Sing a Rainbow

Red and yellow and pink and green, purple and orange and blue,

I can sing a rainbow, sing a rainbow, sing a rainbow too.

Listen with your ears, listen with your eyes, and sing everything you see,

Now you can sing a rainbow, sing a rainbow, sing along with me.

~ Arthur Hamilton

Red




and yellow




and pink




and green,




purple




and orange




and blue,




I can sing a rainbow,
sing a rainbow,
sing a rainbow too.




Listen with your ears,




listen with your eyes,




and sing everything you see,




Now you can sing a rainbow,
sing a rainbow,
sing along with me.

That Flirty Sun

“The sun was as flirty as Scarlett O'Hara with the Tarleton twins, breaking through the clouds in spectacular bursts that seemed like personal favors and then retreating for hours, days, and making us all ache for just a glimpse.” ~ Lorna Landvik

In my previous post, I brought you along to a football game at Toronto's Rogers Centre. It had been a rainy day but by the time we were ready to head home, the sun had made a most welcomed appearance.


Since we've now met again at Union Station, perhaps we can ride the train together.





Lucky for us, we were able to get a window seat. The sunlight is barely peeking through the still-heavy cloud coverage but it's enough to illuminate towers and treetops and add a bit of drama to our journey homeward.





At various points along the way, we get a good view of Lake Ontario.






There's a lot going on here - sunlit shrubbery, trains at rest, a tower, tractors, lamp posts and the reflection in the window which offers a glimpse of the view through the other side of the train.





Another view of the lake before we reach our destination.





As we're pulling into the station, another train works its way westward.

 



There's a bit of construction going on at the station during the week. Although at rest on this day, the sun seems to have awakened the brilliant orange, yellow and turquoise of the equipment.





Just before we found our car, Frank pointed out the top of this bicycle rack shelter.

For some reason it makes me think of this scene from The Wizard of Oz.






You might as well get in the car with us. Doesn't Frank's beard look cool in the sunlight?





One last sight before we arrive home - the church Frank attended in his youth. The cross appears to be lit from inside but it's catching the last rays of this beautiful sunshine.

Happy Thanksgiving to all of my American friends. I think I can smell the sweet scent of turkey wafting up here, over the border. 

One more thing, please...

For those of you who may not know her, Laura is, among many talents, a spiritual director, poet, photographer and of course, a wonderful blogger. She has asked me to include the following Thanksgiving message in today's post so that you can share in her gratitude for life and perhaps be a part of her fine project yourself:

“The Mega Mobius Gratitude Quilt was an idea born in November of 2009 when I had an MS exacerbation that made it difficult for me to communicate through words. I did not know at that time if proper syntax and missing words would return, but I wanted to write something for my Thanksgiving blog post, because I felt so deeply grateful for the goodness in my life. I was concerned that I would not be able to write it myself, so I asked friends and family to be earth angels and help me out by sending me brief messages about what they were grateful for in the moment. Thus began an annual tradition, and thankfully speech and the ability to write returned not long after the first quilt was created. This year more than two hundred people came together to create the quilt with me! You can view the quilt on November 22nd, Thanksgiving Day in the United States by stopping by my blog Shine the Divine. Additional offerings are welcomed in the “leave a comment” box beneath the post.

Gentle steps,
Laura

Ps. It is called the Mega Mobius Gratitude Quilt because a mobius form never ends... may that be so for expressions of gratitude as well.”

Leftovers Again?

With American Thanksgiving so recently past, along with our own Canadian Thanksgiving which occurred in October, I imagine that many of us are pretty tired of leftovers by now. So forgive me while I indulge in the last of my own photographic remnants from the past couple of months.

They're those images that never seemed to fit in this post or that, but I figured that if they were all mixed up together, they might make a decent casserole of sorts. I hope you enjoy them.

Bon appetit!

