In Which Two Great People Get Hitched

I love

I love little baby ducks, old pick-up trucks, slow-moving trains, and rain I love little country streams, sleep without dreams, Sunday school in May, And hay And I love you too. I love leaves in the wind, pictures of my friends, birds in the world, and squirrels I love coffee in a cup, little fuzzy pups, bourbon in a glass, and grass And I love you too. I love honest open smiles, kisses from a child, tomatoes on the vine, and onions I love winners when they cry, losers when they try, music when it's good, and life And I love you too.

Political Unrest

Do you know what's going on in Iran? Does anyone really know what the truth of what's going on there? If you think of it, pray for the people there. It's a scary scary world we live in. Yahoo News Report Thousands rally for, against Ahmadinejad's regime in Tehran Shared via AddThis Pictures More Pictures

Coldplay meets Taylor Swift

This is about the most beautiful piece of music I've heard in a while. For the record, we're huge Coldplay fans. They've got some really thoughtful, well-orchestrated music. Viva La Vida and the latest album as a whole is no exception. Taylor Swift, on the other hand...well let's just say the original of this song makes little sense. [Big gripe starting] It's called Love Story, but its main characters are Romeo and Juliet. I hate to break it to you, Taylor, but Romeo and Juliet do not live happily ever after, they die. Also, she talks about being a "scarlet letter." Do you know the reference that comes from? A book written in the nineteenth century by Nathaniel Hawthorne about a woman who commits adultery. Suddenly the "love story" doesn't sound so cute and innocent hey? [/ok, ok, gripe ending]. Sorry, had to get that off my chest. That said, "Love Story" is a beautiful sounding song, and the two songs combined and played by piano and cello (a fantastic musical match)...it's gorgeous.

Festlighed

This weekend was busy. We went to a stag (B did), a stagette (K did), a wedding, a family photo shoot, and a shower. And got lots of family visiting time in there too! The wedding was one of the best I'd ever been to. It was small, relaxed, friendly and beautiful. It was a perfect day for an outdoor wedding. The wedding and reception both took place at the bride's parents' house. There were around fifty people there, so you quickly got a sense of who everyone was. The reception was in the afternoon and we just all hung out together after the meal. The bride and groom seemed really relaxed and had time to chat with everyone. Finally, the decorating was fantastic. Attention to detail, anyone? Lovely. I've said it before, A&C, but I'll say it again. We're excited to hang out with the two of you lots in the coming months. Sunday was another stinking hot day. Central Alberta needs.rain.badly. Badly. Things are pretty crunchy and dust. But it looks like rain is in the forecast for this week, thank God. We spent the morning doing decorating for another wedding and then headed out to some friends' acreage where B did another photoshoot. We have lots of really great memories of this family in years past and it was great to see them again, however how briefly. We're so proud of the kids...in the years since we've moved to Calgary, they've grown up to be really neat young people. And then starts another week. We've got lots to pack into the week too, before we head back to Central Alberta for another weekend of wedding. It's going to be Awesome. One might even say Legendary.

Clafouti, anyone?

Yesterday I made an experiment dessert and tested it out on the women from Bible Study. It was called Cherry Clafouti and I got it from Simply Recipes. This was the first time we've purchased cherries this year. I managed to resist the urge to just eat the whole bag of them raw. The colour of cherries and cherry juice is almost as good as that of cranberries. Almost. A lot of juice gets splattered when you de-pit cherries. Especially when you're using a chopstick to de-pit. I am a fairly freckled person to begin with, but I added to the collection with some lovely purple freckles courtesy of the cherries. Too bad we didn't get a picture of the finished product. It didn't look quite as good as the recipe picture, I think because we cooked it too long. It was supposed to be a baked custard-like dessert, tasting of cherries and almonds. I think I need to buy a bag of cherries just to eat soon. But I thought it was a little early for cherries yet. I wonder when BC cherries will be ready?

