David Byrne & St. Vincent in Ottawa

 On Sunday, Richard and I headed up to Ottawa to the Jazz Festival to see 

David Byrne & St. Vincent.

 TD Bank was handing out free water bottles and the Jazz Fest provides a free water station to fill it. Great idea considering it was 30C and humid.

Since we got there waaaay early, we decided to walk around. We saw the Parliament Buildings with the stage being set up for the upcoming Canada Day festivities.

 There is some great architecture up there on the Hill.

 Sadly, the Cat Sanctuary is gone. The cats were getting older and they felt it was time to adopt them to homes and close the colony. Kinda sad.

 On the way back to the Festival, we came across a statue in honour of pianist 

Oscar Peterson. 

 Back at the festival, I met up with my friend Suzan who is the media director of the Jazz Festival. I've known her since we were nine years old and haven't seen her for 30 years. She hasn't changed a bit.

 When we went for a beer, we bumped into friends and neighbours Holly and Evlyn. 

Small world.

 Also there were Steve and Sarah from Toronto. Fun seeing them!

 Now onto the show. I've been a David Byrne fan (when he was with the Talking Heads) for 30+ years.

 He is a fabulous musician and entertainer. 

And we had great seats which made the concert even more fun.

St. Vincent (aka Annie Clark) was terrific and reminded me of a female, younger version of David Byrne. Loved her! Together they were a great combo.

Best part of the evening? Just as the concert was ending, they played 

"Burning Down the House" and the skies opened and it poured rain. 

We all danced and got soaked to the skin. Unforgettable night.

Snapping turtle

Saw a snapping turtle crossing the road this week. Very cool but I know they can really "snap" their jaws and their necks can come way out, so I wasn't about to carry him. By the time we got back from shopping, he had made his way to the river. Phew!

Blackhawks Win the Stanley Cup...Again!

 In June 2010, Richard and I landed in Chicago right after the Hawks had won the Stanley Cup. The town was painted red.

And they did it again last night. Richard's favourite team! Wish we were back in Chicago for the parade! Such a great city...

Grocery Store Cat

On a recent trip to Carleton Place we headed to a little town next door called Ashton where they have an old fashioned general store.

 Inside the store is a working cat named General.

General sure is a handsome fellow who spends his days
keeping varmints in check. Love seeing working cats!

Cookin' with Gas!

As an addendum to my post The End of an Era, here's the stove's replacement. It's fun to learn how to use this new stove...and now I'm cooking with gas. Stay tuned.

Flowery Summery Cupcakes

When I'm making floral cakes, I generally make lots of fondant flowers and usually have some leftover. Instead of turfing them, I pack them away in containers...and when I'm invited to a potluck lunch, it's time to pull them out an pop them on top of some red velvet cupcakes. Fancy!

Another One Bites the Dust

 It was time to bid adieu to Richard's old Focus.

 And to say hello to a bright blue Toyota Matrix.

I'm looking forward to many fun road trips in this beauty!

The End of an Era

My parents got this Jenn-Air stove in 1978 and it has cooked many a meal! My mother loved the cook top that allowed you to grill indoors (!) but she loathed the size of the oven. Teeny tiny Barbie sized because the left half had the drainage for the grill. Well, it's outta here! The new one arrives Friday and I'm delighted to finally have a large oven to bake in. Stay tuned!

Matzah Man

After spending all winter and most of spring in my barn, I decided to adopt Red Boy.

 I called him Matzah Man because he had matzah balls when I met him (but not now!).

 He's still living in the log cabin part of my house and I haven't introduced him to the girl kitties yet. In time, it'll happen but for now he's living in his two storey bachelor pad.

He's a good boy and very sweet. Happy he decided to visit my barn last fall!

Lupin Time

  I love lupins! I got two packets of them in Oregon about 10 years ago and made myself a wild garden in the middle of the field.

 Every year, Richard mows around it further and further out as the seeds spread.

Not only do I love it, it's full of all kinds of bees!

Happy Birthday to Me!

Being a cake baker, people seemed really concerned that I would have to bake my own cake. Guess what? I didn't have to! My friend Natalie baked me an amazing banana cake with chocolate chunks, covered in white chocolate ganache topped with dark chocolate ganache. And her hubby Gordon made homemade dark chocolate ice cream too.

It was a great birthday! Always the best day of the year.

Birthday Lunch at Mariposa Farm

 For my birthday we headed to Mariposa Farm in Plantagenet.

Sweet that the salt and pepper shakers were kitties!

Loved 'em!

The dining room is a big, bright windowed affair...

This is what it looks like from the outside.

It has an open kitchen with your eating selection on the counter
A choice of one of three appetizers, three mains and three desserts.

Lots of fun salt and pepper shakers. Ducks seemed apropos for this pair!

Fun!

 Nat and Gordon both chose a wonderful salad...

 Richard started with roasted tomato soup....

 I had the duck/pistachio pate for a starter. Wowza!

 My main was their very own grown duck on a mushroom bread pudding and greens.

 Richard had pork...

 Nat and Gordon both chose the bison flank steak on an assortment of veggies.

 For dessert, you serve yourself coffee or tea...

 

 I chose the carrot cake...

 ...while the other three had the wild blueberry vanilla pannacotta.

All in all a fabulous meal!

 Then we toured the grounds and admired their wonderful gardens.

 Natalie makes friends where ever she goes.

 There was a very late blooming lilac bush with a lovely swallowtail butterfly on it.

 And a sweet pond beside the dining room.

 On the pond was a very big swan...

...who seemed to take a liking to Natalie.

The weather was perfect...

 ...and we all had a grand time. A perfect way to spend my birthday!