Ghost signs

 I hadn't heard this term before until a recent article in the Vancouver Sun. It looks like they are going to save this one. These advertisements on buildings were a part of the landscape as much as the mountains when we were growing up.

"Many businesses advertised by painting signs on buildings in the 1800s and early 1900s, but few survive. They have been dubbed “ghost signs” because of their faded beauty and/or because they advertise long-dead businesses.

Until recently, Vancouver’s oldest ghost sign was for the Louvre Saloon, which operated at 325 Carrall in Gastown between 1898 and 1904. It read “The Louvre Saloon” on top, and “bath house up the hall and beds, 20¢” on the bottom.

But the city has no policy to save old signs, and it was taken down during a redevelopment at the site. The city also did nothing to save a painted sign for a 1922 Harold Lloyd movie, Grandma’s Boy, that reappeared when a building was torn down at Robson and Granville in 2012."

Another one I picked up on an image search for "ghost signs".

Is this the skeleton of a cousin of Nessie?

"A Scot who took to Twitter for answers after her sister discovered part of a large skeleton on a remote beach on South Uist has been astounded by the sheer volume of replies she's received in response to the post.

Theories about what animal could have left behind the mysterious bones have ranged from the fantastic, with a cousin of Nessie or even a dinosaur being suggested, to the more mundane (and much more likely), with them being attributed to being the remains of a beached sperm whale."

The answer:  It was a sperm whale skeleton.

I've seen a lot of whales in my lifetime beginning when I was around 10 years old fishing off my parents' place at Gabriola Island and many times on the ferry from Vancouver to Victoria. And then for years Richard and I went to Sealand in Victoria hundreds of times. They used to sell season passes for a dollar around Christmas for locals. He insisted on being in the "wet zone". I feel very bad about those whales being captive now. 

From Heather James Fine Art in Palm Springs

It's a pretty small painting but I expect it has a very big price.

FERNAND LÉGER

Le Vase Bleu, 1936 oil on canvas, 15 x 18 in.

Le Vase Bleu explores the language of Cubism through the casual playfulness of a lighthearted artist of mid-career maturity. The subjects of this still life are ordinary objects commonly found in daily life, perhaps chosen for their contrasting shapes. Still, the suggestion of familiar forms like an electrical plug and wire alongside the blue vase invites us to engage with the painting through curiosity and delight. 

Léger explained what he did in this way: “I took the object, I blew up the table, I put the object in the air, without perspective, without support. I scattered my objects in space and made them hold together by making them shine forward on the canvas.

A Place to Call Home

We've been getting this on DVD's from the library...lots of fun to watch. Jim and I usually don't find a lot that we like but this is keeping our interest and Marta Dusseldorp is an amazing actress.

From Wiki:

A Place to Call Home is an Australian television drama series created by Bevan Lee for the Seven Network. It premiered on 28 April 2013.^[1] Set in rural New South Wales in the period following the Second World War, it follows Sarah Adams (Marta Dusseldorp), who has returned to Australia after twenty years abroad to start a new life and ends up clashing with wealthy matriarch Elizabeth Bligh (Noni Hazlehurst). The main cast also includes Brett Climo (George Bligh), Craig Hall (Dr. Jack Duncan), David Berry (James Bligh), Abby Earl (Anna Poletti), Arianwen Parkes-Lockwood (Olivia Bligh), Aldo Mignone (Gino Poletti), Sara Wiseman (Carolyn Bligh), Jenni Baird(Regina Standish), Tim Draxl (Henry Fox), Dominic Allburn (Harry Polson), and Frankie J. Holden (Roy Briggs).

It has been described as a "compelling melodrama about love and loss set against the social change of the 1950s".^[2] The show was cancelled after its second season, but obtained further funding and concluded successfully after a total of six seasons in 2018.

