Festive season snippets..all is calm, all is bright.

The festive season is in full swing...
socials, lunches, parties, shopping, baking, gift giving, concerts, Christmas Carols, decorations, egg nog lattes and gingerbread houses are just a few of the highlights that I savour and enjoy.
It is a busy time of year.

Maintaining balance and calm we like taking a drive in the country and having a healthy lunch in a waterfront bistro.

These beautiful swans look pretty content nibbling in the farmer's field.

You can see the pumpkins in the back ground and the raindrops on the window of Mr. HB's car.

Caesar salad with kale and romaine lettuce.

Served at Haro's waterfront bistro in the Sidney Pier Hotel.

I spy with my little eye a wee kitten in an Advent calendar...

in one of the shops along Oak Bay Avenue.

Felted animals...

I have a serious crush on these charming wee cute and cuddly creatures!

Christmas Tree in the lobby of the Laurel Point Hotel where we took in the annual decorated gingerbread house display.

The baking and decorating of the gingerbread displays is quite impressive.

I remember trying to make one years ago and it listed so far to the right that it fell apart!

Neighbours are decorating...

the streets looks quite bright and festive.

Oops 

a gold bauble blew down in the gale force winds...

I stopped on my walk to capture the image not realizing that I would be visible in the reflection.

I'll be posting sporadically over the next weeks as there are so many wonderful and engaging activities to enjoy.

Right now I have my nose firmly planted in Louise Penny's latest novel 

the Inspector Gamache mystery series..."The Nature of the Beast" is brilliant!

If you have never read Louise's books start with the first in the series and work your way up.

She uses the same characters and they develop over time.

Thank you for stopping by...

Home Sweet Home and a quick recap of our Sea Ray Cruise.

We are back on dry land at home in The Humble Bungalow.
Our boating trip was mostly fun and we relaxed, read our books and ate simple meals...

The first port that we visited was Telegraph Harbour Marina on Thetis Island...probably our favourite spot.
The weather was lovely, sunny and warm during our 5 day stay and we got together with friends who live on the island.

I spent a delightful afternoon playing bridge at the Community Centre.

I wore the white scarf that I purchased in Paris at The Monoprix.

I feel particularly feminine wearing this scarf...it's got lots of volume but is light.

I wore it over top an Eileen Fisher linen tank top and some black capri length pants.

I popped on some simple pearl drop earrings and my diamond necklace.

After Thetis Island we cruised to Pender Island and our first port of call was Otter Bay.

It's a rather quaint Marina but is well protected from the straits.

Quite charming and very picturesque.

There are two pools and this one is exclusively for the adults.

(I don't know who those people are, I tried to shoot around those using the pool.)

 I didn't quite manage!

We moved to Poets Cove Resort on South Pender Island and spent 4 days tied up at the dock.

Then weather was positively beastly!
We had torrential rains, thunder, lightning and hail...more rain.

Then short patches of sunshine that teased us for the next few days.

I was very grateful to be tied up to a dock and not bobbing around on anchor or a buoy.

It was an interesting/challenging/experience as we had some leaks for the first time.
The carpet in our salon got wet and stayed wet.
I am not proud when I admit that I got exasperated and at times felt downright cranky!
(at least our bed was dry!)

Our next stop was Port Browning where we joined friends and family.
Some were on boats and other were camping in the orchard.
PIDGE  ~  Pender Island Disc Golf Extravaganza...
this year we played our 10th tournament...34 people played.
The littlest ones walked the course with their parents and grand parents.

Our trophy!

We had a crab feed!

The sun came out...

Overnight the fog rolled in...

and after it lifted we left for home port in Tsehum Harbour in Sidney.

The cats and house were well taken care of while we were away.

They do seem happy to see us...

I've got a mountain of laundry to attend to so I must close for now.

I hope to catch up on my blog reading too while the machines work their magic on grime.

Cheerio.

Shaken and stirred...

Last week I had a very unsettling experienced and it has stayed with me...
I am still trying to make sense of it.

It's something that has completely blind sided me

and left me quaking...

I was driving in my car...a Volvo estate, along a quiet street in Oak Bay.

 In case you are not familiar with these cars they are a very sturdy and heavy vehicle.

Anyway...

