Vancouver

Have you ever been to Vancouver, British Columbia Canada?

No? Well hold on because I'm going to take you for a drive 'roud town!

Mom and I headed into the city today and I brought along my camera so that while she was in at her appointments I could scoot around and snap some pictures.

The pictures above and bellow are of the beautiful old homes in very wealth neighborhood called Shaughnessy/Kerrisdale. This area is where the who's who of Vancouver live! And have since the early 1900s!

The streets here are truly beautiful this time of year... actually they are pretty darn good lookin' any time of year but the pink cherry blossoms are a nice touch....

This place here was a convent way back when. It was also owned by a Whiskey baron, a gold Miner and a politician! Yah, go figure!

After about an hour of drooling over architecture I headed back to pick Mom up and we headed into the metropolitan centre of the city... Here is THE corner- Robson and Burrard....

Doesnt look like much but you can get just about anything your wee heart desires within a few blocks of this corner... some Kiehls hand lotion, Canada's famous Roots leather and sweaters, a out-of-this-world Rocky Mountain Chocolate Factory Candy Apple, some Armani clothes, Tiffany jewelry and top it off with some food from our world famous restaurants. Feel like Indian? Try Vij's... Martha Stewert said it was a very good thing! Sushi, you have to go to Tojos... Or if your a vegetarian check out Sophie's. The options are endless!

But there was only one thing that I REALLY wanted! A Nutella crape from my favorite little hold in the wall, La Crepe! I didnt get a picture of the cute young man who made my crepe...he said, "No, no! Against policy!" when I asked to take his picture so I took on of the street instead. Their was a street musician around the corner singing "Bye Bye Miss American Pie" , the air was warm, the breeze cool and the air filled with the smells of spring. Oh! And I swore I saw Robert Pattinson walking towards me (he is in town shooting the next movie in the Twilight series) but he saw my camera and ducked into a store.... alright, so it might have just been a particularly gorgeous young man in sunglasses and a hoodie... and he could have just been shopping... but if I want to pretend it was Rob Patt... dont burst my bubble, k?

So, I didnt get a picture of my delicious, delectable, divine Nutella crape... sorry... I was to busy devouring it... actually I savored ever last bite! But above is a picture of the city on-the-go! We were headed off to Mom's next appointment. Ya'll thought we lived in a bunch of igloos up here in Canada, didnt you! Nope! We have sky scrapers and everything! But no matter where you are in British Columbia, you're never more than a few minutes away from a park...

This is Stanley Park. It is two minutes down the road from those big ol' sky scrapers you saw above. And it is a 1000 acres of forest, gardens, parks and even an aquarium, all surrounded by the "Sea Wall"- a paved trail that wraps around the border between the park lands and the ocean waters of the Burrard Inlet.

A road cuts through Stanley Park and leads to a bridge that takes us from downtown Vancouver, across the Burrard Inlet to the North Shore. This is the Lions Gate Bridge...(and btw, it doesnt lean to the right like that... but apparently I do!.....)

This is the North Shore, a residential area of Vancouver with an smaller urban area... we are heading to the upper right hand corner of this picture....

Oh and look who is there to greet us at the foot of the bridge- it is the Sealy Mattress Sheep!! Good gosh! Who would use a sheep as a spokesperson? We dont need to go over my sheep prejudice again, I think we about covered it!.....

Here is the view from the North Shore. Trust me when I say it gets WAY WAY WAY better than this... but it was another picture-on-the-go! Mom was running late by this point...

So, after a long day on the road we stopped for a Starbucks. I picked up a delicious bottle of Jones Soda... I love the flavor almost as much as I love its bright orange color! It makes me feel like a kid again...

What didnt make me feel like a kid again was the vocabulary my Mother used while discussing this licence plate...

But we'll leave that for another day! (Or not.... ) Oh! You should know that the below photo is of "The Cut"... this is a very steep, very straight stretch of highway leading to the another bridge (This one is called The Second Narrows) that will take us back across the Barrard Inlet and on our way towards home...

