Other Marches

As we continue to be relatively free of snow this month, fb reminded me of a post from this week, 2017. I took these two pics from the comfort of my den while I waited for the contractor to come by to do our driveway. Our car was ensconced safely in the garage, so I wouldn't have had to shovel at all, or hardly at all.. Most people on this street use their garages only for storage. We are among the few who actually use our garage for the car -- but only in winter.

Then, I wondered what we were doing in other Marches. We certainly weren't doing much last March, nor will we be this March.

It turned out that visits to maple sugar camps were pretty habitual. The next two pictures are from our favourite place, Wheelers, which is a 45 minute drive. The first is from the restaurant and the second from the museum. They are from 2018. 

We did get there in 2019, but it was later in April when the weather was getting good. We have sometimes met Sue's sister there in years when she might have been staying at the cottage, which is closer than Toronto.

In 2016, we went both to Wheelers (first photo) and then to Temples, which is quite a bit closer. We took the kids to Temples, probably in March Break when they were still of an age to require adult minding.

We were also at Temples in 2015. We liked Temples but stopped going a few years ago when they adjoined all of their tables in rows so that they could pack more people in. We didn't like that and haven't returned. Their food was good through, and we would return (not this year though) if we learned that they had resumed normal seating. We seem to have missed Wheelers that year, I think because we had spent quite a bit of time away at the cottage.

I guess we also missed Wheelers in 2014, which is as far back as I am going to go, but we did get to Temples (first 2 photos) and Fultons (3rd photo). Fultons is the closest sugar camp, and it is quite popular, but it appeals a little more to kids than adults, or at least to these adults. Serving is cafeteria-style, and then visitors sit at benches to eat. If you require more maple syrup, you have to get up to get it.

Of the three, Wheelers is the only place to operate all year, every day except Christmas. When we have missed the spring visit, we have for sure made it in the fall when the trees are changing. Not last year, of course. Who knows about this year, but I think autumn may again become a possibility.

More Heather Selfies and Editing

Who wouldn't want more Heather, my lovely and talented sister-in-law?

After our first experiment with her taking a selfie and me trying to enhance it, we tried again. She sent me a half dozen images. I picked what I thought were the two best photos and tried to improve them with the ultimate goal being a b&w image suitable for her book jacket.

While I don't know if any will be deemed suitable, once again, we both tried our best.

She had chosen a non-distracting background for one photo, so I decided that it would be the easiest starting point, requiring the least amount adjustment on my part.

My work mostly involved reducing dark circles, brightening her face and eyes somewhat, and adjusting skin tone just a tad. 

Now, for the monochrome version. I think it is acceptable.

There was one other photo that I wanted to work on. It would require more work, but I liked her very cute pose.

I really liked the photo, but could I change the background? Replacing a background when it involves wisps of hair is not all that easy. You will also notice the other standard modifications by now: skin tone, eyes, dark circles, and face light.

The conversion.

It was a test of my photoshop skills, which are not  really that great compared to many, but one tries one's best, as did Heather with the selfies.

Which would you choose? You may also consider yesterday's photo if you wish. For convenience, I'll repost it now.

Heather

I am putting this addendum at the top in response to comments and questions about Heather and her book, resulting from my previous post The main post, below the line, has already been written, and I will leave it as is.

Heather is Sue's younger sister who won or placed in many short story contests before she got noticed by a publisher. After Clay Girl, the publisher pushed her for a sequel. Due to the vicissitudes of life, it has taken her quite awhile to complete the sequel. The two stories were originally one longer novel, but rookie authors, especially, are limited in how long a novel can be. Basically, she cut her original novel into halves. So, to answer the question about whether to read Clay Girl first, I would advise people to start with the original. Having said that, I am also guessing that Heather has gone to some pains to make Cracked Pots coherent to new readers.

