Looks like we got out of town just in time

Susan in Vancouver sent me a message saying it was -8 C and more snow coming. Everyone here is complaining about it being in the mid-60's F.

And Linda just sent me a notice from Surrey that it was -7 feels like -11 C....brrr.

We were pleased our Desert Sun arrived and this is what greeted me as I picked up the newspaper.

I don't think we'll be golfing this week although Thursday is going to hit 69 F.

Snow on the mountains. With the drought this hasn't happened in a while.

And our good old reliable car started immediately. We didn't unhook the battery since we were only going to be away 4 weeks not over 6 weeks as it turned out.

Meanwhile back home...

VANCOUVER, B.C. – Snow is expected to fall on Metro Vancouver Friday, with up to four centimetres accumulation. A special weather statement for snow and Arctic wind Friday and Saturday remains in effect for the South Coast. Some regions will likely see more snow, according to Environment Canada, including parts of Vancouver Island and the Sunshine Coast, which could see up to 10 centimetres.

Later in the day, B.C. Ferries cancelled the 8:15 p.m. and 10:45 p.m. sailings of the Coastal Inspiration between Tsawwassen and Duke Point because of high winds.

In Metro Vancouver, Friday is expected to be mainly cloudy, with periods of snow beginning early this morning, and a high of 1 C. Tonight, there’s a good chance the region will see more snow and wind, with an overnight low of – 3 C. The weather agency says, however, with the wind chill that’s going to feel more like – 11 C. The snow flurries could continue into Saturday morning, with a high of 1 C, but then it looks like the snow will clear up in the afternoon. It’s going to be a blustery one though, with wind gusts up to 70 km/h in some areas. Saturday night will be freezing with a low of – 8 C and then Sunday is sunny with a high of zero.

Meantime, several weather warnings have been posted for Arctic air, including for the Fraser Valley and, the Sea to Sky Highway, and Howe Sound. Environment Canada says extremely strong and cold winds will cause wind chill factors of -20 C in these areas. The agency is warning that frostbite can occur.

Arrived safely to our little paradise....

Ken does take care of us! Water on, water heater on, garden cleaned up, bougainvillea trimmed, heat on as it is low 60's now but sunny. I don't think I'm tempted for a swim.  I was really worried about how my ears would do during the flight but they are no worse perhaps even a little better but that's probably because of the decongestants and extra nose spray.

And I couldn't resist taking a photo of my wonderful little desk....I can't beleive how much pleasure this gives me.

Off to Palm Springs today

Weather isn't perfect down there but not freezing!  We do hope to get a swim in our pool today regardless.

....and we might even get a nice sunset.

More photos of our little paradise.

https://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=956153029705241271#editor/target=post;postID=4875069873834033037;onPublishedMenu=allposts;onClosedMenu=allposts;postNum=0;src=postname

Intelligent application of minimalism in a car...the Deux Chevaux

There was a note in the Vancouver Sun about this car being featured in a car  show in Paris. I feel quite attached to this little car. During our first trip to Europe in 1972 we rented a Citroen V (the cheapest car to rent) and the Deux Chevaux was the only car we could pass on the highways. In 1976 we were taken around in a Deux Chevaux, the one that the top could come down, all around Amsterdam and surroundings by a teacher we had met in Cannes while we were all doing all doing a course in French. Well, "top" is perhaps an exaggeration. You could roll part of the material roof back... sort of like a sunroof more than a convertible.

I felt it was quite a brilliant design although Chris and Susan (our neighbours in Victoria and both Personal Injury lawyers) were horrified by the design and lack of safety...a friend of their's had one.

This image gives a pretty good idea of how the top worked.