A change of pace in reading

 

The Right Honourable The Lord Archer of Weston-super-Mare
Member of the House of Lords Lord Temporal
Incumbent
Assumed office  27 July 1992 Life peerage
Member of Parliament for Louth (Lincolnshire)
In office 4 December 1969 – 20 September 1974
Preceded by	Cyril Osborne
Succeeded by	Michael Brotherton
Personal details
Born	Jeffrey Howard Archer 15 April 1940 (age 81) Holloway, London, England
Political party	Non-affiliated (since 2001)
Other political affiliations	Conservative (prior to 2001)
Spouse(s)	Mary Doreen Weeden (m. 1966)
Children	2
Residence	London, England
Occupation	Politician, author
Website	www.jeffreyarcher.co.uk
Writing career
Occupation	Novelist, short story writer, playwright
Period	1976–present
Genre	Thriller, Drama

Jeffrey Howard Archer, Baron Archer of Weston-super-Mare (born 15 April 1940)^[1] is an English novelist, former politician, convicted perjurer, and peer of the realm. Before becoming an author, Archer was a Member of Parliament (1969–1974), but did not seek re-election after a financial scandal that left him almost bankrupt.^[2] He revived his fortunes as a best-selling novelist; his books have sold more than 320 million copies worldwide.^[3]

Archer became deputy chairman of the Conservative Party (1985–86), before resigning after a newspaper accused him of paying money to a prostitute. In 1987, he won a court case and was awarded large damages because of this claim.^[4] He was made a life peerin 1992 and subsequently became Conservative candidate to be the first elected Mayor of London. He had to resign his candidacy in 1999 after it emerged that he had lied in his 1987 libel case. He was imprisoned (2001–2003) for perjury and perverting the course of justice, ending his elected political career.^[3]

Hug an Australian Day

 This came up on Days of the Year and seems perfect as we are so enjoying the series "A Place to Call Home" which is set in Australia and features all the top Australian actors and actresses.

"In hindsight, Men at Work’s Down Under was a pretty average song. Thankfully, the country has provided so much more over the years. Hug an Australian Day is a perfect time to show gratitude and appreciation while simultaneously spreading a little love across the world. In a world where people are often made to feel more divided than ever, the simple gesture can make a huge impact.

Like throwing a boomerang, the good vibes will return very quickly. Aside from participants living or vacationing in Perth, Melbourne et al. Hug an Australian Day needn’t impact the entire day either. It’s fun, simple, and an event that everyone can join regardless of where they are."

Good on Thomas King and really hoping he wins!

 I loved this novel....funny but serious too about Indigenous issues.

Indians on Vacation by Thomas King among 10 books longlisted for $15K Stephen Leacock Medal for Humour

And now for something completely different

 I also love pretty much everything Susan K. sketches and colours.  Now that Urban Sketchers are rather restricted, they are doing sketches from Instagram photos.

Cologne, Germany

 

In the eye of the beholder....

 I'm always interested in unusual artwork. I was surprised at the price especially since there seems to be 999 of them made but then I saw an entry(below) in Wiki so perhaps it's cheap at the price.

JEFF KOONS Balloon Rabbit (Red) Item No: JKOONSBRR17

Retail$25,000.00

Was$23,692.99

$22,500.0010% off

Description

Technique: Porcelain with chromatic coating, Year: 2017, Edition Size: 999, Dimensions: 29.2 x 13.9 x 21.0 cm (11.5 x 5.4 x 8.2 in), Signature: Signed and numbered.

From Wiki:

Jeffrey L. Koons (/kuːnz/; born January 21, 1955) is an American artist recognized for his work dealing with popular culture and his sculptures depicting everyday objects, including balloon animals produced in stainless steel with mirror-finish surfaces. He lives and works in both New York City and his hometown of York, Pennsylvania. His works have sold for substantial sums, including at least two record auction prices for a work by a living artist: $58.4 million for Balloon Dog (Orange) in 2013^[1] and $91.1 million for Rabbit in 2019.^[2][3]

There is a long list of exhibitions. He must be pretty well considered to get an exhibition at the Ashmolean Museum in Oxford.

PAST SOLO EXHIBITIONS

2020  Jeff Koons: Absolute Value. Selected works from the Collection of Marie and Jose Mugrabi. Tel Aviv Museum of Art, Tel Aviv, Israel
          [March 10, 2020 - April 3, 2021]

2019    Jeff Koons at the Ashmolean. Ashmolean Museum, Oxford, United Kingdom [February 7 - June 9, 2019]

Balloon Dog 

mirror-polished stainless steel with transparent color coating
121 x 143 x 45 inches 
307.3 x 363.2 x 114.3 cm 
© Jeff Koons
5 unique versions (Blue, Magenta, Yellow, Orange, Red)
1994-2000

Shakespeare & Co, Paris, Cherry Blossoms...can it get any better than this?

