The Arkells

I *heart* the Arkells and was thrilled to see them (in the front row no less!) at Bluesfest last week.

KISSfest

So if you're on facebook then you've probably already seen these photos but I wanted to post them anyway, for the sake of the few who aren't.

Bluesfest has been packed with great shows, but in terms of actual showmanship I'm not really sure these guys can be beat. Before this show the Rolling Stones would have topped my list, but they pale in comparison to KISS's performance.

Brannon and I headed for the stage a couple of hours before KISS was set to take the stage in order to get a good spot. We weren't interested in being right at the very front (we appreciate our ear drums too much!) but we did want to be close. We wound up in an open little space to the slight right of the stage and it turned out to be an awesome location.
The photos aren't in the correct order they were taken, but I couldn't be bothered to play around with them that much.

Getting things started!

I actually find this whole blood spewing thing rather disgusting but the crowd LOVED it!

Hmm - some things never change I guess!

Help from some platforms!

I-I-I wanna rock and roll all night!!!

The confetti that was launched into the air during this song (a full half-hour before the end of the show) was unbelievable. It just never seemed to stop. The next day at Bluesfest it was still all over the ground both in and outside of the grounds!

The drummers are always hard to photograph. I like this one because you can see how fast his drumsticks are moving!

Of course there was fire-breathing!

He was looking right at me - hehe :) :)

They often play in unison - a bit cheesy but fun!

I was quite surprised to learn that a KISS show isn't really just a "Gene Simmons Show". I knew they all sang but I still expected him to be the front man. In all truthfulness I'd have to say that it's an equal split between Gene, Paul, and Tommy - no one really overshadows anyone else which is pretty rare for a rock band, especially one with one really high-profile member.

Paul Stanley (arguably the lead singer) took a little swing out into the crowd. Check out how high those heels are!

Bluesfest - Thurs, July 9

I brought my camera along on my first night of Bluesfest.
The first show we saw was Shiloh; she's a bit of an Avril wannabe (in my humble opinion) but she has a strong voice and really played to the crowd.

Sista Monica - your typical southern female blues singer. She can really sing!
Emily Haines of Metric, they're my favourite band right now and I LOVED this show. I hope they'll be back in Ottawa (or somewhere nearby) again soon so I can see more!

This was as close to Ben Harper and the Relentless 7 as I could get (so ya, not close at all - haha). They were good, but not as good as I was expecting.
I didn't bring my camera with me last night but I saw The Stills, Okkervil River, Sam Roberts (who was much better than I had anticipated, I'm not much of a fan normally), and Jackson Browne. I found JB to be a bit too 'adult contemporary' for my liking but Brannon thoroughly enjoyed it, dancing the whole time (to my dismay - hehe). We were right next to the stage so that was pretty great.

Progression

I first mentioned on May 13 that it appeared that my orchid was going to start blooming again. It's taken weeks but as of last night it had its first bloom - 6 more to come!
I've been taking photos since the buds first appeared and here is a small photo-documentary of the stages it went through. It took a long time to get started but it's progressed really quickly over the last week or so.
The last photo in the second row was taken 2 nights ago just as the first bud started to open, the first photo in the third row was taken yesterday morning and the last one was taken this afternoon when it was finally in full bloom - note the second bud starting to open :)

Don't mind the messy collage, I just threw it all together quickly. Click on it to enlarge :)
I'm quite pleased and hope she stays in bloom for a long while!

Sprouts

I've been keeping busy with our flowers and veggies; here a few pics I took tonight. I've been photo-documenting all along but I didn't really think anyone would care!

The fruits of my labour - literally!

Hairy litle buggers aren't they??
I hope this provides lots of butternut squash - for soup!
And because I didn't want the flowers to be left out, here's my pretty hydrangea!

Anniversary Fruit

Our anniversary was June 23 so I'm more than a bit late in making this post but I've finally gotten around to it so I hope Mom will forgive me :)
Not only did we receive many email/phone/facebook/snail mail congratulatory messages, but just as I was arriving home from the lab that day, I was greeted by a delivery guy who was dropping off a lovely edible arrangement from my family - Mom, Dad, Stacie, Barnie, and Flower. In other words, it was from my mom :) :) :)
Those in-the-know will understand the small size of Flower's (Luci-Fleur) name *wink wink* - there is no way she'd ever send a good thought my way!!

Canada Day Custard Cake

Ok, so it's really just a pie but I was trying to keep with the 'C' theme :)

Today I tried out a new recipe for a strawberry (red) custard (white) pie in celebration of Canada Day. The plan was to share with our neighbours but we didn't end up seeing them (too bad for them) so there's that much more for us. With all new recipes I test out on Brannon I always watch for a reaction but today I didn't even need my eyes - he made sounds I've never heard him make before (heads out of the gutter people!!) so I knew it was a hit!
We're both looking forward to 'seconds' later on!

HAPPY CANADA DAY EVERYONE!!

And for the record, I made it all from scratch, even the crust!

Here's a link to the recipe.