Childish Delight

Outsized ideas are full 

of words and images, 

tangled together, 

a myriad of balloons 

released into the morning air. 

To pick one thread, one string; 

to catch the most important one 

can seem, at first, impossible. 

Not to the scientists who see 

the possibilities.

They each take hold of 

any string and begin. 

“Touch a scientist and you touch a child.”

~ Ray Bradbury

The Thing about Ice Cream

Tropical Boba

The thing about ice cream is that it has 

a voice. It’s a very quiet voice. Doesn’t 

want to hear about the angel on the right shoulder, or the little red guy with horns 

on the left. The voice of ice cream just ignores them both, so much so that they almost start talking with each other. But not for long, because with that first cold taste of ice cream, they both turn into mush. With the sticky dribble of melting ice cream that escapes the spoon and runs through your fingers, they don’t worry about right or wrong. The little angel and the little red guy with horns have settled in their corners for a nap. The thing about ice cream is that it is good.

“My love for ice cream emerged at an early age - and has never left!”

~ Ginger Rogers

Balcony Breakfast

When the sunshines hot before it 

even reaches noon, having breakfast 

on my shady balcony is a real treat. 

Sunday’s traffic is quieter. No service 

vans, or lumbering garbage trucks to 

invade the acoustics of the street. Clear 

and clean before the church bells chime,

I can hear the birds even if I don’t 

recognize their call or tweet or chirp. 

My breakfast of egg and bacon, 

grapefruit and toast served to me, 

by me, on my mom’s china plate 

makes this a special day of the week.

One lonely scout wasp challenged me to 

my buttered granola toast and blackberry 

jam. He lost that match or maybe didn’t 

find my breakfast as delicious as I did.

“Breakfast is a beautiful, elegant thing; 

a meal to be savoured and embraced.”

~ Jamie Oliver

On an Afternoon Walk ~ A Guilty Pleasure

The wind whipped up every tiny dust mote, leaves, dirt and anything not tied down. So after I walked from bus to store to bus, I decided I deserved a Teen Burger. I have lots of treats that I like: chocolate, coffee, and anything I can graze on. But since I was first introduced to Teen Burgers in the late ’60’s, they have been my extra special and guilty pleasure. 

I’ve eaten lots of burgers from Texas to Kelowna to Victoria and anywhere in between but none have matched a Teen Burger. Today, I had a choice between an A&W and wait at the bus stop. I chose to get out of the wind, sit down and eat one of the delicious dripping bites I love. I even had coke in an A&W mug instead of a paper cup! Fresh and cold out of the fridge. Took me back many years. At home, I keep my garlic in an A&W large mug, a reminder of many days gone by.

“Food for the body is not enough. There must be food for the soul.”

~ Dorothy Day

Just Because ~ 2

Orange and Watermelon Swirl

Over time, ice cream cones have maintained a singular popularity. Despite that draw, there seems to be a teeny, tiny bit of guilt attached them. More than a just dessert, they are an extra special treat. Birthday parties, road trips, at the fair, on the way to the football game, and of course, just because. The fact that it’s 30°C was a real winner. Would it spoil my supper? Not a consideration. 

“A ‘treat’ is different from a ‘reward’, 

which must be justified or earned. 

A treat is a small pleasure or indulgence 

that we give to ourselves just because we want it.”

~ Gretchen Rubin

More Sweetness!

*Dessart Sweets Ice Cream & Candy Store

3036 13th Ave, Regina, SK

Side by side, working on writing projects in a quaint little bookstore - The Penny University Bookstore on 13th Ave. My partner finishing up a short story, I’m working on a long term writing project. Two hours in silence broken by discussing writing strategies, problems, the music of the bookstore and patrons coming and going. 

We parted ways, my compatriot drove away to eat pie, while I…….well I had to walk through a line of couples and young families at the ice cream store. Not wanting to appear rude, I joined the line.

Salted caramel and fudge ice cream chosen with care. An outside table vacated, I’m sure just for me, was perfect to sit in the sun and not let a drop of ice cream escape. Ice cream - I really needed that deliciousness.

“Forget art. Put your trust in ice cream.”

~ Charles Baxter, The Feast of Love

Sweetness and a Mystery

An Oreo cookie confection at
Elle's Cafe ~ 2811 13th Ave, Regina

Sunshine and errands ~

a matched pair for getting things done.

At days end, it’s time

for an Oreo confection

with a latte, a Louise Penny

mystery, and her Inspector Gamache.

“Just living is not enough…One must have 

sunshine, freedom, and a little flower.

~ Hans Christian Andersen

**A book review in a couple of weeks…….

Round Table Talk

Not knights of old but

new friends sharing

delightful storied histories

deliciously studded with 

relocations, careers and families, topped with plans for the future and today.

“Our story begins at home, but it doesn’t have to end there.”

