Thursday Doors: My Red and White Front Door

Norm,  the ‘world’s youngest grumpy old man’, invites us once a week to share our door pictures.

After two years of hard labour on hubby’s part, the work on our ‘abandoned house’ is almost complete. The inside is looking great and hubby has just finished painting the exterior. The last thing to be painted was the front door, which I decided should be bright red. The door is south-facing, and according to the rules of Feng Shui, red is the perfect colour and invites good energy into your home,  although I only found that out after my decision, so I think that was rather clever of me.

The inside of the door is white, as it goes better with my decor. I hope that’s okay.  Too bad if it’s not. 🙂

Do pop over to see Norm’s gallery of interesting doors in Montreal’s China Town district.

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Travel Theme: Four Brown Pelicans

Four Brown Pelis perched up high in the swaying branches.

I’ve often marvelled at how they keep their balance and even manage to sleep standing on a branch. Surely it must be exhausting having to hold on so tightly so as not to fall. Well, apparently their talons have a pulley system of tendons so that the bird’s foot closes and grasps automatically as the ankle and knee joints are bent. They can only release their grip once the limb is straightened, so instead of having to expend energy holding on for dear life, as we humans would if we were clinging to a branch, a bird’s magical system simply locks their talons in place. How cool is that?

Have a great Sunday. If you want to see more ‘Fours’, just visit Ailsa’s Travel Theme here.

 

 

 

 

WPC: It IS easy being green

Ms. Igua says, “It’s SO easy being green; nothing to it really. ”

Happy weekend to you all.

To see more easy-peasy green stuff, click here

WPC Atop: Of The Rock

Just outside our kitchen window is the rather sad remains of a water feature and rockery. Now that our ‘abandoned house’ renovations are almost completed, this area will soon be enclosed in the new screen room which is now under construction. We intend to put some Koi in the pond and build a nice rockery around it. Unfortunately for our wildlife creatures, they will no longer be able to sit ‘atop the rock’. I’ve so enjoyed photographing each and every one as they’ve posed for me here.

Samantha squirrel often sat atop there to eat her breakfast.

Sammy also liked sitting there, when he wasn’t busy dashing up and down palm trees.

Rockstar Iggy, so enjoyed displaying his finery atop the rock.

Grandpa Igasho often took the opportunity of showing off his handsome visage and especially his mohawk, atop the rock.

Sweet little Anatole, enjoyed sunning himself whilst displaying his dewlap, atop the rock.

Basil the Brown Basilisk often sat atop the rock, dreaming of finding true love.

I guess it will be the end of an era, once the construction is finished. There’ll be no more photos taken through my kitchen window. I think I’ll be rather sad about that, and so will my gorgeous visitors, but at least I’ll no longer be tempted to have a go at cutting their toenails.

To see more contributions for the ‘Atop WPC’, click here.

Colourful La Boca Loca

Our Antarctica cruise ended in the port of Buenos Aires, and some of you may remember my post recounting the mugging incident as we were dropped off in La Boca. I found it quite difficult to enjoy the rest of the afternoon, as I was looking over my shoulder most of the time. Hubby is made of sterner stuff, though and got some photos of this very colourful historic area.

El Caminito, meaning ‘little walkway’ is now a street museum.

The houses are made of tin, and I was told that this is what the old houses were constructed from, because the people were very poor and had to use whatever materials they could lay their hands on. The mismatched paint colours were of necessity, as they were just using up any leftover paint they could get cheap.

The ‘papier mâché’ residents peered down at us from the balconies.

The murals at eye-level were really rather surreal.

Many small shops offered souvenirs and local artists’ work for sale,

although I’m afraid that even the Pope couldn’t lure us inside to buy.

This little sidewalk cafe looked quite inviting, but our guide was in a hurry to get us out of there and on to the next place.

Although La Boca is very kitsch and tourisy, some of the artwork is really pretty.

On our way back to the car, we saw a mural which looked to be a tribute to brave firemen.

