Emotions

Hey!  Start jumping!

It's Leap Day! - Only once every four years. I keep forgetting there's a February 29th to contend with this year. What to do with an extra day!

In honour of this special day, (ha ha), my daughter Kate's boyfriend, Damian Sommer, (independent video game developer), jumped over lilypads at the chance to come up with one in tribute to Kate! In his own words, "It features ukelele playing and giant evil bats!" He stressed to me that it was created in only two hours. If you play this game, you'll hear Kate's songs, singing voice, ukelele strumming AND be able to kill bats, all at the same time. Awesome!
Check it out. (might take a minute or so to load).

Damian made a game for Kate!

I'm amazed by Damian's creativity. He has lots of other games on the go too. As for my OWN creativity, good grief. I love to write, but why is it I can't EVER take good auto-pics, (let alone create online games!) Tried to take some shots today. All horrible.

Either WAY too light,

MUCH too dark,

way too heavy on the devil red-eye,

insanely blurry & over-exposed, - ai carumba! I mean, come ON!  Just ONE decent shot please!!!!!!!!!

I friggin' give up. Books, instructions, tripods, photography, just NOT my forte!

I keep listening to Howard Stern on SIRIUS, talking about his current photography lessons, (when he's not swamped with America's Got Talent),

his Nikon, all his success with celebrity shots,

calendars featuring his gorgeous wife, Beth, you name it. Guess all it takes is money to finance major-league lessons. Not altogether true though. Howard can just do ANYTHING he puts his mind to.

This one was about the best I could do. Oh well. Whatever.

After all these failed attempts, headed off to visit Auntie Ray at Christie Gardens. Has been far too long since she's held court with me. This is the parking lot, on the way up to see her.

Sam loaned me his iPad, (after giving me a crash course lesson on how to use it - no easy feat, as I am severely iPad-challenged), so I could show Auntie Ray the "squirrel/porcupine" videos shot by my sister, Carrie. I had a sh**load of notes jotted down to try & follow to make this happen.

Miraculously, managed to put the contraption in front of Auntie Ray and actually SCREEN Prickles the Porcupine in action! I knew in my heart, she HAD to see the tribute to Uncle Ev, so lovingly and beautifully put together by Carrie. (between the two of us, I think we were Uncle Ev's BIGGEST fans).

 
 I kneeled beside Ray to watch the video "Imagine the Possibilities", (knowing she would be in tears by the end), when Carrie sings the number she composed and performed, in honour of Uncle Ev, and Stella, the squirrel. Yep, Auntie Ray cried. And so did I. Then I hugged her. Haven't even told CARRIE yet that I gave Auntie Ray a private screening! She raved on & on about Carrie's talent, as a singer, composer, puppeteer, voice artist, etc. And I second ALL of that in EVERY way. After the show, I took her down to the dining room, made sure she got seated for dinner, and cried when I left.

Ray Staples is a very special person. I love her.

Remembering Uncle Ev

December 14/11.

A lot on my mind today. Thinking about Uncle Ev.

It's the one year anniversary of his death. Have had him on the brain for many days, leading up to this day. Loved him with all my heart and miss him so. Yesterday, I was in the vicinity of St. Michael's Hospital, where he passed away.

Decided to stop in and re-visit the place.

Immediately upon walking through the door, I remembered seeing these decorations last year during the numerous times I came by to see Uncle Ev in the Intensive Care Unit.

Despite the sadness inside the hospital, they try to make things cheery at the holiday season.

The lovely lobby giftshop is just as pretty as it was a year ago. I went inside and bought a few sparkly Christmas items to lift my spirits,

and looked at the bouquets of flowers. Seeing the colourful arrangements brought back a bizarre memory for me.

I recall driving Auntie Ray down to the hospital last December 4th, so she could see her husband on their 62nd wedding anniversary. I steered her wheelchair behind the ICU curtain and then backed off so they could have a private chat, (which turned out to be their last visit). On the drive home, Auntie Ray told me she had noticed some tiny trees in the giftshop and instructed me to go and buy a bunch of them, one for every member of the family, as a Christmas gift from her to all of us.

When I returned to the giftshop the next day to look for the trees, I realized what she'd seen was actually the BACKS of the floral arrangements through the window. And yes, they kinda looked like tiny trees! (needless to say, she cancelled her order, upon hearing they were actually flowers!)
But hey, it's the THOUGHT that counts, right?

