October 29th

 

1pm,. Centre Street, Calgary. A stupendously glorious day today as the weather turns yet again. It's been a very warm, mild autumn & long may it continue. I was here for the day working, but sapped this shot from the sunroof of the car as I headed downtown.



October 13th

5pm: Five years ago today we landed in Canada, I still remember the awe as we drove down Highway 1 towards Canmore for the first time that afternoon. Me, Nicky & am 11month old Tabby. Lots of ups & downs since then, mostly ups it has to be said. We love living in Canmore, an incredible place - we have been accustomed to incredibly freezing winter days or blazing hot, high altitude summer days. We have thought about going back to the UK at times, but family apart - what is there to draw us back at the moment?

October 10th

3pm: Our Indian summer continues, a warm but windy day - typical Chinook conditions. We took the kids to Quarry Lake for some kite flying, but as with the fishing trip a while back, we ended up with a tangled mess of line & tantrums. Eventually we just cut the line free & gave them a small leash with which to fly the kits, they had great fun running up & down the slopes, with kite trailing in the wind behind them. The session ended with the inevitable chucking of stones into water.

October 7th

11.45am: I popped down to Charlie's pre-school today to witness the arrival of the Fire Brigade & local mascot - Sparky the Fire House dog. The kids of course loved him & Sparky did his thing, posing for photos & demonstrating the stop, drop, roll procedure for anyone who finds themselves afire! A gorgeous day again, with the market in full swing. Canmore at it's best. Here Charlie, Sparky & Lucas pose for a photo in front of the engine.

October 4th

3pm: So here I am again, at Calgary International Airport on my way across to Toronto for work meetings. Leaving behind a sweltering Calgary day by the looks of it.

October 3rd

11pm: One problem with a dry spell is the loss of humidity at this altitude, to keep my guitars from crumbling to dust I have to whack the humidifier to its highest level in my little basement studio/office.

October 1st

1pm: A day off to enjoy the warm weather that has suddenly arrived. Time to start putting away the garden for the year, with the help of young Charlie. Warm enough afterwards to have lunch on the deck as well.

September 27th

10pm: The sudden warm weather has brought out the neighbourhood moths for a final fling before winter sets in. This beautiful specimen  was sitting on the hall floor as I locked up this evening.

August 27th

4pm: Tabby on the final day of her art camp - looks like she enjoyed herself creating pictures & the like. We had a little show with the kids at the end - very sweet. Charlie refused daycare & was rewarded with a day in front of TV.

August 24th

5pm: Bear fever continues unabated in The Peaks of Grassi! I haven't seen one, but you cant help looking over your shoulder & the kids are still under strict supervision when it comes to going out!

August 4th

8pm: A beautifully warm Vancouver evening, after work i went down to Granville Island for a walk. Here we have the magnificent little aquabus service that ferries people across the river right in the heart of downtown. These boats come & go frequently, I am not sure what their real purpose is - tourism or commuting - they are are cool though. Vancouver is such a magnificent city, I am normally immersed in work here & don't get time to observe & record little things like this. Shame.

July 25th

5pm: I felt tired after yesterday's exertions so it was a housebound day - but the kids were restless so we took them up to the park just up the road. Charlie is an acrobat, make no mistake - fearless & agile.

July 23rd

7pm: Finally my strength & vigour is coming back, enough to take the kids fishing at the local lake. tabby has her own little rod, but the moment she starts it gets tangled up & all in all it is a futile exercise at this stage. Charlie's attempt is much more simple in execution, he takes his little wooden reel along with the magnet on the end, great for catching the wooden fish in his fishing game back home, not so effective in the real world. A gloriously warm day, nice to be back up & at it.

July 21st

7pm:
All summer we have had the same predictable pattern, warm, sunny mornings, cloudy afternoons & intermittent thunder storms. Well another storm just rolled through a moment ago, leaving this rather fetching rainbow in it's wake. I had to venture out onto our soggy front deck to take the picture - worth it I think.

July 18th

4pm: I was well enough to drive slowly home today, 6 hours again up & over the Rockies and back to Canmore. Here we stopped again at Rogers Pass, Tabby & Charlie stretched their legs, squashed some ants & were spoilt with nasty sweets from the gift shop. Not as much pain today, but now very, very tired.

July 8th

5.30pm. One of the welcome features of a Canmore summer is the weekly farmer's market outside the Town Hall. It's not a huge affair but provides the opportunity to buy some interesting local produce. I was there late today, as it was closing down in fact but still picked up fresh local potatoes & tomatoes.

July 7th

11pm: This large moth flew in through the open kitchen door this evening & had to be rescued from the lampshade, it didn't seem any worse for wear. A bit of googling showed it to be a St Lawrence Tiger Moth.....fond of Birch, Aspen & all the other trees that are in the forest a few yards from our back door.

July 6th

9pm: On my way home from soccer training, a lovely warm, mosquito free evening & a stunning sunset - without the polarizing filters on my camera it was hard to do it full justice.

July 5th

5pm: Summer in full bloom at Wilson way, the rain in recent weeks & now the sudden warmth has worked ownders in our garden!

July 1st

1pm: Canada Day parade in Downtown Canmore, the parade was a bit rubbish this year, very long gaps between the floats because of organisational hiccups I am guessing. Still the kids love it, mainly due to the mountains of sweets that are handed out as the procession passes. A nice patriotic day though for the Canadians amongst us, including Charlie!! The day ended with fireworks at dusk, but by then the kids were so exhausted (despite all the sugar) that they watched from our bedroom window.