A toast or two

Best Bar Moments in Venice

I was watching a show last night, a food competition, and one of the judges said the dessert took him back to Harry’s Bar in Venice, where the Bellini was invented. It was one of those few times where I got transported too. Remembering that I had blogged about it, I pulled up the post. 

Ah, yes... what I hadn’t remembered was that the doodle I did, while sitting at the bar, is still in my possession. As is often the case, when someone asks about my doodles, I had offered it to the bartender. I had forgotten that he would only make a photocopy of it to keep, that he refused to accept the original. 

While the memory of my overall experience is strong, I realize I might enjoy seeing this on my wall. I suppose I now have a mission to find the original, to frame it. Once I do so, it will evoke good memories. 

While I do have small objects gathered on my epic 2009/2010 trip (a cushion cover, a small leather pouch, a little knife, etc), I never did frame the things I intended to. A result, perhaps of not having my very own walls, until a year ago. Now I feel home. Now I am inspired to do so. 

Ho ho ho art

This year's seasonal doodle, hand drawn by me. Have a good one!
Cheers,
Roberta

A new year's post

Thank you to everyone who had to put up with me through one of my toughest years. As an eternal optimist, it has been surprising and disorienting to find myself as an often emotional blithering idiot. Understandable, perhaps, but deeply humbling.

Looking forward to a new year.

BTW, I am bringing my doodle blog back to live, to share some of the things I've been creating. Check it out:

• Beepdoodles

Home in Sidney

This is the waterfront just a couple of blocks from where I am living in Sidney.

A funny thing happened tonight, as I was coming home from a short trip to Vancouver. As I got off the ferry on the island end, I felt like I was home. Walking across the parking lot to my car at Swartz Bay, I felt like I was home. I am home here more than I am at home in Vancouver. Intersting. I still miss Vancouver, and would love to live there again, but I no longer feel like I am visiting here. I live here. This is home. I am building a life for myself here. I am home.

Interesting that this is one of the"recent doodles" I recently posted over on my beepdoodles blog...

Trip Reflections: Departure (a year ago today)

I journalled a bit this morning about the fact that this is the 1 year anniversary of when I left for Europe for a trip that ended up being 7 months long. I was jobless and homeless (by choice) and carefree as one can be at 51.... That journal entry is below. And above is the doodle I did today of me as I left Vancouver (click to enlarge it if you want to read the silliness)....

________________

When I set out a year ago today, I really had no idea the future would take me, let alone this year. Would I stay a few months or a year? Would I come back at all? At the outset, the longer definitely seemed like the likeliest. I didn't know what to expect, where I was going (so to speak), nor who I would be when I got there. I really had no idea how I would change. Maybe I still don't really know, but at least I have some inklings.

It struck me today, when driving, that this time last year I was doing the final repack of my bag (backpack! ha! how naive I was ;-) and getting on my way to the airport. I was clueless but sure. I was exhausted but excited. I was shedding an old skin and walking boldly into the unknown. I, who had lived in fear for so much of my life - so risk adverse and with such a strong need to be in control - was really proving to myself how far my reinvention had gone, had come - I was coming into my own skin, finally and truly. Voila! Off into the unknown I go!

My first adventures included having to check the backpack I'd naively envisioned myself carrying onto the plaine (and needing to do a quick repack of essentials into a carry on)... that after already wondering how I'd be able to lug my pack through Europe (portents of things to come)... a strap breaking on my pack 5 minutes after I picked it up from the luggage carousel in Barcelona... realizing I'd forgotten to write down my hotel's address, trying (and succeeding) to get online in the airport to look it up... deciding to splurge on a taxi and being surprised to hear English music being played by a driver who largely spoke only Spanish... to arriving at my hotel to find that they didn't have my4-night reservation. Oh my.

The system my awesome travel agent had used had reserved a room in a hotel of the same name somewhere else in Spain, God knows where. But, alas, they had 1 room available for 1 night. 150E, I think. Let the adventures begin!

I was really not daunted, mostly just amused. How well my past travel adventures (mostly my New York ones) had prepared me to know I could handle it. It would all work out. I'd be fine.

