Category: Quotes

Photo Challenge: Dramatic – Part 2*

Published on by J. Kelland Perry31 Comments

Here is the second (and final) instalment of dramatic photo highlights from my blogging archives. I’ll start with two “vivid skies” left over from Part 1:

I wasn’t long running for my camera when this giant funnel cloud appeared by our house a few years ago. At first I thought it was a tornado!

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Cotton candy clouds at sunset are always a summery treat:

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A perennial favourite—my clothespins encased in a glaze of ice:

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A spider and her web I discovered on my kitchen window one misty summer night. I was amazed by the detail:

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This ghostly tree caught my eye one November, outside a Grand Falls-Windsor inn:

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Berg watching in Greenspond was a delight that day in June 2015.

Admiring Nature’s sculptures in Iceberg Alley. Check out the entire blog post here.

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“Study Nature, love Nature, stay close to Nature.
It will never fail you.”

—Frank Lloyd Wright

*Photo Challenge: LAPC: Dramatic

Photo Challenge: Dramatic*

Published on by J. Kelland Perry48 Comments

When I think of dramatic photos I have taken, vivid skies and sunsets come to mind. And what better place to find them than on Perry’s Point?

Sunsets are proof that endings can often be beautiful too.

—Beau Taplin
Sunset on Perry’s Point

The sky broke like an egg into full sunset, and the water caught fire.

— Pamela Hansford Johnson

Here’s a favourite of mine from Newtown branch:

Long before evening sets on the Point, the sun is often brilliant, dancing on the surface of the waves:

Lots of beauty elsewhere, of course. I captured this curtain of a cloud on a tropical holiday:

Another favourite. This time from Bonavista NL, with the sea and sky together:

Sea and Sky

Stay tuned! Part 2 of Dramatic Photo Challenge coming soon. ☺️

*Photo Challenge: LAPC #282: Dramatic

For Mom ❤️

Published on by J. Kelland Perry18 Comments

“Life began with waking up and loving my mother’s face.”

– George Eliot


Happy Mother’s Day to all the loving moms.
Enjoy your special day.
You deserve it!

Exploring my Island: Port au Port Peninsula

Published on by J. Kelland Perry31 Comments

They say that travelling to places you’ve never been before is good for your brain, especially as you age. The island of Newfoundland is quite large and is the perfect place to accomplish this, with its ancient rock formations, dense forests and breathtaking coastlines and seascapes.

I know, I know—there’s no big culture shock from travelling within my own province, but it’s still nice to sightsee in locales we haven’t visited before. As I mentioned in a previous post, Paul’s work affords us many short road trips to all corners of the island, and we try to visit little nooks and crannies of interest in between.
So when we found out about site visits to two schools on the Port au Port Peninsula last August, we were particularly happy to go. We’ve both been up and down the west coast but never there. And this would be our chance to visit the only peninsula on the island that we’d never been!

Port au Port Peninsula is that tiny arrow shape on the west coast.

We booked a two-night stay at The Inn at the Cape on Cape St. George. It was lovely, the host was friendly, and the breakfasts were wonderful.

Inn at the Cape

“Discovery consists not in seeking new landscapes, but in having new eyes.” – Marcel Proust

Gulf of St. Lawrence
Limestone cliffs of Port au Port

We didn’t get to take in everything on that trip but would gladly go back to sightsee what we missed.

“I take to the open road. Healthy, free, the world before me.”
– Walt Whitman

*INN AT THE CAPE

Invincible Summer

Published on by J. Kelland Perry20 Comments
Perry’s Point sunset

RDP Wednesday – SUNSET

A new addition to our family…

Published on by J. Kelland Perry56 Comments

Introducing Sophie Rae, my son’s new dog. She is a white golden retriever.

Isn’t she a darling? Welcome to our world, little girl! 💕

“Happiness is a warm puppy.” — Charles M. Shulz

Photo Challenge: Close-up

Published on by J. Kelland Perry29 Comments

Cee Neuner’s challenge for photographers yesterday* reminds me of this photo I took back in August. I captured the spider and her masterpiece through my kitchen window that fog-shrouded night, not knowing how the outdoor light on our house would illuminate its detail so well, especially the misty moisture that clings to every intricate strand of the web. The overall effect reminds me of fine gold chain.

