A New Year deserves a new look. I'll have to update my links and such later, but it'll wait until tomorrow. Maybe ducky will be back, maybe not.
Neuba and Kaz are having their New Year's Party tonight. I'm really looking forward to it. Cheruby also has a party going on at his house so I'll be splitting my attention between them. I just hope I end up at the same party as my angel at midnight.
It's been busy around here.
I don't even know everything I've done in the past three (EEP!!) weeks since I was last here. I haven't checked up on anyone else either so I have no idea what's going on with anyone else.
I got a hair cut. It was just a trim, but the nice lady who did my hair knew I was going to my company Christmas party that night so she did it up all fancy-schmancy. I loved it. So curly and cute. A co-worker got some pictures so hopefully I'll be able to scam it from her to show off.
We played In Nomine for the first time in Cheruby's campaign and I made her character work very hard with very little payoff. I felt so bad for her. And my character was quite mean and suspicious of everyone. We're being used as pawns in a much larger game that I'm sure we have no control over.
I've done some baking as well. There was sugar cookie making with a really good friend who's having a hard time lately. And chocolate chip cookies for my Seasonal Celebration that was two weeks ago. The newlyweds and family were able to come over in the afternoon so I got to spend some time with the littlest monkey. She's adorable and loves the kittenses.
Present buying and present wrapping didn't tire me out at all this year. I made several small trips out to specific stores with specific things in mind and only left empty-handed a few of those times so I didn't get frustrated. I always left before that happened.
Trips to the doctor for me and a some time spent visiting a friend in the hospital. A roller coaster of emotions later and things didn't turn out well. I just keep them in my thoughts and prayers that their spirits heal.
I didn't think it'd be a big deal, being away from mom & dad on Christmas-proper. But I missed them more than I thought I would. I saw them the Wednesday before for a small Christmas meal and saw mom the Wednesday after on a quick trip of hers into the city, but the week in the middle was barren without them. I don't know what I'm going to do next year. Mom and I had a very good visit this week. We hadn't visited like that in a while and it was good.
Spending time with friends and family came first in the past few weeks. It's been wonderful and the amazing part is that I haven't felt rushed at any time. Even when I had to stay up until 4 a.m. to get the Christmas stockings done for our adopted family so that the evening could be spent with my family and my Cheruby. Very worth it. I had a few evenings last week where sleep was not the priority. I made friendship bread for everyone in the office which, with 13 people, and 2 loaves at a time at 1 hour 5 minutes baking time for the loaves.... so much baking time. Very tired by Friday and very happy to have the long weekend here.
After the very tired Friday, Cheruby and I went to Lumsden to visit cenobyte and clan. There was another house warming party in their loft. I quite enjoyed myself as did Cheruby who got to pee off a balcony. Heh. I slept in the car on the way there so I could be partially awake when we got there.
Then there was Christmas with my Cheruby's family. They very nice and wonderful and I loved being there and spending time with them. Cheruby's mom is really great and made me feel very welcome. His sister gets annoyed easily with him as I do with my brother. Something about having picked on each other for the majority of their lives might have something to do with that. I loved it. I spoiled Cheruby with too much stuff. I couldn't think of what to get for him. I thought of something, but didn't think it was appropriate. Now, I think it would have been, but that's okay. There will be other times to get him his heart's desire. And he got me this gorgeous ring - it's a cat's eye gold ring that suits me very well. Of course, I cried when I got it. Did I mention that he makes me very happy? Well, if I didn't...
The little one has decided that playing in the bathtub after my shower is her new favourite game and now the shower drain filter is missing. It's a good thing she's so cute.
The big brat is way happier this winter with the little one to chase around and beat on. He hasn't even started gaining his usual winter weight.
Christmas shopping is going well. I think a trip to a few choice stores will see my mission complete. And I've really only ventured into 3 stores. Online shopping is a great thing. It's been a lot of fun shopping for my staff even though it's a little hard on my wallet. They're worth it.
Our adopted family at work has 10 people! Mom, dad and 8 kids of which the oldest is 12 and there are two sets of twins and only one girl! I'm making stockings for them with their names on them. I hope they like them.
If you haven't heard, I'm hosting a holiday get together on December 16th. Please come if you can. I'd love to see everyone.
I've watched a schwack of Dune in the past week, been outraged by Gilmore Girls (Christopher sucks, Cori), and been entertained by the Scarlet Pimpernel.
D&D isn't dying completely, just relocating and being played less often. It was a particularly excellent session this week. It was so intense that Cheruby was worried that the animosity between our characters might spill over into real life. I assured him that it wouldn't. I had a really fantastic time.
My beautiful niece phoned me on the weekend which was pretty cool. We chatted about the awful thing grandma had done to her which was sending her a Christmas present 4 weeks before Christmas and not letting her open it. Heh.
And today is going to be a beautiful day with tomorrow being even better. It's supposed to be +1 degrees here tomorrow. YAY!
So as I was in the middle of a crisis at work this morning, I saw a little boy walking to school all bundled up with a backpack on his back. He went straight into the huge pile on snow in my front yard. He knew there was a big rock there that was totally climbable now with all the snow. He got to the top of the rock and just stood there for a moment. I wondered what he was up to and then it happened. He fell straight backwards into my snow filled yard. I giggled wildly for a few seconds as I enjoyed the moment. Unfortunately, it wasn't as pleasant for the boy as he ended up with snow up his back.
I remember every moment of when I did that when I was a kid. Just letting yourself fall and even the snow in unpleasant places. It hurts more now.
Right now, there's nothing wrong but still there's a feeling of things not being right. I don't know exactly what it is.
My car died last night as I was driving. Luckily, it was right in front of a friend's apartment building. It was the second time in the evening my car wouldn't start and I'd had to call CAA. Now it's at the shop. I heard about another friend terrifying episode in her parking lot. Someone tried to steal her car while she was in it. When the door was locked, the attacker smashed the window with a hammer. I feel so bad for her because it takes a really long time after something like that to not feel scared.
My sweetie and I grow closer every time I stop to notice which is less often than you might think considering my self-analytical nature. He's very good for me and makes me happy.
Friday at work was interesting. I don't know if I overstepped my bounds or not, but I did get something done. I won't be doing anything like that again anytime soon, though. I was a bit agitated when I caused the ruckus I did. I was upset enough to stop being nice to people I didn't know.
The kittens are getting closer too. I witnessed the brat allowing the little one to clean him this morning for quite some time. I did get them very stoned on fresh catnip last night.
I can feel that I'm still trying to avoid work because I have some difficult tasks (for me) ahead. I have a plan and I know I just have to do it and it will all be good, but I don't want to. However, if I want to be a good manager, I have to start being good at giving all kinds of feedback not just the good stuff. I really have to get better at giving negative feedback. I avoid that as much as possible.
So, as I said, there's nothing wrong. Just life being ... life-y. Maybe it's the weather that's causing this feeling.
I like visitors. It makes me happy to be able to do things for my friends and with my friends. This weekend, I had visitors from Edmonton. Not as many as usual, but still good. They brought me a present of thanks that made me very, very happy. It's fuzzy and warm and happy. The kittens like it too.
Cori summed up portions of my weekend fairly well. Cheruby and I was there for soup and biscuits too after the playing at Lydia's. They were very yummy. I was coerced earlier with cookie dough. It was really good to see the plague bearer. It's really been way too long.
So we made plans with brain exercise girl and Cheruby to play kaiser and watch movies on Sunday. It was really good, but seemed like just a start and not quite enough. I know plague bearer is busy so I don't bug him often, but it was very awesome to see him.
Then my mom was here last night and this morning. It was very good to see her too. It's always very good to see her. She made it home safely this evening and even in time to get a flu shot and see her new puppy. Yes, my parents are getting a new puppy. Apparently, my dad wouldn't mind the black one. Heh.
I know that the Californian friends must be dreadfully disappointed that they missed the snow by two days. We got a schwack. Enough that it seems that winter came overnight. I was so happy not to have to drive into the office Wednesday or Thursday this week. Traffic was horribly slow outside of rush hour. Crazy business that. It's so pretty. I've been very tempted to make a snow angel in my front yard.
Shovelling the walk wasn't even that bad. I didn't dig out the back gate or the walk along the side of the house. I didn't really feel the need. Of course, if the Sidekick ever moves, we'll have to dig out the back gate so someone else can park there, but alas, we'll cross that bridge when we come to it. I think my alley is a lot easier to drive down than the street in front of my house.
