Sylvia's Simple Shots

I found White Pelicans at Beaumaris Lake this week!

The water was blue and it was very good.

Not the best shots but they are only the firsts.

Teatime for Firefly by Shona Patel

A story set in India. In prewar WII Layla Roy lived with her grandfather and she was educated. They had great discussions and she was able to debate and express her self.  One day, a young man came to visit her grandfather - Manik Deb. He was handsome, well spoken, had very good English and could rub shoulders with the British.  He is betrothed to a girl down the way.  He has a good job.

Suddenly, it is heard that Manik has taken a job on an Assam tea plantation.  Why? The marriage is eventually withdrawn as the girl is not moving to hinterland of northern India.  What was he thinking.

He had his eye on Layla.  Now with his future clear he can marry Layla.  He does and takes her far away from her home and she is meant to mingle with wives of tea planters.  She is in charge of servants and Manik works long hours.  It all works out in the end.

The White American Pelicans have arrived in Sherwood Park as well at the Heritage Hills Wetlands.

The story continues with not great photos but I will persevere.

My plan to give away the cards I make is working well.

The recipients are appreciative.

This set is headed to my niece.

The Red Winged Blackbirds are back in all the wetlands.

This was a the Heritage Hills Wetlands.  

I only had a bit of time so that is what it is.

Sylvia's Simple Shots

I finally found American White Pelicans at Beaumaris Lake.  There were at least a dozen in a couple of groups. 

They were getting along with the Canada Geese which there were somewhere around 50 of them on the water.  Thanks goodness it is a big pond.

I enjoyed an evening walk instead of my usual early morning walk. I walked from 8 to 9 pm.  It was a very nice temperature so there were loads of people on the path.

This shot was great because the reflection of the main pelican is good and you can see the reflection of the one next to him and the orange tip of its bill. The light is really good.  

The field blueberries were on sale this week.  My sister and I have been on the look out. She had often found them in her neck of the woods but with a call the regular supplier no they did not get any this year.

She called to say that one of the large supermarkets had them on sale.  I had my supper and headed out in hopes that there was supply on the shelf.  There was!

I bought enough to put 5 regular bags in the freezer and eat some fresh for a few days.

Thanks sister!

I am working on a bit of an update on the living room.

Now that I have another chair added to the mix I thought the rocking chair at minimum needed a wash and the buttons replaced.

I purchased the chair second hand back in 2016.  I had washed the covers then and as you can see it is white.

I gave it the covers a good scrub and a bit of bleach on the stains and it turned out really well.

I search my stash for buttons and choose these shell button which have a grey undertone.

It is nice to have that project done.

I am working of new cushions for the living room.  Trying to work in the ivory, deep moss green and the yellow chair colors along with the navy on the dining room table which sits in front of the balcony window.

A solution appeared!

I dropped the car at the dealership for its regular maintenance and I headed out to Fabricland to get thread and zippers for cushions I had planned.  I had purchased several different fabrics that I thought would work for the new green chair. Well, check out this upholstery fabric I found at the fabric store. It includes all the colors I would have wanted - grey, mustard, ivory, navy, warm green, and yellow in a heavier synthetic fabric. It will match all the chairs, include the navy, will last longer than cotton, and it was on sale for $5 a meter.  

I said YES!

 

I dropped off a bag of blankets to the rep for  Project Linus.  The blankets were made my 2 of my sisters.  I have not gotten back to making quilts as most of my fabric is still in storage and I believe will remain there for another while.

It was great to connect with this lady that I have been meeting for the last 5 years at least.

Project Linus provides blankets to people in emergency situations.  They are handed out by paramedics, police officers and fire fighters.  Those who need them get to keep them.

The book this week was T is for Trepass by Sue Grafton.  It was nice to have a visit with Kinsey Milhone again.  This story deals with a vulnerable senior who needs help after a fall.  There is no close family and a couple of the neighbours care but are not family. 

