Archive, March 2007

27 Mar 2007 Music & Life Wow, so this weekend didn't really feel like a weekend - mostly because I didn't get to sleep in at all. As far as I'm concerned, that's the whole point of the weekend, so I'm feeling a bit gipped. Oh well. A couple of things have changed... for one, I now have a new job. Except that it's really my old job with a new title and a new payscale. Sometime in the next week or two, my hourly rate should go up by about $3 - yeah! It's still completely frustrating insanity around here, but if I look at going elsewhere, it's going to have to be for something that makes it worthwhile to the bank account! The other thing that's changed is my key collection. I now have one for Stuart's car, Stuart's building and Stuart's apartment! I don't know about the car, but I guess it's now "our" apartment. I haven't officially moved and I'm still carting bags back and forth, mostly because the apartment requires some rearranging and we just haven't had time. (The most commonly used phrase lately is, "we'll do it after TOSS" - the outdoor show and sale.) However, I got the keys last night and the timing was excellent because it meant I could sleep there even though Stuart had to leave early to teach his lab. As a result of that, this week's song is Stuart's pick: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0sbQ0hqH9ZU Ciao! Currently listening : Nighthawks at the Diner By Tom Waits Release date: 25 October, 1990 3:36 - 0 Comments - 0 Kudos - Add Comment - Edit - Remove 21 Mar 2007 As long as there's cheesecake... Geez, I didn't realize that it's been basically a week since I last posted a real blog. My sincere apologies, but it was so much easier to be regular at this when I had no life! I guess the big outstanding issue from the last blog is dinner with Stuart's parents. Namely, how did it go, considering I was fearing poisoning, interventions or something horrible? Well, as it turned out I got a reprieve because his grandmother went in to the hospital and they went south to oversee the proceedings. I would never wish ill health on anyone, but I have to admit that I was happy the dinner didn't happen. Although, it's only been post-poned, it'll turn up again. On Saturday we had fun all around. After Stuart's run, I took him downtown to see the Hair Goddess for a real hair cut. His stipulations: it shouldn't require goo and shouldn't be grown out to Stage 1 afro within three weeks. She pulled his hair all around, picked up her shears and went to work. I think it looks fantastic; even he thinks it looks good... but he's a little apprehensive about the grow out. Considering that it's been 5 days and he's got lots on the go, I say he should worry about it when it's actually a problem. Having taken him for another round of appraisal, I got my turn, although admittedly at a slightly lower level. We went to Camper's Village to buy me a really real pair of hiking boots. It's been years since I owned such things! It was a bit weird having several people asking about fit, giving advice, etc. but I survived and even bought a pair. Monday, as I mentioned, was Thing 1's birthday and her party was in the evening. The group was: Thing 1 and David, David's mom, my mom, me and Stuart. The activity? Music & Lyrics! The boys were less than impressed, although we all heard Stuart laugh at least twice in the midst of all the groans. After that it was over to the Cheesecake Cafe for enormous, sugar laden yummies. Maybe not the most adventurous, thrill a minute birthday, but we had fun and that's what counts, right? Tuesday at work I had my interview for my job. Sounds weird, doesn't it? In order to get me into a decent pay band, they had to re-write my job description with the new payscale, but by union rules it then had to be posted and I had to re-apply for it. Bizarre. However, since the comment from one of my new bosses was, "You're not going ANYWHERE!", I'm not too concerned. Today I had a client and did some work on straightening up the business paperwork. Then I went over to David's for lunch and a movie. I took a selection of DVDs and we ended up watching "28 Days Later". I think I like it because, for a zombie movie, it has so many long, quiet scenes. I imagine that the idea is to juxtapose the peace with the outbreaks of insanity for greater contrast, but I just enjoy them. Call me weird, everyone else does.... And then I finally made it back to Pilates for the last class of the session. Usually the instructors take this opportunity to ramp up the difficulty - in theory to give you some feel for whether or not you are ready to move to the next level. Since sign up for next session happened weeks ago, this is a fairly specious argument. I think they're just sadists. However, this time Jim gave us a lovely session of stretching and shoulder work which was great. I'm still gonna hurt in the morning, but at least I didn't hurt all the way through class! Ciao! P.S. Stuart gave me retro-active sanction for this week's song, so enjoy to your heart's content! 