rosesandlace - anam cara

Happy New Year!

2011-12-31T18:32:00.001-08:00

Happy New Year! The past year has been a bit of an emotional roller coaster but I feel I have managed to get through it alright and with no regrets! I wish each and everyone a happy, healthy, and safe 2012. Learn from yesterday, Live for today, Change tomorrow!

Long time no Blog

2011-09-20T17:34:00.000-07:00

Here I am ... it's well over a year since I posted here on Blogspot!

It's been a challenging year this year ... our family watched my dad fail physicallly since last August and then he passed away in early May. We miss him so!

Our spring was long, cold, and wet ... and our summer was cool and wet for the most part until mid August when we started to see a few warm and sunny days. And now ... fall officially starts on Friday. Where did summer go? Like a coworker said "It's like summer was stolen from us this year!"

The flowers were at least 2 weeks later than usual in blooming this year and for the most part not as luscious as previous years. I lost some of the lower day lillies over last winter - the frost must have gotten them. :( I am thinking about next year ... and God willing, I hope to plant some ornamental grasses along the back of the gardens. I am praying that I won't lose any plants over the coming winter!

Slowly but surely I am updating my pictures at http://www.pbase.com/rosesandlace - where I have 1000 megabytes of photo space - advertisement free. It is the best deal for $23 annually that one can find!

Also I am still working on my little webspace at eastlink. I started to revamp it 2 years ago but just never seemed to have enough time to get at it. Eventually I will get it finished and unveiled.

I used to stress over these things - but I realized that spending time with elderly parents is more important ... living life with no regrets! Also, my priorities have changed a bit now that I am in my 50s - things that were once very important to me no longer are. And sadly, I've come to realize the insincerity of people - how they will tell you what they think you want to hear just to keep you happy. Mind games ... and I no longer have a stomach for that kind of BS! Either I am maturing or becoming very jaded - I hope it's the former and not the latter!

I know that I've said it before ... but I will try to get back here more often. Till next time Slante!

Happy First Birthday Brandi & Brady!

2010-05-10T18:41:00.000-07:00

Hard to believe the 2 Shelties are over a year old now! Time sure flies!

U2 360 Tour - Sept 16.09 - Toronto Canada

2009-09-22T16:46:00.000-07:00

It was awesome to see U2 perform once again ... in their new 360 Tour at the Rogers Center in Toronto Canada. The evening was lovely and the roof was open 180 for the event. The crowd was enthusiastic and gave a good welcome to the opening band, Ireland's Snow Patrol. As the sun went down the air became electric ... the big bleacher lights were on while the roadies changed the instruments and readied the stage. 'The wave' of cheering went around several times from the upper level to the lower level - 360. Everyone was excited. When the lights dimmed ... Larry Mullen came on stage and sat at his drums, then Edge and Adam and finally Bono - they all just walked out on stage one by one. Not the grand entrance we are used to in past tours but that did not hinder the crowd from cheering on. The claw is massive and creates quite an effect - especially grand are the lights and the huge 360 video screen under the center of the claw. But this is U2 and as grand as they make a concert ... it is always about the music ... and 4 men on stage - drums, guitars and keyboards.

The songs from the new album 'No Line on the Horizon' were fantastic live ... my favorite being Magnificant but also stellar - Moment of Surrender. What was different - not a lot of physical contact with the audience and no lucky gal invited up on stage to dance with Bono ... but change can be good and I feel this was as good a U2 concert as ever. The sound was great and the band were together in that special place giving us all they had. I'd say it was another great and memorable U2 experience!

enjoying home theatre sound surround

2009-01-28T12:06:00.001-08:00

I've made a few home electronics purchases since the holidays - took advantage of some sales. I bought a 32" HD LCD TV, a blue ray DVD player ... and to finish it all off - a home theatre sound surround system. After taking a few days to get it set up and tweak the sound surround to maximum effect, I am now quite pleased with the final results. It is awesome to watch concerts (upgraded in quality) on the blue ray and then hear the music all around the room in sound surround! As well, I am enjoying many of my Solitudes CDs in sound surround and 5.1 digital surround - taking relaxation to the next level!

Barb :)

New Year's ramblings

2009-01-16T10:41:00.000-08:00

Happy New Year! It's been a while since I posted here. I guess my life is busier than I expected and in a way that I didn't expect. It's the aging parents stage.

Last January my dad took ill and his illness became a care to the family. He was in and out of the hospital and doctors offices constantly. They said he has a chronic condition and only acute cases get hospitalized. Thank heavens the Dept of Veterans Affairs heard our cry for help and placed dad in a Veterans nursing home in a nearby community. He is being well looked after and adjusting to a different life. He did, however, have a set back in October and landed in the hospital for a month with kidney failure. He is now on dialysis 3 days a week and adjusting to that.

