Jill Browne, from home and away

Friday, March 11, 2011

Home: Calgary, Alberta, Canada

If you fly into Calgary on Air Canada, you often find yourself at the “A” end of the terminal. There’s a bronze statue of a cowboy’s head, huge, you can’t miss it.

That’s Sam Livingston. He was one of Calgary’s pioneers, originally from Ireland.

He had a farm in a sheltered part of the Elbow River Valley. The microclimate was pretty good there.

The farm is underwater now. We call it the Glennmore Reservoir.

You can stand at Sam’s house, moved to Heritage Park on the high ground above the reservoir, and look down at where the farm was.

Thursday, March 10, 2011

Home: Calgary, Alberta, Canada

Maybe I just need to stop being friends with people on the west coast.

One has already got heirloom tomato plants sprouting in her outdoor greenhouse.

Another is blogging about daffodils and such like.

We aren’t.

The Harry Hays Building, Downtown Calgary. Photo by Jill Browne, February 22, 2011.

Saturday, March 5, 2011

Home: Calgary, Alberta, Canada

I took the dogs out for a walk, since it was sunny and not nearly as cold as it’s been this week. Only about -10 C.

This picture from about two weeks ago shows the east side of the Harry Hays Building on 4th Avenue SE, right downtown. Many people know it as the place you go for passports, though in recent years there has been a more convenient office in the deep south. (More convenient for anyone who doesn’t have to go downtown and isn’t in the far north end of the city. Free parking.)

I remember going there for tax stuff once upon a time, and also I think I had a job interview in there where they fingerprinted me. When I asked if they would destroy the finger prints if I didn’t get the job, I was met with stares of complete incomprehension. Who knows, maybe I’m on file.  That must be what’s been curbing my criminal tendencies lo these many years.

The Harry Hays is one of the few office buildings at the east end of downtown. Very convenient for Chinese food.

Monday, February 28, 2011

Home: Calgary, Alberta, Canada

I love, love, love to travel.

I hate, hate, hate to pack.

Hmmmm.

Sunday, February 27, 2011

Home: Calgary, Alberta, Canada

As the city limits expand, there are more opportunities for humans to move into the territory of the native wildlife.

A couple of years ago I was driving around to the southwest of town and saw a cougar up close and personal. It was chasing a coyote.

The cougar had an exaggerated jutting jaw, just like the Pink Panther.

It was also much more of an orange colour than I expected. In the zoo and in photos, cougars always looked tawny to me, more golden than orange.

The truly orange animal is the fox, though.

On another day, on that same road, I sat in my car and watched a curious, beautiful fox for ten minutes. They really are gorgeous creatures.

Saturday, February 26, 2011

Home: Calgary, Alberta, Canada

At the beginning of February, we look for the groundhog to foretell the winter and spring dividing line.

If that doesn’t work, we watch the first of March. “In like a lion, out like a lamb.”

I actually think that’s it, that’s the whole saying.

But, in grade school when we were little kids, we would treat it as a prophesy.

“In like a lion, therefore, out like a lamb.
In like a lamb, therefore, out like a lion.”

The thing is, at the end of the month we would be too distracted by the thrill of April Fool’s Day to remember to watch the weather.