new mantra

For the last couple of months, my mantra has been "do one useful thing every day." I have been repeating this to myself often and it has actually been working. Useful could mean big things like painting the house, or small things such as renewing my driver's license. Have made a giant list and every day I get to check at least one thing off.

Yesterday, there was an interview on the radio with Pat from the Wrench about their annual Cycle of Giving marathon. Towards the end of the interview, he was asked how they were going to get all the bikes built in 24 hours. He replied, "Just give'r. Joyously." And that spoke to me. Not having any problems with the first part, but could really use some help with the second. And so... my new daily incantation...

november song of the month

At some point this month, in an unknown location, I heard this song. Was I grocery shopping? Was it someone's ring tone? Who knows. But it's been stuck in my brain for weeks. Which is okay, because I like it. I like Serena. And I say this as someone who is not generally a commercial pop music fan. But she's pretty darn awesome. The vid, however? Meh...

last ride of the year

Crossing the bridge at Bruce Park on my last bike ride of the year. Was a gorgeous morning. Very hard to make myself keep pedalling and go to work.

Looking right...

and left. *sigh*

weird conversations i've had lately

Psych Patient at St. B: Do you know who you look like?
Me: [in my head - Oh gawd] Who?
PP: That lady from 101 Dalmations.
Me: Which lady?
PP: The one who likes fur.
Me: Cruella DeVil?
PP: Ya, that one.

I did not ask whether she meant the cartoon or live-action Cruella. Which does make a difference!

Drunk Guy in Silver Lotus: You look so bright!
Me: [WTF??] I have no idea what that means.
DG: Are you just trying to impress?
Me: [WHAT the hell?] No comment.

It should be noted that although I was standing at least five feet away from him, I could smell the booze. He also asked one of the other staff if she'd accept candy from a stranger. She wisely said no.

october song of the month

I actually find the video a bit hard to watch but love the song. Had never heard of Samantha Crain until we were driving home from our blissful weekend at Crooked Mountain. Was the perfect song for heading home when I really didn't want to.

august theme song + a list for o.

Ten awesome old timey country songs (in no particular order):

1. Always on My Mind by Willie Nelson
2. Blue Moon of Kentucky by Bill Monroe
3. There Goes My Everything by Jack Green
4. The Battle of New Orleans by Johnny Horton
5. Walkin' the Floor Over You by Ernest Tubb
6. Jolene by Dolly Parton
7. King of the Road by Roger Miller
8. Jackson by Johnny Cash and June Carter
9. You Ain't Woman Enough (To Take My Man) by Loretta Lynn
10. So Lonesome I Could Cry by Hank Williams

butterfly update

Sadly, the caterpillars have completely disappeared from my garden. Had to go to the zoo for my butterfly fix.

And my polar bear fix.

 And my seal fix.

And my monkey fix.

And my nephew fix!

swallowtails

Look what I have in my garden! Swallowtail caterpillars munching like crazy on the dill. Which is awesome in so many ways. First, I have a ton of self seeded dill that I've been pulling out, so they're saving me all that time weeding. Second, they're beautiful! And going to get even more beautiful. Third, they're super cool. I hope they decide to turn into butterflies in my yard. Oh please, oh please...

Started out with four but have lost track of three of them. They are getting a lot greener and more difficult to find so need to do a thorough search. And then hopefully I will soon be posting pictures of the chrysalides.

baby

getting bigger

and yellower

and then greener and even bigger

june theme song

Not the greatest video but hard to find Roots Roundup on the web. Definitely brings back some memories but more currently, spending a lot on time on my trusty Trek and loving it. Except for going over my handlebars today. Wasn't hurt, other than some minor scrapes, but dignity seriously wounded.

June has been a busy and actually fairly eventful month, which is why this is the only post. Name change became official so have been spending a great deal of time getting all my ID updated. Got accepted to the MLIS program at Western, so generally getting my ducks in a row. Which includes fixing stuff in the house, meeting with our financial dude, applying for scholarships, etc.

Did take a break for the annual sister's weekend at Crooked Mountain. Every year we always say that we hope we see something. Something does not include: cows, crows, seagulls, Canada geese, squirrels or gophers. Last year we saw a fox kit who kindly posed for us until Ali got a dozen or so fantastic shots. This year we saw a ruby throated hummingbird and a great grey owl. Neither were particularly interested in having their picture taken but she still got 'em.

Also keeping on top of World Cup though not finding the time to watch many games. Really sorry I missed the Brazil-Chile game today. But knew who had won when people started driving through the Village, honking horns and waving green flags. And then the same again with Columbia.

