It's my birthday today. This year more than any other this feels like just another day. D surprised me yesterday with a digital recorder. I've been looking at these for some time now because I'd like to start doing some more audio type posts but I was having trouble deciding between them all. Two criteria had to be met: 1) digital and PC compatible so that I can download the stuff, edit if necessary and upload and 2) external microphone jack. D picked a good one for me and we tested it last night. I'm looking forward to using it...probably tonight.

The Vancouver International Film Festival kicks off today with a full lineup of films although the "Opening Gala" isn't until tonight. I'm seeing a movie tonight and nearly every day from now until Oct. 13. I'm really looking forward to it and I'll be updating the review site daily with new reviews sometimes more than once a day so make sure you stay tuned.

Thanks to Dawn, I've finally switched over to an RSS feeder. Now I can catch up on everyone's blogs in record time. Seriously, what before took me 1 to 2 hours now takes 30 to 40 minutes. It's fantastic. I suggest you try it for yourself. I'm using Bloglines and love it.

Now on to something totally unrelated but much more interesting. I have a routine in the morning. I get off the skytrain downtown anywhere between 8:30 and 8:40 every morning and I walk down the same street to the office every day. I'm obviously not the only one with a routine because I see most of the same people every day. This week, I started seeing a new guy on the walk. My first impression was "Wow. There goes Fabio." This guy is betweem 45 and 55. Tall, slim build, sandy blond shoulder length hair and a killer tan. That first day he was wearing a white suit. At a quick glance, I couldn't help but smile at myself. How much more over the top could you get? But I've seen him every day this week and damn, the guy is growing on me. Everytime I see him he's a little more handsome. Weird how that works. I'm keeping an eye on his hands because I have a girlfriend that would *love* to know him. I may yet stop him. We'll see if I have the balls. I'll keep you posted on Fabio.

That's all for now I guess. I'm sorry the posting hasn't been regular this week. It's been a bit crazy in the office and I just haven't had time in the evenings to post but I've been reading! :) I'll be back tomorrow with the KFF.

The week didn't start off well but it's ending on a high note. I only hope that this continues into next week. The rain has managed to disappear for a few days and the weekend is looking like a good one. D and I are spending the day together tomorrow and then heading to the movies TOGETHER (trust me, this is a HUGE deal) for, prepare yourselves, Jackass 2. Truth is, I'm actually looking forward to this. If nothing else, it'll be funny to laugh at a bunch of dumb asses doing some really, really stupid stuff. Sunday is Word on the Street, a Canada wide free literary event. The Bookcrossing group always has a bit of a get together and we walk around checking out the sites so I'm looking forward to it.

I say watching a movie together is a huge deal because although we have lots in common, we can never decide on a movie to watch. Last weekend I did get him to sit through Metal: A Headbanger's Journey and he, grumbling the entire time, decided to sit with me thinking he'd watch for 20 mins and then leave but he liked it so much he saw the entire thing with me. But moments like this are few and far between. Usually, he won't even give it a chance. Oh well. I still love him.

I'm picking up my Film Festival tickets tonight. I've very, very excited. I've picked a number of interesting sounding movies. I just hope they're good!

Enjoy this week's KFF. Personally, I didn't realize Keanu was quite this built. Check out his arms! WOW.

Something happened the other week at Spain's Fashion Week. The folks over there decided that they'd had enough of bones walking around with a bunch of fabric draped on them so, they announced that 'models' who didn't meet the normal height-to-weight index as outlined by the World Health Organization, they couldn't set foot on the runway. This made headlines everywhere. I'm not sure why. It's not like this is a problem that has been hiding under a rug for decades and we only noticed now. The fashion industry is everywhere. We look at models in ads for everything from perfume to hair colour and yet, this is the first time someone has stepped out and said "You know what? These girls look sick." Hello? What the fuck was going on that it took 30 years for the industry to notice???

I was reading this article (which I lifted from a fellow blogger) and looking at the pictures, I just wanted to cry. I would post them here but I've decided that I will NOT participate in the spreading of this insanity. These girls don't even look human. Some of the designers are saying that yeah, they may be responsible. I think someone should smack them across the back of the head. If you want your clothes to hang on a stick rather than a woman, why not drape and pin the fabric on a mannequin or, even better, on a hanger with no body inside? As far as I'm concerned, seeing the clothes on a woman who looks like a sack of bones appeals very little to me. I thought the idea was to have a female shape underneath to show you how the pants sit, how the seams fit, how the folds drape over a woman's body outlining and accentuating curves. The truth is, a very small amount of the population will ever look the way a model does in the clothes and now that these girls are essentially not there, I just don't see what the point is.

What gets me even more riled up is that they're concerned about saying that the girls are too skinny. WTF? Folks walk around all the time bitching at how fat people are but you can't say the same thing to someone who's too skinny? Talk about discrimination! This disgusts me. I hadn't realized HOW MUCH this actually bugged me until I read that article. Fashion has never been something I really bought into (except for Gaultier, Ford and Galliano who – I argue – create art) and at this rate, I doubt I ever will. Thanks to fashion and the media for creating a large population of females with distorted ideas of self image. Thanks very much. I hope you're ready to shell out the time and bucks to re-educate girls on what beauty REALLY is.

