So Much Talent!

I knew when I stared blogging about talent on the East Coast on Mondays that I would have a wealth of artists to pick from, but I am quickly realizing there are so many that I don't even know about, so this is really going to be a fun adventure.

I had written about my first pick twice last year, for the Cape Breton Post, and was so happy that both my mother, and my mother-in-law went there for my Christmas gifts last year.  You can find the Cape Breton Centre of Craft and Design online at www.capebretoncraft.com and on Facebook at http://facebook.com/capebretoncraft.  And it is actually thanks to a blog by Russell Thomas, who also lives in Fort McMurray about a place for artists to gather that it made me think of the Centre today.  They are now located on Charlotte Street in Sydney, and they have a pottery studio, a glass and jewellery studio, a weaving and art studio and a multipurpose room round out the lower level.  On the second level, a beautiful gallery showcases all the artwork.  You can even register on their gift registry if you want to direct people to some of your picks.

And yes, there is a wide variety of everything to pick from, and you might have a hard time picking just one or two things.  I have received a beautiful silk scarf and some wonderful mugs...and have my eye on a few things again.  What a wonderful treat for those living away to get something from a talented artist at home...and you will be supporting a local artist.

You can give an original Cape Breton mailbox, that I am sure your daughter living in rural Ontario will get lots of comments about, or an original painting to hang on your wall, or a necklace to hang on your neck.  There is so much talent to enjoy in Cape Breton!

And I might as well just get my second pick out of the way, and then you guys will all stop wondering when I am going to bring up Matt Minglewood.  I love him, I will always love him, and I will continue to promote him until the day I die...which will be before him, because he has to sing at my funeral.  There is no greater ambassador or no one more East Coast then Matt.  He has won East Coast Music Awards, the Maple Blues Award, 3 Gold Albums, a Doctorate from the Cape Breton University.  But most importantly, Matt has won the hearts of Canadians from coast to coast, to coast in Canada.  He has been taking the stage in every province and territory for over 40 years, and is the hardest working man in the music industry in Canada.  He has been playing fiddle, piano and guitar from the young age of eight, and when he takes a stage, he has the audience eating out of the palm of his hand.

I always love introducing somewhat new to Matt's music, and that was kind of hard to do when I was still living on the East Coast, but once I moved West I had a new playing field, but it is still only once in a while when I can find, usually a younger person who will get the introduction.

For anyone in Fort McMurray, who might need a new Matt Minglewood CD, please send me a message, as I do have some available out here.  Have I mentioned that I love Matt?  Yep, take a listen, and you will fall in love too....the only thing is that it is hard for me to pick just one Matt song for you to listen to, so I will pick two.  Enjoy!!!!

16 Again!

Okay, raise your hand if it feels like you just turned 16?  Okay, so maybe it has been a few years, like, 24, for me, omg, 24 years...but come on, if I close my eyes I can remember every single detail of the day.  Where the hell did 24 years go?  Or an even better question for me tonight, is where did the last 16 years go?  You see tomorrow, my baby, my first born, my Mitchell, is going to enter into another world, the driving world, and that means that I am entering another world tomorrow too, one where I get to sit up late waiting him to arrive safely home because he is old enough to drive himself every where now.

Now don't get me wrong, I am pretty much going into this world with as much resistance as I can. I prayed at nights that time would slow, and my kids would stop growing up so fast.  I watched as they grew out of their cute little work boots and overalls that I dressed them in as little boys, and their Scooby-Doo fascination seems like it never existed at all.  And even my younger son, Nathanial will be joining the "I don't need mom so much crew" tomorrow, because he of course would rather go with his cooler big brother to things now instead of having his mom schlep him every where.

If I close my eyes, I can remember the first night I got my driver's license.  It was snowing pretty good, and Dad had purchased a brand new car on the same day(I know, what was he thinking, right)?  Actually, it was mom's car, Dad always had a truck.  But I digress.  On the day I got my license, it was snowing, we had a brand new car, and in rural Cape Breton that night, there was a dance in Mabou!  If you are from rural Cape Breton, then you know, if there's a dance, then you have to go!  I begged and pleaded with mom, but she didn't think it was a good idea, the roads weren't great, and it was her new car.  Dad landed home from somewhere, and before my mother had the chance to even give him the look that said that he should say no, he had already said I could take the car and go to the dance.  I don't think I ever moved so fast in my life to get out that door before mom could get dad to see the reasoning that she put out there.  Now that I am in the same position, I am actually shaking my head, there is no way in hell Mitchell is getting my car on the very day he gets his license.  LOL...I bet my mom is turning red and saying, "It's alright that it was my car and snowing.".  Mom...you were right, I shouldn't have gotten the car that night.  And here's the confession!