 Ashley Wallace posted this on FB the other day:

"Anyone else looking forward to being able to travel and explore other towns’ bookstores again?"

We certainly are. I think the most fun we have is when we happen upon a bookstore just by chance. We probably won't be buying many more books on our travels but we will always browse.

 

From Wiki:

Shakespeare and Company

"Shakespeare and Company" store, Paris, 2013
Wikimedia | © OpenStreetMap
Location	Left Bank, Paris, France
Owner	Sylvia Beach Whitman
Type	Bookstore
Opened	19 November 1919; 101 years ago 1922 1951
Website
shakespeareandcompany.com

Shakespeare and Company was the name of the iconic English language bookstore founded by Sylvia Beach in 1919 on Paris' Left Bank, and where Beach went on to publish James Joyce's "Ulysses." A later independent English-language bookstore was opened in 1951 by George Whitman, also located on Paris' Left Bank, but under a different name. Whitman adopted the "Shakespeare & Co." name for his store in 1965, and it continues to operate under that name to this day.

The original Shakespeare & Co. was established by Sylvia Beach, an American expatriate, on 19 November 1919, at 8 rue Dupuytren, before moving to larger premises at 12 rue de l'Odéon in the 6th arrondissement in 1922.^[1] During the 1920s, Beach's shop and lending library was a gathering place for many then-aspiring and renowned writers and poets such as Ezra Pound, Ernest Hemingway, Djuna Barnes, James Joyce, F. Scott Fitzgerald, Gertrude Stein, and Ford Madox Ford.^[1] The original Shakespeare & Co. was forced to close in 1941 during the German occupation of Paris. Beach was arrested and imprisoned for six months by Nazi authorities. Upon her release toward the end of the war, Beach was in ill health, and was never able to reopen Shakespeare & Co.^[2]

The later and current bookstore is situated at 37 rue de la Bûcherie, in the 5th arrondissement. Opened in 1951 by American George Whitman, it was originally called "Le Mistral," but was renamed to "Shakespeare and Company" in 1964 in tribute to Sylvia Beach's store^[3] and on the 400th anniversary of William Shakespeare's birth. Today, it continues to serve as a purveyor of new and second-hand books, as an antiquarian bookseller, and as a free reading library open to the public.^[4] Additionally, the shop houses aspiring writers and artists in exchange for their helping out around the bookstore. Since the shop opened in 1951, more than 30,000 people have slept in the beds found tucked between bookshelves.^[5]The shop's motto, "Be Not Inhospitable to Strangers Lest They Be Angels in Disguise," is written above the entrance to the reading library.

A lovely chat with Maureen this morning

 It's very difficult times in Germany with lockdowns and no travel and they have a shortage of vaccines too. She was born in 1946 but won't get her first vaccine until May 15. I do admire Maureen for keeping her spirits up through it all. She has taken lots of bus trips in Europe...one very special one was to Sicily and that's when she bought the tea towel. I feel very honoured to have received it as a gift.

I found my 1987 photos and here are a few I took on that visit to them. 

Maureen looking over pastries. The pastries in Germany were absolutely amazing...the best anywhere I have had in the world. She took me to a wonderful tea shop. I don't seem to have a photo of that but I certainly remember it.

Stephen  and Richard on a rare occasion that they weren't playing video games :)

This is my favourite photo of Roland and Maureen. They had a special relationship and I know she misses him very much.

One day when we were in Germany with them they said we were going to a special place. The special place was a trailer in the country that they used as a getaway. It was a very special place.

What a wonderful surprise!

I was just wondering what to post on my blog and this package arrived from Maureen in Germany! What a lift to get this in these dismal times. Because of Covid she wasn't able to visit her family at Easter so tackled another cupboard to organize and came across these old photos.

Maureen knows I love tea towels from places we visit. We didn't get to Sicily when we were in Italy but I now can imagine being there at least when I look at this towel.

And these lovely plates. We will think of you, Maureen, when we dine.

Maureen's note and lavender soap from France. She remembered how much I love lavender. 

These are from 2003 and Maureen remembers our  trip to the market in Carqueiranne. As Maureen says Jim couldn't take his eyes off the ham. It was fabulous.

