tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-59893622457312597162024-03-14T02:26:33.704-07:00A Word From Aunt BThoughts about food and other delights from Aunt B's kitchen, craft room, and community.Aunt Bhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12805537873269992072noreply@blogger.comBlogger367125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5989362245731259716.post-71152229136673069672019-04-02T14:49:00.001-07:002019-04-02T14:53:41.501-07:00Visiting the Bloedel Conservatory in Queen Elizabeth Park, Vancouver, BC<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-BL-iP40zeuQ/XKK0vMu6W2I/AAAAAAAAUqk/3BjmB5Cz8K0mJiFi5dICvJ0zNUPDUy0nwCLcBGAs/s1600/Bloedel%2BConservatory.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1352" data-original-width="1600" height="270" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-BL-iP40zeuQ/XKK0vMu6W2I/AAAAAAAAUqk/3BjmB5Cz8K0mJiFi5dICvJ0zNUPDUy0nwCLcBGAs/s320/Bloedel%2BConservatory.jpg" width="320" /></span></a></div>
<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">I was in Vancouver last week and, on Tuesday, experienced the warm-coat-and-umbrella side of our coast's unpredictable spring weather. The day dawned cold, with rain showers and gusty winds that left me craving somewhere warm and tropical. </span><span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">It seemed a perfect time to visit the Bloedel Conservatory. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">The Bloedel Conservatory is a 140-foot diameter triodetic dome, 70 feet high at its tallest point, set into a plaza atop Little Mountain in Vancouver's Queen Elizabeth Park. It was conceived as a project to mark Canada's centennial in 1967 but challenges afforded by the site (it was at the time an open 5.5 acre fresh water reservoir for the city) delayed opening of the conservatory until 1969. The design solution to the site challenges is amazing, with the reservoir capped but still functional and the Bloedel Conservatory with its surrounding plaza built adjacent to it, all at the city's geographical center and its highest elevation.</span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;"><span style="color: #666666;">The conservatory houses a botanical garden. It's divided into 3 botanical zones - tropical, subtropical, and arid, although they are currently in the process of taking out the arid zone plants in order to replace them with plants more suited to the humidity inside the dome. Fifty years of growth and cultivation have allowed the garden to develop into a dense planting of full sized trees with a lush under-story of shrubs, ferns, bromeliads, and flowering plants. Flying freely through this botanical wonderland are more than 120 tropical birds. It did, indeed, feel like I'd taken a short trip to the tropics.</span><br /><br /><span style="color: #666666;">I could tell you more about the conservatory's history, it's plantings, and its current management but I'll provide you </span><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bloedel_Floral_Conservatory"><span style="color: #0b5394;">this link</span></a><span style="color: #666666;"> instead, devoting most of the remaining space in this post to photos</span><span style="color: #444444;">*</span><span style="color: #666666;">. I do encourage you to click on the link and to read more about this wonderful project. It's an interesting part of Vancouver's history.</span></span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">By the time I'd explored the conservatory and emerged outdoors again the weather had brightened and warmed, affording me an opportunity to explore the surrounding park. </span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;"><br />The views from the plaza around the conservatory were spectacular, even with the relatively low cloud cover. I could look across the city and the Fraser River to the North Shore mountains in one direction, and across the river delta land and flat fields of Richmond and Delta to the Strait of Georgia in another. I didn't have a camera lens sufficient to the distance but, truly, it's worth visiting the site for just the views alone.</span><br />
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-SNIqTnlzG1I/XKLF49gN-JI/AAAAAAAAUr8/0GrnSndMdMgXuDX-8W-aTAjBlhqdJNBqgCPcBGAYYCw/s1600/view%2Bcombo.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="546" data-original-width="1600" height="136" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-SNIqTnlzG1I/XKLF49gN-JI/AAAAAAAAUr8/0GrnSndMdMgXuDX-8W-aTAjBlhqdJNBqgCPcBGAYYCw/s400/view%2Bcombo.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">Like Butchart Gardens on Vancouver Island, Little Mountain - the site of Queen Elizabeth Park in Vancouver - was once a quarry. Formal gardens were planted in the quarry pits during the 1930's and an arboretum of both exotic and endemic trees was established on the site as well. </span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">The gardens have been extensively planted with spring bulbs, but my visit was a little too early in the season for me to see them in bloom. The brightly coloured flowers will look particularly vibrant framed by the varied greens of trees and lawns but even without them</span><span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;"> I enjoyed my walk around the park. The many trees and shrubs, some in blossom and some with early flowers sheltering in the shade beneath them, provided an abundance of beautiful sights.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">I hope you get a chance to visit this place. It's beautiful.</span></div>
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<span style="color: #444444; font-size: medium;"><i>*If you're viewing this post on a desktop computer or a laptop, you should be able to click on any of the photos and be taken to a slide show where you can view the images in a larger format.</i></span></div>
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Aunt Bhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12805537873269992072noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5989362245731259716.post-23611174284627554042018-11-19T16:57:00.000-08:002018-11-19T16:57:38.171-08:00A Simple Baking Trick: Add Moisture and Flavour to Dried Fruit<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-G8cwCqUSCdA/W-8wFDkrEFI/AAAAAAAAQZk/EH3RI9zZiDMddKPg4vsZgxVtwZoVKuSdACLcBGAs/s1600/IMG_20181116_122206_005.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="color: #999999; font-size: large;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1600" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-G8cwCqUSCdA/W-8wFDkrEFI/AAAAAAAAQZk/EH3RI9zZiDMddKPg4vsZgxVtwZoVKuSdACLcBGAs/s320/IMG_20181116_122206_005.jpg" width="320" /></span></a></div>
<span style="color: #999999; font-size: large;">This is a photo of the 10 pounds of mixed dried and candied fruit (raisins,sultans, dates, glace cherries, mixed peel, citron, and candied pineapple) called for in my great-grandma's fruitcake recipe. I'm not going to share the exact recipe with you - it's a family thing - but I do want to share a simple trick I use for adding moisture and flavour to the finished cake.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #999999; font-size: large;">My great-grandma, my grandma, and my mom all baked fruitcake months in advance, then wrapped the cakes in cheesecloth soaked in either rum or brandy, and stored it in airtight tins. They removed the cheesecloth every week and wet it again with rum or brandy, carefully rewrapping the cake, returning it to its tins, and replacing it in the pantry. The aged cake tasted great but I'm 'way too disorgaized to plan so far in advance. Even so, my cake tastes delicious; the result of a change in method that I adopted long ago.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #999999; font-size: large;">In the early 80's, I worked in a small town bakery. The baker had trained in Scotland, in a rigorous 7-year apprenticeship program that provided him a wealth of traditional knowledge. His baked goods were brilliant and people pre-ordered his fruitcake months in advance. T</span><span style="color: #999999; font-size: large;">he bakery didn't have the space to store booze-soaked, cheesecloth-wrapped fruitcake in tins for months at a time, but that aged flavour was still the end goal.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #999999; font-size: large;">A goo</span><span style="color: #999999; font-size: large;">d quality fruitcake is basically a whole lot of fruit held together by a bare minimum of well flavoured batter, so the baker took a short cut, infusing </span><span style="color: #999999; font-size: large;">rum flavour into the fruit prior to adding it to the cake batter. The </span><span style="color: #999999; font-size: large;">fruit was weighed and mixed, divided into buckets with tight fitting lids, and soaked with a mixture of apple juice and rum extract. Every morning for several days we opened each bucket, gave it a good stir, and replaced the lid, until all of the liquid had been soaked up by the fruit. At that point, it was time to bake the cakes.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #999999; font-size: large;">I use spiced rum instead of the apple juice/rum extract combo we used at the bakery, and I macerate my fruit in a stainless steel pot with a tight fitting lid but other than that my process is just the same. The resulting cake has a wonderful depth of flavour.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #999999; font-size: large;">You can use this method to add flavour to any baked good that contains dried fruit, using almost any compatibly flavoured liquid. I use raisins soaked in apple spice herbal tea in scones, dried cranberries soaked in orange juice in quick bread, and dried apples soaked in Earl Grey tea in bundt cake. The possibities for using this simple trick are endless. Run with it and have fun. 🙂</span>Aunt Bhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12805537873269992072noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5989362245731259716.post-81153407335978913512018-09-28T18:48:00.000-07:002018-09-28T19:39:44.805-07:00Ladysmith Harbour<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-qiov9fmmyBc/W67B84aulcI/AAAAAAAAOMI/Ip8RnvCJUGcqcJec8xJrylGFuAIZ_KyNACLcBGAs/s1600/tugboat%2Bview.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="784" data-original-width="1429" height="217" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-qiov9fmmyBc/W67B84aulcI/AAAAAAAAOMI/Ip8RnvCJUGcqcJec8xJrylGFuAIZ_KyNACLcBGAs/s400/tugboat%2Bview.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">My brother has an office in Ladysmith, about 30 minutes drive north of where I live. One sunny day in early September I caught a ride with him when he was on his way to work. He would be at the office for two or three hours and I intended to use the time to visit the Ladysmith Art Gallery. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">Sadly, I timed my visit to the gallery badly. They had just torn down one exhibit but not yet put up anything in its place. I had time to fill and, since I had my camera with me, I decided to visit the waterfront instead.</span><br />
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<a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-TRHXDrLQHlQ/W67CKggNt-I/AAAAAAAAOMU/MZJ1_HSzhyskV76ZPz6se_U2-APd1-gRQCEwYBhgL/s1600/pleasure%2Bboats.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="768" data-original-width="1168" height="210" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-TRHXDrLQHlQ/W67CKggNt-I/AAAAAAAAOMU/MZJ1_HSzhyskV76ZPz6se_U2-APd1-gRQCEwYBhgL/s320/pleasure%2Bboats.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">Just across from the gallery, there are stairs down to the harbour. They end near the marina where the pleasure boats are moored and where the heritage boat society annually hosts its wooden boat festival. It's beautiful, but I've been there many times.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;"><a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-urYHBBeY2wg/W67GRx0WXHI/AAAAAAAAOPQ/wHH5tt6-Q6Y5hlZYjxVNrHMNNicx4DxDACEwYBhgL/s1600/trail.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1429" data-original-width="949" height="320" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-urYHBBeY2wg/W67GRx0WXHI/AAAAAAAAOPQ/wHH5tt6-Q6Y5hlZYjxVNrHMNNicx4DxDACEwYBhgL/s320/trail.jpg" width="212" /></a></span></div>
<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">I wanted new images with lots of colour and line and texture in them - something maybe a little bit more gritty - so I elected to the follow the wooded trail that led from near the stairway towards the working side of the harbour.</span><span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;"><br /></span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">Ladysmith is a small town but its harbour is quite busy. There are fishing boats there, a boat yard, and facilities for loading barges. Across the water on the Yellow Point side, there are log booms and boom boats. Tugs pull both barges and booms to their destinations. There are cranes for lifting boats in and out of the water at the boat yard, and other cranes for loading barges. There are breakwaters and wooden piers. There are people working all around you as you walk along the piers. Lots and lots of wonderful things to catch the eye!</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">I had thought to walk along the top of the old stone breakwater, now alive with self-seeded wild grasses, flowers and trees. </span><br />
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<a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-GkjbNnykrCo/W67DUXcXBaI/AAAAAAAAOMc/VaFBtPnXy_sz8lIzsN0q-i0zikDC9shNACLcBGAs/s1600/no%2Bentry.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;"><img border="0" data-original-height="949" data-original-width="1429" height="212" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-GkjbNnykrCo/W67DUXcXBaI/AAAAAAAAOMc/VaFBtPnXy_sz8lIzsN0q-i0zikDC9shNACLcBGAs/s320/no%2Bentry.jpg" width="320" /></span></a></div>
<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">Unfortunately, I was greeted with this sign and had to alter my plans and go directly to the piers and wharves instead. It turned out to be no great hardship. There was a great deal to see. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">I won't burden you with a lot of narrative about my visit. Instead I'll share some of my photos, with captions here and there where I feel they'd benefit from a bit of explanation. There aren't a lot of picture-postcard-y images here - many were taken with an eye to future drawings and paintings - but I hope you find them interesting even so. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">If you're viewing this post on a PC or a laptop, you should be able to click on the first image to view the pictures as a full screen slide show. Enjoy.</span><br />
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<a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-KA0M7RP6yzs/W67DpNydQtI/AAAAAAAAOMo/s8VsKm9gosIF9pcQ6GwbfOSkxCj2mlLSwCLcBGAs/s1600/entry%2Bto%2Bthe%2Bpier.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;"><img border="0" data-original-height="949" data-original-width="1429" height="212" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-KA0M7RP6yzs/W67DpNydQtI/AAAAAAAAOMo/s8VsKm9gosIF9pcQ6GwbfOSkxCj2mlLSwCLcBGAs/s320/entry%2Bto%2Bthe%2Bpier.jpg" width="320" /></span></a></div>
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<a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-4wTACtXreoA/W67D0vzYoLI/AAAAAAAAOM0/O63NTMLXtm4gyljaDCcEmUR8xEEYjUFTgCLcBGAs/s1600/accessing%2Bthe%2Bpier.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;"><img border="0" data-original-height="949" data-original-width="1429" height="212" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-4wTACtXreoA/W67D0vzYoLI/AAAAAAAAOM0/O63NTMLXtm4gyljaDCcEmUR8xEEYjUFTgCLcBGAs/s320/accessing%2Bthe%2Bpier.jpg" width="320" /></span></a></div>
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<a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-veoYkwF0jT8/W67ELxn-TYI/AAAAAAAAONE/HpPX05L2ltIWEDE-QoIOC85ote452Tx5wCLcBGAs/s1600/wheelhouse%2B3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1063" data-original-width="1600" height="212" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-veoYkwF0jT8/W67ELxn-TYI/AAAAAAAAONE/HpPX05L2ltIWEDE-QoIOC85ote452Tx5wCLcBGAs/s320/wheelhouse%2B3.jpg" width="320" /></span></a></div>
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<a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-DAK6L0Q-G28/W67ESdl0rtI/AAAAAAAAONI/e0gEE4z3L-4QcE_DvF7-XHNyEmRq0G3dgCLcBGAs/s1600/winding%2Bgear.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;"><img border="0" data-original-height="949" data-original-width="1429" height="212" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-DAK6L0Q-G28/W67ESdl0rtI/AAAAAAAAONI/e0gEE4z3L-4QcE_DvF7-XHNyEmRq0G3dgCLcBGAs/s320/winding%2Bgear.jpg" width="320" /></span></a></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">This is a tugboat's winding gear. It pays out or gathers in the cables used to tow barges.</span></div>
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<a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-b5gSLiMsqxA/W67EWMM_W8I/AAAAAAAAONQ/fyVwQkpKrUUWl8pIpu7SFTBSvo4PLnxsgCLcBGAs/s1600/tugboat%2Bstern.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;"><img border="0" data-original-height="949" data-original-width="1429" height="212" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-b5gSLiMsqxA/W67EWMM_W8I/AAAAAAAAONQ/fyVwQkpKrUUWl8pIpu7SFTBSvo4PLnxsgCLcBGAs/s320/tugboat%2Bstern.jpg" width="320" /></span></a></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">Many tugs have these bumpers around their sterns. They're made up of pieces of tire, cut, stacked, and bound together by cables running through them. I like their texture and the pattern created by the repetition of shape.</span></div>
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<a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-o0jh3vUvfy8/W67VqopPkWI/AAAAAAAAOPs/U8lE5g3zwd0WSDRZ7J9I0ziWKnL6oVnbwCLcBGAs/s1600/hanging%2Bfloats.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1429" data-original-width="949" height="320" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-o0jh3vUvfy8/W67VqopPkWI/AAAAAAAAOPs/U8lE5g3zwd0WSDRZ7J9I0ziWKnL6oVnbwCLcBGAs/s320/hanging%2Bfloats.jpg" width="212" /></a></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">The floats hanging from the back of this boat reminded me of party balloons. </span></div>
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<a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-ns3014C_nxA/W67FIAjRReI/AAAAAAAAONw/AHWOGZemvLIlB6gJ2Y9vAEhkc3c-wDKEQCLcBGAs/s1600/yellow%2Bpier.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;"><img border="0" data-original-height="949" data-original-width="1429" height="212" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-ns3014C_nxA/W67FIAjRReI/AAAAAAAAONw/AHWOGZemvLIlB6gJ2Y9vAEhkc3c-wDKEQCLcBGAs/s320/yellow%2Bpier.jpg" width="320" /></span></a></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">I'd never seen a boat in mid-air before. I stood and watched the crane lifting this one for quite some time.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">My imagination is sparked by pieces of rusted metal. I would like to be able to make sculptures from them.</span></div>
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-5YAaPC0y6Dc/W67GBpNMhcI/AAAAAAAAOOw/5KF7rUb2DzM1-cs-TO14XQipDAk5G4UbQCLcBGAs/s1600/shipyard%2Bflowers.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;"><img border="0" data-original-height="949" data-original-width="1429" height="212" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-5YAaPC0y6Dc/W67GBpNMhcI/AAAAAAAAOOw/5KF7rUb2DzM1-cs-TO14XQipDAk5G4UbQCLcBGAs/s320/shipyard%2Bflowers.jpg" width="320" /></span></a></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">This lovely vine wound itself through the chain link fence around the boat yard. Nature is resilient and pushes her green fingers into every space, no matter how busy or cluttered. I love that.</span></div>
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<br />Aunt Bhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12805537873269992072noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5989362245731259716.post-42111651048168138642018-08-31T12:46:00.002-07:002018-08-31T12:51:22.683-07:00Blue Heron Park<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-BW0VtTI8Wos/W4mTDFQCalI/AAAAAAAAMtA/LTxXFVRBO3YD66q6LVvgze9Mr3JfPsgQACLcBGAs/s1600/blue%2Bheron%2Bpark%2Bsign.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="884" data-original-width="1261" height="224" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-BW0VtTI8Wos/W4mTDFQCalI/AAAAAAAAMtA/LTxXFVRBO3YD66q6LVvgze9Mr3JfPsgQACLcBGAs/s320/blue%2Bheron%2Bpark%2Bsign.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">One of the things I love most about living on Vancouver Island is the abundance of parks here, from tiny plots and playgrounds scattered throughout our communities to immense national and provincial parks offering a wide range of terrains and challenges. I've made it a point this summer to visit as many of them as I can.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">Some parks hold a special place in my heart for the memories attached to them, others for feelings their landscape evokes in me. Blue Heron Park in Yellow Point brings me both. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">This little park is not a place for serious hikers. There are no challenging climbs or long trails through the woods, but what there is in abundance is peace. Accessed by a narrow road in Yellow Point, the park isn't heavily used. It has a few parking spaces in a lot at the top, some picnic tables, and a short set of steps down to the beach. It's the beach that makes visiting this park such a delight.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">Like many of the beaches on central Vancouver Island, Blue Heron's beach is mostly shelving rock: a combination of sedimentary and igneous stone that creates fascinating formations.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">You walk the beach over a series of long low shelves of stone, their edges sculpted by the ocean to mimic the waves that shaped them. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-3YGJgkJVFl0/W4mWt3BejpI/AAAAAAAAMto/D32H-JqNSAg6-coYbCPcOxkUjNO6ixq5gCLcBGAs/s1600/hot%2Bcross%2Bbun.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="949" data-original-width="1429" height="212" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-3YGJgkJVFl0/W4mWt3BejpI/AAAAAAAAMto/D32H-JqNSAg6-coYbCPcOxkUjNO6ixq5gCLcBGAs/s320/hot%2Bcross%2Bbun.jpg" width="320" /></a></span></div>
