N is for Niagara Falls #AtoZChallenge

On April 16, 2018 By Widow BadassIn A2Z Challenge Post, Good Times, See the Beauty16 Comments

I grew up 90 minutes away from one of the biggest tourist attractions in the province of Ontario, dare I say in all of Canada: Niagara Falls.

My newly immigrated parents honeymooned at Niagara Falls, back in 1954. Their honeymoon consisted solely of a day trip to the Falls and stopping for Chinese food on the way home, because it was all they could afford. They didn’t even have a camera at that time so they could take photos.

However, when you are newly immigrated to Canada, and your relatives from the Netherlands (a different set every summer) want to visit, it means a lot of return trips to Niagara Falls and plenty of opportunities to take pictures.

So since their honeymoon, my parents managed to fill albums with photos of the yearly summer pilgrimage to the Falls. Here are just a few:

My mother and her mother at the base of the falls, 1964

Tante (Aunt) Bep (actually my grandmother’s cousin) and Oom (Uncle) Joe, at Niagara Falls 1968?

L-R: Tante Bep, Oom Joe, Baby Sis, Me, Lil Sis, Mom – in front of the Floral Clock. Dad behind the camera, natch. 1968?

Floral Clock Niagara Falls, 1980s? (based on jogging suit I spy, just right of centre)

Oom Henk at Niagara Falls, 1980s (based on acid-wash jacket)

I think I have been to Niagara Falls almost every summer since I have been alive.

There are pictures of me pregnant, pictures of me with the kids of varying ages, pictures of me with my ex, pictures of me with my last husband. And lots and lots of pictures of the Falls.

I’ve even ran a half-marathon at the Falls – in 2015.

Mom joins me to cross the finish line. One of my favourite shots of us. She wouldn’t finish out the year.

No doubt this summer I will be there again.

Do you have a place that you like to visit every summer?

Rock on,

The WB

Can you guess my theme for this year’s A-Z Challenge? All of my A-Z posts this month will be tied into my theme, which is represented by the title of a song that was popular when I was a child. Can you figure it out as the days (and posts) go by? Leave your guesses (one per day only, please) in the comments. At the end of the challenge, I will reveal the theme. Have fun!

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Changing Seasons for March 2018 #TheChangingSeasons

On March 30, 2018March 30, 2018 By Widow BadassIn Bruce Trail Adventure, See the Beauty, The Great Outdoors11 Comments

Spring is slow to come to my part of the world this year. But I’m not complaining as the winter was not as dire as predicted, and there is almost no snow left.

Most of March has been grey and cloudy, with either snow flurries (that disappeared almost as soon as they hit the ground) or cold rain coming down from the skies.

But last Sunday was a gloriously sunny, cloudless – albeit at times bitterly windy – day. Blaze and I had planned to hike Mount Nemo that day so we were happy with the forecast. Mizz J had to write a paper for school so she couldn’t join us, but her boyfriend Kevin asked to come along and we were happy to have his company.

Kevin enjoyed exploring the crevasses along the trail and finding caves.

I nervously stepped out on a ledge to take this shot of the jutting cliff edge.

Try to imagine how far I am leaning back to try and feel safer taking this shot! I mean, I was watching turkey vultures gliding the air currents BELOW me.

Just one of many stunning vistas from Mount Nemo

Joanne (Blaze) and I, as captured by Kevin. Nope, not a fright wig. Just my hair.

Close Up: Did I mention the fierce and bitter wind?

This bench on the trail (a big log, actually) provided by the club I belong to.

The Changing Seasons is a monthly challenge hosted by Su Leslie at Zimmerbitch.

Rock on,

The WB

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The Trip after THE TRIP: To the Hyde Collection

On March 11, 2018March 11, 2018 By Widow BadassIn Artistic Endeavours, Good Times, Roadtripping, See the Beauty9 Comments

Just before leaving for Barbados, I learned that a museum in upstate New York was hosting an exhibition of Alphonse Mucha’s works, until March 18. So I knew I had to work in a trip shortly after returning home. I asked my intrepid beach travel buddy, Mizz CJ, if she was interested in accompanying me, and got an affirmative once I mentioned the art museum was in the Hyde family home. I didn’t even have to mention the world class collection of art – I had her at “historic home”, apparently.

So, off I hop onto the interwebs, to find us accommodations:

Package offered at the Queensbury Hotel, in Glen Falls. Also: historic AF. Win-win.

After a scant week of work, I was off again for another 2 days – this time driving to Glens Falls, NY.

The weather gods were with us on this trip – no snow, sunny, clear dry streets and highways, and above freezing. We got to the hotel in time for happy hour.

House red in Fenimore’s Pub at the Queensbury – delicious. The hanger steak with parmesan frites I ordered from the pub wasn’t too shabby either!

Our room was newly renovated and overlooked the park. We really enjoyed our stay at the Queensbury and would come back.

