Sunday, May 31, 2009

Day 143 of 365

  1. The laziest Sunday known to man
  2. Levelling new toons, on a new server
  3. A bad raid, but people stayed calm
  4. CREAMSICLE SWIRL ICECREAM! Almost as good as cookie dough
  5. Another vow, to be healthier tomorrow... 

Day 142 of 365

Saturday
  1. Finally setttling the house colour debate... it's amazing what completely open communication can do
  2. A plan of action for the projects for the sumemr
  3. More garden plants!! Which I don't remember the name of... but they look pretty
  4. Started the massive task of patching the lawn
  5. The electrical done, the AC half done... finishes on Monday

Day 141 of 365

Friday... I have been lazy! 
  1. A productive day at work, even met a few deadlines! 
  2. Having my parents over for dinner, when they brought over 2/3 of the meal 
  3. A quiet night in, with a great bottle of wine and an even better boyfriend
  4. Listening to Sherman snore
  5. Enjoying taking care of the garden and yard

Thursday, May 28, 2009

Day 140 of 365

  1. There is still one side of my mouth I can chew on. Although I am almost obsessive about chewing on BOTH sides on my mouth. It feels wrong. 
  2. My new Betsery Johnson flip flops - the only Betsey I will be able to afford
  3. An application for a good job went in today - the Director has been encouraging me to apply, so this seems positive
  4. I commented on another blog today! I have to be better about comments...
  5. The realization I don't comment as much because I don't actually leave CONTENT on my blog. Just lists. Like this one. *sigh*

Wednesday, May 27, 2009

Day 139 of 365

  1. Making it through my wisdom tooth removal yesterday and it wasn't as bad as I thought it would be
  2. Howver, the I worked myself into a complete and utter fit before the procedure and I spent the day home from work getting over the stress
  3. Making my Amish Friendship bread - now if I could just find Amish to share with... 
  4. More plants for the garden! Impatients, Geraniums and... another one. Damn, I suck at this gardening thing
  5. Another song I have fallen in deep love with - The Mission by Puscifer

Tuesday, May 26, 2009

Day 138 of 365

  1. Not actually puking from the pre-wisdom tooth removal nervousness (yet)
  2. Sometimes being able to think of something other than the impending tooth removal (for a few seconds)
  3. A new hand cream (Herbacin) that I may have a little crush on 
  4. The decision has been made! I will go back to Bikram yoga (properly hydrated)
  5. A song that makes me bounce to the beat (while I think about having a wisdom tooth removed)

Monday, May 25, 2009

Day 137 of 365

  1. A successful job interview
  2. Now that the job interview is done, I can start stressing about my wisdom tooth removal
  3. Day 2 of no smoking (and no one has died yet!)
  4. No TOO sore after Bikram yoga
  5. Finding the willpower not to frantically feed the nicotine monster living deep in my belly

Sunday, May 24, 2009

Day 136 of 365

  1. Plans to go to a Bikram yoga class
  2. A short check-out line at Costco
  3. Finally hanging a basket of flowers on the hook we installed 3 years ago
  4. Making progress on reclaiming our front yard. Dandelions down, ant farms to go!
  5. A job interview tomorrow!

Saturday, May 23, 2009

Day 135 of 365

  1. Getting the garden in, and it looks wonderful! 
  2. Making improvements in the yard
  3. Spending the morning with NGB and my parents, the people I care about most
  4. Having friends over in the evening to be big geeks
  5. Falling asleep slightly achy... it's nice to work your body once in awhile

Friday, May 22, 2009

Day 134 of 365

  1. My size 29 jeans? Too big!! 
  2. A crazy scary-busy weekend ahead (and hopes of getting it all done)
  3. The A/C is coming! The A/C is coming! Well, the unit... install next week
  4. Star Trek (the movie) - so much better than I thought it would be!
  5. Free burgers at puppy daycare to celebrate one year of their business being open