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Scattered along the beach are small hummocks of stone that have been cracked through, looking for all the world like fossilized hot cross buns.In some lights the stone glints with bits of mica or quartz, causing its sand-brown surface to sparkle in the mid-day sun.</span><br />
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-IH5Wk7K_pnU/W4mW7V9bplI/AAAAAAAAMts/BPJwvuGrUAQkPrEpk3d_CmjDwUm5LS2AwCEwYBhgL/s1600/sand%2Bfrom%2Bshells%2B1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="949" data-original-width="1429" height="212" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-IH5Wk7K_pnU/W4mW7V9bplI/AAAAAAAAMts/BPJwvuGrUAQkPrEpk3d_CmjDwUm5LS2AwCEwYBhgL/s320/sand%2Bfrom%2Bshells%2B1.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">The beach at Blue Heron Park isn't a spot for shell collecting. Barnacles, clams, mussels, and oysters do abide near the low tide line but any shells without occupants are quickly pried from the stones by waves and then ground upon the rough surface of the rocks. As they're pushed up towards the high tide line over time, the shell fragments are ground smaller and smaller until they accumulate into pockets of bright white granules cupped in depressions in the stone.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">All beaches in BC are public property below the high tide line. Provided the terrain allows it, you can follow the shoreline for miles on a low tide day. It's this that makes Blue Heron Park such a gift to me. Although there are homes built right up to the edge of the park, when I'm on the beach I hear no road traffic, encounter few people, and even on the calmest of days the sound of waves and the the feeling of a breeze coming in across the water accompany me. It brings me great peace to be there.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">If you'd like to visit Blue Heron Park or to learn more about it, you can find information on the <a href="https://www.cvrd.bc.ca/239/Blue-Heron-Park">Cowichan Valley Regional District website</a>. In the meantime, here are some more photos to enjoy. </span><br />
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Aunt Bhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12805537873269992072noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5989362245731259716.post-90361011584066938492018-08-24T12:48:00.004-07:002018-08-24T13:02:01.505-07:00Delightful People, Delicious Cheese, And A Recipe<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-a4Kyl8OhZlI/W4BX2YIK4eI/AAAAAAAAMi0/lc4ZVAS4Q4EISTjRGfH37ublig2eIGLDwCLcBGAs/s1600/bome%2Bcheese%2Bfactory%2Bsign%2Bcollage.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1153" height="400" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-a4Kyl8OhZlI/W4BX2YIK4eI/AAAAAAAAMi0/lc4ZVAS4Q4EISTjRGfH37ublig2eIGLDwCLcBGAs/s400/bome%2Bcheese%2Bfactory%2Bsign%2Bcollage.jpg" width="287" /></a></div>
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="color: #666666;">I wrote recently about a visit I made to the</span> <span style="color: blue;"><span style="color: #990000; font-family: inherit;"><a href="http://awordfromauntb.blogspot.com/2018/08/shopping-at-old-country-market-in-coombs.html">Old Country Market</a></span><span style="color: #666666;"> </span></span><span style="color: #666666;">in </span><span style="color: #666666;">Coombs</span><span style="color: #666666;">. While we were in the area, we took time for lunch at </span><a href="http://bomecheese.com/"><span style="color: blue;">BoMé</span></a><span style="color: #666666;">, an artisan cheese maker just down the road.</span></span><br />
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<a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-JIo0jvd9Nkw/W4BY7ufalwI/AAAAAAAAMi8/WRzKANz6xi8T53TbKmjfjqidHCDVmW9ywCEwYBhgL/s1600/lot%2Bnext%2Bdoor%2Band%2Bpatio.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1185" height="320" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-JIo0jvd9Nkw/W4BY7ufalwI/AAAAAAAAMi8/WRzKANz6xi8T53TbKmjfjqidHCDVmW9ywCEwYBhgL/s320/lot%2Bnext%2Bdoor%2Band%2Bpatio.jpg" width="237" /></span></a></div>
<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">Coombs is an excellent education on the importance of not forming judgements based upon first impressions, and BoMé is no exception. The business is situated next to a lot currently being excavated for concrete block mini storage buildings, and found in what appears to be a house repurposed for its current use. There are tables on a concrete patio outside the front door, and it's not until you step into the building itself that you gain a clear idea of the delightful food and excellent service on offer. </span><br />
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<a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-9oW1J-Uxz2w/W4BcS3oFDsI/AAAAAAAAMjU/meiH8PZUVxQ6r62puxOz2bUHSHGCkqKCgCEwYBhgL/s1600/bome%2Bcheese%2Bfactory%2Bindoors%2Bcollage.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1043" data-original-width="1600" height="208" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-9oW1J-Uxz2w/W4BcS3oFDsI/AAAAAAAAMjU/meiH8PZUVxQ6r62puxOz2bUHSHGCkqKCgCEwYBhgL/s320/bome%2Bcheese%2Bfactory%2Bindoors%2Bcollage.jpg" width="320" /></span></a></div>
<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">Inside the front door, you're greeted by a spotless deli-style cooler stocked with various house-made cheeses and desserts, and shelves displaying an assortment of locally made jarred goods, spices, and gift-ware. There's a spotless kitchen behind the deli area and, as you head further into the building, a clean and comfortable dining room with glass walls on one side that allow guests to look down into the cheese making kitchen below.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">When we arrived, we were greeted by a charming young man, who took us through the menu with enthusiasm and happily explained every item in the deli case, offering samples of any of the cheeses we cared to try. Once we were seated and awaiting our lunch - prepared by his equally pleasant mother - he came over and explained the purpose and function of the various pieces of equipment on the cheese-making floor. He and his dad make the cheeses so he was able to explain in detail how it all worked. His passion for their work was quite endearing. We thoroughly enjoyed his company.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">Lunch was delicious. I had a beef, vegetable, and barley soup with a slightly sweet and sour flavour reminiscent t of sauerbrauten and my friend had a very tasty schnitzel sandwich. The portions were a good size: sufficient bu</span><span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">t not so generous as to be overwhelming.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">Before we left, my friend and I both purchased cheeses to take home. I bought a tub of shepherd's cheese - an incredibly flavourful, feta-based cream cheese with garlic, sun dried tomato and herbs - and a tub of their house-made tzatziki, made with a mixture of topfen (quark) and Greek yogurt. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">I enjoyed some of the tzatziki with veggies for supper the following day. It was delicious, and had a much firmer consistency than tzatziki made with yogurt alone. The texture inspired me to use it in a sandwich. I've included the sandwich recipe below, including - for those of you who aren't fortunate enough to be able to visit BoMé - instructions on how to make a similar tzatziki at home.</span><br />
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<u><span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">TZATZIKI AND TUNA SANDWICH</span></u></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">For the tzatziki:</span><br />
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<li><span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">1 English cucumber (seedless cucumber), grated</span></li>
<li><span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">salt</span></li>
<li><span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">225 grams (1 cup) quark</span></li>
<li><span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">225 grams (1 cup) plain Greek yogurt</span></li>
<li><span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">1-2 cloves of garlic, finely minced</span></li>
<li><span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">1 Tablespoon fresh dill, finely chopped</span></li>
<li><span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">1 Tablespoon of extra virgin olive oil</span></li>
<li><span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">salt and freshly ground pepper to taste</span></li>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">Salt the grated cucumber generously and then use your fingers to toss the cucumber shreds and distribute the salt throughout. Allow it to sit for at least 30 minutes then squeeze out as much moisture as you can. Rinse the squeezed cucumber shreds to remove the excess salt and then, after squeezing them dry again, place them in a bowl. Add all of the other ingredients except for the salt and pepper to the bowl and combine them thoroughly. Taste the tzatziki and then add salt and pepper to taste. At this point, I would put the tzatziki in the fridge for an hour or two to allow the flavours to develop.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">For the sandwich filling, combine:</span><br />
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<li><span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">1-170 gram (6 ounce) tin of tuna. (<i>I used flaked light tuna because that's what I could afford but if you can afford better, by all means use that.</i>)</span></li>
<li><span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">1 chopped green onion (scallion)</span></li>
<li><span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">1/3 cup tzatziki</span></li>
</ul>
<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">This makes enough filling for two sandwiches.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">To assemble the sandwiches:</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">Toast two ciabatta buns under the broiler. When they're toasted, butter each half of each bun. Divide the sandwich filling over the bottom halves of the two buns and then top the filling with thinly sliced red bell pepper, sliced tomato, and lettuce. Put the "lids" on the sandwiches and serve them immediately, before the fillings have time to soften the crisp toasted surfaces of the buns.<br /><br />Enjoy! And if you do find yourself in Coombs please stop in at BoMé, I'm sure you'll enjoy it as much as I did.</span>Aunt Bhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12805537873269992072noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5989362245731259716.post-35970693101233723062018-08-10T13:53:00.001-07:002018-08-10T13:57:58.410-07:00Shopping at Old Country Market in Coombs<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<span style="white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="color: #666666; font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><span style="color: #666666;">Last week my friend Colleen and I went to Old Country Market in Coombs. Coombs is about an hour's drive north of where I live. It's a popular tourist destination. I've </span><a href="http://awordfromauntb.blogspot.com/2013/11/an-afternoon-at-old-country-market.html"><span style="color: #0b5394;">written about the market before</span></a><span style="color: #666666;"> but this time I wanted to share its atmosphere at the height of the busy season</span></span></span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;"><br /></span><span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">The Old Country Market has changed a lot over the years. Originally its focus was primarily on fresh produce, then for quite a while it was the place to go for quirky and/or unusual, gifts and home decor. Now, in addition to those things, they have a huge selection of international foods, an excellent deli, and a bakery. Here on the island, OCM is the go-to place for ingredients not found elsewhere. I know that the internet has opened international shopping to all of us but I still prefer to make the drive and support our island's local economy.</span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">One of the market's big draws is the goats that graze on its grass roof. Unfortunately when we were there the goats were all in their house or sleeping under the trees behind the market, hiding from the mid-day sun. I suspect they're more sensible than we are! Since goat viewing was not on the agenda, we followed the crowds into the store.</span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">I came home with a pretty eclectic variety of items: Saskatoon berry jam made here in Canada, pastas from Italy, za'atar, sriracha salt, hot German mustard, Lyle's Golden Syrup from England, tiny anniseed candies from Greece, Canadian-made Indian seasoning blends, some printed paper napkins, and - of course- a couple of "goats on the roof" souvenirs. Mostly, though, I just took it all in. Visiting the market in the summertime is rather like attending a fair or a carnival: some of the best entertainment is to be found in people watching. It's endlessly entertaining even if you don't buy a single thing.</span><br />
<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;"><br /></span><span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">Rather than go on at length about our trip through the market, I've shared some pictures below, taken as we wandered around the store. You can view them as a slide show by clicking on the first one and then scrolling through, Enjoy.</span><br />
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Aunt Bhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12805537873269992072noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5989362245731259716.post-32759205267200304162018-04-06T16:47:00.002-07:002018-04-11T13:53:04.887-07:00A Walk In The Rain<span style="color: #444444; font-size: large;">Want to come for a walk with me? It's raining, a not uncommon thing on Vancouver Island, but we're all good with that, right? If you don't walk in the rain here, you miss out on walking for more than half the year. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #444444; font-size: large;">Let's put on our rain gear, grab our umbrellas and go. Don't forget to bring some water. We'll be walking quite a distance - 12.4 km/ 7.7 miles - and you need to stay hydrated even on a rainy day.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #444444; font-size: large;">We'll begin with a stroll to the Sportsplex, w</span><span style="color: #444444; font-size: large;">ith its oval track often used by those nearby for their fitness walks (<i>Personally , I don't see the appeal. I want to see varied scenery when I walk, but each to their own.</i>), past the fields and baseball diamonds...</span></div>
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<a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-pldtiJCOYls/Wsfzok3oQEI/AAAAAAAAMBE/Nv7vh8G4quMES-CZf6td9_uaFcLbi4UEwCLcBGAs/s1600/sportsplex%2Btrack.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="color: #444444; font-size: large;"><img border="0" data-original-height="949" data-original-width="1429" height="265" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-pldtiJCOYls/Wsfzok3oQEI/AAAAAAAAMBE/Nv7vh8G4quMES-CZf6td9_uaFcLbi4UEwCLcBGAs/s400/sportsplex%2Btrack.jpg" width="400" /></span></a></div>
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<span style="color: #444444; font-size: large;">...to exit via this pretty lane-way. I always enjoy it at blossom time.</span></div>
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<a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-JClCILML3b0/Wsf3iKyKWaI/AAAAAAAAMB4/qHCDYXjE8QESu-hxGA1eEHsgxqV_tGotACLcBGAs/s1600/sportsplex%2Bexit.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="color: #444444; font-size: large;"><img border="0" data-original-height="703" data-original-width="1103" height="253" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-JClCILML3b0/Wsf3iKyKWaI/AAAAAAAAMB4/qHCDYXjE8QESu-hxGA1eEHsgxqV_tGotACLcBGAs/s400/sportsplex%2Bexit.jpg" width="400" /></span></a></div>
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<span style="color: #444444; font-size: large;">From here we're going to walk the length of Lakes Road. Yes, that <i>is</i> a long hill...</span></div>
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<a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-BYHOC6b5fXo/Wsf36yvBrjI/AAAAAAAAMB8/2WCv4vobWXoaLzvWF0fkguwYAdo4Wd8tACLcBGAs/s1600/lakes%2Broad%2B1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="color: #444444; font-size: large;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1111" data-original-width="914" height="320" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-BYHOC6b5fXo/Wsf36yvBrjI/AAAAAAAAMB8/2WCv4vobWXoaLzvWF0fkguwYAdo4Wd8tACLcBGAs/s320/lakes%2Broad%2B1.jpg" width="263" /></span></a></div>
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<span style="color: #444444; font-size: large;">...so we're going to pause at the bridge at the bottom of the hill to enjoy the view before we start the climb. (<i>I apologize now for any raindrops that may have fallen on my camera lens.</i>)</span></div>
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-4FFJa_01LB0/Wsf4NmsNAXI/AAAAAAAAMCE/Ch2_EwlMucIgI7WAe8Kn5i9RRdQmvFPbACLcBGAs/s1600/lakes%2Broad%2B2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="color: #444444; font-size: large;"><img border="0" data-original-height="919" data-original-width="1373" height="267" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-4FFJa_01LB0/Wsf4NmsNAXI/AAAAAAAAMCE/Ch2_EwlMucIgI7WAe8Kn5i9RRdQmvFPbACLcBGAs/s400/lakes%2Broad%2B2.jpg" width="400" /></span></a></div>
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<span style="color: #444444; font-size: large;">Lakes Road isn't as pedestrian friendly as our route has been so far. There's a fair bit of traffic and the sidewalk runs out not long past the top of the hill, but it's worth it. The landscape grows progressively more rural, and offers some lovely sights like this lot whose wild space has been colonized by daffodils.</span></div>
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<a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-Q-_igvmYtuE/Wsf6PoZa6aI/AAAAAAAAMCU/kuAortxKWcUTu8dtKtdNOCvBA2_bUXCAQCLcBGAs/s1600/lakes%2Broad%2Bdaffodils.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="color: #444444; font-size: large;"><img border="0" data-original-height="949" data-original-width="1429" height="265" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-Q-_igvmYtuE/Wsf6PoZa6aI/AAAAAAAAMCU/kuAortxKWcUTu8dtKtdNOCvBA2_bUXCAQCLcBGAs/s400/lakes%2Broad%2Bdaffodils.jpg" width="400" /></span></a></div>
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<a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-vegQ5-azIgM/Wsf6SCpK2mI/AAAAAAAAMCY/tPKXQFPyJ-0zGhw6oNmMB58NJJL29TDIACLcBGAs/s1600/daffodil%2Bclose%2Bup%2B2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="color: #444444; font-size: large;"><img border="0" data-original-height="896" data-original-width="934" height="382" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-vegQ5-azIgM/Wsf6SCpK2mI/AAAAAAAAMCY/tPKXQFPyJ-0zGhw6oNmMB58NJJL29TDIACLcBGAs/s400/daffodil%2Bclose%2Bup%2B2.jpg" width="400" /></span></a></div>
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<span style="color: #444444; font-size: large;">There's a holly farm further on, with moss capped gate posts, a view of Quamichan Lake, and characterful old trees. The farm's been there a long time and used to ship holly all over the world. There's less demand for it these days and I'm glad they're still keeping the trees.</span></div>
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/--57dzu62fr8/Wsf60IVW_eI/AAAAAAAAMCg/g1EoAd1n9m4N8elS6N51cu5g96RZRIPRQCLcBGAs/s1600/holly%2Bfarm%2Bgate%2Bpost.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="color: #444444; font-size: large;"><img border="0" data-original-height="949" data-original-width="1429" height="265" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/--57dzu62fr8/Wsf60IVW_eI/AAAAAAAAMCg/g1EoAd1n9m4N8elS6N51cu5g96RZRIPRQCLcBGAs/s400/holly%2Bfarm%2Bgate%2Bpost.jpg" width="400" /></span></a></div>
