Week 18: A is For . . .

Debby

I was stuck for a topic this week, and frustrated with the blank canvas on my tabletop easel. So this week, A is for Art, or the absence of art, as the case may be. I’ve stepped away from decades of creating abstract art and have tried my hand at some realism.

It’s all Chuck Black’s fault. He’s a 32 year old landscape and wildlife painter from Montana who has a plethora of art videos on YouTube. I tried a couple of landscapes but was not satisfied. Why not try a more abstract approach I thought.

Then I discovered Scott Naismith. He’s a young Scottish landscape artist who is known for his bright colours and abstract approach. Again, I became addicted to YouTube.

I think I need to experiment with all that I have learned to find my own style. What used to work for me doesn’t seem to work any more. I’m waiting for inspiration, and hope the blank canvas doesn’t stay blank much longer.

Carol

Yeah, I went for the obvious with this one. A is for apples.

At first I was going to go to the grocery store and either take a picture of the produce section or buy a variety of apples and pose them artistically to take my picture. But I had a few apples that needed to be used up and I had some little frozen tart shells in the freezer so ….

Apples usually make me think of the fall, not summer, but in this case I was willing to make an exception. :-D

Week 17: Bridges

Debby

In 2013 our local hospital had a fundraiser called Love Locks. They sold gold coloured locks to be attached to a bridge, built over a small creek in a downtown park. The concept was based on a scene from a movie set in Paris. The characters placed locks on a chain on the bridge balustrade, for love, for memory, for hope.

I purchased a lock for each of my children, as this campaign coincided with the 10th anniversary of their father’s death. The locks were engraved “To Dad” with their name. My daughter placed hers on the bridge, my son placed his out on his property.

This was my first visit to the bridge and I was surprised with the variety of locks, not all, sadly, purchased through the hospital. I never hear any news that this is an ongoing fundraiser, maybe because it was not a big money maker. But I like the idea, and may one day add a lock of my own.

Carol

I think I acquired my love of bridges (the older the better) when I was a kid. One of the parks we used to visit up north had an old wood and stone bridge spanning a slow moving river. We’d cross it to the oak trees on the other side, search for acorns, and on the way back stop in the middle of the bridge to make wishes, tossing the acorns into the water.

That bridge has long since been replaced with something more modern, but I’ll always cherish the memory. There just seems to be something inherently romantic about old bridges, don’t you think?

I took a couple of different bridge pictures, one was metal and spanned a wide river, one was small and wooden, spanning a dry river bed, and finally I settled on the following bridge. It’s not big or important, it only spans the nearby creek, but it serves its purpose with character.

Week 16: Fences

Debby

What’s that old saying...something about good fences make good neighbours?

I’ve seen a number of different style of fencing from the natural cedar hedge to tall wooden structures. There’s the unappealing chain link and the old fashioned wrought iron.

One of my favourites is a fence made from split rails. They don’t offer much in the line of privacy, nor are they going to keep intruders out, but they have an appealing old country look.

This photo was taken at a country house, far off the beaten path. The gardens, once lovely, had been left to grow wild for the past year. Still, this little corner held some appeal. I don’t know my flowers so the name of this shrub escapes me. But doesn’t it still have some beauty, even as it stands dry and colourless?

Carol

When I was a kid we owned a big chunk of property behind our house and my mother had a humungous vegetable garden that was bordered on one side by a split rail fence. I always loved that fence. So naturally I thought of that fence when I received this week’s picture topic.

There were several interesting fences around my neighborhood, including a white picket fence that I chose not to try and photograph because of the children playing behind it. How sad that you have to take these things into consideration these days.

I guess the split rail fence has gone out of fashion because the one I had intended to take a picture of, just around the corner from us, has been replaced by a wrought iron fence. It’s still an attractive addition to the garden on either side of it, but it seems to be more of a formal, elegant fence without the charm of the split rail.

Week 15: Oh, Canada!

Debby

The July 1st holiday was always a joke around my house. My parents were both born in the U.S. and were naturalized Canadians, along with my sister and I. My brother having the privilege to be born here.

But as July 1st was also Mom’s birthday it was an ongoing joke that Canada celebrated her birthday every year in such a boisterous way.

It’s been so hot this week that I admit to being a ‘shut-in’ as the heat and I do not do so well. So I confess that I did not take this week’s photo, but it was taken from a phone.

My son was camping and sent me a series of photos and this one seemed perfect for this weeks theme. A chair with the Canadian Maple Leaf, on the edge of a lake, blue skies, sunshine and the Canadian countryside. Oh Canada indeed.

