nesting

Special Delivery

We have an old fashion mail box post at our house. You know the kind you see when you cross the border to the states. The ones that are on a stand, and have a little red flag to indicate when full. We found it at an old antique warehouse in seattle and fell in love with the idea. I can remember the first day we actually had the mailman deliver- we were very excited.

Well, I was just as excited when I reached in the other day and pulled out the 2008 Westcoast Seeds Catalogue. As many die hard gardeners can share, this is like Christmas all over again in January. Leafing through the juicy booklet, discovering new seed varieties and secretly plotting my vegetable patch somehow gets me through these dreary winter days. I must say the more I grow, the more I learn, and the more confident I get with seed planning. As there is only so much room in our little backyard, this year I am committed to growing only what we will actually eat. So for now the beautiful, colorful, big cabbages will have to find room in our perennial beds!

A few varieties I am looking forward to trying:

Beets- 'Chioggia' (Italian Herritage)
Broccoli- 'Purple Sprouting'
Carrots- 'Rainbow Blend'
Corn- 'Serendipity'
Eggplant- 'Fairytale'
Scallopini Squash- 'Sunburst'
Lettuces- 'Tangy Mesculan' and 'Buttercrunch'

Beauty Lost

   

I was recently on a walk, on one of our glorious Sunday afternoons and noticed two very alarming changes to our cityscape. One has occurred on 4th and Yew. The other on Drake and Seymour. The buildings are certainly heritage status, but what is going in- is far from that.

The once Koolhaus and Liberty stores are now being housed by Le Chateau and Shoppers Drug Mart. How is this allowed? More importantly how does it make any sense to de-beautify our streets, by adding two chain stores, into buildings that are both historically and architecturally distinctive?

This reminds me of when, Caban folded and turned into a warehouse type store that looks as though it has just set up shop temporarily- like those 3 week closing out sales you see dotted all over New York City. 10 more days, Everything must go!

I think we need more preservation in a city that is growing so rapidly. So whoever it is out there making these decisions- city official, whoever you are, consider this: Is it enough to retain a building because of its heritage, when the inside's soul and heart of the place, is lost?

A Mini Break

We took a few days to visit family down in Seattle and discovered a great neighbourhood called Ballard. It has wonderful restaurants, inspiring studio spaces and great window shopping. Some of the spots we loved were: Great Harvest Bread Company, Volterra, Blackbird, Greener Lifestyles, Tableau, Archie McPhee's, Olivine, and Twenty Twenty. We will be back again in about a month to head to the Seattle Garden Show and check out some more new hot spots. Now, if we could only get paid to travel!

Clean Sweep

There is something about January and the change into a new year that makes me want to clean house. Call me an organized nerd, but sorting through closets, pantries, cupboards and boxes makes me feel so good. There is something therapeutic about the process, and it reminds me about all the stuff that I have been collecting over the past year. It also gets me to evaluate for change.

I have to say that getting rid of the dirt and grime, although at the end pleasing, is not the fun part. But what has made this process actually- well, fun is my new obsession with eco-friendly products. Over the past year I have tested a few brands and have found some awesome results. The product that brings me most pleasure and a little smile each and every time I use it is, Method.

Not only is their packaging design savvy, their smells oh-so yummy, and their marketing ingenious people against dirty, they actually work too! So, if you haven't already become an addict, like me, go grab yourself some of this goodness. My absolute favourites are:

Method Daily Shower
Method Laundry Detergent
Method Dryer Cloths

Who knew cleaning could be so fun!

      

   

Turning A New Leaf

A New Year is upon us and with that always comes the sentiment of hope and a new breath for change. Like many of you I am sure, this step forward brings that overwhelming sense of resolution. So why is it, that this simple act of resolving, turns into a giant act of solving. Everyone is guilty of this. The long lists of changes we wish to make, habits we wish to break and new and wonderful lives we wish to lead.

There are the general ones that have no measurable effect at all:
Be more open.
Get in shape.
Volunteer.
Recycle.

And the concrete ones that will eventually crack after a month is up:
Eat 3 healthy meals a day.
Floss before bed each and every night.
Drink more water, less booze.
Take necessary vitamins daily.

So, as I attempt at some of the above and do plan to follow suit as best to my abilities, I am taking a different approach this year. O and I played this game the other morning. What will 2008 hold for you? In one word describe what you see for the year.

O said: Bigger
I said: Momentum

So with that we are off. 2008 here we come!