My boss said to me on Wednesday, "Isn't it too early for the snow to stick around?" I laughed heartily at that. He's from Ontario. Ottawa to be more specific. Apparently, he never had to dress for Hallowe'en over a snow suit.
I'm on vacation right now. The last one of the year before we get into our busy season at work so I'm visiting my mom and dad. I haven't been here in much too long. Cheruby may have had something to do with that, but it was still my choice. I brought the kittenses home with me. I just got them to a point where they weren't missing me all the time from being out of the house. Going away for four days would likely ruin all that so I brought them with me. It was the little one's first lengthy car ride. She was nervous at first and had to use the litter box, but after that she was good and slept next to me for most of the trip. The big brat probably had a calming influence on her as he did his usual sleep thing. Although getting him into the car is usually a fiasco, once he's there, he's fine. The fiasco this time included the little one freaking out big time when the big brat came near in the house. I think she smelled his fear and didn't know what was going on because he's never scared, right? That's my working theory anyway. Cheruby and Rilla were there to help me herd the cats which was a big help because usually it's several trips to the house and back to get them into the car and get the house locked up and all that jazz.
I'm surprised I'm not missing the warmer weather. Winter seems to be good so far this year despite the awful driving.
Yesterday afternoon, in between some event or another related to Drang & Sally's wedding, I was questioning the role I play in my social circle. I believe I was musing this to Cheruby, but it really could have been anybody. In large groups, I don't contribute a lot to conversation and I'd rather just be off having a conversation with one person about something close to me. I don't have a lot of education so I don't like to participate in intellectual conversations because my knowledge of subjects is typically shallow and new concepts need to needle into my brain before I can discuss them with any confidence. I haven't many hobbies that interesting enough to talk about for more than three minutes and my job is as a manager which has challenges similar to every other manager job making it not that discussion worthy either. Having said all that, I don't feel completely out of place. I just like to be surrounded by my people and be able to put a smile on their face in whatever small way I can - either with a beer in hand or laughing a joke (rarely ingeniously if ever) or any other small attention that lets my people know I care. I used to be better at small talk and being "on" but fell out of practice and some lost desire to be able to make small talk. Then Drang, just a few hours later, paid me a very good compliment by echoing my thoughts. Just after I'd started into a fit of giggles about some silly joke someone told and had to repeat, "This is why we like having Suzi around. Just a little thing and you get rewarded with that laugh." Or something like that. It made me happy. I think I cried.
I was very tired yesterday and cried tears of joy about at least a dozen times including 3 times during the wedding ceremony including during the strip show as laughter is a release, once when I hugged Drang, once when I hugged Sally five seconds later, and twice when I was driving a friend from work to the reception. There many more times of tears, especially in talking with one of my best friends who I rarely get to talk to anymore because of location and being so busy.
And just so I don't forget. The JP was on Quaaludes and it felt a bit like Romper Room. I see cenobyte and his nibs and sprogs and r:tag and tuo and buttery b and mr. tall and furlak and bne and... and it was good. [sniff]
Went to a party tonight and got home at 3:30 a.m. It was really, really awesome. I haven't stayed that late at a party. I even had a beer in between many caffeinated beverages. Hence why I'm still awake.
I'm so happy for my friends who are getting married next weekend. I was told once that a tiger is hard to catch. Apparently, it takes another tiger. And it's good.
And I think I'm going to get to see him more often because I'm going to be playing in Low Life that he's going to be running. It's very exciting.
And tomorrow, or I should say tonight, we're going to flush out more of our characters from our cabal for Mage: The Awakening. I've got the pretty book back for reading before our meeting tomorrow. Then I'll pass it back to Cheruby for his further perusal. At some point, Kazanj is going to want it again too. This is going to be so much fun!
Lastly, I have to finish fleshing out my character for In Nomine - goals, beginnings, and all that. I have the basics down on paper, just no personality for her yet.
This joke was sent around work today with the Subject line of "A 'Suzanne' joke to end the day!" I guess I'm flattered. [grin]
A man was walking home alone late one foggy night, when behind him he hears something.
BUMP...
BUMP...
BUMP...
Walking faster, he looks back and through the fog. He makes out the image of an upright casket banging its way down the middle of the street toward him.
BUMP...
BUMP...
BUMP...
Terrified, the man begins to run toward his home, the casket bouncing quickly behind him.
FASTER...
FASTER...
BUMP...
BUMP...
BUMP...
He runs up to his door, fumbles with his keys, opens the door, rushes in, slams and locks the door behind him.
However, the casket crashes through his door, with the lid of the casket clapping
clappity-BUMP...
clappity-BUMP...
Clappity-BUMP...
on his heels, the terrified man runs.
Rushing upstairs to the bathroom, the man locks himself in. His heart is pounding; his head is reeling; his breath is coming in sobbing gasps.
With a loud CRASH the casket breaks down the door.
Bumping and clapping toward him.
The man screams and reaches for something, anything, but all he can find is a bottle of cough syrup!
Desperate, he throws the cough syrup at the casket...
and,
the coffin stops.
Happy Hallowe'en everyone! Mwa-ha-ha-ha...
____________________________
This joke was first presented to me at a werewolf moot by a certain very tall gentleman. It still makes me happy to think about that. It was the beginning of a beautiful friendship.
I didn't remember turning on the basement light. So when I got home tonight, and it was on, I was surprised. Then I found a note from my mom on the counter. My mom was in the basement as a pleasant surprise. She has an appointment tomorrow.
I didn't remember turning the VCR off. So the timer didn't go tonight. I missed Gilmore Girls. The synopsis of an episode never holds the same value. [pout] Maybe I'll get lucky with some reruns.
I'm still glad to see my mom.
Today is the 6-month anniversary of my first date with Cheruby. I'm very happy. Can you feel the happy? You should be able to because it's very powerfully happy. Much more powerful than cenobyte's Manchurian Melfing Sickness.
So I went to my first ever drag show last night and it was awesome. I was giddy when I picked her up just because I was actually feeling pretty good. I cleaned up my backyard yesterday. It looks like I got robbed, actually. So barren. Right, drag show.
My brain was in a particularly peculiar state to which got me to thinking about a lot of strange things while sitting there in the oontz-oontz music which was too loud to try to have a normal conversation waiting for the show to begin. Old friends and their exes in compromising situations because I thought the ex might be there in the diverse crowd and what had ever happened to her anyway? Also looking at the diversity of the folks out for such an event was fun. The guy in the green stripping shirt that kept making Rilla think she was in a movie by spontaneously breaking out into dance behind her. And this guy really moves when he dances. And then there was the flirty girl in the red shirt. Obviously, her friend who got stuck purse watching several times in the evening has a huge crush on her. Poor guy, but she's not right for him anyway. A couple started dancing on a table and he lifted her up to girate on his hips. That stuff only happens in the movies, right? The diversity in the crowd really did astonish me because I obvious don't get out much. It was at Louis' so I expected a more university crowd, but it wasn't, it was the Diva's crowd which makes more sense to me. So diverse.
Now, the show was great. I laughed my ass off because some were so funny and others were so good. There did a fantastic rendition of the dance number from Thriller. There were some "brothers" who did a montage of songs which included Mahna, Mahna which made me think of Kazanj which made me imagine him up on stage doing the number which just about killed me with laughter. Of course, they ended their musical number with a song about choking your chicken which was very, very funny. The final performance was of Vogue. I realized that the gaggle of girls that had been watching behind us weren't singing along with that song and I felt a little old, but only old enough to be able to appreciate more jokes and old enough to think they have so much to learn and experience yet. I was impressed by how good the drag queens looked. I mean, it takes the same discipline (or natural metabolism) to be skinny whether you're a boy or a girl, but dang! There was a sensational version of some Justin Timberlake song that I don't quite know, but the guy was really, really good. I think someone around me called it "Sexy Back" but I'm not sure. It was very, very good. I don't even remember all the performances last night which is really too bad because they were all so good.
Proceeds went to the USSU LGBTA Centre Bursary Fund.
I went to work today, but was lying on my home office floor by 3:20. You know, just in case someone tried to contact me cuz I was feeling really useful. All bad. Then I went to bed.
Only up now because mom stopped by and had to get something on her way to Calgary.
And then checked my email. There are rewards in life. I nearly peed myself laughing so hard at this from her. Of course, I just scared the cats with the high-pitched squeal involved when I laugh that hard, but it was so worth it.
Thanksgiving went well. I freaked out as usual. I can't seem to make it through a family gathering at my house without freaking out. Ah well, they love me anyway and I love them.
