Recently I was walking past my neighbourhood flower shop and saw some potted primula flowers in the window. They looked very cheerful and I decided to buy one. Then I was at the grocery store and saw some good-quality potted hyacinth bulbs for a low price; and I decided to buy one of those, also. Hyacinths have been one of my favourite flowers for a long time because they have such a pleasant scent! When I got the primula home, I was happily surprised to find that it also had quite a strong, pleasant scent! My small home became filled with the scent of flowers!
When the winter months start to feel long and it seems that spring is far away, that's a time when I especially like to buy flowers.... If I'm feeling down at other times, I also like to buy flowers and it makes a difference!
Among the commercial, cut flowers, it seems that not many have the scents that they used to...? But there are some, here and there. One time, I had a wrist corsage made from a "delphinium orchid," if I recall, and it had a wonderful fragrance!
Flowers can be very pleasant, and if they give off a sweet scent it's an extra bonus!
Friday, March 17, 2017
St. Patrick's Day
Happy St. Patrick's Day to all the Irish and their friends...! My son is part Irish, also.
Thursday, March 2, 2017
Nature Art--35
Dealing With Early Childhood Illness
When my son was a little over a year old, we had a number of aggravating factors that affected him and he got a serious case of croup. He ended up being flown by air ambulance to the children's hospital in Vancouver, since we lived in British Columbia, at that time. www.bcchildrens.ca My husband wasn't able to go but I went to stay in Vancouver, to be near my son; and we were there for approximately a month. My son's illness was considered to be life-threatening, at the time.
In Vancouver, I spent most of my time with my son at the hospital. Besides my presence there, I wanted to do everything that was within my power to help my son and to supplement the hospital care and treatment.... My mother had been a massage therapist and I massaged my son.... Whenever possible, I took him outdoors to get sunshine and fresh air.... And I happened to have some aloe vera products with me, which my mother had been selling. www.foreverliving.com My son had a tracheotomy tube for a little while and after it was removed, I had a doctor's permission to give my son some aloe vera juice....
A nurses' station was just across from my son's bed, for a while, and they were somewhat skeptical of my efforts, although they mostly tried to be helpful....When the tracheotomy was first done, a nurse asked me how long the doctor had said my son would need it? I told her two weeks and she laughed and said, "Ah, two weeks...four weeks...six weeks...!--It always takes longer than they say!" But my son's tracheotomy lasted exactly two weeks, as the doctor had predicted! Then my son was discharged shortly after....
Within a 5-minute walk from the children's hospital, as I recall, there was a beautiful park called Queen Elizabeth Park.... A frost killed some of the flowers soon after I arrived, in the fall, but it was a great place to visit and take a short break on a daily basis...! And I was thankful to the hospital for all their care of my son.... The hospital also had beautiful grounds with some teddy bear statues and things that made it more fun for the kids.... And I was thankful to God for helping my family get through this difficult time....
In Vancouver, I spent most of my time with my son at the hospital. Besides my presence there, I wanted to do everything that was within my power to help my son and to supplement the hospital care and treatment.... My mother had been a massage therapist and I massaged my son.... Whenever possible, I took him outdoors to get sunshine and fresh air.... And I happened to have some aloe vera products with me, which my mother had been selling. www.foreverliving.com My son had a tracheotomy tube for a little while and after it was removed, I had a doctor's permission to give my son some aloe vera juice....
A nurses' station was just across from my son's bed, for a while, and they were somewhat skeptical of my efforts, although they mostly tried to be helpful....When the tracheotomy was first done, a nurse asked me how long the doctor had said my son would need it? I told her two weeks and she laughed and said, "Ah, two weeks...four weeks...six weeks...!--It always takes longer than they say!" But my son's tracheotomy lasted exactly two weeks, as the doctor had predicted! Then my son was discharged shortly after....
Within a 5-minute walk from the children's hospital, as I recall, there was a beautiful park called Queen Elizabeth Park.... A frost killed some of the flowers soon after I arrived, in the fall, but it was a great place to visit and take a short break on a daily basis...! And I was thankful to the hospital for all their care of my son.... The hospital also had beautiful grounds with some teddy bear statues and things that made it more fun for the kids.... And I was thankful to God for helping my family get through this difficult time....
Guest Nature Art
The Cameras I've Used
The cameras I used for most of the earliest photos in this blog were a 110-size instamatic--I don't recall the brand--and also disposable cameras which contained 35 mm film.... Then I was able to buy a used Minolta SLR camera from a second-hand store. The salesman said it was in "pristine condition" and I enjoyed using it for a number of years, even though I had only one lens...and a tripod.
In 2003, the Minolta company joined with Konica; and in 2006, I believe they sold their camera division to SONY. www.sony.ca
There came a day when I accidentally dropped my Minolta camera on the ground and wasn't able to repair it.... I used some disposable cameras again, for a little while, and they weren't identified as 35 mm or anything special, that I recall...? I also don't remember the brand names.... Then I got an Olympus Digital e-420 camera and I've enjoyed using it.... It has both automatic and manual focus options on it.... www.getolympus.com
Have never actually taken a photography class but I've learned on my own from books, somewhat; and I belonged to a camera club for a while, as an online member.... It seems the club is no longer functioning, at this time. In the distant past, I also took a commercial floral-design course by correspondence; and all the teaching designs were simple drawings within frames.--I learned some principles of design on paper, which was similar to looking at photographs.... Even though flower arrangements are different from photos, of course.... But you never know where you can learn from...and if you get started, you can learn as you go along...!
In 2003, the Minolta company joined with Konica; and in 2006, I believe they sold their camera division to SONY. www.sony.ca
There came a day when I accidentally dropped my Minolta camera on the ground and wasn't able to repair it.... I used some disposable cameras again, for a little while, and they weren't identified as 35 mm or anything special, that I recall...? I also don't remember the brand names.... Then I got an Olympus Digital e-420 camera and I've enjoyed using it.... It has both automatic and manual focus options on it.... www.getolympus.com
Have never actually taken a photography class but I've learned on my own from books, somewhat; and I belonged to a camera club for a while, as an online member.... It seems the club is no longer functioning, at this time. In the distant past, I also took a commercial floral-design course by correspondence; and all the teaching designs were simple drawings within frames.--I learned some principles of design on paper, which was similar to looking at photographs.... Even though flower arrangements are different from photos, of course.... But you never know where you can learn from...and if you get started, you can learn as you go along...!
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