Wednesday, December 22, 2010

We saw a promo....

...on tv advertising an upcoming airing of Crocodile Dundee. I admitted to the boy that Paul Hogan was one of my first crushes. Ok, not Paul Hogan. Specifically his Mick Dundee character. I know. It's creepy. I was, like, 8.

Call it an early Christmas gift double whammy, but immediately after this promo, the movie Tremors came on.

The Boy: "Didn't you also used to have a crush on Kevin Bacon?"
Me: "Not Kevin Bacon. Just his character in this particular movie."
The Boy: "Gross."

What can I say? I was a weird kid.

The boy....

....has started calling me "The Easy Bake Oven" in honour of my super-speed pregnancy.

I'm sure he means that with the utmost love and affection.

Monday, December 20, 2010

I've had a few friends....

....worry that I will change now that I'm a mom. More specifically, I've had some good friends express concern over the fact that they may not enjoy my blog as much if I turn into one of thos ecrazy people who only talks about their kids and thinks everythingthey do is just as iteresting to everyone else as it is to me.

I also have brutally honest friends who have made it quite clear they will not nearly enjoy my company as much if I do become lame & boring.

To all these people, I can ensure you.....mothehood will not ruin my sense of humour. To prove it, let me share this link my friend Lisa sent me.

http://www.pregnantchicken.com/pregnant-chicken-blog/2010/12/10/awkward-pregnancy-photos.html

Inspired by www.awkwardfamilyphotos.com, another one of my favourite sites which I've mentioned in this blog before, check out the above site to view a whole galler of super disturbing pregnancy photos.

Enjoy.

Tuesday, November 16, 2010

Oh, by the way....

....if you haven't heard, I'm also expecting a baby. Yeah, no biggie.

I came dangerously close to being featured on TLC's "I didn't Know I was Pregnant", having not even noticed I was knocked up until I was already 6 months in. This'll be the fastest pregnancy ever.



Within the span of 3 days, we went from finding out we were expecting, to finding out I was over 6 months in, and finally, to finding out the sex of the baby. Most surreal 72 hours ever! Oh, it's a girl.

It's my birthday.....

...and also Steven Tyler Day!

It was on this very day, a number of years ago that my best friend Lisa & I attended an Aerosmith concert in my hometown of Ottawa. But not just any Aerosmith concert. The same concert where for a brief instant, Steve Tyler held my hand. The same concert where Lisa took a more, ahem, forward approach and lunged at his thigh (ok, crotch).

Anyways, that night goes down in hostory as one of the most memorable nights of my life. Every year on this day Lisa emails me to wish me a Happy Birthday, but more importantly, a Happy Steven Tyler Day.

However, it wasn't until today, where upon emailing her back the same greeting, I realized that abbreviated, Steven Tyler Day, is also STD Day.

How appropriate I presume.

Monday, November 15, 2010

We spent the weekend....

....in Ottawa for an early Christmas.

At one point, en route to breakfast with my grandparents, my grandma suddenly asks, "Jamie, you aren't wearing thongs are you?"

After the initial hilarity of being asked that by my grandmother had wore off, I told her politely that I didn't think it was any of her business.

"But you left them in the front hall at our place! It's a little too cold for thongs, don't you think?"

Then I realized she was referring to flip flops, not underwear.

Thursday, November 11, 2010

Don't hate me....

....but I have about 70% of my Christmas shopping done. And wrapped.

I also have my Christmas menu planned.

Hoping we can cut down the Christmas tree next weekend.

I need to get a life.

Tuesday, November 9, 2010

I just misread.....

....a People.com headline that said "Dakota Fanning Crowned Homecoming Queen" as "Dakota Fanning Drowned Homecoming Queen".

Which would have been a way more exciting story. I was slightly confused as to why it wasn't listed as their top story and instead placed halfway down the page.

I need a nap.

Tuesday, November 2, 2010

I have the best.....

...grandpa in thew world. The boy and I stopped by his house on Sunday for another quick visit before we left for Owen Sound. Gampy had just finished carving his pumpkin.

On our way.....

....back from Ottawa on Sunday we got terribly lost. About 400 kilometres out of our way lost. There were mountains and towns I'd never heard of, and lots of snow. And wildlife. There was also this.....



Oh, and this:



The sad part is, these were both taken at the same gas station in the middle of nowhere. On Halloween. Just sayin.

