So I got to see a dear friend of mine tonight. It was really wonderful.

And then my cat finally came inside at 2:15 a.m. He'd been out for over 2 hours. He wasn't even that cold. He's such a funny kitten.

So I got this piece of mail today - at home and at work.

It was in a hand-written envelope with no return address. There was a hand-written note on the newspaper ad inside the envelope as well. I felt violated. This blog entry describes it very well and it was written in June! It just seems wrong somehow. I can deal with my name and address in databases, but for someone to hand write an envelope and a note to me in person gives me the heebie-jeebies.

The past few days have been a blur. Here's a quick recap...

Tuesday
- sleep
- hang out with niece
- shopping trip including the return of a picture, exchange of some cable knitting needles, purchasing of 20 plates for the office, and four fruitless stops looking for iPod skins
- packing
- playing with my niece and nephew
- saying good byes
- long drive home with 2 hours being in the fog

Wednesday
- sleep
- more sleep
- wake up to say good bye to dad
- more sleep
- wake up to pick out arborite and have massage
- shovel the walk
- wait for boyfriend's call
- finally make blog changes
- talk to boyfriend
- more sleep

Thursday
- work
- lunch
- drop recently purchased plates in garage
- work
- recover 7 of 20 plates and trash the other 13 broken and chipped ones despite thoughts of using the pieces for a mosaic
- play with blog template details
- sleep

I'm tired and glad to be sleeping in my own bed.

Lots of shopping with a 7-year-old girl can be fun. Sometimes not, but mostly fun. Especially when she's whining in Home Sense, "I want to be able to buy whatever I want!" I responded that I too wanted to buy whatever I wanted. Then the lady in the next aisle said, "I was just thinking that very thing." Heh.

My frustration level was greatly increased by having to "deal" with a kid on top of my difficulties dealing with that many people while shopping. Good thing most of the stores we went to didn't have much of a crowd. Except Best Buy - that was a mistake and we left very soon. I did get some new towels, cheap picture frames, some new pictures, a new knife set that I like a lot. There was some other stuff too - lots of stuff from Michael's. There were some good sales at Michael's. I really liked this yarn called Wild - so soft!

Anyhoo, off to party now. Home tomorrow to see my kitten and friends. It's been a great week.

Okay, so this morning started with my niece crawling into bed with me and sleeping for a while. Then she woke up with a start and asked me if Santa had been here. So we went to investigate. And indeed, he'd been here. The cookies and milk were mostly gone and the apple had one big reindeer bite out of it. Our next course of action was run all over the house and let everyone know.

First were grandma and grandpa in the basement who were woken with joyful glee of, "Santa was here!! Santa was here!!"

Next was upstairs to wake her brother and parents. My nephew, who is normally quite slow to wake, was disoriented and crawled to the end of the bed saying drowsily and longingly, "Santa... Santa..." How adorable.

We opened our stocking and presents from Santa first. Then we tackled the rest of the gigantor mound of gifts under the tree. The playing with new toys ensued with much joy including karoake and dance competition for the Gamecube with dance pad. Heh. I might have to get me one of those. It was a lot of fun. We also played with Hotwheels, made spin art, knitted a collar scarf for the dog, played Clue Jr. and a nifty game where a pirate steals your coin.

Then there was the food. Lasagna for lunch followed by a feast of turkey dinner prepared by my sister-in-law. Most of the preparations happened while the kids and I were at the park playing soccer and swinging high to the heavens. They got to ride their bikes today and there is almost no snow in Calgary and it was above zero. I didn't even pack my winter coat.

In the midst of all this, I managed a 3 hour nap which gave me energy for the rest of the day.

Now we're off to watch a movie, eat popcorn, and then off to bed. We have a big shopping day ahead of us.

I hope the world has hope and peace.

For Christmas we opened presents, played with our new toys, went to the park, and had lots of fun! My favourite presents were the soft, fuzzy, warm slippers and portable CD player.

Merry Christmas! And God bless everyone.

So my brother asked for help in wrapping presents after we got back from my sister-in-law's dad's house where we had supper and the kids opened some presents. He then indicated that he had to wrap all of them. That didn't bode well. So I agreed because I have never turned him down.

I carted them all upstairs so that our folks could get some sleep. After organizing all the stockings, I noticed my brother still hadn't shown up for his part in wrapping duty. Sure enough, there he was in bed lying next to my nephew. I wasn't going to be in this alone so I woke him up.

He eventually made it downstairs and managed to organize his family's stockings and wrap his present to me while watching two movies. And bad movies, they were. Good thing I was so distracted by wrapping all the other presents myself. Jiminy cricket, there were a lot!

In the midst of all the presents, my niece came downstairs. Uhhh... I thought our goose was cooked! But my brother just talked to her and asked her to go back to bed. And a few incoherent sentences, she went. It was a strange experience because, apparently, she was sleep walking. Freaked me right out, but Santa was real for another year.

I tidied and made it look presentable in the living room, trying not to leave any trace of humans, only the magic of Santa Claus. My brother, of course, didn't make it through the tidying period so I finished that up myself. He was probably already asleep by the time I crawled into bed. Apparently, he went to bed at 4:30.

My doctor told me to ask the kids about their theories around Santa Claus. She had one little boy with this elaborate idea that Santa washed his dirty sooty clothes at his house which is what gave Santa time to put out presents and eat milk and cookies. Then he would go out the front door and lock it behind him. Heh.

So I asked my neice and nephew... Apparently, Santa's a teleporter which is why we don't need a chimney. The rest of the story is pretty standard, but Santa is a teleporter. I like that too.

Yep, it's almost 8 and we haven't left yet. It's going to be a good weekend. We're just getting some presents wrapped and packing. My mom and me consitute the we.

I'm just so excited for Christmas this year.

Eeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee...

It's a crazy busy life we lead and this week, I've spent more than the usual number of hours awake. But all that time has been well spent. It's been the most wonderful week in so many ways. Sure my sewer backed up and my furnace fan needed repairs last week and making that many lasagnas from scratch takes a long time, but when my boss at work mentioned that I wasn't having any luck with my house in the past week, it took me a few moments to clue in to what his meaning was. I had moved past all these obstacles and not looked back to make sure they were still behind me. How freeing!

Tonight at my most sleep deprived and emotional state, I had to say my farewells to the California folk. I cried. It felt so right to have them here and celebrating with them for a wedding, Christmas, and for no reason at all.

I had a few people ask why I was having everyone over for supper. The answer is simple - it was my Christmas gift to everyone. Time together with friends is far more valuable than any material gift and you get to keep something with you forever - the memories of your friends.

"In the animal kingdom, they call this presenting." There are so many quotes that should have been recorded for posterity, but there wasn't a quote sheet for the night.

The happy couple sure was smiley. It was a divine sight to behold. Their radiance filled the room.

I have two men staying at my house right now. When they got home from shopping (for me), they informed me they needed a bucket for the upstairs sink as it wouldn't drain. They wanted to clean the trap. I said sure, but I wanted to take a look first. Immediately, they started emptying the cupboard under the sink. I stopped them before they went too far and asked if they'd tried using the plunger. Uh, apparently not.

After the first plunge where all the clogged water came out the overflow drain shooting all over the mirror. You have to use quite a bit of quick force when plunging for the best effect. This means there was a lot of water shooting out the overflow drain. There might have been some laughter at this point.

Now, I tried a few different things as I realized the cause of the plugged drain was me and my vacuuming on Saturday. I maybe attempted to flush too much water and waste and clogged the drain. But since most of that went down the toilet, the sink blockage might not have been in the trap. I tried plunging the toilet to see if that had any effect, but no dice. Then I plugged the overflow drain with a washcloth, which one of the men was nice enough to hold for me while tried again with the plunging. That seemed to do the trick as I was able to plunge away heartily in the sink. And three or four plunges later - we had drainage.

The man holding the wash cloth made the comment, "Makes me feel kind of useless."

There are certain things in this life that cannot be replaced by anything else. Spending time with friends and loved ones is one of the those things. Most of my time has been spent lately either with the people I care about or preparing for their arrival or seeing them. It is that time of year, after all.

I did a lot of shopping last week. I'm tired of shopping and yet I still have no presents for my dad, brother or sister-in-law. Nothing seems good enough. I have to start wrapping presents this week. Today there were also many hours of shopping, but it was quite delightful with the antics of two fellows from Calgary to keep me entertained.

My brat has been very entertaining the past few days with guests in the house. Standing guard at the end of my bed at night, being all skittish, and looking at me as if to say, "When are these guys leaving? I'm tired of having people in my house. Okay, rub my belly if you must."

I played a new game tonight called Tsuro. I played just one game of it and won. It's a quick game which I like, but it could really get my competitive streak going if I played too many games in a row. I'll have to watch that. I think my boyfriend would really like it.

On Saturday night, there was our company Christmas party. While 5 people cancelled, I was still pleased with the turnout and the neat gifts we were able to provide to everyone. The food was amazing and here is the menu. We started with crab dip with deep fried wontons, neptune stuffed mushrooms and bruschetta. Completely divine. [sigh] I was stuffed to the gills by the time the evening was complete. I think everyone else had a good time as well.

