Wind Turbines

Yesterday we took "the road less traveled by" and ended up south of Tillsonburg on the way to the Sand Hills (which sadly was not yet open) and came across dozens of wind turbines similar to those in the picture below.



An article from a couple of years ago explains some of the excitement surrounding this windmill technology which we first encountered on a trip around the Gaspe in Quebec a few years ago. We were intrigued by the sight of dozens of windmills spread over the countryside, each turning steadily in the winds off the St. Lawrence River. We turned off the main highway to get a closer look and learn what we could. Finding that governments were actually working on a better way to produce electricity was exciting.

When I did a little research on the phenomena this morning, I found an explanation of how wind turbines work, complete with diagrams to illustrate. This all brought to mind our trip to California in January of this year where we saw literally hundreds of turbines turning in the valley nestled up to Palm Springs. Obviously there is a lot of wind there.

I am hopeful that this 'new' technology will prove to be as environmentally friendly as our windmill of old which, far from any electricity to power it, pumped water for the cattle at the back of our farm. Now that's green!

Rites of Spring

Last weekend was wonderful weather which fact helped to create a wonderful weekend. Saturday we spent a few hours cleaning up our screened-in porch. I'm amazed that washing furniture, vacuuming and carrying away dead leaves was fun but it was. Getting things ready for a summer of sitting out enjoying the weather is always so full of expectation. That night we had a dinner party of six friends and, for the first time, I had each couple bring a dish. This meant less preparation for us and led to a delightful time that we weren't too tired to enjoy. In the balmy weather we were even able to open the French doors to the dining room and feel the evening air as we ate. Great day and night.

Sunday after church we decided to accompany another couple on a bike tour to Port Dover on the Lynn Valley Rail Trail. This was our first of the season and we were exhilarated. Our friends were well supplied with emergency equipment, good thing since my husband's tire gave up and he had to change it. This slowed us down considerably and we were quite late by the time we got to Dover around 2 pm. Ravenous we hurried to Callaghan's but they had a 40 minute wait. No way. We headed to another favorite spot, Willie's on the Beach, where we ordered up big burgers and onion rings. The burgers were awesome with lots of great fixings. The onion rings, not so much. There we sat on their extensive porch basking, yes, basking in the sun while we ate and talked and laughed. (We were the noisiest table.)

After the requisite walk on the pier and a chat at the lighthouse we headed up the trail to Simcoe again and our cars. A cold drink and more relaxed chatter at our friend's house nearby and we drove the mile home sated and happy, all the more so since we had not planned this bit of serendipity. I love spontaneity!

Barbary Apes on Gibraltar

Join me today for more of our trip to Spain in 2006, specifically for those amazing Barbary apes at Gibraltar. The two apes on the bus, top and windshield, are easy to spot, but look closely and see a small one which has adopted the woman stepping out of the bus. (Just kidding--it's her sweater.)

Sitting on the road as we approached this tourist site was this fellow who seemed engrossed in his own body. No, those are not peanuts on the pavement in front of him!

These apes are called macaque as well as Barbary apes. The two below are not scared of cars at all. In fact, none of them are and the drivers have to take great care to avoid them.

Here is a closeup of one of the bigger ones. He probably sits about two feet tall here.

And here is another one in a similar position, right in the roadway. Their expressions seem to say, "I am so bored with these tourists!"

I liked this shot very much because of the interesting tree but the macaque wouldn't cooperate to give me a really great shot of him. He seemed camera shy or totally annoyed and wanting privacy.

Finally, I have repeated this shot from an earlier blog just because he belongs with these other macaques. Cool tree, eh?

We were impressed with the sign which told of the macaques and their habits, but especially warning why not to feed them or appoach them. They need to be left alone so as not to become stressed. They don't need extra food as they'll get fat, have shorter life spans, and not procreate. Sounds like something we should think about for humans, doesn't it?

Music Festival is Fun!

This past week has been a whirlwind and time for blogging has been short. I added an extra component to my week visiting the Woodstock Rotary Music Festival for six different sessions. What an experience.

My prime reason for doing this is to hear kids I know such as my three nephews who are 9, 13, and 16. They all did well singing and/or playing the piano whether the adjudicator thought so or not. Watching young people do their best is a pretty exhilarating experience. It's as though they are primed to sing just for me and their intense desire to excel is intoxicating. Also I am transported back to the times I was on the stage doing the same thing and my memories of that are good, but I fiind sitting and listening just as much fun these days.

