Love Lives Here

It is time for parents to teach young people early on that in diversity there is beauty and there is strength. - Maya Angelou

Peterborough, along with most of southern Ontario and points beyond has just exited a lengthy and lovely heat wave - summer's last hurrah. Although the following images are from earlier in the recently-ended season, some of them express the recent heat and the current mood of the area, in more than one way.

This Saturday is Yom Kippur - the holiest day of the year for observant Jews. And it will be on this date that a lowlife who bears a swastika tattoo on his chest, will lead a white supremacist rally in our beautiful city. It is under the guise that they are protesting our Prime Minister Trudeau and illegal immigration. Make no mistake that these are nazis who also oppose legal immigration, and any skin colour other than white. A large counter-protest in the form of peaceful, solidarity events called Love Lives Here will also take place throughout the weekend. That's the Peterborough I know and love. I feel certain that messages of anti-hate will far outweigh those of the "the deplorables," but it's still all so unsettling and disturbing.

The photos are from a couple of summer day trips to Cobourg - where all of the beach pics were snapped, as well as Port Hope, Warkworth and Campbellford. The shore of Lake Ontario reflects the sizzling days of the past couple of weeks, and some of the various signs echo the prevalent mood around town at all times but especially during this particular week. For variety's sake, I'm going to alternate scenes and signs - some of which are welcoming in nature and some simply humourous. All which make up the fabric of my Canada.


Welcome to the lovely port Cobourg, Ontario. Boats were everywhere and so were people. This was the early August long weekend.






This image goes back to June - an attention-grabbing Fathers' Day ad.






On the beach, a sand sculpture competition was happening as part of celebrating Canada's 150th anniversary.






This sign was outside of a more mom-friendly type shop - but didn't want to exclude others - no matter your order of preference.






A pair of protective arms keeping her safe from the cold water of Lake Ontario.






Here's closer look at that crane fly you might have noticed in the previous sign photo.






Despite the really cold lake water, some thought it best to charge right in.






A coffee shop reminding customers why their daily dose of caffeine is so essential.





Others preferred to wade in while texting or perhaps prepping for a selfie.






These are the signs I like to see in my city. In my country. In my world.






The road home provides a pretty vista.






And signs at home in Peterborough help to restore faith.






May love, acceptance, inclusion and respect always soar above bigotry and hate.

Canada is like a bird, it likes to soar freely. ~ Unknown

Poetography

Some of you already know my bloggie pal Jinksy of Napple Notes. If you do, then you also know she's a clever lady with a delicious sense of humour and fine poetry skills. Jinksy is my favourite kind of poet - sometimes serious - oftentimes silly. Occasionally she'll turn her comments section over to her readers challenging them to a poetic response, which is what prompted me to offer her a challenge of my own.

I often search the web for interesting quotes to accompany my photos. Sometimes I select a snippet of a song, a line from a movie or something from a book. More often than not, a bit of poetry exists which will often express the mood of my images. It's satisfying to find the right ones, but it's also very time consuming.

Enter Jinsky.

The other day, I dropped my poetic friend an email asking her if she might be inspired to write a few lines for each of the photos you'll see below. Jinsky rose to the occasion and quickly shot back with her wonderfully crafted verse and haiku which are paired with the matching images for which they were written. I hope you enjoy them, and if you do, please be sure to drop over to Jinsky's blog and let her know. I bet you'll find yourself returning there often.

This lovely gull circled around me a few times before I was able to get him into focus. Though he was still fairly distant, it looks like I just had time to take the photo and duck out of his way - thanks to my zoomy lens.

the camera's eye
freeze-framed the quizzical glance
of the gliding gull

This little pocket of the lake collects the strangest things. Last time, it was a fishing float and an apple. This time it looks like breakfast was on the menu - Cocoa Puffs, a solitary Honeycomb and what appears to be a mushroom cap.

cereal puff balls
float in a nightmare landscape
of water logged dream

This is last year's Autumn Joy which will be cut back before new growth appears. When it begins to bloom in mid-summer, it looks a bit like broccoli. Then as the mini blossoms open, it changes from green to soft pink to rusty red.

Ghostly echoes of the past

haunt the dried flower heads
as they dream of youth flown
and wait patiently for rebirth.

Walking down the street, in the town of Lindsay in southern Ontario, we saw this cute pooch watching every car and person which passed beneath his window.

It's a dog's life standing still,

poised like a statue on the sill,
watching clouds go passing by
with never once the chance to fly
on scudding paws along the street,
free, excited, swift and fleet.
What dreams go racing through his head
at night, inside his doggy bed?

We spent the night in Lindsay. These three stones decorated the table in our motel room.

Three polished stones encircled by lace

each with a word carve on its face-
Truth for the seeking,
Faith in the finding,
and Wisdom to grant overall grace.

