Dogs on Duty

"27 dog sculptures shoot jets of water toward the golden bone that marks the installation's peak, while a single cat looks away, focusing instead on the two sculpted birds sitting atop a nearby lamppost. An elegant plaza—with a pair of bandstands—surrounds the fountain, while a miniature landscape of rolling green hills and grassy lawns frames the park, along with an off-leash area that abuts the neighbouring flatiron building."  Berczy Park is in the downtown tourist district - at the flat iron building just east of Wellington and Yonge Street.  This is the Douglas Copeland sculpture fountain.  Don't forget the cat on guard at the entrance to the park.

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Dog

Spook the Spook

Where did the word 'spook' come from?  I didn't realize it is an Americanism.  1795-1805, Americanism; < Dutch; cognate with German Spuk  1801, from Dutch spook, from Middle Dutch spoon "spook, ghost," from a common Germanic source (cf.German Spuk "ghost, apparition," Middle Low Germanspok "spook,"  Swedish spok "scarecrow," Norwegianspjok "ghost, specter," Danish spøg "joke"), of unknown origin. Possible outside connections include Lettish spigana "dragon, witch," spiganis "will o' the wisp," Lithuanian spingu, spingeti "to shine," OldPrussian spanksti  "spark."  Meaning "undercover agent" is attested from 1942.The derogatory racial sense of  "black person" is attested from 1940s, perhaps from notion of dark skin being difficult to see at night. Black pilots trained atTuskegee Institute during World War II called themselves the Spookwaffe. What interesting meanings it has: 1. Informal. a ghost; specter. 2. Slang. a ghostwriter. 3. Slang. an eccentric person. 4. Slang: Extremely Disparaging and Offensive. acontemptuous term used to refer to a blackperson. 5. Slang. an espionage agent; spy. verb (used with object) 6. to haunt; inhabit or appear in or to as a ghost orspecter. 7. Informal. to frighten; scare. verb (used without object) 8. Informal. to become frightened or scared:  The fish spooked at any disturbance in the pool. So when we find people dressed in spy costumes today (we'll stick with the politically correct slangs) - we can spook a spook.

Wishing not Weeping

There are famous Angel Statues in Cemeteries.  The most famous is "Angel of Grief".  She has her own entry in Wikipedia.  There are replicas in Canada, Costa Rica, Cuba, Luxembourg, U.K. and U.S.  There's one in Montreal's Mt. Royal Park.  As I look through the U.S. listings, and there are many, where do I see one?  It is near Longwood Gardens at the Longwood Cemetery in Kennett Square. That makes it my next destination when we go to Longwood. However, a day trip would be to Rochester in the Holy Sepulchre Cemetery. Our Grimsby Angel, in comparison, is wishing and wanting, hoping and praying.

Portals

I guess portals have been with us for centuries.  These two are at The Guild Inn, in Scarborough, ON, and would've originally been in the downtown financial district.  The first is imposing and decorative  and likely an entrance to a bank building. A portal is:  "a doorway, gate, or other entrance, especially a large and elaborate one."  It also has a meaning of a magical or technological doorway that connects two locations, dimensions, or points in time.

John Deer's Dear Deer

We have a massive John Deere facility in Grimsby.  Of course, it is surrounded by vast lawns.  Its bronze deer out front is a notable feature of the property. While it is not listed in: http://www.roadsideattractions.ca/alphabet.htm, there are many interesting listings.  It is worth a browse to see what crazy statues are out there to see. This is on Hunter Road at the western boundary of Grimsby and is viewable from the QEW.

The Garden Ladder Story

The garden elements that signal a romantic garden include the garden path, the rendezvous and enticing sights, smells and sounds along the way.  I hadn't considered what story would be told by a man vs a woman.  This garden seemed to immediately be a garden story told by a man.  When I looked at the ladder to the barn window, what comes to mind is the story of Rapunzel, or an enticement to come out to rendezvous.  Perhaps this is the garden story of sneaking out a second floor window:  Here are the steps from wikiHow: 1. If there is no sturdy tree right outside your window, go to the garage or storage shed when your parents are not home. Look for anything that can help rappel you out your window (i.e. long, thick ropes, tall ladders, anything that act as a rope or ladder). You should only use the rope if you know its strength, a safe limit for most ropes that is about 1 inch (2.5 cm) is 150 lbs. Tests your limits- better safe than sorry. 2. Bring the rope or rope-like objects back to your room and hide them. Test the ladder: put it under your window. It will work if you can crawl out your window and onto it safely. Put the ladder or ladder-like objects somewhere in your backyard where they are easily reached and unnoticeable. 3. Check to see if your parents and other family members are asleep (preferred), or in their bedroom with the doors closed. You may just be able to sneak out the front door. If they are not, and you just can't wait, and you have a sturdy tree right outside your window, climb the tree. If the previous things apply but you don't have a tree, follow the rest of these steps: Make sure you have at least one friend who is willing to come to your house and stand beneath your window in case you fall. Two-three friends is optimal, but make sure they are strong and you can rely on them to come quietly at the designated time. Have them bring a flashlight. 4. Have your friends go get the ladder from its hiding place and put it under your window. These friends should have a pretty good idea of your backyard and they should be very quiet. Put on sports shoes or go barefoot; socks will make you slip. Have your friends hold the legs of the ladder steady and crawl out the window, down the ladder. Once you're safely down, stash the ladder somewhere nearby. 5. Walk away from your house or have someone pick you up a block away, or push your car at least 100 feet (30.5 m) away and go have a great time. 6 . Come back at least one hour before you expect your parents to be up. It will be easiest to come in through the front door. If this is unwise (you have a loud dog downstairs/alarm/etc), then use the same method you used to get out. Put the ladder back under your window, climb up, have your friends place it back into the hiding place. Replace your screen, close your window. Have your friends hoist you up on their shoulders and climb back in your window. Untie the rope, replace the screen, and close your window.

Jan 2 Drop Off!

Drop Off

This is the day after all the celebrations that started well before Christmas in November and end on New Year's Day  We might be looking ahead to Twelfth Night (Jan 5) and Epiphany (Jan 6) in some cultures with a strong religious orientation.  Here in North America, it all goes quiet.

It turns out that Costa Rica is full of early January celebrations.  The Palmares Fiestas starts the first week of January and is "two weeks of concerts, bullfighting, folklore dancing and general debauchery".  The first week also has the Coffee Cup:  "a much-anticipated, week-long juniour tennis tournament.  And there's the Alajuelita Fiestas - "an oxcart parade and party to honour the Black Christ of Esquipulas, Alajuela." So there's no end of fun in Costa Rica, no cliff after January 1st.

Perhaps it is time to schedule for next year's after-Christmas holiday in Costa Rica.

Here are two images from St. Augustine, Florida oldest house museum complex.  

Angel Voices

I always look at cemeteries in search of angel statues.  They are remarkable and very interesting to photograph.  This one was in Strassburg, PA.

My nearby cemetery has a most unusual Japanese Maple tree that is twined around a headstone.  Everything about it looks like a human form, embracing the headstone.

AGO Henry Moore Exhibit - June 2014

I've visited the Henry Moore sculpture in front of the AGO many times.  Its texture is so complex.  I marvel at something new every time.  Most people take their pictures in front of this beautiful sculpture, but for me this abstract below gives a sense of how wonderful the experience of sculpture in the outdoor landscape is and how much there is for the photographer to interpret.

Here is the Henry Moore exhibit within the art gallery.  The monochrome setting again highlighted the wonderful forms and texture of his work.

For more of my work, take a look at http://opengardensniagara.blogspot.ca - showcasing everything gardens, nature, and flowers.