nellyglass studioUp at 5 AM and enjoying the crisp Saint John air. The grass is still showing here three days before Christmas but there’s a promise of a dusting coming. I couldn’t resist taking a photo of the pretty lights along with a zoom in of Monica in her morning ritual of coffee and i-pad surfing. Family is nearby, presents are gathering under the tree, there’s a wonderful feeling in my heart. Merry Christmas everyone!
Artistic inspiration is all around this week in Saint John and I’m in pursuit with my camera, dragging Monica and others along with me. I see it everywhere; in glass, in stone, in food. It really lifts my spirits to look and find the beauty in this city so easily.
Starting with stained glass, my latest Nellyglass endeavor is producing and selling my work through CraftologySJ on Prince William Street. For the past three weeks, I have been in the studio designing and making Christmas trees, angels and other suncatchers to tempt the cruise ship traffic. There are more than 60 boats scheduled into port this fall, so I’m optimistic.
CraftologySJ features the arts and crafts from over 50 local artisans.
You can find just about anything here for a one stop gift-shopping experience. It’s very cool and I’m excited to be part of the art scene in Saint John.
Just down on the harbour front beside market slip, the international sculpture artists are finishing up their masterpieces for the 3rd Sculpture Saint John symposium. The finesse of the work is breathtaking partly due to the mass of the rocks themselves but mostly because of the talent (eight artists from Canada, USA, Greece, France and Italy selected from over 150 applicants).
These pieces are destined for permanent public display in various communities throughout NB. We strolled on Saturday with good friends from Moncton, met some of the artist’s and took lots of pics.
Art is not limited to traditional media… at our favorite sushi restaurant, Ta-ke Sushi, the chef takes great pride in presentation and the fish is always excellent. We’ve eaten here many times and always leave satisfied and happy…especially when you can get a great lunch like this for less than $10.
We love Saint John. It’s got lots of character and that means lots of artistic inspiration. I hope you find some here, too.
What a beautiful Friday night in Saint John. Clear blue skies before dark with no wind, 25 degrees, crickets chirping right on into the evening in competition with the street music that drifted all the way across the harbour where we parked our car. “Third Shift”: a city social event of art in the galleries and in the streets, with sound, smell, light, taste and touch.
Thought provoking, sensually thrilling, physically exercising and emotionally enjoyable. What a perfect balance for a good life. Here are the return-trip shots of the journey from the parking lot across the harbour.
This was way beyond ‘Dinner and A Show’. This was Ta-ke sushi and The Sleeping Beauty ballet at the Imperial Theater with our niece Ellen, on a Wednesday evening. How incredibly mid-week amazing is that?
Our culture meter just went up a few notches. This was my first ever ballet and I loved it, and it was Tchaikovsky! who, is Ellen’s favorite, AND did I mention there was sushi!
The three of us got together on Wednesday to celebrate the newness of spring. How fortunate we are to have our niece in the city where we can see her often. Ellen surprised us with tickets to the Jorgen Ballet production of Sleeping Beauty and was I ever surprised at how much I enjoyed it. I had never seen a ballet before and wasn’t sure I would “get it”… but I did! …thanks in part to watching the Disney movie many times with the kids, and also the skill and strength of the dancers…I wish I was in that kind of shape!
First, however, we went for supper at out favorite sushi restaurant, Ta-ke Sushi on King Street. We sampled some old time favorites along with some new discoveries. So good… we will be back again soon, hopefully.
It was a wonderful night. Here are the photo highlights.
Today (Sunday March 6) Monica and I spent a wonderful afternoon listening to live Irish music uptown. The Cathedral of Immaculate Conception in Saint John is raising funds for restoration work and hosted an afternoon (free will donation) of local Irish musicians and dancers just in time to set the mood for St. Patrick’s Day. This church was built primarily by the Irish who emigrated to Canada between 1845-47 during the Great Famine. 30,000 people arrived during these three years, doubling the population of Saint John.
The weather was perfect for a walk so we did just that. Although a brisk day (- 1), the skies were clear and the fresh air was invigorating for the half hour it took us to go from the west side to the uptown church. Fortunately, we got there early enough to get some shots of the beautiful stained glass windows before the place filled with people. The music was excellent, of course, but it was the windows I wanted to see and so glad I did. After 25 years in this city, this was my first time in the cathedral. The restoration is coming along but still has a ways to go. Must return some day to see it again.
Here are some of the shots I got:
Monica and I decided to get out of the house and go for a wilderness hike on this very hot and humid Sunday… with a 35 degree humidex factor, we asked for it!
Destination, Walton Glen Gorge in Saint John County very near the Fundy Coast just an hour’s drive from St. Martins. Walton Glen Gorge is often referred to as NB’s Grand Canyon and sports NB’s tallest water fall at 140 feet vertical drop. This waterfall only flows during wet season and August has been hot and dry in NB so we didn’t expect to see it on this day. Nevertheless, the gorge itself is supposed to be spectacular with 300 foot vertical cliffs on either side. Since we had never been here before, we thought this hiking adventure would be good practice for our upcoming Ireland trip in 5 weeks.
