Penny, Blackavar, Luna, and Thor

 

This is Penny. So named because she had penny-sized spots when we got her as a kitten. As she grew, it was a bit of a joke that she should be called Loony. For anyone unaware, a penny was the coin for 0.01 cents, eventually discontinued because the material cost more than the value. The Loony is worth $1, and lorger than the penny, implying that she grew larger and with greater value over time

We thought all photos of her were lost. However, a cousin resurrected some old family pics and this was on them. She was one of our two original cats in Guelph. Unfortunately, I don't know of any of Booshy, the other one of this era.

After Booshy passed, we got Blackavar from a neighbour to keep her company. 

 

This is Blackavar. He had something of the composure of a dragon. He was born from barn cats and made his way to us through a friend. He is the most travelled cat on this list, as he lived at our place on Westwood, then Dawson, then Grange. He knew Penny, Luna, and Thor. 

 

This is Luna. Tragically, she passed a bit before her time at the age of ten. The picture of me and her was my most effective image on dating websites. She was a quirky girl. One of her favourite things was broccoli, and when given it, she would carry it over to the pet rabbit to share.

 

We got Thor at the same time as Luna, from a family over Kijiji. He was the elder, and I got the impression that Luna was acquired to be his companion. The family had recently had a baby and I think they thought he'd need more attention than they could provide. However, the introduction was understandably rough, as you would expect if you've ever gone through the process of integrating cats. As it turned out, they were a little quick to decide if it was working, as Thor and Luna eventually managed to become friends.

Thor was six years old when we got him but had good longevity, living to be over twenty. He got to know Blackavar, Penny, Castor, and Pollux,

Winter Pics 2025-2026

 

 

 

This year the snow came so suddenly that it took the trees by surprise! I woke up to see leaves on snow, not knowing why it seemed weird before realizing that it's usually the other way around

 

This would turn into the snowiest November in 75 years 

 

We've had a few flash thaws followed by freezes. Dangerous for the trees, as this can weigh down their branches. Pretty though

Nothing too scenic, but these were taken the day after the flash freeze photos. Like a completely different season

Mine and Lee-Anne's footprints, side-by-side

I usually can't get such clear shots of birds, although I had to use zoom so it's still a little blurry

 Just a neat shot of the sky being split by a rift between clouds 

Paintings 2024 - 2025

I only did two paintings this year. Both of them were tarot-inspired, based on cards they kept getting during readings. Something kind of cool that I did this year was, I took pictures in stages instead of just the final product.

 

 

I kind of wish I'd have taken a photo of just the background, but this is where I thought to start documenting. Mostly, I was just really happy with what I'd done and was intimidated by the next stage, so I wanted evidence that it looked cool at some point before I screwed it up.

 

The crow is a symbol of freedom to the person I made this for, which pairs well with The Magician, as it represents the potential to become anything.

 

The infinity symbol and top half of the sceptre are a little wonky, but otherwise I was pleased. 

I thought I would screw up the angling of the table featured in the original image. To get around this, I did a stump, which is not only easier to paint, it's also more crow-like.

One of my pet peeves about tarot is that Pentacles and Cups are the same colour. So in this one I made the Cup a silver-blue. I also gave the sword a green handle.

 

 

The foliage creeping up the side was to cover up a black blotch that was made when our cat Kieran jumped on me. I think it looks nice though.

 

My signature on the trunk looks kind of like it was carved. I like it. 

 

I thought to take a pic of the background this time. Originally I wanted to do a tie-dye sky, as that's a symbol to the person I was making this for. I tried many ways, but it never worked out. I tried water colour and found it much more difficult than I thought it would be. Eventually, I would opt to just make it "watery" by dipping the brush, but the effect didn't really come through.

The dog and troll doll are both symbols to the person I made this for. Kind of compensating for not getting the tie-dye sky.

 I did two paintings in 2024 as well. I opted not to make a post for them, as I didn't think it was enough. But they'll fit into this one.

 

 

Art Walks, 2025

This is a repost from my main blog.  I'm keeping it there for visibility, but it did occur to me as I was writing, that it literally resembled an art gallery. It was just too applicable to this blog to not include it.

Everything below is a repost.

Me and Lee-Anne went on the two local Art Walks this year, as we usually do. The one in our neighbourhood was smaller than the one branching from downtown, which is usual. However, it seemed like the disparity was increased this year. The Central Art Walk was only eight locations, and they could be divided into two separate "clusters" with a lot of unused space between them, whereas the Frederick Art Walk was so busy that we weren't even able to complete the whole thing.

It wasn't too long ago that I would go to these things, skirt along the perimeter, snatch glances of artwork and avoid talking to anyone. This year, we were not only involved in every stop we came across, but we spent perhaps an irresponsible amount of money.

The place I got this from generously hosted several contributors, one of whom noted that I was from his neighbourhood. He was enthusiastic to explain the background of the painting to me. While it looked good in the place that I purchased it from, it doesn't quite have the same effect here. I'll find a place to display it where it's appreciated.

The top two images of the sunset and the flower vase are from someone at WALES. The bottom depiction of a cat walking by a rainbow was from someone else. They were both stationed at our office, which was hosting several artists.

We got a bunch of magnets. For some reason, these were a trend this year.

We bought a crochet cactus named Carl Tractor. Each of his line got a story associated with them, which you might see as a thought bubble floating behind him. It says: 

"He once beat an advanced computer at chess, but could never do it again. He takes his sister to the movies every Sunday."

Last year, Lee-Anne ran into someone with Girlguide cookies. She'd run out by the time we got there, but we exchanged phone numbers for when the next batch arrived. That didn't come, but when we were shopping for clay ghosts this year, the seller reminded us that she was the one that had promised cookies. Luckily, she had them in stock this time.

Stickers were also popular. Lee-Anne has been riding her bike more frequently, and she's heard that the best deterrent for theft is stickers, because they're inconvenient to remove and visually distinct. So she got a bunch on the art walks

The same guy that I buy bowls from had charcuterie boards. I wound up getting two, one for us and one for my mother and brother.

Last year I got a homemade calendar, which I was hoping to see again. The house was open, but there were no calendars this year.

Kenabeek Pics, Summer 2025