The other day, I went to see Auntie Ray at her condo so we could talk about our memories of Ev. We laughed. We cried. We shared so many stories.

As a lifelong interior designer/decorator, Auntie Ray told me she appreciates that the folks at Christie Gardens take the time and trouble to make the surroundings attractive for the holidays.

She loves the reindeer,

loves the sparkly trees,

and says she loves ME too! (Right back AT you Auntie Ray)! And you KNOW I'm thinking of you today.

And of Uncle Ev too.

Rebels!

November 13/11.

Auntie Ray had a cool 92nd birthday!

Inimitable interior designer, Ray Staples surrounded by staff members at the Christie Gardens diningroom, celebrating with prezzies, cards and cake!

Screens around the seniors condo advertised her birthday, (which she shares with another resident, Elizabeth Herfenist). She's holding a packaged, shiny pashmina scarf we gave her. - Should look great at Christmas time!

Auntie Ray is SO very special to my sister, Carrie & me. Our "surrogate Mum" and link to all things past, (our own, hers, our late Mother's, our grandparents', you name it). She is SO intelligent with more insight and ideas into the world than anyone you will ever meet. A true original. We were on the verge of tears many times during the course of our three-and-a-half hour conversation with her. (as Carrie says, "You just CAN'T do an hour with Ray"!!! - Virtually impossible).

We took her outside, with her walker, so she could introduce us to her favourite plant, - (the one she swears, "claps its hands" when she walks by)! - As an artist, she tends to see things others don't!

Also went up to Auntie Ray's condo, but things were a tad discombobulated, (to say the least), due to a freakin' major overhaul happening on her floor. Unexpected water damage resulted in EVERYTHING having to be temporarily moved from its proper place to some other spot. DOH!!

Mega-stuff in ALL the wrong places!!

(this, after her dutiful son, Kevan, and devoted daughter-in-law, Marilyn - a TV set designer no less (!) spent MONTHS, putting every single teeny item exactly where it should be. (Looking at it NOW, to quote my TV fave, Ricky Ricardo, "WHA' HOPPENED")??? Ai yi yi!

Knick-knacks and chotskies galore!

(I PITY the poor fools who have to put these hundreds of items back in SOME kind of order)!!

Yikes-o-rama!

At one point, Auntie Ray called the front desk, to ask someone to please come up and move the heavy harp,

blocking her bedroom doorway, back to the livingroom,

since she couldn't get around it!! - DONE!!

Uncle Ev's beloved harp back in place!

Later, Auntie Ray insisted, since she missed MY birthday, (in October), she HAD to give me a Barbie doll, with a knitted dress, (made by one of the ladies at Christie Gardens)! She clearly recalls the obsessive love that Carrie & I had for "The Barbs" when we were kids!!

Those were the days!

While at her condo, we looked at the many fabulous Garth Haines original paintings on the walls.

Gorgeous, generous gifts

given to them, out of love, over many years of intense friendship.

My seestah, Carrie & I, outside Christie Gardens after our visit with Auntie Ray.

As I was leaving Auntie Ray's condo, couldn't stop myself from taking a pic in the pretty park just down the street! This is mid-November?? Wow!

Meanwhile, after finally getting home, went to put the garbage out, and as I was just about to toss a huge bag into the bin, spotted a raccoon in the VERY bottom, resting! Ai Carumba! - Scared the HELL out of me!!

Later, realized, this raccoon will NEVER escape without any garbage bags to climb up & over, so had to turn the bin on its side, open it up and hope for the best!! - (as of 10 p.m., "raccoonie" STILL IN THERE)!!

In the midst of all the raccoon nonsense, Sam managed to hang the magnificent mirror (which weighs a TON!), given to (our late) Mum by Auntie Ray, (and now, inherited by US), above the mantle. Not an easy chore.

My fantabulous son, Max, posed in front of the mirror, wearing his new
H & M black jacket,

and looking cooler than Marlon Brando in jet black leather in The Wild One - (1953),

or even James Dean in Rebel Without A Cause - (1955), in the sizzling red rebel leather windbreaker!

Speaking of which, is there a cooler, (or HOTTER?) shot,

than Dean, cooling his face, using a milk bottle? Unforgettable!

Cheers Jimmy!