Spring Flowers in Bloom!

Spring flowers were in bloom when I was last in Toronto's Trinity Bellwoods Park...

It's hard to overestimate the value of natural green spaces in the middle of a busy city.

What a great time - and place - to be walking about!

Early Spring Views

Terry and I often take drives into the country - especially now that warmer spring weather is here.

I recently realized why I enjoy getting out at this time of year.

Apart from the obvious facts that we have been cooped up indoors for five snowy months...

... and the weather is not too hot yet...

I realize that this time of year...

... before leaves fill in...

We are able to see more buildings -

Ones that are hidden from view once trees fill with leaves.

For all these reasons, early spring is my favorite time to get out and enjoy the world!

New Caplanski Deli

On a recent trip to Toronto, we attended the grand opening of a new Caplanski deli in Toronto, this one located in Yorkville.

I love the borscht. Another favorite was the cream cheese and smoked salmon (lox) on dark rye bread... (the two items on the right of the counter).

Delicious! Looking forward to a return visit!

(The cute Caplanski shoes - with the store logo on them - are, unfortunately, not on the menu!)

Personal Pottery Style

My pottery goal - this last studio session - was to throw cylinders that are thinner and taller. I was even hoping to begin making a few "normal" mugs.

I improved a bit - but my pots still don't look the way I had hoped.

To counter the thickness of the walls, I started to carve designs on them.

In the end, I like them... Not beautiful - but interesting.

Perhaps it's time to celebrate my flaws - and view them as my "personal style"!

Noticing... Rabbits

We often see wild rabbits in our yard.

I like to photograph them - and other animals - from different angles, to refer to when making clay sculptures.

I couldn't help but notice how much their ears resemble the pincers on an earwig... from a certain angle. It must be the coloring of the ears...

Traditional pictures of rabbit ears in drawings never look like that!

"Tetris" Afghan

I never got into playing video games with my children - but I did enjoy a Gameboy game called "Tetris" - that involves quickly finding landing spots for moving geometrical shapes.

I wasn't thinking about Tetris when I started an interesting afghan  pattern by Elizabeth Zimmermann a few months ago. Knit in four pieces using a simple garter stitch, I did think of it as an interesting puzzle-piece afghan with lots of corners.

I finally finished it a few few days ago. When I laid it on the floor, putting the pieces together, I thought it was a little bland. To brighten it up, I added a black stripe.

Now I wonder how it would have looked if I had crocheted around each piece in black. I don't want to take it apart to find out...

When knitting it, I called it my puzzle-piece afghan. When my daughter saw a picture of it, finished, she immediately exclaimed: Tetris!

I guess it will be known as the "tetris afghan"

Understanding Our Restless Selves

Retirement offers me the gift of being able to ask daily: How do I want to spend my day? This is a luxury I haven't had since I was five, since before starting school! An opportunity not to be wasted!

In her book on the "search for a life of passion, purpose, and joy" (entitled Following the Path), Joan Chittister writes: "what we are meant to do in life never really stops biting at our heels. Our unfinished selves never stop calling to us...

"People start to search out what they're most interested in as children... It may take years for the heart to find the soul of itself, to know what that really is, but it will happen. Someday... People begin to paint when they are eighty...

"We are what we are, but the gift of self unfolds only as we go... It can take years before it becomes clear - the real gift that is hidden within us... 

"Developing the honesty it takes to unmask the self to the self is no small task..."