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Snowbird of Paradise

Snowbird of Paradise

Living and Learning in Alberta and California

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Author: Snowbird of Paradise

An Albertan who spends winters in California.
April 21, 2021April 20, 2021Snowbird of Paradise

Wordless Wednesday 21 April 2021

Make-up Tray
April 20, 2021April 20, 2021Snowbird of Paradise

Degrees of Vanity

The temperature in Alberta during April is notoriously unreliable. It can change twenty degrees (Celsius) within hours. This week on my Facebook feed, friends in Red Deer showed pictures of snow while some of us in Edmonton had endured only a little rain. I am trying to persuade some vegetables and herbs to grow from […]

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April 16, 2021April 21, 2021Snowbird of Paradise

Lessons from Canvases

In one corner of my living room is an easel holding a blank canvas. It has been there for a couple of weeks. I keep meaning to get out my paints and brushes to actually create something on it, but my lack of imagination holds me back. I have no idea what I want to […]

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April 14, 2021April 13, 2021Snowbird of Paradise

Three Books About Belonging

Here are three more books that I recommend. They all explore the complications around belonging in a variety of circumstances: in a new country; in a small community; as descendants of immigrants; as refugees; in unanticipated roles. Each of these books presents with sensitivity, concern, and brutal honesty the challenges experienced by people we might […]

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April 11, 2021Snowbird of Paradise

More Love For Nurse Nan

Today I was delighted to hear from the doll collector who now has my old doll, Nurse Nan. I had written about the doll in a previous blog post and explained how I came to donate her to a local doll collectors’ club. After she had been picked up from my home, Nurse Nan was […]

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April 9, 2021April 9, 2021Snowbird of Paradise

My Covid Year

It has been quite a year, hasn’t it? We have all adjusted to new truths, new living situations, and new restrictions. As I look back on my year, and as I try to stay hopeful, I want to review what has changed in my life and how my life has changed me. I do this […]

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April 7, 2021April 6, 2021Snowbird of Paradise

Wordless Wednesday 7 April 2021

April 4, 2021April 3, 2021Snowbird of Paradise

Trying Out A New Lens

I have a fairly new camera and a very new lens which I tried for the first time today. After a walk to Borden Park, I sat down on a bench to get myself sorted out. Much to my dismay, I realized that I had left my camera on after I had used it two […]

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April 3, 2021April 2, 2021Snowbird of Paradise

A Box of Rocks

Q: Who is dumber than a box of rocks? A: Someone who packs a box of rocks around for forty years. And who do you know who has packed a box of rocks around for forty years? Yours truly. That’s who. I have often picked up and taken home attractive rocks. Once, on a trip […]

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April 1, 2021March 31, 2021Snowbird of Paradise

Free Ideas

Several years ago, I initiated a free library at my condo complex in San Jose. I asked the Home Owners Association Board for their approval, and they were kind enough to donate some shelving that was in the community room. I moved the shelves to a lounge area, put up a notice about it in […]

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March 30, 2021March 29, 2021Snowbird of Paradise

I Was Wrong About Feminism

A couple of days ago, I discovered something I wrote when I was in my twenties. It was an essay entitled “Why I Am Not A Feminist.” It represents a moment in time when I had mixed feelings about the women’s movement. I did not think about women’s rights when I was growing up because […]

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March 26, 2021March 25, 2021Snowbird of Paradise

Youthful Poetry

I once took a course, many years ago, that required me to write poetry. I have never considered myself a poet or a connoisseur of poetry, but I did as I was asked. That poetry was put into a ring binder and added to a box of miscellany that I recently rediscovered. Here are a […]

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March 25, 2021March 23, 2021Snowbird of Paradise

Forest Heights Park

On a bright but chilly day this week I walked with my younger son through Strathearn and into Forest Heights Park. It was a longer walk than we expected, covering 4.7 km (nearly 3 miles), but very enjoyable. We saw some new views of the city and got caught up on all our news.

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March 24, 2021March 22, 2021Snowbird of Paradise

Wordless Wednesday 24 March 2021

March 17, 2021April 14, 2021Snowbird of Paradise

Three Books Filled With Dread

If you like books that keep your stomach tied up in knots, then you will enjoy all of these. The Woman Outside My Door by Rachel Ryan. A young mother is repeatedly told she is overwrought when she worries about her son’s new granny. The problem is, both his grandmothers have died, and one of […]

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March 15, 2021March 16, 2021Snowbird of Paradise

Nurse Nan And Her Wardrobe

After a suitable interlude, I have resumed my memorabilia winnowing. A few months ago I sorted through and discarded about nine boxes of miscellaneous documents. Most recently, I abandoned an attempt to sort out “The Box” and my eldest son relieved me of it in its entirety. You might have thought this would have cured […]

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March 13, 2021March 13, 2021Snowbird of Paradise

Whitemud Park and Talus Dome

Suddenly today the temperature went up to 14C and nearly all the snow disappeared within a few hours. The sun was shining and the sky was blue as my eldest son and I went for a walk in Whitemud Park in Edmonton. The river still has a frozen surface, but everywhere else we saw bare […]

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March 10, 2021March 9, 2021Snowbird of Paradise

Wordless Wednesday 10 March 2021

March 5, 2021Snowbird of Paradise

The Box Is History

It’s gone. That box that I have talked out in a couple of blog posts (here and here) and that I have been packing around for fifteen years, is finally gone. I opened it up, looked superficially at the contents, and decided there was too much to sort through. Inside the box were three big […]

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March 3, 2021March 2, 2021Snowbird of Paradise

Wordless Wednesday 3 March 2021

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I am a snowbird who travels south for the winter. When I get there I have a bird of paradise plant on my patio.

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Recent Posts

  • Wordless Wednesday 21 April 2021
  • Degrees of Vanity
  • Lessons from Canvases
  • Three Books About Belonging
  • More Love For Nurse Nan
  • My Covid Year
  • Wordless Wednesday 7 April 2021
  • Trying Out A New Lens
  • A Box of Rocks
  • Free Ideas
  • I Was Wrong About Feminism
  • Youthful Poetry
  • Forest Heights Park
  • Wordless Wednesday 24 March 2021
  • Three Books Filled With Dread
  • Nurse Nan And Her Wardrobe
  • Whitemud Park and Talus Dome
  • Wordless Wednesday 10 March 2021
  • The Box Is History
  • Wordless Wednesday 3 March 2021

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