New Flower (June 3, 2020) – Dark Pink Peony
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Category Archives: About Me
Photo a Week Challenge – Footwear
…thanks to Nancy Merrill for hosting A Photo a Week
My favourite socks. Thanks Geoff.
Friendly Friday Photo Challenge – Comfort Food
…thanks to Sandy for hosting this week’s Friendly Friday Photo Challenge
Comfort foods during COVID-19 have caused me to gain at least six pounds. Despite walking an average 13 000 steps a day comfort foods which are high in carbs are my downfall.
My husband, when he’s feeling okay, has found a renewed love of cooking. I don’t complain and I enjoy what he prepares immensely. The best meals are the ones we work on together. Here are some of my favourite comfort foods that we’ve enjoyed over the last 10 weeks.
Raisin Scones
Homemade Bread
Roast Pork and Mashed Cauliflower
Homemade Pizza
Lemon Pasta with Pancetta
Cowboy Cookies
Breakfast made by Kevin (vegetable hash under a fried egg)
52 Week Smartphone Challenge – Week 21 Serenity
….thanks to Khürt for hosting the 52 Week Smartphone Challenge
Serenity definitely comes from being outdoors. I’ve spent a lot of time in the parks in Toronto that border on Lake Ontario. Even though I’ve been working to clear away the trash that has fallen between the rocks I can still take a moment to enjoy the view and take in the peace and quiet along the shoreline. This is one of the last photos I took on my iPhone.
Cee’s Fun Foto Challenge – Anything Man-made
…thanks to Cee for hosting the Fun Foto Challenge
For more than 20 days we’ve been collecting garbage from the our parks. All of this trash is man-made.
Midges – Is there a way to repel them?
…they’re back in swarms that literally get up your nose and into your mouth
It seems to be a particularly bad time for midges. There are swarms of them along the waterfront. This seems to be our second wave. The first one happened a month ago. The good news is that their lifespan is pretty short and they don’t bite.
Today on our hunt for trash in the park we came across an unusually nasty swarm of them. It was a very warm day and because we were working hard they gravitated towards us. Midges are are attracted to us by carbon dioxide in our breath and the smell of our natural body odour and sweat.
On Facebook one of my friends suggested the we apply Vicks Vapour Rub to our bodies. When I looked it up I did find a site that suggested that eucalyptus repels Midges because they don’t like the smell. Not sure that I want to go to a drug store for a jar when I know that they won’t be with us for much longer.
I have discovered that my COVID mask has come in handy for keeping those nasty little bugs out of my nose and mouth.
My Messy Journal 30 Day Challenge
….30 days to fill an entire art journal with messy pages
I know it sounds a bit strange but the challenge came from Kara Kramer, one of Carla Sonheim’s guest artists from her year long class called 2020: Words and Pictures. The idea is to be loose and free and fill the book and then come back later and using prompts add more to the pages. I’m still in the filling the book stage. Here are some of the pages of the 42 that I’ve done so far.
58 pages to go!!!!
Among the Rocks
…Col. Sam Smith Park is mostly made from landfill
This beautiful naturalized park in Toronto (south Etobicoke) is a gem in the neighbourhood. I remember years ago in the 1980s when dump trucks were lined up to unload their bins of landfill into Lake Ontario to expand the park. As a result an artificial harbour (now home to the Lakeshore Yacht Club) was created. It is skirted by grasslands punctuated by trees and set within the rocky shoreline. The lake-fill area also contains a wetlands habitat with wildlife-viewing platforms, while elsewhere among the tree-lined paths and lawns are playgrounds, pavilions, and a sport field.
This is one of the parks the Trish and I go to pick up litter. When you walk along the pathways you’d think the park is pretty clean but when you walk along the rocks you can see where people have partied and where the waves have deposited waste (mostly plastic) from the belly of the lake.
Here are some shots from the surface of the rocks and then what we’ve found between them.
New Flower (May 22, 2020) – Frilly Yellow Tulip
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Instant Colour
….after a forced trip to Costco
I needed my winter tires taken off my car. I haven’t driven very much since this isolation started back in March. In fact I filled up just before this started and I was down to a quarter of a tank when I filled up again two days ago. That was 8 weeks between fill-ups.
Anyway I digress. I got an appointment at the Tire Centre at Costco very easily. I booked on-line and took the first appointment available. So on the 13th of May I drove to Costco at 9:30 in the morning. I walked straight into the warehouse past a huge line-up of people waiting to get into the store to shop.
After I dropped off the car I had an hour and a half wait so I decided I might as well join the line and pick up some flowers for the yard. It took about 30 minutes to get inside. Once inside I felt completely safe. There were very few people in the building and the check out was very organized.
An hour is a long time so I ended up buying more than I had planned to but I did only purchase things that I needed or would need shortly.
When I got home I arranged the flowers in the front and back of the house. That blast of instant colour made my trip to Costco all the more worthwhile.
Mama Cormier 