30 maaliskuuta 2019

My Walking Routes


 I walk more in the autumn and in the winter, because the garden takes care of
my excersise during the summer. This small river is in the neighbourhood and I love
to walk on its banks. The scenery is open and flat, the sky high above.
I find this place very relaxing and peaceful.

Soon I'll be able to walk there again. In the winter there is no maintenance. 
This is a post that has stayed in my drafts for ages -
so the photos are old, mainly from some autumn, but it looks right now pretty same.



In the summer there are horses on the meadow and plenty of butterflies.
On the left my dear dog Hani  ❤︎ who passed away a few years ago.



There are abandoned gardens and garden gates not in use.
Also stuff forgotten in the woods.



29 maaliskuuta 2019

Friday Bliss #29 - Goodbye March!


March was a month of clear skies and grey skies; a month of tulips and books!
Wishing you all a fabulous April and the coming Easter!
- riitta


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24 maaliskuuta 2019

Color Collage


Sorry Aino, my triangles are upside down!





About my Favourite Linkups


The first linkup I started to participate in the autumn 2015  is Pieni Lintu’s / Little Bird’s Makrotex Challenge. We are given every week a new topic and this week it is GREEN. Because at the moment there is not yet any green to be seen in the nature, I selected a few photos from last year / the Conservatory of Helsinki & Viherpaja Vantaa.


Also I have participated quite a long time in Mosaic Monday, now hosted by Angie at the blog Letting Go of the Bay Leaf. I have learned to know many nice ladies who tell about their life. In the blogpost there must be at least one collage. This week I present some great international books that I have read recently. The writers come from all over the world:

Domenico Starnone, Italy - Trick *****
Sergio Ramírez, Nicaragua - Perdón y olvido, short stories ****
Luis Sepúlveda, Chile - The Story of A Seagull and the Cat who Taught her to Fly ****
The nobelist J.M. Coetzee, South-Africa - Times and Life of Michael K ***
Gail Honeyman, Scotland - Eleanor Oliphant is Completely Fine ****


A year ago I found this green linkup that is hosted by Loretta and Wolfgang from Germany. It concentrates mainly on garden and gardening. The linkup is called Gartenglück - Garden Happiness. The rhythm of the seasons is quite different in Finland and Germany but I love to watch their early spring happiness!



My newest linkup host and blog friend is Tom who has several linkups - and a million of great photos! See his blog Backroads Traveller. I don’t always have an appropriate post but I join in Tom’s challenges every time I can.


Then I love to participate in two artistic linkups - Jutta’s Digital Art Tuesday and Ainos Color Collage Challenge.



To finish I’ll tell you my good and happy news. Today it’s 9 months and 11 days from my severe ankle and low leg fracture and today I was able to walk my 2,5 km walking route for the first time on my own feet without any aid! These have been really tough months but am confidently looking for spring and summer and the new gardening season!



Wishing you all great spring days!
- riitta

22 maaliskuuta 2019

Friday Bliss #28 - Longing for Spring!


If we had no winter, the spring would not be so pleasant: 
if we did not sometimes taste of adversity, prosperity would not be so welcome.
- Anne Bradstreet


Yes, I deserve a spring - I owe nobody nothing.
- Virginia Woolf


Despite the forecast, live like it's spring.
 - Lilly Pulitzer


 Pardón y olvido ****, a lovely collection of short stories 
by the Nicaraguan writer Sergio Ramírez (b. in 1942) / Cervantes Prize in 2017.
This is the first time his works have been translated into Finnish.
Some of his books have been translated to English - see Amazon.



I glanced out the window at the signs of spring. 
The sky was almost blue, the trees were almost budding, the sun was almost bright.
- Millard Kaufman


Wishing you a beautiful weekend!
- riitta



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19 maaliskuuta 2019

Digital Art Dienstag


This week I used Jutta’s original and played to be a pointillistic painter.
Two versions: lilac & white alliums.


The original



16 maaliskuuta 2019

Memories of March


My mother used to say that years are not like brothers, meaning there are huge differences in weather and also otherwise... I think this March is quite normal Finnish March: around zero, grey and raining. Still a lot of snow but it is fortunately melting away. Nothing pretty to photograph outside - not in any March, for the spring comes to Finland in April! The only sign of spring is the melting snow... I wanted to compare previous years and went through my archives and selected a few photos of March 2016, 2017 and 2018. To me these four past March are like twin brothers!


In March 2016 we got a few showers of new snow, snow was melting though
and a bit of perennials could be seen ...


In March 2017 at Easter the snow was almost totally gone and I had some tete a tete
daffodils in a pot on the terrace. But they got a blanket of fresh snow!


In March 2018 I photographed outside only icicles
 - they were truly handsome hanging from the roof of our garage!



This March I have taken only once photos outside  - it was this handsome goshawk visiting.
Taken through glass and at a long distance.
This is the first time I succeeded to photograph this handsome raptor.


Wishing you a pleasant weekend & the new week to come!
- riitta

15 maaliskuuta 2019

Friday Bliss #27 - Animalistic


This week I read a fantastic fable by the Chilean writer, Luis Sepúlveda:
The Story of a Seagull and the Cat who Taught Her to fly 
- Historia de una gaviota y del gato que le enseñó a volar 

The story tells about a seagull who is about to die due to crude oil on the sea water. 
 She manages to make an emergency landing on the balcony of 
a big fat black cat called Zorbas. The seagull lays an egg and Zorbas promises to hatch it 
and then teach the chick to fly. All this is a tough project and Zorbas needs help of his cat buddies - Secretario, Sabelotodo, Barlovento & Colonello. I warmly recommend 💕


Zorbas might look like this! This is not my Sissi.


The other book of Sepúlveda I warmly recommend is: 
The Old Man Who Read Love Stories - Un viejo que leía novelas de amor


This handsome Samoyed dog is Marlon B who works at the local pet shop.
My husband always buys him some goodies!
The Samoyed is a breed of large herding dog, with a thick, white, double-layer coat. 
It takes its name from the Samoyedic peoples of Siberia. 


And this cute girl belongs to my friend...


And some flowers for the weekend - Have it nice & cozy!
- riitta


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