June Covid19 update from Yukon Street

So many things have had to be cancelled this past month. First was our July trip to Central Europe planned around four different home exchanges. We kept waiting and hoping that things would open up but when KLM cancelled our June 30th flight we saw the writing on the wall. It looks like we will end up with a voucher that we can use to book something next year. Fingers crossed that some travel will happen by then.

The other cancellation was our planned trip on the Esperanza up the outside coast of Vancouver Island.  This was something that we also hoped might happen but since the itinerary brings us to some remote First Nations villages it couldn't happen. These small communities are taking great caution to prevent transmission of the virus and they remain closed to any visitors. We're on the waiting list to do this trip next summer. Hopefully the company will still be in business.



The third thing is that my solo art show at the Gage, scheduled for the last week in May and the first two weeks in June, was postponed. I've got a dozen paintings ready for it and if all goes well the show will open the last week of September.  But for now I've dismantled the painting alcove in our living room. and restored it to just a desk in front of the bay window.  I've been using it to do some work in a sketchbook on a daily basis. This is something I've thought of doing before but never followed through. I've done a minimum of two pages every day since May 17th.


Here are a couple of pages. They're just for fun and exploring with no pressure to produce anything.

The good news this weekend is that Vancouver Island was yesterday declared Covid-free. The last patient has been discharged from the hospital and there have been no new cases for a couple of weeks. We're all cautiously rejoicing but everyone is aware that relaxation of these rules brings the possibility of another surge.

Meanwhile we're working in the garden, transplanting and moving things around a bit and I've planted some vegetables in pots on the sunny side that are doing well. Gradually we're beginning to invite friends over and it's so wonderful to be able to visit in person after all these weeks alone.  We are looking forward to some summery weather so we can enjoy June, July, and August--the best months here on Canada's west coast.




We hope that you are well and in good spirits wherever you happen to be at this moment.

Al fresco visits

So here we are in May and our province is still doing social distancing but we've had some success in flattening the curve of Covid-19. This coming weekend some things will return to semi-normal. British Columbia has laid out a series of steps to start slowly reopening some services here.

The goal is to keep cases low while gradually opening up a few businesses and activities. As of this weekend we will be able to "double our bubble"--in other words we can include a couple more family members or close friends in our lives. What a difference this will make.

Harry's son Ben and his fiancee and my sister will welcome being included in our bubble. We miss them so much.

The weather last weekend was stellar and I was able to meet with some friends at Beacon Hill Park in the warmth of a sunny Sunday afternoon.  We took our lawn chairs and sat six feet apart and chatted for the first time since early March. What a treat. And how it underscored the realization that our social connections are what makes life worth living.



Over the next few weeks we're hoping that things will open up a bit more. We have a lovely back yard with lots of fresh air and a beautiful fountain--and room for social distancing. We just picked up a case of wine and would welcome you to come for a socially distanced visit. It's been a long time.




Some colour for you.

Surviving social distancing

I think it's week 6 ... or maybe week 7 of our new reality with social distancing and essential services. Sometimes it feels like it's week 23.  But we're finding out that there's lots to do at home. And that's a good thing.  It's also a good thing that this is happening in April and not November. I think we'd all be having a more difficult time if we were heading into the cold and the rain.

That said, because it's a world-wide thing (still finding it a bit hard to believe) there are many countries in the southern hemisphere that are experiencing this in autumn. My hat is off to them.


We are just so grateful to have our house projects and our garden to relate to.




And the neighbourhood is putting on its very best. This is a dear house a few blocks away where a fellow spends all his time making the boulevard garden into sheer delight. This was taken a few weeks ago; now the tulips are taking over. In the summer there are lilies. Seems this guy rents the back suite and puts all his extra funds into bulbs to beautify the sidewalk.

As for me, I'm still painting in my "studio" in the bay window of our living room.

I've been taking a really excellent online course to help me find my "authentic voice" and it's been keeping me pretty busy.  The painting on the easel is one of the projects she calls the "never ending painting" because every week we have to make substantial changes. I kind of laughed because it feels like most of my paintings are never-ending because I'm always making big shifts and changes. This one has been through a few incarnations over the past five weeks. I'm kind of slowing down with changes because I'm getting attached to this version.  The idea though, is to be able to let go of attachments and see what comes next. 

These are a couple of earlier versions. You can see that it's gone through some big changes.

The co-op gallery I'm involved with has been closed since early March but we've taken turns putting paintings into the window. It was my turn to do the display a couple of weeks ago. I had a lot to choose from because I was scheduled for a solo show at the end of May so I've been doing a lot of painting.

