Addiction Remedy

It has been four and a half years since I've quit smoking occasionally the time arises that I still want a cigarette. I discovered right away on my first attempt at quitting, that I used cigarettes as a reward. I'd wash the dishes, have a smoke. I'd make beds, put away laundry, come downstairs and have a smoke. You get the picture. It is still a trigger for me when I've really worked hard and for an extended time.

I am having a dinner party so I first began the work in the kitchen. A friend who has an allergy to cats is staying the night. Every time she visits I vacuum everything downstairs. I did that and since she is staying the night, I thoroughly cleaned a bedroom - washed sheets and hung them on the line. I mopped the whole downstairs which worked my way outside where I gardened!!!!!! All that work without stopping really triggered an urge to sit down and relax with a smoke.

So I'm here...

It is beautiful, sunny and twelve degrees. It feels cooler though as there is a north wind chasing the day. The cats have loved it as I have all the doors open. My daughter's dog clawed through a screen door last summer. The door is still not fixed so the cats are having a ball coming in and out all day. I'm sure they would prefer I kept it a permanent feature to the house.

I am expecting guests soon so must make this quick. Music. I'm featuring duets today. Bing Crosby and Les Paul are singing It's Been a Long Long Time. That's to acknowledge and celebrate my ending cigarette smoking. Anne and Pete Sibley sing Pick Up These Chains. You see, besides thinking of the chains of an addiction, I was moving all manner of rusty metal things around in a garden today. The photo is of a few of the pieces last year.

Stuffing It In

Its a cool, showery day and I like it. My plan was to garden on my first day off but today's weather is preventing that. It's perfectly ok though because I'm having a restful day instead. Vacuuming, dishes, changing beds, and three loads of laundry don't mean that I'm not resting. I've painted, caught up on some web surfing, went for a short visit, answered some e-mail, did some research I've been wanting to try to find time to do, and slept in till seven thirty. It is a glorious feeling.

I watched Oprah while I folded laundry. She had a story on Nadia Schuleman, the Octomom, and it was mind boggling to see her and all those little children. Fourteen children - that mom doesn't get much sleep so I'd better stop talking about being busy.

Spring around these parts is at a bit of a standstill as far as sunshine is concerned. We've not received much precipitation but we have had cool, cloudy conditions ever since our bout of really lovely weather over Easter. I'm itching to get into the garden. I have a lot of work to do. I plan to make my vegetable garden larger and the flower gardens are sorely in need of attention.

I've had daffodils for over a week and the ones in the back garden are slowly getting bigger and stronger but not bursting forth like they would in warm sunshine. I will enjoy them even longer this way. A friend gifted me with a vase this week. It's a lime green which is fantastic with daffodils. When the large garden has hundreds in bloom I can't wait to see this vase filled to the brim. I have a frog in it at the moment with nine daffodils and it looks ok but will look super when stuffed. Much like the one below. I love this vase and it is wonderful when filled with large bunches of flowers.


An old favorite song of mine, repeated more than once on this blog is covered here again but by someone new. Bop Ensemble is a group I featured a while back because a cover of theirs, the Paul Simon song, Peace Like a River, was stuck in my head. This time they take on Bob Dylan's, Buckets of Rain. Also on the playlist here this week is The Duhks, with their song, Three Fishers. My son and his friends have hardly been home since fishing season began on the fifteenth. He is fishing now as a matter of fact. The weather doesn't seem to be a factor in whether or not they go out. He brought home trout the other night that were so big that a friend and I ate only one each with our supper. I froze the other two. This song is in appreciation of fish and the fishers.

I must go put my fourth load of laundry in the dryer. I put in a load of jackets that are being put away for the season. That's a real sign that winter's over.

Cheer is Here

Though this photo is not of them, I have my first daffodils in bloom. I have seen others, including my sister in laws, and am pleased once again to have some bright, cheery sunshine on my kitchen table. I have more than a thousand and will be having and giving bouquets away from now till the season is over. They are such a beautiful and cheery flower.