Wanna see the ugliest part of Vancouver... something that we are world famous for...

Thats right! Some REALLY horrible traffic! Traffic that was better than usual today because everyone headed home early to catch the hockey game. It's playoff season! .... but I'll leave that for another post!

Well folks, that's all I have for you but stay tuned because on Sunday I will be heading back in to Vancouver to watch my DB run the Vancouver Marathon!! His goal is to run the 26.2 miles in under 3 hours and 20 minutes !!! "Lets hear it for the boy!! Lets hear it for my Man!! Oooh! Ooooh! I LOVE that song! And that movie!!

Afternoon with Mom

Yesterday my Mother called to invite me out for lunch and as she was recently away on a one month cruise and as I missed her like CRAZY while she was gone, I quickly said, "You bet!" I couldn't imagine a better way to spend a gorgeous, warm and sunny Spring day than out and about with my Mom so we headed out with Hawkydog and Hunter to Fort Langley, the "birth place of British Columbia" and historical village- were a fur trading post was built in 1827.

One of my favorite stores in this little village is a coffee shop/restaurant and bookstore named Wendels... (home of a delectable desert square called the Bee Stinger: made of honey, almonds, custard and a light white sponge cake. Yum!)...

But before we settled in for lunch we took the dogs for a little walk across the street at this train station built in 1915....

Here is me pretending to hail a train (but then I remembered that you hail a cab not a train) and so I pretended to be a young woman during WWII waving farewell to her man as he headed off to war...And yes, as a matter of fact I am a total geek!.....

Here is Mom wearing a fleece jacket I tease her about because it is Barbie pink and you couldn't catch me dead wearing Barbie pink but Mom is tanned and blond and totally fabulous so she gets away with it...

Then we headed over and found a table outside where we could sit with the dogs. Hawky and Hunter discussed the lunch specials that were written on a chalk board at the front door...

They decided that I should most definetly try the Salmon Wrap and I agreed.

While we waited for the food Hawky took in the sites with an air of casual indifference, because that is just Hawkydog's style.....

While Hunter on the other hand, didnt quite get the 'chillin' in the sunshine' thing and nervously panted under the table. He's a sketchy wee one! Which is while I call him Preston on occasion (dont ask, I dont know why, it just fits). My favorite nickname for him is simply "Little". I love this dog...

(Oh yah, and FYI, that is my pasty pale white arm in the pic. I looked ridiculous sitting next to my golden goddess of a mother with her fresh South American tan.)

After lunch we decided to go for a little hike at a nearby park called The Houston Trail". It is one of Mom and my's favorite spots.

Having just finished lunch we weren't too interested in what the forest offered up as a complimentary snack....

And besides, you should NEVER eat wild mushrooms unless you are a trained expert! (My Mom was a Girl Guide, dont you know!)

But then there were these little plants which I think looked a bit like seahorses....

I think that these might be baby ferns that had yet to unfurl. I meant to snap a picture of some fiddelheads Mom said she saw nearby but I am not sure which of the pictures is which... I hear that fiddlehead soup is really quite tasty.... Are these Fidleheads?....

This trail is really beautiful as it winds its through the forest....

I asked Mom to walk ahead so I could get a picture of her and the dogs walking down the trail...

I like this pic because of the directional energy of it... or something artsy fartsy like that- it just says, "Go!" (which is what my Mom was saying at the time)...

The light in this forest is particularly pretty because in certain areas it has been thinned while in others it has been left dark and full of hidden crevices and old rotting stumps that act as a bed for new growth...

Hawk and Hunter had a blast running through, up and over the logs and brush, chasing squirrels and exploring the creeks and ditches along the trail...

Doesn't Hunter have the cutest bum? Here he is looking down at Hawk as he explores an old skeleton of car in a ravine...

One stump in particular stole Mom and I's attention....


Isnt it cool! When I went to name these pictures the best I could come up with was "Funky Lumpy Tree"... which I think works. Look at all the different textures in the bark....

