SCORE!

Sweet groooove action!

Team Canada lays out the competition in the final game of the round robin part of the World Junior Hockey championship!!

SWEEEEEEETTTTT!!!!!!

What a grand way to end the year. Great food, selfish time with your partner, a few vids, and a KICK ASS hockey game!!!!

Cause it made me laugh

Fine art of creation

I was talking to a friend the other day, and she said that one of the hardest things that she did when planning their wedding, was sitting down and creating the registry. I hadn't given it a lot of thought until then, but now it is sinking in.

We aren't kids, and when you blend two adult houses, you have the basics covered. So this whole creation of a registry is a bit daunting. What do we need, what can I project is good to have, what will we have space for, seeing as I don't see a move in the near future happening, and what are the things I haven't considered getting but maybe now could? It is an interesting thing to go through.

Some parts of the planning we are blitzing through - it definitely puts things in perspective. It is almost an adventure to plan a wedding in a shorter amount of time because you are making decisions quicker and for us, it seems like things are falling in to place. What matters to me is that I always had an idea of a 'community' wedding - one where people were a part of it, not just people who rocked up for the highly ritualized and compartmentalized weddings that seemed to be happening before. Our friends and family are involved, in the planning, brainstorming, helping with flowers, decorations, the cake, and everything else. It's been kind of cool so far, watching the pieces come together.

I have the feeling that the next three months are going to go by in a blur.

We also have to wait 2 weeks before we get to go to our first ultrasound... can't wait!!! At that point we will have a better idea of when our arrival will be making an appearance :]

Dress Shopping, 101

Ah, the joys of shopping for your wedding dress.

I am becoming more and more of a fan of EBay as time goes on. There are some wicked deals to be had. So, being an entrepreneur, and not wanting to break the bank with our upcoming nuptials, I did a quick look the marketplace to see if anything caught my fancy. To make a long story short, I found the dress PDQ, for a really good price, and was all but ready to run for it.

Well, after a few discussions, my mom convinced me that what we really should be doing is trying on some dresses (makes sense) to get a feel for the sizing, even if the sizing won't be perfect given unknown variables in the next few months, and to see if a deal here in the same price range could be found... so on the 23rd we hit a consignment shop (tried on an ok dress, but needed cleaning and lots of alterations) and then we went to a "bridal salon". Of course, read snotty wenches who figure they are god's gift to future Bridezillas out there.

We rock up, and as soon as I let out that I was getting married in a mere 3 months you could hear the sneer in the voice, and then the comment "OH. (dripping with sarcasm) You are going to have to buy off of the rack!)

Oh forsooth! Evil woman that I am for making them work for it! So, the wench took me to the wrong sizes (be-yotch!), and all they had were really princess-y type dresses with a lot of beading, and frilly crap, and they were just brutal. AND EXPENSIVE. After browsing through 50 dresses whose average price hovered over a 1000 buckeroos, my mom was on my side.

The dress on the net was very reasonable, custom made to my size, and beautiful - simple, elegant lines that will be flattering without too many accroutrements, but enough to be the right dress. So, turning on our heels, we waltzed out of the store, to no surprise to the wankers at the front counter, whom themselves were quite relieved they didn't have to hurry and help someone who wanted to get hitched so quick!

A meme to out myself, so it is all in the details..

A is for age: 32
B is for booze of choice: spiced rum
C is for career: Financial Aid Advisor in a post secondary institution
D is for your dad's name: Bob
E is for essential items to bring to a party: Booze. 7 layer dip or mexican fondue in a sourdough bowl
F is for favorite song at the moment: Devil's dance floor (Flogging Molly)
G is for favorite game: Cranium
H is for hometown: Vancouver, BC (or thereabouts)
I is for instruments you play: clarinet (not well)
J is for jam or jelly you like: strawberry
K is for kids: give it about 7 months for this to be a reality
L is for living arrangements: soon-to-be-more than a partner, 2 cats, fish, 2 bedroom suite in the 'burbs
M is for mom's name: Winnie
N is for name of your crush: The Rock
O is for overnight hospital stays: none
P is for phobias: earwigs (just gross) and a healthy respect for heights
Q is for quotes you like: "You are going up an unsanitary tributary without sufficient means of locomotion"
R is for relationship that lasted the longest: the one I'm in. Together 4 years :] and counting
S is for sexual preference: Ken.
T is for time you wake up: 7:05 am.
U is for underwear: cotton french cuts
V is for vegetable you love: corn on the cob, yam fries, carrots
W is for the wedding date: March 25th, 2006
X is for x-rays you've had: knee
Y is for yummy food you make: lasagne, stir fries, pineapple chicken, sweet and sour meatballs
Z is for zodiac sign: Taurus

post-celebratory time to relax

The last few days have passed by in a blur. I am sure that for most peoples, Christmas is intense - all the preparation, the wrapping, the cleaning, the visiting, the cooking, the cleaning, the unwrapping, the eating, the cleaning, the visiting, the catch a few hours of sleep and then do it again.

It seems like it was just the 23rd and I was finishing up my shopping, feeling pretty proud that I wouldn't have to shop on the 24th, and now, here it is the 27th, and I only have one more day off before I head back to work, albeit for a short week.

We still haven't firmed up what we want to do for New Years, I am suspecting it is a good year for a quiet NYE for just the two of us... I suspect it could be the last quiet one for a while.

The festivities have been great - lots of time with family, good food, lots of visiting, lots of real highs as we dropped our news, and just felt like it was go, go go. Today, it is a good day to stay in my robe. For a long period of time. It feels great to have no plans, and since we haven't been around a lot in the last few days, the house is still pretty much together so I feel no guilt about avoiding chores around the house.

Popular around the keyboard

Amazing how as soon as you sit down at the computer, you become really popular with your cats.

Everything that is going to happen is done :} And I am done.

Merry Christmas!!

Pineapple Express

I must say, I think it is a pineapple express that is blitzing through! It is a nice, balmy 13 celsius out there, and every now and then the skies open up for a deluge of rain. I am warm! Every now and then, I am propping the door open for some fresh air to get things moving again inside, it feels more like March than December and the first days of winter?!!

What is this strange weather on Christmas Eve?

House is just about clean, and about to give my fish a treat and clean up their tank :]

The fine art of procrastination

Unbelievably, I have already been up for a few hours.

Granted, should have been getting a head start on my day but you know when you are right into a book, and you know that book will taunt you until you have it finished??? Well, seeing as I was up, and Ken had taken off to do his running around, I lounged in bed and finished my book. Which was a great page turner I might add!

So, I have begun my vacuuming, and general tidying, hell, I think I may even find the time to bake some cookies today. It is just nice to be home and not running around. The last few weeks have been almost too busy. Who knows, maybe I will nap later on before I start to wrap my gifts.

See, still not that organized. The tree went up last night! Already shedding it's needles all over the place. I enjoy the trappings, the tree and the lights, and just spending time with people you care about... damn, another sappy moment slipped in. The cats are fun at this time of the year, they know something is up, and they shift between being completely aloof, and totally curious and you can find them in whatever box happens to be lying around...

The Wall.

Did a little shopping, got the fixings for some fajitas and homemade salsa, and then got home and vegged out. I could not be accused of any higher level thought processes going on tonight.

Other than the fact that I am gleeful to be away from work for a few days...just tired tonight. Did dishes, moved some laudry, had a bath, that was about it. I am working my way through a book, and that is damn appealing.

I was remembered by a friend in their passing, and I just found out. I cried, just remembering and missing the friendship I had, knowing how happy he would be for me now, with Ken, and the life we are building together. Sometimes life is brutal, and yet its greatest gifts are the people that it brings in to your life, for however long they happen to be there. Makes me realize how much I value the people that I hold close, how much our lives connect even when we don't see each other all the time, or talk all the time. You know that all you need to do is reach out, and they are there, part of your patchwork quilt of being.

I miss pacman

So, when you have a moment, and need a laugh ..................

How many more days do I have to get ready?

Well, the tree isn't up yet.

HoweverI, my bathroom is clean and I have some clean clothes again! And I can even see the floor in our bedroom again. I figured that we couldn't put the tree up if there was hockey gear and the remnants of two very busy, distracted weeks everywhere. So, figured I would score dinner with my folks, and cleaned house for an hour, then went and had a hour with the units. It was good, until I discovered that in my brilliance, I remembered to lock our door, but only grabbed the set of keys for my 'rents place. *AHEM*. Also thought my parents had a spare, but it was doing it's best lost impersonation, so as I gave up a productive night, ... Ken rocked up, not nearly as late from work as I figured he would be, so I was more than happy when I saw his lights in the drive!