Oh yeah! And my date on Friday night was quite wonderful. It was the first time in a while that my boyfriend and I didn't talk about work or school at all. We forgot the rest of our lives and were just together in the moment. We saw The Chronicles of Narnia - The Lion, The Witch, And The Wardrobe. I must say that I enjoyed the movie very much. I was leaning over the seats in front of my with my knees squished against the backs of the seats because I couldn't get close enough to the movie. Audible gasping, sighs, and other such emotional reactions were a part of almost the whole movie for me. And I was so pleased to have my boyfriend in the seat next to me because I always enjoy movies more when I share the experience with someone so close to me.

After my duct and furnace cleaning on Thursday, I awoke today to find it chillier than I would have liked in my bedroom and bathroom on the second floor. The main floor was a little better, but not much. The basement, however, was almost a sauna.

The duct cleaning company was fairly helpful in offering to call a heating place to come check it out and offered to pay for the repairs if it was deemed to be their fault, but I was still annoyed at the implication that it was a coincidence that the fan just happened to stop working the day they cleaned.

My dad is awesome and always receives a phone call from me before I call any repair company. I phoned him from home at lunch and we discussed the possibilities and after some instructions as to what I was looking for, we determined that it was likely a broken wire in the power connection. By wiggling the wires, I was able to generate a slight movement in the fan belt from the motor - 5 inches was the most movement I got, but that was good enough for me to truly believe that it was just a bad connection.

I certainly didn't have time to fix it at lunch so I had to do it after work. I was supposed to have a date after work. Unfortunately, a warm house comes first so I had to fix that first and hopefully, have time for my date afterward.

More advice from my dad came when I had no idea how to strip the large metal cable insulation on the copper wires. Luckily, he gave me a pair of siecutters when I moved in - they have been invaluable. After stripping back the wires and reattaching them to the leads came the moment of truth when I flip the breaker to see if the fan actually comes on. Big breath and ... VICTORY!

And still enough time to make the movie.

I just dropped by some friends' house today. I haven't done that in a really long time. I really miss it. One friend told me that I look happy. I've been hoping someone would tell me that. I feel like me again - with all the basic components still there, just more of the good ones back. YAY!

I had my ducts cleaned today and now my house smells of lovely cranberry. There were some details in the middle I skipped like the haze of dust in my house and the burning eyes and blistering headache and the freaked out cat and the disgusting smells of the cleaning of the ducts.

So I turned on my fabulous vacuum cleaner and added a little cranberry smell and now my house is wonderful. Except the layer of dust on everything.

And now a bit of unsolicited advice, when you have your ducts cleaned in your new house for the first time, don't ask the technician when the last time they were cleaned. You probably don't really want to know. ICK!!

Forget all the other items on my wishlist!!

I want a hippopotamus for Christmas and only a hippopotamus will do.

After a rocky start to the day, I dropped off my boyfriend at the university and started getting motivated. I hadn't done my books in months so after weeks of trying to get myself to do it and the pile getting bigger by the week, I finally did it. Took me a couple hours and I even got stuff cleaned up from 6 months ago. Way to go me! I actually feel like I might get through my to do list before Christmas. [gasp!]

Of course, I haven't thought about work much this weekend and that changes my to do list dramatically. Either way, I think I can do it. It's been a great weekend.

Every day it gets closer to Christmas and today, I found presents on my doorstep!! One for my folks and one for me! My cousin from Edmonton must have had friends coming through so she had them dropped off. I've been smiling all day.

I also got to lend support to a friend in need. A while ago, I was surfing the net and came across this little piece of advice for friends in real need. Usually, people say, "Call me if you need anything." And they really do mean it. They'd do anything. However, having to ask for help is still hard even when people *know* you're in need and typically won't do it. The advice is this; when offering help, offer something specific. It allows you to feel a little less helpless in a situation you can do nothing about. Well, me anyway.

Yep. That's it.

Booyah!

Lots of activity to report this week. While a long winter's nap after work on Monday, I got up to do 4 hours of baking of biscuits and this wonderful cinnamon bread that a friend gave me the starter and recipe for. A diversity week celebration potluck on Tuesday was the reason for all the baking and those in attendance were not disappointed as other dishes were deer roast, sweet and sour ribs, two delicious rice dishes, black forest cake, cheese and crackers, salad, and all other the goodies.

Tuesday evening brought together friends of all sorts frolicking in the heroic land of Paragon City.

Wednesday gave me the opportunity to show a friend who I work with that our office really is a community of extraordinary caring individuals. And I'm so glad my company values their employees needs to be there for each other in hard times such as a parent passing away. The funeral services were moving and I truly felt God's presence. The evening proved to be full of great conversation, pizza, and a dining room table delivery. My dad spent the night and we had a really good visit.

I shoveled the snow today after slipping around town in the car. Shoveling snow is going to be the bane of my winter, but it'll be good for me. I thought about my friends in California as I was shoveling and figured now is the time that they will be very happy to be in California despite not being able to see a horizon.

My mom answered the phone this morning when I called to her the title song. She sang along with me. It was a great way to start the day. She's going to be here visiting me in a couple of weeks and I'm really looking forward to it.

Eighties cartoon watching happened this afternoon. Some room booking confusion put us behind so we didn't have time for the Smurfs, but we did have time for Inspector Gadget, Fraggle Rock, Care Bears, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, and a friend's personal favourite, Thundercats. I got way too many of the trivia questions right - they wouldn't let me win anymore prizes. I traded the prizes I did win for the Fraggle Rock DVD. Yippee!! We ate Count Chocula and Froot Loops. All that was missing was the pyjamas.

Spending time with a new friend was good too, although I think I was cutting her off too much. I'll see her again soon, I'm sure.

Sometimes I forget that I've put my email address somewhere and then get cranky when I get a stupid email. Sillier things have happened. However I got a sale flyer today that thrilled me.

Okay, so where does all the time go? I swear I'm almost always busy and yet I don't seem to get anything accomplished.

Let's see, I got my iPod yesterday and I haven't even played with it yet. How bad is that? I also got Mr. & Mrs. Smith yesterday when I went into Future Shop to peruse the iPod accessory aisle. [le sigh] For Christmas, I want iPod accessories. All of them. Mwa-ha-ha...

Today, I went shopping with a co-worker for presents for our Christmas party. We had a ton of fun. Not finished yet, but we have a plan so it's going to be really good. I'm really looking forward to it - the Christmas party, that is. And my tall friend is coming with me to the party. I'm really looking forward to that too.

I have a cat draped across my forearms as I type this. Surprisingly how little one has to move one's arms while typing. He's just so awesome - my cat.

I heard from a friend today that I hadn't heard from in years. It was sort of a business call, but it was still good to hear his voice. He sounds a bit more grounded than he used to be which is good. Second kid on the way, married, and doing well in his chosen profession. I wish him all the best.

A friend of mine watched March of the Penguins the other day. I think I should just own that movie. I think I'd really like it. I've been wrong about these things before, but I've always found someone to give it to when I didn't care for it as much. I'll have to rent Sky High. We watched it in California, but it's been a while.

The weekend went somewhere, but I'm not sure where. I don't think I was home... I was home! I was home all day Saturday, waiting patiently for SaskTel. But no, they needed a bucket-truck. They didn't actually need a bucket-truck. Someone just didn't want to do my install on Saturday. Grrrr... So instead of being out of the house on Saturday, as was the plan, I sat here waiting. It could've been productive time, but it wasn't because I was expecting I'd be able to leave at any moment. Sunday, I was definitely not home. I slept in, but then left. I know because my cat mauled me when I got home that evening. Right now, his head is pushed into the top of my left hand as I type. Cold, slimy noses. Yech!

I think I'll pop in a movie, play with my iPod, and pester my boyfriend tonight.

Monday - visited a friend at her new house. It's totally awesome. I love some of her light fixtures. And I got to sleep late. Tuesday - worked til late. Wednesday - massage, soak and sleep. I was really tired. I guess I'm doing something, except Monday when I must have been kidnapped by aliens.

Obviously, this was in no particular order.

With my boyfriend being sick last week, I got some quality alone time. Relaxing and restful. All good.

Work was good this week too. New experiences and I didn't feel guilty about having Monday and Tuesday off. And there weren't *that* many emails to catch up on. Heh.

I talked to this person this week and I'm not sure I'm comfortable with the direction the conversation went. I have some thinking to do on that.

On another note, I did something very silly - I bought this. I'm very excited. I might get it delivered as early as next week. Eep!!

And Mr. and Mrs. Smith comes out on Tuesday and I really want to get it. I really liked the movie.

SaskTel didn't install my phone line yet - the guy needed a bucket truck to get the line through the big tree at the back. They didn't phone to tell me that though - I had to phone them. Would have been nice if they'd phoned, but hopefully, it'll be done for Monday.

What a full and fulfilling weekend it was. Shopping for clothes, shoes, luggage, a kettle, presents, a programmable thermostat, and many other wonderful things. And yet, shopping was not the focus of the weekend.

