Bumblebees

One of these just bounced repeatedly against my office window. Not big in the smarts department. A marvel of aerodynamics to be sure. I was watching one hover outside the bedroom window yesterday. They have a penchant for nesting in our chimney.
Oh joy of bliss.... a sure sign of warmer days!

Thomas Pump Organ

My brother bought this pump organ in Dartmouth Nova Scotia. It was manufactured in Woodstock Ontario.

I bought it from him in about 1994. There is some minor damage to one foot and the pedal on the right needs to be attached to the webbing. All the ivories and the stops are intact and the wood is in very good condition. At present it is sitting in my garage and I would dearly like to find it a good home.

This organ has a "Once upon a time" feel to it. I can sit in front of it and stroke the keys, with my eyes tightly closed, and envision the original owner playing a piece of music. Her corset does not allow her to sit anyway other than erect at the key board. Lifting her skirts free of her shoes she pedals quickley to fill the bellows. Her hands, fingers curled, hover over the keyboard. She gently carresses the keys and the sweet sound fills the room.

This organ has a sweet tremulous sound that deserves to be heard again.

Who will want to own this beautiful piece of Canadian history? Talk to me.

Right foot
Pedals
Side view
Carved Panel
Carving
Keyboard
Keyboard closed
Music rest

Pet Peeves

Ok people I can not stand it any longer.

1. Left turning lane. When the light turns green get into the intersection for the love of god!. We all know you want to turn left because you are sitting in the left turning lane, your signal may or may not signify that. Move forward so the back wheels are over the white line...This is enough to drive me to road rage!. If you are into the middle of the intersection you may make a proper turn into the LEFT lane. This diagonal dash, when the light has turned red, into the right lane going west makes me wild. Take a driving course pleeze!....OK I feel marginally better.

Next and this one really pisses me off:

The countries are "i-taly", "i-ran" and "i-raq" . You know "i" like "it."

Not for the sweet love of god, eye-ran and eyerac !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! you don't say eye-taly do you?..hmm maybe you do, I even hear some of you uneducated peons say eye -talians. I almost chocked on my coffee the other night when I heard a news presenter make this gaff.

I accede to the wisdom of Christiane Amanpour who tried vainly, I might add, to educate a news commentator on one of the major US stations. Lets face it if anyone knows how to properly pronounce a country it would be this intelligent woman who has spent the majority of her career covering the news in the middle east.

Our names are our identity and I personally feel that if you can not take the time to properly pronouce a persons name or country it is just another indication of how little chance we have of ever opening the doors to real communication, in this case, with the east. It is called respect now smarten up!

There..... nothing like a little vent to clear the mind!

Mother's Day 2008

This was the best Mother's day ever! Michael and Arlene came for the afternoon and cooked a meal. Michael had been out hunting and half this "terki" breast fed the four of us. Talk about free range..........

Turkeys are really modern Velociraptors, so sayeth my son.....soooo... He had removed the "spurs" when the bird was cleaned and polished them. So after lunch I made my Grandaughters each a necklace. I used some of my favourite carved Jade beads.

Then we had yummy ice cream cake. I even shared!

I talked to both of my daughters...3 out of 4 children ..not bad....and I talked with my Mother...

As I said I really wonderful day..sigh

Reflextions on Mother's Day....

Darling Daughter Corinne.......1971




Where did the time go??????

What a wonderful mother!!....


then there was......




Wonderful Son #1.......1972





My blue eyed baby boy!












My Darling Daughter Julia........1976



The sweetest woman I know!














Wonderful Son #2 .........1979
From the moment I held him to my heart he was My Son!







Just look at that beautiful smile!







I am so blessed!

I have a weakness.......................

Firstly, I have a weakness for lace weight wool. Droll over this mes amis. This is what I treated my stash to when I went to the Creative Show. I have no idea what I am going to knit out of it. But I have lots of yardage....
I had this on order from MLYS before the show. Yup lace weight...again I know what I am knitting out of this one. (at least that is an improvement)

O.K. O.K. I know I blew the budget on this sock yarn BUT at least I know what I am going to make out of it..have already knit one Henley out of sock yarn and I really like it. It was a free pattern that came out in 2003-4 for "Mexiko." I think that is what it was called, it was the first sock yarn that had a stripe/fair isle pattern embedded in the yarn. I knit the first one out of Regia. I knit my mother a pair of socks out of this yarn and it had a .really nice "hand" to it when finished

I can't resist something new. This is the new sock yarn. Bamboo WOW. My mother has very narrow feet and most socks are too loose for her feet. So I am knitting her more "custom "socks.
Carl says these look like "clown" socks. I thought the yarn looked "springy."

Mom can wear them to bed....lolol

Progress on Mom's Birthday gift. The cotton and acrylic yarn I bought at Creative was knitting up far to heavy for this project.....(all will be revealed...when completed.) The colour was perfect but I forgot just how heavy cotton yarn can be. Of to MLYS where I found this..... Cascade Yarns, Peruvian Highland Wool, The Heathers. Beautiful to knit with and far more suitable for this project. She will be thrilled. I got one sleeve out of one hank. This weekend I have to get the other sleeve finished!!!!!!