Citroën 2CV

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Citroën 2CV
Overview
Manufacturer	Citroën
Production	1948–1990[1]
Assembly	Levallois-Perret, France,[2] Forest/Vorst, Belgium Liège, Belgium Slough, UK Jeppener, Argentina (1960–1962), Buenos Aires, Argentina (1962–1980) Montevideo, Uruguay (Panel van & pick-up) Arica, Chile Mangualde, Portugal (1988–1990), Vigo, Spain (PSA Vigo Plant) Koper, Slovenia (former Yugoslavia)
Designer	André Lefèbvre Flaminio Bertoni Walter Becchia Marcel Chinon
Body and chassis
Class	Economy car
Body style	4-door saloon 2-door panel van 2-door pick-up 2-door coupé utility
Layout	Front engine, front-wheel drive / four-wheel drive
Related	Citroën Ami Citroën Dyane Citroën Acadiane Citroën FAF Citroën Méhari Citroën Bijou
Powertrain
Engine	375 cc H2 air-cooled 9 hp (7 kW). 425 cc H2 air-cooled 12 hp (9 kW). 435 cc H2 air-cooled 24 hp (18 kW). 602 cc H2 air-cooled 29 hp (22 kW). [3][page needed]
Transmission	4-speed manual
Dimensions
Wheelbase	2.40 metres (94.5 in)
Length	3.86 metres (152.0 in)
Width	1.48 metres (58.3 in)
Height	1.60 metres (63.0 in)
Curb weight	600 kg (1,300 lb)
Chronology
Successor	Citroën Dyane Citroën AX (indirectly)

The Citroën 2CV (French: "deux chevaux" i.e. "deux chevaux-vapeur" (lit. "two steam horses", "two tax horsepower") is an air-cooled front-engine, front-wheel-drive economy car introduced at the 1948 Paris Mondial de l'Automobile and manufactured by Citroën for model years 1948–1990.^[1]

Conceived by Citroën Vice-President Pierre Boulanger^[4] to help motorise the large number of farmers still using horses and carts in 1930s France, the 2CV has a combination of innovative engineering and utilitarian, straightforward metal bodywork — initially corrugated for added strength without added weight.^[5][6][7] The 2CV featured low cost, simplicity of overall maintenance, an easily serviced air-cooled engine (originally offering 9 hp), low fuel consumption, and an extremely long-travel suspension^[8] offering a soft ride and light off-road capability. Often called "an umbrella on wheels",^[9][10] the fixed-profile convertible bodywork featured a full-width, canvas, roll-back sunroof, which accommodated oversized loads and until 1955 reached almost to the car's rear bumper. Notably, Michelin introduced and first commercialised the radial tyre with the introduction of the 2CV.

Manufactured in France between 1948 and 1988 (and in Portugal from 1988 to 1990), more than 3.8 million 2CVs were produced, along with over 1.2 million small 2CV-based delivery vans known as fourgonnettes. Citroën ultimately offered several mechanically identical variants including the Ami (over 1.8 million); the Dyane (over 1.4 million); the Acadiane (over 250,000); and the Mehari (over 140,000). In total, Citroën manufactured almost 9 million 2CVs and variants.^[11]

A 1953 technical review in Autocar described "the extraordinary ingenuity of this design, which is undoubtedly the most original since the Model T Ford".^[12] In 2011, The Globe and Mail called it a "car like no other".^[13] The motoring writer L. J. K. Setright described the 2CV as "the most intelligent application of minimalism ever to succeed as a car",^[14] and a car of "remorseless rationality".^[15]

Hoping to get to Palm Springs Saturday

Well, we're still not quite over our viruses (what a long time it has been!) but we are going ahead with flying Saturday unless one or the other has a complete relapse.  We hadn't been out for weeks but very glad to have joined Donna at Minerva's last night and Carol and I had avocado toast together for lunch.

It seems the forecast for PS is rather gloomy for the next two weeks and January has been not very good at all. Glad to see Benjamin posted these photos today so folks are getting a bit of good weather. Looks like there is snow on the mountains.

From Benjamin:

Earlier this morning. Beautiful and about time.
Weather which our snowbirds are accustomed to.

Feb 7, 2018 in Palm Springs

Well, I was wondering what we were doing a year ago today. Seems I took some photos of what was blooming and growing in Canyon Sands. Friends had been sending photos of what was blooming back home. There wasn't any snow on the mountains last year. Perhaps there will be this year with the recent storms they've had.

http://janicesextonart.blogspot.com/2018/02/whats-blooming-in-our-community-of.html

Itty Bitty Book Review: "Magpie Murders"

"Magpie Murders" by Anthony Horowitz

Well, this certainly kept my interest. A murder within a murder mystery...very clever.  It was a great book to read while having a cold...still not over it completely.  I need a new mystery! I have all of Josephine Tey on my Kindle (it was free!) so perhaps I'll try one of those.

