back porch mirror

a soft, hard-working day . . . . cleaning and painting and organizing . . . . the second day in a row where this has been availabe to me . . . this little view into one of the back porch mirrors shows the rave little plants putting forth luscious pink flowers despite the drought conditions we have experienced for several months now . . .

watch cat

after a brief but fruitful morning meeting, sid has agreed to terms as my watch cat . . . .

red right returning

african violet

this is the very first african violet i have ever had that actually grew flowers!

through jackson park

i rode out to the west end to visit my daughter as she worked at the fruit and vegetable stand out there . . . the journey was lovely . . . . passing through parts of cavan swamp and the gorgeous old forest in jackson park itself . . .

finally!

rain fell in the night . . .

up above . . .

canada geese making their way downriver . . . there was consternation when they saw me stop high above them, but - with steely resolve - they regrouped and continued on their paddle to the sea . . . .

the dragonfly

resting on the wall right by the front door to my home . . .

lily pads

it was a pretty warm day for riding. so i took extra water, 

and stopped every time i saw something that was beautiful!

woodland portal

abundance

this moment . . . a thistle so vibrant in a sea of queen anne's lace . . . captures my experiencing of this day . . . a warm and abundant day . . . lots and lots of pretty much everything. i began my day by stopping at the Silver Bean Café to pick up a little pile of giant cookies for an early morning tea party i was to share with seven (four-to-seven year old) girls and their yoga/dance/drama/art /music teacher at The Hummingbird Academy. it was loud, lots and lots of laughter, and for me - super-fun, and so very reminding of the lovely innocence and clear insights of little children. 

from there i rode my bike to lakefield and back . . . a hot hot ride for sure, but oh so gorgeous! in the afternoon i got to head back the hummingbird to share time with the little gang of girls as they painted. i'll post pics of that event later.

stopping

i'm riding each and every day. reconnecting my body, my head, and my heart. 

an ojibwe friend of mine - lorenzo whetung - told me years ago that my rides are where i go to experience what he releases and receives in a sweat lodge. (nawww, not just sweat!) 

today, i caught myself flying, with the wind pushing me and the sky so very big and filled with the sort of clouds that take my eyes off the road and i knew that i had to stop. 

just stop. 

so i did, and spent time beside this beautiful river . . . 

stopping. it's under-rated . . . .

see what it's got

some people see skies that are "threatening" and cancel whatever outdoor event they are planning.

it's just like life . . . ride into the storm not away from it . . . see what it's got!!!

a morning ride . . .

no it didn't rain . . . !!

home

sid stands watch over the comings and goings on the sidewalk in front of my home . . .

under changeable skies

a beautiful ride with my friend kris took place under changeable skies . . .
great white, grey and sometimes dark clouds drifted overhead . . . .

from the sky

as i was tidying the front gardens . . . little twigs and leaves fell from above. i'm guessing it was the squirrels . . .

my favourite backdoor

there are two backdoors to my home.

this is one of my favourites!

reed reflections

the wind was stirring up the skin of the water.

this caused the reed reflections to waver and wander . . . .

an early morning ride

an early morning ride beside a still-as-glass river . . . .

bike ride to lakefield

a bright, blustery ride up to lakefield and back . . .

hosta flowers

at the end of the day . . .

rain!

i love falling asleep or waking to falling rain . . . . when it's on the other side of the window of course!

sid the regal beast . . .

today's porch guest was sid. unlike his neighbourhood chum miss scruffypants, sid is not partial to listening to me read to him. nope. sid prefers to bask in the adulation and praise that befits the feline king of the street.

summer home

frank dizzle - the class fish - has arrived home after a bumpy ride in his "dizzlebucket "on my bicycle.
here he is enjoying his summer home . . . .

early morning river reflections

read aloud with the neighbour's cat . . .

yesterday. practicing a new read-aloud (for my class this autumn) with the neighbour's cat . . . miss scruffypants.

at first she has on her long-suffering look . . .

then she pulls out the "wellllllll alright then" . . . . look . . . .

but when the story gets going . . . she hunkers in . . . . .