Wednesday, October 27, 2010

Today is......

....the boy & I's third anniversary.

In honour of the momentous occassion, let me just say, that sometimes it pays off to ignore your better judgement and take a leap of faith. Some people would say jumping into a move-too-fast-rebound-relationship-with-your-complete-opposite-whome-you-met-in-a-bar is a bad idea. I would say I'm thankful that I'm too dumb to listen to people's mostly sound advice.

Mostly, I am thankful he doesn't read my blog so that I can post stuff like this.



HAPPY ANNIVERSARY!

My friend Jenn....

....asked me what my best find was on Friday's Goods Exchange Day.

I was about to tell her I found a brand new hamster cage and accompanying accessories (including a detachable hamster maze!) when I realized this made me sound ready for a starring role on an upcoming episode of A&E's "Hoarders".

I do not have a hamster.
I have no intention of acquiring one.
I don't know anyone who does have a hamster.
I don't even like hamsters.

I opted to lie and just tell her my best find was a bunch of cd's. Sorry Jenn.

So for work.....

.....my boss is making all the announcers record their very own, spooky Halloween i.d. (a little snippet of audio that goes in between songs) to run on the air this weekend.

In mine, I have to say, "This is Jamie 'Jekyl & Hyde' Johnston. From all the undead at Mix 106.5, Happy Halloween!"

All this is fun and cute...except that we have to record them in character. By that I mean, we had to try to do a spooky or scary voice. I despise doing character voices, as our producer can attest to. I rarely do impressions or accents because....well, because I can't.

As a result, my "spooky" Halloween read sounds more like an 80-year old smoker suffering from emphysema.



Update: You know you want to hear it:

http://www.gabcast.com/gc1/index.php?a=pub&id=32939

Monday, October 25, 2010

Have I mentioned.....

....how much I love this little guy already?



I also have an unhealthy obsession with his teeth & how his tongue hangs out of his mouth when he sleeps. I realized this when I began downloading photos off my camera and there were a series of no fewer than 8 close ups of this.

Maybe someday I'll get a life. Until then......

Friday, October 22, 2010

Some good news.....

....to share on a Friday!

1. Today, it's basically Christmas-come-early for the boy & I. Today in OWen Sound is Goods Exchange Day!!! Also known as Giveaway Day, tonigh ti sthe night you place your unwanted, but still useable, items out by the curb, and scavengers like me come by and pick them up. I never would have thought this is what my life would be like. And then I moved to Owen Sound.....

2. I just discovered they now serve oatmeal at Tim Horton's and this made me way more excited than it should! I love Tim Horton's coffee.....but I have always found it hard to find something remotely healthy to eat there in the mornings. I was thrilled a few weeks ago when they introduced the breakfast wraps on whole wheat tortillas...and then I remembered how dismal tasting their breakfast sandwhiches are, and I figure the wraps won't be much better. But they now serve maple oatmeal as well as oatmeal with real mixed berries.

3. I saw snow this morning! Not on the ground, mind you....just on a few cars, and they must have come from out of town. But it was still pretty exciting!

4. The other night we stopped at our local covnevience store because I decided I wanted a can of soup. We stop there quite frequently and since the boy insists on talking to everyone in his path, he's become quite chummy with the couple that own the store. Anyways, the wife had been ver ysad to learn about Lola, and insisted that I take a fall mum home with me. I argued with her, telling her I couldn't accept but she insisted....and in the end she ended u psending me home with two HUGE fall mums for free! I almost felt bad taking them but the woman said she wanted to get rid of them all before the frost. So if you are looking for a great deal on fall mums, go to Daisy Mart ion the west side of Owen Sound. The plants are gorgeous and they still have tons of different colours and styles!



Have a great weekend everyone!

Thursday, October 21, 2010

I have it pretty easy.....

....at home. The boy pre-makes my next day's lunch each night before we go to bed. Lats night he informed me, "Your lunch is ready. It's a bowl of soup and leftover antihistamines."

He means antijitos. I don't bother correcting him anymore.

Wednesday, October 20, 2010

I have spent a good......

.....few hours over the last few days researching purchase options for a particular promotional item I am really hoping to get for the stations.

I have fielded numerous long distance phone calls from all over Canada & the U.S., I've have sent out many email inquiries, I've passed hours in meeting with various co-workers to discuss the benefits of purchasing said item and scoured the Internet for different makes, models, and pricing options.