So I continued on my merry cleaning ways, and the house is half put back together again. Where the hell did December go? Both of us will be shopping this weekend, and it just seems that the days have really flown by. Where is that being in control feeling that I spoke of a month ago, as I started my cards and baking back in November... crazy little thing called life eh? All about the curveballs and side trips along the way :]

Sized for the Holidays

Now you only need to have one beer!

First Day of Winter

Winter Solstice has arrived marking the shortest day, and the longest night of the year. Now we start to work our way back to the light!

The last days of the year are marching by, and I think I will have a chance to catch my breath one of these days...this December seems to have been crazy, a lot of changes are afoot, exciting stuff, and my head has been spinning trying to keep up with it all.

At it's core, there has been some clarity this month as well. The course I just took, through VCC's Instructor Diploma program was empowering. I wish all instructors in post secondary took this course and used this program to improve their teaching. It was such a high to be in that kind of environment with a bunch of very diverse teachers (everything from someone teaching the Hawai'ian form of massage to diesel engines, to classroom aides). This helps guide me back to the idea of at some point being a teacher. I only have one more course, and then the practicum and I am done this program. Then, hopefully there will be another step in that path in the direction of teaching, even if it is at a later date.

I still haven't done my shopping. I am such a last minute shopper.

Tree will be going up tonight!!

Will be time to tame the housework beastie too, been way too easy to ignore the state of affairs in my house the last few weeks. Time to do a big clean before the rellies come out for Christmas!

What snowmen do in the off season

Craziness

Monday morning, and it feels like it is 10:20 at night, not in the am.

I think I am fading, already! I am fantasizing about having a nap, and wondering how many half-lists I have kicking around. It feels like in the last two weeks all I have managed to do is to get things half done. Like half of my cards in the mail, half being carted around waiting for me to make it in to the post office. The house is mess, and well, haven't been home long enough to care. The lights are up, and look great, but I think Wednesday will be official tree getting day. Had some lofty plans for baking, remember that back when, and some got done, other stuff is still a plan.

I have lots of grand ideas floating around, can't wait to see what will come to fruition.

Halfway through the day

I must remind myself next year not to take a course that falls on back to back weekends, the weekends before Christmas.

However, I had a great morning. My dad and I went to a home improvement store to sort out a new kitchen countertop since mine is officially toast and deteriorating rapidly. We were there as the store opened, armed with some Timmy Ho's, stuffed with a warm blueberry fritter, and ready to wreak havok on some poor clerk who was barely awake. Made some decisions, got the job done, spent some time with my dad, and viola. Here I am at school. I did all that before 9AM!

Of course now I am ready for a nap and quite grateful that my class tonight only goes until 3pm. The neurons are definitely stalling right now.

The Unknown Factor

I am stealing this from Refinnej who grabbed it from someone else!

This meme is about listing 10 things that most people don't know about you, strange and unusual facts (for me, still wordy!)

1. I love popcorn. This would be the snack I will generally return too.

2. I moved around a lot when I was a kid and pretty much went to a different school every year until I got in to the highschool years.. then I only switched schools once. I have a bizarre attitude about moving, and actually staying in one place for a period of time. The last three places that I have lived I have spent good chunks of time there (11 years, 3 years, 2.5 years) and the stability is cool, but still a bit of an adjustment. It throws me sometimes that people don't move as much as we did growing up.

3. I have two degrees plus a few extra credits. They are in English, and then History and Humanities from SFU. At times I undervalue my education because it is something that I have always done, and I am a course junkie in many ways. I am having a helluva time making the jump in to a masters, and I like to think because it hasn't been the right time in my life to make that jump. One day.

4. I had perfect 80's hair and used to go through a bottle of hairspray in about a week when I was a teenager. I loved the big hair bands for a few yeards, papered my walls with their posters and was over it before I was 16. Then I went for perms instead, now I have gone au natural.

5. I can actually handle country music now. Used to avoid it like the plague, but with music in the last five years, at least country singers still sing. Not that I still don't like some punk and alternative, but my tastes have grown up some.

6. I have a quiet side. Not many people see the loner side of me that enjoys the time that I get to spend alone, just puttering away doing whatever. A lot of people just see my extroverted side, and discount the fact that I could actually enjoy just being introverted and quiet for a change.

7. I think that travelling is really important. It doesn't matter how far you go, or how much you spend to go there. I think that having a change of scenary every now and then is good for the soul. Because of my dad being in construction growing up, we didn't always do a lot of trips. As soon as I turned 19 I made it a priority to get away whenever I had two nickels that I could rub together. Will try to continue this, and I am eternally grateful that I fell in love with someone that shares my sense of adventure and seeing new places.

8. I really miss having a dog. I love having my animals around me - the cats, the fish, but I miss the company of a dog too. I don't think it is the right time in our life to have one, but I consider myself a cat and dog person, and eventually we will have both.

9. I met my partner playing co-ed hockey. It was funny because both of us figured that the other one was in a relationship until a highly revelatory conversation took place in the pub at the rink many, many years ago. It has been great ever since, and ironic, since I was at a stage in my life where I was not really looking and was happy in the place that I was in. I love the fact that we share a love of hockey, I like being a superfan and hanging with the hockey wives and tailgating after his games, and I love being able to play together. Damn cool.

10. As a result of moving around so much when I was a kid, I realized that friends are friends no matter where you live and they live. So it seems that my closest friends live where-ever, and it makes me glad for blogs, and email, and long distance phone plans. Friendships need a little work over time to make sure they continue to flourish, but they shouldn't be work. I think the best friendships start and pick up where you left off, and you get celebrate the highs together, and cry over the hardships together. I used to spend hours on the phone when I was younger, and now I hate spending too much time with a phone plastered to my ear.

Glad to be home...

Just got in a while ago from the island. The very big drawback of Vancouver Island is BC Ferries.

Nothing like showing up 40 minutes before a sailing (admittedly without a reservation) and it is already sold out, so now you get to wait an additional 2 hours before the next sailing. Of course, the woman at the toll booth said there was still a shot at getting on, we were more than 20 cars off of getting on board, why hand out false hope? Worse than playing bingo.

Then, we were snarled in traffic caused by a major accident, then construction.. the 40 minute drive home from the ferry turned into closer to an hour and a half. So today, it was like the commute that never ended. Left a meeting in Victoria at 3:30 and arrived home minutes before 10, done like dinner but so glad to be home!

Brilliant marketing...

PS We finally got our truck through aircare without major fussing!!!!What a relief!

YAY!

I just finished writing out the last (I think) of my Christmas cards!! PHEW! Nice to have them done before December 24th (been there, done that).

I have discovered a strange pet peeve over the last few years. It seems that my aunts and uncles on my mom's side, in fact, even my cousins, when sending out their cards still send them to my parents (not a separate one to Ken and I)... such "Bob and Winnie, Karen and Kelly" Being my brother and I. He is 27, and I am 32 and as good as married. I don't get it. I started sending out my own cards more than 10 years ago!!!!! Yes, we reside at the same physical address as my folks, but we do not live with them. We have separate lives, separate entrances and parking places, and no connecting staircase. We see each other as much as parents and their kids do once said kids are adults. We co-own, we are independent. I am not sure why this irks me.

Do they expect us to share the card?? A week with the folks, a week with me, and then a week with my brother at his place?? Now, I can understand sending 2 cards in one envelope, and getting one of us to pay it forward but this is a pet peeve. Up there with parking tickets (a corrollary of paying to park).

/rant over

Strange one

Last night I turned the last page in SE Hinton's stab at adult lit, "Hawkes Harbour". Freaking bizarre novel I must say. The front cover boasts that the book will tromp through "vampires, pirates, and lusty french socialites". I am not saying that I hated this book by any stretch, it was a weird book, and a fast read. In a sense it could be described as character driven, but it was not nearly as compelling as her first book, which in many ways is a rite of passage for kids to read (The Outsiders) as they come of age. This book left me feeling bereft, I have been half looking forward to this latest attempt since I first saw the book on the stands, but it didn't measure up to my own preconcieved notions. Between looting stories, and drunken episodes, and shifting timescapes, mental disorders and dependence, and a cured vampire, it is a strange way to pass a few hours.

Mighty Mouse

Houston! We have a mouse!

Apparently with much noise and bumping around, we had a mouse foraging in the cabinet over the stove. The wee bugger got in through the space around the exhaust pipe, so there are bits of insulation all over the place, red river cereal (apparently mice don't like mulled apple cider mix, who knew?) droppings, and thankfully, the mouse isn't an alcoholic and left the bottles alone.

I guess with the colder temps the little creatures are driven in. I would love to know how a mouse in a house with 3 cats has managed to live so long, but he did manage to scurry back in to the nowhere before we could find him, and to his credit, he was trapped in the cabinet and didn't hit the floor running.

