Someone else is on my soapbox woo woo!

Ran across this and feel I must repost...

My eternal battle with "fitness" and health magazines

I admit it -sometimes exercise can be dull. I enjoy most of what I do in my morning workouts, but when my knee flares up and the pool (grrr) still isn't open after repairs, I'm often delegated to 30 minutes on the exercise bike for some cardio. Some days it's all good. Often the news will be on the gym TV. Maybe a cooking show, the Sopranos or even (squee!) the Golden Girls.
Occasionally, like this morning, I'll really be bored and want something to keep me occupied while I pedal that doesn't involve talking to the creepy guy on the bike next to me and the TV's have all been reset to (sigh) sports. Then I dive into the gym's drawer of free "fitness" and "health" magazines to read while pedalling away. I find it makes other people uncomfortable if I spend my time watching them workout, so I figured it would be a decent entertainment.
The more I read them, the more I realize - boy was I wrong. I think my brain actually shrinks ever so slightly as I read them...I'd have probably been better off reading regular crap publications like Vanity Fair. At least I'd know what I was in for...

Over the last few months I have read a variety of "health" and "fitness" magazines and have concluded that 95% of them all spout the same crap:

-Exercises that supposedly sculpt the perfect abs/ass performed by models with minimal muscles
-How high intensity interval training is an exciting new concept that wil lchange my life (yes it's good, but seriously...I know already)
-How diets and diet pills are bad - but oh hey what's advertised on the next page? Grrrr
-insipid articles about how some famous person with a decent body works out and eat's healthy - "they're just like us!" *sigh*
-How I need to lose 10 Lbs.
-How I can lose 10 lbs. In a week. By eating *insert new wonder food here*
-Healthified recipes that might taste good...but most of them are just basics that you'd already know how to make if you cooked anything at all from scratch. And some of them would not taste good. I don't care if it's healthy -if you can't really cook to start with, don't be mucking with recipes to make them bland.
-"sexy" bedroom tips. This also amuses and saddens me. A - how is this fitness related? and B -Maybe I've just got it going on at home but really - do you need to tell people obvious things to do in bed? Is it not fun for you already (you should try harder >;) )? Apparently I am a freak for getting it on a lot as it appears they think most magazine readers are grasping for any mojo action. I've gotta tell you - nothing makes you feel more sexy than being healthy and in shape. I'm not kidding....just work your own mojo people :)
-Inspiring weight loss stories. OK this part isn't so bad. I do like to read about other people getting healthy. It's part of what I like about the Internet - the instant online support in getting healthy and losing weight. What bugs me is the photos. The attitude in most of the articles that this person was less before they were thin. Come on people...shame is never the proper instructional tool.

OK soap box away.
I'm just a bit annoyed at the state of the health and fitness media.
I find it increasingly difficult in my quest to be healthy to get good, true and accurate information on healthy living, weightlifting and exercise that isn't filled with "we're all girls together gosh golly gee" crap or that I'm somehow invalid if I am not stick thin, or can run an Iron Man.
Maybe it's the scientist thing. I don't like being pandered to or treated like a fluffy headed bint.
Just give me facts.

I am hopeful - I have a book by Rachel Cosgrove about weightlifting and fitness training that I got as a Xmas gift, that should give me some ideas and tips about where to go next with this whole fitness thing. It's been recommended to me by healthy fit people that I would be very happy emulating. I'm hoping it will give me some useful information and keep me from injuring myself.
As for the magazines? Well...lets just say I'm not going to get a subscription to anything anytime soon.

Living in the DMZ

The renos are going well, but our house is a gong show. The kitchen is in the living room...on and under the table. So I have set up another table in the middle of the living room to eat at, which is rather cluttered.
Sure George is now in the kitchen where he belongs (so...cool...), but after today the old stove will be in the corner of the living room until it's' picked up. Then there's the trail of sawdust and dust (that I can't ever get rid of and vacuum up...out out damned spot) going downstairs to where Dad has his tools and saw set up...and the laundry area that until tomorrow I haven't been able to do laundry in, and all the drywall patched areas that are dusty...

So no clothes, a gong show of a house...it's driving me slowly batty. If things aren't put back exactly where they were (ahem J) they disappear into the "stuff" apocalypse slowly taking over the house. Like our one cordless phone. And my glasses. Heh.

Don't get me wrong...the kitchen is maybe a week from being done. After the weekend it will be down to painting cupboards and putting the doors and handles on them. It looks better than I had imagined - and is exactly what I wanted. It's great. I'm grateful...just going a bit batty.

