March, 2009
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Twouble With Twitters
March 23, 2009 by Gail
Posted in Unabashed Geekiness, Videoclips | No Comments
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Yerba, Mate!
March 22, 2009 by Gail
–a play on words. We were actually drinking yerba mate, but the native English-speaking brain would scan that as mate with a long ‘a’.
What is yerba mate?
Posted in Critters + Creatures, Food + Drink, Friends | 3 Comments
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Georgetown Mural
March 22, 2009 by Gail
Since I am closer to 40 than 30, I am in need of more recovery time than I used to. Today I was planning to indulge in as much of that recovery time as possible, but it was rudely interrupted by a ringing phone and Beano biting my feet.
Is the universe trying to tell me to get out of bed? Apparently so!
Yesterday I put in a busy volunteering shift at The Brides’ Project, then came home to change and head directly to Georgetown to shoot a double birthday party. Maybe it was wearing higher-heeled shoes for seven hours or just the long day, but I arrived home in the wee hours feeling toasted. So I’m still going through the photos from last night, but here’s one I shot of a beautiful mural I found by accident.
You’re probably wondering how on earth I could get lost in a town with only one street running through the centre — and would you know, it’s named Main Street — but it’s entirely possible when the building plaques showing the cross-streets are faded completely away. Nobody’s bothered repainting them because apparently anyone who has business in Georgetown knows where they’re going. I overshot my turn because I couldn’t make out the sign, spotted this mural on a parallel street and returned after the party to shoot it. (The shot is handheld, ISO 1250 if that means anything to you.)
Be proud of this mural, Georgetown! Even if it takes a newcomer
a wrong turnserendipity to find it.Posted in Out + About, Photography, Working Life | No Comments
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Catatonic
March 21, 2009 by Gail
Something Xena used to do all the time, but for some reason Beano is only starting to do now: snooze* under the blanket.
If I’ve said it once, I’ve said it a thousand times: cats are weird.
* that is, until I wake him up for a photo.
Posted in Critters + Creatures, Xena & Beano | 1 Comment
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Dessert @ The Pomegranate
March 20, 2009 by Gail
Posted in Mobile Blogging | | 1 Comment
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Flashback Friday: Pink Under Protest
March 20, 2009 by Gail
Burnham Park, Baguio City, Philippines
I believe, since I have no photographic evidence proving otherwise, that this is my first official incident of wearing pink under protest. [View Larger On Black]
It certainly wasn’t my last, that’s for certain. Look at that outfit! Look at that pink hat! It looks like a shower cap and one step away from wintering in Florida, wearing huge white sunglasses and matching gloves, complaining about the price tag of a cigarette holder for my Virginia Slims.
I’m guessing this photo was taken in 1973 since I’m standing unaided (my mother says I walked before I turned one), and we immigrated to Canada in October 1974. So it could’ve been taken in 1974, but judging by my waif-like look of “I’m going to cry because everyone abandoned me in the park!” I appear to be around a year old.
But really, what do I know? I remember that I had to take a test to be admitted to Grade One (I didn’t go to pre-school and I barely attended kindergarten) because the Powers That Be said I was too small for six.
The archivist in me is a little twitchy that I haven’t scanned anything in a very, very long time — by my records, at least a year and a half. YIKES. I have quite a large collection of film photos, so to kick start my scanning again I’m going to launch Flashback Friday. Feel free to join in and link to your own in the comments, if you like. I love looking at old photos — the stories they tell!
Posted in Ancient History, Gail at Large, Other Photogs | | 8 Comments
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New Spring Line: Less Fur
March 19, 2009 by Gail
So rumour has it Spring is arriving this weekend. I can hear the chorus now — “And not a moment too soon!” — but the furry Caster creatures living at The House of Fielding have already begun to shed their winter coats. It’s crazy, I’m vacuuming more often than usual, and I still can’t keep up. I always have airline blankets on my bed to catch as much of Xena and Beano’s fur as possible, and now I have to chuck them in the wash every few days (the blankets, not the cats
–although, I wish!). With the warmer weather PLUS the airline blankets PLUS two cats, I will have to ditch the flannel pyjamas soon — it’s too warm!That’s what got me through this winter: flannel pyjamas and fuzzy slippers. I’m serious, I don’t know why I didn’t think of it the previous two winters I shivered through.
