of my recent posts about Christmas that a very good friend of ours who almost always spends Christmas Eve with us couldn’t come over this past year. My daughter arranged for the three of us to get together last week for lunch.

I packed up all the gifts that I had for her, put them in my car and then headed out for Montgomery’s Inn where I volunteered to help put up an art show. I’ve never done a professional exhibit before and I found it exciting helping the artist decide where and how to hang her work. The artist’s name is Sharon McManus and I will probably share more about her work after the official opening this Saturday.

When we finished hanging all the pieces I made my way to Arlene’s place. We met in her condo where she still had up all her Christmas decorations, including her white tree that she’s had since the 60s.

Andrea arrived soon after and we all went down the street to the local Sushi restaurant. We toasted in the New Year with a little saki and warmed our tummies with a bowl of ramen.

When we went back to the condo and Arlene opened her gifts. She loves Henkel Trocken and it’s become a tradition to place a bottle in her Christmas stocking.

Before we left she made us coffee and we shared a muffin and some cookies. Andrea also taught her how to use her camera on her phone so we played around posing for pictures.

I think this is pretty much the end of our Christmas season, although my niece and her husband celebrated Orthodox Christmas a couple of days ago.

There are still a few remnants of Christmas around the neighbourhoods and some of the lights will stay up well past Valentine’s Day but for the most part the decorations are starting to come down and the greenery is starting to whither. Some people are sad that the holiday season is now over. As for me I’m looking forward to some rest and returning to a more normal routine of eating. How about you?

Introducing Me Through Collage

Posted on January 8, 2019 by Mama Cormier

….my introductory assignment for my year long Collage class

Before we start our course we are suppose to create a collage with our name. Here is my assignment completed. I’ve also incorporated some mixed media as well to make it more interesting. I took some tips from my other class, Abstract Mixed Media, by Karin Husty.

What Constitutes a Failure?

Posted on January 7, 2019 by Mama Cormier

….is producing 177 pieces of art in one year a failure?

Last year I had decided to produce one piece of art a day or at least work on an art piece every day for 365 days. I created my own personal challenge of 365 Days of Art. In the middle of November I stopped drawing and painting. Was I discouraged by the fact that I was very much behind my goal or was it something else?

I think that being so far behind was part of it but life just seemed to get in the way, especially in November and December. There were things that I hadn’t planned on like getting ill, my father going into the hospital, the plumbing breaking down and my sister coming for a visit. Then there were the things that just happen, like Christmas parties, concerts and trying to get ready for Christmas.

I recognize that all of these things are just excuses because I see people out there who manage to create a piece of art every day but I’ve decided that I should rejoice in the 177 pieces that I did create. Here are some of my favourites from 2018: IMG_0468 2.jpeg

So what is my art goal for this year? I will definitely continue making art but the question is how much and should I even put a number on it. What do you think I should do? I have some ideas that I will share later today.

Cheers!

Sunday Trees – 373

Posted on January 6, 2019 by Mama Cormier

….thanks to Becca Givens for hosting Sunday Trees

My neighbour’s tree is getting a trim. I watched this guy maneuvering his cherry picker for over an hour.

Digging up the Yard on New Year’s Eve

Posted on January 6, 2019 by Mama Cormier

….actually the neighbour’s driveway

A few days ago I told you about our plumbing problems that occurred on Boxing Day. Well our plumber finally arrived early in the morning on New Year’s Eve and I mean early. At 7:00 a.m. I woke up to the sounds of a shovel hitting the asphalt on my neighbour’s driveway.

I knew that Joe the Plumber was going to start as early as 8:00 but my husband and I and our neighbour were surprised to see him out there digging up the dirt by hand an hour earlier than expected. The sun had barely risen and according to my husband his truck was in front of our house quite a bit before 7:00.

In case you had forgotten we had water backing up through the sewer pipe every time we used the washing machine, the dishwasher or took long showers. When the camera went down the pipe we were informed that the pipe at the Y junction had collapsed and needed to be replaced. Only small amounts of water got through and all the waste materials were building up in the pipe. The unfortunate part of all of this was that the break was under my neighbours driveway.