I do feel slightly like tossing a match in the living room and going out for coffee for a while though. Knowing the whole main level is covered in a fine layer of dust and that I will have to clean it ALL (even the damn blinds) is making me somewhat tetchy.

I will persevere though. Hopefully by the end of February I will have my house back.
AND I went to bed early last night and got 10 hours of uninterrupted sleep. LOVE that.
I just keep reminding myself - soon it will be AWESOME :)

Kids should play

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

Take a picture it'll last longer...

While away at Shambhala (which I still need to post about...I know...) some asshat stole my little backpack which had (among other things) my camera and gorilla pod in it. Annoying. You don't realise how much you use a camera until you don't have one.

Now my old camera (Canon Powershot A80) was about 7 years old and quite big and was sucking batteries like a sucky battery demon...so we'd been thinking about getting a new camera for next year. It was a good little camera, but it's days were numbered. This sort of pushed things up a bit. We've done a lot of web snooping and found that the Panasonic DMC-TS1D is going to be our new camera friend. The Canon version of this (D10) was good, but rather large and potato shaped...not really a pocket camera. It was neck in neck with the one we've chosen:
The Panasonic DMC-TS1 is much smaller than our old camera, it can record 2 kinds of video and takes photos at 12.1 megapixels. It is antishake, droppable and dustproof and waterproof to 3 metres (ie. me proof). It has a good wide angled lens, lots of features that even I can use...AND it comes in orange. I like. It is a bit more pricey than I'd initially hoped, but luckily we have been saving for this for a while, so we won't get too beat up about it. I will pay a bit more for quality and getting exactly what I want in a camera. It should do us another 7 or 8 years I'm sure. With any luck we can pick one up this weekend...we have to see if anyone local has one in stock. I can't wait to play with it. :)
I will post a nerdy little product review once I've gotten my mittens on it :)


Side Rant: Missing the "Positive" Consumer Experience: I've found lately that a lot of stores list an item but it's not actually in the store - that you can "special order" it in...which usually takes at least a week...and then is often backordered taking up to a month more. I know it is impossible to stock all things...but this is why mega stores bother me so much. Smaller specialized stores will be able to carry stock of specific things...I don't need to be able to buy a toilet and shoes while purchasing a can of soup. I can go to multiple locations. This is becoming more and more common...very annoying. The big box mall stores popping up (even here) all look the same. There is no push for quality...just quantity. And buyer beware. Even with the tiles I specially ordered to reno our kitchen, after the 2-3 week delivery period I got a call saying they'll likely be another month. I've made trips across town to stores to get other things I like only to be told I was misinformed or that I'd have to come back some other time or that they would be longer to arrive. People who work in some departments at hardware stores who know nothing about what they are selling.... I DO try to purchase locally from companies that respect and honour the customer and ideas like quality and customer service...but it is getting harder to see those things in life. Are you finding this too?

Anyways...enough of that.
Hope you all have a nice weekend. I know I will :)

I can haz lobotomy?

I spent ALL evening yesterday and some of the night (well OK that was just my macbook pro) trying to take video recorded on a minidvd camera and put 2 halves of our bellydance recital rehearsal together onto 1 DVD. Simple you would think...but no. All the video editing software we have, ranging from iMovie all the way up to Final Cut cannot take in VideoTS folders or the VOB files in them. Oh no. They must be converted first...into DV or MPEG-4 or some other format. The camera only burns the disc in this format. Because of this it won't talk to my Mac to even import them that way by USB/Firewire.
Yet I tried...oh I tried. I took the DVD files and tried to convert them. I used VLC. I used MPEG Streamclip. I used Handbrake...and consistently, I either got audio and video that are out of sync (and too tricky to match up as it isn't images or mouths, just dancing), or audio and video where chunks of audio are just missing for no damn good reason. I even tried converting just pieces of it...just the 4-5 minute dance bits...still no dice. Lack of sync.
All OUR gear is compatible with Macs and can input quickly and easily...but (surprise surprise) given our luck, the cameras J uses to shoot are broken. That is why I borrowed this one.
It appears that all our kit is in kahoots...even our DVD player with a harddrive is interfering...I thought I'd just input them into that and burn both video pieces on to 1 DVD that way...but oh no. Nonononono. It (because of my curse) will no longer burn DVDs. Just cuz. This is a new thing. (It made me yell GAH) I will say, that am pleased with all my laptop can do...but without the video in proper format, I can't combine the two files or work with them in Final Cut or iMovie.
Most of the people in my class are not computer savvy enough (some don't have a computer...) so they need DVDs they can just pop into their DVD player. Soooo...2 DVDs it is.

