Tag: ocean

Calmer Girls Setting in Pictures

Published on by J. Kelland Perry29 Comments

Although Calmer Girls is a fictional tale, its Canadian setting certainly isn’t.

It was fun writing a pair of novels set in my birthplace of St. John’s, Newfoundland, and perhaps the following pictorial will better explain why it had inspired me. After all, as they say, a picture is worth a thousand words!

All of these locations are featured in scenes throughout the first novel. Calmer Cove is not included as it is semi-fictional.

St. John’s Harbour
66 Thunderbird Convertible

Samantha and her sister took their first ride in Ben Swift’s T-bird to Signal Hill and along the harbourfront. Later, Samantha took pictures of a cruise ship in the Narrows.

View of Harbour from Signal Hill
Cabot Tower on Signal Hill – National Historic site
Where Ben Swift lives: Gower Street, in all its vibrant colours
x 2
Where Samantha, Veronica and their mother live: Military Road
x 2
Cape Spear.  Sam, Ben and Kalen visit here. This is the oldest original lighthouse structure in the province.
x 2: Aerial view of Cape Spear – the most easterly point in all of North America
x 3: Cape Spear National Historic Site – new lighthouse
Newfoundland, Canada
House similar to rich girl Crystal’s. She has a party one night where Ben loses his temper. (Canada House on Circular Road, Heritage Property)
St. John’s Regatta at Quidi Vidi Lake, where Samantha and Ben share their first kiss.
Bannerman Park, where Samantha and Ben get busted while kissing. Also where Ben loses it – again! – and punches his buddy Kalen in the face.
The War Memorial, where Ben finally confesses his depression to Samantha. 
Planned Parenthood – NL Sexual Health Centre, where Veronica visits!

Thanks for visiting my hometown, which is, in my opinion,
one of the most vibrant and colourful places on earth.

Photo sources: NL Tourism, Government sites, Wikipedia, Google (public domain)

Come back next time for Part 2: Calmer Secrets Setting

Spring and a Special Remembrance

Published on by J. Kelland Perry27 Comments

Spring takes its own sweet time
to show its face here
on the northeast shore of North America.

Life lies dormant, still deep in hibernation
beneath a fresh blanket of snow and a glittering sheen of ice.

We wait for the arrival of warmer, softer days later in the season,
when the sun shines bright
and full of promise,
giving a welcome glimpse of what is to come.

As we do every year around this time,
we look forward to our coastal world’s transformation and rebirth.

***

A special remembrance today:

Here is our neighbour, Ben
(in the boat above)
from a popular commercial for Newfoundland and Labrador Tourism.
It has played all over the world many times.
This scene in the video is from Barbour’s Tickle here in Newtown.

This post is dedicated to the memory of our beloved neighbour, cousin and friend, Benjamin Perry.
(August 4, 1936 – March 24, 2016)

Arrival of Winter & New Horizons

Published on by J. Kelland Perry24 Comments

Are you dreaming of a white Christmas? 

Winter came early to our corner of the world, and so far it has packed a heavy punch in most areas. These photos were taken a week ago, after our first significant snowfall. We’ve had more since then.

Inspiration can come to the artist in us in many ways. I hope to expand my own horizons in the coming new year, and I wish the same for you.

Here are a few new horizons from Perry’s Point to inspire creativity through the frosty months ahead.

017-1280x899
We live on Snowy Beach Avenue now!  🙂

004-1280x841 006-1280x1061 010-1280x813 019-1280x852 025-1280x807 035-1280x850 I must give credit where credit is due: Paul “helped” with these next three. They were taken in the last couple of hours before sunset. 

045-1280x840
047-1280x935

052-1280x853

“The joy of life comes from our encounters with new experiences, and hence there is no greater joy than to have an endlessly changing horizon, for each day to have a new and different sun.” ~ Christopher McCandless

WPC: New Horizon

What do you see on your horizon for 2017?

Getaway to Twillingate – Part Two

Published on by J. Kelland Perry8 Comments

Yesterday’s forecast had been accurate. We woke up to a brilliantly sunny morning, though it was a little on the chilly side.

After breakfast, I zipped up my hoodie, grabbed my camera and took a stroll around the area we were staying. Won’t you come along with me?

This theatre is busy all summer long.

068-1486x1500

 Plenty of B&B's, cottages and inns in Twillingate, mostly deserted in the off-season.
Plenty of B&B’s, cottages and inns in Twillingate, mostly deserted in the off-season.

