Merry Christmas everyone!

home for the holidays

Well, i'm on my parent's dial-up, so I can't take long, but so far my vacation has been pretty great. It started a little rough with me finishing my exam at 9:48pm thursday night, packing until 1am and then getting up at 5am to catch the first ferry so that I could meet Mika for breakfast before i caught the 2:45pm bus to kelowna. I was SOOOOO tired I could barely function. But I made it, me and Mika had a deliscious breakfast at The Nam (I'm recommending it again!) and I finally got to see her pictures of Japan - which was really cool. The bus was full so I got to take the overflow bus which was much less crowded, even if the busdriver wasn't 100% sure where he was going, and had no idea how to check the tickets. We made it in one piece. It was So great to see my cousin Emily and her boyfriend Leo. I had a lot of fun hanging out with them, even though both me and emily were a little sick on saturday (well her much more than me) and all we did, after shopping for presents in the morning, was watch movies and knitt. it was grand. i was sad to leave them. :( And, the bus depot on sunday was crazy busy! I had to wait in line for over half an hour to buy my ticket, and then the bus was sooo full that me and several other passengers had to wait even longer for them to get another overflow bus ready. But it worked out just fine because there was only eight people on teh bus, so it was a nice roomy ride again. I can't complain. And now I'm here, at home in the snow (although I have to admit, there's a little less snow that I'd hoped for and anticipated... but I'm sure that it will snow again soon) I look forward to sledding, and sipping coffee while watching snow drift gently down beyond the window. It's great to see my family, adn my little second cousin katie whom I fall in love with every time I see her, she is way to cute! Today I had coffee with my good friends Norann and Dave, and it felt like no tim ehad passed at all. I love that about good friends, you can just pick up where you left off, without a hitch (well, maybe a few) ;) Now, I'm getting ready to sleep (after I put the extra foamy on my slightly too hard futon) and tomorrow I'm meeting my roomates for tea and then hangingout with my cousin cayley. Life is good when there's nothing to do but visit and chill out.

there's not too much better than reading a sweet card from a great friend after a hard day.

...writing english exams is even worse... I was actually hitting myself in the head, going "think! THINK!" to no avail. I think I've written better essays in highschool... BUT, at least it's finished, and I don't have to think about it again.
and tomorrow morning I get to have brunch with my friend Ben who I haven't seen in a while and miss, so that is definately a plus to my day!

...studying for english exams is hard, and not too fun...

An Evening of Christmas Cheer

Ah, there's nothing like a gathering of friends sipping egg nog (some with rum), and enjoying homemade treats before a crackling fire. So it took a few tries to start the fire and we breathed in a bit of smoke, we got the job done and when the air cleared there was a merry little fire all aglow (well, it tried to go out a couple of times, but we nursed it back to health).The egg nog was tasty, and so were the desserts (if I may say so myself, I made a pretty delicious - and rich - batch of cranberry and pecan chocolate truffles). We listened to christmas music and played Balderdash, if you've never heard of it, look it up, it's a great and amusing game where you pick a word (frmo the card if you have the game, or you can use a dictionary and scraps of paper) and everyone has to write a defination for it (you generally try to find obscure or strange words). Then the judge reads them aloud, including the real one, and you have to guess which one you think is right. We had some good answers... good times. We did however, have to pause in the middle of our evening to watch the "amazing race" because the boys downstairs and Crystal are addicted to it (not like I should talk). It was pretty cool, definately one of the better reality contest shows.
But now the guests have gone home, or downstairs, and all is quiet. well not quite, the wind is exercising outside rather vocally, maybe it will bring in some snow! (probably not, but I can dream right?)

one down, two to go!

The poetry portfolio has been handed in. YAY! While I'm not completely happy with every poem, it was a relief to hand it in. Now all I have to do is wait...
and since I said that I'd post the revision of the Hinges poem, here it is:


Hinges

Sarah is interested in the sharp
separateness of things: the dog with one blue
eye and one brown, the spilt salt
on the kitchen table, the stone dislocated
from her ring. How a tear, when fallen,
can bruise the tough red of her cotton shirt.

This morning Sarah discovers the way
a throat, soft like brushed leather,
thick in the belief of lips, becomes a rock
at the surprise of a callused hand;
the way a heart lurches,
like a socked foot meeting the slick
of linoleum; the silence just before he swings
and just after; the sound a door makes–
wail of hinges, thunk of wood;
a strand of her black hair
splayed against the white floor.

a great way to spend the night after a tiring day: a girl's night in with pizza, movies, and of course knitting. (oh, and our dowstairs neighbour, Brent)
We rented "Mean Girls" and "Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind", both which are great. But now i must sleep because tomorrow brings much work (school and otherwise) for which I must have my wits about me. (well, at least while I'm attempting poetry revisions) ;)

in lieu of finishing my last two novels of this semester, I decided to go to the Roxy Theater with my friend Oona to watch two movies for a total of $2.50, yup that cheap. Oona needed a break from all her studying, and I figured what the hey, who needs to know the ending of those novels anyway? (well, actually I just figured I'd finish them tomorrow). We saw "Shark Tale", a very amusing animated movie, at which i laughed a plenty. And, "The Motorcycle Diaries" and excellent foregin film based on a true story - I highly recommend it.
When I got home, the house smelled suspiciously like satsuma oil... and when i sniffed a little deeper, a certain fishy smell emerged. My roomate Crystal and two classmates are holed up in her room reconstructing a fish scull (tuna?) which they had previously boiled down in the back yard on a bunson (sp?) burner(last week). I'm glad that I'm not in biology, and that my room is on the other side of the house from hers...

last week!

only one week of classes left; I can't believe how fast this semester has gone! fast like a fish!

get this party started...

just got back from the Butchart's annual christmas party, and I can't believe how sore my feet are! remind me not to wear heels next year (and no black velvet pants either!) There was good food, groovey people (like my 'date' Aimee - we shook our goove thangs all night long), and well, okay music... it was a band, and while they were good, it's just not the same hearing four older men sing Pink's "get this party started" song... (hey Dave, I'm doing the ... thing! whoops! and exclamations!)Hopefully the pictures turn out. But it's time to put these tired feets to bed.

A good point...

a fellow blogger, and my friend Michael made a good point the other day on the americans fleeing the states, so I thought I'd share it with you: stay put

ramble...

okay, well, I had my poem workshopped yesterday (the one posted earlier), and it wasn't too bad. They liked the images, and the 'density' of the poem, but i need to work on the second stanza and the ending a little.
only one workshop left! this semester has gone by so fast, i'm wondering what happened. It's almost december! I'm so excited for the christmas holidays, it's going to be great to be at home, and in the snow. Yay. It also means that I only have one more semester left until Ii'm finished school! Yikes! And then what? Well, I'm going to let the future samara work that out. Right now, I'm going to head to bed cause my eyelashed feel like they're singed.
p.s. maybe I'll post the revision of that poem (hinges) when i've finished it...

life's been a little crazy the last couple of weeks, so sorry about the dearth of posts. give me a couple of days and i'll be back on track.

something to think about...

This is by one of the contributers to Matt Good's blog - it's very good, moving, inspiring, sad, worth a read: times like these

under new management...

