For the past two years I’ve participated in Cardinal Guzman’s monthly photo challenge, The Changing Seasons. I’ve enjoyed the exercise each month of reflecting on the photos I’d taken and giving the month a theme … that’s just my thing. I’m always looking for a theme.
Well, I’m back again for another year of Changing Seasons and I hope you’ll enjoy my 2017 monthly journey … or better yet, join the photo challenge too.
So what can I say about January?
In summary, my month has been great. Toronto’s weather has been all over the place from white-outs to balmy spring weather, but my mood is light because my injured shoulder has finally healed and I’ve hit the ground running with enthusiasm.
Outdoors has often been snow-covered and/or icy, but that hasn’t kept me inside for long (click on any photo to enlarge).
The seemingly endless days of grey don’t usually drag me down, but to counter-balance, I’ve been attracted to anything with colour that contrast against the moody skies and dirty snow … like all the great murals I found on the buildings in Midland, Ontario.
With the Christmas season of bright decorations behind us, any structure that shows a splash of colour seems to stand out at this time of year.
On cold and blustery days (and we had a few!), it’s been about hunkering down for some comfort at home. Lots of cuddle time with my furry one and tinkering with new recipes in the kitchen.
As we approach the end of the month, I’m in the process of packing for a few days of warm, sunny weather in Florida and the company of my lovely sister … both a very rare treat for me in the dead of winter. I’m looking forward to this radical change of season – even if it’s only for a few days.
Check out Changing Seasons at Cardinal Guzman. Maybe you’ll be inspired to share what your world looks like too.
ooh I’d be with the cat on the furry blanket!
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Cats know how to snuggle in somewhere warm and relax!
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How adorable street views! I love it how you find colours.
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Colours look so different in winter. They aren’t competing with all the lushness of nature and can stand out against all the greyness.
Now if only we could get the fashion industry to embrace something other than black for winter wear!
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The murals sure are a bright treat on a gray day! I’m glad your shoulder is better.
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Thanks Amy 🙂
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wonderful expression of winter
to inspire a dose of warmth 🙂
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Winter can make me angry and grouchy, but that’s not a great response to such a large part of the year. Much better to embrace its beauty – as best as I can 😉
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I am so glad to hear your injury is healed!! Such great news.
As for your photos…wonderful. I love the bright colors…and that cute little sled and skis hanging on the pole…precious!!
And what better than a kitty or pup to snuggle with in cold weather!!
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Thanks Tree 🙂
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[…] on Joanne’s January entry to Cardinal Guzman’s monthly photo challenge, I commented that “I would like to join in, but […]
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So many great pics! I like the ‘Paris je t’aime’ hidden in the window too. But I think Theo and the s’mores win!
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Our cuddle-bunnies always win ❤
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Must look up those Midland murals – great colours! The photos of your cat and the rice krispie rolls brought to mind this new Scandinavian ‘hygge’ trend…enjoy your winter escape with your sister.
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Thanks 🙂 I’m sure all the Danes are laughing at this ‘new’ trend that’s finally found its way to Canada 😉
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Love the sweet kitty!
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Thanks 🙂
He’s a really loveable guy!
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I can imagine!
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Love the pop of red in the grey landscape! Have fun in Florida!
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Thanks Jan. I’m enjoying this summery interlude 🙂
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The mural photos are fabulous.
What a beautiful feline eyeing those yummy looking rice krispie treats.
Glad to hear you mended well! Enjoy your travels!
Peta
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Thanks Peta. These few days in the sunny warmth have been wonderful. It will be difficult to go back home
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Have a wonderful and warm getaway with your sister! Sounds marvellous. You have done a great job of finding some colour in the midst of Canadian winter.
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It’s so sad that most of our Canadian wardrobe seems to involve an abundance of dark and dreary blacks and browns. If there were more bright colours, I think a lot of our seasonal sadness would go away.
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Well perhaps we should be rebels and wear pink and orange in winter!
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… and bright blue! Always a good colour choice 🙂
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I must admit, seeing those colourful murals brightened my day! It is been so dull & dismal the past week & it’s not looking like this week is any better. Hope you have an awesome time with your sister & that you are able to grab a little sunshine while you are there!
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I know what you mean – I pretty well squealed when I saw the lighthouse 🙂
It looks like I’m going to luck into temperatures in the mid-20s and sunshine. Not so hard to take at this time of year 🙂
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Absolutely wonderful post! What a talented photographer you are. I love the murals. I rediscovered my love for s’mores a couple of summers ago with family in the mountains on a cold night. Yummy! Have fun in Florida, Lori
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Thanks for the lovely compliment Lori!
I never went to camp when I was a kid, nor did I venture into the world of Boy Scouts with my sons, so this was my first experience with s’mores. I’m rather picky about my chocolate and so my next excursion will be with premium chocolate rather than baking chocolate chips 🙂
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I always enjoy the color in your photos/ These are wonderful scenes from winter, and it’s easy to see how you keep a good outlook. Of course, having that wing of yours heal up had to help. The Rice Krispy roll-up thingies look amazing.
