Zendala Magic

This week's challenge is a "sit in" for our lovely diva by the ever-fabulous Genevieve Crabbe.  Genevieve was one of the first Canadian CZTs and is well known for her intriguing Zendalas.  As our Diva needs a break this week, Genevieve has graciously filled the void and come up with the 25th challenge of the week - Zendala Magic!  She provided a basic Zendala template (in two sizes, very thoughtful - thanks, Genevieve!) and we may fill it as we wish.  I have been intending to do some Zendalas but time has gotten away from me and I haven't managed to sit with pen and template to date.  Now THIS was a positive encouragement I couldn't resist!  I sat right down tonight and had a go...what do you think?

Happy Monday!

Drying Out....

Thank goodness the temperature has gone down and the breeze has come up, dealing most effectively with the humidity and brain-destroying heat that has had me down for the past bit.  It really came up suddenly this year!  Usually we have a couple of weeks of wind-up that helps to prepare for the summer season to come but not this year.  Oh no, this year just HAD to be different and did a full-on DUMP of summer weather in one fell (and foul!) swoop!  At least we now know what to expect and are stocking up on water, sunscreen and wading pools!  Is there anything more sublime than having a personal pool to cool down in summer time?  The dollar store has itty bitty baby pools that inflate and hold just enough water to cool down an overheated adult - the perfect way to while away an hour or so reading during a heat wave.  The gardens are pretty happy with things as they are - the rain of the earlier spring coupled with the sun now beating down has brought everything up at once.  It's pretty nice to see how lush the yard and gardens are...

Happy Thursday!

Puddle in Ontario

Apologies, lovely blogohood friends...a concatenation of events has kept me offline for about 10 days now.  Despite the best of intentions and missing you all (and your lovely, encouraging remarks and emails), I simply ran out of energy!  Yes, the relentlessly creative "me" was vanquished by simple work and weather!  I put in a week of solid 12 hour workdays (AND 10 hours on Sunday PLUS a qualified friend's assistance for the full stint on Sunday!!! - all of it unpaid!...see, Tracey?  You DO have company in your underpaid and overworked workaday world! *G*).  Just at the point the avalanche of work was cleared away, the weather just HAD to chime in!!!  We went straight from wet, overcast and cool (my favourite weather - I know, I know, but SOMEONE has to like it! *G*) to humidity and heat high enough to stop me in my tracks.  I'd leave the office at the end of the day and, upon exiting, it was exactly like walking into a wall of HOT.  Crazy, Dominican Republic-type hot!  Humid, fish could walk down the street hot!  Forget about eggs frying on the sidewalk, I'm talking eggs poaching in their shells hot!....Oh.  I guess you know what I mean by now...  Anyhow, I don't function well in that kind of heat.  I generally meet up with some beady buddies on Tuesday nights for some fellowship and fun and it was so hot we even cut that lovely "therapy" session short - not everyone could stay but two of us walked over to the local Dairy Queen for ice cream afterward and I STILL got home early.  Fortunately, today is finally less humid and I've actually gotten myself together and picked up pen and paper.  Don't get me wrong - I love the fact that Southern Ontario gets four clear, distinct seasons and I love the differences one from the next.  I'm not exactly complaining, I just don't function well in extreme heat and/or humidity.  Is anyone else like that?  It's like it gums up the brains (or melts 'em!) and eating, drinking, moving, you name it, is just too much effort, even something as essential as breathing and art (which, to my thinking, are about equally necessary to sustain life!).  So here is my somewhat sticky, but finally functional, tile - I missed you!

Happy Wednesday!