Remembering Karen, a Year Later

Tuesday marked a year since we lost our dear Karen to cancer. Some of our friends took the day off to spend with Nick and remember her, so this post is both my outfit and a ton of pictures from our wander around. 

L and Yvonne took the full day off (it was already my regular non-work day) and hung out with Nick for almost all of it. 

Based on Monday's insanely high temps, I dressed in anticipation of another very hot day. 

I indulged in some Colour Therapy to help keep my mood up all day. I can't help but feel lifted when I look at this gorgeous skirt! 

• Hemp blouse - Sure 1032, thrifted; last seen here in April for swanning about at the field
• Skirt - A Tribute to Marimekko by H&M, thrifted; last worn here (2nd outfit) in June 2020 (Flashback there)
• Shoes - Sam Edelman, thrifted; last seen here in September with bright pink (Flashback there)
• Coat (below) - Club Monaco, thrifted; last worn here earlier this month

I often wear black with this pink/orange skirt, due to it being a very powerful blast of colour and pattern. 

This hemp top protected me from the sun (I was also fully sunblocked), and is nice and loose. 

The skirt itself is a silk/cotton blend - very swooshy! 

It has pockets! 

This skirt joins some of my items from last week in the "I can't believe that's H&M" category. I would love to find more from this tribute collection - I love Marimekko. 

I did bare legs, but wore my black petit-pants for thigh protection. 

I'm such a saucy minx! 

Covered up - it ended up being a hugely windy day, and I had to carry my hat frequently.

My little woven purse was admired. "It looks like a canteen!" exclaimed Randall. 

After we had breakfast, I was so chilled from the wind that we swung by home for L and I to pick up jackets. 

This was taken at the end of the day, so speckly sun is peeking through the trees. 

Accoutrements: 

I didn't wear the mask much, as we were outside for the bulk of the day. 

• Hat - thrifted
• Purse - Street Level, thrifted
• Mask - Lazy Susan's

The stuff: 

These flat shoes were great for the amount of walking I did, although were not appropriate for the light hiking part. I had one small blister on a toe by the end of the day. Not bad for close to nine hours!

Silver/turquoise bling: 

Like many of my girlfriends, we wore Karen's jewelry to feel close to her. 

• Belt - Brave, thrifted
• Wrap cuff - Karen's
• Silver cuff - vintage, thrifted
• Earrings - Charmaine's
• Silver/gold/turquoise ring - Karen's
• Silver/turquoise ring - local
• Silver/turquoise pendant - Karen's

L and I were up early to meet Yvonne and Nick at Shine Café for breakfast. 

It was a gorgeous sunny day, but that wind was cold. 

After eating, we strolled to Nick's place, stopping at our house to pick up coats - L also changed from shorts into long pants. 

Just up ahead, we spotted one of Victoria's urban deer. 

This was quite a young fawn. 

We hung out at Nick's for a couple of hours, looking at pictures and talking about Karen. Telling stories, laughing...

Greg (above) and Casey (below) showed up. 

We meandered down to Cook Street Village for some "road pops", then walked to Moss Rocks, a local mini-park. 

I did not know this secret back way! 

None of the paths up to Moss Rocks are paved, just this hard-pack and scree of pebbles. 

It's a steep walk, so I was careful. 

The views from the top of this modest hill are spectacular, so forgive the number of pics. 

Scrub underbrush and arbutus trees. 

Looking south, towards the USA. The snow-capped mountains are the Olympic range, in Washington State.

L and Yvonne on the right. 

More southerly views. If you head straight ahead, you'll reach Seattle. 

There was a gent enjoying the bench in the centre, but he nimbly hopped down the steep front face of the hill shortly after we arrived. 

The stretch of water you see in the middle of these pics is the Juan De Fuca (WAN-duh-FYOO-cah) Strait, and connects to the Pacific Ocean. 

This lush neighbourhood is Fairfield. Lots of very expensive houses (houses in Victoria average around $1 million and up - yes, I'm serious). 

I zoomed in to the east - more of the Olympic Mountains, and the eastern bits of the tip of Vancouver Island (which is where we are located, on the southern tip).