And LASTLY, since it has been raining tons and keeping me indoors, I've become completely sucked into these books and spending all my last scraps of time on the sofa, totally absorbed.

Next month.... probably more of the same and then my nephews arrive! Yay!

may theme song

This was going to be my March theme song until it got bumped by Disney (sorry, lovely and talented Canadian indie artist....). So many of the lyrics really spoke to me, though overall I can't say that I understand what it's about.

It's a strange year and it appears that I am stuck
So much of the last couple of years has just been keeping things together and getting through each day. Lately I started to feel much less stuck. Decisions have been made about school, months of an insane work schedule came to an end, and my poor brain has healed to the point where I am more or less feeling like myself again.

Frantic city keep me warm this fall, it's been a heavy year
O's move, concussion in August that was such a setback, the Rufus incident, the freakin' weather.... Definitely a heavy year. Have been referring to the last six months as the winter of my discontent.

Bathurst, Spadina, St. George and Bay
This of course make me think of O. I imagine him riding the subway past those stops, transferring to the street car, going about his day 2000 kilometers away.

I predict a graceful expulsion
When I first heard this, I thought she was singing graceful explosion, but expulsion is so much better. Our very slow spring has definitely contributed to my feeling of letting out a long, deep sigh. But I also feel like I'm pushing things out of my life that I don't need to hang onto anymore. Hopefully I can be somewhat graceful about it. I love the way she sings this part because she seems so determined, but also like she wants to be hopeful.

day 48

Today is my first day off work in forty seven. Leading up to it, I had big plans to do nothing. Possibly not leave my jammies and definitely not leave the house. Unless it was nice enough to sit in the back yard in my jammies, of course. In reality, I felt restless and completely at loose ends. I did much puttering, three loads of laundry, walked the dog, cleaned the cat boxes, took out the garbage, recycling and composting, O and I went grocery shopping.... Now I'm drinking wine and not sure how to spend my evening. RIDICULOUS!!! So blogging until I come up with something to do. Or figure out how to do nothing again.

Since I don't really have anything to say (funny how boring you become when all you do is work), here are a couple of pictures of Rufus. His full and complete recovery has been a joy to see!

Poor dude trying to eat with his jaw wired open.

10 weeks later in full-on attack mode!

april theme song

I know.... it's the first day of the month. And the last post was my March theme song. But Lucinda exactly expresses my feelings today. Winter, I dedicate this song to you.

I don't want you anymore
You took my joy
I don't want you anymore
You took my joy
You took my joy and I want it back
You took my joy
You took my joy and I want it back

march theme song

Had a different song queued up but then Karen sent me this. Believe me, I'm a lot less cheerful than Olaf. -30 windchill on my walk to work this morning... freakin' blizzard on the walk home. Singing In Summer through clenched teeth.

When life gets rough, I like to hold onto my dream
Of relaxing in the summer sun...

walking to work

windchill

no windchill

Guess which one represents my walk this morning... Both taken in December. Much more snow now but today was too cold to take my mitts off and snap a pic. So ya, if you guessed the pic on the left, you were correct.

february theme song

Something sweet and silly to offset the general shitty-ness of the month.

And, uh, happy Valentine's Day, O. Here's to smoking stupid little cigarettes and drinking stupid wine. I'm always pretty happy when I'm kicking back with you.

holy crap

Hard to believe that just one month ago I was happily kicking 2013 out the door and welcoming 2014. Sitting cozily at home, eating chips, making resolutions, and thinking that the new year just had to be better. Silly me.

Let's get the weather out of the way first. Bloody hell. So... second coldest December / January on record. In those two months, we've had 21 days below -30 (not including the windchill). Almost 50% more snow than average. It's making everything else so much harder and I've turned into a very grouchy bear. And February is supposed to be cold and snowy. Ugh.

Then there's the job situation. Too much of a good thing. I start a new job at Deer Lodge Hospital library next week. Super happy to get the position but really, really sorry to be leaving Children's. So sorry that I'm going to stay on one day a weekend until my term is up at the end of April. And I'm staying at Silver Lotus. Not giving up that job until I have a permanent position (and maybe not even then because I really like it too!). So basically, overworking. Which under normal circumstances would be fine, but then...

The broken jaw. This picture really doesn't convey how much of a mess Rufus is. You can tell that his mouth is wired in a slightly open position. You can sort of tell that the left side is swollen. He's also drooling excessively and grooming his legs and chest like crazy to try and deal with it, which is making his skin raw. He won't eat so he had to be syringe fed this morning. And this is day four of a six week process. He's clearly miserable and there is only so much I can do to make things better. Going to pick up a couple of preemie t-shirts today and see if wearing one will help with the grooming. Picking up some chicken or turkey on the way home and will make some broth so mix with his food. Hopefully it will be more enticing. Other than that.... lots of love.

