Spooky Nootchies

Happy Halloween everybody!

I'm feeling 2 zillion percent better, and had a nice birthday, despite my plague. I went out and had a little bonfire...J got me some more Tank Girl comics...and today is Halloween. I love halloween...

Hope you all have a spooky day!
I'm waiting for little goblins to come to my door so I can pump them full of sugar and send them on their way :)

overly optimistic

Yeah, um, I thought I was on the mend, but yesterday was full on fever, chills and aches and sneezes. Not the most fun.

I must say though, I feel miles better today-back and arm aches are nearly gone for the first time all week, no more fever and I have some energy. J is doing much better too...he can look after me now. He went back to work today.

It's not what I had in mind for my birthday, but hopefully by tonight I'll feel a bit better. Being in bed is boring. When your goal for your birthday is to get fully dressed and have a beer in your house I think that's doable...I'm glad to see the light at the end of the tunnel. There are only so many James Bond movies you can watch on the couch before you get stir crazy...I'm still of the opinion that Golden Eye and Casino Royale are my favourites....

Here's to getting better. Cheers!

Mmmm...oatmeal bread.

Mmmmm. last night to cheer up my achy ass I made a loaf of bread in my new breadmaker. OK I put the stuff in it and then came back 4 hours later to scrummy bread...he heh. I love this little robot!

My Mum had one and I helped her figure out how to use it, and ended up making delicious bread and buns with her. Her friend had the same model she never used and sold it to me for cheapedy cheep. I figured it was worth a shot. Since getting home with it I've made the best kaiser buns ever and last night my first loaf of bread.

I got all ambitious and it still turned out. My grandma always made oatmeal bread and I was craving some. So I found a recipe from an old Black & Decker bread machine book and used it -lots of whole wheat flour and oats and some molasses and walnuts. YUM. Nice and soft and delicious. Not heavy at all - turned out quite nice actually. The top fell a bit so it doesn't *look* perfect but I had some last night with honey on it and it was divine. Today at lunch I scarfed some more with the last of the beet borscht my Mum-in-law made me.

Mmm...having a bread machine is a good thing! I just have to not eat bread all the time! Now I just need a good bread machine recipe book for lots of kinds of breads. Anyone got any ideas? You get very few with the machine and I want to make any and all breads! Next loaf will be potato bread I think.

Yummers.

And yes, I'm feeling better now. Still a bit achy and the odd cough but not nearly as dire as I'd worried about this morning. I think I will survive after all! :)

My butt aches. That is really wierd...

Wow...I think I've come down with a bit of what J has. Last night my arms were so sore...and all my muscles started to ache. They're better this morning, definitely, but man. Even my butt ached and my arms were rediculous, where the shots were administered were all sore. I'm starting to cough (boo) so after an important meeting I have at 10ish I believe I may just go home and try and sleep this off. I have nothing really critical the rest of today, and I'm thinking getting 2 immunizations sort of sidetracked my immune system and has made me weak enough to get a bit of whatever he has...hopefully just a bit.
J is very sick - I haven't seen him this sick in a long long time, poor guy...he sounded better this morning when I left, but the poor guy has been downing cough syrup and water and sleeping all day. I think I might do that before I get that bad...sort of cut it off at the pass so to speak. Here's hoping...

Boourns.

Both my arms are kind of sore

Yes - I have used the health care system to get both flu shots this morning. I am immunized now against the regular flu and H1N1. Yup, 1 in each arm. You see, I have asthma and flu is BAD for me. I get very ill. This was good for me.
Even though the H1N1 vaccine is not thoroughly enough tested (in my opinion) the risks of it do not outweigh me getting the flu...then pneumonia and bronchitis as I always do, thanks to my crappy lungs. I've never reacted to vaccinations before (other than a sore arm) so when I heard that I could get both vaccinations because I work in a hospital lab, I got in line stupidly early and got both my shots. And now I'm good to go.

Given that my husband is coming down with something suspiciously flu like I'm hoping I made it in on time :)

Thinking of getting the H1N1 vaccine? Here's a link to the product information from the company that makes it. Read up. Make an informed decision. The last 4 pages are patient info you'd get when you asked about it at your doctor. The other are all the possible info available to doctors....

Later day update: So very tired :) I'm not sure if it's being up a lot of the night listening to J cough or if it's from the vaccines. They normally make me tired. I'm looking forward to going home to bread and chili and a nap...

Creepy

Twiggy scares me....

Leaping Lemurs

I have a confession - I want a pet lemur.

This weekend J and I had a little mini getaway. It was fantastic. We had tickets to see Moby in Edmonton so we made a little romantic getaway out of it. Moby and his band were performing in the Edmonton Event Centre which is attached to West Ed Mall, so we decided to stay in a themed Polynesian room and have a fun weekend. And we did.