This will be short. I am waiting for some company who is running late so may have to stop at a moment's notice. I am so pleased to have a day off. I worked the weekend for someone else so am a tired after working all my own shifts as well. A day off means housework and laundry too so I've been a busy woman. I'm happy though - a day off - so Goodbye Blue Monday by Jeremy Fisher is the song to celebrate that. I also have a song, Slow Down by Alicia Keys, to show what I should be doing on my day off.

Tomorrow our painting group is going to go all day instead of it's usual three hours. This will be a challenge for me who finds it hard to sit that long. I may have to go do some outdoor quick sketches or something to get breaks. I just remembered that I have to make some kind of a soup for our potluck lunch so thank goodness I brought this up here. I may have forgotten and would have been very embarrassed. Hardly any time to stop to smell the flowers again this week.

Spring Cleaning

I'm posting a photo from another year as our daffodils are not yet in bloom, but I want to envision stopping to smell the flowers. I have been cleaning all afternoon, am exhausted and have many miles yet to go. It does smell like flowers here though. I'm on a well deserved break.

Spring has sprung and an urge for spring cleaning permeated my bones. This is my first day off in eight days from work. Some days are part time and in those days and in this full day off, the cleaning tools have been put to good work. Painting group met this morning but the minute I got home I dug out the pail again.

I have been looking at all the gardening work I have to do so with the house clean I will be able to take that on. I have extensive and unusual gardens which includes deck gardening. Our early spring is requiring work to be done earlier. I need tilling done now - not a month from now. There is a whole lot of heavy work that is quite exhausting for this middle-aged grandma. Once the early season work is done, maintenance takes over.

Since this is a break I'd better get to the music. Rachel Ries describes the past few days with Hands to Water. It's today's slow song . For music to make cleaning go faster, I chose my old standby, James Brown. I wanted to name my first child after the king of soul but my husband talked me out of it. Funny, that child now has a child named after a favorite musician. Here's James Brown with something to get you moving - Get Up Offa That Thing. James Brown is still my first choice for housecleaning music.

Off I go to throw in some baked potatoes to go with my old standby, ribs. Then make a salad and put a houseful of furniture back in it's proper place before I get to sit down again. Ah, spring!

Easter Weekend

I started this post when I came home from work, hungry and waiting for dinner to cook. I soon discovered my son had borrowed the cable from my hard drive. I had no photos or music. I am hooked up again so will start anew, fed and feeling a lot more relaxed. I am working all weekend so am not in holiday mode.

I feel quite guilty about not be paying much attention to this blog. I should refer you instead to An Island Walk as I am there at least a few times a week and every day at Shutterchance. I haven't much time, sad to say, and there will be a lot less of it when gardening season begins. Posting photos takes less time. I never plan what I will write about. Until the minute I sit down I don't think about a post. I may know something I might want to mention or have a theme day to respond to but what I say and the music are spur of the moment.

Something I do want to say is if you follow musicblog, Keep the Coffee Coming, take note that the new address is in the sidebar and here it is for easy grabbing. She was shut down at her former home here at blogger.

I am always listening to good music and have been listening to some Gospel. It seems like a perfect fit for this weekend's religious celebrations. I remember the Holy Days of Obligation and the Stations of the Cross , church services at least twice during the weekend. Here's something fitting: Jane Siberry 's artful voice with Swing Low Sweet Chariot and In My Time of Dying by Blind Willie Johnson.

The weather is wonderful but flowers except for the early bulbs like crocus are not in bloom. Spring is showing it's joyful displays at my house though, with forced tulips and forsythia as neither are anywhere near blooming outdoors. I threw away the last of the forsythia today but have wonderful tulips in vases. The tulips are produced locally and are a welcome treat during the winters here. I always force forsythia myself, have for the 25 years at this house anyway. My front daffodils are coming along nicely but it will be a couple of weeks yet. Joys of the season, my friends.

Sitting This One Out

I saw gulls sitting like this two days in a row in different areas while I was driving. I got this one shot in the first of those spots before they all flew off. I couldn't stop for the second. Birds are gleefully gathering and singing their spring notes everywhere I listen. Spring is surely in the air.

