I was going to try and avoid starting my post with more weather talk but I just can't help myself. More snow yesterday which really left a mess at my place (read: snow on top of ice). Things were not too bad this morning on the main roads but getting out of the house was not pretty. I started to freak a little so I caught a ride with my dad early this morning. I got to the office at 8AM. A whole our early. Good thing I have a new addiction...
It's a good thing I wasn't going home right away last night. There was a problem with skytrain that had the system in shutdown for nearly 2 hours. NOT fun. Especially for the folks on board. Yikes! By the time I headed home everything was back to normal and I had no trouble getting home. Even in the snow.
Tonight I'm scooting out of here early because I have to trek my ass over to the college to sort out my registration woes. Hopefully, it'll be quick and simple so I can head home for the first real night of rest since this entire snow debaucle began.
I hope everyone else is having a good week! And if not...stay strong! Only one day to go!
Well, the weather is still wonky here with more snow scheduled for this afternoon. I'm used to this nightmare now though the morning commute has been a little worse than usual. I nearly had an attack when I woke up a bit later today and started freaking that skytrain wasn't going to be running and I was going to end up coming in late. I was wrong, got here with plenty of time but I could have done without the worry.
Other than that, things have been relatively good. I found out yesterday that I have been mysteriously de-registered from the system at the College and since the computer can no longer process electronic applications (it's after the general deadline) I have to make my way to school either tonight or tomorrow (the only two days they're open late) to fill out some paperwork to get myself back into the system. What a nightmare. I just hope the snow tonight doesn't put everything on hold.
Other than that, it's been pretty uneventful except for the arrival of the Airbus A380 - the biggest passenger plane currently flying. It's HUGE. For those interested, info on the plane can be found at Airbus' official site or for those of you, like me, who just like pictures, you can view a whole bunch of good ones here.
WOW. Talk about a crazy couple of days for BC. Snow fall started Saturday night and well into Sunday and yesterday was whiteout conditions throughout most of BC and the lower mainland. The kiddies got to stay home and got to work late (thanks Transit!) but otherwise, the day went off fairly well. I was up to my nose in promo stuff yesterday trying to get a document together for this morning. I was even here until 6 - everyone else left right at 5PM. It's days like yesterday that make me wish for that new computer to have arrived already but I checked the status and it's not supposed to arrive until Friday. Bummer. Back to the weather...at my place, we have about 3 feet of snow which has not made life easy. Today's big problem is the ice. The windshield is WAY up today and everything is frozen solid. A good day to stay home bundled up with a blankie but no such luck, I'm back in the office.
I hope everyone had a great week and weekend. I realize it was extra quiet last week with the holidays but I think things are pretty much back to normal...at least until the holidays. Less than a month to go people! I hope you have your plans ready folks!
Gotta jet for now...a bunch of stuff left to do. Happy Tuesday!
Oh thank god. Thank GOD (or gods or being. Whatever. You get the picture.) the week is over. The last few days have been brutal. I mean BRUTAL. I'm sooooooooooo tired I'm nearly incohesive and to boot, it's been extra busy in the office for the last few days.
Should be a good weekend and to help me get started, here's this week's KFF. This is a FANTASTIC picture. I'm seriously considering printing it on some photo paper and having it framed right next to my autograph of Tom Cruise. Yes. I have an autograph of Tom Cruise. I bought it a few years ago and no it's not a fake. I have a certificate of authenticity. And if I ever do find that it's fake...I'll kill the guy I bought it from. But whatever, sorry for the digression.
Have a great weekend everyone!
Well, I'm starting to get the ball rolling for Christmas and New Year. Yeah. I'm actually early this year. I've decided that little sis is going to get an MP3 player, mom and dad - probably a working computer and D and I have decided to forgo presents for eachother and instead buy a DVD recorder or HDD recorder for the tv so that I can watch ever MORE tv. I've even decided on a resolution. I usually avoid these things but for next year, I'm going to try using a monthly budget. I have to try harder to save money. God I hate talking or thinking about money. I really do but it's something I need to do. I spent nearly 5 hours on Monday devising a budget plan. I think it's looking good.
