Borne To Travel

Show of hands, please

2012-02-10T06:07:00.000-08:00

Hypothetically speaking, who thinks it would be weird to date your cousins widower?

I mean, hypothetically speaking, I'm sure someone's parents are well intentioned, but seriously? Come on ... am I the only one that thinks that would be weird? Please, help me out, here. I'm trying to prove a point .... hypothetically speaking, of course.

Results

2012-02-06T19:28:00.000-08:00

After feeling like I was going a little mental for the last couple of months, I went to my doc to have a chat and tell him what's been going on. The thing I love about my doc is that he doesn't make me feel stupid or tell me that it's all in my head. He takes me seriously and sends me for tests. Today I got those results. I'm perfectly healthy. "So, I'm just going crazy?" I asked him. "Looks like it," he said, then laughed. No thyroid problem. Hormone levels are "really quite good" he said. I don't have asthma (I've been having a cough that reminded me of the 100 day cough I had a couple of years ago). So, what now?

Well, he's going to test me for sleep apnea. I told him that I sleep quite well, actually and it makes me wonder why I'm so tired all the time. He said he's going to check if I'm breathing properly while I'm sleeping. He said it can seem like a person gets a full nights sleep, but if you're not breathing properly while sleeping, it can make you tired when you wake up. So, that's next.

I've been having something weird happen with my eyes. He sent me to an Ophthalmologist and he prescribed glasses. I've been wearing the glasses for 2 months now and it's mostly the same, but a few times it's gotten worse. Now I have 2 appointments downtown with another specialist. Aaaaah, ain't getting older grand?

Part of me feels like I'm falling apart and the other part of me knows it could be must worse. I'll just bide my time and do what the doc says for now and stay positive ... and get out for more exercise now that the sun's been shining!

I'll take what I can get!

2012-02-03T16:09:00.000-08:00

So, my parents are in town for a few days and although it's not unusual for my Dad to call me, most of the time it's my Mom. I heard my phone ring and saw that it said, "Dad's Cell." I figured it was my Mom letting me know that they'd gotten here safely and to set up a time to see me ... yes, I have to schedule time with my parents when they come here. They used to live here for many years plus they have a lot of family here, so I'm lucky if I get to see them twice while they're here. I'm not complaining ... I'm glad they've got friends ... it might just be a tad embarrassing that my parents are busier than me! haha! JK

Anyway, when I answer the phone, I'm a little surprised to hear Dad's voice on the other end. We chit chat about their drive out here for a bit and then he says, "What are you doing on Sunday around 4:00?" My mind quickly peruses my schedule but before I say anything, I had this fleeting thought ... "Is there a Canucks game on Sunday? Does he want to take me to a Canucks game? Sweet!" I calmly say, "Nothing. Why?" to which he answers, "Well, there's a certain football game on that I want to watch" and then it hits me ... he wants to use me for my TV! (they're staying at my Uncle and Aunt's place who have a very old, small TV) haha! Well, I was right about it having something to do with a sporting event! :) I said, "Are you wanting to watch it on my TV, Dad?" "I need a nice, big screen to watch it on!" he says in a whiny tone. "Of course, Dad. Come on over."

I hope this doesn't sound like I'm offended, because I'm totally not. My Mom will, of course, come with him and her and I will chat and catch up ... maybe play some Banagrams while Dad's watching the game. We'll swap seats when the half time show comes on and I'll wonder what Madge will come up with and he'll think it's "garbage" but it'll be fun. Mom said she's got buns and cold cuts (did she bring them all the way from Alberta? Doesn't she realize we have those things here, too? - they crack me up!). I told her that's great, but we have to have pizza while watching the Superbowl, so I'm sure we'll order in as well. I'm sure Dad will fall asleep at some point, but don't worry, I'll wake him up to see the end.

You see, my parents have come out here for a funeral of a long time friend. I know the kids of this man and it really makes me think, "What if that was me?" So, I'm going to cherish this time of watching the 2012 Superbowl with my Dad and playing games with my Mom.

What are your plans for the Superbowl?

A Balanced Life

2012-01-12T16:21:00.000-08:00

The 2nd thing that I believe has helped me have a brighter outlook on life again is getting back a balanced life.

I believe that one of the reasons why I was feeling hopeless is because I hadn't been to church in quite awhile. When I came back from Malaysisa in June, summer kicked in and with it, many weekend getaways. Church was put on the back burner. When summer ended, I started feeling like I wasn't supposed to go back to the church where I'd been attending for almost 30 years. This was a very weird feeling for me. Although I had a peace about not going back, what now? I told myself that next Sunday I'll go check out a new church. Sunday came, I woke up to my alarm, but I couldn't get myself to go. That was odd for me. I'd never had a problem going to my old church by myself and I'm not a shy person, so what was the problem? I guess it really was more daunting than I led myself to believe. I found a friend who was also ready to seek out a new church and our search has begun (I'll go into that in another post).

It felt good to be back in a community setting ... even if we didn't know many people and it didn't yet feel like "home." At least I was going somewhere and getting fed.

In my last session with my awesome counselor, she told me to remember the 4 things that help keep a life balanced: Social, Physical, Intellectual and Spiritual. She said to remain healthy, you should do 2 - 3 of these activities per week. That totally makes sense because I feel I've been doing that lately ... leading to a more positive outlook and a more balanced life. I love when my counselor and I are on the same page. :)

Joy ... something I was lacking

2012-01-11T17:07:00.000-08:00

Continuing on with #1 from my last post, here's some more of what I've learned from One Thousand Gifts. Since she says it best, this is all a direct quote from her book. It was such an eye opening moment for me. I hope you like it, too.

Luke 22:19 And He took bread, gave thanks and broke it ...

In the original language, "He gave thanks" reads "eucharisteo."
Eucharisteo = thanksgiving
root word - charis = grace
derivative - chara = joy

Joy. Ah ... yes. I might be needing me some of that. That might be what the quest for more is all about. That has always been the goal of the fullest life - joy. And my life knew exactly how elusive that slippery three letter word, joy, can be. I think of it then again ... the lunge for more. More what? And this was it; I could tell how my whole being responded to that one word. I longed for more life, for more holy joy. But where can I seize this holy grail of joy? Deep chara joy is found only at the table of euCHARisteo - the table of thanksgiving. Is it that simple? Is the height of my chara joy dependant on the depths of my eucharisteo thanks? As long as thanks is possible, then joy is always possible. The holy grail of joy is not in some exotic location or some emotional mountain peak experience. The joy wonder could be here! Here, in the messy, piercing ache of now, joy might be - unbelievably - possible! The only place we need see before we die is this place of seeing God, here and now.

Continuing on my weird journey

2012-01-10T17:30:00.000-08:00

The question in my last post started creeping into my brain back in late October. I'm glad I didn't post about it then because I think I would've sounded quite hopeless if I had. At first I felt quite void and lifeless when I was asking it. After wrestling with it for a few months, while I'm still asking the same question, "What's the point to my life?" I have hope again. I believe that my friends asking me what's going on was the first step in me being honest with myself that something, in fact, was going on. Then I could start dealing with it. There are 2 things that I believe have helped me have a brighter outlook again.

1) I started reading One Thousand Gifts
I know that there's controversy around this book and I get it. I really do. However, I'm trying to look past that and really get to the meat of what she's saying. I'm only a few chapters in and here are some of my journal notes:

She starts off the book talking about how when her little sister died, her family became closed to "any notion of grace." She started believing "the Serpent's hissing lie" that God isn't good, that He "withholds good from His children, that God does not genuinely, fully love us." I know I haven't had a hard life so some people may say that it's easy for me to not have turned from God, but even now when I'm questioning my point in life, I'm SO glad that I still believe God is a loving, caring God. I'm not mad at Him at all. She goes on to say, "Satan's sin becomes the first sin of all humanity; the sin of ingratitude. Our fall was, has always been and always will be, that we aren't satisfied in God and what He gives." Lord help me NOT to be ungrateful! That was a good wake up call as to why I was really asking myself, "What's the point to life?" Am I unsatisfied with where I'm at? I believe that my answer to that question is no, but then why am I asking what the point is? I'm confused. Maybe I am a little unsatisfied. I'll be honest with God about that and ask Him to really unveil my heart ... since He knows it better than I do!

Like I said, I'm only a couple of chapters in on the book, but I've heard that this book talks about keeping a gratitude journal, so even though I haven't gotten to that part of the book yet, I've started one. I don't want to become a spoiled brat that thinks, "God owes me more than this!" I want to live daily and to not live in the future. I find that I really start thinking, "What's the point?" when I start looking too far into the future. I want to live in the moment and to know that God has me exactly where I'm at, at that moment, for a reason. God does nothing without a purpose. I want to choose to live a life of gratitude.

I've had a few friends lose a parent over the last year ... 2 within the last month alone. Just before Christmas. As I read the next Chapter of One Thousand Gifts, it talks about living life to the fullest NOW. "How to live the fullest life here that delivers into the full life ever after. Thinking on the beginning of this year, who does He call to come home? Is it me, Lord? May I be ready." Wow ... may I be ready ... those are powerful words. "Will I have lived fully - or just empty? How do we live fully so we are fully ready to die?"

I know that death isn't the most uplifting topic to think or talk about, but it's going to happen to all of us sooner or later. I want to be ready and to have truly lived every day to it's potential.

I'll write what I've learned about joy tomorrow ...

What's the Point to Life? Riddle me this ...

2012-01-09T16:58:00.000-08:00

It's kind of odd that my last post is about death and then I went silent. Did anyone think I'd died? haha - ok, maybe I shouldn't joke about that, but it is kind of ironic, isn't it?

Almost right after I posted that, I started going through something internally. A change, if you will. I don't think it's necessarily a bad change, but a change none the less. It's been confusing at times and scary at times. I'd like to fill you in on a bit of it, just to give you a little insight as to why I went silent. Not that I can fully explain it and hopefully you won't be more confused after I'm done, but here it goes.

I've been asking God, "What's the point to life?"

You may be thinking, "Ooooh, she's turning 40 soon. She's having a mid-life crisis!" and you wouldn't be thinking anything that I haven't already thought myself. Thing is, I'm really not scared of turning 40. I'm really not. I'm already starting to plan my celebration! Anyway, I may very well be going through a mid-life crisis, but I still need to get myself through it and come out happy on the other side. There's so much going on in my head right now that I may have to try to explain this in more than one post.

Let me just say off the top that I'm not depressed or angry at God. I completely still believe He's got a plan for my life and that it's the best plan there could be. Him and I are simply just discussing it and working through it together. I'm not one to buy into what society says is "the norm" but yet I've been thinking a lot lately about not being married and not having kids. What's been the point to my life if those things haven't happened to me? As I've started sharing these thoughts with people, I've been surprised to find out that even married people go through this and have asked this same question. To me, it feels like since they HAVE the spouse and the kids, how can they ask it, but they have their own reason for asking it, I guess. It makes me feel a little better, I guess.

I do also feel that I'm changing. Not necessarily in a bad way, though. I feel that I've become more of a homebody lately. I'm really enjoying staying home. Some of my friends have started noticing, so I've had to have the "it's not you, it's me" talk with them. Seriously! I know, it sounds like I'm breaking up with them, but I really do want them to know that it's nothing they've done. I still love my friends dearly and I don't want to jeopardize my relationships with any of them. I'm not the worrying type, but there's a small part of me that's scared that when I come out on the other side of whatever it is that I'm going through, they may not like the new me. I know what you're going to say ... "if they're true friends, they'll still be your friend after you come through this" and I get that, but do you see why I worry a little?

I think it's helped tremendously that those of you who've noticed my absence have questioned me on it. I want to publicly thank you for doing so in such a loving way that helped me open up and start a dialogue about it. I don't expect anyone to have the magic phrase/answer/do this jig 3 times and stand on your head while doing it solution that will solve the answer to my riddle, but I do enjoy hearing others opinions and takes on things. It helps me process.

Like I said, I've got a lot more to say about this, but for today, I'll leave it at this. Thank you for your patience with me.

Quote

2011-09-06T20:46:00.000-07:00

Saw this quote today and thought it was appropriate as per my Loose Ends post.

Pray

2011-08-29T07:38:00.000-07:00

I had iTunes on shuffle tonight and this song by Kendall Payne came on and I thought of you all. It may sound like a backhanded prayer, but it's actually quite great. And if you hear her sing it, it sounds like a benediction. It's really beautiful. Here's my prayer for all of you and I'd ask that you would say these prayers for me:

I will pray for you now
For you have been my faithful friends
While the road we walk is difficult indeed
I could not ask for more
Than what you've already been
Only that you would say these prayers for me

May your heart break enough
That compassion enters in
May your strength all be spent upon the weak
All the castles and crowns you build
And place upon your head
May they all fall, come crashing down
Around your feet

May you find every step
To be harder than the last
So you character grows
Greater each stride
May your company be
Of humble insignificance
May your weakness be your
only source of pride

What you do unto others
May it all be done to you
May you meet the One who made us
And see Him smile when life is through
May your blessings be many
But not what you'd hope they'd be
When you look upon the broken
May mercy show you
What you could not see

May you never be sure
Of any plan you desire
But you'd learn to truth the plan
He has for you
May your passions be tried and
Tested in the holy fire
May you fight with all your life
For what is true

I have prayed for you now
All of my dear and faithful friends
But what I wish is more
Than I could ever speak
As the way wanders on
I'll long to see you once again
Until then, would you say
These prayers for me?
Oh that you would pray for me

Loose ends

2011-08-27T08:55:00.000-07:00

So, Thursday night I was having these weird sharp pains in my head throughout the evening. I didn’t have a headache, but all of a sudden I’d have this make-you-grab-your-head-and-say-Oooooouuuuch kind of pain and then it would be gone just as fast. Out of nowhere, kind of pain. I didn’t think much of it until I laid my head on my pillow and then it’s just you and your thoughts, right? Well, I don’t think I mentioned it here on my blog, but I had a friend pass away in June from a brain haemorrhage. I’m not going to get too dramatic on you here, but I did start thinking about what he went through before it happened, which then made me think about what if it happened to me during the night. Yes, it would be nice to go while I’m sleeping so I wouldn’t know what hit me, but am I ready to go?

I’ve been quite vocal about not being afraid to die, because if God’s promises about what Heaven is going to be like are true, why would I be afraid to go there? It’s going to be a MILLION times better than what I’m experiencing on earth and I’m pretty happy with life here, so WOW! I can’t even fathom what Heaven will be like. I always follow it up with, “Don’t worry. I won’t do anything to hurry along the process. Only in God’s timing,” but I got thinking about God’s timing. We don’t know when that will be as proven by my very healthy friend who passed away just months ago out of nowhere. I’m not trying to scare anyone here, but really ... we have no idea when our time will come and I realize that I don’t have kids or a spouse to leave behind so it’s different for me. I do realize that.

Anyway, back to my point. I started thinking seriously about if I were to die that night, would I be ready? Do I have any loose ends that need to be tied up ... and after wracking my brain, my answer was no. I really do feel that if there’s anyone that I feel I’ve had issues with or has had issues with me, I’ve tried my best to clear them up. I kept searching my brain and prayed for God to bring someone or something to mind that I hadn’t done, but I couldn’t come up with anything ... and that made me happy.

I mean, ok, I did think, “I’m supposed to go hang out with Jennie on Saturday and my trip to New York with my sister next fall won’t happen,” but as much as I’d love to do those things, they wouldn’t be something that I’d feel were left undone. Do you know what I mean? I thought maybe I’d just gotten sidetracked, so I started praying again and the next thought that came to my mind was, “I won’t get to see Blue Valentine. I heard Ryan Gosling did a great job in that movie.” Seriously? I have no idea why that movie came to mind when there are lots of movies that I still haven’t seen (like being able to see Bella and Edward get married - yes, I DID go there!), but I just kept thinking things like, “I guess I’d miss out on skydiving” and “Nope. Not ever gonna find out what sex is like.” (I know, I know - it’s not all it’s cracked up to be - says those who get to have it whenever they want :P )

Finally, after all those silly, fun thoughts, something did come to me. I came to the conclusion that the only thing I’ve left undone is to make sure that someone knows that at my funeral, I want God’s love to be front and center. I want my non-Christian friends to come to my funeral and leave KNOWING that God’s love is what made me a happy and content person. I don’t know why God loves us so much, but He has allowed me a brief glimpse into how much He loves me. I’ve been told that I’m a pretty confident person, but all the credit goes to God’s love. If God loves me THAT much, what else matters, really? That’s what I want to come across at my funeral. So, if you’re one of the people that might help plan such an event for me, take note! I’ve tried to live my life not changing how I talk about God to people whether they’re a Christian or not, so hopefully my non-Christian friends get it, but this would be “my” last chance, so when the time comes (obviously it wasn’t Thursday night), I’ll need your help. You in?

Do you have any loose ends that need to be tied up?

Opinions, please!!!

2011-08-26T07:07:00.000-07:00

Ladies, do you think I could pull off a cut like one of these? Be HONEST!!! I really won't be offeneded if you say that you don't think I can. And don't just say YES because you want to see SOMEONE ELSE get the cut! Only say YES if you think it will look half decent on me ... ok, a little more than half decent. Maybe 3/4 decent???

I don't know if I've mentioned it or not, but when I was in Malaysia, I got my hair professionally straightened. Pretty much the reverse perm. It's been great in that I don't have huge fly away hair, but it's done a lot of damage to my hair ... well, to the parts that were colored. I thought to get my hair somewhat healthy again, I'd chop it and since my hair is straighted right now, it might be the best time to do it since it won't be huge and short, causing a mushroom head or helmet head as I like to call them ... but I don't know if I should go as short as the pics above or should I stick with something more like one of these: Remember, honesty is GREATLY appreciated. Oh, and I have no desire to go pixie short, so don't even go there. :P Thanks!

Update: My hairdresser doesn't think I can do it because my hair is so thick and it'll look like a "mushroom." She used the word I used that I DON'T want to look like. Hmmm, I'm thinking the short short will be a no.

New date!

2011-08-25T00:30:00.000-07:00

No, silly ... not THAT kind of date! :P

Well, she finally called me back and my new surgery date is September 28. Thanks to everyone who prayed for me last time. If I can be so bold as to ask for prayers again, can I be specific and ask that you pray that it actually happens this time? :)

Thanks!

Well, that didn't turn out how I thought it would!

2011-08-21T09:51:00.000-07:00

So, thanks for all your prayers, but apparently we were praying for the wrong thing. Next time, we pray that the surgery actually HAPPENS! Ugh. Here's the long, drawn out story.

I was told that my arrival time was 10:45. Like a good little girl, I got there at 10:30. Jennie and Nathanael were very punctual picking me up and were allowed to come to the back with me. After I had changed into this lovely outfit, I'd barely walked around the corner and this lady says to me, "Come with me!" I already had my camera in hand because of course I wanted Jennie to take a picture of me in my new get up, but the lady was already walking away. I kinda turned around and said, "One second," and handed Jennie my camera and stood there real quick like. Jennie's like, "Are you coming back?" but I just looked at her like, "I don't know!" You can see the lady turning into that first door behind me, but I didn't know where that led, so we weren't sure what was going on. Little did I know, things don't happen THAT fast around there.

I turned and ran to catch up to her and as I walk into the room she says, "Yeah, you'll be going back." But now I'm already in the room sitting down so I can't jump back out and let Jennie know. I wonder if she was sitting there thinking, "Will I see her again or was that it?" I forgot to ask her that. The nurse takes my blood pressure and asks me a bunch of questions, then tells me that she'll take me outside and start my IV and then the doctor and the anesthesiologist will come and talk to me. Never in that 5 minutes with her did she tell me WHEN all of this would take place. Silly me thought that if I was supposed to be there at 10:45, then surely my surgery would be within half an hour. Did I mention that I've never had surgery before? Yeah, silly me.

I don't know if you can see it in the picture above, but they ask you to take out all of your jewellery. Well, I've got a couple of pieces that I can't get out. I thought they'd take wire cutters to them, but they just made me put tape over them (ie, my nose in the picture above).

Time for the IV! Since I've started having a lot of blood work taken to find out what's been going on with me, I've realized that I'm not scared of needles. It didn't hurt at all. It felt weird once she had it in and taped to me because I could feel it move if I moved my hand at all, but it didn't hurt.

My trusty companions all day. They were such troopers. Thank you SOOOOOOO much Jennie and Nathanael for being there for me. Here were all still smiles because ...

It was still only half an hour into our day!

Here I am all ready to go!

And again, still smiling ...

Bren stopped by for a visit before noon and brought me 3 magazines. Thanks, Bren!

After Bren left, it started to feel like we'd been waiting a reeeeeeeeeeaaaaalllllly long time. I stopped one of the nurses who was setting up IV stands next to me and said, "Do you know if my doctor's behind and if so, how far behind?" She said that he was about an hour behind, to which I asked, "Do you know when my surgery was supposed to be?" She asked what time I was told to be here and when I told her, she said, "Your usually asked to be here 2 hours before your surgery." WHAT? That would've been nice to know. I had no idea that I'd be waiting AT LEAST 2 hours. Again, have I mentioned I'd never had surgery before? At least now I knew I'd be waiting 3 hours, since the doc was an hour behind.

The TV was on in the waiting area right next to us, so I kinda strained my next to see what was on. First, it was something like a World Vision program. Dying, starving kids. It was really quite sad ... but maybe they were trying to make us feel better since we weren't allowed to have eaten anything since midnight so we wouldn't be complainers. Point taken.

The next time I looked up at the TV, there was a silent movie on. Yeah, you read that right, a SILENT MOVIE! Did you even know they aired those things anymore? I sure didn't. There was someone in the waiting room and one of the nurses standing up close to the TV watching it ... looking super into it! That made me laugh. I watched and made fun for awhile because their expressions were priceless and then the words would come on the screen, "I am the master here. You will do what I say!" Oh my. Then they showed this guy who looked like a cave man and the word "Idiot" kept being played over top of his face. "Idiot. Idiot. Idiot." I turned to Jennie and said, "What kind of a movie IS this?" But by now I was hooked and it was something to pass the time, so I kept watching. Then Idiot started chasing the rich looking girl around the house and she would stop every once in awhile and scream. I didn't think this was going to end well, but finally the cavalry came and saved her, but when they asked her what they should do with Idiot, she said, "He's innocent. Let him go." WHAT? True, I'd only started watching 3/4 of the way though the movie, so I didn't see the relationship develop between these two, but that was odd. That movie ended with him being extremely grateful to her and her saying, "You'll always have a place with us, Igor." Oh yeah, his name was Igor, not Idiot.