I have been praying for rain and at last it is here. The ground is so thirsty. With no snow cover over the winter to speak of and a dry autumn, our soil needs every bit of moisture it can get. The rain does a good job of adding moisture to the air too, after the drying cold of winter, and cleanses the earth of winter's debris. I've always loved the rain but do not like to live in a rainy climate. I like rain to be just right in all it's forms from light to heavy. Moderation is good in all things, I always say. We do get big variations here in the Maritime provinces with dry springs, wet springs, dry summers, wet summers and so on. You never can tell. But I'm thankful it's raining today.

My main walking partner is moving away again. We've not been walking much anyway this month with my heavy work schedule and her getting ready to go away but I'll miss her and our great hikes in the PEI woods or at the beach. Soon enough, gardening will be added to the list of outdoor activities which gives a bit of a workout but is not a replacement for walking. Walking in country air brings that endorphin high so easily and for my type of energy there is just no better fitness provider.

What I do when prayers have been answered is give gratitude. Because I can't carry a tune and can't play a guitar I'm having Ani Difranco give you an example. Just substitute the word rain somewhere in there and it's from me. Gratitude live by Ani Defranco... I'll definitely be dancing instead of walking for at least one more day till my other walking partner comes home from her jaunt in Mexico. Cha Cha by Balkan Beat Box reminds me of Mexico and is a perfect dance song for working out with rhythms.

Second Chances

I must tell you about my bad luck/good luck day. On Tuesday I have to be in a community about twenty minutes away for a painting group at nine am. When I woke it was really foggy outside. After a cup of coffee had rearranged my braincells back into their usual cre8ive condition, I decided to rush my shower and breakfast (forgetting medication) leave a half hour early and get some shots at Pinette bridge and harbour and maybe a few other spots if time would permit.

When I arrived at the first beautiful foggy location, I got out of the car, turned my camera on and discovered I had not returned the memory card to my camera after removing photos the night before. It would not make sense to drive back home for the card as I would then not have time to stop to take photos. I was very disappointed but it didn't mean I couldn't enjoy the view. I made the best of it and relaxed for a bit taking in the sights. I drove slowly along my route enjoying the beautiful foggy landscapes.

I left painting group at noon and much to my surprise, it was still foggy. I went home, made lunch, and went to visit a friend who was celebrating his ninety-fifth birthday. When I left there it was still foggy so I went home for my memory card then took off for a repeat drive down the coast. The fog wasn't as thick or as widespread as in the morning but there was an added benefit of the sun being out everywhere that it was not foggy. As a result you can see blue sky and fog in some photos. I also got to photograph some geese in a river.



I had to rush around again to get to work but to the cre8ive me a quick supper of leftovers was worth it. I got some very nice shots, some that have been posted on my other blogs. We rarely get this type of fog here. It usually burns off by ten. I was quite accustomed to all day foggy days when I lived in Saint John, New Brunswick for several years. Constant fogginess was the reason I left there for here that thirty-some years ago.

A day like Tuesday can make your heart sing which this tune always does for me. Tchavalo Swing by Hot Club of Cowtown is an awesomely hepped up song that I include on lots of dance CD's. For someone who prefers a slow melody here's a song that tells us that days come in all kinds. It is Jeffery Foucault and That's the Way the World Goes 'Round. I believe it's a John Prine song.

Spring or Not

Where has the time gone! I see I've fallen behind here again. I've not many days off and when I do they are filled to the brim. I can be here today only because a planned visit was canceled. My friend could not come to see me so I went to visit another friend which was extra special because it was unplanned.

Being very busy with work has meant I am missing some of my favorite activities such as walking and taking photographs. I am unable to show photos on Shutterchance that are current. I had a week of last summer's, beaches, then flowers and this week, grasses. It's okay, just not my normal routine. Beache scenes, flowers and grasses have a way of making you yearn those scenes, and not stay in the present. Spring has sprung around these parts and the moment has been lovely and deserving of being captured by the camera. My daffodils are through the ground, the snow is disappearing, the evenings are lengthening and there is a general warmth in the air. It's great to be alive.