I'm also really, really excited! Pedro Almodóvar's Volvér opens this week and I'm taking both mom and dad to it on Sunday. We NEVER do stuff like this so I'm really looking forward to it. It's a huge deal for them to go to the movies. The last time they went was when I bought them tickets to Bridges of Madison County. That's over 10 yrs ago! You read right. That's the last time they went to the theatre. So yeah, this is a big. Deal. I can't tell you how exciting it is.
And to finish off this wonderful Thursday (which happens to be a holiday for our American friends), I'd like to share a little video with you. I'm not sure if any one out there's heard of smashmyipod.com. These guys collect donations, go out and buy ipods and then smash them on-site and on-camera. They decided to expand their horizons (a network of sites)and what better way than with the madness surrounding the PS3 release. They lined up with all the fanboys, bought a player and smashed it outdside of best buy - in front of the line-up of people waiting to shell out their $600 for their own copies. And, of course, it was all captured on film and, thanks to YouTube, you can now enjoy it in all its glory. I laugh every single time I see it. I just can't help myself...
Wow. Out of the blue a MASSIVE storm hit Vancouver with winds up to 150km/h. It was nuts! One minute is was drizzling and the next thing you know, power lines are down everywhere and there's a massive storm in process. Now it's sunny outside. This is insane! The Dragon Lady calls me this morning at about 9:30 and asks me to call Hydro because her power is out. I call them and report the outage and call her back to let her know that no one else had reported it yet. She calls me again at 10:30 and asks me if I've followed up. And her tone suggested that I should have figured out to follow up on my own. WTF? Lady, you never asked me to follow up. Oh well. The boss man just went over to the house because she can't figure out how to open the electrical gate manually. I had a bit of a chuckle at that.
If I hadn't seen it with my own 2 little eyes I would NEVER have believed it. My movie site….it's beat out IMDb – the movie BIBLE. When you do a search for "the host english trailer" you get me in first and THEN IMDb. And it's not like this is some little movie no one's ever heard about either! This is the biggest box office draw in Korean history and a soon to be huge North American flick. I can't begin to tell you how exciting this is! To check out the search string for yourself….lookie here!
That's all the fun and excitement I have for now! I have a feeling a bunch of folks have the entire week of thanks to US thanksgiving…hope you're all resting and eating lots. Have a turkey leg for me ok? Happy Tuesday to the rest of us!
Turns out the problems I had on Friday were not internet related but rather computer related. I finally convinced the Dragon Lady that I needed a new PC and she has agreed that it's time. I ordered it today and it will arrive some time late this week or early next. I can't WAIT! It's a nice little machine that will not only handle the workload but comes bundled with a few extras! I seriously can't begin to tell you how exciting this is! It's like Christmas in November!!!
I did very little this weekend. I finally managed to hit the mall and I bought a couple of things for myself and for the house. I fell asleep on the couch and D left me there for the night (he says he tried to wake me up but I don't really buy it). I woke up on Sunday morning and my entire day was spent between the couch watching movies, the kitchen and the laundry room. I got very little done but it was nice to be inside when the trees looking like they were about to tip over outside.
On Friday night Dale over at Group42 helped me get set up with Drupal - a content management program. I'm going to test it out by using it to build my Bookcrossing site. I'm really looking forward to it. The program looks awesome!
That's it for now I guess. I'm at the library killing some time before the movie tonight and since I didn't get anything done at work today (other than work - GO FIGURE!), I'll do some of my blog related stuff now!
Hope everyone had a good weekend and Monday!
Keepin' it short today. Computer is all wacky wacky. Not sure if it's the PC itself or the internet connection but something is messed up...badly. I think it may have something to do with the howling winds and pounding rain but that's just a guess.
Anyway, it's been a frustrating morning and I can only hope that the rest of the day will calm down a bit but for now, here's today's KFF. I decided on something a bit different for this week. Last night I was on YouTube looking at something completely unrelated and clicking around I discovered this little video. Enjoy!
Is it just me or do short weeks sometimes feel like they're longer than regular weeks? Case in point, I'm more tired today than I've been of late. I haven't really done anything differently but I'm really feeling weary today. It may have something to do with the hurricane-like weather we've been having but I can't say for sure after all, I don't think my moods are connected to the weather…or are they?
