Everyone else seems to be fixated on pie.
Pondering pease porridge.
(It's easy to lose a seven-pound black dog in the November nights.)
I've been to my very first ever Christmas craft fair. The dog now has a new winter coat. It's reflective!
At least with the raspberry vodka, I can skip the mix entirely, and just sip the booze straight. Yes, it's been a rough week.
Rediscovering Carolyne Mas on YouTube.
Not sweeping up the leaves at the moment. Avoiding the neighbours.
Embracing the concept of Friday night. Charles and Camilla haven't popped by yet, so I'll change into my nightgown and really relax.
Watching Linda Ronstadt on YouTube. It's a like a time machine. I expect to hear my mother call me for dinner. Life & time are bittersweet.
...from the cupboard, got a dog, who's begging for a taste.
Yes, baby, I've been drinking. Shouldn't come around, no, no. But I found myself some pizza, and I had no place else to go. Got some whiskey...
Battling autumn leaves. I love them, & I'd leave :) them, but tree is positioned just right to blow them all next door, & that's not kind.
Not sure I'm comfortable with the new 'casual' World Report on CBC Radio 1. I like my CBC on the staid & restrained side. At least for news.
I just carved my pumpkin. I was going for scary, but ended up with goofy instead. However, when darkness falls, and it glows... beware! Boo!
Protestors disrupted torch relay, I read, causing people who were waiting to watch to miss it. Nice work, jerks. Doesn't help your cause.
Because I think I saw the Torch heading into Bolen Books at Hillside Mall. Better keep an eye on that thing.
Not a whole lot of tweets from @victorch2010. I thought you guys were supposed to be updating?
I reviewed my food diary yesterday: inlcuded cookies, bubble gum, potato chips, and mini chocolate bars. Amazingly--I haven't lost weight.
Tried some raspberry vodka tonight; nice. Next thing I knew, was waking up from weird dreams, trying to figure out when I'd fallen asleep.
Twittermail refuses to accept my credentials. I feel as if I do not really exist.
Sulking. I didn't get asked to lunch, and I hear there are martinis. Not that I'd drink a martini during the day, but...
I woke up this morning, feeling funny little lumps beneath me. Turns out the dog had stuck all four legs under me as I slept.
...I think I will wear socks to bed tonight. White sport socks and a flannel nightgown. Ah, my lucky husband!
Drinking herbal lemon tea. Today at work I had peppermint. This is unusual: my loyalty is orange pekoe, hot & strong. The cold, wet weather?
Trying to write a ghost story. Not succeeding. I have nothing new to bring to the genre. On the other hand, I have bubble gum.
Sunday: full of accomplishments and tasks complete for the week ahead? Or piddling the computer & drinking tea? We don't know yet.
Regretting what I just added to the pot of soup on the stove. If I wanted mashed potato soup, that's what I would have made.
This is the longest cold in the history of humanity. My co-workers are going to duct-tape me quiet any day now.
Not sure how to do this, but mentioning #beatcancer.
Listening to the rain, drinking tea, and writing. I do love a Saturday.
Saying hello to a rye and diet Coke. Hello, sailor. I am so very pleased to make your acquaintance. 6
I'm facing Friday with some doubt in my abilities to handle what Friday has to offer me at the office. But I have a cute lunch.
Swearing at Excel.
Putting my lunch together, in my new LAPTOP LUNCHBOX! My husband is the sweetest guy ever.
I got a spam email from someone named "Dung". Way to sound appealing.
I see the Canadian dollar is going up faster than my post-Thanksgiving weight.
Mental note: if you are over 40, don't chew the super-sour "cry baby" type bubble gum. Those I will be doling out to the kids, if any show.
I have survived Tuesday and am serially chewing all the bubblegum I was supposed to have purchased for "Hallowe'en trick or treaters".
Turkey's in. My husband is starting laundry. This is an unusal Sunday.
I'm sick. Now all I need to know is--how much weight will I lose? A good bout of the 'flu's worth 10 pounds. This bad cold--five?
"I'm Lisa. I work at Mountain Area Communications." Blah, blah break room, blah. What is up with that?