Someone is hired to provide care for Gus who lives next door to Kinsey and Henry Pitt.  He is known to be testy with the neighborhood kids and all around grumpy old man.  Solana Rojas was hired and Kinsey was asked as a private investigator to check out her references for the family.  Just the basics was requested.

Solana is a career criminal and has stolen an identity to get this work.  She is treating Gus very badly and has started liquidating his assets. She is restricting the neighbour's access to visit.  Kinsey is getting suspicious and eventually takes action to rescue Gus from his caregiver and saves his life.

I have to say having had ailing parents this story hit too close to home at the beginning of the story.  Generally, Kinsey deals with murders which is much removed from my world and is easier to accept in a fictional text.

My aunt invited me over to watch te movie, Avatar - The Way of Water.  We had stir fry for supper with blueberries and raspberries with yogurt for dessert. Yummy! A walk through her garden before we settled down for the movie. Only then did we discover it was over 3 hours long. It going to be a late drive home.

I watched the first movie (2009) - Avatar as soon as it came to theaters in my area. On a big screen with friends it was really great.

In this movie I found the war outweighed the family dynamics and values of the movie.  It is set up to have a third movie and I am not sure that I would watch the next one because it will be all out war.

It was a beautiful movie to watch!

Sylvia's Simple Shots

 

It was a good week for birds.  I finally found American White Pelicans at Heritage Hills Wetlands in Sherwood Park. The Junco and the Waxwing were on my morning walks.

When I have to walk and exercise inside I found walking meditations which combine 2 things I want to start my day with.

Gratitude is always a good thing.  

I heard this a couple of days ago.  What if you only had today what you thanked God for yesterday?  That is a sobering thought.

I really appreciate being to view these on my TV so I can appreciate all the beautiful scenery that is included in the videos.

Another Angel of Love - Henry K. Ripplinger

Henry continues to get support from Mr. Engelman at the grocery store.  He is still holding out hope that Jenny will be in touch but so far not a word.

Life goes on as it must.  Things are getting better at the store as renovations take place.

Henry meet Julean Carter who comes from a different background than him.  Her family heritage is the Mormon faith.  This will play a role in the future of this young couple.

Henry and Julean marry, buy a house, have children, and still Jenny is part of Henry's thoughts and dreams.

Good clean reading in another great book in this series.

Sylvia's Simple Shots

On my visit to Beaumaris Lake this week,  I found several pairs of Blue Winged Teals.  Maybe they are checking out the lake for nesting places.

These are ducks and the blue patch can only be seen when they open their wings.

I have not seen these at this lake in the past so things are different this year.  Not sure why.  I have not seen pelicans yet but a lot of Canada Geese.

A friend gave me a small art glass vase designed by Robert Held - a Canadian glass maker.

Love the gorgeous purple glass with the iridescent colors along the bottom third of the vase.

I placed some baby's breath in it for now.  Maybe, later in the year I will be able to have live flowers.

It joins my other pieces made by the same maker.

A Desperate Fortune by Susanna Kearsley which is quickly becoming one of my favorite authors.

Historical fiction set in Paris.  In the modern day, Sara an amateur code breaker has arrived to look at a diary from around 1732.  Sara comes to live with the owner of the book.  Her live-in housekeeper has a young son who seems to have abilities in this area as well. The son's father, Luc lives nearby as his parents are divorced.  Soon, there is an attraction between Sara the loner and Luc the business man.

The dairy was written by Mary Dundas who wrote it in code to be sure the contents could not be discovered by spies.  She is a second generation Jacobite exiled to France. Mary becomes embroiled in a plan to help a mysterious Jacobite man stay out of the grasp of English authorities and the diary tracks her journey over the country, her relationships with her compatriots and her budding romance with the severe MacPherson.

Loved this book!

A friend and I went out for lunch this week. I suggested Vietnamese food and she agreed.  My favorite Vietnames restaurant survived most of the pandemic then closed as other business were opening.  Disappointing.  I had to find another. I had eaten in this restaurant years ago and it was as good as I remember.  

