The Sky on Summer Solstice

Hello friends and fellow bloggers,

Happy Summer Solstice (Thursday at 1:50 p.m.) the longest day of the year.

The sky was bright as I was out and about on Thursday night running my errands and stayed bright until late.

Looking northwest. Cranes are everywhere in the city.

The mountains are to the north as is the downtown core.

I captured the sun going down before continuing to shop.

I stopped at the DT near by looking for planters

On my way home, I stopped to rest at this public rest area.

I enjoyed the flowers, the trees and the sky.

The time was about 9:45 p.m.

These last 2 photos were taken on Wednesday night.

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

New Faucet Installation ~ Part 1

Hello friends and fellow bloggers,

I hope your week is going well.

The other day when I was out doing errands I purchased new faucets for both bathrooms. 

I couldn't wait to install them. I've never installed faucets before but I've heard it's a simple job.

Have you ever changed a faucet? Was it a simple job?

When I started the installation I found it very difficult to loosen the big nuts.  I could also see that the small bolts holding the faucets underneath the sink are completely rusted so that might make them difficult to remove (as in the experience with changing the toilet lid cover in the main bathroom recently).

This simple job is going to take more time than it should.  Normally my brother would help out, but he's very tall and it's a very cramped space in which to work.  There's no way he will have room to splay out in the tiny bathroom or be able to fit underneath the sink.  My husband might fit, but he's not home until quite late. I hope I can manage it myself. Wish me luck or say a prayer.

A Bit of Hygge

Hello friends and fellow bloggers,

Some of you will have read my story here about the lost and found item I picked up late Saturday night. I tried to go to the local police station on Sunday but it was closed by the time I arrived. I went again on Monday and thankfully made it before closing. I left the wallet with an explanation of where I found it and my name. Now it's in the hands of the police and hopefully the person who lost it will find their way to the police station or maybe the police will somehow locate him/her. I don't even know if the person is a male or female because I'm not familiar with the names.

I got a long-ish walk in over the span of several days going on errands and going to and from the police station over 2 different days.

To be honest, my body is really suffering from aches and pains and inflammation in the neck, back and hips. I wanted to get a body massage or a get in a foot reflexology session but the timing didn't work out. So instead, I have been trying to have moments of hygge by relaxing and revelling in some of life's quieter pleasures.

Like reading good books.

I was able to complete Crow Mary (favourite) The Paris Assignment (2nd favourite), and Miss Morgan's Book Brigade (3rd favourite)  I enjoyed all of them and would recommend them all.

I spent some time caring for my plants, watering them, removing dead leaves and transplanting one of them into a larger pot.  I also purchased a new plant. I think it's called a Kangaroo Fern but I'm not 100 percent certain since I've never seen one before. All of these plants were purchased on clearance over the past month or so and were in rough shape when I bought them. I'm trying to bring them back to life but they need more sunshine. I'd like to take them out to the patio but need to wait until the workers are gone.

I have this one in a hanging basket.

I just transplanted this one.

The fern on the left is new

I'm going to buy another hanging basket for the new plant on the left in the photo above. I can also see that the aloe vera needs dividing as it's gotten too big for the pot it's in.

I always enjoy seeing pockets of beauty when I'm out and about. I found this cute gem of a restaurant on Sunday and hope to return one day when it's open and when I have more time. It has a cute little patio on the other side.

I did a bit of shopping. I've been thinking about changing the bathroom sink faucets and saw these ones when I was browsing in the stores.  I think they'll do for now.  I purchased two sets, one for each bathroom.  I'll only open one until I see how it looks after installation.

When I'm out I like to dine by myself.  It allows me to rest my feet and catch my breath since walking and shopping takes a lot out of me. I also like to read while I wait for my dinner. This Bento Box is called a Nigiri Bento box for the raw fish (salmon, tuna and prawn) but it also had tempura, beef teriyaki and a dynamite roll. It came with the customary Miso soup which I love so much.

All in all I enjoyed my outings. Thanks for stopping by!

Wild Animals ~ Tuesday 4

Tuesday 4 is here once again. 

Summer brings us out of the house and we spend more time outdoors, weather permitting,  and have an opportunity to see animals and birds that live around us.

1. Do you see many animals where you live? Is your answer a good or bad thing? 

In the immediate vicinity of where I live I don't see many wild animals except for a few types of birds, the odd squirrel and the occasional mouse.  That's a good thing but I wished I saw a lot more variety of birds. Oh once I saw a coyote down a dark alley when I was returning home very late from work one night. Fortunately he was further away and didn't follow me.

2. What kind of animals and birds are around your area?

In the broader city area where I live there are all kinds of wildlife and sealife. There are wild bears, mountain lions, coyotes, squirrels, birds, racoons, rats, mice and possibly other critters. In the ocean there are all kinds of fish which I never see but occasionally I will see orca whales and sea lions, the latter like to sun bathe while sitting on logs or rocks on the seashore. The bird life is prolific but I seldom see them unless I go out farther afield. In my immediate area I only see the occasional robins, sparrows, chicadees, pigeons, crows and sea gulls. If I go to the park I see swans, geese, ducks and all the others I've mentioned and sometimes bald eagles. If I go to the university or other outlying areas I will also see a lot of bald eagles.

