June 19-Odd duck out

Hundreds of Canada Geese descend on Wascana Park each year to nest and raise their young. This white goose was the 'odd duck out' in a flock resting and eating by the shoreline.

June 17-Centennial rose

This is one of the many roses that graces my flower garden. It is a Morden Centennial Rose. This is one of the first blooms it had this season; right now (in July when I am posting this because I am behind) the bush is so full of roses, it can barely keep its branches from dragging on the ground.

June 15-Rider Pride on Tower II

I took photos of the old Saskatchewan Roughrider logo on Tower I; this is the new Roughrider logo that adorns the face of Tower II. They finished it in early June. You can see both logos as you drive into Regina or walk around Wascana Park.

June 13-Wascana Marina

Although Wascana is just a lake, the city does boast a marina where the local rowing clubs and dragon boat teams practice out of.

Every night, there are dozens of folks taking out kayaks, canoes, or sculls from the open bays shown in the picture above to skim across the waters of the mighty Wascana.

June 11-Joe Fafard cow (take 2)

In my April 4 blog, I talk about the artist Joe Fafard and his cows (which he is famous for.) This is a close up of the cow in Tower 1 in Regina. When you look really close, you can see his eyelashes!

June 9-Burgundy Iris

My mom gave me a slip of this burgundy iris a few years ago; now it graces my backyard with fist-sized blooms that can be admired from the sidewalk.

June 7-Skimming across the waters

When it hasn't been raining, I've been walking around Wascana Lake. This is a picture of some rowers practicing out adjacent to the Marina.

June 5-Going to seed

You can tell you're in Regina when you see the dandelions going to seed. These were just a few of the ones that took up residence in my backyard.

June 3-Statue at Regina Airport

I had to go to the airport several times this month. I really like this statue that is in the arrivals area. It's interesting to see how many people take their photographs beside this piece of art.

June 1 - SGI building

This is a photo if the SGI headquarters in Regina. I love its gold-coloured panes of glass. When the sun hits it, the light from the reflection brightens everything with its soft golden glow.

May 30-Mural on Broad Street

This mural, by Hugh Fry, adorns the cement wall of a parking lot just north of the Tim Horton's on Broad Street.
It took the artist about a week to paint it last year. It brightens my day every time I drive past it.

May 25-Street cleaning

I have been busy trying to cope with the rain and its effects on my garden. Over the next few days, I will be posting pictures I've taken over the past few weeks.

This one is of a street sweeping sign. Regina cleans its streets of the gravel it used as part of its sanding efforts over the winter. This sign was seen on Broad Street, near Northgate Mall.

May 21-Sherwood Plaza

The Sherwood Plaza building is located on the corner of Albert Street and 12th Avenue. This is a picture of everyone waiting at the light to head north on Albert Street after work so they can start their long weekend.

May 20-Victoria Park

The trees are in bloom in Victoria Park. However, this view may not exist much longer. The City is 'revitalizing' the downtown. This street view will be dramatically changed by next year.

May 19 - Reflection of the second tower

They 'wrapped' the first tower with the older Saskatchewan Roughrider icon. Now they are wrapping the second tower with the new Roughrider trademark. This is a reflection of the work they've done so far on the second tower, reflected in the first tower's windows.

May 18-Assiniboia Club building

Founded in 1882, the Assiniboia Club in Regina was THE gentlemen's club at the turn of the century. Deals were made; fortunes founded and lost by leaders in the community. It is one of the few buildings from this period that still exist in Regina.

To learn more about its history (and to see a photo of it from 1925), look at this Wikipedia entry about Regina's old buildings.

May 17-CK Pizza murals

These murals are located on the outside of the CK (Copper Kettle) Pizzaria on Hamilton Street. Not only do they brighten up the downtown core, it also helps to prevent grafitti on our downtown buildings.

May 16-Saskatchewan Sports Hall of Fame

Sorry for missing the last couple of days; have been taking pictures, but not been feeling well.