I really want a t-shirt cannon.

Looking back, I really never thought 2 years of college and 10 years into my career I would ever be saying those words.

Monday, October 18, 2010

Once again....

...I have completely ignored the advice of about 75% of people I know. After we lost Lola, we were strongly advised not to "run out" and get another dog in an attempt to fill the void. And in fact, for the first few days after losing her, the boy and I could not even fathom owning another dog ever, let alone in the near future.

As I've said before, losing Lola, was for me, losing my child. I don't have kids...and she was my little girl. We knew we'd never replace her, and even if we did try, as she was the funniest, most charming dog I've ever seen, we would have failed miserably at even coming close.



My heart was broken and while each day got a little better, I still cried over her on a daily basis. I miss her terribly, and would give anything to have her back....

....but I decided to go with my gut and heed the advice of a few others who, while in the minority, were die-hard pet parents like myself. They understood what we were going through and knew that while we can never replace Lola, we could certainly do what we needed to do to try to fill the giant hole she left in our lives.

Meet Oliver (Ollie). Ollie joined our family on Friday night.



I know not everyone will agree with our decision to get another dog so quickly. But it's a testament to how much we loved having Lola around that we simply could not imagine our life without a little French Bulldog in it.



While many people have said he looks just like Lola, I see a completely different dog. Which is good. He's a totally different personality (i.e. he's a handful...that isa nice way of saying it).



He's a lot slower and more clumsy than Lola. He sleeps way more. And when he does, his little tongue hangs out. It's really cute. At least his momma thinks so.



His eyes are really far apart, which gives him a "slow" look as the boy says. I think it's just endearing though.



I cried on the way home after we picked him up. A mixture of still missing Lola, and holding a puppy again for the first time. But also because I was so grateful we had this little guy coming to our family.

If he's half as happy as Lola was he'll be one spoiled boy.

We just got cable.....

....re-installed on Saturday after a few-months long without. I don't know what I was thinking trying to go without TV. Good lord.

I am an idiot. A few months ago, I decided to switch from Rogers to our local cable provider (who we also have our phone service through). I knew they would be cheaper. Plus, I like to shop local when I can. The phone service has been great so I thought the cable option would be great too. And I thought I might get a deal with a bundle.

Anyways, I called our local provider and left a message explaining what I was wanting to do. Then I immediately called Rogers and told them nicely to disconnect me. A couple day slater I still had not heard from the local company so I decided to check ou ttheir website and get our service hooked up online....only to be met with a large notofocation on their homepage that they do not yet offer cable to our area.

WHAT HAD I DONE?!?!?

Now, we could have signed back up with Rogers fairly simply, but our bill would have been EXTRA high due to having to pay a full reconnection fee, plus the remainder of our final bill. And since I work in radio, I am poor. So we waited.

I was proud of us for managing so long without cable. But I'm certainly not going to expound the virtues of living a television-less life. We read alot, but no mmore than we usually do. And being that we are always on a tight budget, it's not like not having tv at home made us get out anymore than when we did have tv. We don't watch a ton of it, but for us, TV is a way to relax in the evenings. We can sit on the couch and snuggle with the dogs and just be entertained. And I can always fal back on the age-old excuse that I need to keep up-to-date on timely events due to my particular field of work (thank you Pop Culture 101 for opening my eyes to this excuse).

Anyways, long story short, we now have cable again. Thank sweet Jesus. And the best thing about it so far? Sister Wives. That show is CRAZY. If you've never seen it, it's about a Polygamist family in Utah (it airs on TLC). The boy & I both watched hours of it last night. That's right, I said "hours". If needed, here is where you can point out the fact that I need to get out more. I won't argue.

Friday, October 15, 2010

Something I'm passionate about.....

...and something I hope you will watch.

Wednesday, October 13, 2010

I had a hankering....

...to write a posting on headgear. Why, you ask?? If I knew the answer to this question it would probably explain a lot. It's just how my brain works.

Remember headgear? I do. Because my parents opted for the cruel & unusual torture of agereing with my orthodontist that I should be required to wear one of these contraptions for 2 whole years of my life. That's right. Everyone know someone who had to endure this. I was that kid. Oh, did I mention I didn't get off easy with the 12-hour a day deal? Nope, mine was to be worn 24 hours, 7 days a week.

You know, most pre-pubescent, gawky 11-year old girls don't have fragile enough self-esteem as it is, without having a monstrous metal device envelopping their head.

