2005

Krys arranged for us all to attend a glass mosaic workshop with Cindy of Shades by Cindy. Loads of fun and masterpieces were created!

http://www.shadesbycindy.ca/

The first snow of the season to stay on the gound.

Glenda is buying a Newfoundland puppy. We went out to see the pups and so she could pick her pup. She picked the dog with the red cord around his neck.

Okay... So it was no big deal. A few snow squalls during he day. However, there is ice in the parking lot (I shall have to pop out in the am and take a photo....) and is was bleeding cold while I was out taking photos of the sunset and ducks by Billings Bridge. BLEEDING COLD!

This sculpture appeared one morning in front of the National Library and Archives, here in Ottawa. The artist deposited the sculpture on the walkway in front of the National Library and Archives, raising eyebrows with TPTB at the Library, since she was not commissioned to do so.

She was ordered to remove it. However, public pressure ensured that the piece was returned to its spot. It has become a much-loved addition to the visual beauty of the city.

"The building needed something and I don't feel that artists have the time to go through the bureaucratic approach. In the same amount of time that it would take to go through all this (bureaucracy) I can cast another sculpture and enhance another space."

*formerly "Secret Bench, Lost Paradise"

http://www.collectionscanada.ca/5/7/a7-2000-e.html
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lea_Vivot
http://www.leavivot.com/index.html

Somewhat more controversial was "Le banc des amoureux" ("The Lovers' Bench") which has had a spotty carreer of popularity with many and being reviled by others. A copy is located in the botanical gardens in Montreal.
http://www.leavivot.com/Picture_115.jpg

We went to the Ottawa School of Art to pick J up from her class. There is a special exhibition on in the gallery, currently.

Shane Cooper is a New Zealand-based software engineer/artist whose resume includes scenes created for "Lord of the Rings" and the upcoming film "King Kong".

His interactive exhibit, "Reflections" involves the capture of visitors' movements via video camera. The images are projected on the opposite wall. The "neato" part is that all the images captured are also collected and then fed back into the computer and matched with like-images of other visitors' images.

Visitors quickly catch on to the requirements of the system and by altering their position within the field of vision of the camera, either right-to-left or in height, images of previous visitors match their own movement across the screen.

I found it particularly interesting to see the reactions of the kids. Adults tended to stick to simple back and forth movements. Kids, on the other hand, danced, bobbed and resorted to funny movements in order to "see what would happen".

Unfortunately, because this is not a static exhibit, by any means, it is hard to photograph the interaction. The strobe effect catches one image at a time. While in real-time, the brain puts the images into a stream-like format, the camera "sees" each individual image in its own frame. The film caught the concept of the exhibit better.

http://shanecooper.com/

We drove out to the farm tonight to bury Cutie. Mom's beloved 19 year-old cat. Cutie died two days after our visit last week. Krys and Julia came with us so they could meet the cats, horses, and Bubba, the dog.

http://public.fotki.com/Mudhooks/my_stuff/year_in_photos/2004/mothers_day/100_0040.html

Mom and I went for a drive and ended up at Cardinal, along the St. Lawrence River.

You might also be interested in my photos of Williamstown http://public.fotki.com/Mudhooks/my_stuff/artistic_stuff/abandoned/picadilly_theatre/

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Thank you for allowing me to share this wonderful celebration....

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I spent most of my summers during high school at and on Lac la Peche.

On the other side of the lake there used to be an outdoor education centre where schools held courses. I used to love going there and knew most o the woods like the back of my hand.

I had never been to the beach however, and haven't been up to the lake since probably 1977 when I actually had graduated from taking courses to running courses.

Sadly, The Haven (as it was called) is no longer used by schools, as far as I know and I think may have been sold to a private concern. http://myriam-online.de/gatineau.html

This photo was taken up there the summer of 1977 during an Ecology course: http://public.fotki.com/Mudhooks/my_stuff/my_shady_past/the_teen_years/100_0015.html

One of the best summers I can remember....

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Mom, Cat and I go on a road trip.

Mom is house-sitting

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I bought a dozen orange roses and a bunch of yellow Freesia and made a really nice (if I do say so myself) bouquet in my deep blue glass vase.

Mom likes oranges, yellows and reds, so while I don't like orange, myself, it went over very well with her. It certainly looks beautiful in the blue vase.

Personally, I have loved Freesia ever since my Dad's funeral. Someone sent this huge bouquet with was mostly white Freesia and it smells really heavenly.

We are both surprised that Benjamin hasn't mangled the roses, yet. Perhaps the Freesia smells so strongly that he won't go bear it?

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Canada's Government Nuclear Command Centre/Fallout Shelter. It is now open to the public...

Unfortunately, you can't take photos inside amd the postcards they sell are crap.

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Krys, Vicki, and I went out to Kemptville to Amanda's Slip and had a terrific evening. I was late, unfortunately, because I had to drive up from Brockville and left a "bit late" so I missed the first set (three sets, three musicians).

An evening at Amanda's is like being at a kitchen party. The music is great. The food is great. The atmosphere is great..... http://www.amandaslip.ca/

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A pair of chickadees has been nesting again this year in the nesting box in our back yard.

I don't know if it is the same pair that have nested each year for the past 3 years. It is either them or offspring of the original pair (probably).

I spent some time photographing the parents popping in and out of the nesting box and, while they were away, I gently opened the side of the box to see how many youngsters there are. I counted at least 5. I didn't take any stills of the babies but got some videos of them. I can't post the videos but at least you can see the images.

UPDATE...

I went out to take more photos of the chickadee chicks....

Before I went out. Mom said that she hadn't heard the parents out there at all today, though I saw one of them looking into the box a few minutes before going out. When I got about 2 or 3 feet away, I could smell something not right.

I opened the box and found that they were all dead.... very dead...

We think it was simply too hot today. I think I am going to move the nesting box into a more shaded spot, or as shaded as I can considering we only have one tree in our yard. I am also going to drill some holes in the back for ventilation and paint the box white to better reflect the sun.

I can't help wondering if that is the reason why we have never seen any babies learniing to fly. Perhaps the box is simply too hot....

Oh, I am so upset.

The Odawa Powwow is on this weekend (May 27-29). Just after the grand entry, it started to rain again.

Most of the dancers took shelter under the various tents, but a few hardy dancers, including one little fellow (age 28 months!) just kept right on dancing. Unfortunately, it was raining too hard to do much photo taking. I got a few shots, as well as two videos of the little boy dancing.

He was so good and so anxious to make a good showing.... I hope he wins a prize tomorrow.

There are a number of catagories of dancers at powwows.
Traditional: The ones wearing turkey feathers and more subdued costumes

Fancy: Wearing more brightly colored costumes with streamers and satins

Jingle: Women and girls wearing dresses covered in tin"jingles" which rattle as they dance

Shawl: Women and girls in beaded abd satin costumes, carrying a shawl over one arm and an eagle-feather fan in the other.

Saturday April 9....

A robin visits the yard, and Pippin and Knuckles (eveyone else calls him Tuxedo) stop in for a catnip snack.

Fundraiser for the Ottawa Food Bank, sponsored by the Ottawa Guild of Potters. You pay $20, get your pick of bowls created by Ottawa potters, and get to sample fantastic soups created by a number of area restaurants, chefs and catering companies.

This is the bowl I selected. I don't know who created mine.

I'll add photos of Mom's bowl a bit later.