An Oasis in High Park

It took me all of ten seconds early Saturday morning to convince R to drop the garden tools for a few hours and enjoy a mini-break.  We have been driving past High Park in Toronto for years and each time we pledge to stop by one day.  The sun has been blazing and the humidity is already making the air thick so we brought Deacon along to enjoy the cool paths.  Finding a car park in the bustling city and crossing four lanes of traffic we entered in on a dirt path amongst a grove of trees and within minutes the sound of the cars was replaced by birdsong.

Colburne Lodge is a Regency-style cottage built in 1836 by John George Howard.  The idea behind the design is for the structure to be as spare and plain as possible so the focus remains on the garden and surrounding nature.  John and his wife, Jemima, had no children and bequeathed the house to the City in return of a small pension.  Most of the articles in the home are just as they were when the couple lived there.

Peeking through a window in the kitchen it looks as though someone will be back any minute to fetch a basin. 

There were areas of High Park that reminded me of Waterlow Park in Highgate, London and it didn't take me long to have a quick daydream about being back there.  We were naughty and clicked Deacon off of his leash so he could jump into a filtered pool to cool off.  It was all fun and games until we realized it was at least a three foot jump down and a wet dog Deacon's size couldn't shoot back out without a set of steps.  R had to reach down and grab hold of a soaking wet coat and heave ho.

And what sort of oasis would be complete without a baby Llama?  High Park has a zoo that is just the right size to excite an elementary class without taxing them.  This little one was making little repetitive groaning sounds which I'm sure meant he wanted his harness off, poor thing.  But oh couldn't you just give him/her a big cuddle?

The rest of the weekend was spent clearing weeds and patching with grass seed, mowing the lawn and R is still clearing an island of tree roots and feels like he is digging his way to China.  He wasn't all that cheered up by my attempt to reduce the situation by mentioning Victorians clearing massive fields of trees and stone.  Oh well, I would be the first to admit that not all of my ideas are good ones.

Holiday Arrivals and Departures

This is going to be a busy weekend.  The Heiress has finally completed her Sociology BA (Hons), with a minor in English Lit no less.  R and I are about to leave the house to make our third trip in as many weekends to pick up the last of her things in Waterloo and bring her home.  It won't be for long though as she plans on pursuing a Criminology MA in England this autumn.  We could not be more proud and will somehow come to terms with living in poverty in order to pay the international student fees!  She has had two offers and is waiting to hear back from two other universities so her school of choice has yet to be decided.  And don't be surprised if she asks for input from my wonderful blog friends across the pond in a post of her own.

Whilst The Heiress is unpacking, R will be packing for a golf trip he is taking and fingers crossed everyone keeps track of whose luggage is whose.  Arriving in Florida with a suitcase full of girl's things and a straightening iron would be a nightmare for him and fodder for a week of ribbing from his friends.

Sunday will hopefully bring a day of peace and calm around the house.  Happy Easter everyone!

Daydreaming...

R is away on a golfing trip to Ocean City, Maryland and as it's the weekend I've seen The Heiress for brief moments here and there.  Even Deacon has planted himself at his post in the garden to watch for people going on their morning run or stroll.  Poor boy is being seriously scolded and dive-bombed by some grackles who have a nest nearby but he thinks they're playing with him!  As I put a load of wash in and thought about dragging out the vacuum I contemplated what I'd rather do.  And this is what I've come up with...

My 'Weather for London' icon is showing a grey day, perfect for wandering around Highgate Cemetery.  It would be spooky on my own but in a fun way.  I'd try to be brave but would most likely seek out a group and tag along at a respectable distance so they wouldn't realize that I was a scaredy cat.

Afterwards, there's a cafe which would supply a warming cup of tea and surely a slice of cake or a scone would be in order.  Miranda has mentioned Ginger & White in Hampstead and it looks lovely.  When a shop looks this tantalizing, I won't rest until I'm pulling on the door handle and find myself standing inside so definitely a 'must do'.