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<a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-Zubc0WrpV1Q/Wsf63aT3AwI/AAAAAAAAMCk/cN-8UDe0kTgZsyBIkWdMH3KgRH7vLdNhwCLcBGAs/s1600/holly%2Bfarm%2Bview.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="color: #444444; font-size: large;"><img border="0" data-original-height="949" data-original-width="1429" height="265" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-Zubc0WrpV1Q/Wsf63aT3AwI/AAAAAAAAMCk/cN-8UDe0kTgZsyBIkWdMH3KgRH7vLdNhwCLcBGAs/s400/holly%2Bfarm%2Bview.jpg" width="400" /></span></a></div>
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<a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-K-M3R7Y6cw4/Wsf6-ujZZrI/AAAAAAAAMCo/MgUFTdTnA2Aes8bBmjehpB5fJtRHQQuDgCLcBGAs/s1600/holly%2Bfarm%2Btrees.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="color: #444444; font-size: large;"><img border="0" data-original-height="924" data-original-width="1102" height="335" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-K-M3R7Y6cw4/Wsf6-ujZZrI/AAAAAAAAMCo/MgUFTdTnA2Aes8bBmjehpB5fJtRHQQuDgCLcBGAs/s400/holly%2Bfarm%2Btrees.jpg" width="400" /></span></a></div>
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<span style="color: #444444; font-size: large;"><br />The houses are further apart now and even the newer houses have traces of old farms visible on their property, often in the form of rows of trees along the fence line.</span></div>
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ZSPHKQfMunA/Wsf7h69a0BI/AAAAAAAAMC4/a4f8HwaS0o0lsU__MadfAXPIM1dU7NFxQCLcBGAs/s1600/lakes%2Broad%2Bblossoming%2Btrees.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="color: #444444; font-size: large;"><img border="0" data-original-height="874" data-original-width="1429" height="243" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ZSPHKQfMunA/Wsf7h69a0BI/AAAAAAAAMC4/a4f8HwaS0o0lsU__MadfAXPIM1dU7NFxQCLcBGAs/s400/lakes%2Broad%2Bblossoming%2Btrees.jpg" width="400" /></span></a></div>
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<span style="color: #444444; font-size: large;">I always enjoy passing by the sheep farm on the shores of Quamichan Lake. These are some happy sheep: the grass is always rich and green. They know me so well now that they pose when I stop to take their picture. ;) See how they're all looking towards me?</span></div>
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<a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-10DSppxR2_4/Wsf8Ns_nT1I/AAAAAAAAMDA/rgffzHpYeRsI2yC9xjEWQJtIErn8iu-wwCLcBGAs/s1600/sheep%2Bfarm.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="color: #444444; font-size: large;"><img border="0" data-original-height="746" data-original-width="1399" height="212" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-10DSppxR2_4/Wsf8Ns_nT1I/AAAAAAAAMDA/rgffzHpYeRsI2yC9xjEWQJtIErn8iu-wwCLcBGAs/s400/sheep%2Bfarm.jpg" width="400" /></span></a></div>
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<span style="color: #444444; font-size: large;">An old apple orchard near Lakes Road's intersection with Herd Road has recently been pruned. These trees blossom late - next month - but they're beautifully clad in coats of green velvety moss.</span></div>
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-HIAnIkfRJ3E/Wsf8wUpUZZI/AAAAAAAAMDI/OeZb_kZ126gQgZw7kp9qRMcvMggS1LjEgCLcBGAs/s1600/apple%2Borchard%2B2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="color: #444444; font-size: large;"><img border="0" data-original-height="949" data-original-width="1429" height="265" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-HIAnIkfRJ3E/Wsf8wUpUZZI/AAAAAAAAMDI/OeZb_kZ126gQgZw7kp9qRMcvMggS1LjEgCLcBGAs/s400/apple%2Borchard%2B2.jpg" width="400" /></span></a></div>
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<span style="color: #444444; font-size: large;">I'll confess that my camera's getting a little heavy around my neck now so I'm going to stow it in my backpack for a bit. We'll continue walking as planned though, turning left onto Herd Road, continuing through a treed area and crossing another bridge to emerge into rolling pastureland. There are lots of horses in this area and it's easy to see why they like it.</span></div>
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<a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-2JYfsYv8hNA/Wsf9VmXdXlI/AAAAAAAAMDQ/o834YapBDz0cRXJLk945aO_i681KRrlDACLcBGAs/s1600/herd%2Broad.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="color: #444444; font-size: large;"><img border="0" data-original-height="949" data-original-width="1429" height="265" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-2JYfsYv8hNA/Wsf9VmXdXlI/AAAAAAAAMDQ/o834YapBDz0cRXJLk945aO_i681KRrlDACLcBGAs/s400/herd%2Broad.jpg" width="400" /></span></a></div>
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<span style="color: #444444; font-size: large;">My eye is always caught by the incongruous, like this lighthouse built to shield an irrigation coupling in the middle of a pasture. It makes me smile every time I see it.</span></div>
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<a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-0EpNOpxD7hY/Wsf91w2uMdI/AAAAAAAAMDY/MqbOdUy3DzopsTqHj1ylrXxDmL94vc9iwCLcBGAs/s1600/horse%2Bfield%2Blighthouse.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="color: #444444; font-size: large;"><img border="0" data-original-height="721" data-original-width="506" height="400" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-0EpNOpxD7hY/Wsf91w2uMdI/AAAAAAAAMDY/MqbOdUy3DzopsTqHj1ylrXxDmL94vc9iwCLcBGAs/s400/horse%2Bfield%2Blighthouse.jpg" width="280" /></span></a></div>
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<span style="color: #444444; font-size: large;"><br />I'm getting a little weary now. It's been more than 8 kilometres since we started and we're on an uphill route once more. The hill's less steep than Lakes Road's hill, it's a long, slow undulating climb. </span></div>
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<span style="color: #444444; font-size: large;">We're on Norcross Road now, passing small farms and then vineyards. I'd take a picture of the vineyards for you but, really, they're pretty bleak at this time of year: gnarled black trunks, pruned hard, black with rain, marching along in lines beneath strings of equally black wire. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #444444; font-size: large;">There is a view of Somenos Lake though, and it's worth pausing for. </span><span style="color: #444444; font-size: large;">Do you see that line of tall fir trees in the background? Lakes Road is behind it. We've covered some distance, haven't we. :)</span></div>
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<a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-Q33mZpibymA/Wsf_jMDp3EI/AAAAAAAAMDk/kgw7jnYoI7M4nVZttU-Sw-ZLtbyjXlBXwCLcBGAs/s1600/norcross%2Bsomenos%2Bview.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="color: #444444; font-size: large;"><img border="0" data-original-height="941" data-original-width="929" height="320" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-Q33mZpibymA/Wsf_jMDp3EI/AAAAAAAAMDk/kgw7jnYoI7M4nVZttU-Sw-ZLtbyjXlBXwCLcBGAs/s320/norcross%2Bsomenos%2Bview.jpg" width="315" /></span></a></div>
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<span style="color: #444444; font-size: large;">We're winding it up now. We'll climb the last bit of this hill, then walk downhill on Bell McKinnon Road until we reach the highway. Cross the highway now, and treat yourself to coffee and a muffin while you wait for the city bus to take you the last 4km/2.5 miles back to our starting point. </span></div>
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<span style="color: #444444; font-size: large;">Wow you guys! Great walk! Thanks for coming along with me. :)</span></div>
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Aunt Bhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12805537873269992072noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5989362245731259716.post-45948939795757498362018-04-03T16:57:00.003-07:002018-04-03T16:57:31.254-07:00Best Laid Plans...<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-IWbbLu_Ne-U/WsQRtfNdz8I/AAAAAAAAL_Q/INJjuXsC1AEyTXfgky1t_MmOcSjZoUlQQCEwYBhgL/s1600/car.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="720" data-original-width="1356" height="169" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-IWbbLu_Ne-U/WsQRtfNdz8I/AAAAAAAAL_Q/INJjuXsC1AEyTXfgky1t_MmOcSjZoUlQQCEwYBhgL/s320/car.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">This is my car. It's a 2009 Ford Focus, purchased by me in 2011. It was a lease return, with just 13,000 km on it. It had lots of nifty bells and whistles and a sticker price I could afford. Negotiation brought the price down further and I left the lot feeling happy with my purchase. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">Little did I know...</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">This vehicle has been the lemon everyone encounters at least once in their lives. It is notorious among my circle of friends. Every time I want to go somewhere, I play car roulette. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">Why do I keep the car? Sometimes - fairly often actually - I ask myself the same question. The answer's complicated but basically comes down to sentiment:</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">During the last few months of my husband's life he was in a lot of pain. His lower back troubled him constantly and the pain meds he was given caused him terrible vertigo. He couldn't lie down to sleep because the room started spinning, and he was often nauseous. We discovered that if I tucked him in the passenger seat of the car, turned on the seat's heating, wrapped a warm quilt around him, rolled down the windows, and drove, the heated seat helped to ease his pain, the fresh air calmed his vertigo, and the car's motion eased him to sleep. Right up until 2 days before he died, we went out driving every day. We traveled thousands of kilometres in that car during that time, and shared some precious moments. There are a lot of tender, bittersweet memories tied to my car and I'm just not ready to let it go.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">Since I'm not ready to part with it and I'm pretty much stone broke these days, when my car breaks down I park it until I can save up enough money to fix it. I've become quite good at finding creative alternatives when it forces a change of plans. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">This long weekend was a case in point. The car may have foiled my camping plans, but the weather was beautiful and springtime here in the Cowichan Valley is a wonderful thing. I made a point of getting out and enjoying my surroundings as much as possible, and managed to fit in some visits with friends and family too.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">I'd hoped to share lots of camping trips with you this year but since I'm pretty much dependent upon transit, foot travel, and rides from friends for the time being, I've decided I'll take you along with me on my local adventures. We can explore southern Vancouver Island together. Look for my first post later this week. </span><br />
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Aunt Bhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12805537873269992072noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5989362245731259716.post-40706226382415924402017-12-07T09:09:00.003-08:002017-12-07T09:09:26.017-08:00Good Morning<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">How are you this morning? I'm well and enjoying the beauty that comes with a blue-sky December day. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">We're enjoying fine weather here; a ridge of high pressure has brought us several clear sunny days, unusual in this part of the world at this time of year. The lack of clouds allows night time temperatures to drop below freezing and, because the days are still quite mild (9 to 10 C/38-40 F), the ground is warmer than the sky during the dark hours of the night. This inversion gives rise to thick fogs that shroud the landscape and fur onto rooftops, fences, branches, and grass as thick, iridescent frost. </span><br />
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Scxxcu7BE1Y/WilwtiCC62I/AAAAAAAAL7E/7uwHGSuDsUc_hH_QkyE6XbJ3BU1uh3qyQCEwYBhgL/s1600/morning%2Bfog.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1063" data-original-width="1600" height="265" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Scxxcu7BE1Y/WilwtiCC62I/AAAAAAAAL7E/7uwHGSuDsUc_hH_QkyE6XbJ3BU1uh3qyQCEwYBhgL/s400/morning%2Bfog.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">In the morning I can sit in my favourite corner of the couch and enjoy the transition from foggy night to clear skied morning as it unfolds outside my windows. Before the sun rises, but as the sky is lightening, the sky turns ceruleaan blue. There's still enough darkness for the street lights to shine, creating a beautiful contrast where they cast their orange light. I see this through the lacy silhouette of the walnut tree beside my balcony. Traffic lights add to the picture, transitioning through green, yellow, and red as regularly as clockwork.</span><br />
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<a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-9UHfxVGgzGM/WilyXLmRbUI/AAAAAAAAL7Q/ozD6zzIW7aQ9-ikGYOlkLBh5HKIPa_I7gCEwYBhgL/s1600/foggy%2Bsunrise.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="964" data-original-width="1600" height="240" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-9UHfxVGgzGM/WilyXLmRbUI/AAAAAAAAL7Q/ozD6zzIW7aQ9-ikGYOlkLBh5HKIPa_I7gCEwYBhgL/s400/foggy%2Bsunrise.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">As the sun appears above the edge of the hills encircling our valley, the fog retreats to the shelter of the trees and swirls in the air above the river winding through the park at the end of my street. It changes colour as it goes, from white, to soft grey, to the palest of lavenders before it blushes to shell pink and then wafts away for another day.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">The lightening of the sky is accompanied by an increase in traffic on the busy streets below my corner apartment. The sound of engines and the occasional honking of horns mingle with the conversation and laughter of children walking past, on their way to school. The change encourages me to stir myself too. I dress for the day and prepare for my morning walk. I'm looking forward to enjoying the brisk air today, and to seeing frost crystals twinkling in the gardens along my route.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">Wherever this morning finds you, and whatever the weather may bring your way, I wish you a heart filled with happiness this Thankful Thursday. Have a joyful day.</span>Aunt Bhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12805537873269992072noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5989362245731259716.post-14093987864796692532016-10-31T10:26:00.002-07:002016-11-01T20:22:14.069-07:00Happy Hallowe'en!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-982nvBIVOzs/WBaadzWVU_I/AAAAAAAALPI/JG5Uqs7X12k3rzlhnr8XH9E7djCdVo53wCPcB/s1600/title%2Bpic.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="270" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-982nvBIVOzs/WBaadzWVU_I/AAAAAAAALPI/JG5Uqs7X12k3rzlhnr8XH9E7djCdVo53wCPcB/s400/title%2Bpic.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">Happy Hallowe'en! I know it's a busy day for many of you, but I'm hoping you can take the time for a little visit with me. I've made some coffee and I thought we might share a bowl of popcorn in a bit.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">Don't you just love popcorn? </span><span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">It's a great thing to keep in the pantry: quick and fun to make, and much less expensive than processed snacks. There's something festive about a bowl of popcorn too. Just the smell of it popping brings back memories of happy times. I've shared some links for different popcorn recipes below in case you want to try your hand at some popcorn treats too.</span><br />
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-luBw2nsQh40/WBanQDDrj1I/AAAAAAAALPU/ShA7HY9SSMc3Xo80VzpHcqEpNW0dEJ_hwCLcB/s1600/wharncliff.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-luBw2nsQh40/WBanQDDrj1I/AAAAAAAALPU/ShA7HY9SSMc3Xo80VzpHcqEpNW0dEJ_hwCLcB/s320/wharncliff.jpg" width="244" /></a></div>
<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">Before we get all busy snacking and chatting though, have you got time for a quick walk around the neighbourhood with me? It's such a pretty day, with the sun breaking through the clouds. Many of the trees are still brightly dressed in autumn colours. It would be a shame not to enjoy some of that beauty.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">The paths by the river are </span><br />
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<a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-IhgU0Z8TvzM/WBanyl-bE4I/AAAAAAAALPg/JaFUQkcZ3qcTc7Z3hY7hRRYxFGA582BtQCEw/s1600/cottonwood%2Bleaves%2Bon%2Bwater.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="219" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-IhgU0Z8TvzM/WBanyl-bE4I/AAAAAAAALPg/JaFUQkcZ3qcTc7Z3hY7hRRYxFGA582BtQCEw/s320/cottonwood%2Bleaves%2Bon%2Bwater.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">scattered now with heart-shaped-cottonwood leaves. They're everywhere right now: on the trail, on the bright green autumn grass of the fields, and even floating on the water, like golden valentines </span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;"><a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-QQS8YtK1h34/WBbRNNzZNxI/AAAAAAAALQU/EpT_3ULUnL48AoLdFmzuiecv70r13G4mwCPcB/s1600/toward%2Bthe%2Briver.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-QQS8YtK1h34/WBbRNNzZNxI/AAAAAAAALQU/EpT_3ULUnL48AoLdFmzuiecv70r13G4mwCPcB/s320/toward%2Bthe%2Briver.jpg" width="247" /></a></span></div>
<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">strewn with abandon by an autumn-drunk Cupid riding home on the wind. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">We'll take the top </span><span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">trail, I think, because the lower trail may well be flooded now, blocked by the several small streams that form when it rains heavily here. If you glance over towards the river, you can see the brush along the river bank back lit by the light bouncing off the water. </span><span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">You're enjoying </span><span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">the beauty of </span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-fbya2UqNFKg/WBa2SiLEKjI/AAAAAAAALQE/0VydRy6_XLsUCBWS6frUTxeIHNAOKmRKQCPcB/s1600/japanese%2Bmaples.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-fbya2UqNFKg/WBa2SiLEKjI/AAAAAAAALQE/0VydRy6_XLsUCBWS6frUTxeIHNAOKmRKQCPcB/s320/japanese%2Bmaples.jpg" width="180" /></a></span></div>
<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">Nature's stained glass </span><span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">windows.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">On the street that leads from </span><br />
<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">the river trail back towards my place, the sidewalks seems to change colour as they go along, carpeted with leaves from many different trees; here vivid red from the Japanese maples planted by the fish hatchery, there yellow from the ornamental cherries, further on reddish pink from the dogwoods, and several patches of enormous yellow leaves with russet edges from the big leaf maples. </span><span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">Some of them measure </span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;"><a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-ZgphCFHhXi0/WBa2u4wQpZI/AAAAAAAALQE/7j8nnapvaTU7OFTtTmI9erQ47HZlA4P-gCPcB/s1600/chrysanthemums.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="212" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-ZgphCFHhXi0/WBa2u4wQpZI/AAAAAAAALQE/7j8nnapvaTU7OFTtTmI9erQ47HZlA4P-gCPcB/s320/chrysanthemums.jpg" width="320" /></a></span></div>
<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">more than a foot across!</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">People are putting their gardens to bed for the winter now but some front borders still </span><span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">boast </span><span style="color: #666666;"><span style="font-size: large;">colourful chrysanthemums, </span></span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666;"><span style="font-size: large;"><a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-EBYiVLFm-tI/WBa3N4F0nWI/AAAAAAAALQE/lYmIDAI7lm08EVBifRxkcvu7QNVaEyokACPcB/s1600/sunflower.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="212" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-EBYiVLFm-tI/WBa3N4F0nWI/AAAAAAAALQE/lYmIDAI7lm08EVBifRxkcvu7QNVaEyokACPcB/s320/sunflower.jpg" width="320" /></a></span></span></div>
