Back Into the Light

I had a bright idea as this year dawned.  And that was to record the changing light on my view of Rose Bay from winter to summer and back again.  So I vowed to take a photograph every day of the year at exactly 5pm from exactly the same spot.

I learned that it’s really tricky to remember to do that everyday at the same time, particularly as the days get longer.  It’s impossible when you are away for the better part of one month (as we were in May). And as summer warmed up, the project was forgotten completely.

However, for the record, here is the transition of light from winter to summer here in my corner of this northern county:

January 1 & 25

February 13& 28

March 23 & April 18

April 27 & June 18

This little study illustrates that winter may have come late to us in 2015 (no snow until in February), but it sure stayed late……… (Sigh).

WPC – transition

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Trio

Three guys … Just waiting for their coffee.

San Miguel de Allende, Mexico (May 2015)

Weekly Photo Challenge – Trio

A Walk in Gatineau Park

With all the heart breaking news reports and difficult conversations taking place at this moment, it kinda feels like a good time for a walk in the woods.  About a month ago, we were in Ottawa, with a day all to ourselves. We opted to leave the city behind and explore Gatineau Park. Come along, and I’ll show you a little of what we saw ………

This conservation park covers 361 square peaceful kilometres of land, but is just 15 minutes from downtown Ottawa.  It is popular with locals and visitors alike, apparently attracting 2.7 million visits a year.  But on this day we were lucky…. It was a chilly, damp Monday and the place was relatively quiet, but as you can see, still very beautiful.

After a couple of hours of exploring, we made our way to the Mackenzie King Estate, a country property of the former prime minister, bequeathed to all of Canada. It’s now part of the Park.

It seemed like the right thing to do, so we finished off with a warming visit to the Tea Room.

 

 

Victory in Harvest

900 pounds of grapes!  This year’s grape harvest represented a brilliant victory for our little vineyard.  Last year, raccoons had a bit of a party just a few nights before harvest.  They left us with 320 pounds of fruit.  Nice, eh? We are struggling to figure out how they managed to compromise the electric fencing, but they did it.  This year, however, we were vigilant – patrolling the fencing every evening and morning for the weeks before harvest – and it payed off beautifully.

That 320 pounds took us all day to pick; we were a team of just two – one removing the bird netting, one picking grapes.  This year however. we were joined by family and friends to make a bit off a party of our own.  Not only were we finished by early afternoon, we had lots of fun together.

Take that raccoons!  This year, it was our turn!

WPC – Victory

Remembrance Day Canada

Today in Canada, as we have since 1919, we are observing Remembrance Day. It is at the 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month that we are asked to pause and have a moment of silence in recognition of those men and women who have lost their lives in military service to […]

http://elengrey.com/2015/11/11/remembrance-day-canada/

On Remembrance Day …

POPPIES – watercolour

c Janet Rimmington Fine Art

Classically Ornate

The iconic New York Stock Exchange, 18 Bond Stret, NYC.

Just looking at this photo makes my feet hurt – we walked for about 12 hours (with breaks for refreshments) and covered about 50k the day it was taken.  But that’s fodder for another story.  😉

Weekly Photo Challenge – Ornate

That Was A Treat!

Two weeks ago, I was in Ottawa with my travelling husband and the trip happened to coincide with our Federal  election.  I was very curious to witness the atmostphere in the capital city during an election.  Would it be like being in the home town when an important sports games was being played?(cue the “O-K! Blue Jays” anthem)  It wasn’t!  A cold, grey, drizzly night – it was especially quiet.  Even for Ottawa.

But the next day was an entirely different story.  There was a buzz of chatter everywhere, as the reality of our newly elected majority government sank in.  The place felt a little lighter, maybe a little hopeful. Even the sun came out.

I found myself on Wellington Street in the afternoon, sharing a crosswalk with our handsome, newly minted Prime Minister.  He was surrounded by a gaggle of photographers – I was not. I did have my camera, however, and I’m pretty sure he’s looking straight at me in this shot!  What a treat for me!

In addition to the relief and happiness of the election results, which the majority of the population obviously feel is a treat for the country, I can’t help but reflect on what a treat it is to live in a country in which the Prime Minister can share a crosswalk with the likes of me.

Weekly Photo Challenge: Treat