The sixteen-year-old was in 19 classes this year but never seemed to be worrying or rushing around. He was completely relaxed. My favorite for him was on Wednesday night when he was in seven classes. Their high school put in about six groups and Daniel was in three of them, placing first, second, and third all in the same class! Very cool. He also sang in our Cantabile Men's Choir singing two numbers and in the combined choirs of Woodstock Cantabile Singers, singing two more. I loved the men's choir numbers. There are only four of them but they sing with such heart and gusto you'd think there were twice as many. ( I sing in the Cantabile Women's Choir--the 'Chicks'--and love it!)

Also in Cantabile Men's Choir was my middle nephew, Adam. He has made the transition from boy to man in his singing, an interesting thing to watch. His best class for me was Friday when he sang a number from a musical I didn't know, about the American Civil War and the fact that brother fought against brother. He was totally in character--musical theatre class--and captured the essence of that awful struggle in his motions, his singing and his demeanor. I was transfixed and even though the adjudicator did not place him in the top three, for me, his performance was a winner because of the emotion he evoked in the audience. Good for you, Adam.

Bringing a smile again to my lips is the youngest who sang and played in classes I didn't see, even getting a first. I did see a musical theatre one where Noah was one of the seven dwarfs. How cute he was, dressed in his leotards, his huge red jockey shorts stuffed to make him fat and his jaunty hat over his white bearded face. (I got to help him take it off without having the glue pull his skin off, too!) Anyhow he sang well and enjoyed every moment. His exuberance is infectious making him a real performer--on stage as well as off--and his Cantabile Youth Choir participation has progressed to the point where he is a real asset, watching the director (his mother) and singing well.

So my week has been busy but very rewarding. Thanks to all those festival participants for putting on such a great show!

It's a Lovely Day Today...

Many would disagree since the weather is overcast and threatening rain, but on my walk home from the gym, I saw lots to inspire me:
1. The very pregnant robin whose distended red-brown belly made flying a wobbly experience. (Does she know how to combat adversity?)
2. A little bit of beautiful bright red in the struggling grass which turned out to be a plastic flower with bright green leaves. Someone had stuck it in the grass maybe to remind us of what's coming. Usually I don't like plastic flowers but this one cheered me on my way.
3. The porch on the house down the street had two barbecues on it, a sure sign of summer, although lots of us hearty Canadians barbecue all winter. Part of our weather-defying nature, I think.
4. A table with a plastic cloth on it and several tired lawn ornaments. It looked to me like someone was getting those ornaments ready for spring. We've all got the bug.
5. Finally and most exciting, I get to spend as much of my day as I like writing at my computer. Gotta love it!
Bottom line (ha ha) is: It's a Lovely Day Today so whatever you've got to do, it's a lovely day for doing it.........

Lovely Evening, Great Food

Last night we took our son and daughter-in-law out for a lovely birthday dinner at The Waterlot in New Hamburg. We started the evening meeting in Woodstock for a pre-dinner libation and great chat at East Side Mario's, arriving there in three separate cars from three different directions. Busy lives!
Then we all drove together to The Waterlot where we passed a couple of lovely hours talking, eating, sipping, exclaiming over the food and just catching up. We were a couple of months late in celebrating our daughter-in-law's birthday, a mark of the busy lives we all lead, but that didn't matter. It is always pleasant to sup together and the birthday just gave us a good excuse. Two of us had a hazel nut encrusted pork loin with awesome mixed vegetables and small potatoes, while the other two tried the steak with garlic mashed spuds, veggies, and fresh onion rings--those looked yummy but no one offered to share:-( The restaurant offers a palate-cleansing sorbet in a tiny cone and also a free sample appetizer. Ours was somewhat wasted on us as two of the group didn't try it and the rest gave a ho-hum review.
Nevertheless, the meal was so good that we all cleaned our plates and were too full for dessert, a rare occurrence for a couple of us. The only complaint I have is that our water glasses were never refilled and since I was 'DD' and wasn't drinking wine, I ended up stealing my husband's glass. I like my water. All in all, though, the evening was delightful, making the drive to New Hamburg well worth while, especially with the happy conversation both going and coming.
Another wonderful family time. Gotta love it.

Rambling Thoughts Today

1. We went to a great workshop last night about marketing on the web and are so glad we did. The presenter was most knowledgeable, took our questions gladly, answered succinctly, and kept to his timelines. In fact this last was maybe a drawback because he was so good we could have gone on for another couple of hours.