Good company was the focus of the weekend. I got to know one of my co-workers a little bit better and got to meet others face to face for the first time at a Christmas party for which I had a new outfit and looked just as smashing as everyone else, except a certain 48 year-old who I can only dream to compare to. I spent time with my friend and his new wife. I was glad to finally have some time to get to know her a bit better. I first met her at the wedding. She obviously makes Owen very happy so that's good enough for me. And besides that, I like her.
Spending time with some other friends for supper was great. I haven't spent any time with them in much, much too long. I'd forgotten how much fun I have hanging out with them. And the food was delicious! Others that I would have like to have seen weren't in the city last weekend, so I was out of luck. My mom and I stayed with my aunt which was great. I really appreciate my time with her as she has so many experiences in life and her wisdom is invaluable. Not to mention how much fun she is. She makes me smile. And she makes my mom smile which is even better. My cousin was out for lunch with us one day so we were able to chat a bit. I don't spend enough time with her either. She's always been someone to look up to for me. Oh and then there were the 9 cats I spent time with this weekend.

All of these things weren't rushed or on a tight schedule. I moved things around to suit each day. And mom just hung out with her sister. I think it did them both good. Mom and I agreed to do it again next year.

There isn't anything in particular that made yesterday a great day - just a lot of things. I got to meet a very nice woman who wants to help me, spent time with one of my best friends, the most fantastic massage which is saying something because they're always fantastic, and got some stuff organized at work which I haven't had time for since I started my new job! And the fact that I woke up smiling this morning doesn't hurt.

NAIROBI (AFP) - A baby hippopotamus that survived the tsunami waves on the Kenyan coast has formed a strong bond with a giant male century-old tortoise, in an animal facility in the port city of Mombassa, officials said.

The hippopotamus, nicknamed Owen and weighing about 300 kilograms (650 pounds), was swept down Sabaki River into the Indian Ocean, then forced back to shore when tsunami waves struck the Kenyan coast on December 26, before wildlife rangers rescued him. "It is incredible. A-less-than-a-year-old hippo has adopted a male tortoise, about a century old, and the tortoise seems to be very happy with being a 'mother'," ecologist Paula Kahumbu, who is in charge of Lafarge Park, told AFP.

"After it was swept and lost its mother, the hippo was traumatized. It had to look for something to be a surrogate mother. Fortunately, it landed on the tortoise and established a strong bond. They swim, eat and sleep together," the ecologist added. "The hippo follows the tortoise exactly the way it follows its mother. If somebody approaches the tortoise, the hippo becomes aggressive, as if protecting its biological mother," Kahumbu added. "The hippo is a young baby, he was left at a very tender age and by nature, hippos are social animals that like to stay with their mothers for four years," he explained.

Well, it's the second night alone in my house after my roommate moved out. I miss him already, but I know it's a good thing for us both. I have been less motivated to clean up after myself, but decided to clean anyway. Got some stuff done too - a load of laundry, found some of my roommate's leftover stuff and put it all in one place for him when he stops by next, and unpacked from my latest trip. Took out the garbage too. All kinds of excitement going on in my house tonight. Wahoo!!

It's bedtime now and I'm looking forward to closing my eyes.

My mom and I received our reservation confirmation for next weekend...

I am pleased to advise you that we have been able to reserve a room for you and your daughter at Avoncroft Farms, main lodge, for November 18th to 21st.

However, the only one available is the honeymoon suite. I trust that this will not present any problems. It includes king size bed, luxury tub, fireplace, and ensuite. It will be available upon your arrival.

Lodge Manager

p.s. Due to unforeseen circumstances, there will be no maid service.

I love my aunt.

How is it that my keychain could appear in the hatchback of my car when I packed it before I went shopping yesterday with my neice? She read my keychain on the counter of Michael's while we were shopping. I didn't open the hatch after that.

So I unpacked last night and found it in a bag of stuff that I bought in Drumheller. I don't get it, but I don't think I should dwell on it too much. It'll just make me crazy. ..er.

Today was to be a good lazy day, great for driving home. Well, I haven't started yet. I got up at about 9:30 after being bugged by beautiful little children for an hour and a half. I know they knew what they were doing when they were banging on the wall in the other one's bedroom with me sleeping on the other side of the wall. Otherwise, why would they check on me afterward? [sigh] It's a good thing I love them. I was still happy to have them around this morning when I woke up.

My nephew chopped off my feet and hands and I bled to death this morning. Then I rose from the dead to attack him and cause him to go running and screaming to his daddy who was also still sleeping. Heh. I love being the auntie. Then my neice and I went shopping for a bit where I lost my car key and keychain that read "PROPERTY OF THE PRINCESS." I got that keychain as a gift from a friend and it always made me smile. I'm just lucky that I didn't lose the key chain with ALL my keys on it. I only lost the pirate's peg leg sometime over the weekend in Drumheller. My nephew noticed that as well. The trials and tribulations of a LEGO keychain.

We were late getting back to the house so I dropped my neice off at the Fun Tycoon where they had a birthday party to attend. Good for them. I then went back to the mall to see if I could find my key. No luck, but with all those stores, I managed to get the 4th season of Six Feet Under, some underwear, a new winter jacket, and stuff from Michael's. Would have been more from Michael's if the bead aisle hadn't been so crowded.

I love my family very much. I still need a teleporter. Can't wait to see everyone even though it'll be later than I'd like when I finally get back to Saskatoon.

So here I am in Calgary after my fabulous weekend in Drumheller.

I haven't sat still for very long since I got here - except at my desk all week and then today watching many, many episodes of Six Feet Under. I felt very busy all week.

My brother told me he was jealous of me. So I asked why. I was pretty sure I knew, but I wanted to hear him say it. [grin] I decided to work in Calgary this week because I can. Heh. It's the little things that make life grand.

I worked too much this week. Last Sunday from 5 p.m. to 3 a.m. which just started the whole week off badly. In early and staying late some days too. And then today for a few hours again. The beautiful thing is that I don't resent it. I feel like it's worth it because people are counting on me and that means something.

The highlights of the week:
1. Meeting some of my staff that I hadn't met before.
2. Swimming with my niece and nephew.
3. Watching Six Feet Under.
4. Seeing my niece and nephew each morning before work and having them yell in unison from the front door, "Good-bye Auntie Suzi."
5. Seeing friends I haven't made time for in a long while.
6. Getting an expected note from someone who really believes in me.
7. Learning that Chinese food leftovers are edible - just get them to put the sauce on the side.
8. Talking to the people in Saskatoon that I miss terribly and it's only been a week - including hearing my cat purr it up at the sound of my voice.
9. Having people feel that they can tell me when I've done something wrong without fear of breaking me.
10. Hugs from my family and friends and feeling connected.

While I'm looking forward to sleeping in my own bed tomorrow night, I'm going to miss everyone here. I really need a teleporter.

I didn't realize how beautiful a king size bed really was before this weekend. I was in heaven. Of course, part of that might have been that it was on a frame at least 4.5 feet off the ground. I love being on such a high bed. It's absolutely great. I think I'm going to begin my campaign with my dad for such a thing again. I might win this time because I have some solid knowledge about how this one was built - yes, I checked it out. Heh.

There's something extremely grand, maybe even opulent, about being connected by a door to a spa where you're getting treatments. Something great about being in your pajamas when they come knock on the door for you at 10 in the morning. It was a fantastic experience. I loved the mango body polish - I'd definitely do that again. The wrap was annoying more than helpful, I found. But that's mostly because laying on my back for 45 minutes gets rather painful. The facial and head massage was divine. [sigh] Then with the painting of my toes the colour of a new penny was fabulous too - I love it when people play with my feet. I just about started drooling.

Of course, the best part of the weekend was the company. I love my friends so much even though we've gone such different ways in our lives. It felt like home being with them.

Wow, it was 16 days ago that I last posted.

Fading Suns was cancelled tonight on very short notice so I find myself with some time and not a lot to say.

Been working a lot of extra hours lately and playing City of Heroes the rest of time which means Purrrsia is level 38 now. Next weekend, I'm off to Drumheller for a weekend with the girls. Really looking forward to it.

I fell asleep on my lunch break today. The sweet girls at work phoned me when they noticed I'd been gone a really long time. So tired so I'm heading to bed soon. Mmmm... sleep.

Maybe I'll have more to say tomorrow night.

Today it was cold enough to get out the hand-knit socks. They make me so happy just thinking about them. They are on my feet right now. [GRIN]

... since my last post.

My mom called me on Sunday desparate for an update on my life. Heh. She had to call.

Work has kept me on my toes, that's for sure. I have to admit that I absolutely love visiting my team members. I can't wait to meet the rest of them. I don't know when that'll be, but I'm really looking forward to it. Hell, I really love my team. I'm so proud of what they do every day and how well they do it. I feel very lucky to have them. I feel so naive as a manager when I say that, but it's truly how I feel. I'm sure it's only going to get better too.

I had a doctor's appointment today. Everything is good. I was freakin' a bit because they called me after I had bloodwork done. I hate that. It means I have to go visit them and be all in suspense about what's wrong this time. Well, duh, of course I have Hepatitis A antibody, I was immunized over a year ago. Freak me out for nothing. Sheesh! Anyway, so all is well and I'm 5 pounds lighter this year than I was last. That made me feel good too.

Training for the rest of the week at work. Learning HR portion of one of payroll programs. It'll be good. I have to duck out for a bit to do an interview or two on Thursday. Looking forward to the new experience of interviewing external candidates. I have to redo the interview questions as they are more geared toward an internal applicant. It'll be fun though.