Anywho, I went through an entire box of old photos last night looking for a single photo of me wearing this device. (See, I'm not shy, I was willing to share). Well, the hour I spent going through an entire shoe box of photos was fruitless. My parents apparently took zero photos of me between the ages of 11 and 13. Most likely due to the headgear itself.

My new goal is to try to find a headgear-clad photo of yours truly.

Hang tight everyone.

I thought I should let you know.....

....that there are only 73 days til Christmas!

We had a fabulous Thanksgiving....

.....with lots of laughs, family and food. It was much needed after the horrendous week we had in our house. The weather was gorgeous, hitting the 20 degree mark most days and tons of sunshine. The boy & my Dad got to spend some time golfing. I came across the scorecard in my dad's truck later that afternoon and while he golfed very well, the boy had stopped keeping track of his score on about the 15th hole.

We had not one, but two great dinners, some drinks and lots of laughs. Oh, and it wouldn't be an Owen Sound Thanksgiving without a little bit of beer-can hockey.



Afterwards (and after the aforementioned drinks), my dad came to see me to inquire if we were ready to hit the road and head home to our place. I told him both the boy & I were indeed ready to call it a night, and he said he was going to get tell my stepmom to get ready to leave. Now, I'm not sure what ensued in the next five minutes....but by the time the boy and I got out to the road to get in the truck, we were just in time to see the truck's tailights peeling around the corner at the end of the street.

It's not possible my father & stepmother left without me is it? Could they have forgotten their daughter? On Thanksgiving? When the temperature was about 2 degrees and we were blocks from home? When they were spending the weekend as guests in my house?!

The boy offered an optimistic suggestion. "Maybe he's just goin garuon dthe block to get the truck warmed up for us."

Alas, this was not the case. The boy and I went back inside, made ourselves a couple of to-go drinks and hit the road. In the dark. In the cold. On Thanksgiving night. Me wearing nothing but a t-shirt and a thin cardican. Oh, and flip flops.

Upon arriving at home, my parents were nestled cozily on the couch, woodstove roaring.

The worst part was, my step mom took the time to rememeber to grab the bottle of wine I had brought to dinner, but she forgot her own husband's daughter. Sheesh.



Note: I wasn't actually mad. If anything I admired their sense of priority. What can I say?

Growing up in Ottawa......

....there was just a certain way of speaking that I became accustomed to. And I should point out, I actually grew up outside of Ottawa, in an incredibly small town. No streetlights. One convenience store. One bank. One grocery store. One gas station. One public school (no high school).You get it.

But still, when I moved to Owen Sound, I was exposed to a whole new dialect.

This morning, while in the car with my mother-in-law, the following two phrases were uttered within a span of about 4 minutes; "Freeze the balls off a brass monkey" and "Jesus Lord love a duck".

In all my twenty-plus years in Ottawa, never once did I hear anyone actually use these expressions. But it's also one of the things I love about where I live now.

Thursday, October 7, 2010

Ok, today is a new day....

....and each day is a little better than the last.

The house is still too quiet and I miss my little peanut so much it literally hurts my heart. I still can't talk about her without crying. And I can't listen to the boy talk about her either without wanting to curl into a ball. I miss her huge ears, and her sweet little lips and her round tummy. And I miss how noisy and energized she made the house. You would think with three other dogs at home we wouldn't notice a difference. But we do.

Last night I framed a couple of pictures of her and put them up on a shelf with the plaque JR made me.

And I go out every morning to see her in the backyard. I was bringing her a treat every morning but then I realized Molly was sneaking back there and eating them so I had to stop.

My sister-in-law sent me a messgae through my blog this mornign that made me laugh and cry at the same time.

"Lola looks very special that's for sure.
She was definitely lucky to have you and I'm sure lived her life to the fullest.

Abner told me he's been communicating with her through the wind. Her little spirit lives on! Even down here on the beaches!I'm sure she is enjoying her afterlife with all the other little ones... including Maddie!

Love to you! and Sorry for the loss.
Christina"

Tuesday, October 5, 2010

When I started....

....writing this blog last year, I made a conscience decision to try to keep it positive. Sometimes sarcastic or mean....but never whiny or depressing.

Today that is going to be a challenge.