2. I am going to tell you how frustrated I get when in public and people are so self-centered they never ask what I am doing. I like to be interested in their things but I would so enjoy having them reciprocate. All of us have a life and would like to be asked. Since retiring I have especially noticed this, an annoying development since I think I'm doing some pretty interesting things. It's like people just assume that once you retire you sit and watch tv all the time!

3. I am thankful for my blog and my blog buddies. We share ourselves for an uplifting experience almost every day. And those comments are highlights. How small we make the world.

Easter Monday was a holiday for my husband so we decided to head for the Niagara Region, one of our favorite places and, of course, the Horseshoe Falls on the Canadian side are one of the Seven Wonders of the World. Below are the two flags of Canada and the United States on the bridge at Queenston, marking part of the longest undefended border in the world.



I took this second shot to show the interesting green of the Niagara River because of all the cloud about on this early spring day. You can also see how deep the Niagara Gorge is.

We drove past the Falls and didn't stop as it was very cold out and we did our winter Niagara pictures last year. Just past the main tourist area we saw a turnoff to a type of conservation area and we delighted with what we found there. You can see green shoots are just starting to sprout and, with the red wood of some of the bushes, add life to the landscape, offsetting the icy snow patches.

Here is a happy little bird who was hard to photograph, she flitted about so much. I think she is a female because her tummy seemed so full with spring's eggs. I called her a chickadee but am not really sure I'm right.

As we found our way along the path following the many chickadees fluttering about, we came upon a feeding spot for all types of birds. This male cardinal sat posing for us for quite some time, keeping an eye on the feeding station as he was.

And beside the feeder a lovely little pond area, mostly frozen but starting to thaw, provided a skating rink for ducks and geese. I saw one drake come in to land, put his feet down and ski to a tipsy stop as he toppled to the ice. Laughing out loud my husband and I watched to see more duck antics on the ice. The wild fowl were very well fed as they were ignoring both the corn lying on the ice near us and the people on the other side throwing food to them. Enough already, they seemed to say as they turned their backs on all human outreach.

I loved flitting about from spot to spot, trying to find the best shots and hoping to get some with the birds actually showing me something besides their posteriors. Eventually our walk came to an end and the car was in sight. I couldn't resist this last shot of yet another pond from a small bridge over it. If you look closely at the shore edges, you can really see how the ice at this time of year just floats on the pond like a cube in a glass. How peaceful.

We'll walk there again in summer some fine day, but there will probably be hordes of people, so this viewing was special.

Niagara-On-The-Lake

A wonderful trip to Niagara-on-the-Lake took the unseasonable cold right out of our minds today. Well, almost, anyhow. We were researching Butler's Rangers, a Loyalist regiment who fought in the American Revolutionary War on the side of the king. I am directly descended from one of these men, which fact makes this history pretty personal.




We visited Butler's Barracks but were not able to get inside.





Then we found the John Butler Burial Ground and were disappointed to see how ill kept it is and that one of the crypts has been changed. When I was there a few years ago, one of the attractions was a tomb which had steps down to the actual door which was below ground level. Imagine our surprise upon finding the steps have been totally filled in and all that remains is a small piece of the top of the tomb which remains above the grass. That there is a tomb there is not at all evident and this saddens me. How much of our past are we prepared to lose? Below are the remaining grave markers for the burying ground.





The bright spot in all this was a leaflet I found in the local museum which asks for donations towards "Saving Colonel John Butler'. Hopefully this campaign will be successful.


In the meantime I will content myself with reading and making notes on "The Capital Years: Niagara-on-the-Lake" which is the story of this town as the capital of Upper Canada (Ontario) from 1792-1796. I find this research extremely interesting from that personal history point of view and also for some writing which I am doing.

Ireland, the Fifth and Final Posting

One day my husband and I were driving from the west coast towards Dublin and found this very old cemetary with many of the Viking crosses, which are so prevalent in Ireland.

On the other side of the road is the new cemetary, but it is still full of the pagan crosses, an irony not lost on us.

Here is a stone which has stood for a long time, showing the longevity of this tradition.

Below is a lovely section of green we found beside a river one day on one of our bus trips out of Dublin. This is somewhere in the Wicklow Hills, a lovely spot if ever there was one.