Would be interesting to see what my cats would do - being indoors for the majority of their lives. They are both doing well - the Ripper seems to have made a full recovery and is still as affectionate as ever.

Double Whammy

It has been a strange week so far, some amazing highs between a winning hockey game friday night, a quiet night at home saturday with my sweetie, hanging with family, and finally getting some picks right for our football pool (I think we nailed second).

Admist all this, I also managed to get out of my truck funny in the Safeway parking lot, tweaking my knee and have a nasty cold. So between sneezing and coughing and whining about my sore knee, I am a bundle of joy right now!

So, I am staying home and taking care of myself. I know when I crave 5 alive juice and mandarins that I am still under the weather but hopefully on the mend, quickly.

Well, almost.

After that short burst of Christmas related activities a few weeks ago, I currently find myself contemplating writing out those cards I had high hopes for getting out before or around the first, and a few more things that need baking. I haven't really devised a list yet of what I need to get done, but I am sure that is around the corner.

We are melting out there!!! It is strange to have the white stuff on the ground. Yes, I know I have made a lot out of our weather lately, but snow is novel, especially when it doesn't immediately turn to slush. Perhaps enough out there for a sloppy snow angel, but there it is still kicking around and it has been a few days. Normally we get teased with winter, not actually have to experience it for more than a few days in a row... like Jen - sitting at -20. HOLY SHIT BATMAN. And I am whining about the damp weather we have hovering at 0?? It is all relative is all I can lay claim to. Ours is a wet cold and it penetrates much quicker.

Ken is going to put up our lights today, and I am excited. I love having lights up, and then I love decorating the tree. This is the season we first got together and I remember a lot of firsts, like our first real date when he helped me out with my tree and I got to see him in a suit as he left to go to a work party! He looked AWESOME! What a way to leave a great impression on a gal!

Been feeling somewhat funky lately, but I am working at shaking it off. I think it is a'happening, I am pleased to say. Hockey game last night was great, we won, and everyone else figured I had a decent game, but I had just gotten my skates sharpened and did a not so graceful fall on the blue line when I missed grabbing an edge. Still haven't fully gotten back in to watching the NHL again, I watch the highlights, but it certainly hasn't been prominent in my life. During the strike last year, I moved on a fair bit.

Zinger

My work week is over! YAY!

And I can't believe that it is December already. Where has 2005 gone? Another election has been called for this wonderful country and it is time for the bandwagons to be wheeled out. I have a thing against all the signs that the politicians post, promoting their names and affiliation. What a waste of resources. Yes, I understand that much is about name recognition, but it quickly becomes ridiculous. Give it 6 weeks and there will be tonnes of signs on street corners, obscuring your view of anything else. A veritable stand of trees, with messages, that are easy to ignore as your drive by at 50 km/h.

Learned a few new concepts today about Financial Literacy for college and university students and how it can be a core indicator for student success, retention, completion, and ability to service debts upon graduation. Interesting stuff, and although this came from more of an American p.o.v., it will have more and more relevance to Canadian models as links are forged between Financial Literacy and Success over time. It is a new field, and I think it would be one that I would like to do some research in to, given the chance.

Tidbits

1. It is snowing again! It is beautiful outside and we had a mini-snowball fight in the driveway with my brother this morning
2. This is great article about the 25% hike in service calls that Canon Photocopier$ get in the festive season as a direct result of people phocopying their various naked bits after partaking in some holiday cheer. Now that is funny as hell!!!!

How are you?

Sometimes this question can really trip me up.

How to answer - brutally honest, and let it all hang out. Or do you spare the person the details and just go with an easy "fine".

Sometimes when people ask you how they are doing, they are just being polite and don't really want to hear the long story and gruesome details. Sometimes, you can tell that the person really cares, and then you are in a position where do you really want to go there, or is it easier for you to retreat to said earlier position?

I find it hard some days to answer this question because it can be easy to get caught up in the mundane trivial stuff that grates on your normally optimistic outlook... So generally I go with my gut instincts, how I am feeling in that particular moment and whom is doing the asking.

This morning I think I would have liked to have stayed in bed.

SNOW!

It is Grey Cup Sunday today, and I think with all the folks in town from East of Hope and the Coast Mountains have brought with them some intrepid weather from the rest of Canada. When I got up this morning, it was SNOWING! It was beautiful. Not enough to stick... yet. The temperature is still hovering just above zero, and I thinking that we could see some more in the next few days. Prolly won't last, but a novely when it happens. It is always amusing that a few inches of snow all but shuts down the coast for a day or two.

I always find it strange when I watch weather snippets from the rest of Canada, the cold, white, frozen north. West Coast is so different, all the way up to Alaska. A true rainforest that stays pretty mild and damp, while the rest of the country(ies) are held in the grip of winter, we have days where you could easy head for the slopes in the morning and go for a walk on the beach at night. Maybe not always, but not far from the truth either. It blows my mind - you can head not even 100 km in, and the weather is completely different.

Last night we hooked up with some dear friends and went for "all you can eat" Sushi and Korean B-B-Q. Damn fine night. We get spoiled with out fresh seafood and the wares last night were awesome. We topped it off with a few different kinds of gelato - green tea, mango, and coconut. The last two were divine, I am not quite in to green tea gelato at this stage of the game. We even had a private room, so it didn't matter how loud and racous we could be/were. Great service, and really good variety. Funny, I think the more sushi you try, the more you end up craving it. Before, once a year was enough for me and now I can definitely eat it anytime. There are a few things I won't go near, and some items that amaze me that I like. The salmon sashimi is something else though.

Off to prepare for some Grey Cup festivities...

The Crush delivered

We had a great game last night, breaking our last few games of just not playing up to our potential. It has been two weeks since we played, and I missed it. We won, 7-2, and it was great to get out for a skate, even if it happened at 11pm and I was TIRED to begin with. We only had 3 girls out (again) so I played most of the game (being coed, we have to have a minimum 2 girls on the ice at all times). We did shorter shifts so I didn't quite feel like I needed the oxygen tent the whole game :] Kenny played well in net, and all in all, the girls played awesome for only having three of us!

Today has been a move slowly, watch a vid, do some housecleaning type day. Was feeling blechy around the edges, so taking it easy was a welcome break.

Rambles

Sometimes it is hard to capture the thoughts that are running through my head and pay enough attention to them to see them through.

Some of my thoughts are like silverfish, darting in to my consciousness and then they are gone in a flash. Or like a silverfish, they weave and dance a little before they disappear, teasing me.

Sometimes I liken the way my mind works to a skipping CD - bouncing between half finished topics in a rush, only to return to one, and then skip forward, and somehow managing to keep most of the threads in order in between apparently random and disconnected thought processes.

Sometimes my mind is like a sieve, easily distracted, or like teflon, where nothing seems to stick. Or when I have so many thoughts trying to get out at one time that they all log jam and I end up sounding like the village idiot.

The fine art of communication

I have had a strange day. My presentation went off without a hitch today! My technology worked, I had a handful of people out, I didn't flush red, and people seemed grateful for me being me and the information that I disseminated. Transit home worked smooth - my train rocked up pretty quick, and my bus was waiting at the station. An easy end to a long day.

Until I called my mother.

All of my communication skills mean nothing when I talk to her. I love her dearly, but it seems at times we speak two different languages. We approach life so differently, and how we interact with people. I think our five minute conversation quickly became terse, and we ended on a cheesy note in which I had an instant flashback of being any age, feeling frustrated with my mum and wondering how we got from A to H in less than 6 seconds flat. Those are the moments I want to lean over to my dad and tell him that I think it is good we are united in many of our personality traits, as it seems my brother and mum reflect each other a bit. I wonder about that - gender dynamics between siblings and their parents, and how each interacts. Dads look out for their girls, and mums look out for their boys.

Time to pull up with a good book, this week at times has already been a slog. Had a nice "not seeing eye to eye moment" about office temperatures yesterday. Well not much of a disagreement, apparently I can have a few vents moved and just cope. Out of spite I brought in an old sweater to wear, one that my gran used to have, my inheritance. So I can wrap myself in a big hug that reminds me of someone near and dear and change my own temperature and gripe about the battle I had no chance of even showing up to.

100 Random Things

I started this list back in November 2005!!!!! This was before I got pregnant, before we got married, before out lives evolved! Crazy eh???