Den Første Gang Jeg Så Dig

We borrowed a CD by Kim Larsen from K's mom a while ago, and recently found it again. It came from our family in Denmark, and is a great collection of Danish children songs. We've tried to find it to buy a copy for ourselves, but it is hard to come by. Since K is working with Danish all the time she is able to pick out some of the translations, and they are fun. Anyways, here is a sample of the music, hope you enjoy, even though you won't understand the lyrics.

Firsts

This weekend was one of firsts. First rhubarb crop of the season harvested. It was put to good use in a combination with some strawberries for a crisp for our small group. My favourite dessert. Ever. First time seeing the town of Okotoks' namesake. The Big Rock. An erratic dragged by the glaciers all the way to the beautiful rolling hills of southern Alberta (see the picture above). What a wonder to admire. We decided that this is something worth showing family visiting from abroad. ...And the reason we were even near Okotoks is because we got to be a part of another first. The first high school graduation in the family for some dear friends. Thanks for inviting us, friends. And congratulations again, J! First tomato on the vine. Our tomato plant has decided to brave all the snow/sleet/rain/hail/being-hauled-inside-and-out and begin to set fruit. Cause for celebration indeed. First "game" of tennis of the season. B and I are enthusiastic occasional tennis "players." Players and game need quotation marks because 1) Neither of us know the rules of the game -- well B does sort of, but I really don't have a clue and 2) Both of us, and especially me, have to focus so hard on getting the ball over the net and still within the tennis court, that you can't actually call what we're doing "playing" a tennis "game." We just work on hitting the ball back and forth at each other. But man do we have fun. :)

To Do This Summer/Why I love Calgary

It's another beautiful beautiful day in the city of Calgary, which got me thinking about all our plans for this summer, and how much I love Calgary in the summer. It's hard to choose whether to go camping/hiking all summer (one of our favourite things) or to stay at home in Calgary and enjoy our garden and alllll the things going on here. So, following is a combined "to do" list on the subjects. - Finishing my thesis by the end of July. - Four days in Jasper National Park, camping. - Shakespeare in the Park - Calgary Farmers' Markets-- multiple times please - Stephen Avenue at lunch time, on breaks from working at the Glenbow - Our birthdays - Road trip to Glacier National Park (we love Montana, Grandma Marci!) - J&M's wedding - A&C's wedding - Riley Park, just wandering, or watching Cricket-playing - Calgary Folk Music Festival (though I'm not sure we can afford to go this year...) - Running a 10km race - Siebenga 80 years in Canada Reunion - July 1st in Prince's Island Park - Gardening. :D - Nose Hill Park (perfect for biking, and walking, and flower-discovering and picnicking)

A Venture into Calgary Green Space

Speed Bumps: to make you slow down and enjoy the scenery

Saturday night we went for a walk in Riley Park, Kensington and along the Bow River.

It was so neat to see all the different ethnic groups, the families, the young people, everyone out enjoying the beautiful evening.

And why not? Calgary's green spaces are something we should be proud of.

It's a beautiful city.

And it's going to be a good summer enjoying the whole spectacle.

Plum Tree blossoms. It's a good year for fruit trees, to which trees all over the city attest .

A beautiful green VW van. I heart Volkswagens...

A Church downtown, just off of the Bow River pathways Sandstone arch near Prince's Island Park

On Such A Sunny Morning

My favourite thing these days is sitting on the front step in the morning.

Eating breakfast

Enjoying my hot cup of coffee

Doing my devotions

Discussing the day with Brent

Examining the growth of our plants

And this morning we had the added bonus of chatting ever-so-briefly with some church friends on their way to kindergarten-- --Well, the kids were. The driver/mum was just delivering them. :)

I think the time between about 6:30 and 8:30 is the best time of day during the summer.