Fantastic! The concert was fantastic. Really. Mehee. I got to hear Moby say "thank you thank you thank you thank you" after a song. Squeee. He was very nice guy, performing with his band and two women with the most amazing voices singing lead vocals to most of his songs. Phenomenal pipes on these women. He played a bit of everything - even his old techno stuff! Meep! I got to hear Go live and jump around like a fool. They played a lot of my favourite songs....lots of energy and a real personal cozy feeling to it all. Fantastic show...Loved it. The Ed Event Centre is a great place to see a show - no matter where you are you can see the stage. I was about 5 feet from the stage and could see Moby and his band all very well. Not even the large drunken troll who took up residence near me in the crowd could dampen the show for me - it was great! His opening act, who was also one of his lead vocalists, was Kelli Scarr. She has a few of her tracks to download or free on her website - check her out. Her voice is amazing...

Then it was still a full weekend in a cool theme room with a ginormous hot tub shaped like a rock pool, a nice romantic dinner out, bangers and mash for breakfast (mmmm) and even Where the Wild Things Are in Imax. That movie is so full of imagination...by someone who had an imagination filled childhood. I have never read the book, but J has many times. We both enjoyed it.

West Ed mall is huge with lots of stuff to do and see. They even have lemurs there. You can watch them. Tee hee. Half monkey, half cat critters. Cute and hoppy and furry...and I want one please. Please?

Yes my friends...it was a wonderful weekend. :)
Hope you all had a great weekend too. I'm off to the lab. Things are afoot! :)

Dulldrum

Yesterday I got to hang out with my friend Heather all evening and yak and drink lime Coke and raid tombs. It was great...stayed up way too late and got caught up on life. I don't get to see her enough...
Today is gray and misty and boring...perhaps something interesting will happen soon.

Here's to that!
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Tiptoe through the painttray

Heh...the cats were apparently very curious about all the painting I did on the weekend. I ended up having to clip the paw fur of Gavin...he's wandered all around the painted stuff after I was done and managed to get it all over his paws. I figured it was fingerprints in the paint. Nope...Gavin prints.

The snow melted over the weekend and we're back to our regularly scheduled fall...kind of. There are still some leaves left on the trees and it's my favourite season, so I'm glad to get a little of it. I am pumped...it's fuzzy everything season. Fuzzy socks. Fuzzy hats. I broke out the micro-fleece sheets last night. They are so warm and cozy - like a giant fuzzy cocoon. :)

As a random odd link, here's a good one for you. In planning for emergency awareness and response, the University of Florida has included zombie awareness in their plans. Go here to see their written plans to respond to (*snort*) "zombie behavior spectrum disorder" or ZBSD as they so quaintly describe it. Good to know film scifi trends are trickling over into regular life. Now all we need are response plans for the coming apocalyptic robot hordes and we'll be all set.
Erm...I'll make sure I have my chainsaw ready and renew my zombie squad membership...just in case...
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My right hand is cold...

Once again I am the proud owner of one left hand glove.

I have an ingenious knack of losing 1 glove...always the right one...at least 20 times per winter.

10 days ago I bought a nice fuzzy pair of black gloves...and this morning I left one of them on the bus, for what will not be the first time this fall/winter. I take the right one off on the bus to fiddle with my iPod, open my coffee or what have you...and put it somewhere where I "for sure won't forget it"...and then usually every few weeks I do.

In the past I've resorted to buying lots of pairs of those stretchy micro gloves...they aren't all that warm, but if you lose one, they are uni-hand, so just grab another one and you are good to go...until you're down to just one again. Then you get some more. I splurged last time on a nice pair.

I should know better :)

Sometime this week it's back to a small collection of mini gloves. I have to stock up on them. My good warm winter knitted fleece lined gloves have an idiot string on them that goes thru my sleeves of my coat so I can't lose them. I am mocked mercilessly about this, but I haven't lost any of them yet! Heaven help me if the string breaks!

This weekend was a very busy and smoochfilled one.

Yes, let me just say that kissing a smooth faced man is really the way to go :) J has no mustache or beard and it's wonderful. I had...um...a lot of catching up to do. Heh.

And we got a lot done around the house. We both got up early both days and got to a list of chores we've had for ages: we reinstalled a pane of glass in the bedroom window that I broke painting, I cleaned the windows, we painted a box for J's light kit that Dad built and primed and painted the bookshelf Dad & J built at the lake last weekend. I hemmed 3 pairs of J's pants (which I've had ready to hem for only 6 months...heh), and I made homemade pizza dough and buns with the new breadmaker. Soooooooo gooooooood. Even if I never make a loaf of bread with it it was worth it just to make 15 of the most delicious big kaiser buns I've ever had. Yummers.