The pelicans were at Heritage Hills Wetlands this week but due to a situation on the trail my attention was diverted for a time.  While lending a helping hand to a senior on the trail time passed so by the time I had a camera in my hand again, they were at the far end of the pond.

I decided it was too hot and I had been out too long in the heat to pursue them any further.  I was told they had been around for a couple weeks already so I will find them again on another day.

It was exciting to see them even at a distance.

A few other things I found at the wetlands.  A Mourning Cloak butterfly, a Ruddy Duck with it's blue bill and of course Poplar Fuzz.

A good week!

Sylvia's Simple Shots

I took a trip south to visit my niece and her family before summer plans take over our lives.  My sister and brother in law would be there too!

This was late June.  I took a leisure drive down and arranged to meet at her house for supper.  Several of them were headed to the Nanton Parade of Garage Sales that day.

I arrived at about 3:00 pm and connected with her husband who was home getting things ready.  I decided to head off for a walk with the camera as I had been sitting in the car for about 4 hours.  I did stop halfway for a bathroom break and a bit of a walkabout.

They live very near a large green space which I have walked before so off I went.

I found this new flower for me - Shrubby Cinquefoil.

I found Squills as well which were plentiful in the meadow.

Supper was great and it was wonderful to spend them with family.  As we headed to my nephew's condo late in the evening I saw the mountains in  the distance.  They are so big!

The next morning my sister and I took a bit of a walk so I could get some mountain photos.  I managed a few without getting too much of the city stuff in the way.

I would like to take a trip to the mountains sometime.   It's been 8 years since I was there.

My aunt invited me to sit down and watch the new Downton Abbey movie - A New Era.

I did not watch the series when it was originally broadcast but have caught reruns over the years.  I have a basic understanding of the main characters both upstairs and down.  Also, the relationships involved - the Grantham family and the relatives of the extended family.

We watched on the TV at her place which suited me just fine rather than going to a movie theatre.

We got some delicious burgers and fries to round out the evening.  She picked up burgers from Delux Burger Bar which were absolutely delicious!  Sweet Potato fries were excellent.   It was a splurge but worth it.

I was disappointed that Henry Talbot - Mary's husband did not appear in this movie.   It was a great night out for me.  Thanks so much.

I have visited the St. Albert Botanic Park again now that new flowers are blooming.  

Roses, dahlias, lilies, Johnny Jump Ups were blooming as well as many more not included in the mosaic to the left.

I love going early in the morning when not too many others are about.

I did stop by the river but there was not too much wildlife about.

It is taking a nature bath when I can be quiet, calm and enjoy taking pictures.

I have started taking video with my camera and it is a learning curve.  I took this video of the pond and water feature at the park.  Hand help recording takes a lot of practice.  The flowering Ninebark in the background, the bulrushes, the running water, the curving stream of water and the stones all make for an oasis.

I took a walk with a friend around Beaumaris Lake recently as well. It was her first time and she was amazed at having this quite large lake in the city.  We saw White Pelicans, a Cormorant, Mallard Ducks, RedWinged Blackbirds, Grackles, a Painted Turtle, Coutts, and much more.

I am always up for a Christmas story any time of the year.

This is a story of the typical life on an English green during the Christmas season.

The season comes with the Christmas play of course, presents to buy, those coming to visit, church services, meals to prepare, those in need of time, love, caring and sharing.

In this case an older woman of the village is losing her sight, has a fall and is in need of temporary care of the holidays.  A friend who now is married invites her to stay with them.  The last of her Christmas shopping is done, she helps with the meals, and they attend church services.

It is a heart warming story of friendship and neighborliness.  I enjoyed the book.

Sylvia's Simple Shots

I finally found White Pelicans at Beaumaris Lake this week.  I had not seen them last time I was there and was hoping they would return.  No Cormorants so far.

The walk around the lake was beautiful.  Not too hot, sometimes a bit too much wind, and lots of other birds.  