I've been on a kick of children's books lately so to get back into the swing of things, I jumped into a 'bodice ripping' mystery. Once in a while, I feel the urge for these cheesy romances but I'm starting to think this one may not have been the best selection since I'm nearly 100 pages in and still no sex. WTF? On a related note, I'm always in search of good 'erotica'. I'm being serious. I have a collection of 'classics' and I've sort of become the go-to girl when friends are looking for this sort of stuff. If you know of any, let me know in or drop me a line. I need to add some new material to the collection.
I have to share a little secret with you but you can't tell anyone ok? I've been following the happenings with the Tom and Katie wedding. I haven't been searching the net for every tidbit of information but I am vaguely interested in the event. I actually quite like both of them as individuals and though the thought of them as a couple is a bit odd I can't say that I don't like it because I really think it's sweet. And honestly, look at this picture and tell me you don't think they're perfect for each other???
They look so darn happy together, in all their pictures together - even the candid ones. I say have a great wedding guys. Best wishes for a happy future together.
I know, I know. I said I'd strangle anyone that mentioned how close we are to Christmas but talking to my Bookcrossing buddies yesterday, someone brought up the fact that they were doing all of their shopping online. In the spirit of this, here are 10 sites I've scoped out with potential gifts for various folks. Maybe some may work for you…
- If you like your toys dirty, this could work well. Bad Ass Teddy Bears look cute but talk dirty. You can check them out at PrankPlace.com. For more selection including insulting parrots, Squirt the mini humping bulldong, and Spanky the humping monkey, check out BaronBobGifts.com.
- For those that prefer their laughs a bit cleaner, here's something fun. Talking Toy Presidents have hit the net! For $29.99 you can have a GI Joe type replica of George Dublya Bush complete with an assortment of sayings. To boot, they're not limited to Presidents. They also have Jesus, Moses and the Pope! Check them out at ToyPresidents.com .
- Gag gifts galore can be found at Stupid.com. Everything from Stupid Toys to Vintage Stupidity. They only ship in the States but they have some cool stuff!
- For Gifts that don’t' suck, check out WickedCoolStuff.com . They have tons of neat gifts from T-Shirts to Calendars.
- This is by far my favourite so far and a perfect gift for D (I'm thinking this is going to be the gift for him this year). You can now own an acre of land on the moon! At LunarLand.com you can buy acres of moon property complete with certificates of authenticity! Very cool.
- If you prefer stars to the moon, you can name a star too! Not as cheap but still very cool. You can check out all the pricing and packages and find links to international pages via StarRegistry.com.
- Sylvia at some point mentioned a place with $1 makeup! You could design your own gift basket for a girlfriend or sister! Check them out at EyesLipsFace.com.
- If you like things a little more serious, perhaps a reproduction of the Rosetta stone or of Aphrodite of Melos, MuseumStoreCompany.com is the place for you.
- For the artists in the family, the place to check out is the Louvre online shop. They ship internationally and all prices are in Euros. A little pricey for me but they have some cool stuff. Check them out at Musées de France. For closer to home, the MoMA also has an online store. They can be found at MoMAStore.org.
- For the sci-fi/fantasy fan, the best site on the net is certainly Master Replicas. These guys have Disney stuff, Star Wars, Star Trek and Lord of the Rings. Their items are amazing – most of it not exactly cheap but there are some reasonably priced items. Check them out at MasterReplicas.com.
I'm sure I don't have to tell any of you how wonderful it was to have as many days off as working days. It was SOOOO nice to have Monday off to revive yourself from the weekend.
