Pocketful of Memory Cards

The free 30 days of my Quickbooks upgrade expired last week.  I really should have registered it immediately when I installed it, there was no reason not to ....other than the fact that I didn't have to. As a result I wasted half of a beautiful sunny day tearing my home office apart, looking for the folder that had my QB licensing number on it.  It wasn't there. I phoned the Quickbooks Help Line to see if they could register me some how without it, and they could, but that would involve faxing them the invoice along with all my business information, address etc. and then waiting three to five business days.  Not having a fax machine at home meant I'd have to wait until the next day.  You might be thinking I could have scanned it, but the story to explain why it wouldn't have worked is just too long so trust me...I couldn't. You'd think I would have put it somewhere safe I thought to myself. So I pulled the place apart again, shuffling through fi...

Mike had told me about the stunning views in one of the project's he's working on so we headed up to the the South Mission Slopes to have a look at Kathy Melton's latest subdivision. Every one of the 17 lots has stunning unobstructed views (and the engineering is naturally outstanding). Here's the view from our new Lot. Oh sorry, did I say "our new" lot?  I should have said "my favourite" lot.  *sigh*....it's nice to dream.

Shortly after I moved to Kelowna I was lucky enough to become part of a group of four like-minded women who decided to meet weekly and work their way through a book by Julia Cameron called The Artist's Way .  This book and these women changed my life and got me in touch with a creative part of myself that had been dormant for many years.    Two of the basic tool s Cameron employs are daily Morning Pages and a weekly Artist's Date.  Weekly would be in an ideal world.  Even a semi-retired bum like myself has responsibilities that create challenges for a weekly indulgence such as this.   I do it when I can, and today I could.  I took myself and my camera on an Artist's Date at  Benvoulin Heritage Church .  Above is my favourite shot of the day.

As more and more disgusting things come out about factory farming  our family is consuming less and less meat.  This certainly does not mean we're using our barbeque any less.  This afternoon while preparing the business's quarterly HST and Corporate Tax payments,  I oiled up some veggies (don't worry, the skins are coming off so all that oil won't be consumed) and put them on the grill so I could prepare some Escalivada for tonight's dinner.  Had to use my timer due to the varying cooking times, but I've figured out the secret to adding them bit by bit so they finish around the same time.  This traditional Catalan salad combines the  grilled vegetables you see above, with a simple vinaigrette of olive oil, wine vinegar, finely minced garlic and oregano, garnished with a rough chop of flat leaf parsley.  I couldn't find an online version of the recipe i use, but did find a link to the cookbook if you wanted to have a look for it or borrow...

For me there's a special quality of light on sunny summer days in the late afternoon.  I glimpsed a hint of it today when the sun found a patch of blue sky in all that grey, and shadows of the cottonwood trees stretched their way across my deck.  It reminded me of summers past, when I'd walk from a comfortable temperature inside, into heat laden air that wrapped itself around me, slowing my brain and my body.  Though I don't like the extreme heat, there's something comforting about that warm embrace.  I miss those lazy Saturday afternoons.  It's so relaxing to recline on the rattan sofa, while an icy drink sweats on the table beside me.  Pages turn slowly in the palpable heat until I become too drowsy to hold up my book and nod off for a while.  I haven't given up hope that we'll have a few of those days soon, after all we still have more than half the summer left!  

My daughter was turning that magical age of 11 when the first Harry Potter movie came out in 2001.  I’m pretty sure she took her friends to see it to celebrate her birthday which falls at a time when many of the subsequent movies were released.  By then I think the third book was out and both of my children had become avid fans of the series, re-reading the books over  and over until each next installment arrived at Mosaic Books .   Oh how I wish I’d made up a letter from Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry for my daughter to open on her 11th Birthday.  These days with so many different computer fonts and specialty papers I’m sure you could create a believable facsimile and the text is right there in “ The Philosopher's Stone ”.    Also in the Philospher’s Stone is one of the most powerful things I’ve read in a book, before or since...  In an attempt to hide from Filch, Harry finds himself in an abandoned classroom with The Mirror of...