<span style="color: #666666;"><span style="font-size: large;">nodding sunflower heads - much beloved by birds - and</span></span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><span style="font-size: large;">orange </span></span><span style="color: #666666;"><span style="font-size: large;">calendula. </span></span><br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><span style="font-size: large;">Hollies bear clusters of bright red, pyracanthus branches bend under the weight of abundant</span></span><span style="color: #666666;"><span style="font-size: large;"> orange berries, and rose bushes sport both late blooms and scarlet hips.</span></span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">How can a person not fall in love with the colours of October?</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">And here we are, back at my place again, with roses in our cheeks from our walk in the fresh air. That coffee and popcorn will taste even better now. :) </span><span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">Why don't we settle in and I'll share those recipes, and some beautiful things that have caught my eye recently.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;"><span style="color: #666666;">I'd eat popcorn for breakfast, especially with coffee and bacon in it. Can't wait to try these </span><a href="http://pastrychefonline.com/2015/02/03/coffee-maple-bacon-popcorn-treats/"><span style="color: #0b5394;">coffee maple bacon popcorn treats</span></a><span style="color: #666666;"> from </span><a href="http://pastrychefonline.com/"><span style="color: #0b5394;">Jenni Field's Pastry Chef On Line</span></a><span style="color: #666666;">.</span></span><br />
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<a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-ZmTAbK2xKLU/WBdOF-zB15I/AAAAAAAALQc/n_CqJj09SbMj7-AAx-kFG9z3v0G4gyzYQCLcB/s1600/coffee%2Bmaple%2Bbacon%2Bpopcorn%2Btreats.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-ZmTAbK2xKLU/WBdOF-zB15I/AAAAAAAALQc/n_CqJj09SbMj7-AAx-kFG9z3v0G4gyzYQCLcB/s320/coffee%2Bmaple%2Bbacon%2Bpopcorn%2Btreats.jpg" width="258" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="color: #666666;">How about a little indulgence? Check out this </span><a href="http://chindeep.com/2013/03/15/truffle-oil-black-pepper-popcorn/"><span style="color: #0b5394;">Truffle Oil Black Pepper Popcorn</span></a><span style="color: #666666;"> from </span><a href="http://chindeep.com/"><span style="color: #0b5394;">ChinDeep</span></a><span style="color: #666666;">.</span></span><br />
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<a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-bumQvLR4e1s/WBZty_lAz2I/AAAAAAAALM0/ETHrZepMOjYIA--_iGbqzr90eRaOOdrngCLcB/s1600/truffle%2Boil%2Bpopcorn.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-bumQvLR4e1s/WBZty_lAz2I/AAAAAAAALM0/ETHrZepMOjYIA--_iGbqzr90eRaOOdrngCLcB/s320/truffle%2Boil%2Bpopcorn.jpg" width="219" /></span></a></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="color: #666666;">This </span><a href="http://www.feastingathome.com/garlic-parmesan-popcorn/"><span style="color: #0b5394;">Garlic Parmesan Popcorn</span></a><span style="color: #666666;"> from </span><a href="http://www.feastingathome.com/"><span style="color: #0b5394;">Feasting at Home</span></a><span style="color: #666666;"> is right up my alley.</span></span><br />
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<a href="http://www.anediblemosaic.com/gingerbread-popcorn/"><span style="color: #0b5394; font-size: large;">Gingerbread Popcorn</span></a><span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">? Two of my favourite things in one bowl! From </span><a href="http://www.anediblemosaic.com/"><span style="color: #0b5394; font-size: large;">An Edible Mosaic</span></a><span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="color: #666666;">Who can resist classic Caramel Popcorn? </span><a href="http://premeditatedleftovers.com/recipes-cooking-tips/how-to-make-caramel-popcorn-2/"><span style="color: #0b5394;">This recipe</span></a><span style="color: #666666;"> from </span><a href="http://premeditatedleftovers.com/"><span style="color: #0b5394;">Premeditated Leftovers</span></a><span style="color: #666666;"> is very good.</span></span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large; margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-tfJSgV7J9tw/WBZ5sDMD29I/AAAAAAAALNo/aQXu9NGu2l0QhCqU2uiVFhXx2tHi_q3UQCLcB/s1600/caramel%2Bpopcorn.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="251" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-tfJSgV7J9tw/WBZ5sDMD29I/AAAAAAAALNo/aQXu9NGu2l0QhCqU2uiVFhXx2tHi_q3UQCLcB/s320/caramel%2Bpopcorn.jpg" width="320" /></a></span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">This </span><a href="http://lizoncall.com/2013/09/24/pumpkin-spice-caramel-popcorn/"><span style="color: #0b5394; font-size: large;">Pumpkin Spice Caramel Popcorn</span></a><span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;"> from </span><a href="http://lizoncall.com/"><span style="color: #0b5394; font-size: large;">Liz on Call</span></a><span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;"> is another wonderful sweet treat.</span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;"><a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-8qztFMffrls/WBe03nTVHwI/AAAAAAAALRA/WT7Rpbq9MOUdckplZlshuKQMhft4prkJACEw/s1600/pumpkin%2Bspice%2Bcaramel%2Bpopcorn.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-8qztFMffrls/WBe03nTVHwI/AAAAAAAALRA/WT7Rpbq9MOUdckplZlshuKQMhft4prkJACEw/s320/pumpkin%2Bspice%2Bcaramel%2Bpopcorn.jpg" width="320" /></a></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><a href="http://busycreatingmemories.com/caramel-apple-popcorn-balls/"><span style="color: #0b5394;">Caramel Apple Popcorn Balls</span></a><span style="color: #666666;"> from </span></span><span style="color: #0b5394; font-size: large;"><a href="http://busycreatingmemories.com/"><span style="color: #0b5394;">Busy Creating Memories</span></a> </span><span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">combine two Hallowe'en classics into one great treat.</span></div>
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<a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-WLM3bOs5H5w/WBd8YoIX6II/AAAAAAAALQs/69-xBYeobQgVksvsdjRdJyfXWH6sRRM3ACLcB/s1600/caramel%2Bapple%2Bpopcorn%2Bballs.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="218" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-WLM3bOs5H5w/WBd8YoIX6II/AAAAAAAALQs/69-xBYeobQgVksvsdjRdJyfXWH6sRRM3ACLcB/s320/caramel%2Bapple%2Bpopcorn%2Bballs.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="color: #666666;">These </span><a href="http://www.ihearteating.com/smores-popcorn-balls/"><span style="color: #0b5394;">S'mores Popcorn Balls</span></a><span style="color: #666666;"> from </span><a href="http://www.ihearteating.com/"><span style="color: #0b5394;">i heart eating</span></a><span style="color: #666666;"> are another combination of popcorn with a classic treat. I mean, who </span><i style="color: #666666;">doesn't</i><span style="color: #666666;"> love s'mores?</span></span></div>
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<a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-LoQJ6pXKXqc/WBd9d99jvAI/AAAAAAAALQw/2UWrurPNbeQQcYjclOtqvhEFvvueq5fsgCLcB/s1600/s%2527mores%2Bpopcorn%2Bballs.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-LoQJ6pXKXqc/WBd9d99jvAI/AAAAAAAALQw/2UWrurPNbeQQcYjclOtqvhEFvvueq5fsgCLcB/s320/s%2527mores%2Bpopcorn%2Bballs.jpg" width="183" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="color: #666666;">The first Beautiful Thing I want to share today is actually </span><a href="http://battitude.blogspot.ca/2013/10/october.html"><span style="color: #0b5394;">one of my own posts</span></a><span style="color: #666666;"> from 2013. October still makes me feel this way. I want to write love poems to autumn at this time of year. </span></span></div>
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<a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-TA2uoXTNYYY/WBaEH5rVb_I/AAAAAAAALN8/rUpnJtEBOHwH3tLzQzKlGFdcVRUmOk5gQCEw/s1600/b-attitude%2Bmaple%2Bpic.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;"><img border="0" height="212" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-TA2uoXTNYYY/WBaEH5rVb_I/AAAAAAAALN8/rUpnJtEBOHwH3tLzQzKlGFdcVRUmOk5gQCEw/s320/b-attitude%2Bmaple%2Bpic.jpg" width="320" /></span></a></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="color: #666666;">Our autumn rains do many things, not least providing big, still puddles that capture beautiful reflections. I particularly like </span><a href="https://www.facebook.com/DougClementPhotography/photos/a.292771010800913.68835.292374520840562/1152357051508967/?type=3&theater"><span style="color: #666666;">t</span><span style="color: #0b5394;">his photo</span></a><span style="color: #666666;"> of the provincial legislative buildings in Victoria, taken from the Inner Harbour causeway by </span><span style="color: #0b5394;"><a href="https://www.facebook.com/DougClementPhotography/" style="color: #0b5394;"><span style="color: #0b5394;">Doug Clement Photography</span></a><span style="color: #666666;">.</span></span><span style="color: #0b5394;"> </span></span><br />
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<a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-kbM1aHW--rg/WBaGfbuEjoI/AAAAAAAALOI/_vkmG4qN39MBH7yYLIZC4rlK5ghnunGgQCLcB/s1600/causeway%2Bnights.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-kbM1aHW--rg/WBaGfbuEjoI/AAAAAAAALOI/_vkmG4qN39MBH7yYLIZC4rlK5ghnunGgQCLcB/s320/causeway%2Bnights.jpg" width="320" /></span></a></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="color: #666666;">More fall beauty. </span><a href="https://www.facebook.com/CarrieColePhotography/photos/o.67430677682/1298442580200972/?type=3&theater"><span style="color: #0b5394;">This photo</span></a><span style="color: #666666;"> was taken in the Japanese garden at Hately Castle, on the grounds of Royal Roads University, by </span><a href="https://www.facebook.com/CarrieColePhotography/"><span style="color: #0b5394;">Carrie Cole Photography</span></a><span style="color: #666666;">.</span></span></div>
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<a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-vJ2XH4doZA0/WBaJlYk0lyI/AAAAAAAALOU/J7yLrNLQ0co8nDHrBJRve5BatLxaM4xMQCLcB/s1600/hately%2Bcastle%2Bjapanese%2Bgarden.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;"><img border="0" height="199" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-vJ2XH4doZA0/WBaJlYk0lyI/AAAAAAAALOU/J7yLrNLQ0co8nDHrBJRve5BatLxaM4xMQCLcB/s320/hately%2Bcastle%2Bjapanese%2Bgarden.jpg" width="320" /></span></a></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="color: #666666;">Aren't the sky and its reflection in this photo, </span><a href="http://fletcher.v3media.ca/gallery2/main.php?g2_itemId=5365"><span style="color: #0b5394;">Before the Dock</span></a><span style="color: #666666;"> by</span><a href="http://fletcher.v3media.ca/gallery2/main.php" style="color: #666666;"> </a><a href="http://fletcher.v3media.ca/gallery2/main.php"><span style="color: #0b5394;">Paul Fletcher</span></a><span style="color: #666666;">, amazing?</span></span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large; margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-C9v-i20yiPI/WBaTnugnZ4I/AAAAAAAALO0/bH0_kejsmVUnpcaoQx8bMnh7pXzHwL7JgCLcB/s1600/before%2Bthe%2Bdock.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-C9v-i20yiPI/WBaTnugnZ4I/AAAAAAAALO0/bH0_kejsmVUnpcaoQx8bMnh7pXzHwL7JgCLcB/s320/before%2Bthe%2Bdock.jpg" width="320" /></a></span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">I'm so glad you stopped by for a visit today! Want to continue the conversation? I'd love to hear what you've been up to lately. Have you been spending time outdoors? Gardening? Cooking? Crafting? Making cool costumes? Pop over to see me at Aunt B's Kitchen on </span><a href="https://www.facebook.com/Aunt-Bs-Kitchen-194608900564468/"><span style="color: #0b5394; font-size: large;">Facebook</span></a><span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">, </span><a href="https://twitter.com/AuntBsKitchen"><span style="color: #0b5394; font-size: large;">Twitter</span></a><span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">, or </span><a href="https://plus.google.com/u/0/109951803146596003333"><span style="color: #0b5394; font-size: large;">Google+</span></a><span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;"> and share your news. Bring pictures if you've got them and, however you spend the rest of your Hallowe'en, have a joyful day.</span></div>
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Aunt Bhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12805537873269992072noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5989362245731259716.post-80244269705008059312016-10-17T13:32:00.004-07:002016-10-17T13:39:11.477-07:00Monday, Tea, and October's Gifts<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">Hello! How are you? I've been thinking about you a lot this month, what with the weather and all. Some of you have had a really rough time of it. I hope you're okay.</span><br />
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<a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-UXPx7sf7QAs/WAUJsS5bNFI/AAAAAAAALH4/nJ59lvhBVKgqP1H-kDcp3GT6OxOysk2JgCEw/s1600/cowichan%2Briver.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="180" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-UXPx7sf7QAs/WAUJsS5bNFI/AAAAAAAALH4/nJ59lvhBVKgqP1H-kDcp3GT6OxOysk2JgCEw/s320/cowichan%2Briver.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">We've had a very rainy few days of it here on Vancouver Island but that's fine with me. Rainy weather's pretty much the norm here in October and I have to say that I love it. </span><br />
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<a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-H8lnNcPF_H0/WAUNoDa1QkI/AAAAAAAALIA/1G5QDZBthg0c08LVPsd8886gJ36EfoYBACEw/s1600/clouds%2Band%2Btrees.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-H8lnNcPF_H0/WAUNoDa1QkI/AAAAAAAALIA/1G5QDZBthg0c08LVPsd8886gJ36EfoYBACEw/s320/clouds%2Band%2Btrees.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">It changes the landscape from the dry golds of late summer to a shimmering palette of silver, pewter, grey, and blue green, with splashes of autumn yellow and red for contrast. </span><br />
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<a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-4iws8vGj2PQ/WAUiiYUiStI/AAAAAAAALIc/qjGxdgovxIoRWQtcaM3ljMUTip7wQ6imQCLcB/s1600/falling%2Bwater.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="212" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-4iws8vGj2PQ/WAUiiYUiStI/AAAAAAAALIc/qjGxdgovxIoRWQtcaM3ljMUTip7wQ6imQCLcB/s320/falling%2Bwater.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">Water from the sky, ever drawn to the ocean, forms little streams that leap and chuckle down rocky hillsides, and waterfalls decorate every sudden drop with froths of lace. </span><br />
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<a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-ani1ItIaSnc/WAUU31jw_EI/AAAAAAAALIM/jOnxEbRyn0kKGcqvPhAgSma7nmd95wAhwCLcB/s1600/stone%2Bchurch%2Bon%2Ba%2Brany%2Bday.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-ani1ItIaSnc/WAUU31jw_EI/AAAAAAAALIM/jOnxEbRyn0kKGcqvPhAgSma7nmd95wAhwCLcB/s320/stone%2Bchurch%2Bon%2Ba%2Brany%2Bday.jpg" width="212" /></a></div>
<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">When it's raining steadily, it's like looking at the world through a sheer, silvery curtain; the edges of the landscape are blurred and the tops of the mountains are often wrapped in soft grey scarves.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">When the weather's wet and the nights begin to draw in early, I look towards cozy pastimes like knitting and sewing, and to baking bread and cooking roast dinners that not only make the house smell wonderful, but warm it too. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">I'm baking today and I thought that you might like to keep me company while I work. </span><span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">Pull up a chair to the table by my kitchen and pour a cup of tea. </span><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="color: #666666;">There are </span><a href="http://awordfromauntb.blogspot.ca/2011/10/ginger-scones.html" target="_blank"><span style="color: #0b5394;">ginger scones</span></a><span style="color: #666666;">, still warm</span></span><span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;"> from the oven, and butter and honey to dress them with. Please do help yourself.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">Thank you for being kind enough to overlook the mess in here today. I've been pretty busy lately. I've emptied my bedroom so I can paint it and hang new curtains, and the furniture, books, and bedding have all ended up in the living and dining room. </span><br />
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<a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-QuBccRpDqRE/WAUo129ig9I/AAAAAAAALJI/ceh4zNuNHrk55NAvjfU9zUAyVhS6d5LXACPcB/s1600/fabric%2Band%2Bchair.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-QuBccRpDqRE/WAUo129ig9I/AAAAAAAALJI/ceh4zNuNHrk55NAvjfU9zUAyVhS6d5LXACPcB/s320/fabric%2Band%2Bchair.jpg" width="188" /></a></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">As usual, the dining room table is home to my sewing machine and a stack of fabric on one of the dining room chairs awaits my attention.</span><br />
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<a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-ubasddpnyM4/WAUj38EFvfI/AAAAAAAALIs/4JXrSLDoPp42_K2v_jkesHk9hDG7x2WGQCPcB/s1600/cards.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-ubasddpnyM4/WAUj38EFvfI/AAAAAAAALIs/4JXrSLDoPp42_K2v_jkesHk9hDG7x2WGQCPcB/s320/cards.jpg" width="297" /></a></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">The bedroom bookshelf (now in the </span><span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">hallway) has been </span><span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">pressed </span><span style="color: #666666;"><span style="font-size: large;">into temporary service as a repository for greeting cards. I've been making quite a few of them this week and need to photograph them as soon as I have a bright enough day to do so.</span></span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;"><span style="color: #666666;">I'm taking and editing photos of my various </span></span><span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;"><span style="color: #666666;">projects for my new Etsy shop. (Yay!) I'll be opening it soon and I'm really excited about it. I'll be posting about its opening on my </span><a href="https://www.facebook.com/Aunt-Bs-Kitchen-194608900564468/" target="_blank"><span style="color: #0b5394;">Facebook</span></a><span style="color: #666666;">, </span><a href="https://twitter.com/AuntBsKitchen" target="_blank"><span style="color: #0b5394;">Twitter</span></a><span style="color: #666666;">, and </span><a href="https://plus.google.com/109951803146596003333" target="_blank"><span style="color: #0b5394;">Google+</span></a><span style="color: #666666;"> pages once it's up and running, and </span></span><span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">I'm starting a new blog </span><span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">to go with it. Watch this space for more news as my work progresses.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">Of course, it's not all been work around here. I love the fall weather and have been enjoying lots of time outdoors even on rainy days. I have good rain gear and several lovely umbrellas so the wet is no deterrent to me. I've been visiting some of my favourite trails, camera in hand to capture the fall colour.</span><br />
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-O0QcOnYjBtI/WAUloRJAwBI/AAAAAAAALI0/9EEE_DgvJscvhu70JkYZuyWa4yDELf0kgCEw/s1600/spawning%2Bsalmon%2B2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="212" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-O0QcOnYjBtI/WAUloRJAwBI/AAAAAAAALI0/9EEE_DgvJscvhu70JkYZuyWa4yDELf0kgCEw/s320/spawning%2Bsalmon%2B2.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">Most of the trails I walk take me along some part of the river. The salmon are starting to make their way up the rivers to spawn now that the rain has raised the water levels. I've been watching them </span><br />
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<a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-JQNtzbMYAVI/WAUnqIC_qvI/AAAAAAAALI8/yqENEtRyuTUGQEa0yRL5jrMUU_OlgGgHwCLcB/s1600/spawning%2Bsalmon%2B1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-JQNtzbMYAVI/WAUnqIC_qvI/AAAAAAAALI8/yqENEtRyuTUGQEa0yRL5jrMUU_OlgGgHwCLcB/s320/spawning%2Bsalmon%2B1.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">make their way home. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;"><span style="color: #666666;">A little later in the season, I'll be heading to </span><a href="http://www.goldstreampark.com/" target="_blank"><span style="color: #0b5394;">Goldstream Park</span></a><span style="color: #666666;"> to take some photos of the salmon making their way upstream. If the pictures turn out well enough to share, I'll write a blog post about it.</span></span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">Indoors, my entertainment at this time of year often includes attending craft fairs. From now until Christmas they'll be plentiful. I enjoy seeing all the creative work our local artists and artisans display. It inspires me in my own work, and when I do purchase gifts I like to support people who take the time and care to make them by hand. I'm looking forward to seeing lots of wonderful things!</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">With autumn crafts and fall cooking on my mind, several interesting blog posts have caught my eye recently. Here are a few of them:</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;"><a href="http://www.hometalk.com/10102300/concrete-pumpkin-project" target="_blank"><span style="color: #0b5394;">Concrete Pumpkin Project</span></a><span style="color: #666666;"> from </span><span style="color: #0b5394;"><a href="https://www.facebook.com/dianasdiyden" target="_blank">Diana's DIY Den and Treasure Shack</a></span></span></div>
