Tuesday 4 ~ The Four Seasons

Glad to have you back for Toni Taddeo's Tuesday 4.

The idea is to promote blogging and friendship and allow you to get to know yourself and others through 4 questions asked each week.   

Let's talk about the seasons. Summer has just passed and we have begun our journey into autumn.

1. How would you describe each of the four seasons? 

 

Fall - crisp, cosy, nature, gold and orange, long shadows, bare branches, layers, spice, hot beverages, heavier food, busy, sad because winter is coming

Winter - cold, rain, heavy rain, gray, very little sunshine, short days, unpredictable, indoor activities, heavy clothes, anticipating spring

Spring - renewal, joy, new shoots, leaves unfurling, wonder, green, colourful, birds

Summer - heat, sunny, too much watering of the garden, unpredictable, wildfires

2.  How do you generally feel during each season? Do you suffer allergy, feel tired, sad, happy, energized? What does each season do for you?

 

Generally I feel a lot of joy and energy as soon as spring arrives.  I also feel a bit of anxiety because I'm always behind in getting the house in order and the gardens planted in readiness for summer season. I usually get behind no matter how I try. Though I love the autumn season it is also when I suffer the most with physical ailments such as cold, flu, aches and pains and stuffed nose due to allergies. I also suffer from stuffed nose and congested sinuses during spring when all the new growth happens.

 

Despite the physical discomforts I love both spring and fall best. Sadness also attends me (and many other locals) in the fall season because I'm sad about the coming winter.  We get very little light in our winter months and the sky seldom breaks clear.  I feel tired for much of the winter season due to the lack of light and I make a special effort to get out to concerts and movies and other social events so that I don't stay in the house for too long a stretch.  Outings are not that affordable any more but still I look for special events that are doable & affordable.  I also try and get friends to join in with me for a social outing.

3.  If there is to be only one season for you to live in, which one would it be and why?

 

Probably the spring season. I absolutely love the joy and happiness I get from the reawakening of nature all around me, the end of gray and dark skies, arrival of the longer, sunny days and people out and about after a winter of hibernation. It is also my favourite time of year because of the cherry blossoms that happen in April. The blossoms are just stunning and one of the great joys I look forward to each year.

4. What color(s) do you associate with summer, winter, autumn and spring?  Example: maybe summer is green, winter is white..etc.

 

Fall - orange, gold, yellow, red, brown, tan

Winter - gray, blue-ish gray, brown, earth tones

Spring - white, blue, light pink, dark pink, red, yellow, lavender and so on.

Summer - every colour of spring, various shades of green,blue of the water and mountains

Thanks for stopping by!

 

Books to Films

Once again it is time for Toni Taddeo's Tuesday 4 in memory of Toni Taddeo. Today's subject is books turned into films.

Here we go:

1. What book turned into a film did you enjoy?

I enjoyed The English Patient very much and The Life of Pi as movies. I'm sure I've enjoyed a few more books turned into films, like Out of Africa (more on that later) but I cannot remember them at the moment. 

2. Did you ever find the film version of a book to be better than the book or was the book better than the film and which book was it.

The English Patient was a book that for my taste was a far better film than book.  I guess I watched the film to see if it was any better than the book and it was!

3. If you could decide what book should be a movie, which would it be and who would you get to play the main characters?

I've enjoyed so many books over the years and many of them have been turned into films which I've enjoyed.  Generally I find that books are better than the movies. But sometimes I am surprised.  For example, the movie, Out of Africa is based on bits and pieces of several books by the author Karen Blixen (pen name Isak Dineson) rather than one book.  The movie puts all the relevant pieces of the author's life together for you to enjoy a cohesive story.  After seeing the visually appealing and emotionally touching movie, I read all of Karen Blixen's books about her time in Kenya and also several books by other expats living in Kenya.  They were all very interesting and enlarged my understanding of the nation of Kenya, especially her colonial past.

An interesting book to turn into a film would be  The Signature of All Things by Elizabeth Gilbert. It's a highly unexpected kind of book from the author and I thoroughly enjoyed it. My pick for the main character would be Jenna Coleman, the British actress. She played Queen Victoria in the historical mini-series of the same name. I think she would bring a great depth of character to the female protagonist in The Signature of All Things.  Another book I'd like to see turned into a film is A Fine Balance by Rohinton Mistry. I don't have suggestions for actors but I think all the roles need to be played by South Asian actors.

4. Have you watched a movie and then had to go read the book or has the opposite occurred and influenced you to see the movie?

