More Niki de Saint Phalle

Guess I didn't look hard enough…here's a YouTube on the sculptures in Nice.  Still not quite sure if they are still there.  Also found out she was living in La Jolla,  California , when she died in 2002.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eP1rqYXi74c

I'm pretty sure the Miles Davis statue in front of The Negresco Hotel is permanent.  Isn't it wonderful!

Sent my first text to Richard while he was running.

 Me:  Have a great run!  A day of firsts…first text for me and first run for you!  Send photos.

Richard:  Got your text when I was feeling tired and it made me push on.
Me:  Quit when you need to, Love Mom
Richard: Haha.  It's not really that gruelling,  but all the encouragement helps!
Me:  So you finished in under two hours.  Great!!!

Actually,  he sent a photo of the four of them but can't seem to post it.

Figured out a way….

Aaron,  Liz,  Richard,  Claudia….before the race methinks.
Update:  After the race Richard tells me…all looking rather good I think considering they just ran a half marathon!

Happy Thanksgiving everyone!

I feel very thankful for my wonderful family and friends and for living in two amazing places….my home town of Vancouver and our little piece of paradise in Palm Springs.

Richard is running the half marathon in Victoria today and the route takes him past his old neighbourhood and haunts.   Richard has always felt Victoria was a great place to grow up and it was a great place to raise a family for us.

This is his first race and along with firsts I sent him a text….my first ever…really!  I hope he picks it up when he finishes and sends me a photo.

I see Victoria had torrential rain yesterday so glad today looks pretty good for them.  Weather seemed clear when I looked at Chek TV's live streaming of the finish line.

So,  good luck to Richard and his friends running the race today.

A few photos from previous runs.

Niki de Saint Phalle

Jim knows how much I was taken with this artist's big colourful statues on the Promenade des Anglais in Nice so picked up a book on her that was being featured when he was in the library today.   (Unfortunately,  the photos I took are no longer available on my blog…some glitch with Blogger I guess).   Perhaps these weren't a permanent installation as I can't seem to bring up images when I google Nice and Niki de Saint Phalle.  This image isn't one of the ones but it will give you the idea…it's the image that on the book.

I learned that Saint Phalle was a "new realist".

"Its demand for freedom of artistic practice carried it over the frontiers of traditional painting in the direction of object art,  making use of ordinary materials from everyday life and introducing "action" as an element of artistic expression….

Saint Phalle created paintings which,  having attached targets,  bags of liquid paint and so on to them,  she then peppered with rifle shot.  With her "shooting paintings"  'everything depended on chance, as in real life,' as exhibition-maker and museum-founder Pontus Hulten wrote."

I think this is going to be a fascinating read!

Susan,  maybe we'll try this…do you have a rifle in your arsenal of art supplies?

Another rather quiet day….

I think the steam did a lot of good for this chest congestion.  Ed's Linens is going out of business and have 60% off so went to take a look and bought a few towels and a sheet.   Then I suggested we go to the "Golf Museum" which is housed at the original clubhouse of the Vancouver Golf Club at 10th and Blanca.  Very cool actually.   Nice to get out a bit but will be early to bed again tonight.

Perhaps not a "Jim" cold ….

I actually got some sleep last night and didn't cough.   I'm going to go swimming this morning and hope all that steam will help the congestion.   Usually I'd rather not have my indoor swimming experience so steamy but it will be an advantage with this cold!

Basking in the sun…so warm for Oct 9

We were having a glass of wine and enjoying the sunshine on our deck and we saw an interesting effect with the sun….like two little rainbows on the side.  No rain but guess it's something or other.  Never seen this before.

There is literally EVERYTHING on YouTube...

Ian sent me this….the ride on Skytrain from downtown Vancouver to New Westminster.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SotNo9pKZ2Q

Hot off the press….

Jim's open textbook "English Literature: Victorians and Moderns"  was published today by BC Campus.   Since I'm holed up with a cold it will be fun to browse through.  I've already read the excellent  intro of "To the Lighthouse" by Alix Hawley who Jim hired to do the Virginia Woolf unit.  I just may re-read the novel or at least re watch the DVD we have of it.

Take a look at:

http://open.bccampus.ca/find-open-textbooks/?uuid=f373dca8-65c1-4a28-974a-035fe681f15a&contributor=&keyword=&subject=

Old friends, good times...

Our dear friends,  Susan and Alan,  from Yorkshire are in town and we had a great visit today.  We don't see each other that much these days but we always seem to pick up where we left off.  So glad the weather was perfect and they loved our view.

I've come down with a rather nasty cold but apparently everyone on the plane was coughing and sneezing so we decided we'll blame any cold they get on their seat mates.

Itty Bitty Book Review: "The Silkworm"

"The Silkworm"  by Robert Galbraith (aka J.K. Rowling)

Enjoyed this second thriller from J.K. Rowling.  Writing is certainly in her blood I think.  In her Acknowledgements,  she begins "Writing as Robert Galbraith has been pure joy…"  I imagine there must be a freedom in writing for adults that you don't have in writing for kids or young adults.  Looking forward to the next one!

