oh, magnolia!

Nothing calms me and stills my galloping thoughts like a day with camera in hand and the certainty of a long, meditative walk. An explosion of colour has unleashed itself in town this past week: buds have unfurled and trees are laden with blush pink magnolia blossoms, their sweet perfume floating in the air. There’s a house near mine whose owner invites me onto her porch every year at this time to share in the giddiness ignited by the shock of those pink blooms. So it wasn’t unusual to find her seated there this afternoon, a smile sweeping across her face as she spied me standing slack-jawed, staring at her tree from across the street. She waved me over and we stood on her porch overcome by the beauty so effortlessly displayed in a single bloom. She cares for her magnolia so tenderly, as thrilled by its decadence as she is by the look on the faces of all those who pass by. It wasn’t long before she confided that she ought to be occupied by work, but instead was giving herself over fully to sitting on her porch and breathing the fragrance of those pink blossoms dappled in sunlight. We went inside to see the paintings done by a couple of local artists: portraits of her magnolia, her luscious beauty. It was all I could do to nod and take in its spectacular presence, light at play on the canvases.

It’s interesting to me what gives people a rush. That certain something that fills us with euphoria and dulls the mundane or the pain. That process of transcendence from the ordinary to the blissful in mere seconds. That state of consciousness that allows us to inhabit an extraordinary vision for a fleeting but soulful time …

photos by: bliss {in images}

My lately

It’s day three of life in a new restaurant kitchen, and I’m swimming in a sea of new menus, procedures, faces and details. So far, I haven’t been pulled under! With the weather already mimicking summer (what happened to that transition called spring?) and brunch-on-patios in full swing, it promises to be a slammer of a day. Oh, sweet sunshine, that gorgeous thing that puts a smile on people’s faces—and makes the kitchen sizzle. There will be plenty of water and iced tea coming my way today.

Happy weekending, friends! I hope yours is rolling out just right.

PS If you live in the US or Canada, and haven’t already entered the GIVEAWAY here at Bliss, go ahead and treat yourself to a couple of fantastic art prints! Simply leave a comment below this post to enter. Good luck to each of you!

photos by: bliss {in images}

Blog Giveaway!

 I’m excited to announce a very first GIVEAWAY here at Bliss! What a great way to head into the weekend.

When artist Allie Kelley approached me with her very generous offer to share some of her artwork with a Bliss reader, I was pretty darn thrilled! Allie’s Etsy shop Whimsy Collage is filled with fun, quirky, delightful prints. Two of these prints will be going out to one of you. This Giveaway is a way to say thank you for the time you spend here and for your tremendous feedback and support. You folks are plain awesome!

To enter: Please leave a comment in the comments section of this post letting me know that you’d enjoy receiving the two, 8″ x 10″ prints featured here! GIVEAWAY ends May 9 at midnight, EST. One winner will be randomly selected and announced on the blog Friday, May 10. This Giveaway is limited to readers in the US and Canada.

You can show Allie some lovin’ by visiting her at Whimsy Collage and checking out her other great prints!

Good luck, blissful friends!

on pushing forward

I’ve had to deal with down time on the work front recently. An occurrence in the restaurant/catering biz that’s nerve-wracking when you’re trying to navigate the often unpredictable, seasonal nature of work and still make ends meet. Admittedly there’s a sense of relief in having some respite from long, grueling hours, but it’s short-lived. In my case, that relief doesn’t come with an over-stuffed financial cushion to park my arse on.

So, my survival instincts kicked into full-on offense mode last week. I needed to drum up more work—immediately. Rather than succumb to the terror of the what-ifs (what if I can’t find work? what if I can’t take care of my family? what if the ground opens and swallows me whole?) before I even gave fear a chance to proliferate, I walked in cold to a restaurant I thought I’d enjoy working in and inquired about opportunity. The upshot of this was a sit down the following day with the owner, a resume review and a two-hour chat. I hesitate to say job interview, because in the restaurant/catering biz there’s nothing orthodox about the interview process in a kitchen—at least in my experience. In smaller, owner-run businesses, HR protocols are … well … different. Or non-existent. So you roll with it, whatever the “it” is: unconventional interviews, immediate start dates, on-the-fly training and any, or all, or none of those things. There’s adaptability or there’s sudden death. And there’s nothing in between.

Tomorrow I’m stepping into something completely new. A different house, a new crew, an entirely new menu to learn, another approach to food. Kitchens and kitchen culture are a breed of their own. The intensity creates intense relationships—for good or ill—with all the function and dysfunction of a family. You love, you tolerate and sometimes, you walk away. And when you do, the unknown soon becomes the familiar. The fear is muted by strength you hadn’t quite recognized in yourself.

So work will be an interesting patchwork of projects: the restaurant kitchen, existing catering work, and an independent project that’s largely been kept hushed while waiting for the final nod of approval that says: give’er! I’m excited. I’m also a cocktail of deep-in-the-belly nerves with a twist of confidence and a hefty splash of determination to push the hell forward.

In the meantime, I take photos. Because the practice of observing beauty in the ordinary, catapults me—unfailingly—into a state of gratitude.

photos by: bliss {in images}

brickworks in spring: part two

More photos from our weekend excursion to Evergreen Brickworks. Sweet sunshine, an unexpected meet-up with great friends, handfuls of squidgy clay, warm earth, a jewel blue sky and contentment …

bliss ❤

photos by: bliss {in images}

brickworks in spring: part one

If you’re a regular reader, you’ll know of my big love for Toronto’s Evergreen Brickworks. And if you’re new to these pages and fancy a little exploration, you’ll find this post and another over here a great way to get your trek started!

Kieran and I spent Saturday checking out spring transformations at the Brickworks. A place where historical foundry buildings have been re-purposed for environmental community initiatives, farmers’ and garden markets, and the surrounding land preserved as wetlands and hiking trails. It’s an oasis of creative happenings tucked away in the city. We were thrilled to run into a friend of ours who was working in the kids’ area. Within minutes, Kieran was offered the chance to do some volunteer work and he leapt at it. A 13-year old who throws himself into anything nature-based? Yeah, that’s my kid. It’s heartening to know that his mad skill and ferocious interest in all things IT is balanced by hands and feet (preferably bare) planted in soil.

So, while he was busy clipping, clearing brush and weaving branches for a small garden fence, I wandered around with coffee and camera, chatting with parents happily surrounded by kids at play in a magical place. The yurt has withstood blankets of snow and the fire pit remains the hub for cooking and congregating. The trees have slowly woken up to spring, their branches adorned with pine cone-and-seed feeders and woven dream catchers. The craft tables are heavily laden with paint and clay and seed packets. Water is running and tender seedlings peek through soft, swollen ground. Earth, Water, Air and Fire: the elements that unite all who come here. You don’t have to be a kid to fall under the Brickwork’s exhilarating spell.

bliss ❤

photos by: bliss {in images}