Old boss gone, new boss in. what will it be like in the Grafix office now? Tracy may not have been that organized, but she knew the answer to pretty much everything, and she was very laid back. Ryan seems really cool, and definately organized, but it's going to be weird adjusting... we shall see.
Goodbye Tracy, we'll miss you!

eek

with the encouragement of my friends Tara and Ben, I've decided to post one of my poems. It is an assignment poem (due tomorrow in class!) and i really enjoyed writing it. I'm still sure about a couple parts, for example, is the word "curving" the right one? And the grammer needs some work. But I'm pretty happy with the way it turned out. I'll let you know how the workshop goes!
Here goes:

Hinges

Sarah is interested in parts, in the sharp
separateness of things: the dog with one blue
eye and one brown, the tongue of a frog
against the wavering black fly, the cut of a stone
dislodged from her ring. How a tear, when fallen,
can bruise the tough red of her cotton shirt.

This morning Sarah discovered: the way a throat,
curving to catch a kiss, can turn
soft like brushed leather, thick
in the belief of lips, and then, in the surprise
of a sharp bite, become all rock;
the way a heart can lurch, unprepared,

like a socked foot meeting the slick
of linoleum; the silence just before he swings
and just after; the sound a door makes– soft
wail of hinges, thunk of wood.

This morning Sarah saw the black of her hair
splayed against the white floor.

i get to pick up my new glasses tomorrow! yay! not so yay is the price i had to pay... and the fact that the only reason I'm getting these new glasses is because I snapped my old pair in half... apparently repeated bending of plastic isn't the best idea... but, apparently it was time for a change, and these glasses are definately a change from my other ones. a dark tortoise shell with a very nice shape to them - hard to describe, perhaps I'll have to take a picture... we'll see (ha ha, we'll SEE, get it?) oh dear god, send this girl to bed!

If you're looking for a little amusement on a cold dark night, these two videos are good for a twisted laugh or two. (Warning, they may only be amusing to slightly odd, unique individuals like myself)

the end of the world

schfiftyfive

Thank you to Tara for showing them to me, and to Mika who first did such a great impression of schfifty five guy. :)

these were the best ones, but if you want to check out more, the website is www.albinoblacksheep.com

fun fun fun... I finally got my pictures developed from halloween, so I thought I'd share some. enjoy!

happy halloween deco 

Tara as Princess Fiona 

a zen oona and a goolish dave 

the hairy man and the bearded lady 

so many pumpkins 

Too sunny to be depressed...

Well, Bush won... I guess I'm not really surprised, but more flabbergasted that the American people could re-elect such a president. I'm pretty disillusioned with the American public. I realize that not everyone voted for Bush, and that many many people are against him and his politics, but at the same time, he won the popular vote! Has more than half the population gone blind? Or perhaps it's a case of putting blinders on so that they only see what they want; they can hide behind Bush's "strong moral values" and his decisive actions. But frankly , I'd take a president who takes a moment to consider the implications of his actions, and who is more accepting of human diversity, than one who wages uncalled for wars and wants to take away the rights of gay and lesbian people.
But apparently the majority of americans are willing to be led further down a path that only bodes trouble - for the nation and the world.
When I found out this morning that Kerry had conceded the presidency to Bush, I was more than a little disheartened. However, when I stepped outside, the sun was shining, and the air was crisp and clean. And I thought, the world is waking up. The world is shaking off it's lethargy and maybe something good will come of this.

please, please, please, let Kerry get Ohio!

happy halloween!

Faeries, and teachers, and frogs, oh my!
So last night was our halloween party... it was fun, groovey, and punctuated by girlish screams and neighbouring fireworks. There were some great costumes, such as: a firefly with a blinking bottom, Princess Fiona (Tara, looking incredibly cute in her little pink dress and green arms and legs), a christmas tree, toilet, Dr. Phil, several creapy dead people, a gorilla, etc.
me. I was fern gully... the place... basically I wore green with a lot of flowes and leaves glued and pinned to me... it was fun.
highlights were the costumes, friends, music, candy...
lowlights were poor crystal getting sick on too much gin, the dirty sticky floors in the morning, when our neighbour called... suggesting it was time to quiet down, and that he didn't appreciate people jumping though the hedge near his boat (gorilla in the hedge...), having to work the next morning...
But all in all, the low wasn't so low, and the highs made it worth it. Plus, Dana made us supper tonight to say thanks. Potato leek soup, yum! and we got to give out candy to cute trick-or-treaters tonight which was fun. But there's an in class essay tomorrow, and then it's micheal Franti! wahoo

Today: woes and wows

- waking up to the phone ringing, only to have it be an irritating beep on the other end
- the phone ringing again, the same damn beep
- yet again the phone... but this time a person calling for crystal, whew!
- hanging out in pajamas, eating pineapple chunks, reading poetry in the morning
- waiting for a email...
- getting a message from Tara asking me to take Sinisa's shift at the school changing the
cinecenta sign when I don't have classes or another reason to go up there...
- seeing Tara in Biz's cute pink prom dress
- meeting Crystal at the bus stop and heading to the mall to get candy and pumpkins for
halloween
- having to carry those pumpkins and candy home, along with groceries, on a busy bus...
- cleaning the bathroom (surprisingly not a woe)
- carving pumpkins with crystal, and her sorority girls, plus Adam and Brent from downstairs,
while having chips and pop
- girly squeals and shreaky laughter...
- heading down to The Central Bar and Grill to have dinner and see Ron Sexsmith
- waiting in line and almost not getting a table
- talking to a physics graduate named Thanos, and a cool couple who had just been teaching in
asia for the last two years... about scary movies, and music, and physics...
- waiting over an hour for our food (nachos, veggies and dip, and wings for the carnivores)
- listening to Sarah Slean - the opening act
- waiting 1/2 an hour
- listening and enjoying Ron Sexsmith's sexy voice...
- almost falling asleep because of the mixture of mellow music and room temperature
- walking home in the wind and dark with friends
- having to push all the crap off my bed
- sitting in my warm cozy bed, ready to sleep
- falling asleeee........

lunar eclipse

What a gorgeous day today! The sun must be getting forgetful because it was shining hot like springtime, and the sky was oh so blue. I got to wear my new brown skirt today which is oh so cute (except for the fact that I neglected to wear a slip and so spent most of the say tugging it down as I walked - damn I had sticky tights!) and my click-clacky black boots. I did some more lovely filing today at work... bleh. But then I sat under a tree and read a good chunk of my novel for canadian lit, enjoying the warmth, and the fresh air. after class I met with sweet Tara and I read to her, yes i did, D.H. Lawrence's "The Shadow in the Rose Garden" and, well, it was interesing. not the best short story i've read, but interesting. I finally got my midterm back in my British fiction class, and i didn't do as bad as I feared, so that was nice. Then i came home and made burritos - yum! and watched a bit of Sex in the City, and then decided to stroll up to Summit Park to get a better view of the Lunar eclipse. It's pretty cool, we watched the shadow of the sun slip across it from our kitchen window (at first we had to jump up to see in above the house across from us, it was kind of funny); it was already fully covered by the time we made it up to the park, but it was still cool because it wasn't completely dark adn it was sort of tinged slightly red - tara said it was because of at the relfections from the sunrises and sunsets still happening around the world, or something like that, i'm not sure if that makes sense, but it sounds cool to me.
What isn't so cool, is the stupid kids who keep setting off fireworks around our neughbourhood! It's driving me crazy! and half the time they're just the stupid ones that only make noise! Arrrgh! and one more exclamation mark for good mesure... !

