Changing my mind

I was going to write a post inspired by something I read on a friend's blog - but I decided not to, in case said friend reads the post and is offended. I doubt said friend actually reads my blog, but let us not tempt that which I will refer to as fate.

Instead let's talk about ... umm.... condiments. Currently I am watching The Shopping Bags and they are talking about ketchup, which is possibly my least favourite condiment, next to relish and sauerkraut. (My hot dogs only have mustard and onions.) A bunch of boys are the ketchup testers - these are kids who will eat ketchup with everything. Rice, vegetables, fries, meat, etc. Disgusting! There are very few condiments that I actually enjoy enough to eat on a wide variety of foods.... although the hubby did make a delicious XO sauce recently that is pretty yum. I think my brother was one of those "ketchup goes with everything" people (maybe he still is... eh?).

The Shopping Bags is quite the fun show.

I'm distracted right now. The hubby is on the phone with his mom. I think they are having a mouse problem over there. Despite (perhaps because of?) my previous life as a science research student working with rodents, I admit to still being upset by mice and rats. Apparently the hubby's mom saw a mouse come up the stairs - it looked at her and ran away. Ick!! So scary!! I'd offer to help but, um, nope, too gross.

Infrastructure priorities

Ever since I moved after getting married, I have lamented the city in which I now live, as it's my firm belief that our city is poorly managed. I'm sure there are many politics behind decisions that are made, but often I think to myself, "Wow, I can't believe they said that" or "Why are they spending money on that?" When there was some issue about people being abducted near the casino, the city officials made some statement about how the casino is very valuable to the city, although of course they don't condone any crime. Ummmm... good then! Glad to see that profit doesn't weigh too heavily on their minds.

This week has really reinforced my dislike of city infrastructure. They'll spend what must amount to thousands on flowers for the medians, hanging baskets, Christmas lights, outdoor lighted reindeer... but will they plow the streets? No! I'm not asking for the small streets to be plowed, but when you're slipping and sliding down a major street covered in ice, that's a problem. Salt can only do its work when it isn't freezing out. PLOW THE STREETS. The city isn't even that big - what's the problem?? I drive through many other municipalities on my way to work and their streets are ALL free of snow. Grrr!

Hopefully the rest of y'all are safe and warm. I kinda like cold, sunny weather but I could do without the snow and ice.

NaBloPoMo is almost over - not that I've been able to post every day - but are you all enjoying the increase in posting? I sure hope so!

Winter sucks the big one

I said once that summer is my favourite season... and I think this weekend's weather really emphasizes my love of summer. Our gazebo collapsed under the weight of the snow... It took me twice as long as normal to get to work today (including 15 minutes of de-snowing my car) and that was only because I took the Oak St bridge which had virtually no traffic. Ugh! Snow is just the worst. I can think of virtually no redeeming characteristics of snow. Sure, yesterday I had some fun building a snow chair and a snow horse with some of my favourite kids - but really - isn't a hot summer day so much more fun... ugh. To all those who raved, "Snow is awesome!" - all I can say is Shut up! No it's not!

Moving on. This weekend, the hubby and I tried to buy our (second ever!) Christmas tree - but we couldn't really decide on whether to get the Home Depot $20 tree, or spring for the fancier (and more fragrant) Noble firs at the local tree farm/place/thingy. In the end we decided that we'll probably get a $15 tree at Ikea next weekend. I suppose $80 for a tree is a bit steep considering you toss it out at the end of the season. Although I really dislike winter, I do enjoy Christmas.. it's always a good time. We tidied up the house so that we could decorate for Christmas, but so far the only decoration up is my Purdy's Advent Calendar. Yay!

PS: Hey PJ - thanks for the website on GPS systems. Is this system the one that you were referring to on sale? It does seem like a good price although no text-to-speech - but maybe I could do without that...