*sigh*

So.... 2014.... not really diggin' you so far...

january theme song

My favorite song off their latest album, which I've been listening too ALL THE TIME since the beginning of December. As usual, I haven't bothered to find out much about this band or listen to their other album but I do know that they're playing in Winnipeg on April 7th. Thinking I might go if the budget allows. Haven't been to see live music in ages.

ten books

To help keep Resolution #1 on track, I came up with a list of books I'd like to read this year. In no particular order...

1. Anna Karenina. Started in October and it got put aside over the holidays. Loving it and will finish. 500 pages from now.
2. Vimy. On loan from my sister. Have had it quite a while.
3. Quiet. Um.... because I'm an introvert?
4. A Scanner Darkly. I don't read much science fiction and don't know the genre very well. But I've really like what I have read (Bradbury and Gibson mainly) and think that Dick is the next logical step. 
5. Pippi Longstocking. Okay, fine, not exactly keeping with my resolution but we just got this in at work and I adored it as a kid. I totally wanted to live in an old house with a monkey and a horse. Got the old house...
6. Wolf Hall. Recommended by Elizabeth but also referenced in a Vanity Fair article about the King James Bible. Piqued my interest.
7. North and South. As a change from reading Pride and Prejudice over and over.
8. Burial Rites. Just sounds interesting. I like historical fiction. With murder. Set in Iceland. 
9. Tombstone Blues. Totally looking forward to local author Chadwick Ginter's follow-up to Thunder Road. 
10. At least one of the Smiley novels. Want to read Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy because it's such a classic but feel like I should start at the beginning.

I'm happy with my list. Have a couple of Canadians, nice mix of genres, something old, something new. I'm sure I'll be reading more than 10 books in 2014 so please send recommendations!

38 degrees below zero (with the wind chill)

My shift at Silver Lotus was cancelled today due to the blizzard that blasted through the last couple of days. Loads of snow + frigid temps = no customers. I love working there but I'm very happy to have the day at home. Have spent an hour and a half shoveling and have at least another hour to go. Following the new NY mayor's advice.... getting low, using my knees. May have heard that advice a time or two before (right, mom?).

This afternoon is a Downton Abbey-a-thon. Re-watching the first three seasons (while knitting, doing laundry and drinking even more coffee) in eager anticipation of the start of season 4. Two more days!

Then noodles for dinner and back out to shovel. Possibly followed by a hot bath. Actually kind of a lovely day.

Here are a few random pics from the last couple of weeks....

Christmas Eve with O. and his family.

Downy woodpecker at my mom's feeder.

How the cats are spending the winter.

George Harrison, who goes home tomorrow.
Waiting for his person to fly in from NYC.

6 weeks into winter... 10 more to go?!?

six resolutions

1. Read more adult books. Goodreads sent me my 2013 year in books by email. Apparently I read 33, which seems pretty good. But 13 of these were young adult novels and 5 were graphic novels. Not being dismissive of these books, they're just fairly easy reads (Maggot Moon excepted). As were the 7 Ian Rankin books that I couldn't put down. Feel like now that I have my brain (mostly) back, I should be taking on something more challenging.

2. Clean up my email accounts. All FIVE of them. Yeesh. Student account, work account, Hotmail and gmail, and the account I give out to organizations when they insist. Every one full of junk.

3. Get back on the budget bandwagon. Totally fell off the wagon since getting a job in April. Kind of ironic. Spend an hour today setting up a spreadsheet for 2014 and since I've kept a budget diligently from 2005 to 2011, this resolution is more of a reboot.

4. Eat healthy and exercise bla bla. Ditto for this one. Didn't fall off this bandwagon; more like I was shoved. Knock on the head in August really set me back but now that I'm feeling well again I need to get going. Our crappy December (coldest in 80 years, twice as much snow as usual...) has been a convenient excuse for staying cozy in the house and eating carbs but no longer! Going to walk at least one way to work every day, swimming on Sunday mornings (once I wax my legs!) and weights twice a week. Which is not up to where I was before but it's a start.

5. Make a decision about school. My decision is mostly made.... just need to think on it a bit more. And then, you know, actually act on it.

6. Write letters. Since Canada Post announced major changes to its service, I've been fondly remembering all the letters I've received and kept over the years. I love, every once in a while, digging them out and reading them. I also have a stack of blank cards and paper that I've been moving from apartment to apartment and house to house since working at Smithbooks in the early 90s. Even though there's a good chance anything I say in a letter will be said in an email before the letter arrives, I still plan to do some writing. So check your mailboxes!