I paid for the room, took the key, walked up the stairs - or, should I say, lugged, or schlepped, my bag up the stairs, found my room and opened the door.

LAST YEAR: here is my first post from Barcelona.

Random Reflections and Pics from Victoria

Just some random pics and reflections from Victoria....

This is a windowsill doodle, next to a retro clock that works when winds, but not for long. Regardless, the doodle keeps on smiling...
I met this dog yesterday when I went to the home of one of the women in my travel writer's group. His name is Milton and he is apparently the largest dog in the capital district. He is a Mastiff and weighs 210 pounds. His head is truly the size of a cow's head... and his paws are like a bear's. He seemed very gently, but I wouldn't want to be a tiny person out on the street if he got off his leash, as a simple bump just might tip you over.

More sneakers over the telephone wires. These ones in Vic West on Henry:

Neat old building on Bay Street.

A taxi from Bangladesh, if I remember correctly. It was outside the Ten Thousand Villages store in Saanich somewhere. Apparently these taxis carry 7 or 8 people!

I see cool stuff every day here. Not remembering to take pics as often as I was before, but still grabbing a few, and must remember to post them from time to time ;-)

BTW, also posted a doodle I called Harlequin Hands over on my doodle blog.

Windy and His Bear

As I was sitting having my morning coffee today, this dude pulls up in his car. Not any dude, and not any ordinary car....
The bear wasn't in the back seat initially, but he ran out to sit him up part way through his coffee. Windy (the guy) is from Canmore, Alberta and had just driven out. Took him three days, due to the snow, and he can't wait to wash his car. I overheard him say to someone what kind of car it was , but, sorry, I forget. It's a 1950 'something', starts with an "M".... maybe Meteor? The bear doesn't have a name, he's just referred to as "the A&W Root Bear's cousin".

As I was sitting there, I did a little doodle. I learned his name after I'd doodled the pic and offered it to him. If the bear had a name, I would have added it too....

He obviously gets great delight from the people who stop and look and take pictures, wherever he goes. This was about 8am and dozens stopped as he was having his coffee. It was the great excitement on the main drag of Sidney this morning.

He was in town for a car show this weekend. That 1-story high antenna on the back of the car normally holds a real fox tail, but he takes it down when he is on the highway. heh. This is one of four old cars he has (one is from the 40's). Says one of his grandsons once had the revelation that "you're not an normal grandpa are you?".... and says he's still considered cool, rather than an embarrassment by the grandkids. heh.

So... that pic above is of Serious Coffee, one of the many spots to grab a java around here, but I'm seriously enamoured with it, great place to hang out, read papers, doodle and people watch.

Life in Sidney, so far, is good.....

Bee Green

A little doodle on the eve of Earth Day...

I've been pondering a bit lately about how I've become more green. It's just stuff that comes to me from time to time.


Like the paper towels here. I'm in a furnished apartment and I've been here 7 weeks. When I arrived there was a roll of paper towels about 2/3 full. I am on the same roll, and there's still a few left. In my old life, I'd have probably gone through several rolls by now. And, here I am, less than a roll in 2 months. When did that change? I think, perhaps, that shift began in Barcelona when I was staying with Mabel. I'm pretty green, but Mabel is G.R.E.E.N.! And I learned alot just living with her. I was there about 6 weeks in total between two visits. And it was there that I got out of the habit of using paper towels, and didn't really pick it up to the same degree since.


Like the plastic bags here. Despite being right in the thick of it in the city, I'm enjoying buying my everday staples from a little corner store here, run by a nice couple. That in itself, I think, is a carry-over from Europe, I really appreciate small shops run by people you can get to know. Anyways, despite always having my fav purple net shopping bag with me when I was out and about in Europe, and, as a result, rarely used a plastic bag, I haven't been as vigilent since I've been back in Canada. I just haven't been carrying it. Not sure why. But it's come to be that I often stop at their store on my way home without my handy dandy shopping bag with me. So, I get plastic. What made me think about how green I am becoming is that this morning I collected up all those bags and put them aside to take back to the store. I was out later, with my purple shopping bag, stocking up... and I asked if they would like them back. By all means! So, I'll drop them off tomorrow. That is more natural to me than throwing them out. And I think I need to find another little reusable shopping bag that rolls up tinier to fit into my purse, so I always have it with me.