Who's excited to go see Ron Sexsmith??? I am!
www.ronsexsmith.com

FOR A MOMENT THERE

For a moment there
I could've swore
I knew where I was going
For a moment there
I was in my room
Following the music
Never knowing
If it was going anywhere

I could hear it in the sky above
In the streets below me
I could hear it in the songs of love
Just enough to show me
There was a light somewhere
Somewhere

For a moment there
The sun was in my eyes and I was blinded
For a moment there
But now I look again
And when it seems like all is lost
I find it
Or it finds me anyway

I can see it in the sun above
In the grass below me
I see it in the ones I love
Just enough to show me
There is a light somewhere

For a moment there
I could see it in the ones I love
Just enough to show me
There is a light somewhere

- Ron Sexsmith

music mania...

well, it started with Lester Quitzau and Mae Moore in Nelson (a great show! They are amazing together, so sweet and their voices go together beautifully), then Sarah Harmer last weekend (with Crystal and Dana, at the Mcpherson Playhouse - our first time there, in the almost nose-bleed section, but still amazing, I love Sarah's voice. she rocked), then there's to be Ron Sexsmith on the 29th which i'm really looking forward too, and finally Micheal Franti of Spearhead on Nov. 1st, which should be amazing. And in between that is our dress-up halloween party - wahoo. Oh yeah, and I guess school fits in there too. heh heh, just kidding, it slaps its fat butt down over everything. I'm just glad that I'm getting to hear all these great people!

What ever it takes my love...

Yay! Wednesday is finally over! Not that today was a bad day in itself, but the days leading up to it have been jam-packed with reading, writing, and stress! and a little bit of Ron Sexsmith, lovin his cd 'retriever' right now. I finally finished my english essay and got to read it aloud to a group of 6 class mates, and yes, I did go red (well at least in the beginning, i think it faded as I motored through my essay). It's amazing how reading your essay out loud can make you cringe... but they said it was good, so that was nice - here's hoping that my teacher thinks so too. :) But other than that, it was a beautiful sunny day (well the earlier part of it) and I love crisp sunny fall days, they're such a treat. Me and Tara decided to skip our last class (bad i know, but sometimes you just need to) and went to the Uvic Bookstore so I could pick up a novel that I somehow missed on the reading list for engl 436A. While we were there, we found some very cute (and pretty cheap) shoulder bags - they're a little plasticy, but they've got these great pictures on them in panels. Tara got one with poppy bulbs on it (you know, after they've flowered) and I got one with leaves - it's a very lovely green. yay! Then we headed to the hillside mall for a few groceries, and the cutest thrifty's grocery guy smiled and said hi to me - of course me and Tara had to giggle and stare after we'd moved away. dreamy sigh. Then we headed home, make some scrumptious salad and watched a couple episodes of "Sex and the City" it was grand. Now, i'm going to flop my tired head onto my cushy pillow and sleep until I wake up.

okay, i've just spent the whole evening procrastinating from doing any real homework. This is not good as I have two assignments due this week! Why do I always do this to myself? Practice I tell you, practice at the art of self-induced stress to aid in the production of panic-induced bull shit that passes for an essay. okay, maybe it's not that bad. I did do a lot of homework on friday and saturday (well, relatively) and I did work all day today... But really, if I had just spent a couple hours working on my essay, there'd be less for me to write in the next 2 days... I like how I'm able to think of these things, but rarely follow them through. Oh well. And here I am, writing a blog. of course.

midnight serenade...

I just had the longest dream about Matt Good last night... (oh don't get naughty, it was nothing like that) He was serenading his girlfriend and I was with her in the appartment peeking out another window (well, he is cute, even in a dream). But the girlfriend couldn't be with him anymore because his career was always coming between them, so I had to go out and tell him that, poor guy. And the weird thing is, he's married in real life... hmmm... what does it all mean i wonder? not that i care too much, if matt good wants to slip into my dream and sing a few songs, i'm okay with that. :) (are you jealous Tara?) ;)

200 pages, a stupid phone call, and and hour of pain...

my oh my, what a day. It wasn't even a particularily interesting day, but it was a long one. First off, I woke this morning, and then after breakfast and a shower (where I tried a sample of the new fructus shampoo and my hair still smells all mangoy-fruity), I read for about three hours to finaly finish the novel that I have to write my paper on for wednesday. It's about a very large jewish prostitute named Hoda, and it's very good, but still a lot to take in, in a short period of time. In the middle of reading, I got a phone call from mastercard saying that they were going to send me a card shortly in the mail, blah blah blah, and when I told the guy that I didn't need another (stinking) credit card because I already have one, and I'm a student, we went on about how I'd want to switch over once I heard about the points blah blah blah, and I was getting so mad because I swear I get the same phone call every couple of months and when are they going to realize that I don't want another bloody credit card. It starts to get difficult to be polite when you just want to yell "SHUT UP!!!" But I just said firmly (and perhaps rudely, but I swear that's how you have to be to get them to actually listen to you) that I was busy, didn't want a card, and thany you for calling - and he finally got the hint. Man, I would hate to have that job. It's hard not to get made at the callers even though it's their job to phone you and everyone's got to make a living, but sometimes... grrrrr....
But anyway, so after that, I went to class where instead of discussing canadian literature, we met in the library for a "session" with the English Librarian. I am embarrassed to admit how little I knew about the resources available for canadian and english literature... but I'm glad I finally learnt about it. It's amazing how you can go through 4 years of school using a very small working knowledge of your library and never trying to expand it until your teacher does it for you... The pain I could have been spared...
So after that, i painted banners (oh the excitement of my job at grafix...) and me and Tara headed to the mall for some groceries (me) and cds (Tara). We then hung out (well, procrastinated from doing homework) until it was time to head to our 3rd Fitness Fusion class. I think our instructor is the devil. The theme was strength tonight, and we set about trying not to collapse as we lunged, did push-ups, tried to be chairs, balanced, and tried to remember to breathe. I already know that my quads are going to be a little (hah!) sore tomorrow... But it feels good at the same time to be doing something active, even if you want to kill your buff instructor...
And now, after enjoying an exciting hour of ER, I'm setting into my bed with the intention of getting 9 hours of sleep... mmmmm mmmmm!

back in the thick of it...

Well, I'm back from Thanksgiving weekend at home in Nelson. It was a quick trip (will write more when I've time), and as soon as I returned I realized the pile-up of work and assignments awaiting me was larger than I expected. So after attempting to study for a midterm tomorrow, and not quite finishing a (long) novel that I have to write an essay on for next week, I venture off to sleep. I plan to expand on my adventures to the homeland when I have a space of time to breathe in, but I leave you with a song that me and my brother sang one evening as we waited for supper (I swear, we're musical geniuses!): There was a fish, who had a wish, not to be someone's supper dish! When he moved his tail, it went swish swish!
(just wait, there's more to come...) ;)

Farewell Ticki...

Tomorrow is the last time I'll take a trip with Ticki, my dad's blue Bronco II that he so generously let me use for the summer. It's been a good time, and she will be missed. Especially when it come to getting groceries, and early morning shifts at work. And while she may be a little rusty, and drip a little oil, she served me well. (We'll ignore the fact that she definately preferred to be driving with a full tank -rather than one half full or less, and the time when she wouldn't start with the key in the ignition, but she'd happily rumble to life without one, and the time when I started driving and noticed that my radio wasn't working, and all my lights were on like I'd stalled, except I was still driving... ) The good far outweighed the bad.

To Ticki, may your rust be minimal, your gas be good, and your tires never flat.

monthly poem...

This poem is by my workshop teacher, Lorna Crozier, a well-known and very talented canadian writer (I'm so lucky to be learning from her!). I love this little poem - it's brilliant.

Onions

The onion loves the onion.
It hugs its many layers,
saying O, O, O,
each vowel smaller
than the last.

Some say it has no heart.
It doesn't need one.
It surrounds itself,
feels whole. Primordial.
First among vegetables.

If Eve had bitten it
instead of the apple,
how different
Paradise.

rockin' out...