I'd have the energy now to hop on the Tube and make my way to the National Gallery.  An exhibit  featuring this painting by Paul Delaroche and the sketches leading up to it will be coming to a close next weekend.  I've admired 'The Execution of Lady Jane Grey' since spying it years ago in a book.  It may cost a bit but as long as I have enough money left over to enjoy one of these....

Last May, I came upon The West Cornwall Pasty Shop.  A friendly waiter saw me hesitate and asked if I wanted to come inside.  I've never eaten a pasty before and usually shy away from anything quite so bulky, but I'm dying to know what they taste like and wish that I had tried one so there's only one thing for it.  I'm parking myself at their location in Covent Garden and stuffing my face!  Oh I'll try and be a lady but if they are as yummy as they seem then you may need to look away.

Since Drury Lane Theatre would be quite close by it would be terrific to see Oliver!  And when that poor little fella is still hungry after his porridge and asks for more...I'll be thinking of that pasty!

Snapping back to reality, it's time to have breakfast and get some work done.  Enjoy your day!

Father's Day

For Father's Day, R thought he would like to go for a bike ride with The Heiress. It was the wee hours of the morning when she got in but that didn't stop R from going into her room quite early and announcing his plans. The Heiress is a good sport and within half an hour she was ready to go. Off they went with their bikes on the back of the van for an afternoon of touring the boardwalk. I plugged in the kettle, gathered some reading material and had a blissful afternoon under the pergola. Best of all, the Dad's in the neighbourhood were taking a day off from the lawn mowers, leaf blowers and weed whackers so it was fairly quiet. Hooray!

Rain Soaked Roses

I'm not far enough into Saplings yet to give any sort of a review other than it's really growing on me. So I thought that I would share a picture of our rambling rose bush, so full of rainwater it's almost touching the ground. R has just come in from walking Deacon and had me in stitches! Around here we have a 'junk pick-up', a couple of times a year the city will collect large items for the scrap heap. R told me that he had spied through some plastic wrap, a print featuring a mouse eyeing up a piece of fruit, sitting at the bottom of someones driveway. He thought to himself "Darlene loves mice, perhaps I could bring this home". R pulled back the plastic for a closer look and decided that the mouse had the look, not so much Beatrix Potter as Quentin Tarantino. The print stayed put. I thanked him for that.

Let Them Eat Pizza

R and I thought we would like to try our hand at making some pizza from scratch. R has a theory about most things in life and it's this; if a little is good then more must be better. I came back from walking Deacon and found him in the kitchen kneading a bowling ball, ummm I mean a ball of dough. I don't know if he read the recipe correctly but I think instead of 3 cups of flour he used a bag. Instead of risking another disaster I had him drive over to a nearby Italian bakery to buy a package of ready-made dough. He came back with not one but two bags of dough. So there we were, just the two of us with three large pizzas on the counter. Oh well, saves me from figuring out what's for dinner tomorrow.

Louet Gems

After knitting three pairs of fingerless mitts and a pair of socks in muted earthy tones I needed some colour. My next sock project is Embossed Leaves in the lilac because I really, really need to think Spring thoughts. R bought the wool for me because he said he hadn't bought me flowers for ages so would the wool do. Yes, it does.

Ginger Snaps

I came home from work yesterday to this! R had made me some Ginger Snap cookies to go with my tea. He went out with his friends to play darts at the pub and took some to share. I so enjoyed the image of a car load of grown men off for a night out munching on biscuits.

Oh the weather outside is frightful...

This is the view outside my front door two hours after the snow started this morning. It's supposed to keep up all day, my back is sore already just thinking about the shovelling ahead. It's not all bad news though, days like this are terrific for lots of things! All day fires, in the fireplace of course, baking, knitting, movies in the afternoon and chatting with neighbours. R went off to work this morning and by 9:30 am was promptly sent home by the powers that be. It's a good thing too, now I have a shovelling partner!