Dog Treats

Well ... once again, it has been a while ... I have been feeding my soul with art, drama and companionable food experiences ... almost all, courtesy of my flurry of pet sitting activity last month.

Tamarak's show opening was a great success.  I particularly loved her flow paintings in which the brilliant colours stand out against very dark backgrounds, especially the two that had clearly defined boundaries within them.  My two favourites sold immediately.  She sold about a quarter of her canvases in one afternoon.

The day after the opening, Tamarak and her family came here for an afternoon of snacks and wine.  We were seven humans and four dogs so we enjoyed a full house of activity.  Tamarak's brother took away the high chair I am making funky for an expected baby so that it could be made completely stable.  I have it back now and am ready to begin painting.  Just waiting for the ultrasound to tell me which colours to choose.

On Tuesday I spent a good part of the afternoon at Le Hibou with a friend from my Mongolian travels.  We perched in the booth that gives a panoramic view of the river and an owl's eye view of the whole cafe.  I had the moules frites; she had a salad; we discussed writing.  She has been asked to write an article for a northern magazine about her teching experiences in the Arctic in the sixties.  The whole afternoon was a treat for the senses and the mind, and the laughter we shared was a real bonus.

On Wednesday, we celebrated Tamarak's birthday by going to the GCTC to see Blood.Claat, an amazing 90 minute show written and performed by d'bi.young.anitafrika.   She is wonderfully talented, seemingly inexhaustible, and intelligent.  This one woman show which combines elements  of "biography, poetry, music, myth, magic, monologue,  and dialogue" is performed with an energy that crackles and surges like lightning or storm-lashed waves, but also with very human warmth. On a stage fitted with only corrugated steel walls, a stool, a washtub, a bottle of Dettol, and a clothesline, she created not only the Jamaican setting but also the illusion that there were several other characters.  She moved smoothly from the central role of the fifteen year old protagonist to the other roles in an absolutely convincing way.  Everyone from the religious auntie to the stern grandmother to the cool boyfriend came to life.  If you have a chance to see it, do.  It runs till March 21st.

Yesterday I was in town  running errands at such diverse locations as the Book Mart, the huge Asian supermarket, T&T, and St. Vincent de Paul.  I divested myself of "things", prepared to get rid of books, and wandered around T&T picking up things like Japanese bread, Asian sauces, smoked duck and dim sum.  I ended up with a friend at a cafe eating a kangaroo burger and looking at art.

Today I am going to another friend's to help with sugaring  ... the last of my treats for the soul.

I intend to spend next week house cleaning, working on a course I am offering, and doing my taxes.

By the end of the week I will be ready for more dog treats