Learned a lot about Winnipeg last week because I got to drive there. I love driving. I almost missed my plane, but I love driving. It's so exhilarating, especially driving in a new place, getting lost and finding my way again because I'm that good. Heh.

And I found the drink that I've been missing most of all last week - Crown Royal and Coke. Sooo sweet. Sooo yummy. Sooo goofy - I was positively goofy. My companion while I drank it (no, my companion wasn't the drink) felt the need to protect his drink more and more as my gesticulating while I talked got bigger and bigger. [giggle] I like being goofy, not tipsy, just goofy. Maybe tipsy and goofy. It was a good evening.

And tonight - Gilmore Girls!!! Oh, what an exciting life.

So I was really looking forward to staying at the majestic-looking Fort Garry Hotel in Winnipeg. I just wrote a really long post about the whole experience. And then it got lost, for some reason, didn't want to publish and went the York Hotel website. Bizarre and I'm totally unruffled.

There was lots of bad stuff at the Fort Garry. I hated almost every bit of it. The bed was fabulous, the walk-in closet had a motion-sensor light, and the towel were huge. And that's honestly the only good things I can say. All of them. The rest was very bad and I left right after I showered. I made reservations at the York (previously called the Sheraton) and was outta the Fort Garry for good. I checked into the York after work and oh happy day!! It's not perfect, but it's more what I'm looking for - a dresser, in-room wired high-speed internet, a digital alarm clock, no ice machine across the hall, no spotlight on the window, a TV that isn't older than me, and cards on the beds that means that they won't change the linens unless I want them too. Not too much to ask, really.

The rest of the day was great. I got to see some staff, solve some problems, and was in control of my happiness.

Oh yeah, and I played City of Villains for the first time in FOREVER! The new costuming bits were so much fun. And I really, really enjoyed just playing. Even though the training server was at medium load, there wasn't too much lag which was awesome too. I made a Dominator. Lots of joyous defeating of longbows and snakes.

So, here's how the weekend is playing out.

Thursday night was awesome. Friends came over to play Earthdawn and we all got sleepy around 10 which seems to be normal for us. What that really meant though is that I got 8 or more hours of sleep for 5 nights in a row. Wow! What a difference in my disposition, ambition to accomplish things, and all that jazz. Fantastic.

So Friday night, mom and I went to get fabric for my nieces housecoat. Then we all sat around the living room for a while and snacked on things while watching TV. And to bed early.

Saturday included errands all morning with mom and I *finally* got the bloodwork done that I've been meaning to get done for four or five weeks now. And guess what, they don't do one of tests on weekends. [sigh] Of course, it wasn't a really important test so I think I'll skip it this quarter.

EB Games, Toys R Us, Michael's (orange and black sprinkles), farmer's market, Sobeys, Kernels and Husky (for coffee). I was pooped after that and had a nap. Mmmmm... naps. Supper was fantastic too - we had deer tenderloin. Mouth-watering good. Sooo tender and yummy.

Then I was asleep by 11 p.m. We watched The Jewel of the Nile last night, and I wasn't sure I'd make it through, but I did!

Today, I'm excited that my friends are coming over for Thanksgiving dinner with my folks. I tried to invite the ones that probably weren't going to have some family to share Thanksgiving with.

We're making mashed potatoes, gravy, turkey, cauliflower and cheese sauce, lime cottage cheese jello salad, apple cabbage salad, corn, stuffing, and my friend is bringing buns and mom said to ask if she has any pluma mousse left because she started to drool when I mentioned it. I still have to do that. And pumpkin pie and whipped cream. Mmmmm... I need something for my drool now.

Thanks to my awesome friend, I went back and figured this out. Okay, I have more than one awesome friend, but this is one of those.

1. Go into your archive.
2. Find your 23rd post.
3. Find the fifth sentence (or closest to).
4. Post the text of the sentence in your blog along with these instructions.

So here it goes. I thought this one might be kind of fun. At first, I didn't think I'd be able to do it, but lo and behold the verbosity that I've managed...

"So apparently, I was brilliant in part two of the interview."

Heh.

I have the blahs.

Heh. I did it. I know EXACTLY how my house is heated because I am now, the goddess of thermostats! And maybe just my thermostat hookup, but dang, I learned a lot.

While on Friday, I couldn't turn off my furnace (something about hooking up the wires in the wrong places so they were always touching) and yesterday, 14 degrees Celsius seemed a little cool so I went to work trying to figure out the system. After much time on the phone with my dad again, I had bridged a connection at the furnace to make it fire up. Yay! I pulled on wires running into the walls and figured out which were the live two wires that I needed to touch together to make the furnace come on. There are three in the wall, but one isn't connected at either end so I made sure to mark the dead one upstairs. I determined through many trips up and down the basement stairs (many, many trips) that the new programmable thermostat was a dud. Completely broken. Stupid electronics. Of course, I got it in Nipawin so I have to wait to send it back to my parents so they can return it.

I now have the old one back on the wall and working properly.

And I could hook up a new thermostat in less than the estimated installation time and be able to check to make sure it's working properly too.

I still want a programmable thermostat.

Yep, I'm going to Nipawin again this weekend. I'm not leaving until morning so that gives me the evening to catch up on all the things I've been meaning to do all week.

1. Get caught up on my books.
2. House chores - cat litter, dishes, laundry, etc...
3. Hook up the new programmable thermostat I got last weekend. Well, I *started* that today at lunch time, but didn't have time to finish. Note to all others who might attempt this: FINISH this task once you start. My roommate actually tracked me down at my boyfriend's to alert to the fact that the temperature in the house was 34 degrees Celsius when he got home and the cat was panting in front of the now open back door. It took a few phone calls to my dad and an inch of extra wire to get things going the way they should. Guess I'll know for next time. [GRIN]
4. Made it to Toys R Us to pick up the other two X-Pod creatures to match the one I got in California. Of course, on my trip to Shoppers to get batteries (which I forgot to buy), I saw all the ones I needed for the same price. [sigh]

And I'm planning on playing some City of Heroes tonight too. I haven't played in a very long time.

Serenity time when I get home on Sunday. YAY! Sooo looking forward to it.

... to save a cookbook your grandma gave you from falling into hot oil, you accidentally rip off the front cover

... in the wake of almost ruining a favourite cookbook, a cupboard door comes off and can't be put back up without replacing a portion of the wood frame

... you realize much too late that you lost the hook from your lego pirate keychain in the parking lot of Safeway

... someone tells others some bad news, that was yours to tell, in an automated email

Things to get through a bad day...
... tears
... mom
... hugs
... kittens
... laughter
... friends
... bizarre happenstances

In this case, home is my folks place in Nipawin. I know it's been a long time since I went for a visit when my mom shows me pictures of a full and lush green lawn where I remember there being seed and a small smattering of green blades on black dirt.

I had intended on getting caught up on a few things of my own, like some of the necklaces I've been meaning to make and my books, but that didn't really happen. Almost all my waking time was spent at my parents' business. Mom's been trying to get her books caught up for a very long time and hasn't been having much luck. There are so many things to get sidetracked by that it's hard to stay focused. That's where I come in - I can keep her on task just like she does for me when I need it. And we have the same ideas when it comes to keeping books and how things need to be entered. That helps a lot. So we got through just over 3 months worth of data in one weekend while she hasn't been able to get through one whole month in just about that time. I'm so glad I was there to help.

And dad was good too - he was doing some jobs while mom and I worked on the books. We didn't really get to do much else besides share some meals and go to sleep. Sleep I did this weekend. I slept probably close to 14 hours on Friday night. I was obsessing about work a bit though because every time I woke up on Saturday morning, I was thinking about all the things that need to be done and how they need to be done and how I can't be afraid to say things that need to be said. I'm sure everything will be fine and while I'm finally feeling confident about my ability to do this job and feeling good about the things I'm accomplishing, I'm not perfect and still have quite a few mistakes yet to make. And you know, I'm okay with that.

And then I slept about 10 hours on Saturday night and didn't wake up thinking about work on Sunday. I was also quite shocked that it was 1 in the afternoon when I woke up. I had missed the whole morning. Since I didn't figure there was anything urgent waiting for me in Saskatoon, I thought I could stay late so I finally left Nipawin at about 9:30 which was a bit later than I had intended, but whatever. I wasn't in any hurry. [GRIN] I still managed to be in Saskatoon before midnight.

I test drove a car home this weekend. I don't think I'll buy it but it gave me a good idea of what I'm looking for in my next car. I learned that I need a car with power. [I'm hearing Tim Taylor in my head right now.] I met with a used car salesman and I liked him. He seems like a good guy. We went through what I'm looking for in a car and I think I'm going to have to spend a bit more than I was originally intending, but I know I'll be happier with the car I get. So I drove 3 different cars this weekend. A neon, which showed me that I need power in my car to be happy, an Alero, which had some power, but doesn't come in manual transmission so that wasn't great, and a Camry, which is a good car, but has a bunch of little things going wrong so I don't think it's a good fit for what I'm looking for.

I also discovered that my cell phone loses all signals just before Wakaw which is only 90 km out of the city.

So, Sears...

I expected that when I bought appliances and they were delivered to the correct house and all the paperwork had my new address last year that Sears had updated my address. And they sent me new warranty information two weeks ago to my correct address. Apparently, I was wrong. Just because the warranty people have my correct address, the whole company doesn't.