Worth noting

1. Dear Canucks - I'm still a fan. Try not to have too many stinkers though.

2. PJ - hey - we still beat the Wings and I notice you didn't comment about that. Hiding your head in shame, I imagine? Three unanswered goals. Take that, I say to your 50-year-old goalie. The glory days are over... the Dominator has become... the Domino? He sure falls down a lot.

3. I am not a big Luongo fan and never really was. I still support the organization though.

4. I got snarked at by a barista today because she messed up my drink and somehow it wasn't her fault. I would just like to point out that I was extremely polite - yet nothing in return. Well, Merry Christmas to you too, grouchy.

5. I need a GPS navigational system - one that tells me where to go and where to turn. Driving through Surrey with only a vague idea of how to get where I'm going is unwise.

Ranting is worth it

Since my little diatribe about the Canucks sometime last week, it appears they've listened, buckled down, and won three games straight.

So PJ.... how about them Wings? They sure are tasty when they're roasted by the Canucks!

Expansion

Just received some news last week - one of my oldest, bestest friends is expecting her first baby! I am terribly excited for her - not only was she the first of us to get married, but now she's the first of us to be bearing offspring. I remember (it wasn't that long ago) that we were talking about how we are still kids ourselves, so the idea of having kids was pretty frightening.

The hubby and I haven't been married that long, but we do sometimes get asked when we're planning to have kids?

There are many families at church having babies too. In fact sometimes it seems like the babies are taking over the back half of the sanctuary. I like babies (and kids) - they're a lot of fun. I love how they grow up to be real people who can hold real conversations with me.

So all this has got me to thinking.... should we maybe consider... an expansion of our family? And the answer is... YES!

In fact I would love if it was no longer just the two of us... I mean.... wouldn't it be perfect to add.....




wait for it...





















Seriously how cute is this little guy? Ahh... it's just a dream for now - but maybe one day I'll get my yellow Lab. Dogs are more fun than kids anyway. Haha!

Day of childish games

Today was rather entertaining. Char received a lovely gift which was promptly opened and played with (competitively of course), to the squeals and delight of everyone except a small baby who doesn't like when other people scream. Here's a picture to give you an idea - except that Char's didn't look so much like Nemo.


Then, we headed over to the Dream House* to watch the Grey Cup... and since I don't really care for football, I played Go Fish, Hungry Hungry Hippo Frog, and Hide and Seek.

I'm pretty awful at Hide and Seek. Sometimes, I like to just sit and wait for the hiders to get bored and come out. Why work at it when waiting produces the same result... Can't say I'm too good at the other games either. Sigh.

I did manage to figure out the magic trick though, so at least it wasn't a totally poor day, games-wise.

*It has granite countertops AND hardwood flooring AND an upstairs laundry room. Drooool.

Questions to ponder (or answer)

1. There's a boil water advisory in your area - all water has to be boiled, including for brushing your teeth and washing your food. Do you:

a) start boiling up some water, or
b) spend your hard-earned money on bottled water.

2. Your faithful, four-year-old laptop gives you warning signs that all is not well (eg: screen appears to want to detach from keyboard.) Do you:

a) buy a new laptop immediately,
b) wait until "Old Faithful" dies a painful, inconvenient death and then buy a replacement,
c) ignore all warning signs and duct tape screen to keyboard portion?

3. Assuming you do eventually have to replace "Old Faithful", do you:

a) buy a Dell again (four years trouble-free surely means something)
b) buy a Macbook (oh - the prettiness)
c) ask, why a laptop? I'm a desktop guy/gal all the way.

Oh, Canucks...

I'm still a fan. For at least the next week or so - then we'll talk.

But why must you hurt me in this way? Surely you know that I'm a true fan (okay, okay, I'll stop calling you Shirley)... I mean, we did shell out ridiculous money to get season tickets to see you... TWICE... we do schedule our lives around watching your games... (or so it feels)... I've bought into the fever with your clothing and merchandise... I've even eaten a $5 Haagen Dazs bar (there's a doohickey on top of the first A - I haven't bothered to add it on).. knowing that the actual cost is what to you, 50 cents... and how do you repay us?