There's more, but those are the things that jump to mind.

I do feel better that I use up less of this planet now than I used to.

But I want to "bee" more green... so hope to get new ideas and motivation on Earth Day tomorrow.

My Olympics - Random pics & more doodles

Here are some random pics from my Olympics... This is Batman taking time out from his street art performance to interact with some kids on the public art. It made their day:
Emailing friends from the big screen down at Robson Square:

Musicians and ordinary folk dancing down at Robson Square....

Dudes dancing alone, you just don't see that every day...

Proud Canadians showing their love for our country at the ice skating rink down at Robson Square:

These guys weren't really street performers, I think they were marketing a play or something, but were fun to see nonetheless.... and I love what that one guy has done with his tail! ha!

On Robson at Seymour there is a big board where people can write messages to the athletes, it's fun to get up close to:

American cheeseheads at women's hockey at UBC. I don't mean to be mean, they were Americans and they were wearing cheese on their heads. Quite happily, I might say ;-)

I've been doodling all along, and finally got some more posted - enjoy!:

Olympic Doodle - Day 9

Olympic Doodle - Day 10

Olympic Doodle - Day 11

Olympic Doodle - Day 12

Olympic Doodle - Day 13

Olympic Doodle - Day 14

Olympic Doodle - Day 15

My Olympics - Victory Ceremony: Stereophonics

Last night my friend Kelly and I went to one of the Victory Ceremonies at BC Place, where we saw the Stereophonics. Neither of us knew them (we saw them because it was the only date with tickets still available) but totally enjoyed the music and the show:
This was also Yukon night at the venue, so we got half an hour of video and performances from the Yukon - with lots of cheers from the Yukon-heavy crowd next to us. We were surprised that - during a First Nations performance - to see a dog sled come out. It was beautiful and very special. Part of me was busy hoping that the dogs were happy (and not terrified), but they were wagging their tails;-)

Some hip hop dancers from the Yukon. They were shown first flipping off mountain ledges in the outdoors up in the Yukon, then they exploded onto the stage. Pretty darn good!

Was a bit disappointed that the night we attended the Victory Ceremony the were no local medals being given out, but we got to see the Whistler awards - incluing Jon Montgomery's gold medal. It was a proud moment, and I got to sing Oh Canada (and was suitably drowned out by the crowd, much to Kelly's relief... I gather my singing isn't so hot.... lol). Regardless, it was good to see the inside of BC Place all decked out for the Olympics - and it was cool to get a good event for only $22 in the nosebleed section.

I have been doodling, here's the next batch:

Olympic Doodle - Day 6

Olympic Doodle - Day 7

Olympic Doodle - Day 8

My Olympics - keeping up!?!?!?

My view from the "cheap seats" at a women's hockey game last night at Thunderbird Stadium at UBC. I was cheering for Finland, who won 2-1 over China.
It was quite a cool experience which I'll repeat again tonight (Slovakia vs. Switzerland) and tomorrow afternoon (USA vs. Finland). I managed to get "obstructed view" tickets for $41 each, which is defined as 10%-50% obstructed... I saw just fine!

I am amused at my vision of blogging daily about the Olympics, as it's time consuming and I've been out most nights doing something. Here it is Day 6 and my last post was Day 2. Heh. At this point, I am still planning to fill in the gaps, though at some point I might just admit defeat and do a catch up summary. LOL. Regardless, I've got some great pics I want to share... but, for now, it's time for me to get to my event! ;-)

In the meantime, I have posted my daily doodles:
Olympic Doodle - Day 3
Olympic Doodle - Day 4
Olympic Doodle - Day 5

My Olympics - Day 1: Bittersweet

Where was I yesterday (February 12th) 1 hour, 34 minutes and 29 seconds before the games started? At the countdown clock, of course. It was cool, as I remember being here when there was 1 year left- click here to see those pics.