~ Charles F. Glassman, author

On a Walk Home ~ Into the Candy Store

Usually when I leave my writing group, I head straight home. Have to pass right by the candy store! My focus went askew. I ‘needed’ more licorice at home. Not everyone favours licorice especially the delicious black licorice but that is their loss. Filled with candies of all sorts, I didn’t know where to start. I found several jars of licorice lining a shelf making it difficult to choose. My favourites are the cigars or pipes of soft black licorice with the little red candies at the end. The soft Australian black licorice is good too, but none were in the store.I did balance all that licorice with two bananas and some chocolate. A store clerk came to my rescue. Describing those favourites of mine she asked if any were sweet or salty. Salty? Never tried it. So she showed me: right there in front of me were these little bags of a mix of different licorices - sweet and salty. I’m willing to be brave!

“What she did have were Bertie Bott’s 

Every Flavour Beans, Drooble’s Best Blowing Gum, 

Chocolate Frogs, Pumpkin Pasties,Cauldron Cakes, 

Licorice Wands, and a number of other strange 

things Harry had never seen in his life.”

~ J.K.Rowling

High Tea on the Prairies

Brilliant sun, -18C, wondrous clear blue sky, windblown shreds of loose snow skim the highway. Snow white prairies, winter black trees sketched on it’s palette

  

We drove to the tiny town of Qu’Appelle, Saskatchewan for high tea ~ a short 45 minute drive 

from Regina on a wide highway ~ 

three women met with another friend 

who had organized our outing, 

 

In a nondescript restaurant on Qu’Appelle’s main street, 

a delicious prairie high tea was set out for us ~

a variety of tea, deli meat sandwiches, 

wonderful biscuits, chocolate covered  strawberries, 

lemon tarts with meringue, tuna bunwiches, …….

we laughed, ate, drank tea and whiled away the afternoon in easy camaraderie.

“Teatime is a chance to slow down, pull back, 

and appreciate our surroundings.”

~ Letitia Baldridge

Pen’s Family Restaurant

Canadian-Asian Fusion

40 Qu’Appelle St., Qu’Appelle, Saskatchewan

http://pensfamilyrestaurant.scvr.co

See Pen’s Family Restaurant on Facebook

Just Dessert

Not too sweet

a bit of a crunch, 

winter strawberries

 ~ seldom sweet and juicy ~

are still delightful. 

“It has been many years since I have eaten freely at my choice, fair one, 

and a plate of strawberries is all that I desire.”

~ Cassandra Clare, Lady Midnight

Only Ice Cream

It was only an ice cream cone 

on a breezy warm fall day ~

Soft chocolate with coffee crystals

swirled high in a crisp vanilla cone.

A small green jelly bean 

atop it’s delicious mound.

I do wish I could show you a picture but somehow 

it disappeared before my very eyes.

“Without ice cream, there would be darkness and chaos.”

~ Don Kardong

On a Morning Walk - Water Play

The sound of rushing water 

drew me down a set of metal stairs 

blocked when passed 

earlier in the spring.

  

  It was delightful! 

Not a graceful fountain, 

a cascading water fall nor 

rippling water over slippery rocks but 

a playful metal worked structure featuring 

a salamander at the mouth, 

squirrels atop a metal wave and 

fish flipping below ~

water cascading from the side of the long ‘creature’.

Delicate new greenery added to my delight.

A quick click of my camera and I

resumed my morning walk.

“Delight is indeed born in the heart. 

It sometimes also depends on its surroundings.”

~ Amy I. Reichert, The Coincidence of Coconut Cake

On A Morning Walk - Spring Wind

Wind

pushed against my intention 

to walk to the Bird Sanctuary

Cold

but only jacket cold. 

Not deterred, I walked on.

Down

the slope to a veering path ~ away from 

the wind tunnelled roadway

 

Wind

chastened, blew high in the trees

ruffled across steel grey waters

Waterfowl

bobbed in pairs on the lake,

gulls rode the currents of cold air.

Clouds

cotton yellowed and grey

stretched and pulled across the sky

Wind

nudged my back

encouraging me home.

“You find the strength of a wind by trying 

to walk against it, not by lying down.”

~ C.S.Lewis 

On a Morning Walk - Redwinged Blackbirds

It was beautifully familiar.

A melodious trill bouncing

from treetop to bush

but no bird could be seen

until deep in a bush

red and gold slash on black

hopped into view.

As closer I edged

the trill changed in tone

 ~ ‘chuk-chuk-chuk’ ~

the tree-top grew silent.

Photos secured, 

I edged back on the grass.

Trills resumed back and forth

I turned to continue 

my walk to dried rustling cattails ~ where perched 

a lone blackbird throating melodious trills high in the air.

(1

“Morning has broken

Like the first morning.

Blackbird has spoken 

Like the first bird.”

~ Eleanor Farjeon, Morning Has Broken (first published in 1931; performed by Cat Stevens 1971)