The Monday morning short hike today was along the Cable Bay Trail just south of Nanaimo on Vancouver Island. The trail itself is a wonderfully immersive forest experience with huge trees, ferns, streams, rocks, fungi, moss, and birds. We breathed in more than our fair share of oxygen-rich forest air. The prize at the end […]
This morning, while out for a walk, I saw a man who was stylishly dressed in maroon and gold pants with a matching maroon hat trimmed with a gold band. He was tuning a guitar and then, just as I passed him, he sang “Why-y-y-y?” That was it. No additional lyrics. Just, “why”. As I […]
It is hard to admit failure, but I have to confess to something less than success in a history class. I have started taking classes in local history presented to seniors by a department of the regional university. It is called Elder College and it has all sorts of affordable courses presented both in-person and […]
In between rain showers today I enjoyed a 5 km walk through Linley Valley Drive Park and part of the way into Linley Valley/Cottle Lake Park with my Monday morning hiking group. The trees were resplendent in their coatings of lichens and moss, and I also enjoyed seeing several nurse stumps. Nurse stumps are mother […]
When you visit the Surf Lodge Pub on Gabriola Island, you will be amazed by the massive size and beauty of the wooden joists and beams that support the roof above you. When you leave the Surf Lodge Pub on Gabriola Island, you will be in awe of the view of the Strait of Georgia […]
This morning I woke up to find this glorious sunrise outside my windows. This new year is looking very promising!
While visiting Gabriola Island today, I was enjoying a great lunch at the Ground Up Cafe with my eldest son and his family when this family of wild turkeys crossed the road just outside the window. Traffic was sparse and slow enough that all the turkeys got to the other side safely.
Whether you call them public conveniences, toilets, washrooms, or loos, these two in Nanaimo are a pleasure to look at. The first set of murals is by Van Charles Art at Maffeo Sutton Park and the second is by Don Richey at Brechin Boat Launch.
A week or so ago some friends were talking about Spotify and how it had taken income away from musicians. I agreed, and added that both my children are or were musicians and they had found that they got more benefit from selling CDs at performances than from Spotify. Both of them had experienced that […]
Rathtrevor Beach Provincial Park on a frosty December morning.
When I bought my ticket for a musical performance at the local theatre, I assumed I would get there by taking a half-hour walk along the waterfront. I don’t like driving at night and the theatre is close enough to walk to. What I didn’t anticipate was a blizzard two days before the event. When […]
After I moved into this apartment I decided that the grey wall-to-wall carpeting needed something extra; specifically, a dash of colour. So I ordered an 3′ x 5′ area rug that I thought would coordinate with the window pelmets (or valances) and really tie the room together as the famous designer, The Big Lebowski, once […]
This week’s hike with the Harbour City Newcomers was at Walley Creek Trail. It was a short but sweet walk, at first along a trail lined with aspen trees that were leaning in to reach for light. Then we enjoyed a surprise side-trek to an opening in the forest where trees had been harvested in […]
Tomorrow will be the start of Advent in the Western Christian tradition. That means you can start taking the chocolates out of the Advent calendar, and you can begin putting up Christmas decorations. Some of us use a different tradition and start putting up decorations as soon as Hallowe’en is over, which explains why some […]
I have been intrigued to watch some of the yachts in the marina being prepared for winter. They are wrapped up like the most difficult to wrap Christmas gifts. That reminded me of the year my parents bought me a hula hoop, but that is another story. There is something very sweet about swaddling a […]
You know how it is when you try to do the right thing but it turns out to be the wrong thing? Well, maybe you don’t. You probably always do the right thing. But anyway, that’s what happened to me. Doing the wrong thing unintentionally, that is. Here’s what happened. In my apartment are a […]
Snowbird of Paradise 