Friday was excellent. D and I headed for the border just after 9AM. We had a short 20 minute wait in which I nearly gave myself a hernia. D started thinking up reasons why they wouldn't let us accross and the whole time I'm FREAKING OUT to the point I tell him to shut the fuck up (something I NEVER say to him) because he was giving me a major stomack ache. It occured to me when we reached stateside that the boarder guard had tried to screw me up and I didn't even notice. He asked me if I was Spanish and I said no and then he asked me how long I'd been in Canada. I didn't think anything of it at the time but when I was putting my ID away I noticed that all of that information was on my card. Tricky little bugger! He was just doing his job but I thought that was rather interesting....Another cool thing was that as soon as we crossed into Washington both D and I got text messages on our phone saying "Welcome to the USA! Your service is now being provided by Verizon Wireless" That was kinda cool. As for the shopping itself, it was frustrating and really unsuccessful. I couldn't find the plus size clothing in most places until I finally saw a sign in Spanish that cleared it all up. Hello?? How come none of the shops say Plus Sizes? The only one was Walmart. Go figure. Either way, I hit all the shops: Ross, Macy's, Kohl, TJ Max, Walmat, Target, KMart and whatever else was in the mall at Bellis Fair. I managed to find a wicked pair of rain shoes at Ross for $10 which was a steal of a deal. A nice dress top at TJ Max for $5 and some very nice pants at Walmart of all places. D and I brought back a whole bunch of other stuff including tons of pop (D LOVES his cherry pepsi), boxes of Capri Sun juice (they were 3 for $5!!!) and 1L bottles of Arizona Ice Tea (the best ice tea in the world as far as I'm concerned). On the way back I managed to convince D to hit Jack in the Box for dinner because I wanted to try the sourdough burger. It was yummy and I can now say I've to Jack in the Box. I just LOVE their commercials. See? They work for some morons people.
Saturday, D took me to the casino. We both put down $40 on the blackjack table. D was out in 20 mins but I played for nearly 3 hours and managed to make back his money and a little extra. In the end, I walked away from the table with $125 bucks which wasn't too bad considering it was a losing table. The guy next to me dropped $500 in 20 minutes and then walked away. Bad day for him! This is worth mentioning because I'm a very very bad gambler - and a nervous one to boot. As much as I love to play blackjack with D's uncle and to occasionally watch D, I never muster up the guts to play for myself but I had this bug and I WANTED to play so I did. Worked in my favour!
Sunday...I can't remember what I did Sunday so I'll skip it.
Monday was a relaxing with the GF's at the mall. OMG. If anyone else tells me there's 40 some odd days left to Christmas I'm going to strangle them. I don't want to think about it yet OK? OK??? Good.
Because I missed Friday's KFF and since I've spent an enormous amount of time recounting my adventures to the great US of A, here's a nice picture to get your mind off things on a Tuesday morning:
It was a very long night. I came home to find D and K drinking their little hearts out. I didn't manage shower and go to bed until 1:30 and then I decided that since I only had a few pages left on my book, I'd finish it and start fresh when I woke up. I didn't get to bed until after 2 and this morning I suffered for it. I tried to read but ended up sleeping through the commute. At least I woke myself up during the brisk walk to the office. It's a beautiful day today and though it's a bit colder than yesterday, the lack of rain is a godsent.
With K coming over the last couple of days, I haven't managed to do much of anything when I get home at night which as really put me behind schedule. I have yet to download or listen to my podcasts and I still haven't done the picture taking and downloading. On the other hand, this hardly matters considering my mounting excitement for Friday. I can't begin to tell you how excited I am. It's like I'm going on the biggest trip in years which, believe it or not, the drive to Bellingham will actually the farthest I've been from Vancouver in at least 4 years. Sad but true. I can't wait!
D has found out that he may be getting some backpay (the company owes him back wages to February of this year) on Friday. The problem is, it's sounding like it may only be going back a month. No one knows for sure and they won't know until tomorrow but it'll be interesting how that pans out. D has said that if he gets the money, we're staying in Seattle for the weekend. That would be AWESOME!!!!!! I'll keep you posted on the happenings.
I want to share with you the story of a the first "art work" I ever purchased. At my old job, we had a buy and sell page where people could post stuff for sale. There was a guy who was moving out of his apartment and he was looking to get rid of a bunch of stuff and one of the items caught my eye. It was a gorgeous print and the more I looked at it, the more I loved it. I offered to take it off his hands along with a framed mirror but last minute, he changed his mind on the painting. It haunted me and I searched high and low for it. Seriously, this print was nearly impossible to find. That Christmas, I was working at the mall and as an employee we were entitled to mall discounts including at a discount at one of the framing stores. I went in there and with some help and after looking through every art book they had, I finally spotted the print. With my discount, I paid $300 for the poster, canvas transfer and mounting. It was the best money I've ever spent. The picture is by a Spanish painter named Ramon Pujol and the print is Reflection on a Summer Morning. I'm thinking about having another one made, this time for my hallway and I need some help. Take a look at these and let me know what you think. I'm having a hard time deciding but I'm really liking Resolution and Inception.
