Squirrels, a drawing or three

Happy  Paint Party Friday!

I spent yesterday afternoon at the kitchen table drawing, while the snow fell.

Here is an old one I'd done.

We have flying squirrels, red squirrels, black squirrels all over the place! The black squirrel, sitting on the railing in the snow, JB called Slow Eddy! (That was after a major snowstorm in Bala.)

First I tried Dea's cute cartoon squirrel for a warm-up.

Then I moved on to How2DrawAnimals. I used my photographs to help with the eyes, for example, and the light. After this, I thought about a background: the dock, the flower rock and Long Lake (see below)! Finally, you can see how I put these together in a trip back through memory lane (or memory lake!). 

Our cottage, on Long Lake, Bala, Ontario –where we were from 1960 - 2010. I miss it terribly. I knew every rock, shoal and inlet on that lake, as well as the lake behind the trees in the background which fed it. I had many a wonderful canoodle there.  I walked around the lake: a sweet trip. Paddled on Mary Lake: Canoodling on a beaver dam pond - under blue skies!!

Slow Eddy!

Canada Geese on the dock

The dock

the Flower Rock

Long Lake

Where did you grow up?

My younger brother, circa late 60's?

The building behind me was made into apartments.
It's where we played softball on the lawn.
My family home is behind the photographer
(my mom!).

I'm an inner city kid.

My childhood home, 25 Walker Ave

I remember painting all that white trim, in the 70's, I think

Downtown Toronto, with a multi-cultural, wonderful mix of kids, families, homes, large and small. Old family homes, with land, built by people with money, who eventually moved on. These homes were renovated for apartment buildings.

Then, in the 80's, developers tore them down and built townhomes with parking garages underneath.

My family home still stands. But the houses opposite are gone.

demolition crews and building is gone

Beautiful old homes

new town houses

Must have been amazing to watch

Our 150-yr. old house had a milk door,
used then by the cat

Modest backyard, here's my late dad cleaning up!

My late mom, morning coffee,
building in the background now gone

Great neighbour, Dad, my Uncle Dee (right),
lived in the semi-detached #23

how old is old?

You are never too old!
To enjoy taking photos of ordinary things.

To live, laugh and play.


It is a terrific thing just to do things that are just fun. Ordinary things, like chipmunks.


The old photos are fun.
 Pets, now long gone. Only memories.

At the 'cottage' before the cottage was built.

Well before MY time!

My Parents Were Awesome. (An interesting site!)  Here my parents, when they were courting.

Dad (Ray Jilks, 1925 - 2007) and Uncle Aust (Austin Forsyth, 1900 - 1989) preparing to go fishing at the cottage.

We had such good times in the summer.

Don't you love the stove?!