Snap Happy

Looking for some summer fun? A little project to get you energized and creatively charged? My Sensational Snapshot Society photography e-course starts this Friday and runs for 6 weeks.

No technical "know how" needed, any camera will do, we are learning to see our surroundings in a new way. The goal is interesting pictures, fun projects, confidence and kindling a passion for photography. The world is out there ready to be captured! Who knows, you might just make some new pals along the way:)

Dartmouth afternoon

This is Eastern Passage, one of Halifax's best kept secrets. Fifteen minutes from downtown Halifax, across the bridge and along Dartmouth's harbour. This is looking across to Lawlors Island, next to McNab's Island. The smell of the wild roses was divine. There is a quaint development called Fisherman's Cove here with working fishing boats and whale watching, small shops and the home of maybe Nova Scotia's best fish n chips. Well....certainly a contender:) They are working on getting home cut fries. My two friends and I really enjoyed our meal, sitting outside on the deck in the warm June sunshine.

We also shared a Greek salad to balance it out. This one had mozzerella in it too.

After lunch one friend had a quiet moment while we took a stroll along the boardwalk trail to stretch out our legs, not to mention tummys!

books and pals

This print is called Friendship Makes Everything Better (oh and in case you are wondering, the bird and cats are buddies) I'm packaging it up today along with others to send to a shop called Flea Amigos..... Don't you just love that name?! It is an animal themed gift shop in Annapolis Royal.
Continuing on the theme of friendship, I'm going to a big fat book exchange tonight. Love this idea. You bring books you love but want to clear out and others bring theirs and then you take home an armload of new ones to read. There will be wine and cake too :)

happy tasks

Headed here today with a friend from Calgary. Really looking forward to a lunch of chowder and gingerbread for dessert:) Looks like another gorgeous day out there. Click on the picture for a live webcam view of the Peggys Cove lighthouse.

I'm happy that Artful Penpals is doing well. So far 23 people have signed up and are excitedly waiting for their perfect match. The task of aligning people according to their common interests and dreams is daunting but I do the best I can and hope for good things. You do not need a blog to join and there are a few blogless people onboard.

Don't forget that the latest round of Sensational Snap Society starts next Friday:)

summer living

My honeysuckle plant is just starting to bloom. It is entwined through the wooden side slats of my deck and I love the way it looks, all tangled and wild. One of my plans this summer is to make my deck into a small oasis of calm and beauty. I've always had tomato plants and pots of growing stuff on it but they have been haphazard and standard. This year I am planning on doing things out there with a bit more thought towards asthetics and on a budget:) Fragrant flowers and herbs. Colour. I would love to have a water feature. Don't you just love the soft song of running water?

I bought some comfy new brown chairs at Costco ($15 each) and managed to snag a brown and green beach umbrella at Superstore which matches beautifully and does the job just as well as a regular table umbrella (at least for now). Our summers are gorgeous but short and I wish to spend as much time outside enjoying it as I can. Making my deck into a summer "room"will help:)

This weekend is the annual YMCA fundraiser Over the Garden Gate. A few wonderful private gardens are opened up to the public and we wander about soaking up inspiration and beauty. A great way to spend a Sunday afternoon, finished with a cup of tea somewhere:)

o positive

I got such a kick out of these....
If you know who Sookie Stackhouse and Bill are, you will too.
Quite refreshing:)

zaatar and art

Oh my, heaven in my hand. I went to the Lebanese festival this weekend expressly to have some of this!! It is the only time of year it is available around here but I could be wrong. I must investigate:)

It is called mankoushe and is a hot flatbread spread with zaatar, sesame seeds, tomatoes, fresh mint, olives, and smeared with labneh. ( yoghurt like cheese)

Evidently it is a common breakfast in Lebanon. Yum, I could easily have this every day!
After our tasty treat we popped over to Argyle Fine Art where my friend Mark Brennan is having a show of his wilderness paintings. This is the gallery before it filled with people.

The show is titled Re Earthing and is wonderful. I know I have said this before, but I think Mark is one of the most talented landscape painters out there.

He distills the wilderness into colour, filling his work with the intensity and breath of nature. It is full of life. These pics don't do the paintings justice. If you are drawn to his work I suggest you purchase soon. He is now painting much larger works. You can follow him on facebook

Here he is with his pretty wife, Lucy:)





If you like to write letters, this might be for you:)
Want some fun with your photography, need a bit of inspiration?

Artful Penpals:Round 2

Yes, almost a year has passed but it is time again.... please pass it on xo

New York 1

I feel like I have not been around this wee blog much and I miss it:) I am still recovering from New York. Can you believe it? We packed a tremendous amount of activity into one week. Thanks so much for all your great tips. I followed up on many of them and others just could not find the time.

It was Fleet Week while we were there and sailors were everywhere! This place never gets dark, the light changes according to the billboards that light up. This picture of sailors was taken about 11pm.

We stayed right next door to Times Square which I found to be beautiful and busy and bizarre. Our hotel was a quiet oasis from the hubbub. A friend recommended it and what a gem. Every night they lay out a wine and cheese buffet in a small lounge and it was really lovely to come back from a full day, sit and unwind a bit and chat and then head off into the night again. We met some marvelous people.



We walked and walked and walked. Really, you have to go into training to do this city! They say that the average New Yorker walks 10 km a day. Hardly anyone owns a car. Expensive to park and public transit and taxis are so plentiful, there's no need. I only saw one gas station and that was in Brooklyn. You never know who you will see....Here is Spiderman walking along Fifth Avenue. Talking on the ever popular cellphone. I recognized his voice before I saw him:)

and I leave you with........the naked shower guy. Taken at Radio City Music Hall, Sex in the City Premier:)

flying lessons and sensational snapshots

Still coming back to earth. I was struck down with a migraine yesterday and it seems as though I am out of step with my life at the moment. New York was fabulous and so very busy. Now I have to get back on track and focus on the things that will take me to my next adventure.
I have been a bit muddled lately with the flow of my art and business. Too many directions to go in. I found this course a wee while ago and think the inspiration and info is just what I need:) Kelly Rae Roberts is leading this ecourse and so far it has been wonderful! It started on Sunday. Still not too late to join.

Also, speaking of ecourses..... my Sensational Snapshot Society will be starting up again on June 18 and running for 6 fun weeks. I will write another post about it later in more detail.