Thursday, May 21, 2009

Day 133 of 365

  1. 20 minutes of thinking maybe WE won the almost $50 million lotto (one ticket, sold in our town)
  2. Feeling slimmer again today... and NGB is too (GI Diet ftw)
  3. Raid called early
  4. Busy, busy, busy at work! 
  5. A sleeping puppy's breath on my ankle

Wednesday, May 20, 2009

Day 132 of 365

  1. Not losing my mind at passive aggressive stupidity
  2. A night full of projects to do 
  3. Another dinner made at home
  4. And even doing the dishes after!
  5. Watching the pups roost in my housecoat as I sit in the most perfect bath water

Tuesday, May 19, 2009

Day 131 of 365

  1. Winning $55 on the lotto and reinvesting some
  2. Remembering to bring a lunch today (even though I forgot I am going for Indian with a friend)
  3. Amazing Indian buffet for lunch
  4. A patient boyfriend who understands and supports
  5. Only some snow today (so far)

Day 130 of 265

Monday
  1. NGB running out to get Blizzards on a cold afternoon
  2. NGB running out to get brownies on a cold and SNOWY evening
  3. Not leaving the house: Day 2
  4. Finding a new show to like!
  5. Stepping awa from the computer (and in front of the TV but it's a start!)

Sunday, May 17, 2009

Day 129 of 365

  1. A lazy rainy Sunday
  2. A good raid and another boss down
  3. New yummy salad discovery
  4. Not leaving the house all day
  5. Knowing tomorrow is a holiday and there will be no work on Monday! 

Day 128 of 265

Saturday
  1. Buying the paint for the dog's room and other productive errands
  2. A wonderful belated mother's day dinner with my parents
  3. A new restaurant found - AMAZING wraps there
  4. Sleeping in very very late
  5. A new external drive for my computers

Friday, May 15, 2009

Day 127 of 365

  1. Maybe being somewhat smart-ish in a meeting this morning
  2. Waking up and remembering my freaky half-awake/half-asleep dreams
  3. A great concert last night, Joel Plasket. An entertainer and artist (not a lip-syncer)
  4. The friday before a LONG WEEKEND
  5. 5 years with NGB... damn. And he still hasn't made an honest woman out of me *grin*

Thursday, May 14, 2009

Day 126 of 365

  1. Taking lunch from home
  2. It didnt snow too much today (stupid weather)
  3. NGB being so sweet and loving when I am feeling irrationally grumpy
  4. $40 million dollar lotto prize 
  5. Being told I look skinny today

Wednesday, May 13, 2009

How...

Drivng to the farm Monday night I had the sudden belief I was pregnant. I would have been JUST pregnant... it was only a few days from the last time NGB and I got all adult friendly. And that was the first time in awhile. 

The idea was so clear in my head I almost announced it to my parents that desperately want grandchildren. I believe it is a wondeful case of PMS-hormone induced insanity... but does anyone ever just know? 

Day 125 of 365

Caught up again!
  1. Weather that is better than forcasted
  2. Hawkins Cheezies, my current true-love food
  3. Another commitment from NGB to get his passport application in
  4. My new hair colour is not as red as I feared it was
  5. A decent raid night

You want me to put my ass WHERE?

My Uncle's funeral was yesterday. We filled up the van, bundled up against the snow (yes, snow on May 12) and headed out for the 1 hour drive to the farm. On the way we stopped at Tim Horton's for a fuel up, to make the trip bearable. 

Because of my proclivity to car sickness I got the front seat. With my knees snuggled up against the dashboard (to give NGB's legs some room behind me) we drove out telling stories, sharing ideas, inerrupting each other. We got to the church at the farm in good time and I hopped out and started to make my way through the snow brushed green grass and I realized something vital. I had to pee. No, make that, I HAD to pee. While this is generally a problem easily solved there is one hiccup. The church? It has no plumbing. It has no heat or insulation either (other than a wood stove) but that is another post all together. However, it DOES have an outhouse. Well, 2. One marked "women" and one marked "men". 