Night view from our room. Pardon the reflection.

After a scrumptious breakfast the next morning (the pork sausage with sage – to die for), we made it to the Hyde Collection, nearby.

Entrance via the Education Wing and Exhibition space, attached to the former Hyde home.

I loved seeing the full sized Mucha posters, as they would have hung on the exterior walls in Paris, advertising Sarah Bernhardt’s latest plays. There were also some creatively framed pieces, and actual paintings and sketches, showing the range of Mucha’s talent.

The house itself was lovely and the art collection of the previous owners was displayed with their furnishings. And what a collection: Rubens, Rembrandt, Picasso, Degas, Renoir, Botticelli, El Greco, Seurat, Whistler, Homer…and they are still adding to it, with modern and contemporary artists.

The house is on an estate, along with 2 other homes that belonged to Mrs. Hyde’s sisters’ families. The plan is to eventually open all 3 homes up to the public and restore the gardens.

Behind the house still exists the original source of the family’s wealth – the pulp and paper mill.

Unfortunately I couldn’t take any pictures inside, but I did pick up a book on Mucha before we left to head home through the Adirondacks.

Lovely museum. I would definitely go back to it, and Glens Falls and surrounding area.

Now I am home to stay for a while, and settling back into domesticity. I used the self-clean feature on my oven for the first time ever today.

That white stuff is the ash left over after the oven cleaned itself.

I’ve never had a self-cleaning oven before. I am used to cleaning my oven the old-fashioned way – by moving to a new house and leaving the dirty one behind. 😉

I like this new way.

Rock on,

The WB

Home – The Changing Seasons for February 2018

On February 25, 2018February 25, 2018 By Widow BadassIn Good Times, Mindfulness, See the Beauty14 Comments

I flew back to Canada on Friday evening, my 2 weeks in Barbados having come to an end.

I have to say that 2 weeks was the perfect amount of time to be away. Last year I felt that 1 week was just too short but I wondered if 2 weeks on the beach would be too much.

It wasn’t. It was perfect.

Boardwalk, South Coast Barbados — Sunrise skies as seen from the Boardwalk

I was and still am so grateful to be able to take a winter vacation to somewhere warm. Even though this was my 3rd year to head south to Barbados, I still pinched myself daily during my sunrise strolls, at my good fortune to be outside in sandals, tank top and skort…at 6 am, in February.

Barbados sunrise on the south coast — The beginning of another beautiful Bajan day on the south coast.

By week 2 my friend and I were ready to get our relaxed butts off of our beach loungers and do some island exploring. We booked a half day tour of Hunte’s Gardens and St. Nicholas Abbey (with a stop at Bathsheba and the Morgan Lewis windmill).

towering palms Hunte's Gardens — Veranda view of the towering palms of Hunte’s Gardens

gorgeous foliage Hunte's Gardens — Gorgeous foliage – Hunte’s Gardens

flowers Hunte's Gardens — Hanging flowers – Hunte’s Gardens

St. Nicholas Abbey is not an abbey at all, but a beautiful and historic English house surrounded by a working mahogany and sugar cane plantation.

Seashell Chandelier at St. Nicholas Abbey

An actual Thomas Crapper…er…crapper. At St. Nicholas Abbey. Yep, I go to a historic home and take a picture of the toilet. 🙂

View from Bathsheba – on the rugged east coast of Barbados. Not safe to swim here, but the surfers love it, apparently.

The Morgan Lewis windmill. Still used to crush sugar cane.

Our half day tour ended up being closer to a full day, thanks to traffic and being on island time. We kinda figured that might happen so we had packed snacks, figuring we might be an hour or so late getting back. Instead of returning at 12:30pm, we didn’t get dropped back to the hotel until after 4 pm. Next time we are packing a full lunch! Just in case.

sunset dining at Champers — Sunsets and Sangria at Champers, while the sea turtles frolic in the waves below. We ate at this nearby ocean-front fine dining establishment 3 times during this trip. Worth making and eating ham and cheese sandwiches for our beach-side lunches so we can splurge here in the evenings. Always a treat.

At the end of the trip, on the flight home I reflected on how happy I actually was to be returning to my home, and how for so many years this wasn’t the case for me. Home used to be a place I dreaded entering. Towards the end of my first marriage, coming home meant returning to my verbally abusive, controlling husband and his often-drunk, miserable mother. In my last marriage, coming home meant returning to Crazytown – a place filled with clutter, dirt and disorder – and all the other OCD-related shit I felt I had no choice but to put up with, from my last husband.

I don’t know if I can express in words how grateful I am now, to be able to say that returning home is pure joy. Home is my refuge, my sanctuary, my little corner of the world that is safe, warm, clean and welcoming. That is finally and truly mine.

And I came home to mild weather! Sunny skies and 9 degrees Celsius! Amazing!