Just got back from groovin' at Steamers. Velvet had a guest drummer (bongos etc) and it was pretty groovalicious. I decided that I needed to got out tonight because I worked all weekend and haven't gone dancing in a while. Plus, I really didn't want to do homework... (bad mera) So, me, Crystal, Emanuel, Noah, and Caria (sp?) headed down first to Bog Bad John's for a cheap beer (well, I had a sprite...). For those who have never experienced this unique pub, it's low ceilings plastered with stickers, scribbled-on canadian and american dollar bills, and hanging from beams and other accoutrements are various bras and underwear - apparently you get a free drink if you donate a piece of your undergarments to be displayed... A real classy joint. But we got to munch on free peanuts and throw the shells on the ground, and it definitely has character. The best line, was when the music stopped for a minute and this woman yells out. "Hey! You promised me Dwight Yokum!" (again, sp?) And she was serious! We were all amused.
Then we headed to Steamers for a good 3 hours of dancing. Me and Emanuel tried to have a "dance off" to one song, but neither of us could do/remember each other's moves so we mostly just wiggled a lot and laughed. Good times were had.
But now I must sleep and do all my homework tomorrow before class. Oh well, it was worth it.

iron and w(h)ine...

I'm sitting in my bed. It's friday night at 10pm. Why am I here you might ask? Well, I have to work at 7:30am tomorrow so I thought I'd try to get a decent sleep, everyone else is out enjoying the night and I don't feel like watching tv, so I thought I'd snuggle down, check my email, and close my tired eyes. But apparently the boys downstairs are also enjoying their friday night - for which i can't blame them - becuase they're booming heavy-on-the-bass music and I'm trying not to get extremely irritated... It's one thing when you're down there enjoying it, and another when you're trying to go to bed and all you hear is this womp womp womp thump thump thump - it's enough to make one twitchy! sigh... I've put on a great, mellow band called "iron and wine" and plopped on the earphones to drown out the noise... (hence the title... this is me whining, not the music) ;)
But we had a lovely supper tonight, Tara had her friend Joanna over and she's really cool, and a couple other friends popped by and we had spagetti squash with homemade sauce, salad, and lots of appys... and for dessert - pumpkin pie with whipped cream! YUM! Good friends and good food makes for good fun!
Oh yeah, last night me and Tara and Oona went to our first "Fitness Fusion" class which combines Yoga, Pilates, and traditional strengthening exercises. So we'd do a 'downward dog' and then we'd be doing push-ups! Needless to say I'm a little sore today... But it was fun, and it felt good to be doing something active especially with my two sweet friends. :) Hopefully next week won't feel so shocking...
Here's hoping sleep comes quickily, and tomorrow's work goes by even more quickly!

Raver revival...

If I never have to peel tape off a laminated banner again, I'll be a very happy woman... I'm sitting in the Grafix office, taking a little break from the aforementioned evil tape peeling, enjoying a strawberry twist smoothy and listening to someone spinning records outside. Earlier they were mixing some Eddie Grant - Electric Avenue (bringing back fond childhood memories of lipsync-ing and grooving with my bros) and now I'm enjoying a thumping version of Tom Jones' "Kiss"... I just want your extra time... womp womp womp... and your AHhhh KISS! ;)

in the name of cleanliness...

I have just boiled 11 pots (of various sizes) of water over a period of 35 minutes so that I may have a bath - a shallow, not so hot bath... They better come and fix our boiler tomorrow!

There is no hot water in our house... none, not one drop. This is very frustrating to the girl who wants to shower and shave her legs because it's nice outside and she wants to wear a skirt...

being sick has its benefits...

while dealing with a constantly dripping nose, headaches, and general "stuffiness" is never very fun, having time to spend at home has been pretty nice. I called in sick today (well last night so they'd have time to call some one in) because, one, I feel pretty crappy, two, I didn't want to expose even more poeple to this empdemic snot war, and three, I took it as a good chance to spend some quality time at home (more importantly, in my roon organizing and cleaning). I was inspired by my roomate Tara while watching her meticulously hang her clean laundry and decided that my method to tossing clothes onto my shelves was no longer going to cut it. As I have no closet in my converted dining room, I went on a mission to find a portable clothes rack. I went with Tara last night to Walmart (cringe) to pick one up, but to my tired disbelief they had none left! We tried Canadian Tire and Zellers, but both were closed as it was after 8pm on a saturday (I realized it was late, but I was in one of those moods where I just wanted to start cleaning...). Alas, it was not to be that night. Instead we watched a painfully cheesy movie - "The Prince and Me", I hang my head in shame that I chose such a flop of a film, but I was in a mood for a cheesy romance. Unfortunately this was too much cheese, not enough cute romance or laughter. One of the good parts was a tractor race... oh well, it passed the time.
So this morning, I left the house determined to find a clothes rack. First stop, London Drugs. And yes I found one. Rubbermaid brand, 29.99. I gave in and grabbed it, along with a couple smallish plastic baskets for organizational purposes. Once home, I proceeded to assemble said rack. But something wasn't right. I had all of the peices, but they wouldn't fit together properly... I couldn't believe it! Was the universe against me becoming organized? Frustrated, I shoved everything back into the box, and coxed my roomate Crystal to accompany me back to London Drugs to exchange the damn thing. (this has only taken about an hour - it's around 11am) Well, they let me open another box to see if the peices were different, but alas, they were the same stupid incompatible peices. I got a refund, and we headed up to Zellers, which was thankfully open. The store has been doing some extensive renovations for the past few weeks so it was still quite chaotic inside. I was about to give up finding any when I paused in front of an aisle and looked down. There, sitting on top of a pile of random boxes was exactly what I wanted! There was no price tag, so we checked it at one of those electronic price checker thingys (not sure what they're called...) and low and behold, it was 10 bucks cheaper! Happy day for me. Plus, it was "heavy duty chrome", not cheap thin metal like the rubbermaid one (althought this one is height adjustable, and I hope that it doesnt' start sliding down if I put too much weight on it...)
We made it home (with a soy mocha to boot - no milk for this stuffed up girl) and I hesitantly opened the box and began to set it up. And praises, it went together beautifully! I moved my shelving unit out of the way, and rolled it (or plunked it) into place. What a fit!
I spent pretty much the rest of the day hanging clothes (although I need to get some more hangers tomorrow to finish the job), and reorganizing/cleaning my room. I must say that I'm pretty happy with it. I've gotten most of the junk off of my meager floor space so I feel like I have a little more space to move around (well at least I can walk around my bed now) and I finished putting up all the little things like pictures and candles etc. All in all it feels pretty cozy. Right now, I'm sitting here typing on my freshly made bed with candles burning, and listening to Hayden's Elk Lake Serenade cd. Ignoring the fact that I didn't get much homework done, I think I had a pretty good day. Not to mention that the sun was shining away, and I got to talk to my loverly cousin Emily on the phone, and my friend Oona too.

ugh....

being sick sucks... I thought I was going to squeak by without catching this bug that seems to be landing everyone on their ass (including my roomates, so I shouldn't be too surprised), but alas it smacked me down too. There's nothing like a constant headache to make one's day. And it really suck too because we're having such great weather right now, and I can't enjoy it. pooh!

Happy 18th Birthday Cayley!!!

The O.C., C.S.I, ER, ABC, FBI...

Yes, the Thursday night line-up begins... thank goodness i don't have school on fridays... but then again maybe that's a bad thing, as I'll have nothing to stop me from getting sucked in every thursday night... But at least it's only one night a week. I give myself that. (and maybe 1/2 hour on tuesdays for Scrubs, but that's it!) Everyone's got to have some veg time right?

two poems, a toothbrush, a pair of shoes, and asparagus...