Oh great pulsating brain that rules the galaxy...you win again.
Curse you and your little dog too...

Much Music's Top 10 gyrations, er, I mean songs...

While feeling sicko I watched some TV. Usually I don't and I've got other stuff to do, but after a few days you need something to entertain you when you feel too drugged up on Nyquil to read a book.

One thing I watched, out of curiosity, was the Much Music countdown...you know, to see what the current greater sheepherd of the world is up to. I caught the the last top 6 "songs" of the top 10 countdown. Sadly, all but one were insipid dance tracks with no creativity or quality to them...sure if you were somewhat drunk and wanted to shake your ass at club they might do in a pinch, but to just listen to? Meh. And the lyrics? Quality lines like "I'll take him out and make him hard" and "I'm huffin with my muffin"...who writes this shit?

What really got me though, was the videos. Soft porn anyone?
Point in case: the "dancing". Maybe it's because I've been doing a lot of bellydancing lately - but you can be sexy without looking like a burlesque show. You can do it with style, and have fun dancing. Yet, looking at these videos, honestly, I've seen a few burlesque shows with more class. Lots of pleather, tight 80s kinda costumes, with boobs all over and dry humping of the air, cars and the occasional boy toy plopped in the video for increased groping factor (I recall Justin Timberlake was one of them-he had a shower in the desert before making out with his girl on her car by their trailer...I know. Wierd.). Even a bit of an orgy in one of the videos.
Um...hello? You're not selling the music here...you're selling sex. Nothing new really, but seriously. Give it a rest. All that dry humping must be exhausting... With the whole voice pitch correction thing, you don't even need to know how to sing anymore, so work out some real dance moves. Work it...and no, just gyrating and humping the air don't count as dancing. Boob shaking and hip grinding is not dancing...

Let me say this - I am definitely NOT a prude. I'm all for sexy...when it suits. I just got to thinking, how do young people cope with all this and figure out who they are? I ask those of you with young girls - how the hell do you bring up a girl to be self respecting and not buy into all that crap? Is it just me or has woman's lib tipped far over into "freedom to be a skank, because I choose to be"?

Bah!
Where are my pills?
It's cold in here. Someone get me my afghan and mywalker.
Time for my nap...

But you ARE special - we thought of you 23rd!

I had a few simple New Year's resolutions this year:
-listen to my body and try to give it what it needs, and not push it too far
-eat as little processed food as possible
-exercise a minimum of 3 times a week
-Stand up for myself more and make sure that I give myself the respect and consideration I give others.

The last one will be a challenge.
Being a bit passive aggressive, I tend to put others first. I don't always know what I like, just more what I don't like, so unless I dislike something, I'll usually go happily along with the flow. The problem comes when I bump up against others who either indirectly or directly know they can bully me into doing something and try to do so. I used to just give in and then hold grudges or get frustrated at myself for being a wimp, and occasionally blow up when it went too far. I am not sure how conscious others are when they do this. What I do know is that I have to be stronger...when people do push too far or hurt my feelings I have to let them know, even if they don't like it. It's a scary concept for me, but it's something I need to start doing more. And I can't expect them to read my mind...

This has, oddly enough, come up in life already...last night in fact. Thanks to my Mum-in-law, who is notorious for doing this.
Needless to say I'm a bit annoyed at the moment and have to vent.
If you aren't in to it, go have a coffee. I understand. :)

My sister in law just had a beautiful baby last month, and now that Christmas is over, should have a baby shower thrown for her. My other sis-in-law and I have been told we will be putting it on (yup, not asked-told)...a bit annoying to be told what to do at 35, but it should be fun, so we ignored that, and put things in perspective to do the right thing...and we'll do it the way the sis-in-law would want it to be.
Last night tho, I got more annoyed, as it got even more complicated. I received a call from the sis-in-law asking me if a date a few weeks from now would work as the date. "Absolutely not" I replied, as I have bellydance class that night and also and don't even have the car as J has to work that evening, so getting to the loaction out of town would be tricky -I would not even have a way to get there. I suggested many other dates as options. I then received a call back (again not from the mum-in-law) saying that "oh actually, turns out the mom in law has already called 22 other people about it being that night", and she wanted me to "just" cancel my class and find a ride out of town and plan the party...
At first I grumbled and then acquiesced, and sis-in-law and I talked about this and figured out a way to make it work - we're kind of used to this sort of thing happening to us, and figured we'd make the best of it. After all it's a baby shower - this is a big deal for them. We will rock the party.