I was there later than usual so the amount of people was higher which makes things a little tricky.  The rehabilitation certainly has added extra wide places and look outs so that helps a lot.  It is so beautiful

The walk is 1.6 miles which is really nice.  With the camera I really forget how long it takes to get around.  It is at least an hour I think.

I finished The Dovekeepers by Alice Hoffman this week.  

I really enjoyed this book.  It has some basis on historical events. Masada is an ancient fortification in the Southern District of Israel situated on top of an isolated rock plateau, akin to a mesa. 

Herod the Great built two palaces for himself on the mountain and fortified Masada between 37 and 31 BCE.

According to Josephus, the siege of Masada by Roman troops from 73 to 74 CE, at the end of the First Jewish–Roman War, ended in the mass suicide of the 960 Sicarii rebels who were hiding there. However, the archaeological evidence relevant to a mass suicide event is ambiguous at best and rejected entirely by some scholars.

This book takes place during this event where displaced people made their way to the mountain top for safety. Four women are the main characters of the story - Yael, Revka, Aziza, and Shirah. The lives of these four complex and fiercely independent women intersect in the desperate days of the siege. All are dovekeepers, and all are also keeping secrets—about who they are, where they come from, who fathered them, and whom they love.

Again, I have to say I am attracted to strong female main characters.  I have included above the book cover from the novel on the left and the one from the book I read which is from the CBS mini series.  I recognized the actress in the blue shawl - Cote de Pablo.  I will have to check out whether it was ever put out of DVD.  It would be interesting to see it.  I would recommend this book.

My allergies have been really bad this year.  I think the dry spring did not bring rains to clear out the dust and pollens.

I generally only have my eyes affected and my optometrist has recommended switching to eye drops instead of using a systemic antihistamine.  While visiting with family for Dad's funeral in May we went for a couple long walks in farm fields which really made my allergies really flare up.  My sister shared the drops she uses and so when I got back to the city and invested in a bottle.  They worked pretty well here in the city.

We have had rain which improved things for me quite a bit.   I can finally say this week by Thursday I no longer needed meds to manage them. That should be it till next May.

The are not predicting the temperatures we had last summer but the fan has been running in the nights for about 10 days already.

I have started setting up the fan this way.  It is perpendicular to the floor so I don't have it hitting me directly but it moves the air around the room.  This is quite effective.

It is quieter for sleeping as well.

I tried this new pizza from Dr. Oetker this week.  I had seen the ads on TV and it was on sale so I decided to try it.

Dr. Oetker is my go to brand for pizza.  I normally buy the Ristorante ones - normally the Funghi but have tried several flavors.

This new was good!  As you can see from my photo it looks as good as the box suggests.  This one was full of veggies which was great. 

Every once in a while we have to stretch ourselves outside our comfort zones and try new things.  It may just be a good thing and expand our world a little.  I need it after being so isolated.

I really enjoyed it and would recommend it.

I had my first visit to the St. Albert Botanic Park this week. 

There were a few flowers blooms but it is just the very beginning. I got a Bearded Iris, a Globeflower, the white Anemones, a Rose and Bergenia.

The dahlias were not ready at all, there were just a couple of roses so plenty more to come. 

I will make several more trips this summer.

Sylvia's Simple Shots

I went for a really long walk Sunday morning but a bit more about that later.

The fruit trees are all in bloom.  These are the blossoms of a small crab apple tree.  It was full of flowers.

I love the deep rich color of the blossoms.

I found these at a park I normally visit once or twice a year.  It  has a large man made storm water pond and generally supports many waterfowl.  

The trail that surrounds it is 1.7 miles long. It was originally built in 1977 so an upgrade is due.

Unfortunately, with the significant renovations done to the path way which goes around it things will be disrupted most of the summer.

My regular entrance was cut off so I had to walk a ways just to access the water and the start of the grey line in this picture. 

Then I got to the end of the grey line which is where I found this sign. It led me to the neighbourhood to the north.  I should have paid more attention to the map because I spent the next 40 minutes walking on city streets trying to get back to my car. 

