Chuckles and Chortles

And here we are again at the start of a new week. How is everyone doing? Anything new going on? Nothing to report here. Today we are painting. Again. We were supposed to have finished the front/living room by now but we ran into problems that delayed the project, the main issue being that the walls needed repairs and then those repairs needed time to dry. I tell you, sometimes it feels like we'll never get done with this place. *sigh* We have finished painting the ceiling at least, so there's that. Today we start on the walls. This is not an easy room to begin with because of its 12 foot high ceiling, something I'm not a fan of because rooms with high ceilings are difficult to clean or paint. Anyhow, today we'll make a lot of progress.

Right now, let's laugh with these Halloween-themed cartoons.

Happy Monday!

This Week

As I type this, my cat Mocha is sitting on my lap. And holy furball, does her little body ever generate heat. I’m starting to sweat with this little furnace sitting on my thighs.

Speaking of furballs...

A few months ago I picked up a lint roller with 60 sheets, the type that boasts about how easy it is to remove pet hair off clothes and furniture and just about anything. I brought it home, put it away and promptly forgot about it. Yesterday I ran across it and decided to give it a try on a sofa that the cats sleep on. I rolled it across the seats over and over and over again. Within a couple of minutes I had used up almost one third of the adhesive sheets. And the sofa was still not free of cat hair. Yeah, that’s not going to work. My tabby cat sheds enough of her fur each day to build another cat. So out came the vacuum and gone was the hair. Sometimes the tried and true method shouldn’t be messed with.

I wish my cats would clean up after themselves.

So here I go again promoting my daughter’s travel blog again. That’s what moms do. Her blog can be found here. Her Instagram account here. And her Facebook page here. Drop by and say hello. She’s fun and sweet and friendly. And absolutely adorable. Just like her mama... *chuckle*

And speaking of daughters, here is something that my daughter has that I don't: natural talent in art. While I have to work at it and train myself, she does it with little effort. I have a first cousin from my mom’s side that’s the same and my brother Steve, the younger of my two older brothers, was also gifted this way. He used to draw people when he was just four years old. No joke. He’d tell you to sit down and he’d make a sketch of you. The grownups enjoyed this so much that they’d tip him when he was done. He was an artist and a young entrepreneur.

Now here are some of my latest (Halloween-themed) drawings that I had to work hard at:

Here’s something I’ve been enjoying very much lately. I pour freshly squeezed orange and grapefruit juice into ice cube trays. Once they’re frozen, I grab a couple of cubes and pop them into a glass of water to enjoy with lunch or dinner. It adds a subtle flavour to water making it more interesting, which in return encourages me to drink more of it. Does anyone else do this? Try it, you might like it.

You know what? I’m going to stop here. Mostly because I can’t think of anything else to say. But before I go, I want to wish you all a wonderful weekend. Enjoy!

Chuckles and Chortles

Happy Monday, everyone. How'd the weekend treat you? What's going on with you all? Anything fun or interesting to share? Add it below in the comments.

We are having some amazing weather these days. It's hard to believe it's late October. Here's hoping it stays this way for awhile. Today we will step outside and clean up. We don't have a garden, really, but the grass needs to be mowed and weeds need to be pulled out and the hose needs to be drained and put away, and on it goes. Little stuff to take care of before winter arrives. And that's all I have to say about that.

Now let's get to some funny stuff.

Have a good one!

This Week

Here we are again. How has your week been? One thing I can say about ours is that the weather is once again mild. At least from a Canadian perspective. I hope it continues this way for some time because I’m not a fan of winter, and I’m becoming less and less so as I get older. If we could afford it, the most amazing man in the world and I would spend January and February in a warmer place.

So this week...

A few days ago I ran across an article titled “Worried About Nuclear Explosion? Here's What To Do”. Apparently, Google has seen a spike in searches on “how to survive a nuclear attack” and so now we have suggestions on how to live through one. You know what I think you should do if such a thing were to happen? Kiss your ass goodbye.

If you don’t want to be doing that, reel in chest-thumping, ego-driven politicians who bring on the need for these articles. They are replaceable. Our planet is not.

End of rant.

There is a maddening amount of bad news that we are bombarded with on a daily basis that would have you believe that the world is going to end at any moment. Well, even if that was true, what’s the point of worrying about it? I decided a long time ago that I’m not going to live in fear. If the end comes, so be it. Until such time, I’m going to enjoy every moment I have joyfully and worry-free.

So apparently there are still people out there that believe the earth is flat. They probably never owned a cat. Because then they would know this:

Speaking of cats, mine wake me up early in the morning. Usually very early. Like 5:00 AM. Because I’m such a sucker gentle soul, I drag myself out of a warm bed and feed them. And then the little stinkers settle down for a long nap. They even give me a look that says “What are you doing up at this crazy hour?” Cats.

I'm still drawing and here are my latest attempts, two out of three with a Halloween theme:

And that's all, folks. I’m going to end this Friday’s post with an ode to earth set to “Baba Yetu”, a song by composer Christopher Tin. I’m certain I’ve shared this in the past but it’s so beautiful that it deserves to be shared again.



Enjoy, and happy weekend to all!

Chuckles and Chortles

Happy new week, everyone! How was your weekend? Ours was pretty quiet. We went out for dinner on Saturday night but that's about it. This week will be much busier as we prepare to wash and start painting the front room in our home. Once we're done with that, we can finally unpack and put away all our stuff!

My daughter sent me this photo of her cat, Obi:

Isn't this little bean head adorable? I want to reach into the image and plant a kiss on her fluffy head.

Speaking of my daughter, she's very grateful to everyone who has visited her blog and she's been visiting your blogs but having a hard time leaving comments on some of them, mostly the ones that are on blogger. It all depends on how you're set up and who you allow to comment. Anyhow, just thought I'd mention it.