Carol

When I first came up with the idea of something Canadian for this week I kind of envisioned something in celebration of Canada Day, like our local waterfront festival or the fireworks or an artful display of Canadian flags.

However, I didn’t see any of the local colour, we went to Toronto for the weekend. Furthermore, I was armed with a brand new camera so most of the pictures I took were done using it. I mean seriously, would it have killed me to take at least one picture of the CN tower with my phone?

While I didn't have a lot of pictures to choose from, there were a few interesting ones of street murals, and the interior of a couple of restaurants we visited. There were also a couple taken during shopping expeditions.

What could be more Canadian than a flock of Canadian geese, especially the ones in flight in the Eaton’s Centre, one of Canada’s most iconic shopping malls?

Week 14: Trains, Planes, and Automobiles

Debby

There is something mysterious about train tracks. I look out upon those empty tracks and wonder about the trains that travel along the way. Where are they going? What do they carry? Some of this interest may have come after watching the movie “Unstoppable” with Denzil Washington. And, of course, after the train wreck we had a few years ago outside of town, with its environmentally unfriendly cargo.

I have always loved the sound of the trains on a summer night. The repetitive clickity clack as they make their way through town. I realize, if the tracks ran directly behind my house I might not be quite so enamoured.

This picture was taken on one of the side roads east of town. It was dull and grey out, raining off and on. A perfect setting for some wistful thoughts.

Carol

Recently I had the pleasure of heading down to New Brunswick for a quick visit with my sister. Normally I would have driven, or taken the train, but time was short so I decided to take a plane. It had been about 25 years since the last time I flew anywhere and a lot of things have changed since then, so it was a real eye-opening experience.

I guess it’s just as well I didn’t have a real camera with me, because none of those pictures would have been eligible for this blog (being all about phone photos). To be honest, neither time I was at an airport was particularly good weather for taking pictures, but that didn’t stop me!

I think this shot is pretty self-explanatory – it was taken from my seat on the plane as the pilot started to rev the engine. I do love a window seat!

Week 13: Mary, Mary, Quite Contrary

Debby

I have never had much of a green thumb, as I seem to be in the drown or desert dry class of gardeners. I blamed the cats, when I had cats, as to why my house plants were all of the silk variety but it was really because I had a black thumb.

My little patch of garden here is thriving, but then it only consists of four hosta and one clematis. The red flowers are my Mother’s Day plantar on a stand. My neighbour waters the garden daily, so I can’t take credit. I did cut up the Irish Spring soap and place it around each plant to, hopefully, ward off insect damage.

We have squirrels, chipmunks and rabbits and I saw chunks of soap on the grass, so assume the wildlife quickly learned this green in the garden was not a vegetable.

The colour looks great, and at night the tiny lights come on to outline the metal frames against the brick wall. I rarely see it at night, but my neighbours tell me it looks pretty from their windows. Doing my small part to pretty up the neighbourhood.

Carol

Mary, Mary, quite contrary
How does your garden grow?
Will silver bells and cockle shells
And pretty maids all in a row.

I have to admit, although I love looking at a flower-filled garden, I’m kind of an indifferent gardener at best. I start out with the best of intentions, but they kind of peter out as the days grow hotter. This is why the long garden across the front of the house is usually filled with petunias. The wave petunias fill in the space nicely and all I have to do is dead head them to keep them looking nice.

One of my favourite flowers, however, is the iris. So imagine my surprise when I went out to take a picture of my petunias and I found this iris in full bloom. I gave my husband hell last summer when he moved it to this location, but apparently he was right.

Just don’t tell him that!

Week 12: Pretty In Pink

Debby

Wandering through the court where I live, I saw a beautiful peony, large and full, a gorgeous, isolated bloom. Unfortunately I didn’t have my phone with me. When I repeated that walk, the flower was looking a little sad, past it’s bloom so to speak.

Lucky for me, peonies are a popular choice among my neighbours. I found another bush, full of blooms in a deep and delicious pink.

I had to laugh as I wandered home. What did my neighbours think when they saw me? Peeping Tom maybe? No, just someone who loves flowers and is in search of something pink.

Carol

When I heard this week’s topic was “pretty in pink” my mind went immediately to the 1986 movie of the same title, starring Molly Ringwald. It’s one of those teenage flicks no one ever admits to watching, let alone liking. LOL

My second thought was to pose the granddaughter in a pink dress against one of the peony bushes in the garden, but I figured that would be a little too obvious. Besides, she’s pretty in many colours, not just pink.

But looking in the garden I don’t think there’s anything prettier than columbines (unless it’s a sweet pea, but it’s too early for those blossoms yet). If you look at the columbines just right they even look like little prom dresses, don’t they?