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 \ Niagara-on-the-Lake is the home of the Shaw Festival. The Irish playwright, George Bernard Shaw’s works, are performed here in four theatres. The Festival has added some other contemporary productions over the years. Shaw won the Nobel prize for literature in 1925 and was also the winner of an Oscar. Many people come from near and far to visit this lovely lakeside town and also take in one of the shows. I was there for the Peach Festival. All these images of the Shaw Cafe and Wine Bar were taken two weeks ago. ...

 \ It was a pleasure for me to visit one of the wineries in the Niagara region two weeks ago. It was one of the stops on our day tour. This was a trip going to the Peach Festival held at Niagara-on-the-Lake which is a picturesque and charming little town. The trip included several stops, one of which, was this winery. I took all the images while we were there and thoroughly enjoyed myself. ...

 \ All the cemetery images in this collage were taken on my last visit to Parklawn where my parents are buried. The angels are photographed from a souvenir print I brought with me from Italy that has nothing but angels. The African Violets were taken at my friend’s apartment. Events of the past few weeks have turned my thoughts to death and dying. I received news of the death of someone close and was saddened by the news and also relieved that the person’s suffering was over. Cancer is never easy. I felt grief for the wife and children of this individual and also felt the sense of loss that we all feel when a person we once knew moves into the realm of invisibility. We are also reminded of our own mortality. As John Donne said: ...

\ The three images in this collage with black frames caught my attention while I was waiting in line at my local bakery last week. They had never caught my attention before so I don’t know whether they are new or were always there. The image with the white frame is an acrylic painting that I myself did as a gift for my son many years ago. I had seen a Monet painting called “Garden at Sainte-Adresse” and wanted to try something like it. This is a scaled-down version. Putting the Canadian flag was entirely my idea. I did this because my son was away working in Mexico, and on his return to Canada, this painting was to be his birthday present. He is Canadian. ...

“Say not, “I have found the truth,” but rather, “I have found a truth.” Say not, “I have found the path of the soul.” Say rather, “I have met the soul walking upon my path.” For the soul walks upon all paths. The soul walks not upon a line, neither does it grow like a reed. The soul unfolds itself, like a lotus of countless petals.” ― Kahlil Gibran, The Prophet ...

“CATS”\ You now have learned enough to see That Cats are much like you and me And other people whom we find Possessed of various types of mind. For some are sane and some are mad And some are good and some are bad And some are better, some are worse — But all may be described in verse. T. S. ELIOT, “The Ad-dressing of Cats,” Old Possum’s Book of Practical Cats ...

 \ I have a weakness for both artsy paper products and peacocks. I’m fascinated with just how beautiful the covers of journals have become as well as greeting cards and stationary. Peacocks are ostentatious and showy and make a colourful subject to attract the attention of buyers and admirers of peacocks alike. All the images in this collage come from such products. I took them at different times because of their attractiveness and wasn’t sure how I would use them. They just seemed to be begging to be photo-collaged and this is the result. ...

 Moroccan-style Birthday\ My Birthday was last Wednesday and I wanted to celebrate in grand style. This birthday was special because my brother and his wife were spending it with me and they don’t come very often from Australia. I chose this Moroccan Restaurant because I had gone there before and thought it would be a suitable venue for my special day. The images in this collages were taken there. ...

\ We went to one of the summer events at Nathan Philips Square in Toronto last weekend. In this multicultural City of Toronto, there are many such wonderful open-air festivals taking place. Although it was called “Taste of Thailand,” it wasn’t just about tasting Thai food. Getting a “taste” of a people or a country involves all the aspects of the people and their culture that it is possible to represent. We did have some nice Thai food to eat, and on an open stage, we saw some beautiful tango dancing. There was also a demonstration of Muay Thai Boxing. Many Thai arts and crafts were on display and available to buy. There was also a Thai fruit carver demonstrating her skill and showing off some carvings she made. ...

\ This collage is to help make all of us who are sweltering in the heat of this summer day feel a little bit cooler. Toronto is hot, hot, hot! We are complainers about weather when it’s cold And we can’t stand much when it’s hot,hot hot!