In the area known as the Burren, a wild and stony place, we visited the Burren Perfumery and saw how the owners used native plants to create their perfumes. This closeup shows some of the flowers found in this rocky yet naturally abundant area.

One of our favorite finds in Dublin was the Cathedral of the Holy Trinity which we found quite by accident. We had decided to tour the Dublin Viking tourist stop and found this lovely church as a bonus.

For my final Ireland shot, here we are sitting in front of the Irish Sea, I think. We stopped for the view and a kind stranger took this great shot for us.

We are thinking of maybe going to Ireland again and this time visiting Northern Ireland. The Glens of Antrim have our names on them and I also hear there is a boat trip which takes the short hop to Scotland. Maybe, one day soon..........

Ireland 4

This shot begged capture as the stone walls up front and marking off the fields in the distance are just so prevalent. I love the green variations and the texture of the stones.

Look closely here to see the minute road cut into the side of the mountain and also the dock at the bottom which we watched long enough to see a boat come in. Very beautiful and rustic spot.

Here a coastal panorama of small islands looks like sleeping whales in the water. The blues are so happy here.

A more modern castle is Powerscourt perched on a huge section of land, where we walked amongst flower beds and manicured lawns. It was very impressive.

In Dublin one day we saw this interesting building design so I crossed the street to pose for a picture. As my husband was waiting for the traffic to stop, a man approached me and wanted me to take a handout. His rubby look and his insistent poking the pamphlet at me made me refuse to take it. He tried again and I verbally said I didn't want it. Backing off he shouted, "Bloody Catholics!" and headed down the street and I realized I had stepped right into the middle of the Catholic-Protestant clash in Ireland. Isn't it interesting that he thought the only reason I didn't want his handout was that I must be Catholic? Other than that, we had no hint of the 'troubles' from anyone on our trip.

Ireland, What Else?

I promise I'll stop soon but I am having too much fun working with these Ireland shots and my photo software so today I've put on five more edited shots. This first is a shot of Dunguaire Castle which we found quite by accident. The day was too foggy to go to the Cliffs of Moher so, reluctantly, we turned the car away from the coast and started back toward Dublin, finding this roadside castle.

Another day we were exploring around Kells and Jerpoint Abbey and found this old abandoned mill. I took a few shots here, loving the setting.

And this is part of the decrepit but still stunning Jerpoint Abbey ruin. Our first B&B hostess had a lovely handmade map of all the historic things near her, which we put to good use.

This is Lismore Castle which was beautiful from all angles with its Norman towers, its stunning flower beds and gardens and its haunting walkways.

This is one of my favorite shots of Lismore.

My next post will probably finish up my Ireland shots. Oh, I took hundreds but I'm paring them down to the most beautiful to put in my blog--a tough job!

More Ireland Photos

Here in a village south of Dublin, you see a bright red door which is indicative of an Irish custom. In Dublin lines of rowhouses have different front doors on each individual house. They are different colours often, but interestingly they are all of different architectural styles.



This is Kell's Priory--in ruins--but it reminded me of my reading about the Book of Kells, which we saw in Trinity College in Dublin. I had read all about it in Rutherfurd's 'The Princes of Ireland'.




Still at the Priory I had to get a photo of 'sheep butts' for my painter friend back home; hence, this picture.

There are many walking paths which delight a photographer. The green expanse reaches into your soul and soothes something unnamed.

Our day tour bus driver let us out along the road where we climbed a stile to get to this wonderful path. While he went on to the meeting place, we strolled this trail, camera in hand, loving the lushness of Ireland's greens.

You just have to love Ireland, eh? (That was a Canadian reference for all you readers from other countries. Ha ha.)

Ah, Ireland

Today I went looking for some pictures to write about and my fingers naturally found my Ireland CDs of shots from our June, 2004 trip. Such a beautiful land and a lovely, exuberant people. We'd go back in a heartbeat.

This is a view of and inlet towards the west coast on our way to The Dingle peninsula. We had a picnic lunch here soaking in the sea scene like thirsty plants as we munched and chatted.

We had to go to Blarney Castle as I remembered my grandmother talking about kissing the Blarney stone on her visit there. Imagine our surprise when, after waiting as our line of tourists snaked its way up the narrow steps, past single bare stone rooms on each floor, we reached the top and this view of the scene below. The centre of the castle was missing with only the outer walls still standing. For anyone who dislikes heights, this could be a bit of a challenge. When we finally made it to the kissing place, I declined as (1) I didn't want the 'helper' man holding my waist while I leaned out, and (2) I just figured I didn't need all the germs of the hordes of people who had kissed that stone before. Enough it was just to climb the tower, thank you very much.

