Day 6

This is a tough one to live with...not sure whether to continue!?

Day 5

Definitely do not understand where this is going!

Day 4

Hmmh!

Day 3

Something is happening but it is still a mystery.

Day 2

Still lacking inspiration...

...I have decided to play with it every day!

Maybe a surprise will emerge?

Day 1

Yesterday I forced myself to buy two large canvases at Opus. Today I am experiencing that familiar frustration that comes with having a blank canvas combined with lack of inspiration. So I decided to slap some color onto the canvas and see what happens.

It is interesting to note that the initial colours are warm tones. To further delay any possible progress on this painting I was compelled to research the psychological meaning of my color choices!

Good luck, prosperity and money are all linked to the warm colors...also excitement, heightened emotions and even violence! So...am I seeking any of these things...or do I need to add any of these to my life?

Stay tuned as this painting progresses...unless I manage to find other distractions.

Adult entertainment

Someone decided to install a bulletin board in the elevator.

The intention was to allow space for building notices...

...but it has become a source of entertainment...

...for residents...

...as we ride up and down!!

Remembrance Day

The nights have been cold...below zero

and the days have been sunny!

This morning we woke to fog and ice.

On my morning walk I noticed the icy poppies

that were painted on the grass around the cenotaph

for today's Remembrance Service.

Jet lag

Tuesday was a long day! Up at 5:00am for a taxi ride to Athens airport followed by a 3 1/2 hour wait at London Heathrow for our connection to Seattle. Departure from Heathrow was delayed over an hour due to "technical issues" but the pilot managed to make up time enroute. It was an uneventful flight with several movies to keep me occupied. In Seattle we found our way, via three train rides, to our next departure gate and waited another 3 hours. By the time we arrived in Vancouver, at the furthest possible arrival gate, it was 7:00am in Greece (9pm in Vancouver). We had been awake for 26 hours!

I pulled our phone out of my purse and prepared to call Adrian, our son, who was waiting for our call before picking us up at YVR. Unfortunately I discovered that the phone battery had died! Uh oh! Neither of us could remember his phone number so we couldn't use a pay phone to call him. Then I remembered facebook messenger and sent him a message from my iPad to say that we were on our way to collect the luggage...except that the luggage never arrived!...and, among other things, the phone charger cable was in a suitcase!

We filled out the necessary "lost luggage" form with address, phone number and were reassured that the bags would be delivered to us...in Langley. It wasn't until after we left the airport that I realized the impossibility of contacting us. We had a dead phone and, as I mentioned, the charger cable was in one of the suitcases. Also...we didn't know when Adrian would be available to take us to Langley!

The next morning, after several attempts to contact "lost luggage", we managed to speak to an Alaska Airlines agent in Seattle. She took our son's phone number and said the delivery company would call us...and they did. Adrian took us home yesterday afternoon and the luggage arrived before 11:00pm last night. Whew!!!

Today we are still suffering from jet lag "jelly brain"...but this will pass in a few days.

Heathrow

Sitting at Heathrow...

...watching red, white and blue birds

taking flight... in formation...

...following one another into the air

every thirty seconds.

Wait...here comes a very large bird...

...carrying over 400 guests on his flight

to a faraway land.

Pasteli

There will be a large wedding on the island next weekend

so this morning there were many people involved 

in the making of pasteli, a traditional sesame seed and honey sweet.

The mixture is heated in large vats and poured onto special tables

before being smoothed out into a consistent thickness.

After it has dried to the right degree it is sliced into diamond shapes.

Each piece is then placed on a diamond shaped cut piece of lemon leaf

before being wrapped in cellophane...all 1600 pieces for this wedding!

Villagers stopped by to check the progress,

to visit and to bring gifts.

Another special dinner

It was another fun night at Fotodotis for dinner

with Theo, one of our adopted sons and Mata, a special friend.

Of course every restaurant has feline visitors too!

He didn’t beg for food...just curled up beside me through the entire meal!

Last night’s dinner

Last night we were invited to share dinner with friends at a gorgeous home in the north.

The owner has kept the basic shape of the house and totally remodeled the interior.

Unfortunately we arrived after dark so I could not capture the beauty of the house in photos.

This light over the table caught my attention!

On display was a piece by a young woman artist 

who has developed a style of hand stitching on fine cotton

with thread that she makes from seaweed.

This is a small section of the piece that is about 6’ x 10’ in total!

Summer again

Summer days have returned to the island.

The hibiscus are blooming again...

...and the bougainvillea never seem to stop blooming!

Our writing group met for the last time this morning.

It was a real challenge to hear each other over the background noise

of school children inside the cafenion (on a free day)

and the old men yakking about the weather on the patio!

When we finished it was too late to go for a swim...

....maybe tomorrow!