This is the old Land Titles Building in Regina, which is now the Saskatchewan Sports Hall of Fame.

Acccording to its entry in Waymarking.com, the building was completed in 1910 and was the first public building commissioned by the Saskatchewan government. It is also a heritage building.

May 14-Tower is done!

They were putting the last finishing touches on the Roughrider banner on the Tower yesterday. When you fly or drive into Regina, you'll know Regina has 'rider pride.

May 13-Lilacs are here

Looking around my garden, my peas, onions, beans, turnips, sunflowers, and lettuce have all poked their heads above ground to welcome spring...but they are still too small to photograph.

However, my lilacs are a different story. In about a week, I will have my first bunch of lilacs to bring in the house. In my mind, once you see lilacs and irises blooming in your yard, you can put away all winter clothes because the warm weather has definitely arrived!

May 12-Albert St & 12th Avenue

The City announced that in mid-June, 12th Avenue will become two-way instead of one-way and work will begin on 'revitalizing' Regina's downtown core.

So I took a photo of 12th Avenue - looking towards the downtown core - to record the way 'it used to be' before the changes take place.

May 11-Wrapping the towers #3

Well, they are making good progress on wrapping the towers. They had to halt for a couple of days because of the weather, but they were back out there on Monday.

You can make out the old Saskatchewan Roughriders logo at the top, and where it will eventually say "100 years of pride".

May 10-Courtney Street

This picture is of me driving along Courtenay Street in Regina's north end.

To your right is a fully developed neighbourhood. To your left is a farmer's field - literally the edge of town.

According to the City's northwest sector plan, this area to the left will be filled with houses within the next decade. The fields will exist no longer.

I wonder where people will go to ride their skidoos in the winter when houses are built in this field?

May 9-Nest buddies

I was parked in a downtown parkade when I saw this pigeon's nest, with three little birds inside. Only one had its eyes open; the others huddled close to each other for warmth.

I didn't realize that pigeons were so ugly when they were little. They look nothing like their mom, who strutted and coo'd as I took this picture (just out of range of my camera.)

May 8 - 9th Avenue North (Ring Road)

In Canada, you have to garden when the sun is shining ... so I apologize for not posting the past couple of days. I have been taking photos though.

This month I am going to take photos of some of the major roadways and collector streets in Regina, because as the city grows in the future, these roads will change dramatically.

This is a shot of 9th Avenue North heading westbound, just before MacIntosh Street. There's been a lot of roadwork in this area over the past couple of years. It is one of the easiest ways to get to the new subdivisions in the northwest area of town.

Unlike my previous postings of local streets, the trees are not yet mature enough to create a canopy over the roadway.

May 7-College Avenue

This is College Avenue at Broad Street looking west.

The elm trees are starting to bud out; Regina has been very fortunate that its Dutch Elm Disease program has saved most of the 200,000+ elm trees that have been planted in the Queen City. Once you drive outside of Regina, there is hardly an elm tree to be seen.

May 6 - I love Regina

You knew it was coming; a picture of the I Love Regina sculpture in front of City Hall.

Since 2002, this little symbol has appeared on everything imaginable in Regina. It was the basis of the "I Love Dog River" storyline in Corner Gas.

If you want to learn more about its history or how the City is trying to incorporate their new logo into this old theme, visit the City of Regina's website.

May 5-Frog at U of R

The University of Regina original campus is located on College Avenue, near the downtown. It has some lovely old buildings and some great sculptures.

This frog is about 4 feet high and about 6 feet in length. It watches over the parking lot and east end of the College Avenue campus.

May 4-Wrapping the Towers #2

I know yesterday's photo didn't do justice or show the scale of the signs that are being put on the two Hill Towers in Regina. (Although yesterday's shot showed how nice it can get here; not like today when it is cold and dreary.)

I took this photo from a friend's office who works in the other tower (which will also be wrapped later this spring.)