Spring is a truly lovely season and is captured beautifully by a song of the same name by Richard Shindell. I'm optomistic for spring's speedy return but accept we will likely have a bit of winter weather to contend with yet. It's traditional for us to have our St. Patricks Day storm and have had storms even later. I have a song for that event too. If Winter Weather returns, Fats Waller's great song of the same name will be perfect.

Marching It Is

It's March and winter is melting by the moment. Western PEI had storm conditions this morning but here in the East we had a bit of rain. The sun broke through this afternoon. The West's bad weather was fortunate for me as it turned out. Yesterday I broke a filling off my tooth and this morning found my dentist completely booked. Within a few moments of calling, the front desk staff called back with a solution. Someone from the West had an eleven o'clock appointment and was very happy not to have to make the long trip into Charlottetown over this morning's slushy highways.

After the unscheduled dentist appointment I shopped for groceries and ran a few errands so did not do what I had planned for today. I rarely get a whole day to paint but had managed to on Saturday. It was quite motivating and I had broken a few roadblocks. I planned to follow up today with many new cre8ive ideas. Instead I'm here. Isn't it funny that my whole day changed after a broken tooth. An unscheduled blog post came into being. I now have to work every day until next Tuesday. Perhaps I should jot down those cre8ive ideas as in eight days, I'm bound to forget them.

While I was painting this weekend I burned a double CD. I haven't named it or did the artwork yet but it will have an Olympic theme. At present it is entitled Feb 2010. I have playlists of many hours but don't often burn double CD's. It is really good! I have now started a new one which if burned will encompass many CDs. I am saving it under All About Art but that may change. Here are a couple from it: Straight Lines by Dawn Landes and Baby Blue by Rachel Pearl. Sunlight by The Youngbloods is so far the first cut. Sunlight was what inspired the playlist. The first song will change many times before the end. I'll add it as an old familiar for the old '60's music lovers. Ralph?

Surprise Ending

There is a beautiful day is apon us here in PEI and instead of enjoying the fresh air, I am fulfilling my blogging obligations because once again, it is more than a week since I've posted. The truth is, I was out this morning so it is not a terrible punishment that I am enduring by staying indoors. After today's painting group I had a visit with a friend who lives in a beautiful spot but has a long driveway. The snow is slushy and I was afraid of getting stuck so walked the distance. She and her husband feed birds so chickadees met me at the first tree and accompanied me on my journey and back. It's truly beautiful in the countryside these days so it is very good to be outside taking it all in.

Sorry for the interruption though of course, you didn't know I was gone. I had some wonderful company drop in , a couple of drinks, started supper and was away from the computer for a couple of hours. During supper preparations my oregano had disappeared and I spent a long time looking for it. Found it when I was cleaning up. I have to continue giving stirs to the supper but from this moment forth, you'll never know when I've been gone.

I am still readying my computer to set up the Christmas gift from my daughter. It was a turntable that allows me to convert my vinyl to mp3 files. The fact that the Olympics are on 24/7 on one of the two channels I get has given me some extra time. I've missed Oprah and American Idol terribly but soon I will have this machine working and I am very excited about that. There is so much good music in our universe and I want to hear every bit and share some of the old songs I have that you may not be familiar with or are very, very familiar with.

To have Bonnie Raitt's first two albums, all of Joni's, Dylan's, Dan Hicks' early albums, Phoebe Snow' s, Aretha's and more albums than I can name right now available anytime I want is a dream come true. All my vinyl is sitting upstairs and I've missed it terribly. My daughter had a boyfriend a few years ago who wanted to see how turntables worked and changed the weight on mine. It is beyond my expertise to change it back to how it was.