I was made incredibly happy by R&R's attendance at Thanksgiving dinner. There was much tomfoolery with my niece and nephew, especially my nephew. He's a quiet kid normally, but he bloomed into the centre of attention that evening. And my niece, who is usually the centre, just let it be that way. I was quite proud of her, actually. She shared the spotlight or went and found someone else to pay attention to her.
We celebrated my dad's 60th that weekend too. I love him very much. It was really good to see him and he fixed my front stoop. He's a good man.
A few short (but very, very long) days at work and I had a vacation day on Friday the 13th because I don't work on any Friday the 13th if it can be helped. Just a general rule I like. Makes me happy.
So Cheruby and I went to his uncle's cabin for the weekend. We left on Thursday night and had a very relaxing weekend without any obligations of our real lives. Lots of game playing. They taught me Civilization although we didn't finish the game. I read a lot in my pretty new Mage book. We're getting together a cabal for the new Mage LARP. It's going to be hella fun.
I felt so wonderful after the weekend away. Monday at work was so much more manageable. Then I got to hear my Cheruby play at Cluricaune that evening before coming down with melfing and the runs. Thanks to Cenobyte for that. And this.
***
Find your Celestial Choir
***
Got a half day work in yesterday before getting too exhausted to go on. Then Cheruby got the Manchurian Melfing Sickness. And then I almost started again, but maybe it was just sympathy. So today, I'm really hungry and scared to eat. Rightfully so, everything zoooms through very quickly - too quickly. More than you wanted to know, but I'm in a sharing mood.
Taking it easy today. Decided that work can wait until the weekend when I can think in full sentences. Maybe finish some of my outstanding work and get organized a little. Maybe not.
I took today off work so I could prepare for my family's visit this weekend. I had all last night to start the process too.
So, Purrrsia's finally level 44 in City of Heroes. I've also created a new hero in anticipation of Issue 8. YAY! Free costume modifications are good. My newest is on Champion - Dryad Huntress. Very exciting. I also noticed that Purrrsia has 24 free costume changes. Heh.
I was reading Neuba's blog and she was mentioning how she doesn't have a lot to say these days. I have to say I know how she feels. Even though I am working - it's the same work that I've been doing for quite a while now. And it has it's ups and downs, but whining about it on my blog isn't going to make anything better. And in fact, will likely make them worse because I'll be dwelling on them. The best I can do is just keep my focus and keeping doing my best - accept what I need to and keep being there for my team. It's rewarding and frustrating when I can't support them.
Now, I'm watching the old Battlestar Gallactic. It's very amusing - the costumes and special effects. It reminded me of an upcoming event on October 7 on Space that I'm really excited about which doesn't have anything to do with trailer trash. That's tomorrow. SQUEEEEE!!
I hope everyone has a very happy turkey day. I am very thankful for all my wonderful friends and family wherever in the world you may be. Here's to hoping that you are all healthy and happy and in good company.
This week hasn't been the most wonderful. Work went south very quickly. My staff are so amazing though. After being told of the situation, one of them even volunteered to take on some of the work. I cried. They're so great. I wouldn't love my job as much without them.
There was some annoying stuff with this loan that I got. Stupid folks had my wrong home phone number and so they kept calling me at work after I repeatedly told them not to. AND they couldn't call me by my middle name no matter how many times I told them that either. Well, the first person I talked to was great, but the others have been annoyingly oblivious of the meaning of good customer service. The guy didn't show up for our meeting and then showed up later to find the nasty note I left him on my door. We finally got the deal done, but I was pretty frustrated before it got that way. And to make this meeting that the guy didn't show up for, I had to leave an important board meeting for the charity I volunteer for because the number he'd given me to reach him had been out of order all day.
Then a meeting was cancelled, but no one bothered to phone me, just an email to my home account which I didn't have access to during the day. So I showed up because I have to go there straight from work to make it on time. No meeting.
Tonight, I went to MacNally Robinson to look around and get a present for a friend. Cheruby and I spent some time looking around before heading back to my house... to a broken garage door. Some jack@ss ran his/her car into my garage making it inoperable. My garage door is dented and broken. And the one wall is 3 to 4 inches displaced from its usual home. The police were nice enough to drop by and take a look and give me a file no. They're not going to investigate any further, but they were nice about it.
And then there's all the other stuff that didn't go right this week.
Good stuff:
- People ordered Tupperware from my party last week even though only one other person besides my mom came. And I get free stuff.
- Got that loan I wanted.
- Got to meet my boss.
- Another week with Cheruby making me smile.
- Ordered a beautiful blue shawl.
- Mom and dad are coming up next week and for Thanksgiving.
- Got to see lots of friends recently that I haven't seen in much too long.
- Went into work and actually got to socialize with my coworkers rather than just be connected to the phone in my little corner of the office.
- Made plans to visit more friends in a week and a half.
- Booked some vacation days to help me relax.
See? Lots more good than bad.
How is it that I know that I have a good reputation at work, I have a good relationship with my boss and I still am nervous about meeting him in person? I got all caffeinated at work today just so that I could be talkative at dinner tonight with him.
He's so short. One of my coworkers actually said that I was bigger than him. And yes, I am, and not just around. He's quite vertically challenged. How wrong would it be to mock him as I so dearly want to? Heh.
So here I sit - tired and too caffeinated to sleep.
Ril and I were girly girls last night. Makeovers and learning how to put makeup on. Fun stuff. So much so that Rilla wanted to do it again, but go through a whole colour analysis. So we are in a couple of weeks. Such girly girls.
Of course, getting that stuff off my face was a little more than I bargained for. Wait, it was all free, nevermind. Heh.
And I got a very pretty wedding invitation in the mail. I love weddings.
Fresh warm plums just off the tree are really, really good. Sometimes, they're small enough to just pop right in your mouth and explode when you bite into them. Warm plum goodness fills your senses. It was a really great walk around the yard with my Auntie Cool. She's very awesome and made me have a nap after having plums.
Caffeine can keep one awake even on a lonely drive between Edmonton and Saskatoon after a day at the office and one episode of Six Feet Under with a friend. A friend who can supply much of said caffeine. Oh, and there was sugar.
Being there for an employee's first day makes a difference into how welcome that new team member feels. I was very happy to be able to be there for that.
Seeing a loved one after being away for a while is a joyous occasion. Five days is nothing compared to an entire summer, but it's still enough to make me very thankful to be home. Cuddling with kittenses who missed me is also very good for the soul. With that much love, it is pretty much impossible to stay stressed.
Being on a budget and a diet while travelling is really, really hard. Good thing I have understanding and supportive friends.
I really, really dislike seafood (excluding fish). The reason for that is not because of the taste as I love the taste. It has to do with the squish-pop factor involved in cooked seafood. In my experience with salting eggs and turning them to rubber, I believe that the salt water also creates the squish-pop factor in cooked seafood.
squish-pop - the inability of one's teeth to immediately tear the flesh of cooked seafood. Pressure must be applied before the cooked flesh gives way and breaks apart. The first bite is usually the worst for the squish-pop effect, but all subsequent chews also have lesser squish-pop effects as they rend more cooked flesh.
Because I have been accused of being safe when ordering and eating food, I make myself try things now and again that I used to dislike just in case I like it this time because so many other people enjoy it. Lasagna used to be in the dislike category. Obviously, I was very very wrong in that opinion. This trend lead me to attempt calamari again this evening.
And wow! It was truly awesome. I have had almost good seafood once before at Genesis in Saskatoon and it was scallops. MMmmmm.... scallops. Of course, they too had a slight squish-pop factor so I only ate two before getting all squidgey-like. I've also had mussels that were almost great as well. That was in Halifax this summer at the Five Fisherman. Tonight, I had truly wonderful calamari. It took me three tries to actually put the first piece in my mouth, but DANG! So amazingly yummy and non-squishy-poppy. YAY! It was at a Mexican restaurant in the Comfort Inn downtown Edmonton called El Toro.
How is it that I can't seem to keep the house clean lately and can't keep with my friends' blogs for two months, but I can find time to play a new online game?
Having too much fun, I guess. [grin] I think that a certain Cheruby has been occupying much of my time. It was a mere 4 months ago we met. Seems like so much more time than that has passed - in a good way. Scratch that, in a fantabulous way.
Tonight I should get a little more caught up on things as I prepare for a trip to Edmonton to visit Bne and all my new Edmonton friends. And my old Edmonton friends too. And family. Did I mention that I took Tuesday off work so that I would have time to visit all my friends and family?