When I came to work this morning my goal was not make it through the day without breaking down sobbing at my desk. It really freaks out my co-workers. Fortunately, none of the guys who work at the desks surrounding mine have shown up yet, because I've already failed. Twice. And it's not even 9 a.m.

On Sunday, I lost my little girl Lola.



For any of you who know me, or read my blog, you know my unhealthy obsession with my dogs. We have 4 of them. That alone indicates a slightly off-kilter compulsion if you ask me. Well, multiply that obsession by about 10 times, and you will come close to understanding my feelings about Lola.

The boy got me Lola as a Mother's Day gift in 2009. She was just a puppy. And she was the last of 4 dogs we have taken in. Much to the chagrin of the first three, she fast became my favourite.



I have no qualms about admitting that I crossed the appropriate owner-pet behaviour line multiple times a day. In the past week for instance, I've said each of the following statements to the boy:

-"I could look at her all day long. I never get tired of looking at her." (To which the boy replied, simply, "You are sick Jamie.")

-"I just love her so much. She is going to live forever. I know it."

And wait for it folks, here's the kicker:

-"I hope if I ever have kids that I love them as much as I love Lola. I'm not sure that I could ever love anything as much as her." ("Ok, we are so never having kids then." - The Boy)



This is the same dog who came everywhere with me, who owns more clothes than the Boy and the 3 other dogs combined. The same dog who I literally held in my arms all night, every night. The same dog who everyone of my family, friends and even perfect strangers fell in love with upon laying eyes on her. The same dog who had such a huge and sweet personality has made it nearly impossible to be in the house now because I can't stand the quiet.



The same dog who spent her last day going for a long drive with us through the backroads. Who met a bunch of people she'd never seen at garage sales we stopped at and who soaked up all the attention she could from perfect strangers. The same dog who pooped in the backseat of the car the one time we did leave her alone for a few minutes. The same dog who didn' tget in any trouble whatsoever for doing this because she was so cute and loveable she got away with pretty much everything. (The boy and I both agree that if there was something we could do, some trade we could make to just get her back, she would be allowed to poop all over the house for the rest of her life if it meant this weekend had never happened). The same dog who snuggled in with us as we slept in on Sunday morning. Who got us both to suck her up and she rolled around on her back, trying to be cute. Who got to curl up and nap in front of the woodstove. Who wrestled with the cat and her 2 brothers until I yelled at them to please stop. The same dog who got countless kisses in her last few hours.



Lola was not my dog. She was my little girl. She gave off so much love, and charm, so much sweetness and cuteness, so much personality, that there was no way she could have lived to be an old dog. And the only way I can explain why what happened happened, is to say that she was too good to be true.

The boy had this made for me yesterday as a surprise. I had no idea I could spontaneously erupt into tears that quickly.



To my little Lola, my peanut, my angel.



P.S. Thanks to my brother & Christina who made a donation to the Owen Sound Animal Shelter in Lola's memory. The shelter has promised to use the money to go towards saving another dog who needs it.

Friday, October 1, 2010

A summary....

...of my evening so far.

-Nap
-Leftovers
-Returned a ceiling fan
-Back to work at 6 p.m. (after already working a full day)

Up next? A 9 p.m. trip to Walmart to scope out paint samples and peruse the women's section.

It's a big Friday night in the city of Owen Sound folks.

What's happened to my life?

(I say that simply to make you think I'm not totally excited about my impending Walmart stop. Did it work?)

Have a great weekend all.

So we've been....

....giving away tickets to see Mickey Rooney at the Old Roxy this weekend. I would have thought a Hollywood legend, coming to a small town would have been a big draw. But tickets are going slow. Possibly due to the $70 price tag.

To be honest I was a little shocked to find that Mickey Rooney was still alive. I have fond memories of him from my choldhood, due to the fact that he used to appear on one of my favourite shows from my pre-teen years. I couldn't even really be sure I didn't make this sho wup in my mind, but thanks to Wikipedia I know this is not the case: 'There was also a television series called Adventures of the Black Stallion which aired from 1990 to 1993 and starred Mickey Rooney and Richard Ian Cox."

Anywho, Mickey Rooner got me thinking about one of my true favourite Hollywood living legends, Anthony Hopkins. Ok, I should just admit it...I might have watched Legends of the Fall again the other day. That might have been Viewing #1634 of that particular film. TRowards the end, when Anthony's character who's had a stroke, pulls a rifle out of his ragged old bearskin coat and blows away all the corrupt lawmen who have come to kill his son??? Ugh, it gets me everytime.

