Engineers Guide to Cats

I'm sorry - but it is definitely video time at the Palace....

I found this over at Tabby Normal's blog.....



This is one of the funniest things I have seen since Evolution of Dance......enjoy!

cq

Watching the Whales (Canada 5)

Lakes and Lagoons
Butchart Gardens
Elk and Beaver
Memory

Finally, what you've all been waiting for - the Big Trip of our visit to Victoria BC. On a cloudy but nice day we set out hoping see, in my and ck's case, our first ever orcas in the wild.

We used a wonderful company called Great Pacific Adventures who run two boats, one rigid raider and one yacht. silentmum and I were wanting to go on the raider, but when we discovered the boats went out at different times, we all elected to go together on the yacht.Waiting with bated breath for the trip - 'it is time yet?' was the constant query of nine year old Boo.Once on the boat, Boo was a natural..........
We stood at the rail and scanned the water for signs of orca life....Oh my god - is that one.....?...we strained our eyes at the little black blob on the blue sea....
Well, it's definitely fin-shaped.....Yay - there's the white dorsal mark! It's a killer whale called Pender, who is a transient who has been visiting the straits for over 40yrs.

The resident orca weren't there, but Pender entertained us for a couple of hours. Orcas do deep dives, which involve a submersion for anything from 10 to 15 minutes and then three or four breaths at the surface to suck oxygen before going into another deep dive. Pender would take his breaths and then deep dive, surfacing about 1/4 mile away.....so we never knew where he would come up.

We were watching him sweep the water when we realised that, while we were staring intently at the choppy water, he had found and partaken of a little light luncheon - probably a porpoise. Without a clear view and below water it is called a secret kill.

So, we did see our killer whale and had a wonderful day out on a magical trip. Not only did we see an orca, we also saw harbour seals, stellar seals and Californian sea lions - even a bald eagle nest with a baby eagle peeking out over the edge.

It was a beautiful day out with some of my closest friends, seeing sea animals in their wild environment. A once in a lifetime opportunity.

cq

Memory

Lakes and Lagoons
Butchart Gardens
Elk and Beaver

What else did we do in Canada? - well, amongst other things we attended the Battle of the Atlantic Commemoration Service.

My beautiful god-daughter Boo was in the parade with her sea scout troop so there was no way we were missing this event!

Attended by proud veterans,
the Canadian Navy, the US Submariners, and the Navy Cadets this was a touching service to the honour of the Canadian servicemen lost during the longest battle of World War Two.

Bringing up the rear was a small troop of determined children, polished and cleaned to within an inch of their lives - stubbornly marching to the beat.

This is the image that sums up the morning - RESPECT...(Boo is second from right)

My mother summed up my thoughts about Boo when she said 'that girl is a credit to her Ma!'.......

cq

All About Racing for Life....

Cyberkitten photographed some of the essence of Race for Life....
Arriving at the venue - Lydiard Park, just outside Swindon...
3,000 women gathered, with husbands and families......spot cq!

The cadets were there to help out - dish out water, watch the course and dole out medals.

There were Faeries..........

and Runaway Brides.....

It is a time to remember....

loved ones.......

People we love and admire...
The course can be run..........

...or walked......

Open to anyone - as long as they are female.....
At the venue, there was a wall to post our thoughts, memories and loved ones.......

Hot and bothered........But I did it.......!

If you still want to donate to Cancer Research, feel free to click on the donation button in my sidebar and spend some worthy money.....

cq

14 June 2008

Today is Race for Life Day.........

I am number 3119 :-)
Thank you to all those, home and far away, who sponsored me, or donated to Cancer Research UK in my name.

I'll make you proud :-)

If you haven't yet sponsored me or donated, feel free to click on the donation button in my sidebar and spend some worthy money.....

cq

Elk and Beaver and Goldstream

Canada 1 here

Canada 2 here

While we were driving from A to B outside Victoria, I was struck by a sign - not physically, obviously....but the sign begged me to go have a look.

So in the pouring rain we visited Elk and Beaver Lake - just so I could say I had seen 'Elk and Beaver Lake'.......it's the name, it's so...Canadian!

See? Sooooooo cool.....So we nipped down to have a look.........

It was a wonderful serene place in the rain, the only activity a couple of kayakers.....

I looked to the left and there was a stand of magnficent pine trees..........

I looked to the right and a weeping tree grew into the water as if part of it's essence.

Another place we stopped was Goldstream Park - we actually went to a lookout point where we could see right across the Park.......

Hundreds of square miles of beautiful peaceful lake set in a magnificent park - and one lone sail boat.........

Breathtaking....

Please check out my side-bar to sponsor me or donate to Cancer Research for my 2008 Race for Life this month.

cq

Butchart Gardens

While in Victoria, we spent a long morning at Butchart Gardens - it could easily have been a whole day except it absolutely hacked it down with rain all day...

A little something from the Butchart Gardens website - illustrated with some of cyberkitten's fabulous photos..... "The Butchart Gardens is one of the world's premier floral show gardens.

Jennie Butchart began to shape this magnificent landscape in 1904. She established, in the style of the grand estates of the period, several distinct gardens to evoke a range of aesthetic experiences.

An abandoned limestone quarry was transformed into the dramatic Sunken Garden, a reflection of the early 20th-century beautification movement and an exceptional achievement in Canadian gardening history.

Through successive generations of the Butchart family, The Gardens has retained much of its original design, and continues the Victorian tradition of seasonally changing the outstanding floral displays."

This is the seed nursery, where the baby plants are raised and cared for ready for planting out.

I was drawn to this wonderful fountain in the former quarry - it's called Ross Fountain! 'My' fountain! Isn't it spectacular!?! Hidden delights in the Japanese garden......How about some idea how wet it was? Here's Boo on her favourite stepping stones, 'vogue-ing' for cyberkitten, complete with Mum's jacket and the umbrella provided by the Gardens (excellent idea, btw!).More another time....

Please check out my side-bar to sponsor me or donate to Cancer Research for my 2008 Race for Life this month.

cq