(And yes my toenails are embarrassingly pink)

Garden update

This morning, when the sun was shining so brightly, I got up with great intentions of doing some yoga before work...but it was a morning to be out in. So, I dug manure into the zucchini bed and the place allocated for the peppers. I planted eight marigolds, and six zucchini plants. And watered the whole works in with plant-starter fertilizer. Our tomato has its first blooms. Our scarlet runner beans are finally recovering from frost damage. The whole world smells like Mayday blossoms. And the sun is still shining brightly.

Plants and Music

I find I have to search out and be mindful of cheerful and joyful things these days. It's easy to remain caught up in my cloud of gray sadness and wonder about what-ifs and should-have-beens. But if I count my blessings and measure plant growth, it forces me to dwell in the now and the dependable future.

So, without further ado:

Yesterday a friend dropped by with a tomato plant. What better gift for aspiring vegetable gardeners? We spent some time discussing the pros and cons of fertilizer, how to build a coldframe with a thermostat and the probability of Calgary remaining frost free for the rest of the season (I would say chances are not great). Nevertheless, we're going to plant the tomato out and take our chances.

And in addition to a happily accepted plant, we're so blessed by the friendship of said tomato-givers, with whom we have a symbiotic plant-babysitting relationship as well as a mutual appreciation for things growing, green, outside, natural, rural... (and the list could go on). I am always astonished and blessed by kindred spirits.

Today our four new albums came. So far we're listening to the Once soundtrack. It's the perfect balance of melancholic and joyful for my mood right now. Then we're going to listen to Jimmy Rankin of Rankin Family fame. Slightly less melancholy but still far from fluffy or bubble-gum cheerful. The world is a serious place. And again of friendship. At the same time as our cd parcel, we received a card from friends I've known as long as I have memories, who just wrote to say they cared. We are indeed blessed.

May Planting

Our Garden This Year, in List Form: Seeds: - Spinach - Beets - Scarlet runner beans - Swiss Chard [yet to come] - Nantes carrots Transplants: - Scarlet Runner beans - Sunflowers [yet to come] - Peppers - Zucchini - Forget-me-nots - Basil - A happily-received tomato - Marigolds Growing: - Rhubarb - Tulips - Shasta Daisies - Jacob's Ladder - Lupins - Yarrow - Lamb's Ear - Columbine - Lemon Thyme - Day lilies - Tiger lilies - Lily of the Valley - Campanula - Delphinium - Irises - Rudbeckia - Painted Daisies - Dianthus

Not Quite Snowing

Monday May 18th and we have rain-that-thinks-snow-might-be-a-good-option. But the rhubarb is growing in its red and green glory. God knew what he was doing when He gave us spring and green growing plants. They give us hope.

Five Good Things

1) We put in a cd order for FOUR new albums that should arrive by the end of the month. Ray Lamontagne, Leonard Cohen, Jimmy Rankin and the Once soundtrack. 2) My rhubarb plant finally made its above-ground appearance the day before we left for California and is now looking healthy and strong. 3) We have four cheerful tulip blooms in the front flowerbed. 4) The new Star Trek movie was great. I could have gone right back into the theatre and watched it again. 5) The sun was shining very brightly when we went for a walk this morning.

Guiding Me

I woke up with this song in my head last week. Not that I don't believe there's a God. I sure as heck do. But he describes well a gritty dark but honest perspective; one that is very familiar to me right now. David Gray is one of those singer/songwriters who knows where it's at. Him and Leonard Cohen and Martyn Joseph come to mind right now. Ain't No Love Maybe that it would do me good If I believed there were a God Out in the starry firmament As it is that’s just a lie And I'm here eating up the boredom On an island of cement Give me your ecstasy I'll feel it Open window and I'll steal it Baby like it’s heaven sent This ain’t no love that’s guiding me Some days i'm bursting at the seams With all my half remembered dreams And then it shoots me down again I feel the dampness as it creeps I hear you coughing in your sleep Beneath a broken window pane Tomorrow girl I'll buy you chips A lollipop to stain your lips And it’ll all be right as rain This ain’t no love that’s guiding me This ain’t no love that’s guiding me No it ain’t no love guiding me No it ain’t no love guiding me No it ain’t no love guiding me This ain’t no love that’s guiding me This ain’t no love that’s guiding me On winter trees the fruit of rain Is hanging trembling in the branches Like a thousand diamond buds Waiting there in every pause That old familiar fear that claws you Tells you nothing ain’t no good Pulling back you see it all Down here so laughable and small Hardly a quiver in the dirt This ain’t no love that’s guiding me