I tried to find a still from this scene in the movie to post here, but apparently not as many people are a huge fan of this movie as I am.

And then yesterday, while I'm on the topic of Hollywood legends.....I learned another of my favourites, Tony Curtis, had died. My love for Mr. Curtis is based solely on two facts. One, he starred in one of my favourite movies of all time, "Some Like It Hot" along with Marolin Monroe & Jack Lemon. This movie will always make me think of mt grandma and watching it over and over and over again at the cottage for a few summer sin a row, until I knew everyword to everyone of Marilyn's songs.

The second reason I loved Tony Curtis is a little more complex. I was partially named after his daughter, not-quite-legendary actress Jamie Lee Curtis. Then, only yeasterday I learned that Tony Curtis' real name was Bernie Schwartz. And that instantly took away a whole lot of what was left of my 80's namesake glory. Oh well.

R.I.P. Tony.

I have been.....

....smoke free for just over 3 months now. Shouldn't I get a pin or something?

Congratulations.....

....to Meesh! Can't wait to meet her in person!

Monday, September 27, 2010

Wait, whoa....what??

I noticed this sign at a mall in Barrie yesterday.



It appears the quilting industry is now marketting to previously untapped demographics.

Thursday, September 23, 2010

I was pleasantly....

....surprised to come home the other day, only to discover that the boy had added a few finishing touches to the autumn explosion that has become my porch. Pumpkins, gourds, hay bales etc.

The boy: "Hey, you didn't comment on the corn flakes."
Me: "The what?"
The boy: "The corn flakes. I tied them to the front porch pillars like you said you were going to do."
Me: "Those are called corn stalks, not corn flakes."
The boy: "Oh, whatever, Ms. Smart Encyclopedia Lady."

Friday, September 17, 2010

I don't know....

...what it is about the fall. But I've been going into demoestic mode. Or nesting mode. Or whatever mode it is people go into when the weather gets cold and they prepare to bunker down for a long winter.

I decorated my front porch for autumn. These seasonal elements will stay in place until probably 6 weeks from now, when I tear everything down and go into insane Christmas Lady Mode. And yes, I realize Christmas is still 14 weeks away. (I just went through an online photo album from last year. And the pictures of us cutting down out Christmas tree were taken on November 23rd just to give you an idea of the scope of my issues.)

Check out my porch!





And the boy was kind enough to buy me some corn stalks from a roadside stand that I can attach to the pillars on the porch. I know, no one is as excited about this as I am!

Oh, and the baking! I have done more baking in the past 2 weeks than I usually do in two years. I baked the boy some peanut butter cookies last week.

That same night I tried out a new recipe for Pecan Pie Muffins.



Yes, that is a liberal sprinkling of brown sugar on each muffin top. Alas, these were dissapointingly dry. I should have followed my usual go-to baking rule...when in doubt, add more butter.

Last night, I made a cabbage role casserole, which was amazing.



And finally, since I was on such a roll, I whipped up a loaf of banana bread for dessert. ( Of course, it would have looked way more appealing if I'd waited until after it was nicely baked before taking the photo.)



So remember that posting about a week back where I shared my excitement over having discovered I'd lost a jean size? Well, maybe losing weight is overrated.

Some lovely homegrown....

...tomatoes were brough tinto the station by a co-worker recently. Now, I hate raw tomatoes, but I brought some home for the boy.

Everyone at work seemed shocked that I refuse to eat tomatoes. Especially being that I like things such as brushetta, tomato juice and spaghetti sauce.

One Halloween, when I was about 6 and my brother maybe 4, we were forced by our parents to each eat a slice of raw tomato before we were allowed to go out trick or treating. My brother and I both sat at the kitchen table, in costume, sobbing and gagging and trying to force the tiny piece down our throats. It was not a Happy Halloween. But we did eventually get through it after much dry-heaving and tearful theatrics.

The happy ending is that later we went door to door and looked adorable, and from the photos taken later than evening I can tell we forgot all about the ugly tomato-dinnertime incident. But to this day neither of us will eat raw tomoatoes.

I watched....

....The Passion of the Christ last night for the first time. I don't get what all the controversy was about.

Granted, I am not religious whatsoever, so I would not be the best person to be able to spot all the inaccuracies that incited so much anger when the movie came out. In fact, 4 years of Catholic school religion classes are all nothing but vague memories at this point. Not unlike everything I learned after Grade 2 math. And even that would be stretching it. The math has pretty much left the building as far as my brain is concerned.

