Lights and Action on Blue Monday

Monday morning has come around again, and with heavy rain in the forecast for a good part of the week, Smiling Sally's Blue Monday meme feels like a good way to celebrate :)  Many thanks, Sally, for hosting.  I saved a few photos from our walk on Saturday just for you!  

This mixed-media was at Harrison Galleries and is by John Lin, an artist who began painting while operating a framing business in Taiwan.  He immigrated to Canada, continued to expand his business, and also continued to develop his skills as an artist.  This one is part of a series called "Emit-Flow Blue" that takes on different hues in different light.

 Here, you see it against the brick wall (that I love) at Harrison's.

These blue lights are on a hedge near the gallery.

They are quite striking but I struggled to capture them in a photograph.

 It seems Vancouver is going with a blue theme for many of the street decorations.  

These lights are in front of the Opus Hotel on Davie Street.

I like the way they are reflected.. 

in the windows and on the cars. 

Mainland Street and Hamilton Street in Yaletown are difficult to describe, but this photo gives you an idea of Mainland Street at night with its blue lights.  I copied these words from a Wikipedia article to give you a sense of the history behind those streets.
"While little or no original housing from the 19th century survives, several older buildings from the industrial days still exist. Hamilton Street and Mainland Street are the most significant, comprising two intact streetscapes from that era. They are lined with handsome brick warehouses built on rail platforms, many with cantilevered canopies. These have been converted into loft style apartments and offices, with boutique stores, bars and restaurants at the ground level. During the latter years of the dot com boom, these streets housed Vancouver's "multimedia gulch" similar to the SOMA area of San Francisco."

The rest of this post has way too many photos (some overexposed) of Black Jack but it was one of those days when I was struck by her energy and playfulness and expressiveness.  The ball, carpet and cushion have blue in them, but if it's strictly for the blue that you are here, you may want to stop reading at this point and hop on over to Sally's meme.

Bill plays with Black Jack several times a day and she.. 

 really gets into her.. 

ball games with him.

Our apartment is wheelchair accessible, which is why you see a bit of a roll in the floor leading to the balcony.  We are not handicapped, but it just happened to be the only apartment available when we rented.  Hopefully, we'll never need that feature.  

 Phew!  Exposure a bit better in these last two though focus is just a tad fuzzy :) 

After playtime and breakfast, Black Jack rests, Bill takes his shower and I do the dishes and then practice piano.

Often, I have the camera by the piano, and yesterday, I snapped the odd shot between playing.  With the leaves gone, I noticed we once more have our water view of False Creek.  The rain had let up and you can see a hunched-over cyclist on the bike path.

  Black Jack has a variety of beds and spots in the apartment that she likes to hang out.  Yesterday, she chose this pillow and I have to say she looked very, very comfortable.

 I was singing and playing but could see her over the edge of the couch.  Her responses..

 ranged from total boredom..

 to a sort of perked up interest

 when I hit the higher notes.

"What are you looking at?"

Just to confirm the cushion is blue :)

 The weather was lovely in the afternoon when we went for our bike ride along Coal Harbour.  These mallards were on a rock that is usually frequented by the smaller birds.  

 Someone has been leaving a lot of seeds around lately.

 The smaller birds found their own spot off to the side of that rock.

I am still amazed to be seeing cherry blossoms..

 at this time of year.

 The wigeons had come out of the pond and were finding lots to eat in the grass.

We heard some Redwing Blackbirds and Bill tried his best to tempt them with peanuts.  Some days, they will sit in his hand, but yesterday, they wouldn't come out of the reeds.

 The wigeons suddenly took flight but didn't go far.

 They seem to know Black Jack is not a threat because we mostly keep her on leash, but I think this dog was a new visitor and they weren't taking any chances.  In fact, the dog was more interested in sharing their food than chasing them.

 We have been known to let Black Jack run free in this spot by the pond, but a squirrel..

 made us think better of that yesterday.

 Bill ran around at the end of her leash after her :)  The squirrel took refuge in the tree..

 and Black Jack was in a frenzy of excitement..

 that kept us both hopping, me with my camera and Bill, as said, 

 on the end..

 of her leash.

I was too close to get a photo of him with the 300 mm lens so you will have to use your imagination to visualize the scene.

With darkness falling quickly, we headed back to Harrison Galleries for lattés and treats.  I caught a little blue in the sky before we left.  Another good day.  Many thanks for stopping by to let us share it with you.  Happy Blue Monday!