Oakridge...the largest new development in Vancouver

From The Daily Hive:

The future of Oakridge Centre: New renderings show surreal architecture

"The design of the planned redevelopment of Oakridge Centre is said to draw inspiration from medieval towns like San Gimignano, Italy, and it will become a hilltop town or “micro city” with a skyline of its own."

That is how the proponents of the redevelopment described the project in their recent development application to the City of Vancouver. A rezoning proposal for the project was previously approved in 2014, and construction is scheduled to begin by the end of this year."
Well, I don't know how it will all shake down but I am rather fascinated by the architecture.

https://dailyhive.com/vancouver/oakridge-centre-redevelopment-architecture-august-2018

I may quite like this new development in Vancouver but I don't think it will remind me of San Gimignano and the Tuscan Hill towns although I admire the clever marketing!

In 2002 we did a two week road trip of Italy and for three nights we based ourselves in Siena to go round to the Tuscan Hill towns. Siena was a wonderful place to base ourselves and we plurged so had a great view of the Tuscan hills from our room. We also took the breakfast and dinner plan and it was a wonderful restaurant so after a day of busy touring (not to mention the special joys of driving in Italy!) we came back to a wonderful dinner without having to go out looking for a restaurant.

Siena is very famous for its tower and for its crazy horse race called the Palio around the village square. Huxley wrote about it. This is Rick Steves:

"The Tuscan hill town of Siena is known both for its pride and for its independent attitude. And for five centuries, that spirit has shown itself in a crazy horse race — the Palio. Twice every summer, the entire community of Siena hurls itself into the traditional revelry of the event with abandon. "

Huxley on Siena and The Palio.
https://danassays.wordpress.com/collected-essays-by-aldous-huxley/aldous-huxley-essays-travel-the-palio-at-siena/

San Gimignano (below) is actually very beautiful other than I suppose we liked it the least because it had been scrubbed too clean and packed with tourists. The only "local" we saw was some old guy scuttling down an alleyway.

A little excerpt from Huxley's essay on Siena and the preparation for the Palio. Perhaps this explains the overly scrubbed look of San Gimignano.

More stones were brought down in those few months of weeding than had fallen of their own accord in the previous thousand years. But the Italians were pleased; which is, after all, the chief thing that matters. Their hatred of weeds is fostered by their national pride; a great country, and one which specially piques itself on being modern, cannot allow weeds to grow even among its ruins.

My blogpost was inspired by one Carol did and I can certainly sympathize with the person who altered the ad at the bus stop and Carol's views. I may feel the same way but for the moment I remain curious and interested to see the result.

Carol's blogpost:
http://mountdunbar.blogspot.com/2019/02/describing-new-oakridge.html

Amazing that snow fell in Palm Springs...I guess it happens.

Four Decades of Delicioso

Las Casuelas Terraza marks its 40th anniversary but probably not with the snow that fell in 1979.

On Feb. 5 – the same day the restaurant opened its doors four decades ago – Las Casuelas Terraza in downtown Palm Springs will donate 40 percent of sales to four local charities that are close to the Delgado family’s hearts.

“We want to give back to the community that has supported us since day one,” said Patrick Service, a member of the Delgado family who manages Las Casuelas Terraza with his mother, Patricia Delgado. “This includes nonprofits that have nurtured, fed, and protected our community.”

Boys and Girls Club of Palm Springs, AAP Food Samaritans, the Palm Springs Police Officers’ Association and Well in the Desert will be the beneficiaries.  The public is welcome to join the Delgado families for a toast and a few words of appreciation in the palapa bar from 5-6 p.m. that day. Guests will also enjoy live music during both lunch and dinner by PS Sound Company and Hot Roxx.

Housed in a historic 1924 Palm Springs casita that has been remodeled over the years to offer expansive indoor and outdoor dining space, Las Casuelas Terraza blends the warm, vibrant atmosphere of a Mexican Hacienda with authentic recipes that stem back generations in the Delgado family.