Then, I hung up and talked with J and fumed...as the woman does this often. Later, I called the Mum-in-law back and asked her to reschedule if she could and mentioned that if she had merely asked *before* calling 23 other people it would be simple to change...to try and let her know that my feelings were hurt...but in the light of day, I've decided that for my sister-in-law, I'll just suck it up and jump thru all the hoops and make the party happen (and miss a bellydance lesson and work out a ride in and back...grrrr). I will, however, have a long chat with the mum-in-law this morning to make sure she understands why I am so annoyed, that she she does this to us a lot, and that perhaps we'd be more apt to visit or be involved in family events if we felt like it mattered that we were there. If it was something for her, I likely wouldn't show up and send a gift with regrets, but the sis-in-law had nothing to do with it really, and these things that only happen once are things new mom's remember and I'm not going to be turned into the "bad selfish person who couldn't put her life aside for just one evening and made everyone else change things for her". Even tho (dammit) I've actually done nothing at all wrong.

Yup I am still mad...but nothing can be done about it now except ask for a little more respect and consideration next time.

Maybe I'll move up the ladder to the top 10 next time.
Oh to dream...

ADDENDUM:

Whattaya know? Being honest and open with people does work. My mum-in-law was very good about it and said she had made a few calls and if it was OK they'd move the date back 1 day. No guilt. An apology and no problems...huh. Good. A positive thing.... I'll have to stick with this stand up for me thing...:)

An open letter to Butterick

Hi there,

Sappy seamstress here. I just wanted to ask you a question about your "easy to sew, quick and simple" line of sewing patterns. I think you may have the wrong ideas in mind. Do you have the same dictionary I do? Let me check it:

easy  [ee-zee] : not hard or difficult; requiring no great labor or effort.

simple [sim-puhl]: 1. easy to understand, deal with, use. 2. not elaborate or artificial; plain.

I don't think these words apply to all suchpatterns. Take, for example, the pattern that I am currently sewing: not only is all the info that you need to buy the fabric on the INSIDE of the pattern bag, but you blatantly misdirect people in the inner instructions. Once they decipher what they need to buy to sew the pattern and gleefully try to sew the damn things...they get annoyed...repeatedly.
My case in point: you state at the start of the pattern instructions that "seams are 5/8" unless otherwise stated" and then have ALL the pieces in the entire pattern state a different seam width on them? Why? My favourite so far is the 30" zipper you said I needed, with the pattern instructions saying it"may need to be shortened". Seeing as the entire bunting bag is only 26" long I'd agree! And the zipper was fun, as altho it said it is a 1/4" seam for installing the zipper, it REALLY is 5/8" to put the zipper in properly, which you can't really tell from anywhere except a badly drawn diagram, and a cryptic comment at the end of the pattern. For me, so far, this pattern has involved lots of squinting and huffing and muttering to get that right. Since all the pieces are really really small, there isn't much room for correction. This is a gift, not a macaroni picture. I want to make it look good!

Work with me here. I wish to make cute little things for cute little people. If it doesn't work out I'm making a hat out of it, and you will have to rest in the knowledge that some cute little baby will have no bunting bag...only coal. How could you do that to a poor little baby? If a novice tried this one it would already be a hat...a really ugly hat with a overly long long zipper hanging off of it for no damn good reason.

I am an experienced sewer and you've annoyed me. Rest assured I will think twice before I tread anywhere *near* your "difficult/advanced" patterns, let I combust in a ball of flame fuming over more completely random pattern instructions.

A little more care and attention please.

In stitches,

Geo

My eyes! They burn!

I'm pretty much prepped for priming and painting now...I'd do more, but I'm beginning to think "what's the point?"
Why am I so cynical?
Well, the painters of the room before me did a shit job of patching, filling holes or even trying to remove tape or other stuff from the walls...the perfectionist in me is cringing at it all. There's (mercifully) only 10 nail holes to fill, but I'm not trying very hard...there are a zillion *under* the paint glossed over and lumpy...and whoever put the window in was a twit. Honestly. A monkey with a hangover could have done smoother mudding and sanding. I take pride in my renos...having to settle is pissing me off. But it's just not worth the pain int he assness of it all to make it more perfect. I'm kiddingmyself if I don'tadmit that I will likely try and fix a few of the holes tomorrow when we pick up a bit of polyfilla with the paint, but it would take a bucket of filler and more time than I care to spend to fix it to my standards...

