Little Nottingham

Across the busy road from the swanky homes that sit on the hill overlooking Departure Bay with nothing but ocean view in front .. is the community that Frank Ney and his town council buddies gave the affectionate name "Sherwood Forest."  To be fair, there are some swanky homes on the rocky slopes of Sherwood Forest, but there are some pretty normal places not surrounded by woods in shades of lincoln green.  Still .. it would totally delight me to have any of these names on a return address:

 

There are many more streets in this area, and I expect I'll be including them as I stroll in  Sherwood Forest.  I think I passed Prince John today and I know Marion is represented as well .. not so sure about Will Scarlet. 

And in case you, like me, now have a yen for some music to go along with these pictures ...

A healthy start to Spring

Usually, my journeys outside of the house take me to one of two places .. the grocery store or .. hmm .. the other grocery store.  The pounding, driving winter rains make me all too happy to hibernate for a few months or until the torrent of water gushing down the street somewhat dries up.

As I drove to Bev's to go for our morning walk, the glory of Spring's promise is evident everywhere, and I've got a few pictures to show you.  It surprised me, I guess because my view of Spring had been limited to a very small area of the city and somehow, the flora in the north end of Nanaimo hasn't quite caught up to the excessive showiness of the inner city.

We walked over along the streets by her home, a wee house tucked up in Sherwood Forest just above Departure Bay.  I've got some street signs to show you in a separate post .. first, I thought I'd bring you along on our walk this morning.

The first shot juxtaposes both Winter and Spring .. winter holly and spring cherry blossoms.  Cherry blossoms are to BC what lilacs are to Alberta ... an elaborate display of exuberance ... a greeting of the season.

We found the cherry blossoms on the way down to the Departure Bay Beach area where we clambered over the rocky shoreline .. and where Bev promised to show me Rathtrevor Beach in order to belie my commentary about beaches being made out entirely out of rock here on Vancouver Island.  This next picture of the gulls only justifies my claim.  The dark, bumpy rock segues into the light and grey bumpy shoreline of gulls.

At the risk of turning an ankle while she had Keith strapped to her back, we ventured back up to the streets and carried on, chatting about everything from what to do with spaghetti squash to relationships .. girl chat.  A couple hundred strides down the road, I took this picture of a little island out in Departure Bay.  It is home to a Department of Fisheries aquaculture station.  Way in the background, you can see the BC Ferries Terminal where the Coastal Renaissance is docked.  The bluish island in the background is Newcastle.

Bev is part of Bruce's Huligans outrigger team .. twice a week, they travel all over these waters .. it looks quite impressive when you see the extended view of their usual paddling path.

As we rambled homeward after passing on the steeper incline portion of Departure Bay Road, I snapped a few of the Spring flowers that delighted me with their appearance.  Enjoy!

Yesterday, our walk took us up Rutherford Hill .. the backs of my legs are still protesting, but hey, if it doesn't kill ya, it's good.  Right?  Right?  I've always been fascinated with fences, gates, windows, lanes .. where they go and what opportunities await if you only travel down the road or through the portal.  

Bev .. these are for you ... I know you can't see how adorable he looks back there behind you, so here ya go.  I love that quizzical look in the bottom picture where he's trying to figure out just what I'm up to.

May the Road Rise up to Meet You

Happy St. Patrick's Day everyone!  Funny, but it's this day more than many others that I miss Mom.   There was usually a card in the mail with some sort of corny Irish thing on it.  Well, not always .. she sometimes picked spectacular cards too.  Not that I mind corny Irish sayings .. it's all part of the fun of the day. 

I hope, wherever you are, you're wearing green and pinching folks who aren't, planning on having a green beer and practicing your very best Irish accent.  Tut,tut ...

Hmm .. this neon green reminded me ... I've got some bridesmaid dresses to show you, Sam. Stay tuned!

Dutch Master

The headline today read "Dutch Master Artist Paints Airport Mural."  As headlines go, I suppose it lacks a certain wow factor, but it does contain the words 'Dutch Master.'  To be compared alongside the likes of Dutch maritime masters Jan Porcellis, Simon de Vlieger, Jan van de Cappelle, Hendrick Dubbels and Abraham Storck might be embarrassing for my modest friend Cecile, but those of us who know her and have seen her work and how diligiently she works at her passion ... we know she's one of a kind.

To view her work progress on the Nanaimo International Airport, go here.

Happy birthday, Cecile.

Could it be ... ?

There have been some signs of Spring around the Neuman homestead.  First, the endless rain has occasionally stopped for a day or sometimes two at a time.  Gasp!  I know, I know .. I feel that way every time it happens .. like I need to get outside and have a picnic or something crazy.  A few days ago, I saw a fat robin sitting atop one of our pergolas. 

 
And this morning, I went outside to take a picture of the rain and was met with an overwhelming fragrance from the wee flowers outside my door.  No idea what they are and I don't care ... they are like lily of the valley in that they are small with a fragrance as big as the outdoors.  They make ringing my doorbell a real pleasure as you wait for me to answer it. 

I turned around to see if anything else was looking springlike and sure enough .. the Pieris is about to go nuts.  We have a hedge of these in the front .. makes for a rather intense display.

We took a trip to Vancouver yesterday ... Bruce was seeing someone for his ongoing (and hopefully resolved) back issues ... and saw further evidence of Spring .. and how oddly flowerlike vegetables can be.

 For those of you whose lot in life is not caught up like mine, I thought I'd give you a picture that is something Islanders see often enough that it's commonplace.  For me, however, I still get a prairie girl thrill waiting for the ferry.

And finally, another street sign.  I know I usually post these separate, but this is the street that the ferry terminal sits and it falls within the Nanaimo's unusual street names meme that I've got going on.  This is Zorkin Road.  Apparently, Mr. Zorkin was a developer here in the city.  How his name came to be emblazoned upon this particular road, I've no idea.

Oyyyy

I should never try to design a website when my stomach is in turmoil.  Its a new item for my list of "bad things that can happen to good websites."  When better health returns the mind to its usual  state and a critical look at the aforementioned website is made ... it cannot fare well.  In addition, I've been looking at the Oscar's "worst-dressed" list for 2011.  I think my previous March theme might have made that sort of list!

Here is it, cleaned up.  Hope you enjoy.

Talked to my dad today.  His surgery on Monday went well and feeling he's pretty excellent.  Said the outside has healed and although he's walking a bit gingerly still, I did catch him out and about at the grocery store.  Hernia surgery scheduled for the 17th, so he's a happy camper.

March . Surprise!

March has come in whimpering.  I think Bruce would probably say it's me and not the month.  In addition to catching me off-guard and flat-footed with regards to my website makeover, the first days of March see me with a unsettling case of stomach 'flu.  Weather-wise, we've been enjoying much better temps than those of you in Alberta.

I'm going to be adding a batch of links below .. some more web comics and one 'journal.' It's written from the perspective of a feudal Japanese woman.   I've been reading the back issues and I have no idea where the story is going, but its been an interesting read so far.  Just click on the picture below to go to the site.

In other news, Bruce's Huliguns are practicing now for a Crazy Eight Race around Protection and Newscastle Islands.  This is an outrigger race in our home harbour and yet  Bruce has not yet finished the race. The first time, his team came a bit too close to shore and waves washing back from the shoreline dumped his team over into the frigid waters.  Last year, his ongoing back troubles prevented him from competing so he's determined to get it done this year.  Timed runs are now underway .. this is srs bsns!