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<a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-XUSn5fZKS0g/WABcnn73SbI/AAAAAAAALF8/ZLdosXlcTU82kPecro8KczOxqC9gdynJgCLcB/s1600/concrete%2Bpumpkins.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;"><img border="0" height="201" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-XUSn5fZKS0g/WABcnn73SbI/AAAAAAAALF8/ZLdosXlcTU82kPecro8KczOxqC9gdynJgCLcB/s320/concrete%2Bpumpkins.jpg" width="320" /></span></a></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;"><a href="http://alittlepinchofperfect.com/halloween-shadow-suncatcher-craft-kids-free-template/" target="_blank"><span style="color: #0b5394;">Halloween Shadow Suncatcher Project</span></a><span style="color: #666666;"> from </span><span style="color: #0b5394;"><a href="http://alittlepinchofperfect.com/" target="_blank"><span style="color: #0b5394;">A Little Pinch of Perfect</span></a></span></span></div>
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<a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-H96MmAuUytY/WAQ1iApjwXI/AAAAAAAALHU/rmmBoEN3_q0ElH6uKOqcthMFQ7wpBlcLwCLcB/s1600/suncatchers.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-H96MmAuUytY/WAQ1iApjwXI/AAAAAAAALHU/rmmBoEN3_q0ElH6uKOqcthMFQ7wpBlcLwCLcB/s320/suncatchers.png" width="320" /></span></a></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><a href="http://www.budget101.com/content.php/4047-Make-Your-Own-copycat-Lara-bars" style="text-align: left;" target="_blank"><span style="color: #0b5394;">Make Your Own Lara Bars</span></a><span style="color: #666666; text-align: left;"> from </span><span style="color: #0b5394;"><a href="https://www.facebook.com/Budget101com/?fref=ts" style="text-align: left;" target="_blank"><span style="color: #0b5394;">Budget 101.com</span></a><span style="text-align: left;">.</span></span></span></div>
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<a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-S--2biD9xzk/WABgB1KRbxI/AAAAAAAALGM/V-zhMB_608QEpgG-2Pr5g8q1Dfjs0H-OACLcB/s1600/lara%2Bbars.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-S--2biD9xzk/WABgB1KRbxI/AAAAAAAALGM/V-zhMB_608QEpgG-2Pr5g8q1Dfjs0H-OACLcB/s320/lara%2Bbars.jpg" width="320" /></span></a></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;"><a href="http://premeditatedleftovers.com/recipes-cooking-tips/pumpkin-pie-spice-substitute-and-reusing-spice-jars/" target="_blank"><span style="color: #0b5394;">How to Make your own Pumpkin Pie Spice</span></a><span style="color: #666666;"> from </span><a href="http://premeditatedleftovers.com/" target="_blank"><span style="color: #0b5394;">Premeditated Leftovers</span></a><span style="color: #666666;">. </span></span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large; margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-REl0LsZHsOQ/WAQ110CWzWI/AAAAAAAALHY/TVxHc34m0moLH4EWkcWPhGZvZ14fARb3wCLcB/s1600/pumpkin%2Bpie%2Bspice.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-REl0LsZHsOQ/WAQ110CWzWI/AAAAAAAALHY/TVxHc34m0moLH4EWkcWPhGZvZ14fARb3wCLcB/s320/pumpkin%2Bpie%2Bspice.jpg" width="218" /></a></span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;"><a href="http://www.cozycakescottage.com/2013/12/06/cooking-with-gooseberry-patch-cranberry-swirl-coffee-cake/"><span style="color: #0b5394;">Cranberry Coffee Cake</span></a><span style="color: #666666;"> from </span><a href="https://www.facebook.com/Cozycakes-Cottage-312672158767952/?fref=ts"><span style="color: #0b5394;">Cozycakes Cottage</span></a><span style="color: #666666;">.</span></span></div>
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<a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-wx0ZTOyevqA/WAQ2Aa_03II/AAAAAAAALHc/FhNH49bSqoAaDR9luOXtaP6FtpNlO6jTgCLcB/s1600/cranberry%2Bcoffee%2Bcake.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-wx0ZTOyevqA/WAQ2Aa_03II/AAAAAAAALHc/FhNH49bSqoAaDR9luOXtaP6FtpNlO6jTgCLcB/s320/cranberry%2Bcoffee%2Bcake.jpg" width="232" /></span></a></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">and here are some beautiful things that have captured my fancy along the way:</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;"><a href="https://www.facebook.com/irinagarmashovafineart/photos/a.217863185061522.1073741829.187830481398126/647417658772737/?type=3&theater" target="_blank"><span style="color: #0b5394;">Bed of Leaves</span></a><span style="color: #666666;"> by </span><a href="https://www.facebook.com/irinagarmashovafineart/"><span style="color: #0b5394;">Irina Garmashova-Cawton</span></a></span></div>
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<a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-fGU1SAd41Rc/WABdwaXM6SI/AAAAAAAALGA/x86HTzEpYmsm2nQW3InzWaXp9LqnzdMtQCLcB/s1600/bed%2Bof%2Bleaves.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;"><img border="0" height="242" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-fGU1SAd41Rc/WABdwaXM6SI/AAAAAAAALGA/x86HTzEpYmsm2nQW3InzWaXp9LqnzdMtQCLcB/s320/bed%2Bof%2Bleaves.jpg" width="320" /></span></a></div>
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<span itemprop="name" style="margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"><span style="color: #666666; font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><a href="https://www.etsy.com/ca/listing/239220194/book-paper-sculpture-paper-tree-with?ref=shop_home_active_61&show_panel=true" target="_blank"><span style="color: #0b5394;">Book Paper Sculpture - Paper Tree with swing on wood</span></a><span style="color: #666666;"> by </span><a href="https://www.facebook.com/Malena.Valcarcel.Art/?fref=ts" target="_blank"><span style="color: #0b5394;">Malena Valcarcel</span></a><span style="color: #666666;">. You can see more of her work at her </span><a href="https://www.etsy.com/ca/shop/MalenaValcarcel?ref=l2-shopheader-name" target="_blank"><span style="color: #0b5394;">Etsy shop</span></a><span style="color: #666666;">.</span></span></span></h1>
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<a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-psyFSy-jTP0/WAPscBrYQfI/AAAAAAAALG8/hrX3vdLGCw4XTqsUdQ6JxLK20hKI9wN9wCLcB/s1600/paper%2Bsculpture.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-psyFSy-jTP0/WAPscBrYQfI/AAAAAAAALG8/hrX3vdLGCw4XTqsUdQ6JxLK20hKI9wN9wCLcB/s320/paper%2Bsculpture.jpg" width="187" /></span></a></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;"><span style="color: #0b5394;"><span style="color: #666666;">I don't know the title of this </span><a href="https://www.facebook.com/janespaintingsonline/photos/a.206526462820533.51913.205040036302509/818475334958973/?type=3&theater" target="_blank"><span style="color: #0b5394;">painting</span></a></span><span style="color: #666666;"> from </span><span style="color: #0b5394;"><a href="https://www.facebook.com/janespaintingsonline/" target="_blank"><span style="color: #0b5394;">Jane's Shed</span></a><span style="color: #666666;"> but it sure is amazing</span></span><span style="color: #666666;">. You can find more of Jane Wilson's work with maps in the </span><a href="http://www.janespaintingsonline.co.uk/a1-gallery2.asp?roomID=7906" style="color: #666666;" target="_blank"><span style="color: #0b5394;">Cartophilia</span></a><span style="color: #666666;"> Gallery on her </span><a href="http://www.janespaintingsonline.co.uk/" style="color: #666666;" target="_blank"><span style="color: #0b5394;">website</span></a><span style="color: #666666;">. </span></span></div>
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<a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-kaTP7bXP2g8/WAPt4g69V1I/AAAAAAAALHE/gy4amXpB-HgmM4MQP-szWswRgvZ_4ss6wCLcB/s1600/Janesshed%2Bowl.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;"><img border="0" height="227" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-kaTP7bXP2g8/WAPt4g69V1I/AAAAAAAALHE/gy4amXpB-HgmM4MQP-szWswRgvZ_4ss6wCLcB/s320/Janesshed%2Bowl.jpg" width="320" /></span></a></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;"><a href="https://www.facebook.com/CarrieColePhotography/photos/a.538454022866502.1073741830.538389029539668/1249512965093934/?type=3&theater" target="_blank"><span style="color: #0b5394;">San Josef Bay, Cape Scott</span></a><span style="color: #666666;"> by </span><a href="https://www.facebook.com/CarrieColePhotography/"><span style="color: #0b5394;">Carrie Cole Photography</span></a></span></div>
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<a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-rrXnMPEaPvU/WABeNemY__I/AAAAAAAALGE/e1VzydB0Am0zzvuAwrWQfqpKcNzaHAZsQCLcB/s1600/San%2BJosef%2BBay.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-rrXnMPEaPvU/WABeNemY__I/AAAAAAAALGE/e1VzydB0Am0zzvuAwrWQfqpKcNzaHAZsQCLcB/s320/San%2BJosef%2BBay.jpg" width="320" /></span></a></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;"><a href="http://randyhallphotography.com/featured/whitewater-randy-hall.html"><span style="color: #0b5394;">White Water</span></a><span style="color: #666666;"> by </span><a href="http://randyhallphotography.com/"><span style="color: #0b5394;">Photos by Randy Hall</span></a></span></div>
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<a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-uem7ueK43lU/WAPloLxssxI/AAAAAAAALGs/Mi7MZxq7oK8B8IrU61XQBcPk8p2vDqnZQCLcB/s1600/whitewater.PNG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="218" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-uem7ueK43lU/WAPloLxssxI/AAAAAAAALGs/Mi7MZxq7oK8B8IrU61XQBcPk8p2vDqnZQCLcB/s320/whitewater.PNG" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><a href="http://www.haidagwaiiphotos.com/gallery-3.html" target="_blank"><span style="color: #0b5394;">Waterlogged or Logwatered?</span></a><span style="color: #666666;"> by </span><span style="color: #0b5394;"><a href="http://www.haidagwaiiphotos.com/" target="_blank">Guy Kimola</a></span></span></div>
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<a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-zE7GLg0wCKM/WAUtOzwsKNI/AAAAAAAALJQ/d5VHHG7w2JIwH24VV3_yd0xJqApA9_omwCLcB/s1600/waterlogged%252C%2Bor%2Blogwatered.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="212" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-zE7GLg0wCKM/WAUtOzwsKNI/AAAAAAAALJQ/d5VHHG7w2JIwH24VV3_yd0xJqApA9_omwCLcB/s320/waterlogged%252C%2Bor%2Blogwatered.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="color: #666666;">Thanks for visiting me today. I've enjoyed it. </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="color: #666666;">I'd really like to hear about your autumn too. How have you fared with the weather? What's been keeping you busy? What's caught your eye on line? Please do take a minute to comment here, or on my </span><a href="https://www.facebook.com/Aunt-Bs-Kitchen-194608900564468/" target="_blank"><span style="color: #0b5394;">Facebook page</span></a><span style="color: #666666;">, </span><a href="https://twitter.com/AuntBsKitchen" target="_blank"><span style="color: #0b5394;">Twitter feed</span></a><span style="color: #666666;">. or on </span><a href="https://twitter.com/AuntBsKitchen" target="_blank"><span style="color: #0b5394;">Google+</span></a><span style="color: #666666;">. I'll look forward to hearing from you.</span></span></div>
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Aunt Bhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12805537873269992072noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5989362245731259716.post-30458717004983852462016-08-08T16:07:00.001-07:002016-08-08T16:50:05.208-07:00Hello! I've Missed You!<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">Hello! I've missed you! </span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">Since I have some extra time on line today, I thought we might have a visit over a virtual cup of tea this afternoon. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">Step into my living room. You can sit in my favourite corner of the couch, where you can gaze out the window and enjoy the view. </span><br />
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<a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-z-jGPzEOvL0/V6kKO1OwW7I/AAAAAAAALEQ/jn4x687A-MohKX4ixI6xMDbIXee-K07uwCLcB/s1600/home%2B%2528s%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-z-jGPzEOvL0/V6kKO1OwW7I/AAAAAAAALEQ/jn4x687A-MohKX4ixI6xMDbIXee-K07uwCLcB/s320/home%2B%2528s%2529.jpg" width="234" /></a></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">It's cloudy this afternoon, and kind of cool outside; my very favourite kind of weather. I have lots of energy on days like this and love to go out for walks around the neighbourhood. The colours of the flowers show so brightly against the grey sky, and lots of people take advantage of the cool weather to work in their gardens or to get out and about as I am, to enjoy the sights.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">My neighbourhood is very green right now. Trees are wearing heavy canopies of leaves, and abundant crops of nuts and fruit adorn many of them like jewellery. The evergreens are dropping their cones right now and squirrels travel along the aerial highway the power lines form, carrying the cones away to stash them for the winter months. Some of those cones end up in my foraging bag too, destined to be crafted into Christmas decorations.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">The river is very low now, chuckling over the rocks where it passes through the park down the street from my house. You can walk all the way across it now, without ever needing to swim. At the swimming hole, children and dogs are busy playing, even in this cool water. The sound of their laughter drifting up through my window as they bike their way home makes me smile.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="color: #666666;">I've baked a </span><a href="http://awordfromauntb.blogspot.ca/2011/12/jacks-favourite-coffee-cake.html"><span style="color: #3d85c6;">coffee cake</span></a><span style="color: #666666;"> just for you. </span></span><br />
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<a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-tFfbaW2RRi8/V6kK8W36R4I/AAAAAAAALEU/7EWkWvCHVKkQDk8UD_B97cHr1h23M8ReACLcB/s1600/coffee%2Bcake.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="222" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-tFfbaW2RRi8/V6kK8W36R4I/AAAAAAAALEU/7EWkWvCHVKkQDk8UD_B97cHr1h23M8ReACLcB/s320/coffee%2Bcake.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">The whole apartment smells like cinnamon, and warm steam curls up from our teacups, fragrant too.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">So...How have you been?</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="color: #666666;">I've been pretty busy lately. July and August are busy times in my little town. We have the </span><a href="https://duncan.civicweb.net/document/66843/2016-04-18%20Appendix%202%20-%20Summer%20Festival%20Schedule%20o.pdf?handle=1F352AC847BC474C8C299178C2B95A49"><span style="color: #6fa8dc;">39 Days of July Festival</span></a><span style="color: #666666;"> from June 24 to August 1, with live music downtown every day, the </span><a href="http://rockofthewoods.com/"><span style="color: #3d85c6;">Rock of the Woods Music Festival</span></a><span style="color: #666666;">, and </span><a href="http://sunfestconcerts.com/"><span style="color: #3d85c6;">the SunFest Country Music Festival</span></a><span style="color: #666666;">, as well as all sorts of other smaller events in the other towns around us. </span><br /><br /><span style="color: #666666;">I'm not a crowd person so I avoid the big events, but I do check out the smaller ones. I enjoyed the music downtown and have made several visits to the </span><a href="http://bcforestdiscoverycentre.com/"><span style="color: #3d85c6;">Forest Discovery Centre</span></a><span style="color: #666666;">. I've walked much of the </span><span style="color: #3d85c6;"><a href="http://www.trailpeak.com/trail-Trans-Canada-Trail-Cowichan-Valley-Section-near-Duncan-BC-6566"><span style="color: #3d85c6;">Trans Canada Trail</span></a> </span><span style="color: #666666;">here in the valley and especially enjoy the sections in the </span><a href="http://www.env.gov.bc.ca/bcparks/explore/parkpgs/cowichan_rv/"><span style="color: #3d85c6;">Cowichan Valley Provincial Park.</span></a><span style="color: #666666;"> </span></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="color: #666666;">My sister and I spent a day in </span><a href="http://www.visitchemainus.ca/"><span style="color: #3d85c6;">Chemainus</span></a><span style="color: #666666;"> and found what may be my </span><a href="https://www.tripadvisor.ca/Restaurant_Review-g154926-d5291423-Reviews-The_Book_Nook_Coffee_House-Chemainus_Vancouver_Island_British_Columbia.html"><span style="color: #3d85c6;">favourite coffee shop ever</span></a><span style="color: #666666;">, with walls of books, jazz music, and - of course - good coffee. It was a real treat!</span></span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">At home, I've been doing lots of sewing and crafting. I'm hoping to share some of those projects with you very soon.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="color: #666666;">I've been writing too. Here's my latest piece from </span><a href="http://battitude.blogspot.ca/2016/08/weeds-and-wishes.html"><span style="color: #3d85c6;">b-attitude</span></a><span style="color: #666666;">. There's a lot more on all my blogs, in draft form. I hope to have enough library time in the coming weeks to publish some of it for you.</span></span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">You guys know how my magpie mind works, right? I'm interested in all sorts of things. Here are some on line things that have caught my eye recently:</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><a href="http://www.favecrafts.com/Green-Crafting/Scrap-Fabric-Projects"><span style="color: #3d85c6;">43 Scrap Fabric Projects</span></a><span style="color: #666666;"> from </span><a href="http://www.favecrafts.com/"><span style="color: #3d85c6;">FaveCrafts</span></a></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><a href="http://therecipecritic.com/2016/07/lime-butter-salmon-foil-summer-veggies/"><span style="color: #3d85c6;">Grilled Butter Lime Salmon in Foil</span></a><span style="color: #666666;"> from </span><a href="http://therecipecritic.com/"><span style="color: #3d85c6;">The Recipe Critic</span></a></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><a href="http://www.muminthemadhouse.com/free-colouring-pages-for-adults/"><span style="color: #3d85c6;">Free Coloring Pages For Adults</span></a><span style="color: #666666;"> from </span><a href="http://www.muminthemadhouse.com/"><span style="color: #3d85c6;">The Mad House</span></a></span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;"><a href="http://www.vancouverislandview.com/hidden-gems-vancouver-island/"><span style="color: #3d85c6;">Hidden Gems of Vancouver Island</span></a><span style="color: #666666;"> from </span><a href="http://www.vancouverislandview.com/"><span style="color: #3d85c6;">Vancouver Island View</span></a></span></div>
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<a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-dBajz5AsYe4/V6kCNncYrAI/AAAAAAAALDg/BmeBd1ZTGMcwxyp7cdGoqp21ruuyxurHgCLcB/s1600/Hole-in-the-Wall.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-dBajz5AsYe4/V6kCNncYrAI/AAAAAAAALDg/BmeBd1ZTGMcwxyp7cdGoqp21ruuyxurHgCLcB/s320/Hole-in-the-Wall.jpg" width="213" /></span></a></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;"><a href="https://www.tenthacrefarm.com/2014/11/5-homemade-holiday-gifts-to-start-right-now/"><span style="color: #3d85c6;">5 Easy Homemade Infusions That Make Perfect Gifts</span></a><span style="color: #666666;"> from </span><a href="https://www.tenthacrefarm.com/"><span style="color: #3d85c6;">Tenth Acre Farm</span></a></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><a href="http://www.mealplanmaven.com/recipes/grilled-vegetables-yogurt-tahini-dip/"><span style="color: #3d85c6;">Grilled Vegetables with Yogurt Tahini Dip</span></a><span style="color: #666666;"> from </span><a href="http://www.mealplanmaven.com/"><span style="color: #3d85c6;">Meal Planning Maven</span></a></span></div>
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<a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-J-zkwmDglO8/V6kYXXu8_0I/AAAAAAAALE0/d0Wodm4u6dUK4yw4VVuVCySPP5p9QGP5ACLcB/s1600/Grilled-Vegetables-w-Yogurt-Tahini-Sauce7-500x333.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-J-zkwmDglO8/V6kYXXu8_0I/AAAAAAAALE0/d0Wodm4u6dUK4yw4VVuVCySPP5p9QGP5ACLcB/s320/Grilled-Vegetables-w-Yogurt-Tahini-Sauce7-500x333.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">And here are some beautiful things have captured my attention:</span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">This sweet yellow vignette in my living room</span></div>
