Just in time for Easter Monday! It took a while, but I finally finished my eggs. I’ve posted a bunch of pictures on my other blog, createthreesixty5.com.
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Tag Archives: Coco
Neat Dog Trick #273
A Puppy Bookmark: how clever is that? Now I’m thinking I should teach this trick to Coco. He lies by my side or right on top of me when I’m reading anyway, and this could really work with larger tomes to avoid wrist sprain.
FYI this is also quite literally a placeholder while I slave away at my Best Of/Worst Of list of 2011 books, which I can’t seem to whittle down enough to make for a short & sweet post. So expect a long and detailed one. In other words: a book lover’s delight.
This photo was found here.
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Under a thick blanket…
The view from my kitchen today.
I woke up in the early hours this morning to a gorgeous thick blanket of snow outside. Then I got back into bed and slept like a baby—so good to sleep when it’s snowing outside (better than inside, that’s for sure). First snow of the season, and I can hear the snow removal trucks going up and down the streets already. It’s a very fine powder that keeps floating down ever so gently but persistently. If I was still a skier I’d be heading for the hills right now, but now my snowy-weather treat is watching Coco jump around like a mad hare in the stuff, looking like the happiest dog in the world.
I’ll be heading off to the McClure Gallery this afternoon. It’s the art gallery that is part of the Visual Arts Centre where I take my art classes. They’re having a fundraising affair that I think I may have mentioned before. They’re calling it Square Affair, as they’ve distributed square blocks of wood to all the advanced students, teachers and any professional artists that wanted to participate, asking us to use it to contribute a work of art, which will be on going on sale this evening at 6 p.m. I haven’t invited anyone for today because there’s a large entry fee and it’s going to be packed solid, and to be perfectly honest, I didn’t even think of it, but the show is on till the 26th, and I’d like to go back with my camera to take some pictures, so will invite my dad to come with me, and whoever else would like to see it. They apparently got over 300 contributions, most of them in the same smallish format, though professional artists had the option of working on larger (still square) surfaces. 75% of the proceeds go to the school, which is a non-profit organization, and the other quarter goes to the artist. Our watercolours teacher, who is a sweetie with a mean sense of humour warned us not to be too disappointed—”if your work doesn’t sell, you’ll know what it feels like to be a real professional artist!” lol. I don’t mind either way. If it doesn’t sell, I get to add it to my Cabinet of Natural Curiosities series I intend to keep working on. If it does sell though, it’ll be good for me as far as income taxes go, because my accountant has been deducting all my art expenses after I promised him I would eventually start selling my artwork…
Off right this moment to edit the photos I’ve taken of the pieces from the CoNC series I’ve completed so far, and publishing them on the other blog as soon as I’m done, i.e. within the hour, hopefully.
The McClure Gallery
350 Victoria Avenue
Montreal (QC)
T 514.488.9558
E galeriemclure@visualartscentre.ca
Tea & Company
Today was a very fun day. When I finally did manage to drag myself out of bed (at nearly 3 o’clock in the afternoon!—med adjustment making me drowsy again) I got myself a bowl of cereal and sat in front of the computer to read my email, and thank goodness I did, because I had a reminder that I was supposed to meet a friend at 3 on the dot at a café a few blocks away. I don’t think I ever got ready so fast in my life before. Somehow I managed to get there just 5 minutes late. It’s this place called Lili & Oli which is really laid back; they allow dogs and I just love the casual and warm ambiance. I took these photos a few weeks ago when it was uncharacteristically quiet, but gives an idea of the place. I like to go there with Coco after a trip to the library which is practically next door, and sometimes bring my laptop with me too like most people there do as well.
I was meeting a brand new friend, a girl I met at a bookstore a couple of weeks ago. She and her partner had arrived from England a week or two before as he’s gotten recruited for a big job in the aeronautics industry. She was a sociology teacher and is going through the motions of finding a job here. Really lovely girl with a beautiful attitude and very chatty like me, which makes for a pleasant time. We talked about everything but books somehow, though she did tell me she’s getting together with a book group tomorrow. When I met her, she was looking for Let the Great World Spin by Column McCann, which I heard great things of and which is what they’ll be discussing tomorrow. Michelle told me if this group seems interesting she’ll bring me along next time they get together, which is something I might really enjoy. Continue reading
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Indian Summer Afternoon
Meet: Mouse
I’ve been seriously considering renaming my little Coco since Saturday, when he got shorn for the rest of the summer. I forget just how tiny he is when he grows his big teddy bear coat and now he seems so small I just can’t stop cooing. Can be annoying, I’m sure, which is why it’s nice to have all that one-on-one time with him, that way everyone’s happy, especially Coco who just loves having attention lavished on him. I took a bunch of pics today, so here’s a little slideshow. For some reason, as soon as I take out any camera-like tool, he does this funny squinty thing with his eyes. Too bad because they’re big and brown and beautiful and you’ll just have to take my word for it!
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High Anxiety
I’m very shaken up tonight after taking Coco for his evening walk a couple of hours ago. There’s a small park right across from my place where many people bring their dogs; a man was playing catch with his huge Rottweiler and I unthinkingly decided to cross the park with Coco, without picking him up, since big dogs don’t scare me one bit. Thank God I at least had Coco on the leash this time, because that dog came at him like it was trying to mow him down and next thing you know, it had it’s giant mouth just an inch over Coco’s entire head. I completely panicked, screamed a deathly screech just like a real girl (my throat still hurts, that’s how loud it was), grabbed the leash and threw Coco into the air, spinning him ’round before I could grab him. Which was the wrong thing to do, I’m sure (poor thing), but I didn’t have time to bend down and pick him up in time, besides which, I would probably have lost my hand in the process. The man eventually came over to pull her away and tried telling me his dog was a sweetheart and would never have hurt my little guy, but I beg to differ. That was a very close call. That bitch would have chewed his head clear off in one swift motion a split-second later. I hate being one of these small dog people who are overprotective, but I’m not letting big dogs get near my little lamb ever again. Talk about high anxiety!