By stinking it up on the ice, that's how.

I'll admit that you haven't been playing the worst hockey I've ever seen, but I think we can agree that it certainly hasn't been the best either. Don't get me wrong - I appreciate the effort you've been putting into the games. Maybe you just need to work a little harder on our relationship, so that I can stick by you even while I cringe through every excruciating minute of your games. Maybe if every once in a while, you acknowledged me as a true believer.

Those "We are all Canucks" ads are mildly convincing, but you've gotta admit that telling me we're in it together isn't really a solution when we're having these kinds of relationship difficulties. I need action. I don't want to leave you, but I'm going to have to if things don't improve. My emotions cannot handle this roller coaster of a season.

If you really want to make things better between us, try phoning me once in a while, or hey, here's an idea, how about NOT RAISING TICKET PRICES EVER AGAIN... I mean, I know you have to pay for that fancy scoreboard and all, but really, try to be reasonable. I don't need a fancy scoreboard. Just a little love and appreciation. You don't want us to have to go to counselling, do you? Because if we do have to go, I'm putting you on notice that you'll have to pay. I'm saving my money for more Haagen Dazs bars.

Rage

I don't know what it is about traffic here, but I never seem to catch a break. Just as I can never choose a speedy checkout line at the grocery store, I can't seem to get through a day of travel without a ton of traffic.

I try not to blog about work, so I won't go into much detail here. But today, I was full of rage. I was told by someone I'll call "X" that I had to be at a particular location by 3pm. I was running late because of some horrendous traffic near Jr's school... but when I got there, I was so relieved. Unfortunately, X got the location wrong, so I missed the event altogether (with the bonus feature of looking like a total idiot when I was phoned by the person expecting me.) When I called the office, X denied having told me the wrong location... I ended up driving back to the office and it took me twice as long as normal because of more horrendous traffic... there are more details but I'll shut up. Suffice it to say, I was super angry....

...but eventually I just had to let the anger go.

It's funny how anger can consume me sometimes. I have a pretty short temper, not something I'm terribly proud of. I'm working on it. Patience, self-control - the hardest fruit of the spirit to grow.

Canada's Worst Driver

Has anyone seen this show? It is hilarious. I love how the drivers take no responsibility for their awful habits, and how almost everyone hits a ton of obstacles on the passenger's side, but almost none on the driver's side.

I'll admit that most of the tasks they are given are pretty challenging, but it is incredible how terrible they are. On this task, they are required to back down a narrow "driveway" onto an island surrounded by a muddy moat. Once on the island, they are supposed to make a six point turn, so that they will turn a full 360 degrees, and drive back off the island.

The first lady has already ended up in the muddy ditch, and she had to be pulled out by a huge truck with a short chain, and then she ended up rear-ending the truck once she was out. Haha! She is not only a truly horrible driver, but she also has bad vision, and refuses to wear her glasses when driving.

I love this show. They are awesome! Backing up while only looking backward... taking 16 turns for a regular 3 point turn... ahhh... hilarious.

Nosy....

Since I was a kid I've always liked open houses. I used to dream about having a huge room with my own bathroom (so I wouldn't have to share with my brother, of course), and one day my mom and I actually saw a house with these benefits. Unfortunately we weren't really in the market, so I never did get my huge room with private bath.

I mention this because our neighbours are selling, and since I can see their house from my living room window, I just found this out yesterday when the realtor put the sign up, along with the Open House sign. Nosy neighbour that I am, I immediately looked up their house on MLS and rushed over to see the open house. I've seen a lot of people drive by and walk through too (interestingly - not a single non-Asian...) We were around when the previous neighbours moved, and at the time we thought "Wow ... can't believe they got so much for the house" ... but then, they did do a ton of renovations. The current owners are looking to make even more of a profit now, having done not a single renovation themselves. I guess the housing market really is insane around here.

Well, I can't blame anyone for paying a high price to live here. We are within walking distance of a Starbucks, so who wouldn't want to live here? Heh.