Last year Mom and I were walking this trail when right about at this point....

....the setting sun cut through the trees in yellow beams, slicing through the cool green air and filling the forest with its light..... Mom and I walked through in quiet reverence of the beauty before us... Later that night I wrote this poem....

Yellow, golden dazzling light,
peering through, sparkling bright.
Between the branches and air it plays,
piercing the dark dense green- its' rays.

So low the sun does sit to rest
Last banners preening over the horizons crest
Its' light so odd to see
shining up rather than down on me.

Thank you for the great day, Mom! I am so happy to have you home.

"You, me and some Tzatziki!"

So the question has been asked and as the overwhelming consensus on yesterdays blog was that people appreciate it if you answer a direct question, I will venture into the topic of sheep today.... (not really, I'd have done it anyways...but it did give me an excuse to discuss my sheep prejudice).... I guess after reading on my profile and hearing that I am interested in "any kind of animal (but sheep)." Jen098 felt compelled to ask, "OMG how can you not like sheep!?...." and finished up her comment with, "Have you had a bad sheep experience?" Why, yes! I most certainly have.

Now, knowing that a good number of my blogger friends have sheep (and appear to love them dearly) I have, up until now, left it as a mere statement of fact.... I DO NOT LIKE SHEEP. Period. I hate sheep just slightly more than I loath goats.

I am sorry but I do not take this position out of ignorance- I boarded my old horse Rocky with a mob of sheep for four years (I was responsible for feeding and cleaning up after them) and I lived with Odie (the Goat) for another. I've spent a good deal of time with either species at other barns along the way and have had some that I've liked better than others and my tender moments with them as well. One ewe at my old barn I named Gramma, she had an ol'n'wise look to her eye and would come up for a scratch every morning. I'd even give Odie a scratch a time or two. I dont hate an individual sheep, if I came by your place I'd give yours some lovin' too and probably compliment you on their profuse and gloriously fine wool. I get that they are contributors to this planet and have a place on them. But still... thanks but no thanks.

IMHO they stink, they have VERY dirty bums, their poop is like miracle poo, (it gets everywhere and is impossible to remove from clothing, creases or sawdust), their sole objective in life is to find ways to make yours miserable (by breaking out, eating up or destroying anything they get their grubby little paws on (I know they dont have paws!)). Now, I am sure your goats and sheep are clean, potty trained little angels, but the ones I've known where all of the above. I am sorry, honestly I mean no offense, but this has been my personal experience with them...and an opinion I am fairly content with...meaning I will NEVER own sheep or goats. Never say never, right? Never!

Actually there was a resident goat at my last barn named Odie. Everyone just loved that little 'ucker like he was the best thing since slice bread. He drove me up the bloody wall. I swear, sheep and goats are the single most annoying creatures on earth. Sure they can be cute and their antics humorous, they can be "smart" (meaning they are insanely clever at finding new ways to reek havoc wherever they go) but, with all due respect, thanks but no thanks!

My less-than-adoring attitude found Odie and I eyeball to eyeball on more than one occasion- him backed into a corner trying to find a way by while I stood over him, shaking with frustration, trying to resist the urge to bash him over the head with whatever object he had recently destroyed (I would never actually hurt the belligerent bastard). I'd mutter, "You and me, Odie... just you, me and a side of Tzatziki! I hear your lovely in a curry!"

*****
Thanks everyone who contributed to yesterdays post. It really helped me understand more about blogging...the social aspect of it, as well as all the wonderful, positive benefits we draw from expressing our thoughts and opinions, gathering support and sharing our life experiences with a global community.

A Mouthful 'bout Bloggin'....

I've been thinking a little lately about blogging... wondering just why it is we do it! Also, what makes one popular, or not.... And what, if anything, it says about a person if their intent is to become popular.