*sigh*

Oh well...The room is clean, and the holes *I* can fill are filled...I've tried to sand the worst of it, and tomorrow I'll begin the priming.
Oh the priming...have a gander at what I have to paint over.
Go on...feast your eyes.
See why I'm a bit cynical at the moment?

Eez bright...no?
Of course I'm going for bright lime green with white trim, so the wall should be OK...it's the trim that will be a bit of work.
I'm taking bets as to how many coats of primer...I say 2. Anyone else care to guess??

On the bright side (and on a totally other topic - since I have the camera out)...the cats seem to like their early christmas gift. A place for them to relax...and scratch instead of the furniture.


So far so good...

Well whaddaya know...

Hmmm...apparently optimism and hope do still exist on American soil.

I stayed up after class last night to watch the polls roll in and hear the speeches. McCain and Obama were both gracious and kind, but what really impressed me was seeing the lines of voters...the polar opposite of our Canadian election a few weeks ago. It really filled me with emotion to see so many different people from so many walks of life caring about their country...feeling like maybe there was a chance they could fix things... to see individuals feel like their voice counted and that they were a part of making their country better...it honestly brought tears to my eyes. It was inspiring to hear the end of Obama's speech and know he really realises what he's in for...that he is inspiring his whole country to change. Hearing him ask everyone to help...the very fact that his motto for the campaign was "yes we can" is a fundamental change in attitude for the American public.
My beef about modern man is his ability to isolate himself and put himself first. If we have any hope for our future and little ones like my new niece Zoe, there has to be a shift in attitude...a return to a sense of community and doing things for the greater good. We can't hole ourselves up and look after number one and hope it will get better...we did that. Look where it got us? Greed and selfishness built up faulty loans that fed our greed and resulted in the world economy falling to it's knees. We're all falling together...and I really believe that unless the whole world bands together to try and address our future we will fail. We have seen first hand what greed and selfish oppression gets us. We have to learn from our mistakes or we will burn like Rome, and those we have failed will delight in our fall...dooming themselves in the process.

In the past I heard songs like "the spark that bled" and would think "why don't we do things differently? When did apathy and the hunt fro an impossible selfish life become the accepted way to live? How did we become so resigned to things being a different way?"

I accidentally touched my head and noticed that I had been bleeding
For how long I didn't know
What was this, I thought, that struck me?
What kind of weapons have they got?
The softest bullet ever shot
I stood up and I said, yeah!
I stood up and I said, yeah!
I stood up and I said, hey! Yeah!
From this moment on blaring like a trumpet
Coming from above us and somewhere below
The confidence of knowing descending to relieve us of the struggle to believe it's so
I stood up and I said, yeah!
I spoke up and I said, hey!
I stood up and I said, hey! Yeah!
And it seemed to cause a chain reaction
It had momentum, it was gaining traction
It was all the rage, it was all the fashion
The outreached hands had resigned themselves to holding onto something that they never had...and that's too bad
'Cause in reality there was no reaction
(The spark that bled - Flaming Lips)

Like the 60s, there seems to be a resurgence in the need and desire for change - An unjust war on foreign soil...a younger generation questioning why thing are the way they are when they only benefit some. There is a whole generation coming up who've seen the bullshit of the baby boomer era and they want something different. My generation just sort of whined about how sucky it was and grunged our way into electronic distractions, expecting others to do the work for us.

This election gives me hope seeing the desire for change come up from a new generation and spreading out into the general population. What was a dream of the young and innocently optimistic has spread to the rest of us.

I feel we are all the better for it. I hope this will carry forward and everyone will feel the responsibility to work at change.

I sincerely believe this will not be a sound and fury signifying nothing. When people unite for a common cause and put each other before themselves, things will change. We may not *have* more, but we will be united. We will care for each other and the respect and dignity that will arise will make our lives and our communities better.

I have to believe this...it's how I live my life. I'm inspired to think that maybe, just maybe, other people think the same thing...and maybe it *will* get better...

Sometimes it's hard to be a woman...

Any respect I had for Palin, McCain's token female running mate in the US election, is waning after reading that she is pushing to have evolution and creationism both taught in schools as one of her election statements. I have to ask: Haven't we gotten past this to more important issues of state in election time?
The US has a lot more problems at the moment than a science/church pissing contest over the origin of the species. Let's hold up the whole separation of church and state and move on with governing a country in a humane and fair way. Unless we're going to acknowledge all religions in the US and let them all have equal say, leave it alone. Teach taxonomy and leave the rest out until people go to University and let them figure out what they think from there...