And I didn't even have to apply!

I was pondering what to write in today's blog, so I wandered over to my email inbox and look what I found!

Thank you for your interest in a summer position with us.
With the number of applications from well qualified law students such as you, it has been difficult to make a decision. Unfortunately, we are not in a position to grant you an interview at this time.
We appreciate your interest in our firm. As you may be aware, our articling program is much larger than our summer student program. As a result, we encourage you to apply for an articling position with us in April.
All the best in what is left of second year law, and we look forward to speaking with you about our articling program.

This lovely email is from a local (large) firm, if you couldn't tell by the form-letterness of the email. There are several problems with this email, so I've been working on my response...

Dear Coordinator of Student Programs,

There seems to be a mistake. I don't recall being interested to any degree in your firm. Has my identity been stolen by some hapless law student? If so, I commend him/her on being well-qualified but undeserving of an interview. S/he is reminding me of me already.

If my identity hasn't been stolen, then I'm just plain offended that I could be rejected for a job I did not even apply for. (Is it because of my dangling prepositions?) I realize I'm not the sharpest tool in the drawer known as law school (and certainly not the biggest tool either! badabing! Thank you, I'm here all week.) but it is a serious affront to my ego to be sent this (as these are called) "PFO" letter by email. I resent the implications that a) I'm not good enough for your firm and b) I should be demoted to the ranks of second year law student. Hmm, wait. Maybe "demoted" isn't the right word. Maybe school is BETTER than work. I'll take that into consideration.

Irregardless (ack! A non-word!), I would like to thank you for advising me, via mass email, that I am not being considered for a position. I'm sure my boss will be overjoyed to hear that I will not be leaving to move to your illustrious firm. Why would I leave? I do get free parking here, after all.

Sincerely,

Ms. Snarky.

Commentary on Junior's post

Really briefly glanced at E's post about the "stereotypical" Chinese family and was musing as to whether I'm part of that stereotype. I guess it's hard to say, since it depends on your definition of that stereotype. I definitely didn't become a lawyer for the money, so does that qualify me as anti-Asian? If it helps, I also don't really like to eat white rice very often, and I almost always have a cold beverage during my meal, not afterward.

I do drive a small Japanese car, though... and as previously noted, I am also very cheap... hmm. Looks like it balances out!

Note to self

Always order the Venti Tea Misto. It's the SAME PRICE as the Grande. Oh Starbucks, why must you play with my wallet so.

Further note: apparently at some Starbucks locations, the Tea Misto includes vanilla syrup in the price.... of course, at the Starbucks I visit, I pay an extra 35 cents. Fabulous!

Onan unrelated point: our cell group is making boxes tonight for Operation Christmas Child. Can't wait - this is always the beginning of Christmas preparations for me. I love making those boxes! Soon it will be time to put up the tree. The big debate this year - should we buy the $20 tree from Home Depot (or the $15 tree from Ikea) - or should we spend more (than double!) and cut our own from a tree farm .... those ones are always more fragrant.

I really must avoid the morning radio shows...

This morning, the radio hosts decided to chat briefly about last night's Canucks game. Faithful fans will recall that a fluky goal was scored, reminiscent of the Lidstrom-Cloutier disaster some years ago... so the female host (I shall call her "Annoying") said that this fluky goal was scored by "Bieska" and that surely his coach would be mad at him for shooting on net from beyond the red line, because, according to Annoying, "you just don't do that", "you should shoot it in, work the line", "he should have passed it instead", etc.

The male host ("No Less Annoying") clearly knows nothing about hockey, as he didn't even have any comments to make.

I admit, I'm no hockey expert, but what coach would be mad at a player for putting the puck on the net? "Okay team... I know you've been shooting pucks at the net lately but let's change the strategy and pass it around a bit more instead." Grrr! And the worst is how Annoying and No Less Annoying claim to be such huge hockey fans! Boooo urns.

And how do you pronounce it?