A 2nd silent movie started but the nurse, instead of changing the channel, turned the TV off! What??? It was SUPER quiet in there after that and Jennie and I were starting to get a little weary by this time ... well, I know I was. Then one of the nurses comes into our area and says, "Is anyone here a really big Stanley Cup fan?" We just looked at her like, "What? Why do you ask that?" She says, "The Stanley Cup is here and if you go to the end of the hall, you can look down to the lobby and see it." Knowing that Jennie is a HUGE hockey fan, I told her, "GO! You have to see it!" She grabbed Nathanael and off they went. I sat there for about a minute and then thought, "Nuts! I've been waiting now for about 3 hours. If they come out while I'm gone, THEY can wait a minute or two while I go take a look at the Stanley Cup," so up I got in my cute little gown and trotted down the hallway pushing my IV and this is what I saw:

It was pretty cool, actually! I'm so glad that Jennie could experience it, too. How random was that? I hadn't heard that it was going to be in Abbotsford (apparently one of the coaches on the Boston Bruins is from Abbotsford). Jennie said she'd read that it was going to be in Abbotsford, but couldn't remember where it was going to be. A case of being at the right place at the right time? I don't think so. I think God knew we'd need a little pick me up that day.

After this momentary excitement, we went back to our previous positions (see picture number 7) and continued on with our waiting. A nurse had come out and talked to me about pre surgical stuff and asked me a bunch of questions, so in my mind, it was a go.

At about 2:15, the same nurse that asked if we were Stanley Cup fans, asks me, "Are you going in anytime soon?" With a quizzical look on my face I said to her, "I thought you'd be the one who could tell ME that!" She said, "It can't be too much longer now. The nurse already came out to talk to you, so it must be your turn soon." I said, "As long as I don't get bumped, I'll be happy." Both her and the other nurse were completely quiet for about 5 seconds after I said that (which seemed like forever) and then they were like, "No, I'm sure you'll go in anytime now."

Well, about 15 minutes later, Jennie says to me, "I don't have a good feeling about this." All morning as Jennie was nervous and said she's been cleaning her house like mad, her feelings didn't transfer to me. I was totally calm. I thought maybe when I got to the hospital I'd get more nervous. Nope. Maybe when they put the IV in I'd get more nervous. Nope. But when Jennie said, "I don't have a good feeling about this," I believed her. I started to get that sinking feeling. We'd already seen one person get bumped today (he was quite the character as well, but I won't go into those details), so who's to say it wouldn't happen again. Then, we see a nurse come from behind "the" doors, she grabs my chart, Jennie and I are thinking, "This is it!" she walks over to the Stanley Cup nurse (yes, that's her name) and I see the nurse's hands fly up to her face in an "OH NO!" pose. Jennie and I just looked at each other and said, "Oh crap."

Yup. You guessed it. I got bumped. The nurses were all SUPER apologetic. They explained to me that the doctor had had a very serious cancer case in the morning that had gone longer than expected and then the gallbladder right before mine had taken longer than expected as well and they were going to have to reschedule me. I KNOW that cancer trumps gallbladder so I wasn't upset about that and I tried to be gracious ... especially because it was NONE of their faults, so I pretty much stood up and asked for the IV to be taken out right away so I could go get myself something to eat. I was STARVING!!! Ok, not World Vision child starving, but you know when you can't have it, you want it even more? Yeah, that feeling (and since the cute doctor who'd come out with a sandwich earlier in the day had decided to torture me by waving his sandwich around in front of me hadn't shared with me, I was really thinking about some food at this point).

I'm not sure which thought went through my head first: food or "I have to go to work tomorrow!" but they were pretty close to each other. I think I was more disappointed because I'd already had my date changed once so technically, this was my 2nd bump and rearranging things at work is kind of a pain. I'd gotten myself all psyched up for 2 weeks off work and now ... back to work. And I LIKE my job and my supervisor!

Anyway, Jennie and I went and grabbed some food (the new Thai Chicken burger at McD's is quite good, btw - no, I wasn't TRYING to bring on an attack so I'd end up in emerg and they'd HAVE to do the surgery like my Mom thought) and then I made the phone call to the doctor's office to reschedule. The girl in the office sounded quite flustered when I called so I asked her if she wanted to call me back. She said "yes" and that it would most likely be tomorrow. Well, it's now Sunday and I still don't have my new date. She did inform me that the doctor was going on holidays, so it wouldn't be until September sometime. Of course it won't.

Again, thanks for all your prayers. I know I'm extremely blessed to have you all praying for me and that I haven't had an attack since May. I don't know if I would've been able to handle the disappointment if I'd still been continuously having attacks and NEEDED it out NOW!

I'll keep you all informed when I hear any news. Thanks again!

Surgery day!

2011-08-15T09:17:00.000-07:00

Today I get that darned gallbladder taken out. I've washed with the antiseptic soap (twice - once last night and once this morning ... they must think I'm awfully dirty!) and now I'm all itchy, but I'm not allowed to put any lotion on.

I haven't had an attack since May 17, so I'm not sure what's going on ... have my gallstones disappeared ... did I pass them? What? Strange.

I've taken a picture of my stomach without any scars. Yes, I've been told that the scars will be very small, but I've never had surgery or any major scars before so this is all new to me.

I had a dream last night that I was in the OR (that's operating room for those of you who don't know ... I learned that when I watched ER - that's a TV show short for Emergency Room ;P ), lying on my side and that they were operating through my back. I could hear everything they were saying and could feel some tugging, but no pain. When I woke up, I started thinking about that movie Awake where the guy (Hayden Christensen) is awake during surgery but paralyzed by the anesthetic so he can't tell them that he's feeling everything they're doing. Ok, not the best thought before going under. I'm sure that won't happen to me, right???

Gotta go pack a bag in case the surgery doesn't go well laparoscipically and they have to open me up. If that happens, I'll be in the hospital for a few nights, but it's very rare, so I'm sure I'll be home later this afternoon and tomorrow I can let you all know how I'm doing.

Thanks for your prayers!

Movie Monday

2011-07-18T06:40:00.000-07:00

It's difficult to understand the sum of a person's life. Some people will tell you it's measured by the one's left behind. Some believe it can be measured in faith. Some say by love. Other folks say life has no meaning at all. Me? I believe that you measure yourself by the people who measured themselves by you. What I can tell you for sure is that by any measure, Edward Cole lived more in his last days on earth than most people manage to wring out of a lifetime. I know that when he died, his eyes were closed and his heart was open.

Those are the first words you hear when watching The Bucket List. It intrigued me right off the bat. I wondered, "Is my heart open? What is the sum of my life?" I was really interested to see where this movie went. Sure, there are cheesey parts and it's a shame that they used a green screen in so many scenes instead of actually going to the locations they're supposed to be in the movie (safari in Africa, the pyramids in Egypt, Taj Mahal in India and even something as simple as driving a race car), but I liked the overall idea of the movie.

They both find out they have cancer and have about a year to live, so they make a list of things they'd like to do before kicking the bucket ... hence, The Bucket List. Morgan Freeman's character puts things down like:

See something truly majestic

Help a complete stranger for the good

Laugh until I cry

Jack Nicholson's character puts things down like:

Skydiving

Kiss the most beautiful girl in the world

Get a tattoo
Which leads Carter (MF) to say to Edward (JN), "Is that the sum of your ambition? Edward, I've taken baths deeper than you."

I thought that was a pretty good line, however, in my opinion, if you're going to make a bucket list, I think it's ok to have fun things like that on it.

Later on in the movie, when they're sitting at the top of a pyramid (yeah, right!), Carter tells Edward that the ancient Egyptians had a beautiful belief about getting to the entrance to Heaven. When their souls arrived, they were asked two questions and their answers determined whether they were admitted or not.

1) Have you found joy in your life?
2) Has your life brought joy to others?

Wow! Those are 2 awesome questions! Think about them. Read them again. I can honestly say yes to the first question which brings me ... what else? ... JOY! And the answer to question #2? Well, I think we'd all like to answer the way Edward answers by saying, "Ask them."

But be honest with yourself. Has your life brought joy to others? My answer is this ... I believe so. For the most part, I've surrounded myself with people who bring me joy and in turn, they inspire me to do the same. Edward's answer is probably right in that we can't truly answer for someone else. People have to choose joy. I may try to bring people joy, but they have to choose to receive it. I think if you were a grumpy, bitter, curmudgeon and were asked that question, you'd have to answer no, so if you're mostly a pleasant person, why wouldn't your answer be yes? Because it seems arrogant to answer yes? Maybe, but who cares! I do think that we can always strive to be better people, though, so let's not get carried away on being high on ourselves. ;)

This movie, to me, was about three things.

1) Being a good friend

One of the last lines in the movie is this ... "I'm deeply proud that this man found it worth his while to know me." I am so grateful to have so many people in my life worth knowing. You have inspired me, encouraged me, cried with me, served with me, been silent with me, laughed with me and gone on many adventures with me (whether abroad or right in our own backyards). I lost a friend recently and it was very sudden. I hadn't told him what he meant to me and I'll forever be sorry for that. His facebook wall was inundated with amazing comments about what a great person he was. I know that no one's going to say something bad about someone at a time like this, but they could've just said simple things. Instead, they went on and on about his character, his encouraging words and how much he'll be missed. It's really made me want to be a better person. We should all aspire to have those things said about us when we pass away.

2) How do I want to be remembered

This pretty much ties in with what I said at the end of #2. What kind of legacy do you want to leave behind? What do you want people to say about you when you're gone? Then start living it NOW! It's not good enough just to think about it. Do it! And I'm pointing the finger at myself here as well. Just like choosing joy, it's a daily choice to be a nice person when you wake up in the morning. Granted, for some people it's an easier choice than for others (why is that, anyway?), but we really do have a choice.

3) Take risks and try new things

The other day I saw this quote: "Begin at once to live, and count each separate day as a separate life." - Seneca. Count each day as a separate life. I like that. Some things will definitely be worth the risk and others won't, but at least you'll have put yourself out there and tried. Going back to the beginning of this post, when I die, I want my eyes to be closed and my heart to be open, however, I also want to LIVE with my heart open.

Overall, I'd definitely recommend this movie. Is it JN's or MF's best acting jobs? No. But it's the message that counts and this is a good one.

So, my question for you is:

What's on your Bucket List?

Hello July!!!

2011-07-08T16:56:00.000-07:00

I realize that I've been quite absent for awhile and for that, I'm sorry ... however, you know I was gone for the month of May and the month of June? Forget about it! I returned home from overseas on June 3, forced myself to stay awake until 9pm, crashed for 10 hours, got up, repacked a small bag and headed out the door with 2 friends for Seattle. Why Seattle? I'm glad you asked. I went to see THE BEST BAND IN THE WORLD!!! If you have to ask which band that is, you're new to my blog, aren't you?

U2 of course!!!

Had a GREAT time at the concert, stayed overnight, walked around Seattle the next day and tried my new favoritest ice cream in the world (will explain more in a later post), came home early evening on Sunday (still working on jet lag, don't forget), had errands and plans Monday and Tuesday, did NOTHING on Wednesday and then back to work on Thursday.

Friday after work I packed ANOTHER small bag and headed up to Whistler for the weekend with 3 friends. Man, Whistler's beautiful!!!

Another week of work (just about kicked jet lag by this point ... with a few up-until-3am nights in there), then had a friend come up from Seattle and stay at my place all weekend ... we went and saw Wicked (really great, but the A/C wasn't working so it was like a SAUNA in there!!!) and then on Sunday did another trip into Vancouver to pick up my sister's dog at the airport and transfer him to another airline and send him off to Calgary for my parents to pick him up.

Another week of work (finally kicked the jet lag) and then headed down to Snohomish and Seattle to visit some friends, which brings us to last weekend where I GLADLY welcomed the month of July because I only have one or two things planned!!!

Don't get me wrong. I loved everything I did in the months of May and June, but I'm exhausted!!!

I'll try to start updating again, but that's the quick version of the last month ... all of which my pics are on Facebook and most of you have commented on, so I think I'll just leave this one as a wordy update. :P

I'm happy to be back!

Travel tips/Things to Know

2011-05-16T03:27:00.000-07:00

1. When choosing reading material for your trip, make sure to bring a book that wraps up nicely ... or bring the sequel along. There's nothing worse than getting all caught up in some characters only to be slapped with a big, ole "To be continued ... " at the end. :(

2. This one's mostly for the ladies, but you'll find yourself doing your hair differently or wearing things you'd NEVER find yourself wearing back home. I wish I had a picture to show you of this thing I've been wearing on my head, but the benefits of traveling alone are that there ARE no pics! I am kinda sad that I left my fisherman's pants at home because again, although I wouldn't wear them at home, they're super comfortable and "fashionable" amongst travelers.

3. When buying trail mix for a snack, make sure there's no chocolate in it. Makes for a very messy situation when in warm climates.

4. Don't forget to put suntan lotion INSIDE your ears. Yup. They will burn and it'll hurt to put in your ear buds to listen to your iPod later. If you do forget, still do it the next day even though it hurts like a bugger. You'll thank me later.

5. You'll start getting a British accent - or at the very least, an accent not your own. Let me explain (granted, this may just happen to me). English is the common language (fortunately, for me), however, from my experience, a lot of ESL people have learned English from the proper British, therefore, when they speak it, they kinda sound British (at least to me they do). Lately, I've found myself when talking to someone from Holland (met a nice couple from there today ... thought of you, Bren), let's say, that all of a sudden sentences all sound like questions and just generally sound different. If I say it the way I'm used to, a lot of times people don't understand you ... but put on the British accent and they get it! I haven't said "Ta" or "Cheers" yet, but I have found myself saying "Reckon" (not with the southern US drawl, but again, the British accent). Ok, like I said, maybe this one's just me.

6. When ordering a cheeseburger, it's best not to ask until after you've eaten it what kind of meat they made the patty with.

7. You'll most likely get so relaxed that the very thought of going back to work will make you want to "accidentally" lose your passport ... then you remember that you have to work to make more money and go do this again, and the panic attack passes.

8. Canadians are very polite. It's not like that everywhere ... but sometimes it's part of that country's charm, in a weird way.

9. Don't let your left side turn towards the sun today ... oh sorry. That one's just for me. :P

10. When the "captain" tells you, "Jump in here and you see turtle" or "Jump in here and you see shark" do it, even if you're scared! I did it! Can you believe it? I hardly can!!! :)

11. Talk to people around you. Most of them will be interested to hear where you're from, where you've been and to tell you good places to see and things to do. If they don't feel like talking, you'll figure that out pretty quickly and you can move on to the next person/people.

AND LASTLY ...

12. You can't outrun the Biebster. They play him in the airports, hotel lobby's and even little restaurants on practically deserted islands. I know some of you will be happy about this, but I thought I'd warn the rest of you. You're welcome.

The Things I'm Thankful For Over The Last 24 hours

2011-05-14T01:48:00.000-07:00

Thank You, Lord, that as I was reading my book on the beach and watching the sunset (yes, you can do both simultaneously), I "happened" to look behind me when I heard a rustling. My eyes weren't sure what they saw, so I had to take a closer look. It looked like a badger, but with the talons of a bat. It was a flying squirrel. A gentleman passing by saw me looking up into the tree and asked, "Anything interesting?" We stood and watched 2 flying squirrels hop their way to the top of the tree and eventually jump/fly down. Very, very cool.

Thank You, Lord that I "happened" to wake up at 5:30 this morning and look outside and see a crazy lightening storm ... with no rain ... even better.

Thank You, Lord, that when I set out on what I thought was going to be a short excursion today, I "happened" to think to take my sarong to cover my shoulders so I wouldn't get more burnt. My excursion ended up lasting 4 hours, so I'm glad I had it along.

Thank You, Lord, that I've learned to look behind me when I hear rustling and again, "happened" to turn around and see a monitor lizard slowly walking down the path towards where I was laying on the beach.

Thank You, Lord, that as I was setting up my self timer on my camera to take a picture, that I "happened" to see a "stick" move and "happened" to look at it more closely to see it was really a snake (the equivalent to what we'd call a Gardener snake - is that how it's spelled?"). And thank You, Lord that I "happened" to get a National Geographic moment as I looked closer and saw that it had a little lizard in it's mouth. Thank You, Lord, that my battery on my camera "happened" to die right AFTER I'd watched this circle of life moment so I could capture most of it on my camera. The reason I was setting up my self timer was because the beach I was on was completely deserted. I literally felt like I was a castaway all alone. Kinda cool and creepy at the same time.

Thank You, Lord, that when I got back to my hut and wanted to relax by listening to some music, U2's "Beautiful Day" "happened" to play when I put it on shuffle.

Thank You, Lord, that I don't believe in happenstances. Thank YOU for a GREAT day!

Oh, and thanks for banana/pineapple smoothies. :)

What I Know About the Perhentian Island so far ...

2011-05-13T01:46:00.000-07:00

By the time I arrived on the Perhentian Islands, I was soaked and thought we were going to capsize about 3 times from the boat ride over. The poor sap beside me had only just met me and yet I grabbed his arm every time I thought we were going over. It's ok. We're fast friends now and he's most likely going to come visit tomorrow. haha - don't you love meeting other travelers?

My room smells like urine and the sheets are stained.

I've got a chicken and her baby chick living under my hut and a nosy squirrel constantly staring at me.

I've got no hot water and the bathroom leaves much to be desired.

And you know what? ... I LOVE IT ALL!!!

I'm not kidding.

This place is BEA-U-TI-FUL!!! The water is so clear that when I stand on the dock, I can see all the colourful fish ... I don't even NEED to go snorkeling! The sand is so soft and white that it squeaks under my feet. Last night I was sitting on the beach just people watching and I looked to the south and watched the coolest storm roll in. Once it passed, the air felt fresher and less humid.

I slept for 10 hours!!! How is that possible? Why can't I ever sleep that long at home? I'm not going to think about it right now. I'm just going to enjoy it.

Here are a few other things I've learned:

I should've applied more sunscreen today. Oh well. That just means I won't have my back to the sun at all tomorrow. It'll be a front facing day. So, I make an adjustment. No big deal.

Yes, travelling alone has it's lonely moments, but I haven't once felt that I'm holding anyone up while I stop and take my MILLION pictures or take a super long shower. I haven't felt like I've disappointed anyone by simply wanting to sit and read my book for 5 hours straight instead of "doing" something.

To sum it up, I'm having a GREAT time! This is the life. I'm telling ya. And I've still got 3 full days of it ... looking forward to doing more of nothing. :) Then I'm on to my sisters and I just learned she's got a pool in her complex ... I guess a few more lazy days are in my future before the grad festivities start up.

Hope you're all well. I do wish you were here. Oh, a rooster just walked by the door ... did I mention I saw a monkey in the tree above the restaurant earlier as well? Yeah, pretty darn cool.

Less than 2 weeks

2011-04-25T07:10:00.000-07:00

Psalm 121:5-7 "The Lord is your protector, there at your right side to shade you from the sun. You won’t be harmed by the sun during the day or by the moon at night. The Lord will protect you and keep you safe from all dangers." (CEV)

I had another attack last night. It wasn't fun, but just as I started worrying about it happening during my trip, I read the verse above. It's all in His hands. He will protect me and I have to trust in that.

On another note ... as much as I'm thankful for my new phone and that I can get internet on it and update Facebook and my blog, typing anything too long can be a real pain on this teeny keyboard, so that's all from me for now. :P

Happy Easter!!!

2011-04-24T07:37:00.000-07:00

Christianity happens when men and women accept with unwavering trust that their sins have not only been forgiven, but forgotten, washed away in the blood of the Lamb. Thus, my friend archbishop Joe Reia says, "A sad Christian is a phony, and a guilty Christian is no Christian at all.".

Computer woes

2011-04-23T07:30:00.000-07:00

Well, I'm without a computer again. :( My computer died on me a couple of months ago and I got a new one a few weeks ago and now that one's died on me. I don't have the time or energy to research and go buy a new one right now, so I guess it'll have to wait until I get home from my trip. Ugh. I really DO want to tell you about my experience in the delivery room and show you pictures, but it'll have to wait.

Oh, I have an appointment with the surgeon on May 2. When I booked the appointment she said it'll be about 20 minutes and then after that she'll book me for the surgery once I get back from my trip. When she said that, my stomach did a little flip. I've never had surgery before. Heck, I've never even been in the hospital overnight ... I've only been to emergency twice in my life and from about the age of 12 - 30 I didn't even HAVE a doctor because there were no visits needed. So this whole thing is a bit new to me. And I'll be honest with you ... when I drove into emergency a couple of weeks ago, I was wondering what the possibility would be of them cutting me open right then and there and it made me sad that I was alone. I wanted someone there to hold my hand. I always feel like I'm pretty independant and content being single, but this was one of those weak moments where I wish I wouldn't have been alone. Yes, I could've called someone, but one thing about being single is that you (obviously) don't have the spouse there to see that you need to go to the hospital and just jump in the car and drive you there, so you have to make the effort to call someone and you really don't want to bother people. Plus, I really didn't think they were actually going to cut me open that night, so I knew I could handle it alone. I had phoned my parents while I was waiting in emergency and when I called them back to tell them what had happened, I told my Mom about wishing I had someone with me, and she said that her and Dad had thought about that but were worried about my car all alone in the parking lot all night! haha! That cracked me up. :)

Anyway, I've actually been feeling pretty good the last week, so I'm sure it'll all be good while I'm gone. I've alerted my insurance company that I've got this pre-existing condition so that if something does happen while I'm gone that I'll still be covered. One day at a time, right?

Easter ... and an analogy about surfing

2011-04-22T07:34:00.000-07:00

I read this a couple of months ago on Jamie, The Very Worst Missionary's blog and it was such a good analogy that I thought I'd repost an excerpt of it here:

This is about surfing... but not actually.

If you could do me a favor, I’d like you to imagine, as you read this, that I have a body like one of those girls from that surf movie Blue Crush... or like the super-model, Giselle. Yeah, Giselle would be good. Trust me. I just feel like this whole story will come off better if you can pretend that I’m sleek and athletic, rather than stumpy and jiggly. Let’s pretend I’m “lithe”, I like that word. Also, lets pretend that I’m a pretty good surfer. I’m not. At all.

I get the same bruise every single time I surf. Same bruise, same spot, same reason. Every time. I walked out of the water with it, throbbing along the back of my arm, this week. And even though it always happens, it still kinda surprised me.

It’s a good deep bruise, the kind that bleeds into the closest joint, making everything feel stiff and sore. The kind that reminds you, every time you stretch your arm or roll over in your sleep, that, oh yeah, you were surfing today... yesterday... earlier this week... You were on the water with your eyes stinging and your lungs burning of salt, and you slipped off your board into the sea -like you always do- and, as you tumbled under the waves, your very own board came back at you, above you, trying to kill you. So you put up your arm to protect your face and head from the fin that was racing toward your skull, and that’s when it got you, right smack in the same spot where it always gets you, on the back of the arm.