More rooftops. The light haze is the chill from the water hitting the heated air.

Back to the south-west. 

The lighthouse on Trial Island. You can see a lot of whitecaps on the water - very windy! 

A zoomed-in view of one of the barges that travels in the Strait - most of those goods are from the US and China, destined for Vancouver (which is the major west coast port). 

There were wind-surfers and parasailers enjoying the water. The largest white speck is a wind-surfer (click any of the pics to make them bigger).

Looking east, towards James Bay (another residential area). The two towers are apartment buildings. 

There are houses and condos on Moss Rocks, nearly up to the top of it. 

I climbed a bit higher on the rocks. 

Looking south again. On very clear days, we can see the town of Port Angeles twinkling in the sun. 

L clambered up the rocks to the top. 

My shoes said, "That would be a bad idea."

Such blue skies. 

The area near the water here is part of my Mental Health Walk route. 

Looking down from my slightly higher perch. 

And back up at L on the peak. 

It looks really high, but Moss Rocks is barely a hill. 

Looking further east, over the roof of one of the condos. 

You can see Mount Baker on the right - it's a dormant volcano in the Cascade range.

I loved the starkness of this tree against the blue sky. 

What a peaceful place. 

We sat sheltered from the wind and just chatted for a couple of hours. 

This young crow joined us, cawing madly. 

Just like a teenager, always cranky. 

As we walked back down the hill, we heard the telltale, "Hey, Al!" sound of a peacock, and were startled when one suddenly appeared beside us. 

I left my shadow in so you can see how close we are! 

What a lovely fellow. 

Beautiful rich colours. 

We walked beside Ross Bay Cemetery, and I looked back.

The red arrow is where I was standing for most of these pics. 

We walked through the graveyard to connect up to Dallas Road. 

Hello, Poet-Tree! (there's a poem inside that hole, see here).

We didn't see too many deer aside from this young buck. 

He was snacking on the clover. 

Only a small set of antlers, still with their velvet on. 

We headed for our little cove in the corner. 

A lot of people visit this section of the beach. 

The tide was in, and the sun was starting to lower in the sky (this is around 5:30pm). 

Looking across Ross Bay towards Clover Point. 

The rocks were mostly covered by the high tide - no climbing on them this time. We were here in April for Karen's birthday (post here). 

It was very cold near the water. If you ever come to Victoria, no matter what time of year it is...bring a coat! 

The seagulls were soaring on the wind. 

The rocks and pebbles shushed under our feet. 

Casey, Rosanna (with her no-sun brolly), Nick, Greg and L putting his hat on.

Chris and Ali joined us. 

Then Cat. 

Smart Ali, wrapping herself in a blanket. 

Caro arrived a few minutes after that. 

The driftwood logs are quite comfortable to sit on - many of them are cedar and are a bit squishy due to being in the water at some point. 

The view from our gathering spot, which was out of the wind. 

What an amazing place to remember our dear friend. 

We had about 15 of us (note that we're still spaced apart - force of habit!), which is the biggest group we've had together in over a year and a half. 

It was so good to see everyone. 

Justin and Vero brought another bouquet of wildflowers from their garden. 

I chilled with Ross (in the Evel Knievel bike helmet) and Cat (in the straw hat in the foreground). 

Since we'd been with Nick all day, the newcomers spent beach time with him. 

We laughed and talked about Karen, discussed the things we're planning for the summer and beyond, and savoured each others' company. 

Nick brought along a picture of him and Karen from when they first met in 1997. 

I know he was soothed by the outpouring of love from everyone. 

L and I walked home and relaxed with Vizzini (he'd missed us). It had been a long day of emotions, and we were both exhausted. 

But Karen will always be in our hearts. 

If you're feeling like a good cry or walk down Memory Lane with me, please feel free to revisit my tribute posts to her from last year here:

• Karen: The Pre-Digital Years (1997-2007)
• Karen: The Family We Choose (2008-2015)
• Karen: Grace, Giddiness and Gratitude (2016-2020)

Thanks for indulging me in this remembrance, my friends. We'll be back to my usual outfit postings shortly.