That show is postponed now until maybe September. one will be postponed now, maybe until September. It all depends on when things might be eased up. It's kind of hard to see the paintings with the reflections in the window so here are a couple of photos of two of the larger paintings.

This one I'm calling "Yellow Square" is 24x36 inches and it's now hanging above my desk. 

And this one "Together and Apart" is 24x24". They'll both be in my solo show, whenever it happens.

Although both Harry and I have been busy, the days have a very different feeling to them, mainly because we cannot see our friends. Social networks are part of the fabric of our lives and it is very strange that this is not available now except through the internet and telephone. Like everyone we've been using the telephone more and have even had some Zoom meet-ups. But we're longing for a time when we can actually get together.

Sending you greetings and our very best wishes for health and sanity at this time when we're all called on to gather our strongest inner resources.

I'm back

It's hard to believe that my last post here was January 18th. And now we're at April 22nd. That's more than three months without blogging. And what incredible changes the world has gone through in that time. Here we are together around the world going through a pandemic and self-isolating ourselves at home. If you had told me beforehand that this would result from a flu virus that emerged in China I would not have believed it possible. But here we are.

Here in Canada it began on a Friday Morning in early March when our Prime Minister held a press conference in front of his home to tell us that his wife was ill with the Corona virus and that our Parliament was closed and everyone should just stay at home. Since then we've seen different countries around the world start to take action in their individual ways, some more effective than others.  Now our newscasts cover nothing but Covid-19.

So from our home on Yukon Street to you, wherever you are, we send greetings and well wishes for your health, safety and sanity. It's a very strange time.

Victoria has experienced a stretch of beautiful spring-like weather lasting about six weeks. It's been really lovely and although Harry and and I are staying home and keeping away from other people, we have managed to get out for some walks in different areas, always keeping the required 2 meters away from others.  We've seen lots of other people getting fresh air, walking dogs, and chatting at a distance,  children playing on the deserted streets with their parents close by. After ignoring my camera for weeks I started to bring take some pictures again.

So I thought I'd share some photos from these walks. 




Chalk drawings on the road.

 A  view from along the waterway path in Sidney.

There are lots  of springlike blooms happening here in Victoria. It seems strange that the world continues to unfold as usual while we humans are experience such different times.  I am so grateful for the beauty though.

There are signs that things are different though... like hearts posted on windows to show support for our health care workers. 

And this sign chalked on a path in a nearby park.

It gives hope that this may not last forever. There is talk that the strict measures adopted here in B.C. may be gradually lessened in months to come.

Home to the snow

We arrived home from Mexico City on Monday to a wind and cold and a skiff of snow and the following day Victoria was blanketed in the white stuff.  This is what we experienced from one day to the next. What a contrast!

Before I leave our Mexico trip behind I want to post a few photos from places we visited around Cuernavaca.

This is the Robert Brady Museum, the over-the-top home of a rich American collector who lived there until 1986. The house was a former convent and displayed his collection of thousands of works of art, many of them Mexican.  The place is exactly as it was when he died in 1986, a private museum for him and his wealthy friends. A great spot for living vicariously.

Next up is Tepoztlan, one of Mexico's Pueblos Magicos, where we went by taxi for a day trip. It's a small town in an amazing setting of rocky mountain peaks. Wikipedia says it's famous for the remains of the El Tepozeteco temple built on top of a mountain. We didn't climb the mountain to see the temple but we did wander up and down the cobbled main street, where vendors were taking down their Christmas decorations and hikers were gearing up for the climb.                                                                                                                                                The church was pretty and the meal we had was good but there were entirely too many vendors selling trinkets for our taste.

We were more impressed with the Gardens of Mexico, also a taxi drive outside of Cuernavaca. This place is really large, the largest public garden in North America we're told. It was built by a wealthy family and rivals Butchart's Garden for sure. Like Butchart's it has an Italian garden, a Japanese garden, and all kinds of different areas. 

This large peacock greeted us as we entered. It was decorated with poinsettias and I believe the flowers change seasonally. You can see the bulldozer starting to remove the plantings in front.

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We liked the tropical gardens and the Cactus garden, but most of all we enjoyed walking around this lovely area (and taking little jitneys) in the early morning sunshine without crowds. 

Because it was just after the Christmas holidays there were very few people visiting.  It's only been open for five years so they must have trucked in some pretty large palm trees.

We enjoyed a lovely lunch in the lakeside restaurant and then headed back to Cuernavaca to get ready to leave the next day.  Even with the snow, we're glad to be home after a month in Mexico.