Autum in Vancouver wouldn't be complete without rain. Unlike some years when we get a few weeks of dry yet cooler weather, this year the skies decided to open up and let it all out. The rain has been around for a few days now and, honestly, I'm ready for it to stop. You HEAR ME RAIN????? GO AWAY! It's not that I hate the rain because I actually find it quite refreshing. What bothers me is trying to lug all my shit around from home to work and back while trying to stay dry. I have yet to find the *perfect* bag that will allow for this. I WILL find it. I'm going to start looking this weekend.

The other thing I hate about the rain is that it always gives me a feeling of melancholy. I'm not necessarily depressed or unhappy but the drearyness and the wet make me kind of sad. But on a good note, I've been feeling pretty good lately. The little illness that was bothering me last week and over the weekend appears to be subsiding which is making me a very, very happy girl. My major concern now is trying to catch up on some reading for the Book Discussion next weekend.

So the results are in for the "Celebrity that makes you puke up a little in your mouth every time you see them." Paris Hilton won that challenge with a landslide 60%. The best comment about the whole thing was "Paris Hilton was redeemed in my eyes when South Park did a whole episode dedicated to the STUPID LITTLE CRACK WHORE." Thanks to Colleen Prime for that tidbit. It had me rolling on the floor.

I think today is going to be really quiet - YEY! - more time to catch up on a few things like writing a review for The Last Kiss which was really, really good (quite the writer eh?).

To finish off today, I'd like to share this picture with you:

This is a picture of Emperor Akihito and Empress Michiko of Japan. This was taken last week shortly after the birth of their first male grandchild. There are actually a couple of great tidbits of history about this family. To read more, you can check out Wikipedia. To learn WHY this grandchild is such a big deal, read this. The reason I posted the picture is because they're SOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO adorable! Seriously! Don't they look like two cute little dolls?

It was one of those not so great weekends. Saturday was just a BAD day. D and I went out for lunch and then a day of shopping. I was waiting outside for him to pay for lunch when he pokes his head out the door and tells me that his bank card isn't working. I go in, try to use mine and it doesn't work either. He walks over to the bank only to discover that the Credit Union interact system is down. So much for shopping. We did go to the mall for a couple of hours and walked around but it was saddly uneventful. He then dropped me off at the Skytrain so that I could head downtown to meet a few of the movie group folk for The Black Dhalia. I was already running late but I got to the theatre right at 7. I'm waiting in line to buy my ticket (because my bank card doesn't work) and when I finally get up to the front (10 minutes later) I notice that the movie isn't playing. I'm at the wrong theatre. A hussled my ass to the right theatre but was really late so I watched something else. After that, I met the girls for the laser show. Now, I'll be the first to say I'm not much of a drug user - never have been. I can drink nearly anyone under the table but I'm a light weight when it comes to the drugs. Maybe I should say featherweight because two puffs and I was feeling the effects. Yeah, I'm a cheap druggie. So sue me. Make fun all you'd like but I had a great time.

Sunday I had a hard time getting out of bed and when I finally rolled onto the couch, I refused to move. D did manage to get me out for a couple of hours to do some grocery shopping and that was about it. I'm still feeling a bit overly tired today but better than Friday. I'm off to have a good $11 nap tonight thanks to de Palma. Hopefully it won't be all that bad but all suggestions indicate that it IS that bad.

Last week I saw something which cracked me up. It's a list of annoying personalities. See the list for yourself:

I loved it so much, I decided to let the readers poll. Who's the ONE person that makes you ill????? If they're not on the list below, let me know in the comments. I'm curious.

It's been a great week for attracting new readers (hi folks...nice to have you on board the Marina boat) but that's been the only good thing this week. I've been feeling kinda gross all week and this morning I woke up feeling disgusting. My nose is plugged up and my head feels like the drain backed up into it. I'm having a hard time concentrating, I have a slow and quiet continuous pounding in my upper neck and I feel groggy (like I've had 10 too many beers). I was going to head home after work but I'm just not sure I'm up to going home and moping around so I'm still planning on attending the Friday geekout but we'll see. Anything could happen between now and 6PM.

The only other truly great joy I had today was picking the picture for the KFF (Keanu Friday Find for the new ones of the bunch). I've been saving this picture for either my birthday or a big holiday but today has been such a crappy day I needed something to cheer me up so, here we go. I don't usually post them this big but hey, it's my blog and I wanna see it BIG. Wiccachicky...you may want to be sitting for this one...

I hope everyone manages to have a great weekend. I'm planning to load myself up with drugs on Sunday if I'm still not feeling well. As for tomorrow...I must remain alert. I have a hot date with some girl friends, Pink Floyd, lasers and (if all goes well) some of BC's best MJ.