Yes indeed. I've both watched movies then read the books and also read the books then watched the movies. Out of Africa is probably the most impactful movie causing me to do a lot more reading of books by expat authors in Kenya and also Kenyan authors and authors from other African nations. Probably the most famous or well known of these is Nigerian author, Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie. I thoroughly enjoyed several of her books especially Half a Yellow Sun which tells the story of the Biafran War.

Well that's it for this week.

Thanks for joining in and come again next week!

Tuesday 4 ~ Bug Out!

 

Hi friends and fellow bloggers,

Welcome to October and welcome once again to Tuesday 4 in memory of Toni Taddeo, hosted by her good friend Annie of Cottage by the Sea.

Where I live we are still in summer mode and the autumn hasn't really arrived yet. Perhaps in another week or so. In the eastern part of Canada and USA there have been high winds, tree splitting winds and buckets of rain and several hurricanes. Since the east coast is experiencing hurricanes and tropical storms let us explore the topic.

 1. Expert survivalists and weather experts say it is wise to have a bug out bag handy in case of evacuation, hurricane, earthquake or any emergency. You can see online how to create one. Do you have an emergency kit or bug out bag?

Yes, I have an emergency kit consisting of a small suitcase and a backpack. The backpack has the barest essentials if there is no time to grab both bags.  Where I live we are likely to experience emergencies relating to wild fires, flooding or earthquakes. Hopefully we will never have to deal with any of it but being a bit prepared takes some of the edge off the possibility (just a little anyway).

 2. Do you have plans with your family on where to meet and what to do in case of emergency? 

 

Whatever plans we had need to be revisited and updated because family composition has changed since I last updated the kit.

 3. Do you keep your phone well charged and your gas tank topped off ? Is your flashlight kept fresh with batteries? Do you have a list of what to go where to go? 

 

Yes and I try to keep the power bank charged up. I have so many flashlights and battery operated lamps. I need to invest in more batteries as I seem to be low on what I need.

 4. How about a little stash of emergency goods and foods to last a week or two? They say it pays to do this.. do you?

I have meal bars and water from the emergency packs you buy at the store and I added a bit more. These need to be changed out from time to time as they get old but I don't change them as often as recommended.  I figure that they will still be "good enough" in a pinch even if the taste is not quite as good. I'd like to buy some dried foods but whenever I've looked into it it seems like they only come in very large quantities. It's probably time to look on line again to see what is available. Update:  I found a Canadian company called Good2GoCo that has a wonderful selection of foods and other items in small and large quantities. The foods and water have a very long shelf life so I think this is where I will be purchasing from soon. The food is sourced from Augason Farms which is based in Utah and so you can purchase from a number of retailers (Home Depot, Walmart, Amazon, Winco or from Augason directly).

 

In other news, I haven't blogged about the Kenyan missions.  While Jonah and I have been busy getting organized we have also tried to continue with some missions efforts from afar. I hope to provide a short update in the not too distant future.  If anyone would like to contribute to the work the donate button on the right hand side of this blog is always open. If you should experience any problems/issues with it, please let me know and I can try to resolve it. Thank you and God bless!

 

Thanks so much for stopping by!

 

 

Tuesday 4 - Autumn Trip

Welcome back to Tuesday 4 in memory of Toni Taddeo. Thank you for stopping by to visit and for (hopefully) leaving a comment. Enjoy your week ahead!

Today we're planning a lovely vacation through New England to see the Autumn leaves.  Money is no object and we have all the time we would like or need for the trip.

1. How many days and  nights would you like to be away?

For my trip to New England I would love to have at least 2 weeks to enjoy the lovely countryside, spectacular autumn leaves, historic sites and beaches. For accommodations we would prefer to stay at some of the lovely historic B & B's but at the ocean front we would love a beach house, preferably a bungalow all to ourselves so we can relax, unwind and come and go as we like to the beach front.

2. What kind of car would you like to take on this trip? Maybe you would enjoy the train? Would you sail up the coast in a yacht?

Most likely we would take a car or rent one after flying to the airport at our first stop. It is so nice to be able to have the freedom to come and go as one wishes to either see the sites or take in dinner and events. If we had a friend who owned a yacht and lived on the east coast, we would most certainly love to spend some time sailing with them up the coast.  Alas we don't know anyone who fits the description so we'll stick to the land by car.

3. Would side trips be on your agenda? Perhaps to Mystic, Connecticut, Salem, Massachusetts, Plimouth, (yes, they spelled it with an "i" ) Massachusetts, Walden Pond, Lizzie Borden's home or maybe the home of  Emily Dickinson, etc.