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All this talk about Rice Krispie Squares and S’mores is giving me a craving. I just might be raiding the freezer downstairs before this day is over to retrieve a piece – or ten 😉
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Oh my! You have some in the freezer? Oh, they would be so gone by now…so gone.
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I love to bake and since there are only 2 of us (and I would eat more than my fair share), some or most usually ends up in the big freezer downstairs for another day.
When I was taking cake decorating classes a few years ago and baking a cake every week to decorate, I actually had to start giving cake away to friends because we simply had too much.
On the other hand, when I make pie, there is never anything left after the 2nd day. Gilles + pie = no restraint 🙂
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Too much cake? Wow – that does not compute 🙂 My wife used to bake a lot when our daughter lived here and when I had a larger department at work. Now, it’s just the two of us and everybody at work seems to always be on a diet.
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glad your shoulder healed and lovely photos,,,
may we all learn from Theo
🙂
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Once upon a time I wrote a blog post about life lessons learned from my cat. I think that’s their purpose in life … to teach us how to chill 😉
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indeed, indeed
relax
chill
meow
purr
chill
relax
purr
meow
oh and lick
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Yup – that pretty well sums it up! 🙂
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forgot purrrrrrr
have a nice day Joanne
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It’s good that you don’t let the grey weather drag you down. Hopefully I’ll get to see Toronto this spring, but now the immigration wants some police certificates before I can enter… Hip hooray for bureacracy! 😀
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Oh crap. Good luck … the only positive thing I can say is that it’s probably better to grind through this stuff now than when stuck in Customs after a long flight.
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I forgot to mention that the murals are cool. The liven up the place. It’s always nice with some art here & there.
I’m in the process of getting a police certificate now, but it takes a couple of weeks. Anyway, it’ll all be ready in good time before my arrival.
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I love the murals!
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Thanks Corina 🙂
I think seeing them on a frigid winter day had a bigger impact than it would have had on a warm and sunny one.
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Your seasons will change dramatically when you go to Florida. Have fun down there. I hope you get lots of sunshine and warm weather.
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I’m starting to rethink the wisdom of my decision to go down for only a few days. I’m not even there yet and already I’m thinking it should have been ‘weeks’ 😉
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Beautiful photos. The cat looks so comfy. Enjoy the warmth of FL. Sounds lovely.
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Thanks – I’m looking forward to it 🙂
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I am with Theo, it’s snuggle weather. 🙂
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… and Theo really knows how to snuggle 🙂
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Like everyone else I love the lighthouse and the other murals, so cheerful! Enjoy Florida, I keep trying to persuade the OH that we should head south during the winter months, but he’s hard to persuade. Only two months to the vernal equinox so light is at the end of the tunnel! Yay!
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I can’t seem to persuade Gilles to take a winter vacation either. This is the next best thing I guess 🙂
We still have a lot of winter ahead of us. I’m going to pack in some Vitamin D to get me through the rest of it 🙂
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Those murals are so bright and colorful – like so many we saw in Toronto (and other Canadian cities) on our visit. Have fun in Florida! I hope it’s warmer and dryer there than it is here in SoCal (although I can’t complain too much about the rain). Enjoy your sista-time!
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I’ve been watching the weather and it won’t be overly hot – not a bad thing in my opinion – but there will be sunshine 🙂
… and yes, lots of sister time!!
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I love the murals in Midland. Since my cottage is close by I get to see the same murals every summer. As for snow we haven’t had a lot in January. The wet grey days are starting to get to me. I’d rather have a big dump of snow. Lucky you going to Florida for a few days. Next year a good friend is insisting that I come down to visit her in Florida when I’m retired. Have fun. Glad to hear that the shoulder has finally healed.
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haha! I’m the opposite. I’d rather have the mild, grey weather than a dump full of snow and sunshine.
I hated the really windy days we had earlier this month. I’m not a fan of the wind!
Midland is a pretty town – I was really impressed with all the murals. I would imagine that the tourist traffic in this area gets a bit crazy in the summer.
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I’m sure that the businesses in town wish it was busier.
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If I had to guess, I’d say January was the worst month for retail. It’s cold and people are tapped out after Christmas.
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Lovely images Joanne. Your posts of Toronto are giving me such itchy feet!!! I hope you have a wonderful time with your sister and enjoy some sunshine. 🙂
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It’s been a LOT of years since I’ve gone such a long period of time without taking a trip. I’m both excited and nervous. I’ll be travelling alone, which I don’t usually do and it will be my first time carrying “hardware” through airport security. It might make a good story 😉
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Good luck; and I hope it’s a really fun trip.
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Love the murals, especially the lighthouse. I had to do a doubletake to see the BUILDING! I can totally see why colors would be attractive in the winter.
Ha! when we head south we go to the KEYS…or as I’m doing next week, the Bahamas.
