Celebration

Let us celebrate the occasion with wine and sweet words. ~ Plautus

A few weeks back, I was suddenly presented with the opportunity to take a quick trip to and from my sister, Andrea's town of Port Dover, Ontario for the combined occasion of her 65th birthday, and my brother in law Bill's retirement.
My son, Alex and I were there and back within twenty-four hours for the intimate gathering and our time was filled with family, friends, food and fun. My lovely nieces, Jaime and Stephanie threw this joint part for their parents at the beautiful, old farmhouse where Steph and her partner, Jordan live. They also accommodated six of us with a place to sleep after the party.

I'm not including any people pics - just images of things which made my camera go click!


Along with lots of other goodies, these scrumptious celebration cupcakes were a huge hit.


 



A mini replica of the race car Bill and friends owned, back in the day.






My niece's home borders on a big old cornfield which spent much of the afternoon and evening illuminated by the sun.






What farm doesn't have a wheelbarrow parked on it, somewhere?






Colourful clouds gathered as the sun began its descent in the sky.






Before long, only a small strip of vibrant gold remained on the terrain.






Which was when the moon made its presence known.






That was also when the mosquitoes dictated that we take the party inside to toast the celebrating couple with champagne.

In the morning, Andrea and Bill kindly treated the family to a yummy breakfast out. As we arrived on the patio, a couple who had been enjoying their breakfast made a hasty exit. The waitress told us that the man was Sons of Anarchy actor Kim Coates who was in town for a charity promotion in support of Big Brothers - Big Sisters. None of us had ever watched the show, so he went unrecognized by our group. I think he saw my camera and feared getting caught up in an intrusive photo request. Little did he know that whether we recognized them or not, they would have easily finished off their breakfast uninterrupted.


After breakfast, Alex and I left for the drive back to Peterborough. Glancing out the passenger window as we crossed this bridge, I happened to see a boat doing circles in the water.





And this famous landmark greeted us as we drove along the Gardener Expressway in Toronto.






A closer, more tilted perspective of the C.N. Tower, complete with dashboard reflection.







And back home again, I happened to catch my beautiful little Zephyr's reflection in this small mirror. He was sitting to my right on my desk, when a glance to my left revealed his perfectly framed sweet face. I had to snap two shots and play with them a bit in Photoshop because there was no way I could get his face into focus along with the rest of the image.

And that ends our whirlwind trip into Port Dover. Thanks for your wonderful party hosting, Jaime and Stephanie, and your lodging hospitality, Steph and Jordan. And thanks for brekkie, Andi and Bill. Happy Birthday, my beautiful sister. And Happy Retirement, Bill.

Across Lake Erie

You can't see Canada across lake Erie, but you know it's there. It's the same with spring. You have to have faith, especially in Cleveland.

~ Paul Fleischman

A couple of posts back, I brought you with me to Port Dover, Ontario where we celebrated Friday the 13th - biker style. True, those weren't photos from this November 13th which filled my blog page, but rather Friday the 13th of March. At the end of that post, I promised to share some different Port Dover images from that same visit, and these are them - with nary a biker to be seen in any of them.


I was in Port Dover to visit my lovely sister, Andrea (hi, Andi!) who who has lived in this picturesque town for close to forty years now. Being March, we still had a fair bit of ice and snow to contend with on the northern shores of Lake Erie.






Yet, the melt had indeed begun as evidenced by the free-flowing creek.






It was a cold day for just sitting but this pooch and his person were enjoying the icy view.






I don't think we often consider the dangers that commercial fishing entails but this community has had its share of sad losses. This monument is for them.






The lighthouse is a well-known landmark in Port Dover and it looks especially pretty when the setting sun creates such a colourful backdrop.






The sign says "No Swimming - No Diving - No Jumping." With all that ice... no problem!






The next evening, Andrea and I went out to dinner at Callahan's Beach House. Old posters and photographs of performers decorate the walls of their lobby.






The rest of these images were taken through glass where reflections distract somewhat but the view was still enjoyable.






This pair navigated their way over the bumpy lake ice.






As we enjoyed a delicious meal, we were treated to another warming sunset.






Always beautiful - Port Dover.

PD13 - Friday the 13th in Port Dover

The PD13 motorcycle rally is considered by some to be the little party that grew. It all began when a couple of dozen biker friends of a local bike shop owner got together to party in 1981. They had a fine time and decided to gather again every Friday the 13th after that. Over the years, their numbers have grown considerably. So much, in fact that when the date falls during the summer months, quaint Port Dover's population grows from 6,000 to well over 150,000 - and a huge numbers of those visitors arrive by bike.

This year, Friday the 13th appeared on the calendar three times - in February, March and right now in November - the 60th such event. My sister happens to live in Port Dover and I was visiting her for a few days in March. Below are some photos depicting a few of the scenes and some of the characters who add to the charm of PD13.