That's how it goes every stinkin’ time. And this might sound weird, but I love that wretched, painful bruise because it reminds me of how I love to surf.

I love the struggle of surfing. You have to battle against the forces of the Earth just to get out past the break. You have to beat the current, and the waves, and the wind, and your own tired body, before you can let it all loose again to come together and push you back to shore.

Then, once you're out there, there's a moment of quiet. A time of Peace. Where the crush of waves over your head has been replaced by the graceful sway of the water underneath you. You’re just there, in that place where you wait for the wave that will pick you up, steady your path, and shoot you back to the sand a little faster than you’d like.

When it’s time, you can feel it rising behind you pulling you backward, upward. And then the fight begins again, to paddle ahead, to stay upright, to get up on your feet as white water surges behind you, and then all of a sudden... you’re standing, moving, surfing along the wave, you are flying free and fast, and you don’t remember anymore how hard it was to get there. You aren’t bothered by aching muscles or burning lungs. The struggle is over. The battle is won.

It’s not until your feet are buried in the sand again, and after you’ve caught your breath, that you feel the pulsing at the back or your arm, where the fin of your board laid into you, You can feel the blood pooling under the skin and seeping down into your elbow, but you totally don’t care because that’s the price you pay for the freedom to glide above the water. And it was worth it.

And that’s when you remember another price that was paid so that you could be free.

Today, I am reminded, whenever I flex my sore right arm, that we are commemorating the battle waged, the broken body, the shed blood.

Tomorrow, a moment of quiet anticipation, as we wait for what's to come.
And finally, on the third day, a celebration. The freedom granted to each of us by the empty tomb, the battle won.

Now, I need to stop wondering if I’m worth it...

One Minute Sermon

2011-04-21T06:13:00.000-07:00

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WUQYJ77qa50

Where do I live???

2011-04-14T06:48:00.000-07:00

How is it possible that on April 14, THIS ...

is what I woke up to this morning? WHAAAAAAT?

My vacation can't come soon enough!

Ultrasound results!

2011-04-08T16:16:00.000-07:00

Well, I just got out of my ultrasound and luckily she didn't tell me that she heard the heartbeat! Haha That would've been a whole other ultrasound and I would've felt ripped off! ;) But, I am the proud owner of gallstones! I know that may sound weird that I'm proud about that, but I'd been so nervous that they wouldn't find anything and there'd be no cause for the pain/issues I've been having, so to hear her say to me, "you've definitely got stones" was a big relief to me. What happens now? Well, I'm not 100% sure, but I've got my follow up apt with my own doc on Thursday next week and I'm sure he'll tell me where we go from here. The tech seemed to think I could be put on a list with others having the same problem and it'll depend how often and severe the attacks are before I would have surgery to have it taken out. She, herself, had her gallbladder out and she said it took forever to even get a consultation with the surgeon. I'm not holding out for anything to happen before my trip, but now that I can technically put a term to what I'm going through, I'm ok with it. Thanks again for all your prayers and advice!

Gallbladder update

2011-04-06T12:12:00.000-07:00

So, I had another "attack" (until they confirm that there's a problem with my gallbladder, I have to put attack in quotes because it's alleged, not confirmed) last night. I was sick of it, so I drove myself to emergency. I was happy to see the waiting room virtually empty and 10 minutes later, I got called in. The doctor came (he didn't look anything like George Clooney, btw) and did a little interview with me. I didn't realize how stupid I'd feel that I wasn't actually an emergency. I was more there because I was sick of feeling this way and wanted to get an earlier ultrasound than the 27th ... and pretty much because my doctor had told me to go in the next time it happened. I was in pain, but it wasn't excruciating. When I think of the ER, I think you should have an appendage dangling by a thread to go in there, but I guess that's not always the case (I heard another guy in the bed next to me later tell the doctor he felt bad for wasting his time, so it wasn't just me). Anyway, the doc told me that he couldn't get me an ultrasound then and there because the techs had gone home for the day and they only call them back if it's a true emergency. "Sheesh! Why was I there then?" I thought. They took a few samples and then the waiting began. I had to go out once and pay for more parking, but just before that one was about to expire, the doc came back to me and said, "Well, your samples came back fine." Of course they did. Ugh. "But I'm going to order you an ultrasound anyway." THANK YOU!!! "I can't guarantee that you'll get in earlier than the one you've already got scheduled, but we'll see what we can do. I was home 3 hours after I'd gone in and had a good sleep.

This morning, I got a call from the hospital and they've booked me for an ultrasound on FRIDAY!!! Whoo hooooo!!!

I'm trying not to worry about the thought "what if the ultrasound doesn't show anything" because then I'll be back to square one with no reason why I've been having these "attacks."

Anywho, just thought I'd give you a quick update. Thanks for your prayers ... would appreciate if they continue. :)

Movie Monday

2011-04-04T07:20:00.000-07:00

Short and sweet ... it definitely had some funny parts, but knowing my readers, I'd say you can skip this one.

Catch up!

2011-04-03T08:20:00.000-07:00

It seemed like I was on a roll there for awhile and then I left the planet for a bit. Sorry about that. I was actually quite busy and when I finally did have some downtime, I wanted to just sit on my couch and catch up on shows I'd PVR'd (that would be DVR'd for my American readers ... hopefully that's not Lost in Translation ... ooooh, there's a GREAT old movie I could review for Movie Monday ... but that's for another time). Anyway, here are a few of the events I was busy with over the past couple of weeks. Sonya's quick visit. When Sonya told me she was coming down to Abby, I asked if I could get some girls together to see her. She was all about that, so here we are reunited at Earl's. The lovely Kori and Jill joined us as well ...

And Rachel was also there. Apparently I didn't get the "wear black" memo. :P We had fun chit chatting and jumping every time my phone rang because, I don't know if you noticed, but Jennie was absent from this night (so was Keri, who was on her way to Palm Springs ... whatever. Who chooses Palm Springs over girlfriends? haha - JKJK!). Jennie was supposed to come, however, she was having contractions that night and they were 6 minutes apart and some of them were so bad that she could hardly breathe through them. We all thought, "Tonight's the night!" but alas, it wasn't to be. What was to be turned out to be something different all together.

Unfortunately, I ended the night quite abruptly. I've been having a few stomach aches over the last month after I've eaten a meal, but I was just attributing it from going to strictly Jenny Craig food (high in fibre and soy) to a "normal" diet again. Well, I got my regular stomach ache and I joked that I should tell Jennie, "Oh, I totally know how you feel about your contractions. My stomach hurts, too." haha We all had a good laugh, until all of a sudden I had stabbing pains just below my chesticles (as Len from Dancing with the Stars calls them). I excused myself from the table and went to the bathroom for so long that one of the girls was about to come and check on me just as I was coming back. Don't worry, I won't get too graphic on you here, but let's just say that I was lucky I made it home in time before my quesadillas decided to make a reappearance. So, you know after you puke you usually feel better. Nope. Not this time. The stabbing pain continued for another 10 minutes or so and then it was like someone flipped a switch and the pain was gone. Exhibit A - the meal in question

I love my quesadillas at Earl's and have had them many times before. I chalked it up to bad chicken or something. Until the pain came back the next day while I was sitting in the movie theatre. Same story. Excused myself and went home. By this time, people are starting to tell me that my symptoms sound very similar to (insert family member's name here) story of when they had gallbladder attacks. I decided to be my own physician and google it. I could pretty much check off every symptom I found on google. It said it could also have been a problem with my appendix, but when I clicked on that, none of the symptoms matched. Anyway, to make an already long story short, I found out that my Dad, my uncle, my Grandma and 2 of my cousins have had their gallbladders out, so my doctor thinks that's most likely my problem as well. I've now had 4 "attacks" in 2 and a half weeks but of course, unless you go into emergency, I can't get an ultrasound until April 27. Crappy thing is, if they find something, I leave on my trip a week later. Oh well. I know it's all in God's hands and will work out how it's supposed to. But there's my update on that.

The next weekend I went out with my cousins for a little stagette/shower for my cousin Taraleigh. I got to go to her dress fitting as well, but none of those pictures can be shown here ... gotta keep that beautiful dress a secret! Janelle and I planned to take Taraleigh downtown and keep her in the dark as to what we were doing. We left just before supper so I made this cheese plate to take along with us to eat on the drive in.

We saw this street performer downtown (who looks strangely like Mr. Tumnus) and we told Taraleigh that as part of her stagette, she had to go stand with him and have her picture taken with him ... as you can see from the picture, she didn't comply. haha We weren't into that kind of stagette.

We were, however, into chocolate. After walking around and window shopping for a short while (we didn't realize the stores we wanted to go into closed so blinkin' early!), we headed to our reservation at The Sutton Place for the Chocolate Buffet.

Yes, I said Chocolate Buffet. It was pretty darn good. I would definitely recommend it, but I will warn you, it's not cheap. You definitely pay for the atmosphere as well, though. It feels very posh with the pianist in the background (he was really quite good), the fancy table settings and decor and of course, the company.

Here's plate #1. Yes, I was a little nervous after what had happened at Earl's the week before, but I chanced it and all was ok.

Here's the happy bride. Janelle and I were wondering if she was going to want to kill us for filling her up with chocolate a month before her wedding ... but then we thought, "It's a month before the wedding! She'll have lots of time to work off the chocolate!" haha Luckily Taraleigh agreed with us and wasn't mad at all. :)

Plate # 2 - I had to go back for a crepe! Good think I only see my Jenny Craig consultant once a month now! I conveniently forgot to tell her about this when I saw her. ;)

She looks a little nervous opening this bag in the middle of the restaurant, doesn't she ... or maybe she looks excited ... I can't really tell.

And THIS is what you get when you ask someone else to take a picture for you. I didn't think that I had to specify to focus on US and not the huge painting on the wall behind us. Funny. I didn't crop it because it's actually kinda funny.

Taraleigh decided she wanted a better look at what was in the bag when we got to the car, so she pulled this out ... with 2 others in different patterns. They were SUPER soft and a great price for 3, so if you know anyone who's getting married and you don't want to get them something super slutty, I'd say to head over to La Senza for these cute little nighties. I almost bought myself some because they were so cute and soft, but then ... really ... why? haha!

And the last "big" event that I planned was a mini Bornefest. My cousin Brenda was coming out to visit from Manitoba so I sent all the Bornes that are in the area an email letting them know when and where to meet and they ALL showed up! It was great! There were 19 of us in total and we had so much fun.

There were 6 of us cousin there representing 6 different families (out of 10). Usually we have a bunch of siblings in the group when we get together like this, but this time it was different. We have: back row - Taraleigh (Art), Edee (Vern), Janelle (John) and front row: Brenda (Henry), me (Herman) and Gord (George).

So, those are just a few of the reasons why I was busy over the last weeks. There were a bunch of coffee nights with individual friends where we were chatting so much that I didn't take any pictures and then nights out with my Little Sister and so on. The biggest event that happened in the last few weeks will have to wait for it's own post. SOOOOOO much to tell from that amazing day. My schedule has cleared up now so hopefully I'll be able to post about it soon.

Movie Monday

2011-03-21T08:02:00.000-07:00

"Now faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see," (Heb. 11:1).

On the brink of winning a seat in the U.S. Senate, ambitious politician David Norris meets beautiful contemporary ballet dancer Elise Sellas--a woman like none he's ever known. But just as he realizes he's falling for her, mysterious men conspire to keep the two apart. David learns he is up against the agents of Fate itself--the men of The Adjustment Bureau--who will do everything in their considerable power to prevent David and Elise from being together.

But why? Why don't they want them to be together? And when you find out why, is that a good enough reason? This movie seems to make you want to ask yourself if we control our destiny or do unforeseen "forces" manipulate us.

Before I say anything more, I will tell you that I liked the movie. It's definitely more romantically inclined and less action than they lead you to believe in the trailer, but I did like it. I don't want to give anything away or taint your thoughts before seeing it, but this movie could really mess with your mind. If you're unsure of what you believe and who you believe in, I can see that this movie would bring about a lot of questions, which it did for me at first. On my drive home my mind was going a mile a minute and I started questioning God ... and then the verse I opened with popped into my mind.

"Now faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see,"
(Heb. 11:1).

Oh yeah. I don't NEED to know what's going on because God's got it under control. I will NEVER be fully in "the know" and that's ok because that's what faith is. And besides ...

"For I know the plans I have for you," declares the LORD, "plans to prosper you
and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future." (Jeremiah 29:11)

I went and saw the movie with a co-worker and she obviously had some thoughts about the movie as well because as soon as she walked through the door the next morning, before she even took her coat off or turned her computer on, we were talking about faith, God and free will. It was pretty cool. I don't know if we came to any hard conclusions, but I told her about the 2 verses that I've mentioned here and that I don't worry because I really do believe that God's got it all under control. All I can do is think about today and see how God wants it to play out.

I mentioned that this movie seems to make you want to ask yourself if we control our destiny or do unforeseen "forces" manipulate us. I believe they left out one option. That there's a loving God who allows us to have free will and won't manipulate us but will be there with open arms if we decide to choose Him. No, it doesn't mean that life will be a piece of cake if we do choose Him, but He'll be with us every step of the way to help us through it ... and that's enough for me.

Red Eye Flashes Twice

2011-03-19T07:50:00.000-07:00

This cracked me up on a couple of levels. One - don't you have one or two friends/family members/co-workers who ALWAYS ruin a picture by having their eyes closed or walking away before the picture finishes? Two - if you listen until the very end, it's kinda what I was talking about last Saturday in my post about wanting to be famous. I realize it's cutting off half the video, but you'll get the gist of it.

Happy Anniversary!

2011-03-18T06:44:00.000-07:00

Today is my parents 51st wedding anniversary. These pictures are from last year when I went with them on a trip down memory lane to some of their hot spots when they were dating and early married. Here we were at White Spot eating at the drive in/up ... whatever it's called. They honestly giggled like school kids almost the whole time we were eating in the car. It was quite funny.

And then they took me out to UBC where they used to watch "the submarine races." Yeah, right!

Happy Anniversary you crazy kids!

Love you lots!

Pay it forward

2011-03-17T06:17:00.000-07:00

The other day a friend of mine who I hadn't seen in a long while sent me an email after hanging out for the weekend and wrote in it (and I quote):

If I didn’t say it to your face, you look great. Slim and great. Healthy, and frankly, you sound happy.

As nice as it is to hear that I'm looking "slim," I actually was more touched by the compliment that I sound happy ... because I am. I have a great life. I really have nothing to complain about. Well, other than this long winter, not having much money right now, the gas prices going up and thinking I may have a gallbladder problem - but other than those silly things, I've really got NOTHING to complain about! haha - No, but really. I take that as a compliment because I do feel the blessings of God in my life on a daily basis and if I come across as happy, it's because He's in my life and that means I'm somehow paying tribute to Him ... and that makes me happy. I do want my life to be a testimony to His goodness.

So, thank you to my friend for paying me that compliment. It was honestly one of the nicest things anyone's said to me in a long time.

I'm going to look for a way to pay that compliment forward. How about you? Have you received a compliment lately that was unexpected and made your day ... or paid a compliment to someone and shocked them?

Wordless Wednesday

2011-03-16T06:31:00.000-07:00

Another Happy birthday!

2011-03-15T06:44:00.000-07:00

This little girl turns 18 today. WHAT? How can that be? Sydney is my first niece. I remember when she was born because I was out in Alberta for a friends wedding (in April) so I got to see her when she was a month old ... and it snowed. I think that clinched me ever wanting to live in the Prairies ... snow in April!? Uh uh.

Anyway, back to Syd. This girl makes me happy. She is SUCH a good kid (I'm sure at 18 she hates to be called a kid, but when you're "old" like me, she's still a kid). Sydney is a nice person. She always has been. She's a loving sister and friend. I've witnessed it. She LOVES to read! I think she read the Lord of the Rings trilogy when she was 12 ... I didn't read those until I was in my 30s! If you give her a new book, don't expect to see/talk to her for a couple of days because she's engaged in reading said book. And she's super smart, too! I mean, she's graduating this year so the fact that she's passing means she's smart, right? :)

This is a pic of me and Syd a couple of years ago. I think she was 14 then. Yeah, my little niece!

I can't wait to go see her walk across the stage and matriculate (big word, hey? I like reading, too, you know. It really has helped me with my vocabulary.). I hope that no matter where my nieces or nephews live when they graduate that I will be able to go and see it.

Now Sydney has a boyfriend. I can't wait to meet him. I haven't heard what their plans are for next year, so I'm excited to sit down and have a good chat with her about all her plans for the future ... or at least for the next year.

Isn't she beautiful? Seriously. I think she should apply for America's Next Top Model.

Love you, Syd! I hope you have a wonderful birthday and an amazing year. It will be full of changes but I know you're strong and you'll make it through with excitement and lots and lots of vigor.

Movie Monday

2011-03-14T06:24:00.000-07:00

Maybe I've got babies on my brain because Jennie's about to have hers any day now and I'm SUPER excited slash nervous to be in the delivery room, but this is also just an awesome movie that you really should see. I believe I've admitted that I'm not sure if I want to have kids. That doesn't mean that I don't like kids, but I guess what I'm trying to show here is that even someone like me, without kids, liked ... no LOVED this movie. I watched it with my cousins one night and then I had Jennie over the next day and asked her if I could show her a few minutes of it (knowing that she'd be suckered in to watching the whole thing) and watched it again the very next day.

The remarkable thing about this movie is that there's no talking. The movie angle is from the baby's perspective, so you rarely even see adults. Well, you see their calves and sometimes when they bend down or are sitting, you actually see the full human that birthed this child, but most of the time, it's just a year in the life of one of 4 babies.

One of the babies is named Bayar who lives with his family in Bayanchandmani, Mongolia.

I don't want to ruin it for you, so I won't tell you specifics, but this kid gets into some interesting situations. The lone male of this movie, he's battered by his brother and left to play amoungst the cattle at times.

Oh, and he's super cute!

The next baby is named Ponijao and she lives with her family in Opuwo, Namibia. This little girl (who I thought was a boy the whole movie) is absolutely ADORABLE!

Some of the things that happened in the Namibia sequences made me gag and some made me cry. Seriously. Amazing.

Again, I don't want to tell you too much, but pretty much their only toys are rocks ... and they seem content with that!

The 3rd baby is named Mari and she lives with her family in Tokyo, Japan.

Mari has more "things" at her disposal so this sequence isn't as jaw dropping as with the other 2, but she's still super cute, so she's fun to watch.

The last baby is named Hattie who lives with her family in San Francisco, California. This rolly polly little girl lives a life that we are used to.

Playing with cell phones and trips to the beach are regular activities for us, but when watching it in contrast to what the other ones are doing in their perspective homes, it's really very interesting.

I think everyone should watch this movie. Even kids. Like I said, there are very few spoken words in this movie, but it grabbed my attention right from the get go. It will blow your mind to realize how spoiled we North American's are. I thought I knew that lesson ... yeah, this will reopen your eyes to that subject. The more we have around us, the less content we are, it seems.

Anyway, I highly recommend this movie. It's awesome. It obviously took a year to film and then a couple of years to edit and get into theatres, so they do a little follow up on them at the end a couple of years later, but I'd love to see another follow up on them maybe at age 10 and then 15 ... you know ... every 5 years to see how they're doing and to see what they think of themselves as babies. So great! Enjoy!

Happy birthday(s)!

2011-03-13T08:43:00.000-07:00

I know 3 people who have birthdays today ... and if you know anything about me, that makes me happy ... because of the number 3 being involved, duh! I don't know why, ok. It just does. :P As far as I know, none of them read my blog, but I want to pay tribute to them anyway.

First, I'll tell you about my nephew, Jackson.

He's my youngest nephew and he turns 11 today. He's such a sweet guy. I haven't seen him since my trip to Malaysia back in 2007 when this picture was taken.

I can't wait to see him again in May. He's just a barrel of fun. When we skyped with them at Christmas, I could totally see a change in him and although I'm sure he'll be taller than me in no time, he'll always be my little nephew.

I don't know if he'll let me put him in a trance by tickling his face anymore, but as an Auntie, I think I'll always have to try, right? It's my duty!

Happy birthday, Jackeroo! Can't wait to see you in 54 days!!!

The 2nd person I know with a birthday today I've known since I was 10 years old. It literally makes my heart happy that we're still friends after all this time. My friend, Lee and I have been friends since we met in Grade 5. We went to different schools for Grade 8 and 9 but still kept in touch and then were BFs again in Grade 10, 11 and 12 when we were reunited at the same school again.

After we graduated, we lost touch a little bit, but never for long. We definitely went our separate ways and did different things and I think we might have gone a couple of years without being in touch, but you can't kept true friends away from each other. Last summer I had the privilege of going to Lee's wedding. It was such an honour to be there. This was a picture of us from last month when we went out for supper, had some great laughs, looked through old High School pictures (and of course had more laughs about that) and just generally chatted about our hopes and dreams. Honestly. That may sound corny, but we did. Lee's got 2 beautiful little girls now and it's wonderful to see her as a wife and mother. We also talked about our shared love of Sixteen Candles (we can recite almost the whole movie), Ricky Gervais (have you seen the new show An Idiot Abroad? HILARIOUS!) and Hoarders (gross, but you can't look away!). I love you, Lee, Lee the Dancing Bee!

The 3rd person I know who has a b.day today is my friend, Colleen. I put Colleen 3rd because, like me, she's got this weird thing about the number 3. Neither of us can explain it. It just makes us happy to know that there's someone out there who gets it. So, there's that that makes us great friends, but Colleen's also one of the nicest people I know. We became friends because I was friends with her brother and slowly over time, I started hanging out more with her than I did with him. I don't think I know anyone who doesn't like her when they meet her.

When I was living in the States, Colleen was one of the people who would write me letters (remember those days when we actually still put pen to paper?) and send me little things in the mail to make me feel not so far from home. She's one of those people who does those extra little things to let you know that you're special to her. I am blessed to call you my friend, Colleen.

Happy birthday to you all! I hope you all have a WONDERFUL day because you all deserve it!

Thank You for making me average

2011-03-12T07:51:00.000-08:00

I was going to call this post, "Thank You for making me normal" but then the opposite is abnormal and I don't like that word. Here's what I mean.

The other day I was watching TV and I came across a show where a guy had a 12 pound tumor on his face. It was awful. I felt so bad for him. Luckily the show was about an amazing doctor in Chicago that said he would remove the tumor for him. When this man would walk down the street, people would stare at him. After the surgery, he did look a million times better, but people will still stare at him. On average, most people don't have 12 pound tumors on their faces.