As usual, I couldn’t resist the pull of the ocean, so I took a walk down along the coastline to get these last few shots:

081-1500x1215 092-1500x684093-1500x1000

His work finished, for now, on the new winery, my guy is ready to go.
His work finished for now, my guy is ready to go as soon as I get back.

Maybe the next time we visit Twillingate, we’ll come in late spring during iceberg season.

Thanks for tagging along! I hope you enjoyed it. 🙂

Getaway to Twillingate

Published on by J. Kelland Perry13 Comments

Just as I had almost given up hope on an autumn getaway, my guy came through with a road trip in early November to Twillingate.

Being a working trip for him, I didn’t expect it to be much more, for me, than a chance to grab a few scenery photos in yet another part of Newfoundland I hadn’t had the pleasure to visit yet. Known as the Iceberg Capital of the World, Twillingate is a lovely little town that draws many tourists, and although this is not the time of year for icebergs, it is still a pretty location to drop in and take a look around.

The place we booked, the Sunshine Inn, had only opened in August after major renovations, and as it turned out, we were the only guests there that night. That meant we had the entire main floor common area to ourselves.

Take a look at our accommodations:
035img_2043

042-1343x1500

037-1500x993

img_2050

img_2079

039-1500x1296

Our room was the only bedroom suite on the main floor.
Our room was the only bedroom suite on the main floor.

031-1500x975

img_2038img_2035

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Pretty artwork in the common area:

img_2047

055-1359x1500

Taking in Twillingate Harbour as dusk settled in and lights winked on, I found myself looking forward to morning. The forecast called for sunshine, which would be perfect for a walk with my camera. Come back for Part Two of this post to see what I came up with!

Fun, Sun, Sand and Smiles

Published on by J. Kelland Perry15 Comments

After nine days, the children have gone home.

Our house yawns astonishingly quiet and empty. The beaches here on Sandy-Feet Avenue and Perry’s Point look abandoned, lonely and forlorn; bereft of the three little beach bums that ran across them countless times a day.

A myriad of reminders surround me: empty sand pails, tiny mementos in the form of sea glass and shells from the beach, our grandson’s toy army tank left behind, a day pass from Windmill Bight Park, a box of our granddaughter’s favourite crackers in the cupboard, a candy wrapper under the bed. There is even a folder of GoPro videos they made saved on my PC desktop.

And I’m amazed at how much longer it takes for the dishwasher and the washing machine to fill up in their absence.

We miss our two grandchildren – plus one little friend – but we had an incredible time together filled with sweet summer memories and photos to look back on.

And there is always next year, God willing!

Here are a few captures from last week.

FullSizeRender (6)
Searching for starfish, hermit crabs and other treasures
“Wanna go clam-digging again?”

FullSizeRender (10)

FullSizeRender (9)

FullSizeRender (8)

FullSizeRender (5)

FullSizeRender (11)
The weather was beautiful nearly every day!

FullSizeRender (12)

FullSizeRender
Our girl having fun at the nearby playground
FullSizeRender (1)
Zip-lining!

FullSizeRender (3)

FullSizeRender (4)
Waiting to dine on ‘Surf ‘n Turf’ at the local restaurant*

During one of these lazy afternoons, our girl decided she wanted to write a story. So while her friend and our boy continued playing on the beach, she sat down nearby with a pad of lined paper and a pencil. When I asked her what her story was about, she said with a shy grin, “Cats.”

I guess the (grand)apple doesn’t fall far from the tree.

FullSizeRender (1)

*All photos taken with iPhone 6

Weekly Photo Challenge: Fun

Weekend Walk Part II – Lovely Greenspond

Published on by J. Kelland Perry26 Comments

There is something about the town of Greenspond in Bonavista North that consistently captures my imagination. Yes, it is known for its wonderful walking trail and its majestic icebergs in spring, but it is magical to me because of much more than that.

No matter how many times I visit, take pictures, or blog about it, this historic community with its many mansard roofs, saltbox homes, and idyllic scenery harkens me back to imaginings of yesteryear when English settlers first came here from Dorset, Devon, Somerset and Hampshire centuries ago.

These first inhabitants grew Greenspond into a major economic enterprise through fishing and trading, yet today it stands preserved in an “olden day” atmosphere, giving this visitor storybook inspiration of how Newfoundlanders lived before life became modern and fast-paced.