The best option would have been to turn around and go back the way I came, at least I would have seen more birds and wildlife.  I have learned my lesson.

These are some of the birds I did find walking along the trail on the edge of the water.

An American White Pelican but only one.  Generally there are a lot of them here.  No Cormorants.  

The House Finch was singing her heart out which did my heart good!

Many Mallard Duck couples were feeding and swimming.

As you can see the Red Neck Grebe was sitting on her nest with her partner very nearby.  In the past I have had a hard time finding nests but I found 2 on Sunday.

This is the book I finished this week.  I can always count on Nicholas Sparks for a family friendly story with heart.  

True Believer is a story about a science journalist, Jeremy Marsh from New York who visits a small town in North Carolina to investigate mysterious ghostly lights in a local cemetery.  The phenomenon brings much needed tourism to the area. Lexie Darnell is the local librarian who has returned to live near family.   She has had her heart broken and is not interested in going down that road again.

Lexie serves as local guide for Jeremy and the sparks fly but Lexie is cautious about getting involved.  Jeremy is head over heels. He works out the mystery but can he convince Lexie his love is true?

It all works out in the end.

We have had some gorgeous warm +20C days in the last week.

It was time to dig out the trusty Keens sandals which came highly recommended by my niece when I bought them.  I can vouch for this brand of sandals.  I have had worn a pair for at least 10 years. 

When I put them on yesterday but the elastic on one of them broke!  With a closer examination there were other issues so they needed to be replaced and quick!  I search on line and found a store in my neighbourhood, called to be sure they had my size and headed out to purchase a new pair. Yellow with black and grey, perfect!  In all of 10 minutes they were mine. They were pricey but worth every penny.
 

I had a challenge this week on Flickr which was letters.  I decided to do a still life and put words out into the universe that are life giving.

I created a small bouquet with dried flowers and grasses.

The letters are by Tim Holtz and I have had them for a long time but lost them for a while and recently rediscovered them.

Love the letters.  Wood blocks at least 1/2 inch deep so they stand on their own.

As you can see a variety of colors.  Love them and I have added them to the photography studio props.

Deleted Blog Posts! 

Did anyone else lose blog posts this week?  I had 14 posts deleted due to possible contravention of Googles Community guidelines.  I later got followup emails saying the posts have been reinstated but they are still gone.

The challenge on Flickr Macro Mondays this week was soap.  This is one of a few shots I took for the challenge.  A lot of potential in this subject matter.  You can check out my Flickr Photostream (SMDPics) to see the shot I submitted.

I am  sharing with Angie who hosts Mosaic Monday #131 and 

Mersad who hosts Through My Lens #289.

Have a good and safe week!

Sylvia's Simple Shots

I found American Coot babies at the Heritage Hills Wetlands yesterday!  They are so hilarious!

They have huge colors in red and yellow.  Then that fuzzy hairdo just makes me smile!   I thought I had missed the babies but like most things this year a little late.

The mother was collecting vegetation from below the water and feeding them one at a time.  There were 3 little babies!

There were a couple of White Pelicans too!  They were eating - dip their beaks in and swallow. Up and down which made getting good photos tough.  These look a little scruffy.

Yes, Mama by Helen Forrester was a good book.  The story of Alicia Woodman, a blonde blue eyed little girl growing up in a house with dark haired parents.  Put into the care of a nanny, Polly Ford who has lost a husband and a baby, to ensure she does not incur the wrath of her father or see the indifference of her mother.  It was a win for the nanny as now she had a room, food, clean clothes, and a bit of a wage.  The child was loved and cared for.  There is quite a bit of insanity before it concludes with a wonderful end.

I am diving head first into this DIY hair cutting trend due to COVID 19.  I have cut it once but it was a desperate big trim basically.

I decided that I needed some proper tools to do the job well going forward.  I have someone I know that gets hers cut with a No.1 comb on a hair trimmer.  I was not quite ready for that but it looked really good on her.

I was late to the game so I had to wait a while for the trimmers to be in stock again at my local drug store.