It was a toss up at the end and I had a tie breaker question. Am I more female or in touch with my instincts? I had to say more female for biological reasons. I can quantify being female, but not being in touch with my instincts. Besides, I really am a girly girl sometimes.
| You scored as III - The Empress. The Empress is a maternal symbol. She is the mother figure who loves, nurtures and protects. She will protect you, she will always be there when you are in trouble. When you fall over and graze your knee, the Empress will kiss it better. Yet she is not a weak figure. Her compassion is strength. If her children are threatened she will stop at nothing to protect them. If well aspected in a Tarot spread, the Empress can symbolise security, protection and unconditional love. If badly aspected it can represent over-protectiveness, fear of risk taking and refusal to face the real world.
Which Major Arcana Tarot Card Are You? created with QuizFarm.com |
That's right, pirating. While we only plundered the other raft, it was still awesome. Pirate shirts and bandanas galore, one Jolly Roger to be claimed back and forth and one captain's tricorn hat makes for a glorious day. That all lasted about half the trip down the river. The other half was laying back and soaking up the sun while the river took us wherever we needed to go, mostly.
We lost most of the oars at one point as the other team had five of the six. We had to compensate somehow so we trailed our feet in the water and kicked. This only worked for a little while before certain folks were sucked under the boat as we got into a deeper, swifter part of the river. And when I say, deeper and swifter, we're talking about 4 feet of water here and while it was difficult, it wasn't impossible to just stand. They floated ahead of us for a while until we caught up so they could get back in the boat. I was also out of the boat for a while there and the only challenge with me getting back in was that I was laughing too hard.
For those expecting me back in Saskatoon today, I am spending another night in Calgary so that I can stay awake for the entire drive. I'm very tired. Good night.
I decided to take it easy on the drive to Calgary this evening which means I wasn't even doing 100 km/hr at times. It was a nice drive. The lightning around Drumheller was spectacular as usual.
I listened to my iPod play such classics as Tentacles and Saturday Night. Saturday Night came on at a crucial point in the drive about 25 kilometres out of Hanna. I don't remember the last time I had to pee that badly. I was almost crying. I usually stop at the Husky or Esso actually in Hanna, but the Shell station won this time by being so much sooner on the road.
Clark got many boxes of stuff this evening and we've just finished unloading the car. Hopefully, whatever was scratching from within one of the boxes for the entire drive has gone back to sleep.
My dad likes to talk. A lot. I love him very much and on a long drive, he's great.
Yesterday, I was talking to him about my uncle. And then he started telling about this friend of my great aunt's. He was going on and on. Finally, I had to interrupt him to ask him if he had a point. To which he replied, "Well, she died." I started laughing so hard. There was absolutely no connection between the topics of conversation. NOTHING! And then he just ignored my laughter and started in on something new! LOL
Tonight, I phoned mom just to find out if they were going to come visit me this weekend because she had told me earlier that they were. It was a short conversation and we were done. But then dad had picked up the other line and was wanting to talk to me. I just started giggling because of the conversation last night. He knew why I was laughing so he asked me what I was going to do when I had to take care of him. It's obvious - stick him in a room full of cats to talk to all day. He hates all the cat hair everywhere so I told him I'd vacuum often. How was I going to vacuum without having to talk to him? Sedation in the food I put under the door, of course! It was at that point he finally called me bad. Heh. My dad talking to a room full of cats. It'd either be a hit comedy or something the likes of About Schmidt.
This note was from my Director of HR Operations. He said some nice stuff and then he wrote, "People like you make me love my job!"
That's been making my day every time I come into the office for over a week now.
He's the only consistent male in the Halifax 2006 pictures finally linked on the right. All the other males are ones we picked up at our restaurants.
I had a very relaxing weekend. I spent Friday night through Sunday afternoon with Cheruby. We went to see Creeping Zombie Insanity at the Fringe, took a walk along the railroad tracks at Clavet, watched some Battlestar Galactica (for which I saw an episode preview on Space and know part of the future - grrrr...), played City of Heroes, napped, went to Buttery B's going away party, and went for lunch at Cheruby's mom's.
I got to have supper with my parents tonight too which was very nice. It was good to have some time with them. My mom was telling me that my niece said she liked Cheruby well enough, but that she didn't think he was right for me. She's a very intuitive girl about people. She picks up on a lot of things that most people don't notice at all. She's more intuitive than I am and I like to think that I'm pretty intuitive. Of course, I also can be pretty intimidating so people wouldn't be likely to tell me I'm wrong.
I had such a great weekend and I'm very happy.
Instead of Traeger's, we went to Grainfield's as Traeger's was closed. Heh. Can I tell you that it makes me happy? I don't care for Traeger's. I know that will make some gasp in horror, but I don't. Grainfield's didn't treat us very well though. It took over a half hour to get our food and made me late for D&D.
However, D&D was fantastic today. We beat up orcs and a manticore and let a family die because we were too scared to go on and saved a town from an orc invasion. And we sang more Golden Girls theme music. D&D with mostly girls gets weird in a different way sometimes.
Then I got home to find out that mom and dad and my niece weren't coming to Saskatoon tonight because The Maze isn't happening this year. I was very disappointed and so was my niece. It didn't make sense that they arrive here late and don't get to spend any time with me. So I'm making them lunch tomorrow. Chili and buns. Should make the rest of their drive to Calgary fun. Heh.
So I played City of Heroes all night. It was a nice break before heading back to work tomorrow. And on that note, I need to sleep.
I took Cheruby on the tour of Nipawin after supper at my parents' on Wednesday. It took less than an hour. Heh. Dad mentioned that part. And Cheruby loved the old bridge as much as I do.
The next day we went on a fabulous boat tour on the Saskatchewan river which turns into Tobin Lake on the north side of the new Nipawin bridge. We saw loads of pelicans at the dam and some eagles, bald and golden, while touring the river. The golden eagle was being harried by a smaller bird and just looked annoyed more than anything else. We went on shore at one point so the dog could do his business. Cheruby found a fabulous walking stick.
Cheruby and I took off back to Saskatoon shortly after that. We took a scenic route which took us through Melfort and Prince Albert. It also took us on a river ferry after we had visited LaColle Falls. It was VERY dusty and my car is still awful.
Friday was fantastic as it was the first day to myself in weeks. We played some games at Neuba's house as there were some folks coming in from Calgary. We then went to eat at BPs when the storm hit and the power went out. Romantic meal in the dark. Heh. We played Earthdawn and then had a games night with hottubbing on Saturday.
Sunday had me playing some City of Heroes finally, Fringing with MM, supper Ril and Clark at her new cute house and then some much needed kaiser playing. MM was a kaiser virgin, but no more. Heh. The girls ruled!
The last day is today. Hanging out in my backyard with MM as I write. We're going to Traegar's for brunch, then I'm off to D&D and then mom, dad and my niece are coming through Saskatoon and we hope to do The Maze and visit the Strawberry Ranch tonight if they are still open.
I have to get back into work tonight when I create the agenda for the meeting I'm chairing first thing in the morning, but that isn't now. Now, I am still on vacation.
Well, after our first day of fun which she told you about, we had lots more. We did rent some movies, but hardly got through any of them as there were many distractions to be had.
Let's see, Monday a friend and her two little girls, 8 and 3, came over and played. We just painted and coloured and watched very little of a movie, but that was in the evening. Earlier in the day, we took all my bottles back, rented movies, did a little shopping, and sorted her bead collection into better containers. We maybe should have had some luggage specifically for her stuff, but that didn't happen so there are a lot of trips to the car to pack.
Tuesday was Princess Diaries. It's such a good show. I really should own that someday. I really do love the movie because I'm such an incredible sap. It's all good though. We went rollerblading on the sidewalk and my niece did really well. She only held onto the fence for the first time down the sidewalk and back and the rest was mostly hands-free. She fell a couple times, but then so did I. Good thing we got her new pads that fit her. The wrists guards from the new set really didn't fit as they were too small but everything else fit well. So I'm hoping her wrists guards will last a long time and she can grow from her current pads to the old big ones and keep on blading. And yes, I got some rollerblades and they're a lot of fun. The sales guy was poopy though. He didn't even repack the box for me after I'd tried them on. They're still good blades. We went for ice cream at the double decker bus that night with my friends and her kids again as they got along really well. We went for a walk along the river and went on some rides at Kinsmen Park. I had to have a nap because I was getting so tired. My niece was really great about it and watched TV in bed with me for about a half hour while I rested. We set up the table to do some painting, but never got around to it because our evening activities. Cheruby came over to watch Lemony Snickett's Series of Unfortunate Events with us, but my niece didn't make it through 10 minutes before sleeping so I carried her upstairs as she was a limp noodle (although much, much heavier). Cheruby and I then watched some Battlestar Galactica before sleeping.