3. What kind of animals and birds could you do without and what kind would you love to see more often?

I love all birds but can do without the coyotes, wild mountain lions, cougars and bears. These animals have been increasingly forced out of their natural habitat by human encroachment so it's only natural they now roam the areas where humans have moved in. Thankfully in my immediate, I only know of coyotes that can pass by. Apparently several hundred of them live in the city.

4. Do you feed wild birds or animals?

I do not feed the wildlife. It isn't good to encourage them to rely on and get habituated to humans. It's especially bad to try and feed bears when you see them in the park but people do it all the time. 

Thanks for stopping by and reading my post today. Please come again soon.

Lost & Found

Hello friends and fellow bloggers,

I hope you all had a wonderful weekend. I was busy the whole weekend cleaning, running errands and reading the latest books borrowed from the library.

Saturday evening I ran an errand to the pharmacy to pick up milk and cream. On the way back I found a wallet sitting on the sidewalk in the corner of a very busy intersection. I was just about to cross the street when it caught my eye so I went back for it.

I opened it at home to find cash, a debit card, some health cards, but no information to help me locate the owner. I had a name and a country (Hungary) so I went on line and wrote a message to a few people to see if they might be the right ones. But these folks were not active on social media so I don't think they ever saw my message. 

Sunday I decided to go to the police station but when I got there kind of late in the day I saw that it was closed. I tried buzzing but there was no answer. Outside I ran into a police officer and told him my dilemma. He suggested I return tomorrow or go to the police station's property office. I asked him if he could take the wallet and he said no because he didn't have the right paperwork to complete. 

I expressed concern that the individual didn't have access to money or debit card and he assured me that the main thing was that no one was using their ID. So I had no choice but to return home with the wallet and hope I can make my way back to drop it off on Monday. 

Who knew it would be so difficult to return a wallet? When I picked it up I was assuming it belonged to a local not a foreigner. I hope the foreigner has a place to stay because they don't have their debit card or cash right now.

After the stop at the police station I decided to go to a nearby retail store to look for bathroom faucets. I found one at a good price and bought 2 of them, one for each bathroom. I also bought a fern that was on clearance. I intend to hang it from the ceiling since I don't have any flat space to put more pots.

More Books

Hello friends and fellow bloggers,

How are you doing today?

This week I'm reading a lot. I completed The Paris Assignment by Rhys Bowen and have started reading all the other books except for Laura and Emma.

I can highly recommend The Paris Assignment if you like reading historical novels about heroines of WWII.  I found it very engaging and quite realistic about the horrors of the war without getting into too much gory detail. It was also very touching and moving in parts. Overall a very satisfying read.

Right now I'm making progress on Crow Mary, inspired by about a real life, 16 year old Crow woman who marries Abe Farwell, a white fur trader.  It's the late 1800s and he takes her to his trading post in the Cypress Hills of Saskatchewan Canada. 

Reckless Daughter is a biography of Canadian folk icon, Joni Mitchell. I've just gotten through her early years with friends and family, Joni's early forays into art and music and her graduation from high school.  Already I would say that Joni Mitchell's early years were not the norm, especially for a young person from Saskatchewan, Canada.

The Three Sisters Bar and Hotel is another book with dual narratives. I purchased it at the thrift story mainly because it is set in Canada and it looked interesting. The first story deals with a family headed by a widowed professor.  It is 1911 and they have just arrived in small town, Gateway (real life Canmore), Alberta, Canada where they are lodging at the Three Sisters Bar and Hotel. In the second story set in the current times, we are introduced to an elderly couple who have purchased the very same hotel and informed their 3 grown daughters that this is their gift.  Needless to say this is a shock and surprise and not welcomed by all daughters.

No sooner did I get these books home when I received a notification that another book, Miss Morgan's Book Brigade, was on hold for me. I love to walk to the library as often as I can for some exercise so I walked there and picked up the new book on Friday.  I began reading it before I got home. It's a book of dual narratives.  The first story involves an American woman, Jessie Carson who goes to France during WW1 to establish children's libraries. Then she disappears. The second narrative is set in the late 1980s, when another librarian and aspiring writer, Wendy Peterson learns about Jessie Carson and becomes obsessed by her story.

This is as far as I've read for now. I'll probably reserve Laura & Emma until I've completed the other3 library books. I can take my time reading the thrift store find and once I'm done I can give it to someone else.

What about you dear reader? Have you got any good book recommendations for me or have you read any good books lately?

A Trip to the Garden

Hello friends and fellow bloggers,

I finally made it to the community garden plot the other day. It was over due for some weeding. It was already getting late but there were still people enjoying the park.
 

 

After plucking all the weeds, I harvested some chives and some strawberries.  The chives are well past their prime but I think I can salvage some of them.

I could see the sunset and the clock on the city hall building in the distance. The time says 9:20 p.m.

After my work at the garden I took a walk to the local grocers to pick up a few things. On my way to the grocers I passed another clock. The time was around 9:40 p.m. 

I ended up buying more than a few things when I only really needed bananas.  The ground beef was on sale and I only buy it when it's on sale. I bought 2 packages as well as some mangos, strawberries and bread.

How about you dear reader? Do you go to the store for one thing and bring back several items instead?