We did escape the Sun Run...

One of our black leather recliners had a problem and Mobler fixed it for us.  The part was ready so we drove out and also walked through Ikea…always interesting but didn't buy anything.  We did have lunch there.  A first for us.  Jim had the 10 Swedish meatballs and mashed pot and gravy and shared my haddock and chips.  I had a bit of his too.  Very good!

Then,  a bit of a rush for me to get to my Artist Trading Card group but I made it for the trade of cards and picked up lots of good stuff.  And really nice to see everyone and have a good chat with  Susan.   I'll post photos of my goodies tomorrow.

I'm always fascinated by things on a small scale.  These are the furnishings for an apartment of under 600 sq feet. I would say there is more storage space than any house I've lived in.  Now,  our condo in Palm Springs has an incredible amount of storage so that doesn't count. Recently,  micro condos of 385 sq ft sold out in minutes in Vancouver.

This is a little play stove in the kid's section.  Loved it but nothing could compare to the play stove my wonderful father built me out of four wooden cheese boxes stacked in a cube,  lids from paint cans painted black for stove elements,  and empty thread spools for turning the elements.  My absolute favourite toy ever and it didn't cost a cent!

Jim and I both loved the circus tent for kids.

I parked in a different place today and noticed these two bocce courts in Victoria Park and folks speaking Italian.  Jim was very interested and will probably come down with me next month and see if he can play some bocce and speak a bit of Italian.  Always lots of things of interest for him on Commercial Drive anyway.

Sun Run today

Tens of thousands participating today under warm sunny skies.  It's really great to see so many people enjoying themselves.   Since these runs are in our front yard,  we have tended to be a little annoyed about being captive by the road closures,  the music and cheering when we just want to read our paper in peace and quiet.  But,  heh,  it's not asking too much to share our paradise.

And we have it all figured out.  We both have our noise cancelling head phones on.  I'm listening to Jimmy Buffet's Margaritaville,  drinking coffee,  and reading my paper in peace.  We even moved the car last night so we can escape before Beach Avenue is opened up again.

Seagulls floating and an amazing sunset

We just love to see the seagulls enjoying themselves on the wind currents.  They just have fun after they've probably stolen hot dogs,  fish, etc.  They don't work hard but play hard for sure.  Now,  the crows are doing their usual…kind of worried and thinking ahead.  They are much more intelligent but let's go with the gulls...

Beautiful night for Cloud 9….great tapas as usual.

Wings,  dry ribs,  calamari…and the calamari was especially good.  New supplier apparently.

Great Blue Herons

I took some photos of the heron nests today…soon the leaves will be hiding them.  I was interested to see some squirrels chasing each other up and down the trees and jumping from tree to tree.  The metal bands keep the raccoons out but I see the squirrels can just sneak under them.  I wonder it they are a hazard to the eggs or the new chicks?

Good times and good conversation as usual with John and Carol

We always enjoy being together and Carol is a chef extraordinaire.  We were completely spoiled with fresh halibut in parchment…wow!   And great appies as well….a wonderful greek olive,  cheese, and thyme concoction along with other goodies.  And a fabulous dessert.

Another sunny day….

I picked out my new glasses then went for a swim at the Aquatic Centre….not quite like swimming in the sunshine but at least the pool has a glass roof.

Note to self…take it easy the first week back...

Well,  it's not that we've had a lot to do but just getting things organized here again and then I made various doctor's,  dentist,  eye exam, etc appointments.  Nothing was urgent,  just routine stuff.  But,  after you've had close to 6 months of deciding whether to go to Bill's Pizza on a Monday,  buying California Cab or French Bordeaux,  swim in  the the big pool or small pool,  it does seem a bit hectic. 

Some rain today but a wonderful sunset as usual….

What made me reflect on this is seeing this boat  (probably a trawler) coming in so slowly.  We often see water taxis going like stink.  Well,  who can blame these sailor on the freighters wanting to get into town after being at sea.

Richard and Grace come to dinner

It was great to see Richard and Grace last night and as usual they came bearing tasty gifts…a great rosé wine and wonderful cream puffs…yum.  And Jim made spaghetti and cleaned up so no work for me!

Thanks,  everyone!

Good times with old friends...

We had a super evening with Donna and Neil last night.  Appies and dessert at their lovely condo then on to one of our favourite restaurants,  Minerva's in Kerrisdale.  Our timing was perfect as they close today for three weeks for renovations.  We always have a wonderful meal there.

Thanks so much,  Donna and Neil,  for a wonderful welcome home!

 Jim and Donna each had the chicken parmigiano with spaghetti and meat sauce.

 Donna and Neil.

Neil and I both had the souvlaki….lamb for me and beef for him.

Hot dog by the sea for lunch today...

The price has gone up to $3.50 but it was $3 for at least 5 years so not too bad.  All the usual condiments and sauces…about 2 dozen choices in all so real gourmet.

Our dining out view from a park bench.

Someone was putting the rocks with oil on up on the seawall….very sad business.

Nice to see the rowers, kayakers, dragon boats, cyclists, joggers, sailboats….

So far a better day for weather than expected….a chill in the air.  We won't be sitting out in shirtsleeves today.

I bought these cacti a couple of years ago and this year when we were away they got very little water….still going fairly strong.  What an amazing plant!

From Susan K.'s blog...

Love these tulips done with gelatos…I get too play with these sometime soon!

The tulips are in full bloom in Vancouver.  They're my favorite flower, so I couldn't resist another gelato piece.

Rain this afternoon but also light….

If there is any sunshine to be seen  at dusk,  we got it!

Heard the clip, clop….yep….the Royal Canadian Mounted Police...

Trouble in Paradise….

It seems just as we were arriving home  there was an oil spill from a tanker in English Bay.  Lots of bad press about what seems like a slow response.  Yes,  definitely a wake up call.  We heard some First Nation drumming and chanting yesterday.  I guess they were out protesting this travesty…good on them.

Looking at the photos I took yesterday morning  I do see some black shadowing which could be the oil I suppose….not really sure.  No,  just shadow.

I guess it was a big story on the TV news yesterday.  We missed the news as we were basking in the sun having a drink in shirtsleeves on our balcony.

http://www.cbc.ca/news/trending/dramatic-photos-of-vancouver-oil-spill-spark-pipeline-outrage-on-social-media-1.3026816

Well….no morning swim in the sunshine but waking up to this isn't too shabby...