1. I was hatched and raised in British Columbia, somewhat rare in these parts since many people have moved here from the rest of Canada and beyond
2. I am in my 'early' 30s
3. I am as good as married, even if we haven't done the deed yet
4. I am glad that we met when we did, and I didn't expect it when it happened
5. I have 2 cats
6. I have african cichlids (fish)
7. I have a lot of plants
8. I have a lot of books, and am finally getting better at paying forward the pocket books which I won't read again
9. I love playing ice hockey
10. I enjoy knitting
11. I love being in the ocean, near the ocean, near any body of water
12. I wish I could be more of an environmentalist but I recognize my limitations
13. I read voraciously
14. I have written a lot of poetry over the years, some good, some not so good
15. I have taken way too many post secondary level credits
16. I love plaid
17. I recycle as much as I can
18. I collect rocks
19. I love to travel
20. I cry when animals get hurt in movies
21. I can't carry a note
22. I am a morning person, once I am up
23. I love a good cup of coffee in the morning
24. I like reading the Sunday paper
25. I love that moment before the day starts and you are snuggled up with your honey in bed, and the cats are wrapped around your legs
26. I have a bird of paradise plant that is five years old and I hope that 2 years from now that it will bloom
27. I love popcorn.
    
28. I hate paying for parking and parking tickets
29. Learning how to breast feed is really tough
    
30. I am stubborn.
31. I don't give up easily.
32. I love punk celtic rock
33. Watching Brandon grow and change has been humbling
34. We had a "shot gun" wedding and I loved every minute of it
35. I never expected to be sober for my stag, or for my wedding
36. Helping hands that come forward with gently used items when you have a baby is amazing
37. Catching up with old and new friends once you have a baby is really cool
38. Facebook is some crazy stuff - reconnecting with people on a superficial level, and actually rediscovering connections that were put to the side for a time
39. I like trucks.
40. I don't miss driving a 5 speed as much as I thought I would
41. I like growing plants
42. I like rose gardens
43. I really don't like any of Vancouver's radio stations. Some days it floors me to admit that a talk radio show, or even a country radio show can be better than the rest of the offerings
44. My musical tastes have been trapped in a state of limbo, I really haven't been exposed to all that much new stuff I actually like
45. I want to see ZZ Top, Flogging Molly, and George Leach in concert. Talk about extremes eh?
46. I have a brother that is 5 years younger than me.
47. I like to camp.
48. I love to travel.
49. I have read all of the Harry Potter books and I think they ended well.
50. I hated how the Sopranos ended.
51. I have a tan for the first time in years
52. We got married on March 25, 2006
53. Brandon was born on July 24, 2006
54. I want to see Yosemite.
55. For some reason, I want to go back to Hawaii one day.
56. I would like another try at outrigger.
57. Having a power boat would be really cool to get out and explore more of BC's rugged coastline.
58. I love cross border shopping.
59. I like cheese.
60. Coming up with 100 random things about myself is hard work.
61. I enjoy going to the tulip festival in la connor and looking at all the colours.
62. This summer I visited Nej and her boys, and it blew me away when I looked in the backseat and between us we had 3 boys. 20 years ago, it was just us.
63. I want to go whale watching at the north end of Vancouver island.
64. I have a yen to do a hot springs of BC driving tour in the fall.
65. I want a masters degree one day.
66. One day, I would like to have my student loans paid off.
67. I have both an outgoing side, and a real loner streak.
68. I like doc martens.
69. I like to wear white shirts, even if they never stay clean.
    
70. I want another tattoo.
71. I don't think I will get more piercings.
72. One day, we will get a dog.
73. I was born in Richmond, BC
74. Watching the Vancouver Giants win the Memorial Cup live was AWESOME
75. My son has blue blue eyes and dimples!
76. I never thought that cosleeping would be an option but it works
77. I miss my dear friends who don't live in the lower mainland dearly, and am so grateful the lot of you stay connected by whatever means works with all of our crazy lives.
78. I really try to be a good friend.
79. I have seen the northern lights.
80. I like to travel in June and September
81. I want to start doing some drop in yoga sessions.
82. I love massage therapy
83. I like having my toenails painted.
84. I like taking pictures of my feet in funky places.
85. I like reading both high brow literature and page turner thrillers
86. I like reading just about anything, and recently signed up for the national geographic magazine as my bathroom reading material
87. I never knew I could care so much about another person's bowel movements before we had Brandon
88. having kids does change you, no matter how much you yell and scream and deny that it will change you
89. having kids doesn't mean you can't do what you used to do, you just do it differently
90. I got to see part of the original Cariboo wagon trail and it made my day in a geeky way
91. I like guinness.
92. I like spiced rum.
93. I like blackberries.
94. I don't like tuna or tomato soup.
95. I am almost there and I am running out of juicy little tidbits to relate.
96. I think that my friendships are really cool now, even if I don't get to see all my girlfriends that often (kids, husbands, family, work... )
97. I am in a book club, and it makes me gleeful
98. I am trying to get out walking as many days of the week that I can.
99. I like to take the path less traveled.
100. I like arrowroot biscuits.

AND THAT IS ALL FOLKS.

The first 25 or so were from almost 2 years ago. O M G !!! where does the time go?? And wow, has every thing changed or what?? Funny how some years are everything about change, and some years you just float on through.

Pea Soup

For the last few days, and for the next few days, the coast has been literally cloaked in pea soup fog. Viz has been reduced to just beyond the edge of your car, a half k (1/4 mile) in every direction until everything disappears in to the mist.

Makes me glad that I don't have curly hair (read spiral perms of the 80s to give some life to my very straight hair), otherwise the dampness would turn it in to frizz. It is a cloying, cold damp that clings to you, making you shiver. It also looks bizarre, there are fog patches in my back yard! Almost time to hang the christmas lights to bring light to the dark!! The other part to it, is you leave for work in a fog, go for a walk at lunch, in a fog, and you guessed it, you leave from work in a darker fog! Today will be a longer day since I have to do a presentation later, if anyone decides to show. Part of me hopes that some do, the other part has all crossables crossed that my technology works. The few presentations I have done have been an ongoing learning curve on how to fix technology that doesn't work how it should.

Some days are like this...

snippet from afternoon TV

"you are up an unsanitary tributary without sufficient means of locomotion"

now, if you were a script writer, and you came up with a line like that, would you waste it on afternoon TV?

try rolling that one off your tongue and not laughing. It definitely had me and my sidekick in stitches!

where the hell did my six days off go?

why does that time seem to go by in half the time that the rest of the time goes by in?

*SIGH*

ah well, finish running some errands today and trying to get my head back in to the game and failing miserably.

Kazzicus Domesticus, volume 1

Day two of my week at home and I am covered in flour.

My kitchen is covered in flour.

There isn't a spare counter that doesn't have something spilled on it, er on it.

However, I am ploughing through my Christmas baking. It is nice to know I can stick this stuff in the freezer and I am set for the next 6 weeks. I have a course that runs 2 weekends in December, so if I don't really get it done now, it won't get done. It is nice to show up at someone's house with a plate of goodies :]

I have already made, in no particular order:

ginger snap cookies
sourdough star cookies
chocolate haystack bar (instead of drop cookie version)
chocolate/peanut butter marshmellow bar
date square
butter tarts

I still need to make shortbread, and a few other things, but I done for today. Time to take some selfish time and fritter away the rest of my day with a good book.

Hell, maybe even put my kitchen back to the way it was before the flour monster hit.

This could be the first time in ten years I get my Christmas cards in the mail before December 24th... I know, all the cynics out there, but it may actually happen!!!

Sleep, interrupted

My first day off, of a few. It feels strange being off with no big plans, or plans to get out of dodge. Instead, I am doing the odds and sods around the house you never seem to have enough time for.

You know how it is, attempting to sleep in to be woken up by a telemarketer, only to realize an hour later when you wake up in a true sweat that someone forgot to turn the heat off so it is a balmy 90 degrees and you feel slightly naseaous as a result. It was a good day, I have no idea where the time went, nor did I feel all that motivated to get my personal list of chores done. No more laundry to do, which is a bonus.

It is strange not really having an agenda though - I think I will do some baking, I will try to catch up with a few friends, but there is nothing absolutely pressing. Maybe get the car through aircare (finally) and perhaps attempt to relax too.

I have a thick folder of my poetry attempts, I think a side project will be to put them in an electronic format and perhaps work on them a bit. Judging from the stack of paper, that is a job in itself! Other than that, nothing all that prolific is coming to mind tonight.

Frost!

What a beautiful morning! After dragging my ass in to work early, which is nothing short of a miracle for me (I would normally rather stay late than show up early... perhaps this is another perk with aging comes a different circadian rhythm?) I have a net station up, and I am grooving at my desk, enjoying the quiet.

The skies were pink, and it is clear! NO RAIN!!! It feels like it has already been raining for months straight and progress has been steady on our ark!

First frost this morning, and where did we put our ice scrappers? They have vamoosed, and then some. Funny, you only need something 3-4 months a year and once the temperatures change, away they go. Kind of like the bug zapper going in to hiding for the winter.