It was PMS. My husband brought home potato chips and pizza--one day too late. It didn't stop me from eating the pizza, though.
I'm sad. I don't know why. I'll call it PMS and see if it slips away. It's Friday! In October, my favourite month...
Remembering when CNN.com actually had news on it.
Found the Ibruprofen. I am less fit than the 72-year-old woman who passed me going up Mill Hill Park.
Wishing *I* was already reading "Under the Dome". Wishing I were actually fit. Wondering where the Ibuprofen is.
Last night I dreamed about Donny Osmond. He was going through a series of facial hair changes. I liked Mustache Donny a lot.
Just came in from spotting the ISS sailing overhead. Very cool. Look up! There is so much to see...
Things on invoices that sound far sexier than they probably are: "poly coupling".
Good lord, my husband is eating the final bits of candy from LAST Hallowe'en. My fault for keeping it, though. The bubblegum's still good!
Golden September...morning commute like being caught in a surging herd of elk. With backpacks.
You can never get a cup of tea large enough or a book long enough to suit me. -- C.S. Lewis
I do not function without my tea. I wake up, and put the kettle on. All else comes second.
I get cranky if someone else makes my tea--did they hot the pot? Did the kettle truly boil? Did they put too much water in it? I get crankier if I can't have my tea.
Hot, strong, with skim milk. No sugar. The first two mugs are the best, but I drink the rest.
I like weekends, because I've got time to drink a whole pot of tea, and then make another. Weekdays, I have to stop at two large mugs. Any more than that, and I won't make it through the morning commute. Tea does make me have to pee.
Nothing fancy, just Tetley orange pekoe. Oh. Only Tetley orange pekoe. I took it up while breastfeeding--my mother smoked and drank tea, and I do the same.
I'll quit the cigarettes before I quit my tea.
I love my mug of tea. Fiercely.
This is my favourite month ever... now, if only I weren't sick.
My husband bought me a LAPTOP LUNCHBOX!
Now I will have to make cute and healthy lunches. No, this could be good...
I only finished 11 books this summer. I started a lot more. I was hoping to have a longer, more impressive list.
"The Stand", the extended version, was really long, though.
I have to go "sweep broom" at Mill Hill Park in 20 minutes. I am heavily doubting my physical ability at this point. I will be the fat chick, huffing and puffing her way up the hill.
I think I will take a few pre-emptive aspirins now.
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1. Golden September...morning commute like being caught in a surging herd of elk. With backpacks.7:19 PM Sep 11th from txt
2. ...I am trying to remember to post something at 9:09 09/09/09. I will probably forget.8:45 PM Sep 9th from web
3. I petted a pig this last weekend. Now I’m wondering if I just increased my chances of catching H1N1 to a remarkably high degree.8:44 PM Sep 9th from web
4. I feel I have to hide the cauliflower. It's a long story.10:54 PM Sep 8th from web
5. Trying to convince myself that working out made it possible to enjoy a nutrious dinner of potato chips & Nutella. I only wish I was joking.8:48 PM Sep 8th from web
6. And I'm just ticked that I don't get to go back to school. New binders, notebooks, and pens! Damn and blast.7:01 AM Sep 8th from web
7. Also, it's Monday after Labour Day. I do dread the morning commute. The studentia population will have returned.7:01 AM Sep 8th from web
8. No wonder I stink at accounting. To me, "Journal Entries" start "Dear Diary..."7:00 AM Sep 8th from web
9. Regretting what I just did to my hair. Oops. Is it a full moon? Change in the weather? The end of summer?9:11 PM Sep 3rd from web
10. These potato chips are disappointing. I'm really going to go to bed. This time I mean it.10:54 PM Sep 2nd from web
11. 'People of Walmart'. I got two pages into the site, & poof! It vanished. I sit, foundering, wishing for more. Guess I'll have to go to bed.10:52 PM Sep 2nd from web