A statement to pay for my appliances on July 21 was returned to Sears. I talked to some woman last night. Poor, poor woman. I've been waiting for the Sears statement for a month and a half now. Expecting it. Knowing it was coming. Making financing plans to pay for all my appliances so that I didn't get dinged with all the interest.

Apparently, my lack of following up cursed me with over $140 in interest. I was sooo frustrated. And she couldn't even help me except to update my address. She gave me a number to call today because customer service had already gone home. I couldn't resolve it last night. I had to sleep on it. I was just trying to be reasonable all night. My plan was to hopefully spend some more time with my boyfriend, but that had to be aborted because I was feeling too cranky.

And what kind of company calls someone about a late payment and then puts them on hold, "Please hold for an important call from Sears..." Music follows. I hung up on Saturday. I hate doing my personal business over the phone. I usually miss/don't remember something important.

So I called this morning. First thing - I crawled out of bed and went to the phone at 6:30. And I apologized before even speaking about the issue. I apologized to the poor lady because I knew I was going to get upset even though I was trying desparately to remain calm. That helped me later because I knew I wasn't catching the lady off guard when I did start getting upset when recounting the details of what had happened. She responded by saying that first of all, she understood how I could be so frustrated with the situation. I told her my main concerns were the interest and the credit rating impact. She told me that they could fix the credit note and then put me on hold to speak to her supervisor. And they reversed the credit charges as I was paying the full amount - today. She gave me the total without interest to pay. I confirmed both actions of Sears and then confirmed I was going to pay today.

And then I thanked her profusely.

And now I've paid them. And I feel much better. And Sears will get my business again because of the way they handled this situation. I think I'll send them a letter.

Now, I'm not saying that the full moon has anything to do with it, but it sure does make things crazy. I don't normally have to stay overtime, but I've been working overtime for the past week and then the latest was last night until 7. Sheesh! I'm hoping that once I'm done with hiring at work, things will calm down to a reasonable list of to do's and more things on the it can wait list.

But, I did it again this weekend. Ms. Fixit is my name. I spent most of Sunday in the basement. The first hour was mostly disgusting as I can to clean up where my cat had been sick - twice. I guess carrot cake and cream cheese icing aren't the best thing for his little tummy. Next, I did some exercising. And then I rearranged the place and hung up my punching bag and got rid of all the garbage stuffs from the futon wrapping. Then I went grocery shopping and had a great evening with my sweetie watching The Return of the King on his new couch.

Last week is a blur - 4 hour meeting after work on Tuesday for the Canadian Cancer Society. I was soooo caffeinated that the sound of my heart beating kept me awake that night. But no headache which was nice. Wednesday night I went straight to my massage after work but only remember the first 20 seconds of it and the last 5 minutes. Some might say that I was sleepy. I felt grrrrreat! afterwards, though. Thursday night was also caffeinated so I was mostly awake for friends to come over and play Earthdawn. Friday night was my very first double date although it was impromptu. We went to see The Fantastic Four and then had a bite to eat at Montana's after the movie. Then I went to a birthday party for a friend who spent the summer in B.C. working as a camp counsellor. It was awesome to hear his stories of camp. And Saturday, well, Saturday was a write off. There may have been some computer games. Maybe a lot. And there were waffles. Mmmmm... waffles.

There's a llama
And another little llama
Fuzzy llama funny llama
Llama llama duck.

Llama llama cheesecake llama
Tablet brick potato llama
Llama llama mushroom llama
Llama llama duck.

I was once a treehouse
I lived in a cake
But I never saw the way the orange slayed the rake.
I was only three years dead
But it told a tale
And now listen little child to the safety rail.

Did you ever see a llama
Kiss a llama on the llama
Llama's llama
Tastes of llama
Llama llama duck.

Half a llama
Twice the llama
Not a llama
Farmer llama
Llama in a car
Alarm a llama
Llama duck.

Is that how it's told now
Is it all so old
Is it made of lemon juice
Doorknob ankle cold.
Now my song is getting thin I've run out of luck.
Time for me to retire now and become a duck.

September 10, 2004, I moved into my house. So in honour of spending that much money a year, I spent some more this weekend. Finally got the golden see-through curtains for my bed and I only needed 6 instead of 8 and they were cheaper than I thought, only $15 a piece. And then I got a canvas wood holder and carrier. I just take it off the base frame and go get the wood in it and then put the bag on the rack holding the wood I just brought in. It's something I've been looking for since I moved in. And I got rid of the front curtains and replaced them with a bamboo rolly-uppy window covering which is see through so I'll have to back it with some fabric, but it was cheap so I'm okay with that. Besides I have all this curtain fabric to spare. [grin] And I got a green roman shade for the kitchen window for roommate happiness. And I got a futon for the basement which is much better for guests. And I finally hung the roman shade in the stairwell window for more roommate happiness. I bought that shade in November of last year and it took me all of 10 minutes to put up. [sigh] And I got rid of the Mickey Mouse border in the computer room finally which makes it feel sooo much different in that room and it's a really good kind of different. Much cheerier and brighter. And taller, actually - the room seems taller. And much more roommate happiness. And I finally hung the black cat picture over the fireplace that's been sitting on the mantle since I moved in last year. And I also hung the CD rack (8 holes in the wall later) which has been on the floor since I moved in. And I also finally wall mounted the massive power bar for all the electronics in the entertainment unit. And I only broke three CD cases and one of my roommate's baking sheets in the process of all this handiness. Pretty good ratio of fixed to broken if you ask me. ;)

And I had a fire last night which was wonderful.

In the fireplace.

I was wrong. I shouldn't have asked all those people to come to this wedding that didn't want to come. That isn't to say that I didn't really enjoy their company because I did. They just didn't enjoy the event as much as I did. I was selfish. And I should have gone to the gift opening on Sunday too and I didn't.

Kate and Jason Parsons are fabulous people. Kate is someone who I've admired for as long as I can remember. When I first met Kate, I remember thinking, doesn't she know that her smile is too big? And what a horrible thing to think because Kate's smile is just one of the reasons she is such a beautiful person. Her commitment to her friends and family surpasses everyone I've ever known. I've known others that are committed, but they manage to lose themselves in serving others but not Kate. She is strong and devoted and charismatic and beautiful and determined and confident and forgiving. For most people, it takes them a long time to really know and accept themselves as they are. Remarkably, Kate's known who she really is since I met her. She might argue the point, but she was always miles ahead of the pack in that regard. Most times that I think about Kate now, I just think how incredibly fortunate I am to have someone like to her in my life. Everyone has role models in their life and she's one of mine. And to know that Jason loves her and his strength of character to be a partner for Kate for all these years makes me very happy to know that he's the one for her.

On a more humourous note, mom and I were dressing in my room for the wedding and I was changing my bra to go with the shirt I was changing into. Mom just looked up at me as she was talking and turned back to her own clothes and started to giggle. Before she was too far gone into the giggles, she managed to tell me that as she was glancing at me, she noticed my boobs and had the thought, "Hey, I've got one of those." I'm laughing so hard right now the computer is shaking and I can barely see through the tears. LOL We had a right good laugh about it then too.

I got this link from a dear friend of mine who got it from her mom. These are along the same vain as the MST3K episode with the crazy androgynous "Mr. B. Natural!" [shutter] Of course, the little songs don't make me want to run and hide.

My nervousness peaked today as I went to UPS to pick up my package. I knew it was my shoes. They phoned the house to tell us that they couldn't deliver the package because they couldn't find the address. I thought that was weird. Then they couldn't find the package with the number they'd given my roommate. All the time, I was being crowded by this guy standing behind with no sense of personal space. I was getting really twitchy after a long day at work and I really, really wanted my shoes.

And there is was - a shoe box sized wrapper with "oooo"ing and "aaaahh"ing feet drawn on the side. Definitely my shoes. I started getting really anxious - are they going to fit? are they going to be worth everything it took to get them here? did I really need to special order these shoes? The knot of doubt growing in my belly.

First thing I did when I got the package into my hands was look at the address. Sure enough - someone couldn't read along the way and therefore typed the address into their electronic system wrong and since you can't read hand-printing anymore, the UPS drivers couldn't find the address. Instead of 8th Ave N, the street was shown as "8th E" which would boggle anyone's mind. Of course, the policy sheet they stuck in with the form covered everything but the house number. And they stuck the form and policy sheet in a plastic thingy covering my address that was on the brown package in big black marker. And everything was printed very plainly so I could see where they went wrong. NOT!

Relieved that there was no duty and that I finally had my shoes in hand after not 3 - 7 days, but 3+7 days of waiting, I decided to not panic about the large rip in the brown paper which exposed the shoe box plainly. I even managed to wait until I got home with the box on the passenger seat still mostly intact. I did have to open the form in the plastic thingy to see what address had been provided.

Home now and it's about to happen - the opening of the box. Stupid packing tape made the process a little longer than I would have liked, but I eventually won. The box is open now and what do I see right on top? A hacksaw blade. My first thought was, maybe they're too long and will need to be sized down. I didn't like that thought so I dismissed it and put the hacksaw blade aside even though it was still puzzling to me. I wouldn't immediately disregard the thought that someone put it in the package deliberately just to mess with my head so I let the idea rest in my brain while I go for my shoes which are finally in my hands.