NGB was raised partially on the farm as were my parents. They all laughed uproariously as I danced the pee-pee dance and fought the suggestion to pee in the wooden box. After a bit of teasing, to prove to them I am NOT a wimpy city girl, I walked bravely to the outhouse and unlocked the door. The door that is locked in THREE ways on the outside... With some struggling I got it, opened the door and saw... 

Well, what could I really be expecting? Gold plated seats? I small heater? A hand sanitizer container filled with softy foral scented soap? No. But I could have expected a ROOF. Something to prevent the snow from piling on the cold splintered wood with the oval shaped hole. I stared... I tried to suck it up, be a tough girl. But the thought of snow on my sensitive behind? No. I stepped away and told NGB, who was beside me, that I would wait until we got to the hall. He offered me his boy-outhouse. With no toilet paper or light. Then my stomach turned from the scent and I said no. I think it turned his stomach too, he walked away with me. Or it could have been that he ddn't want to stoop over to pee in the hole (the outhouse itself was a few inches shorter than him). 

Willing away the bladder pain I walked into the church, through a throng of my aunt & uncle's pierced grandsons and made my way into the tiny church. I found my aunt and gave her a hug. We talked and I mentioned the outhouse... the sun-roofed outhouse. She laughed at my squeemishness and told me I should have squatted behind it. 

You are not taught how to squat in the city. You are taught to assess a place for the cleanliness of their bathrooms, or to find a place that has cheap drinks in case it's "customers only". As I explained to my aunt that to successfully pee in the bush I need to disrobe from the waist down (shoes and socks included), pile everything on a log or some other raised surface then walk 10 feet  away, preferrably downhill,  to do my business. She began to chuckle and called me a "sprayer". 

I am sprayer. Hear me tinkle! 

But I was able to make her smile on a sad day. And successfully made my way to the hall before the service, to pee in the flushing toilets over there.

Day 124 of 365

Tuesday
  1. Flushing toilets
  2. Roofs over flushing toilets
  3. Tim Horton's French Vanilla Iced Capp (with whipping cream)
  4. Having something else to hang over NGB's head... he ate my ENTIRE dessert in one bite when there were no more to be had. Blackmail! 
  5. Family

Day 123 of 365

Monday
  1. For the first time ever, my aunt was able to say "I love you too"
  2. Listening to my mom tell the same story about the same corner every time we drive in the area where she grew up
  3. NGB in a suit - he cleans up purtty
  4. The drive home before rush hour starts. It is SO much calmer
  5. Prem sandwiches on a day when I am craving salt (and lacking in any taste, apparently)

Tuesday, May 12, 2009

Day 122 of 365

Sunday
  1. My mom. Happy Mother's Day Hakka
  2. Potato pancakes and sour cream
  3. Lazy, slightly hungover afternoons
  4. Another boss down in 10 man
  5. The trees are starting to bud leaves

Saturday, May 9, 2009

Day 121 of 365

  1. A new hair colour
  2. A clean house just in time for guests
  3. Loads of food and beer and wine (for guests)
  4. Having guests over
  5. Sherman and Walter laying side my side in the sun

Friday, May 8, 2009

Day 120 of 365

  1. Lunch with great girlfriends
  2. A busy and active week ahead
  3. The excitement my pups show when I pick them up from daycare
  4. NGB's new cologne - YUM
  5. Cute summer shoes are out for the next few months! 