¹⁰ Be kindly affectionate to one another with brotherly love, in honor giving preference to one another; ¹¹ not lagging in diligence, fervent in spirit, serving the Lord; ¹² rejoicing in hope, patient in tribulation, continuing steadfastly in prayer; ¹³ distributing to the needs of the saints, given to hospitality.
¹⁴ Bless those who persecute you; bless and do not curse. ¹⁵ Rejoice with those who rejoice, and weep with those who weep. ¹⁶ Be of the same mind toward one another. Do not set your mind on high things, but associate with the humble. Do not be wise in your own opinion.

On Such a Summer's Day

Beautiful morning: We were up at twenty after six to make an airport run. The sun was shining and the birds were singing. And we stopped for coffee and breakfast on the way home. It's going to be a great day. Good news: the streetsweeper came [Brent informs me it's actually called a street cleaner]. Now our street is clean and shiny and much easier to bike on. But really, the reason it's good news is that I think the streetsweepers are pretty cool looking machines. I'd run one. Dilemma: my beans. They've decided to grow at the rate of...a bean? So they're nine inches tall now and I don't think I can neglect them in the house for a whole week while we're gone. So I was thinking I should risk planting them outside on Saturday (when it's supposed to be plus 15 out). I run the risk of killing them, but based on their present rate of growth, if I did kill them, I could always just grow new ones. Count-down: California-dreamin. T minus two days. And then tidal pools, sunshine and fresh fruit. Oh yes, and Disneyland. This morning we dropped E&B off at the airport so they could go ahead and make sure it's safe for the rest of us.

The purple one they insist on calling violet

(No one except my family is going to get the blog title, but I can't help it, it just came out). We took a trip to the greenhouse in late March when I was feeling particularly lacking in sunshine, and I bought a potted pansy. I was afraid it would get really leggy by the time we get around to planting it out, and it has, but it has also bloomed continually and brightened up many a snowy day in the past week or so. I love the startlingly deep colour. Pansies are definitely one of my favourite flowers. They're so cheery and come so early in the spring and can handle the frosty cold springs of Alberta. I remember when I worked at the greenhouse having to shovel a foot of snow off of the pansy seedlings and there they were, blooming cheerfully underneath, unperturbed by the rude awakening.

New Lens

I purchased a new lens for my camera this past weekend, and so far I really like the results. We went to the greenhouse of the way home from the camera store so I took the opportunity to test it out on the plants there, here are some of the better resulting photos.

Leonard Cohen, Live In Calgary

Last night we went to a concert that I never thought I'd ever be able to see. Leonard Cohen is one my all-time favourite artists. Ever. I think it was meant to be, seeing as in all likelihood I heard him before I was born, and I do believe that my birth tape, the music my mum played while she was in labour, included songs by him. I was trying to find a video on Youtube to play to give a sense of who he is, but none of them really do him justice. So if you don't know who he is, I suggest you look him up. Maybe give a listen to "Famous Blue Raincoat" or "Tower of Song" or "Take this Waltz." Heck, it's hard to go wrong with any of his music. Cohen is in his early seventies now, and only went on tour because his manager swindled him out of his money a couple of years ago, and so Cohen had to come out of retirement. But you would never guess he was in his seventies. He was full of energy, his voice was clear, musical and powerful and the show was downright interesting. The artists he had in his band were all incredibly talented in their own rights and supported him well. He was quick to give them credit for their contributions and so was the crowd. He did THREE encore calls that added close to another hour to the show and made us all love him that much more. He sang all the old favourites. One of the female singers was Sharon Robinson, with whom he co-wrote the album Ten New Songs, and he sang some songs from that album, giving her opportunity to shine as well. The other two singers were the Webb Sisters from the United Kingdom. We're thinking we're going to have to buy an album of theirs--they have such gorgeous voices. The concert started at eight and we didn't get home til almost midnight. And then I was so wired that we had to read for a while so that I could fall asleep. It was fantastic; I'll never regret going.