"Everything Will Be"

Took in the Julia Kwan's "Everything Will Be" documentary today on Chinatown.  It's being premiered and she did it to preserve some memory of what is currently Chinatown and what Chinatown was because it certainly is going to be changing soon.  I felt a lot of connection to the "old" Chinatown   and rather sorry to see it in its current state.   One thing I learned is that Chinatown also used to have quite an Italian presence and there still is an Italian deli that's been there for almost 100 years.  The father of the current owner died behind the counter from a stroke at the age of 85….good way to go!  The son is pretty old himself but has no plans to sell or retire.

 It's impossible to get the old Chinatown back so it will be interesting to see what the development  and "gentrification" will mean.  Bob Rennie came across pretty well in the film and I think he wants to respect the community and what it was.  It will be a bonus if it is a vibrant community again even though it will be multicultural.  As long as it doesn't become another Yaletown I'll be happy.   Yaletown just doesn't seem "real" to me and we probably wouldn't set foot in it if it wasn't' for Provence Marinaside Restaurant.

The first one is from the film and the rest from google images that are like in the film.

Raw Canvas

Susan and I  had a great time tonight at "Raw Canvas" where you start with drinks and appies and then move to "the painting pit" to paint a canvas.    Dick and Susan came over for a drink then we all headed to Yaletown.  The boys dropped us off then headed to the "pool hall".  We all had a super time and couldn't believe how popular the painting venue was…well,  it was a Groupon so I guess that helped.

 Before…Susan was experiencing "trepidation"…I don't know why…

 "The painting pit"

 The food…

 The beginning of our masterpieces…mine on the left,  Susan on the right.

 The paint…actually quite good quality.

 Our co-artistes…

 Susan putting some finishing touches on her cactus.

Out for lunch today

Donna and I went out for lunch today at White Spot in Kerrisdale.   I had a legendary burger and it really was like the old time ones with the toasted bun and lots of Triple O and no lettuce or tomato.  Yum.  The idea was to walk around the village a bit but too rainy today for that.  We came back to their  condo and had a nice chat with Neil.

 Both Neil and Donna are looking terrific after their recent Alaska cruise.  It really was the perfect thing to do to relax and put a rather horrific year behind them and it obviously worked!

They have lots of chestnut trees in their area so I picked up some chestnuts to put in the bedrooms.  We haven't seen any spiders inside so far but they might find their way up here.  Probably an old wive's tale but…

Just googled it and it seems some elementary school kids proved that it isn't the case…ah well,  they are pretty anyway.

http://uk.reuters.com/article/2010/07/15/uk-britain-spiders-idUKTRE66E3FT20100715

Out to New Westminster Quay today

We just love taking Skytrain out to New Westminster and having lunch at the Paddlewheeler Pub.  We've never had a bad meal there….everything seems to be good.  I had the calamari and Jim had the fish and chips…both excellent.

Always a wonderful view of the North Shore mountains on the Skytrain and love being up high and seeing the city go by.

Just a beautiful day today.  Would you believe Jim is actually down at our beach at the moment thinking he might go for a dip.  It will be a quick one I'm sure.

Photos taken while walking along the boardwalk.  The whole time we were dining and walking we saw only one boat on the river.  I wonder why?  

John and Carol come for dinner

It was great to see John and Carol last night and hear all about Carol's studies….she's doing a Masters in Liberal Arts at SFU.    It's quite a fascinating program but has a killer reading list.   Most of the people in the program are working full time and some have small children…not an easy gig for them.   This is a retirement project for Carol.   I took the year out to do my Masters and it was quite a different experience for those of us who did that and others who were still teaching full time and with family responsibilities.  We had a lot more fun!

And John took this great photo of the food…

A budding artist….

Mary's grandson,  Eliot, age almost 4,  did these artworks.  I think they have a wonderful sense of colour and composition.  Now,  Mary,  you also have a wonderful sense of colour and composition so why don't you join Eliot when he creates??

Eliot

Stupendo, fabuloso...

Words Jim's colleague in Spain used to describe the open textbook and their working together.  Jesuias is going to start using the text this November in his Masters classes.  It fits so well because the University of Almeria  allows profs to use the online medium for up to 70% of Masters classes.  He also hopes to involve Jim in an online tutoring capacity….all very exciting!

We will probably go to Spain next Fall for Jim to participate in the European Erasmus program where professors are invited to come for up to a month to give special lectures and work with faculty.  They pay travel and an honorarium .  Jesuias wanted Jim to come this Fall but we wanted to have the full winter season in Palm Springs.  Next year we'll probably be ready for a break from that and happy to spend a shorter time.  Jesuias is keen to take us to his favourite places in Andalusia and the weather will be Palm Springs like at that time of year.

A few photos from our November, 2010 trip.

 Jim and Jesuias at the Alhambra.  Jesuias gave us a wonderful tour since he lives in Granada half the time and knows the Alhambra very well.


Sitting in the sunshine on the ocean enjoying a paella in Nerja.

West Coast weather in spades….

We've been enjoying the change in the weather and particularly enjoyed the sun coming out yesterday afternoon.  I've got lots of great reading material.  I'm enjoying J.K. Rowling's "The Silkworm" and I see another Louise Penny I haven't read has come up as a hold.  And I've ordered McEwan's latest novel,  "The Children Act" and as always really looking forward to that.  And I still have The Goldfinch which I stopped when holds came in since I bought it.

We took the car in for servicing the other day and did our usual lunch on The Drive.  We decided to go to Nick's…always a blast from the past.  And of course Jim was in heaven.