Meanderings of a Mermaid

Summer in the Arctic. Yes I miss it. Here are some shots by the late great J. Most are of terrain on the Brodeur Peninsula (northwestern extremity of Baffin Island). The community is Arctic Bay, in such a lovely setting. The tent camps are typical modern mineral exploration camps, where geologists will hang out for weeks and months at a time. Quite rugged. and yes, that is snow in the gullies and the north sides of ridges. But it's a dry cold.

Tonight was the Santa Claus Parade and I decided to don the silver fox hat to keep the chill away. Same hat as in this photo. The rest of the outfit was different. It's not cold enough outside for a sealskin coat. (must be -20 C or colder for this full length parka). I raced down to the main drag and looked around for some friends. Not finding them I sat down on the edge of a wooden planter box, in the most perfect parade viewing location. A buddy from work and is daughter ambled over and he greeted me with "We noticed the fur hat and had to come and join you". He was wearing a fabulous white wolf hat. I told his daughter that I had requested of several float organizers that a lot of candy be tossed out to the crowds. Buddy and I demonstrated how we would score all the candy with the fur hats as catchers' mitts. His daughter quickly snatched his out of his hands and ran off to try. I didn't see any other fur hatted folk in our vicinity. People had cleverly park...

This project is inspired by Chrissy, an artist hanging on in Geraldine, New Zealand. She gave me the Solve bags and the general instructions. She explained that this soft pliable plastic-like material is made from corn starch. Oce immersed in warm water, the material dissolves away. With the first dumping of snow coming down around me today, I pulled out the equipment I'd need. I had several types of yarn from New Zealand I wanted to use in this first attempt of a shawl that dissolves away. The 3D glasses are optional. First, banish the dog to the hallway and cut open one bag. Lay flat. Start with the black possum and sheep wool product. I just pulled from the centre of the ball and enjoyed the angular "scribblings". A random pattern works best. I laid down some white wool boucle after that. I looked across the room and my eye caught a silk and yak wool hank I had on the shelf. It begged to be included, and so I had to divert and wind the hank into a ball. I had no c...

Undergoing a large renovation is not for the shy. My whirpool was installed in the basement when there weren't any walls roughed in. IT passed inspection a day or two later. It sat there taunting me. Coaxing me. The builder has a key to my house; soundlessly letting himself in and out as his moonlighting schedule allows. The electrician pops in an out along the same lines. I just leave the door open for him when I suspect he's coming. So there goes your privacy. There goes your evening enjoyment of the whirlpool tub. Particularly when there were no walls or doors. Thankfully the plumber came in, did his job quickly and was away. Are they gone? Are they gone for good? Maybe he just went back to his shop to get some tools???? Maybe a run out to A&W for a burger?? So you twiddle your thumbs and dare not plunge into the pool. A neat new tracking tool has come to my attention recently. It combines the analytical skills of a GPS with the communication skills of a sat phone that ...

Okay, I know many of you are doubting that I am a geologist. I never write about it here. So here's a few fly by shootings. Once the house is renovated and organized, I'll try to set up my new close up studio. In the meantime, yeah, I have a few rocks and things lying around. The man in the core is extremely special to me. I found him one day (or he found me) logging core in Northern Manitoba. The rock is an Archean gneiss. It forms the country rock to the deposit we were investigating, and as such, we logged through this stuff with ultimate speed and brevity. But this day I felt that I was no longer alone in the core shack. I looked all around me. Spooked, I checked all the doorways. I came back to the core and for some reason flipped over this piece of core. And there he was. He has travelled with me everywhere since our chance meeting. My little micaceous Mexican. And I'll make an effort to write some posts about geology. I promise. Rather than list all the mineral and r...

Not so long ago, this magical playground appeared beside the lake near my house. An organic form, rising out of the imported sand, it stunned me when I first saw it. And today, as I stood there in the raw chill wind, my thoughts raced to the spring when snotty nosed kids would be squealing all over this thing. And a thing it is. I imagine Antoni Gaudi, the architect of magical designs in Barcelona, would've played here. Born in 1852, his unique approach to architecture is much admired. Three constructions stand out: La Sagrada Familia, a fantastic temple which has been under construction for 126 years and has another 30 to 80 to go!; Park Guell, with it's colourful tiled monster and mushroom like buildings; and the sea inspired apartment Casa Batlo. Too bad I am goddess sized and can't clamber over these pegs and nets. I may not have ever been small enough to do so... but I digress. We all need such imaginative playgrounds to exercise in, whether physical, mental or spiritu...

I got a little homesick for the Arctic today, when I was talking to a friend about the wind. I miss that sensation of being knocked right over by the power of it all. Here are a few shots of central Baffin Island. It's truly a miraculous place. These photos were taken by Jethro, all except the arctic poppies. I shot those.