Marilyn's Photos - Sep 1 2026 - And then there's Messi Tattoos

 

Maybe this recent investigation of tattoos comes from a few sources.  One is the continuing pictures of Lionel Messi.  The photographers seem to go for the tattooed arm waving in the air.   I am well rewarded in looking up his tattoos. This is a long story with Messi having many tattoos.  I found a site that provided a detailed tour of Messi Tattoos - it has its own table of contents as there are 18 of them - they are HERE.  Here's an excerpt for the first six.   1. MOTHER’S PORTRAIT (FIRST EVER TATTOO) Location: Left shoulder blade Meaning: A tribute to Celia Messi, his biggest supporter and foundation runner Story: This was Messi’s very first tattoo, showing where his heart has always been—with family. His mother runs the Leo Messi Foundation, helping underprivileged children worldwide. 2. THIAGO’S HANDPRINTS Location: Left leg Meaning: Actual handprints of his firstborn son Story: Added on November 2, 2012, the day Thiago was born. Initially mistaken for Maradona’s “Hand of God,” Messi clarified by adding his son’s name inside the prints. 3. “THIAGO” NAME TATTOO Location: Within the handprints on left leg Meaning: His eldest son’s name Story: Added to clarify that the handprints belonged to his son, not a football reference, showing his priorities as a father first. 4. ANTONELLA’S EYE Location: Right bicep Meaning: Portrait of his wife’s eye Story: A romantic tribute to Antonella Roccuzzo, his childhood friend turned soulmate, whom he’s known since age five. 5. KISSING LIPS Location: Arm Meaning: Antonella’s lips Story: Another romantic gesture honoring his wife, added after years of dating before their 2017 wedding. 6. FAMILY BIRTHDATES Location: Left leg (within Thiago’s handprints) Meaning: Birth dates of Antonella and all three sons Story: November 2, 2012 (Thiago), September 11, 2015 (Mateo), March 10, 2018 (Ciro), and February 26, 1988 (Antonella). and a bunch more to get to that total of 18.  Here's a picture reference.  It is a visual storybook, don't you think?   Here's a pretty garden scene - one of the Grimsby gardens on the garden tour. Read past POTD's at my Blog: http://blog.marilyncornwell.com Purchase at: FAA - marilyncornwell.com Redbubble - marilyncornwellart.com

Mairlyn's Photos - Aug 31 2026 - Tiny Tattoos

 

As we move towards colder weather, the tattoos won't be on full display.  I consider myself one of the few who doesn't want this display.  More than a third of people in Canada have at least one.  Millennials are at the top with over 50% having tattoos.  So they would enjoy the warm weather with the tattoo shows all around them.  I guess conversations are struck and friendships begin because of tattoo displays in the summer.  I am intrigued with the great interest in them and saw an article on the trend in tiny tattoos.  What will that one-third do?  Will they erase the current ones for a teeny, tiny one? A small tattoo is considered a minimalist design that "carries a deep personal or symbolic meaning for the wearer." There's a lady in the aquafit class who has a semi colon tattoo.  These are symbol tattoos - survival and mental health awareness.  It represents a person who considered ending their life but chose to keep living.   A semicolon is used when an author could have ended a sentence but chose not to.  "In this case, you are the author, and the sentence is your life." Project Semicolon was started in 2013.  It is a nonprofit in the U.S. There are various forms of the semicolon tattoo - on the wrist is one.  This person in aquafit had it behind her ear.  It says this is often for discreet visibility. It is to be a personal reminder of strength and resilience while keeping it subtle for privacy.  So aquafit turns into a revealing experience. Who would ever have guessed this?  All those variations of semicolon tattoos!  Lots of them have butterfly wings with the semicolon as the butterfly body.  There is a language of symbolic tattoos. There's the anchor - it stands for stability, strength, and staying grounded during hard times.   And the sun and moon - symbolizes the balance of opposites, such as light and darkness or masculine and feminine energy. Lotus flower means purity, rebirth, and the journey to finding inner peace out of adversity.  Arrows or malins - signifies that you must sometimes face setbacks or pull back to move forward in life.  I guess now tattoos can be appreciated a little more - checking to see if a person has a symbolic tattoo that communicates a life journey.

It is flower time in Niagara with Zinnias and other annuals making pretty bouquets.

