Sniffles and Things

It is officially Fall and, predictably, I have the sniffles. That doesn't mean I've stopped doing that which I love; it does stop me from making food for others, though. I'm being a good girl and doing everything possibly to speed along this recovery. I don't like missing days.

To stick it to these drippy sniffles, I finished two knitted hats (go me) and the pictures are up on my Ravelry profile. But to save you the clickings, I'll put them up here for your pleasure.

 Here we have Handsome Lad modelling Jayne Cobb's Cunning Hat. He likes things like Firefly so I gifted this toasty (albeit - in my opinion - ugly) thing to him. He's quite taken. I don't think it's ever coming off. Oh well, I brought this upon myself.








On the right is the Funky Colours Cable Cap. It has a tassel! When I'm not at school I'll do a proper modelling of it. It does not photograph well unless on a head. I admit: I love knitting hats. They're quick and there's so much to play with.

Promptly after finishing this hat I jumped into knitting matching wrist warmers. I'm a nut, but considering Canada's climate, it's beneficial.



Prior to becoming infected with these infernal sniffles I did a little baking. Two cakes were the result and unfortunately, I only managed to photograph one of them before they were devoured.

Behold!

 

Is it not beautiful? And if you find yourself wondering what the heck that is, I shall enlighten you.

Upside Down Plum Cake courtesy of the Food Network.  I highly recommend it if you find plums to be in season. It comes out looking like a little jewel of deliciousness. Also, it's a little more purple than the picture depicts. 

If you do feel inclined to make it, feel free to deviate from the recommended spices. I essentially turned mine into a spice cake topped (or based, it's upside down) with delightful plums. 

I do believe this makes up for my week long absence so until next we meet, I wish you happy hobbies and don't let the cold catch you.

The Fifth Toothbrush

In my recent musings I have alighted upon a realization: even with all the transitions I have undergone in the past few months I crave something more. Like an elusive but nonetheless irksome itch, I pawed at the problem, hoping to relieve my malaise. I have it. Or rather, I feel that I have a meagre grasp on the issue. I want to get on with my life.

It's not that I'm hung up on any slight or offence. No trauma haunts my thoughts, and finally, no long-ignored issue needs addressing. I mean, simply, that I want to get a place of my own and play at being an adult. As long as it remains a play at adulthood I can enjoy the game. Games are but facsimiles of more serious realities.

This is not just an impatience to grow up, as it was in high school or any number of other occasions where my youthful self aspired to maturity. But maturity is a matter of perspective and youthfulness is valuable.  So, to put it some better way, I want a place to be myself in my own company.


Right now, I sit ensconced in morning kitchen smell. The kitchen is not my own and the morning is a late one. Muffins, eggs, toast and coffee, such wondrous small pleasures. I adore breakfast. Actually, I love foods of all kinds but I do believe that I am not alone in my love of breakfast. For some, it is sacred ritual - the way to welcome a new day and a new stab at life. For others, it's a stopover on the way to other things, but there is still a root that resides in that first bite of toast or that first sip of coffee.

On that note, I think of baking. While the baking is simple the meditations on baking are complex. It's homey magic to see ones become wholes. Right now it's cookies or muffins or cake or something. Anything sweet and soft.

In case you're wondering as to the significance of the title, I'll leave it up to you. It's funny how others can find meaning in the phrases you find unimportant.

Morning Yoga

It's a particularly chilly morning, as if the weather is aware what month it is. I sometimes forget it's the other way around; seasons exist because the weather changes predictably. However, I like to believe that just because it is mid-September the weather shouldn't take a sharp dip towards cold.

It seems I have to earn my morning yoga session. I've already expressed my bemusement at the gym-atop-the-mountain but I fail to understand why I decide to ride a bike up that hill (or at least halfway). In summary, any pain I feel, I've inflicted upon myself. I am counting on that old adage to hold true: what doesn't kill me brings me a lot of pain but supposedly makes me stronger.

Or at least I think that's how it goes.

I admit, I am sore and going up and down stairs is misery itself. I shall persevere! I promised myself a more positive outlook on life and my place in it. Since I admit to having body image issues, I'm going by way of the healthier lifestyle. So far, I remain optimistic.

Sore... but optimistic.

Uphill, Downhill...Repeat

The quality of this image is not ideal; however, the content is significant. That man over on the right, in the vaguely discernible top hat is the veritable god of rock: Slash. Seeing him play was well worth the 4 hour drive to the middle of nowhere.

Although it renders this exercise pointless, I cannot begin to express the fantastic nature of this concert. Slash, his band, and singer Myles Kennedy have a live act that struck my very being (although that might have been the base vibrations). The band played some Guns 'N Roses songs (Civil War, my all-time favorite), some Velvet Revolver and some material from Slash's latest album.