Well, today has gone exceedingly better than last night. I managed to find another poem, and it went over well in class. I'd better get my ass in action as I'm going to be handing in a poem a week! So my workshop went well, there's a good vib in the class and everyone seems pretty calm and nice. I'm looking forward to it. (although I'm sure there will be furture blogs ranting about mental blocks and bad poetry so be warned)
Then, I met with my great and groovey friend Ben for lunch at the IQ Bistro and had a delicious pesto tofu ceasar wrap, yum. After some good conversation, we parted ways and I headed downtown on a mission to find some shoes. You know when you have an idea, a picture in your mind of what you want, but then actually finding that thing generally proves impossible unless you make it your self? well that's what's been happening to me with shoes. I really wanted something slightly funky that I could wear with pants and skirts, preferably black, not too shiny... cool looking you know? Well after perusing most of the nice shoe stores Downtown (the expensive eurpoean ones...) I was feeling pretty frustrated. As a last ditch effort, I headed into the Bay Centre... And there, in Sterling of all places, I as last found a pair of shoes that I could live with. No, they were not what I had pictured, heck they're not even black, and I porbably can't wear them with all of my skirts, but they're funky, comfortable, and I think I even like them. They're little suede chocolate brown Sketchers with some (slight cringe) pink lines around the edges. I figure I can always borrow Tara's shoes if i need a different pair... :)
And then, (yes the story continues) I went to Rietman's to return my skirt (mentioned in an earlier blog), only to discover that all the skirts had the same defect, and that nothing else I tried on was going to cut it. So I got a refund and decided to walk home.
Then, I made dinner for my roomates: linguine with steamed asparagus and peppers, roasted almonds and cheese sauce, and salad with cucumber, carrots and pepper from our garden, and some foccocia bread to complete the meal. It was enjoyed by all (including Tara's friend Charles who joined us), and now only the dishes await cleaning.
But, Scrubs is on, and as I've allowed myself to become addicted to at least 2 shows, I must go... ;)

AARRRGGGGG!!!!

...I think i'm going slightly mad. For the past two hours I have been trying to write a poem, trying to inspire myself enough to get a few decent words down, but dear lord it isn't working. I just need a little poem, that's all i'm asking, not an epic or a sonnet, just a little poem that says something slightly meaningful - heck even meaningless as long as it sounds good at this point. But all I keep getting is as good as poop on a stick, yes you heard me, poop on a stick! AAARRRRGGGGG!!!!

an unfinished poem, laundry in the wash, and a sorority of giggling girls in my livingroom...

This has been my weekend: Friday, I went home from work early with a bad headache... Saturday I delivered Cinecenta movie schedules with Emanual, painted banners for Volunteer Victoria, and then went to work at the Gardens where I cleaned ice cream machines for 4 hours... But then I came home and me an crystal watched a cheesy movie together while munching on freshly baked chocolate zucchini cake (yes, we still have zucchini!) Sunday, I slept in, talked with my loverly mother, and then me and my sweet roomies went downtown for some shopping... it was tiring to say the least, but I did find a cute fall skirt and Crystal bought a nice sweater. (although, the skirt i tried on had the slip showing a bit, so I switched for another of the same size, but when I tried it on at home, there was weird bumps in the back that looked terrible, so now i have to got back to exchange it... sigh) Then we got a few groceries and settled into homework mode... I finished "Heart of Darkness" - my goodness, could he mention the title one more time? ugh, and I still have no idea what they're talking about in class... And I talked to my momma about one of the two poems I have due on tuesday (the other not being written yet...) Then, Crystal had a few friends over for dinner, and I'm sorry to say because they're all really nice girls, but they squealed! I'm not kidding, it was unnerving. But they're gone, and now I'm pooped out and ready for bed, but Tara has to use my computer and I still have to start on yet another novel...
(oh yeah, and Statistics Canada called again as part of this labour thing we somehow got shuffled into, and we all had to answer questions about our work and stuff, real fun).

sigh

... it's a beautiful sunny september day, i just had a deliscous homemade pancake breakfast with my good friends Mika and Crystal, and i don't want to go to work (either job!). I think i'd prefer to go for a stroll up to Summit Park, sniff the fall air, be inspired to write a poem, and then go buy a new pair of shoes. :) But alas, I must first bus it up to school to paint banners and possibly post a few posters (BORING!) before bussing it back to my house to get ready to drive out to the Gardens where i get to work 4-10:30pm. sigh again. such is the life of a working student...

Awe, Ah, Autumn

Can you feel it? that briskness in the air? that crisp swish of wind? how lovely it is! Fall is here, and I think I'm ready. :) I love being able to wear scarves and hats and mittens and sweaters, and meeting friends for coffee or tea in some cosy cafe. Me and my roomate were walking to the bus stop and at the same time we both noticed the air - you know when it has that particular chillness that hints of leaves falling and swirling, and big yellow moons - and grinned. We had also just bought some beautiful dangling earrings to wear for a fun change, and so were inclined to grinning in the first place. :) There's nothing like walking along with a great friend on a windy cool day.

workshop...

well, i had my first poetry workshop today... I was a little nervous heading into it as I haven't really written any poetry all summer (a bad work habit I know, but it's too late now), and my friend (and security blanket) Ben isn't going to be in it. But, it went well for the most part and I think it's going to be a good group of people.
Our teacher, instead of making us answer the usual questions of "what did you read this summer" and "what do you want to get out of this class", asked us instead to say what we thought we were "bringing to the class" and what we wanted to "leave behing". Yikes! I was thinking, as my heart started to slap a little harder against my ribs, that I have no idea what i'm bringing to the class - fear of public speaking? of not writing well enough for the class? these are not very positive things... I think I blubbered something about my love of nature and coming from a small town like Nelson... And what i wanted to leave behind? my stifiling fear of failure... I think I said, not talking enough in class, and fear of attacking any subject... sigh. And then, to top off my feeling of inaptitude, we had to do a writing exercise, which was all fine and dandy until we were asked to share them, and of course I passed, and then had to listen to everyone else being brave enough to read theirs aloud. argh, sometimes i want to smack myself.
But, I'm going to let it go. we have to hand in 2 poems next week, and I'm going to be ready and willing to participate whatever my hesitations. so there.

On a pleasant note, Canada won the World Cup in Hockey! (yes, I am a band wagon hockey fan, i'll admit it) And, one of my favourite shows, Scrubs, is on for another season. yay!
and so goodnight.

so l lied

okay, I know I said that I'd expand on my trip to vancouver, but you know what, I don't really feel like it. All i have to say is that I had an awesome time seeing my friends again and I definately want to make trips over to the mainland more frequent than they have been in the past three years. And, I'd highly recommend anyone planning on visiting vancouver (or living there and haven't been yet) to check out "The Nam". It's an amazing vegetarian resturant in downtown vancouver (sorry i don't know the street - my knowlegde of the city is rather miniscule), and it's open 24hours and has the most delicious food! Yum yum yum. :)

three great friends, two umbrellas, and one stellar concert...

Well, it's my second night in vancouver, and already i've slept on an air mattress, ate a scrupmtious cinnamon bun, watched Sarah Maglachlin(sp? you'd think I'd know how to spell it by now)perform an amazing concert - i'd forgotten how superb her voice is - and now i'm about to watch a girly movie with my good friend lindsay. And tomorrow, I get to go to ikea!!!! the excitment never ends. but as i'm on a friend's computer, i will go on at length another time. cheers

it begins.... again

Well, first day of the last year of university. We had a freak rain storm, i saw some old friends, met some new people, bought some books, spent some money, ate a wrap, drank some coffee, and took the bus. pretty exciting hey? well after 3 years (well 4 if you count college)the nervous anticipation has worn off a little, and it's more a matter of settling in once again.
so here I am, a settling in...

back off, get your own totem poles!