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Md_Pb8LdWRc/V6kCj6BzZuI/AAAAAAAALDk/cOl6FL13-KQn7o8PwbJoM6YTTvVricZtwCLcB/s1600/yellow%2B%2528s%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Md_Pb8LdWRc/V6kCj6BzZuI/AAAAAAAALDk/cOl6FL13-KQn7o8PwbJoM6YTTvVricZtwCLcB/s320/yellow%2B%2528s%2529.jpg" width="210" /></span></a></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="color: #666666;">Path in the Woods by Vincent VanGogh, shared by the </span><a href="https://www.vangoghmuseum.nl/en/collection/s0080V1962"><span style="color: #3d85c6;">VanGogh Museum</span></a></span></div>
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<a href="https://www.facebook.com/simonkenevan/posts/10153874775528040:0"><span style="color: #3d85c6; font-size: large;">Storm Song by Simon Kenevan</span></a></div>
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<a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-I-jj6CM4VqM/V6kEAJIXzqI/AAAAAAAALDw/YF46k1uRBYUIbvhWeTDVJGriQcTTWMu5ACLcB/s1600/storm%2Bsong.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-I-jj6CM4VqM/V6kEAJIXzqI/AAAAAAAALDw/YF46k1uRBYUIbvhWeTDVJGriQcTTWMu5ACLcB/s320/storm%2Bsong.jpg" width="238" /></span></a></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="color: #666666;">This beautiful Monet-inspired photo from </span><a href="https://www.facebook.com/butchartgardens/photos/a.382533076294.165534.155980211294/10153792972601295/?type=3&theater"><span style="color: #3d85c6;">The Butchart Gardens</span></a></span></div>
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-il85R9ZHeD8/V6kEhNpdu1I/AAAAAAAALD0/x5ZDUJcc8fsDjsLZE_HGTAu3bmQQa2OuQCLcB/s1600/monet%2Binspired.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-il85R9ZHeD8/V6kEhNpdu1I/AAAAAAAALD0/x5ZDUJcc8fsDjsLZE_HGTAu3bmQQa2OuQCLcB/s320/monet%2Binspired.jpg" width="320" /></span></a></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><a href="https://www.facebook.com/DougClementPhotography/?fref=ts"><span style="color: #3d85c6;">Early Morning at Cadboro Bay by Doug Clement Photography</span></a><span style="color: #666666;">.</span></span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">(Cadboro Bay is about an hour's drive south of where I live.)</span></div>
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-e6gUuHekeyQ/V6kFGEHMh3I/AAAAAAAALD8/aOQc6UdNGQINdWI1pTyrD12FxvWE5ozcwCLcB/s1600/Early%2BMorning%2Bat%2BCadboro%2BBay.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-e6gUuHekeyQ/V6kFGEHMh3I/AAAAAAAALD8/aOQc6UdNGQINdWI1pTyrD12FxvWE5ozcwCLcB/s320/Early%2BMorning%2Bat%2BCadboro%2BBay.jpg" width="320" /></span></a></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="color: #666666;">Milky Way at Skutz Falls by </span><a href="https://www.facebook.com/1412157045678412/photos/a.1412326842328099.1073741828.1412157045678412/1879890225571756/?type=3&theater"><span style="color: #3d85c6;">David Chang Photography</span></a></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="color: #666666;">(Skutz Falls is part of the </span><a href="http://www.env.gov.bc.ca/bcparks/explore/parkpgs/cowichan_rv/"><span style="color: #3d85c6;">Cowichan River Provincial Park</span></a><span style="color: #666666;">, located about 1/2 hour's drive west of where I live.)</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="color: #666666;">Thank you so much for visiting with me! I'd love to hear your news too. If you have stories or photos or interesting links to share, please post them in the comments below my link to this blog at </span><a href="https://www.facebook.com/Aunt-Bs-Kitchen-194608900564468/"><span style="color: #3d85c6;">Aunt B's Kitchen</span></a><span style="color: #666666;"> on Facebook.* I'll look forward to seeing them the next time I have time on line at the library.</span></span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">I hope that whatever the weather is like where you are, and whether you are enjoying busy times or quiet, life is bringing you things that make you happy. I hope that you have time to enjoy the gifts each day gives you and that you're able to dream big, happy dreams while holding those you love close to your heart. </span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">Take good care of you. I hope we can visit again soon. </span></div>
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<i><b><span style="color: #666666;">*</span><span style="color: #666666;">G-Rated and family friendly comments, photos, and blog links only please. No politics, either. I'll delete anything I think may offend my readers.</span></b></i></div>
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<br />Aunt Bhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12805537873269992072noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5989362245731259716.post-86037304853933780292016-03-23T20:43:00.001-07:002016-03-23T20:51:45.855-07:00Rain Coast Evening<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #666666; font-family: "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: large; line-height: 18px; white-space: pre-wrap;">It's kind of hard to describe our spring rains to someone from "away." They're not dramatic - no typhoons or twisters, or even thunderstorms - but they demonstrate the word steady in a clear and spectacular way, falling in sheets, straight down. </span><br />
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<span style="background-color: white; font-family: "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif; line-height: 18px; white-space: pre-wrap;">The rain falls upon the stones of the hillsides, gathers together and rushes down, tumbling and laughing in rivulets that jump with effervescent abandon over ledges, before swirling in eddies and carrying on their way, coursing towards </span><span style="background-color: white; font-family: "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif; line-height: 18px; white-space: pre-wrap;">wetlands of our valley. </span></span><br />
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<span style="background-color: white; font-family: "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif; line-height: 18px; white-space: pre-wrap;">The valley's lungs - it's rivers - breathe in those dancing downhill tumblers and hold them within their swift currents, expanding sometimes even above their banks, before yielding that water in exhalation to the bay. </span></span><br />
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<span style="background-color: white; font-family: "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif; line-height: 18px; white-space: pre-wrap;">Grassy fields are soft with rain that wells up around your boots as you walk and, at the estuary, the landscape changes from bright green to mirrored grey and silver as fields flood with the rain and renewing silt borne down from the hills above.</span></span><br />
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<span style="background-color: white; font-family: "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif; line-height: 18px; white-space: pre-wrap;">The tide, its beating heart a testament to the enduring love affair of Ocean and Moon, moves the water up and down, rising it into salt marshes and then pulling it back again to reveal sand, and stone, and mud flat, and herons fish according to its rhythm, dining daily on the abundant small creatures carried in its grasp.</span></span><br />
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<span style="background-color: white; font-family: "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif; line-height: 18px; white-space: pre-wrap;">In the forest, all that is green is intensified, Moss becomes a lush, glowing, verdant carpet that blankets stones and trunks and branches, its edges bedecked with blue-grey lacy lichen. New leaves, looking too delicate to withstand the weather, stand up in bright contrast to rain-darkened branches, cloaked in clear water and - when the rain stops - bejeweled with crystal droplets that make rainbows in the breaking light. Fern are born on the forest floor, moving like dancers as they gracefully unspiral their long stocks and then open their arms to embrace the damp air. Heavy rain drops, accumulated in the evergreen canopy above fall with heavy "plops" onto the carpet of last fall's leaves spread upon the ground, and mushrooms poke exploratory fingers through the loam.</span></span><br />
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<span style="background-color: white; font-family: "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif; line-height: 18px; white-space: pre-wrap;">When night falls on rainy days, a dark velvet blanket wraps itself around our houses and raindrops make music on the roof and windows, lulling us to sleep. </span></span><br />
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<span style="background-color: white; font-family: "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif; line-height: 18px; white-space: pre-wrap;">We're having just such a night, after just such a day, this evening. I'm sitting listening to rain music and the swish of tires on the wet road below my window. </span><span style="background-color: white; font-family: "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif; line-height: 18px; white-space: pre-wrap;">I see the streetlights reflected orange against the black mirror of wet pavement, and feel grateful for my comforts. </span><span style="background-color: white; font-family: "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif; line-height: 18px; white-space: pre-wrap;">A soft blanket covers my legs and feet, a book and my glasses sit beside me, awaiting my attention, and the steam from my cup of tea makes its fragrant way towards my nose. </span></span><br />
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<span style="background-color: white; font-family: "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif; line-height: 18px; white-space: pre-wrap;">It's time for drawing in, for quiet and for rest. </span><span style="background-color: white; font-family: "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif; line-height: 18px; white-space: pre-wrap;">I wish you peace and calm this evening; comfort and coziness and love. Sleep a restful sleep and dream gentle dreams. Wake refreshed and filled with good cheer in the morning.</span></span><br />
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<span style="background-color: white; font-family: "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif; line-height: 18px; white-space: pre-wrap;">Goodnight.</span></span>Aunt Bhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12805537873269992072noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5989362245731259716.post-56021795626869556612016-03-14T09:11:00.000-07:002016-03-14T09:11:12.963-07:00I'm Back....Again<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">I may well be the most on-again/off-again blogger in the world. but here I am back again.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">My life has changed a lot over the past couple of years. I left my office job to care for my husband during his final illness and then, after I lost him, began adjusting to life alone after 34 years of marriage. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">I doubt that anyone can make that journey and remain unchanged. I know I'm certainly I'm not the person I used to be. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">My priorities are very different now. "Stuff" is much less important than it once was and experiences are key. I've come to believe that life is much too short to spend any more time than you absolutely have to on things you don't enjoy. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">With that in mind, I've dithered a lot about returning to blogging and social media. Being present on line has brought a lot of really interesting, intelligent, caring people into my life. I enjoy my conversations on social media, I learn a lot from the people I interact with, and I love to write, but I <i>don't </i>love the amount of time and self-promotion required to establish and sustain a commercially successful online presence.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">I'm going to follow my own lights on this one. If I write on a regular basis, have good conversations on social media, and learn something new each day, I'll have achieved my goals. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">You'll see me on line on weekdays but not on weekends, and my posts will be less frequent than they once were, but - as always - the focus</span><span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;"> will be on sharing good content in a positive, welcoming environment, with plenty of good conversation. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">I hope you'll drop by just as if you were visiting a friend, and that you'll encourage your friends to join the conversation too. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">I learn so much from you guys! I'm looking forward to hearing from you.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">Here's where to find me:</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="color: #666666;">On Blogger.com at </span><a href="http://awordfromauntb.blogspot.ca/"><span style="color: #0b5394;">A Word From Aunt B</span></a><span style="color: #666666;">, </span><a href="http://auntbbudget.blogspot.ca/"><span style="color: #0b5394;">Aunt B on a Budget</span></a><span style="color: #666666;">, </span><a href="http://b-on-balance.blogspot.ca/"><span style="color: #0b5394;">B on Balance</span></a><span style="color: #666666;">, and </span><a href="http://battitude.blogspot.ca/"><span style="color: #0b5394;">B-attitude</span></a><span style="color: #666666;">,</span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="color: #666666;">On Facebook at </span><a href="https://www.facebook.com/Aunt-Bs-Kitchen-194608900564468/?ref=hl"><span style="color: #0b5394;">Aunt B's Kitchen</span></a><span style="color: #666666;"> and </span><a href="https://www.facebook.com/AuntBonBalance/?ref=hl"><span style="color: #0b5394;">B on Balance</span></a><span style="color: #666666;">,</span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="color: #666666;">On </span><a href="https://plus.google.com/b/112197463993335280084/+AuntbbudgetBlogspot/posts"><span style="color: #0b5394;">Google+</span></a><span style="color: #666666;">, on </span><a href="https://plus.google.com/b/112197463993335280084/+AuntbbudgetBlogspot/posts"><span style="color: #0b5394;">Twitter</span></a><span style="color: #666666;">, and on </span><a href="https://www.pinterest.com/AuntBsKitchen/"><span style="color: #0b5394;">Pinterest</span></a><a href="https://www.pinterest.com/AuntBsKitchen/" style="color: #666666;">.</a></span></div>
Aunt Bhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12805537873269992072noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5989362245731259716.post-30111020340343694862015-07-16T11:37:00.000-07:002015-07-16T13:05:32.362-07:00Good Morning<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-eVKcMWk7Vgo/Vafo-KUII9I/AAAAAAAAKgg/OXFpVFsFD74/s1600/July%2B16.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="265" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-eVKcMWk7Vgo/Vafo-KUII9I/AAAAAAAAKgg/OXFpVFsFD74/s400/July%2B16.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">Some mornings I am completely seduced by the allure of reading. The "to do" list written prominently on the blackboard by my kitchen clamours for my attention, but I ignore it. Healthy Me tugs at my conscience, whispering in my ear that I should really go for a walk, but I pretend not to hear her. Instead, I stay in my pyjamas, brew a pot of coffee, and settle in to read.</span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">I'm book-wealthy just now, having made a trip to the library this week and then been given books as well, and this morning their siren call was impossible to ignore. I curled up on the couch, plucked the first book from the top of the pile and settled in, dividing my attention between my book and the sunrise scene coming into view outside my front window.</span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">The novel, a detective mystery, was action-filled and interesting, busy with sinister villains and a complicated plot. </span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">The sunrise was exactly the opposite. </span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">The sky grew paler at its edges and then began to blush. faint pink spreading upwards from the hilltops. It caught the trails of cloud just above, and deepened into something altogether different - a vivid fuschia limned at the bottom with an edge of glowing phosphorus - then continued its gradual flow of colour across the sphere above. </span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">The book drew me back again. The family dogs, stolen by the villain's henchmen, were in danger. Would they survive?</span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">I read on until the changing light once again drew my eyes from the page. The view from the window was magical: the clouds had gathered together to form a few tall cumulus stacks - orange shadowed with lavender grey - that sailed upon a sea of pink and mauve. </span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">As transitory as a single breath, the colour in the sky began to fade, not disappearing so much as growing quiet. The clouds settled into shades of peach and grey, the blush behind them receding, giving way to the palest, most delicate of blues. Peach faded to yellow, then brightened to white, and the sun, having made its appearance above the shoulder of the hill, shone directly in my window.</span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">On the power lines across the street, a crowd of raucous crows shouted their morning news across the neighbourhood while a covey of mourning doves in the tree beside my balcony hoo-hoooed a gentler good morning to each other. </span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">A breeze came dancing down the street, ruffling leaves as it passed my way, and in its wake the neighbourhood woke up. </span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">The ginger cat who owns the family across the street climbed onto the roof, arranged itself so it could drape front paws and head over the edge, then settled in to watch its humans enjoy coffee on the steps just below.</span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">Two women, with the serious stride of those who walk for exercise, strode along the pavement discussing their plans for the day.</span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">The first city bus of the day went by, mostly empty, a few seats occupied by still-sleepy passengers leaning their heads against the window as they nodded their way towards their destinations.</span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">An old man walked a tiny, perfectly groomed white dog towards the park, pausing patiently every few feet to allow his small friend to sniff fence posts and shrubs. Both took their time; the man gazing at the scenery around him, the dog gathering news of other pets who'd passed this way before him.</span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">My heart, quieted by the peaceful scene outside, told my spirit that all was right with the world, then urged me back to bed. I set the book aside, - heroes and villains could wait a while - tucked myself in, and drifted back to sleep.</span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">However your day has begun today - busy or quiet or some balance between the two - and whatever your plans may be, I hope you find a peaceful moment in which to enjoy the gifts it brings you, and to shelter in the calm. Have a joyful Thursday.</span></div>
