isobelmtl

Writing under a Montreal sky

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about

Isobel Cunningham has published short fiction and poetry. Her book, Northern Compass is available on Amazon. She was born in Wales but Montreal is her adopted home. She speaks French, Modern Greek ( it’s a fun story) and a little Spanish…oh, English too, of course. She welcomes comments on her blog and looks forward to chatting with you over cyber-space.

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  • Morning garden

    It is very satisfying to hang clothes on the line after an early morning shower. The sky is quite clear and they will hang for a few hours and be reeled in dry as board, the towels rough and the underwear bleached white. The garden is still dripping. I noticed some morning glories. Mine always…

  • Jasmine

    All winter the jasmine plant was dreary and bare It sat in the dim laundry room perhaps grateful simply to be alive. So much in the garden then was as good as dead. It was at least protected from the long ice agony Now after much rain and much heat Some buds, some blooms appear.…

  • Waning Summer

    What summer? No danger of heat stroke or sunburn this year so far. The rainy summer has ensured that I do double time weeding and that the biggest stars of the garden are the many and beautifully striped snails who rule! This morning as I sipped coffee in a dreamy haze I had evidence of…

  • Public sculpture

    In winter I was posting a little about graffiti. There are some great examples here in Montreal but over the past week or so, I’ve been surprised by the great public sculpture around town. Here are two pretty classic examples. The beautiful copy of the winged victory of Samothrace was a total surprise. Montreal’s long…

  • The beauty of insects

    We’re always swatting them away, spraying them, destroying their nests and yet they are very beautiful and absolutely necessary. Why do we love butterflies and despise these little guys. Of course, it is annoying to us to have flies buzzing around our food, in our houses or hovering over the pic nic. This little guy…

  • Just when I think

      I     That the garden is at a bad stage, roses done, clematis starting to fall, nothing interesting for a while and loads of weeding. . . .I find that the foxglove I planted earlier this year has bloomed.  They are supposed to take two years to come out so what a nice…

  • At The Pow Wow

      It is always hot at the Pow Wow.  I usually manage to go and it is always hot.  By now I have learned to wear a big hat or bring an umbrella for shade and to sit on the east side of the dance ring where there is a little shelter from the burning…

  • After the Teddy-Bears’ Picnic

    My grandchildren visited me today. They have a few favorite games. Doctor is an old favorite but somehow it is more of a winter game, best played in the muffled basement where the hapless patient is questioned by my granddaughter. Come to think of it, she never wants to be the patient. With two older…

  • Plant Based

          “I particularly enjoy this green smoothie after a vigorous workout.” These are words to make my heart sink when I read them in a recipie book. Even for an indifferent bacon eater like me the tone is distinctly Spartan. To face a refrigerator full of kale, quinoa and smug cucumbers takes a…

  • Wild or Tame?

    Even in the city there are little spots of wildness. This year the lane behind my house has exploded with life. The usual beautiful tall flowers are there, white and green but migrants from the gardens have sprung up too ( so that’s where my hollyhocks went) Whether it was the cool wet spring or…