Author: Andrea Cordonier
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In the House With Sir John A.
Did some macro- to micro-Habicurious time travel this weekend in celebration of Canada Day. Spent July 1st (the launch of confederation) in Kingston (the first capital city of the united Canadas), touring the house of Sir John A. Macdonald, the country’s first Prime Minister and a Father of Confederation. Bellevue House was built in the… Read more
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Intoxicating
Houses and rooms are full of perfumes, the shelves are crowded with perfumes, I breathe the fragrance myself and know it and like it, The distillation would intoxicate me also, but I shall not let it…. – Excerpt: Song of Myself, Walt Whitman Read more
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Perfectly Beautiful
When I stepped into the dark coolness to escape the scorching heat I didn’t expect to find the most beautiful space I’d ever seen. Of course no flash photography or tripods were permitted and my children possess a built-in limitation for looking at things tiled or religious. I was, as always, left wanting more. Click… Read more
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Welcome to Quintland
UPDATE: August 5, 2018: Annette visited her birth house in North Bay today. Cecile was supposed to join her but cancelled due to health reasons. The story is here. UPDATE: As of November 19th, 2017, the birth house and museum of the Dionne Quintuplets has been moved to the North Bay waterfront, installed on Oak… Read more
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Nobody Tells This to Beginners, He Says
It took some clickety-clicking to find the derivative work, but here’s John McWade’s original posting on Ira Glass and the beginnings of creativity. It’s worth watching Mr. Glass’s video if: a) You’ve ever thought of learning a skill or creating something new; or b) See above. Mr. Glass’s thesis is this: Creatives are compelled to create,… Read more
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Something Old, Something New
Seven years ago I snapped a photograph of a pair of doors that I fell in love with in New York City. I always carried it with me, hoping to find some of my very own. Four years ago I built a recessed, open-shelved cabinet in the dining room that never felt quite done. Two… Read more
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Painting Pictures
I took up my brushes knowing that if the mural turned out poorly I could paint right over it. Happy to say, I didn’t have to. Read more
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Stalking the Purple Beast
Immaculate, it was not. Or maybe I have a wildly different understanding of the meaning of that word: mint; without wear, tear or staining; something that can be used right away without an additional investment of time or money. But everyone knows by now that buying anything used online is always caveat emptor. I drove… Read more
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Easter Karma
[pullquote]The quality of others’ lives have a direct impact on our well-being; the energy of generosity, as an antidote to acquisitiveness, establishes the reciprocal loop of happiness that occurs when we take others into account while making choices. ~ Michael Stone, Yoga for a World Out of Balance[/pullquote] I sit in a chair, in the… Read more
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Framing Fine Carpentry
Yesterday’s changeable sun/cloud mix presented a perfect backdrop for some architectural photography in Ottawa’s Hintonburg neighbourhood. Carpenter, and fellow Algonquin College Heritage Trades Institute alumnus, Christoph Altehoefer restored this gorgeous porch, integrating a mix of original and reproduction pieces. Carefully redeploying existing materials, he crafted each reproduction piece from unusable rafters and other surplus lumber… Read more