…this is a new flower for me
New Flower (October 3, 2022) – West Indian Lantana
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Category Archives: About Me
Last Day of September
….busy day today
The lawn bowling club is prepping the grass for next season and the chairs and carpets were stacked and rolled up and put into storage for the winter. On my way back to the car I noticed that the wildflowers and were throwing off their fluffy seed heads and the bees were busy collecting the last bits of nectar.
Weekly Prompts Wednesday Challenge – Pernickety Pets
…thanks to GC and Sue W for hosting Weekly Prompts Wednesday Challenge https://weeklyprompts.com/2022/09/28/weekly-prompts-wednesday-challenge-pernickety-pets/
A few years ago, before COVID, I looked after my neighbours cat while she was in the hospital. His name is Tober. My husband is allergic to cats so I went over to the house twice a day to feed him and I stayed for an hour to keep him company. I did this for six weeks. You’d think after all this time we’d have some kind of relationship but when he goes out he avoids me at all costs and heads straight for the neighbour across the street who used to leave him treats. How fickle.
Even though we owned a cat for 12 years before my husband’s allergies kicked in, we’re definitely more dog people. Below is our daughter’s dog, Olive, who we dog sit periodically and our dog, Frances, is the last photo. Frances was a great dog, who loved the water and lived to the ripe old age of 15. We lost Frances almost a year ago.
I’m a Fan of…..Stones and Boulders
….thanks to Jez for hosting I’m a Fan of…..https://jezbraithwaite.blog/2022/09/26/arches-wk1-fan-of-175/
At both ends of our beach on Big Sand Bay there are wonderful stones and boulders that the water and waves flow and crash over all year round. As a result most of them are smooth and rounded. They come in many colours and have interesting veins and cracks. I love how the water gives them a glossy sheen when they are wet.
Weekly Prompts Weekend Challenge – Review
….thanks to Sue W. and GC for hosting the Weekend Challengehttps://weeklyprompts.com/2022/09/24/weekly-prompts-weekend-challenge-review-3/
Reviewing my day in Hamilton. Had I known that I was going to do this I would probably have taken more photos.
My daughter and daughter-in-law had appointments in Hamilton to get their hair done and the car isn’t very reliable anymore for long trips so I volunteered to drive them in my car. I haven’t been back to the downtown core of Hamilton since our daughter moved to New Brunswick.
The first thing I did was drop the girls off at the salon and then I drove to Denninger’s. It’s a German deli that has been in Hamilton since Rudolf Denninger immigrated to Canada from Germany with his wife. The family owned business has grown from the original store on King St. in Hamilton to 5 stores, a warehouse and a manufacturing facility, employing 300 people in southern Ontario. https://denningers.com/pages/about-us
The visit was bittersweet because so many things in the store reminded me of my father, who passed away almost two years ago. I picked up many things that had a special meaning for me. My father loved chocolates, herring and small oranges like clementines. The cashier asked me if I was all right because I had tears in my eyes. I told him they were happy tears. I spent way too much money.
After my shopping trip at the deli I drove back to Mulberry and MacNab because I knew that I could park there for free and I walked up James St. to the wool shop. I had some money left on a gift certificate from the Hand Knit Yarn Store. It wasn’t for a large amount but I thought I would check out the new merchandise. I haven’t been there since before COVID, over two years ago. Everyone was very friendly and using up the remainder of the gift card was no problem. Again I spent way too much money. https://handknityarnstudio.com/
After my purchase of yarns I walked around the corner to Arcana Salon https://www.arcanasalon.ca/ to check on the girls. Andrea had another 1 1/2 hours to go, so I walked back towards my car and my favourite coffee shop in Hamilton, Mulberry Coffeehouse https://www.mulberrycoffeehouse.com/. Along the way I stopped to take some photos of flowers and Interesting doors.
Once I was in the coffeehouse, I ordered a tea and a breakfast sandwich. It was very busy, as it always is and I was lucky to find a seat at a counter. I pulled out the book that I am currently reading but I didn’t get too far. Josie walked in with her new haircut and wanted to visit the Farmers’ Market which was within walking distance from the cafe. When I finished my tea we made the trek to the Hamilton Farmers’ Market and we were delighted to see that most of the vendors had survived the COVID restrictions and closures. I purchased two large bunches of basil and garlic after overhearing another customer talk about making pesto with his purchase. I thought it was a great idea. In the next post I’ll show you our busy day making and putting the pesto into jars.
Andrea met us at the market. We walked around a little bit more and I treated myself to a bunch of flowers. My Dad also enjoyed buying flowers for me and my husband used to do it weekly. We headed back to the car with our bags of produce in hand and then made our way back to Toronto.
That evening we shared a meal together and I cooked up the spaetzle that I bought earlier. Kevin had made a lovely beef stew that complimented the German noodles perfectly. To burn off some of the calories from our meal, the girls and I and Olive went for a long walk through the neighbourhood. What a perfect day!
The Abundance of Autumn
…the vegetable and fruit stands are overflowing with beautiful produce from our local farmers
On my way home from the cottage last weekend I stopped at one of my favourite farms to buy some vegetables to take home. I wasn’t disappointed. So colourful and so varied.
The Last Night of Lawn Bowling
….what a great season
This was the first year, since 2020 where we were able to play a full season and with fewer restrictions. Many of us, including myself, had the experience of playing in tournaments with other clubs and with the addition of 30 new members in our club alone we made a lot of new friends.
Thursday evening was our last opportunity to play. It was cold and windy but enough members came out to play on three rinks. Today the city came by and laid a layer of sand to the pitch which prevents us from playing into next week. In a couple of weeks we will have one more opportunity to get together and share a meal at a local restaurant.
Feeding the Cows and Texture Tuesday
…on the way to the cottage on the weekend I stopped at my favourite Vegetable stand
This vegetable and fruit stand is located at the front of a farm where they not only grow vegetables but they also raise cattle. Today they put out food that the children and adults could feed to the cows. If you weren’t careful they often mistook your phones for food and would reach out with their long tongues. Those tongues were rough and the nostrils were slimy with a textured pattern.
Tuesday Textures – Beyond Its Best Before Date
….some things in my garden weren’t picked in time
When our granddaughter was here she went out every morning and picked the ripe and not so ripe tomatoes, peppers and beans. Now that she’s gone some of the bounty from my garden has been left too long on the vine. Miss you Winnie!
The textures here are wrinkled, withered, dried and ruptured.
RDP – Monday – Soil
…thanks to RDP for this unusual daily prompt https://ragtagcommunity.wordpress.com/2022/09/12/rdp-monday-soil/
Have you ever ordered soil for the garden and then later in the season when nothing is growing you wonder what on earth you were sent. I even gave some of that bag of soil away to the neighbours because it was more than I needed and they discovered the same problem. The soil became hard and clumpy and very little grew where it had been placed. I’ll never order from that garden centre again. They just ignored my complaint.
Mama Cormier 