Maybe focus on *real* issues in the election. Like, oh, I don't know...the economic collapse of a nation? Feeding and clothing all of your people and allowing them to live a decent life? Removing corporate greed from your White House and allowing the country to look after itself and the environment with prudent dignity?

I would like to speak for the entire female gender in saying: A hearty boo to Palin, and state that really, although she *is* technically one of us, please don't judge us all by her actions. Can we assign her some "other" category? Give her some sort of tattoo, saying "warning contents are not representative and may have settled during shipping"?

I had such hopes that the first female politician let anywhere near the White House would be anything other than this...Hillary I could handle. But this?

*sigh*

And here I was so pleased last night, gloating about how a woman would be better in office, after reading our local Conservative MP's mailout to us that was his usual rantish, bigoted, female insulting and pretty much inane self...with comments like how he wants to "stop women being forced into abortions" and "halt the restrictive and hurtful human rights commissions and committees" from getting in the way of "good people" doing the "right" things. In the past he's ranted about the terrible natives who abuse our social programs and are taking advantage of our handouts, and how women are not being allowed to be traditional (??) and that liberals and NDPs are attacking family values. I keep wondering why he gets reelected over and over...but then I know I live in a predominantly religious right wing riding, where lots of small town people will vote conservative just to vote conservative regardless of who is on the ticket. I cannot, on good conscience, support this guy. A pigs bladder on a stick would be better some days, I think. He is a racist illspoken man who has not done anything helpful for the greater good in my riding other than to support the status quo.

And again...I am baffled why people vote conservative for such a leader. I understand wanting family values...wanting someone who isn't scary and won't challenge your way of life or thinking. Someone who looks after "what's right"? But how is that concept uniquely conservative? And why is liberalism so bad? Why are people so afraid of new thoughts, cultures and ideas? To me, if the person in the running in your area was a good person with a lot of well spoken ideas then pick him/her, regardless of his political party. Pick someone who will stand up for their principles, whatever they are, and make sure your riding's needs and opinions are held up in government. Isn't that the whole point of voting?
Do I want Maurice Vellacott to be king asshat of Meewasin Saskatoon riding again? Hells no.
I am not exaggerating when I say that altho I am certain he is a nice, decent man, he has also proven himself in the past to be overly biased in christian religious issues and a racist by his actions and statements.
We have to move forward...

And so now I can't be proud of men or a women in politics...
Perhaps I shall use my lab to create a new 3rd gender...or (shudder) go into politics.
OR (I'm liking this 3rd option more and more the more I think about it) create a new race of political undead to run in the next election...hell why not? I can see it now: an undead Trudeau for Prime Minister in 2012! Bring back the great leaders of the past to Canada!

Um...yeah.
Lunch break's over.
Bye.

Skanks anonymous

Lately I keep seeing more and more of this, but this morning I've seen things that have made me decide that the summer trend for Saskatoon college women is...well...the "just rolled out of bed whore" look. Is this happening in your neck of the woods too?
Usually I see the odd thing that raises an eyebrow here at work...I'm not a prude, but there is a level of body coverage I tend to adhere to at work or school - no bare belly or lingerie confusable items. This morning at the bus stop there was a cute plump girl waiting for her bus and I looked over and started to giggle...and then felt a bit bad...for her. Honestly - she was wearing 4 inch silver heels, low cut (ass crack revealing) long dress shorts with a stomach bearing (I kid you not) mesh black corset. A barely covering her boobage sort of deal...and no shirt. Just that. Even going out to a club in a shag me now sort of mood, I can't imagine wearing such a thing...she looked horribly tacky. It was not sexy. It didn't make her look fat or weird it was just so very very wrong for 7 AM on a monday morning I wanted to pull her aside and give her a little chat about not putting it all out there for the wolves to see. I've accepted the fact that I no longer get all the current styles (which are currently looking suspiciously more and more like what I wore in high school), but lately I'm getting annoyed at the lack of class in what people are wearing. Maybe it's just where I live in buttcrack Saskatchwan but there is an annoying trend as of late to not even bother to wear proper bras and such under things -is it too much trouble to wear a strapless bra? Is it OK to look like you didn't bother to look in the mirror to check if bits of you or your gitch are plopping out around your clothes? Sigh...when *I'm* wondering about a fashion thing, you have to know it's an issue...

