Photography – Page 8 – Jennifer's Journal

Road Trip 2: Beautiful Bonavista

Published on March 28, 2021 by J. Kelland Perry37 Comments

Last weekend, Paul and I took another work trip, this time to the town of Bonavista. Thankfully, it was a much shorter drive than the last one—3.5 hours to our destination, compared to nearly 8 hours to St. Barbe and Flower’s Cove on the Northern Peninsula‘s Viking Trail, and we only needed to stayed one night instead of two.

And Spring happened! The weather was much nicer on our trip to Discovery Trail, although there was still plenty of snow around. We arrived at our Airbnb accommodations early on Saturday so Paul could get a jump on his work at the school there. Check out the beach home where we stayed:

The house was exceptionally clean, warm, and charming. I loved its shiplap walls and beadboard ceilings. The ceilings were low, though. I’ve never felt so tall in my life!

The next morning while Paul worked, I took a stroll around the block to see some heritage saltbox and vacation homes. The day was crisp, cool and gorgeous, and it was hard not to take too many pics.

Of special note: a “Seaside Loafers” bench, a potential fixer-upper, a fence made of branches, a seawall, and a family of Labradors.
This was our second visit to Bonavista. I blogged about our fall trip here. If you liked what you saw above, you’ll love the photos in that post. Was it really eight years ago??

“One’s destination is never a place, but a new way of seeing things.” -Henry Miller

Road Trip to the Great Northern Peninsula

Published on March 14, 2021March 14, 2021 by J. Kelland Perry46 Comments

Mountains around the Western Brook fiord

Last weekend I accompanied my husband on a work trip to the Great Northern Peninsula. Also known as the Viking Peninsula, it is a large rural area in western Newfoundland, located north of Gros Morne National Park and extending to L’Anse aux Meadows National Historic Site, a former Viking settlement at its northern tip. The region is known for its Long Range Mountains, the most northern section of the Appalachians.

Both the park and the Viking settlement are UNESCO World Heritage sites.

Having visited the region several times in summer, I was excited to travel to the west coast for my first opportunity to see the mountains covered in snow. Lucky timing too, as it’s been an odd winter. Most areas off the Avalon Peninsula didn’t get any amount of snow until late February and early March. Marble Mountain skiers didn’t hit the slopes until March 4th, due to lack of snow and the new Covid-19 variant. Strange times indeed!

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Paul’s work will soon take us to the lovely town of Bonavista, another locale I look forward to seeing in the off-season for the first time. Stay tuned for more photos! Perhaps they’ll be more spring-like. 🙂

Sunday Snap: Baby Picture

Published on February 28, 2021 by J. Kelland Perry24 Comments

“The smallest feline is a masterpiece.” – Leonardo da Vinci

Photo Challenge: Off-Center

Sunday Snaps: Perspectives on Creativity

Published on February 7, 2021 by J. Kelland Perry43 Comments

Do you agree with this quote?

“To be creative means to be in love with life. You can be creative only if you love life enough that you want to enhance its beauty, you want to bring a little more music to it, a little more poetry to it, a little more dance to it.”
~ Osho

But then, what of the following quote? Can a person who is low in spirit also be in love with life and create anything worthwhile?

“Our sweetest songs are those that tell of saddest thought.”
~ Percy Bysshe Shelley

Many have theorized that there may be a correlation between sadness and creativity. Great talents such as Van Gogh and Virginia Woolf come to mind. The romantic poets described suffering as a precondition to writing anything of literary merit.

Angst has a creative upside! That said, I believe joy, heartache, or any strong emotion can stimulate creativity, just as one’s mindset can influence the mood of an artistic piece.

To look through the lens of a somber, troubled mind, one may imbue his or her own state of melancholy onto the subject. . .

Black and white image of Anglican church in Newtown, Newfoundland

. . . whereas, if the emotional perspective and attitude is lighthearted or happy, one might frame it in an entirely different light.

Anglican church in Newtown, Newfoundland framed by an outdoor bench in winter

Sadness and happiness are simply two sides of the creative coin.