Side trips are most definitely on the agenda. I absolutely love the autumn season and would love to see as many places as possible. I've spent a short amount of time travelling through some of New England (Maine, New Hampshire, Massachusetts & Connecticut) on the way to New York City several years ago.  However it was a real drive through trip travelling back to the Province of Quebec in order to board our flight back to the west cost of Canada. It was late spring or early summer and the leaves hadn't yet turned colour. On this trip I would love to spend time and visit Walden Pond and the home of Emily Dickinson as well as visit some of the historic sites like the Freedom Trail. I would also love to spend several days enjoying the Cape Cod seashore and stay at a lodging along the seashore. Last but not least it would be fun to see Yale and Harvard up close as I've heard so much about these institutions of higher learning. However, all in all, the main purpose would be to enjoy the autumn leaves which I find are more plentiful and vibrant in the eastern part of Canada and the USA.

 4. Lobster roll, chowders, boiled dinners, brown bread, baked beans,  pancakes with real maple syrup, blueberry muffins, Parker House Rolls (well loved by Charles Dickens, Nathaniel Hawthorne, Henry Wadsworth Longfellow,  the Kennedy clan.), Toll House Cookies, Red Flannel Hash, Tourtiere  pork pie, (Recipe here)— what native foods catch your attention?

Any and all the food sounds wonderful. I like to sample the local foods wherever I travel. I think the Tourtiere Pie would be so tasty and lobster rolls, chowders and baked beans sound just right for the season.

Tuesday 4 - September 2022

Hello and welcome back to Toni Taddeo's Tuesday 4  hosted by the lovely Annie at Cottage by the Sea.

The "Ber" months have begun: September, October, November and December.   Let's talk about  September okay?

1. When you were in school or university, did you look forward to returning? Why or why not?

Yes, I was always excited to return to school or university. As a child it was a bit exciting to go with mom and other siblings to find what was on our annual list of things to buy for school supplies. It was also the time of year when we got new clothes. Back then one didn't buy new clothing that often like we do today. As I moved out of the house and on to university it was still exciting returning to campus and dorm life or looking for an apartment in the city. There was always a lot to do with selecting classes, finding an apartment, furnishing it and so on. I never had enough money to live in one place all year long so did a lot of moving in those days from dorm to home, home to dorm or home to apartment and back and so on. Fall is my favourite season so it was always nice to do my university preparations in the cooler weather. Of course, back to school also meant a chance to reconnect with dear friends.

2. September has  Labor Day, which, for many is the signal of summer's end and fall's grand entrance.  Do you celebrate Labor Day in any way or is it just a day off for you?

I don't do anything special for Labour Day. It is basically a time for me to stay put and get organized for the change of season and whatever is coming.  I especially avoid travel on Labour Day or any other holiday as it is far too chaotic. 

3. September's birthstone is the Sapphire which is 2nd only to a diamond in hardness. (Ruby is a red sapphire by the way) It comes in many colors.  Do you know your birthstone and do you like it?

I absolutely love the sapphire stone. It is the birthstone of both of my brothers. I like the deep blue colour of sapphire and prefer it to my birthstone which is emerald.  Years and years ago I purchased a classic 3 stone sapphire ring surrounded by small diamonds. I never removed it from my finger and over the years I couldn't remove it because I'd gained a lot of weight. From time to time I thought about getting the ring cut off but I didn't want to ruin it so I kept it on. One day, not too many months ago, I finally was able to get it off. My was I surprised and relieved. Even though that was many months ago my finger still has an indentation around it where the ring used to be. I find that odd because it wasn't so tight and would turn around and around. I just couldn't get it over my now enlarged knuckle. I've kept the ring and perhaps one day will wear it again.

4. September's birth flower is the Astor. What is yours ?

My birth flower is Lily of the Valley. I don't think I've ever seen a Lily of the Valley in real life though I've read that it doesn't thrive or survive in hot weather but can live for decades in a cooler climate. That sounds like me! I also discovered that the Lily of the Valley is a poisonous plant but it symbolizes absolute purity, youth, sincerity, and discretion. But most importantly, it symbolizes happiness. That sounds pretty good! I remember when I was a tween, I would find soaps and perfumes in shops with this scent. It smells lovely and apparently in France they celebrate La Fête du Muguet (Lily of the Valley Day) on May 1st.

Thanks for visiting. All my scenic photos were taken in September over the past 4 years.

Summertime and the Living is Easy?

 Welcome back to Toni's Tuesday 4!  We need to enjoy every season to the fullest even those of us for whom summer is not the favourite season.