I made a serious dent in setting my craft room and I helped J install track lighting in the computer room and in our upstairs hallway and stairs. And half of it even works!

*sigh*

I'm not sure what is up with the one in the bedroom, but at least the one in the hallway works and you have NO IDEA how cool this is. 4 and a half years ago the fixture up there started acting up and then quit working. We didn't replace it, as we meant to put up track lighting when I painted...which (cough) we did over a year ago...and then after having the track lighting for a mere 6 months we have actually installed it sunday. Our hall is a zig zag so there was lots of cutting and drilling and crazy ladder hanging to install it but it all works except for a little endy bit, which I'm sure we can just swap out. I keep just going to the hall and turning the light on and looking at it and grinning like a nutter. I cannot reiterate how utterly cool it is to have a light in the hall. I'm a scaredy cat, and a tripper so having light on the hall and stairs is a good thing. It's frustrating that the light in the computer room isn't working, but we'll fiddle with it next time we have some time...I'm sure we'll figure it out eventually...

Sunday afternoon was fun too - I got together with my sis-in-laws and niece cutestuff and we made Halloween hfoamy mansion houses and crafted them up with paint and sparkles and fake blood and ghosts...lots of fun and a great reward for a busy weekend. Then J's Mum made us all manicotti for supper. Couldn't ask for a better day really.

I hope you all had a nice weekend.

Happy monday :)

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It's been a long wait

J shaves off his mustache today.

WOOHOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!

It's been over a year since he's had no beard and two weeks he's looked like Tom Selleck/Mario/"soup in a bag guy" from the sketch 35 degrees in Tampa.

Smoocherooonie :)

Still snowing

Helloooooooooooo....
Anyone out there??????

Buried in snow?
Feeling a little cold...honk if you're there, K? I'm a bit adrift and disconnected in the snow myself. I need more fall...

Bellydance class was cancelled last week due to snow (yeah I know...silly) but tonight I'm again excited that (barring a flash blizzard) it's on. I've got all my kit and I'm ready...again :) It's been a hectic week and I need to dance off some stress and take in some energy. There's a freedom I get from movement I can't quite explain...
I've had the Jesus Jones song Motion in my had all morning and it captures the edgy, twitchy feeling I've had since snow has come and the mornings have gotten dark:

"I've got to have motion, I get relief in motion
When I move I'll be fine.
Have to find the right speed to shake off what I don't need,
And leave it all behind.
Motion takes me...."

Scruffy headed nerfherders rejoice

Tee hee...
Wookiepedia

:)

It's a wawwy

I love my home town. I like living where people still speak up and have opinions...and act on them.

For some reason George Bush is booked to come here and speak next week at a lotsa $$ per seat banquet, and lotsa people here are angry about it. I'm not impressed...the man, in my opinion, did little to further America and a lot wrong with Iraq (including starting a war for greed and business and turning a blind eye to war crimes)... to top it all off, he is not someone I would call a good public speaker. This is the guy who can't pronounce nuclear. Who continued to read children's books when the twin towers collapsed...why would you pay $$ to hear him speak? I just don't get the appeal.
I suspect it will be a gathering of uber conservative rich business types who will pat each other's backs and applaud loudly...after all, if Bush can make it to the presidency, why can't they be great public figures too? In my mind all I can forsee the event as is a big business networking shmoozefest. Ech.

There is a rally against him on Wed, Oct 21 when he is scheduled to speak. Turns out a lot of people (myself included) don't like the fact that he is coming to speak here. They want him to be held accountable for what happened during his presidency. The night before his arrival and speeches in town there is a showing of "Taxi to the Dark Side" at the local library (a film that touches on America's attitude towards war crimes and torture). The day of, there will be a rally...I'm stuck at work so I can't be there, but I do hope there is a strong non-crazy showing of people to express what needs to be said. Maybe if enough level headed, average people speak up against corruption and bad leadership something will change.

Ya think?

Thankfulness

Sometimes you don't realise what you have until it's spread out before you.
This weekend I got to be with my family in one of my favourite places on earth. I got to walk in the snow with my handsome (mustached) husband, and relish in in our being together...still. I got to bake in the kitchen with my Mum. I got to watch J and Dad build a shelf for our house. I had supper with family and friends and visited with good food, good wine and fantastic conversation.
What struck me most of all was seeing how life can turn the tables on you and bring back joy. This weekend I got to witness joy and love...My Dad's friend Gavin, who lost his wife Shirley to cancer a few years ago, was at supper...and he was happy. He was laughing and smiling...and holding the hand of another old family friend. She lost her husband to cancer about 10 years ago...and over the past year she's helped him deal with his grief, because she could understand it...and oddly enough, they are now together. There is joy in their lives again. It makes me so grateful to see how life brings things together, and offers us things to be thankful for. To know that things go on, and life still happens and joy returns: Yes. I am thankful. :)

A beautiful rant...

