Shades of Pink And Ivory

This is one of my favorite flowers. I've forgotten the name, but it reminds me of grandmothers and lace.

It's been fun discovering the varieties of greenery in our new yard. Ferns, hosta, rosebushes, rhododendrons, azaleas, day lilies, water plants, and more.

And there need to be herbs around, so I've already planted lavender and rosemary. Basil is next. Because pesto = food of the gods.

Making Connections

I'm trying to find other people who write poetry in the Vancouver area, so last Thursday, I attended a Poet's Workshop at Fort Vancouver public library. About 9 people showed up and the leader gave us 2 different prompts:

1. Write a six word poem.

2. Fill in the blanks in a poem where most of the words have been removed. This sounds simplistic, but it's actually a good method to add some surprise to the writing. I just forgot to ask which poem the leader cut up--it'd be interesting to compare.

Afterwards, many of us went out for a drink or dinner at a nearby restaurant. I enjoyed connecting with the varied bunch of folks. Quite an age and personality range, from a boisterous high school teacher to a retired pirate type guy who used to cruise around and look for gold in the Caribbean.

While I'm on the topic of poetry, did you know that President Obama is hosting a poetry party at the White House? Good for him!

Also, the Poetry Daily site posts lots of excellent poems.

What's Going On In Vancouver

Just a brief update:

* It's barely over a month since we moved into our north Vancouver neighborhood. The house now has a new roof and I'm still finding roofing nails in odd places like the shrubbery and slats between deck boards. No bare feet outdoors.

* A duo of frogs has taken up residence by the fish pond in our backyard. At first, their "ribbett riddee" sounded quite charming. Now we're getting a bit tired of the constant barrage from their froggy throats. But the funny part -- Murphy thinks a HUGE creature must be making all that HUGE noise -- so when the frogs start up their nightly chorus, he rushes outside to see if he can ambush monsters. If he only knew; these frogs are hardly an inch long!

* I saw my nephew Austin play in a rugby game yesterday. Rugby rules are still unclear to me. But how can the bottom person in the pile (I think it's called a scrum) survive all that squishing?

* People actually say "hi" to strangers here on the street. Almost fainted the first time that happened, after living in Germany for four years.

* There is no good English word to substitute for stau (traffic jam).

* I found some potential walking partners and take my first walk with them tomorrow morning. Yes! After several months of hotel stays and restaurant food, exercise is a priority. Unpacking boxes might fit into the category of aerobic exercise, but I need a little more intensity. Plus it's fun to talk and walk.

* That's all I can think of for the moment.

Further Croatia & Slovenia Photos