How much ego is involved in authoring a blog? I say ego guardedly- presumptuous might be a better word- the idea that some stranger actually cares about what we have to say! And that some of us actually try to make people care about what we have to say... and that people actually DO care about what we have to say! Even if it just a catalogue of the mundane aspects of our everyday life!

Why do I blog?

The answer for me is that this has always been, and hopefully always will be, an outlet for personal expression and a forum to practise the creative process of writing- how ever trite that may sound!

I have to (and hate to) admit that I do want people to like my blog. I want my readers (how arrogant does that sound?) to feel inspired, humored, intrigued- I want to make you smile or make you think. But most of all, as selfish as this may sound, I want to make MYSELF feel inspired, humored, intrigued and I want to smile and think.... to explore horse, life, and love issues through writing and pictures and through your response as well.

Why do you blog?

I have to (and hate to) admit that I do have that irresistible human compulsion to seek acceptance and popularity from my peer group. I wont deny it! But I try not to let it have any place in this blog.

Because if I allowed the concept of self-promotion to flourish I would loose the "outlet for personal expression and forum to practise the creative process of writing" and instead become consumed with devising strategies to keep you'll interested- like writing short and simple posts on a personal and consistent topic. My blog does not follow the rules of creating a "successful" blog! And I don't care! *sticks tongue out*

But when I first started writing this blog I promised myself that I would never write a post, leave a comment, reply to a comment or do anything at all with the intent to promote this blog or solicit readers to it- I would write about what I wanted, when I wanted, and for as long as I wanted!

But damned if I didnt think from time to time, "Oh no, I cant write that! I touched on that last week." or "Its been while since I did a horse post, better write one today" or even "I wonder why no one had to say anything about that post? Was it not interesting?" And then I remember that it really doesn't matter what anyone else wants or has to say...and it is awfully presumptuous to think that anyone else even cares!

But comments are addictive, aren't they? Let me ask you this, do you think that a gantlet of "followers" and 142 comments a day really makes a blog "good"? Any more so than the undeniably popular but unforgivably bitchy girl in high school was made a good person by the number of girls in her click (groupies)? Is blogging like record sales? Is Brittney Spears a good singer because she's sold millions of albums?

Or is blogging like art, there are no rules (which is also subject to opinion)?

Do you have a blog that you follow, even though you don't really enjoy it? If so, why do you keep going back? Like a bad sitcom, are you addicted to the plight of characters, however meekly formed, poorly acted or ridiculously written? I am and I do!

Personally, your comments and readership is a bonus! Some really fabulous icing on a cake I call creative expression! I love hearing what you have to say! You've helped me out, been supportive, funny and very encouraging! In almost a year of blogging I have yet to receive a single negative comment. Thanks!

But I don't comment on other peoples blogs very often! Though I do enjoy reading my fair share.... I don't for one very good reason....


I could very easily spend my entire day reading, commenting and replying to a hundred different blogs. And I am a self professed extremest, so I tend to limit myself to doing something very little in order to restrain myself from doing nothing but! Like daytime TV, I have to limit myself to just a few select cooking shows or I would get lost in Days of Our Lives, All My Children and Peoples Court.... Oh! and Oprah.... and Ellen too, of course- which would lead towards an expansion in the general vicinity of my ass and proceed upwards from there. Trust me, I cant afford any further enlargements! My chair is still shrinking!

So I dont comment or even reply to the comments left here! Which leads me to my BIG question of the day (I say that like its a regular thing)....

DO YOU PREFER A BLOG WHERE THE AUTHOR REPLIES TO YOUR COMMENTS? (Most of the time).

DO YOU GO BACK TO A BLOG WHERE YOU HAVE LEFT A COMMENT TO SEE IF THE AUTHOR HAS REPLIED?

I do not reply to the comments some of you so kindly leave. I read every one of them! Promise. And I LOVE hearing what you have to say. And most of the time I would love to reply to your comment... and I really would love to get my two bits in on your blog too! (I have a LOT of bits!)

BUT...