The next day was full of fun and some interesting conversations between my niece and I. We picked apples at an old roommates house in the morning. It was really good to see him and his girlfriend. It was raining a little so we took the fabulous orange umbrella I got in Halifax. She doesn't know what it says so it was all good. Then we got home to find Cheruby home from work as he wasn't feeling well so we went for food at BP's and then over to swim for a bit at Cheruby's moms. Cheruby just slept in a comfy recliner on the deck while my niece and I swam. She really tested the deep end a few times and freaked me out, but I kept my patience and just had myself at the ready to bring her to safety. We had pool noodles so she mostly held onto those. She did freak herself out once, but I was right beside her to bring her a flotation device (pool noodle). After that, we spent some time in the shallow end at her request. We wrestled pool noodles (thanks, Ril), had contests about who could shoot water further, had back kick contests across the pool, and did other various watery things. After that, we drove straight to Nipawin where we had supper with my parents.
Everytime I go to Calgary, I run myself ragged trying to see everyone I miss so much. Of course, this only gets worse when I work every day that I'm there now. I'll start taking a day off in there so that I can enjoy myself and maybe get enough sleep. Just a thought.
I had a great time though. I always do. I did miss Bne as he was gallavanting on another continent, but that's his loss really. I got to see quite a bit of Clark and E&MM which was awesome. We picked up a barbecue that his company gave him and even though I wanted to take it home with me, it stayed in Calgary. I also got to see W&H&E which is always a good time even though it's usually on a weeknight when we all have to work in the morning so it's a short visit.
One of the best things about the trip was a chat with one of my coworkers in the Calgary office. I used to work with her very closely and had no idea what was going on when I first started on her team. So her behaviour which was induced by significant stress levels left me feeling as thought I was incompetent in some way. Of course, she wasn't in any kind of headspace to try to make better for herself let alone anyone because of the pressures of the business. I've grown up a lot since then and can take responsibility for my own actions and perceptions of the time in question which were very wrong. It was a really good chat and I did learn a lot from her, but for the most part, I just wanted out at the time. I almost quit and was blaming her. Now, I see it wasn't really her fault. There were circumstances that I knew nothing about and she had been so stressed for so long, she had become a different person than who she thought she was. I get that now. And I feel bad for putting all the blame on her, but I'm truly not stressed about it anymore. I'm glad to have had the opportunity to have that talk with her. I've wanted to for a very long time and it opened my eyes a lot.
I spent Friday night and Saturday with the family and drove home with my niece late on Saturday night. She only slept for a half hour and we finally got to Saskatoon at 3:30 or so in the morning safe and sound.
There was a house full of people when we got here, but I was expecting that. It was great to see everyone from Edmonton before they went home on Sunday.
Written by my niece and edited for spelling by Auntie:
Yesterday I went for breakfast with Auntie's friends from Edmonton. When we had breakfast the chef forgot my breakfast but that is OK. Auntie's pretty friend with red hair got them to bring my breakfast. And I had hash browns, bacon, and toast, but I didn't like the hash browns and bacon, but I loved the toast.
We went to Pike Lake and I went down the water slide by myself but the scariest part was going on the water slide backwards but then I turned around quickly. We went on a paddle boat last, but it was boring and hard and Auntie scared me by splashing the water and I thought it was a fish. And then Auntie and Cheruby were going to throw me in the water and then I got so freaked out. And I also saw three fish. They were only babies. And then we went in the pool another time.
We watched Hellboy before bed and ate kettle corn. Before that, we had cherries and grapes.
I must have been sleep-walking last night because Auntie told me I came downstairs and went right back up again.
Bye all.
Since I got to Calgary, I've been nursing my sunburn and whining about it a lot. I like to sleep on my tummy, you see. And it hurts so much that I can't so I'm waking myself just before I drift off because I roll onto my belly. [sigh] It's a hard life. [Visions of third world countries from those commercials going through my head.] My left breast also really started hurting today. Apparently, I was paying too much attention to my belly burn and neglecting my boob burn. Really hard life. [More flies crawling allover small stick like children with their distended bellies.]
So today, I got riled up at work. Someone from our client tech support center called a client at the request of one of my staff and told the client that my staff member's instructions were completely wrong, thus, discrediting her. Am I wrong to be this bothered by that? Because I am. I know she's not the easiest person to deal with when she upset and she's very much used to getting her way, but how rude is that?!?! In front of a client!! I'm going to have a very good, rational discussion about it on Friday and we'll get it all sorted out, but right now, I'm still too riled. Gggrrrrr...
On the plus side, it's great to get riled up again. I have two more days until I have no more theme song. [grin]
Yes, I'm crispy. But just on my left arm, neck, and breast. I was driving in my sports bra because it was hot. But I forgot to bring any sunscreen. Ooops. I did spend about 2 hours of the trip with my t-shirt draped over my left arm and it definitely helped, but I'm definitely still crispy.
Ferlak treated me to a fantastic supper when I got here. He's gone all healthy on us, folks! AND he's playing Katamari right now so I must go... I'm so torn though. Double XP weekend in CoH or Katamari? Is there an angel and devil in this situation or are they both devils? [grin]
Well, not really. I was planning on driving to Calgary today, but this and that happened and I'm going in the morning now. No plans were really made today so no harm done, and I'm feeling much better about getting a lot of stuff done this evening so I can leave my house in relative cleanliness for when I bring my niece back with me. [YAY!]
Got a few more chores to do like finishing up the laundry, vacuuming and dishes. All the rest like mowing the lawn, weeding the flower beds, most of the laundry, cleaning the litter, etc. are done already. I suppose I'm not doin' too bad. Of course, I haven't packed yet either and I'm only half done my "to pack" list. That list is optional.
I'm so looking forward to seeing everyone in Calgary. It's been way too long, actually. I even get to see my auntie because she will there from Edmonton. I think I'm going to have to start making trips to Edmonton like I do for Calgary with the staying a couple of days thing. I just hired another staff member there. YAY!
So, tomorrow, I start on my journey westward and hopefully I get there before the day heats up too much.
Cheruby and I got home this evening from our wonderful camping weekend and watched a movie.
Weekend notes: I finally got what being away from home with no worries does for my mom. My shoulders and neck were so much less tense. I slept beautifully for the first time all week. I met more of Cheruby's family and they were wonderful. Played a lot of games with Cheruby and his uncle. It was such a good visit.
Back to the movie. Cheruby wanted to watch Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind with me. I thought I remembered Clark telling me that I might not like it after he'd seen it. I trust his judgement on these things and he was right - I wasn't ready to see it. It would have really, really upset me. I think I would have appreciated the movie as being as beautiful as it was, but I wouldn't have enjoyed it much. Tonight wasn't that different except that I was with Cheruby and that made it good. The movie was, as Cheruby said, beautiful. I didn't once bring myself out of it to say, "That's Jim Carrey acting." Apparently, he can act! Besides that, it took me with it through the story of how a relationship failed even though there was love and then started again knowing that it failed the previous time. It had a great ending where you are left to decide for yourself how they end up. I said that it was wonderful and I never wanted to see it again. That was a few hours ago and I don't know if I'm still feeling that way. Maybe I do want to see it again.
ESotSM left me with three thoughts:
What counts as roughing it? Just an outhouse? Cuz that's what I'm doing. Going camping at a campground with no other amenities. I'm pretty excited about it. Or maybe I'm just excited to see Cheruby because he's been camping since Wednesday. [GRIN]
I'm worried about the kittens because the little gets pretty upset when I'm not around, but she's doing much better. She has that bump on her belly from her spaying operation, but she hasn't been licking it very much. The big brat has mellowed completely and although he's happy to see me when I get home, he doesn't fuss quite as much. I'm quite sure that the little one cuddles with him in the basement during the day.
The power was out in the house last night for a couple of hours. I was still tidying before heading out for the weekend. I finished up using a flashnight. Including catching the little one deciding to pee in the basket beside the toilet upstairs which ended up being all over me because I picked her up by the scruff in an effort to stop her. [sigh] We took a walk downstairs to the freshly cleaned litterbox in the hopes that this would be what she needed. I never had a single problem with the big brat. Then I did laundry which didn't turn on because the power was out so it just sat there and turned on when the power came back.
I haven't been sleeping well lately, which for some people is a normal way of life, but I'm having some trouble adjusting. So much trouble that I was awake for my whole massage last night. I had NO idea she beats me up so badly. It hurt A LOT! And then she tells me that she's taking it easy on me because I'm awake. Yikes! What the hell am I sleeping through? I have another appointment next week because my neck and shoulders are a mess so we'll see if I can get through it.