Marilyn's Photos - Aug 30 2026 - Aluminum Foil

 

I hadn't thought of how that would work - effective immediately.  So Lake Ontario is now Lake America on the other side of the border.  How immediate can that change be?  What are all the things that would change?  I guess there's a process/procedure in place after it was done to the Gulf of Mexico.   The U.S. Department of Geographical Services has 30 days to update everything to reflect the new name. Federal agencies, electronic files and upcoming printed U.S. government maps must use "Lake America."   There is no international recognition of a U.S. executive order.  So like the Gulf of Mexico, there will be varying versions of maps with the differing names.  For example, the Gulf of America shows up on U.S. user maps, etc.  What Google has done is put (Gulf of America) after Gulf of Mexico.  So I guess we'll get a double named lake out of the trade war.  It hasn't happened immediately on Google, as I still see the one name lake.   We join the disputed dual name club - Sea of Japan - East Sea.  Or we can join the weird bodies of water names - B.C. has "Another Lake" and "And Another Lake" - that's my next suggestion.  Lake Erie can be renamed to "And Another Lake America."  And as Trump has declared that there needs to be an American Ocean - which one will be called "And Another American Ocean?" Send that suggestion into the White House Suggestion Box. Here's a watercolour rose from a few years ago. Read past POTD's at my Blog: http://blog.marilyncornwell.com Purchase at: FAA - marilyncornwell.com Redbubble - marilyncornwellart.com

Marilyn's Photos - Aug 29 2026 - Street Names

 

I got to thinking about street names and what shows up?  Residents of Ottawa who live on Trump Avenue want the name of their street changed.  I wonder if the street was named for the verb or the person.  While that name may not be popular now, there are street names that will always be concerning.  What about Canadian street names? Just as there is Another Lake, and And Another Lake in B.C. there is a This Street, That Street, and The Other Street in Porters Lake, Nova Scotia.  Here's what the author of the article wrote about those names:  This is like the "Who's on First" of street names. There must be a lot of confusion when people get any of these addresses for the first time. "Where do you live?" "This Street." "The street we're on right now?" "No, I said I live on This Street, not this street!" "...What?" There's a Ragged Ass Road in Yellowknife, a Road to Nowhere in Iqaluit.  We all know there's The Tragically Hip Way in Kingston.  Wardner,  B.C. has Ha Ha Creek Road. There's a Twiggly Wiggly Road somewhere in B.C. too.  And that's just here in Canada, and those are just street names.  Wikipedia has an entry for place names considered unusual.  It is HERE.  It says that Swastika Ontario changed its name to Winston.  It had been named in 1908, long before the Nazi Party, so had to go in for a redo after the war.  The residents of the town didn't like being renamed.   These were from a few years ago - they are living wreaths, but over time the moss degrades.  I haven't been able to find replacement wreaths to do these again, so have plastic succulent wreaths now.   Read past POTD's at my Blog: http://blog.marilyncornwell.com Purchase at: FAA - marilyncornwell.com Redbubble - marilyncornwellart.com

Marilyn's Photos - Aug 28 2026 - Effective Immediately

 

I hadn't thought of how that would work - effective immediately.  So Lake Ontario is now Lake America on the other side of the border.  How immediate can that change be?  What are all the things that would change?  I guess there's a process/procedure in place after it was done to the Gulf of Mexico.   The U.S. Department of Geographical Services has 30 days to update everything to reflect the new name. Federal agencies, electronic files and upcoming printed U.S. government maps must use "Lake America."   There is not international recognition of a U.S. executive order.  So like the Gulf of Mexico, there will be varying versions of maps with the differing names.  For example, the Gulf of America shows up on U.S. user maps, etc.  What Google has done is put (Gulf of America) after Gulf of Mexico.  So I guess we'll get a double named lake out of the trade war.  It hasn't happened immediately on Google, as I still see the one name lake.   We join the disputed dual name club - Sea of Japan - East Sea.  Or we can join the weird bodies of water names - B.C. has "Another Lake" and "And Another Lake" - that's my next suggestion.  Lake Erie can be renamed to "And Another Lake America."  And as Trump has declared that there needs to be an American Ocean - which one will be called "And Another American Ocean?" Send that suggestion into the White House Suggestion Box. Here's a watercolour rose from a few years ago. Read past POTD's at my Blog: http://blog.marilyncornwell.com Purchase at: FAA - marilyncornwell.com Redbubble - marilyncornwellart.com