Saturday 29 September 2012

A Brush With Autumn Palettes


See more BC scenes at Penelope Puddlisms: BC Life Is A Whale Of A Ride.

Rosy View At Kwomais Point Park


See more BC scenes at Penelope Puddlisms: BC Life Is A Whale Of A Ride.

Seeing Double Moons In Early Morning

LOOKING OUT my kitchen window this early morning, I saw two full moons suspended in the sky. A smaller duplicate smudge of the original orb was reflected on the murky glass. There was a ghostly Halloween glow to the scene that was delightfully spooky.

To explore reflections from around the globe, link to Weekend Reflections.

Copyright by Penelope Puddlisms

See more BC scenes at Penelope Puddlisms: BC Life Is A Whale Of A Ride.

Friday 28 September 2012

Black Or Blue ... Color Conundrums In White Rock

FRESHENING UP some areas of White Rock caused quite a verbal bruising from people recently who took issue with changing the color of the railings along Marine Drive to black from blue.

The railing serves as a barrier for a very busy railway track and is not designed to simply look pretty. Some thought that painting over the original color was wasteful spending. Others said it was about time the city got rid of the "garishly" bold primary blue.

In defense of the black, some suggested it was more noticeable and, therefore, safer as a barrier than the blue. But although I find black more tasteful, the blue in my opinion was actually the more noticeable of the two. I think black has a way of receding into the background and disappearing from conscious view.

While local newspapers covered many crucial matters, letters to the editor obsessed for days about black versus blue.

Copyright by Penelope Puddlisms

See more BC scenes at Penelope Puddlisms: BC Life Is A Whale Of A Ride.

Sunday 23 September 2012

Pushing Back Against The Tide Of Trash

NOT EVERY WEST COAST scene makes a pretty picture, especially when garbage floats into view. It would be much worse, however, were it not for eco-friendly folk like those who volunteer their time and skills through the Great Canadian Shoreline Cleanup initiative.

A small group at the Vancouver Aquarium in BC sparked the event in 1994 and inspired the nation to subsequently evaluate and pick up the litter less responsible people leave behind at beaches from coast to coast.

While some wearing rubber suits searched the water under the Crescent Beach pier on Saturday ...

others wore rubber boots and waded along the water's edge.

This volunteer said she found hundreds of cigarette butts lodged into the wooden planks of the pier. Many hundreds of food wrappers, plastic bottles and bags harmful to wildlife were also fished out of the area.

Not all debris is intentional or carelessly placed on our shores. Accidents and natural disasters play a significant role and what happens in one part of the world affects another. It is estimated that the tsunami that tragically struck Japan in 2011 swept up to 25 million tons of debris into our oceans. As much as 1.5 million tons of this could wash up on BC shores and future cleanups will be needed. Information on how to help can be found here.

To explore sights from around the globe, link to Our World at the sidebar.

Copyright by Penelope Puddlisms

See more BC scenes at Penelope Puddlisms: BC Life Is A Whale Of A Ride.

Saturday 22 September 2012

Walking Through A Cloud At Crescent Beach

THE HORIZON was a blank slate at Crescent Beach recently. No rain had fallen for weeks and the cool autumn air brought moisture to the morning conspiring with the heat of several days to create a low-lying fog.

Visibility was poor along the shore and there were few people out and about. The vessels that normally bob along the bay were nowhere to be seen beyond the rare sprigs of fall colors on the beach.

The clammer of summer visitors had waned but remnants, such as this bear stenciled onto a wood railing, remained. The hovering cloud cast a broad net. I liked how its muggy softness cushioned my steps.

A lone man was focused on fishing at the edge of the pier. (See more pier photos here.)

A crow suddenly appeared out of the mist.

It, too, was probably fishing.

The bird moved gracefully reminding me of a dark seagull.

With outstretched wings, it sailed back into the enveloping haze.

Copyright by Penelope Puddlisms

See more BC scenes at Penelope Puddlisms: BC Life Is A Whale Of A Ride.

Sunday 16 September 2012

Birds Of A Feather At Crescent Beach

NOT ALL BIRDS want to fly in our world. This 18-year-old parrot named Goober was perfectly content to perch on the shoulder or a thumb of its human companion when visiting Crescent Beach recently.

Not only did the man and his long-time pet wear matching colours ...

they also enjoyed a stick of gum together.

The man chewed and the bird pulled the sweet sticky goo from his mouth as if it was a string of delicious taffy.

A friendship as special as this pair share is something to squawk about.

Goober speaks several words as well as sings, in part, thanks to the mechanisms involving the bird's tongue. I once wrote about a related topic with a link to another clever parrot named Einstein here.

To enjoy sights from around the globe, link to Our World at the sidebar.

Copyright by Penelope Puddlisms

See more BC scenes at Penelope Puddlisms: BC Life Is A Whale Of A Ride.