Art, a bike ride, a walk and crossword #7

Another walk and another crossword completed (#7) and all part of a good day in my city (Vancouver) that I'll share this morning with Sundays in My City (thank you, Unknown Mami).

We did this one pretty quickly.  Bill is still a bit shy about his newfound expertise :)

The more I think about it, the more I realize that having a café in an art gallery is a brilliant idea.  Many galleries have a place where you can go for refreshments but it is set aside from the viewing rooms.  At Harrison Galleries, we sit with our lattés and treats and the art changes around us often enough that we are stimulated, but  not so often that we lose the feeling of being in the midst of art that is growing on our  consciousness.  I read H.M. Saffer's bio a few weeks ago and am in awe.  Graduate work in economics, chef/owner of three restaurants (two in France and one in Spain), professional musician and producer and all the while continuing to grow as an artist.   

Venice ll by H.M.Saffer 

This work had just come in by Paula Blackwell.   I showed one of her pieces in Friday's post.  She uses a torch to fuse beeswax and pigment in her quest to represent the beauty she sees in nature.  I've left the edges of other paintings showing behind it, and have to add that no photograph can do her style or any art justice.  The other paintings were waiting to be hung in one of the other small rooms and separate spaces where happy customers enjoy their refreshments.  One never knows what to expect when entering the Harrison establishment.    

After we left the gallery, we biked to this spot along False Creek.  I was on a mission.  Bill drinks an organic orange juice that comes in a carton and I drink almond milk that also comes in a carton.  Those cartons are extremely difficult to recycle and the product is not available in any other container.  Has anyone else encountered this?  I flatten and save them until we have enough to make a trip to one of only two places I have found that accept them.  A lot of effort to do my small bit for a planet that I love.  There's Bill holding the bag.  We locked up the bikes and walked from this point along False Creek.  There's another thing I'm wondering about.  The bike path from this point on and for about the next kilometre or so is made of uneven stone that is really, really bumpy.  Whose idea was that?  Black Jack gets bumped around in her basket and it just isn't comfortable for any of us.  The good thing?  It was an absolutely gorgeous day for a walk.  Below, Bill holds the bag :)

Our trusty bikes waited for us, 

and we walked past the marina (that's the Granville Bridge in the distance)..

and along the bank that was lined with tiny little mauve flowers..

to our recycle destination.  Black Jack likes to walk along that ledge and Bill obliges :)

I love all of the textures (as long as we're not cycling over them).

As you can see, the path is well used.  I wonder if anyone else complains about the bumps.

Our walk took us past this pond.

I looked back and realized that we could see our apartment across False Creek.  (It's tiny in comparison to many of the high-rises.)

We have finally dumped our cartons and are now on the way back to the bicycles.  These are just some pretty sheds that we passed.  There was a huge effort by someone to beautify them, but sadly, a little bit of graffiti as well. Bill looks happy to finally have his hands free. 

There's that pond again.

The seagulls use this as one of their prime bathing areas.

Beautiful irises by the pond.

I was distracted a lot yesterday, and many of my photographs were poor because I kept forgetting which setting my camera was on.  Still, I caught this goose on the fly and something about the whirring landscape behind it was pleasing, I thought.

Another photo mistake but it gives a sense of take-offs and landings at the seagulls' airport. 

Reflections in the pond made it a very green space.

A little girl told me about the goslings around the corner, but when she said there "were too many to count" I thought she was kidding.  

We only saw one pair of adults.  Foster care, perhaps?

It was a strange site to us, but perhaps this little one thought the people standing around were a bit odd as well.

We walked a little bit further and I looked across the water to spot a tiny orange car on the Cambie Bridge.  (The recycle place was about halfway between the Cambie and the Granville and we are now facing home.)  I thought of Orange You Glad It's Friday and..

zoomed in to capture that taxi.  By the time next Friday rolls around there will be lots of other oranges in my life, so for now, I'll just say that oranges seemed to pop up quite a lot through the rest of this post.

 Below, the reflections of t-shirts worn by two people walking above that stone wall.

In the distance, some geese flew in formation..

I tried to capture those tiny little purple flowers but this turned out more like modern art :)

Ripples and sailboat masts.

and quite a bit of blue

kept the modern-art-carol-style theme going.

We passed some apartments (I wonder how these people feel about being right on a popular walk and bike route) and loved this sculpture peering out the window.

Bill noticed the grasses growing up between the stones and I noticed the continued..

orange themes everywhere I looked.  It was just at this point that we met up again with our bikes and continued the rest of our trek home by wheel.

Revived after supper, the day was just too good to be indoors and we went out for a short..

walk as the sun set.  This is the view looking back to where we had been.

You have now had a fairly comprehensive look at two sides of False Creek.

A little run..

for Black Jack..

and then it was time..

to leave yet another gentle view of the Granville Bridge behind us and head home to read aloud to each other.  We are currently enjoying The Summer We Read Gatsby.  It's a few shades lighter reading than we had been tackling, but then again, that's what summer reading is for.  Just another day in our beautiful city.  Perhaps you will take a few minutes to read about good times in other cities at Unknown Mami's blog meme.  Thanks for stopping by here on your way.