I brought up Bonnie Raitt first because I know I have one song, That Song About the Midway, from Streetlights on mp3. I also have my favorite Phoebe Snow song. It's actually a well known Gershwin song but in my opinion it is sung best by Phoebe Snow. It is There's a Boat that's leaving Soon For New York. It is one of my top three favorites and I've featured it on this blog more than a few times.

When getting the Phoebe Snow link, I read that she suffered a brain aneurysm in January. I have to read more and find out how this has turned out. Perhaps you will too.

Wonderful Winter

Where does the time go! I've not been here in more than a week. I managed to fill every minute of it with work, chores, painting, making jewelry, having visits here and there, and one trip to town. It is customarily the summer season that we're most busy and when I think of all we'll add to the mix when spring and summer come along, I wonder how I will manage. I take it one day at a time though and some night's falling into bed feels better than others.

My daughter and her beast, as well as her boyfriend, are visiting this weekend. It's wonderful to see her though she is not staying here. Only one serious mishap occurred involving the pooch and it is more my fault than the dog's. I put the cat's food bowls on the large jewelry table in the studio when the dog started to eat the cat food. I forgot to put it back on the floor for the cats. One of the cats jumped on the table through the night and knocked a whole box of earrings onto the floor. They were everywhere and hopefully there are none missing.

Winter has been extraordinarily beautiful this week. The cold temperatures of the previous week were gone and we had light snow a couple of times which made the landscape really gorgeous. We had a bit of freezing rain on Friday which covered tree branches with a thin layer of ice. Heavy frosts occurred twice this week, as well, so frosted trees greeted anyone out on early morning drives to work.

Here are a couple songs to celebrate this wonderful season. It used to be I wanted to be in warmer climates in the winter. Since my 'shoulder/arm/kidney' winter two years ago, lots of things changed about me and one is my renewed enjoyment in winter. Here's David Francey with February Morning Drive and Emily Smith with Winter Song. Both sing with Scottish accents but David came to Canada years ago so we get to claim him.

I also have a song for Valentine's Day and it is an oldie but goody. Dusty Springfield was so great in her time and I love her singing The Look of Love. Enjoy the Day.

Beans and Fishcakes

It's high time I checked in with my old faithful friends. I'm not sure how I maintained it before, writing every day, but I'm certainly not able to do it any more. I'm having a wonderfully cre8ive winter and am dancing with the muse or whatever it is that ever keeps me feeling this way. Part time work and part time art making is perfect though I must live on a shoestring.

The weather's been very cold so people aren't out walking, snowshoeing, skiing, or enjoying outdoor skating. I think people would like to be though there can be all that wonderful 'tucked in by a warm fire' aspect to the cold days. A romantic image, I'm sure.

I met a friend for lunch today. We were early, about eleven. We had to wait a bit so I could have the special of fishcakes and beans. My friend wanted bacon and eggs. At about eleven thirty, our waitress started a CD and the first song was one by Johnny Cash. Sadly the CD turned out to be a compilation but I was thinking of the late Johnny being like beans and fishcakes or bacon and eggs - with us since early childhood, in the background, providing us with comfort. His unique voice has always been comfort food for me .

I know I played a version of Sea of Heartbreak quite recently. Here it is again, but by Johnny Cash, for the bacon and eggs, and here is Four Strong Winds, his version of Ian and Sylvia's great song, to accompany the beans and fishcakes. Because everyone knows Johnny Cash, I didn't feel I had to link his name to his website or Wiki article. I instead linked it to his YouTube version of Hurt, the most beautiful cover of another person's song that there ever was. In my humble opinion.....

Storm Day

We are in the middle of a storm and thus a long awaited, 'storm day' on the Island. We've discussed them here before. I believe it is the first one this winter though I may be wrong. We did have some storms earlier in the season. I got a day off work as did all students and many other in the work force. The wind has not begun in earnest yet and the conditions will worsen toward evening but it was all enough for a snow day.

The ground was bare to begin with so it looked like a first snow. I got outside for some photos mid morning but did not venture out again. It was so very pretty out there. I kept thinking the winds would soon blow all the snow covered branches clean but the winds have not been as wild as predicted. The day is not over yet though. Just enough for a snow day.