Shop windows were all decked out for this busy event.






As one might expect, it was a cold and rather blustery day on the northern shore of Lake Erie in March.






Some bikes were parked.






Others rolled along through Main Street while people strolled in between them to cross the roads.






Indoors and out, vendors were busy making sales.






The girl behind this cheerful smile sold me one of the black jerseys to commemorate the day.






All lined up in a row.






It sure wasn't as crowded as it gets during the warmer summer months but considering the cold, and that there had just been a Friday the 13th four weeks earlier, the turnout wasn't bad.






There was a whole lot of leather everywhere you looked.






Nobody seemed to mind being caught on camera.






I'm sure that some were even intent upon being photographed. Check out the shoulder poodle.






Many of these faces would really stand out in a crowd if it weren't for the fact that this crowd was full of these characters.






Some of these guys have been attending PD13 for many years.






You could buy pretty much any motorcycle-related accessory here.






Although I don't think that's where he got his little riding buddy - The A&W Root Bear.





And this brings us to "the end" of Friday the 13th in Port Dover. Next PD13 is in May, 2016 - the only one of the year.

Eventually, I'll share some other photos I took around town. Until then, have a look at this video from when Rick Mercer featured Port Dover on his show in October 2013. You'll get a better idea of the crowds which were still small compared to summertime.

To Be at Home

I long, as does every human being, to be at home wherever I find myself.

~ Maya Angelou

Thank you all for your many wishes of good luck, good energy, crossed fingers, prayers and positive vibes about my house selling quickly and for a good price. They worked!

It was on the market for the fifth day when two bids came in. We took the second one which offered exactly what we'd asked, with no need to secure financing and a quicker closing date (November 12) than the first one. Three days later, their offer was firm when an inspection of my home revealed nothing of deterring concern.

It was important to me that the new owners fit in well with our neighbourhood. We're a close-knit group as many of you may remember from my posts about our planned street parties, impromptu barbecues and New Year's Eve get togethers. We're much more than neighbours - we're friends, and the proof is in how despite several of us having moved through the years, we maintain our friendship and party together. My real estate agent, Janette lived on our street a few years back and she continues to be a regular part of the group events.

Once the offer was signed and accepted, we chatted extensively and I feel quite certain that this couple will soon be a regular part of the gang. They're warm (we hugged to seal the deal), friendly, interesting and they love animals (jokingly suggesting that my Skitty might be thrown in with the house) and are nature lovers (looking forward to walking around the very pond that inspired a huge part of my love for photography).

Welcome to the best neighbourhood on the planet, Christine and Aaron. You will be coming home.

And I'll be going home. If our new neighbours are half as wonderful as the ones I leave behind, we will be truly blessed.

Most of the work I have left to do is legal stuff, make phone calls to cancel utilities, advise businesses of my change of address - oh and pack up the rest of my stuff to move. My 14 year-old cats are not going to be happy about such a long trip (about three and a half hours) and they'll deeply miss my son, Alex. And he'll miss them terribly as they've been in his life since he was nine. Of course he will visit us and the cats will have Benny to keep them crazy entertained. Alex will be in search of his own apartment but still has his Dad's place to stay at if he needs to for a while.

I'm glad that this part of the process is done and that I'll be moving in to our new place before true winter settles in. Now, we'll just have to endure the rest of the renovations that have been taking place there since the summer. I guess I'll tell you more about that when I see it for myself.

This weekend, I'll head up to be with Frank for a little while before I get down to the business of moving. It will be nice to spend some alone time together and to enjoy the last of what autumn has to offer. We'll probably select some fixtures, flooring and cabinets for the new addition while I'm there. Maybe it won't be too long after that until our place is fully liveable.

For now, I'll leave you with a few random photos taken during the late summer and early autumn. I hope you enjoy them.


Just before the Labour Day weekend in early September, my son Jeffrey came in for a bit of business and a two week visit. We spent one day visiting my sister, Andrea who lives in Port Dover, Ontario - on the northern shore of Lake Erie. This was the view of the pier and lighthouse as seen from our beachside restaurant table.





Autumn leaves, lit by a small shaft of sunlight, early one morning.





This was snapped on my way across the city of Toronto early one evening. Every now and then the setting sun would illuminate the tracks.






This was the view I saw on my way to town from my new place. It was still early in the autumn but the leaves had long begun turning.





I've written about this heroic tree before here (third photo down) and here (third from last image). There's nothing left but its trunk now, and yet it still provides shelter for insects, which become food for the birds. There were several wasps going in and out of it's hollows on this sunny day.





Framed in between the wires, a small flock of geese make their way along the path cut out by the Credit River in Mississauga. We were on our way home from the South Side Shuffle. I'll have some more photos of that event for you coming up next.

Happy Thanksgiving to all of my fellow Canadians and to everyone else. I have very much for which to be thankful and I count your wonderful presence in my life among them.