PERRY’S POINT, NL – AUGUST 13, 2022

“The artist is a receptacle for emotions that come from all over the place: from the sky, from the earth, from a scrap of paper, from a passing shape, from a spider’s web.” – Pablo Picasso

*Cee’s Midweek Madness Photo Challenge: Close-up or Macro

Vivian’s View From Here: Can You See The Difference?

Published on by J. Kelland Perry22 Comments

Happy Sunday, peeps and pets!

Vivian K. Perry here, sharing with all of you lovelies some new photos of moi. I posed for the first two back in 2012:

Look at me!

A force to be reckoned with at 5 years old

Zoom ahead ten years to the present:

In my fifteenth year, do you think . . .

. . . I’m still pretty?

I can’t see the difference. Can you see the difference?

Not much has changed for me in the past decade—aside from the devastation of losing my sweet sister Maisie two years ago.

As a mature feline (not gonna use the word old!), I still lead quite an active life. I go outdoors several times a day. I eat both wet and dry cat food, which Jennifer thinks helps keep my fur nice and soft. I’m an exceptionally clean creature and a fastidious groomer. And I get plenty of love and attention from both my staff.

The one thing that has changed a bit are the length and number of my naps.

Beauty sleep is a must!

Yes, there’s no denying I’m a cat “of a certain age.” But when you are healthy and enjoying your days in a relaxed, wholesome, loving environment, life is a joy. In some ways, I’m still growing: in my experience, my wisdom, an ever-growing collection of memories, and my “kitty” vocabulary!

Perhaps some of you (and that includes my human friends and followers) can relate.

Hey, pet peers,
any of you enter your senior years yet?
Are you enjoying your elder status?

“The great thing about getting older is that
you don’t lose all the other ages you’ve been.”
~ Madeleine L”Engle

Which Way: Thoughts on a Nature Trail

Published on by J. Kelland Perry43 Comments

When you get the chance to enjoy a walk outside, which way* do you go? Do you prefer a stroll through the streets of your community or neighbourhood? Or would you rather a natural, more secluded setting?

If possible, I will always choose a walk in nature. Luckily, there are several trails, as well as plenty of beaches, in my area. I’m an introvert through and through, so my preference makes sense. An extrovert would probably choose a more peopled path so they could enjoy a few chats along the way. And there’s nothing wrong with that either.

Nature walks, where I can take the time to reflect and recharge, are like meditation for me. I don’t need a lot of external (people-y) stimulation to be happy. In fact, too much can feel overwhelming.

With all that is happening in our external world over the last couple of years—the pandemic, the war in Ukraine, the political and racial unrest in our own countries—I believe I’ve retreated into introversion even more, as a way to preserve and care for my mental health.

I realize not everyone can choose to do so, depending on their jobs, etc., but if you are an introvert, don’t ever feel guilty for needing and allowing time for yourself. It’s a part of who you are.

“I’m an introvert… I love being by myself, love being outdoors, love taking a long walk with my dogs and looking at the trees, flowers, the sky.” ~ Audrey Hepburn

“Asking an introvert to open up is as rude as asking an extrovert to shut up.” ~ Unknown

Where do you like to take your walks?

Which way are you leaning on the
Introversion/Extroversion scale?

Do tell!

*Photos taken on May 8, 2022 @ Business Pond Walking Trail, Valleyfield, NL

*Which Way Photo Challenge – Alive and Trekking

Earth Day 2022: For the Love of Trees

Published on by J. Kelland Perry26 Comments

As we recognize and celebrate Earth Day this year, I fondly think about my favourite tree.*

This huge and flourishing maple tree is in the front garden of my daughter’s summer house in outport Newfoundland. I look forward to seeing it each and every July.

maple leaves

“Trees are poems that the earth writes upon the sky.”
~ Kahlil Gibran

Caring for our trees is of vital importance, now more than ever. Strong, healthy trees help to clean the air by absorbing pollutants and releasing clean oxygen for us to breathe. They capture rainwater, which helps prevent landslides and floods. And, of course, they provide shelter and habitat for many forest creatures. All of this shows how trees help reduce the effects of climate change.

“The true meaning of life is to plant trees,
under whose shade you do not expect to sit.”
~ Nelson Henderson

We can all play a part in countering the effects of deforestation. One way is the simple act of planting a tree or a number of trees. Check out the Canopy Project at https://onetreeplanted.org/

The Canopy Project

Do you have a favourite tree, woodland or forest?
Please share if you do!

*All photos taken on July 11, 2021 in Lead Cove, NL