A couple of weeks ago I saw another show where a 7 year old girl was kept BY HER PARENTS in a dog cage in the basement. Awful. Awful. Who does that to their child? On average, most people didn't grow up with horrible parents.

Then there's the show Hoarders. I realize that this show has opened our eyes to the fact that more people have this problem then we may have thought before the show aired, but on average, most people don't live like that.

I've always been attracted to fame. I used to watch Entertainment Tonight religiously. I used to buy People Magazine as often as possible. One of the things on my Bucket List is to see myself on the big screen. Not as the star. Just walking by in the background in a movie. Or when someone invents something that makes millions or goes from obscurity to fame, I'm honestly happy for them, but there's a twinge of jealousy in me as well. It's not about the money. There's this weird desire in me to be known. I don't know why. It's not one of my finer points, but it's not something that controls my life, either. I don't crave it so much that I'm actively doing anything to BE known. It's just kinda always in the back of my mind like when I hear how Stephenie Meyer has a dream, wakes up and starts writing down this dream and it turns into the Twilight series. My first thought is, "How cool is that for her?!" and my second thought is, "Why couldn't that have happened to me? I love writing and I have TONS of crazy dreams!" I know, it's weird. I don't seek the spotlight, but if it's put on me, I don't shy away from it, either (although I probably should because my face goes ALL SHADES of red! Not because I'm embarrassed, but because attention is drawn to me and I know that people are looking at me and then inevitably, someone will yell out, "Man your face is red!" Thanks for that.).

Anyway, the reason I'm telling you that is because this week after I'd watched those first programs I mentioned, I realized that I'd rather be average than to be known for something horrible that happened to me that was out of my control. I'm happy that God made me who I am. I could've been born with a condition that caused a tumor to grow on my face, but I wasn't. I could've been born to horrible parents, but I wasn't. I could have a mental condition that causes me to be a hoarder, but I wasn't (ok, some of my friends do think I keep WAY too many things, but it's not to THAT extent). On the flip side, I could've been born with the acting ability of Halle Berry, but I wasn't. I could've been born with the creative talent of Vera Wang, but I wasn't. God made me Fiona Borne for a reason.

I just wanted to publicly thank God for making me average. And I'm really ok with that.

Compliment ... followed by a diss ... followed by another diss ... followed by a compliment!

2011-03-11T16:37:00.000-08:00

Have you seen this site?

http://urlai.com/Default.aspx

If you type in your blog name, it'll give you an analysis about your blog. Here's what it said about mine a week ago.

Text analysis
bornetotravel.blogspot.com is probably written by a female somewhere between 18-25 years old. (Nice!) The writing style is personal and upset most of the time. (What? Wait a second! Am I upset most of the time?)

Then, a week later, after I've blogged about JB, it said this:

http://urlai.com/url/bornetotravel.blogspot.com

All of a sudden I'm 13 - 17 years old and I'm happy most of the time! Yup, must've been the post about JB. I wonder how it rates your blog so quickly? It must look at most commonly used words or something like that. Oh well. I'm not putting too much stock in it. I thought it was kinda funny.

Heavenly crepes

2011-03-10T06:19:00.000-08:00

Ok, I realize that "heavenly" may be an overstatement, but in my mind, they were heavenly ... because I made them with my own 2 hands. I'm sure you know by now, but cooking really isn't my thang, but it was Fat Tuesday, after all and I had just gotten a recipe from my fellow blogger, Jill, so I thought, why not try it?

I realize they're lumpy and my eggs yolks were really orangey so that's why they look so yellow, but you know what ...they tasted good and that's what mattered to me.

There's gotta be a life lesson here ... Don't judge a book by it's cover ... We all have a few lumps but are still essentially good ... or maybe it's as simple as ... Stop being so scared of cooking, Fiona, and just DO it every once in awhile and you'll see it's not so scary!

Sprinkle on a little sugar and cinnamon and everything turns out all right.

I remember one time I was all excited because at school we were going to learn how to make something called crepes and it sounded so exotic. I came home at the end of the day and said to my Mom, "Those things weren't so great. They were German pancakes! We eat those all the time." It wasn't that I didn't like them when my Mom made them. I just thought I was going to see something new at school that day, but it was something I'd known all along, just with another name ... hmmm, there's probably a life lesson somewhere in there, too.

This is how I used to eat them as a kid ... rolled up with sugar inside. Mmmm, mmm, mmmmm

That was fun for me. I wonder what I should tackle next!

Lent update

2011-03-09T06:28:00.000-08:00

I know today is usually Wordless Wednesday, but today is the first day of Lent, so I thought I should write an update.

I’ve obviously decided not to give up blogging, and I’m happy about that. I’ve been enjoying blogging lately in a way that I haven’t before and I believe it’s in a healthy way, so I’m glad God didn’t ask me to give this up. I love connecting with you all on a different level.

So, what AM I giving up this year? Well, Facebook for one. I just don’t NEEEEEED to be on it as much as I am. There are other things I can do with my time that are more productive. I’m going to finish reading Unbearable Lightness by Portia de Rossi - thanks to Keri for lending it to me). Since I started Jenny Craig last summer, I vowed I didn’t want to become a calorie counting, food obsessed person. I think I’ve done pretty good in that area and have become more equipped with the tools to help me stay balanced. I wanted to read this book to see if I see myself in it at all. She was anorexic and bulimic. I really do believe that physical appearance is something that the majority of women struggle with, so although I think it’ll always somewhat be an issue in my mind, I would like to get as much in control of it as possible and have it be an issue in the BACK of my mind, not in the forefront. I’ll admit that I did see myself in parts of the book, but then she’d go completely off and in my mind I’d think, “Whoa. That’s crazy!” so I think this book was good for me to read to confirm that I’m not over the edge .. although, I fully give any of you permission to ever tell me if you think I HAVE got an issue. Please do. So, once I finish reading that book, I’m going to start reading Mennonite in a Little Black Dress by Rhoda Janzen. I’ve heard it’s hilarious and even some of my non Mennonite friends said that, so I can’t wait to see what it’s all about. I’ll let you know what I think when I’m done.

Here’s another weird thing that I’ve been feeling I have to stop doing ... I’m not going to run yellow lights anymore. No, this has nothing to do with Lent, but have you ever been at a light waiting to turn left and finally the light turns yellow so you’ll get to go and then one (and sometimes even two or three) more people go through the yellow so by the time you get to turn, the light’s already green for the people going the OTHER way and you get dirty looks? Yeah. Sucks, doesn’t it? Well, I’ve often been that person going straight through the light, forcing my left turning friend to get the bad looks that I deserve. No more of that. The same goes for when I’m a pedestrian and I don’t have a walk signal. Ok, yes, I do agree that it turns to “the hand” too quickly most of the time, but again, there are driver’s waiting to turn left and if I’m taking my sweet time walking through the crosswalk, they are going to be forced to hold up traffic waiting for me. No more of that, either.

You’re probably thinking, "What does this have to do with Lent? This doesn’t seem so hard." I’ve been thinking the same thing. This year I haven’t felt compelled as in previous years to really struggle and give something up for 40 days ... but instead, been challenged to give a few things up for good. Things that I think will only be good for me (and other drivers, evidently). You may wonder how my giving up “malicious talk” is going. Mostly good. It’s a daily struggle. I wish I could say that it isn’t, but it is. I do love that I’m hearing the Holy Spirit’s conviction, though. It makes me feel closer to God. Sometimes I’m strong and sometimes I’m not ... but I’m working on it. I’m not giving up. I don’t know if you remember or not, but I had originally said something about it being worth the risk and then not being sure if “risk” was the right word to use. Well, I’ve learned there is risk involved. If I’m in a room where I feel people are bad mouthing other people, I’ve chosen to walk out. Most of those people know that I’m working on this area in my life and while I don't expect anyone to change their ways because I've decided to work on this, I also don’t want them to think that I think I’m better than them because I’m taking the high road and choosing not to partake in the bad mouthing. I've learned hard lessons in the past not to judge. It's not my job to convict other people and what they do is between them and God, so I don't want to force anyone into anything, but there’s risk of losing some friendships, actually, if people think that I think I'm better than them. How do I make them realize that I don't think that way? I can see how it seems a little self righteous to leave a room when you don't agree with something, doesn't it? How do you get it across that I don't think any less of you, but I'm just going to do what's right for me. Does that make sense? I'm still processing that one and it's been weird, but again, a risk that I think is worth taking.

So there you have it. Lent is very different for me this year. I think I’ll have to find another way to prepare myself for Easter than I have in past years, but I’m up for the challenge. I know a lot of people who are taking on the Lent challenge for the first time this year. I think that's awesome, but I've said the same thing to each one of them, so I thought I'd put it here as well, in case you're thinking of doing it for the first time. Don't pressure yourself. Lent is an experience between you and God. Everyone does it a bit differently. There really are not a set of right/wrong rules. Don't tell yourself that you have to sit and pray and read your Bible instead of whatever you're giving up. For me, that was a recipe for failure. Just let God direct you and show you what He wants you to do/learn/see. There were years where I felt like a failure because I filled whatever I'd given up with something equally as time consuming, but I believe the main thing was that I tried and when I felt like cheating and going back to whatever it was that I'd given up, I'd be reminded of the sacrifice that Jesus had made for me and it made me think, "Ok, what I'm giving up is NOTHING compared to that, so I can handle it for 40 days." I believe that Lent is to prepare us for Easter and get us to really think about the sacrifice Jesus made for us. It's not to guilt you into doing something else. Yes, if reading your Bible more or praying more are a by product of your experience, that's awesome. But don't put that pressure on yourself. Just start by letting it be a reminder throughout the day of Jesus' sacrifice ... and go from there. That's just my opinion.

Oh, after I wrote my other post about what I felt God was asking me to give up, Marni sent me this video. I’m not proud of this, but I’ll be honest and say that at first, this lady’s voice sounded condescending to me and I almost didn’t watch it, but I knew Marni wouldn’t have sent it to me if it didn’t have something good to say, so I watched it. And I’m glad I did. She talks about using our words in a positive way and not allowing the enemy to use them against us ... and that’s exactly what I was talking about! I love having you girlfriends looking out for me ... knowing you’re out there and you’ve got my back and are such an encouragement to me!

A couple of you mentioned that you're struggling with this same issue. First of all, thank you for admitting it and for making me feel like I'm not alone. Second, let's all pray for each other and have our own support group! I think we should start with this verse:

Psalm 19:14
May the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be pleasing in Your sight, O Lord, my Rock and my Redeemer.

Because it's funny!

2011-03-08T06:49:00.000-08:00

Hoops and Yoyo eCards - Tuesday Treat Day!

Movie Monday

2011-03-07T09:20:00.000-08:00

Never Say Never

That really is a good saying to have in your life. I didn't learn that lesson until I was in my 20s. I used to say "I'll never do _____!" and I obviously hung out with people with really good memories because they'd often remember me saying that and then point and laugh and say, "Aaaahahaha! You said you'd NEVER do ______ and look at you now!" That honestly cured me of saying never ... although, I really never thought I'd be reviewing this movie on my blog.

Justin Bieber's Never Say Never

There's going to be a lot of confessions in this post and yes, they'll have to do with either boy bands, pop music or sometimes just random facts. You can choose now whether you want to read further or not ... I'll give you a minute ...

Still with me? Ok, here we go. When I first heard about Justin Bieber, I thought he was manufactured ... like that boy band ... oh, what was their name ... let me google it really quick ... oh yeah ... O-Town. Remember them? Confession #1 - I watched most of that "Making the Band" show. What? That was more than 10 years ago. I was much younger then. I wonder where those guys are now? Oh wait, when I googled them, it says that as of January 2011, 4 of the 5 are back together recording in the studio. Uh oh. Anyway, back to the movie. I thought Justin was like that. I thought someone had found this cute kid, given him an image and put him on stage. I knew he was a good Canadian kid and supposedly had a Christian upbringing but that's really all I knew about him or cared to know about him.

Well, I have a 12 year old Little Sister now and guess who she loves? Yup. The Biebster. I thought she'd for sure be going with her friends to see the movie but when I asked her, she kinda hung her head and said that no, she wouldn't be going with her friends. Well, her and I do go see a lot of movies together, so I said, "Do you want me to take you?" I don't know why I didn't think she'd want to go with me (maybe I was just thinking about myself at that age and that I might be all squeally and wouldn't want an adult seeing me like that - I guess that was Confession #2), but she said yes, so off we went.

I'll just get Confession #3 out of the way right now. I liked the movie. Judge away. I honestly don't care. I really don't, because (here comes Confession #4), I've always liked pop music. I remember when I was in either Grade 5 or 6, I LOVED Michael Jackson. I did. I had a button on my jean jacket with his face on it. My friends all mocked me. I didn't get it. How could they not like him? I got bugged every day about it, but I didn't take off my button. No way. Come to think of it, I'm surprised my Dad didn't make me take it off, but maybe I didn't wear that jacket around him a lot. I can't remember. What I do remember is that when Michael Jackson came to Vancouver in concert, ALL my friends went ... and I didn't. I was crushed. I thought they didn't like him? I honestly remember that like it was yesterday. I think it was my first run in with hypocrisy. Anyway, that's a bit of background on me. I've liked pop music ever since I can remember. Loved watching Video Hits when I got home from school ... until my Dad came home and would say, "Turn that garbage off." Don't worry, he's lightened up significantly since then. I don't remember being all squeally about MJ, but who knows what I would've been like at his concert. I guess we'll never know now, will we?

Back to the Biebs. Did you know that JB is actually talented? There was video of him in this movie of him playing the guitar and the kid could barely walk! Then he was playing the drums. The neighbour kids had a drum set and JB would go and just stare at him and watch him play. The kids heard him drumming on the steps and thought it would be fun to get him a little kid set of his own and he was good! When he was 8, they had him play in a jazz competition with them. Apparently jazz music is pretty hard to drum to when you're that age, but they ended up winning and made enough money to buy him a regular size set of drums. He also played the piano. All when he was under 10 years old! He really does have talent. When you watch the videos of him as a little kid, you can just see that he loves performing. He was a ham for the camera and had natural talent. His mom put a couple of videos of him singing on YouTube so their family from other parts of the country could see him ... a marketing executive saw these videos and the rest is history. Good for you, Justin.

I will admit that I still feel that since he's only 17, him singing about love ... really? How much does he know about love ... other than the mom/grandma/grandpa type of love? Not a whole lot. So, that's the only part I still kind of roll my eyes at, but I get that that's what sells and all teenagers think they really understand and know what love is ... heck, I'm 39 and I'm not sure if I even know what that kind of love is like, so I guess, who am I to judge, right? All I know is that I cannot judge these little girls. Confession #5 - if I met Bono today, I'd probably cry. I really do think that I would. I don't know if I'd cry while I was meeting him (hopefully I'd be able to hold it together), but I really do think that afterwards I'd have a bit of a meltdown ... and I'm an adult, so how can these young girls be expected to know how to control their emotions? They can't. So to them I say:

I get it. Squeal away. Have fun with it. Daydream if you must. Just don't take it too seriously. He's a cutie and seems like a really nice guy, but you probably won't marry him. You probably won't ever be his "Baby, baby, baby, oh!" You most likely won't even get to ever be within 100 feet of him ... although I've been within 10 feet of U2, so I know that last one can happen, so don't give up on it ... just don't base whether your life is worth something or not on it. You know what I'm saying? Yeah, just have fun with it. You'll look back on it in years with fond memories and maybe even still get a little weak in the knees if one day in your 30s you actually meet him. And that's ok. Don't let anyone tell you it's not ... as long as you don't take it too seriously. No one likes a stalker.

Oh, and now I think he was robbed of the Best New Artist Grammy. Confession #6

Jealousy update

2011-03-06T09:21:00.000-08:00

Thank you to all of you who prayed (are praying) for me. I'm happy to announce that this jealousy has really subsided. It's not completely gone, but it's not right THERE like it was when I wrote my original post. Your comments were very helpful and a friend of mine who I go on walks with (I love these walks for 2 reasons ... 1 - we get into some great, deep issues on our walks and it's SO great to talk these things out and get someone else's perspective and 2 - we get some exercise while doing it!) said the same thing that most of you said to me ... it's what you do with this jealousy that counts. She also said that it was obvious that what I was jealous about was something I was also passionate about, so maybe God was bringing it to the forefront of my mind to spur me on to take further steps to becoming more of that kind of person. I don't know if that makes sense, but I've actually noticed changes in my life already ... and that's exciting to me! I guess it scared me at first because I'm not generally a jealous person. I'm pretty content with my life, so when these issues came up, I didn't like not feeling content on this level, but I really do believe it was because God is doing a work in me and I'm slowly going through the motions with Him to help me figure out these changes He wants me to make and work through. It's been exciting!

The day after I wrote my original post, I found this next paragraph somewhere, saved it as a new post because it was so in line with what you'd all said and what God was teaching me, but now, for the life of me, I can't remember where I saw it! Is it the memory or the eyesight that's supposed to be the first to go? Whichever one it is, I'm losing both of them lately. Sheesh! Anyway, here's the paragraph I found that I saved but can't give credit to anyone because it's completely slipped my mind where I found it ... or if someone sent it to me. Sorry!

This kind of jealousy begs for a change in direction. God is jealous for us to turn away from the distractions of this world and turn toward Him. He’s jealous for us to let go of the false identities we hold onto so tightly, and to align ourselves with Him. He’s jealous for us to relinquish the things we allow to define our worth, and grab tightly to our value in Him.

Change of direction. - When I was in my early 20s, I remember saying to someone that change scared the crap out of me. Now, I love it. Life would be boring without change. I want to constantly be changing into more of the person that God wants me to be.

Value in Him - Over the last few years, finding my value in God has completely changed my perspective on life. That's how I feel I've been able to become content. Finding my value in God rather than worldly things (I'm definitely not saying I'm perfect in this area by ANY means - always a long way to go!) has given me so much freedom to not worry as much about what people think of me. Freedom rocks!

From jealousy to freedom. Thanks, God, for never giving up on me and for continually teaching me lessons. Help my eyes to be open and not to miss what You're trying to show me. And thanks for giving me great friends to help me along the way.

Grace Over Karma - An interview with Bono

2011-03-03T06:20:00.000-08:00

I wish this was an interview that I had done with the man himself, but alas, I'll leave that privilege to Michka Assayas.

Bono Interview: Grace Over Karma
(Excerpt from the book Bono: In Conversation with Michka Assayas)

Bono: My understanding of the Scriptures has been made simple by the person of Christ. Christ teaches that God is love. What does that mean? What it means for me: a study of the life of Christ. Love here describes itself as a child born in straw poverty, the most vulnerable situation of all, without honor. I don't let my religious world get too complicated. I just kind of go: Well, I think I know what God is. God is love, and as much as I respond [sighs] in allowing myself to be transformed by that love and acting in that love, that's my religion. Where things get complicated for me, is when I try to live this love. Now that's not so easy.

Assayas: What about the God of the Old Testament? He wasn't so "peace and love"?

Bono: There's nothing hippie about my picture of Christ. The Gospels paint a picture of a very demanding, sometimes divisive love, but love it is. I accept the Old Testament as more of an action movie: blood, car chases, evacuations, a lot of special effects, seas dividing, mass murder, adultery. The children of God are running amok, wayward. Maybe that's why they're so relatable. But the way we would see it, those of us who are trying to figure out our Christian conundrum, is that the God of the Old Testament is like the journey from stern father to friend. When you're a child, you need clear directions and some strict rules. But with Christ, we have access in a one-to-one relationship, for, as in the Old Testament, it was more one of worship and awe, a vertical relationship. The New Testament, on the other hand, we look across at a Jesus who looks familiar, horizontal. The combination is what makes the Cross.

Assayas: Speaking of bloody action movies, we were talking about South and Central America last time. The Jesuit priests arrived there with the gospel in one hand and a rifle in the other.

Bono: I know, I know. Religion can be the enemy of God. It's often what happens when God, like Elvis, has left the building. [laughs] A list of instructions where there was once conviction; dogma where once people just did it; a congregation led by a man where once they were led by the Holy Spirit. Discipline replacing discipleship. Why are you chuckling?

Assayas: I was wondering if you said all of that to the Pope the day you met him.

Bono: Let's not get too hard on the Holy Roman Church here. The Church has its problems, but the older I get, the more comfort I find there. The physical experience of being in a crowd of largely humble people, heads bowed, murmuring prayers, stories told in stained-glass windows

Assayas: So you won't be critical.

Bono: No, I can be critical, especially on the topic of contraception. But when I meet someone like Sister Benedicta and see her work with AIDS orphans in Addis Ababa, or Sister Ann doing the same in Malawi, or Father Jack Fenukan and his group Concern all over Africa, when I meet priests and nuns tending to the sick and the poor and giving up much easier lives to do so, I surrender a little easier.

Assayas: But you met the man himself. Was it a great experience?

Bono: [W]e all knew why we were there. The Pontiff was about to make an important statement about the inhumanity and injustice of poor countries spending so much of their national income paying back old loans to rich countries. Serious business. He was fighting hard against his Parkinson's. It was clearly an act of will for him to be there. I was oddly moved by his humility, and then by the incredible speech he made, even if it was in whispers. During the preamble, he seemed to be staring at me. I wondered. Was it the fact that I was wearing my blue fly-shades? So I took them off in case I was causing some offense. When I was introduced to him, he was still staring at them. He kept looking at them in my hand, so I offered them to him as a gift in return for the rosary he had just given me.

Assayas: Didn't he put them on?

Bono: Not only did he put them on, he smiled the wickedest grin you could ever imagine. He was a comedian. His sense of humor was completely intact. Flashbulbs popped, and I thought: "Wow! The Drop the Debt campaign will have the Pope in my glasses on the front page of every newspaper."

Assayas: I don't remember seeing that photograph anywhere, though.

Bono: Nor did we. It seems his courtiers did not have the same sense of humor. Fair enough. I guess they could see the T-shirts.

(I found this picture myself on the world wide web so I thought I'd include it ... :)

Later in the conversation:
Assayas: I think I am beginning to understand religion because I have started acting and thinking like a father. What do you make of that?

Bono: Yes, I think that's normal. It's a mind-blowing concept that the God who created the universe might be looking for company, a real relationship with people, but the thing that keeps me on my knees is the difference between Grace and Karma.

Assayas: I haven't heard you talk about that.

Bono: I really believe we've moved out of the realm of Karma into one of Grace.

Assayas: Well, that doesn't make it clearer for me.

Bono: You see, at the center of all religions is the idea of Karma. You know, what you put out comes back to you: an eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth, or in physics; in physical laws every action is met by an equal or an opposite one. It's clear to me that Karma is at the very heart of the universe. I'm absolutely sure of it. And yet, along comes this idea called Grace to upend all that "as you reap, so you will sow" stuff. Grace defies reason and logic. Love interrupts, if you like, the consequences of your actions, which in my case is very good news indeed, because I've done a lot of stupid stuff.