Today was bittersweet, with the tragic death of Georgian athlete Nodar Kumaritashvili in a training run at the luge track in Whistler (click here for the story; note there is a video but I have not watched it, nor do I intend to, right now that feels like sensationalism, rather than respect, though I suppose I might feel differently later). Like most, I felt absolutely sickened by the news and so very, very sad. It was hard to get my spirits back up for the games, but that is nothing compared to what his fellow athletes must be going through. I had so much respect for the team as they marched into the opening ceremonies. They left afterwards, but they have chosen to stay and compete. Wow. So, what was to be a happy day wasn't so much. Really felt for John Furlong last night. But the games went on, as they should (sigh).



I must say, there was lots there to lift one's spirits watching the Opening Ceremonies. A big one for me was the cutaways to our Canadian troops in Afghanistan. At one point they showed a pic of the sky above the base where the pilots had shaped rings in the sky. Cool. It's so nice that the troops have something to look forward to that connects them to home.

OK, I cheated, and took a few pics of my friend's TV screen. CTV, I know you own these images. But as they are so poorly taken, I trust you will forgive me, as there is no way anyone is going to use them, and just maybe someone overseas will look up CTV online to see your coverage. Peace, ok?

Because, in the end, I couldn't resist this pic of Canada's awesome Clara Hughes carrying our flag. Clara the only Canadian and fourth ever athlete in history to win medals in both Winter and Summer Games (speedskating and cycling). You can visit her website and her blog here.

A couple of the Canadian athletes were carrying a flag of signatures. Makes me wonder what the story is....

OK, now some other moments from my day yesterday... I was watching the torch relay streamed live on my laptop (aka what a girl with no cable does!), and was delighted to see Sam Sullivan carrying the torch. Sam was one of three Vancouver mayors to play a role in our city's preparation for the games (the others were Larry Campbell, who was in office during the bid, and Gregor Robertson, our current mayor who saw the city through the final bumps to get us here). Regardless of what one thinks of Sam and his time as our Mayor, Sam did an awesome job as ambassador of the Vancouver Olympics. Click here to see a video of him accepting the flag in Torino, a moment that apparently stunned people in some parts of the world that could not imagine a quadraplegic holding such a prominent political office... and gave a new face to the Paralympic games. Anyways, I had been saddened to learn that he had no role in the games themselves, and had not even been given tickets. Geez. So, I was delighted to see him carrying the torch, how special for him! (Not in this pic, I also noticed that there was a disabled journalist travelling along with him, which I thought was a neat opportunity, as otherwise the relay would have been too fast for this kind of participation).

As I stopped to use the ATM at the Royal Bank on the corner of Georgia and Burrard Streets I noticed that they had a big screen set up and a bunch of easy chairs... Nifty. Tho now the secret is out...

A neat way to get around downtown these days...

Oops, a definite miss! Even I could have figured out we needed more garbage cans downtown. Doh. On a sidenote, interesting to see this crew of motorcycle cops at the ready - not a usual sight in Vancouver!

Encountered this guy was I was walking along Robson Street yesterday, all decked out with his cardboard/paper torch, gas mask and breathing tubes. He was all alone, but because he looked so hilarious, everyone looked and so he actually probably got his message out (oh, wait, what would that message have been?)... hmmmm...

This street band walking down Granville Street was featured on the news last night, apparently they were protesting all the protesters. Heh.

Oh, one more pic from the opening ceremony.... loved these fans!!!

A few pics from after the opening ceremonies now... This is the CTV news booth outside their studios on Robson Street. I don't think Pam is going to be all that happy, as the back of it is open and the wind was blowing her hair so that it was standing up on end during the broadcast.... I'm picturing a change by tonight. I doubt they'll cover the opening, so I'm guessing an Olympic toque, a hairnet or a pound of don't-touch-me-iron-hairspray.