I needed a hair cutting cape.  I started with a dollar store tablecloth.  I sewed it to a piece of deep yellow fabric with navy seam binding.  I did the full outside edge. Then I cut the key hole in the back and added the seam binding around that creating the ties at the same time.  I made the front longer so I can tack it to the metal sink with magnets to catch the hair which will help with clean up.

Now I needed a mirror behind me to help me see what I was doing.

I had a full length mirror that I could hang on the bathroom door.  I used some copper wire and ran it through the holes in the top corners.  I made curly cues on the front.

I adjusted the length of the wire by twisting to shorten until it was at a good height.  It needed to be at an angle so I put a roll of TP behind to create the angle I needed.  Perfect.  The photo you see is the long hair version from a few days ago.

I did watch several YouTube videos before I took the plunge this morning.  I am pretty happy with the final results.

The Flickr Macro Monday Challenge for this week is "Label".  You can check my Flickr Photostream - SMDPics for the one I submitted.

Of course, there is a plethora of labels in our lives.  Some are stuck on, some are tied on, and some part of the object they label.

This is the metal label on my stainless steel turquoise necklace and chain.  If you look close you can see it engraved on the lobster claw clasp as well.

I am sharing with Angie who hosts Mosaic Monday #84 and Mersad who hosts Through My Lens #244.

Share Your Cup

We celebrated Canada's 150th birthday on the weekend.

I decided to have a red and white breakfast.  I made whole wheat pancakes. I put with high bush cranberry syrup in my red and white bowl.  I had my tea in the matching mug.  Cream for my tea and pancake syrup was served in a glass creamer. I chose a white IKEA plate with a bit of butter on a small china plate.

I did collect some small flags which I placed in a small vase.  I landed a Canada 150 commemorative water bottle.

I was very good and a nice relaxing breakfast.


A visit to the Community Garden gave me a lovely deep pink rose with an ant highlighted on the left.  I love the moody photo of a light pink peony on the right.  They have been so nice this year.

I bought a coffee table photo book by a local photographer, Daryl Benson.  It had been advertised and I was intrigued.  It is a wonderful book with photos from across the country.  Really enjoyed looking at and will go back to it for inspiration.

The scrapbook store was promoting 50% sales on quite a few items so I thought it was worth a trip.  I had been making a lot tea related cards for a challenge and had hoped to land a Tim Holtz Tea Time die. No luck and I am really in stash busting mode so no other product came home with me.


 

I spent several hours walking around Beaumaris Lake and captured a lot of wild life.  There was a hare baby, Canada Geese, ducks of all kinds, a Coot, a Ring Billed Gull and Red Wing Black Bird.These photos are Ring Necked Grebe on the left and checkout the little head sticking out on her back.  The little one is hitching a ride. The right has a Double Crested Cormorant and a American White Pelican sitting on a structure in the middle of the lake.  All eyes are on me.

I have been sewing.  We have a family event coming up and there a request for donations of items as a fundraiser to support the rent of a facility.

I made a set of flat ware roll and placement combo which facilitates outdoor eating.  I added a small coordinating napkin which makes it completely zero waste.  Just wash and reuse.

I chose a bright pink and purple floral fabric a coordinating pink solid.
I cut the place mat pieces at 13Tx19.5W one from each fabric.  The pocket was cut at 8Tx19.5 W.  It was hemmed at the top and then sandwiched between the layers and a white ribbon was added on the left hand side. After stitching all the way around and it was turned inside out.  I over stitched all the way around the outside edge.  I then created slots on the right hand side one for each knife, fork and spoon.  A wider one for the napkin.  I had just enough fabric left over to make a small napkin with a floral header.  Place the flatware, the napkin and there is still pocket for anything else you might want to include. Once the complete just fold the top edge down then roll from the right hand side going toward the ribbon ties.  This will ensure your flatware stays in place.  There were some designs which did not have the flap but I thought it was critical.



Sharing with Share Your Cup #255 hosted by Jann at Daily Cup with Mrs. Olson.