So…you like gators. I have a video of a gator encounter that occurred just a few days ago that you must see…he he….ha ha….oh, my! I’ll send you the link via Facebook…look for a friend request from Karen B.
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I’ve never been to the Keys, but I understand it’s beautiful down there! I’m going to FB now to look for that video 🙂
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Every once in a while I get an idea to get over my instinct to stay away and perhaps do an eco tour and kayak through the rivers…and then I see videos like that one.
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Thanks for the warning. IF I see one, I will be keeping a healthy distance!
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😀
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Even >I< like Florida for a few days in the middle of a gray, snowy winter — it's going to be fantastic for you!
Love the murals! 🙂
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I’ve only been to Florida twice and both times it was unseasonably cold (as in, I wore my winter coat on one visit) and the skies were overcast the entire time.
This time it looks like I’ll get warm – not hot – weather which is good for me, and lots of sunshine 🙂
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So glad that you found your old step-liveliness!
I might just check into this changing seasons thing, too. But then I’d be on the hook and I must confess, I find myself resisting commitments these days. I’m enjoying the wide open calendar pages too much. So, I’ll just satisfy myself with your entries.
Bon voyage!
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Changing Seasons is a lot more informal than you might think it is. The Cardinal posts around the 20th of the month and everyone else posts sometime before the end of the month. It can be a single photo, or a gallery, a recipe, artwork, whatever the month means to you.
Even for a commitment-phobe, it would be fun.
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hmmmm, must let this stew for a bit. 🙂
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Thanks for talking Maggie into this Joanne. She posted a lovely entry just now. 🙂
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I noticed it in my mailbox. I need to go check it out now 🙂
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So happy to hear you are finally getting back out there! Enjoy Florida, I hope you have lots of sunshine, not just in Florida but throughout the year!
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Awww – thank you 🙂
That familiar feeling of excitement when you have plans in the orders is finally back 🙂
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So glad that you have hit the ground running with enthusiasm this January.
Enjoy Florida…and the luxury of sister-time!
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Thanks Donna. It will only be for a few days but I expect to have a lot of fun 🙂
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Wow, love the lighthouse building and the distressed look of the red one. Have fun in Florida!
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My favourite part of the mural on the red building is the smoke from the train engine billowing around the 2nd floor window. I’m always so fascinated by the work of creative people 🙂
A few days of sunny warmth will be very welcome right about now!
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Do bring back some sunshine. Kitty look royally happy.Great pictures. Love the blue building with the lighthouse in front. That shade of blue does something to me. Oohh. 🙂
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That lighthouse mural is simply spectacular! I’m pretty sure I squealed when we came around the corner and I saw it!
Theo definitely thinks he rules around here and expects to be treated royally 😉
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Enjoy the sun on your face and the time with your sister. Both are pretty special this time of year. 🙂
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I’m definitely looking forward to both! 🙂
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Rice Krispy S’mores! I bet those were yummy! I like that Lighthouse. I love red and white lighthouses though.
Have a wonderful and safe time in FL!
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It’s pretty hard to get a rice krispie square wrong 😉
The lighthouse was a big wow. On a very cold blustery day with snow clouds threatening, seeing this was a treat.
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You sound so cheerful, Joanne. 2017 looks like its off to a great start. Enjoy your time in Florida with your sister. That will be nice break and then spring is right around the corner (almost). 🙂
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You’re right, Diana. I AM feeling cheerful 🙂
I have pretty well zero expectations from 2017, so it won’t be hard to really delight me 🙂
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Where in FL is your sister, Joanne? ‘Cause I’m here in Florida!
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I’ll be in Fort Myers … and you?
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Nope. I am in NW Florida–the Panhandle. No one comes this way! 😀 Have fun!
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I did … once. Panana City for Ironman Florida. It was my last IM in 2010.
The race is always held in early November and the weather wasn’t particularly warm. It was only around 45F in the morning for the ocean swim. I remember standing on the beach waiting for the race start and my bare feet were absolutely FREEZING!
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Have fun in Florida 🙂
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Thanks 🙂
I’m currently in the process of unpacking all my summer clothes to see what I should bring with me. No complaints here.
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Love that mural with the lighthouse and bright blue wall of sky! And the train mural is pretty special too!
Glad that you’ll be enjoying a short warm up in Florida. The weather has been delightful this month. It will be cooler the next day or so before rebounding again. Hope it’s perfect for your visit with Sis!
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That lighthouse is my favourite! When I saw it as we were driving down the road, I actually squealed 🙂
Anything warmer than freezing will be a nice change. This might sound silly, but I’ve never seen an alligator and that’s what I’m most excited about 🙂
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Lovely captures- those smores look fabulous! Theo has the right idea if you ask me!
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Theo has R&R down to a fine art 😉
I love Rice Krispie squares … they make a great treat on or after a long hike. This recipe has great potential – but next time I’ll use a very good chocolate rather than cheap baking chips. I should have known better – I’m picky about chocolate 😉
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