1:47 - 0 Comments - 0 Kudos - Add Comment - Edit - Remove 19 Mar 2007 Unsanctioned song Hi Folks, I'm at work and trying to catch up on all the stuff I was supposed to be doing last week. And tonight is Thing 1's birthday bash, so you're just going to have to wait longer. Sorry! In the meantime, let me give you the song of the week. (I didn't decide on this one with Stuart's help, but it seems appropriate to me! ) Enjoy. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zj25gRwsZmE Ciao! 3:43 - 0 Comments - 0 Kudos - Add Comment - Edit - Remove 18 Mar 2007 Busy... I know, I owe you a blog, but I'm getting a back rub instead. I guess you'll just have to wait! :) Ciao! 15 Mar 2007 So, this week is more down Alright, I'm home sick. Yes, AGAIN. My mother blames it on stress and given this week, I'm tempted to agree with her. As usual, there is no one culprit, just a a shlock of minor irritations all coming at once. Work is a big part of it. By lunch time on Monday, I had pretty much lost any of the relaxation and peace I managed to accumulate on my time off. Past that, it's such a tangled, petty mess that I don't want to waste my time or yours by trying to explain it. Just take my word for it... I want OUT of there. The next bit was Monday night, when I'd arranged to get together with Thing 2. I had already told Thing 1 that day that Stuart had asked me to move in and that I was seriously considering it. She was pretty much unsurprised. I knew I had to tell Thing 2 as well, but I wasn't as sanguine about her response. And boy was I right. She tried to guilt-trip me about how long it's been since I'd hung out with her (not really taking into account the fact that I'd been out of town for more than a week!) She tried to guilt-trip me abut moving in with "some guy I'd known 6 weeks and they'd never met" when I'd said I couldn't be her roommate three months ago. This despite the fact that a) she said she didn't want us to be roomies because she was afraid it would wreck the friendship and b) I still can't afford rent - whatever happens with Stuart, my contribution will not be monetary until I find another job. To which she responded "Do you really want that hanging over your head?" By this point I was almost speechless and she dropped the big one. All this time, completely unsuspected by me, she has been blaming my relationship with Mike for the time when we drifted apart. Apparently, the fact that I went to University and met a whole new crowd had nothing to do with it. Her move to Red Deer had nothing to do with it. My move to Ontario had nothing to with it. It was just Mike and the way he always had other plans and I would go along with him that was the problem. Even three days later, remembering that conversation gets me steamed. Even if I were to grant that she had truth completely on her side (which I don't), can't she even grant me some leeway in the fact that that was 10 years ago? Is it possible that I've grown up a little since then? At any rate, yes Stuart and I are talking about moving in together. Is it awfully quick? Yes, I don't deny it, but I did much the same thing with Mike and I don't regret it. Do I think Stuart is "the one"? Well, better to ask if I think there is "a one" at all. I had six years with Mike and came out the end with great memories and a friend. If I can match that, I'll be happy and if I can best it, then I'll have no room to complain, heh? So really, that decision and the processes to implement it don't really cause me too much stress. However, Stuart told his mother. (Not that I think he shouldn't have, mind you!) His family is Lutheran, so living in sin doesn't fall within their scope of things to do, in any way, shape or form. By their lights, he should be married and his charming wife should be a stay at home mom of at least two, by now. I'm not Lutheran, I'm not even Christian, I have no interest in being married and less in having children. Stuart knows all this and is still content to have me with him... but his family? In his Mom's words, "I don't think so." And we're supposed to be having dinner with them on Sunday. I think I'd rather face another major surgery or would-be rapist. I'm confident of my ability to defend myself, but to do it without alienating them completely? I don't know. I have no intention of lying to them, but our truths lie on such completely different plains....I guess I just do firm but polite until my teeth ache and hope for the best. Mom's comment was that she guessed she wouldn't worry about inviting them over any time soon. I had to laugh, the nice Lutheran couple and my dad? Does the Lutheran faith have exorcisms? Ciao. Currently listening : Escapology By Robbie Williams Release date: 01 April, 2003 6:07 - 0 Comments - 0 Kudos - Add Comment - Edit - Remove