Can this be really be the view from my rooftop patio in February? Where is the snow and ice?

This is my Changing Seasons post for this month.

Rock on,

The WB

Beach Blogging Part 2

On February 17, 2018 By Widow BadassIn Blogging, Good Times, See the Beauty, The Great Outdoors14 Comments

palm trees and beach and flag of Barbados — Welcome to the beach. Long live Barbados!

cement sea wall — Gorgeous salt-ravaged wall

weathered beach gate — Beach gate, leading to boardwalk

Bus stop sign at beach — Island humour. Even the bus stop signs want to be at the beach!

Ceramic sea turtle — Sea turtle embedded in ceramic wall. By Blakey’s on the Beach

beach flower — Closeup of flower seen on boardwalk

coconut palm on boardwalk — Coconut palm closeup

plant life on sea wall — Plant life cascading down wall

sunrise on boardwalk Barbados — What I see on every morning walk. Bajan sunrise Feb 17.

Beautiful Bajan sunset last night, as viewed from our balcony.

Rock on,

The WB

Beach Blogging

On February 11, 2018February 11, 2018 By Widow BadassIn Blogging, Good Times, See the Beauty, The Great Outdoors14 Comments

Sign on the Beach. Appropriate for this post!

First night. Checked in, unpacked and made it down to Charlie’s Beach Bar in time to catch the tail end of happy hour.

First morning, capturing the rising sun through the palms.

Thought this was the quintessential tropical photo. Kept waiting for this guy to move out of the frame. Then realized this local fisherman was actually posing for me. Nice!

What can I say? Dedicated AF to meeting my blogging goal for this year. P.S. my friend thinks I’m nuts but she did take my picture, which is what a true friend would do.

Rock on,

The WB

Where did the Weekend Go? And My First Changing Seasons Post, for January 2018

On January 21, 2018 By Widow BadassIn Artistic Endeavours, See the Beauty, The Great Outdoors18 Comments

Well, I am not entirely sure how it got to be Sunday night already but here I am, needing to make a blog post to keep up with my target of at least 1 post/week!

I might be jumping the gun a tad as it’s not quite the end of the month…but I have some lovely wintery photos burning a hole in my iPhone, so here goes my first attempt at a Changing Seasons post. (Su, I hope I am doing this right!) All of these photos were taken on the Mill Run Trail that starts in the Village:

river ice formation — Closeup of interesting ice forming in the river. Taken on First Day Hike with Mizz J – Jan 1, 2018

Ducks on the river — Ducks trying to stay warm Jan 1, 2018. This was as close as we could get without alarming them.

pampas grass — Pampas Grass against a beautiful winter sky Jan 1, 2018

This weekend I was back down on the Mill Run Trail again, this time with Joanne of My Life Lived Full. This was our second get-together, and my pleasure to host her at my stomping grounds. The weather was a lot milder than on New Year’s Day, and the snow showed it:

snow crust revealed — Evidence of typical January freeze/thaw Jan 20, 2018

Back indoors, when not binge-watching Grace & Frankie, I was “arting around”:

sea turtle painting — Sea Turtle painting, almost complete. Not happy with the sky at present. Need to figure out a fix.

painting of blossoms — Blossoms, almost complete

This painting came to life while following instruction from Angela Anderson

I love the way the background came out but I could have done better on the blossoms. I want to fix some stuff and do some glazing, and then it will be done!

I haven’t proceeded any farther with my Queen of Wands idea. I’m trying to figure out the best way to take a small drawing and transfer it to a bigger canvas. I’ve looked up the process of using a grid technique (cheap but looks tiresome) and also have discovered (cue angelic singing): the Artograph. Yep, that’s about 800 dollars worth of awesome technology that I won’t be buying anytime soon. Back to reality I go…

This weekend’s January thaw also meant it was finally a good time to wash Edward II, without risk of his doors freezing shut. If the sun would come out, he’d be all sparkly again. For about 5 minutes. Until covered with wintry road goo once again…

My weekend was jam-packed with fun stuff. How was yours?

Rock on,

The WB

What I did when Summer finally came to Ontario – October

On November 3, 2017November 3, 2017 By Widow BadassIn Bruce Trail Adventure, Gardening, Good Times, NaBloPoMo, See the Beauty, The Great Outdoors5 Comments

First a PSA: thanks to the power of the Twitterverse and a blogger named Kat of AsKatKnits, I learned that NaBloPoMo is still a thing! Another blogger (Aimie from Blissful Lemon) is hosting it this year. Go Aimie! Link up here, if interested in joining in the challenge (and the fun!).

Here is part 2 of how I made the most of Ontario’s better-late-than-never summer weather :

The Badass Rooftop Garden produced pole beans and cherry tomatoes until an overnight frost hit mid-October.

The warm weather meant lots of strolls at all times of day. Here is early evening on October 3.