Vivian’s View From Here: Puzzle Passion

Published on January 31, 2021 by J. Kelland Perry33 Comments

Greetings, peeps and pets!

Vivian K. Perry here again on my human’s blog with something to share with you. Jennifer has gotten a renewed hankering for jigsaw puzzles lately, which is all well and good, but I had to put my ~~foot~~ paw down after the last puzzle purchase.

If she wanted to go with animals again, I demanded a change in species, preferably of the feline variety.

She delivered!

That’s more like it!

If my human continues to feed this rediscovered addiction of hers, I hope she finds a puzzle with domesticated little cats like me next. Or perhaps she can get a puzzle made from a blow-up of me! I’d be all over that one for sure.

Passion for Puzzles Continues as Pandemic Plods On – CTV News

January Blue*

Published on January 28, 2021 by J. Kelland Perry44 Comments

It’s a blue winter day on Perry’s Point.

It isn’t a sad and lonely day, but one painted with the hues of a brilliant blue sky and a blanket of sunshine, the kind of day where the sun and snow merge to design graceful shadows in the hollows of the landscape.

Sun on the newly fallen and drifted snow creates a tapestry of shadowy forms,
from the palest baby blue to the deepest of indigo.

The slanting afternoon rays of sunlight hold little heat,
but warm the heart of this nature-lover nonetheless.

The surface of the snow waves and crests,
while most of the bay lies still under a layer of slush and ice.

Dunes of scalloped white surround me…

…and the only hint of sound is the faint exhale of a frigid breeze.

Certain feathered creatures have already been here.

At the end of the Point I reach the icy blue coastline…

…where the water is still full of movement in spite of the sub-zero air.

Cold, but fluid…

…clear and beautiful.

Other shadows dapple a weather-worn barn…

…and sun-bleached fences.

Hidden in shade, a bird house waits for spring, and a new tenant…

…while our neighbour’s fishing boat awaits a new summer.

Ben Perry’s shed is called a “store” around these parts.

Still more shadows hide in furrows of snow and last summer’s grasses. I wade in.

My toes are like ice cubes inside my boots at this point. I hop over the fence to home.

Time to put the kettle on…

…and thaw myself out with a cup of tea.

And my world changes from blue to green.

How is your January going?
What is the colour of your winter?

*ThrowbackThursday – This is a reblog from January 2015.

Sunday Snaps: Pink Clouds

Published on January 17, 2021January 17, 2021 by J. Kelland Perry37 Comments

“When we feel stuck, look at the sky. The clouds remind us that everything changes.” ~ unknown

Nancy Merrill’s Photo Challenge: Something Pretty
Photos taken June 26, 2020

Vivian’s View From Here: Joie de Viv*

Published on January 7, 2021January 7, 2021 by J. Kelland Perry39 Comments

Ragtag daily prompt: Blanket

Hey, bloggers and cat lovers!
Vivian K. Perry here today with a quick guest blog
for your viewing pleasure.

Most of you know how much I love to explore the outdoors at every opportunity. In the chill of January, though, I don’t stay out long. My little paws get oh-so-frozen, and before you can say “where’s Viv” I’m back meowing at the door for my staff to let me in.

As much as I adore a warm lap, a much-loved pastime for me during the winter is cuddling up with a cozy throw blanket.

I’m a pro when it comes to finding comfy spots.

But paws down, this fluffy white blanket is my favourite.

Where does the blanket end and I begin?

*All photos from our Instagram account. You’re invited to follow. 🙂

Sunday Snaps: Ten Years in This Old House

Published on December 13, 2020 by J. Kelland Perry38 Comments

Last week on December 7th, Paul and I celebrated our tenth anniversary of living here on Perry’s Point in Newtown. We had left the city behind in 2010 for the rural life and a new adventure.

Our house, which was newly built for Paul’s grandfather Perry in 1923, was in dire need of restoration and renovation before we could move in. The work that went into these first stages is clearly illustrated in these photos.