I do not know why I was so aware of this next fact but I don't recall a rock concert being as rigidly timed as this one. Bands came and left and even encored exactly on the hour and half hour. They did one song for their encore, then promptly left. Perhaps I have illusions about rock, but I was under the impression that it is a more free-spirited medium.

Handsome Lad did inform me about a rather big name band that played in our City recently who decided that the imposed noise licence was not during an appropriate "rocking" time. They purposefully came onstage late, got through half their set and suddenly, at the hour appointed on the licence, the plug was pulled and the lights shut down.

City is not a small town, it is a metropolis. I do not know how true this story is. Personally, I would rather not believe that such things happen. I'm Cleopatra, Queen of denial.

~~

Good news! My uber-fitness regime began today. Memories of early mornings came flooding back as I rolled out of bed at 5:30 this morning. Yoga is worth it, I keep telling myself.

When I asked 'who builds a University on top of a mountain?' (which I do every morning) I was unaware to what extent the campus ... extended. I now include, in my query 'who puts a gym at the top of a mountain?'. Clearly, mine does. I must work out before I work out. And no, I do not consider a hike a 'warm up'.

All that being said, it really does feel good to work out. I hope this new routine assuages my guilt of spending so many hours in my day seated.

I wish you all a good week, I know I will be trying to have one.

Busy, Busy Life

It has come to my attention that I may have over-filled my schedule for the next few months. I won't bore you with the details, my dear reader. Suffice to say that I see the brick wall coming and instead of slowing my pace, I merely lower my head and sprint onward.

Thunderstorms filled the skies above my City last night. I haven't seen that much lightning for a long time, but I must say, we were due. Every few seconds the black sky was alight with bursts of white, so bright, I thought there was an aerial spotlight demonstration. I have no fear of thunderstorms. Actually, I enjoy them so long as I'm inside, where they are not.

So I'm sitting in one of the many lounges on campus, sipping a lemon iced tea and listening to the Backstreet Boys via online radio. A little nostalgia never hurt anyone, and I'd prefer to recall the happier times of my primary school days. One day, my reader, I shall have to show you the hill I have to brave in order to get to this confounded school. Perhaps I shall use such a photo to conclude my Life on Campus Week (of sorts).

It would appear that I have made a segue, let's go with it. I'm still getting over my shyness in sticking the camera up in front of random people. I have to realize, however, that in a four-university City, there are plenty of students toting cameras. In a way, I'm lucky that a photographer is not a foreign sight. I have two for you today.

It's not campus life per se, but I like it.

I love when I get moments like this.

 And, in promising that I shall overcome my shooting shyness I shall end this post. I wish you a most excellent midweek.

One Last Heat Wave

It is officially September in Montreal, folks. After an astoundingly humid week the weather has turned, as it always done, towards the colder side of things. I feel that Mother Nature, while maintaining the illusion that adheres to our little calendar, enjoys throwing the occasional curve ball to see how we react. And react we do.

This past week has been a blur of humidity in which I began my first semester at University. I love living in a city where everything is within reasonable walking distance. The campus is vast and there are many places where one can hide from the sun.

You have probably figured this out already, dear readers, but it must be said. In my quest to maintain semi-consistent updating habits, you have caught me at a time of low inspiration. More than likely this is due to the shift in my daily routine. Prior to this week I pedalled into the office every morning (earlier than most), settled myself into whichever desk I was occupying that week and proceeded to spew creativity into my morning writing. Trust me, that image was definitely more attractive in my head.

My morning serenity - and possibly my steaming mug of creamy coffee - contributes greatly to my creativity. For the past week, if I'm not in class, I'm traipsing up and down the Hill on which some brilliant scholars of old decided to place their University. One mountain on an entire island and my school has to be on top of it. On that note, three of the city's hospitals are also built onto the mountain. Questioning these decisions occupies a good portion of my morning hike (the rest is filled with under-breath cursing).

As I might have mentioned before, the primary focus of much of my artwork is people. I adore watching people when they don't know I'm watching them. I like to observe body language and especially facial expression. This habit probably explains why I took to photography. As I make my way briskly along campus paths, I see the lawns bestrewn with students in various states of repose. Each time I see a well places subject, I kick myself for leaving my camera at home because my backpack was too heavy that morning.

To amuse myself for this coming week (I find I like to make theme weeks) I shall take pictures of people on campus. With four Universities in its' downtown core alone, Montreal residents are used to having all manner of media equipment pointed their way. By means of this undertaking, I shall force myself both to use my camera and to update consistently. Two birds with one proverbial stone and all without animal cruelty.

I wish you all a good week, hopefully the colder seasons dawdle on their way to you.