Assayas: I'd be interested to hear that.

Bono: That's between me and God. But I'd be in big trouble if Karma was going to finally be my judge. I'd be in deep s---. It doesn't excuse my mistakes, but I'm holding out for Grace. I'm holding out that Jesus took my sins onto the Cross, because I know who I am, and I hope I don't have to depend on my own religiosity.

Assayas: The Son of God who takes away the sins of the world. I wish I could believe in that.

Bono: But I love the idea of the Sacrificial Lamb. I love the idea that God says: Look, you cretins, there are certain results to the way we are, to selfishness, and there's a mortality as part of your very sinful nature, and, let's face it, you're not living a very good life, are you? There are consequences to actions. The point of the death of Christ is that Christ took on the sins of the world, so that what we put out did not come back to us, and that our sinful nature does not reap the obvious death. That's the point. It should keep us humbled . It's not our own good works that get us through the gates of heaven.

Assayas: That's a great idea, no denying it. Such great hope is wonderful, even though it's close to lunacy, in my view. Christ has his rank among the world's great thinkers. But Son of God, isn't that farfetched?

Bono: No, it's not farfetched to me. Look, the secular response to the Christ story always goes like this: he was a great prophet, obviously a very interesting guy, had a lot to say along the lines of other great prophets, be they Elijah, Muhammad, Buddha, or Confucius. But actually Christ doesn't allow you that. He doesn't let you off that hook. Christ says: No. I'm not saying I'm a teacher, don't call me teacher. I'm not saying I'm a prophet. I'm saying: "I'm the Messiah." I'm saying: "I am God incarnate." And people say: No, no, please, just be a prophet. A prophet, we can take. You're a bit eccentric. We've had John the Baptist eating locusts and wild honey, we can handle that. But don't mention the "M" word! Because, you know, we're gonna have to crucify you. And he goes: No, no. I know you're expecting me to come back with an army, and set you free from these creeps, but actually I am the Messiah. At this point, everyone starts staring at their shoes, and says: Oh, my God, he's gonna keep saying this. So what you're left with is: either Christ was who He said He was the Messiah or a complete nutcase. I mean, we're talking nutcase on the level of Charles Manson. This man was like some of the people we've been talking about earlier. This man was strapping himself to a bomb, and had "King of the Jews" on his head, and, as they were putting him up on the Cross, was going: OK, martyrdom, here we go. Bring on the pain! I can take it. I'm not joking here. The idea that the entire course of civilization for over half of the globe could have its fate changed and turned upside-down by a nutcase, for me, that's farfetched

Bono later says it all comes down to how we regard Jesus:

Bono: If only we could be a bit more like Him, the world would be transformed. When I look at the Cross of Christ, what I see up there is all my s--- and everybody else's. So I ask myself a question a lot of people have asked: Who is this man? And was He who He said He was, or was He just a religious nut? And there it is, and that's the question. And no one can talk you into it or out of it.

Wordless Wednesday

2011-03-02T06:35:00.000-08:00

Movie Monday

2011-02-28T06:28:00.000-08:00

Well, since I had the inside scoop (yeah, I wish!), I was correct on the big 5 awards from The Oscar's last night in my Movie Monday post from a couple of weeks ago, so instead, I'll show you how I decided to dress for the "party" I went to.

We were supposed to have Care Group that night but when I told everyone that it was Oscar night, we decided to just get together and watch the Oscar's ... and I decided to have a little fun.

I'd thought of the idea a couple of weeks ago and told someone at work and they thought it was funny ... as did I ... until I was fully dressed and leaving for the party ... then I started feeling silly (as proven by this last silly pose). In case you were wondering, I'm wearing "Giorgio" Fairweather circa 2002.

I walked in with my head held high (even though I felt like slipping into the bathroom and changing before anyone saw me) and we all had a good laugh. Heck, how else am I going to put one of the 12 bridesmaid/maid of honour dresses to good use?!

Anyway, since the Oscar's were quite boring other than the opening number, I'll review another movie I saw on the weekend. Rabbit Hole:

Nicole Kidman and Aaron Eckhart play ordinary people mourning the accidental death of their 4-year old son in the searing new drama “Rabbit Hole”. Kidman and Eckhart must find a way to navigate the many potholes and detours on the long journey back to intimacy after such a tragic hole is ripped right through their seemingly perfect lives.

I'd say that overall I did like the movie, although it was a bit slow at times. Nicole Kidman was nominated last night for her role in this movie, but I didn't think it was that good. My friend and I both heard her accent come through at different times, too. One of the reasons this movie got to me was because my family has dealt with the loss of a child. It happened before I was born and honestly, sometimes I forget that my parents went through that horrible incident, but seeing a movie like this made me think about it from their perspective. I won't give away the ending, but I will say that it was interesting to see how each of them dealt with their grief so differently ... sometimes working together and sometimes not.

After watching this movie, I want to take this time to commend my parents for not letting the death of my brother destroy their marriage. Blame could have been cast, but it wasn't. Their grief could have destroyed them, but they didn't let it. They dealt with it as best they could at the time. In the movie, both Nicole Kidman's character and her mother have lost children and she says to her Mom, "When does it go away?" and her Mom says, "Never. But it gets easier." That really hit me when thinking about my own parents. Like I said before, it happened before I was born so I don't think about it every day, but I'm sure it's never far from my parents minds. We do talk about my brother and I've seen pictures and man, was he a cutie! I often wonder how we'll know each other when I get to Heaven and will he still be a little boy or not, but what matters is that I'll get to meet him one day.

Snow ... in February ... ugh

2011-02-27T16:25:00.001-08:00

This morning when I woke up I looked outside and saw this outside my window ...

And now, by 4pm, it looks like this ...

Needy people make me less Christ-like

2011-02-27T09:27:00.000-08:00

I know, I know. That's not a nice title, but it's the truth. Not people who are in need, but needy people. Do you know who I'm talking about? Not people who stand on the street with signs asking for money or food ... people who stand in the doorway to your office and suck the life out of you. Ok, maybe I'm being a little over dramatic. To me, there are two types of needy people. There are people who never do anything for themselves and expect you to do everything for them (which can be exhausting in it's own way, but mostly I can deal with those types of people)and there are just people who need SOOOO much affirmation ALL the time. These types of people are mainly the ones I'm talking about. If I'm being honest (which I guess I already did in the title of this post), those types of people make me unChrist-like. I literally tend to start ignoring these people. Not ignoring as in, you're talking to me and I don't reply at all ... well, not right off the bat, anyway. Now, that would be rude ... just ignoring as in "you're talking to me and after we've chatted for a bit and dealt with our business yet you keep standing there saying NOTHING but you like to hear yourself talk and think that maybe this person I'm talking to will affirm me in some way but I keep looking at my computer screen and typing because I'm working so I'll glance up at you every once in awhile and give you a smirk but hope you'll catch on that I need to get back to work" kind of ignoring.

I know. I'm an awful person. And this is why I've come here to talk about this. I need suggestions of what I can do. These are the types of people that if you give them an inch, they'll take a mile and you'll never get on with your day. This doesn't just happen at work, either. That was just one example. And how come these are the only types of people who don't catch on to the social indicators that the other person is in a rush or would like to move on? Non needy people will see those signs and be like, "Hey, it was great to see you and catch up really quickly. Have a great day," and not be insulted (hopefully). I mean, if you're standing there talking to me and my body is completely turned the other way and I'm saying, "Uh huh. Uh huh. Well, I should be going ..." and you just keep talking! I put that in because if I ever run into any of you in the mall I don't want you all to be thinking, "I wonder if she's thinking I'm needy and wants to leave right now," because those of you who I know read this blog are not like that. But maybe after admitting this, you'll have such disgust for me that YOU won't even WANT to talk to me in the mall anymore. And you know what? I totally get that.

I get that Jesus would never have turned away from someone because He had to be somewhere else. I get that Jesus would affirm that person with His love and make them feel like the most special person in the world. I get it ... and that's why I feel bad a lot of the time ... but again, if I'm being honest, most of the time, I don't ... hence ... unChrist-like. How hard would it be for me to say, "Yes, you look amazing in that outfit" (even though it's the trillionth time they've asked me) or "Hey, you did a great job on that project" (even though it's their job and that's what they get paid to do). Ok, I'm going to try to soften the blow and not make myself look so bad ... if that's even possible. I have no problem telling someone they did a good job or that they look great if I can tell they're not searching for the compliment. Does that make sense? Hopefully that explains it a little better. So now, can you please tell me how to get that "that person's searching for a compliment so I'm going to be stubborn and NOT give it to them" thought out of my head?

I understand that we all have our insecurities. I really do get that. I've got a couple big ones of my own that come to mind, but that's for another post. I guess it's when people's insecurities become other people's problems that I have an issue ... ok, I'm sounding like a bitch again. Ugh. Maybe I should just quit before I dig myself too big of a hole ... or maybe I'm too late for that. Or maybe I should add this to my lent list.

I'd LOVE your thoughts on this topic. Help!

Globetrotters!

2011-02-26T07:40:00.000-08:00

Other than the obvious rewards of being a Big Sister, there are some pretty great perks as well. The main one being that you get free tickets to a lot of things. Last night we went to yet another Heat game and last week we got to go see the Harlem Globetrotters (oh, and did I mention that last summer we went to Cirque du Soleil? Yeah, that's right).

I felt a little bad for them because as many people as you see in the stands ... yeah, it didn't fill up any more than that. I "think" I had seen them when I was a kid, but people have been questioning my memory of them coming to my High School and that maybe it was a knock off team. Maybe they're right, so in that case, this was my first time seeing them ... which, nope ... just doesn't feel right saying. Oh well. 1st, 2nd ... does it really matter? I think it was Rachel who commented on my Facebook status that she'd heard you only need to see them once every 10 years and I think she's right. It was fun and because I love basketball, I can appreciate the talent it takes to be silly and still pull off the shots and plays that they do.

When they had been introduced and were warming up a bit, I looked at one of the guys and thought, "He looks familiar. Why would I "know" him? Has he been on a talk show or something lately?" And then it came to me ... THE AMAZING RACE! Flight Time and Big Easy were contestants on one of my favorite shows a couple of seasons back. For some reason Big Easy wasn't there, but the guy twirling the ball on his finger in the picture above ... that's Flight Time! Don't believe me?

Apology accepted. ;)

They pulled a lot of kids out on the floor and did fun things with them.

Of course they have to do the pretend-there's-water-in-the-bucket-and-chase-you-around-and-then-throw-it-on-the-crowd-but-oh-wait-it's-just-confetti schtick.

Flight Time pulled this kid out on the floor and was dancing with him. I don't know if you can tell by the kids look on his face, but he was TOTALLY getting into it. Way to go, white kid! Show 'em how it's done!

And the oh-my-goodness-he-pulled-his-shorts-down-and-the-guy-has-on-Elmo-underwear schtick.

There was a line up to meet Flight Time because he was one of the main "characters" but I didn't want to make Danielle stand in line for my crush, so I got her to take this picture of me instead.

In between people walking up to him, I whispered, "The Amazing Race is one of my favorite shows. You did a great job on it!" He said, "Thanks! It starts up again on Sunday," and gave me the thumbs up. I said, "I know!" and waved and walked off. Lately when I watch TV, I watch mostly PVR'd shows, therefore, fast forwarding through commercials (it's GLORIOUS!), so I although I knew that The Amazing Race started again this past Sunday and that they were bringing back past contestants, I didn't know who they were bringing back. As we were walking away I thought, "I wonder if him and Big Easy are back on again ..." and sure enough, there he was on my TV again last Sunday. I wish I would've known that because I would've tried to have gotten some info from him about the season ... what? I can be persuasive! Yeah, you're probably right. He's not allowed to spill any beans. Oh well. It was cool to see him and great that one of my favorite shows is back on again.

Back to the Future

2011-02-25T06:14:00.000-08:00

This is SO awesome! I know exactly which picture I would recreate from when I was a kid.

http://irinawerning.com/back-to-the-fut/back-to-the-future/

My challenge to you all over the course of the year is to try to recreate one picture from when you were a kid. Fun, right?

New Comments section

2011-02-24T06:40:00.000-08:00

Ok, so I'm a copycat ... but don't "they" say that's the best form of flattery. I'm still reading the blog Jamie the Very Worst Missionary and I noticed that her comment section changed. A lot of people were asking about it, so I decided to jump on board as well. This way, you can choose whether or not you want to get an email when anyone else comments on that post and when someone leaves a comment, I (or anyone else for that matter) can reply directly to that comment. I thought those reasons were genius, so that's why I've signed up. Hope you like it!

I've just noticed that it's wiped out any of the previous comments, so I'll try to figure that out because when I go to "edit posts" it still shows me the comments there. Hmmm...

A Pickle is a what?

2011-02-24T05:41:00.000-08:00

So, this is going to be a bit of an embarrassing story, but it's also kinda funny, so I thought I'd share.

A couple of months ago, I was hanging out with my friends and somehow the topic of either cucumbers or pickles came up. I don't remember exactly how it all went down, but I remember being completely confused and then saying (yes, out loud), "Are you saying that a pickle is a cucumber?" Someone looked at me and said, "Yeah, a pickle is a pickled cucumber. Didn't you know that?"

Now, I probably should've said, "Yeah. Of course I knew that. I was just seeing if YOU knew that," and left it at that, but I didn't. My mind was in such shock that my face alone gave away that no, I did, in fact, NOT know that.

I know what you're going to ask ...

"How could you not know that?"

Here's my perfectly good explanation that I think makes perfect sense but always makes people laugh instead of saying, "Yeah, Fiona. I can completely see where you're coming from."

When something has been "pickled" you say Pickled Beets, or Pickled Carrots or Pickled Peppers (remember, Peter Piper ...). Why, then, does one not say Pickled Cucumbers? Why are they called ... just ... Pickles? I don't get it. One of my friends asked me the other night (because this conversation came up yet again - it's ok, I find it funny now, too), "What did you think pickles were, then?" I said, "Pickles! I thought they were their own thing!" Someone else asked, "How did you think they grew?" and I answered, "Just like everything ELSE grows in the garden." Since I don't like the taste of pickles, I really (obviously) hadn't given it much thought. At Christmas we were discussing the fact that my sister likes pickles and I like cucumbers, but she doesn't like cucumbers and I don't like pickles. My nephew pipes up and says, "But they're the same thing." Shut up, kid. Yeah, my 14 year old nephew already knew something that I didn't find out until my late 30s. Sheesh! What happened to respect your elders. Psssh.

BTW - I just looked up what pickling is: Pickling, also known as brining or corning is the process of preserving food by anaerobic fermentation in brine (a solution of salt in water) to produce lactic acid, or marinating and storing it in an acid solution, usually vinegar (acetic acid). The resulting food is called a pickle. This procedure gives the food a salty or sour taste.

Seriously. How can you guys eat that stuff? Fermentation? Lactic acid? Ich. I will admit that I do enjoy a good Dill Pickle chip, but that's as far as I go.

Like I said, I do find this quite funny, and for me, that almost shocks me more than the topic itself. You see, I used to not like to look stupid in front of people. I mean, does anyone? ... and I know it's pretty much avoidable at least a couple of times in a person's life, but instead of joining in the laughter like most people, I would get embarrassed and then kinda angry. I would ALWAYS join in laughing at someone else when they looked stupid, but heaven forbid anyone ever call ME out on something. So, to me, this is progress. I wasn't purposely working on this about myself (I was more working on the actual "don't look stupid in front of people" thing), but the fact that this topic has come up a few times since it happened and I join in on the laughter, makes me happy. I guess somehow along the way, God has helped me to take myself a little less serious. I love learning a lesson that we don't always have to learn the hard way. I mean, I guess I'll have to wait until it happens again and see if I react the same way ... oh wait, it DID happen again, but it has something to do with a femine hygiene product and probably isn't really something we should talk about here ... but it was FUNNY ... and very enlightening to me. If we're ever face to face and you want me to tell you the story, just ask.

Now, who doesn't have the Peter Piper picked a peck of pickled peppers rhyme going through their head? You're welcome.

Wordless Wednesday

2011-02-23T06:03:00.000-08:00

Pet peeve

2011-02-22T06:49:00.000-08:00

I hate, no, HATE when smokers throw their cigarette butts out the window. Seriously?

Movie Monday

2011-02-21T08:16:00.000-08:00

This ... was a terrible movie. There, I said it. If you liked it, I'm sorry. We can agree to disagree, right?

From about 3 minutes in, I knew this was going to be a painful 2 hours ... yet, I continued to watch. I don't know why. I can't explain it, but even if I'm reading a not so great book, I have to finish it. I'm the same way with movies. I guess I always have a little hope that it'll get better. Oh, sorry. I guess I should give you the synopsis of the movie so you know a little of what it's about.

Nelson (Keanu Reeves) is a man devoted to his advertising career in San Francisco. One day, while taking a driving test at the DMV, he meets Sara (Charlize Theron). She is very different from the other women in his life. Nelson causes her to miss out on taking the test and later that day she tracks him down. One thing leads to another and Nelson ends up living with her through a November that will change his life forever.

So, my problem with the movie wasn't so much about the storyline (although I'll get to that in a minute), but the acting. It was HORRIBLE!!! I never expect much from Keanu (sorry, I know he's Canadian). I mean, I liked him in Bill and Ted's Excellent Adventure and also in The Matrix, but in B&TEA, he was a goofball and he pulled it off. To me, it didn't really look like acting. It looked like that's how he really talks ... and to me (can you tell I'm trying to get across that this is just my humble opinion), I've seen a little of Ted in all his performances since then. In The Matrix, it worked for his character to be very monotone and I really did like that movie. Oh, I also really liked Point Break, but I think the storyline and Patrick Swayze carried him through that one. Plus, it was about surfing, so he could bring that goofball thing into it again and it worked:
Johnny Utah: You're sayin' the FBI's gonna pay me to learn to surf?

Johnny Utah: Vaya con Dios, Brah.
Hmmm, am I sensing a little Ted in there yet again?

Anyway, that's Keanu. Now, about Charlize. As I was watching the first few minutes, I thought, "This must have been one of her first movies. This is awful!" So, I went to my trusty IMDB and looked it up. I was surprised to see that this movie came out after The Legend of Bagger Vance, The Cider House Rules and Men of Honor ... movies in which I'd liked her.

It must have been the script, then. The whole thing is too forced and unrealistic ... to me. I don't want to give too much away in case, in spite of my warnings, you still see it (luckily this is an old movie so most likely you won't CHOOSE to rent this one). Yes, it's explained later on why she acts the way she acts, but really? Ugh. I don't even really want to spend too much more of my time on this movie, so I'll try to end on something positive. Yes, there were a few sweet moments, but I think the best things about this movie were the kid who played Abner (Liam Aiken - he's also in Lemony Snicket, Road to Perdition and Stepmom - SUPER cute kid ... who's now 20) and the guy who played Chaz, Sara's friend from downstairs (Jason Isaacs - he also plays Lucius Malfoy in the Harry Potter movies - I knew he looked familiar while I was watching this dreaded, err, uhm ... movie).

Again, sorry if you liked it. This is just my humble opinion ... and it is my blog, after all. ;)

Lent

2011-02-20T08:12:00.000-08:00

Yes, it's that time of year again. Well, in a couple of weeks it will be. I had been wondering what I should give up this year. I guess I'd been praying about it, too, but not designated, sit down and that's all I pray about kind of prayer. I'd be going through the day and the topic of Lent would come up and I'd say to God, "Hmmm, what do You want me to give up this year?" I still consider that praying. I don't know about you, but I have a LOT of those prayers throughout the day ... "Thank You for getting me up when my alarm didn't go off." "Ooooh, Lord, how do you want me to answer this person right now? Sock it to 'em (about the gospel), or slow and steady?" "Thank You for not letting that crazy driver in the roundabout kill me when they swerved over into my lane because they don't realize this is TWO LANES, buddy!" Ok, that was a mixture of prayer and yelling at said driver, but you get the idea.

So, although I'd been thinking about this, I was thinking more material things. Since I'd already done sweets, TV and then computer, what was left? Was I supposed to do those things again? To be honest, I wanted a bit more of a challenge since I knew I could do those. Yes, they were hard to give up at first, but I'd done it before and knew it was possible ... and for me, it kinda loses it's sting when it's not really hard to give up. So, why was I surprised when God finally revealed to me what He wants me to give up? Here's how it happened:

I went to Care Group last Monday and after catching up with everyone and saying our usual, "How was your week?" "Nice hair, did you get it done?" type of questions, we got down to the nitty gritty. We were asked to read Isaiah 58: 6 - 12. I opened up my Bible and you know how some paragraphs have "titles?" Well, this one said "True Fasting." I looked at our leader and said, "You're not going to make us fast, are you?" I was thinking food and you gotta remember, since I started on Jenny Craig, I don't eat a heck of a lot! I mean, I eat enough, but don't ask me to give THAT up, too! I'm joking ... kind of.

Anyway, we started reading the passage, "Is not this the kind of fasting I have chosen; to loose the chains of injustice and untie the cords of the yoke, to set the oppressed free ..." "Phewf," I'm thinking, "it's not about food. Yes, injustice ... set the oppressed free!" Then, whoever was reading, got halfway through verse 9, "If you do away with the yoke of oppression, with the pointing finger and malicious talk ..." and I didn't hear any more of the reading.

Pointing finger and malicious talk.

We read through the whole passage one more time and then we were supposed to write about what jumped out at us. I knew what I was going to write about, and it wasn't pretty. Here's what I wrote:

With Lent just around the corner, I had been wondering if I was supposed to give up TV, the Internet and sweets again. I know all those things are doable, but gossip and malicious talk?! That would be hard. That will be a real challenge.

Ok side note here: I realize this doesn't paint a pretty picture of myself. After I read it to the group, I was thinking, "Wow. They're going to think that if this is something I've been convicted of giving up, that all I do all day must be to gossip and talk maliciously about people." I'd say that I'm more of the try-to-be-funny-while-bordering-the-line-of-insulting-people kind of talker. Does that make sense?

Even though we only were supposed to read until verse 12, I read on (I know, I'm super spiritual keener like that ... ok, I usually don't do that, but this was obviously God prompted).

Verse 13b and 14a say, "if you honour it by not going your own way and not doing as you please or speaking idle words, then you will find joy in the Lord, and I will cause you to ride on the heights of the land." Finding joy in the Lord is NEVER a bad thing, and riding on the heights of the land sounds pretty cool, so I think I want to take on this challenge. I'm scared, but I think I'll become a better person because of it. It's worth the risk (ok, is there really "risk" involved? Maybe I should've just stuck with the word challenge).