Anywho.....I didn't mind the movie. But I kept trying to figure out what all the fuss was about. Again, I should emphasize I am not up to snuff on my Jesus trivia, so please forgive my ignorance.

It also didn't help that the following questions were posed back and forth between the boy and I during the course of the film:

-Is that Judas? I thought they showed Judas being arrested.
-Ceasar was alive at the same time as Jesus? I had no idea.
-Is that guy Judas?
-Wait, is Mary his mother or the prostitute?
-What language is this?
-Didn't you go to Catholic school? And you don't know this?
-Why do so many of the characters have long hair and beards? I can't keep track of Judas!
-Is this taking place in Rome? It sure looks like Rome.

I did something today I never in a million years thought I would do. I Googled "Passion"+"Christ"+controversy. Hey, it's a quiet Friday afternoon. I won't judge your Google history and you don't judge mine, okay?

Tuesday, September 14, 2010

I just got....

....really excited upon discovering some loose change in my pants pocket.

Look, payday is tomorrow.

Don't judge me, okay?

Wednesday, September 8, 2010

The boy's....

....horoscope in yesterday's paper read, "If you have been looking for permission to go ahead and have a night out on the town with friends, permission granted. You deserve it!"

Screw you Horoscope. I make the decisions around here. And unless you are going to clean out the garage and help me walk the dogs then I suggest you keep mind your own business.

My friend...

...Amanda came to visit this weekend. She just recently moved from Vancouver to Toronto. And decided to spend a weekend here in the OS to catch a bit o fthe salmon derby.

Here is one reason I love Amanda.



Let me explain.

Amanda scooped this poster for me about 3 years ago while still living on the West Coast. She has hung onto it since then and recently ensured it's safe transportation in a cross-country move. On Saturday, she proceeded to trek it through downtown Toronto at 6 a.m. on her walk to the bus stop, for the 4-hour journey to the Sound.

Now, I'm sure she got some strange looks from her co-passengers on the bus. And, that is saying a lot. Anyone who's ever travelled by bus knows what I mean. No offense to frequent bus travellers.

Anyways, thanks Amanda. You made me very happy. You made the boy very uncomfortable. And you made Dwight finally feel like he's part of the family. (For now anyways. The boy is giong to make me move Dwight out of the dining room very soon. I don't like the way he looks at him.)

I pride myself.....

.....on keeping a relatively clean house. I mean, it's not perfect by any stretch of the imagination. But I take satisfaction in knowing that while I have 4 dogs, people tell me how tidy and nice smelling my house is (thank you Febreeze Noticeables).

Anyways, that's not to say that there aren't some little house cleaning jobs I might have missed for say, the last....oh, I don't know......4 years or so.

Like cleaning the ceiling fans for instance....which I unwittingly turned on "High" last night for the first time in a long time.





Martha Stewart, I'm not.

Tuesday, September 7, 2010

Go ahead....

....and watch it if you want, but Ben Stiller's "Greenberg" was terrible.

The following email exchange just took place between my brother & I.

Me: P.S. Do NOT rent the movie Greenberg starring Ben Stiller. It is the worst movie I've ever seen in my life. Ever.

Ty: Regrettably, I started to watch Greenberg. Christina made us turn it off like 10minutes into it though. Talk to you soon. Ty

Me: Something instinctively told me that you guys were going to watch it and I felt compelled to warn you. Christina made a wise decision. Literally, nothing happens between the time you turned it off and 104 minutes later when the credits roll. Literally....nothing. I was so mad at the end. I can't even believe that movie was made.



I recall saying half way through the film that I hoped Ben Stiller's character decides to off himself because it would mean the movie was done.
So consider yourself warned.

Anyways, to each his own I suppose. I am not a film critic.

These people are however:

-Good luck with yourself, Greenberg. But I think I want to break up.
-The characters are so socially destructive that it’s difficult to care what happens to any of them.
-Roger Greenberg is not the kind of guy you want to wind up next to at a dinner party.
-You may well identify with Roger's relentless irritation. But you probably won't like it.
-I only kind of like it, and I'll probably never want to see it again, but I respect it on some level.

And my favourite review so far:

-Detest may not be a strong enough word to express what surely ranks as the worst movie of 2010. If you choose to ignore this warning, you may want to jump off a cliff after seeing this debacle for yourself.