As many of you have discovered, I am not a shopper....but Monday is grocery day and since I do enjoy cooking (and eating), grocery shopping is a necessary evil.   After stops at Don-O-Ray, My Country Garden and Extra Foods - where I refused to pay $7.59 for 400 grams of Feta Cheese (when did Feta get so expensive??!!) I rewarded myself with a stop at Abby's Spice and Tea Store .  It's always a treat to visit with the knowledgeable and inspiring Abby to find out what new goodies she's added to her inventory.  In need of a good olive oil, I managed to snag a rich and peppery bottle of Canale 53 Extra Virgin Olive Oil after sampling three of the best choices for salads and other raw foods.  Abby also carries some amazing products from the Vinegar Works in Summerland.  At their Valentine Farm operation, they grow the grapes, make the wine and then turn it into several kinds of vinegar.  I tasted their Balsamico Rosso,  Blanco and also tr...

Gone are the days when everyone took Sunday off to relax with family and friends. I'm sure there are people out there somewhere who insist on the Sabbath as a day of rest, and as much as I enjoy the thought of it, I have yet to embrace it as a weekly ritual.  Yesterday I did enjoy some time off , but the weekend also involved grocery shopping, vacuuming, weeding and lawn mowing and for my hard working hubby it began with never ending fence building and ended this afternoon with the installation of a laundry sink.  The first one EVER in this house which was built in the 70's.  I'm so grateful for a husband who is both handsome and handy .   (Damage to the front of washer and loss of the front plate on the dryer was a result of the so called professionals who started our renovations last year.)

A perfect Saturday at  Hot Sand's Beach in Kelowna City Park with so much going on around me as we enjoyed three of the ten bands performing at the Jubilee bowl.  The Okanagan Jazz and Blues Societ y hosted a Jazz and Blues Festival today.  Jazz in the afternoon and Blues this evening.  Head out now if you're a Kelowna Blues Fan...Pappa Dog,  Moni Funk and the Groove Machine , Sherman Doucette, and Random Acts yet to perform. Pyramid with Danielle Stradecke The Award for Best Photographer Stance goes to... The extremely young and extremely talented MidNight Kicks waiting to go on. Neville Bowman and Bernie Addington from the Bernie Addington Quartet Scott Gamble and Craig Thompson from the Bernie Addington Quartet. These two kids were so much fun to watch,  finding ways to entertain themselves with next to nothing. Going for a birdie This stick became ...

My photo of the day has been turning into a montage of  the day as I seem to be running into difficulty picking only one picture, but I am having fun messing with this Nikon D200 , so hope you will bear with me.    This morning Pitou joined my friend Donna and me on a road trip.  We headed down to Peachland for a coffee at the very popular Bliss Bakery  and a walk along Beach Avenue.  It's worth the drive to Acton! (inside joke for you Southern Ontarians). "Yes, I know we're not using the crosswalk...do as I say, not as I do." Man that's coffee! Rotary Centennial Clock Coffee time for District of Peachland Works department? Lots of honey bees and bumble bees seen in the last two days.

Pitou and I treaded carefully amongst the garden patches behind the CNC this morning.  Those luscious plants and colourful flowers and veggies were begging for some attention from the paparazzi.  I could only oblige.

These are not the dog days of summer we were promised.  Usually it's the heat that keeps our pack small in the summer, but this year between the rain,  the mosquitos and vacations, it's slim pickin's for playmates at the Mission Dog Park .   At our usual visiting time in the spring and fall there's at least a dozen dogs to play with at any given time. Only a few today, but Pitou made the best of it. Pitou is usually chewing on Aussie's ears. He loves to chase Libby. He always tries to heard the Border Collies After proper introductions, Pitou and Zoe love a good wrestle.

The cool wet spring delayed the opening of one of my favourite markets, but I'm pleased to say  Old Meadows Farm opened this week for sales of their fruits, berries and vegetables. They don't have a lot of stuff but they have good stuff, and a lot of it is organic. I was thrilled to find a couple of " eight-ball" zucchini this afternoon as I couldn't find them anywhere last year and we didn't think to plant them in this year's garden. They are rounder and heavier and more flavourful than regular zucchini.   I like to slice them about an inch thick, brush a little olive oil on them and grill them on the barbecue.  After you turn them over for side two, brush a little balsamic vinegar on the top and add a thin slice of provolone .  Mmm mmmm, looks like w're going to have to have one tonight!

I returned from walking the dog this morning to find a snail gradually making it's way up my front step. There's something to be said for the unhurried, purposeful way they move, so opposite of the frantic, distracted pace I've embraced. I headed back out a little while later and discovered two more little guys, and watched them for a while.  They moved so slowly I could barely see any progress. When I turned away for a few moments and looked back, it surprised me how much they had moved. Perhaps there's a lesson in that.