I really felt I needed a day off as I've been working extra shifts and have another tomorrow. I have also been painting and making jewelry with no down time so am enjoying this well-deserved break. I've had a lovely day finishing up some chores and general housework and relaxation, all mixed up into one delightful day. I'm behind in all blogs but have not even begun any on-line work yet.

My son is trying to get my car out at the moment - just to see if he can. If he can I have an errand so am letting him try with my car instead of his. He's just called and got out easily so is running my errand right now.

Catherine MacLellan won several awards at the PEI Music Awards recently. One of her songs, Snow Day, celebrates this kind of day most beautifully. A couple more from the files will do that too. Kate Rusby with Let the Cold Wind Blow and Eels with Girl From The North Country will work quite nicely I think.

Addendum: After Sonny Boy found he could easily get out of the driveway, he's off to town on an errand of his own. The silly boy should stay home I think! Most of the Island is shut down. They've declared it a snow day!!

Moving Day

I sit here, exhausted, in new surroundings. I've been thinking about and hemming and hawing about changing my studio space into something more workable for a long time. Today was 'doing it' day at last. I've only just begun but have all of the painting supplies moved to this room and partially set up. I will tackle the empty room on Wednesday as tomorrow is completely booked. That room I will set up with beads and jewelry supplies and for once will be able to practice two crafts at once. If a glass commission comes in it is much easier to clean up the room of beads than painting paraphernalia. They are all in trays that are easily stacked and put away in their storage spot in a half hour.

The window I will look out of when painting is filled with old blue bottles and heart shaped shells and rocks. It might be inspiring. I am leaving a patio door sized view with a large bit of light. Now I will have two large windows with a light source from two directions, one being north. I think it will be very good.

I've been spending time with two women who recently had their heart's broken in relationships. One woman is young and one is in her fifties. It matters not the age. The feelings are the same. I am feeling heartbroken too watching what these women are going through. The music today is for them.

Here's Sea of Heartbreak by Gray Sky Girls. I know the Roseanne Cash version is hot right now. I have her new album and her Dad's version but I like this cut better and have played it here before. The other song is true in both of these cases. The Guy Who Says Goodbye to You Is Out of His Mind by Griffin House. The men who have hurt these wonderful women so badly will be the losers in the long run.

What I Believe

I started this post over two hours ago. Got a Sunday visitor, always welcome here in the country. I had just returned from the rink. I was on ice for the first time since my shoulder dislocation/broken arm two years ago. It did not go well. Putting all my weight in a gliding motion was too irritating to my wonky hip. Kind of an Eeeekkk pain which was too sharp to ignore. We don't have enough snow yet but I hope that when we do, I will still be able to snowshoe. To lose two of my favorite winter sports in one winter would be too much to bear. I'll tell you, getting older is not easy. How can your heart feel so young and your body so old?

I'm glad cre8ivity is not something that wanes with age. Happily it doesn't sag or droop either though, of course, a few wrinkles can appear from time to time. I was thinking about this yesterday after discussing a glass project with another drop-in friend and possibly, client. I actually pointed him in the direction of a DIY routine, with a bit of a course/tutorial, for his project. I don't think he can afford what he really wants with me doing it for him. Anyway about cre8ivity, I believe it blooms with age. You begin to know your way through roadblocks when you have them and with age comes experience in your various artistic leaning. I believe the old adage of 'practice makes perfect' comes to really mean something now. It is an advantage finally, to be older.

A friend of mine turned 65 this week and I asked him at a dinner on Friday night if his employer required mandatory retirement. Luckily for him it does not but another of his employers requires full time staff to be under 65. He is a session prof thus part time in that job. I feel better every day that I get older in regards to cre8ivity and I hope you can too.

I made a wonderful CD this week in time for Friday night's dinner party. It was entitled Girlfriends and is kind of special. The dinner was not restricted to girlfriends but it was a definite theme with a good number of the attendees. Ha! I just looked back to a misspelling alert and had written Girlfiends. Too funny!