13 Mar 2007 Up, down, through and around What have I been doing since my last post? I think the answer is more like, what haven't I been doing? But let me try and sum up.... Friday night, Stuart took me to a cd release party for Alfie Zappacosta. I'll admit that until a couple of weeks ago, my knowledge of this guy was vague, and even since then, limited to the songs I was aware of on Stuart's playlists. But I'm always up to try new music, so off we went. It was a slightly strange venue, the Edmonton Country Club, so I made an effort to dress up a little and don't think I shamed myself. (I did discover that aside from things appropriate for running or climbing mountains, Stuart's wardrobe apparently needs a little help.) I have to say that I enjoyed the show... Alfie has a great voice and is very personable on stage. He had three guys backing him up and the music was good. Not cutting edge, but solid and enjoyable. We also found several members of the audience to be highly entertaining, so I'm glad I went. Saturday was all about errands and hanging out until the evening. I had tickets to see Hawksley Workman. That was held at the United Church downtown, which isn't a bad venue at all. Except that after the mild day, we were all dressed far too lightly for the half hour wait outside in the freezing wind. (I've been fighting an attempted cold break-out ever since.) The show was mindblowing though... 2 hours of pure Hawksley, in a chatty sort of mood, ably supported by Mr. Lovely. He opened with Stuart's fav song and managed to play all of mine! He also did random forays into songs by Pink Floyd, Genesis, Beyonce and I don't remember who all. The only thing that could possibly have made it better would have been if he'd been selling the cute little caps he had at Folk Fest. Sigh. Stuart and I hooked up too late to get him a ticket to this sold out show. Instead he went to his work's Christmas bowling party. I definitely think I got the better end of that deal! lol On Sunday, Stuart and I met a bunch of my family and friends for dim sum. The party? My parents, my sister's parents-in-law, brother-in-law and his wife and another couple who are close to my parents. I think everyone had a good time, the food certainly was yummy and everyone's attention was too split up to really give Stuart a hard time. lol We headed off from there to see 300. Considering that the plot line can be summed up in maybe 3 sentences, this wasn't a bad movie. Lots of blood and gore, lots of skin, fair grasp of a phalanx, although the concept of fighting with a bronze sword was kind of glossed over. It wasn't a tour de force, but I've seen worse. And in discussion later, I discovered that it's a hit with at least some of the gay community. There was definitely an abundance of ridiculously over-muscled male flesh! Then it was time to whip home to do two treatments: one for a client and one for Stuart. The timing worked out so we stayed at the house and had dinner with my parents. They were remarkably restrained and didn't grill him at all. Although Dad made his usual effort at dominating the conversation, so I don't know when the grilling could have been sneaked in. lol Later comments from my mom indicate that she likes him and I'm sure if Dad really disapproved, I'd have heard about it by now. Monday is a whole other story and much less upbeat, so I think I'll leave it for now. Further news, probably tomorrow. Ciao! 12:35 - 0 Comments - 0 Kudos - Add Comment - Edit - Remove

11 Mar 2007 Whipping through I know, I owe you a blog, but sheesh... who has time? After a relaxed vacation, my weekend was busy, busy, busy and now I'm back at work. I'll bring you up to date as soon as I can, I promise! However, to tide you over, here is the song of the week. I'm sorry, no video, but here's the link to his myspace page and choose "Passion". http://profile.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=user.viewprofile&friendID=49849275 Ciao! Currently listening : Lover / Fighter By Hawksley Workman Release date: 18 September, 2003 5:41 - 0 Comments - 0 Kudos - Add Comment - Edit - Remove

08 Mar 2007 All good things come to an end Yes, today is my last day at Chez Gerry. As with any holiday, the time has seemed to whip by while I also feel like I've been here forever. Going back to my regular life, with work and all seems a bit of a downer. On the other hand, I finally get to see Stuart again (he's picking me up) and that will be great. I talked to my mom the other day and the question of the week seems to have been, what has she been doing? The answer is, this is Red Deer - if I'd tried to make it exciting and exotic, I would have been disappointed. Instead, I truly have been just sitting on my ass, reading, watching DVDs, eating yummy food and ocassionally taking Giz for walks. Oh yeah, and taking baths... Stuart thinks Gerry's water bill is going to be outrageous, but since he hasn't been here with the kids and all their laundry, I think