One reader wrote that she had some trouble getting into Clay Girl but might try again. This is what I wrote in reply: 

I understand your difficulty with getting into the book. I am sure that I would have had the same reaction under different circumstances. 

 

It starts from the viewpoint of a young child who is thrust into a confusing situation. The fact that she's also talking a lot to Jasper, her imaginary little seahorse friend, doesn't help. It can be confusing at first, and I like to warn people about that. It does straighten out fairly shortly if I recall.

I only add this, just in case you were to feel that I am prejudiced, which I am; most people do love the book.

Onto the intended post.

==============

Speaking of Heather, the author (see yesterday's post), she required updated photos for her new book and related publicity. There was no way for her to get a proper photoshoot, especially during the recent lockdown. So the poor thing did her best by taking selfies with her phone. She then sent her images to me to see if I could improve them at all.

The first photo had a colour cast and a distracting background.

My first step was to adjust the colour. Then I darkened the background. You may see other modifications too, such as slightly reduced dark circles beneath the eyes. What she ultimately wanted was a b&w, but I worked in colour first.

Then I did the conversion.

For sure, it doesn't come up to the level of a professional studio portrait, but we both did our best.

Later, she sent me two additional photos, but I think I'll post them on another day.

The Clay Girl Sequel: Cracked Pots

It has taken 5 years, but Heather's sequel to The Clay Girl will arrive in bookstores this October. People loved Ari, the Clay Girl, and a sequel was called for. Due to trying life circumstances, it took Heather quite awhile to write it.

Back in 2016 and beyond, the great reviews for The Clay Girl kept on coming and coming, and Heather travelled as far as California to meet with book clubs.

Some of the many rave reviews can be found on Goodreads. When I clicked in, my daughter's, Shauna's, was at the top of the first page, so I will paste it here.

As I finish this book my eyes are "ocean-full".

This book.... this book.... it's a beautiful work of art much like Ari's poems and the clay pots and batik tshirts I see in my mind's eye as I turn the pages.

The characters are so robust and imperfectly human that I dare you to not believe they are real people.

The Clay Girl is a Jewel. My copy is flagged and little stars and lines decorate the pages where I've noted unique turns of phrase that ensure this book will remain a favourite of mine until forever. The Clay Girl "is a sapphire strung on" a string "of pebbles and pearls."

Then, I went over to Amazon, where I was able to reread Vicky Lane's review, which I have also pasted below. 

This is an amazing debut. The story of Ari, youngest of six sisters in an extremely dysfunctional family is told slant -- in language so poetic, so allusive, so enigmatic that for the first few pages I found myself agreeing with Ari's teachers later in the book as he reads one of her stories: "I haven't a clue what half of it means but I feel it, I see it, and on some level I understand it completely."

The puzzlement clears soon and it becomes obvious that Ari is telling her story in the only way she can --sideways because the full on reality is too harsh.

The novel follows Ari from eight -- when her father kills himself, her mother has a breakdown, and the sisters are doled out to various relatives -- to sixteen when she has an opportunity to put into action the lessons life has taught her. During those eight years, Ari bounces between wonderful, nurturing situations and people -- and other people and situations that will test all her resilience.

The beauty of the writing and the indomitable spirit of young Ari keep this book from being depressing. Horrible things happen -- but so do wonderful things.

Highly, highly recommended!

Vicky is both a blogger and author, and I recently posted my own review of her newest novel And the Crows Took Their Eyes.

Since it has been a long time since Clay Girl, I have written all of the above to remind us all how wonderful and acclaimed the novel was. The sequel and conclusion, entitled Cracked Pots, will be published in October, and I predict that it will be inspiring and heartwarming.

I feel safe in my prediction because once upon a time, I read the original manuscript when the two novels were one. While they had to be separated into two volumes for publication requirements and thus have had to be rewritten extensively, I am sure that the wonder of Ari's evolution and triumph will be maintained.  

I must end my enthusiastic prattling, by showing you the cover and the accompanying blurb, below.