Took a trip up to Mrs. & Mrs. Me Too’s place right after Thanksgiving!

And drinking beer on the dock while viewing stunning sunsets, natch.

Back in my neck of the woods again. More hiking, this time at Crawford Lake Conservation Area. Nassagaweya Canyon overlook.

I’ve been enjoying using a free hiking app downloaded to my phone, called All Trails. It shows you exactly where you are on the trail (blue dot)

And even more hiking! This time at Felker’s Falls with a delightful fellow blogger, Joanne from My Life Lived Full. This was a close as I dared get to the edge – my back leg is firmly planted as far behind me as I could extend it.

It was great to finally meet the person who inspired me to revive my own Bruce Trail Dream (in progress). We spent so much time hiking and chatting we forgot to get a picture of the both of us…hehehe. Next time!

And now the real fall is finally upon us. Dark mornings and early evenings and damp, cold, windy weather.

Thankfully, I have this to look forward to during these dark days ahead:

Ahhh, a Nespresso latte machiatto. Life’s little morning luxury.

Rock on until tomorrow!

The WB

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What I did when Summer finally came to Ontario – September

On November 2, 2017 By Widow BadassIn Bruce Trail Adventure, Good Times, NaBloPoMo, Roadtripping, See the Beauty, The Great Outdoors, Uncategorized10 Comments

This is going to be a two-parter, because Summer finally came to town in September and hung on through almost all of October.

Afternoon at Little Tract September 13. Blazing hot out.

Visiting Alton Mills Arts Centre September 16. Lovely spot and worth the drive!

Beaching it at Bayfield September 17. I even swam, twice – to get some relief from the heat!

Hiking with Mizz J September 23. Another scorcher of a day.

Watching the dancing at Jane Austen’s Country Ball (hosted by the Fashion History Museum) September 23. I felt a little sorry for all the revelers in their hot costumes. Obviously no one thought it would be so hot and humid so late in the season when the event was planned. It did not stop the festivities though!

Hiking at Rattlesnake Point September 30. Hasn’t cooled down yet!

I did try to make the most of the great weather while it lasted, and when I wasn’t working.

Tomorrow I will do a photo recap of the glory that was October.

Rock on,

The WB

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Happy September!

On September 3, 2017September 3, 2017 By Widow BadassIn Artistic Endeavours, Good Times, I Got Married, Roadtripping, See the Beauty, The Great Outdoors6 Comments

Well hello dear Bloggie,

Coming at you from a hotel room in Kelowna, British Columbia on this fine 3rd day of September – which would have been my 7th wedding anniversary. (Or would it? Hmmm…I’d like to think I would not have divorced my mentally ill, betrayer of a husband had he not died from cancer…but who knows what alternate reality I would be living by now had things turned out differently…) Anyhow, I don’t have a whole lot of emotion surrounding this day anymore…and I think that is a good and healthy sign.

August has been a stressful month for me. My sister has been quite ill and in hospital here in Kelowna – hence my presence. Most of the month I was on pins and needles, not knowing when her surgery would finally happen or if she would be healthy enough to even qualify. This, plus lots of goings on at work made the month both drag on and fly by simultaneously, if that makes any sense (and it does to me).

I did manage to get up to see my other sister (Me Too) and her wife at their lovely lakeside home, on the Civic Holiday Long weekend…and stopped in at a National Park (another one crossed off the list) along the drive up there.

At Thousand Islands National Park. Check out how straight my teeth are becoming! #Invisalignlove

Just another peaceful misty morning at Me Too’s place.

And I did get to Riverfest Elora 2017. A fantastic festival with such a great vibe – I think this will be an annual event for me. Hopefully next year I can convince someone to join me. I didn’t mind going alone, but naturally it would have been even more enjoyable to have company.

As I fretted and stressed the month away, I decided to pour my feelings into the paint I was applying on some canvases.

Practically a copy of a painting done by another artist, Elspeth McLean. Don’t all artists start out by copying the greats? 🙂 This is for the sister I am currently visiting. I named it “Feminine Energy”.

Another finished piece. No name yet. This is an original.

I did find some time to get on the river.

And then I got word that my sister’s surgery had finally been scheduled and was happening within 48 hours, so it was a mad dash to get plane tickets and book a hotel. I arrived in smoke- and ash-covered Kelowna on Tuesday. This has been the worst season for forest fires in 60 years, I’ve been told.

My feet (de-Birkenstocked) after a day of trudging back and forth to the hospital.

Patio chair after a night of falling ash.

My sister’s surgery was a success and she is steadily improving. And the skies have cleared up too!

That’s much better! Still hazy but at least it’s blue!

I have booked my flight home for this coming Tuesday. Now there is nothing left to do on this Labour Day long weekend but enjoy visiting my sister and eat my fill of Okanagan peaches.