Thursday, May 7, 2009

Day 119 of 365

  1. A semi-successful raid
  2. Having work to do that made me think
  3. Lunch with the old friend I reconnected with - it was like we had never stopped talking
  4. Job possibilities for NGB
  5. My parents safely home from their conference

Wednesday, May 6, 2009

Day 118 of 365

  1. Finding my cute white shoes again
  2. Running into an old friend who I forgot I missed
  3. A relaxing bath with a fluff book
  4. Almost success with a new yummy recipe
  5. Falling asleep with 2 puppies at my feet

Day 117 of 365

  1. Honest conversation with a coworker I respect
  2. Understanding that the project looked so much at the trees that it missed the forest
  3. Coming home to the man I love
  4. Having my leadership experience in a video game discussed in a MBA business class
  5. Knowing it is time to move on

Monday, May 4, 2009

A different kind of mourning

This weekend there was a death in the family. My uncle passed away. Uncle by marriage, my mom's sister's husband. And yet I feel no sadness...

My Uncle was an old-school kind of man. He was born and raised on the farm in an era that no longer exists. And yet those antiquated ideas lived on in him. 

Man is the head of the household. 
No love shown, no support given. 
However abuse, both emotional and physcial, is given at will. 

He was a hard working man, he gave his family everything they needed except love. 

My aunt's story is sad and while it is not mine to tell I want to still have the words out there, somewhere, for someone to see. So that someone knows the wonderful woman whose life was not fair. 

Let's go back to her childhood. My grandfather was not around much on the farm. He was away, in the city, with other women. When he was around home he had nothing but anger to give his family. My grandmother was also an angry woman who hated the way life ended up. She was unable to show love. My aunt was raised in this house (as was my mother and my uncle). 

Off on a tangent I go! One day I was visiting my aunt in the hospital after one of her many operations to replace another part of her body that was worked until it broke. She was groggy on pain medications and alone in her drab hospital room, built in the 50's. On impluse, I crawled into bed with her ,wrapped my arms around her and we talked. I think it was the medications that let her drop her guard but she actually talked to me. She told me that her childhood was hard. I know it was hard for my mother, but she spoke about how she would try to shield her younger brother and sister from the worst. At the first chance to get out, only by marriage in that day, she left. A child still, not even 18, she married a dashing young man who farmed near where she was raised. My uncle. And almost from the start it was wrong. My uncle did not know how to show love. And then more anger, just like her childhood... she didn't actually get away. 

That same hospital trip where I hugged her and we talked, my mom bought her a silly teddy bear. Small, something from the gift shop. My aunt held it close, like a baby, and had tears in her eyes. A woman in her 60's.... and this was her first stuffed bear. 

Well, after over a half-century of marriage my aunt is alone. My uncle died, they could never figure out what was going wrong... he was too ill for the testing. 

I don't mourn his death although I know I should. I mourn the loss of her life, her happiness, her dreams. And now that she has a chance to find some happiness I am scared that it's too late, that she is too broken, too used to the lack of love to know anything else. 

Day 116 of 365

  1. Vanilla Bean Lattes
  2. Applying for a job I am very excited about
  3. Baconator for dinner (screw the diet!)
  4. Getting around to sorting my shoes.... I have too many
  5. The snorful sound Sherm makes when he's reaching to grab something

Day 115 of 365

Sunday
  1. Sunday brunch with wonderful friends and their families
  2. Getting B&BW lemon soap for the kitchen (it smells like happy!)
  3. A few more projects crossed off the list
  4. Watching the pups play chase in the backyard under the sun
  5. 2 more bosses in Ulduar! 

Saturday, May 2, 2009

Day 114 of 365

  1. Summer is in the air! 
  2. Getting a new and environmentally friendly mower
  3. Ulduar 10, new bosses killed
  4. Sleepy sunny puppies
  5. Watching a movie with NGB and the pups

Friday, May 1, 2009

Day 113 of 365

  1. Volunteering our house for a "shooter party"
  2. My hair is long enough for an itty-bitty teeny-weeny little ponytail!!!
  3. www.fmylife.com - hours of fun! Although damn... a lot of kids have sex
  4. A compliment on how guild has been running
  5. More confirmation I need to find a new job