I just spent 7 hours making sure 2 totem poles didn't get touched...
It was all fine and dandy in the beginning, when there were actually people around - I answered questions with my limited amount of knowledge, joked about trying to run off with one of them, I even shooed a few intruding tourists back behind the chain - but after around 8pm it was pretty much dark and you could barely see the totem poles, and after 10pm the gardens was empty of visitors and the only thing I was going to scare away was a few bats. But, then again, I did get paid to sit on my ass for the majority of the time, and I even managed to smuggle my novel up there in the guise of the "totem pole guide" (although I don't think they really would have cared if they noticed I had it, I mean it was that or sitting and staring into space...) along with a cup of hot chocolate with a squirt of peppermint and a flashlight (well I didn't smuggle the last two). Another cool thing was I got to use one of the radios from Visitor Services (I also had a little 2-way radio for checking in with my loverly supervisor in the coffee shop, but I had trouble working it for some reason - most likely my mechanical inaptitude...)
Thank goodness it was only one shift!
and School starts tomorrow, a whole new adventure!

The joys of a sleepless night and a 10 hour work day...

sigh... i do believe that it is one of the most frustrating things to be unable to sleep when you need to. Take, for example, last night. I knew that I had to wake up at 6am to get ready for work at 7am. so of course when I lay myself down to sleep, the sleep doth not cometh. I finally fell asleep around 12:30am only to awake again to the sound of my roomate returning from her Sunday night venture at Steamers. I usually sleep right through this (or am returning home myself), but for some reason I woke up to the sound of the front door opening, their whispers and the refrigerator door being swung open and shut more than once. And so began the night watch. it was 3am, then 3:59am, then 4:30, the 5:50 and my alarm is playing some bad country song (I really must find a better station), and I have to get up. sigh... and so begine my day. me and Tara make it out the door and she's ringing the buzzer to her brother's apartment (we all work together at Uvic - today we were blowing up hellium balloons and painting banners) by 6:40am.
Due to lack of sleep and lack of coffee, my brain started sending weird signals and before you know it, me and Tara were dashing through the SUB halls, chucking a roll of duck tape at each other (or kicking it) and giggling like a pair of 10 year olds (although I'm inclined to think that even 10 year olds would be more dignified). Luckily, it was freaking early so no one was there. (and I'll admit that we had fun). But then it was 10 am and I had to drive out to the Garden's for my 11-6pm shift. With the help of a bit of coffee (lots of chocolate syrup), and my dear friend Oona, the time went by rather fast. And now I'm sitting here wondering why I'm still awake... all I have to say, is thank goodness it was a stat so the pay makes it worth it.

a spot of poetry...

I have a deep and abiding love for the poetry of Mary Oliver, she inspires me and takes my breath away. So i thought I'd share one of her poems today. (I just bought one of her books on sale at Munro's this afternoon and fell in love again.) this is one of my favourites:

You are young. So you know everything. You leap

into the boat and begin rowing. But, listen to me.

Without fanfare, without embarrassment, without

any doubt, I talk directly to your soul. Listen to me.

Lift the oars from the water, let your arms rest, and

your heart, and heart's little intelligence, and listen to

me. There is life without love. It is not worth a bent

penny, or a scuffed shoe. It is not worht the body of a

dead dog nine days unburied. When you hear, a mile

away and still out of sight, the churn of the water

as it begins to swirl and roil, fretting around the

sharp rocks--when you hear that unmistakable

pounding--when you feel the mist on your mouth

and sense ahead the embattlement, the long falls

plunging and steaming--then row, row for you life

toward it.

the veggies of our labour...

Ah, the joys of having your own garden: lettuce for salad at the snap of a leaf, carrots just a tug away, cucumbers and zucchinis plump for the picking. It's been so great to be able to grow our own food. I'm always amazed at the miracale that is life - watching something grow from a little tiny seed to a sprawling tomato plant or towering pea vine. We've made many a delicious salad, pesto, stir fry, pasta dish, dessert from the bounty of our small garden. Last night me and my friend Oona made a chocolate zucchini cake to bring for our last fireworks night shift today at the Gardens (that's the Butchart Gardens if you're wondering), and it was delectable (if I do say so my self. plus we did get a lot of compliments, but it could be also that it was free food ;) ). Crystal also made one for our potluck/house warming party tonight so I got to savour it twice! I can't believe I didn't like zucchini for so long. (well, not that the cake actually tastes anything like zucchini, but I enjoy eating it in other things now too) :) I have to say that while I had fun tonight working, I'm glad that the firework season is over for another year. It was pretty intense at times, and having to do the same job every week for the whole summer can get a little tedious - especially when there's not always something to do and you kind of end up floating all over the place.
But I was talking about our garden (and when I say our, I mean me and my roomates again).
and all I have to add is: YUM.

p.s. if anyone wants the receipe for that chocolate zucchini cake, just let me know and i'll send it to you, it's really really yummy.

p.p.s apparently I'm trying to see how many times I can write zucchini...

cinematic satisfaction...

Anyone interested in checking out a unique, sweet, funny, quirky little film, should definately make plans to see "Garden State". I just went tonight with my roomies and a couple other friends and we all enjoyed it immensly. (i'm pretty sure I can speak for them since we were all gushing about it as soon as we stepped out of the theater - and guys out there, you'd like it too! I swear!) It has a great soundtrack, and Zach Braff (he plays the lead guy in "Scrubs") wrote, directed, and starred in it, which makes it even better (in my opinion).

47 packets of hot chocolate...

UGH! Let me just say that doing inventory in the staff cafeteria at my work has got to be one of the least pleasurable jobs around. From weighing bananas, tomatoes, lettuce, potato salad, to counting chocolate bars and chips, it couldn't get much more ridiculous or tedious. My only saving grace was that this time I didn't have to count such things as sugar packets or tea bags (which I have done in the past...) But, as I was all alone, and closing the cafeteria at the same time, it made for a frustrating evening. Not to mention the freaking huge tub of pasta salad that some irritating girl from the dining room (one of the Garden's resturants) brought up. It hink it weighed around 29 lbs. and yes, I had to do it by weight - which is even more frustrating if you take in to account that the little scale I had at my disposal could only read up to 5 lbs. Harumph. (needless to say, I gave some away, and then still had 4 big containers of it full, and about 20 small bowls of it too!) But enough of the pasta salad. enough of the counting (no doubt I'll be doing inventory in my dreams tonight).
It was a lovely day outside, I had coffee with my roomate and her parents this morning, and it was tasty (for anyone who lives in Victoria, I highly recommend Cafe Fantastico on Kings and Quadra - they roast their own beans, and it's generally fair trade). Tomorrow, I plan on finishing my room (last little bit of organizing and decorating, and poof, it's a cute, cozy, bright little nook of a room), writing a poem, and eating a delicious breakfast. yum.

friendship

... gotta great phone call today, and it made me think about what great friends I have, so I just thought I'd let all of you know how much I appreciate your friendship, and your uniqueness. friends are people who make you laugh and feel good about yourself, not people who put you down or say things that are completely untrue for no reason (for any reason). so thanks for being great friends. whether I see you often or not, you are all in my heart. my little pink mound of thumping flesh that magically holds so many things besides blood. (yeah, I realize this is super cheesy, but frankly i don't give a damn.) :)

silly me

... dyed my hair last monday, thought it was going to be a dark brown with some red highlights... not so... should have taken a warning from the colour name "crushed garnet" because that's how red it came out. a little bit of a shock, but I'm getting used to it now, and it's faded a little thankfully. I guess that's what I get for being impatient and using a box instead of going to the hairdresser's...

mmmmm sunday mornings...