And headed straight for my feet. SCORE!!! They're fantastic. I've never had a better pair of shoes in my life. Wahoo! It's the little things that make life wonderful. I wore them around the house for the next hour just enjoying them. I also got a card and a note from the sender with no mention of the hacksaw blade.

Unfortunately, some poor UPS patron doesn't have a hacksaw blade anymore. I can see why it was shoved into my package. It was ripped open and the box had an edge that made it easy to slip something back into which was probably what the delivery folks did. No commitment to customer service. I don't care now though, I have my shoes. And a shiny new hacksaw blade.

I'll bring them by to visit everyone real soon. [GRIN]

Last week was crazy! Trying to get things ready to make the quick trip to Edmonton this weekend. I got some sleep on Thursday night instead of killing myself to get everything done that needed to be done for Friday's trip. Friday, then, was crazy busy. Cookies, laundry, packing, work, keys to drop off, banking... You know, all the little things. Heh.

My roommate and I did the dishes before we left which made coming home yesterday very nice. He drove the whole way to Edmonton which was good and we were there by 10:30ish. I was very tired by the time my head hit the pillow. Socializing and all that nervousness that comes with staying in someone's house that you don't know that well.

I was up very early on Saturday to go visit my aunt before she headed out for the weekend. Some hugs and smiles and stories later, I headed back. More socializing and getting to know our hostess. She and her husband are really great people. Their whole family of friends is great, it seems. Of course, no one is perfect, but there is a fabulous feeling of trust and familiarity that I wanted to be a part of. It made me realize how out of practice I am at making new friends! I confirmed with my roommate that I was much more outgoing and trusting and talky before I moved to Calgary than when I came back. I really value all the friends I made in Calgary and still make time to see all of them as often as I can. I stopped making the effort for acquaintances and I shouldn't have.

I had wanted to spend the afternoon with my other friends in Edmonton, but didn't want to dictate everyone's day. So when I got struck by a monster headache that landed me in bed for the afternoon, I was glad to not have to break any plans. I really wanted to spend time with the newlyweds and my older friends who moved from Calgary to Edmonton a few years ago. I haven't spent nearly enough time with them. I think the next time we go to Edmonton, I'll try to be more prepared and make arrangements to see everyone and still have time to make some new friends.

The game we went to play, Kingdom Come, was a blast. I really, really enjoyed it. I have big plans and big dreams for what I can accomplish in the game. They are very long term plans, but I hope they make the game more interesting for me and for others. That's the point, after all, isn't it?

We left around midday yesterday after a good night's sleep. In fact, Saturday after the game, I pretty much just headed straight to bed. They used an electronic airpump, which if you know anything about them are very loud. I slept through it. Someone took a pillow from under my head. I didn't mean to be laying on all three, but I was. I was very tired, and I'm very happy that I sleep like the dead.

My roommate drove all the way home again. It was good to be home. We talked and then watched Sliding Doors. A fine movie. Makes me cry every time. It's still a gooder.

Today, I had the pleasure of the company of next weekend's bride. She doing better than I might be in her place. She's managing to remain reasonably calm. This is one woman who has always inspired me. She has such a good and forgiving heart. There are some people in this world who I am privileged to be able to call a friend and she's definitely one of them.

Okay, okay, I know he's not a kitten anymore. He'll just always be my baby-cat. And after being bothered about his behaviour all weekend, I finally took him to the vet on Monday. And I was quite relieved to hear that he had good reason to be acting so strangely. He had a nasty fever.

Of course, the vet also told him that he'd have made a good mom which I got defensive about, but that's neither here nor there. I was proud that the vet thought he was clever.

I got some antibiotics for him and less than 24 hours after the first half-pill, he was doing much better. He was well enough to be sucky last night and follow me around all evening. And de was a portion of whiny self to get outside this morning. Both very good signs. Of course, the lack of very hot skin was also a good sign.

I got to have lunch today with one of my mom's brothers. I always have a good time with him. Today, he left a book in restaurant on purpose - a travelling book. C.S. Lewis' Miracles. I don't know if I could leave a book to the fate of the world. I think it's really interesting though. Where might that book travel? He's already sent one book to some place across the Atlantic ocean that I've already forgotten the name of. What adventures is that book going to have? And is someone going to adopt these books as their own instead of letting them travel the world? I really liked the sticker on the front cover that said, "I'm not lost." Heh. Personification often gives me a giggle.

$5 million and 4 months to fix the damage...

Okay, it's not an update on when I'm getting my new shoes, but I did find out some information about where Chaco shoes are sold in Saskatoon:

Welcome to the Chaco dealer locator.
Chaco footwear is sold at more than 1500 retail outlets around the world.

Boomtown Outfitters
210 20th Street W
306.242.0882

Outter Limits
644 Broadway Avenue
306.374.1663

It was hard to choose just one, but I keep coming back to this one at Alcatraz.

And here are some more that are great too...

From slot canyons to alpine hikes, The Chaco Z/2 Colorado Sandal performs under all conditions. Soft, polyester pull-through adjustable straps are carefully positioned for comfort and support. Durable polyurethane footbeds feature Chaco's BioCentric™ contour for biomechanical fit and comfort. High-quality outsoles by Vibram® maintain your stature as an upright citizen. It's not only what you do in these sandals, it's how they measure up through an activity that earns them the "Performance" title.



- Simple, secure and very comfortable
- Originally designed for river use, Colorado soles are versatile, lightweight, and shed dirt and debris easily
- Wrap around, adjustable toe loop provides an extra measure of forefoot stability
- Ideal for wet and sandy environments

Really, it just means that the sole on the bottom of the shoe is less thick and has a difference tread than the ones I tried on - the Terreno.



- Simple, secure and very comfortable
- Ideal for hiking and travel
- The thickness of the sole gives an extra measure of cushion, comfort, and durability
- Wrap around, adjustable toe loop provides an extra measure of forefoot stability
- Terreno Sole is great for traction on loose, uneven terrain or cobblestone streets

I'm really, really excited about my shoes. I've been trying not to guess when I'm going to get them. But I *will* make it through next week. EEEeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee...

If you want more information about these shoes, the best I could come up with is this google search for all the online stores that sell these shoes.

Absolutely nothing extraordinary has happened to me or by my actions in the past few days. I didn't want to go to work because my roommate is out of town and I desperately need a day just to myself, but alas, that isn't to be so I'm using my time however I see fit. I've cleaned the fridge, had friends over one night, watched Sin City with my boyfriend last night, and slept in as much as I possibly could and still make it to work on time.

And my cat has been sleeping since the roommate left as well. And isn't energetic, and he missed jumping on the bed last night, and he hasn't been eating. Quite frankly, I'm getting really worried.

So here's my next pet (courtesy of neuba).

YOU OWN THE DRAGON OF WATER....CALM,COLLECTED AND
LOYAL HE IS A PERFECT PARTNER...WHEN IN A TIGHT
SPOT :)


Which Mythical Dragon do you own?
brought to you by Quizilla

I got this from a friend's blog. No budget, a little bit of every plot - sounds like my life. Although Sofia Coppola might be able to turn it into something more interesting.

I had the strangest chiropractor appointment yesterday. Dr. Marshal Montgomery made a few adjustments to my back and foot, but then he asked if I was congested because of my cold. The sneezing, runny nose portion of my cold hit yesterday and I ran out of tissues just before my vacation and then I went through the last of my co-worker's box who sits next to me and so I was travelling around the office stealing tissues from everyone equally so no one person felt the burden of my nose-blowing tissue needs. Of course, that's waaaaaaaaaaay too much information so I'll digress.

The treatment Dr. M gave me was massaging my sinuses and ensuring that all the gross build up didn't settle and become a real problem. He vibrated my head and my chest. And he patted my back on each side and of course, I got the full treatment because he also said a little rhyme for me about Betty and some bitter butter or something like that. It was entertaining and made me smile. It's his kids' favourite.

Then I locked my keys in the trunk of my car.

And I woke up this morning able to still breath which is a first for any cold I've ever had so something must have been good about the treatment in combination with the 4 litres of water I drank.

I must have started hallucinating because I swear I just heard my roommate say, "I am a gimp." I gotta go to bed.

From the time I got home, I have been busy with stuff and things.

I had my mom's paper supplier drop off paper at my house about a 1/2 hour after pulling into the drive way. He knew more about my mom's plans to come into Saskatoon this weekend than I did! But that really started me wondering what my mom had planned...

A friend called me to make sure I made it home safely. And we chatted for a bit about my trip and seeing each other on Saturday before she let me go so I could call my mom to see what was up. I was so scatter-brained that it took me about an hour to call her after my first inclination to do so. Laundry, unpacking, trying to get organized and everything else took some time.

One of her 8 brothers was going to be in Saskatoon with his wife this weekend for a wedding so they were having lunch on Sunday. This actually worked out pretty well seeing as she needed to pick up the 5 boxes of paper now crowding my front hallway and she could use this trip to bring my baby-cat back to me. And I got to hug my mom which is always a good thing.