Battlefront

After too many hours, I have to admit that the latest Star War$ Battl3front II is awesome gameplay for the x-box. What a way to burn off angst with some senseless battles between good and evil. Very enthralling, great graphics, makes for a way to make a few hours evaporate in between pizza and iced tea and then POOF! That was your saturday. It has been fun though, we have been chilling with my bro, and it has been fun! Lots of trash talking, and mocking each other, interspersed with my trying to tell him that this speed metal band he is listening to now sounds like old school heavy metal from the 80s. Listening to a few sound bites was hilarious, I half cringe and half laugh, and partially half to admit I did really like some strange types of music in my day, hell, even still :]

There was some productivity today however, the house is clean, ran some errands, fixed the lock on our shed... I feel like I have been in an altered reality for the last few hours though - this will more than likely be my fix for the next long while!

Remembrance Day

A good time to remember those that have fallen in the name of something greater than themselves. Whether it be in a moment of silence, or participating in an organized event, it is important to never forget the events of the past, no matter how troubling they are.

I watched the Fab Five last night, they are truly wonderful folks and I like their show. Today would have been a dear friend's birthday, whom passed away during the summer after an heroic battle. I miss his prescence, he would have fit in to the Fab Five dynamic - an amazing art historian whom loved ABBA and the Spice Girls, with impecable taste, honour, and an unbelievable sense of humor. I miss his friendship all the time. On the flipside, Ken's best friends' birthday also happens to be today, and I am very proud of the man he is and the job he does. Today is meaningful in so many different ways, no less poignant.

Yikes!

I think I am really looking forward to playing hockey tonight. My mood has done a weird funky chicken today, at some points I have felt great, other times lazy as hell, at other times just blah. It will be nice to leave it all on the ice. I need to get better at incorporating exercise in to my daily regime. I feel so much better when it is there, seems like my schedule has been wonky enough that it just hasn't happened yet on a consistent basis. It is like I have weekly "resolutions" of what I should be doing and I think I half sabotage myself. I should be trying to get out and at least walk every day, I should be making sure the house doesn't fly to pieces by thursday night (ok, it is just that things are out of place and need to be put to rights) , I should be eating better all the time. Ah, the tyranny of the shoulds. All you can do is try, and when you stumble, wallow for just that second, dust yourself off, and get right back up again.

Then there is the human factor, and shit happens. You have a bad day at work, you wake up on the wrong side of the bed, you miss your bus, you end up not being in the mood to eat the lunch you packed. These things happen and you have to be flexible enough to be able to roll with it. Some days it is harder to shake.

Like yesterday, I got lots done but at times it felt really uphill. Picked up something from Puro-later and then went to drop off our empties and got stopped by a train, for almost 20 minutes, which was my second train of the day! Nothing like sitting in the car stewing over something you can't control, especially when the train stops and starts moving backwards, only to resume forward motion again and you wonder whether or not you are foolish to fit in another errand before you head to the doctors! Or going to Cosstco and getting a script filled, only to have them be able to fill about a 1/3 of what you were picking up but they did fix my glasses for free and I got out of their cheaply. Or getting to your mechanic, and getting a really big problem fixed, two actually, only to have another one crop up. It felt like one of those days where something would come together as something didn't. I hate that I end up feeling like I am whining when I go off about stuff like this - ultimately I am healthy, secure in who I am, in my relationship, but there are these little hurdles that you just deal with. It is what we all do - because I think life is a series of checks and balances, some good and some bad, and there are indeed moments when life does take your breathe away, usually when you least expect it.

Most of today was really nice - slept in, went out for lunch with Ken's mom and then to the casino for a bit, read my book, lazed around. Funnily enough, even just venting about this here has helped put things a little bit more in perspective again - a little moment before I work my way back in to optimism!

Busy day off

Why are days off busier than days at work?? I think I have put a dent in to my "things to do" list, but it still feels like I am avoiding things. Truck still needs some loving care, but I did manage to fix the sagging fabric roof! Yay!

It is damp and cold today, a theme of this week. Seems like I haven't been warm enough. Had to go to the doctor's today, so as a result of feeling sorry for myself I decided to buy a new tablecloth and grab a lunch on the run. It helped, a little!

Ken was also a sweetheart last night and came home with a dozen red roses - just because. Awww. Amazing how days always seem to be filled with highs and lows, and all points in between.

Temperature Wars

There is something to be said about being the youngest female in your office. Especially when there is a significant age gap and your hormones are doing different things directly as a result of being in different times of your life.

My office is so cold right now that my hands are cold. My nose is cold. Hell, I am getting cramps in my hands from the cold as I type this. There is a cold something drifting down out of the vent. I think I will need to call in someone to adjust my thermostat... and then I will probably boil.. but somehow boiling in November is more appealing than shoving my cold hands under my armpits inside, at work, in November.

Details. Of course, I am whining right now and it could be worse... Ken is outside quite a bit for his work, working in the inclement weather all the time and he doesn't complain, he is a trooper and does what he has to do, yet another reason why I love him. *SIGH*

Sunday, again

My house has been put to rights again, the laundry is done and the needles swept away until the next gust of wind. I am down to the last few pages of a Breath of Snow and Ashes and I have loved this book - all 1000 pages of it?! It has felt like a constant companion for the last few weeks, but it draws to a close. The worst part about discovering a favourite author in medias res is that you have to wait for them to write their next installment!!! Not nearly as satisfying as discover a "new to you" author that is a prolific writer and you have a whole library to choose from, at your leisure. It means I get to jump in to a new adventure book tomorrow!

Fiesty!

I am having one of those weeks where I am a little bit more blunt that normal. I also think I have been suffering from a bit of a sailor mouth as a result. I think I have been feeling pretty frustrated with things beyond my control in the last few weeks, and these frustrations have manifested themselves a bit in my overall fiestiness, or sassiness, or just blunt honesty.

I have been calling a spade, a spade rather than being diplomatic and trying to disguise my own frustrations with mamby pambly language that dances around the issue rather than just putting it out there. Overall this week has gotten better while it has progressed.... workwise I seem to be doing a lot of clean ups of other peoples messes, and it continues to amaze me the kind of vision that people generally walk around with. So many people walk around with blinders on, not realizing or considering the impact that their words or behaviours can have on other people. I don't think that I am unique in this awareness. There are pockets of people like us out there!

The weather has been crazy this week - I love how tumultuous it has been. The sky has been angry and roiling, and then breaks where the sun peaks through and the clouds shine silver. I have seen absolute monsoons come down, freak lightning, rivers of water down the street, the winds blowing the fall colours around, tossing them up and then sending them down wet and sticking to everything. There are so many needles down in the backyard it looks like a rust coloured patio and not concrete. I love fall - how the weather changes on a dime, and then tosses your hair around, and then breaks in a moment of beauty that takes your breathe away.

Wow, a rant and a poetic moment. I must be playing hockey tonight :]

First taste of this years batch...

The first of the Winter Ale's has come out, and frankly, I am not completely thrilled with this years offering. I had a hankering for a good beer, so I stopped in and grabbed a family of Granville I$land's Winter Ale.

I twisted off that cap after sufficiently chilling, and poured it in to a glass. No real head which I found surprising. Nice smell, and a slight vanilla taste, and it tasted ok, but it tasted a bit flat - like it didn't have a lot of kick to it, or fizz for that matter. Didn't really feel all that thirst quenching, or like more. It was nice, like an affable person that doesn't really stick out.

Looking forward to trying out other Christmas Ales that may come out. All in all, I am a microbrew girl. Unless I am in an establishment that can pour a fine black velvet (guinness and strongbow cider), I will go for a darker beer on tap, hopefully on sale but after my monday night experiences, that may not matter so much.

Glad the bulk of my work week is over. The students that I have interviewed this week fell in two camps, those that were a joy to help, those that caused me nothing but grief. Only so much character development I need to go through some weeks!!!

5 bucks!

Amazing what you can do with 5 bucks. Well that isn't completely true - I started out with $12.25 but I needed to send out a parcel (from one of the items I sold on the bay), so after squeaking in as a small package ($6.85) I had $5.40 left in my pocket. I needed to pick up the rest of dinner (just about payday so cupboards are getting sparse) and so I grabbed bulk rice, mushies, green and red peppers, and onions.. and it came to $5.33.

I am freaking awesome!! Ok, this could stem from my days working as a grocery store cashier, but damn, I am good. I find it amazing that you can have a budget, or fixed amount of dosh in your pocket and you can get what you need and have a few cents left over.

Cheap Beer

I love beer and hot wings. Some days, more than others. For our football club/pool, we get a free dinner and pint of beer on monday nights. Usually, this is a pretty good deal, except that the beer they used to have on special monday nights no longer is, and we have been cheaping out the last several weeks and getting a subpar beer (which is on special and appeals to our scotch genes).

