Sunday Seven

A roundup of this week's excitement --

FELLOW CANUCKIAN BOOMERS: will recognize this week's banner as being from the classic but controversial 1960s CBC current affairs program This Hour Has Seven Days, with legendary Canadian journalists Laurier LaPierre and Patrick Watson. I wasn't even 10 years old when this show was on, but I loved it! It kickstarted my lifelong interest in Canadian politics.

I CELEBRATED "NOIRVEMBER:" by watching the 1946 film noir classic The Big Sleep. Lots of smart-ass quips from Bogie and Bacall as they confronted "a corrupt labyrinth of gamblers, blackmailers, pornographers, hired thugs and murderers" (as one reviewer summed up the impossibly convoluted plot).

STARTED REGISTERING: for a new bunch of art classes in early 2024.

COFFEE CATCH-UP: met a friend at Second Cup for a delightful couple hours of conversation.

DON'T WORRY, I'M NOT PLANNING ON GOING ANYWHERE ANYTIME SOON: to accompany my updated will, enduring power of attorney and personal directive documents, I met with a funeral home this week and bought a preplanned end of life package. Immediate cremation, no funeral.

ASHES TO ASHES, DUST TO DUST: also obtained formal City of Edmonton approval to be scattered in due course at a Memorial Scattering Garden in a nearby cemetery where I once went on a Halloween ghost tour. It's a charming place. But every time I drive by that cemetery now, you know what I'm thinking about. 

WHAT I DID FOR NATIONAL NOVEL WRITING MONTH: wrote my own obit -- but it's a very short novel, only four paragraphs long! I've always been a succinct writer. Picked out a decent photo to accompany it as well. No, NOT this one --

Friday Face OFF -- Afghan Girl

For this week's Friday Face OFF link party

of art featuring faces, hosted by Nicole of

DVArtist, Art, Food, Gardening blog . . .

Remember that famous National Geographic

1985 cover photo of the Afghan girl?

We did a copy of it in coloured pencils class.

As usual, my facial shadows were done 

in too dark a brown, but oh well.

And trying to reproduce that hijab

damn near killed me.

But her eyes turned out well

and they are the most important

and haunting element

of that incredible photo!

[Art & photo of art by Debra She Who Seeks, 2023]

SERENITY NOW!

PEOPLE!

Let's get rid of all our hostility and anger issues

before we have to handle the upcoming

holiday month of love, joy and goodwill to all!

November Full Moon Altar: The Valkyries

Since November's Remembrance Day honours our war dead, this month's full moon altar has as its focus the Norse goddesses of the battlefield, The Valkyries, whose name means "the choosers of the slain." In older myths, they actually chose which warriors lived and which ones died. However, their function changed in subsequent myths to simply choosing which fallen warriors deserved to be taken to Valhalla, the home of the gods. The chosen heroes (only the bravest and most fierce) would form the army of the gods during the great battle at the end of time, Ragnarok.

The heavily armoured Valkyries rode through the skies on winged horses, swooping down onto battlefields to pick up and transport the chosen dead to Valhalla. The Northern Lights were said to be moonlight glinting off their armour as they rode.

The most famous Valkyrie in our culture is Brynhildr (Brunhilda) whose name means "Bright Battle." In Wagner's Ring Cycle of operas, she defies her father Wotan (Odin) and is made to pay a terrible price, but ultimately gets her revenge by triggering the destruction of Valhalla and the downfall of the gods.

And of course, I must include a brief excerpt from Wagner's famous "Ride of the Valkyries" in tribute to these fierce goddesses.

[Photos © Debra She Who Seeks, 2023]

Sunday Seven

I seem to have spent a fair amount of time in front of the television this week --

STUNNING UPSET: by the underdog Montreal Alouettes who beat the Winnipeg Blue Bombers 28-24 in the final minute of the Grey Cup championship football game. I always cheer for The West, so I am bereft. Hand me down my crying towel!

ANOTHER TASTY WIN: on the other hand, I was happy to see Loïc Fauteux-Goulet, a teacher from British Columbia, win season 7 of the Great Canadian Baking Show. But then, all the contestants on this show, plus the hosts and judges, are always very likeable.

IMPROMPTU COFFEE: unexpectedly ran into a friend while grocery shopping, so we got a coffee from the in-store Starbucks and had a little break and a good chin wag.

WRAPPED: all the Christmas gifts. I am now covered in glitter from ass to tea kettle.

FINISHED WATCHING: season 2 of the British World War II drama World on Fire -- "the intertwining fates of ordinary people in multiple countries as they grapple with the effects of war on their everyday lives." I especially like the series' focus on minorities and women, whose wartime experiences and sacrifices often get overlooked in such dramas.

BETTER LATE THAN NEVER: finally got around to watching the 1981 movie The French Lieutenant's Woman with Meryl Streep and Jeremy Irons. Hey, it only took me 42 years. Interesting gender role reversal of the standard romantic trope about a moody, troubled Byronic hero and the besotted, vulnerable naïf whose life gets ruined.

BEEN LISTENING TO: a great opera arias CD which I learned about and purchased thanks to John M's blog Reflections. See? Blog reading pays off!

Friday Face OFF -- Woman in a Trench Coat

For this week's Friday Face OFF link party

of art featuring faces, hosted by Nicole of

DVArtist, Art, Food, Gardening blog . . .

Rather than a front view or profile depiction of a face,

here's a recent graphite drawing showing a

back view of a woman's face and hair instead.

I'm particularly pleased with

how her trench coat turned out.

Trench coats are certainly a standard item

of professional/corporate outerwear attire.

I wore a couple of them all through my career.

But I haven't worn one since I retired six years ago!

They seem too formal for my casual lifestyle now.

[Art & photo of art © Debra She Who Seeks, 2023]

Just Plain Weird