This morning, on one of the radio shows I force myself to listen to (hey - sometimes it's funny), the host was talking about a book he is reading. He admitted that he hasn't actually read the whole book, but has only read the beginning part.... except he called that beginning part the "PRE-face" ... now... I don't know about you but I have always pronounced it as the "PREF-iss".

So... who's the dummy - me or him?

Shameless "borrowing"

Quality music is a challenge to find on the radio... and as I do not possess an iPod (nor the energy to learn how to use one - haha - I typed "sue" instead of "use" - and nor the computer to connect an iPod to, it's true...) I'm forced to entertain myself by listening to the radio to and from work.

But this one song comes up sometimes and I have found myself really enjoying it. Apparently it's by someone called "Starfield", who I always thought was one of those weird indie bands, the concerts of whom *some* of my friends are constantly attending... but who is actually a (weird indie?) Christian band. Anyhoo here are the lyrics which I have borrowed from another blog (colours and all):

Son of God, shaper of the stars,
You alone, the dweller of my heart.
Mighty King, how beautiful You are,
how Beautiful.

Son of God, the Father's gift to us,
You alone, were broken on the altar of love.
Precious lamb, our freedom's in Your blood,
It's in Your blood.

Jesus, oh Holy One, I sing to You, forgiven.
Savior, I'm overcome with Your great love for me.

Son of God, strength beyond compare,
You alone, the darkness cannot bear.
Lord of all, Your kindness draws me near,
it draws me.

Son of God, prophecy of old,
You alone, redeemer of my soul.
Come again and lead Your people home,
come lead us home.

Jesus, oh Holy One, I sing to You, forgiven.
Savior, I'm overcome with Your great love for me.

You are worthy,
You are worthy,
You are worthy of all my praise.
You are beautiful (You are beautiful)
You are beautiful (so beautiful)
I will lift up my hands and sing. (I'll lift up my hand and sing.)

Jesus, oh Holy One, I sing to You, forgiven.
Savior, I'm overcome with Your great love for me.

Puddles

It's been a very long week and I'm anxious for it to be over. This week I have driven to or at least by what feels like every single city in the Lower Mainland. I have met four dogs (all big ones) (five if you count my boss' little dog, who of course I've met before, so no, she doesn't count), and three cats (two friendly, one scaredy). I've stepped in two deep puddles (neither was animal-related - let's be thankful) and have been caught in the rain without a hood only three or four times. I've eaten approximately six pieces of Halloween candy. I've had Starbucks twice and Wendy's once. I have been thinking far too much. I am exhausted.

I love weekends.... almost as much as I love summer.

Praise God for getting me through another week.

Always one step behind

Over at one of the blogs I sometimes read, there's a new, um... contest, I guess. Not really a contest. More of a campaign for more blogging. It's referred to as NaBloPoMo - National Blog Posting Month - basically trying to get people to post one entry every day in November in order to liven up previously slow blogs. I saw this and thought, totally a great idea, I'm on board .. but then I failed to post yesterday.

So here's the scoop from yesterday. I spent most of my day in the car, driving all over the province, or so it felt. I drove to Chilliwack in the morning, then to Pitt Meadows, then to Maple Ridge, then to Pitt Meadows again, then back to work, then home. By the by, did you know that gas in Chilliwack was only 86 cents? Scandalous! I also drove through Mission (hi Tree!) but really don't recall much, except I did pass a lake of some sort. The drive to Chilliwack is quite nice. Too bad it's so ridiculously far.

Also in yesterday's news, we went to a company dinner paid for by the hubby's work. There are some interesting (=bizarre) people who work with the hubby. He's been there long enough to identify the folks I didn't need to meet, so that was nice. In a little speech, his manager referred to me as the most patient, tolerant, and understanding woman he's ever met, since I'm married to the hubby. Clearly, this manager doesn't know a thing about me. Oh, the deceptive webs I weave when presenting my public facade to strangers!

PS: I wanted to take the two week All-Bran challenge, but it's far too difficult to eat it every day. My mouth can only handle a certain amount of twigs and branches per week.