Well, after a draft beer headache (or was it because I didn't have a coffee yesterday, I hope not!) from 2 beers, I think that next week I will be voting to continue with my free subpar beer, and then moving to the better draft beer if I feel the need to have another at that point.

It was a strange halloween - a few folk were dressed up at the pub, nothing like watching a granny make a few comments to a 20 year old MALE granny in full get up, but it was quiet. Not many fireworks in our neighborhood, or trixters out and about. Could have been the lousy, damp weather. When I went up to the bar to sign in, and got my prize draw tickets, one ticket sent a buzz up my arm and I figured I had a winner there! My dad was teasing me at the table, trying to get me to switch with him (he wins many doorprizes where I do not), but I refused, holding on to my lucky ticket. Moral of this story - I WON! I got a free pair of cool sunglassed with a case :] now if we could pick enough winners next week in our pool I will be even happier!

Happy Halloween

All Hallow's Eve is upon us, one of the two times of the year where the veil between worlds is the thinnest, according to celtic traditions.

It is raining off and on, so who knows what kind of a night it will be out there. I feel a bit nostalgic for the days of dressing up, eating way too much candy, the smell of the fireworks, and how magical tonight seems. We didn't even carve pumpkins this year!! It is hard feeling motivated to do one up when you don't have your own stoop where trixters and treater$ come by! Our door, being around the back isn't all that accessible from the front, and I don't want to encourage people to wander around the house at night. That said, I also want to go to the pub for dinner and enjoy a pint. For some reason, a beer has been sounding really appealing today.

When in doubt, go for funny bone

Decluttering

Damn. It is hard to clean out drawers, closets, and paper. The last few monts has marked one of the few times that I have parted willingly with some things in my life. I have always been a packrat, which is surprising when you considered how many times I moved when I was younger, but lately I have found some of the extra stuff to be more of a pain in the ass than it is worth.

I am finally letting go of clothes that might fit that I never want to wear again. I am finally paying forward some of the pocket books that sure, make my bookshelf full, but really, there are so many other books out there, do I really need to hold on to them all? - so out they are going, released to the wild and hopefully will attract some new books with which I can start that cycle up over again. I am trying to hold on to the few books I will read again, those out of print, and those that one day I might use as a reference. Reference to what? Who knows at this point, but they are a remnant of my university days.

I just cleaned out my filing cabinet and created a whole bag for recycling. Where the hell does all this paper come from?? And shoes, I know I love shoes, but really! How many pairs can a girl own, especially when they start to date back over ten years? Ok, this is where I connect with Carrie from SITC (I love shoes) but I am finally letting go of some now that I know where I can replacements for a reasonable value.

I think there is real worth in getting rid of stuff you don't use and won't ever look at again. I think carting all this stuff around, or servicing it, even if it is a few hours every few months to move it around again, is burdensome. I don't think I will ever be an austere person, or someone that doesn't have a few dust bunnies or a huge pile of lobsided books, or papers shoved away for future reference, but it does help to tame that clutter beast with courage every now and then.

Ruminations

My mind was wandering for a while today, and I have been trying to reign in my thoughts to no avail a few times.

What does your mind seize on when you have a quiet moment? When I think about what I have done with myself, a lot of the times I pull up memories from travelling, whether it be people that I have connected with, places that I have seen, things that have moved me spiritually, really good beers, coffee, or meals, places where you have a heightened sense of self, and you know that you are doing or seeing or interacting in a way that is damn cool and will stay with you for a long time.

In so many ways it is the holidays that I have taken that stand out as yearly markers. I was in school for so long, it all blurs in to different stages of my education. I have been on enough hockey teams, that I separate that in to team dynamics, and clumps of time. I have lived in enough places around BC, I think of the places that I lived in and what attracted me most.

I don't always stop to think about my favourite people, or memories, or photos and trinkets, or the moments that take your breathe away.

I think that is why holidays stand out - they are not the normal order of things. You are out of your normal context, doing "extra" ordinary things. You see places you don't normally have access too, you met people from different places with different ideas, you are in a constant state of change and as such, your senses are heightened and I think you are more open to what is happening to you, even if you don't understand until months later.

Surprised...

Well, I am still cynical when it comes to watching TV, but seeing as it fits my budget about now, the appeal is a little more there than it ever has been. I am never the one in this relationship to actually find new shows that are worth investing the time in, and you can hear a but here, another decent show has landed on my "things I'd like to follow list".

I have to say I have seen a few episodes of 'They call me 5arl" and it is funny as hell. I think I even laughed out loud. Watching all the teasers made it look like a real hick show, but it has some depth and it makes me laugh. Which for tv, isn't so bad.

Oh MY!

Role of Thanks

An appointment left my office a while ago, leaving me with a thank you card and a box of truffles. It was completely unexpected, and well, it made my day.

In my job, we don't get a lot of performance evaluations, or perks for doing our job well, or any performance incentives for that matter, but knowing that you made an impact on one person's life can make all the difference in the world. It means a lot to hear a thank you, and when someone looks you in the eye with respect, and you know that you have done good. It means that you are doing things right, and people remember that.

Also reminds me how powerful it is to take the time and let people know when they make an impact, because it can be a real turning point in their day too.

Call me terrible but...

When you go to CNN to check out the latest news, the caption reads "We Didn't Expect This" in regards to the latest hurricane to slam the Gulf Coast. Now, don't get me wrong, this has been a truly horrific and costly hurricane season that has had many of us more fortunate souls glued to our televisions and reaching out as we can. But, we didn't expect this?? Unreal. What, did you turn your television or radio off? Thousands of miles away we could tell how bad it was going to be, record size and changing strength... kind of hard to take that comment seriously, especially coming from CNN whom has had cameras and reporters on the scene for days! I couldn't help but react when I saw that, and not in a callous way, more shocked at the naivete in that statement.

Lists

I think I reached critical mass for new information somewhere about noon yesterday.

After Ken came to pick me up, and we got home, I faded fast. I napped, and just "was" for a few hours. I reached that point where you just don't have anything really intelligent to say, I didn't feel the need to take in any more information, and it was just time to catch up on sleep and processing time. So that is what I did.

On the opposite side of things, today has been productive. I have also created a few lists and tasks to complete so I can feel some sense of accomplishment as I get through today. I figure that we humans are goal orientated, so it feels good to strike things from that to do list. I added a few geeky links to the side that arose from some of the workshops that I was able to attend. Although I haven't heard of all the books on the Top 100 list, I have read a few and it could be a good place to plunder for reads when I am seeking something different that I can sink my teeth in to.

Did you know that if you post a poem, article, essay, photo, or piece of writing on your blog that you have just given up your "first electronic rights" in terms of publishing?

Slight amendment.

Must add "put on flannel pjs" and grab that last glass of wonderful wine to list of must dos for tonight. AHHHHHHHH.

Attitude adjustment complete.

I can now face the rest of the evening. Perhaps I may switch book for DVD and just chill on the couch. Ah, such serious decisions to be made.

My feet hurt like the dickens

The SIWC has been a great journey so far!! I had no idea what really went on during a writer's conference, having only been to a few 'festivals' to date. This conference, and I would assume those like them, are for writer's, and about writer's, and all about improving your craft. I have learned a lot and I still have another day. This has also been empowering, and I am glad that I am attended as a volunteer, because as a paying person, you would have to cram so much information and experiences in, your mind would be spinning and I think you would quickly reach the saturation point.

I got to meet Diana a few times. She is wonderful. I brought my hardcovers in for her to sign, and I picked up a copy of her latest installment of the Jamie and Claire series. I can't wait to get tucked in to it. Nothing like having a new book by one of your favs, but also having met them - and they are great people in person. She also has great fashion sense :] funny what you notice when you are a little nervous at being at your first conference, and also meeting people you never thought life would afford you the opportunity to do so.

I also got to meet Jean. Like wow. If meeting Diana wasn't enough, I also got to meet Jean. She was really nice, down to earth, and surprised me by commenting on the first edition of Clan that I have... apparently they are really rare, it is in great condition, and it is now signed... ! ! ! ! ! ! ! I got to meet a few people that I have also read, like Terry, whom has piercing blue eyes and lots of energy.

I spent a lot of time on my feet directing people, but I did get to go to a workshop on "community in writing" hosted by Jenny Crui$e. She was hilarious and dynamic, and I think she could talk even faster than me!!! I think some people had a hard time keeping up with what she had to say, but definitely some food for thought there. I haven't read anything by her, and I think she does chick-lit, but I am now intrigued and may have to look her up at the library next time I am there.