I know that this is a blatant abuse of my blog in order to promote discomfort and uneasiness in others, but Clark's 30th birthday is today and it would be awful to do to him what we did to Neuba's husband.
So, if you know this fellow, send him a note to taunt him that you know his secret. If you're close enough, you should give him a hug because he really loves hugs. ;)
So while I am absolutely smitten with Cheruby and I want to spend all my time with him, it seems that I'm neglecting some other very important obligations like yard work, house cleaning, laundry, City of Heroes...
Of course, with today all to myself I started at the top of the priority list and almost got Purrrsia to level 43. I got to play with Arkayne last night and today even! YAY!
The kitten still hasn't been able to remove her pain patch after her Tuesday trip to the vet to have her baby making bits and a dozen pointy bits removed. On Wednesday morning, I discovered a new perk of working from home. While I knew that my big brat really enjoys having me at home so he can go in and out all day, he was able to bring me a present to say thanks. Of course, I screamed loudly and he dropped his very large, freshly dead robin inside the back door. He didn't know what the heck was going on so I left the robin there and calmed him down and told him what a good boy he was. Then I went about the task of removing the dead bird from my house. [sigh] The little one came home later that afternoon and within 20 seconds of my holding her at the vet, she was purring. I was a little worried, but apparently didn't have anything to worry about. She's missed her pointy bits a few times, but I know she'll be fine.
The rest of my to do list will eventually get done, but I'm not going to rush myself. I'm going to enjoy the summer and love it. And spend as much time as I can with my friends, family and of course, Cheruby.
The weekend was a total blast! I got to get to know some new friends better. Cheruby came with me camping and we had a rockin' good time.
We had to drive up on Saturday morning so we left early enough (after having to borrow his mom's tent because my tent has gone missing from my basement - please let me know if you've seen it) to take the scenic route south of the Saskatchewan River from Saskatoon to North Battleford. It was very, very dusty. Cheruby's hair turned gray from all the fine dust sticking to it. Crazy! We were feeling pretty gross, but gas at Battleford was 99 cents and the gorgeous Saskatchewan scenery was well worth it.
Cheruby played in his first LARP on Saturday evening after a dip in the pool. He did very well and looked very dashing in his top hat and tux costume. I even think he's going to come with me again sometime. YAY!
There was some carousing after the game, but we were very tired from the day's travel and intense new experience. Of course, because it wasn't my tent my air mattress was a little big for the tent. In fact, it didn't fit well at all. We had a very small door opening left to crawl through once the mattress was full. I thought it was great.
The next day was full of napping, carousing, swimming (lots of swimming), frolicking, massages, fireworks and a wonderful round of "O! Canada". It was a lot of fun. Oh, I forgot to mention the games that were played. You can't get rid of all the geekery from a party of geeks even though there was a champagne fountain.
It was a great weekend.
So today was it. The last day of being the Saskatoon Location Manager at work. It was a volunteer position with some perks, but the best thing about it was that it kept me in the loop. So now I have to make that extra effort to not be reclusive and on my own in the corner.
I had lunch with my successor and I showed her most everything that I've done over the last two year in the role. There's lots of organizing and planning and thinking of others. I loved letting everyone know that they were appreciated for what they brought to the office in terms of humour, attitude, and community. I really feel like the Saskatoon branch is a small community within the company even though we have 11 different managers for 15 staff in the office. It sounds segregated, but we have such a wide range of talents in the office that we can utilize all of them.
There is one last task set in front of me. What do I think Saskatoonians would excel at. The only answer I could come up with was, "Anything we try, we will be good at." Of course, that's just how I feel about Saskatchewan in general. I need to look at what training courses are offered here and what direction the company is moving in. I think we'd be great at a lot of things.
Although I'm going to miss it, I'm glad that I can concentrate on my day job again.
I had a total of 13 houseguests this weekend. It was great! I think I've finally learned to just relax and enjoy my guests' company instead of playing perfect hostess which makes me anal and uncomfortable to be around.
There was partying and carousing and they've learned that I sleep like the dead so they can do pretty much as they please til whatever time they please without disturbing me. I also like to make them breakfast. There would have been fudge too, but I didn't quite get around to it. Ah well, hopefully for next weekend when I go to visit them.
I also went dancing for the first time in years. It was sooo great! All the goths were little and cute and I loved them all. I hope they didn't realize that I was smiling at them and how cute and serious and angsty they were. Then there was the cleavage!! Oh my! And I really saw that some people are not born with rhythm in any way, shape or form. Joints and other pointy bits sticking out into unoccupied air space around them not in time with the music except by coincidence. But since dancing isn't about how you look while doing it - more power to them for doing it!! I smiled and danced and danced and smiled. I could feel the beat in my sternum for some songs and belly for others. Makes me feel so alive and invigorated. I danced for about an hour which made me pretty happy.
I also saw the little brother of a friend of mine that I hadn't seen in ages and ages. He, the lil bro, was hardly recognizable with all the piercings and the mohawk, but he was still just as cute as ever. He's leaving for Rome in 11 days. And he has a job waiting for him when he gets there. I'm so excited for him. He was absolutely bouncing with energy. It's funny though. The thing that made me 98% sure it was him was that he smoked like his brother! Of all the habits to pick up... It's good to see that even though his face, hair, and habits have changed, he still shines from the inside out. He always did.
Now that Cheruby's life has ended as well, we are much better suited for each other. ... I thought it was funny.
I took a few days off work to spend with Jeremy for his 30th birthday. I presented him with the vision of something from his imagination - one of his favourite made up super heroes. His name is Lamp-post Man. I also wrote a short story about the man that became Lamp-post Man in a ill-fated accident with a radioactive lamp-post. I commissioned the drawing from his friend who draws. I was very pleased the outcome. Cheruby seemed to like it so I was happy.
The birthday party was on Wednesday night at Maguire's Pub and we had a really good time. There was much drinking and music. His string quartet played for a while and then there was an Irish music session. He played a lot which left me to fend for myself among all his friends. I did pretty well, but it was tiring. I chatted with someone I met in high school United Nations. She's the same as I remember. She's teaching music in Kuwait right now on a two year contract. Eep! I can't imagine being away from home for that long. Between her and Cheruby's roommate, I had two people in the room I was relatively comfortable with that weren't playing music.
There was a good moment between me and another girl I just met. Someone said that they wouldn't be able to have a tantrum. Pause. Then this other girl and I said in unison, "But those are so - much - fun." We paused at the same places when we realized we were saying the same thing. Of course, I won because I apologized for not bringing my tin foil hat before she did. I don't think she was going to, but it was still odd.
The strangest part was meeting all these people that love Cheruby's ex-girlfriend, including her parents. Obviously, Cheruby and her are still friends and she's a good friend, but it was still had me feeling a bit like an outsider. I didn't feel that way by the end of the night though which was awesome. I didn't even have a drink to make me relax and not be a spaz. Woot! I'm actually starting to look forward to meeting her. She sounds like a great person. Of course, don't let this delude you into thinking that I starting out wanting to meet her. It's been a journey and I'm glad to be at this end of it.
The rest of the trip through Cape Breton was so beautiful. We drove up the eastern shores of Bras D'or Lake to Sydney and Louisbourg. While I wish we'd had more time to go hiking and more time to walk around sites, we had to settle with driving by a lot of very cool things.
I kept thinking that people I know should come here because it's so beautiful. I didn't send very many postcards, but Peggy's Cove left me speechless and awestruck and feeling completely at peace. I thought of Neil Gaiman's American Gods as I sat there. What was it about that place?
The other thing that I kept being reminded of through my travels through the countryside of Cape Breton was, "No, but the deer looked kind of crazy though." You tell me...
That sounds like the beginning of a joke, but it's not. Surprised? Heh.
So tonight, only four of us dined together at a restaurant called the Five Fisherman. They have a salad and fresh steamed mussel bar. WOW! Fresh steamed mussels are fabulous! No squish-pop at all. None. And they tasted really delicious as well.
