Pat Blythe – Christmas past, NYC, John Harris, N’we Jinan…and Music!

My house looks like Santa barfed up an entire Christmas store. Lights, decorations, bibs and bobs scattered about, the decorating a work in progress and I haven’t even purchased the tree yet! Chris use to chide me on the amount of Christmas paraphernalia I had accumulated over the years so I decided one year to use the minimalist approach. A week before Christmas day Chris asked me when I was going to decorate? Ya can’t win…. So, five containers, an extensive Santa Claus collection and a couple of supplementary boxes heaved up from the basement, I am now sussing and sorting, banging nails, climbing ladders, walking on the counter to get to the top of the cabinets….letting no space go “unChristmased”. Even my musical Charlie Brown Christmas Tree is back in its place of honour.

Pat Blythe – It’s April….

…..and my lovely purple crocuses are out….sprouting in places I don’t remember planting them. I think the squirrels and anything else that’s been rooting around in my gardens have taken the liberty to relocate some of my bulbs. The birds have also been disposing rose hips seeds out their back ends and I have tiny, wild rose bushes sprouting up everywhere. Yes, I realize we had a bit of snow and freezing rain last week but I for one sense that Old Man Winter is done with us….at least until the end of the year. I’ve set up new (for me) outdoor furniture on the deck with the hope I’ll be enjoying my morning coffee out there very soon. Some of the detritus has now been cleared out from under my deck so this weekend it’s time to start the yard cleanup. Fingers crossed Mother Nature goes along with the idea. So far, sun and decent temps are scheduled.

Pat Blythe – It’s a Mad World

I want to start by saying THANK YOU everyone for your wonderful messages and FB responses regarding last week’s column. Yes it was both difficult and cathartic to pour it out in black and white. It seemed to have touched a lot of lives but I hope in a good way. So again, THANK YOU!

Pat Blythe – I’m Oh So Loving the Music

Again, the best laid plans…..my previous ideas have now taken a 90 (may be a full 180) degree turn, all based on a single song I heard a couple of days ago.

Roxanne Tellier (Veronica to my Betty) posted this song, “Home to Me”, a couple of days ago. It is such a wonderful, heartfelt piece. I fell in love with it instantly. Meaningful and tragically real, these kids have taken their misfortunes and turned them around in such a positive way, creating something so  deeply beautiful. I dare you not to move.

Wait for it………