Life is Art

I just recently returned from a lovely vacation in Vancouver.  My youngest daughter Katie and I went out to visit my other daughter Jennifer.  Jenn is getting married this summer and we went out to do wedding things.  Like pick out a wedding dress and bridesmaid dresses and a dress for me!  The colours are so beautiful!  And organize the rest of the wedding with a little help from our friend, Google!

On the first day we walked to Granville Island. That means to Opus Art Supplies.  This place is absolutely worse than a candy store.  They have three aisles of acrylic paint! I got to touch so many colours.  I honestly did not know were to start... as I left my list of "needed" stuff back home.   I grabbed a basket and went to the watercolors, and of course purchased a number of beautiful tubes (sigh). They I went to the acrylic aisles, grabbed some more paint and I also purchased some liquid acrylics (mostly blue shades - to compliment the stuff I bought on-line earlier this year).  I bought Jenn I and each an modern acrylic book - which I absent mindedly left behind in Vancouver :(  . Maybe I will just have to go back to get it.....

The next day we went back to Opus just because.  Oh, the poor magnetic strip on my debit card.  I bought squeezy bottles - I have a plan for another poured painting with fine lines.  I cannot wait to start this one. Have two more to finish first (I think I have to). So I also had to buy lots of masque.

Another Vancouver hi-light was visiting all the kitchen shops near and dear to Jenn's heart and her Foodess blog!  I had it in my head I wanted to buy large wooden spoons, you know, to cook more healthy.   I was so proud of what all I bought. But when I shared my happiness with my husband... he asked when was the last time you oiled the ones we already have?  I said hmmm.... He said he was watching Anna and Christine's Grocery Bags and they had a segment on oiling your wooden spoons to prevent bacteria growth. Needless to say I oiled away and then googled the show. Oh no... I oiled them with Safflower oil - not mineral oil. Now they have to be really scrubbed and re-oiled.  Does anyone know where to purchase mineral oil?

We were awakened most mornings to the heralding honking of Canada geese.  Apparently they love the environmentally friendly construction trend of grassing roof tops of new buildings. In fact, they appear to be nesting on the rooftops.  They do not fly silently - they feel the need to honk honk honk honk with every flap of their wings.  At first, we were quite excited to look out the big windows in Jenn's apartment  and see them on the roof of the building across the street. I even took photos I was so intrigued.

After a few days the honking seemed to start earlier and somehow, seed much louder.  The novelty wore off quite quickly.   You see, they also fly ... overhead.... and are big poopers!  They sit on the edges of roofs and balconies with their tail feathers overhanging the edge - making a walk with the doggy, Oliver, quite unsettling because you walk looking up.    Speaking of Oliver, we took him to a dog beach whenever we had the opportunity.  This dog seriously loves the water. Fetching a ball or a prized stick -no matter as long as he was in the water! I have so many action shots of this beautiful dog!   He is so animated and entertaining - I will miss him so much.






I managed to paint a bit while I was there. I did a small acrylic painting of a chocolate cake Jenn baked for her to give away on her blog. I started a second painting as well - but there was just so much visiting to do.

Jenn and I went to cooking school at The Dirty Apron just before Katie arrived. It was so much fun and the facility was fabulous.  The evening was led by a chef - David. He was entertaining , informative and engaging.  We watched him prepare a dish and he told us of the food science behind cooking and so much more. Then we repeated his cooking procedures on the same dish three times. After each course was cooked, we got to enjoy it in the dining room.  Mussels, scallops and haddock - seafood bliss!