We had this waiter whose name was Sean. He didn't seem real nice at first and I thought I was going to have a miserable time. The first of us ordered and the salad and mussel bar is complimentary with any entree. She mentioned the mussels and asked if he would brought them to her or if she had to get them herself. After some discussion, he said that he'd bring hers to her. It was quite cute. And going in order of age, the second person ordered. She too mentioned she wanted the salad and mussel bar at which point, Sean interrupted and said politely, "The salad and mussel bar is complimentary with each entree." Without missing a beat, the woman replies, "Right, shut up then. Got it." Sean, who had been all too serious up until now, doubled over with laughter and admitted, "You got me. I'm not a nice person." He might have used stronger language but it's already fuzzy in my memory. The night was much more interesting and fun from that point on. Sean was a big flirt. We tried to make conversation with him, but he said, "We'll chit chat later. I just got two new tables." It was how he did it. Real charismatic, this guy, but really not nice. So, he reminded me of a certain ex-waiter friend of mine. He'll be nice to you because you'll pay him well if he acts the way he's supposed to. We still knew he was being nice to us to get a big tip. We didn't disappoint. 15% on the bill to expense (cap) and an extra 10% in cash from us. We really liked him.
And you'll never guess who was one of his new tables - the phone guys from work! They were sitting in the table across from ours. We ran into them in the office yesterday. And even though we were from across the country, we all knew him because he'd come to each of our locations to do phone upgrades. Really good guys.
Our initiative meeting was this morning. This is the reason we were all brought to Halifax. We were charged with the task of gathering the opinion of the masses across the country about a new initiative that we're trying to bring about. Of course, we're trying something new - telling the staff about the change before it's all planned out so everyone can have a say in what they think might or might not work. It's a struggle because we've never done this before, but at the same time, it's the right way to do things because all the employees of the company come up with great ideas and it's hard to find a workplace that values us that much.
One of the great things about the meeting was that we know things are going to happen differently because of what was said. One programming project is being stopped so the work doesn't have to be done. Of course, Saskatoon has a much different culture than all the other branches, but it's something that we love and we have cultivated. We are planning on growing and I hope that we keep that same environment. I'm going to try my best to do that because it's important to me.
We also got some parting gifts from our director. The note we got with it made me cry, of course. I'm such a sap. I just feel so lucky.
And I say "lucky", but I know that isn't it. I worked for it and I've been rewarded beyond my expectations.
We just got back from the Press Gang restaurant and I thought of many of my friends. Stone walls and wooden beams were the decor with candles everywhere, including a wrought iron chandalier. There was a little alcove in the back for two with a curtain that could be closed for extra privacy. There was a wall with holes in it that fit candles and the wax had been let to drip down the stone. I have pictures so I hope they turned out okay.
The food was spectacular. I started with the beet salad which was on a bed of feta surrounded by a turret asparagus spears. For the main course, I had the blackened halibut with dill sauce. And dessert was the Chocolate Caramel Parfait. [sigh] It was so good and so filling.
We actually got shushed in the restaurant because we were being too loud. What do you expect when you get 10 women together from across the country who are all outspoken and outgoing and opinionated? Oh and a company executive and a company director were there buying wine too. It was so much fun.
Let me start with the fact that life is really good. I know that I've been saying that for a while now, but it's still true so I'm going to keep saying it.
I got to see mom on Wednesday and I think she stayed longer than she meant to at my house so she could meet Cheruby. Sneaky mom. We sat outside and talked and talked and she told me about her trip that she's going on sometime in the next two years. She sat in her egg chair and I laid on my hammock. It was beautiful. I don't think I'm going to be able to hunt the rest of the dandelions before I leave for Halifax on Tuesday morning.
Cheruby and I have been spending lots of time together. This week, he learned that intending to play City of Heroes for an hour meant playing for three hours. Heh. I wasn't playing, he was. I had to get him hooked on it somehow. [grin] And I got to meet his cousin this week who said that I was too good for Jeremy. Apparently, he thought I was pretty and smart and funny. And that I've got to be cool because I play video games. I don't think that's cool criteria myself, but it goes with the rest of me that is pretty cool. I'm not good at video games, I just like to play.
I've been seeing more of her and Neuba's honey which is nice. There has a resurgence of his D&D game and we've invited Batty to play with us as well. Batty and I have been going through withdrawal since our GM moved to Calgary. PPbbbbbbbbbbttthhhh...
I'm feeling very blessed.
We finally made it off the couch to do some qigong on Friday night. We did it outside which was completely amazing. I get so ... energized, which isn't quite the right word for the feeling, that I can't meditate on it for very long. She usually does that part at least twice as long as me. I think the problem is that I can't seem to focus the energy anywhere, it just seems to explode everywhere and I have to get rid of it some how to feel not out of control - subtle but important difference from in control.
Then I made supper for her and Cheruby before we sat down to some BSG including the season one finale which shocked me. Then the jerks wouldn't let me watch any of season two. Booo!
I was awake for a few hours yesterday, but only because I had to be and was rewarded with flowers and lunch. And I took up hunting my dandelions with a very big knife today. Two and a half hours later, I have cleared out approximately 16 square feet which isn't very much of my infested yard. More hunting later.
This evening I was supposed to do some Kung Fu with her, but we decided that sitting on the couch and being lazy and watching Six Feet Under was a much better plan.
While we were watching the first season's finale, Cheruby phoned just to see how I was doing. What a sweetie! I love moments like these when someone else lets me know that they were thinking of me. These are the things that can make my day completely spectacular whether it was a bad or good day prior to the event. [GRIN]
It takes a lot for me to call in sick and yet, that's what I did today. How does one decide whether or not you are sick enough to not work? I don't really think today was as bad as I wanted it to be, but decided today I wouldn't be good at work even though I felt guilty because I had a team meeting which I know my staff arrange themselves around a little bit. Grrrr... So I'm mad at myself for letting them down a tiny bit. I'll have to send out an email for the items that can't wait for two weeks. Dang.
The stupid dumb luck part of the day was that I answered my cell phone which woke me from my slumber at 1:30 this afternoon because it must be important or I wouldn't be getting a call. Yep. It was the Vice President of my department at work who I haven't had a chance to speak to personally yet, but have heard a lot of good things about. And I'm at home babying myself because I didn't feel well enough to work. He let me go back to bed after discovering my state of being so I don't even know what it was about.
It's reminiscent of the first time the Director of my department decided to do a surprise drop-in on Saskatoon to visit his three staff here. One was on vacation, one was on jury duty, and I was feeling really ill so I went home early. Then I got a call at home from him letting me know he was in the city. Sheesh!
When looking at it from another perspective, one might think I call in sick a lot if on two important occasions, I just happen to be out of the office ill. But I trust that my reputation at work will precede me and that wouldn't have been the thought at all.
The past week has been quite busy. In that exhaustion-inducing way trying to do everything can be. I'm going to take it easy for the rest of the week or at least Thursday to recuperate from all the busy.
In trying to do everything I wanted, I seemed to get quite a bit accomplished at work last week even though I was in a different branch. I went swimming with the kids in my new fancy bathing suit. And had supper with two good friends in Calgary and their little girl who is very cute. Spent some time with a friend of mine from high school. And helped someone buy a new office chair. Heh. Because maybe we threw out his old one.
The drive home in the rain was fun. I was so happy to see Cheruby when I got into Saskatoon. All my fears about just being with someone have been put aside. While there is no label for our relationship besides that we are seeing each other, it's still good. Although, he got his first taste of crazy today because I haven't eaten enough and was getting all anxious about my to do list this evening. I've had some Nerds since then, but nothing substantial. I'm still proud of having noted my craziness while still in it. My powers of communication are completely shot though. A simple conversation has been very difficult for me.
Hmmm... it seems that I have less friends than I thought in Saskatoon. Everytime I look at my list of frequently called numbers, I keep running into a peculiar problem - they're mostly long distance. When did that happen?
The weekend was spent in the fabulous company of Cheruby with some naps and X-Men 3 with friends and TV and games with Neuba thrown in. I eventually had to sleep yesterday, but it was great while it lasted.
It's funny how talking about the people I know with the other people I know about what I read on so-and-so's blog has become a natural part of conversation and keeping up with friends. When I get busy and don't have time to read every day or two or seven, it takes me a few hours to catch up. Like now. I just spent the last few hours reading and commenting on other's blogs. I feel like I've spent some time with each one of those friends and they don't feel so remote anymore. I know a bit of what's going on in their life. I know that I can't possibly actually know how they are really doing without actually spending time with them in some way, but at three in the morning, it's the best I can do.
I was touched by the personal exposure that some people shared. One of my co-workers took the time to read some of my blog and asked how I could put so much personal information out there. What have I got to hide from the world? I learned a long time ago that the world doesn't revolve around me and that mostly, I'm the only one that thinks about me that much. That actually takes a lot of pressure off me to be perfect. No one expects me to be perfect and doesn't spend time thinking about all the ways that I'm not perfect.
