And best layed plans, yadda yadda

First up - we're having a great time. Malta was hot and fun and interesting. Sicily has been hot until the rain blew in last night. Tonight we are in Piazza Armerina, swathed in fog and light rain. Still warmish, though.

We dropped Nan and Greg at the Catania airport noonish and switched cars. The cars deserve an entire post of their own (with pictures), but let it suffice to say that we went from the lap of luxury this morning to what may be classified as a clown car this afternoon! It got the job done and we are here.

We never did find the internet cafe in our town in Malta, and didn't see one in Syracusa, either. My netbook refuses to turn on, so I may be hooped even if we find wi-fi. Tonight's bed and breakfast has a computer we can use - although the Italian keyboard is a challenge! (I keep losing the @ symbol!) But I'll keep trying - pictures may have to wait.

It is only 5:30 pm, which is insanely early to consider dinner in these parts. But I'm hungry! I feel like we've driven across half of Sicily today and I'm ready. Besides, we want to try pasta alla Norma, so out into the fog we go!

Until later!!!!

This is what happens….

When Someone has a birthday that coincides with International Talk Like a Pirate Day. It begins with cards and the singing of Happy Birthday. Then – out come the pirate hats while during the post brunch visit to the frog prince at The Chalet in Deep Cove:

As the day progresses there are the so necessary pirate jokes, including:

What’s a pirate’s favorite inert gas? Arrrgon!

What’s a pirate’s favorite kind of sock? Arrrrgyle!

What’s a pirate’s favorite kind of cheese? Havarrrrti!

Soon enough comes cake:

And just in time, too, ‘cause this rascally fellow wanted some cake!

Happy birthday, sweetie! And many thanks to Martine for making it fun!

Horses – check. Pipers – check. We have a parade!

Bigfork, Montana is such a cute little town. We’ve been coming here since about 1968. Probably some 300 people lived here then. Geography has not allowed for much expansion of the original town, which has meant that it retains its small town character. The town is a tourist destination, and the tiny little main street has many interesting shops and restaurants to tempt visitors. Lots more people live in Bigfork and the Bigfork area now, but its still a sleepy town in the winter and it bustles all summer long.

If you’ve ever wanted to experience a small town Fourth of July parade this is the place to be. Having a parade here does pose some challenges, though.Grand Drive comes down the hill from the highway and along the bay. It meets Electric Avenue, requiring a right hand turn. Electric Avenue goes along for a bit before it meets a small one way bridge that carries traffic over the river and back up to the highway. The one way bridge can’t handle heavy traffic. This set up makes for two challenges – negotiating the right hand turn at Electric Avenue and the pile up by the bridge as the heavy trucks wait for the parade to end so they can turn around and come back – sort of a two for the price of one parade!

This year was warm but overcast so we neither baked in the sun nor shivered while clutching coffee cups. It was a big cheerful crowd, decked out in red, white and blue.

 

Every year the newest acquisition of the fire department is featured prominently in the festivities. We noted that the new ladder truck. with ‘105 foot ladder’ written right on the side, is passing probably the only building in town taller than two stories – two stories and a roof garden. But if someone builds something tall – they’re ready!

The young ladies from Bigfork High strut their stuff.

As promised – pipers!

And horses! Last year the local tea party gang had an entry in the parade. And they managed to spell Independence wrong. And their float was being pulled by a Japanese made truck. There was an interesting message in all that, but we stayed out of it.

And then there’s Superman!

He was back this year, and he brought his friends:

(note the web spinner action!)

Another year, another parade, another fun celebration!

Are there bees in the garage?

Nope – just a helicopter….

A teeny, tiny helicopter that sounds like a swarm of bees….

And yes, there are two airplanes hanging from the ceiling. And a set of golf clubs on standby.

On rainy, windy days the garage becomes a flying field – Mike, Bill and Dad take turns flying the helicopter. There are an assortment of other craft waiting for the weather to turn – airplanes, floatplanes, other helicopters – all at the ready.

I was looking around the living room the other day and started an inventory of the electronic toys. There are six of us here and we have amongst us:

2 laptops

3 netbooks

2 Internet tablets

5 regular cell phones

1 Blackberry

2 IPod Touch

1 IPod

1 IPod Nano

1 IPod Shuffle

2 mp3 players

6 digital cameras

1 handheld GPS/Nav system

and, a partridge in a pear tree….

Needless to say there is a wireless network in the house – with two routers for maximum coverage. And then there are all the headsets/headphones, chargers and connection cords and cards and so on that accompany all this.

As part of the Stoneman air fleet there also various airplane parts or parts of control systems about. And my knitting projects. And then there’s the books! Every body arrived with books to read and to swap.

