Saturday, May 25, 2013

Better late than never

Still a bit tentative Wednesday:

Wednesday

Thursday the flower was full-blown open.

Showing off the macro setting

Friday I didn't take a picture! I did, however, buy 2 balls of sock yarn, a 1962 Vogue Knitting magazine and a bunch of fabric in garish colours that I am not sure what to do with! It was the Textile Museum's sale. As usual, I went with my friend who buys more than me, and she performed admirably, going for the fabric this time. I held back from buying acres of upholstery samples. "I could make a cushion! I could sew all these together and make.... something!!" No, no, I couldn't.... One thing at a time. I did get some wild psychedelic stuff that I think I can make a beach bag out of. We shall see. I've added it to the pile.

Saturday's alium
Oh, look a peony is going to bloom, too!
Will take pictures of the acquisitions and more in the days to come. (And I am eager to see what the peony does; I can't even remember what colour the flowers are.)

Tuesday, May 21, 2013

Two for Tuesday

Yesterday was bright and sunny, and last night we had torrential rains. All this seems to have been good for the plants!



I wish I had a huge clump of these, instead of the 3 or 4. I hope they divide and multiply and add! Next year, watch out!

Monday, May 20, 2013

The onion on Monday


Opening more and more. If the squirrels don't eat it, we'll be enjoying a full giant onion flower in the next few days.

Sunday, May 19, 2013

Yesterday and today

 My ornamental onions are coming into bloom.

Saturday it looked like this:


Sunday it looks like this: 


It would be nice if everything progressed so clearly.

Tuesday, May 14, 2013

The things we do for our wee children

We are still sifting through years of kid stuff while we move the bedrooms around. Elaine's last abandoned bits are still upstairs and need sorting into garbage; things to pass on; and sentimental stuff that the parents want even if the kids don't.

I think this has to end up in the garbage pile, but I took some photos to immortalise it.

I believe we inherited this pair of pants from Arthur's cousins.


The elastic cuffs on the ankles were useful, especially when the pants were really too big for the kid; this way they didn't drag on the ground. However, when Arthur finally outgrew them, I didn't really want to save them for baby Elaine, as they were pretty ratty by then.

He had, I recall, just got a bunch of marbles from somewhere, and since we didn't have a Crown Royal bag handy, I decided to make a bag out of a pant leg, with that elastic cuff as the opening. I think they call this upcycling, these days. (OMG, look at the stuff people make! Quilts! Stuffed creatures!)

upside-down pant-leg = personalized marble bag
reinforced knee, with my writing
Arthur, aged 3 or 4, squeezed fabric paint on the back
such neat red stitching
All good things must come to an end. The fabric is weak, the paint is stiff, the marbles are somewhere else. Farewell, marble bag.

Sunday, May 12, 2013

Never-ending edging


When last we spoke about knitting, I was setting out to knit a fringe on the edge of my Colonnade shawl. Looks not too bad, right? Some progress is being made.


Actually, I am not even done the first quarter of the edge, and when I spread it out, I fear I am maybe only done the first half of the first quarter!


I think it will look good and be fun and funky when it is finished, but when that will be, who can say? Especially because I am thinking of moving on to something else! I'll at least finish that one ball of dark navy, and then I'll try to finish the quarter. I'd like to just whip up a hat, but I was supposed to just whip this up, too!

Thursday, May 02, 2013

More on Hot Docs, and funny pictures I take on my phone

I was early to see a movie the other day, and started taking pictures of things like the line-up sign.


The loneliness of the person who gets to the theatre ridiculously early.


This was at the ROM where I saw (eventually) Special Ed. Here's the trailer for the film, and you can see a bit of Ed talking about the movie in this clip. Here is his great masterpiece, Primiti Too Taa. I love Ed. I think we all know some nice guy, a bit idealistic, completely good-hearted but actually useless. That's Ed.

Taking these pictures reminded me I should maybe see what other masterpieces I have stored on my phone.

Craziness.


Last fall, I walked across the Bloor Viaduct. The trees were beautiful and the fence was ... there.


This is not meant to be a picture of a tree, but of the house behind that had a big fire. Terrible, two houses wrecked, families displaced and so on! And I seem to have taken a picture of the tree.


This is Elaine's seigneur's farm. I hadn't seen it because they'd done the work at school, so I was thrilled to see this in the display case in the foyer of the school. She provided the base: a plastic election sign we had in the basement. (And this is so relevant, because Ed once made a house out of election signs!)

Finally, I thought this was very funny:


Now, the green things are poking out of the ground, and we even have a blooming magnolia!


I saw two other movies that same day. We Always Lie to Strangers was extremely funny and delightful, about a town full of music halls and the Lennon Sisters and extravaganzas.

Muscle Shoals was also super, but unfortunately it ends with the song Sweet Home Alabama which I have not been able to get out of my head for 2 days. I will not link to that song or I might explode. Other than that, it was a really good movie about a record studio and the guys who made the music there. Interviews with Aretha Franklin and Keith Richards, among others. Keith Richards ended every statement with a nervous little giggle, and everyone in the theatre then nervously giggled, too. Very odd.

I've done with my volunteering shifts and just have 2 or 3 more shows to see. Fun, fun, fun. I do have to do a week's worth of dishes and forage for some food for my dear family, and next week we'll likely be back to normal around here.