... and the sound of yipping puppies at 8am, well, just one really, our next-door-neighbour's yellow lab who has that certain pitch of bark perfect for irritating those who wish to sleep in after a week of morning shifts and carpet cleaners arriving at 7:45 the previous morning. But I let it go and remained cozy beneath my duvet as the sun tried to slip inbetween my blinds and eyelids. After a week of rain, the sunshine is a welcome thing...

rain drops keep fallin...

Oh how I love the rain. I love waking up in the middle of the night and hearing it start. I love lying in bed listening to it. I love watching it through the window - falling on leaves, and petals, and grass, in puddles - it's so beautiful.
I do not, however, enjoy driving in it at 5:30am when it's still dark, and I'm in fear of hydroplaning. A little scary.
But, I also enjoy how it gets us (at work) off of setting up our hot dog and ice cream carts. which also means that I generally get to go home early (a mixed blessing). Like today, I went home at 10am and thus got to kick back and watch a few olympics - like men's 3M springboard diving where our 19yr old canadian Alex Desprite (sp?) won silver! yay canada. Have we, as a country, even managed to get as many edals as Micheal Phelps has earned as an individual? I'm not sure if we're there yet... a little sad. but you know, the atheletes themselves are getting personal bests and having a great time there, so there's more important things than medals (she says while still wishing we were doing a little better...)
Anyway, there is still time. meanwhile, I'm going to lay back and let the soothing patter of rain wisk me to sleep.

p.s. I recently noticed that I seem to write most of these fairly late at night, and am always on my way to bed... perhaps I should work on that...

a wedding, a car crash, and 25 pies...

Let me tell you a story. It involves a girl (me), a wedding (my friend's sister Karma's) and a stretch of road between Victoria and Cobble Hill (the malahat).
It begins early, 6am to be specific, the girl wakes up and prepares for her 7:30 shift. Her hand is still slightly swollen from the wasp sting she received on thursday afternoon. (it's now saturday). She dresses, eats breakfast, and is on her way. everything is on track. Her 4 hour shift goes by fast, nothing too exciting, she's happy to be out of there by 11:30. She gets back home, showers, eats lunch, packs for her overnight stay in Cobble Hill, and writes down the directions to the farm and hall where the wedding is taking place - she is to be there for 2:30. It's just about 1:30pm. She loads her stuff into her bronco (affectionately dubbed Ticki), and is off. It's a 45 min drive.
The weather hasn't been very nice so far, heavy rain, wind, clouds, she's hoping that the ceremony won't be forced inside.
Her biggest worry is the puddles on the road, and her windshield wipers sliding off (as they like to try occasionally).
So she's driving along listening to a cd, hoping she finds the right turn off, when she has to pull up suddenly because traffic has stopped. "What's this?" she thinks, as she shifts into first and then comes to a complete halt. Perhaps construction? But there have been no signs. She's hoping they'll start moving soon.
Traffic is moving, but it's only inching along, and she comes around a corner only to see a line of vechicals stretching as far as she can see. Cars are turning around. It's 1:56pm.
After about another 10 minutes, the girl realizes that she should probably turn on the radio if she wants to find out what the congestion is all about. So, she puts on the Q fm, just as the announcer says: "If you're stopped on the Malahat, there's been a head on collision just near bramberton, and the whole road is blocked. Traffic has come to a complete stop and this was nearly an hour ago. So if you've got a wedding in a half a hour, chances are you're going to be late." (well, It was pretty much what he said - he did mention a wedding at 3pm)

Every once in a while the line inches forward as vechicals (or their drivers I should say) decide that the wait isn't worth it and turn around. 2:30 rolls around, she's late. 3pm clugs by, and she's not going to make the ceremony.
3:45pm and she's hoping that she'll make it to the reception.
Needless to say, she was on that road for three hours. Thank goodness for a couple plumbs, and apple, and the novel, "Life of Pi".

Finally, at around 4:48 the line starts moving, so she's hoping she make it to the reception on time to help serve the dinner.
But, the directions she'd written down were for heading first to the ceremony site, and then heading to the reception from there, so she's not confident where to turn. And sure enough, she turns too early and ends up on an unfamiliar road cursing herself. Finally she pulls over at a little store near Shwanigan Lake Village and asks for directions. And it's here that the stress of being late finally takes it's toll. She can feel the tears well up as she's trying to understand the woman's directions. As soon as she gets back into the bronco, yes, the tears start a flowing.
By the time she finds the hall, (yet a couple more wrong turns later) she thinks she's got them under control. It's just 5:30. But, as soon as she gets out and starts walking towards the bride's father there they go again. Fortunately he's a kind man who gave her a big hug and told her not to worry that everything was okay, and they were just glad she'd made it. He ushered her into the hall and over to his wife who promptly took her to the ladies room (as the tears were still gushing) an helped to get the girl calmed down.

to be continued...

Wedding nibblets...

I was checking up on my cousin Dylan and Fannie's wedding site (they just got married on July 31st!) and I found some of their photos already up, so I thought I'd borrow a few and post them for your viewing pleasure (hopefully that's alright). That wedding was one of the most beautiful ceremonies I have ever seen. It was elegant, simple, thoughtful, and gorgeous! (and heck of a lot of work!) Enjoy!

It was great to watch this photo being taken, I'm really glad it turned out so well. 

Mother of the groom (auntie Deborah), looking stunning, along with a tearful uncle Perry. It was a beautiful ceremony. 

This photographer did a great job! These photos are magazine worthy. I mean, can you say Hallmark? (in a good way of course) 

Aw, what a loverly couple. They really are two of the nicest people.  

Dylan and Fannie's wedding cake - it doesn't get much nicer than that. I swear it looks exactly like it did in the magazine! Way to go Dad!  

Calling 202...

What goes bzzzzz bzzzzz silence ouch! me being stung by a wasp. Yes an angry brute declared me lunch today at work, and now I've got a hand the size of a baseball glove. (okay, it's not that bad or I wouldn't be able to type, but there is a pretty nice swollen lump on the back of my right hand that doesn't want to go away despite repeated icings). I had to call first aid so some one could bring me up some "sting stop", which didn't really help that much anyway, and the guy had to fill out all this paper work, just for one little sting. But I guess for insurence purposes... I kept working anyway, although it was hard to serve ice creams because I was trying not to bend my hand. I guess the sting was payback for the many wasps I've sacrificed to hot water for the common good (and our sanity up at the Soda Fountain!) but I think I would have rather slammed my finger in the door - oh wait, I did that too! Not having much luck with my hands today... at least I'm about to sleep so I can endanger them with knives and other potentially hazardous items. Words of Wisdom: stay away from wasps drunk on sugar, and angry because you've just tried to drown them in really hot water, and when shutting doors behind you, hold firmly to the handle. That's all for now. :)

p.s. I'm really not a bad person, I only killed those wasps because they were a danger to us and the visitors, and our (by us and ours I mean me and my coworkers) mental health - have you tried to pour a pop with five angry wasps buzzing around your head and hands? not a fun activity!)

three stacks of plates, two oversise mugs, and a toaster oven...