Any wonder we fall into bed exhausted every night?

Giganteum update!

Well, we are here and it is there, but fret not, there is an update to the subject of my last posting. As we figured, the giant Himalayan lily bloomed after we left for our Montana visit. To our great relief our friends Kristin and Ken agreed to check up on the lily, and take pictures. And looky here!

I kind of wonder where they were standing to get these close ups, but Wow – aren’t those beautiful flowers?

Kristin also included the following to re-assure us that our white tailed friends haven’t been missing us one bit:

Yep – still wading right in….

Waiting. Watching. Wondering.

Plant lust. What can I say. One of the people who lives in this house has a bad case. Never met a plant he didn’t like, or at least want to like. All manner of things follow him home. After years in Calgary, where gardening can be a heartbreaking proposition things are so different here. In fact, out here in the country gardening is less a genteel pursuit and more a case of constant fending off.

However. Two years ago Wilf brought home a plant that was suggested for areas of light shade. He planted it, lost the tag with its name and carried on. Year one – a flurry of large heart shaped leaves, but nothing more and it died back. Year two – repeat performance. So – nothing very exciting, but something green to look at, we thought. And then…… this year in March the plant took a deep breath, heaved up and started to grow. Like Jack and the beanstalk, it started to grow!

March 31, 2010 – nothing is visible behind a flurry of daffodils:

May 5, 2010 – it grew 18” while we were in Winnipeg:

Looking at the top (for the last time):

Around about this time we were at the Farmer’s Market, and saw a pot full of familiar leaves. ‘That’s it!”, we cried. The tag said Cardiocrinum giganteum, and a consult with Mr. Google revealed the common name of Himalayan Lily. Turns out after the seed is planted it sort of moseys along for four years, at which stage it gets a bit bigger and starts with the big leaves. For two years. And in year seven up shoots a stalk, heading for a floral display. After which it will die back, leaving us with daughter bulbs and seeds for the next go round.

May 16, 2010

June 5, 2010

June 18, 2010

We’re finally getting some sun, and you can see that the cluster of buds has opened and the flowers are spreading out. I don’t think it’ll be blooming by the time we head south, but I’ve got a friend lined up to take pictures.

I tell you, plants with a last name of giganteum really do provide much entertainment!

Geophysical – a quilt show

I’ve had a couple of questions, mainly through Facebook, if I’m still quilting. And yes, lack of pictorial evidence withstanding, I am still quilting.

The Canadian Quilters Association has a big convention/quilt show/extravaganza every other year. It moves about the country – the 2010 show was in Calgary last month. As well as the National Juried Show there are various invitational shows as part of the event.

I belong to The Fibre Art Network , a group of Western Canadian based fibre artists. We applied to the Canadian Quilters Association to have a show as part of  the Calgary event. Of course there needs to be a theme or organizing principle behind such a proposal, and there was much discussion about what would be appropriate. One day the email arrived with the parameters for the show. In my distracted state I read ‘Get Physical’, and immediately began thinking about Olivia Newton-John and head bands and leg warmers and….. I managed to get my attention back and read further:

‘GeoPhysical’, pays tribute to geology, and the scenic and economic riches it provides to western Canada. FAN members are challenged to interpret, in cloth and thread, “the earth and the forces that shape it” without reference to subjects man-made or currently living.

Well. That, of course, made much more sense.

I’ve been working in a series for some time now, looking at lines, working within a restricted range of fabrics and colours. Thinking about this project I was thinking about underground structures, and layers and fractures. I looked at stratigraphic depictions of what’s under the ground in areas of Alberta, and while I love the lines and colours of those depictions (i.e. this) I decided that I didn’t want to go the representational route, choosing instead to continue with the lines that have held my interest. I did feel the need to expand a bit colour wise, so those of you who have been used to seeing me work through all the variations of gray/gray violet/black and more gray…..

Drop Fault machine pieced, hand stitched and quilted. 18”x26” 2010

Drop Fault detail

I wasn’t able to get to Calgary to see the show, but both the big show and the Geophysical show were apparently a big success. Part of the mandate of The Fibre Art Network is to document group shows, so I’m happy to report that you can view all the pieces in the exhibition over here: Geophysical.

I’d also like to thank Colleen Peake and Gay Walker, the Calgary FAN members who co-ordinated the show. They managed all the complicated communications and arrangements to pull the show together – all of our hard work creating art would have come to naught without them. And thanks also to Kristin Miller who administrates the FAN website and makes our work look so good.

Okay – all this writing, thinking and looking at quilts makes me want to get to work!