This is from 1987 when we visited them in Germany. They drove us up to Travemunde on the North Sea. It was very cold that day so we were having a hot drink to warm us up.

We had spent most of the summer in  England and France when Richard was 10 years old and very bored expecially having to endure our long dining experiences. He was thrilled to be in Germany because his cousin, Stephen, had lots of video games so he was in heaven.

This is from the newspaper in 1968 when we got married. I guess Jim's parents sent this. 

Thank you, thank you, thank you, Maureen! 

 

Socks

 Carol's friend, Linda, and her wonderful socks. Well, she knits all sorts of things like cosy hats and who knows what else...scarves I'm sure.

Very impressed with the socks especially the tartan ones. They seem like they would be difficult to knit. I knit a 12" square for a Brownie project. That's about as far as I got.

Some history never changes...

 

Good on The Vancouver Sun

 Yesterday, the day of Prince Philip's funeral, The Sun published what I thought were some quite wonderful and carefully chosen "Letters to the Editor" that readers sent in. I think the memories these local folks have express who Prince Philip was to the Queen and so many people. 

This is probably my favourite:

When the Duke was at a banquet in the far north, the server told him, “Keep your fork, Prince, there’s pie coming.”

I’ve often wondered whether he and the Queen had a good chuckle about that, later.

Erwin Flaig, an artist, lived in Inuvik in 1970. He went out for a solitary walk and met another solitary walker. The Duke got in step with Erwin, and they had a long chat as they wandered — no bodyguards in sight.

It must have been nice for the Duke to just be a normal person for a while.

Lorna Blake, Vancouver 

https://vancouversun.com/fr/opinion/letters/letters-to-the-sun-april-17-2021-sun-readers-share-their-memories-of-prince-philip

Birthday party cancelled again but at least he got this cake.

 A 10 year old boy Linda knows had his birthday party cancelled last year because of Covid but his mom arranged a drive-by greeting that was fun for everyone but now that people can't travel out of their zone even that can't happen but he got this great Krispy Kreme cake...wow! I thinkRichard would love this cake. He got introduced to Krispy Kreme when he was working in San Francisco. 

A little more of Modernism Week

 I really enjoyed this free sceening of a tour of The Edris House designed by E.Stewart Williams in 1954.

This is an abstract painting of it that you can buy as a poster. I thought it was pretty cool.

Link to the tour here:

1954https://www.modernismweek.com/signature/

Down at Spanish Banks yesterday....

Isn't the snow on the mountains just amazing! We were down on a weekday and surprised to see the concession open this time of year.

 

Modernism Week in Palm Springs

 It looks like this is a full program with in-person attendance with Covid  protocols. I hope it's successful. PS has really been hit hard with the pandemic for the tourist and snowbird dollars it depends on. We've enjoyed many events over the years. This looks like a wonderful selection of cars!

One of the events that caught my eye.

Fins and Tails - Classic Private Car Collection

In the 50s and 60s, modern design was everywhere, expressing the exuberance of the new post war prosperity. Modern Architecture was no longer for the wealthy and expanded with the growing middle class driving their new cars out to their new suburban modern homes. The automobile industry was equally forward thinking, designing the cars of the future for today with big fins, exotic modern styling and big engines to help rocket you off into the coming space age!  

Today, as so many people come to Palm Springs to restore midcentury modern homes, they realize that one of their most important and fun home accessories is a beautiful vintage car parked in the classic modern carport. The tour offers the opportunity to view a large collection of restored classic American and European collectable cars that are now in private ownership. So come and view these beauties in person while enjoying a morning mimosa.

This event is sponsored by the Palm Springs Modern Committee - non-profit organization dedicated to the appreciation and preservation of Desert Modern architecture and design.  

$25

Things to Know

This event it for all ages.
Hand sanitizer is provided at check-in. Face coverings required for guests over 2 years old. Guests will be provided with a mask if necessary.
Directional signs or ground markings will be used to guide guests.
The exhibit covers a large area of cars in a warehouse setting with wide open doors.
There will be tape distances of 6’ apart at check-in area and surrounding the cars.
Staff will be onsite to limit the number of people entering the warehouse at one time.
The organizer of this event is Palm Springs Modern Committee. 

Event Check-in Location