I'll share a couple of the songs from this CD. These two songs may not seem to go together but they fit quite well into the context of the whole. Yep, age has it's benefits in that I'll say "Respect your elders," if you don't agree. Here's All Grown Up by Holly Golightly and Company of Friends by Danny Schmidt. The latter is one of my favorite songs of the decade and had been featured here more than one time. I believe the words in this song. It is about what you believe.

New Year Hello

Click: Happy

Click: New

Click: Year

Holiday Hello

It is amazing that our landscape is bare of snow. This shot is from our walk three days ago but I dare say that bit of snow is now gone. It was +5 at ten before I went to town this morning and the sun came out after that. Two years ago, I was skating on the pond at this time. It is the anniversary of my fall tomorrow. This year there is no ice at all in the pond. The ice in the bay was thin and is now broken up and I saw only slush in Charlottetown Harbour. I am amazed at how winter has changed since my childhood. We still get snowy winters from time to time. The winter of 2000 is an example and we had some big snowy winters in the 80's and a few in the 90's with other years of hardly any snow.

I had a wonderful Christmas and it seems everyone around me did too. It ended too quickly though as my daughter was home only a short time. She had to work today. I am certainly and truly glad the weather was good for her travels.

I went to town for the Boxing Day sales today. Charlottetown decided to remain closed on Saturday and Sunday just like on Christmas Day and chose today to be the commercial Boxing Day. Government offices and Doctors remained closed today. I got one really excellent deal at La Senza. Their body lotions and shower gels, etc. were 10 for $30. I had specifically gone to town with a gift certificate for Body Shop from my son. I was hoping to get the now discontinued Warm Amber scented anything as that is one of my favorite of their fragrances. I got a few items there but then found that La Senza carries an amber fragrance that I like very much. I bought five of the ten items in their Amber Romance.

My daughter gave me a grand Christmas gift. She gave me a turntable that converts albums to computer files. I have not even opened the box yet but will tomorrow. I managed to get some other gifts set up and even used already. My sister-in-law gave me the Cadillac of pedometers. She knew I was heartbroken after recently losing mine. This has two clips so you have a pretty good chance of not losing it if you attach both. I tested it yesterday with a walk in the woods and the day before to the shore.

I am excited about my old albums becoming computer files. I'll have some real treats for you then. I do manage to find some of my favorite old songs here and there but I do have some gems. One of my favorite albums when it came out was Joe Jackson's tribute to his father's music, Jumpin' Jive. I loved that album so much. I was always a fan of that era of jazz and liked his take on it. Here is a couple of his interpretations of that wonderful era of silly lyrics and lots of booze, What's the Use of Getting Sober and You Run your Mouth and I'll Run My Business. My kids grew up on this album. My daughter still loves Is You Is Or Is You Ain't My Baby from this album though she has a different favorite version. I'll be checking out that wonderful new tool tomorrow.

'Tis the Season

I can't believe a week has passed again. It's been a busy week. Like everyone else, I'm knee deep in Christmas preparations along with everything else and hardly have time to turn around. My son, who was just into the Christmas baking, said when I complained, "You can just make more." "Hmmmph", is what I said.

I took a lovely stroll to the woods yesterday to find a suitable Christmas tree. I found several hardwood saplings instead and bound them together into a passable Christmas tree. I set that up last night while I listened to a couple of Christmas playlists I'd made. It looks rather nice though birch would have been nicer. I used what I had. I made a few swags and sprays out of some fresh white pine. A large branch from the white pine tree in the yard broke off in the wind a couple of weeks ago. It was nice to have a use for it. I still have two other wreath forms and will make some pine wreaths if I have time.

Get Me Through December is still my favorite Christmas song for the month . It goes on every December playlist. A couple more nice seasonal tunes that I've been listening too are Maybe This Christmas by Ron Sexsmith and Go Tell It On the Mountain by Desert Noises. The new Andrea Boccelli Christmas album is also really good. Angelic is the first thing I think of when thinking of his wonderful voice.