Take a little tour with me through the following photos. The first one is from Facebook but the rest are from our visit there in May.

facebook

104
Post Office
195
Lobster traps seen along the Causeway

105 099 may 2015 100103 107 110birds

Greenspond - Part II
Last but not least: one of my favourites from two years ago

 

A Weekend Walk (…and book stuff)

Published on by J. Kelland Perry21 Comments

This past Victoria Day long weekend turned out to be a beautiful and sunny one here on the island of Newfoundland.

We headed out on Saturday hoping to find icebergs, but unlike last year’s bumper crop, they kept their distance for the most part, hugging the horizon.

Undaunted, Paul and I took a hike around the trail in Greenspond and still managed to capture these pretty nature scenes.
001 006 022 021 Icebergs big and small can be seen dotting most of the horizon.
023 042 078I zoomed in for these two. Notice the wide band of blue, which is called looming.
068The atmospheric phenomenon of looming made this iceberg seem to stretch -or refract – vertically into a shape that made me think of a water bomber…sort of.
064 039These little shelters house picnic tables along the Greenspond trail.
028 066Now for the funny and unexpected part of our hike:
007I decided to snap a photo of this helmet someone had picked up and placed here, thinking I would show it on Facebook to help unite it with its owner. But…009This is where I stepped back to get a shot from the other side, and my “accident-prone” foot got caught in a crevice. Down I went. Luckily I missed the big rocks and my camera was also unharmed. At home, I discovered I’d taken the above photo by accident!
010I got the other shot, no harm done. Hubs got a little fright (and a laugh), though. 😉

What did you do for fun this weekend?
(and did you lose a helmet?)

Author updates:

I’m running a Goodreads Book Giveaway! Enter here or on the sidebar for a chance to win a signed, first edition paperback of Calmer Girls. Though the winning entry is randomly chosen by Goodreads, I will mail the book directly to the winner.

And…I’m attending my Book Launch this Saturday in St. John’s:

UntitledHere is the link for the Library announcement:
NL Book Launch – Jennifer Kelland Perry
A.C. Hunter Adult Library

***

Have a safe and inspiring week, everyone. ❤
(and watch out for those crevices!)

Gratitude

Published on by J. Kelland Perry18 Comments
Bath Time Bliss
Bath Time Bliss – jenniferkellandperry.com

Gratitude

Be grateful for the kindly friends that walk along your way;
Be grateful for the skies of blue that smile from day to day;
Be grateful for the health you own, the work you find to do,
For round about you there are men less fortunate than you.

Be grateful for the growing trees, the roses soon to bloom,
The tenderness of kindly hearts that shared your days of gloom;
Be grateful for the morning dew, the grass beneath your feet,
The soft caresses of your babes and all their laughter sweet.

Acquire the grateful habit, learn to see how blessed you are,
How much there is to gladden life, how little life to mar!
And what if rain shall fall today and you with grief are sad;
Be grateful that you can recall the joys that you have had.

~ Edgar A. Guest

Edgar Albert Guest was born in Britain but grew up and spent most of his life in the U.S.A. He was a product of “small town” America and the values and lifestyle he had as a boy permeates his writing both prose and poem. He worked most of his adult life as newspaperman, syndicated country-wide and is reputed to have had a new poem published in a newspaper every day for over 30 years. – AllPoetry.com

Travel Theme: Poetry – combine a favourite poem with a fitting photo.

Do you have any favourite poems to share? What are you grateful for?

Hugh’s Weekly Photo Challenge: “Calm”

Published on by J. Kelland Perry58 Comments

Spring is a long, drawn-out affair here on the island of Newfoundland.

No matter what the calendar says, we still have to endure the odd snowstorm and it seems to take forever to warm up.

Sleet storms are common. But the next day I take in the results with my camera…

023

…because when the sun comes out, everything shimmers and glows with a crust of rime.

024

Tufts of grass lay frozen and still.

harp seal on ice
harp seal on ice

Silence reigns today because the spring ice is in and the air is calm.
Our “flippery” friend lolls about, basking in the peace and quiet.
(And I do believe I made up a word. 😉 )

harp seal
Turn that frown upside down!

You are free, little seal. Nothing to hurt you here.

buoys
My neighbour’s lobster buoys

Just another quiet day on Perry’s Point.

Hugh’s Weekly Photo Challenge: Week 17 – Calm