Publisher Link

Winter in Retreat

I have seldom seen, or rather I cannot remember seeing, such a quick change from deep winter to an early spring. It is not that spring has actually sprung or that I am claiming that Old Man Winter is totally done with us, but he is on his way out the door. While I expect the old man to turn and spit back at us every now and then, I am looking for him to keep exiting.

February 27th from my den

On February 27th it was snowing, and I recall actually beginning to worry about the snow buildup on roofs. February had been a pretty cold month, and if winter kept on keeping on, I wondered if snow on roofs would get to be a problem.

Not to worry. Just 5 days later, the snow was all but gone from the roofs. I am pretty sure that I took another photo at the time, like the one above, for comparison, but if I did I cannot find it. 

However, I did decide to take a series of photos outside to mark the change in snow cover. I expected it to take all month for the snow to melt markedly, and it may yet, but so much went so much quicker than I expected.

March 04

March 04

March 04 was Thursday. Look at the difference by the following Friday.

March 12

March 12

All it took was a few mild days. The temperature actually climbed to 14C/57F, which is pretty high for the first third of March. It is a bit unusual for so much snow to go so quickly before mid March, and  I have, in fact, seen seen it stay even into April. In fact, the snow cover lasted so late one year that when I finally shovelled it off the garden, tulips had sprouted under the snow.

This year, some of the garden section under the tree is already clear.

The long term forecast does not predict any balmy days like we had last week, but most days will rise above freezing,

With daytime temperatures usually  rising above freezing and nighttime temperatures continuing to descend below, it should be good for the running of the sap in Lanark County, the Maple Syrup Capital of Ontario. At least we call ourselves that.

MacArthur Mill Again

When I took this photo almost two weeks ago, I thought that I should return closer to sunrise.

I knew that I couldn't wait too long because I wanted the snow to still be there with its nice lead-in along the river toward the mill, and I also had to get there before the trees leafed out to obscure the view (although that will still be quite a way off).

At the same time, I have resisted going out in the cold mornings. Besides the cold, I don't always like to rush out. I want to sit and have my coffee and ease my way into the day.

However, on Wednesday I awoke at 4, so I could take my time and still get out for the 6:30 sunrise. The other inducement was that it was only slightly below freezing.

I didn't quite make it to the same spot but took a wider view from farther away.

It is very different than the first photo, and it was a difficult one to get right. When I got home to the computer, what I saw in the RAW photo was not what I had seen on the LCD screen of the camera, and it took some fiddling and faddling in post to get the photo to look more like what I had originally perceived.

I think that I might actually like the first ad hoc photo better than the one that took the extra time and effort to shoot. But I did feel good just getting out there and making a concerted effort to do dedicated photography. I am pleased enough with both the effort and the result.

Recent Walk Attempts

They finally cleared the snowbanks by some of the accesses to be Riverwalk Trail, so we thought to use one of them. It was not the right day for this venture as we inched carefully down the icy incline (there ==>) toward the path.

I know that you can't tell that it is icy from the photo, but it was. We kept going down, hoping that there had been less thawing and subsequent freezing down on the trail, but another couple of oldsters that we met said that it was pretty slippery all along the way.

What to do?

We decided to head to O-Kee-Lee Park. It wasn't quite as icy in there, but it was  slippery enough.

I was uninspired and didn't take a single photo. Although it looks like I did in Sue's pics (below), I was really just checking focal distances for possible future photos. I would like to photograph the building across the river one night when the lights are on, and I was wondering what would be the best single lens that I might take so that I wouldn't have to haul a heavy load of lenses.

The next day, we brunched in the car as we are wont to do from time to time, and then took a saunter in Roy Brown park.

I remained uninspired on that walk.The only photo that I took was of little plants in the snow fairly near the entrance. Beyond that, the woodsy path was just dull.

While I like that little photo well enough, the photography is hard these days.