This weekend has also been about rediscovering my writer's voice. I can feel the urge to write awakening, and seeing so many people in every stage of their career has been really inspiring. I have seen people pitch their ideas, talk to hugely successfuly authors, gone to workshops, talked to Agents (hell, I even spilled coffee on myself in the elevator only to be embarrassed later on that it was an agent that was in one of the sessions I was working in, yah, I looked like an idiot there)... it really helps debunk some of the perceived distance for me. Where this will take me, who knows. Tonight, I think I will put the shoes I wore today in to a the pile of shoes I don't need to wear again and chill for a few hours.

It is strange being solo on a Saturday night but my honey is playing hockey, and I see popcorn and a good book in my near future....

Getting ready to head out...

After a boisterous first meeting with a new committee last night, I am heading to my first experiences with the Surrey Writer's Conference. I am volunteering through the day, and I am intoducing a writer named Don McQuinn. My background research indidcates he is a cool dude, retired corps turned to espionage and science fiction writing, sounds like he has a passion for writing and mentoring those coming up. I think the rest of what I am participating in is more administrative, but time will tell.

There is nothing like the unknown - it looks like I will get a lot out of the conference as a volunteer, but who knows?! It could really motivate me to things a little differently in terms of my writing in the future, but time will tell.

Just to make sure I feel properly balanced, I hope to pick up a new hockey helmet on the way. Mine is shot. I keep forgetting to do this (helmets aren't cheap) but it is my head, and well, it was cracked, and then I lost pieces, and it got worse last week. It is time to bite the bullet and make it a priority.

Other cool thing is that Reffffffffiiinnnneeeej is in town, so she is picking my ass up at 5 from the conference! Which is perfect, some time with the kids, some time with her, and then off to shop, and then go play hockey!!! Yup, it will be the day that never ends!

final thought of the day

"One must still have chaos in oneself to be able to give birth to a dancing star"
Friedrich Wilheim Nietzsche

Get that motor started

Ripley's Back!









I have never seen this cat so chatty - it is like he is telling me everything that they have done to him in the last few days at the vet.

He keeps wrapping himself around my hands, my face, this keyboard... he is so happy to be home. Cross your fingers that all stays well this time.

Our cat is on valium. Crazy eh?

Ripley is a purring machine tonight, and it feels like the weight has lifted from my chest. We are so glad to have him back, and the only time he has stopped with the affection is to run to the window to watch the squirrels. Too bad for him and his shaved derriere he can only look from behind the window.

That, combine with a chocolate utopia, and life is looking a lot better than it was just a few days ago. What a relief. One more day of work, and then off to the Writer's Festival. I am now participating all three days, and I get to introduct two speakers. It sounds like it will be an amazing event, and comes at the right time. I would love to continue to develop my writing skills, to do some projects on the side would help a lot at this stage of the game. Only time will tell what opportunities spin off from here. I am just glad to be able to participate as a volunteer, and see what all this is about. It is more than just a writer's conference where author's read excerpts from their books and answer questions at the end, these are workshops that enable potential writers to do just that.

When you have that destructive urge

Try this out!!!!

Definitely therapeutic. The screams are hilarious.

People are strange

Perhaps that tag line should read, sometimes I am strange. I don't think I am all that special in that awareness, I think most people are a bit odd some times, just depends on how much you want to acknowledge and/or embrace that.

I have definitely been feeling a bit introspective the last few days. Ripley needed a little more care and attention from the vet, which is stressful on us three. We both really care about our little guy and all you want to do is do the right thing by your buddy. I really believe that we are doing the best we can, and it has been an amazing part of my relationship to know I stand facing this all as a unit/partnership, not as an individual. It makes this seem not so daunting after all, knowing that your partner's hand is clutched in yours, and you both care and are on the same page. I waited a long time for a relationship like this, and it is great to finally be there :] Besides affirming this, he just called to affirm that Ripley is on the mend again, YAY! Makes my heart swell to know we have each other in the wings, loving and supporting, caring, and living together (so much more than just sharing space with each other).

My strange part for today, sometimes I end up being bad about phoning/emailing people back right away. I have less of a desire to spend time on the phone than I did when I was younger, and after some intense days at work where I can't control when I speak to people or when they see me, I find that I hold my private time closer to my chest. It doesn't mean I don't want to talk to that person, but sometimes it is more about having the emotional energy to do it too. Once you attend to your core - yourself, your partner, your immediates, there isn't always a lot left over, emotionally or time wise, and I would rather be there fully in the moment, rather than pick up the phone and hurry through it unless it is a touch base thing where you make a plan to catch up a later date. I have no idea if this makes any sense, but there you go.

Thanksgiving.. never too late for a savoury meal

We celebrated our Thanksgiving Dinner today with our folks, and my brother. First time officially all done at our place, and on our own without asking 5 trillion questions on what to do with this really cold and clammy, and kind of obscene (but tasty when cooked) bird.

This was made a little tougher by the fact that we didn't get in until close to dawn due to a long, drawn out texa$ hold em game at a friends place :] it was a lot of fun, just not as much fun at 4:30 am when we truly realized what time it was... so I was tired this morning. Took me a while to get going, and to get motivated to get the dressing made, and figure out the meal details. Everything went off without a hitch, my apple pie was amazing, and I have leftovers! Yay! Makes a few meals a little easier to plan - hmm, do we have Turkey Pie or Just Plain ol Leftovers. Both are equally appealing.

So, I am over tired, I think I will have a bath, and I feel a bit fried.

Buzzzzzzzzzzz

Ahhh. The joys of being Canadian and finding YOUR energy drink. Move over competitors, this beaver will take a bite out of you!!! LOL

Fall Days

I love fall days like today where the sun comes out, and when you step outside, the sun warms you like a caress.

Last night's hockey game was exciting. We couldn't hold on to a lead to save our lives. It was like we would score a goal, YAY! and then we would lay back and all just miss catching up to their players by just enough to give our outstanding goalie (yes I am biased because I love him lots) much of a chance. We ended up with a tie, 5-5, and it was a well played game. Being the git that I am, playing defense, I see a shot coming right for the net. Brain says, TURN FROM THE PAIN forgetting that my shin pads don't wrap all the way around, they are there to protect my shins not my calves. I think it is the first time being smacked with the puck that I didn't start swearing like a sailor on the ice. It hurt so much all I could think of was "holy shit" and it never made it past my brain. I successfully blocked the puck, but should not have turned. I have a great bruise coming up, and as my dear love would say, that is hockey, suck it up. He's right, but it still makes a great story, and give it a few days to become more colourful!

No call from SIWC yet - I guess my poems didn't make the final cut. Ah well, there is always another time in this purely subjective endeavour.

Taking the plunge

After almost a year of humming and hawing, I finally decided to hawk a few items on the bay of selling. It took forever to craft my listings - I am really surprised at how easy but time consuming it really is to sell stuff this way. I guess that is one way to learn a few more html tags!

Days off always go too freaking fast. Good intentions fly out the window, laundry only gets half done, and chores are left somewhere in the middle. Hell, I haven't even finished reading my lastest book yet (Michael Connelly kick, reading City of Bones this go around). I think with the tosvy turvy weekend that I had last go around, I guess today's general farting around and wasting of time is no big surprise.

I don't get what happens to days like this. I putter, and get easily distracted - like surfing the net, attempting to do constructive things, but then it is getting close to 6 and I have to think about dinner?! Like, WTF?! I have hockey to look forward to later on, we have another late game, we don't play until 10:15! Ah well, I guess it is time to go and clean up after myself. BAH. Will never be anything close to a perfect housekeeper. It just doesn't rank high enough in my overall priority scheme of things. Tidy is good, spotless is just too much damn work for very little payback.

Random thought

On one of the brain fluff thursday night reality shows, one of the guys commented that he is not in to the "novelty size" women's chests out yonder.

Since when have the girls been referred to as "novelty size"? Freaking bizarre. I guess novelty size is when you wonder whether or not it is the ocean you hear or a valley that trembles. Never looked at chest size like that before...

Cool Stuff

Got back from the volunteer's meet and greet for SIWC a while ago. Damn, it looks cool, although I am a slightly glazed eyed newbie to the lot. So far, I will be introducing a few authors, and perhaps working the room where potential scribes are booked in for short appointments with editors and agents.

A real sneak peek in to the world of writing and some of my favourite authors will be there!!! I can get some books signed at the book fair, and attend workshops if I am not volunteering for a session during that time.

I am stoked. I am like a kid on Hallowe'en with a full bag of candy.

Looking at the presenter's list is pretty inspiring. Jean Auel and Diana Gabaldon are both keynote speakers, and I should be able to hang out at the back of the room and listen in. I am really looking forward to this experience!!! From the sounds of it, volunteering is a great way to go because from what I gleaned from some of the folk there, as a paying customer, it is an overwhelming weekend because there is so much going on and can have a huge impact on how one approaches the craft of writing. At least this way, I can be a part of it, and pick and choose a few workshops at my own pace :]

Priority Sheet

These are signs in Japanese Metro Trains, "Priority Seats for... (from left to right)"

1. person with injured arm
2. person holding a child
3. pregnant woman
4. person with injured leg

Learned something else new!