Now shall we laugh? Let's do it...

Have a great day!

This Week

Another Friday means another round of this and that...

A loveseat/sofa bed was due to arrive last Thursday but the shipping date was pushed to Friday. We were planning to be in Ottawa that day, so no one was going to be here to receive it. I figured with a package that big the shipping company (they have a location in our city) would leave a notification and we’d schedule delivery for another time. The most amazing man in the world joked that we’d come home and find it dumped on our driveway. I took it one step further and joked that they’d dump it right in front of our doorway.

Sure enough...

I should have taken a picture but forgot. But just to give you an idea of this absurdity, here’s a photo of our tiny entrance. Imagine a giant box standing up in front of the door. Totally inconspicuous.

Speaking of the new love seat, I asked “how long do you suppose it will take the cats to claim it as their own?” after we unpacked it and put it in place.

In 3, 2, 1...

It now belongs to the cats.

Our cats sleep so much that I have to check once in awhile to make sure they’re alive.

The cooking madness continues. Some of this week’s goodies included another big pot of applesauce, raspberry muffins, raspberry and yogurt bread, pancakes, scalloped potato gratin and creamy potato soup. We’ve been eating well and our freezer is packed with leftovers. I should take photos but I never think of it. You'll have to use your imagination. Sorry. But  not really.

In the art department, here are a few of my latest (Halloween-themed) attempts. Just in time for Friday the 13th:

And then there’s this one. Because why not sometimes draw things that have my loved ones questioning my wellbeing? hehehe

We recently watched a documentary about Park Ex (short for Park Extension), the area I grew up in. Established in 1910, it is the neighbourhood of choice for newcomers to my hometown, has the highest concentration of immigrants and visible minority groups, has always been a working class neighbourhood, is one of the poorest in Montreal and Canada, and has continuously been a tight-knit and welcoming community. I’ve lived in quite a few different areas since I left that spot and I’ve never felt as strong a sense of community and a feeling of belonging the way I did there. Most of the people I knew in Park Ex while growing up have moved on but my mother and my brother are still there, so I get to visit often. I feel my heart being squeezed every time I arrive in Park Extension; a unique area with a remarkable history that I have very fond memories of.

The blue section is the entire area of Park Extension. 33,800 people reside in it.

(Image found here on Wikimedia)

Anyhow, the documentary is available for free (at least to Canadians) on CBC; Canada’s public radio and television broadcaster. Here’s a link to it for anyone interested in watching it: Return to Park Ex

I think that’s enough for today. Happy weekend to all!

Chuckles and Chortles

Happy Monday, blogging friends. And Happy Thanksgiving to my fellow Canucks. I hope everyone is doing well. Today will be a quiet day for us. The stores are closed and the weather is sucky. A perfect day to kick back and relax.

Friday we spent the day in Ottawa with younger daughter, Alex, and her boyfriend, Ian. It was great to see them and hear about their recent trip to Portugal. We went to lunch at The Green Door where you'll find vegetarian, vegan and gluten free food that is so delicious, you don't know what to choose. For coffee and dessert we headed over to a place called Little Jo Berry's where you'll find the most amazing sweets and treats, and a wonderful atmosphere to go with it. These young people know the best places in Ottawa. My daughter will be writing about them in her new blog, The Vegan Travel Bug. Drop by and say hello.

Now let's laugh a little, shall we?

Have a great day!

This Week

This week I made the most delicious lemon snickerdoodles. I don’t know why but the word snickerdoodles makes me giggle. But there’s nothing funny about the taste of these cookies. They. Are. Really. Good. Click here for the recipe. I didn’t have butter extract on hand, so I replaced it with vanilla. And I also replaced about half the sugar with Stevia. The snickerdoodles (*giggle*) turned out to be a complete success.

"Snickerdoodles"

On Wednesday morning I drove to Montreal to visit my best friend. She fell last Saturday and she’s home from work this week with a concussion. I didn’t stay too long because I didn’t want to tire her. She’s a little banged up but doing okay. After a quick visit with her, I drove to my mom’s. She didn’t know I was coming and it was a nice surprise. One of the first things she said to me was “are you hungry?” Moms. No matter how old we get, they want to take care of us.

On the way to my moms I popped into an arts and crafts store called DeSerres. The company was founded in 1908 and has 33 locations across Canada. It is very tempting to spend a fortune in these places but I managed to get out of there without getting into debt. I did treat myself to a 24 pack of coloured pencils that was half price.

As for art, squeezing in time for it is challenging but I’m still on it. On days when there is very little free time, I work on quick and simple stuff. Here are some recent drawings.

While in Montreal, I also picked up bagels. You have not had good bagels until you’ve had Montreal-style bagels; many of them still produced by hand and baked in a wood-fired oven. I bought three packs for a total of 18 bagels. We ate two yesterday with cream cheese and the rest have been sliced in half and placed in the freezer.

Poppy seed (dark) and sesame seed (light) Montreal-style bagels (Image found on Wikipedia)

Speaking of cream cheese, I've discovered the most delicious brand in the history of delicious cream cheese brands - Arla. It is made up of very few ingredients that you can actually pronounce: pasteurized organic milk and cream, salt, bacterial culture. That’s it. How can you not love that simplicity? I buy organic when I can because who the heck wants to ingest all those horrible chemicals sprayed onto and added to our food. Scary stuff.

Is that enough for this week? I believe it is. Before I sign off, I’d like to thank everyone who visited my daughter’s blog ‘The Vegan Travel Bug’ earlier this week. You rock, blogging pals!

Have a super weekend, everyone. And Happy Thanksgiving to my fellow Canucks.