Tag Archives: google earth

Winter’s Kiss

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Winter has returned to kiss me goodbye. Not satisfied with the slow and gentle farewell when we parted yesterday, the season has turned to gently brush my cheek.

It was sunny and very chilly today, but the temperature did rise above freezing. As evening approached, so did the black volumes of cloud, swept in by the gusty wind.

I accomplished a lot today. I arranged to obtain a Camp Fire Permit to use at the Rideau Camp. I gave the pharmacy some lead time to check into my prescription renewal, which I will need soon. I called the car dealership where we bought our car to make sure the sales department has our new address; apparently changing the address with the service department does not change the address with the sales department. I sent the lawyer’s office information so that our real estate deal can continue smoothly, and at the same time asked a few questions about my concerns, which were completely and competently allayed. I updated the software on all of my websites. I went for my walk, and did my knee exercises. I received reading material attached to an email message. The reading is required for tomorrow’s teleconference, my volunteer work. I read the reading material. I learned how to draw lines and measure distances with Google Earth, and to remove lines as well. If I didn’t list these things, I would be sitting here thinking I had done “nothing”, when that is far from the case.

Terra announced that she is carrying a girl and boy, she is pregnant with twins.

My Sister-the-youngest-girl sent Attila and I an invitation to Easter Dinner, which is very exciting. We are waiting to see what this kiss of winter will bring, and what the roads will be like for travelling; there is freezing rain in the forecast. Fingers crossed that the weather will be good and the roads clear and dry.

It was a quiet day, one full of little bits of this and little bits of that. I love this kind of day.

Worldly Distractions

Weather
Special weather statement: …This late season winter storm is threatening to bring significant amounts of precipitation to Southern Ontario. Latest indications suggest significant snow is possible…
4°C
Date: 5:00 PM EDT Monday 21 March 2016
Condition: Not observed
Pressure: 101.1 kPa
Tendency: rising
Temperature: 4.4°C
Dewpoint: -11.2°C
Humidity: 31%
Wind: NW 18 km/h

Quote

“One’s dignity may be assaulted, vandalized and cruelly mocked, but cannot be taken away unless it is surrendered.”
Michael J. Fox
1961 –

Garden Gnomes in Scotland

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Some questions burn a hole in your day, they just have to be answered. Do they have garden gnomes in Scotland? Inquiring minds need to know. I went looking for garden gnomes in Scotland, and I finally found them!

I toured the streets of Glasgow, and the word that came to mind was “austere”. The buildings were mostly two story homes, with patches of grass and a paved drive each. I found no flower gardens, no flower boxes, no flowers. Nor did I see any place to buy food, or shop. Obviously Glasgow is a city that would demand a broadening of my world view.

Then I headed over to Edinburgh. Not quite so austere, much more greenery; shrubs and short trees mostly. The neighbourhoods I found felt warm and seemed charming. Again, no flower gardens or boxes, and no obvious places to purchase food, or shop.

Then I headed over to Inverness, and I found flower gardens, and flower boxes aplenty. Again, mostly two storey homes, and no obvious places to buy food, or shop.

At last I reached Port Ellen on the Isle of Islay; and there I found my garden gnomes. They were nestled into a small, well kept yard, by a two storey house. I even found a small shop, a food co-operative, down by the waterfront. This is a village I can relate to!

Little Garden Gnomes, happy at last.
ScottishGardenGnomes

I know there are glaring omissions on Google Earth, things we are not meant to see. There is quite a lot included though. I like to sit of an evening and wander about, projecting my fantasies of balanced communities onto the places I visit. And maybe, just maybe, somewhere I have visited is an actual healthy, balanced community, a place that I would love to call home. If I can imagine it, it could happen.

And the weather! There is quite a bit of snow to the south of us in the USA, but here it is sunny, and relatively mild. Of course, the snow we received since December is still out there in a seemingly endless expanse of white. Still, when the sun shines one can believe in spring.

Worldly Distractions

Weather

-6°C
Date: 10:00 AM EST Friday 14 February 2014
Condition: Mostly Cloudy
Pressure: 99.8 kPa
Visibility: 16 km
Temperature: -6.2°C
Dewpoint: -12.9°C
Humidity: 59%
Wind: WNW 9 km/h
Wind Chill: -10

Quote

“We are able to laugh when we achieve detachment, if only for a moment.”
May Sarton
1912-1995