Dear Mom,

You know me. I’ve always loved curry. Whenever I cook curry, it’s always a good evening. Curry invigorates my senses: the smells, tastes, and even the visual. Well tonight was a curry night and oh my it was delicious. I love how tofu picks up all the curry spices. Mint wasn’t fresh so, as I’m apt to do so often lately, my garnishes were fresh cilantro and toasted almonds. Of course, a nice crisp white wine is pretty much mandatory to go with it. Curry perks me up — it puts me in such fine fettle.

The neighbour passed me some lovely thick stalks of rhubarb from her garden. Everything grows so beautifully here. I sure wish you could be here. I miss you so. I’m going to make some rhubarb crisp with the rhubarb and may add some frozen blueberries and orange zest to it as well. I’ve found that’s always such a perfect combination — much like adding kids, beach balls, and sand to a sunny summer day. Remember those times when we’d go to Lakeview? I still remember how all those cabins — only one room in size — were lined up along the drive, much like soldiers in a parade.

Back to my curry dinner. I didn’t have any baking made (I ate the last of the cookies this afternoon and had nothing else frozen). Fortunately the mangoes have been sensational in the supermarket recently. I diced one up for my dessert though I did indulge in a shot of Sambuca to go with it. Remember that fun-loving Italian family we used to live beside next to the Low Level Bridge? They sure lived life to the fullest didn’t they?

Did I tell you Len bought me a beautiful bouquet of flowers for Mother’s Day? He specifically asked them to include oriental lilies — can you imagine? Two of the lilies are in full bloom right now and oh my the entire main floor is whispering, “we’re here … we came from Len … breathe in our intoxicating loveliness” … So, I do.
Love you and miss you. I’ll write again.

Your daughter,

Diane

Despite not being pleased at having such an unproductive day yesterday, today was full of production. I also have a cute story to share.

My dogs have had quite an adjustment getting used to having neighbours (since they’ve both been raised on and lived many years on an isolated farm). One neighbour has a dog that has become a real pain but I still have two other neighbours — yes, on one side of our yard there are two immediate neighbours (one at the top of the yard and one at the bottom part of the yard). Then on the other side is one separate neighbour. The dogs have been getting acquainted with two of the neighbours quite nicely. In fact, the one neighbour, whom I have this cute story to tell, asked me a few weeks ago if it was okay to give the dogs treats. I said sure but I’d supply them (since I’m very particular about what the dogs eat). The neighbour was hoping to make good friends with the dogs and to ensure they wouldn’t bark at them when they’re outside enjoying their yard. A great idea I thought, and so it has been.

Over the weekend this same couple has had some company staying with them and the company is complete with young children plus a dog. Their dog barks at my two but my guys only need to be told once if they should think of barking back at him. The visitor’s dog is harmless and my two dogs know it. Yesterday I noticed my male kept heading over to the lower part of the yard and sitting beside the fence, watching them. Quietly. My female did a few times too but she didn’t see what was so interesting and moved on.

Today, while I was working in the yard and later when I was fixing dinner, I noticed something unusual. My male, Austin, usually never likes being out of my sight so he’s normally inside with me or at my side if I’m working in the yard. Today, he was off on his own. Each time I noticed he was sitting, ever so quietly, with his back hunched (he does that when he gets tired). He looked like an old man sitting and watching the world go by. But Austin was actually quite taken with the people and children on the other side of the fence. And was also watching that little dog. Each time the other dog spied Austin through the fence, it began barking at him. Austin simply ignored it and a few times would turn and look at me, to see if maybe he should do something. Or maybe if he might get in trouble for what the other dog was doing. Does that remind you of your kids by any chance?