~MuM

The bed has arrived!

OK it is a little high, not that I am admitting anything. I wasn't kidding when I said "Princess and the Pea." (more like Dowager Empress)We measured it. It is 30" off the floor! Carl says we are in the nosebleed section. Sometimes there is no romance in his soul....sigh. He thinks it is too high.

"Tell me one reason why you like that bed ?" he asked.

"It is pretty."I said.

He sighed.

"The night tables are too low you won't be able to reach your coffee." he said.

"No, they're not," I replied, "If you think they are too low, Put soup cans under the legs of yours." ( I am so witty)

He sighed ....again.....

..I will concede one thing.....

The pillow top ( wool, silk and memory foam) is so deep we sink into it

Oh Joy Oh Bliss

BUT

It is a little warm...shsh don't tell him I said so. He says it is too hot......damn

We have a couple of months to try it out. I am hoping we get used to it.

Life is Music

I came across this paragraph I wrote for a creative writing class:


There is a saying,” To be born Welsh is to be born privileged, not with a silver spoon in your mouth but with music in your blood and poetry in your soul.”
The hard working people of the principality of Wales are known for a love of music which permeates every aspect of their daily life. An English-speaking Welshman can always be heard above the crowd by the musical inflection in his speaking voice.
Singing, accompanied by the rhythmic slap of the shuttle against the loom, the pounding of the bread dough and sweep of the broom, filled every home. Dawn arrived at the pit face as the men, arriving for work, sang of faith, trust and thanksgiving. In sorrow and joy, their voices rose to uplift and support their community.
Musical instruments were a luxury and generally not needed by Welsh choirs. The National Eisteddfod, a Welsh choral competition, bestowed honours upon those possessed of “The Voice”. The respect of their peers brought life-long satisfaction to the individual and prestige to his region.


...just thought I would share that with you.

By the way the boat is a "coracle"

Oh for a good night's rest.....

I know I will be so happy when the new bed arrives. The water bed has been drained and discarded. About time too.

In it's place we are using an inflatable Queen size mattress. Great for a "spare" bed but every night is killing me. I feel like the princess and the pea. We have tried to adjust the air accordingly but no luck. The new bed is super duper top of the line with oodles of coils and memory foam with a wool and silk padding. It is so high I am going to need a stool just to get in it.

OK..... lets hear the ooos and the ahhhs........

Thank you

At this point all we are really concerned about is a good nights sleep. We have 60 days to try this Lamborghini of beds and it it doesn't do the trick out she goes.

Where we go from there will be the problem but I am sounding like a pessimist. I laid on the bed in the show room and did not want to get up at least until the next day.....Oh joy Oh bliss.

Once we get over the shock of "no mattress is worth that much money" we are going shopping for a new headboard and foot board.

*whisper* I want one like the picture.

There is Gypsy in my Soul

This is the weekend when we used to open the trailer for the summer. For 10 plus years I lived in a natural conservation park from the last Saturday in April until Canadian Thanksgiving in October AND commuted 5 days a week to work. The trailer had all the luxuries of home, don't get me wrong...oops other than the laundry and emptying the septic tank once a week. But that is exactly what I am getting at. I loved living like a gypsy. When possible I spent most of my time outside, spinning under a tree, knitting by a campfire, reading in a swing and wandering through the woods. It was glorious and I will always miss it.

When Julia was a year old my husband and I camped in a tiny tent trailer ( and I mean tiny) with 3 children all under 6yrs old for 8 weeks. No running water or electricity. It was the best time of my life.

I live for colour, dangling earrings and flashy skirts. I dance when no one is looking. I love to tell stories on the spur of the moment. Once upon a time my hair was black and my eyes a brighter blue. When I was a teenager and would go to see my Auntie Kate ( My Mother's Aunt) she would look at my bright clothes and all my jewelry and say, "Oh you Gippo you."

My theory about travel is,"If your going away make it worth while." I have been back to Wales on vacations never less than 4 weeks at a time. Moving all the time from place to place. You have to love the "Bed and Breakfast"concept. One holiday of a 6 week duration found me in Scotland, Ireland, Wales ( of course) and then onto Europe, through Belgium, France, Germany, Italy all the way to the Isle of Capri. ......sigh

Now, I live with memories of those wonderful days...... Wistful at times. Ever thankful of the opportunities I have had to travel. I knew that one day I would want to relive those moments. Now I can close my eyes and feel myself back in any given place because when I was there, and this may sound silly, (but it worked) , I would stand with my eyes closed and whisper to my self," Remember, be a sponge, let this moment soak into me." Right now I can remember the heat of the sun on the column at Pompeii, the musty smell from the stones of the Chester Cathedral, and the taste of the salt in the breeze on Capri.

revel in the moment.........