1. What do you like to do in the summer?

Sad to say that summer is not my favourite season. Primarily because it is too hot. So what I like to do to avoid heat is to stay indoors and sit as still and as quiet as possible. It's my time for watching television, reading and doing slow housework. When I have more time I like to go to the beach and have a nice walk to enjoy the ocean breezes and spectacular scenes.  

 

Summer is also usually the time I enjoy having a visitor or two but the last few years this didn't happen. Hopefully next year.  This year I've been spending a lot of time downsizing and doing small DIY projects so I can enjoy the months ahead.

2. What is your favorite summertime food and beverage?

My favourite summertime food is probably a well done cheeseburger with potato salad and a very cold lemonade with ice (not too sweet) or a iced coca cola with lemon juice. Oh, and let me not forget many varieties of ice cream and fruits, especially watermelon to quench the thirst. In former days I enjoyed having a Mr. Misty Float from the Dairy Queen. I had a few this summer but now I find them too sweet and tart at the same time.

3. How do you beat the heat?

I beat the heat by sitting indoors at home or in an air conditioned coffee shop. When I go outdoors I tend to walk in the shaded areas as the sun is too hot for me.

4. What do you really like about the summer season?

The best thing about the summer season is going for a walk on the beach to enjoy the ocean views & waking up very early just to watch the glorious colours in the sky. I also like to enjoy the garden when it is in full bloom.

Thank you for stopping by!

 

 

Tuesday 4 - House & Home

Hello and welcome to Toni Taddeo's Tuesday 4 hosted by Annie who writes a blog called Cottage by the Sea.

Today's these is home secrets for keeping house and person clean. Maybe we will learn a few tips from one another.

1.   What household tool or appliance do you rely on a lot?

Like most western households these days I have many household appliances. I use most of them on a regular basis but I rely on the washer and dryer and the vacuum cleaner the most. During heat waves I also rely on several fans because I have no air conditioning.

2.   Which laundry detergent, fabric softener, and dish detergent work best for you?

I've always used Palmolive for hand washing dishes because it was the sole dish detergent featured in television commercials back in the day. I still use it but now I also use Dawn.  Sometimes I also use Ivory.  I  interchange between these 3 with Dawn being the primary dish detergent I use.  I  also use several kinds of liquid laundry detergent: Purex, Arm & Hammer and  Freshex (1st and 3rd one are free of dyes and perfumes). To be honest, I have not researched to see how environmentally friendly any of these products but in a quick search I see there are concerns about both Palmolive and Dawn.  I'll need to investigate further but slowly I am moving toward using fewer chemically based products. When I had a front loading washing machine I made my own powdered laundry soap but now that I now I own a front loading HE washer, I buy liquid soap for such machines.  I don't use fabric softener but I do use fabric dryer sheets. I sometimes use wool dryer balls instead of fabric sheets and plain white vinegar in the rinse cycle to deodorize towels and linens.

3.   What soap do you like to use?   Where do you have soap in your home... bathroom, kitchen, shower?

I use liquid  castille soap which I use only for body soap in the shower, not for household cleaning.  Castille soap is made of plant oils — coconut, hemp, sunflower seed, jojoba and olive. I used to buy Dr. Bronner's brand but it is quite expensive. Now I buy exclusively at a place called Soap Dispensary where they sell oils, soaps and many products in whatever amount you want and they dispense everything into recyclable containers which you pay for on deposit. You get your deposit back when you take the container back for cleaning and reuse by another. I also use bar soap from time to time, primarily soap made with Shea Butter, Goat's milk or Olive Oil. I also use Ivory bar soap from time to time. I keep liquid hand soap in the bathroom, castille liquid soap in the shower, dish detergent in the kitchen and laundry detergent in the laundry closet.

4.   What is the secret to a clean home in your opinion?

The secret to a clean home is not to leave things undone each day. Everything needs to be picked up and put away or folded and put away or washed (like dishes). The other thing is to take care of "hot spots", places that accumulate clutter. For me it's my desk and dining table, for others it may be the kitchen counter and so on. A few minutes each day, or a set time each week, to tackle such things will go a long way to keep everything tidy.  Regular decluttering will also help. As I've aged I've faced various health challenges and taken on possessions of loved ones who passed on.  Now I have a huge job to get things to a cleaner, tidier state and in better working order. I've been working away for a long time already to get things in better order.  Slowly I'm getting there but it is a challenge.

Washing dishes is my least favourite chore but I like a clean sink.

Thanks so much for stopping by! 

Have a great week ahead.