When I was fixing dinner, I stepped onto the deck just to make sure the dogs weren’t beginning to make a nuisance of themselves. My female, Pearl, had joined  our male dog and was sitting watching the goings on next door. You have to know Pearl’s personality but she’s a bit of a talker. She does this grumbling sound, similar to a growl, except it’s a grumble. She does this when she needs to go to the bathroom and wants us to let her out; she also does it if we’ve asked her to be quiet and she wants to keep at least making some sound. So there she sat, watching the neighbours and their company all the while ‘talking’ quietly to herself. I can only imagine what was on her mind!

I thought it was cute.

(No, I didn’t get a photo of that. I knew that by the time I ran downstairs to grab my camera, I would have missed the moment.)

That didn’t work. My day has truly been a waste. What if this were my last day? You see, I should have been working. I have a big project that needs at least another day and a half to finish up. I had to redo a significant part of it before I took the weekend off (long story but I had measured my pages incorrectly and it required a major re-work). I woke this morning with a swollen eye and it hurts to boot. That shouldn’t stop me from this project I told myself. I did open the computer and all the software necessary to work on my project. I checked emails, even responded to some, purged a bunch of files, and then turned on my computer itunes. I won’t bore you further, but let’s simply say I have been completely unable to do any work today – none. I mean I didn’t even take the dogs for a run for pity sake. I ate crap because I didn’t feel like making anything worthwhile. Since last night I have felt entirely drained of energy. Whine, whine, whine.

So here I sit after a day of useless sitting, some thinking, and a whole lot of procrastination. Trouble is, I have numerous tasks booked for the rest of this week and I’ll likely have to work like a dervish late into every evening to get this overdue project completed. Shame on me for not using this day to full advantage.

Well I’m sure I’m not the only one who has wasted an entire day. Heck, I could have done better had I read a book or something. Oh well, I’m done whining and I’m done sitting at the computer. My shoulder hurts, my eye is still swollen, and I’m not going to sit and think anymore. Tomorrow is a new day — and night :~)

So, have you had wasted days? How did you kick yourself and get back to the grind? Please, do tell.

I looked the gentleman in his kind eyes — eyes like one of my favourite horses, and that’s a compliment. He smiled constantly, spoke eloquently, and with such vibrance he was sure to coax the spring bulbs into full bloom. His dog was named for a kitchen party. He said her name is Ceilidh (you pronounce that phonetically like “Kay-Lee”). We spoke about other things, he mentioned his wife with such a sparkle in his eye, it was obvious he loves her dearly. He asked about my dogs, the colour of their eyes, their breed, and their names. Interrupted by my dog’s eagerness to head out for their stroll, they began to play like schoolchildren. The gentleman laughed and observed, commenting how patient and well behaved they were. We spoke for a few more minutes, more with his initiative than mine. I was busy appreciating his enthusiasm and the exchange. Listening.

We parted, each of us with such a smile and gaiety that it was obvious each of us fueled the other. I didn’t ask his name; he didn’t ask mine. But the names don’t matter, only the time spent and appreciation for each other’s attentiveness.

By the way, as I write this, the late day light is so enthralling I could easily say it has its own magic. Nah, everyone says ‘magical’ when talking of this special light — it’s like the exhilaration of a first kiss. Yea, that’s it.

One of the reasons I love black & white photographs so much is because a person’s eye naturally gravitates to the details and often to the silhouette as well. Whereas in colour, our eye naturally focuses on different areas or colours before stopping (if the eye ever does) to notice the details. Either way, an amaryllis is one of my favourite subjects to photograph.

All photographs on this site are the exclusive Copyright © Diane M. Schuller. All Rights Reserved. Permission directly from Diane is required should you wish to copy or use a photo for any purpose. Thank you for doing the right thing.

All photos that appear on this site are the sole property of and Copyright © Diane M. Schuller. All rights reserved. Permission from Diane M. Schuller is required should you wish to use a photo in any way.

All photographs on this site are the exclusive Copyright © Diane M. Schuller. All Rights Reserved. Permission directly from Diane is required should you wish to copy or use a photo for any purpose. Thank you for doing the right thing.