Come on in - the door is open. This weathered wooden door is unusually narrow. It's the portal between Frank's kitchen and his back deck, where he sits watching the birds until the sun goes down. In this photo, the sun was setting very low in the sky, bathing the worn wood with its rich, warm glow.

This feather sits in a ceramic jar in my front hallway. It's not from one of those birds that Frank likes to watch on his back deck, but rather from a wild turkey which my neighbour hunted a few years back. The sun was pouring through the small, frosted window in my front door, illuminating the tip of the quill.

Pour yourself a drink, if you like. No, this isn't our bar - it's a shelf at the LCBO (Liquor Control Board of Ontario). This colourful display caught my eye but I felt really conspicuous taking a photograph in the store which was filled with weekend shoppers. So I just let the camera hang from my shoulder, estimated my focus and hoped for the best. I wasn't displeased with the results.

One day, early in October, Frank and I took a walk down to the lake shore near his place. This rescue boat was just coming in from a tour of the lake. Everyone was relaxed and casual as you can see, so I assume that all was well.

Perhaps they crossed paths with the folks in the canoe missing from this collection.

On the same day as the above two photos, we were driving through one of the many picturesque areas of Frank's town when I asked him to stop the car so I could snap this shot from the bridge. It just struck me as so peaceful and beautiful.

These were about the size of a ping-pong ball and quite golden in colour. I'm not sure exactly what they were but they begged to be photographed.

Hidden among the autumn foliage, these pretty capped mushrooms peeked out at me.

This was an overcast day but the sun began shining a subtle glow from behind the clouds creating a shaded backdrop and casting a soft light on this spent clematis head.

What better way to end this remaindered spread than with a cottage sunset. This beauty of a day shared this scene with us in mid-September.

I hope you enjoyed the photographic nibbles. We'll try for dessert another day.

Northern Shores, Iconic Stores and My Dear Friend, CA.

We've not had any snow yet in my part of southern Ontario, and November has kindly treated us to a number of unseasonably mild days. This means more walks and more photos to share with you.

As you can probably tell by the title, this is a bit of a scrambled post. Earlier this month, I boarded a commuter train so I could spend the day visiting my friend, Carol Anne. We've known each other for just about 35 years now and I can scarcely remember what my life was like without her in it.

Over the decades, geography and circumstance occasionally dictated various gaps of time between our getting together - sometimes, weeks or months, though I doubt a full year has ever passed without a visit. No matter how much time passes, ours is the kind of friendship that instantly picks up where it left off, with the comfort and laughter that can only be shared with dear friends who have seen each other at their best and at their worst - and love one another in spite of it, and because of it. We've lived as far apart as 565 kilometers (350 miles) and as close as same-floor neighbours in a small, old apartment building.

We met when we both worked at the (then) Montreal-based head office of Canada's largest retail chain, Zeller's. Carol Anne worked in one of their buying departments, and I handled a chunk of their suppliers in the accounts payable office. We had a few mutual friends in other departments and soon we were all hanging out together evenings and weekends.

Zeller's had a pretty good handle on company morale. About every month or so, their Better Relations Committee organized events such as car rallies, sugar shack parties, sample sales, dances and of course their Christmas parties every November. It was a fairly close-knit group of 300 employees and we had a lot of fun together through the years.

Eventually our immediate gang of about 10, each moved in different directions, geographically (some as far as New Zealand), and Carol Anne and I were no exceptions. After working for ten years at Zeller's, I moved from my native Montreal to settle in Ontario. Shortly afterward, Carol Anne and her family did the same and we each took up residences in towns on opposite sides of Toronto. She has recently moved a bit farther away than that, but her home is still less than an hour away from mine by car and just a couple more by bus and train. And as a bonus, she's only about 20 minutes from Frank's place so I get to see her there too.

As for Zeller's, their stores have been around a little longer than I have, but sadly, their time is coming to an end as they have recently been bought out by an incoming American chain - Target. They'll be changing most of the stores over pretty soon and I'm not looking forward to that.