Restaurants and Eating Out

Welcome back to Toni Taddeo's Tuesday 4 in memory of Toni Taddeo and hosted by Annie at the blog, Cottage by the Sea.

Today's theme is restaurants and eating out.

1 Do you like eating out with friends or would you rather have them over for a meal?  

 

I would love to host friends for a meal but I no longer have the energy to do all the cleaning, shopping, food preparation and cooking, hosting guests then cleaning up. So whenever possible I meet up with a friend for one on one casual dining or coffee dates. I save the hosting for the odd holiday meal but the past few years of course I haven't had anyone over for any meal.  When I finally complete downsizing, organizing and refreshing my small home I may enjoy hosting again.  But then again, maybe not.

Vietnamese Pho Soup

2. Let's go out to eat. You pick.  Where are we going ?

 

If it's possible I like going to a lunch buffet where each of us can choose the things we like, take our time and savour all the goodies. But the hotel I liked to go to for buffet lunches hasn't reopened the service since Covid and I doubt they will again. It means I'll likely choose an ethnic restaurant (Greek, Chinese, Japanese, Vietnamese, Indian, African, primarily Ethiopian or Kenyan). I also like western food but these days it's hard to find such a restaurant. Sometimes I get to Denny's for their salads and sandwiches and there is the odd restaurant that serves the mom and pop style food I like.  Yesterday I had a Clubhouse sandwich for the first time in years. I don't eat out so frequently anymore unless I'm travelling. Then I eat almost all my meals out unless I stay in an Air BnB and it is properly equipped for cooking. I occasionally eat lunch or dinner out when I stay in an Air BnB and cook the odd meal. It's nice to have a place to make simple soups and meals and to have a place to put fruits and drinks.  It's a lot easier on the budget and eating out several times a day also gets boring.

3. What are you going to order tonight?

 

Normally we order chicken wings, pizza or Chinese food. All of these tend to be more economical than other foods. If we dine out we often go for steak, ribs, Greek food or Vietnamese food or other ethnic foods. My DH likes beef, chicken and fish in that order, pork less so. He isn't adventurous enough yet to try the type of fish we serve on the west coast of Canada.  I  prefer chicken when eating out and I also cook a lot of chicken.

4.  Are you going to have dessert?  

 

It depends what we eat. I likely won't add dessert unless I'm going for lunch and taking hours to eat because eating the meal is filling enough.  The one place I used to go quite frequently to meet friends is no longer open for buffet but they used to have many different desserts on offer and they were all good. You could take a sliver of each item you liked if you didn't want to over do things or you could simply have one item of your choice. I'm always amazed at how much some people can eat and they always seem to be the skinny ones!

 

Books and Reading

Welcome to Toni Taddeo's Tuesday 4.   Today we are talking about books and reading. Those that don't read might  consider substituting movies and TV programs. I'm posting a little early this week. (I see there is an issue with the font size in some of my answers. I hope to correct it soon).

 

1.  What book brought out your emotions and why?

A book that regularly brings out my emotions is The Holy Bible, the inspired word of God. It really touches me when I learn and see the way God spoke to his people throughout the Bible, the hardships and tribulations they went through and the miracles that many experienced. I also love the teachings as to how to live as a believer and follower of Christ. Despite the different times we live in today there is still so much relevance in the scriptures for these contemporary times.

As for secular books that brought out my emotions I'm sure there have been many over the years but the ones that come to my mind are: The Kite Runner by Afghan-American author Khaled Hosseini and A Fine Balance by Rohinton Mistry. These were two masterfully told stories that really brought out my emotions as I read what all the characters went through. I've since read several books by both authors and I've enjoyed most of them.

2.  How has reading changed your life both for good or for bad? What you get out of it?  All in all, I would say that reading has changed my life for the good especially since I was introduced to Jesus and the Bible (reading) in my youth. Reading and learning from scriptures has been an amazing journey throughout my life and my hope and prayer is that more people would come to experience it for themselves. I've also really enjoyed reading books in general throughout my school years though I only really started reading more avidly once I started setting reading goals.  I like reading books of substance.  Books that are more weighty and take time to read rather than lightweight books that take only 2 hours to breeze through.  This preference obviously impacts on how many books I can read in a year and I have to remind myself of that. Sometimes I do feel like a slacker when it comes to the quantity of books I read because some people literally read hundreds of books in a year. I try to challenge myself a bit in how much I read but I'm also very mindful of the need for time to do many other things so my annual reading goals are on the modest side.  Since I've been keeping a record of the type of books I read, I've discovered that I have a preference for historical fiction but I also like to intersperse this kind of reading with reading to learn new things.  For example, I borrow cookbooks to get new recipe ideas, self-help books for the latest information on women's health issues, craft books for new patterns and so on.  I get a lot out of reading books and supplement my learning with a lot of on-line reading. I can scan through or read hundreds of articles in any given week. This kind of reading helps me keep current on a lot of things of interest.