The restaurant’s recipes date back to the 1920s when Florencio Delgado’s mother, Maria Farjardo, fed copper miners in Arizona who came to her kitchen door to purchase delicious meals she prepared in her earthenware pots and pans. Florencio (Del) with his wife, Mary, brought his mother’s authentic Mexican recipes to Palm Springs in 1958. They opened the original Las Casuelas nearly 60 years ago.

Over the next few decades, the Delgado family opened four more restaurants in Greater Palm Springs, each owned and operated by one of their children. Del and Mary’s daughter, Patricia, brought Las Casuelas Terraza to Palm Springs 40 years ago.

In addition to the family’s classic recipes handed down four generations, the restaurant is known for its more than 18 varieties of margaritas, as well as over 100 of the finest sipping tequilas. Guests have a number of choices in the type of Las Casuelas Terraza experience they want to enjoy – the cantina, small intimate dining rooms, or outside on the patio surrounded by towering palms trees. The restaurant also features live bands and dancing.

* Note about snow in Palm Springs...imagine closing schools....well, perhaps to let the kids experience the stuff just like in the south of France!

Perhaps the most recent substantial snow storm took place in 1979, when the flurry made such a mess that schools had to be closed for the day. However, Mother Nature has blanketed the desert in snow on a few previous occasions between the 1930s and 1980s.

Richard sent some photos from Kauai.

Now that's one good looking Mai Tai! Richard said they had found a place that makes great ones. Quite the sealife and scenery!

What we're missing at Rancho Mirage Library and Observatory

I was particularly looking forward to this presentation. We see lots of roadrunners around the library.

Guess I'll have to content myself with a Roadrunner cartoon.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zjg1aqF9TTA

 This looks like an intersting book to read.

Patty just sent me this photo...I have no memory of this either!

bonjour Janice,

look what Terry found, while going through some old slides!

this was taken sometime in 1988, on the BC ferry. 

Cannot remember what the occasion was, nor where we were heading off to. However, I am sure we had loads of fun! 

Elaine, Don, me, Jim, Patty, Terry

(Elaine, Patty, and I all taught together)

Sometimes I think I should try to make my blog a little more significant than just mainly our daily lives but then I really appreciate having memories I can look back on and figure out when we did what.

Snow in Vancouver

There was actually a bit of snow falling when I took this photo. I don't think it's going to amount to much.  Speaking of snow and the soutth of France.  One of the years Jim was teaching there, the region did get some snow.  Jim was teaching his class and the students asked him if they could go out in it...some had never seen snow!  He let them, of course.

Ah...Mimosa...from The Good Life France this weekend.

I will never forget driving from Nice to Toulon in January 2002 when Jim took up his first winter teaching gig in France. All the way down there were these amazing yellow trees in the forests. We had never been to France in the winter so didn't know about Mimosa. The markets sell bunches of them as well. We have  Acacia trees in Palm Springs which bloom a little later than January. They aren't quite like the magnificent bushy blooms of the Mimosa in France but they do bring up a memory of the South of France.

I began blogging in April 2002 when we returned home and my early blogs are of that time in France  Here's a bit of it when I write about Mimosas and I painted a Mimosa branch in a Pastis pitcher. It was during this trip that I first started painting.

SATURDAY, APRIL 20, 2002

One of the really neat things when travelling out of the summer season is seeing things in nature that you hadn't seen before. When we arrived in January the Mimosa (or Acacia) trees were in full bloom and were just fabulous. The downside is that these trees are so prolific in the area they cause eye infections for a lot of people. And when you add all the burning of slash related to farming and the fact that the French are still smoking like fiends....it's a triple whammy. The Mimosa branch is in one of the many pastis water bottles we collected at flea markets when we were there. We had a lot of fun finding these and pastis is so typical of the area. It also never seems to taste any good outside of the south of France. The flea markets were also great for book browsing and people watching.

From The Good Life France magazine:

"Mimosa is a vibrant symbol of winter in the south of France and a sure sign that spring is on its way.

The bright yellow flower of this scented plant grows prolifically in southern France in the Var region where the Cote d’Azur and Provence meet. The route du Mimosa is 130km long and runs from Bormes les mimosa to the perfume capital Grasse and you’ll see it at its best from January to March.