The crowds on Robson behind the Art Gallery (between Hornby and Howe Streets) were insane. This was around 11, at least an hour and a half after the end of the opening ceremonies. Took about 10 minutes to walk a block, but the energy was very positive, so it was fun. I think there may have been a celebrity in this cluster, based on all the cameras clicking, people climbing fences and ledges to see, and the singing of the "Ole" hockey song (a Sidney spotting perhaps? naw, the crowd was too small, but something was going on!).

Howe Street, where I went to catch my bus. Hmmm.... There were busses sitting on the other side of those people, but the street was completely shut down. These friendly Sherrffs - who suggested I try Richards Street where the ones that didn't get stuci were apparently rerouted to - said they didn't know how long the street woud be shut. I gather it wasn't expected, but the crowd was just too big. But this is the very spot where the fireworks go off every night, so it's no surprise. Oh, on that note, about 15 minutes earlier, as I was approaching the area, those fireworks were just ending - with some huge round balls of fire that blasted up into the sky, like something I'd never seen before. Will have to go back to see the full show

I looked back again, and caught this great pic of Hotel Vancouver lightings up the sky behind the Robson Square area.

And this was the energy on Granville Street south of Smithe as I walked by. Nice vibe.

And I did another Olympic doodle: Olympic Doodle - Day 1, now posted.

My Olympics - Day 0

Tomorrow the Olympics start here in Vancouver, so I'm calling this day zero. Today I went out to see the Torch Relay in person (you can watch the last day on Friday live online here), and afterwards got my pic taken with one of the torch bearers after the relay went by Vancouver City Hall. Yes, I'm touching the torch!! Very cool;-)
The torch!!! SO cool to see it right there in front of me. Sweet!!!

Afterwards, in addition to getting my pic with the torch, I also had a chance to meet three of Canada's Olympians. Imagine my luck at finding Emanuel Sandhu smiling up at me! I asked him how it felt to not be skating (he was a men's single skater in the 2006 games), and he said "weird".

I love how they have engaged past Olympians in the events!!! This is Ruky Abdulai, a Canadian long jumper, who competed in Beijing and hopes to go for gold in London in 2012. So far, so good!

OK, I also got their autographs, but I figure I could be arm twisted to give those to some kid with Olympic aspirations. Rose Marie Pepe is a swimmer - breaststroke - who competed for Canada in 1972! I probably watched her when I was 13! (I was a fish).

This was the other torch bearer who was posing for pics at City Hall. I believe he said the woman he was hugging had organized the torch relay, but he hugged a lot of people, and I'm not sure she organized the whole thing... but interesting nonetheless....

This was the scene at the back of City Hall where all the action was. The guy in stone is George Vancouver, for whom our great city was named.

This is the HUGE Olympic flag hanging at City Hall and visible from Cambie Street between 11th and 12th.

Loved the way people decked themselves out in Canadian flags and other stuff!!!

Just the cutest kid ever, excited beyond words at getting near the torch.

If you get stuck in traffic as the Olympic torch relay goes by, what better thing to do than stand on the roof of your car and wave your Canadian flags?!?!!? Love this pic. It's worth clicking on to see the enlarged version. Oh, that fog, hoping that above it might be cold enough for a little snow on Cypress...

As the torch was about to clear the corner at 12th and Cambie, this was my view. And I'm tall!! But after a few calls of "umbrellas down!" from the peanut gallery (with "please" and "just for a minute"), the view cleared and everyone could see.

This seeing eye dog is proudly wearing his flag...

Being near Vancouver General Hospital, I wasn't surprised to see nursing staff running down the street in their scrubs to take in the action. I only say nurses, as I imagine that the doctors might not be able to get away, but who knows...

Now this hat is just weeeeird. But at least it's red, right?

So, it was a fun way to start off my Olympic experience. Tomorrow: the opening ceremony! I am heading to a friend's place to watch it on tv with wine and pizza. A bit of a luxury, as my new flat does not have cable, hmmmm.... let's just say I'm hoping for lots of web streaming coverage, and I can see myself out at those big screens a lot.... Oh... and I did an Olympic doodle today, it's over on my Beepdoodles blog, here.