After about five hours of digging by hand the problem was resolved. The broken pipe was removed and replaced with a new piece and the hole refilled. In the spring we’ll have to repair the asphalt on our neighbour’s driveway but for now it looks neat and clean. It was a very costly but necessary repair. What a way to end 2018 but we’re grateful to guys like Joe who come out to do that kind of work all year long.

Two Birthdays – One Here, Another in Uruguay

Posted on January 5, 2019 by Mama Cormier

….my twins are 37 years old

Last Sunday my babies turned 37. Our son travelled to Uruguay this Christmas to spend time with his wife’s family. Her uncle rented a ranch house by the ocean and while we were enduring the cold here in Canada they were basking in the sun at the beach. My son was literally burning (at least his feet were).

For his pre-birthday dinner he was treated to a South American BBQ with lots of meat on the grill.

Meanwhile back here in Canada we celebrated his twin sister’s birthday in her home. We decided on a Persian themed pot luck supper. My husband picked up some meat kabobs and eggplant dip from our local Persian restaurant and he made a pot of Gormeh Sabzi (Green Herb Stew). Our son-in-law made a Fesenjan (Pomegranate Walnut Stew) and a Jewelled Rice (rice with nuts and dried fruit). Andrea made a Cauliflower Kuku (cauliflower frittata made with eggs). Everything was delicious. I think Azadeh would have approved.

Winnie insisted that Mom needed a birthday cake so Gaelan whipped up a cheesecake with a hazelnut base. It was outstanding.

Of course it wouldn’t be a birthday without opening gifts. It turned out that some of us also got to open some Christmas presents from our friend who was unable to come to our house on Christmas Eve.

All in all it was a great day.

The Third Day of Christmas Celebrations Amidst a Plumbing Disaster

Posted on January 3, 2019 by Mama Cormier

…..on Boxing Day the sewer started backing up into the basement

Soon after doing the laundry we noticed that water was coming up through the sewer drain in the basement. Luckily it was only a large puddle around the drain and it was easily soaked up with rags but soon after when someone showered it happened again. We decided to carefully ration the water until we could get a plumber to the house. We called the next morning but because it wasn’t an immediate emergency we had to wait one more day before the plumber could get to our house.

On the 28th a camera and a plumbing snake were lowered into the drain. At 41 feet the camera came across the problem. The clay pipe at the Y junction had collapsed and only a small area was letting water get through. That meant that paper and some ‘matter’ was building up at the break and water was having a hard time passing through. Plumber Joe was able to clear the blockage but it was only a temporary fix. The pipe had to be removed and replaced. There was only one problem; the broken pipe was in the middle of my neighbour’s driveway and her car was sitting on top of it.

Now that might not seem like a huge problem but the car hadn’t been moved in almost two years and no amount of pushing would move it back the three feet we needed to get to the problem. We tried calling CAA but they didn’t show up and when I called they said that our coverage didn’t cover moving the neighbour’s car. Now what?

The next morning we figured out why we couldn’t put the car into neutral. Newer cars are all controlled by the electrical system and since the battery was completely dead we needed to give the car a boost. Eureka! We got the car started and backed it up the three feet that we needed. Unfortunately by the time we called our plumber back he was already on another job and couldn’t come till Monday, Dec. 31.

Our third day of Christmas was suppose to happen on the 28th but due to a miscommunication my sister’s family was planning on arriving on the 29th. At the time I thought the plumbing was going to be fixed on that day so I wasn’t too anxious about having eight adults and a baby in the house. When they arrived I explained the situation and asked them to use the bathroom sparingly. In the end we decided to go out for dinner instead of eating at home. Before we left we opened more gifts and phoned the restaurant to make sure that they could accommodate our large group.

In the end it turned out that the restaurant was a good option all around. There were no dishes for me to wash (couldn’t run the dishwasher), everyone was able to order according to their dietary needs and likes, we arrived after the rush, the service was great and we were able to spend time talking to one another without worrying about our plumbing problem. My sister and her family all live out of town and my nephew had flown in from California. If we hadn’t gotten together that day it probably wouldn’t have happened. Thanks for small blessings.