In one week.....

....I will no longer have to see this sitting in my laneway every time I return from work.



This is the boy's demo car. The Demolition Derby is this Saturday. Which means for the first time in a month my laneway will be free of randomly strewn car parts, random men drinking beer and smelling like gasoline and this green monstrosity.

It's a good thing I love him.

The one time....

...I opt not to run and grab my camera and I'm totally regretting it.

On Sunday night the boy fell asleep on the couch in the back room. When I was ready for bed, I went to see if he was just going to stay put.

I turned the light on and immediately gasped.

I don't know how to properly explain what I encountered in that room.....but let me use a few mathematical equations and see if you can put it together.

It'll be fun.

2 Gravol + 1 backpain tablet = a powerful sleep inducing cocktail if I ever saw one

No air conditioning + the boy falling asleep with a pile of chocolates on his chest = bag ful of melted chocolate all over his face, neck, shirt, hands, glasses and couch

One terrible and mean spirited person (me) + a groggy person's misfortune = me laughing so hard I could barely go get a cloth to help him clean up and opting to go to bed instead.

Wednesday, September 1, 2010

A harsh reminder.....

....that I should never brag about anything:

Five minutes after my earlier posting gushing about how excited I was to be down a jean size....a co-worker walked past, reached out, and tore the size sticker off the ass end of my jeans.



That's not really me in the picture. I was too mortified to take a photo. I promotly threw the tag in the garbage and went back to my desk to cry.

I had the pleasure...

...of spending all day Saturday on a boat. In the sunshine, docked near White Cloud Island. Not just any boat. This boat.



It was very fast. So fast that you are required to wear goggles.



You thought I was exaggerating, didn't you? No, it wasn't just a fashion statement my friends.



I won't tell you how long it took the get the knots out of my hair. (Ok, it took a long time. I may not even be finished yet.)



There's nothing wrong with befriending people hwo own boats. I promise.

God bless....

....the jean makers of Walmart. They either know how to boost a girl's self esteem or I might have FINALLY lost a jean size. I say "finally" because I quit drinking pop (almost entirely) about a month ago. I used to have a can of Pepsi ever day. At least one can. Now, I can still have one once in a while, but I don't buy it to keep in the house. I've started drinking about 6 bottles of water a day. And I have been a little more careful about what I eat. (I'm sorry Nachos. I still love you. We just can't hang out every day like we used to.)

I also quit smoking too. Which, in an unexpected turn, has made drinking a lot less enjoyable. Who knew? So I've been cutting back on the beer & red wine too. I know...it's like I don't even know myself anymore. Don't worry Wine. I'm never goin gto quit you entirely. We've been through too much together.)

All that to say, my efforts were rewarded last night when I tried on a pair of jeans, fully expecting them to be a size too small, but insisting on trying to squeeze into them anyways....only to discover they actually fit!

That is the first time this has happened in years. (I was going to omit the fact that the only reason I was jean shopping in the first place was because I had worn out my former favourite pair of jeans from excessive friction in the thigh area....any girls who wear more than a size 6, you know what I'm talking about.) But I'm nothing if not honest.

Tuesday, August 31, 2010

Random Thoughts

1. I have a lot to do at work today but zero motivation. I spent the last hour constantly refreshing Facebook to see if anyone's uploaded anything worthwhile.....and now I'm printing out a recipe for homeade cinammon bread.

2. I just saw a dog hair in my lunch.....I tried to pick it out and then I lost track of it. So I kept eating. Gross? Maybe. (I know it was one of my dog's hairs though. Still not sure if that makes it any better.)

Thursday, August 26, 2010

Last night.....

....I dreamt I had a baby. The baby was clearly not mine as it was a different race entirely. But this didn't seem to concern me in my dream. And in the span of 2 weeks he had already grown to the size of an 8-year-old. But because I still thought he was a newborn, I insisted on carrying him around everywhere, including to the Toddler Wrestling Championships, which took place in a field. Everyone todl me we had a good shot at winning since my little guy was so hefty.

I swear, I only had had 2 drinks all night.

Today is.....

.....Thursday, August 26th. It's National Dog Day.

"He is your friend, your partner, your defender, your dog. You are his life, his love, his leader. He will be yours, faithful and true, to his last beat of his heart. You owe him to be worthy of such devotion." - Unknown