At the Community Garden ~ Skywatch Friday

 

These photos were taken a week or so ago. The day was overcast but warm enough as you can see by the people sitting on the lawn.  Since then we've had a mixed bag of weather and today was very hot. Tomorrow we are anticipating another hot day. The park was so crowded today in every area. People, including me, have been waiting for the warmer days.

I'm joining in with Skywatch Friday today. Enjoy your weekend.

Skywatch Friday ~ April 21, 2023

Hello friends and fellow bloggers,

Welcome to beautiful Vancouver, BC!

It continues to rain and be quite cool here but every now and then we have a break in the sky and the weather. I haven't been out for a specific time of capturing cherry blossoms due to the inclement weather and being otherwise busy. But I've been fortunate to get some decent photos on some of my errand days. I hope you enjoy them.

 

I'm also adding a few photos from a rainy day.

I've also been enjoying some reading. Some of the recent books of note include the following:

A fictional account, based on facts, of a governess to the late Queen and her sister Margaret.

The Valley of the Birdtail is a non-fictional account of a small Indian reservation and an adjacent town in the province of Saskatchewan, Canada. It's an extremely interesting and well done account of the situation of Indigenous people in Canada, some of the historical problems and injustices, race relations with the 'white' population and some of the current reconciliation issues and potential ways of relating to one another.  The book was co-authored by an Indigenous law professor and a non-Indigenous lawyer who was a former student of the professor.

Cottage by the Sea is an easy read by Christian author, Debbie Macomber who is a number 1 New York Times best-selling author. In this story, the protagonist, Annie Marlowe, goes to spend time at a cottage rented by her family for summer holiday when she was a teen. She goes there to get away from family tragedy and to seek healing.  She finds healing and more.

I'm currently reading the two books in the photo below, starting with The Summer I Met Jack. It's a great read so far. It's a fictional account of how a beautiful Polish refugee (Alicia Darr) met, dated, got engaged (and unengaged) to John F. Kennedy in the 1950s while he was a Senator. It's based on fact but obviously the author wasn't privy to all the intimate details of the relationship so it is fictionalized. Similar to the book above, In Royal Service to the Queen.

Last, but not least, I completed a wonderful book called, The Brutal Telling by Louise Penny, Canadian murder mystery writer extraordinaire. In this story, a stranger is murdered and found in the Three Pines bistro and antique shop. Olivier, owner of the bistro is immediately a suspect but the novel unfolds in a very intelligent way before the final conclusion is revealed. Chief Inspector Gamache begins the search for the murderer.  His investigation ultimately leads him across the continent from the Province of Quebec to the Province of British Columbia. There in the former Queen Charlotte Islands (now known as Haida Gwaii) we finally learn what the brutal telling is and it's connection to the world renowned painter, Emily Carr. Believe it or not, this is the first book I've read by Louise Penny. I tried last year to read one of her books and I wasn't able to dig into it before it needed to be returned to the library. I purchased a thrifted copy of The Brutal Telling and will gift it away to someone locally as I now do with most of the novels I buy.

I'm joining in with Skywatch Friday today. Have a wonderful weekend.

Skywatch Friday ~ April 14, 2023

Hello friends and fellows bloggers,

I hope you've had a great week!

Those of you who've been following my blog know that we've had a long winter and a cold Spring so far with lots of rain. It is still a bit too cool for the norm but the sun is beginning to shine more frequently and I think from here on out we are well on our way to warmer, sunnier weather.

The photos which follow were taken on Easter Sunday on my way to church. I'd been hoping to get some cherry blossom photos during days of sunshine but if I don't get out in the next few days there may not be anything to photograph! Cherry blossoms are so fleeting.  I did manage to get some pictures of cherry blossoms and magnolias in bloom. Hopefully I can get more on a sunny day.
 

I'm joining in with Skywatch Friday. Thank you for stopping by!

Skywatch Friday ~ April 7, 2023

Hello friends and fellow bloggers,

This is a series of photos depicting the weather and skies in Vancouver, Canada at the moment. It has been quite rainy and cold for most days this month and it looks to continue.

I'm hoping that the weather will warm up so I can get out and take better photos of the cherry blossoms. I'm amazed at how they bloom despite the cold.  They give a lot of enjoyment on otherwise dreary days.
 

 Joining up with Skywatch Friday. Thank you for stopping by and have a blessed Easter.🙏🙏🙏

Skywatch Friday - March 23, 2023

Hello friends and fellow bloggers,

I hope you've all had a great week and are looking forward to the weekend.  Where I live we've had some beautiful, sunny days and some not so spectacular days. After a glorious sunny day yesterday it was back to rain today and actually quite chilly. It should turn back to sunshine soon. I can't wait until it warms up a touch. I don't like it too warm just enough to keep my bones from getting a chill.

The first photo is taken in my patio garden. I haven't done any work to prepare it this year and I won't be doing any. Everything will be ripped up and out by June or July as the patio gardens in the entire building need redoing. It's a job and a half and very expensive.

I took the next two photos at the community garden in a nearby park. I was trying to capture the setting sun before it completely disappeared.

I've been preparing the community plot but some darn dog went and walked all over it damaging things in the process. I love dogs but not when they run rampant. I don't know why but they only ran over mine. I guess my plot is too close to the main pathways. Good thing I caught it. I will be keeping a close eye on things as I want the garden to grow a bit by May.

Thanks for stopping by and have a lovely weekend. 

Joining in with Skywatch Friday this week.

Another Friday Has Come & Gone

My how time flies. I wish it would slow down a bit but on the other hand, right now I'm waiting not so patiently for spring season to arrive because we've had a long, cold winter as far as Vancouver weather goes.

Today we had some glorious sunshine and it being Saturday and the end of spring break for students, everyone and his/her dog was out all over town.  However, the good weather won't last long. In fact it will cloud over tonight so my brother and I went for a wonderful drive up the coast to enjoy the scenery. I hope you enjoy the photos.

Joining in with Skywatch Friday today (a day late). Have a wonderful week ahead.

Warm & Cold

Hello friends and fellow bloggers,

I hope you are all well. Today I want to share photos I took on Wednesday. The day started off sunny and warmish. I went to the community plot in the late afternoon (first photo) and by the time I left it had turned cold. 

In this photo you can see how bright and beautiful the sky was before it began to cloud over. Today is now Friday and it was very cold when I returned home from a late outing. It's supposed to start raining soon and I expect we'll have unsettled weather for the rest of this month which is the norm. I'm glad I went to put the compost in the garden on Wednesday because I sure wouldn't feel like doing it now.

Thank you for stopping by.

I'm joining in with Skywatch Friday. 

Beautiful Friday Sky on a Cold Evening

Hello friends and fellow bloggers,

I keep thinking Spring is around the corner but my hopes keep getting dashed. We had an unexpected bit of snow on Wednesday night and on Saturday we are expecting up to a foot of fresh snow. Knowing that I went out tonight and did a few pressing errands.

Here are some of my night shots.  There seemed to be a lot going on including an explosion that happened at the dinner hour just before I was about to get off one bus in the heart of the city. I heard a lot of sirens after that. Later I learned the sad news that 2 were treated for burns and lacerations due to the fire which they believe was caused by some kind of underground electrical vault fire. My bus had passed the site where the explosion occurred just seconds before hand and some passengers that got on the bus seconds later says there was smoke and balls of fire coming from the side of the building. Roads, buses and skytrain in the vicinity were all closed or affected in some way but I was on my way out of the city before that happened.

Here are some photos I took while I was downtown. I'm joining in with Skywatch Friday. Please join in too.

Thank you for stopping by. Have an awesome weekend.