Who is the Magpie?

Thank you for taking the time to visit my blog. let me tell you a little about me, The Magpie:

I have a lot of interests… passions in some instances:

• Hiking  (I would rather be in my Hiking Boots.)
• Travel
• Photography
• Painting (mostly watercolour these days) ( I Found my Why, my Raison d’être )
• Bird-watching  (Yes this is a PASSION!)  (On Becoming a Bird Nerd )

I am very fortunate to have recently moved to beautiful Vancouver Island in British Columbia, Canada. (I spent many years in Ontario and a brief few years in Nova Scotia so have lived from coast to coast.)

I am now retired, I have 3 grown children and 7 beautiful grandchildren. I love to travel and spend a few months in Mexico every year. When at home, I spend my days simply.  We do a lot of hiking and take long walks along the waterfront, up the local mountains or around the many parks surrounding where we now live, usually with camera in hand. In the evenings, we love to watch movies or play cards. (we do not bother with TV.) I am encouraged to live a healthy lifestyle by eating healthy foods, often organic, by my wonderful (he says amazing) new man.

My favorite saying is “Life is Good“.  It has not always been this way. My miserable life changed dramatically a few years ago. My world has improved steadily since that horrible day and for the first time in my life, I can say I am truly happy.

YES… I am happy and enjoying life even though I am afflicted with a very strange chronic condition called brachioradial pruritus or BRP. This strange name is the medical term for itchy arms.  I am lucky because while I am active during the day, I am fine. It is when I sit down at the computer or try to watch a movie or play cards, and especially when I lay down to go to sleep, that the itching starts. It is a burning pricking painful itch that will not be satisfied unless I apply a cold pack. In my post I Want a Cure not a Band-Aid I describe this condition in more detail.

Do not let the bitterness steal your sweetness.

Playing bartender in Los Animas, Mexico