vehicle

White Rock, BC - mural

****************

Thursday Challenge

Next week: YELLOW (Flowers, Vegetables, Sun, Clothing, Vehicle, Toys, Blanket,...)

still trying (#535 - 549 of 1000 gifts)

"You may be disappointed if you fail, but you are doomed if you don't try." - Beverly Sills

I think we are experiencing the longest spring ever! The peonies that were tight little balls over a week ago are still clenched and waiting for the sun. We're all waiting for the sun which, of course, makes it much easier to tidy up writing loose ends in preparation for summer...


535. In that vein, I finished a big project, first begun almost two years ago and sent it on its first outing. It has anchored me in duty for so long I now feel like my balloon has finally filled with helium and I'm taking off!


536. A little poem I wrote got featured in TS Poetry Press's daily newsletter. So honoured.

537. Drifts of wildflowers.

538. A Word Guild Writing award for a book review I wrote. Most very grateful and honoured. And a big congratulations to all other winners!


539. Two dozen roses to celebrate the week of our anniversary.


540. A fun book launch. The Violet Flash by Mike Mason is second in the series following The Blue Umbrella. Here is Mrs. Mike in her little book shop.

541. I met Luci Shaw!! Here she is talking with Mike Mason and Ron Reed (they are all in the same writer's group — a modern version of the Inklings I'm sure!).

542. Here is Mike under his magical blue umbrella.

543. Hubby and me, 30 years ago yesterday. 

544. To celebrate our anniversary yesterday we went for a walk along the White Rock promenade and then for a Greek lunch. As you can see, the UV index was very tolerable.

545. Enjoyed a little drama between some crows hassling a bald eagle.

546. I love all the flower boxes along the walk. Every restaurant has different flowers presented in different ways. I was so charmed by these delicate pansies.

547. And how about these black and yellow petunias! 

548. Have been reading heavy-ish non-fiction lately, so yesterday dipped into something lighter. I am enjoying Angela Hunt's The Fine Art of Insincerity (a free gift from her sister's contest - thanks so much, Angela!).

549. For my husband and father of our kids - a true man of God. Hubby - you're the best!!

************

If you'd like to join me and many others collecting One Thousand Gifts, please do. Some members of this gratefulness community post their gifts on blogs, while others list them in private journals. Instructions on how to join are here.

**********

autumn lingers (#123-131 of 1000 Gifts)

123. Though I've begun wearing my winter jacket on morning walks, the days have been warming up beautifully with the afternoon temperatures most days still in the double digits. Daylight time diminishes by minutes every day, so we all know it's just a matter of time till autumn surrenders to winter. But I'm so loving this lingering of fall.

124. Maybe it's hanging around too long and confusing the plants. Caught these in bloom last week. I know - rhododendrons blooming in mid-October?! Something has its wires crossed!

125. Our washer/dryer combo broke down. And that is a gift because it broke down in a very sane way (a slow drip of water into the machine tub, and a wrecked transmission that has only just begun spewing oil when the machine goes into spin mode). We have a new one bought and scheduled for installation early this week.

126. Plus, we came home from the trip to the appliance store with a new microwave (how does that happen?).

127. This book came last week (Inscribe's 30th anniversary anthology). I feel honoured to have a couple of pieces included with so much excellent prose and poetry by fellow Canadian writers.

128. Working on the Lavender Project with my friends from Women by Design at church. Thursday night we spent two hours in Cheryl's barn, stripping dried lavender blossoms from stems. We're planning to make sachets to sell in the Christmas craft fairs. It's to raise money for the hospital stay of Ugandan girls whose faces have been mutilated by guerilla captors. Plastic surgeons have volunteered their skills to repair the damage, but each girl's hospital stay costs several thousand dollars (Gulu Project - see photo no. 5).

Lavender - many buckets like this to harvest

It's a dusty and tedious, though fragrant, job.

129. My sonny boy sold his truck!

130. A laptop, making it easy to multitask during baseball playoffs.

131. A beautiful late morning walk in White Rock yesterday, followed by a delish Greek lunch at Cosmos, followed by a nap at home. I love lazy Sundays!

White Rock Beach from Marine Drive

**************

If you'd like to join me and many others collecting One Thousand Gifts, please do. Some post their gifts on blogs, while others list them in private journals. Instructions on how to join are here. 

sky

The Pier,  White Rock, BC

**********

Thursday Challenge

Next Week: HIGH or LOW (Photos from a different perspective, Photos from the top or bottom of Buildings, Mountains, Towers, Underneath,...)

holidaying in the heat

Family is visiting from out of town and we're enjoying a week of summer vacation at home. It just happens to be the hottest week (on record) in years. Today it was 38 C outdoors here (that's over 100 F and we have no AC). I'm happy not to be confined to my little sauna of an office.

Here are some of the places we've been:

Victoria B.C.

Butchart Gardens. Absolutely WOW!!

Sunken Gardens

Stunning color combinations everywhere!

Japanese Garden

Victoria waterfront:

Houseboats at Fisherman's Wharf

E. and me being water taxied back to the Inner Harbor

Sharing the waterway with float planes, ready for take-off.

My family (hubby, brother and wife, sister and husband) walking on the Victoria waterfront.

A family wedding

Held up at Eagle Crest Vacation Retreat in Sooke. Wonderful views in all directions!

Seen from one of the balconies.

The bridal procession. All the wedding party was in white except for the bride. She wore green!

This wedding was definitely a family affair. After exchanging their rings, the bride and groom give the groom's 10-year-old daughter a necklace. Now she can call her dad's new bride 'Mom.'

My lovely sis - mother of the bride.

My sis with her twins and new granddaughter.

Three sisters (of the grandma generation).

Vancouver

Granville Island - where we had coffee and shared a gooey slab of blueberry coffee cake - yum!


Friends who have bought and are renovating a house in the Mount Pleasant area took us on a walking tour of the neighborhood. On our way past the Davis House (166 - 10th Ave.), someone who lived in one of the units invited us to take a look at the courtyard - all done up with antiques and old fashioned memorabilia.

White Rock

Breakfast with sis-in-law, another sister, and my bro.

Looking down from the pier - tide's coming in.

This might be the first time I'm jealous of a starfish. Ooh, that water looked good!

organized - cluttered

Pigeons on White Rock Pier

*************

Two 4 Tuesday photo challenge

night

Twilight on the White Rock pier

**********

Thursday Challenge

Next Week: MANY (Lots of People, Lots of Space, Lots of Things: Buildings/Candy/Toys/Animals, Countless,...)