Indian summer winds blow through the hills, As the autumn sun shines on your hair; I will always remember the day that we met, In that wonderful time of the year.
So, will you dance with me tonight, my love, Beneath the September sky? Will you sing with me tonight, my love, And we’ll waltz for the rest of our lives.
~ excerpt from the song September Sky by Louise Morrissey
I will never forget the night we met in September of 1994, when “I fell head over heels in LIKE,” and how my whole life changed. Thank you for being you.
The above photo was taken by my son’s significant other, Jennifer (yes, another Jennifer, but I’ll return to that topic in a bit).
Vivian was enjoying a catnap in our back garden that day. Some days during summer, she crawls into the wild rosebushes in our garden for naps that can last for hours! She hasn’t got the life, I know. Thinking of the photographer reminded me of something I wanted to share.
First, about the southpaws: I am a lefthanded person. I was one of those little girls whose grandmother tried to switch her over to righthandedness, whether I was holding a spoon, fork, crayon or pencil. But I was having none of that. No siree bob. Mom finally convinced my Nanny Lambert that it was useless for her to keep trying.
I was the only lefty in my immediate family. My parents, sister, and brother were all righthanded. But then something interesting happened.
I had: 1 GIRL and 1 BOY
My brother had: 1 BOY
My sister had: 1 BOY and 1 GIRL
Three of those boys, our only sons, were born lefthanded! What are the odds on that?
Now, back to the “Jennifers.”
There are three other Jennifers in my extended family. No, none of them were named after me (shucks).
These other Jennifers are the wives/significant others of mine and my siblings’ three sons! All three couples have been together for years. ❤
Funny how life in all its randomness created such a happenstance. Do you have any strange coincidences in your family? Many southpaws? While thinking on that, have another, more closeup look at our Vivian. Thanks again for the great capture, Jenny!
During our time away this month, we took our annual trip to the small community of Lead Cove, Trinity Bay. My daughter and family have a second home there, and it’s always nice to visit, especially in the summer.
Their property has lots of beautiful trees, but for this post I’m sharing the tiger lilies.
“Flowers don’t worry about how they’re going to bloom. They just open up, turn towards the light and that makes them beautiful.“ ~ Jim Carrey
I first heard of this quote from writer friend Pamela Wight‘s Instagram page. Thanks for sharing it, Pam. 🙂
I’m away from home for a second week, part of our annual summer getaway to St. John’s and surrounding areas. I had planned to blog a few Sunday Snaps yesterday, but time got away from me while visiting family and friends, so here we are. Monday Snaps it is!
I couldn’t resist Cee’s Fun Foto Challenge from last week, even though it’s the last day today. Orange in the great outdoors is often a vibrant colour, as the following selection of my photos will attest.
Carrots from my friend’s garden last fall. Thanks, Libby. They were sweet and delicious!
Colourful leaves in Corner Brook last fall . . .
. . . and in Marystown, mingling with shades of red and gold.
A “flutter-by” on our house. Is blue your favourite colour too, little one?
An orange-belted bumblebee rests on my bench.
This orange sunset warmed up a chilly winter eventide.
As did this one!
Vivian listens for voles in the sun-drenched sea oats. You’ll be back there enjoying the golden evenings before you know it, kitty. ❤
Aerial View of Perry’s Point– photo credit: Winston Perry, 2018
As Newfoundland and Labrador prepares to reopen to Canadian travellers under our province’s Together Again Plan, I thought it might be a good time to share the All Things Newtown links from my blog. With everything from our sandy beaches, a harp seal whitecoat, to our Heritage Fishing Village, and—yes of course, Perry’s Point!—there’s plenty to read about and tons of photos to enjoy.
Like to see other local posts? Check out the link below to my blog’s Newfoundland and Labrador page, where I share my photos and articles from all around our beautiful province:
September 30th is Orange Shirt Day in Canada, a day set aside to remember the experiences and loss of the thousands of children who were stolen from their families and placed in Indian Residential Schools. It is an opportunity to create meaningful discussion about the effects of Residential Schools and the legacy they have left behind.
Why orange shirts? Orange Shirt Day grew out of Phyllis Webstad’s story of having her new orange shirt taken away on her first day of school, and it has become an opportunity to keep the discussion on all aspects of residential schools happening annually. You can read Phyllis’ story at orangeshirtday.org
Why September 30th? The date was chosen because it is the time of year in which children were taken from their homes to residential schools, and because it is an opportunity to set the stage for anti-racism and anti-bullying policies for the coming…
Canadian author, fellow blogger and e-friend Carol Balawyder recently read and reviewed my New Adult novel, Calmer Secrets, on her blog. I would love for you to check it out.
Carol Balawyder
“Calmer Secrets is a novel about good people making bad choices. . . about an affectionate family sticking together through thick and thin. It’s a heartwarming book, filled with love and tenderness and suspense.”
Thanks for this, Carol, and for your lovely review of Calmer Girls as well. All of my writer friends and book-blogging buddies rock!
I can hardly believe it’s been four years since my last book was released. Although I have a finished novel and an outline for its sequel, I’m still patiently waiting for follow-up from four publishers who have requested the full manuscript. Time will tell! Have a great week, everyone.
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
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. 🙂