Jeebus people, after mumbling to myself about this all morning, I have to say something:

Ladies! Have some pride!
You don't have to dress like a mid-class whore to be sexy.
Sexiness is not equivalent to the amount of flesh you are showing-
Sexy is an attitude - so work it...
and put some clothes on dammit!

Sincerely,
Your grandmother Geo.

Sarcasm keeps me going

Doing 3 days work in one day is AWESOME.
Yup, I love no breaks and a 5 minute lunch break of snarfing down cereal.
Lets just say when people found out I'd be off work for a week they came up with a bunch of things that "had" to be done before I left. They are cool projects but man...moderation would be nice.

Boourns.

Oh well, at least after this I'm off a week to paint the living room...s'nice.
I got to do VTR on J's show last night which was fun...and I think I'm getting a laptop...and it's Magnus's birthday today...so it's a great excuse to make a blueberry pie.
Yum.
Only 3 more hours til home...I should get back at it for the final push.

Ah...thinking about that, it's not so bad :)

Safety is Swell

I'm currently very proud to live where I do.
I just finished a gawdawfully long course on Occupational Health and Safety, the safety regulations and all that good stuff so I can be our safety dudette extraordinaire and be on our college OHS committee, inspecting and handling safety complaints and being an all round safety do gooder. I'm already the safety nut around here for our labs and the one who trains everyone in lab safety, so I thought I'd make it official (plus, it's always the people (*cough* me *cough*) with the ability to hurt themselves on cotton balls and rubber tubing that end up the safety nuts...). It doesn't hurt that it gives me a bit more clout when have I tell off the grad students and lab staff for doing unsafe stuff in the labs ("no while working with concentrated acid you can't wear shorts and sandals...").

Our province has always been a labour province, an NDP province mostly...we pioneered unions and health care, sent Tommy Douglas to the Prime Minister's chair in Ottawa and were the province that pioneered the occupational safety acts. *We* were the template for the rest of the country - the first to say "no you don't have to do that if it's unsafe. And you can't be discriminated against for refusing". To say that your boss can't just make you do unsafe things or mistreat you for profit...and we have a giant book of regulations to say when they have to do to keep you safe at work to show for it. I've spent days learning the regulations about things and I'm really proud, at the moment, to know we in Saskatchewan are the ones who have helped lay out how important it is to treat each other with respect and dignity. To put people before profit and respect our fellow man in our daily lives. I could almost hug a wheat bale to prove it...but they're pokey and itchy and full of bugs and I really should get back to work. Currently, I could rant about how our new provincial conservative government is trying to destroy our social programs, affordable housing and lifestyles, union's right to strike and our worker respect in as short a time as they possibly can in pursuit of profit and being a "have province", but noone wants a provincial political rant on a friday morning. Suffice it to say our current prov. government are asshats, but we still live in a great place...and we'll move on.

So yeah.
Saskatchewan is great.
It's sunny, the pelicans are on the river and it's a beautiful friday so far.
Groovy.

An open letter to the giant brain that pulsates at the centre of the universe

OK.
I don't know what sort of lesson you want to teach me. Is it patience?
Humility?
How to not freak out at your workplace over cosmic intervention?
To prioritize extremely expensive samples and chemicals in order of expendability?
How to be utterly useless ina a room full of equipment and resource?

I now have all the reagents I need to do a sh*tload of work in 3 days on a timed schedule and find that, lo and behold, I am totally screwed timewise as the actual instrument I use to do this work has suddenly died with no warning in a way that requires a repairman to come and fix it - with me already having prepared the slides and reagents...and no time for overtime (due to the pledge shifts), yet needing to get the work done, but not having the ability to do so physically without the machine. And I can't let this stuff go to waste.
*sigh* What's a labrat to do?

Was I too harsh with the courier prople? Am I getting too good at my job?
WHAT?
WHAT THE HELL DO YOU WANT FROM ME?

I'm finally doing research that *matters* - that could actually positively impact patient's lives and help fight cancer and all I can do is stare at all the stuff I have, put it in a big pile and do nothing but sit on my hands, see things spoil while I wait for a guy to (hopefully) fix my machine tomorrow. Maybe. And then I'm hopelessly behind...

If anyone out there has a cushy job petting puppies or smelling flowers can I at least trade with them for a while? I need a break...

*cough*
Um...Hope I didn't offend you Mr. Brain sir. I've just had enough of all this and don't know what else to say.