I didn't go straight to the dance, and home.  As often happened as a teenager, it was all Tim's fault, lol.  I can't remember if I went to pick him up or if I ran into him at Bobby's store that night...but he convinced me to go to West Mabou, in the snow to pick up John(Wendell) Campbell.  Well, didn't I get the new car stuck in his driveway?  Good thing I was a good driver and we got it out, lol...I think Carmen(John's dad) or Angus(his brother), helped.  But we got out, and we made it to the dance, and eventually we made it home safely.  I guess there are a few stories of nights out with friends and things we did that our parents never knew.

Maybe that is why I am having so much anxiety about this change that is coming in our lives? Teenagers will be teenagers, and they will go looking for fun, and friends, and hopefully they will just remember to do it safely.  Or maybe I should just start drinking my way through the teenage years?  I won't have a car to go anywhere anyways....

Awesome Monday!

I am continuing my series of wonderful East Coast talent with two photographers that I have come to love.  Jack Ronalds hails from Port Hawkesbury, Cape Breton, and his photos highlight the beauty of the surrounding areas, the events that happen there, and the people that live there as well.  I fell in love with his photos many years ago, but I think now that I live so far away I appreciate his talent even more.  I love when he goes out for a day to a different area and posts his photos on his Facebook page.  Here is the link to his page so you can have a look for yourself. https://www.facebook.com/jack.ronalds?fref=ts.  His pictures are on many walls across Canada, and make wonderful gifts for loved ones who have moved away from  Cape Breton, or those who have been there and fell in love.  Here are two favourites of mine.

And Steve Rankin also hails from Cape Breton, and is actually from the same small village that I am from, Mabou.  I am not sure how long he has been into photography, but I only just discovered him about a  year ago, and he had me as a fan from the very first pictures that he posted on his Facebook page as well.  I love his play with light, and the way he can take a picture of an area that I have seen 1000 times, and make it look different.  He has a real talent, and I am so glad he now shares it with the world. Here is the link to his photography page on Facebook. https://www.facebook.com/SteveRankinPhotography?fref=ts  And here are two of my favourite pics that Steve has taken.

I hope if this is the first time you have seen their work that you will fall in love as much as I have. Enjoy!

Nothing like soup when it gets cold!

I love my soup, and I love it even more when the weather turns cold.  Today I had a craving for some French Onion soup, so now my house smells rich of onions and garlic.  Here is the recipe!

In a large soup pot, heat 1Tbsp of butter, and 2 Tbsp of olive oil.  Add five large onions and cook for about 10 minutes, until they start to turn brown.  Then add about 4 cloves of garlic(depending on how much garlic you like), a tsp of sugar, and a half a tsp. of dried thyme.  Continue to cook over medium heat for about a half hour.

Sprinkle 2 tbsp. over the onions and stir until blended together.  Stir in a half a cup of wine, and nine cups of beef stock, and bring to a boil.  Skim off any foam that rises and then reduce heat and simmer for about 45 minutes.

Toast some French bread slices(about 3 minutes on each side), and then float them in a cup and a half of soup.  Top with Gruyere or Emmenthal cheese and heat in oven until the cheese starts to bubble.

Great for a cold fall night!

Why do we care?

A few weeks ago I got an email from a friend, and I won't go into all the details, but she shared that she was concerned that people would think she was "big on herself" for something that she was doing.  Another friend was concerned that people that her house was "too perfect" and they felt uncomfortable visiting.  I often have the opposite concern, and worry that people will judge me for the clutter in my house, and the piles of papers that seem to gather on one stupid little table in my kitchen.  Over the years I have heard women not enjoy an event because they are worried about what others think of A)what she wore, B)what she brought for food, or didn't bring, C)and whether she was smart enough to carry on a conversation.

We worry about what everyone else thinks way too much.  And I know, we say that we don't care, or that it doesn't bother us, but I think we all do care...well, women anyway.  My husband seems to have the crazy ability to ever seem to notice or care what others think.  And he is proud of that, even putting this now favourite pic up on his facebook as the cover.