That Kind of Day
Today is a real Spring day. Sunny. Kind of warm. Warm in the sun, in any case. Coco and I went for a walk along Lachine Canal, which I avoid in the winter since the constant wind in that area makes it beyond unbearably cold. But today, I took my coat off, took off Coco’s sweater which he needs these days having been recently shorn of his own fleece. I let him run around free; there were lots of dogs around which used to prompt my little lamb to run off as far as his surprisingly fast little legs would take him. But today, with some prompting and gentle reminders, he calmly followed me near and only went to sniff potential buddies with my permission. It’s hard to explain how much contentment I derive from such easy walks with him. Both of us free, yet attentive to each other, with this woman’s best friend doing what he does best.
Along the way, I was listening to Miss Pettigrew Lives For a Day, by Winifred Watson, a 1938 novel here narrated by Frances McDormand. It’s charming little story about a hard on her luck spinster who, applying for a job as a governess, knocks at the wrong door. Instead of the disagreeable housewife she usually must contend with, she meets with a beautiful vision of a girl, just as glamorous and delightful as the ones Guinevere Pettigrew has seen at the movies, her one greatest guilty pleasure. In less than twenty-four hours filled with thrilling events the likes of which Guinevere has never experienced before, this straight-laced vicar’s daughter discovers things about herself she never knew she had in her.
In the wrong hands, this kind of story might have been a sickeningly-sweet kind of affair, which is absolutely not the case here. I had stumbled on the movie version as I switched the television on for a quick perusal one day and experienced my first brief love affair with Miss Pettigrew, again portrayed by the remarkably talented Frances McDormand. The novel had even greater delights to offer, if only because one gets to spend more time with this unlikely heroine who serendipitously sees her life transformed, a 1930s middle-aged Cinderella. The world needs more stories like that. In my version, Cinderella would probably not be a virgin, though I admit that aspect lends our champion even greater charm in this case.
Coming home, I just had to listen to Kind of Blue by Miles Davis, which to me is a joyful affair. I’ve been listening to So What over and over again. A perfect soundtrack for today.
A Cozy, Homey Boxing Day
Here’s a little photo gallery of pictures I took today (click on the thumbnails to view them full-size). I hadn’t seen my collection of Christmas decorations in quite a few years, and took them out just in time for my dad and I to enjoy them on Christmas day. We had Cherry Clafoutis which was quite delicious, followed by a gift exchange and then quiet time chatting while I played around with some paint. I gave him a framed watercolour (you can see it here), and I got a giant bar of Swiss chocolate to satisfy my chocolate cravings for quite some time, along with a couple of great books; Barney’s Version by Mordecai Richler, a born and bred Mile Ender who had plenty of admirers and detractors alike and who often said that one of his goals was to write at least one book that would
be read after his death. I’m sure his wish has been fulfilled many times over since his passing in 2001. As it happens, I’ve never read him and wanted to discover his writing through this very book. I don’t know if he ever wished for movie rights too, but the soon-to-be released movie version is coming out in theatres, probably in a week or two. I also got Super Sad True Love Story which came out to glowing reviews this year. It’s written by Gary Shteyngart, another author I’ve been wanting to read for some time now.
Of course I couldn’t resist taking pictures of my kidz too. I dressed up Coco as the gift he’s truly been, since this was our very first Christmas together. He put up with our little impromptu session without grumbling although I wouldn’t say he had a ball exactly. Mimi refused to pose for me altogether, a very rare occurrence, and Ezra was just being his grumpy old self, an occurrence which is not rare in the least.
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Art & Crafts (among my many other hobbies)
As I usually read in bed and tend to fall asleep well past midnight, it’s most unusual for me to rise before the sun, which is what happened this morning. I thought: “Great, now I have lots of time to work on arts & crafts projects before my watercolour class!” Then I came to the computer to check on my emails and read another chapter from my mother’s latest manuscript which is delightfully engrossing and which I pray will reach an intern or an agent smart enough to see what a gem it is and make sure it gets published (about high time for that small miracle to happen!) Then I donned my ski-wear and warm (recycled) fur hat and favourite cashmere mitts and took Coco across the street, and we chased each other up and down the snowy alley, my peals of laughter egging him on so that he practically fell over himself while running and simultaneously wagging his nub of a tail. I could swear he was grinning from ear to ear too. By then I must say I felt better than I have in a long long time. Taking in bright morning sunshine and air, and a loving and (almost disgustingly) cute little dog following you around will tend to have that sort of effect.
Coming back inside, I thought, Ah! L’embarras du choix! what project shall I work on now? Make another wax model for a ring to add to my new series? Draw that organic red onion that’s sprouted such large tentacles it’s now fit to be a circus freak? Start that series of paintings I’ve been thinking about for so long? Go back to bed? Blog about it all? Well, maybe you can guess which option I chose in the end. Still, I’m hoping I can get this post done quickly and still have time to paint and draw so I have something to put on the wall when I show up to class.
Here are a couple of quick snaps I took of my latest ring design—the first of that new series I just mentioned—even though there’s a bit of work left to do on it. I’m so happy with it, I decided to equip myself with the minimum of necessary tools so I can make wax models at home and not depend on classes to make more rings (don’t know to what end, but just the pleasure of making them is good enough for now!) I’ve taken a few photos of the step-by-step process too, which I’ll post on createthreesixty5.com along with better photos once it’s all finished.
Silver rings & iPhone pics by Smiler (click to view full size)