Gibberingly yours with great humility,
Geo.

PS - Fucksticks

Open letter to Fedex

In the future, when planning elaborate and complicated labwork that all depends on a single perishable and very valuable item being delivered to me by you, I will no longer rely on you to deliver something to me as promised on time. I will not take your delivery dates as accurate, but will know them for what they are: random guesses based on the ways of the entrails of mice and the rolling of bones. I will also not expect you to apologise or in any way expidite my express package, or even offer any explanation as to why you and the customs brokerage team seem to be trapped in a dark room together playing Marco Polo while trying to clear my package at the border.

In the future I will fend for myself, and survive in my wilderness by my own skills, borrowing from my kind neighbors to make ends meet and still succeed despite you. Were it not for a huge horseshoe I keep tucked safely up my bottom for such occasions, and the generosity of other researchers who just happen to have the same obscure product that I need I would be royally and utterly screwed.

You nearly f*cked up my entire week's work, you wankers.

I hope you drop your ice cream on the sidewalk in the sun.

Most sincerely,
Geo

It's coming from INSIDE THE HOUSE!

Herm.
Not to whine, but I’m feeling a bit overwhelmed by my home as of late.

With summer holidays and being busy and not home most weekends and a lot of evenings, all the chorey things have piled up and the house, although not a disaster, needs serious organization before I can go hide out and finish organizing and using my room in the basement. And there’s still the camping stuff to wash and store for the winter so it isn’t all skunky when we pull it out next year…*sigh*
Trouble is, all I want to do is futz about in my new room and make things. My Mum and Dad want me to build them a window and I’ve drawn out the plans and want to get at it…but can’t let myself until the house is under control. I’m one of those people who gets grumpy from extreme clutter, and everywhere I look (now that I have time to look) there seems to be something in the house to look after. I know if I try and tackle the whole house it will take me all weekend and by the end I’ll be so tired and cranky I won’t want to do anymore. And honestly, it won’t really be organized – just where I can’t see it…then when I need something I’ll have to tear the place apart to find it and I’ll be back at the start. I keep having the grand idea of going thru one room at a time, thoroughly…maybe I should get on that.

It’s odd - I see pictures of people’s homes where things all have places and there’s minimal clutter and I want to ask you all – how the heck do you DO it? Did you spend a fortune on shelves and cupboards? Do you actually LIVE there or are you hiding in the basement? ...OR do I just have to much crap? I’m just not sure…

Since we got home, for my sanity, I’ve been trying and do a bit a day, organizing here and there in 15 minute spurts and I really am slowly making a dent in it. It’s hard to not just go nuts and burn out…and then there’s things like making your bed…it’ll just get messed up again eventually and noone sees it but us and we really don’t care, so why bother?

I think I need to make some lists or something. And then not lose them and follow them!
GAH!
Any tips for not spending ALL of my spare time organizing my home?
I’d like to have a life…and not turn into my mother. I just don't care enough to go all anal about it. I just want to try and keep it together, albiet loosely, for a while and see what it's like to be in a calm, uncluttered home.
It's my *home*…and I want to *live* here…not tidy it all the time.

Venting

OK.
So, I'm trying not to be furious...but after a night of sleep and lunch I'm still mad.
Why?
Well, while we were away a few friends checking on our cats while we were away for 10 days, to be sure they were getting love and food and water.
And, when we got back last night they had NONE.
Not a drop of water or a scrap of food.
I left them 3 bowls of water and two large bowls of food to be on the safe side, in case they couldn't come every other day. I'm glad I did.
They were to be checked on every other day.
And so I raise a hearty WTF to the world?
No food at all...ALL GONE.
I'm not impressed AT ALL. My critters are very important. Knowing I can't trust my friends with things this important to me is very dissapointing...particularly as I do this for them all the time.
I'm wondering how long they were alone with no food...
*sigh*
From now on I'm asking my family to come by, even if it is an imposition.
I'm just glad they're OK...

An open letter to Baker's Secret Deluxe Bakeware

Dear Baker's Secret,

Today I used your deluxe, professional line of non-stick muffin pans.
I have only 4 words to describe my annoying experience with your "guaranteed non-stick bakeware":

Non stick, my ass.

Could you at least make an effort towards producing a quality product?
Do you still stand behind your product or should I just not bother with brand names that used to stand for quality and get back to random picking of the shiniest thing on the shelf when selecting new bakeware?

Ah. That's what I thought.
Good day to you then.

Sincerely,
Geosomin