Are your critters shedding, too, or are Xena and Beano ahead of the game?
Posted in Critters + Creatures, Xena & Beano | 4 Comments
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March is Colorectal Cancer Awareness + Nutrition Month
March 18, 2009 by Gail
[my father and aunties]The month is well past halfway over, but I’m finally getting around to posting this. From the Canadian Cancer Society website:
Did you know?
Screening is an important way to prevent and detect colorectal cancer because:
- Colorectal cancer usually develops over a long time without causing any signs or symptoms.
- Screening can detect cancer and pre-cancerous polyps before any symptoms appear.
- When symptoms do start they are often vague and easily mistaken for more common illnesses.
- Regular physical activity and eating a healthy diet may help reduce your risk of colorectal cancer.
Statistics
Currently, colorectal cancer is the fourth most commonly diagnosed cancer and the second leading cause of cancer death in Canada.
In 2008, it was estimated that about 21,500 Canadians were diagnosed with colorectal cancer and about 8,900 died from the disease.
On average, 413 Canadians will be diagnosed with colorectal cancer every week and 171 Canadians will die of colorectal cancer every week.
Colorectal cancer mortality rates continue to decline in both men and women and are likely the result of improvements in treatment, specifically chemotherapy.
For more on education and screening for colorectal cancer (especially if you are over 50), and to read a survivor’s story, click here.
Posted in Family, Haunted by Cancer, Linkage, Vancouver | No Comments
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My Photographer Alter Ego
March 17, 2009 by Gail
Groundhog Day (February 2) 2009, Philadelphia. Seuss (I think?) shot this at The Nodding Head after their wedding. My flashgun, stage left. My large hand, stage right. Looking a mite crazed at centre stage. You know, I have NOT THE FOGGIEST IDEA what I was trying to communicate here, which is a little scary since I pride myself on being able to communicate in plain language. Although, whatever sign language I’m using here is definitely not standard, more like “Calgon, take me awayyyyy!”…
Posted in Gail at Large, Other Photogs, USA | No Comments
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Cross-Canada Run Update
March 17, 2009 by Gail
I look at this video and I can’t help but marvel at the lone figure running out into a cold, snowy road. It’s Wayne Cho out there in that world of white, a man who suffered from anxiety and depression most of his life but now manages it with the help of long-distance running. He has taken on the huge task of running across this vast country (SIX time zones!) to raise awareness and reduce the stigma for anxiety and depression … and inspire others along the way.
I wrote about Wayne six weeks ago while he was in Toronto, and he is currently in Manitoba. One of the kids Wayne spoke to Kenora, Ontario, last week wrote a comment (update: and now two) under that post to thank him.
I wasn’t able to meet Wayne when he was in town, but after I wrote that first post I pledged to give him my support during his run and I will continue to do so until he reaches his goal in BC. I think Wayne’s doing an enormous public service, and I applaud him for taking on such a commitment to a cause which is so personal to him. It’s been more than three years since I lost the love of my life to cancer, and not a day goes by without wishing I didn’t have to keep going forward and make goals without him. But I do, just like Wayne keeps running west and talking to people to fulfill his dream. I suppose the one thing we have in common (because it certainly isn’t running!) is a desire for a purposeful life, to strive toward something we really believe in. For Wayne, it’s running for mental health, and for me, it’s raising money for cancer research through photography.
I was thinking about it today when an email arrived, like a sign from above. It was from a prospective wedding client.
Wow. That’s all I can say.
Posted in Haunted by Cancer, Linkage, Videoclips, Volunteering/Charity, Working Life | 2 Comments