British visitors introduced Mimosa to the French Riviera in the late 19^th century. The area was popular with those craving the sunshine of the Med and Victorians flocked to this area including Queen Victoria who spent several months at a time here. The plant loved the climate and the soil and mimosa growers proliferated. Used in the perfume industry (Givenchy, Yves Saint Laurent and Guerlain are all fans) for its scent and in bouquets for its exquisite beauty and gorgeous colour.

Its other main use is in the fabulous Mimosa festivals that take place in the Riviera, heralding the arrival of spring. And, you’ll also find it in syrups and some locally produced specialities."

Tropical Paradise

I hope Richard and Grace have been enjoying that wonderful smell you only get in the Hawaiian Ilands and some Mai Tai's.  One advantage  about having to cancel our dinner together is we got to eat all the Madademia nuts I had bought for the occasion :)

A rainy day, a good mystery, and a cup of tea...

Patty recommended this and I'm so glad I put a hold on it and it came in before we left. We're still both under the weather and this will be a perfect antidote. I've just read three pages and I love it already.

Susan Ryeland, the editor for the famous mystery writer,  Alan Conway, is just sitting down to read the manuscript of his latest called "Magpie Murders".

A few quotes:

First paragraph:

"A bottle of wine. A family-sized packet of Nacho Cheese Flavoured Tortilla Chips and a jar of hot salsa dip. A packet of cigarettes on the side (I know, I know). The rain hammering against the window And a book. What could have been lovelier?"
.....

Page 2-3

"I began to read the book as you are about to. But before you do that, I have to say to you.
This book changed my life."

"There are plenty of books that have touched me very deeply: Ishiguro's 'Never Let Me Go', McEwan's 'Atonement'."

She had me at the first paragraph but then she mentions two wonderful novels that I loved and they do touch you deeply.

Novels and films

Recently, for some reason, Jim and I got talking about “Gone With The Wind”. He hadn’t read the book (not surprisingly) but also had never seen the movie. Perhaps also not surprisingly but less so. Of course, every adolescent girl read the novel and the movie came periodically to the movie theatres so we saw the movie. I loved the book and the movie. So, it was interesting to get the movie and also read a bit of the book. I only read a few pages but the book didn’t disappoint in those few pages. In fact, I was quite impressed with the writing. Even so, I doubt whether I’ll read very much of it.

The second paragraph of the novel which I think captures the character of Scarlett and also the society she is a part of:

"Stuart and Brent Tarleton in the cool shade of the porch of Tara, her father's plantation, that bright April afternoon of 1861, she made a pretty picture. Her new green flowered-muslin dress spread its twelve yards of billowing material over her hoops and exactly matched the flat-heeled green morocco slippers her father had recently brought her from Atlanta. The dress set off to perfection the seventeen-inch waist, the smallest in three counties, and the tightly fitting basque showed breasts well matured for her sixteen years. But for all the
modesty of her spreading skirts, the demureness of hair netted smoothly into a chignon and the quietness of small white hands folded in her lap, her true self was poorly concealed. The green eyes in the carefully sweet face were turbulent, willful, lusty with life, distinctly at variance with her decorous demeanor. Her manners had been imposed upon her by her mother's gentle admonitions and the sterner discipline of her mammy; her eyes were her own.”

“her eyes were her own”…wow, that’ pretty amazing writing as far as I’m concerned.

The scenery and sets are pretty spectacular but it was difficult to watch even 10 minutes of it. It was very tiresome. I suppose I can’t really judge it after 10 minutes but enough is enough! We were both ready to turn it off after 5 minutes.

Another novel and movie I loved was The Agony and the Ecstasy. I’ll have to give this the same test. I think the movie will come out better and also probably the novel.

The Agony and the Ecstasy is a 1965 American film directed by Carol Reed, starring Charlton Heston as Michelangelo and Rex Harrison as Pope Julius II. The film was partly based on Irving Stone's biographical novel The Agony and the Ecstasy. This film deals with the conflicts of Michelangelo and Pope Julius II during the painting of the Sistine Chapel's ceiling. It also features a soundtrack co-written by prolific composers Alex North and Jerry Goldsmith.^[3]

The film was shot in Todd-AO and Cinemascope versions. The Todd-AO version was used for the DVD release because of its superior picture quality.