Saturday's massage was nasty and wonderful all at once. My hips and lower back were so bad that I had an upset tummy all day Saturday and most of today because of the work my massage therapist did. Of course, it's all good because it needed to get worked out, but dang... I managed about a half hour soak in some epsom salts before calling my friend to come over for a bit. I showed her my San Francisco loot and we swapped some stories about the pictures my boyfriend and I had taken. Then we got in most of a game of Kaiser with my roommate and her roommate which we haven't done in quite a while.

Then it was off to pick up my boyfriend to play Earthdawn with our other friends who were in San Francisco just before us. It was a good afternoon. Our host showed us his LEGO TIE fighter which came with a Darth Vader lego guy that has a light sabre that actually lights up when you push on the top of his head. Heh. And to think he was disappointed when he couldn't get the mini star destroyers he wanted for a fleet. You can get them online... Speaking of which, I seem to have found their wishlist option and added a few items.

Sunday started with being woken by phone calls from my parents. My dad told me to phone my uncle and figure out the plan for lunch. My mom didn't even recognize my voice and told me more details for lunch as I hadn't called my uncle yet which included inviting everyone to my house because she was running late and wouldn't make it by check out time. So I spent the next two hours cleaning my house which was really all I needed. Didn't have a chance to vacuum, but I'd be forgiven that one thing, I'm sure. Besides, no one but my mom got to see my clean house. Not that I mind, the cleaning needed to get done anyway.

Lunch with 2 of my uncles and 1 aunt and my mom was great. We went to Station Place which was very nice. Actually has train cars as part of the restaurant. After a few hours there, my aunt and uncle had to head back to Edmonton and my other uncle back to Humboldt area. Mom and I headed out to Wilson's greenhouse as they are having an end of the summer sale. And I finally got my bougainvillea!! I've been wanting one since I moved in last September, but haven't been able to get/find one. I hadn't been looking very hard after my several trips to farmer's market where I found the first one I wanted which was before I got possession of the house. I gave up and got a food processor instead all the while still pining over a bougainvillea. I love it and now I have one. I took a picture too just to show everyone my new beautiful plant.

I had a glorious nap after mom headed home and then my boyfriend came over and we played with my new LEGO and watched Star Wars: A New Hope on CBC. All in all, a fantastic end to a fantastic vacation.

I think I've got a cold.

I special ordered shoes yesterday from Shuz of Los Gatos. They are mostly like my hostess' sandals and I really, really, really hope they fit. I felt like singing to the angels when I tried hers on and they aren't even the right size for me. She has long skinny feet and I have short wide feet. I could still hear the angels in the distance. What I want to hear is angels right next to me when I try on my own pair in a couple of weeks.

Everything was packed, I got all the digital pics that everyone took so I'm all set for setting them up for viewing when I get home to Saskatoon. The airport held some exciting stores like the Discovery Channel store (remote control alligator) and SFMOMA (San Francisco Museum of Modern Art) Museum Store. Both had some pretty nifty stuff. I especially liked the Discovery Channel store. So many things I wanted and things for the kids (my neice and nephew).

We got row 2 on the side of the plane that starts with row 2 which meant we were the first ones off in Calgary to walk the long kilometre to the actual customs stations. Baggage was fairly quick and there were no delays after that happened. And we were out of there!

We went for supper and stayed in for the rest of the night which was nice. I stayed up until our host got home from work to give him a hug, but then I was down for the count.

Today I got to see Australia boy and the recent three-person family which I always enjoy. It was a great afternoon with Ab. I've missed him a lot.

Watched Life is Beautiful tonight. It made me very angry. The fiction part was beautiful, but I couldn't see it for the truth of what happened. There's no way they could've known how I would react. My host said it felt like he'd been punched in the gut and felt good about it because he felt the hope the story inspired that this man could do a funny march to his death to keep his child from being scared and keep him alive. I couldn't feel anything but the death of millions of people. There's a reason I don't watch the news or read newspapers. I can't handle all the death, destruction, and hate in the world. Maybe that makes me shallow and selfish, but everyone has to do what's necessary to stay sane. And so I keep my focus on my little world in Saskatoon (and work) and leave the rest to the people that can deal with it. That's why I vote. I think in a few days or weeks or months, I'll be glad to have watched it but right now, I'm not. I am glad at my outrage because I should be outraged at what happened. That will be some comfort when I think about it over the next while.

Tomorrow, breakfast with another friend and I get to see my family as they are back from a camping trip! YAY! I'm so looking forward to seeing them. And Friday, we get to go home.

We had incredible travel karma today. We made every train and every bus with enough time. Although we did run once to catch the 6:50 train to San Jose from San Francisco.

The tour of the city was okay. It should have been done at the beginning of a trip so we could go back to the places we wanted to see more of. We stopped at four places to look around - the political buildings downtown, the painted ladies, the Conservatory of Flowers in Golden Gate Park, and finally the Golden Gate bridge.

Then a trip to Alcatraz in the afternoon and we were spent. Except maybe a stop at Cost Plus which our hostess had been wanting to stop at quite a few times already.

Lunch at Swiss Louis' was great. The waiter reminded me of the Calgarian Agent.

Then we went to see the movie Sky High when we got back to San Jose. I really enjoyed the movie.

We went to a few farmer's markets today. The fresh produce and fruit was astounding. Every little new thing is still exciting to me. The parking on the bridge, the pluots, the champagne grapes, the olive oil selection, the outrageous prices, the vast array of novelty items, a bunny in a yarn shop, just everything!

There was a Fiesta Des Artes in Los Gatos that we wandered through a bit too. If I'd had an extra $500 kicking around, I would now be the proud owner of a hand-spun wool, hand-knitted cream coloured jacket with beautiful hand-done detail work included a delicate pattern in the wool and citrine stones sewn on. And I'd have had a picture of the sheep that gave its wool for that beautiful piece of clothing. Now *that's* cool.

Being really excited for an extended period of time, however, is quite exhausting.

Our hosts have been tremendous. I had a malt today for the first time. It was from the Happy Hound.

I helped start making a costume with old teddy bears too. It's going to be completely awesome when it's done. I was covered in teddy bear fuzz by the end of it.

Although we off to a late start, the day was awesome.

It included a closing out gaming store where much loot was to be plundered, a drive across the Golden Gate Bridge, and a hike through Muir Woods that was very beautiful and 5 minutes too long to catch the bus we wanted. The next bus out was in 1 1/2 hours so we waited in the beauty that is this protected valley. When I have a chance, there will be pictures.

STILL haven't come down from my I'm-in-California high.

We drove to Monterey from San Jose today. The drive was amazing - the road, the scenery, everything. I've got more details written in my paper journal of the trip so I'll add some later, but right now, I'm just thrilled to be here.

The Monterey Aquarium - I hear angels singing. Otters, fish, so many cool fish, and jellyfish. EEeeeeeeee... the jellyfish. And the otters. And the kelp forest. And the penguins. And the seals out in the bay. And sooo freakin' cool.

And there was an amazing sock store. Heh. I only walked out with one pair.

Managed to sit at a table of 9 people in a pub that was mostly Saskatoonians. Heh. Much fun!

Then a walk in Los Gatos when I expected all the shops to be closed, but no siree! The gelato place where Chris got some fond memories. The Kid in a Candy store with an m&m dispenser to really envy. And the Mad Hatress. I was in heaven. And just knowing a store named Purrsnickety makes me happy.

Wow! My excitement level hasn't really come down yet.

My first trip through any sort of customs and border security was easy. And I was soooo worked up about it. I don't know what I was expecting - being chased down by angry guard dogs who could smell the Canadian Smarties in my bag maybe. At any rate, I didn't even have to turn on my laptop at security.

We got a tour of Cryptic Studios today which is where one of my friends works. What a cool office. The toy collections were incredibly cool. Of course, so was what they were programming.

There's lots and lots of palm trees here. I saw one in Vancouver earlier this year, but it was short and stubby. The ones here are like the ones on TV. And the people here have all been very nice so far. Even the one my friend ran over by walking backwards in this cool little supermarket called Trader Joe's where I bought some chocolate.

We had supper at a restaurant called Rock Bottom. The waiter was excellent. He explained the whole process to us and wasn't too annoying with checking in, but we were never wanting for anything. I'd totally recommend this restaurant to anyone based on this one experience. Well, I forgot to mention how amazing the food was. I'm starting to salivate just thinking about it. The appetizer tasted a bit too much like Cheez Whiz, but the entrees were truly incredible.

I think we've got our next couple days crammed full of stuff to do like our San Francisco city tour, a trip to the Monterey Aquarium, a trip to Muir Woods, and a little shopping.

The best part about today was the hugs from our friends. I've missed them.

The last three days are a complete blur of work, planning a celebratory summer lunch, playing computer games, and preparations for the trip to San Francisco. There wasn't a lot of sleep, that's for sure. I got the lawn mowed too.

I'm in Calgary and I'm not sure I would have made it without my boyfriend's driving for 2 hours between Kindersley and Hanna. I got in a half hour nap and was good to go after doing a little dance in the Husky in Hanna. Had to get the blood flowing somehow...

Tomorrow, we get on a plane headed for San Francisco. Wahoo!

A co-worker asked me the other day out of the blue, "Are you excited?" I wasn't totally sure she was talking about my vacation, but then she said, "Only two more days..." At which I responded, "Excited? Hell, yes!" Nothing has changed since that moment.