Far more lovely and interesting to me were the remnants of other towers on the property and the lovely walking paths, complete with stone-stepped trails and the flavour of days gone by. I just love this shot, heightened with that indescribable colour of green found only in Ireland--and maybe here in Ontario in the first few weeks of spring.

My husband took this beautiful picture of me before one of the many castles we toured. Didn't he do a great job?




Finally, this is a view from the front yard of one of the Bed-and-Breakfasts that we enjoyed. It is very reminiscent of the scenic vistas that Ireland affords your eyes.



What do you think? Want to go there?

Random Thoughts

1. Did you ever wonder what kind of horrible legacy you were leaving your children? Oh, I don't mean in your will but by how you raise them. What you say when you shouldn't. Luckily, I can now see how my kids have turned out and I'm very proud of them, but I know that things we parents have said or done have had adverse effects, as well as positive ones. Makes you wonder.

2. Have you read Rutherfurd's books? I mean Sarum, Forest, London, et al? I really enjoyed them and will probably read them all over again sometime. Rutherfurd takes a setting and starts thousands of years ago, developing characters with distinct features or occupations, and then shows how that all plays out in that particular place over the centuries. Fascinating.

3. When you look at generational family photos, do you see similarities to people in your family today? Of course, we all do, and we're so surprised. At least I am. How can that be, when so many other matches introduce so much new DNA? I'm not scientific at all but I do wonder about the ability of a strong nose, a pair of dimples, a curly or white hair streak to reoccur generations later.

4. Do you ever wonder what to blog about? Well, today I did; hence, these ramblings. :-)

Sex, Booze, and Politics

Did you ever 'google' your name? or the names of those around you? This morning, for some unknown reason I slipped my mother's name into the search box and up came a website about a book written by a person of the same name. This imposter (!) is young and lives in Australia. There are many references to her as she is an actor. The funniest part was the title of the article about her book: "In her memoir of student life, Alice Garner reveals that it wasn't all sex, booze and politics."

What a hook! Of course my husband commented that for my mother, whom he loved, those things were pretty important. Ha ha.

I see an explanation is needed: My mother birthed, raised, and loved thirteen children who were born over a period of 25 years. (This is the sex part, I guess.) Quite a commitment, wouldn't you say? And she just got better and better at being a mother, and, later, a dear friend.

Booze? Well, Mom suffered from arthritis from a fairly young age and lived with a lot of pain. Also after my Dad's heart attack he was encouraged to have a drink a day, as a blood thinner, I guess. The five o'clock pick-me-up was born out of these two things and their house became a great place to drop in and chat at pick-me-up time. We had some of our best conversations during those times and that is what we miss most about my parents being gone. We could always go there and talk out whatever was happening in our lives.

Now, the politics part. Mom and Dad were ardent, card-carrying liberals. Oops, that should definitely have a capital: Liberals! They worked tirelessly over many campaigns, sometimes getting their candidates elected, more often not succeeding in this predominantly Conservative riding. Then, in 1975, Mom was asked to be the Liberal candidate for our riding. For three weeks she stumped tirelessly--losing 15 pounds in the process--up and down the county talking to people. She loved it. I had a personal epiphany on the night she lost when I realized how fearless she was, how brave to face the negatives and push on. I thank her for what she taught me about doing what you believe in, no matter how hard it is.

So when I 'googled' her name, I would have liked there to be more on her than a reference to her burial place in North Embro Cemetery. She was so much more. And, by the way, she would have laughed uproariously about this other Aussie Alice Garner.

Three Good Things Today

How can I write these when the day has barely started? I'll write in anticipation of three good things and probably many more will come my way as the day lengthens.
1. We are going to my old childhood family church this morning to hear my sister sing and to mark the fast approaching first anniversary of Ross' journey to the next step. Hopefully he will be with us in spirit as we do this.
2. We're going to a favorite spot in Stratford for lunch, one at which Ross particularly loved the salmon with his eggs et al. We'll toast his memory.
3. Later maybe we'll put together the bathroom cabinet we bought in Home Depot yesterday, mount it on the wall, and take down two old ones we have there. This is another small step in updating our bathroom.
I wish a good day to my readers, too--I'm off to the shower!