Now I have to give more attention to my aging mother who is still at home with me and we spend a lot of time visiting with my dad.

I hope that 2009 will be a better year for our family and that I will find more time to pursue personal interests like photography and learning to make better use of my digital camera by learning more about it's features. I hope to be back here more often as well.

Barb :)

Winter 2009

2009-01-16T10:21:00.001-08:00

Looking back - 50 years!

2008-10-05T17:26:00.001-07:00

the best of my photos from summer 2008

2008-09-14T16:41:00.001-07:00

ramblings etc

2008-09-11T17:46:00.000-07:00

Good evening. It's been a hectic summer with my dad being ill and finally getting into a nursing home. It's been an adjustment for the whole family and for my brother, sister-in-law and myself it has meant that we've put our own lives aside now for a while to serve our elderly parents.

This was the wettest summer on record - in August it rained 27 of 31 days. It was good for the gardens in some ways but not in others. We did not get to spend much time outside enjoying nature's bounty, which was disappointing.

Fall is upon us now - the days are getting shorter and the summer gardens are done. The fall bloomers are slow ... again, they've seen too much rain and too little sunshine.

I've changed the Flickr slideshow to one of my favorite places in Ireland - Kinsale by the sea (just south west of Cork). If I ever get my feet on Irish soil ... Kinsale will be a must see!

the wet garden

2008-07-23T12:27:00.001-07:00

early summer 2008

2008-07-01T17:44:00.001-07:00

Newgrange

2008-05-12T17:28:00.000-07:00

"There is a place on the east
Mysterious ring, a magical ring of stones.
The druids have lived there once they said,
Forgotten is the race that no-one knows.

The circled tomb of a different age
Secret lines carved on ancient stone.
Heroic kings laid down to rest,
Forgotten is the race that no-one knows.

Wait for the sun on a winter's day,
And a beam of light shines across the floor.
Mysterious ring, a magical ring.
But forgotten is the race that no-one knows. "

Lyrics by Clannad

See the Flickr slideshow - upper right hand corner - for pictures of Newgrange ... a beautiful and mysterious piece of Ireland!

'ladies night out'

2008-04-12T17:42:00.000-07:00

On Friday evening I attended the 7th annual 'ladies night out' at the Membertou Convention Center ~ a local fundraiser for Transition House (a shelter for women and children in crises). It was a sold out event and the tickets are always very hard to get. The evening comprised of vendors, games, card readings, mini massages, a cold plate meal, drinks, a silent auction, and plenty of prime local entertainment ... including the reknown Matt Minglewood. It was definitely a fun evening and I plan to make it an annual event in my calendar.

My New Office Pictures

2008-03-22T17:55:00.001-07:00

Spring!

2008-03-21T17:46:00.001-07:00

It's finally spring - although the weather here doesn't know it yet! Feels good though - sun and green growth ahead! I finished my studies from Dalhousie University's distance ed program - the course was managerial skills and I really learned a lot of good things from it. Now I'm starting the house cleaning - or I should say 'dust cleaning' as houses don't really get dirty today, just dusty.

I have a new office at work and I'm very happy with it. :) Purchased a few extra trinkets for display so that the office is an expression of me. I'll put up a slideshow of some pics soon!

Happy Easter everyone! Now that I have more spare time ... I'll be updating more often.

Beannachd leibh ... Celtic Blessings!
Barb

my roses slideshow

2008-02-17T16:05:00.001-08:00

official launch

2008-02-16T16:53:00.001-08:00

rosesandlace has an official home at blogspot! It took me a while to find just the right place for an official blog page - tried MySpaces but didn't like it. So blogspot is the place! It is my intent to update this blogspot regularly - sort of like a journal - and share what's happening in my life and my interests with my friends.

At this point, I've had a rough start to this year with my dad being ill and now confined to home care. Since he and my mom live with me, our family has had to bear the stress of the upset in our day to day home life. Having home care means that you must open your home to professionals - who come and go whilst attending to my dad's health needs. It is a bit of a violation of privacy in a sense and has changed the way our family all live our lives.

It has taught me the importance of accepting and dealing with change in a very big way. I am also learning the importance of looking after my own physical and mental health by taking care to get regular exercise and time-out with my iPod and those wonderful Solitudes albums.

Recently, I printed the full manual for my Olympus SP 500UZ digital camera and am attempting to study it on my own and learn how to use more of the camera's many features. It is now past the middle of February and I am so looking forward to spring, gardening, walking and taking lots of pictures!

Stay tuned ...

Beannachd Leibh ~ Celtic Blessings!

Barb