"Windows is like the faint smell of piss in a subway: it's there, and there's nothing you can do about it. "

A quote from this amusing article...

Turkey for me Turkey for you...

Love to eat turkey 'cause it's good
Love to eat turkey like a good boy should...

Turkey lurkey doo and turkey lurkey dap
I eat that turkey then I take a nap...

Gobble goo and gobble gobble gickel
I wish turkey only cost a nickel...



Happy Thanksgiving everybody!

Strut your stuff on the floor

Tonight I learn basic floorwork and knee work at my tribal class. I have my new kneepads. I have my harem pants. And my hipscarf. And my sword.

Squeee.

siren song

I'm trying hard not to eat my muffins. I made gluten free muffins for my celiac sis-in-law (it's her birthday and I'll be seeing them for supper) and...well...they're staring at me.

The cranberries and walnuts are calling my name. It would be rude to eat someone else's gift muffins...so I'm going to have to go to the other lab and do a CHiP assay so I can't hear them.

Fingers in my ears!
*lalalalalalala*

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S'ok

Good...it was a misunderstanding.
I was hoping that a friend of mine wasn't able to be such a giant jerk...and turns out he isn't after all.
Good.
Ah. Better now...
This blog is where I go to vent so I don't stick my foot in my mouth before calming down...after a little tirade I could just call up my friend and suss it all out. Sorry you all end up reading my rants...but you have no idea the therapy bills you're saving me :)

No fair.

I'm a little pissed. OK more than a little.
Every year on my birthday for years now we have had a bonfire...birthday and halloween and bonfire and awesome. In my favourite firepit across the lake. Last year J and the crew taped their halloween episode there too. This year my birthday is actually on a friday - even better! I was going to start inviting people and begin planning it next week. I checked with the crew and some friends and they were all in for coming...I was starting to plan it all out.
Yeah...on facebook I just got an invite to the halloween birthday bonfire...but it's not mine. But yet it is mine. I was invited to this year's crew and host halloween birthday party there for them and 2 people on their show, on that day...and apparently I'm invited. How nice of them to invite me to my own bonfire, pretty much take it over and not mention my birthday at all (but 2 other people's, including the inviter) in the invite.
I know it's just an oversight and it'll be fun having the people there (I had invited them all anyways) but fuck me if I'm not slightly bitter about having my birthday thing taken over by someone else...
I feel like a 4 year old, but bah humbug and fucksticks galore.

Remembering Wicket

I'm a little mopey. I found out my friend's cat died yesterday.
Wicket was a incredibly fluffy cream coloured tub ball of a cat. He could shed more than any cat I have ever known...he was scared of the strangest things, and I will miss his little fur face when I visit. I used to keep an eye on him when Heather was gone for her weekly shifts at the mine lab, and I'd get to hang out and play "catch the thing" with him and let him shed all over me. He'd "help" us play Wii by sitting on the controllers and loved to sit in our laps when we watched movies and try and lick the potato chips when we weren't looking.
Wicket got diabetes a few months ago, and wasn't eating well, and was going to start needing insulin shots daily if his appetite didn't pick up. Because she wasn't home all the time from work and she didn't want to burden me to go out and check on him and maybe give him shots, she brought him out to her parents farm tohave her mom keep an eye on him...he seemed to perk up well and really liked the farm. He spent his time running around the farm and making buddies with the other mousers there...and still came up for daily skritches and laptime. Unfortunately, after initial improvement, he didn't get better...and so he's buried under the tree he liked to curl up under in the sun. It's nice to have somewhere to go to remember his plumpness...but sad to see him go.

Bye furball. We'll miss you :(

Ahhhh...I had the luck getting in to see Gogol Bordello last night at a steamy sold out show.
Gypsy punk insanity. It was a great show....crazy energy. Seeing these guys live is a great time.
And now back to regular everyday life. Pledge drive? Done. 15 hour day helping J shoot a Halloween episode at Camp Crystal Lake (jay jay jay jay son son son son)? Done.

5Km Breast Cancer Walk for the Cure? Done. So inspiring.

All finished off by the gypsy punk insanity that is Gogol Bordello. Jumping up and down to Start Wearing Purple was a great way to end off 2 insanely busy weeks... Plus J shaved his beard off for the pledge drive...the masses chose his new "look" and now I find myself married to Tom Selleck for 2 weeks.
Bizarre, amusing and slightly unsettling :)
(yes...photos to come)

Ahhhh :)

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Kids should play

Here's a recent fitness rant of mine...what do yo uthink?