New Brunswick

Here’s a photo of the St. John River as it flows by Fredericton, New Brunswick. Nice fall weather here. I am busy, busy, busy at a conference – being president, involved in committees, chairing sessions, handing out awards – all very important. Also eating too much, and exercising and sleeping too little. I would be more…

Car covered with shells

This car roams in our neighbourhood. There used to be another similar one, but I don’t know if the same person has owned both of them. These photos were taken at the local beach, so perhaps the owner is collecting more for the next car. Look at the variety of shells, and the care taken for…

Russian baritone – Dmitri Hvorostovsky

I  was YouTubing with my sister-in-law, who took me to a famous Russian baritone, Dmitri Hvorostovsky singing “Kak molody my byli” which means “When we were young.” Watch it through to the end, to get the full repetoire of facial expressions. A little searching found a great blog about Dmitri and Russian schmalz . Follow the interesting links on the post.

Wardrobe excess

We are going to visit Daughter #2 who graduated in May, went to Australia on vacation and decided to stay a year or two. We’re taking some of her clothes with us, since she has a respectable job and needs more clothes for work. I went through her collected belongings (which my husband drove 1000 km to collect…

Mutiny on the Versatile Blogger ship

My blogger friend k8edid nominated me for the Versatile Blogger award, which is basically a nomination to a mutual admiration society. I was very pleased to receive this honour and have spent several days, while commuting to and from work, thinking about my response. The rules laid out were: Link back to the person nominating you. List 7…

Geriatric tennis

Not long ago, Husband and I visited the tennis courts at Kitsilano Beach, which is where we met a few years ago. They are public courts, free, with certain guidelines for use – for example, only 30 minutes play if anyone is waiting. Of course there have always been the unofficial rules, cliques and status…

Open jar dill pickles

Open jar dill pickles are easy and fun to make. The photo below shows a fresh jar on the left side, just started; on the right is a jar that has been fermenting for about a week. The cloth cover is meant to keep the fruit flies from drowning in the brine. In a bowl,…