I was driving at 40 km, which is the new speed limit in our residential areas of town, 

when and I passed a cyclist.

The next thing I heard was shouting and swearing.

 When I looked back in my rear view mirror and saw the cyclist racing up to my window.

He was shouting and swearing saying I had clipped the mirror on his handle bar.

I said "oh my goodness I am So Sorry if I hit you I am SO very sorry."

"Are you OK?"

(I felt and heard nothing inside the car even though the windows were wide open)

He said "You are NOT SORRY"

"You are a terrible driver!"

"You were going too fast and passed me between two parked cars!"

I said "I am Sorry if I clipped your mirror."

"I didn't think I had passed that close to you."

By this time he was red in the face, and still yelling so I suggested that we call the police.

He was having none of this and yelled at me as he sped off...

"Respect the bike, Respect the bike!"

He then rode right through the stop sign and swerved onto the road ahead...

my heart was pounding and I was shaken.

I looked around for witnesses and saw no one.

I slowly drove away looking to see if he was in sight.

He was nowhere to be seen.

As soon as I got home I got on the phone to the police and made a full report...

I explained how shaken up I was by this event.

It was all the yelling and swearing that had me so upset.

I was not even sure that my car came in contact with his mirror but if it did I wanted them to know.

(I looked at the passenger side of my car and could find no evidence of any marks or scratches)

The report was filed and within the hour I received a call from the Police...

The previous week there was a report exactly like mine...

a driver reported a cyclist who intimated that his bike had been hit 

the driver had no idea or evidence to that effect

an apology was forthcoming ~ despite lots of shouting from the cyclist.

The driver had filed a report with the station and the cyclist had not.

The officer assured me that I was right to report the event and counselled me not to lose any sleep.

I consider myself a very careful driver and I look for cyclists.

I obey the speed limits and am very aware of pedestrians.

I drive defensively...

Now I am left uncertain, shaken and wondering...

and I'll never know for sure.

Sitting with a mug of Lapsang Souchong Tea

on my wee patio

by the back door

listening to the birds

watching the bees flit from flower to flower

trying to make sense of this event.

What have I learned from this?

I'll never know if my car clipped his mirror...

but one thing for sure is that I'll be on the look out for this same cyclist

in case it happens again.

Life is full of unanswered questions...

Thank goodness for the roses...

they are such a cheerful tonic and I hope in time this feeling of unease will fade.

Hope you enjoy your weekend.

Hostess

XO

I've got the blues...OOTD

Today I'm wearing a BOHO OOTD...
an asymmetrical tunic top in indigo and cobalt blues.

The top is a bit of a departure from my usual conservative classics but it's such a bright and energetic piece that when I put it on I feel instantly happy!
I love the power of colour.

There is black mesh at the neck and the bottom with a section of the hem gathered up on one side...

made by Papillon.

Yes my hair is wet but it is too hot to blow dry it this morning.

I snapped this photo to show a new CC cream that the gals at the Pharmasave told me about...

It's specifically made for those of us with rosacea.

I am so in love with my new Mulberry back pack bag. 

Shopping and walking is so much easier and it's fashionable too...

it's smaller than my usual bags which makes my shoulders happy!

The Paris inspired red lipstick is getting lots of wear.

It's inexpensive, made by Maybelline, and the shade is called Pleasure Me Red!

I pulled out my sapphire ring when we took Mother out last Sunday for her birthday and I have been wearing it ever since...

Mother celebrated her birthday in style at The Empress Hotel's Bengal Lounge.

My sister and our spouses surprised her with a dinner in her honour...

it's not everyday that one turns 88.

I wore my Jones of NY wrap dress to dinner.

The jingle jangle of the bangles...

It's been a fairly quiet week so far.

The weather has been hot and I have been keeping the blinds closed to maintain the cool here in our Humble Bungalow.

 I've been outdoors dead heading the roses like mad...they LOVE this hot weather!

I picked a bouquet of white Iceberg roses and placed them in the Vintage French pottery jug that I bought on my recent trip. They look lovely in our wee bathroom on the main floor.

So that about wraps it up for now...

our darling grand daughter turns 5 this weekend and I am wondering where the time has gone...

how can she be 5 already?

Hope your week is ticking along nicely...