The other thing I realized after I'd read it to the group is that now that I've been convicted of this, do I really wait for March 9 to start it? "Phewf, good thing God only convicted me of this for Lent and I only have to give it up for 40 days!" No, unfortunately, conviction doesn't really work like that ... believe me, I tried to put it off, but that Holy Spirit is right there convicting me when those thoughts come to my mind ... which I know is a good thing ... but if I'm being honest, can be a bit of a downer sometimes. Ok, maybe that's what I meant by risk ... having this voice in your head telling you what's right or wrong and trying not to go CRAZY!

So, I ended my writing with this prayer: Lord, help me not to fail. Help me to think before I speak and maybe after awhile, I won't even have those malicious thoughts anymore. What? It could happen, couldn't it? Ok, I know I'm human and not perfect, so I'm sure I won't completely be rid of those thoughts and sometimes they'll spill out into words, but I'm gonna give it a try. This week was hard, but I was actually happy when those thoughts stopped me before speaking and then I was proud of myself (that kind of pride is ok, isn't it?) when those ugly words didn't fall onto someone elses ears and make them fall prey to malicious talk as well, because that's the other thing ... when I talk like that, I'm causing someone else to fall as well, and I have enough guilt of my own. I can't be responsible for others, too!

So, there you have it. I'm sure after yesterdays post you're thinking I should be giving up jealousy and I'm working on that one ... but baby steps, people! I haven't figured out if I'm still supposed to give up sweets, TV and the Internet, but I've got a couple of weeks to figure that out. I'll let you know ... or if I'm all of a sudden gone, I'll be back in 40 days.

Jealousy

2011-02-19T08:07:00.000-08:00

I have to admit something ... I've been dealing with jealousy lately and I don't like it. Usually I'm quite content and happy with my life. Ok, there may be the occasional pouted lipped times when my hair doesn't turn out like some superstar's that I tried to copy on TV or my body doesn't look like those on the cover of Sports Illustrated, but those are unattainable things (they are, right? Don't tell me otherwise - I like living in that bubble). They have hair stylists, make up artists, trainers and air brushers. This green monster has hit a little closer to home. I'm not going to tell you exactly what I'm jealous of for a couple of reasons:

1) I don't want to make those who I'm jealous of uncomfortable and on the flip side, I don't want anyone who I don't mention that I'm jealous of, to be hurt.

2) I don't want this to look like I'm having a pity party for myself and wanting people to comment and tell me, "Don't be jealous of _____! You're just as _____ as _____."

It really isn't about that. I guess I just need to admit it. Admitting it's the first step, right ... or at least that's what they tell me.

I will tell you that it has nothing to do with being married. There. I said it. Again, I have my moments of PMS induced binges where I have a good, snotty, what-have-I-done-wrong-in-this-life cry, but for the most part, I'm not jealous of those of you who are married. I'm happy that you're happy and that you and your mister (or miss if I have any male readers) found each other, but until/if God decides to bring along Mr. Right, I've come to terms with my singleness.

So, it's not that.

I'm going to try to apply the same "terms" to this new jealousy that's crept up in my life so I can fling said green monster to the curb, but until then, just thought I'd ask for your prayers.

Thanks. You guys rock.

Introducing ... Jamie the V ... (google it!)

2011-02-18T06:27:00.000-08:00

Friends, I need to introduce you to someone. She's hilarious and I think you'll all love her. Her blog name is Jamie the Very Worst Missionary. Maybe you've already heard/read of her. If you haven't, read this post first and you'll be hooked. I promise. I love her openness and honesty (and we all know how much I'm all about being open and honest and saying how you feel) about what she's going through as a missionary and just about life in general.

I've started reading her blog from the beginning, and a post from 2008 really touched me. It was called We live like Kings. She talked about going to a ghetto area and meeting some amazing kids that have nothing compared to what she's got. Here's a bit of it:

Here I am, worried about getting too fat because I eat TOO MUGH. I complain that I am sick of my clothes when much of my closet sits untouched. And God help you if you shut off my electricity - I'll curse the day you were born! Because "I shouldn't have to live like this!". But.....apparently....it's okay if thousands of my neighbors live like that.

This hit me on many different levels. First, I'm just about finished my Jenny Craig program and I'll be honest ... it's cost me quite a bit of money. At first I didn't care because I needed something to get me jump started and consequently, I have learned new tools to help me keep the weight off, however, it's exactly what she said above ... worried about eating TOO MUCH and gaining weight when there are people out there starving ... well, it just makes me sad. I really do think I'll think about that every time I sit down to eat. It will make me more thankful for the food I have as well as realizing that I do not need to eat that much! I can survive on less.

Secondly, all my clothes have gotten quite baggy on me. I know this is a good problem to have, but at this time I don't have a lot of extra money to go out and buy myself a whole new wardrobe that fits. I've found myself getting irritated when I go to my closet and feeling like a slob when I wear pants that hang in the crotch or butt, but I should be happy that I have clothes to wear at all! And there are definitely clothes in my closet that I haven't worn in AGES! I will try to be less of a complainer.

Thirdly, my electricity didn't go out, but my laptop died! Heaven forbid! How will I be in touch with the outside world? How will people know what I'm up to that day if I don't update my status? How will I be able to read my favorite blogs? Those were all thoughts that went through my head ... and while I was trying to figure out what to do next (because remember, I don't have money right now to go buy a new laptop), I went and sat on my beautiful, leather couch and turned on my large, HD TV and watched one of my favorite shows to escape from it all. Hmmm... I'm not saying it's horrible to have nice things, but it sure has put it in perspective for me. I drive down Gladys Street past the Lego Building in my town and right across from it ... along the LOUD railway tracks, I see tents set up. Tents. People are living in tents, just blocks from my condo. And it's COLD outside! Again, putting things into perspective for me.

So, I guess I'm writing this post to ask you to keep me accountable to be less of a complainer and to really comprehend that I do "live like a king" compared to a lot of people.

See, this is why I love blogging. I love "meeting" new people that I may never meet in person that can brighten your day and expand your world just a little bit more. Thanks, Jamie.

Funny

2011-02-17T06:52:00.000-08:00

The other day I was driving on the freeway behind this big truck that looked like it would be a sump pump. I looked at the license plate and it started with BM, so I thought, "That would be funny if it really was a sump pump truck." I drove up beside it and on the side of the drum it said, "#1 for all #2 business." haha

Wordless Wednesday

2011-02-16T06:23:00.000-08:00

Zumba!

2011-02-15T18:54:00.000-08:00

Tonight I did my 2nd Zumba class. It's a LOT of fun! It really isn't that hard. The steps are quite easy and you know what? If you feel you can't do the step exactly like the instructor, just make up your own! As long as you're having fun and grooving to the beat, you'll have a good time and maybe work up a sweat as well. I definitely found the Hot Yoga's a better workout, but Zumba's waaaaay more fun (let's just put it this way - when I come back from Yoga, I have to take the elevator because I'll collapse on the stairs, but tonight when I came back from Zumba, I ran up the 5 flights of stairs). The first class I didn't really work up too much of a sweat because I was watching the instructor and concentrating on learning the moves. Today I felt I already had a good base and did more of a workout since I didn't have to concentrate so much on learning the steps ... plus I moved up closer in the class so I could actually see the instructor better. I'm definitely not as young as I used to be, though, because my knees get quite sore. I have one kneecap that pops out of it's socket, so I have to watch that one a little, but it's good fun.

What is Zumba, you may ask. It's a mixture between Latin/African dancing and aerobics. Here's a little taste.

Firsts

2011-02-10T16:28:00.000-08:00

Isn't doing something for the first time great? Ok, most of the time it's great. It means you're experiencing something new and while it may not always turn out to be a pleasant experience, at least now you know, right? :)

Well, last night I had another first. I'm now a model ... ok, I should say "model" because I'm sure when you think of a model, you think of something like this ...

And that was not my experience. My experience was to sit exactly like this:

for almost 2 hours while students at UFV painted me on their canvas. The instructor told me to pick a point on the wall to stare at and meditate ... so, I prayed. I actually prayed for each one of you (well, the ones that I know read my blog on a regular basis) and of course, my family and I would LOVE to say the time flew by. In the first 15 minutes I thought, "This is easy! I can do this no problem!" Then, I got an itch. Did you know that when you can't scratch an itch, it gets that much worse? I made it a game within myself to withstand the itch. No scratching! It was hard. The instructor would come back into the class every 20 minutes or so to give pointers to this beginner class so that was interesting to listen to and wonder what they were painting and how they saw me. At one point, maybe 35 minutes in, I went a bit squirrely. My eyes started twitching and I wondered if I'd be able to hold the pose. I was happy that I was sitting, but sitting completely still is hard! Luckily, since they were a beginner class, she told them they only had to paint from my shoulders or torso up, so I started tapping my toes to the music ever so slightly so I could feel that I was "moving." There were times where I was thinking about something completely outside of the class and I actually zoned out for a bit, which was great because I wasn't thinking about the fact that I couldn't move. Then all of a sudden the teacher came back in and said, "Half an hour before clean up," which shocked me. Only half an hour left? Then 15 minutes left and then ... with only 5 minutes left, I was again pretty zoned out and forgot about my test to NOT itch and it was too late. I had scratched an itch. Errr! Oh well. No big deal ... and then I was done! That wasn't so bad at all. She thanked me and told me to feel free to walk around and take a look, "but remember," she said, "they're beginners." Hmmm, was she preparing me for something bad? Well, I must say that they did a million times better than I could EVER do, however, do I really look THAT old??? I thought I had a smirk on my face, but it must look like a frown because I looked old and angry in most of the pictures. Mind you, they were all about 21, so I AM old to them! haha! Well, that was "good" to see. I asked her if I could bring my camera next time and she said, "Sure." Hopefully I'll remember and be able to show you all their interpretations of me. I had to take the above picture so I remember what I was wearing and how my hair looked because ... well, I'm old, remember and I might forget. ;)

Why was I doing this, you may ask? Well, unfortunately, I need the money. I really thought I had budgeted pretty well since I bought my place, but apparently, I was wrong. I charged a few big items to my credit card that I thought I'd be able to pay off really quickly and it's kind of stuck at a certain place. It's not huge compared to some people's debt, but I'm used to paying off my credit card every month, so I don't like it being where it is. I've taken on 3 extra jobs besides my full time job to help out, but I'm not getting as many hours as I was hoping I would. My next thought was to take in a roommate. As much as I love my own space, it would be fast money. I asked my cousin because I'm comfortable with her and I knew she was going to get married soon (like, I was thinking by the end of the year), so it would only be for a few months. She said no because she actually got engaged the next weekend and will be getting married at the end of April and didn't want to move again. Completely understandable. The day after she said no, my friend called me and said someone had approached her about a Japanese girl that was living in Abbotsford and working at CBC and things hadn't worked out with her current homestay and she needed a place to stay until May. Perfect! She came over and we met and she was the sweetest little thing. I instantly liked her and knew she'd be a great roommate. I cleared out the spare room and moved a bed in there (thanks to Jon and Jennie for lending me said bed) and got it all ready for her. Unfortunately, she decided to take another home closer to her work. Again, understandable as she only has a bike and didn't want to be riding home from work late at night. So, I wait and trust that God has some other way for me to pay off this debt. I'm trying to be as open as possible and to hear His voice when He nudges me (or anyone else) and gives ideas. I'm not worried. I'm not embarrassed. I got myself into this and I know I will learn from it and get through it. God is faithful and trustworthy, so what's there to worry about, right? :)

Wordless Wednesday

2011-02-09T06:16:00.000-08:00

Movie Monday

2011-02-07T07:42:00.000-08:00

Countdown to the Oscars (February 27):

My picks for my favorite categories:

Best Actor (I've seen 4 out of the 5 performances nominated in this category - I can't speak to Javier Bardem's performance in Biutiful, but I do want to see it as well):

Colin Firth in The King's Speech - if you haven't seen this movie yet, go see it! Colin Firth does such an amazing job. He plays King George VI (the current Queen's father) who suddenly finds himself The King when his brother abdicates. The only problem is that he has a terrible stutter. His wife finds him a speech therapist (who is played by Geoffrey Rush and also does a great job) and the story of the friendship they make is incredibly heartwarming. Colin makes you empathize with The King on a grand level and he executes the stutter in such a way that I could feel how exhausting it must have been. He definitely wins my vote for Best Actor this year.

Best Actress (I've only seen 2 out of the 5 performances for this category):

While Natalie Portman does a good job in her role as The Black Swan (see previous Monday's review), I'm not sure if she should win. It's hard to pick when I've only seen 2 out of the 5 performances, but if I'm going according to previous awards shows this season, she seems like a shoe in.

Best Supporting Actor and Actress (I've seen 4 out of 5 performances in both of these categories):

I believe these awards should go to Christian Bale and Melissa Leo who play Dicky Eklund and Alica Ward (mother and son). I actually think that Christian Bale should be nominated for Best Actor, not best supporting actor (but then he would've been in competition with Colin Firth and I honestly can't say who I'd pick to win - they were both equally amazing). He's in the movie at least the same amount of time as Mark Wahlberg's character and has WAY more of a presence than almost anyone in the movie. He plays a real life person, which I think would be super hard to do, but at the end of the movie, they showed a clip of the real brothers and oh my goodness! It seemed like the same person. Dicky Eklund was once a very good fighter who got caught up in drugs. He seemed like he was always high on something because he was always moving or kind of skittish. It seems like he would've been a very tiring person to play, but he did a phenominal job.

Also doing a great job was Melissa Leo as his Mom. She was the boys manager and she was extremely controlling. Her character was over the top and since the movie was set in the 80s, had QUITE the wardrobe and hair get up. When I saw her later, on TV as herself, I had NO IDEA that was the same person I'd seen in the movie. She's been winning awards left and right for her performance as well. My votes go to these two. Another good movie I'd recommend. It's not amazing like some others I've seen, but it definitely is good.

Animated Feature Film (I've seen 2 of the 3 movies nominated in this category):

How To Train Your Dragon - I LOVED THIS MOVIE! Synopsis: "A hapless young Viking who aspires to hunt dragons becomes the unlikely friend of a young dragon himself, and learns there may be more to the creatures than he assumed." I can't explain exactly what it was that I loved about this movie ... it was just so sweet! I'm an animal lover, so although I don't believe in dragon's, my heart really does melt when I see a relationship form between a "pet" and an owner. A definite must see. Toy Story 3 was also nominated and although I enjoyed that one as well (yes, I did cry), How To Train Your Dragon was more original. We've seen the Toy Story theme a few times now and it was nice to see something different in a kids movie. Ok, funny story. Since I don't have kids (this movie came out before I was a Big Sister), if there's a kids movie I want to see, I have to go with my friends. I met my friend at the theatre and he was already in line when I got there, so I got in line a couple of people behind him. He turns around to say hi and I said, "So, are you ready to learn how to train your dragon?" The lady in between us kind of turned her head but didn't actually look at me and then I realized what I'd said. My friend just shook his head, smirked and looked away and I started laughing and went all shades of red. Aaaha! Too funny. So now when I hear the name of this movie, I can't help but smirk, but it doesn't take away from the greatness of the movie for me.

Best Picture (I've seen 9 out of the 10 movies nominated in this category ... I know! I was surprised as well ... I've never seen that many of the nominees!)

I think The King's Speech should win. It's one of those great movies that you can take your Mom to and not worry about her being offended. You know what I mean, right? Plus, all the actors did an amazing job. When I saw the trailors for this movie, I knew I wanted to see it, but I was worried that it would be a tad bit boring. I was completely wrong. It kept my attention the whole time and, as I mentioned before, it was very heartwarming. You left the theatre with such a good feeling in the pit of your stomach (ok, I did ... I guess I shouldn't speak for others). Loved, loved, loved this movie. If you don't get to see it in the theatre, it's coming out on DVD on April 19.

So there you have it. My picks for winners this year. Can't wait to see all the dresses on the red carpet, either. ;)

Mature People Truths

2011-02-04T06:28:00.000-08:00

Mature People Truths

There are a lot that have at least a little truth to them, but my faves are #9, #11, #14, #18 and definitely #22 ... ok, and #26. :)

"4" THINGS ABOUT YOU

2011-02-03T06:32:00.000-08:00

1) Four places I regularly go to:
- Prison
- Movie Theatres
- Church
- Save-On Foods
(not particularly in that order ... ok, maybe it is in that order)

2) Four people who e-mail me (regularly)
- Jennie
- Brenda
- Groupon
- Bikram's Yoga (I guess they don't think I go enough - haha - they're right!)

3) Four favorite smells
- Roast beef cooking (which one of my friends made for me last night and it was DELICIOUS! - I love walking into a house and being hit with that yummy smell)
- Puppy breath (call me crazy, I don't care - I LOVE IT! - plus, if I'm smelling that, it means I'm holding a puppy and there's nothing wrong about that)
- Clean clothes
- Baking (pretty much any kind ... I'm not picky that way ;)

4) Four places I would rather be right now
- Italy
- Thailand
- France
- Croatia
I could go on and on, if you want ...

Because I'm Nice ...

2011-02-02T17:00:00.000-08:00

Not that I want a lot of competition for these tickets, but it would be awesome if someone I knew got to go, soooooo, without further ado:

The reservation window for Oprah's After-Oscar® Party taping in Hollywood, CA will be open from Wednesday, February 2, at 10 a.m. Central Time until Thursday, February 3, at 11:59 p.m. Central Time.

If you are interested in securing reservations for this special taping, here's what you need to know about attending the show:

•Oprah's After-Oscar® Party taping will be on Monday, February 28th at the Kodak Theater in Hollywood, CA.

•The time commitment for this special taping will be approximately from 7 a.m. Pacific Time until 12 p.m. Pacific Time.

•You must be at least 18 years of age to attend.

•You can submit one reservation request for yourself and one guest. You will be the lead of the reservation and you must attend for the reservations to be valid. If your reservation request is confirmed, you will have until Monday, February 21st to change the name of your guest. No name changes will be allowed the day of the taping.

Click here to go to her site. You will have to create an account on her site before you can enter.

Fingers crossed!!!

Wordless Wednesday

2011-02-02T06:33:00.000-08:00

Movie Monday

2011-01-31T06:07:00.000-08:00

BLACK SWAN

Nina (Natalie Portman) is a ballerina whose passion for the dance rules every facet of her life. When the company's artistic director decides to replace his prima ballerina for their opening production of ``Swan Lake,'' Nina is his first choice. She has competition in newcomer Lily (Mila Kunis) however. While Nina is perfect for the role of the White Swan, Lily personifies the Black Swan. As rivalry between the two dancers transforms into a twisted friendship, Nina's dark side begins to emerge.

I've got mixed reviews about this movie. I'm not a horror fan, but I do enjoy a great suspense movie. If things are a bit creepy, I'm ok with that. This movie was high on the creepy factor, which was good, but to me, they stepped over the line in the sexual department. There's a make out scene that really didn't need to be in there and then there's a couple of scenes where (sorry if this grosses some people out, but I want to be honest with you) she pleasures herself. Again, not needed. Her acting is great as is the way they filmed the movie, but I would only recommend it if you rent it and can fast forward through some parts. Apparently Jim Carrey did a good spoof of it on Saturday Night Live which I haven't seen yet, but I'll definitely be going to You Tube to check it out.

Oh, and can you believe it's the last day of January already? Sheesh! Where did the month go?

Fun with friends

2011-01-30T09:26:00.000-08:00

The other night I had some girlfriends over that I'd been promising to have over for quite some time. With Christmas and all it's busyness behind us, I sent out an email, set the date and the night was planned. How can anyone resist a chocolate fondue?! :)

From left to right: Rachel, Kori, me, Jennie and Keri

Getting ready to start dunking a piece of fruit, a marshmallow or a pretzel.

Yuuuuumy!

We were definitely not short of food, that's for sure!

Of course we must take a group picture. This was my first attempt at setting it up with the couch in the centre. Not bad.

Then I set the timer ... or so I thought!

Ok, now the timer really is set ... but "someone" didn't make it quite in time. :)

There we go!
We had such a great night. We had planned on playing either Dutch Blitz or Mexican Train, but we got gabbing ... and gabbing ... and gabbing, and before you knew it, we had talked the night away. Gotta love it when you don't run out of things to talk about.

The girls brought me this beautiful plate (they know that purple's my favorite colour) as a housewarming gift. I LOVE IT and can't wait to use it! Then, after I unwrapped it, I saw something stuck to the plate ... they had also got me a gift card for Pier 1! Ladies, you shouldn't have! I am hoping to go spend it this weekend and then next week I'll post pics of ALL the wonderful housewarming gifts I've gotten. I truly am blessed.

Thanks for a great night, ladies. I can't wait until we get together again.

Has anyone noticed ...

2011-01-29T09:05:00.000-08:00

that there's only 97 days until I leave on my trip??? Under 100 days!!! Whoo hoo!!! :)

Happiness

2011-01-28T06:37:00.000-08:00

Joining a club that makes you show up once a month has the same impact on your happiness as doubling your income. Widen your social circle in an authentic way. - Dan Buettner

Pretty much what he's saying is that things/money don't make you happier and I, for one, agree with him. Yes, this was from an Oprah show the other day. I'm not one of those people who does whatever Oprah says and I haven't seen every show, but I have been PVRing them all this last season because ... well, because it's her last season. If it's a topic I'm not so interested in, I delete it, but this one was a good one. I enjoyed the whole show, but when the guy said the above quote, I started taking notes. Here are some of my other notes that either Oprah said, Goldie Hawn said or Dan Buettner said:

Even when giving gifts, it's better to give experiences. The impact of a new thing only lasts about 9 months, but an experience (cooking class, vacation etc.), that is a memory that will increase happiness for the long term.

I couldn't agree more with this. Last year I didn't know what to get my Mom for Christmas, so I decided to get her tickets to Fiddler on the Roof. Unfortunately, they live in Calgary and I wasn't able to fly or drive out to join her, but her and her friend had a GREAT time and she mentioned it a few times. This year, I decided to take my sister and Mom to see The Canadian Tenors as their Christmas gift and my sister said it was the best Christmas gift she's gotten in her 48 years. I'd say an experience like that can be priceless. I'm sure our age has something to do with it and if I was a kid I might have wanted something tangible instead and that's ok, but I'm liking this whole "experience as a gift" thing.