it'll just be about average! lol So, what are my plans for my last day, you ask? In a reluctant nod to returning reality, I've been getting up "early" the last day or so (8am, lol!) Therefore, trying to muster something regarding consciousness is high on my list. Today is my day to tidy - not that I've made a huge mess, but with no one else here, my stuff is kinda spread all over the house... don't want to leave anything behind. I'm also expecting Megan, Ella and Myles in a couple of hours. They're going to stop for a visit on their way back to Calgary. Since I'm heading out tonight and Gerry's not due back 'til tomorrow, his parents are going to stop by after work. They'll take Giz for the night and get back the car that they graciously lent to me. I'm happy to say that it will be going back in exactly the same condition as I got it (maybe a bit dirtier... it's springtime melty here and I had visions of trying to clean it and knocking off the rearview mirror or something. Eek!) So that's it kids. It's not far-flung and adventurous, but if that's what you want, I'll happily take donations for another trip! The next post will be from somewhere back home in Edmonton. Ciao! Currently listening : Back to Bedlam By James Blunt Release date: 04 October, 2005 3:09 - 0 Comments - 0 Kudos - Add Comment - Edit - Remove

05 Mar 2007 Music for life Stuart and I were talking via the completely inadequate medium of IM last night and sending each other links to favourite stuff. In the course of the evening, we discovered our theme song for this week. We decided that having a "song of the week", might be fun, so I bring it to you here. I don't know how long this will last, but hopefully it will be fun for the duration. Thus I bring you the inaugural song: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zTneO6UgRuM I can't figure out why the video embedding didn't work, so let's try this, a less satisfying option... 12:19 - 0 Comments - 0 Kudos - Add Comment - Edit - Remove

04 Mar 2007 Giz Since Gizmo is the ostensible reason for my being here, it only seems fair that I talk about him a bit. He's both a pain in the ass and a cutie, usually referred to as Giz. God knows I love Ger, but I honestly do not understand his relationship with this dog. Giz is really well trained in some very specific aspects. He's a crate dog (he stays in the crate when no one is home) and he knows that command very well. He can do "sit", "down", "stand" and "roll over" but "stay" is a complete mystery. He's a cuddly dog when he's in the mood for it, and it's very sweet. He likes to curl up in a lap and sleep (although this can be trying too, since he has appallingly stinky gas!) And I've never before seen a dog who likes to worm completely under a blanket to sleep. But he and Gerry only seem to rough house, so I can't even pet him without him getting all riled up. He doesn't usually bite per se, but he likes to gnaw. This maybe isn't a problem for Gerry, but I'm allergic to most dogs. All it takes is the lightest scratch to let in the saliva and I look like I've been freshly branded (not too mention that it itches like mad.) The gnawing is a problem in other ways too. If Giz had his way... the house would contain nothing but wet, mushy shreds. I've spent a large portion of my time here taking stuff away from him: Gerry's pillows and quilt, Nate's toys, Adhara's slippers, a rubber ducky, my brush, hair ties, teddy bear... the list is endless. He finally came up with something that is so well gnawed that I have no idea what it was, but it keeps him happy, so he can have it. The final frustration with Giz comes in the realm of potty training. Being a small dog, he has less bladder capacity than a pregnant woman - and I wouldn't mind having to let him out every hour if it actually worked. The problem is that while he seems to pee outside, he saves his other business for the kitchen floor. I fooled him yesterday and took him out for a long walk about the right time, so he had no choice but to do it outside. That's not always an option though... All in all, Giz is nice enough, but I'm glad he's not mine. I suspect he feels the same way and will be very happy when Gerry gets back and things return to normal! Ciao! P.S. Sorry, I meant to include pics, but the method of including them escapes me at the moment and I'm too frustrated to care anymore. I'll put some in my Pics area, if anyone is interested. 3:54 - 0 Comments - 0 Kudos - Add Comment - Edit - Remove