We passed by more shops and restaurants. The tango theme was around every corner.

Then it was back to the market where hubby’s attempted mugging took place. I was by this time, very hot and tired and dying to get in the car’s air conditioning.

Finally, it was time to leave La Boca and head into the city with its faded grandeur.

Arriving at our hotel safe and sound, was quite a relief.  We had been up very early for disembarkation from the ship, and our tour had been 8 hours long. I collapsed onto the bed, worn out after so much walking in the heat of the day, and was mildly amused to see that we were now expected to practise Argentina’s national dance. Not happening!

There will be more posts from our trip when I find the time to look through the photos.

Hope your Tuesday is going well.

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Backyardigan Shenanigans

Looking out across my backyard, all looks peaceful and serene. Not a blade of grass is moving, not a palm frond stirs. All is set for a calm and tranquil Friday afternoon.

One of the Iggy family a grey and colourless soul, after nibbling lots of leaves for lunch, is taking a nap in the neighbour’s bush.

Little Anatole balances on a twig, thinking of his weekend plans.

The Peli couple is enjoying an afternoon siesta, one upstairs, one downstairs, before going out this evening for a sushi supper.

Suddenly out of nowhere, comes Grandpa Igasho. He doesn’t look any too pleased to see his colourless, grey cousin in his favourite bush. His hackles are up and he bristles with entitlement.

“Now see here cousin. That’s MY bush you’re sitting in and you’d better move quickly before I get really mad and come over there to waggle my dewlap at you!”

Danny and Daisy just sail past as though nothing is happening. They never get involved in any bickering. It’s just not in their nature,

Ozzie Osprey, watching from his tree across the water, calls “Time gentlemen, please! There’s room for everyone here in this beautiful place. Let’s not ruin everything by fighting over territory and power.

Remember what Mother Teresa once said, “If we have no peace, it’s because we have forgotten that we belong to each other.”

Wishing you all a peaceful and relaxing weekend.

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A Turtle kind of Thursday

Little Terrence was parked right outside our garage door this morning. “I’m a bit lost, can you help me, please?” he asked in a very tiny voice.

I knew exactly how he felt, as I’ve often been lost. Thank goodness for GPS these days. In the bad old days when I had to rely on map books to find my way around, you would often find me parked at the side of the road, map book in hand, turning it this way and that, trying to decide which direction I was actually facing, and then endeavouring to work out whether to turn around or go straight on. I must have inherited my lack of sense of direction from my dad. He was always making u-turns. It’s not just on the road that I get lost. When exiting a public toilet in a shopping mall, I invariably turn the wrong way and head towards the men’s. Then I suddenly realising that there’s no way out at that end of the corridor. Hubby thinks this is funny and always has a weird smirk on his face when I eventually find him again because he knows what I’ve just done.  Anyway, dear little Terrence had found a kindred spirit in me and was gently taken to the backyard, where he was deposited in the lake. I’m sure he’s now happily reunited with his family.

Hope your Thursday is a good one.

Wordless Wednesday: Double Duck

Reflections can play tricks on the eye. Mervyn Muscovy at his most colourful.

I hope he was off to buy flowers for Muriel. Happy Women’s Day to you all, especially if you’re a woman.

 

My Sunday Photo: Was My Face Red!

Ms.Muriel Muscovy looking a little red in the face, as she relaxes in the shade outside my bathroom window.

Hope you’re all having a great weekend.

Travel Theme: Bark Surprise

Ailsa’s Travel Theme ‘Bark’, reminded me of our walk through the beautiful Parque Forestal in Santiago Chile. So many trees and benches there, but I had never seen such a surprised tree as this one.

Some people have very weird imaginations and can’t resist defacing objects which don’t belong to them in order to share their quirky ideas with passing strangers. I’m sure there must be a name for this disorder; something like CGS…Compulsive Graffiti Syndrome.

Wishing you all a very relaxing and happy weekend.