A Great Day for a Race

Posted on September 24, 2016 by Mama Cormier

….the conditions were perfect

Back in August I signed up for the Railpath Community Run. Initially I thought I would do the walk but every year for the last three years I end up running the course. I guess the term running is debatable in my case but once I start I don’t stop to walk. I’m not very fast, in fact I know people who can walk faster than I run.

On Thursday, my daughter and I made our way to the Henderson Brewery where the running packages could be picked up. This is the first year that the micro brewery, situated on the rail path hosted the event. We stayed and sampled some of the beer after picking up our numbers and t-shirts.

My husband has been coaching a group of boys, ages nine to thirteen, for the last four weeks to prepare them for this year’s cross country run at their school. We’ve known most of the boys for 10 years and we consider them family. Despite my husband’s current medical condition, going out two to three times a week to work with the boys has been a very uplifting experience for him. In his younger days my husband was considered a world class marathon runner.

This past week K has been flat on his back with debilitating pain in his knees and ankles. At the hospital they thought he was suffering from an onset of severe rheumatoid arthritis and they sent him home with a prescription for morphine and a phone number for a rheumatologist. To make a long story short, he was able to get dressed today and make his way to the race to watch his team run.

There were 13 of us from the ‘family’ running and I was the only one who had signed up for the walk, which was after the run. Instead of making everyone wait for me to finish the Community Walk I decided to do the run section instead. I learned a new term today that applies to me. I’m a ‘snurtle’ which means I run slower than a turtle. My only goal today was not to be the last one on the course.

Well I reached my goal. There were four women slower than me and I ran a personal best. The run is 45 minutes long and I was about 200 metres shy of the 5k mark. I figured I would have hit the mark in about 47 minutes. In past races I’ve never run better than a 50 minute 5k.

The boys all ran 8K, some faster than others but in the end three of them took first, second and third place in the under 18 category. Pretty impressive. My daughter, A, ran 8K as well and my daughter-in-law, J, ran 7K. We were all happy with our results and after the race we hung around and had a drink at the brewery. We also stayed for the draw prizes and three of the boys walked away with a gift and I won a prize. Not a bad way to end an event.

Next year I’m going to aim to get to that 5K mark before the 45 minutes are up. It will probably mean losing some more weight and running more often but I’m confident that I can do it. Who would have thought at my age I would become a runner.

Cheers!

The Last Days of Summer

Posted on September 21, 2016 by Mama Cormier

….normally we start to experience cooler temperatures before the onset of autumn

The first day of fall is only one day away, September 22. You would hardly know that by the clothes people wear to work and out on the street. Sandals, shorts and sleeveless tops and dresses are still the norm. Even the evenings are still pleasantly warm.

Today I witnessed sailboats out on the lake in the late afternoon hours and the swans, geese and ducks are in no hurry to fly south. There are signs, though, that autumn is close at hand. The leaves are starting to change colour, many flowers are starting to whither, plants are going to seed and bushes are ripe with red and purple berries.

After the Rain

Posted on September 18, 2016 by Mama Cormier

…..orange sky, green tomatoes and wet flowers

Maybe someone can tell me why my cherry tomatoes are still green after all the heat we’ve had lately. It’s true what they say about ‘red sky at night’. Today was a beautiful sunny day.

Full Moon Over Lake Ontario – Sept. 16, 2016

Posted on September 16, 2016 by Mama Cormier

….from the shores of Lake Ontario on the west side of Toronto we were blessed with a beautiful harvest moon.

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WPC – Edge

Posted on September 11, 2016 by Mama Cormier

…..this week’s challenge is to capture a scene with an ‘edge’

Sunday Trees – 240

Posted on June 20, 2016 by Mama Cormier

….a little late

Taken a few weeks ago when the leaves were first coming in. For more Sunday Trees check out Becca Givens’ blog.

Sunday Trees – 236

Posted on May 22, 2016 by Mama Cormier

….thanks Becca for hosting Sunday Trees

The neighbourhood is bursting with colour as the blossoming trees produce their vibrant pinks, reds and purples.

The 50 Mile Coat

Posted on May 21, 2016 by Mama Cormier

…last weekend I attended the closing day of the EHS Inspires show at the Neilson Park Creative Centre where the 50 mile coat had been completed and was on display

A good friend of mine is a member of the Etobicoke Handweavers and Spinners Guild. They recently undertook an enormous project that took 800 hours to complete. They designed and hand made a coat that used materials that were accessed within a 50 mile radius of the the studio where the materials where assembled and put together.

It started with the shearing of the wool from sheep in Pelham. The wool was then cleaned and carded and spun by hand into yarn. I don’t remember the numbers but there were several spinning wheels at the centre where members took turns spinning the wool into yarn. Neilson Park is in the middle of a naturalized park area and ladies of the guild collected plant materials to make natural dyes. One of the plants they used were marigolds. The yarn was dyed and then the loom was set up with the warping threads.

Once enough cloth was woven for the coat, the pattern (designed and made by one of the members) was pinned to the fabric and cut out. The entire coat was hand sewn with thread that was also handmade. The buttons were made from wood that came from another members property and carved into beautiful shapes. My friend made the felted colour for the coat.

I’m sure I haven’t done justice to the long process that was involved in making this coat and I’ve probably missed some steps. Now that the coat is done it is going on tour. I’m not sure where it will end up but it certainly should be in a museum somewhere so that many more people can enjoy it.

The show also featured many other beautiful works of art made by the members of the guild. All the felted pieces featured here were made by my friend ML and the one piece at the top of the gallery of photos she describes as ‘a memory of the colour and textures of the Aran Islands on the west coast of Ireland’.

Sunday Trees – 234

Posted on May 8, 2016 by Mama Cormier

….thanks to Becca Givens for hosting Sunday Trees

Happy Mother’s Day!

New Flower (May 7, 2016) – Magnolia

Posted on May 7, 2016 by Mama Cormier

….the trees are finally in full bloom

I read today that the cherry trees went straight to leaves, skipping the blossoms that attract huge crowds to the park every year. Thankfully the magnolia trees weren’t affected by the cold temperatures a couple of weeks ago.