You can see how massive the logo will be. You should be able to see the logos as you come into Regina (whether by air or by car.)

May 3-Wrapping the towers

In the April 1 edition of the Leader Post, the paper announced that a vinyl wrap would be affixed to the front faces of both the two towers in Regina to celebrate the Saskatchewan Roughriders' 100 anniversary.

I thought it was a April Fool's prank.

Nope ... It wasn't. They started to put the wrap on the windows Monday. This is the first six panes being wrapped. By the end of the day, he had completed two full rows downward. You can see the wrap as you walk around Wascana lake.

Roughrider pride certainly lives in Regina.

May 2-A Prairie Buffalo

Felt better on Sunday, so I went out for a drive and passed this sculpture at the Access Communications building on Park Street. (They are our local cable TV and internet service provider.)

This sculpture called a Prairie Buffalo is by Daniel-Vincent Bernard, a Montreal artist and sculptor. It was dedicated on September 15, 1998 to "the pioneers of yesterday and the citizens of tomorrow." On the plaque it reads:

"Fashioned in coaxial cable, this unique statue combines cable technology with the symbol of Regina's glorious past."

May 1-Provincial Legislature

Still not up to snuff ... so here is a picture I took a while back (when it was warm and not snowing outside!) of the Saskatchewan Legislature Building in Wascana Park.

April 30-Crocuses

I'm still not feeling up to snuff, so I dug into my archives of photos to find this one I took a few years back. Enjoy!

April 29-Kanata Beach

I haven't been feeling well (hence the photos being posted a day or two late.) I didn't feel well enough to take photos for yesterday, so I dug into my archives to show you how southern Saskatchewan can look like in all its glory when summer arrives (which isn't today because we are supposed to get 5 cm of snow in the next 24 hours.)

This was taken from the house of a friend who lives at Kanata Beach a few years ago. A storm had just ripped through the valley, leaving its mark on the sky. It's no wonder why our licence plates say "Land of living skies". It never looks the same twice.

April 28-April showers...

April showers bring May flowers. Well, they also bring April flowers too. This is a picture of the first flowers blooming in my yard.

April 27-Big box stores

This is the site that greets you as you enter Regina on the TransCanada Highway #1 from the east. Big box stores. Dozens of them.

I took the picture because this is a relatively new phenomenon in the past 10 years here in Regina. (This use to be an empty field.)

I hope that either a) they will plant trees or something to hide these ugly buildings or b) society will evolve so it doesn't want to shop in such a way in the future.

April 26-Birds of a feather

Since I have a feeder AND a bird bath in my back yard, I have become quite popular with these fine feathered friends. (My cats haven't made up their minds yet; they love having birds around the house outside, but are quite frustrated that they never can catch one.)

I stepped outside yesterday for a quick walk and found them chirping up a storm on my fence.

April 25-Stained Glass at the Legion

This stained glass window created gentle rainbows in the foyer of the Royal Canadian Legion #1 Branch in downtown Regina.

The banner across the top says "Saskatchewan for Freedom". Beside the main figure are four smaller banners that read Liberty, Truth, and Justice.

Below the main figure are four other figures, representing the Navy, Air Force, Nursing Profession and Army.

April 24-Expo 86 Cow

Here is another Joe Fafard cow sculpture. This one was one of the focal points of the Saskatchewan Pavilion at Expo 86. It now lazily overlooks all those who enter Tower I downtown. (Since the building is locked at night, I had to take this through the plate glass windows.)

According to the brochure the City of Regina put out about downtown art, people visiting the sculpture at Expo 86 would rub the cow's nose for luck.

April 23-Ross Avenue

Yesterday (yes, I am late posting again) I was driving around in the dreary weather instead of gardening like I wanted to. I took this shot of the Ross Avenue overpass to the Ring Road to show how dreary life was yesterday and how barren some places in Regina can look.

