Life According to my Blackberry

I've been so busy planning, working, planting and spring cleaning that I've neglected to share my life around these parts. This spring has been really exciting for me, full of lots of firsts. I spend a lot of my free time reading, doing yoga, tending to my sprouting garden and learning Polish for my upcoming trip. I refuse to look like a flippant tourist with no interest in local culture or language but that takes a lot of time and dedication. I do stop to take photos now and again, mostly at work and at home. Here's a little update of things that peaked my interest.

    

    

I took these photos from the MacNab St. S. underpass mural, painted by Laura Zajacz and Becky Katz along with 30 volunteers. During winter and early spring I often think of Hamilton as a grey and dingy city (albeit with a great spirit) but it just takes some walking around to find bursts of colour throughout the year. That feisty chipmunk is currently my phone's wallpaper. 

This cheerful message is on the side of a church in our neighbourhood. I always smile when I walk by.  

    

    

Have a nice day is something I say pretty frequently at work. I decided to take my day job to another level and teach myself some latte art skills. It is a lot harder than it looks. Hopefully one day I can present you with some nicer designs. The fern leaf and the heart have been hard to master, usually I just try my best with abstract designs. 

Here are some of the fancy tip questions I came up with at work. My answers: 1) Yes, aliens probably exist. 2) I was born to be wild. 3) Dr. Frankenstein's monster, while mostly misunderstood, is made of dead people stitched together. I can't think of anything scarier than that!

My roommate Jesse and I saw this in a shop one day, we thought it was pretty funny looking... or avant garde. We couldn't decide.

I got some colourful new shoes.

    

On the left is a photo of my "old garden" of potted plants. I've been holding on to some of these plants for 3 or 4 years. My "new garden" or grow-op as I more affectionately call it, is on the right. On Monday, Jesse, Rysio and I spent a couple of hours filling containers with seed starting mix and planting all sorts of flowers and vegetables. I'll keep you updated as things begin to sprout. I've already spotted a few marigolds and radishes rearing their delicate heads. It is so exciting to see the fruits of your labour begin to develop!

Finally, the above cookies are eight of the giant batch of sugar cookies I baked today. It was my first time testing out royal icing, it was fun but challenging. It's hard to get those super fine lines! I had a fleeting moment where I thought I could do this as a career but I'd prefer to keep on enjoying baking instead of seeing it as a tedious chore (the way work can sometimes seem). 

I'm off to wander around the city and take pictures in the glorious springtime light!