I will try to get back here before the big day. Until then, work, work, work, do, do , do. "Tis the Christmas season.

Come By Storm

How is that for relaxed! This is the normal Kenz. I see no strings in the shot but they are there; a couple of shoelaces or the like. She lies and rolls beside/hind me, bonding with me, her catnip pillows and strings. She has an added camera bag and pair of shoes here for extra rubbing materials. She can sit and lie in a spot without moving a muscle for twenty minutes. It's amazing. Her eyes are wide open, staring straight ahead. When she's lying down it would seem she's asleep but her eyes are open.

I've been madly shopping and wrapping, boxing and wrapping, labeling, getting parcels ready for the mail. I'll soon be finished but have to send my camera off for repair so still have to do that. I'm going to miss my camera but it is something that must be done before warranty in a couple weeks. I am making CD's to put in parcels as well. Busy, busy, busy.

I has been extremely windy and cold for the last three or four days. The Confederation Bridge had their longest period of restrictions since the severe White Juan storm a few winters ago. This time, thankfully, the rain had melted most of the snow and hardened what remained or we would have had snow issues like white-outs to contend with. It has certainly curtailed our walking schedule. My hiking partner told me this morning that it is suppose to get warm again soon. I need my hikes and walks.

My niece who lived here for the summer three and a half years ago just had a baby girl on Friday. This makes my baby brother a Grampy which hard to believe! The new baby was born on the 11th, one day before my nephew's birthday on the 12th. This is the usual way in our family. Birthdays are one day apart or on the same day several times, happening over and over. It's very complicated, the dates of birth and death, I believe. It is in our family anyway.

I downloaded this song the other day because I loved the title. Turns out it was pretty good. Here's I'm Not Broke But I'm Badly Bent by Lattie Moore. Check the link on her name. It has the most unusual (and funny) song titles you've ever seen. The other song is for the new baby. I'm assuming it was as windy as it was where she was born as it was where we are. Here's Come By Storm by Laura Gibson.

Snow Day

I am watching our first snowfall. We had wet flurries one day that did not accumulate but this is real snow. It is covering the tree branches and grasses and everything else in the landscape and is oh, so beautiful. I'll see if I can dig out a photo from another time for the spot above. We are expecting fifteen cm.

I've been lucky all these years to have a studio which gives a wide look apon the natural world. In winter, to see a variety of wildlife through these windows while I summarize a daily weather report can be magical. Today reminds me to add birdseed to the town list. I painted all morning and intend to go back after lunch. Yesterday was very dark and natural light for painting was not so good. Today is excellent. The days are noticeably getting shorter with less afternoon time. That will change shortly though with the equinox, much to my pleasure.

I am still thinking about a way I could be working on at least two of my art forms at the same time. I cut out little models of all the furniture in this second studio room and have been moving them in various locations around a drawn-to-scale room with windows and doors. I have two large windows in the room and the challenge is to have each table looking out the window while I do my things.I have become resigned to the fact that my computer will occupy a much smaller table but it must allow me to look out the window at my beautiful landscapes.



I could not find a photo of my view with a first snow except for a first snow with the pond frozen which it is not at this time. The photo above is my friend's little shed a few days after a fairly heavy first snow. It does show how pretty it is at the first of the year. There will be a time soon enough that I'm tired of the whole thing. I will enjoy it's beauty for today.

I always play this song at this time of year. I am not a big fan of Christmas and sometimes can barely tolerate it. This year has not been so bad but this song is often how I ground myself during December. Our talented and beautiful Maritimer, Natalie MacMaster plays fiddle so wonderfully in this song by the talented and beautiful as well, Alison Krauss: Get Me Through December. One of the songs I 'collect' is Baby, It's Cold Outside. Though it's not that cold it's wintry (See poll on right for another day or two or read last post) out there. I was making a Christmas CD for my jazz-loving aunt and uncle last night and added this version of it by Liza Minnelli and Alan Cumming. For some reason this song doesn't seem to be uploading. I will try one more time but may have to come back. This happens quite often.