Some days I tell myself that I don't care what people think, and I think for the most part I live my life how I want to live my life.  But I have to admit, there are days that I worry way too much about why someone doesn't seem to like me, or I try to figure out what I might have done to upset them.  It bothers me so much, that a few times over the years I have asked people who seem to not like me why they didn't...sick right?  There is a little part of me that I keep trying to push down, and that is that I have always been one to be a people pleaser, and it at times, drives me nuts that I can't seem to keep it under control.  People that have treated me badly over and over still seem to be a part of my life....well, not all of them, but you know what I mean.  But I am way better than I use to be, and I have even taken to block people who just seem to have negative comments on my Facebook all the time.  You are laughing, but it took me a while to not care about such things.

Besides, I think if we all start to not care about what others think what will our society be like?  We would be a bunch of ego centric people who don't volunteer, donate or pay attention to what others need.  I guess there is a fine balance, and it seems like I am talking about balance a lot lately.

Ironically this rant comes from someone telling me that I think too much, and I am still trying to figure out if that is a good thing or a bad thing?  And why do I care?

Inspired

With this 30 day challenge, I have been reading way more than I have been in a long time, which is a good thing.  The only bad thing about it is that I read a really great blog post this morning from another writer that is in the challenge, and now I can't find it.  I would have liked to reference her, so you could check out her blog...and to let her know that she put a thought in my head for the whole day.

The blog was all about a letter that she wrote to the first person who ever made a comment on her blog, and how that comment and the others that came after keep her motivated.  So I went back to look at who the first person was to make a comment on my blog, and it was "Zara", someone I don't know, someone who just said, "Thanks for sharing."  But it was Zara, and everyone who reads this blog that kept me writing the last year.  Sometimes I think I am sharing too much, and sometimes I think my own stuff is just drivel.  And there are other days that I write something and it is something that will only mean something to me, and I will get a wonderful email from someone who related and reached out...and that is the part of writing that I love the best, when people can relate.

I had to look a little further, and who was the second person who commented on my blog?  It was Kevin Thornton, a writer in Fort McMurray, and I was absolutely tickled pink that Kevin had maybe read my blog, and then took the time to also make a comment.  You see, Kevin is by far one of the best writers that I have ever read, but I have also gotten to meet him, and he is exactly the kind of writer that I wish I could be...witty, extremely intelligent, and he has a sense of humour that trickles into his comments, his writing and his Facebook posts.  Since then I have received emails from people that I would never, ever would have imagined would read my words, but there is still something about those firsts....something about getting support from people you admire, and I have had so much support from friends both old and new that I carry in my heart, and that keeps me writing.

So thanks to everyone who has ever made a comment on my blog, shared it, read it and your support means more than you will ever know.  And Tim, don't worry, the first book will be dedicated to you!

Awesome Mondays!

I have been reading so many new blogs and wonderful talent the last few weeks, and many have inspired me to do more with the space that I take with this blog.  So for the last few weeks I was trying to think of a theme for a day that I could add and it could be a regular feature.  I have come up with Awesome Mondays, and on these days I wan to shine a light on the extreme talent that exists on the East Coast of Canada.  Growing up there I now know that we took it for granted.  It really wasn't until I moved away that I realized that the rest of the population was not necessarily completely immersed in wonderful culture and talent.  I knew singers, painters, dancers, photographers, and writers growing up and through my later years, and I want to share that blessing with everyone that comes to read this blog on Mondays.  Some weeks I may feature music, other weeks I might focus on a new painter, or a new book.  I can't wait to make some new discoveries as I go searching for what I can share with everyone.

I want to surprise everyone with my picks, but some weeks you will know the artists, but other weeks you might be thinking you never heard of them before.  The thing I won't do is kill you with details, I will just post something and let you make your own decisions.

My first pick is someone that I fell in love with just before I moved out to Fort McMurray, and I still haven't seen him live.  His name is Nathan Wiley and hails from Summerside, Prince Edward Island.  He is an amazingly gifted singer, but it is song writing that I am most impressed with, as it seems to touch varying generations.

Okay, and so the next pick is close to my heart since they hail from Mabou...my hometown.  And yes, I know that everyone from Canada has heard and fell in love with the Rankin Family, but I wanted to share them again, and I hope that some others that are now reading this blog will discover them and fall in love too for the first time.