It's not a pretty photo, but it isn't meant to be. My blog is a portrait of Regina - warts and all - in 2010. A hundred years from now, I think this view will have dramatically changed. I want those people to know how things looked (and what we saw) in our ordinary, every day lives.

April 22-Anthropomorphism

I was playing around with my camera at work, taking photos of these glass hearts that were on a shelf in a co-worker's cubicle.

When I showed her the photos, she noted my camera's flash created a 'face' in one of the top hearts. The other heart at the top looks like it is winking. I guess this photo is a good example of anthropomorphism...when you attribute human characteristics to inanimate objects.

April 21-Campion College

Campion College, located on the U of R campus, was founded by the Jesuits in 1917. It was the first institution in Regina to offer a bachelor's degree when it obtained Junior College status in 1923.

This sculpture is in its main foyer. From far away, it looks like a weird looking cross. However, the horizontal arms have spines in them and are oval, which makes it look like a fish skeleton (i.e., Christ as the fisher of men.) It also looks like a map of a coastline, with the 'fish' skeleton at the end of a river that connects to the sea (Could it be representing Galilee?)

Definitely many layers to this piece.

April 20-Darling buds of May

Well, actually it's still April, but the buds are coming out on the trees. I took this picture as I was walking last night (before heading back to study.) I'll be back to posting daily once my finals are over.

April 19: Live-in continues

Day 28 of the Live-in at the First Nations University Campus in Regina. Students say they will continue to live there until the Federal Government reinstates funding to its previous levels.

When I went there to study for my finals this week, the sun was setting behind the teepees.

April 18-Regina Islamic Centre & Mosque

I have been taking lots of photos of Christian religious buildings, so I thought I would show other types of religious buildings in Regina.

This is the Regina Islamic Centre & Mosque. I couldn't find out any history about when it was built on the Islamic Association of Saskatchewan's website, but I did find out more about the proud history of Muslims in Regina.

One of the first Muslim community leaders in Regina was named Muhammad Ali Tahaynee (Haynee), who immigrated from North Dakota. He and his wife raised 17 children in Regina. He owned Ali's Fancy Notions and acted as an interpreter for both new Muslim immigrants and the RCMP. Haynee Street in Regina is named in his honor.

April 17- Looking back

I saw someone else on City Daily Photos do this on one of their postings and I have been waiting for it to get warm enough for me to try it as well.

This is a photo I took while waiting for a red light at the corner of 12th Avenue and Winnipeg Street. You can see in the distance the downtown core and the twin towers.

It's not as easy as it looks to take a photo of the reflection in your side rear mirror. I took 10 photos; this is the only one that doesn't show my camera or hands in the corner of the photo.

April 16-St. Matthew's Anglican Church

Last weekend I went to a Caribbean Night fundraiser for Hope's Home (the first daycare in Canada to take both regular kids and medically fragile kids) at St. Matthew's Anglican Church.

While at the fundraiser, I found out that St. Matthew's is celebrating its 100 Anniversary this year. So I thought I would take a picture of how it looks in the cold spring sunshine.

Although there has been a church on this spot since 1910 (called the Grace Church), the building you see here (designed by Frank Portnall) was completed in 1926. Grace Church was renamed St. Matthew's Anglican Church in 1915.

For more information about its history, and to see beautiful pictures of its interior, please download their centennial brochure from the St. Matthew's website.

April 15-Limestone fossil

Many Regina buildings are decorated with limestone (both inside and outside of the building.) This photo is of a fossil that is found in the Cornwall Centre (just west of the food court before you go into the parking lot.)

I think it is some type of coral fossil or a bryozoan, but I can't be sure. I will ask a friend at work (who is a rock hound) what type of fossil it is and report back.

April 14-Broad Street North

Sorry for not posting the last 2 days; crazy hours. But I have remembered to take photos!

This is looking north at the intersection of Broad Street and 7th Avenue at 10:30 at night. It had just finished raining, so the roads were clean and shiny. A few cars in the distance, but most were safe at home, snug in their beds.