3.   What character(s) do you love and which do you hate and why?

I'm not sure I really hate or love characters from books. My feelings don't usually go to particular characters but rather, to particular stories. I love historical fiction books best as the stories often unfold through hours of reading and give time for better development of the story line and the characters in them. Though my feelings about particular characters don't often surface, I do recall feeling great emotion about Anna Karenina in the book of the same name. I remember watching this story long before reading it.  The film was an old black and white movie with the titular role played by Greta Garbo. The film made a huge impact on my young mind because I saw that in certain countries and at certain times in history, the lives and options available to women were very limited.  So much so that dear Anna throws herself in front of an oncoming train to escape her situation. I was deeply saddened by this. There is a lot more to this story that I can recount here but the story has many issues to unpack and Leo Tolstoy is/was a masterful story teller. Of course, the lives of women in many countries continues to be limited or restrained today and I feel  very blessed to have been born in Canada where I've had the freedom to pursue my life as I've wished. I don't take it for granted.

When it comes to the Bible, I have one 'character' I love and that is the Apostle Paul. I never get tired of learning from the books he authored and I have learned so much from them.  A particular favourite passage is Galatians 9 and the listing of the works of the flesh and the fruits of the Spirit.  When I was a young child, I learned a song about the fruits of the spirit and I often love to sing it to myself  as a meditation.  It helps and guides me and makes me glad that I have access to the wonderful and loving guidance of the Holy Spirit and through the scriptures.

4.    What book or books  do you think everyone should read once in their life time?

The Bible and as many of the classics written by authors such as Jane Austen, Charles Dickinson, Fyodor Dostoevsky, Leo Tolstoy etc. There are too many wonderful writers of the classics to list.  I also think it's a good idea to read a few authors from other countries to be exposed to other ideas and cultures in the hopes of bringing broader awareness and understanding of one another.  Books are a good way to learn and become aware of new things.

Those are all my thoughts for today. Thank you for stopping by!