Did I mention that I've been feeling really happy lately. I've got a lot of good things going and I've started figuring out how to just be happy without trying to find the next big flaw in me to correct.
I've got a lot of good things going and a lot of really great friends and family to share it with.
Today, we started out with breakfast at Phil's. That prompted a story about chemical drain dissolvent. You'll have to ask TUO is you want to know. Brunch was good and it was exactly what we needed before heading out to the zoo.
I took lots of pictures and played with my video capabilities on my phone. I ended up deleting the videos of the snow leopard because I didn't have a lot of room on my camera. They were good videos, but I got a lot more pictures. Camels, baby muskox [delighted squeal], monkeys, elephants, baby big horn sheep, a gigantor snake [shudder], hippos [YAY!], giraffes, tigers, and so much more.
It was a good day and my previous unhappiness at seeing all those animals in cages was much less this time, but probably because I was waiting for it and squashed it quickly. It just seems so wrong.
All the walking and sunshine made for a sleepy Suzi. I'll try to post my pictures later.
I know that I like to talk. And talk and talk and talk. But I can't hold a candle to my dad. I mean, WOW! He's incredible at the amount he can talk. We drove to Calgary together last night and there wasn't any music or any other distractions. The only silence I got was when he was eating and he's trying to eat less so that means talking more. He managed to get me all fired up about something which means I have to talk loudly and more forcefully. That's the easy part when I get passionate about a topic. Mostly, it was just so that he wouldn't interrupt me and try to explain something else about what I was saying. (I have to get it somewhere. [grin])
Great Allergy Man has now threatened my dad's life many times. It seems that when I have an energy drink, I don't shut up when I get excited. And I was very excited to be in the company of so many good friends. Wheeee! I was so tired that I was able to sleep anyway once I managed to be quiet for five minutes. Of course, I woke up and still felt giddy and giggly. There is too much tired in the late night and early morning for this much cute. [happy dance]
Being surrounded by the friends I've made over the years was so amazing yesterday. Not everyone could make it, but they were with me in spirit. Especially my dad, Cenobyte and family, Cheruby, and my brother and family.
I learned so many great things are going on my friends' lives that I didn't know about yet. An engagement, a bid on a first house, a job interview, new opportunities, a possible reunitement, etc. So many good things happening for so many people. Oh, and an invitation to a D&D game. Sweet!
Forty people came out to help me celebrate and five people had well wishes via other mediums including a lovely phone call with my grandma in the morning and my dad calling from the road singing happy birthday to me.
And once again, I was surprised at people getting me presents. You'd think that I'd learn this one. The celebration of my birthday was supposed to be the present to me. That doesn't mean that the stuff i got wasn't incredibly neat and cool and delightful and appreciated. I got gardening stuff for my new favourite hobby, a hammock, an acre of rain forest, frog magnets, Lego knights, magnetic poetry, Logan's Run, thanks for inspiring a friend, money, a silk scarf, a glass bead necklace, balloon animal menagerie, Satsuma essential oil set, chocolate covered almonds, etcetera. And what meant the most was the well wishes from everyone. I cried several times throughout the day for good reasons and none for bad reasons.
And last but not least, showing my age by showing you how much I love this particular piece I found on Nueba's blog.
And lastly, I didn't have a chance to tell everyone why I wanted to celebrate my birthday with so many people. I wouldn't be the person I am today without the influence of all my family and friends and their experience and support and constancy. Thank you everyone for everything you've been through with me in the past 30 years. You mean the world to me.
Thanks very much to Drang and his tallness, I now have patio lanterns in my back yard! YAY! They're awesome and I can't wait to test them out tonight.
Cheruby, as he will thusly be known, is leaving on a jet plane to Vancouver tonight. A trip planned much in advance, but he did give me a birthday present yesterday. Cosmic Cows. Sounds right up my alley, eh? It's a cross between Yahtzee and beaming cows up to your alien space ship. What's not fun about that? Heh. I'm really going to miss him.
The little one has learned how to open the screen door by herself when she wants to come outside to see me. Today this resulted in my opening the screen door as her paws were in it. She was practicing her technique. The she ran under Drang's car as he was preparing to leave.
When I sent out my birthday invites, I know that I asked for RSVPs. Only about a quarter of those people actually RSVP'd. And if all the people that didn't RSVP that I expect to show up anyway actually don't show up, I'm going to have a lot of leftover food and drinks. Pirates don't keep that well.
I had a really funny thought the other day after my dad told me that he didn't think he was going to make it to my party. I completely understand that he can't hear that well anymore and it's even worse where there are a lot of people talking. So I thought, "What could I do to make it better for him?" I came up with the perfect solution! Invite Cenobyte's dad! They could sit together and say, "What was that again?" or "Can you repeat that? I didn't quite catch it." Heh. Of course, I didn't buy any Pil for Cenobyte's dad so chances of him showing are slim, but still, the mental image of those two in the corner hoping that everyone they were talking to would just yell so they could make out the words. I have no idea whether Cenobyte's dad is hard of hearing, but it's funnier if he is. Then I imagined them not getting along and having two old guys in two different corners of the yard. Or getting into a fistfight which is just as amusing to me.
Didn't I hear that somewhere? Life ends at 30? LOL I'm just poking all you REALLY old folks out there like cenobyte, tuo, R:tAG, etc. Oh, I suppose my mom fits in that category too, but she's so young at heart that I forget how old she is most of the time.
My to do list in the next few days isn't that long either - final food and drink arrangements, vacuuming, picking up the last of the borrowed items, string up patio lanterns and get a massage. Sweet!
And I have a date tonight. Too bad he won't be in Saskatoon for my birthday party. One of my friends has asked me several times when she gets to meet him so we're playing Shadows Over Camelot tonight. Great game so we should have a good time.
I'm going to try to get my running around done today so I'll be home all day tomorrow to do whatever I please. Maybe even play some City of Heroes.
Well, I have to say that I'm very, very happy. You may have noticed that already what with two weeks of nothing but sickeningly sweet posts about my dating. We had another date last night which I think went very well. The new Battlestar Gallactica movie is quite good and creepy.
So, I have been doing other things besides going on dates lately. I formed my garden yesterday and the cats are doing their best to destroy it. There was spray painting of plastic leaves yesterday to make "laurel crowns" for work next week. Planting of peas also happened although nothing else. I noticed just now that my callalily that she gave me for my birthday is already poking through the soil on my computer desk. I made something grow!! And my little one is getting very big indeed. My mom came to visit last week and I should get to see her again today. A dear friend came into the city and we went to an expo at Centennial Auditorium which was interesting. Getting the last of party details all lined up so I have a worry free weekend with nothing to cause me stress.
I'm so happy.
Last night was another fabulous date. Oh my goodness, my belly is still full of happy little butterflies. [sigh]
We went to a ceili, an Irish dance. He was playing for parts of it and came to dance with me for parts of it. I learned three Irish dances last night and had a blast. I got to laugh at myself and have fun as a bunch of us were learning the new dance. There were some people who knew what they were doing which was very helpful for me to see how it's supposed to be done. I picked everything else up fairly quickly. I liked the Haymaker because I got to stomp my feet. Heh.
The kids running around on the dance floor for the first part of the evening were great. There was one kid who would lay "sleeping" under the tables by the stage and the other kids would come partway to the front until the "wolf woke up" and then they'd scream and run to the back of the hall. They played that one for a while. And they played Duck Duck Goose and they played some form of tag that I remember playing, but don't remember the name of. It's the one where if you get tagged by the It person, you have to stand there with your arms out until someone runs under one of them so that you're free. It wasn't as good as dodgeball, but then again, what is? [grin] They offered me great entertainment along with the really wonderful music.
I feel so young with this whole dating thing. It's fun and it's odd to think that I'm going to be 30 next weekend and still dating. The two ideas aren't congruent to me, but I suppose that's just a product of having my parents married since forever and my brother having his first kid at the same age my mom was when he was born. Apparently, 23 is the ideal age for your first child, or so my mom's doctor told her when she was pregnant with my brother. I'm a little behind the times. Of course, the doctor could have just been settling my mom's fears. Either way, it's what I believe and it makes me feel young.
The best thing about dating this guy (I've let myself start calling him Sweetie), is that I'm not afraid of getting hurt. The knowledge is there that it's a possibility as with any risk, but I've been wonderfully naive to it this time around. It could end at any moment and I'd be hurt, but I'm savouring ever wonderful moment of starting this relationship.
My coworkers actually used the word sickening in regard to my skipping and beaming around the office. Don't care - they can suck it up.
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