Lemon and Vanilla With Fresh Strawberries

The other night we had K&K over for one last hang-out night before female K moved back to Lacombe for the summer. We've had them over a number of times in the last while, once where we made supper and then went out for dessert, once where they made supper and we made dessert, and now this last time, where we made supper and they made dessert.

Fortunate for us, K&K are both really good at cooking and baking. They made chicken cordon bleu from scratch the night they cooked. AND they're particularly fond of cheesecake. So cheesecake it was early this week.

And it was good. Very very good.

Thanks guys, you can come over anytime. :)

Eeyore

Repeat after me: "This is going to be just the moisture needed for everything to turn green. It'll all be melted soon." Sniff. It's snowing again; thick snow of giant flakes. And it's true, we need a little moisture to give the plants a kickstart. I would prefer it in rain form, but this will (I suppose) do the trick. I'm feeling rather gloomy and Eeyore-like though. A friend sent me this (Thanks L!): "It's snowing still," said Eeyore gloomily. "So it is."

"And freezing."

"Is it?"

"Yes," said Eeyore. "However," he said, brightening up a little, "we haven't had an earthquake lately."

No earthquakes indeed. But I think I need a hot bath.

PS. Happy Earth Day! I had great intentions of partaking of a free cup of Starbucks coffee and picking garbage, but I think I might just walk to the grocery store and call that my carbon-emissions-lowering contribution.

Now hare this

Two days in a row we've had this little fellow visiting us around supper time. And not just for a moment. Tuesday night he stuck around the whole time we made supper and did dishes. Just sniffing through the flowerbed and hanging out. The second time he stopped by, I was surprised he wasn't wearing a little blue coat like another famous rabbit I know. That reminds me, have you seen the movie Miss Potter? I highly highly recommend it. I can't wait for the weekend. Here's what we're going to do: - Rake the gravel off the front lawn. - Clean out the flowerbeds and mix more compost in. - Trim down the perennials. - Enlarge one flowerbed so I can grow vegetables (shh don't tell the landlord) - Dump out the composter; mix it around; take out the decomposed bits; move the composter to a sunnier location; fill it up again. - Plant some seeds in yoghurt containers for later transplanting. 1) Scarlet runner beans; 2) sunflowers; 3) Forgetmenots; 4) I'm up for suggestions. - Get our bikes up and pump up the tires and dust them and clean them up so we can go BIKING. I've been waiting and waiting to go biking. - Visit the farmer's market and spend at least $20 on vegetables. I need way more vegetables in my diet. And protein, apparently. - Go for supper at some friends' house. But most of this is banking on the hope that Brent feels better by then. He is SICK. I've never seen him so sick in the whole time I've known him. He was hit really hard by this flu...way harder than me. He's been more or less on minimal input or uncontributing for three full days now. That's unheard of for Brent.

Once Old, Made New Again

There's a sign as you drive towards Radium on Highway 93 that reads "And the mountains shall bring peace to the people." I've always loved that sign, because I've always felt that to be true, the mountains do bring me a sense of peace, because they are a reminder to me of God's awesome (as in filled-with-awe) power and His role as creator of all things beautiful and wonderful (as in filled-with-wonder). Two nights ago Brent and I went for a long walk up Nose Hill in the evening sunshine. It was our first walk up there since last fall. Every spring I am caught in surprise as I realize how beautiful Nose Hill is. A giant rise sticking out from amidst busy and often mindless suburbia. Nose Hill is caught between nature and culture, with native prairie grasses and other flora as well as all kinds of traces of the glaciers that once covered the area, but also with concrete foundations, paved paths, garbage and other signs of the visits of people and domesticated dogs. But it is so peaceful. Up high on the hills you can almost forget you are in the city, with the wind whistling in your ears and the grass waving and the smell of wet spring. Just as much as the mountains, it brought to me a sense of peace and joy. I thank God for His creativity and imagination in creating this world we live in. I am thankful for the opportunity to be caught surprised by the good and beauty in our world. I hope this never ceases as long as I live.