Off we went toward St. Martins to find the Shepody Rd. which cuts across land through perhaps one of the last unspoiled and unsettled tracts of forested coastline along the Atlantic Coast from Nova Scotia to New Hampshire. En Route we passed through a turn of the century community called Londonderry (same as the one in Ireland). What an unexpected thrill to find St. Paul’s Anglican Church and graveyard complete with high crosses just as if we were in Ireland. How ironic. Some of the graves date back to the mid 1800’s.
Traveling on past Crawford Lake and turning south onto Little Salmon River Rd., we came to major construction where the extension work of the Fundy Parkway construed my mental map for the gorge parking spot. Lost momentarily, we backtracked to the only signage we had seen for the gorge which meant a 5 km hike was ahead of us. Very good then, off we went. Within 5 minutes, we were soaked to the skin in this 35 degree weather.
It took at least an hour to get there…passing McLeod Brook Falls on the way. Arriving at the canyon and we were rewarded with an unparalled panorama of this spectacular gorge with it’s 300 ft vertical walls. On my belly, I crept to the edge as close as I dared and stuck my camera over the edge for a snapshot. Photos just cannot do this justice. Because the weather has been so hot and dry, the main falls were not running on this day…so, we will be back…maybe next spring.
Hot and thirsty (we consumed all the water we brought withing the first 30 minutes of the hike) we started back to the car. An hour and a half later, we dragged our tired bodies into the car and cracked a cold drink (thankfully our cooler still had plenty of ice). What a day trip. We walked over 10 km and saw some of the most beautiful scenery NB has to offer. If you get a chance, you must come here and see this.
Friday morning Monica and I were in full vacation mode and it was foggy – really foggy, but calm and quite lovely. Thankful actually it wasn’t a 40 degree day. We decided to go for a walk to gallery hop and photograph city street doors in the downtown and then have sushi for lunch. Plus we hadn’t found the perfect anniversary gift yet so I’m secretly thinking (hoping) maybe we’d luck out at one of the galleries.
The afternoon was totally reserved for relaxing on the back deck in the sun (thank you above) with Monica and Sarah and a perfect BBQ/salmon, twice-baked stuffed potatoes and caesar salad all brought seamlessly together with a fantastic pinot noir (La Crema) from Santa Rosa California.
Put your feet up for three minutes an enjoy this day in images. Cheers and happy summer to all!
It started with a trip into the Saint John city center with Cecilia. She and I were still mourning after the death of Jesus on Friday and so appropriately dressed in black. 
Monica, on the other hand, is lovely and vibrant dressed in pink for Easter celebrations. 
Into the Hilton we went for a jolly good breakfast. Cecilia treated Monica and I to the full buffet spread all you can eat. Cecilia eats about a teacup full compared to me. Here’s my first go at the buffet. 
Later to aid in digestion, we strolled through Market Square to the Old City Market. Lots of people were out and about and it’s always wonderful to get that experience. 
Of course, Cecilia has to check out the quality of the produce. 
Questionable dust control.
We always love coming to the Saint John City Market. 
Especially at Easter. 
Tomorrow I will visit my father. How ironic, on Easter Sunday.
With my beautiful wife by my side, we walked the Irving Nature park this morning…all 6.5 km and it felt really good to get some sun, fresh air and exercise.
There was more snow than I expected. 
but it was granular and easy to walk on. Just be careful – a bit slippery in places.
Easter – it’s about end of life and beginning of life at the same time. I am thinking about spring bulbs poking up through and thinking about Dad as he enjoys a weekend at his house – nice change of scenery from the hospital. I am so thankful that the one I love is here with me. 
Art is all around this weekend…starting with the snow. Can you see the rabbit in this photo? 
I also found time this weekend to do some stained glass. The Schiffer Villa panel is progressing nicely. I’m working on the birds now – grinding to fit. The iridescent glass is magnificent. 
You can follow the production photo journal under Panels/Schiffer Villa Panel.
Happy Easter Everyone. Let’s remember what is important and be thankful.
Nelson.
First, we worked all day (very productive) and then went chair shopping for Nelly. Stopped at at Leon’s (price too high) then to Lounsbury’s (perfect price/perfect chair… alabaster leather recliner swivel rocker made in Canada – thank you).
Then we tooted off to supper at Boaz Sushi on the West Side of Saint John. So Good! This photo shows Deep Fried California Roll, Spider Roll (with deep fried clams), Spicy Crab Roll (very spicy) and classic California Roll. I love this place.
After supper, we drove down to the Reversing Falls Park and walked down to the river’s edge. It was very high and dirty from the spring freshet. A kiss to Spring. All the birds were singing, it was sunny and warm. What a lovely afternoon. And then we headed off to Harbour High School for an evening of Fiddler on the Roof. Great Day – got to spend the best parts with my wife.
nellyglass studio 