Yikes!

Well, I think I actually may have used some muscles again tonight. I took the plunge and went to aquafit. One distinct drawback - I stink like chlorine. I even showered and washed my hair before I left the pool. One distinct advantage, I think I burned off some angst, even if there is still some waiting to be dispersed.

Fall is definitely starting to show it's colours as well. I am working at my secondary location and I actually have a window, and I look at out green space (novel concept if you could see my other locale - four walls, within four walls, within another box. Nothing like never knowing if it is daylight or not). The trees that line the path in are like burning matchsticks. The reds take your breathe away, and the oranges, and yellows, and trees that have yet to turn. It is a beautiful tapestry out there. I think I would miss the seasonal changes if I lived in a place where it was the same ol, same ol all the time.

Memes

Filled with all this new feline knowledge, I felt that I should continue on my quest to teach this old dog some new tricks.

I noted on J's blog, that there is a new meme that was going around. A few questions later, I kind of got the gist of this latest craze, but that surface knowledge just wasn't enough for me on this glorious day. Ok, so the sun came out and it is perking me up.

So what the hell is a meme, to us other lay peoples?

A meme can be seen as an idea that we, as humans, communicate. Memes are a kind of thing, but they only live inside of our minds. Like all things, memes fit better with some things than others. Some memes naturally fit better in people’s minds. Some memes naturally fit better with other memes. When a group of memes fit well together and pull the strings of someone’s mouth and vocal cords so that they pass them on to others, a new, self-replicating thing gets created. The new thing is called a memeplex.

Accordingly, a meme can also be viewed as simply a unit of intellectual or cultural information that survives long enough to be recognized as such, and which can pass from mind to mind. There's not much of a sense of describing thought processes, but nor is it just a model. A meme survives in the world because people pass it on to other people, either vertically to the next generation, or horizontally to our fellows.

Memes are contagious ideas, all competing for a share of our mind in a kind of Darwinian selection. According to Richard Brodie, memes can evolve, they become better and better at distracting and diverting us from whatever we'd really like to be doing with our lives. On this website, there is an interesting piece on chain mails, etc. and how they can be "mind viruses".

The OED defines the meme as "a cultural element or behavioural trait whose transmission and consequent persistence in a population, although occurring by non-genetic means (esp. imitation), is considered as analogous to the inheritance of a gene. Examples are tunes, clothes, ideas, catch phrases..."

Interesting stuff. Not sure what to make of it, but interesting just the same. Now you and me know.

Ripley's Home! (major cat care post)

Ripley's Home! And even better than that, no conehead :]

I guess I have been pretty lucky until now about never having had a cat with FLUDT before. For a while there, between a variety of circumstances beyond my control, my cats weren't living that log so this has never been an issue before.

From what I can gather from the Vet Assistants, the biggest problem with the cheaper grocery store cat food is that they are high in ash and magnesium. If your cat has any disposition to urinary tract problems, between the ages of 3-5 FLUDT can occur and without treatment that means a quick decline. Ripley's brother Murphy doesn't seem to have had the same issues, and never seemed to drink as much water as Ripley did/does.

Since Ripley has had FLUDT, we do have to do the special diet from here on out. Once the initial part is over (the two cats eat seperately with different foods), then they can both eat the special diet stuff that will help prevent recurrance of the crystals (after the vet bills, this food looks like a great preventative solution) and ultimate prevention for the other guy. When I asked about the better store brands, the assistant today pretty much said nay it is a no-go for us, and that Medi-cal or C/D formula is the true only way to go from this point since this incident.

Now, if your cats have not had an issue like this, and knowing what I do now, I would at least make a switch to a better cat food that is low mag/low ash to make sure 4 legged friends are healthier from the get go. Here is a way to make it cheaper for the first month (read free bag of cat food). It's funny, because we would all say that our cats are worth it, and we all have searched out for the best deals because it is an expense and it is natural to try to figure out ways to save a little money. I guess in future I will just buy bulk and try to save money that way, and with the wet food, the boys will be on total rations from here on out. No more over feeding and wasting the stuff. In the big picture of things, all positives.

The vet hospital was an interesting place this morning. It was smoking busy, and two cats do live there, which make their rounds to concerned owners cooling their heels. This clinic is only open nights, weekends, and holidays and there are only 3 in the GVRD. Our major break was that one of those clinics is at the bottom of our hill, so we didn't have to factor in a big drive to and from our place, a small mercy.

So the cats are getting reaquainted, and that was our holiday weekend! Slowly all is coming to right again, with the small exception that I didn't get any assists on friday night and I swear I was at least a part of one of those goals!

More on cat health

I never guessed that in the last week I would become knowledgeable about FLUTD. That would be Feline Lower Urinary Tract Disease. Anything in life can be a learning experience.

Our vet is recommending that once Ripley's inflammation has been sorted out, and all is working as it should, that both cats be put on a better diet.

I read this hilarious review of the PRESCRIPTION (like, OMG?!!) cat food for the boys that has been suggested as a maintenance food, which will put a significant dent in the budget, YES they are worth it, or, a slightly cheaper alternative and apparently comes highly recommended. When we get to pick up the Ripper, I will talk to the clerk and see what is up, and whether or not we should the c/d route for the first while and then perhaps switch to the Purrina 1 once health is restored as a cheaper and more available alternative to the prescription stuff.

Makes you start to question some of those diet choices any of us can(do) make. I have been going off about the cats, but what about us too? I have suspected for a while that many health issues are directly (or indirectly) linked to what people are eating. I try to shop the outside aisles at the grocery store, trying to stay away from the heavily processed foods of a questionable nature. We all slip, hell, every now and then I get these cravings for things I know are bad - like the cheese dip for nacho chips. We switched to bottled water about a year ago, and I think we have been healthier overall. When you read articles about how many pre$cription drug$ make it in to our water supply, it is scary!!

Enough of my rant.

Happy Turkey Day

Well, the little guy should be sprung tonight after 8 pm (all crossables crossed). I decided that with my other cat all wiggy without his buddy, and how this weekend has transpired so far, I am sticking close to home. I will either roast a chicken or do up a ham for dinner tonight. It was a tough decision to make. Turns out my gram is not going over to my Aunt's, and as I tossed and turned about what is right, I figured that I committed to getting my cat well, and then to not be around when he gets back is a bit hypocritical. Folks ended up driving on to the ferry, so it will be time unknown for them getting home tomorrow since there are no reservations available and guaranteed ferry waits, which only partially makes me feel better about staying in. Either way could have been a right decision, do I stay, do I go? but I think it is all good about staying back.

After all the furor about INXS, looks like they are opening in Vancouver (thanx Regs) next January. Will be interesting to see how fast it sells out, and whether or not a lot of us will head out to watch it.

Still waiting to see the stats from Friday's Crush Victory! All in all a decent game, and I think that I ended up with a few assists! I felt that I played well, and I definitely felt better after playing. I don't think that Ken saw a shot until midway through the second period! We played at 11pm, which made it hard to stay motivated before we played, and then you end up awake at 3am from the receding adrenaline rush!

I would settle for blah

Well, the little guy is at an 'emergency animal clinic' for at least another day because the vet I went to has no one around for the rest of the long weekend. ARGH, but what can you do? What is that saying, in for an inch, in for a mile? Ripley is stable, but needs more time for the urine crystals to pass, enough fluids to go through his system, and then he can come home. It looked positive this morning, but then there was another backup and back to needed catheder, etc. Hopefully another 24 hours of monitored care, and then he can come home, or at worst, monday morning. This does mean a lifelong diet change for the boys. Apparently Fri$kies or Whi$ka$ are "death in bag" for cats according the clerk at the clinic. That is a little eye opening. So the boys will be a little more pampered in the future.

Was great to have my friend D in town, but hard too, because I was really enjoying our visit, but a part of my brain is processing the whole "cat down" situation, as well as the money part. What can you do? In the comments, all you lovely ladies who have four legged friends get that hard part of the decision, once made, you have to go with it. It feels right in the heart and that is what you gotta do.

My sweetheart is out getting us some comfort food. Usually I would be going for some beef and broc, but this time around I am going to try out some mango butter chicken. Combine that with some DC and movies, maybe some hockey on the tube for the battle of the west, and that would be our laid back saturday night. I feel a bit emotionally done like I would love to avert making some big decisions for a little bit. Ripley is on the mend, there are unknown factors, but everything that matters is there. Tomorrow I will head to the island solo for Thanksgiving Dinner, and then get home on Monday. We couldn't get ferry reservations, so we will go as walk on to avoid waiting for 6 hours on either side.