Last week I noticed that the tulips are peeking their heads up out of the wet earth in our front flowerbed. Spring is on its way!! We can't help but smile when we hear the birds singing sweetly. We're so glad to have them back. When we went running yesterday morning in the park we discovered that the ducks are back in great numbers. I wished them a good morning and a welcome back. I feel like I have never NEEDED spring to come so much as this year. We are so glad to see it coming. Our backyard is still completely full of snow, but it was 12 degrees outside yesterday, so this will change quickly. Hello all that is green and growing and sunshiny and earthy and new. I'm so glad to see you again!

Five Years' Time

They've been playing this song on CBC lately and we're big fans. And my brother T was such a big fan that he went out and bought the album. I can't upload the official video because they've disabled it, but I suggest you head over to Youtube and check out Noah and the Whale's song Five Years' Time.

Out for Supper

Last night we went out for supper with K&K. I wanted Italian but since there are TONS of Italian restaurants in Calgary, I wanted to try something different, something less mainstream than the Olive Garden or East Side Marios. So we went to a place in Kensington called Niko's Bistro. Niko's Bistro is on Kensington Road, closer to 14th Street than to 10th. It's a tiny little space in a cute little row of shops. When we came in the door the owner met us and led us to our table--a place right at the front where we could see out the window. The restaurant was not super busy, but we were far from the only people eating there. The decor was nice and understated. Heavy curtains separated the main part of the restaurant from the entrance. The windows had funky stringy curtains in front for a little privacy. The walls were painted coffee-coloured muted tones and there was local art on the walls. The background music was contemporary folk/jazz/pop of the variety that we really like. So far so good. We got our menus and there was tons of interesting things to choose from, either pasta dishes or meat-oriented dishes to which a side of pasta, vegetables or ceasar salad could be added. The wine menu was extensive too, but K&K are not wine drinkers, so we thought we would not go for wine. I think that was our first mistake, not ordering wine. We got kind of a sneering look from our waitress as she took away our wine glasses. When K and B decided later to order drinks, she brought them AND THEN asked for their IDs. Brent hasn't been IDed....maybe ever? So strange. We had bruschetta and calamari as appetizers. The bruschetta was really good--we could have had a lot more of it, though the waitress thought one order would be enough. The calamari was...calamari. I've decided I'm not a huge fan. It was well-spiced but nothing to write home about (but maybe I'm just not a calamari connoisseur?). I had a heck of a time deciding what to order, so I asked the waitress what she thought. I didn't take any of her suggestions, which was perhaps my next mistake. I ended up ordering the chicken parmigiana with vegetables. Brent ordered another interesting kind of chicken with pasta on the side, and K&K ordered canneloni and spicy spaghetti. After taking our order, we didn't see the waitress again until she came to ask if we wanted dessert or the bill (!!). The owner of the restauraunt brought us our food, and no one ever came to see if we were happy with our food or we wanted more to drink (which we all did). Finally when I was the only one still eating, and the waitress came to see if we wanted dessert, I asked her for more water. It wasn't like the place was really busy or was really big so that she could have forgotten us, we were right there. But I guess we had offended her or broken some unspoken rule (like not ordering wine at an Italian restaurant??). At any rate, the food was quite good. But good enough to come again? I'm not sure. We had way more fun when we came back home and had tea and the dessert that K made and played a roaring game of Settlers. Relaxed and we could get up and refill our own drinks. So there you have it. Niko's Bistro on Kensington Road. Take it or leave it.