Jazz, a nail trim, chaos and tranquility

This is a long video.  I heard Jaclyn Guillou sing with Bruno Hubert at the piano, David Blake on the guitar, James Meger on the bass, and Joel Fountain on the drums quite some time ago, but have never forgotten the pleasure.  I posted about them here. They are rare talents.  Jaclyn's new album will be released on October 9th.  This video takes you through a part of the process of making it.  For those of you who have the time, this is a wonderful listen (and look) at their musical and personal relationships.

Yesterday, it was fully worth the effort to huff and puff up the long hill to The Pet Shop Boys so that Black Jack's nails could be trimmed, stress free, by David.  Elizabeth, at the front desk, is a breath of fresh air as well.  She loves her job and we feel that with every visit.  I didn't take photos of them yesterday, but hope to do a little photo shoot one of these days, because, like Jacyln Guillou, they are a Vancouver treasure.

Black Jack loves to snuggle. I guess she comes by that honestly, with her Pug/Chihuahua genes. She reluctantly showed off her beautifully trimmed nails this..  

morning, but reminded me that the favour would require a little..

compensation sooner than later.

After the nail trim, we had lattés and treats at Café Cittadella (to give us energy to coast down the hill :)  Then, Bill wanted to buy a new wrench so that he can take care of a small but important maintenance job on my bike.  He will never know just how much I appreciate his vigilance to make sure we are safe on our bikes.  We left our bikes locked by the café and walked to the corner of Broadway and Cambie to Canadian Tire.  Oh my goodness, what a shift in sounds and sights from the ones we enjoy most of the time!    Though we live in a big city, I realized yesterday we rarely feel chaos until we shop at the "Big Box" stores.  I was overwhelmed until these flowers, catching the light over a cement wall,    

gave me an immense rush of relief and happiness.

Even in the busiest, noisiest part of the city, signs of.. 

respect for art and for nature are there.  We just had to look a bit harder than usual :)

And the best part?  Our short downhill ride after that took us to a favourite little refuge along False Creek.  






We can see the building we live in on the other side of the water from that tranquil bench.   

We have to peer through the branches and past the sailboats, but that's just the way we like it.

If we take a couple of steps into the clearing, David Lam Park appears like magic.

Black Jack was intensely focused on life under the rocks.  Sadly, there is no safe way to give her freedom at this location, but we did let her burn off some of her energy later (no photos of that as it was getting dark).  Though she is greying very noticeably these days, I love that, once pried from her cozy bed, Black Jack springs to life like a young pup.

One more False Creek scene here, 

and then Black Jack and I left Bill for a few moments to check out the pond on the other side of the bike path.

The reflections..

were about as vibrant..

as I've ever seen them.

I felt a long distance from the downtown we had left a short time ago.

Yet, for the seagulls, this pond is rather..

like a busy airport.

They fly in,

navigate slippery.. 

landings,

dunk headfirst..

for a thorough washing,

and then spread..

their wings..

to dry them..

before taking off again.. 

for places.. 

unknown (to me).

Black Jack loves both the pond side and the False Creek side of the path, 

and inspected pretty well every leave and twig..

before we returned to the park bench.  Bill and I took a moment to read the plaque on the it.  Dinah Williams, I'm sorry you had to leave your husband way too soon, but am so very happy that you were deeply loved for the last two years of your life. 

We rode to Granville Island, put our bikes on the Aquabus, and headed home feeling well satisfied with our very good day.  The light over the Granville Bridge.. 

was extraordinarily warm.

We will have to explore that apartment (store?) one day.

It must be quite a feeling to be inside, with the bridge traffic rumbling..

overhead.

I'll conclude with this photo of Bill and Black Jack as we ride the Aquabus.  See?  Once again Black Jack has snuggled into softness.  When we arrive home, I pry her out of her basket and she bounces into the apartment with full enthusiasm for her supper followed by more snuggling.  To be honest, Bill and I do just about the same :)  Thanks for stopping by.  I hope you are in the midst of a beautiful Friday.