02 Mar 2007 Grooming I'm told (mostly by ever helpful women's magazines) that there's a line you shouldn't cross in discussing your beauty regime with men; even or perhaps, especially with that special someone. So I'll try not to get too graphic here. But I have to say that given a week alone with no plans except what I choose to do, this will definitely be a home spa extravaganza! Although there are always exceptions, I think that personal grooming is one of those topics that gets "men are from mars, women are from venus" reactions. Men can't understand why women put so much effort into it (and guys, odds are you don't know the half of it!) and women wish that guys would put in just a wee bit more. lol Not that I've been plagued by hordes of dirty, stinky men or anything. For the most part, they're clean and basically neat... but let me give you an example. The thing that I always notice is how guys seem to neglect their hands. Callouses, cracked skin, ratty cuticles and ragged nails. As far as I'm concerned boys, you're hands are bigger and stronger than mine... that's manly enough. If you want to put 'em on me, I'd really rather you filed your nails and used some moisturizer! Actually, this is Alberta... use a lot of moisturizer... there are many unscented options, you don't have to smell like your grandmother, I promise. For most girls however, the problem is not remembering to do our grooming, but squeezing enough time out of the day to accomplish it all. In the course of average life, it's usually a case of a bit here, a bit there as you can. Knowing I had this whole week, I packed accordingly... bath bubbles, oils, moisturizers, masks, waxes, files, loofahs, pumice stones, polishes; the list goes on. By next Thursday, I will be soaked, scrubbed, polished and oiled; gleaming, glowing, smooth and supple. I booked an appointment with the hair goddess when I get back, so by Saturday, I ought to look about as good as it's possible for me to achieve. Too bad I don't have a ball to attend or an international conference to address! That's it for today, there's a nail file here calling my name... Ciao! 4:45 - 0 Comments - 0 Kudos - Add Comment - Edit - Remove

01 Mar 2007 Exotic Vacation Yes folks, the time finally passed and I got to kick the dust of work off my heels and start my vacation. Accordingly, I am posting this blog from the annoyingly un-ergonomic keyboard of Gerry's computer. That's right... this year's hot vacation destination is Red Deer! (His chair is a pain too, while I'm bitching about gift horses...) Those of you who've been around a while may remember way back when that Gerry was going on a trip to ummm... the Dominican I think, courtesy of selling a bunch of some product or other. Since he's got the dog and a tankful of fish, I offered to house sit, since I won't be able to afford a truly exotic vacation this year. It's a nice big house, with a large screen TV, new leather furniture and a lovely, lovely tub - and I don't have to share it with anyone!!! Actually, that was a selling feature when I made this plan originally - now it's pissing me off a bit. I want Stuart to be here... it seems such a waste otherwise. All this quiet, peaceful time that I was looking forward to now seems like a whole lot of time to be missing him. Sigh. On the plus side, I think he might actually like me, since he skipped a gaming melee to drive me out here last night! There might not be a truer test of devotion, when you get right down to it. We've been having a lot of discussions over the last week or two about just how fast this relationship is progressing. It honestly does feel like we've known each other much longer than a month and we've already started finishing each other's sentences. (Since I've done that with Thing 1 for years, I'm kind of excited to introduce them and see if we can do it in three part harmony!) It seems to boil down to: we know there are traps inherent in speed, but we want to be together, so we'll just try to be as honest and upfront as possible and do the best we can to avoid trouble. Let me put it this way... I've been firm on the fact that I don't want to get married for about as long as I can remember. (I want someone permanent-ish in my life, just don't want to be married.) But I find myself thinking that if us "living in sin" truly came between Stuart and his family, I might consider some kind of wedding just to prevent him from having to make that choice. Yikes! At any rate, after I fed Stuart and sent him on his way home last night, I settled right into my holiday schedule. I stayed up way too late last night watching "National Treasure" and slept in this morning. Then watched some TV and "The Fifth Element" before heading out to stock up on groceries. Gerry's parents graciously arranged to lend me a car for the duration, so I was tooling over the to Save On in an Impala. It felt like driving a land yacht, since I'm used to the Echo! lol I made a late lunch when I got back and started watching "Constantine". (I packed a bunch of wonderful stuff to read, but I have a sneaking suspicion I'll DVD until my brains are leaking out my ears before I crack a book. Wait! I take it back, I plan to soak in the tub for an hour or three tonight and I'll be reading then. Huzzah!) I may not have a tan or a gig card full of photos when I get back, but by god I'll have had some down time! lol Ciao!