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<br />Aunt Bhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12805537873269992072noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5989362245731259716.post-11705665246992146102015-07-15T07:37:00.003-07:002015-07-15T07:37:52.176-07:00Good Morning<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-Zfh5VF98vUA/VaZoycEv5aI/AAAAAAAAKgM/f0vB1wMGvjM/s1600/July%2B15.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="265" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-Zfh5VF98vUA/VaZoycEv5aI/AAAAAAAAKgM/f0vB1wMGvjM/s400/July%2B15.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">I woke well before dawn this morning, the stars still bright in the arching cobalt bowl above, the air blessedly cool, and decided to watch the sunrise from one of my favourite spots at the lake. </span><span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">I quickly dressed, filled my backpack with breakfast and camera, and set out to walk there. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">The streets - usually loud and busy in my neighbourhood - were quiet. Only the occasional car whisked by. Here and there along the way, yellow light spilled out from kitchen windows: early risers preparing for the day.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">By the time I'd left the houses behind to walk along the edges of the marsh, the first blush of morning had appeared above the hills to the east and the chorus of birds that each day announces the coming of dawn was in full voice. Hidden among the low bushes, scrubby trees, and tall golden grass that are the marsh this drought-y summer, they made their presence known in a volume that only sheer numbers can bring, each tiny set of lungs filling with the morning air and exhaling song upon the softness of the breeze.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">When I reached the lake the sky was lightening, scarfed with wispy cloud, and tinged with pale blue, peach, and butter yellow, all reflected on the water, the edges of the landscape blurred by rising mist.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">I unpacked my breakfast, poured my tea, and settled in to watch and listen.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">I was surrounded by a choir of frogs. From their seats among the lily pads their voices rose together, discordant, ranging from high pitched ribbits to something as unmelodic as the twanging of a rubber band; all matched in their enthusiasm for this morning conversation.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">Fish rose for the morning bite, an occasional flash of silver above the misted water; more often a quiet "plop," leaving concentric ripples in its wake. A kingfisher, perched on the railing nearby, watched them intently before diving to pluck his breakfast from just beneath the shining surface of the lake.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">Two otters surfaced just beyond the edge of the lilies, and regarded me with curiosity. Then, having decided I was not a threat, swam by and climbed onto the shore, disappearing lightning-quick into the thicket of willow that overhangs the water's edge.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">A heron, resting unnoticed on the nearby trestle, took wing and passed not six feet overhead, the creamy-yellow undersides of his wings glowing in the not-quite-sunrise light.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">And still we sat, the chorusing birds, the choir of frogs, and I, to greet the sun as it rose above the blue hills to the east.</span>Aunt Bhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12805537873269992072noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5989362245731259716.post-25804394981711197102015-07-10T08:37:00.003-07:002015-07-10T14:03:35.627-07:00Good Morning<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-j_UFLZzF9Kg/VZ_YjFscdcI/AAAAAAAAKf8/sU7eYnnHjTc/s1600/July%2B10.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-j_UFLZzF9Kg/VZ_YjFscdcI/AAAAAAAAKf8/sU7eYnnHjTc/s400/July%2B10.jpg" width="265" /></a></div>
<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">I've traveled the road to the bay so many times it is as familiar to me as breathing and yet, still, each time I wend my way along it, it offers me new gifts. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">Today the roadsides are cottage gardens. A tangle of blackberries and wild morning glory form the hedge, the bright white trumpets of the morning glory flowers turning their faces to the sun while beside them clusters of berries ripen in various stages, acid green, and red, and deep almost-black purple all found together in each single cluster. In front of the tangle, expanses of tall golden grass are trimmed with roundels of white Queen Anne's lace dancing in the morning breeze, while magenta vetch, ragged blue chicory, and tall clumps of bright yellow tansy crowd up against the edges of the pavement. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">Here and there, accidental fruit trees grow, sewn by birds or by careless passers-by who've tossed away their apple cores or plum pits and left them there to grow. The trees are heavy with fruit now, their newest branches so laden that they bend like bows, arching towards the grass below. Small green apples, thumb sized pears, clusters of bright red plums hanging like grapes among burgundy red leaves all promise abundance in the months to come.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">Our unusual weather has caused many forest fires and the sky is hazed with smoke. It's a worry but - as with everything in nature - the smoke brings its own gifts too. The skies both morning and evening are intensely coloured, and the landscape washed with filtered, golden light. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">This morning, the newly risen sun washed the sky above the bay with lavender and apricot, reflected in the dancing ripples of the breeze ruffled waters below.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">I ate my breakfast picnic at a table in the park and watched the morning unfold: </span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">Barn swallows and purple martins swooped and soared in an intricate dance above the shallows.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">Gulls wheeled overhead, uncharacteristically quiet, as if they too were taken in by the morning's majesty. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">Small brown rabbits peeked at me from the edges of the undergrowth and then, when I'd been still for long enough, ventured out onto the grass to continue with their morning meal before fading silently into the shadows once again as an eagle swept by overhead.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">The eagle, for one single, breathless moment, hung perfectly silhouetted against the pastel sky, great wings outstretched in flight so seeming effortless I was surprised by how quickly it was gone.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">A single fish jumped in the deeper water, the circular ripples left by its course making a contrasting pattern on the satin surface of the bay.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">A heron stood across the way, perfectly still, a totem to patience and calm planted at the water's edge.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">The village had not yet stirred. There were no human voices, no passing cars to mar the perfect quiet of the moment. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">Peace settled itself on my shoulders like a blanket. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">My breathing slowed. My heartbeat calmed.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">I made my way home slowly along the winding road.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">I wish you a happy day today. Whatever it may bring you, I hope you find a quiet moment or two to enjoy the beauty that surrounds you. Open this Friday like a gift, enjoying both the wonder of its wrapping and the worth of the treasures found within.</span>Aunt Bhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12805537873269992072noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5989362245731259716.post-6018836133727871842014-12-05T10:30:00.004-08:002014-12-05T10:30:56.913-08:00Good Morning<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-h1deSjhCyTw/VIH4UNbL2LI/AAAAAAAAKds/4PRuoF0TCmM/s1600/swan.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-h1deSjhCyTw/VIH4UNbL2LI/AAAAAAAAKds/4PRuoF0TCmM/s1600/swan.jpg" height="320" width="312" /></a></div>
<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">The swans are back. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">We watch for them every winter, anticipating their return to our fields, lakes, and sea shores; the southern end of their annual migration. They begin to arrive at the end of November, a few more each day, until - quite suddenly, it seems - there are large flocks of them gathered throughout the valley.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">This morning our grey weather has returned. The brief, snowy interlude has passed, and it is raining. The clouds are so low that the mountains that encircle our valley seem to have disappeared, and the mist rising from the forest blurs the boundary between land and sky.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">Farm fields, edged in tall dark ranks of fir and spruce, hold silvery mist in their hollows, the swans appearing like ghosts within it. Adolescent cygnets, still soft grey, can disappear entirely into the the translucent swirls, appearing again like apparitions right before you.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">The lake, its waters perfectly still, reflects the silver sky above so perfectly that you can see the clouds more distinctly by looking down than you can by gazing up. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">Along the shore, swans mingle with geese and ducks, the elder statesmen of the waterfowl world, maintaining their aloof dignity even as their neighbours squabble and gossip all around them. Less than graceful on the strand, they move into the water and transform from stolid matriarchs and rounded worthies to something more akin to angels. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">A flotilla of grand, white birds sails across the water; silent, graceful, its movement so smooth that it barely ripples the surface. They don't take from the reflection of the sky, but add to it: A symmetry of silver and white, forming perfect heart-shaped Valentines each time a head is lowered to touch the water's surface.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">I am not their only audience. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">Heron sentries posted along the edges of the water pause from their quest for small silver fish and raise their heads to watch the swans sail past. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">Gulls, ever noisy and inquisitive, swoop and dive around them, and are completely disregarded. </span><span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;"> </span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">An eagle circles overhead and then settles in the bare top of a tall, dark fir tree, his keen yellow eyes watching their progress as the flotilla sails beside the shore.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">There is a sort of peace to be found in regarding these creatures, in feeling the rain on my face, in watching the movement of the birds, and in admiring the quiet beauty of the scenery. I am reluctant to leave it. My fingers grow cold so I stow my camera and don my gloves. I open my umbrella. And still I stand and watch, and listen, until I know I can linger no more.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">I return to the warmth of my car, and then to the warmth of my house, grateful for my time with the swans this morning, and for the camera which allows me to save their images for another time. I make a cup of tea and get breakfast on the stove. I return to the routines of my day.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">This afternoon when the sun is setting, I'll see the swans again. They'll wing past my window on their commute from estuary to inland fields, still as silent as ghosts, and seeming to glow in the light of the lowering sky: A gift of the season.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">I hope that wherever you are today, and whatever you are doing, you'll find the time to pause, and look, and listen to the world around you. I hope that the gifts of the season are yours to unwrap, and that they warm your heart, capture your imagination, and lift your spirits. Have a joyful day.</span>Aunt Bhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12805537873269992072noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5989362245731259716.post-14013593782800609152014-12-01T09:31:00.000-08:002014-12-01T09:49:11.588-08:00Good Morning<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-5qcvB62duRg/VHyhBdFpNgI/AAAAAAAAKbQ/NjHfJ-lF-6c/s1600/snow%2Band%2Briver.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-5qcvB62duRg/VHyhBdFpNgI/AAAAAAAAKbQ/NjHfJ-lF-6c/s1600/snow%2Band%2Briver.jpg" height="300" width="400" /></a></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">Something fairly amazing happened here this weekend: On Thursday, we had record high temperatures, but then the weather changed and on Saturday morning we woke to snow.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">Two things happen when it snows here:</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">The first is that drivers panic, and with some good reason. Our mild temperatures mean wet snow that packs into a layer of ice, and day-time thaws in sunny areas followed by night-time freezes can turn our streets into asphalt skating rinks. When you combine that with the fact that, </span><span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">because we have so few snow days each year, </span><span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">few drivers here buy snow tires, you get some fairly spectacular results. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">Wise drivers choose to stay off the roads as much as they can on snowy days, making the busy streets outside my home much quieter than usual. That quiet announces the presence of snow before we even look out the window. We are always grateful for it.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">The second thing that happens on a snowy day is that people go outside. We know that the snow will last but a few days before the rains return, and we want to enjoy the landscape's brief but oh-so-beautiful transformation. Parks are busy with children at play, and walking trails see a lot of traffic.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">The trails are still quiet, though, in the early light of a weekday morning and, although the centre of the trail has been well travelled, the snow on either side is largely untouched by human traffic. It tells the tale of forest creatures coming and going across its expanses; the story narrated in footprints of birds, deer, raccoons by a pond, and even this morning a single bear, who made his way up the steep hill beside the trestle, used it to cross the river and then headed down the hill on the other side.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">Most of the forest near the trail is coniferous. The broad fans of evergreen branches catch the snow and the needles hold it, making layers of white and deep green that follow the contours of the hillside in a rhythm; a Christmas-card-perfect picture of winter. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">In places there are alder groves, their silvered trunks rising from the blue shadowed snow like swift brush strokes on watercolour paper, ending in branches as delicate a tracery as lace. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">Near the water, the cottonwoods crowd, their bare branches holding the snow as they reach out over iron-grey water.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">This morning I hear the high pitched <i>scree scree</i> of two eagles calling to one another from the tree tops. Their white heads and black feathers make effective camouflage in the winter scenery. Even following the sound of their voices, I'm unable to distinguish them amid the snow and branches. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">Content to know that they are there, I cease looking for the eagles and carry on along the trail, my patience rewarded by the sight of a magnificent, white-headed giant, soaring along beside me at shoulder level as it follows the course of the canyon below.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">On my way home, I pass by vineyards, the grapevines bare and sculptural now; black twisted arches marching in rows across rolling white fields. The yards are edged by willow, its yellow ochre twigs standing out against the monochrome of snow.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">In a sheltered field near the road, a flock of swans are breakfasting on the grass beneath the snow. They've chosen a spot where the snow layer is thin but, even so, they blend with the landscape. Were it not for the soft grey cygnets among them, I might not have noticed them at all.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">Overhead, great flocks of geese pass by on their morning commute from inland fields to estuary. They are growing in number now, our year-round residents joined by their migratory cousins, with vees that sometimes number close to a hundred. They're flying very high this morning, far enough above that I can't hear their calls but near enough for me to admire their swift-moving silhouettes against the pale blue and shell pink of the early morning sky.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">I'll continue to enjoy the flights of geese and swans as they wing past my window while I work today, grateful for the theatre nature so generously provides. I'll pause now and then to sit in the sunny spot at the end of my couch and watch the world go by. I'll admire the way the snow crowns roses in the garden, and smile at children making snow angels on our yet-untrammelled lawn. I'll enjoy the contrast of comfortable warmth and chilly view, and savour this snowy day for the special treat it is.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">I hope that your morning has been a happy one, that your busy-ness has room in it for quiet and reflection, and that the day brings you a thousand small gifts you can unwrap with the anticipation of wonder. Have a joyful Monday.</span>Aunt Bhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12805537873269992072noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5989362245731259716.post-83279490159818379222014-11-27T10:08:00.001-08:002014-11-27T15:45:55.714-08:00Good Morning<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-UagLrMDUL3Y/VHdmmFHnxrI/AAAAAAAAKbA/WOmzlVV3G4Y/s1600/nov%2B27%2Bmorning.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-UagLrMDUL3Y/VHdmmFHnxrI/AAAAAAAAKbA/WOmzlVV3G4Y/s1600/nov%2B27%2Bmorning.jpg" height="265" width="400" /></a></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">The weather is changing. The soft grey flannel overcast of first light was torn into streamers by a chill breeze, then swept away to reveal blue sky studded with puffy clouds of white and dark grey. There are large clouds looming in the south east: a great bank of leaden grey, as heavy and substantial as a wall. The sun, still quite low in the sky, breaks beneath them and above the hills rimming the valley, to shine a warm-hued spotlight on field and forest.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">The temperature has dropped and the wind's cool gusts make me tuck my neck down further into the warm folds of my scarf. I can feel the moisture in the breeze on my cheeks and my fingertips tingle when I remove my gloves to use my camera. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">On the marsh at the edge of the estuary, rushes and golden grass are distinct in their outlines, perfectly drawn against a background of bare branches and blue hills. The surface of the water changes constantly: still and mirror-perfect one moment, stirred into dancing ripples the next. No ducks light upon it but patient herons, spaced like sentries, fish along the edges of the river channels, so still that one can miss them entirely until - suddenly - they strike, and lift their heads from the water again, their beaks holding wriggling silver-bright fish.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">Geese and swans fly overhead, on their way to the fields beside the bay, where they will breakfast on the rich green grass made lush by autumn's rain before venturing out into the protected waters of the bay. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">Such a contrast between the two birds: The geese travelling in great, noisy, somewhat disorganised skeins that ravel and unravel as they move in flight, the swans so silent you can hear the swish of their wings when they pass overhead, maintaining position in perfectly symmetrical vees. </span><span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">On the ground they intermingle; a great crowd of large birds all intent on finding their morning meal, but still distinct, the geese's browns and greys blending into the landscape, the swans' bright white glowing against the emerald green background of the fields. </span><span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">In the water, both assume an almost unworldly grace, moving as smoothly and precisely as if set to music.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">There are gulls too: Incessantly noisy, greedy creatures, they gather in number wherever food might be found. I have no love of their noise, but have to admire their strong instinct for survival, and I can't draw my eyes away from them when they are in flight. They play with the wind as if it were a living thing (which indeed it is), flying into the face of it and then letting it hold them suspended, or carry them in a swooping dance along the great sweeping curves of its current.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">Along the edges of the trail that follows the top of the estuary dike, bright red rose hips are an abundance, suspended jewel-like at the ends of crimson branches, in brilliant contrast to the few vivid yellow leaves clinging to the brambles. Among them, the dried remains of tansy and Queen Anne's lace sway in the breeze; sticks crowned with tiaras. I gather some. Their sculptural shapes are hard to resist and, placed in a tall vase, will make a pleasing arrangement for my living room.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">In the village beside the bay, people are busying themselves with the first errands of the day. They make their way from the bakery - its windows steamy from the heat of the bread ovens - to the cheese monger, to the fish shop, and on to buy some wine: most of life's essentials and a few sweet luxuries all to be found within a few short steps of one another. This is the time of day to pause and greet friends or to daydream over a cup of morning coffee while admiring a view of the water.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">Some of us will head further down the road when our errands are done: Past farm fields glittering with a morning dew so heavy that at first glance it might seem like frost; past flocks of sheep, grazing heads-down in grass so tall that their rounded backs appear as dun and grey hillocks spaced across the acreage; past contented cows, huddled together, their breath making soft white clouds in the morning light. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">The road will wind around again, and cross the highway - its course as crooked as a brook - past more farms, another small village, and a century old church, its yard full of stones that tell the valley's history. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">The road narrows there to a single lane, passing under a railway bridge almost as old as the church, and then across a wooden bridge that offers only a single lane for traffic but a wide walkway for those on foot; a remnant of a simpler time. Beneath it, the river - so low in the summer you could walk across it without wetting your knees - runs full and swift, eddying in small whirlpools near its banks.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">I continue on, past farms and vineyards, and forest and field, over another bridge, into town, and home again; a circle of some miles. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">The sun has broken through again and, although I am reluctant to end my morning's travels, I climb the stairs, grateful for the broad windows in my living room that bring the light and air indoors. I'll settle to my chores now, pausing once in a while to listen to the quiet, and to accept with gratitude the beauty of the view.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">Whatever the weather where you are, and whatever the view from your window, I hope you find the opportunity to pause now and then and listen to the quiet, to breathe deeply and draw in both calm and happiness, and to appreciate the gifts your time and place have offered you. Have a joyful day.</span><br />