It was a weird sort of weekend. I didn't mention this yesterday because I didn't think much of it but thinking aobut it last night I figured it wasn't really "typical". Sunday D and I went Downtown. I went with my dad to settle some stuff at the library and then I met up with D and K later. We met at Earls for drinks and appys (I was trying to find a picture of the place because it looks amazing. If you're ever in town...definately a place to walk by - warning: food is over priced and service is terrible!). Just as we were leaving I noticed a jacket on the floor and picked it up and tapped the gentleman on the shoulder and let him know and I placed it next to his arm. When I looked at him I nearly said something more. I was looking for a post because I was SURE I'd shared the story at some point but it looks like I haven't so I'll leave it for another day. Essentailly, the guy sitting there was the first guy I ever really went out with and liked. Also, the giver of my first "real" kiss. Wow. It was funny how in the span of 5 seconds I re-lived our entire relationship. It was a bit weird but the part I found most interesting was that I had no heart flutter, no second thoughts. It was re-assuring and kind of cool - if a bit strange.
Things got even a bit stranger when, after the movie, we're stading around waiting for K and I see Ms. Mac looking as fabulous as ever. She stopped and chatted for a few minutes. Boy it was nice to see her. I'll have to make a point of stopping by or giving her a call. I'd love to do coffee.
Then yesterday I was at a movie at the College and I bumped into Elsa, a girl I met during my second semester and we had an Anthropology class together. I wonder who I'm going to see today?
I've taken a few more pictures for the Photo Treasure Hunt meme but I haven't had a chance to upload them yet. Hopefully tonight!
Ugh. I didn’t get anything done this weekend. A meeting on Saturday afternoon left me exhausted in the evening. D and I managed to go out to do grocery shopping and then headed home for the night. Sunday we headed downtown to meet with a friend. That extended from early afternoon since, after the movie, we headed back to our place for dinner. It was nice but the entire weekend just seemed to fly and I'm just as tired today as I was on Friday.
We're being pounded by the Pineapple Express today. TONS of rain expected and howling winds. It's disgusting outside. I brought out "big red" (my water resistant winter jacket) today and the super size golf umbrella and managed to stay relatively dry during my commute until the walk from the Skytrain to the office. I found out that my boots are leaky. I'm not sitting here with wet feet. It's very uncomfortable; so much so I may still take my shoes off. This means that I now have something else to buy. I hate shoe shopping. I'm not sure what to do from now until I find the boots. It's supposed to rain like this until Wednesday! I may have to break down and look for boots during the week!
I also didn't manage to take any pictures for my Photo Hunt Meme. I'll try taking them tonight for tomorrow. Back to work now. I have a stack of papers to type up!
Well guys, it's been a busy week and it's going to end on a wet note. No time to spend talking about the weather today though. WAY too much stuff to cover.
Jumping right in. For those of you who have been working on the M&M picture that I posted about on Tuesday, all of the answers can be found here. Sylvia managed to complete the bloody thing in 15 minutes or something crazy like that. Congrats to everyone who tried it!
Yesterday Reuter's reported that Jackson Pollock's No. 5 (on the left) sold for a record breaking $140 million. I've been a fan of Pollock's since high school, the only one of the modern painters I really like but No. 5 is not my favourite painting. That is reserved for No. 30 (below). If I could find a good poster print of this I would buy it and have it canvas transferred. If anyone has spotted a good one either online or somewhere in a store, please let me know!
And for those that don't know much about Pollock and would like to learn more, there's a are some excellent resources here and here. For you visual folks, there's also a great and accurate 2000 biopic called Pollock directed and starring Ed Harris which is outstanding.
Another news story that caught my eye yesterday, this one is actually quite funny. This ties in to a trend that I started noticing late last year. For decades women have been victim to endless commercials urging us to use products and services to keep ourselves looking young. I've noticed that there are now a bunch of commercials that specifically target men as well (most notable to me is the Just for Men hair coloring commercial). Companies have discovered an untapped market in beauty supplies for men and they're zeroing in for the kill. Women have years of experience ignoring these commercials but the men are fresh faced and naïve. It's a bit sad but quite funny as well. 