If happiness is a cake recipe, the most important ingredients are:

- good job

- did I marry the right person

- do I volunteer in a way where I feel I'm giving back

- where you live

I agree with the list above, but I would've added loving family and friends to the list as well. The "where you live" point isn't super important to me, so I'm probably not the best person to ask on this one ... as you know, I moved around for the last 5 1/2 years. I really enjoy my new place, but my happiness doesn't depend on it, but every one's different, so that's my only questionable point on his list ... but I understand that it might not be for other people. Right now I can only imagine that marrying the right person would be vital to your happiness, but I've seen a lot of unhappy marriages around me and I'd say this is a VERY important point. Don't get married just for the sake of getting married. Thinking about my future spouse, if there is one, the thought that he is my best friend is such a comforting thought. I wouldn't settle for anything less. This last year I became a Big Sister, and although it hasn't been without it's issues and hard times, I completely agree that volunteering in a way where I feel I'm giving back has completely added to my happiness. It really does give you a sense of worth in a new way ... and not in a "pat myself on the back," "aren't I awesome?" type of way. It just feels good. I can't describe it more than that. A good job is super important as most people spend most of their day there. I've been in good jobs, great jobs and bad jobs and I can attest to the fact that my happiness went up and down with each experience. Is that right? Probably not, but after being in a crappy job for years, it's hard to look forward to getting up and going to work ... ok, who am I kidding? Even in my great job I didn't look forward to getting up and going to work ... it is work, after all! haha Oprah had a lady on her show that worked in a toll booth and she just LOVES her job. Oprah asked her if she thought she was born happy or did she make herself this way ... the lady said, "Oh no, I was definitely born this way. My whole family is happy." If that's the case, I think this lady would've been happy in any job ... but they didn't discuss that point. And speaking of jobs:

Which one do you think is the happiest job in America:

- Travel Agent

- Clergy

- Special Ed Teacher

- Firefighter

If you answered "All of the Above" you're correct. Not one of these jobs (on average) pays more than $50,000 a year. Go after what gives you bliss, not bucks. The happiest people get 8 hours of social interaction a day.

Now, some people just aren't a "people person" as the phrase goes, so obviously some people would disagree with this last statement. I do love that "CEO of some big company" or "Actor" aren't on this list, though, because it proves that you don't have to get paid a whole wackload of money to be happy. Which brings me back to the point that things really don't bring you happiness. Lasting happiness, that is. Yes, money most of the time would make life easier, but I don't think your happiness should depend on it. The only thing I wish they would've discussed on the show is that I think happiness, for the most part, is a choice.

I'm going to choose to be happy today ... how about you?

Movie Monday

2011-01-24T09:11:00.000-08:00

Today's movie review is on a 1994 movie called Leon: The Professional (or just The Professional)

Professional assassin Leon reluctantly takes care of 12-year-old Mathilda, a neighbor whose parents are killed, and teaches her his trade.

Now, remember that this movie came out in 1994 so it's been awhile since I've seen it, but after my friend and I saw Black Swan the other night (whoa, that's a whole other review waiting to happen - all I'll say for now is that if you're interested and curious, wait until it comes out on DVD so you can fast forward through some parts that are REALLY not needed!), she asked me what other movies Natalie Portman's been in. I remembered a few but when I looked her up on IMDB, The Professional popped up and I remembered that I really liked this movie. It does have a lot of violence in it, so be prewarned ... it is about an assassin, after all. I remember thinking that "the kid" did a great job and it was fun to watch their relationship grow ... if memory serves correctly, there may be a few times that it seems like a "weird" relationship, but it doesn't take that turn ... otherwise I wouldn't have liked it. It shows New York in a cool light and since I love NYC, that's always a good thing to me.

Ok, I promise my next review will be a bit more of this day and age. :)

Andy Rooney says ...

2011-01-21T06:25:00.000-08:00

I don't believe in Santa Claus, but I'm not going to sue somebody for singing a Ho-Ho-Ho song in December.

I don't agree with Darwin , but I didn't go out and hire a lawyer when my high school teacher taught his theory of evolution.

Life, liberty or your pursuit of happiness will not be endangered in any way because someone says a 30-second prayer before a football game.

So what's the big deal?

It's not like somebody is up there reading the entire Book of Acts. They're just talking to a God they believe in and asking him to grant safety to the players on the field and the fans going home from the game.

But it's a Christian prayer, some will argue.

Yes, and this is the United States of America , and Canada , countries founded on Christian principles. According to our very own phone book, Christian churches outnumber all others better than 200-to-1.

So what would you expect -- somebody chanting Hare Krishna?

If I went to a football game in Jerusalem, I would expect to hear a Jewish prayer.

If I went to a soccer game in Baghdad, I would expect to hear a Muslim prayer.

If I went to a ping pong match in China, I would expect to hear someone pray to Buddha.

And I wouldn't be offended. It wouldn't bother me one bit.

When in Rome .....

But what about the atheists? is another argument

What about them?

Nobody is asking them to be baptized. We're not going to pass the collection plate. Just humour us for 30 seconds. If that's asking too much, bring a Walkman or a pair of ear plugs. Go to the bathroom. Visit the concession stand. Call your lawyer! Or, just exercise their right to leave this country!

Unfortunately, one or two will call their lawyer.

One or two will tell thousands what they can and cannot do. I don't think a short prayer at a football game is going to shake the world's foundations.

Christians are just sick and tired of turning the other cheek while our courts strip us of all our rights.

Our parents and grandparents taught us to pray before eating, to pray before we go to sleep.

Our Bible tells us to pray without ceasing.

Now a handful of people and their lawyers are telling us to cease praying.

God, help us. And if that last sentence offends you, well, just sue me.

The silent majority has been silent too long. It's time we tell that one or two who scream loud enough to be heard that the vast majority doesn't care what they want!

It is time that the majority rules!

It's time we tell them, "You don't have to pray; you don't have to say the Pledge of Allegiance; you don't have to believe in God or attend services that honor Him. That is your right, and we will honor your right; but by golly, you are no longer going to take our rights away.
We are fighting back, and we WILL WIN!"

God bless us one and all...Especially those who denounce Him, God bless our service men who
are fighting to protect our right to pray and worship God.

Let's make 2010 and 2011 the year the silent majority is heard and we put God back as the foundation of our families and institutions. And our military forces come home from all the wars.

Wordless Wednesday

2011-01-19T06:33:00.000-08:00

Movie Monday

2011-01-17T06:04:00.000-08:00

I'm no movie critic, but I do loooooove movies. On Mondays, I'm going to give you my opinions on movies ... some old, some new, some indy, some blockbusters. Take it as you will. I just loooove movies. Did I mention that already? :)

The first movie I'm going to tell you about is from 2000 and it stars Guy Pearce. It's called:

Memento

I was just telling my sister about this movie over Christmas and it's really made me want to see it again. Here's the general synopsis:

A man, suffering from short-term memory loss, uses notes and tattoos to hunt
for the man he thinks killed his wife.

Sound interesting? How about if I tell you they play the story backwards? I don't want to give too much away, but this movie had so many twists and turns and kept me so intrigued that after I watched it, I rewound (hey, it was VCR days) and watched it all over again. Someone I told about the movie did the exact same thing ... so maybe have about 4 hours of time blocked off if you watch it because when you get to the end and kind of figure things out, you'll want to watch it all over again knowing what you know. It's been awhile since I've seen it, so I can't remember how violent the film is or how much swearing is in it, so don't count on me for that aspect. Just know that it is rated R, so... Also know that you have to be in a mood to think and be challenged. Guy Pearce (The Count of Monte Cristo, L.A. Confidential, The King's Speech) did an amazing job.

Here's a cool quote from the movie:

"Memory can change the shape of a room; it can change the color of a car. And
memories can be distorted. They're just an interpretation, they're not a record,
and they're irrelevant if you have the facts."

That's all I'm really going to say about this movie because I don't want to give too much away. Let me know if you watch it and what your thoughts are ... good, bad or indifferent.

Thank you ... Thank you very much

2011-01-16T08:23:00.000-08:00

I've been tagged, awarded, honoured ... whatever you'd like to call it. It's something fun we bloggers like to do and I, for one, am up to the challenge.

This Girl's Life is a blog of a wonderful person. Although I didn't know her when we went to school together, Sonya and I have become friends pretty much because of our blogs. For that, I am grateful we both got into this "business." I don't remember how I found her blog or if she found me first, but most likely it was linked through mutual friends and that's kinda what these blogs are all about. Random people meeting through reading other people's random thoughts. Pretty cool, if you ask me. Anyway, Sonya has bestowed upon me the honour of the following 2 awards.

The first award is:

Rules:
1. Thank and link back to the person who gave you the award. - Check
2. Answer the following 10 questions. - Check
3. Pass it along to 7 blogs you've recently discovered and enjoy. - Check ... but no pressure
4. Leave your recipients a note telling them about the award. - Oops, gotta go do that now.

1. Why did you create this blog?

Well, for that answer, I could just link you back to my first post, which I will do, but I'll try to give you a short answer as well. I was planning a trip around the world so I thought a blog would be a great way to keep everyone informed. Unfortunately, that trip didn't happen (which I'm alright with - kinda - it's all about timing), but I continued with my blog.

2. What kind of blogs do you follow?

At first it was just blogs of people I knew, but then I'd see some people leave really interesting comments and I wanted to know more about them, so I clicked on their links and started reading a few others. I must admit that I've narrowed it back to only a few that I read and even then, I have to play catch up quite a bit.

3.Favorite make-up brand?

I wear very little make-up, but what I do wear is eyeliner and mascara, both made by May.belline.

4.Favorite clothing brand?

Hmmm, that's kind of a tough one. I really like Super.store's Joe line, G.ap, but really, anything nice I can find on sale is a win for me ... especially when it's from Bana.na Republic. :)

5.Indispensable make-up product?

Mascara ... my eyes disappear without it.

6.Favorite color?

Purple. I don't have a lot of purple clothes or surround myself with purple, but I just think it's a super pretty colour.

7. Favorite perfume?

In high school, it was Obsession. Much too sweet smelling now. Early adulthood, it was Samsara. Not too many people had heard of it and when I would go buy it, the ladies in the store always looked at me funny because apparently only old ladies bought it, but I got many compliments on it. I still really like the smell of it. "Then why," you ask, "don't you still wear it?" Funny story. I was at a restaurant a few years ago and this girl walked by me and she smelled fantastic! I asked her what she was wearing and she looked at her friend and they both giggled. She looked at me all embarrassed like and said, "It's called Fantasy ... by Britn.ey Spea.rs!" I went out and bought it the next day and have had the same scenario happen to me many times but now I'm the one with the embarrassed look on her face. :)

8. Favorite film?
Don't get me started. You'll have to read my Movie Monday reviews to see a few of them.

9.What country would you like to visit and why?

Italy (looks stunningly beautiful), Croatia (also stunningly beautiful and cheap), Kenya (I want to go on safari reeeeeeally bad), and pretty much any other country I haven't visited ... because ... why not? There's a whole world out there to explore.

10. Would you rather forget to put on mascara on one eye or forget blush on one side of your face?

Definitely blush on one side of my face. See #5.

The second award is:

Apparently a stylish blog is not necessarily about fashion but a blog with heart that keeps you coming back for more. Hopefully I provide a bit of that ... when I actually blog.

Rules:
1. Thank and link back to the person who gave you this award. - Check - see beginning of this post.
2.Share seven things about yourself. - Phewf! That was hard! - Check
3.Award 10 recently discovered great bloggers. - Again, no pressure
4.Contact these bloggers and tell them about this award. - On it!

1. I bought my first home this year. A lot of people I know have bought fixer-upers and had to do a lot of renovations. I didn't want to go that route so I bought brand new ... and had to renovate my life! Although I love my place, I grew up in a family that moved ever 5 years so I don't become super attached ... which is most likely why I could housesit for almost 6 years. Those housesitting years, my money was my own to do with as I pleased and I had a lot of fun. Owning your own place definitely ties you down and I've had to make some adjustments. All healthy changes, but some not so welcomed. I've gotten 2 more jobs to help out with some bills so I can have a little more breathing room. Hopefully I'll get a little ahead soon and won't feel "house poor" as the term goes. It's all good.

2. I'm a plant killer. There ... I've said it. I try and try to keep plants alive but I'd say 80% of plants I have, have bit it pretty early on in our relationship. :(

3. Next year I'll be looking to get my 6th tattoo and I'm taking recommendations. Seriously. If I pick yours, you'll get a prize. I don't know what that prize will be, yet, but you'll get a prize.

4. I love brain teaser games: Crosswords, sudoku, word search, card games, etc. Call me a geek. I honestly don't care. Some people read right before going to bed. I do my sudoku game.

5. Because I couldn't think of any other fun facts about myself, I went onto Face.book and played Scarab Solitare and I won ... and it made me happy. See? Proved #4.

6. Since mid-August of 2010, I've been on Jenn.y Cr.aig and so far have lost 30 pounds. It feels great and I've got about 10 pounds to go but you know what "they" say ... the last 10 pounds is always the hardest. Since the weather doesn't want to cooperate with me and warm up like I've asked it to so I can go back to walking the major hill in town, I've resurrected my Bik.ram's yoga classes and have gone to 2 classes in the last couple of days. I'm hoping I can just sweat off the last 10 pounds. :)

7. One more thing ... one more thing ... oh, my new favorite show is Moder.n Fam.ily. This show is absolutely HILARIOUS! Not only is the writing brilliant, but the way each actor executes his/her part is perfect. The only thing wrong with this show is that it's only a half hour long every week.

It's going to be hard to come up with 10 people to tag because they've all been tagged by the blogger who tagged me, sooooo, I'm going to tag them anyway just to ensure they get around to doing it. :)

Here goes (in no particular order):

1. Jennie ~ one of my BFFs. Can't say enough good things about her. She's honest, loving, friendly and everyone I know that meets her, loves her.
2. Rachel ~ I've known Rachel for a long time, actually (Sunday School way back as kids) and have enjoyed getting to know her as a friend, a Mom, a wife, a co-worker, etc.
3. Kori ~ maybe her hubby will take me up on #3 above. :) Have really enjoyed getting to know you at Oasis the past few months, Kori and look forward to what God will show us in the next few months.
4. Keri ~ Also looking forward to seeing what God's got in store for us at Oasis in the next few months. Thanks for sharing and being open. You're awesome!
5. Joy ~ had heard so much about you when I was in Camden and finally got to meet you a couple of years ago. It was fun getting to know you. Hopefully we'll meet again one day.
6. Ali ~ I've also known Ali for many years but again, we didn't hang out until she started dating and eventually married, a good friend of mine. He is SOOO lucky to have her. She's sweet, funny and incredibly kind. Her blog is mostly about family, so I'm not sure if she'll do this type of post, but I thought I'd tag her anyway.
7. Sheryl ~ she's my cousin (by marriage) and I've really enjoyed getting to know her more at Oasis as well. She somehow keeps her sanity with twins and a little boy ... oh, and being married to Josh! haha

Sorry, I can't come up with 10. And of the 7 I've tagged, I don't want anyone to feel any pressure to do this. It's just for fun and if you find the time, great. It took me awhile ... I had to save and come back to it quite a few times, but it was fun in the end. Thanks for the awards, Sonya. :)

2010 Year in Review

2011-01-15T08:06:00.000-08:00

I'm sure that most of you who read my blog already got my poem via email or Face.book, but I wanted to put it up here for posterity's sake. Plus, this way I can add a few pics:

At first, looking back
I thought, “Was 2010 boring?
Why don’t I remember much?
Did I do any exploring?”

My memory sure ain’t what it used to be
For exploring, I certainly did
No, I didn’t meet any celebrities this year
Nor did I travel to Madrid

But the Olympics came to town
And there was much fun to be had
The city was buzzing with excitement
In red and white, everyone was clad

It was sad when it was over
Life seemed a bit dull
Then in March my parents came to visit
And that ended the lull

First, we celebrated
50 years they’ve been together
They deserve to be congratulated
For making it through all kinds of weather

Then began the hunt
36 condos we did see
When I finally found THE ONE
I shouted out with glee!

Yes, I’m now a homeowner
No more living out of a suitcase
I’ve got a place to call home
I own 910 square feet of space

Thanks to Mom & Dad for helping me shop
It was a whirlwind process
Now I’m actually settled
I finally have my own address

In April I also became a Big Sister
It was time to give back
In the excitement and drama department
It definitely doesn’t lack

We’ve gone to Cirque du Soleil, seen many a movie
And strapped on some skates
We took cooking classes and trips to the library
What brought us together was more than just fate

I thought the summer would be bleak
No money to go travelling
But God had another plan
That He started unravelling

Friends needed another chaperone
To go to Montreal
All expenses paid
And man, we had a ball!

That city is like no other
It’s absolutely breathtaking
Of the bond our group made
There is no mistaking

The rest of the summer was great
Went to the wedding of a long time friend
And then the Michael Buble concert
Brought it to the perfect end

The fall brought my 20 year reunion
At which I had a blast
How can I already be 38?
It all went by so fast!

Saw Steve Nash play in October
That helped me relive my youth
Remembering being a top athlete
It’s ok that it’s no longer my truth (really, it’s ok! J)

2010 I started out with bright, red hair
But ended up back as a blonde
I like to keep it fresh and new
With a wave of my hairdresser’s wand

It’s just hair after all
Not something that has meaning
Like my amazing Father’s love for me
New things I have been gleaning

Like Living Beyond Yourself
The new study that I’m doing
Is teaching me it’s not all about me
Transformations I am viewing

Striving to be who God knows I can be
Easy, it is not
But knowing that His unconditional love
Is something that I’ve got

Makes everything manageable
‘Cause look what He’s done for us
Christmas is a testament
It’s why there’s all this fuss

It’s not really about Santa
Or what great gift was under the tree
He gave you the greatest gift of all
And it’s absolutely free

So as I look back on this year
I see that I am truly blessed
I know my path is in the most capable Hands
I vow to not be stressed

I pray that you are all doing well
And that you’re excited for a new year
Remember that if you’re reading this poem
In my heart, you are very dear.

Too cute not to share

2010-12-14T09:40:00.000-08:00

Are you an Asker or a Guesser?

2010-12-07T19:52:00.000-08:00

I read this article the other day and thought it was quite good ...

Are you an Asker or a Guesser?

By Oliver Burkeman

The advice of etiquette experts on dealing with unwanted invitations, or overly demanding requests for favours, has always been the same: just say no. That may have been a useless mantra in the war on drugs, but in the war on relatives who want to stay for a fortnight, or colleagues trying to get you to do their work, the manners guru Emily Post's formulation – "I'm afraid that won't be possible" – remains the gold standard. Excuses merely invite negotiation. The comic retort has its place (Peter Cook: "Oh dear, I find I'm watching television that night"), and I'm fond of the tautological non-explanation ("I can't, because I'm unable to"). But these are variations on a theme: the best way to say no is to say no. Then shut up.

This is a lesson we're unable to learn, however, judging by the scores of books promising to help us. The Power Of A Positive No, How To Say No Without Feeling Guilty, The Book Of No... Publishers, certainly, seem unable to refuse. (Two recent books addressing the topic are Marshall Goldsmith's Mojo, and Womenomics, by Claire Shipman and Katty Kay.) This is the "disease to please" – a phrase that doesn't make grammatical sense, but rhymes, giving it instant pop-psychology cachet. There are certainly profound issues here, of self-esteem, guilt etcetera. But it's also worth considering whether part of the problem doesn't originate in a simple misunderstanding between two types of people: Askers and Guessers.

This terminology comes from a brilliant web posting by Andrea Donderi that's achieved minor cult status online. We are raised, the theory runs, in one of two cultures. In Ask culture, people grow up believing they can ask for anything – a favour, a pay rise– fully realising the answer may be no. In Guess culture, by contrast, you avoid "putting a request into words unless you're pretty sure the answer will be yes… A key skill is putting out delicate feelers. If you do this with enough subtlety, you won't have to make the request directly; you'll get an offer. Even then, the offer may be genuine or pro forma; it takes yet more skill and delicacy to discern whether you should accept."

Neither's "wrong", but when an Asker meets a Guesser, unpleasantness results. An Asker won't think it's rude to request two weeks in your spare room, but a Guess culture person will hear it as presumptuous and resent the agony involved in saying no. Your boss, asking for a project to be finished early, may be an overdemanding boor – or just an Asker, who's assuming you might decline. If you're a Guesser, you'll hear it as an expectation. This is a spectrum, not a dichotomy, and it explains cross-cultural awkwardnesses, too: Brits and Americans get discombobulated doing business in Japan, because it's a Guess culture, yet experience Russians as rude, because they're diehard Askers.

Self-help seeks to make us all Askers, training us to both ask and refuse with relish; the mediation expert William Ury recommends memorising "anchor phrases" such as "that doesn't work for me". But Guessers can take solace in logic: in many social situations (though perhaps not at work) the very fact that you're receiving an anxiety-inducing request is proof the person asking is an Asker. He or she is half-expecting you'll say no, and has no inkling of the torture you're experiencing. So say no, and see what happens. Nothing will.

Do you know which one I am? :)

Short update

2010-11-20T20:11:00.000-08:00

Ok, now that you've pinched yourself and realized your NOT dreaming (it really IS a new post from me! - haha), I'll update you a bit.

My place is mostly set up. I just have my spare room to finish, but I don't really have any furniture to put in there, so my boxes of stuff I don't really know what to do with are sitting in there. I've been going through them all day today and needed a break so I thought I'd come say hi. Here are a few pics of my place:

Isn't it weird how small a room looks with no furniture in it ... it should be the other way around.

The kitchen!

The living room ... that's all you get for now. :)

It's been over 6 months now and I'm really liking not living out of a suitcase and thinking I'm going to have to move again soon ... yet I came from a family that never lived in one place for more than 5 years, so I don't really get too attached to a place, so I feel kinda bad when people ask me if I'm LOOOOOVING having my own place and I say, "Yeah, it's cool." I don't think I show the enthusiasm that most people expect. It's great, but it is what it is. A home ... for now. :)

In July I went to a wedding of a friend that I've known since Grade 5. It was so great to see her and our other bosom buddy as well. I love that our friendship has lasted all these years. Do we see each other often? No, but we can pick up where we left off and it's NEVER awkward. I love that and I love these beautiful women!

In August I got to see Mr. Buble again. It was a GREAT concert ... despite the fact that I didn't get him to sign the picture of him and I. :(

In September I went to my 20 year reunion ... I know ... I don't know how that's mathematically possible since I'm only 28. ;) And if you look closely at the picture below, you'll see I went to my reNunion, not my reunion. :)

I got to see my High School BFs again at the reunion. We are 3 very different people but I love that it never kept us from being such great friends.

There weren't as many there as we would've liked, but those of us that came had a GREAT time and promised we would get together in 5 years again instead of another 10.