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<br />Aunt Bhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12805537873269992072noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5989362245731259716.post-53914298610520948262014-11-24T09:54:00.000-08:002014-11-24T09:57:38.551-08:00Good Morning<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-vADJ7DXmo6k/VHNun3hbZUI/AAAAAAAAKaA/RwCD7bD6RyM/s1600/mossland%2B2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-vADJ7DXmo6k/VHNun3hbZUI/AAAAAAAAKaA/RwCD7bD6RyM/s1600/mossland%2B2.jpg" height="400" width="323" /></a></div>
<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">It looks like November today: Not the November of bright blue skies we've had this year, but the Novembers remembered from years past - grey and moody and a little bit dark. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">It's not raining but there is so much moisture in the air that when you step outside your cheeks are kissed with a fine mist, not cold but cool, and so gentle that you want to tip your head back and drink it in. That mist, imperceptible to the eye when near at hand, gathers in the distance to wreath hilltops and tall trees in scarves of soft dove grey. It seems a living thing, rising wraith-like in streamers from the woods to join the clouds above.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">The colours of the landscape are more subdued at this time of year, but they are there still: scarlet rose hips and the crimson branches of the dogwood, delicate huckleberry branches tipped in deep pink, ochre grasses edging the roadsides, and everywhere a million shades of green, from the palest silver green of old-man's-beard lichen hanging from the bare silvered branches of ancient maple trees to the dark blue green of the spruces in the deep forest, all of them rendered more vivid against the grey background of the sky.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">The fields seem impossibly green on a day like this; shockingly alive against the still pewter background, their rolling expanses populated by stolid cattle and busy geese, all eating their morning salads. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">The swans are back, standing out in bright white groups among the greens and greys. We watch for them each November and are always delighted by their return. They're one of the joys of winter here, and the first sight of them winging silently above the estuary lifts my heart more surely and simply than any Christmas light or decorated tree might do. They are majestic and, when lit in flight by early morning light or setting sun, nothing short of magical.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">The maples and oaks, white-trunked alders, and tall cottonwoods are all bare now, encircled by carpets of fallen leaves not yet returned to the soil. Their branches reach up to the dove grey sky, seeming to grow less solid the higher they reach, turning from pillar, to beam, to filigree.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">Once the leaves fall, the small details of the landscape draw my eye. Moss gardens flourish on grey granite outcroppings and wrap tree trunks and branches in inch-thick velvet. Lichen in a thousand different forms flourishes among the moss. Tiny mushrooms pop up overnight, conjuring images of faeries dancing in the morning dew. I find myself pausing again and again on my walks and leaning in; admiring each small frond of fern, each tiny mushroom gill, each jewelled droplet of mist caught on the edges of the grass.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">I return home from my walks with fewer things in my foraging basket at this time of year, but with a full heart and a calm spirit. I am often soaked to the skin and always grateful our warm home, dry clothes, and a cup of hot tea around which to warm my fingers. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">I curl up on the couch and review the sights of the day, often getting out pencils and paper to capture images from my walk while they're still fresh in my mind. Then, with appreciation for the gifts of the day, I stir myself to begin my chores.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">Whatever the weather where you are, and whatever this Monday brings you, I hope you are able to find a few small moments to gather your gifts around you. Enjoy them with a grateful heart. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">Have a joyful day.</span><br />
<br />Aunt Bhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12805537873269992072noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5989362245731259716.post-18145986470354822062014-11-17T09:34:00.003-08:002014-11-17T09:43:38.500-08:00Good Morning<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: right;">
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">It's a double-sock, warm sweater, scarf-wearing kind of day here. Cold! (Or as least as cold as it ever really gets in my corner of the world.)</span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">Hard frost has dressed the landscape in white lace and diamonds and ground mist rises to wrap it in a gauzy white scarf. For a few brief moments after it appeared over the shoulder of the mountain, the sun, shining through the mist, painted the clear sky a pale lemon yellow. It's faded to the palest blue now: beautiful in a way that wants me to reach gloved hands out towards it, and to bundle up and go outside.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">In the garden, the moisture in the ground has frozen, forming the soil into small crystal-capped columns of surprsingly consistent shape. They make a mosic floor around the tough chrysanthemums who bravely bloom despite the chill, their warm fall colours contrasting with the morning's whites and greys. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">The huge, dried, deep-berry-purple heads of the hydrangea bush are gorgeous. Each small flower edged with a layer of frost crystal fur that sparkles when the light catches it.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">House sparrows shelter in the hydrangeas, cheeping brightly to one another as they flit from branch to branch. From time to time they dart across the empty street to roost in the tall holly tree, where they breakfast on the bright red berries.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">Crows perch on the telephone wires. Not their usual raucous selves this morning, they seem to be conserving energy as they wait for the sun's presence to be felt. When they do speak, their rusty voices are made visible by white clouds of condensation.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">It is a day to keep hands thrust deeply into pockets. I draw my scarf up closer to my chin and my toque down further over my ears as I walk towards the river. My boots leave yellow footprints where they lift the frost from the mat of fallen cottonwood leaves beneath my feet. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">I clumb to the trail at the top of the dyke and, from there, I can see - even through the row of silver tree trunks that lines the river bank - mist rising from the water like steam from my tea kettle. Just barely visible through the mist, a single, hardy fisherman is casting his line into the deep back eddy where Grandfather Trout often hides. I wonder if he'll catch him?</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">Most of the leaves have fallen now When I look up into the branches that arch over the trail, I see not the green and yellow stained glass canopy that greeted me just a week ago, but instead, an intricate, interlaced filligree of wrought iron. Through its openings an eagle is visible, circling overhead. Its scree-scree-scree carries on the crystal air as it calls to a companion roosted in the top branches of a snag on the far bank.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">It's time to gather rosehips, and I have my foraging bag with me. It fills quickly, a bounty of bright red that looks impossibly cheerful; a promise of warming teas and tasty jelly spread on toast at my winter table. Preparing the hips for drying will be my first chore of the day.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">Foraging bag brimming, I continue down the trail beside ice covered expanses of shallow water, left by last month's rains The ice is patterned by successive freezes into a swirling arrangement that summons to mind 1960's psychadelia. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">My path circles back towards home, along the sidewalks of our neighbourhood. I pause to admire roses, still blooming, their petals edged in crystal, and back yard gardens of sturdy kale and brussels sprouts. It takes a dedicated gardener to work the soil when winter comes, but these are their rewards.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">Once home, I put the kettle on. Hot tea! In a big ceramic mug I can wrap my hands around. It warms my fingers. A perfect beginning to the day.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">Whatever the weather where you are, and whatever your plans, I hope your day brings you the gift of cozy comfort, a few quiet moments in which to enjoy the beauty around you, the blessings of companionship, and a joyful heart. </span>Aunt Bhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12805537873269992072noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5989362245731259716.post-83040578720613146592014-11-13T09:30:00.002-08:002014-11-13T21:48:34.543-08:00Good Morning<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: right;">
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">Our days this week have been a series of blue crystal beads strung on the necklace of autumn, clear, and perfect, and catching the sunlight on every faceted surface. </span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">The sun sits at a lower angle in the sky at this time of year, and its light is different. It catches the edges of things, outlining every newly-bared branch in phosphourous white, shining through coloured leaves as if lighting a cathedral window, plating the trunks of alder and cottonwood with platinum and gold, and brightening the woodland's mossy velvet into vivid green, delightfully detailed miniature forests.</span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">Geese fly low in the sky, their chests and under-wings highlighted by the almost-horizontal rays, soft and smooth as old burnished pewter, each feather clearly visible, seeming so close that I might reach out and touch them. They are headed to the estuary to feast on rich grasses and small fish.</span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">Along the roadsides, heavy dew clings to the delicate red branches of huckleberry bushes, the tiara-crowned remains of Queen Anne's lace, and tall, gold stocks of grass. It glints and sparkles with bright light and miniature rainbows as I walk by.</span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">Farm fields are almost impossibly green - the kind of emerald attributed to Ireland - born of recent rain and new growth; lush, abundant, they roll into hillocks and tumble into dells as they follow the shape of the land. Now and again I spot a small gathering of deer, breakfasting in the fields, at leisure in the sunshine.</span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">The lake is polished glass, perfectly mirroring both the clear sky above and the hills and trees around it, the stillness broken at the edges by gatherings of ducks. The reeds at the water's edge are busy with red winged black birds. Remarkably quick, they flit from spot to spot, lighting for only a moment before moving on.</span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">It is cool enough this morning to make my fingers tingle and to chill the tip of my nose bright pink. I'm grateful for my warm hat and wishing for my camera, left behind this morning to encourage me to simply pause and enjoy what's been given us. And I am enjoying it. There is so much to see, to hear, to experience that my walk has left me with the same feeling of fullness I experience when pushing my chair back from the table after a good meal. It's a luxury, this feeling.</span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">My pace slows as I walk, and it takes me much longer to make my way back to the house than it did to leave it. My pulse slows, my mind quiets, and my spirits lift. The tight fist of tension I held within me unfurls, and my spirit opens fingers, then hands, then arms to the glory of the day. This is not the surge of excitement a person feels when embarking upon a new adventure, but it <i>is</i> joy; the quiet kind that sneaks up on you, the kind you suddenly realize, regard with mild amazement, and treasure before it slips away again, as fleeting as the blackbird's flight. And like the blackbird, I will remember its quicksilver presence again and again throughout the day.</span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">I wish you joy today too, and moments of brightness and beauty. I hope you feel their darting presence wherever you are today, and that you're able to pause a moment to let them lighten your heart.</span><span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;"> </span></div>
Aunt Bhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12805537873269992072noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5989362245731259716.post-89415001918231106062014-11-12T09:30:00.001-08:002014-11-13T21:44:38.821-08:00Good Morning<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">If November had a poster child, I imagine it would be a day like today. It dawned clear blue and cold, with a breeze strong enough to cause the tops of the trees to sway and dance in the morning light. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">Most of the maples and plums have shed their leaves but the huge cottonwoods down the road cling stubbornly to their gold foliage and, in the yard across from me a picture-perfect pear tree boasts both green leaves and lush, golden fruit. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">There is a fully leafed tree directly opposite my window. Its heart shaped leaves are varied shades of green and yellow. The sun is directly behind it right now, and the leaves glowing: Nature's stained glass. They flutter in the breeze, entrancing in their grace.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">Bevies of small birds swoop and glide from tree to tree, breakfasting upon bright red holly berries and the orange fruit of both pyracanthus and mountain ash. There are other berries too: The black olive-like fruit of neatly trimmed laurel hedges stands in perfect contrast to the pure white of unruly wild snowberries flourishing in the cottonwood groves. Beside them, wild roses weave medieval tapestries; ruby hips glowing at the tips of golden branches.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">A congress of crows has gathered this morning on the telephone wires, raucous in their conversation as they begin their day with a good gossip. They break suddenly and I look up to see an eagle soaring overhead, riding the cold wind in spirals, its wings extended motionless as it rides the currents upward. It is headed towards the river, uninterested in crows when there are salmon for the taking.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">A group of children passes by below, on their way to school, dressed now in winter coats and, for the first time this fall, I see mittened hands. The girls wear brightly coloured tights beneath their skirts but there are no snow boots yet. Instead, running shoes of almost every hue - some neon-bright - clad feet that seem too large for such small people. They'll grown into them soon enough, I'm sure. :)</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">I sit drinking my first cup of coffee, savouring its comforting warmth while making a list for the day ahead. Only three items on my list: Do the laundry, sew an apron, work on a card design. </span><span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">A list of three is all I allow myself on any given day. Within that limit lies the hope that I might actually finish my chores before I go to bed. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">I hear my fella stirring now. He sleeps longer since his illness, but he'll join me soon. Time to ready breakfast and begin my day, but I will pause again, I'm sure, to enjoy the sunshine and the view. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">However you spend your day today, I hope you'll find some quiet moments too. Whatever the weather where you are, I hope you find some small seasonal gifts to lighten your spirits. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">Have a joyful day.</span>Aunt Bhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12805537873269992072noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5989362245731259716.post-57623446750677093672014-11-11T09:53:00.000-08:002014-11-11T14:09:53.327-08:00Good Morning<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">This is one of my very favourite November photos. It was taken on Remembrance Day, two years ago. Folks had gathered that morning at the cenotaph, shoulders hunched against the pouring rain and then, not an hour later, the rain stopped. I'd gone for a drive with a dear friend, and ended up at Quamichan Lake just as the sun broke through. Hello rainbow!</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">Today is a different sort of day: Clear blue skies, enough of a breeze to carry swirling leaves past the window, crisp air. Those gathering for the memorial service will be grateful for the fine weather.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">Here in my little town, the cenotaph is in the heart of the community, in a tree sheltered park right beside the railroad station. Townsfolk will begin gathering there an hour or so before the service, and will watch our veterans make their way down the main street in a small parade. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">There are fewer elders now. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">The first names carved on the cenotaph are those of young men who died a full century ago. Those who served in WWII are in their 90's. Those who went to Korea, not much younger. It's touching to see them still make this annual journey.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">Today, I'm grateful for the fine weather we have to make this observance. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">I'm grateful that we still have WWII veterans among us; a living reminder of service and sacrifice, and of the freedoms we enjoy because of them. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">I'm grateful for the men and women who have served in the decades since as peacekeepers, and for our very Canadian commitment to the processes of negotiation. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">I'm grateful that we honour those who are commited enough to their beliefs to serve. Without them, we would not be the country we are now, nor would we enjoy the freedoms so many take for granted.</span><br />
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Aunt Bhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12805537873269992072noreply@blogger.com