Frugal Fun in the City

It's been a while since my last post; I just didn't have it in me these past few weeks. But I'm back to tell you about some frugal fun happening in the city! If you're watching your pennies, check out these activities ...

NCC's Opera Under the Stars
I may be a bit too late for this one (June 30th is the last night), but it's still worth a mention. How often do you get a chance to enjoy opera with full orchestra for free? And if you've never given opera a try but are curious, what better price is there to experiment?

RCMP Musical Ride Sunset Ceremonies
Also a bit late for this one, but at least you've got two days to catch it. The show runs from 7:00pm to 9:00pm tonight and tomorrow, Canada Day.

BOB FM's Movies on the Beach
This is fun. D. and I spent last night curled up under a blanket on the slopes of Westboro Beach, watching Jaws on a inflatable screen with the Ottawa River as a backdrop. It's the drive-in of yore enhanced by an incredible view. The next movie is scheduled for Friday July 13th - you can vote for your choice online. My vote goes to Psycho.

Centretown Movies
Another free movie festival, this time in the core of downtown. Movies are screened in Dundonald Park on Somerset, between Lyon and Bay. Movies coming up include Casablanca, Little Miss Sunshine and Al Gore's An Inconvenient Truth.

These are just a few activities I've come across during the past few weeks and they're all free. You can't any more frugal than that!

Morning Breeze

Thankful am I for the morning breeze,

For it puts my laboured breathing at ease.

After several days of heat and humidity, I welcomed this morning's cool weather by sitting out on my balcony, coffee and journal in hand. Living on the top floor of a 1920s walk-up has its charm, but that charm takes on a different twist when temperatures hit 30+ degrees Celsius with the humidity.

Thankful am I for the morning breeze.

Fun in the Sun

Today I played frisbee with friends, laughing and running barefoot in the grass on a gorgeous sunny afternoon. It doesn't get much better than that.

A Few Camping Pics

I had fun playing with my camera on our backcountry camping expedition to Frontenac Provincial Park a few weekends ago. I thought I'd share a few of my favourite pictures. I hope they don't take too long to load. :)

campsite in the morning sun

McNally Bay at dusk (this was taken from the shore of our campsite)

green creek with sun & shadows on Tetsmine Lake Loop

wild Columbine by Moulton Gorge

the weekend's last pic: a tired Cassie, a tired Steph

These are just a few that tickled my fancy. I hope you like them too!

Ottawa Farmers' Market

In the spirit of exploring local food supplies, I decided to check out the Ottawa Farmers' Market last Sunday. Its Web site promises that "all goods sold by the vendors who participate are produced by those vendors." Works for me.

Armed with an empty daypack, a bottle of water and my camera, I set out on foot on what turned out to be a gorgeous morning and a fulfilling experience.

The market itself was lovely: stalls with fresh asparagus, greens & berries, golden honey, herbs, perennials and preserves. A horse-drawn wagon loaded with families made its way through the parking lot, pulled by what looked like a pair of Clydesdales. The icing on the cake? A man sitting in the middle of it all strumming his guitar, singing Murray McLauchlan's Farmer's Song - a song heard oh so many times in my household, where Dad used to strum & sing it every Sunday morning too.

Although some of the vendors I was hoping to see were absent, I found others. I'd gladly return. Next week I plan to explore Ottawa's Organic Farmers' Market, but that'll be another post.

The Ottawa Farmers' Market is held every Sunday at Lansdowne Park from 8:00am to 3:00pm.

Good Weekend, Good Tired

My head is buzzing with so many wonderful things to blog about but I had such a good, full weekend that I'm too tired to write!

You'll just have to wait to hear about it 'cause right now I plan to park my butt on the couch with a cold Stella, a bowl of Miss Vickie's country-style chips and either a) a good book or b) Finding Nemo.

Good weekend, good tired. I like that.

And We're Back!

We're back. YAY!

The weekend was mixture of panic attacks, accomplishments and contentment. I'm exhausted. Friday afternoon thunderstorms excepted, the weather cooperated beautifully. I'll post some pictures and expand my recap in a further post or two. In the meantime here are a few highlights & lowlights for your reading pleasure:

Highlights:

• loons singing on the lake
• figuring out how to cross a stream using rocks and two sturdy walking sticks
• playing with my camera
• scenery along Saturday's 12km hike
• observing a beaver and hearing an owl for the first time
• breakfast in the great outdoors: bacon, eggs and cowboy coffee with a twist

Lowlights:

• panic attacks induced by thunderstorms and narrow footbridges
• mosquitoes and wasps
• packing woes (if I do this again, I'd get a bigger backpack)

Surprises:

• the delightful taste and consistency of Beef Stroganoff with Wild Rice in a bag

This morning someone asked if I'd try it again. Although it wasn't all peachy, I think I'd like to give it another shot. I think I'll allow myself a little time to recoup first though. I need it.

And We're Off!

It's the eleventh hour. My backpack is full and my sleeping bag & sleeping pad are strapped to its bottom. My travel mug and trusty ball cap dangle from the sides.

It was touch & go for a while between D. and I while packing and shopping for food last night. At one point a frustrated D. pointed out to a frustrated me, "Camping with a girl is different than camping with the guys." I'm not sure about all girls, but with this girl it is honey. :)

I think my equipment will hold up for this first try at backpacking into a campsite. The only piece that might make me grumble is my daypack. There's a reason they call it a DAYpack. It's probably not made to hold the amount of crap I stuffed in there to last me a few days. Mm.

D.'s done his packing, which means it's time to go. Woohoo!


TTFN ...