Back to the photos. On this lovely autumn day, early in November, I boarded the GO Transit (GO stands for Government of Ontario) and headed east across the city of Toronto to visit Carol Anne.

I took this photo through the train window, as the tracks followed the northern shore of Lake Ontario.

Before darkness fell (it does that so early these days), we decided to go for a stroll near her home. There's a lovely walking path which follows the lake's shoreline and in turn, it beckoned us to follow it.

Depending on your vantage point, Lake Ontario can appear small and intimate like like my own local pond..

or large and imposing like the ocean.

And always beautiful...

.. no matter how you look at it.

After our lovely nature walk, we headed over to Frank's place for a yummy dinner. Carol Anne returned home after the meal and I stayed at Frank's for a few days.

This wasn't dinner leftovers, but rather a migrating salmon picked clean by the local birds. I snapped this shot on my walk a few days later, along the creek shoreline.

And just in case you wanted to get a look at the area just before sunset, here it is. This is right outside and across the street from Frank's front door.

Thanks for joining me on my walks. Carol Anne, Frank and all of you are such great company.

"A true friend is someone who thinks that you are a good egg even though he knows that you are slightly cracked." ~ Bernard Meltzer

A Perfect Day

A few weeks back, I spent the day with my friend, Carol Anne and her daughter Cheryl. Cheryl lives in Toronto, just steps away from Lake Ontario and since her boyfriend, Matt runs one of the water taxis which take folks from the city to Toronto Islands, we decided to spend that very warm summer day exploring.

I took the GO Train (Government of Ontario, in case you were wondering) from Mississauga to Union Station, in the heart of Toronto. I phoned CA upon my arrival, and she and Cheryl walked over to meet me just outside of the train station. While waiting, I amused myself by taking photos of the bicycles which were available for rent.

Cheryl's apartment was a short walk from the station and before long we arrived to the sounds of chirps and tweets. Darned if I can remember the names of the lovebirds but I'm pretty sure one of them was appropriately named Birdface. I'm going to guess that this one was that bird. A beautiful little critter, isn't it?

Looking down, Birdface and his people have a pretty decent city view from their apartment window. Lots of activity below.

Looking out toward the lake, there's an even better view. Various boats of all shapes and sizes entertain birds and house guests alike.

After a yummy lunch, the three of us headed down to the harbour front where Matt treated us to a trip over to the islands. This was taken from inside the water taxi, just before departure. The commute lasts about five or ten minutes.

Matt continued his workday back and forthing between the islands and the mainland while Carol Anne, Cheryl and I wandered around Toronto Islands. The Toronto skyline proudly displays the C.N. Tower.

Toronto Islands are primarily made up of Hanlan's Point, Centre Island and Wards Island and each are connected and within walking distance of one another. This donations booth suggests you leave useful but unwanted items (as long as they fit on a shelf or a hanger) for those who may have a need.

Please don't tell Birdface but it would appear that a most horrific crime was committed here on Hanlan's Point. Somebody killed Big Bird!

When we were well and truly tired of walking around, Cheryl phoned Matt to see where he might be. As luck would have it, he was just about to dock the taxi right in front of us. He had us back on the mainland before long.

After bidding our goodbyes to Cheryl, Carol Anne and I moved on to her place in Ajax, Ontario, east of the city. Despite our long day of walking, we decided to head out for another stroll along the lakeshore near her condo. There's a public park right by the water where picnicking families were beginning to pack up for the day. I hope they don't forget their clothes which were hung on the line to dry.

The sun began to set as we made our way along the the path. A city sunset can be beautiful when not obstructed by tall buildings.

And when the sun sets, the moon rises. Nature gave us a lovely view at the end of a perfect day.


Tomorrow, we're heading up to the cottage for about a week. I hope to catch up with all of your blogs sometime after I return. Have a lovely week!