Tuesday 4 ~ Light

We are experiencing a heat wave this week and Tuesday will be very hot. After that it will cool a bit each day. I'm not sure what the rest of the summer holds since our warm weather came very late this year unlike last year where we battled constant heat and wildfires or smoke from wildfires. It seems that kind of weather has moved on to central an eastern Canada, parts of USA and Europe. Please stay safe and cool wherever you are.

~~~~

 Welcome to another Tuesday 4 by Toni Taddeo.

 

Let's talk about light, okay? You light up my life.. shine a light in the darkness, Miller Light. All kinds of light but how about at home?

1. Are you afraid of the dark? Is night or day your favorite time?

I'm not afraid of the dark in general; only if I am alone walking in the dark anywhere. Late at night or very early in the morning are my favourite times because it tends to be cooler and quiet. 

 2. Do you have night lights in your home?

I have a night light that plugs into the socket in my bathroom. When I use it I don't have to turn the hallway lights on if I get up in the middle of the night. I don't always use it though because light keeps me awake.

3. How low do you set your air conditioning?  Do you adjust it through the day?

I don't have any air conditioning though I wish I did. I do have a few fans and I turn them on and off all day long during hot summer days or when the air is stagnant.

4. Do you keep any outdoor or indoor lights on all night?

I don't keep lights on outside all night. In fact, it is forbidden by the strata by-laws to have light bulbs outside. I pretend I don't know that and I have a few solar lights in the garden to enjoy at night when I look out. Inside I only have the bathroom light which only throws light once it's dark. I don't use it all the time as light tends to keep me awake when it filters through the cracks around the door.  

Late at night I read or knit and sometimes watch TV. It seems I concentrate better when virtually everyone else is sleeping. (The photo shows 3 books I'm currently reading).  Thanks for stopping by!

Inquiring Minds Want to Know - Tuesday 4

 Hello!  Welcome to Toni Taddeo's Tuesday 4 in memory of Toni Taddeo.

Let's inquire about stuff....

1. What gets your blood to boiling?

Injustice and mistreatment of people through any form (examples, government corruption, police brutality, unfair legislation, policies or court practices, the mean way some people treat others and so on).

2.What does a really good day look like for you? What makes you say, "That was a great day"?

 

It doesn't take a lot to make me happy. I love a beautiful, sunny or slightly rainy; not too hot or cold. I enjoy going for a short stroll and looking at the natural beauty around me. Then I would end my outing by reading a good book over a cup of fresh coffee.  Preferably at a coffee shop since I usually have only morning coffee at home. This is how I love to spend days alone. But I also enjoy going to a movie or a coffee outing with friends or having a dinner in or out with family and spending time talking to them.

3. Are you continuing to grow mentally, spiritually, talent wise or are you  just marking time?

 

I definitely continue to grow mentally and spiritually and there are still new talents I'd like to learn as long as I'm alive and able.  The internet is a big help these days with learning and staying on top of all kinds of things. You can even learn new skills and a variety of other things from watching You Tube videos. It is very helpful especially as one grows older or becomes less mobile. One of the things that make me sad is that time is flying by and I have so much I still want to do and learn and see.  There is far more on  my list than I will ever actually get to do. I try not to get too stressed about it because there is only so much time we all have. I am blessed to have had the time I have had and I pray I get to have more awesome times ahead.

 

4. Have you changed your hair style since high school?   Why or why not?

Oh yes, I had long straight hair in high school. During the ensuing years I've had all kinds of hair styles.  Some of them were super short, some were curly, some straight, some were 'big', some styles had bangs, some did not. Nowadays I have gone back to straight hair with no bangs. I colour it myself and now and then I go to the stylist. I prefer straight, longish hair that I can simply pull back during the day. The photo is of me getting my hair done in the salon in March after a long period of no appointments due to the pandemic.

Tuesday 4 - Which One?

 Welcome to Tuesday 4 in memory of Toni Taddeo.

Which one do you prefer?

1. Picnic by the water or backyard BBQ?

I absolutely love the waterfront and would choose the venue for a picnic if there weren't a lot of people around. I love to have peace and quiet and just enjoy the picnic with family or loved ones. A backyard BBQ is attractive because you won't have a lot of noisy people around plus you don't have to schlep your food and other accoutrements very far.

2. Spring or Autumn? Got reasons?

This is a hard one because these are both my favourite seasons. If I have to choose one I guess it would be spring. The reasons are that it brings so much joy and colour after a cold, long, gray season of late autumn and winter. I do love fall too because of all the beautiful colour and the cool, crisp air after a hot summer. I find crisp air so invigorating.  But I would have to choose spring just because it gives my spirits a lift and I look forward to growing season. When fall rolls around I get a bit melancholy because I know it won't last long and winter is around the corner. If I could only have fall and spring, I would gladly do away with winter and summer.

3. Cup of Tea or Cup oCoffee?   'splain it to us Lucy... if you don't mind!

I love coffee best. Probably because when I was a child almost every one drank coffee when they visited one another and there was a lot of visiting going on. Tea was usually only brought out for a one on one afternoon visit. I really love the smell of coffee too and I have fond memories of the coffee aroma wafting it's way to my nose whenever mom or dad would make morning coffee.  Nowadays I drink coffee in the morning and early afternoon. I switch to decaf or herbal tea late at night to keep me warm and I also drink a lot of water.

4. A weekend at home or one spent out and about?

It depends what one is doing out and about. If it is going to see some naturally beautiful spots or spending time with a friend  then I will go for being out and about. I also like to go out and about once or twice a week just to spend quiet time on a walk or running a few errands, maybe reading a book over coffee. Otherwise I would much rather stay home relaxing or doing things around the house. 

