movie review....

Seraphine Louis.

Not a very recognizable name in art.

But her paintings were truly inspired.

Born in France in 1864, she was a humble cleaning woman

who was driven to paint by the voices of angels.

I first heard of this movie through Lucinda's blog and after 2 years of waiting for it to

 come to my local library, I've finally had the chance to watch it.

This film tells the story of Seraphine's discovery by a German art collecter

who brought her name to fame for a brief time.

Her paintings depicted the flora of her countryside and came 

alive with the lines of featherlike strokes, almost

looking like birds and insects...

Beautifully filmed in the colours and architecture of the time, it's a moving film

of a woman's passion for two things: God and painting.

Well worth the wait if you can find it.

Passageways...

Walking along the dirt roads and cobblestone streets of Mexico,

I would often stop to take pictures of doors, windows and passageways.

The weathered wood, the painted trim, funky metal hardware, the iron work...

and sometimes a curious face looking back at me!

pelicano's

In the mornings on the beach outside our hotel,

the local fishermen would take their boats out early...

...coming back with their catch for the day...

There were the usual birds on the beach...

But there are a few 'special' ones hanging around...

...two young pelicans, not yet fledged, quite comfortable around people.

It's because their poor mom has a broken wing and has the smarts to know

that this is a safe place where these youngsters will get some food...

She hobbles about with her damaged wing, waiting for the morning scraps from

the cleaning of the fish...

These birds are magnificent to watch as they glide inches above the waves

and even more impressive to see them go from high above the water,

folding themselves into a perfect dart and diving in for fish.

But on the ground they are slightly gawky and awkward...

 ...not yet knowing the finer points of closing their wings back up again

and preening their new pinfeathers by the minute...

Sometimes if you were walking on the beach with flip flops in hand

the young pelicans would mistake your footwear for fish and give chase!

Lucky for these young ones, that their mother knows a place where

people will feed her babies until they are old enough to find their way.

I'm hoping somehow they'll learn to fish and as for mom...I don't

know what will become of her.

A pelican that can't fly, can't fish but maybe once the babies are gone

the locals will keep feeding her or get her some help for her wing.



Song for Friday...for St Paddy's day past...

On St Patrick's Day we were in transit and I think it's the first 

time in many years that I wasn't sitting with a pint of Guiness in front of me.

So today's song is my little cheers to the day...

This song was featured in the film 'Margarets Museum' and 

is one of my favorites.

 Erin Go Bragh my friends...

A different sun...

I thought I would welcome the spring with thoughts on the sun...

the more southern sun...the Mexican sun...

The feel of it on our faces as we step off the plane onto the tarmac.

A warmth we haven't felt since last summer.

The wind is warm too.

This is the reason Northerners make the pilgrimage 'down south',

exiting from the rain, snow and greyness.

For my nieces, it's a foreign land they've never seen.
Unfamiliar signs in an unknown language...thoughts of Dora the Explorer.

The ride to the hotel...through the old streets...past palm trees,

blooming bougenvillia, skinny stray dogs...

Exotic birds...

The adventure begins.
This week they are the explorers.



Hola!

Back from sunny Mexico...

I have many many photos to tell some stories with

but for now I have to readjust my horizontal with my vertical

and warm up by the fire.

Here's a taste though...



Song for Friday...adios amigos...

My sister had planned a vacation to Mexico last July

but never got a chance to go.

This would have been the first time the family had ever been on

a plane together to a foreign country.

Steve and the girls asked Tom and I to go with them in her place

 so that's where we'll be for the next week.

We will take some of her ashes with us and spread them

somewhere warm and pretty.

She'll be with us in our hearts and of course

her spirit is always shining through those beautiful children.

It's a bitter sweet trip but means so much to the girls.

I must admit, with the cold, wet weather, I'm

looking forward to some hot sunny spells with

a cold Corona by the pool.

Have a great weekend and a fantastic week...

Adios!

http://youtu.be/u1z7-PCTmTE