First Signs of Spring -again

Our on again off again spring has appeared again. First signs - take 2. After the polar vortex and another brief reappearance of winter yesterday morning, spring is once again trying to take hold.



I always like the appearance of scilla. They are tentatively showing their colour, not yet blanketing lawns.

Winter Morning in April

Photos: April 11, 2016

It's that time of year when we seem to have several seasons in one day. The morning was winter with everything covered with snow. By the time I took this photograph around 9:15 rain was falling. By mid-day the snow had virtually disappeared.



These bird apartments encourage purple martins to set up house. They help keep the bug population down. This area is next to the St. Lawrence River and is a favourite spot for shad flies.

Spring is coming - it is just taking its time to really settle in.

Fact into Fiction

I am currently reading Vanessa and her Sister by Priya Parmar. The other books are on my "to be read" pile. I like books that make me look things up, to learn more about the subject - whether it is finding out more about historical situations, learning more about a country in which the book takes place or finding out about people who were included in the story. Vanessa and her Sister is a fictionalized account of Vanessa Bell and Virginia Woolf - the Stephen sisters. The many characters in the book were real people - part of the Bloomsbury group. I have searched on the internet for paintings done by Bell that have been mentioned in the book, checked on the lives of some of the people in the novel and I feel this enriches my experience of the book. So far I am enjoying it, but a piece of me wants to know how much is based on truth and how much veers from reality.

I read Us Conductors, by Sean Michaels, which is a novel about Leon Theremin. I enjoyed finding out more about who he was (the inventor of the theremin among other things) but was put off by some events in the book that were far from the truth of Theremin's life. While Michaels makes it clear that this is a novel, it bothers me that people reading it may believe these events; I had to research to separate the truths from the fiction.

At what point should an author just be writing fiction and not use the names and lives of real people - a question I ask myself as I read.

Architecture

When I walk, I gawk - at flowers, at public art, at architecture. Today it was the latter. This neighbourhood has houses of every vintage. The original homes had large lots and, in this case, a second house was built onto the first (its entrance is at the side). It just doesn't work for me - the architecture is obviously of different eras; the bricks don't really match. In some cases, parts of lots were sold off and homes of a totally different vintage and style were squeezed into the smaller space between the original homes.



But it is not just homes from different eras that feel mismatched. This, too is not one but two homes. The one on the right also has its entrance on the side, not totally unusual for this street. From the front it looks so insignificant compared to the home on the left with the massive front porch and overhang. It feels off balanced to me.

I think of the architecture of the Renaissance where emphasis was on symmetry and balance. While I don't necessarily want to go back to other aspects of the Renaissance style - I would like to see a little more balance. Am I being too critical?

At the End of a Day

A long day of being mired in paperwork - preparing all my papers for tax time. It's enough to put knots in anyone's belly. I made good progress, but dinner followed by a decaf cappuccino was a fitting end to the day. Time to forget about numbers and details and just relax.

Bonsai Trees

Photos: April 6, 2016

Yesterday at the Botanical Gardens we walked through the greenhouse that holds a number of bonsai trees. It is hard to imagine the care and expertise needed to nurture these specimens. This is a 40 year old Chinese Peashrub.



This Gingko is just coming into leaf again. I'll have to make a point of going back to see what it is like when the foliage is full.



(Above - a Japanese Maple - 65 years old)  I'm fascinated by the art of bonsai. It takes a lot of skill and patience. This site has a lot of information. It's interesting to see the trees undergoing seasonal changes.



This Bald Cypress is also 65 years old. How many people have been responsible for its care? On the site mentioned above, there are photos of bonsais that are 800 years old and older. It is hard to imagine the succession of people who have nurtured them - through all kinds of upheaval (political, weather...) until now. They are works of love and devotion.

*******************************
As the above photos were taken yesterday (as were my butterflies, I figured I should include one photo from today



We have had snow and rain since our visit to the Botanical Gardens yesterday. It is April; it will melt, but in the meantime I prefer to sit with my back to the dreary weather and think again of butterflies and bonsais.

Butterflies Go Free

A delightful afternoon spent at the Botanical Garden's exhibit of Butterflies Go Free.
It is simply magical to enter this space and be surrounded by butterflies flitting around.



These butterflies are hard to capture as most of the time they are resting, their wings are closed. Their blue colour is spectacular.



Some pose, staying in one spot for a long time. Others seem to be always on the move.



Some perch daintily as they feed. Others flap their wings madly to stay in place.



But each is a thing of beauty. I try to imagine why they have evolved the way they have with their intricate colours and patterns. It was not just to be admired.

I am sure I did not spot all the varieties that were in the greenhouse. Here is the pamphlet that describes them all.