In October I got to go to my "happy place" and watch Steve Nash play basketball in Vancouver. It feels like just yesterday that I played myself ... but I guess I let the cat out of the bag by telling you what I did in September that you know it wasn't just yesterday. :P

October brought my friend, Karen's birthday and when I asked her what she wanted to do, she said she wanted to go on a hike, so off we went to hike Elk Mountain.

It's a GREAT hike with a beautiful view at the top. I'm glad we did it when we did because I'm pretty sure there's a lot of snow up there now.

Now we're in November and what will that bring? Judging from the pictures I've just posted, I'm sure another hairdo will be in order ... man my hair changes quickly! I'm not sure what else it'll bring, but hopefully it won't be 6 months before I let you know. :)

Going Private!

2010-06-10T16:31:00.000-07:00

Hey Everyone,

I know it's been FOREVER since I last posted, but buying a condo and moving in is a LOT of work!!! Fun work, but work none the less that keeps me away from blogging.

I've been toying with saying goodbye to my blog for good, but I think I'll give it a little more thought. If I do decide to continue, I do have to go private (explanation will come shortly), so if you want to be on my "safe" list, please send me a message with your email address and I'll add you to the list ... otherwise, if you're a lurker who doesn't want to "out" themselves, thank you for stopping by and peeking in on my life every once in awhile. It was a pleasure to be a small part of your day every so often. :)

Thanks!

Happy 50th Anniversary!!!

2010-04-12T15:13:00.000-07:00

On March 18 my parents celebrated their 50th wedding anniversary. I'm SO proud of them. The older I get, the more I realize how much hard work goes into a marriage. Yes, they've had difficult times, but they've also had great times and they managed to stay together and that deserves to be celebrated! Way to go, Mom & Dad. I love you lots!

Here's the poem I wrote for them:

What can I say
About 50 looooong years
There have been many good times
And yes, a few tears

It started at a roller rink
Out with some friends
Laughing and skating
But do you know how that night ends?

When they went to go home
Into the back seat they did climb
But when it came my Mom’s turn
Dad had thought ahead of time

“I’ll let the other girls get in first
But when Hilda goes to get in
I’ll throw the seat back
And let out a grin

She’ll have to sit right next to me
And we can talk all the way back to the farm
Oh, I do hope she likes me
And appreciates my charm”

Well, it obviously worked
And in South Abby church they did wed
They had 2 years of freedom
Before in moved a baby’s bed

Carolyn was the first
And Donnie was soon after
Their house was quickly filled
With the sound of children’s laughter

We stop to give pause
To the brother I never met
He is always in our hearts
We will never forget

Jodi came next
And I was the last
With my fiery red headed spirit
I was bound to be a blast!

We all had to adapt
Because we moved MANY times
I believe the count is at 22 in their 50 years
Now that’s gotta be a crime

But they like it, I’m not complaining
It’s obviously their decision
As long as my Dad gets to take
His big screen television

From BC to Manitoba
Then back to BC we did go
Now they’ve moved on to Alberta
Although for the Canucks Dad’s heart does still glow

I enjoyed our time in Manitoba
Living on all that land
Except during chore time
When I had to lend a hand

We had pigs to feed and grain to get in
And the cows needed hay
But it really was a great life
At the end of the day

I even got to attend
The same elementary school as my Dad
Not many kids can say that
And for that, I am glad

When we moved back to BC
Dad took up again in construction and Mom at the church
But Mom was only part time
So us girls were never in the lurch

She was always home to greet us
And to prepare a great meal
I know I didn’t fully appreciate it
But it really is a big deal

And Dad always worked so hard
To provide for his brood
To make us all happy
And never come unglued

We took many vacations
With the 5th wheel trailer we did go
Yellowstone, Disneyland and 100 mile house
Were all a stones throw

When you could pack up your trailer
And head down the road
With your kids and your dog
It was never a heavy load

In more recent years my parents have ventured
A little farther on the globe
New Zealand, Malaysia, the Panama Canal
Are new places they did probe

There are too many memories
To recall in this short rhyme
But I want them to know
As my parents, they are sublime

We honour them today
On this 50th year
So please raise your glasses
As we give them a cheer

Hockey game with my Dad

2010-04-10T11:10:00.000-07:00

My parents came out to visit for the month of March. I had such a great time with them. I miss them already. My Dad and I decided to go to a Canu.cks game and although they lost, we had a great time. We decided to take the skytrain in and my Dad was like a little kid. He hadn't been on the skytrain for years and his head was whipping around trying to see every little thing. He had a story for every stop we made (he used to live, work and/or go to school at almost every place we stopped). One time I asked him a question and then he saw something else that he wanted to talk about so he started talking about that. After he finished, I said, "You didn't finish the other story," to which he said, "I can't be interrupted. I might miss something." So cute. I just pretty much sat back and let him talk and reminisce.

We ate at Whi.te Sp.ot inside GM Place and then we went to find our seats. My Dad went to the bathroom first and he was gone so long that I thought maybe he'd gotten lost. The players came out to do their warm up and I waited ... and waited ...

and waited ...

Finally I got up to go see if I could find him. You know where he was? In the store buying a jersey! It was the cutest thing. He's a little on the larger side and this jersey was quite snug, but he LOVED it and was so excited to buy it. I just smiled and told him the game was about to begin. This was the only picture we got together. I should've asked someone to take a picture for us, but I didn't think of it. Oh well. This one's fun, too.

We could see Fin down below.

Anyone remember this guy? It's Dan Murp.hy! My sister graduated with him and now he works for Sport.snet. Pretty cool to see him out there.

Let the game begin!

My favorite part of the game ended up being during the singing of the national anthem. They had a video going of the Canada team winning the gold medal game at the Olymp.ics and Luon.go and Cros.by getting their medals. The crowd went nuts when they showed it ... I don't even think they were listening to the anthem. :)

Luon.go had to stop the game because it looked like he had something stuck on his skate. Whatever he did to fix it didn't help because they ended up losing 5 - 2.

If you've watched the games on TV, you've most likely seen these guys in the crowd. If you google, "Green guys at Canu.cks games" you'll get some fun video clips and pictures. We had a good laugh about them.

And Luon.go got benched. Too bad. Can't win 'em all, right?

All of a sudden we heard this loud banging behind us. We turned around and there was Fin. He actually ended up coming over and putting his shark mouth over my Dad's head and stealing his cap. My Dad and I had a good laugh about that.

Thanks for hanging out with me, Dad. If you moved here we could do a lot more things like this together. ;)

Wordless Wednesday

2010-04-07T06:00:00.000-07:00

Final Olympic days :(

2010-04-06T05:57:00.000-07:00

On our last weekend of the Olympics, we went downtown both days. On Saturday we did a lot of walking and standing in lines. As we walked through Yale.town to get to the Socc.i House, there were people stopped at any store that had a TV in the window watching many different athletes win medals. It was a very fun atmosphere on the streets.

Looking across False Creek at Olympic Village. Remember seeing this flag on the news and in the newspapers?

Hmmm, I wonder which athletes were in those condos in the middle? ;)

All the many flags from around the world represented at the games. Very cool.

As you walked around the seawall towards what we know as Scien.ce World (which was transformed into the Soc.ci House - the Russian town where the next Olympics will be held), everyone was creating their own Inukshuk.

How many ways to you know how to say Welcome?

The flame isn't even snuffed out in Vancou.ver and the countdown begins to the next Olympics already.

Here's Ellen and I outside the "Socci House." This was the only day that I went downtown and it was a little rainy and chilly. I decided to make Ellen a rain slicker to keep dry. This picture of her and I also made it on her website.

I think she appreciated it.

Now, I'll admit that when our mascots first were announced, I didn't think too much of them, but over time, they grew on me. Wanna have your first look at the Soc.ci mascot? Hmmm, not too sure about this one. I think it makes our mascots look pretty cool.

Here's Ellen getting her last picture with BC Pl.ace (where the Opening and Closing ceremonies took place) and Canada Hockey House (or as we BC'ers like to call it, G.M Place) in the background. This is the 3rd and final picture that made it on her website. It was fun hanging out with you, Ellen. Until our next adventure ...

Outside the Molse.n Hockey House - it cost $100 to get in here and I don't think that included any food or drinks. You just got to possibly hobnob with some celebrities/hockey players.

I think this is supposed to be Luon.go.

The next day was the final day of the Olympics and we headed down early to get a spot at a nice restaurant in Yale.town, however, a few other people had the same idea. We split up and waited outside 3 fairly well known restaurants, but were turned away from all 3 of them. We happened to luck out and found a table for 3 in a quaint little place where we were instantly friends with everyone in the restaurant.

Elation and much cheering when the score was 1 - 0.

More excitement as Canada gets another goal!

A little more tense ...

Yes, Karen. I know how you feel. It was definitely hard to watch at times.

At this point I put my camera away because it was just too stressful. With 30 seconds left I remember thinking to myself, "Only 30 seconds and we can celebrate and all this stress will be over." No, that was not to be. With 24 seconds left, the US scored and tied the game. It was literally like the air was sucked out of the room. Everyone was deflated, scared and nervous.

Then, the good and honourable 22 year old, Sid.ney Cr.osby scored the winning goal to give Canada the gold medal! We were high fiving and hugging strangers. It was like we were all best friends and would be bonded for life. What an amazing (albeit stressful and scary) game.

I know this little guy was happy ... I have no idea who he is, but he was cute so he deserved a picture.

Call me a nerd for taking pictures of the TV, but I had to capture Sidney getting hid medal.

And how about that moment when our flag was raised. SOOOO much pride!

I know this is a terrible picture of the team, but I just had to put it in and say, "Way to go, boys!!!"

Then we filed out onto the street to celebrate with even more "friends."

I don't know if you saw the corner of Rob.son and Gran.ville on TV, but I was in the middle of it.

Lots of "whoo hooing" and "Oh Canada" being sung and air horns and cow bell.

And that, ladies and gentleman (if there are any gentleman who read my blog) was my experience at the 2010 Olymp.ics. It was SO much fun and it was sad to see them go. I have never been so proud to be Canadian. I think Vanc.ouver did an excellent job.

Socc.i in 2014, anyone? :)

Ellen's Day at the Olympics ... and a little about me.

2010-04-05T17:43:00.000-07:00

Our 3rd day at the Olympics actually included an Olympic event. Thanks to my friend, Steve, who got tickets to a men's hockey game through the lottery, he sold them to us and off we went. We realized that everyone was obeying the "please don't drive downtown" rule, therefore, there was no traffic on the roads and we drove right downtown from Abbotsford in 50 minutes. Sweet! Parking right under Pacifi.c Cent.re was great because we didn't have to lug all our jackets around with us if it started off warm and got colder in the evening. Brilliant, I tell you. Brilliant.

This collage shows a lot of the patriotism displayed on store windows and even on the outside of store or office buildings. It was really neat to see. The bottom couple of pictures are of Robson Square and the zip line. I hope the 7 hour wait was worth it ... I'm not joking. The line was up to a 7 hour wait ... yes, it was free, but I can't imagine waiting in line that long for anything (oh, I guess I've done that for U2, but that's different!).

Ellen wanted to come along again as well, however, she asked if I could take more than just her head this time, so I made her a little body (complete with red mittens).

Here she is with Quatchi ...

and Miga.

When we went to the official Olympic store, she wanted to hang out in the syrup. Side note: when I sent these pictures to her, I told her that I hope she got her fill and if she needed more, just let me know and I'd be happy to deliver some more to her ... I haven't heard from her yet.

I figured she might be a little lonely, so I took her over to the USA apparel.

Then we went to the Ca.ctus Club and watched the Canada vs. Germany game that was on before the game we had tickets to.

She told me that the gloves I made her weren't good enough, so she wanted to try mine.

Then she tried to steal my ticket ... but when I reassured her that I'd be able to sneak her into Canada Hockey House in my purse, she gave it back.

Don 't ask how she ate with those mittens on. It wasn't pretty.

Aaaah, the official ticket of the 2010 games. One for my scrapbook.

Ellen and I at the game. They were really good seats. Thanks Steve!

Ellen wanted to get a little closer to the action (this picture actually made it onto her website).

The girls at the game. I think Karen was off taking pictures at this point so I didn't get a pic with her in it. Sorry, Karen.

Do you remember these 4 announcers when you were watching the games on TV? Here's what they looked like from the back ... 'cause I know you were wondering.

Love this.

And then there was the game itself. It was Norway vs. Slovakia. It started off looking like Slovakia was going to dominate the whole game, but Norway game out in the 2nd period and really turned it on. This one guy had a pretty bad fall where his helmet went flying off and his head bashed against the ice. They took him off on a stretcher and see the picture of the guys in blue with scrapers? That's them scraping the blood off the ice. Ick!

The end result was 4 - 3 for Slovakia who Canada had to play later on in the series ... luckily beating them. It was yet another fun day at the Olympics.

Wordless Wednesday

2010-03-31T06:34:00.000-07:00

Olympic fever - Day 3

2010-03-29T16:51:00.000-07:00

I'm back! Lent was good, but boy, did I miss you all. There's SO much to catch up on. I know the Olympics seem like a distant memory, but I still want to blog about it for posterity's sake.

We went downtown on a beautiful Saturday and our first stop was Robs.on Square. Unfortunately, the line ups were up to 9 hours long for the zip line, so I had to settle for taking pictures of it.

Even the dogs got into the Olympic spirit!

Most of Robs.on Street was shut down to traffic and we stopped to watch Mike Killeen and Coleen Christie setting up for their broadcast.

As we hit Thur.low Street, I looked right and saw the Cauldron off in the distance. Of course we had to go see that so...

We got a bit closer. It was very cool to see it ... although (and I don't mean to be negative, just voicing my opinion) it did look a bit like a tin foil large science project. But like I said, it was still cool to see it.

I don't know if you've been watching Ellen lately, but she's trying to "Dominate the World in 2010" and wants people around the world to help her. You're supposed to go to her website and download her picture and take it with you to places around the world. What better spot than the Olympics ... here she is at the Cauldron.

Here's me at the Cauldron and a few closer up pics of the tin foil. ;)

Ellen was being a bit of a diva that day and had to have another picture without the fence in her picture.

The first line up I decided to stand in was to go up to the viewing point and see the Cauldron from a different angle. The line up only took about 45 minutes and since it was a beautiful day, it wasn't bad at all.

I actually think seeing it from below is better because there's too much going on in the background from this angle.

And also from this angle.

But it was cool to look out at the crowd from up there.

We walked to Steamw.orks in Gast.own for dinner ...

And then my friends went to the Victory Ceremony that they had tickets for and I waited in line for an hour at Live City at Yale.town to see Sam Rob.erts. A French girl opened first along with Kardin.al Offi.cial and Jay Malin.owski (lead singer from Bedou.in Soundc.lash).

Then came Sam Rob.erts. Flying solo at this point actually worked well for me because I walked right up to the front row and had a great spot for the show (yes, that's the same front row where just a week earlier the barrier collapsed while Alex.isonfire performed and a bunch of people were injured - the crowd was very calm when I was there and I wasn't in any danger of being trampled).

After the concert I walked back along Granvi.lle Street (which was also mostly shut down to traffic) and the energy was crazy! Lots of people out having fun.

I met back up with my friends and there were some new people who had joined them who hadn't seen the Cauldron yet, so we walked back down there (are you sensing a theme here with all the walking ... yes, there was a LOT of it).

These were the Olymp.ic rings out in the water with Seymo.ur Mtn, I believe, in the background. Whenever Canada won a gold medal, these rings turned gold.

We had a lot of fun that day and I was SUPER exhausted by the end of it but it was totally worth it. Go Canada Go!

Wordless Wednesday

2010-02-17T06:26:00.000-08:00

http://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2010/02/13/sports/olympics/20100212_CEREMONY_PANO.html

Lent Break

2010-02-16T21:03:00.001-08:00

Well, I'm taking my lent break again. If you don't remember this from last year (or you're a new reader of my blog) click here to read more.

My recap of my day downtown during the Olympics this Saturday and then my night at the Men's Olympic Hockey game on Tuesday will just have to wait until I'm back in April.

Oh, I've set up a post to publish tomorrow for Wordless Wednesday. It's a link you have to click on and it has to do with the Olympics.

Go Canada, Go!!!

Olympic fever - Day 2

2010-02-15T06:13:00.000-08:00

On Thursday we heard that our friend, Michael Bu.ble, was going to be carrying the torch downtown ... so, off we headed after work. We decided not to drive right downtown thinking that all the traffic and road closures could make it a nightmare, so we hopped on the skytrain in Surrey and walked through downtown. Granville St. has all these cool statues and things set up and is closed to traffic.

A lot of businesses had signs hanging off their buildings.

There were camera crews everywhere (from all around the world) doing interviews with random people on the street. Bren reminded us to have a good answer ready if we got asked a question. We heard them ask, "Who's your favorite Olympic mascot," "What sport are you most interested in seeing?" etc. Let's just say I'm glad they didn't ask me anything.

Then, the moment we'd been waiting for came. I decided to take video instead of pictures as he ran by us because ... well, mainly because I don't really know how to work my camera yet, but what I do know is that my "sports" setting doesn't allow you to use flash and if I didn't put it on sports setting and used my flash, they would've been blurry. I'm glad I went with video.

As soon as he had run past us, we kind of stood there in awe for a second because we couldn't believe how much security he had with him (a little different then when Mary Jane had run it). Did you notice him high fiving everyone as he ran by? No? Go back and watch it again. I'll wait ......... Isn't he great? Such a nice guy. Anyway, after about 10 seconds, we looked at each other and said, "Should we run to where he's passing it?" Yup! Off we went. There were so many people there that I could barely see anything so I just held up my camera and hoped for the best. We'll just look at the next few pics in silence.

Here they are extinguishing Michael's torch. Sad moment (although I will admit, it wasn't as emotional for me as when Mary Jane ran with it. This was more of a media frenzy and for me, wasn't as focused on the torch itself).

I'm not sure what he was saying to the crowd here, although I do like Kori's guess of "... Fiona, where are you... I know you're here..." hee hee :) He would've remembered me from last summer, right?

After the VanOc dude that he passed the torch to took off, the media swarmed Michael. Couldn't even see him for a bit.

Then he walked right in front of us and this is the picture I got:

Sheesh! See that blur of white in the middle of the picture. Yup, that's him. Awesome, hey? See, that's why I'm glad I took video of the run. Pics wouldn't have turned out. Oh well. I'm glad we went and saw what we saw. Still bummed I didn't get tickets to his concert, but am counting on him announcing a 2nd Vancouver show anytime. He can't announce a 2nd show in Calgary and Toronto but not in his hometown ... can he? No, he wouldn't do it ... and I WILL get tickets.

So, after that excitement was over, we stayed and watched a bit of the party at David Lam Park.

I loved all the patriotism hanging from people's balconies. Very fun.

Then we decided to just walk around and enjoy the feeling of downtown. As we were walking by the Bell party, we stopped to see what was going on. The girls outside told us that Steve Na.sh was inside and that Wayne Gre.tzky had left about 20 minutes ago. Shoot! They said he had walked right out and into a taxi (yes, a taxi). Wish we would've seen that. Oh well. We heard the loud music and they were playing Bare.nake.d Ladies. We started walking away and I saw this Alberta sign so I stopped to take a picture.

All of a sudden I thought, "That music sounds live!" I turned around and went close to the window and sure enough, this is what I saw...

The were right there!!!

We stood outside and watched for awhile and looked through the crowd to see Steve, but didn't see him anywhere.

Might've even tried to get in if the lady with the clipboard of "invite only" names hadn't looked so daunting.

Oh well, it was a great night anyway and I'm SO glad we went.

Olympic fever - Day 1

2010-02-14T13:15:00.000-08:00

Last Sunday the torch came through Abbotsford and it was SUPER exciting! We went down to the spot where my friend, Mary Jane, was running and waited for her to come by.

We were right at the point where she would pass the torch, so about 15 minutes before she came through, they dropped off the guy who she was going to pass it to. He was like a rock star. People crowded around him immediately asking him questions and taking pictures. I don't think the grin ever left his face. I heard him say that he was "super excited and very nervous." So fun!

THE TORCH!!! Well, one of many. :) Apparently you could pay to keep the one you ran with. I think I heard it was $300. I would've bought it for sure.

Here she comes!!!

Way to go, Mary Jane. We were all super proud of her and for her. We all got a little teary eyed as well.

After the torch left our area, we went into the local recreation centre where the Japanese speedskaters had been practicing earlier in the week and now the Russian figure skaters were practicing. Very cool to see them up close.

What an exciting day!!!

Wordless Wednesday

2010-02-10T06:27:00.000-08:00

Makeover time!

2010-02-09T19:55:00.000-08:00

Well, my 20 year reunion is coming up this summer. I know, I can't believe it either. One day I was looking in the mirror and realized that my hair was pretty much the same as when I was in High School ... long and frizzy. I thought that if I was going to change it up, I should do it soon in case I didn't like it. My hair grows pretty fast so I thought that if I didn't like it at least it would grow a few inches and the colour can always be fixed as well.

So, I went for it. Cut off about 12 inches at the back and about 10 inches off the sides. Oh, and I went BRIGHT red! Of course when my hair dresser does it, it looks all nice and sleek and shiny. Here's the side view.

And the back view. I can't wait until it grows a bit because I think I'm going to go for even more of an angle from the back to front.

It was quite shocking at first and every time I walked past a mirror it startled me. The reactions from people have been amazing. My desk faces the door out to a long hallway and most people just say, "Hi" and wave as they walk by. Well, the next few days they'd be walking by as usual, say their hi and wave and then I heard their footsteps stop ... and backup. Then I'd hear, "Whoa!" wait a few seconds and then I'd hear, "I LOVE IT!" You know how you can tell when people are lying or just being nice or don't say anything at all because you can tell they don't like it? Either these people are all amazing liars or I think people actually really like it. After all these positive comments, I figured it was ok to go out in public (work doesn't really count as public because it's something you HAVE to do - I couldn't rightly call in sick for 2 weeks). Since it was ok to go out into the world, I went into Vanco.uver last weekend with Bren and a complete stranger told me he loved my hair. What? That hasn't happened to me in FOREVER!

I had posted the before and after pics on Fac.ebook, but I think it was Kori who said I should add the brunette picture from a year ago in with it, so here they are:

A couple people have called me brave, but really, it's just hair and it'll grow back, right? :)

This week on Fac.ebook it's been Doppleganger week. You're supposed to make your profile picture someone that looks like you. I couldn't think of anyone from before the haircut or after, but then, when I was straightening my hair the other day, it came to me ...

hahahahahahahahahahahahahahahaha!

Quote

2010-02-05T06:26:00.000-08:00

Snowflakes are one of nature's most fragile things, but just look what they can do when they stick together.

- Vesta M. Kelly