Yesterday did me in. Now men can lift and separate too. There's some underwear out there that does just that 'cause you know, a dropped 'package' can be a real turn-off.
And finally, this week's KFF. I love this picture because it's one of the few were Keanu looks like he's smiling genuinely.
Lots of pictures in the post this week! Keep a look out of more next week! Still looking for questions for the Photo Treasure Hunt Meme, so keep them coming!
Have a great weekend everyone!
It's not as cold today but the rains have set in. It's a high of 5 this morning in downtown Vancouver. Not too bad but mix that with the wind and rain and it's a bloody disaster outside. To make matters worse, there was stalled train on the tracks this morning which slowed down my commute. I didn't get into the office until 9:10. Thankfully for cell phones, I managed to contact the boss lady in plenty of time and managed to avert any possible office disasters because you know if I'm not here to answer the phones right at 9 all hell is going to break loose! ;)
When I got home yesterday I went up to say hi to my mom who was still up (she has nasty insomnia as a result of depression). We started chatting and the next thing I know, it's 2AM. No joke, we talked for nearly 4 hours. I love my mom dearly. We're close, though things haven't always been this way, and the very thought of moving far away scares the crap out of me. I like the feeling of being able to yell up when I want to talk. We talked about everything from religion to movies. My mom isn't a formally educated woman (she has the Canadian equivalent of grade 9) but she's lived a life full of tests and experienced more in the 28 years she's been married than some people experience in their entire lives. She's a very smart, well read woman that I'm proud to call mom. I can't help but get sentimental when I talk or write about her. She's such an amazing woman.
I heard something very cool on the radio this morning. Two guys from Victoria have set out on a trek. They call it Hitch 50. The idea is that they're going to hitchhike to all 50 state capitals in 50 days of less. The catch is that they're not paying for any transportation. The boys are keeping a blog about their journey which you can view at Hitch50.com. It's a cool project with tons of links to pictures and to boot, they're local boys!
A few people around are participating in the National Novel Writing Month. Basically, you write 50,000 words in the month of November. I don't have the stamina for that but I'm going to do my own thing with this (kind of like Wiccachicky did). My sci-fi group has a writing challenge every few weeks. My goal is to actually participate by writing my story this month. It's very short, a total of 1,000 words but I'm going to take a stab at it! I'm even going to post a progress bar, just to keep myself motivated!
Finally, a little request for the readers. Yes you, sitting there reading. I know there's a couple of folks who follow this little highway to my brain who hardly, if ever, let me know they're out there. A few months back, wiccachicky and Amy posted a sort of photo diary called Photo Treasure Hunt Meme. The idea is that you, the reader, ask a question and I answer with a picture. So, starting Monday Nov. 6 I'm going to be posting answers to the questions so get off your tuff and do your thing people!! Ask away! And that means you too BIFFers and any other lurkers!
So this morning I chose to forgo vanity for warmth. I wore a bright red, my one and only, toque and I arrived at work headache free! It was soooooooo nice to get here and actually feel comfortable. I felt kinda ditsy in my head gear but I just don't care, I was way too comfy to care.
I've taken next Friday off! D and I are heading down to the states for a day of shopping. I'm hoping that between now and next week I can convince him that we should stay the night and come back Saturday night. That way, we could go down to Seattle and I'd finally have the opportunity to see the Star Trek museum (among other things). We'll see. As it stands now, we're going to Bellingham for a fun filled day of shopping. I'm REALLY excited!!!!!!
I've started looking at options for school in January. A few more sociology classes, a stats class and a math/science credit and I'll be ready for the transfer. I'm thinking that by January 08 I'll be nearing the completion of the longest bachelors in history. On other future planning related fronts, I'm thinking of starting a job search. I'm tired of this office and the uncertainty of not having full time work. It bothers me that I've been here almost 3 years, they've been telling me for the last 2 that they wanted to hire me and yet, I'm still temping. I wouldn't care too much except that as a temp, I'm not getting any of the added benefits like days off and vacations. I'm going to bring it up with the Dragon Lady at some point this month (if I can muster up the guts) and depending on her answer, I may be looking for somthing new for as soon as the new year. We'll see how things go.
I hope everyone has a good hump day! :)
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