About

There is a pleasure in the pathless woods,
There is a rapture on the lonely shore,
There is society, where none intrudes,
By the deep sea, and music in its roar:
I love not man the less, but Nature more,
From these our interviews, in which I steal
From all I may be, or have been before,
To mingle with the Universe, and feel
What I can ne’er express, yet cannot all conceal.

– Lord George Gordon Byron, 1813

Although few of the woods I visit are truly pathless, I much prefer the solitude and the wildness found in forests, fields and wetlands to the bustling, artificial glass and concrete city that I inhabit five days a week.  Nature soothes my spirit and restores my inner peace; the ordinary world and all of its burdens fall away when I am surrounded by nature, alone.

Colour alone can inspire me…the shade of a lilac blossom, or the colour of a butterfly’s wings can influence my mood and lighten my heart. Nothing gives me more pleasure than walking the nature trails close to my home, listening to the birdsong, smelling the moist woodland earth, and feeling the sunlight on my face.

This journal is dedicated to the observation and exploration of nature in all its forms. It is a place to share my discoveries and experiences, update the progress of my garden, document wildlife I have seen, nature trails I have visited, and post new photos I have taken.  I hope it conveys some the joy and pleasure I experience in my wanderings, and encourages others to take an interest in exploring the wild places around them to see what they, too, can find.

ABOUT ME

I currently live in Ottawa, Ontario, my home for the past 20 years by way of Edmonton and Toronto. Although I work as an legal assistant, I have a B.Sc. degree in biology, and enjoy pondering on the mysteries of life and death, physics and God, and space and time. I love to read (primarily historical fiction, suspense, horror and fantasy), writing stories, photographing nature, gardening and spending time outdoors.

I live with my fiancé and our two cats, Lacey and Lily, whom we dote on. These sisters were adopted from the Lanark Animal Welfare Society after our previous two cats, Phaedra and Jango, passed at the ripe ages of 19 and 20. I am definitely a cat person and like to joke that I’ll be one of those crazy cat ladies at the age of 80 with 12 cats.  All of my cats are indoor cats and never go out in the backyard unless one of us is with them, as I have a birdfeeder in my backyard which attracts birds, squirrels, chipmunks and other wildlife from time to time, and want to ensure they have a safe environment in which to feed.

I am a lover of nature whose primary interests are birds, butterflies, and dragonflies. Although I have been birdwatching since 2004, my fascination with the natural world really began in 2006 when I first started taking my camera on my walks with me. I found that when viewed through the lens of a camera, the world became a much more beautiful and fascinating place. I found I was able to capture details not readily apparent in the fleeting glimpses often granted to me, and that sometimes what I thought was one species was actually quite another!  The more I saw, the more I wanted to see. I became an avid birder, and to this day it is the birds that hold the first place in my heart. Mammals, reptiles, and amphibians also captured my attention, but butterflies became my next real interest, followed by the odonata (dragonflies and damselflies). While I enjoy photographing them, my main interest is in observing and learning about the species I see through my lens.  For those of you who are interested in seeing the best of my nature photos, please feel free to check out my gallery on Pbase.

What will future interests include? While I don’t have the answer to that right now, I do love learning new things, and I’m sure there will be a new interest or hobby just over the horizon.

I do welcome comments on my journal entries; for those visitors who are not LJ or WordPress users, please let me know who you are and how you found me! For those of you who wish to contact me without leaving a comment on my blog, please fill out the contact form below.

Gillian Mastromatteo

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