Massage and slept from noon to 7:30 p.m. on Saturday. Supper with a friend at 12:30 a.m.

This morning, I finished the book club book Adiamante by L.E. Modessit Jr. Cried like a baby even though I didn't really care for the whole book. War always makes me cry.

Called a friend in Calgary and had a much needed chat. I get to see her in about a week or so which will be really good.

And then I helped a friend clean up her backyard a bit as they want to have the house up on the market by the end of the week and she's a little stressed. I can relate and any help at all is better than trying to do eveything by yourself.

Then a date with my sweetie where we watched a decent plot with bad actors - Timeline. And then my mom got here and brought us ice cream. Mmmm... Blizzards...

Big day tomorrow with work and playing computer games. Heh.

Moopie has graced me with her presence today. Joy!!

Twice in one week! I didn't leave the bar, Beily's, until 3 am.

Most of it was spent in conversation with this really interesting guy. I might have noticed the increasingly drunk people around me if it weren't for him. Thanks, Dwayne! (Or is it Duane?) And the bride-to-be helped his friend, Syb, get friendly with a girl who he'd been eyeing up all night. Sure enough, at 3 a.m., Syb was saying a very long good night to her.

It was a really great night. I had a really great time.

A dear friend of mine made the observation that we've spent more time together this summer than in the past year. I'm really glad I've seen her so often lately. We both took responsibility for the previous year and moved on to have a wonderful evening together.

We went to Lydia's to see one of her lifelong pals, Alana Levandoski. She was good. Not my usual style, but I still enjoyed it. I listened to her song Red Haired Girl which is on the internet today and I enjoyed it more than the live show last night because I could actually hear the words. There were a lot of people not listening to the show which is to be expected at Lydia's, but still. I was one of the ones who was trying to listen.

There was a warm up band that I enjoyed as well, but I didn't catch any names. Her voice was really amazing.

Of course the best thing about the evening was the conversation. I haven't come home that late in a very, very long time. That makes me happy too.

1. Accept that some days you're the pigeon, and some days you're the statue.
2. Always keep your words soft and sweet, just in case you have to eat them.
3. Always read stuff that will make you look good if you die in the middle of it.
4. Drive carefully. It's not only cars that can be recalled by their maker.
5. If you can't be kind, at least have the decency to be vague.
6. If you lend someone $100.00 and never see that person again, it was probably worth it.
7. Never buy a car you can't push.
8. Never put both feet in your mouth at the same time, because then you won't have a leg to stand on.
9. Nobody cares if you can't dance well. Just get up and dance.
10. Since it's the early worm that gets eaten by the bird, sleep late.
11. The second mouse gets the cheese.
12. When every thing's coming your way, you're in the wrong lane.
13. Birthdays are good for you. The more you have, the longer you live.
14. You may be only one person in the world, but you may also be the world to one person.
15. Some mistakes are too much fun to only make once.
16. We could learn a lot from crayons. Some are sharp, some are pretty and some are dull. Some have weird names, and all are different colors, but they all have to live in the same box.
17. A truly happy person is one who can enjoy the scenery on a detour.

Heh. I saw llamas.

And Miss Otis Regrets got me through a cranky mood waiting at a train in Edmonton. Also gave the women in the car next to mine a pretty good giggle as it's not often you see someone vigourously car dancing to Bette Midler.

I got to see two of my aunties yesterday. I miss them terribly. I got to meet a remarkle young woman who's having twin boys in November. I know she's going to be a terrific mom. And I got to see a very hot guy who I haven't seen since we were about 10. [biting my knuckle] Dang.

I missed seeing my cousin and his wife AGAIN. I'm going to have to start planning my Edmonton trips better.

Interesting thing I saw on the drive home: an empty bus on the side of the road with its passengers outside. My thoughts are that the teenagers (lots of them) were getting a bit rowdy and the adult supervision told everyone to get off the bus to do some running down a grid road for a while to maintain their own sanity. It made me grin.

I think the afternoon has some boyfriend time and some City of Heroes time in store. Sooo looking forward to it.

I know, I've mentioned names, it's shocking. I felt it was appropriate if I'm going to celebrate the event.

First off, I let myself sleep a little later than I had intended, but I wasn't worried because I knew I wasn't in any real hurry. That is, until I discovered I hadn't packed my new pants that I was going to wear at the wedding. Well, frig. I put myself into hustle mode and boogied after that. I left Provost at 8:36 and was at a shopping mall in Edmonton at 10:58. New pants bought! Triumph one for the day.

Got to the hotel, showered. Got dressed and looked stunning for the wedding in my co-worker's orange, beaded halter and my new black capris. Wahoo! My hotel-mates were looking very good as well. Australia-boy in his tux as the best man and his sister is always good looking.

I sat with the gay doctor and the best man's sister at the wedding and we were awful. Giggling at everything but trying to be quiet about it. I let some bubbles go in the church. The first hymn we sang had a line in it about us being God's members. The first passage read from the bible proclaimed that the wife was the property of the husband. Good times! The pastor of the First Mennonite Church in Edmonton is fabulous! She turned most of my giggles into reverent thoughts of what this occasion meant to Owen and Jennifer. I had to tell her after the ceremony how much I'd enjoyed her words and her passion in them. She talked about how important the decision to get married is and wasn't afraid to mention all the crappy things that might happen in the course of a marriage. She very politely mentioned that Owen is levelled headed and likes to talk a lot (BS) and Jennifer is the one in tune with her emotions and is able to cut through all Owen's big words (BS). By the time the wedding ceremony was over, I was in tears, as usual.

After a quick stop at the hotel, we went to the hall to help decorate. We were busy there almost the entire time up to the reception. I hate streamers.

And the reception was great. Short on toasts, but the ones that were there had so much value and meaning in them. I was especially moved by both Owen's parents getting up at different times to welcome Jennifer to their family. I almost cried again. And Owen's mom was smokin' hot! Kudos to her!

She a blushing bride
He a delicate flower
Both now joined as one

This haiku was mostly written by Owen himself for his brother's wedding. The last line was changed to protect the innocent.

Owen asked me to say good things about him here when the evening was almost over. I have no choice because there was nothing bad to say. Owen looked really good and I told him so in the receiving line. He mentioned that he'd lost 45 lbs. Kudos to him. What I was really talking about was the smile on his face at marrying Jennifer. It's making me cry right now thinking about it. True happiness can be seen in a smile and that was it right there. It's one of the most beautiful things in the world because it's unfortunately more rare than I'd like.

The evening included lots of dancing after I got my second wind. And lots of talking with my Calgary friends. I miss them all terribly, but they aren't all in Calgary anymore. I wish I had more time off work so that I could go see them more often. I danced so much that I could barely walk for my ankle was quite unhappy. I didn't really care because I was having too much fun.

There was an open mic for a while and I should have told this story, but was feeling a bit shy. None of the stories we could think of about Owen ended in a proper fashion so we decided to just stay silent. This one is no exception. So, Owen, here it is. When I first met Owen, we were spending every Thursday night at the Unicorn in Calgary drinking, etc. There were some of us that showed up every week and were served by the surly pregnant barmaid Kelly. As everyone knows, Owen loves to cook. So on Valentine's Day he hosted the Bitter Singles Dinner Party(TM). There were quite a few of us invited and I was late because I'm not real good at public transit. So I started off the evening with some straight scotch to warm me up. The menu was filet mignon with some sort of sauce, some vegetables, a great cold soup, and some dessert. The liquor and wine were flowing quite freely that night. One of the guest's ex-boyfriends tracked her down at Owen's because he thought they should get back together. I was the co-hostess for the evening and was helping serve. Bad idea. I managed to spill steak juice on someone's head. And like all successful Owen stories, someone ended up being violently ill from the drink. Good times!

Well, I made it. I'm not exactly sure how because I don't really remember the three hours I was in the car. There was lots of music. I was mostly just thinking the whole time. And maybe being a bit less concentratey on the road as I should have been. I didn't speed either. Most times I looked at the spedometer, I was doing almost exactly 100. That made me feel alright.

I didn't get to hear Miss Otis Regrets by Bette Midler. I love singing that song and I haven't heard it recently enough to remember the tune and words well enough. Pretty soon, they'll be ingrained, but until then I'll have to hear the song periodically which I don't mind at all. The last time I heard it, I was singing it for days afterward. To my boyfriend too which he could've taken in a very bad way. Especially since I was so excited about it. Heh.

There was a thundershower happening in the distance for the last 30minutes or so of my drive which made it go quite quickly. I absolutely love watching the lightning in the sky. I'm always in such awe of these things.

I'm determined to have a really good weekend. I haven't decided yet everyone I'm going to visit or whether I'm going home to Nipawin on Sund.... Hmmm... that's a bit of a slip. Apparently I need to go visit my parents soon. Anyway, haven't decided when I'm going back to Saskatoon yet - either Sunday or Monday. It might be Sunday just so I have the day on Monday to just be at home. I haven't had enough of those lately.

I'm going to see so many people at the wedding that I haven't seen in forever. I haven't been really good at keeping in touch with them so I'm a little worried that they might be mad at me, but I'm sure everything will be fine. I do think about them, but am never in a position to act on it when I do think of them. [sigh] I do think of them. And smile. And wonder what they're up to. It's a good thing I get to find out this weekend.