.JPG)
Today we share the sorrow of Canada,
a fellow member, with Australia, of the British Commonwealth.
.JPG)
Sadly, brutal terrorism has visited upon the Capital, Ottawa...
.jpg)
Regular readers of the blog know that my daughter lives there with her family;
I took the first two pictures in Autumn, 2011, and the Winter pictures of the Parliament buildings in 2010.
That day we visited the beautiful Gothic hall,
.JPG)
decorated for the Christmas season..
.JPG)
.JPG)
.JPG)
Yesterday my daughter was caught for three hours in a locked-down building,
the Little Bebe was safe in day care, and his Big Brother told me by phone that he had to 'hide in the bibliotheque, behind a table'.
He knew something scary had happened in Ottawa.
Everybody is safe, and they all got home at the usual time.
As a mother on the other side of the world, my protective instincts make me wish I could be over there with them.
.JPG)
Hopefully next year..
Princess Anne visited Brisbane this week.
There was no advance publicity, and I was surprised when she suddenly appeared in the media.
Anne is one of the hardest-working royals, and I do admire the low-key way she works for dozens of charities and causes. Here she inspects Australian Defence Forces in Brisbane.
Also on the agenda was a visit to the Riding for the Disabled - I hoped she was coming to one in our vicinity, but unfortunately she was on the other side of the city.
From cute little Princess,
to beautiful young woman, and now a grandmother, several times over.
I hope she enjoyed her visit.
.JPG)
Wish it would rain - apparently this October looks set to be our driest on record.
Climate change again.
This week I happened to open my Dashboard at just the right moment -
in time to see exactly 68000 pageviews.
Thank you all for visiting over the past few years.
I love your comments and the friendly interaction;
I treasure each and every one of my blogging friends.
.JPG)
I hope you have a very safe and happy weekend.
XXXX
The situation in Canada was/is frightening. I'm so afraid we are going to see more of this kind of thing. So glad to hear your family is safe.
ReplyDeleteDarla
I have the same concerns, Darla, especially as our city of Brisbane will host the G20 meeting in less than a fortnight. Obama, Putin, and many others will be here. Everyone is quite on edge and the city will be turned into a fortress of sorts.
DeleteI can well imagine how you must have felt Patricia being so far away from your daughter and her family when this act of brutal terrorism was unfolding in the city where they live.
ReplyDeletePrincess Anne has many good qualities and as you say she does work hard - she doesn't spend a fortune on clothes either and is not afraid to be seen in the same outfit time and time again. She lives literally across the fields from me so she is very much a regular in the area.
Yes, it was a helpless feeling Rosemary, and while it should not have been a surprise any more than anywhere else, it was. Australia is definitely nervous about a similar event here, given the number of similarly disaffected youth issues, and the approaching G20.
DeleteI thought Princess Anne might live near you, Rosemary, and we can tell she would be a down-to-earth person locally. I am impressed with her thrifty attitude to repeating her fashions (just like the rest of us), and love that she will wear a 70s gown with tiara on occasion, and look brilliant in it.
I agree with Darla. Feeling helpless. No way to prevent these horrible incidences. So sorry for the people in Canada / related to Canada.
ReplyDeleteYes, so sad for Canada Mette. It is a gentle country, and everybody is very courteous, not brash at all. Trying to save my dollars so we can visit again in 2015.
DeleteI'm so glad your family is safe, Patricia. I'm sorry to hear all of this. As dry as your climate is, that is one beautiful rose. I hope it rains for you soon. We had a bit of rain, but only for awhile. That last picture is such an unusual looking flower, but very pretty.
ReplyDeleteHave a nice weekend.
love,
~Sheri
Hi Sheri, Yes, we still have some nice roses, which I enjoy. The last plant is a bromeliad, a tropical plant which is very tough and suitable for our climate. Happy Sunday xx
DeleteI feel for you Patricia - it happened there first, and with your family connections, it brings the situation home to you. It is such a shock it happened there first - I almost expected it here first. I should imagine it will be pretty tedious in Brisbane during G20.
ReplyDeleteI'm glad you like Princess Anne - she was always one of my favourite royals, and I always used to get upset when people said she was not attractive. She is, and very gracious, unpretentious and down to earth as well. I think people just don't get this sort of behaviour, or what it represents. I'm sure it was a wonderful morale boost for the army - much needed, as they do a very difficult job for us all.
I also thought it might happen here first, Sarah Liz, perhaps because of the publicity around disaffected youth, as well as the G20. We plan to have a quiet week and keep away from the city centre, although there are some attractions for visitors such as light displays. I agree, Princess Anne is down to earth and I am sure very gracious and hard working, without being particularly interested in the 'precious princess' mode.
DeleteI'm sorry for what happened in Canada too. It really is tragic. I like Princess Anne, she always seems so no-nonsense about everything. I've read that she is the busiest royal, with the most engagements on her calendar every year. I think that's admirable, since they all do quite a bit. I hope you're having a good weekend.
ReplyDeleteI've read that too, Jennifer, about Anne being the busiest royal, and with the least publicity, too. The media do concentrate on the fashion aspects of royalty, but overlook the role behind it. Happy weekend to you and the family!
DeleteSo frightening for you to realise that your family had been caught up in that dreadful event in Ottawa, Patricia. I missed it at the time as we were too busy with the move to watch TV, but have been catching up since. I agree with you about Princess Anne, whom I've always had a great deal of time for.
ReplyDeleteIt was quite surreal to turn on morning TV and see the events in Ottawa, especially the footage of the beautiful interior which I had visited and photographed. Naturally, my first thought was to ring my daughter.
Delete