We all need to cook to survive but many of us can find spending time in the kitchen a bit of a chore. I admit that’s how I have felt, very often, particularly in recent years. But … guess who’s been inspired to be in the kitchen lately? Yes, and being a tad on the creative side (you’ll remember my recent foray into making marmalade).

There are likely multiple factors (less stress recently, for one) that contribute to the ripening of my creative juices in the kitchen these days.

A couple weeks ago I finished reading an incredibly interesting novel in which food and cooking was one of the main characters. It was so well written, which I really appreciate, yet it was a story about friendships and connections with people. What’s the novel you’re wondering: The School of Essential Ingredients. It’s a delicious novel by Erica Beauermeister and I definitely recommend it for all the readers out there, whether you enjoy cooking or not.

So, reading that tasty novel certainly was responsible for adding some spice to my creativity in the kitchen. Being out and about with friends has added to my feelings of well being and creativity — that’s what I call REAL social networking! Seems the more unplugged I have become, the more my creativity rises.

Two weeks ago I bought another book, The Complete Book of Small-Batch Preserving: Over 300 Recipes to Use Year-Round. So today, after taking the dogs for a bike ride, I decided to take advantage of a dull day and do some more canning.

I made the corn relish. Not only was it easy but it really took very little time — far less time than making the marmalade. This particular recipe has a bit of a southwest flavour rather than the corn relish our grandmothers made so it has a bit of a unique twist. I already have my eye on another recipe in the book that I’m going to make next. Now I have to go out and buy more canning lids.

So what is inspiring you these days?

All photographs on this site are the exclusive Copyright © Diane M. Schuller. All Rights Reserved. Permission directly from Diane is required should you wish to copy or use a photo for any purpose. Thank you for doing the right thing.

What’s of note isn’t so much that this is a dog with a toy or that each eye is a different colour. What is more unique is that Pearl normally really dislikes toys. And if toys squeak, it makes her crazy. She thinks it’s something dying — as in some living thing crying out in pain or agony. She will approach the squeaky toy with caution, carefully pick it up, and then whine and whimper as she looks for a safe place to hide it.

So we finally had to get rid of all squeaky toys in the house. A knotted rope or a bouncy Kong, however, don’t make noise so she’s okay with that. She’s just as happy carrying around an old piece of towel. Dogs (and kids) really don’t need a whole room or house full of toys — the simplest things are the best I find.

One thing I have done, is to remove nearly all my photos from this blog. I will post an occasional photo now and then but will likely remove them after a short time. If you’re wondering why, I’ll try to explain.

One reason is because of how my photos are showing up on searches. Although I only load low resolution photos, my photos are still ‘making the rounds’ and I’m afraid Google and Bing are accommodating folks quite nicely (for them, not for me). It was also brought to my attention about a month or two ago that when people search my name, some of my photos come up as a search result, including some real old ones that I’m not particularly pleased with (they are ones I deleted quite a long time ago as my work progressed and improved) — and others that I simply prefer they not be circulated. The Internet bots have likely picked them all up anyway, but perhaps if they disappear for long enough, the bots will forget about little ol’ me. So that’s the scoop.

I will certainly try to include a photo with most posts though, as I mentioned, I will likely remove them after a week or two to try and avoid having the Internet bots picking them up and broadcasting them.

Shutter Sisters is one of the blogs that I do take a moment to check out, even if those moments are few and far between. Shutter Sisters picks a word for each month; guess what the word is for March? I was inspired to post these images.

“She kept asking if the stories were true. I kept asking her if it mattered. We finally gave up. She was looking for a place to stand, and I wanted a place to fly.” ~ Brian Andreas, Story People

You know sometimes I wish I had my own private gallery space. This second photo is one that I would blow up large — I mean nothing smaller than six feet tall. I’d hang it so that the bottom of the image was at eye level and the rest of the sky rose up from there. Powerful. But alas, I don’t have a gallery. Though it really would make quite an impact, don’t you think?