Whew! While moving upstairs has been great because we don't have to repack and then unpack everything, it's a little like a bloody 5-day marathon! Okay, we've only been moving stuff up since monday, and it's been up and down those freaking stairs I don't know how many times with books shelves and beds and laundry baskets full of plates and food and blenders and more! Not to mention that my previous bedroom now looks like a closet threw up on it - clothes everywhere. I am definately going to have to do some weeding in that department because I don't think i can fit them all in my "quaint" new closetless bedroom. And I still can't decide which door to leave and which one to put my bookshelf in front - the door leading to the kitchen (closer to the food and the bathroom), or the one leading to the living room (potentially a quieter way, closer to the front door) ... any suggestions? I am still enjoying my colour choice, and the few pictures I have put up go very well with it. (yay) But it's late and I have to work, again, early... so goodnight

doin' the happy dance

Yay!!! Who gets to move upstairs today??? We do! Yep, we just did the "walk around" with our landlady and now the floor is ours (and by floor i mean the main suite of the house). We're pretty excited, and danced down the stairs. It's time to start packing and hauling stuff up to our new abode. Wahoo!

sundays are great, obviously

Horray for having the same days off as my roomates, finally! today was splendid - we started our morning with blackberry infused pancakes (need i say yum?) and then headed out to the Sooke Potholes, a 45min drive and 20 min hike away. It was glorious - the water was cool, but oh so refreshing, and when we came upon Crystal's favourite swimming spot, there was not a soul in sight... soooo nice, just us, the sunshine, and the water. But then, 2 minutes later a rather large group of people ambled down the path... sigh, so much for solitude - but what can you expect from such a divine swimming place? After swimming up the river aways and watching some boys jump off cliffs into the water (yikes - i just keep picturing my cousin with his lacerated spleen from landing badly off a 30 foot cliff a couple weeks ago), we swam back an prepared ourselves for some much needed sunbathing. (well that only lasted for a little while until we had to break open the food bag and munch for a while - mmmm more good food like samosas and veggies and trail mix, and crystal's homemade candied ginger, oatmeal and chocolate chip cookies!) It was a wicked way to spend the day. When we arrived home, it was time to check out some of the summer olympics - rowing and gymnastics to be specific (those gymnists can do some crazy shit i tell you). Then my good friend Oona came over and we got ready to go dancing at Steamers Pub where Velvet plays dance music with some funk every sunday night. Good times were had. All in all I'd have to say it was a pretty stellar day, obviously (sorry, but that's been the word of the day). :)
But sweet dreams are awaiting me, and my eyelids are going on strike....
p.s. Happy Birthday Grandma!

ode to cinnamon buns...

early morning delights:
Arriving at work for 7:30 or 8:00 am rarely has any perks (besides that of getting off by 4 or 4:30), except on those glorious days where I get to ice the cinnamon buns. Yes, spreading soft cream cheese icing on still warm, gooey, sweet buns, and then swirling it with my fingers (gloved of course) to make it look simply irrisistable, is one of my favourite jobs.
The funny part is that I don't even like cream cheese icing, and our cinnmon buns are made with corn syrup, not honey, so they're way to sweet. But making food look asthetically pleasing is something I love to do... perhaps I should go into the culinary arts? I think I'd probably have to expand my tastebud tolerance if i were to do that because I could make everything, but then I wouldn't be able to tell if it was good because I would probably dislike most of the ingredients I put in it... sigh... I'm working on it. My roomate Crystal provides tough love when it comes to trying new things so I've now aquired a taste for previously untouchable items (according to me) like peppers (although I mostly like the orange and yellow ones), lentils, zucchini, spanikopita, and soy milk. I'm sure most of you are shaking your head at me right now, but at least I'm trying right? :) However, I think that tomatoes are always going to be on my ewww list - I've tried to eat them, but there's just something about the combination of juicyness/watery flavour/peel texture that I can't deal with.
But I was supposed to be giving an ode to cinnamon buns. Now, if you want to treat yourself to a truly divine example of what a cinnamon bun can be, you should take yourself over to the Kooteney Bakery Cafe in Nelson, BC (a long treck for some of you I realize, but I'll put it out there anyway) where my dad makes a delectable pecan cinnamon bun with a buttercream icing. And so I shall leave you with that scrumptous vision.
I think I'm drooling a little... ;)

hot hot hot (no really, it was swealtering in there!)

victory! a concert to remember.

Thanks to Tara's friend Jordon for the photos (hope it's okay I posted them) :)

a flailing body, a half a glass of beer, a drumstick, and a set list...

People who can hack being in the front row of a concert shouldn't be there in the first place!
Ah Matthew Good, a great show, a great band, a great location, and a stupid audience - what else is new. This is not to say that I didn't throughly enjoy both the opening act, Wil, and Matt Good, they were amazing - especially from our hard won front row spots, but why do people think that shoving as hard as they can the people in front and to the side of them is going to make anyone's experience any better? I seriously had to elbow this guy a few times because he kept pushing up against me, and believe me, I wasn't planning on moving anywhere - we were about as close as you could get without being on stage. I understand that with a rock crowd in a bar, there's expected to be a little pushing and such, but three people body surfing in a not so large venue, come on now that's just a little ridiculous. I think that the aggressive side of me comes out when placed in those sorts of situations, I was just as ready to shove back, and I don't think that me and Tara moved more than a couple of inches the whole night. I certaintly wouldn't want to be a security person at one of those things! When it started getting rowdy, the girl next to me started freaking out a little, and I thought she was going to throw up, so we had to let her out - the security guys were pretty good at making sure the smaller people were doing okay (not that they asked us - we must have looked pretty determined). But I'm ranting. The music was great, he played mostly from his new album and a couple well chosen older songs like "Picture Yourself" (forgive me if I have the title wrong...). And at the end me and Tara managed to pick up one of the set lists and a drumstick (yes, it's a little obsessive, but fun nonetheless) which we got signed by the man himself! Tara was tempted to stalk him back to his hotel, but we decided that would be way too creepy as the streets were fairly deserted and he was walking with two body/security guards... I swear that we're not that obsessed (disclaimer - I was mostly following Tara... really...). One girl asked to have Matt's half finished glass of beer and she got it! ewww, what would you do with that? What ever tickles your fancy I guess (well, not like I can do much with a drumstick, but at least it's keepable). Anyway, if you're a Matthew Good fan, I highly recommend you see him live, but just be prepared to stand your ground if your in the throng.

item number two: paint brush and spatter

Well, upon contemplation, neither previously mentioned colours fit, and so I ended up with a light green titled "spring fest". Me and my roomate then proceeded to apply said paint to the wall at 9:30pm - not bothering with a coat of primer to help cover the dark purple currently covering the walls of my soon to be bedroom. Needless to say, we were tired, the purple showed through, and I realized how small this room really is. It shall be me, and my bed, and then the walls. Okay, it's not that bad, but it's definately the smallest room I've ever inhabited before! (It does, however, have nice big windows, a cool built in cupboard, and a funky old light fixture - having been designed as the dinning room).
The colour is bright, but I think once I get everything in place it will be a happy medium. I think that the idea of painting and choosing colours and decorating etc is always more exciting than the actual hard labour (big surprise there), and I am happy it's finished. one more week and then we can be moving upstairs! Yay for hardwood floors, a plethora of cupboards and shelves, a fireplace, and our own mailbox! I'm planning on having a "moving up" party around then, so anyone living nearby who wants a nice dinner for the price of carrying a few items up the stairs, please give me a call. ;)
Well, it's time to remove the tape from the walls of my affectionately dubbed "medicine cabinet" room, here's hopeing no paint bled through!

item number one

i've discovered the joy of blogs.
blog blog blog.
If only I could remember all the great things I wanted to write about...

Today my biggest problem was choosing a colour to paint my room, I'm waffling between "windy hill" and "tropical mango" any suggestions? (windy hill is a lighte bluey colour).