Back at home, I was trying to photograph a bird which sat atop a higher branch. The winged critter was out of my focal range but the camera decided that these woolen mittens were an unusual find - about ten feet above me.

green pine-needle spray
disguises identity
of two brown mittens

On the first warm day of spring, all sorts of wheels hit the pavement - bicycles, motorcycles, roller blade and skateboards. This board was abandoned hastily by my young neighbour. I suspect he had to pee.

Bright painted shapes protest at their sudden view
of a world tip tilted and stationary,
as the discarded board's metal wheels vibrate
with the hum of remembered movement.

Then again, that might have been me who had to pee... after finishing this yummy martini made with passion fruit, lemonade, pineapple and vodka.

on a glass surface
painted dragon fly hovers
intoxicated

Newly-sprouting willow boughs against the backdrop of the setting sun.

willow branches bow

to greet golden, glow-worm spheres
of lighted windows

Thanks for joining Jinsky and me on our little joint adventure. If you enjoyed our post, please stop by her blog and let her know.

I'll be back in a few days.

Young Love

Tuesday was sunny and warm, and it beckoned me to grab my cameras and take a walk. My destination was a park about fifteen minutes away. I've photographed the area before. You may have seen an early blog post showing children playing at the splash pad. My seagull and cormorant dramas unfolded there too.

I arrived at the dock and took a seat, hoping to see something worth recording. I snapped a few shots of the gulls in flight.

(please click to enlarge)

They were hoping to steal a morsel of bread being fed to the ducks - right beneath this sign.

I see that happen all the time.

An attractive, older couple sat watching me from the next bench. As I got up to move along, and around the lake, the man stopped me to ask about my camera. He had a warm smile and twinkling eyes. He asked about the zoom on my cameras and how far I could be from my subject and still get a clear shot. He told me that he used to be interested in photography but had to give it up when someone used his camera to take a picture of him. He saw how wrinkled he appeared and concluded that the camera must be too old!

We continued chatting comfortably. And every now and then he'd punctuate his humourous remarks with a gentle nudge to the woman's elbow, or with a wink in her direction. She didn't say very much. She let him do the talking as she smiled quite adoringly at him. They touched one another often. A squeeze to her hand. A pat to his arm. An embrace with their eyes.

I moved along to continue my walk. When I made my way to the opposite shore, I could see that they were still seated on the bench. They were busy chatting and pointing things out to one another. I wondered if they could see me hold the camera to my eye and take their photo from across the small expanse of water.

(please click to enlarge)

It only takes about a quarter of an hour to walk around the lake, and I figured that if they were still on the dock after I'd completed the tour, I'd show them the photograph.

As it turned out, I met them part way. They were ambling along, deep in conversation, hand in hand like two teenagers in love. He greeted me like we were old friends, and I showed them the picture of the two of them. They were amazed and amused that I managed the shot without their knowledge from across the pond. He commented on how beautiful his partner was and asked about how my camera lens coped with his own mug. He teased that she looked great for a woman of 112. I laughed and told them that I thought they were a great-looking couple, and I asked how long they'd been together. He looked at her for confirmation as he estimated about a year and a half. Again, I thought he was joking, but he quickly explained that they'd met at the nearby retirement home where they both live.

Over the course of the conversation, I learned that she was a lifelong resident of Ontario. He was born in Italy but immigrated to Canada when he was 18. I smiled at him and exclaimed "Oh so you've been here for about 30 years now!" He told me that he appreciated my math skills. He revealed that his partner was a very young lady of 90, and that he was 81. I teased them about how she robbed the cradle. And he replied with "Yes she did, and she really rocks my cradle!"

We chatted for a short while longer and then she nudged him and suggested that they continue their walk around the pond. He told me that they had already walked that path earlier that morning, and now she wanted to complete another tour. He suggested that she was trying to tire him out so that he wouldn't get frisky later on. She laughed and told him that it was just the opposite - she was trying to give his circulation a kick-start.

I went home feeling great. I'd met the happiest couple on earth, and their spirit was contagious. What a lovely gift they are to each other - and to those they encounter.

Below are a few random photos taken over the last month. Please remember to click to enlarge.

I saw this interesting pattern on the highway on the road in front of us. It was taken through the windshield which is why you can see the glassy reflection. (please click to enlarge)

I have no clue what they were. Any ideas? (please click to enlarge)

A lovely Monarch lights upon a beautiful Coneflower. (please click to enlarge)

Children splashing and wading through the creek. They weren't alone - Mom was just upstream. (please click to enlarge)

Benny also loves his regular creek swim. He happily fetches as many sticks as we'll throw. (please click to enlarge)

An early eveing shadow cast in golden sunlight. This was taken from Frank's back deck. (please click to enlarge)

And here's the plant that the sun kissed to create that shadow. (please click to enlarge)

Nighttime in park. (please click to enlarge)

See you in a few days with more.