Beautiful Blue Monday

Does turquoise count as blue?  If so, and if I stretch my imagination a bit, I think I can justify linking up with the blog meme, Blue Monday.  Thank you, Sally, for hosting! Blue is one of my very favourite colours, so any excuse will do :)

There was no time to change the settings on the camera for this shot, but I wanted to catch Bill's little smile and Black Jack's total contentment yesterday.  

The rain kept falling but she was warm and safe and all was right with her world.  

 Adoration.. 

with a touch of "Yes, this is my due.." shone in her eyes..

 and perhaps something like, "See, this is how it's done.  Look and learn."

Bill and I decided to see a movie, but before we left, I took Black Jack across the street to David Lam Park for a little walk.  The rain continued and I wasn't able to catch the shot of two seals swimming in False Creek but I did stand under this Handkerchief Tree (davidia involucrata), noting that it had just bloomed in the past couple of days.  This is one of those shots that will require a lot of imagination to see any blue but that hint of rainy sky in the background has a powdery blue texture.

We saw the movie Bears and I took a couple of screen shots.  That link shows Dr. Jane Goodall endorsing the film.  (I saw blue tones in the back forest area.)  

The photography was breathtaking.  As explained in the link above, the movie was heavy on cuteness.  One could criticize this, and I did, but forced myself to let that go so that I could take in this opportunity to see bears and a salmon run at such close quarters.  It would not be much of an exaggeration to say I could count the hairs and water droplets in many of the shots.  The bear "stars" were given names, and there were heroes and villains amongst them, all part of creating a story line for the viewers.  This cub has a clam stuck in his claw.  It made for a very funny scene and John C. Reilly's narration was perfect to bring out the humour.  Bill would have liked a more scientific approach, with a narration more in the style of David Suzuki's.  Dr. Goodall feels that naming wildlife and playing on people's emotions will, in the end, save many species from extinction.  I saw both sides of the equation but.. 

kept my mind pretty much focused on the process of filming.  That sometimes led to negative thoughts too, but I couldn't deny that the film crew got to know their subjects intimately.  And deep down, it was a relief not to have to deal with the harsher reality that I know exists for all wildlife.  Bottom line?  I'm glad we saw it.

We saw the movie at International Village Cinemas.  Especially on rainy days, I love the photography potential in places with structural complexity.

 Each time we attend a movie in that building, I am struck by the window of Ayden Gallery.  It appears to combine the sale of art and clothing under one roof.  An interesting concept.  This work is by Ilya Viryachev, a Kazakhstan-born artist who came to Vancouver in 2004.

 My favourite portion of the above piece is this dog at the right (fox? coyote?) Lovely blues!

Walking through this building, there's a feeling of having x-ray vision.  Even the escalators show you their inner workings.  There have been some horror stories on escalators, at least one recent one happening in Vancouver.  Please, if ever you transport a pet via an escalator, pick them up and carry them.  And, before you get on, check for scarves, shoe laces..  anything that could dangle and get caught.  Escalators can be killing machines.  

We took a look out the two end windows of the second floor and I liked this view best.

I love this globe outside International Village Cinemas.  (Blue jeans keep the theme going.)

We walked up the steps and looked over a cement wall at this building.  Blue?  Bill's eyes.

We stared into the windows of the building and wondered what was happening here.  See the tiny bit of blue on the plywood?

Same building zoomed out.

 We walked up Beatty Street and decided it may be one of our new favourites.  

This is the "true blue" photo of this post, I think. 

There was a mural with many familiar (but unnameable) faces.  Jimi Hendrix..

and Dr. David Suzuki were two that stood out for us 

At the end of the murals, this blue wall took us to a lovely stairway that led to..  a parking lot. 

 As I stood there admiring the scene, the tree sprouted a blue-clad leg and a green arm.

 We turned the corner and walked through a familiar street with unfamiliar items displayed.

There was a bit more fun in store when..

 we noticed these puddle reflections.

 We each took..

a turn posing.

Then, we peeked over the seawall..

and stopped at Urban Fare where I loved this sign outside its doors.  That was a good portion of our day yesterday.  Happy Blue Monday, everyone!