I know I could so easily get lost in spending my afternoons conversing with you fine people...and I would turn into a fat(er) albino that never sees the sun or goes outside, or cooks...or goes for groceries (maybe I wouldn't get so fat after all! Now there is my kinda diet!) So as a rule I don't comment...but I have always been REALLY bad at sticking to my self imposed rules so sometimes I do...

Now, if I were a smart little blogger I would break up this ginormously long post and post a section a day for the next month! But I wont. But I really do want to hear your answers to my many questions (if you'd be so kind as to reply!) and I will promise that I will reply to each and every one of your comments... and maybe we can have a conversation? And maybe that conversation will become my next post! And then maybe I will be the first every blogger to have a blog strictly about blogging! (Though I am sure its been done!)

So in summery *embarrassed grin*

1. What makes a blog popular?
2. Do you think it is good, bad, (or neither) to solicit readers/comments?
3. Do you think blogging can be a little presumptuous?
4. Do you care if your blog is successful?
5. Why do you blog?
6. Do you like getting comments?
7. Can a blog be good or bad?
8. Are you addicted to a blogs you dont like? Why?
9. DO YOU PREFER A BLOG WHERE THE AUTHOR REPLIES TO YOUR COMMENTS? (Most of the time).
10. DO YOU GO BACK TO A BLOG WHERE YOU HAVE LEFT A COMMENT TO SEE IF THE AUTHOR HAS REPLIED?

11. How much time on average would you say you spend blogging (writing, reading, commenting, etc.)? Come on now! Be honest!

When You Buy A Horse...

I found this quote the other day....

-"When you buy a horse, you buy that horse's history: the pastures (rich or weedy) where he grazed, the manner (rough or kind) of his handling, the skill (even or not) of the one who has schooled him, even the water (sulphurous or sweet) he drank every day of his life. Horses bear the sins of their handlers with astonishing good grace, but somewhere in that sculptured form every bout of lost temper, every shortcut, every attempt at economy, each little loss of faith in that horse leaves a legacy. We chip and chip away, or we build and buttress, and leave a little of our character on that horse's heart."

- Lawrence Scanlan

Guess what? My Mom is home!!!! YAYAYAYAYAYAYA!!!!! I missed her SOOOOOOOOO much! I am sure she will let me do a post on her South American cruise this weekend so stop by to check out some really pretty pics!

A Lazy Afternoon with LuLu, Bitty and Hawkydog

The animals in my household have it pretty rough. As you can see in the above photo. Yesterday afternoon we decided to chill out on the bed and have a little photo shoot... because, to be honest, I had absolutely nothing better to do... and I love my animals....


LuLu is always game to have her picture taken. I swear this kitty was a blond haired-blue eyed supermodel in her past life.




And then there is my Miss Bitty... Misfit, Bitty-Boo, Bit, Bitmyster, (enough?) Bitty has a thing about tails. You see all of her sisters go outside be she does not! Oh no! She most certainly does not. So she has to live vicariously through them by sniffing their tails the moment they walk in the door so she can try to decipher all of the bizarre and wondrous things they rubbed up against during their foray into the (way too) scary (for Bitty) outside world.

While Bitty had her sniff-fix I took some photos of her delightfully deep, soft and downy looking fur!.....

If you think of these pictures in an abstract way (not as fur) they take on a whole different look.... like the one below....

While Hawkydogs fur looks like a photo of a sea of grass bent and blowing in the wind, (shot in black and white).....

Anyone care to take a guess what part of Hawk's body the below photo is of? I loved the different depths and directions of his fur.....

At this point I had focused far to much attention on everyone else and Loo demanded the spotlight again by striking this fabulous pose!....

Actually, last night I was watching Planet Earth (amazing!) featuring a Snow Leopard that reminded me of a big, fierce, wild (and very large) looking LuLu.... Here is Loo evoking her inner Leopard!....

But Loo, she only had to give me one of her dear, sweet, 'deer -caught-in-the-headlights' "???!!!??" looks to remind me that there isnt a fierce bone in this kitty's body!

I love my babies!