What's Happening Here

(Shot in Whistler for YAYOM)

-Watching the light change as the season begins to shift. Autumn brings light the colour of faded denim. I love witnessing this transition.

-Attending Popluck, a new dining experience, following the same plan as the Al Fresco dinners we enjoy. This group started last month, so it's very new. I am making a lemon loaf to share. It's in the oven now and smells delicious.

-Enjoying some down time. I needed it. I didn't know how much, until it happened. It's a good reminder to create space for this every now and again.

-Just starting to think about the things I want to accomplish over the next few months. Getting some of those plans in motion now. I live for adventure, truly.

-Watching the 2012 Paralympics. I saw the opening ceremony yesterday. It was infinitely more enjoyable than the Olympic one. I was especially thrilled to see Stephen Hawking hosting. That was brilliant! Team Canada looked like they were eager to get to work. GO Canada GO!!

-Penn, Carol & I got tickets to go to the Vancouver Etsy Party next week. If you're local and want to go, send me an email and I'll help you get tickets at a discounted rate. The good folks who are organizing the party sent me a promo code to share with friends who might want to join us. All the fun you can craft for $15! (Click the link to learn more.)

-I treated myself to this new Sabrina Ward Harrison book. I thumbed through it in the store and it's full of eye candy, so I had to have it. It also has a big glassine envelope inside the front cover, full of collage ephemera. I didn't notice that until after I got it home, so it was a pleasant surprise. It's the kind of book you pick up over and over again to pour over. YUM!

And you? What are have you been up to?

Good Food & Good Music

So I'm on vacation and it feels like things are just as busy as they were when I wasn't. Not complaining-just an observation. Thursday, we attended the second Al Fresco dinner of 2012. I had my first taste of elk.

The secret location this time around was at the Roundhouse. There's this big metal structure (I think it's supposed to be art) in the courtyard area and we sat right underneath it. It was a really nice evening.

Saturday, through a stroke of luck, I got a free ticket to the Burnaby Blues & Roots Festival out on Deer Lake. I arrived around 4:30 pm and it was smokin' hot out. Really, too hot for me, but I had a good reason to be there.

Jimmie Vaughn, brother of Stevie Ray Vaughn played. He's really every bit as good as his brother. At one point, he played an entire song with his guitar behind his head, backwards. Crazy!

THIS was the real reason I went though. I adore the Indigo Girls and though I've been a fan for years, I've never seen them in concert!

They are so incredibly talented and gave a great concert. Every time they finished a set, we'd clap and they'd say "Thanks Y'all!" So charming! When they play here again, I am most certainly getting tickets. They're touring the US soon, playing with local symphonies in several cities. I imagine that's going to be fantastic. I wish they were coming here.

Sadly, the Olympics are over. I watched hours and hours of events while it was on. I didn't manage to make it through the closing ceremony though. That was ridiculously long. I fell asleep during the part with Russell Brand. They re-aired it in the evening, so I picked up where I'd left off, but by the time 7 pm rolled around, it wasn't even close to being done and Breaking Bad was coming on, so I gave up. I think any ceremony longer than 3 hours is too long. 

Now there's the 2 week changeover for the Paralympics. The opening ceremony is on the 29th. I am hoping we get good coverage, but if not, the Paralympic website will be live streaming events. I plan to watch as much as I can and cheer for team Canada!

Oh and one more thing before I sign off-I haven't forgotten about the giveaway. I'll be contacting the winner later today!

8 Years Come & Gone

Okay, first things first! My blog is officially 8 years old! Yes, I've been blogging since the dark ages of the Internet, pretty much before most artists had blogs! It's hard to believe it's been that long. 

To that end, I am going to have a giveaway to celebrate. I promise it's going to be something GOOD, so make sure you leave a comment to enter, especially if you are a lurker. Tell me where you are from and how you found me and I'll throw your name in the hat. I'll draw a winner on Friday, August 10th. Please make sure I have some way of reaching you if you win. I'm not saying what the prize is because we all need more good surprises in life, don'tcha think? 

Meanwhile, I am working on healing my poor eye. It's slow going, but I am hopeful that by next weekend, it should be okay again. I sure wish I knew what I was allergic to that caused such an ugly infection. Not fun! This has been a very bad year for allergies. Everyone I know has said the same thing.

The Olympics have been fantastic so far-so many amazing moments and wonderful stories. I've been cheering like mad and I've already cycled through an entire box of Kleenex. CTV's Difference Makers stories are real tearjerkers. 

I am incredibly proud of the Canadian Women's Soccer team for making it to the finals. I volunteered at the CONCACAF Women's Olympic qualifier here in Vancouver back in January to help support them and I really want to see them do well. They have a big game against the US on Monday, which I am sure is going to be a nail biter. I will be glued to the tv!

It's funny, during in 2010 those of us who were involved in the Games were living in an Olympic bubble. We didn't really know what was going on outside of the Olympics. It feels the same way watching London 2012 now. I haven't watched news in days and I'm a news hound. I can't tell you what's happening in the real world, but I can tell you just about anything that's going on in competition! Hard to believe in a week's time, we'll be watching the closing ceremonies! The Paralympics are just around the corner!

GO CANADA GO!! 

ALLEZ LES ROUGES!