Dockside, a local restaurant to which a friend introduced me.

A friend took me to the above restaurant which was quite special because it is marina side and it wasn't very busy at noon. I enjoyed it because I don't really like crowds especially when trying to visit with a friend. Of course if you go to some events you expect it to be busy and then you don't really visit but simply enjoy companionship while taking in the sporting event, concert, movie and so on.

Just Wondering

Welcome to Tuesday 4 in memory of Toni Taddeo...

This is one of Toni's last Tuesday 4 posts published December 9, 2019.

 1.   When was the last time you tried something new?

The last time I tried something new was a few days ago. I made a Curried Chicken dish with raisins and peaches. The latter was substituted for dried apricots which I did not have. 

Thanks to Jeanie at Marmalade Gypsy for sharing the link to the recipe.
The only other new thing I've done lately is try a new facial serum. I'll know it works if it minimizes my wrinkles.

2.   Who in your family do you compare yourself to?

I don't compare myself to anyone. However many extended family members and old family friends compare me to my late mom.  They can't get over how much I look like her in height (short), build and facial features.  My late father was also short.  Mom used to like to laugh at me because she was "taller" by one quarter inch and we'd tease one another about being short.  Though we looked alike and shared many same values, we were also very different people in many ways. 

Mom's last earthly birthday (post stroke)

 3.   What lesson in life did you learn the hard way?

I learned one very important lesson the hard way and that is in life you will often stand alone.  It's best to anticipate this so you are not surprised when it happens.  Good lessons in life are often painful but what they teach helps you so much as your journey through life's byways.

4.   What can you do today that you weren't able to do before?

That's a difficult question. I can't say I've really learned to do things that I couldn't do before though there are definitely still some things I'd like to learn.  For now I keep practising some things and hopefully improve on them. Especially things that don't come naturally like knitting and cooking.  

Thank you for stopping by and leaving a comment. I appreciate you!

Things I Enjoy

Joining in with Toni Taddeo's Tuesday 4 in  memory of Toni Taddeo.

There are some things we just enjoy quite a lot. Let's talk about it okay?

1. Which book could you read over and over again?

I absolutely love certain authors like Rosamunde Pilcher, Rohinton Mistry and Maeve Binchy.  I've read all the books written by Rosamunde Pilcher and Maeve Binchy and about half of Rohinton Mistry's books so far.  I would seldom, if ever, read a book more than once. There are just too many books I want to read. I love reading! It's so easy to have a book on hand or have one to read on your phone, Kindle or Kobo.

2. What movie or TV program could you watch and never tire of watching?

I can never tire of watching all the (Jason) Bourne movies when they are replayed on television. I first saw them in the theatre on the big screen. I love them all, even the prequel with Jeremy Renner but I preferred all the others with Matt Damon. 

3. What meal do you like enough to eat several times a week or several times a month?  Got a recipe to share for it?

I do not eat any meal several times a week or month though sometimes it may seem like it, lol. I do eat leftovers the next day or 2nd day after if there is more than enough food for one meal.  In general though, I like variety in virtually everything including food.  Recently I've discovered a recipe for Taco Soup and I love it. I've also made Greek Chicken and Potatoes. I only make the Greek dish 1-2 times a year because it takes more planning and preparation than my usual meals.  I'm basically a lazy cook.  Despite the fact I don't eat it often, the Greek dish is my favourite meal of all time. On Friday, I had my first meal in a sit down restaurant for the first time in ages and I had the Chicken Souvlaki pictured on the photo. The restaurant is one of few remaining restaurants with vintage furnishings and individual jukeboxes at the booths. The man who owns it now was relaying how he has been struggling to keep the restaurant going during the pandemic and he has had to lay off all but one staff (the cook) and he is working long days. They make the tastiest food and it's basically home cooking just as I like it. The restaurant is often used as a movie location, the most recent being in the Sandra Bullock movie, The Unforgivable. 

Greek dish of Chicken Souvlaki without the skewers.

Tonight (Sunday) I made roasted carrots/potatoes tossed in herbs and oil, grass fed beef patties with sauteed mushrooms and onions and a kale salad. Monday night I'll be making Pesto Chicken; another new to me dish that I read about recently on Mari's blog. 

Keto friendly Taco Soup

 

Here is a link to the Taco Soup recipe (Keto friendly) but I didn't use quite as much cream cheese in mine. I also used Greek Yogurt instead of sour cream as that is what I had on hand. The second time I made it I added beans, corn niblets and more seasoning. It was even better so this will be a dish I continue to make.

4. What place do you enjoy so much that you go back again and again? Why do you like it so much?

I love several places and have gone back again and again. In Canada, I love the interior of the province where my late mom recently passed and my niece and a nephew and his family still live. It's beautiful there. 

 

I also love to go to the far north of BC and Alberta as I have relatives living there. 

Out of the country I love Australia and have been to the East Coast (and from north to south). I love it's beauty plus I have distant relatives there. I still do have distant relatives there and have travelled to the land Down Under 3 times. Once with my mother and twice with my brother.  I would love to return however there are so many other places to visit in the world and to explore if we get a chance to travel again internationally.

I also love Kenya and Africa in general. I've been to Kenya 7 times and have friends there. I love the exotic wildlife, the people, the landscape and the work I do in missions to feed the hungry and help the very poor. This is a labour of love and is not backed by any church or organization though I wish it was. I have also been to Ghana in West Africa, a very different place to Kenya. I would dearly love to travel to many other parts of Africa if I get the chance but I also would love to travel through more of Europe and parts of Asia. 

Please click this link to see a bit more of the places I'm writing about. I hope you enjoy the tour.

Thank you for visiting and leave a comment. Enjoy the week ahead.