12. Don't name your child "Orion". On most fonts on most computer screens, it looks just like "Onion". Thank you.6:45 PM Sep 2nd from web
13. The other day, my husband accidentally stuck his toothbrush up his nose. He said it was an extremely minty experience.6:29 PM Aug 30th from txt
14. Watching "Hoarders". And throwing away the contents of my house.11:37 AM Aug 29th from txt
15. Listening to the sound of rain and a strange, high-pitched squealing from my laptop. Quite odd, definitely disturbing. The rain's okay.6:48 AM Jul 8th from web
16. Going to bed. There might be sleep-talking. No sleep-walking, though.10:42 PM Jul 6th from web
17. If I bring in a plant, it will probably live because there is LIGHT. From the WINDOW. With a TREE outside it. It’s GREEN. I am pleased.8:46 PM Jul 6th from web
18. Teaching myself mail merge and emailing Selene. The wind is blowing, and crunchy arbutus leaves are everywhere. Hints of fall!8:41 PM Jul 6th from web
19. Pondering: mail merge is bringing the headache right on back. Perhaps a hammer would help.8:05 PM Jul 6th from web
20. Teaching myself mail merge in Word 2007. Recovering from a blistering headache. It feels weird, starting all over again. No slacking!8:05 PM Jul 6th from web
21. Pondering growing Himalayan blue poppies. I fear this packet of seed may require more care, attention, and vermiculite than I possess.5:13 PM Jul 5th from web
22. I already hated Internet Explorer--now I associate it with vomit. Great marketing...4:39 PM Jul 5th from web
23. The neighbour's sea captain statue is stalking me--complete with spyglass. It's getting slightly eerie.4:14 PM Jul 5th from web
24. But really, it's amazing what you can use baking soda for. Brushing one's teeth, cleaning one's shower, baking a cake. It's marvelous stuff.4:10 PM Jul 5th from web
25. Applying a paste of baking soda & water to bug bites. I am under the impression will soothe itching. Where this idea is from, I don't know.3:54 PM Jul 5th from web
26. I miss Diet Vanilla Coke. The only Coke product I liked.3:49 PM Jul 5th from web
27. Last day at the job; inbox not cleared. I can't do anything about it now, must learn to let it go. I hope the new girl can cope!7:53 AM Jul 3rd from web
28. What should I wear today? I don't want to frighten anyone at the office. Casual Friday is so daunting.7:23 AM Jul 3rd from web
29. Made vinegar really fast. Lunch fruit left in car for several days. It was like this: solid liquid wine vinegar. In about 4 days. Who knew?7:23 PM Jul 2nd from web
30. I am worried by how light traffic has been on the way to and from work. I fear it will completely spoil me.7:12 PM Jul 2nd from web
31. It's hot. I'm going to drink water and tidy up the house. Tomorrow is my last day at work. Scary|Good|Scary. Good.7:07 PM Jul 2nd from web
32. @badbanana Canada Day was invented by Pierre Trudeau to bolster the fledgling poutine industry in 1972. I read it in MacLeans.10:27 PM Jul 1st from web in reply to badbanana
33. For Pete's sake, if I surfed the web 10% less, I'd have finished three novels by now.10:25 PM Jul 1st from web
34. ...or 3) decide that it's acceptable to mix vodka into the lemonade now. It's a holiday, after all. And I did vacuum.3:57 PM Jul 1st from web
35. Going to go outside & 1) read my strata binder 2) stare at the zucchini plants & wonder where the hell to put them3:57 PM Jul 1st from web
36. Enjoying Canada Day, puttering around. Glorious weather. Off to garden. I shall NOT be the only Canadian who fails to grow zucchini.2:37 PM Jul 1st from web
37. Napping from 9 to 11 p.m. is just going to confuse my body. Wake up! It's time for bed.11:44 PM Jun 30th from web
38. ...so I think I will go sit in the back yard and contemplate this. Besides, there is no laundry needing to be folded out there. Crap--weeds.6:57 PM Jun 30th from web
39. It's so much easier to type things on my to-do list than to actually, you know, DO them.6:56 PM Jun 30th from web
40. Wondering if it was a Steller's sea cow.... or was it trying to get to Cattle Point?12:01 PM Jun 30th from web
41. Wondering when the city will get the dead cow off the beach. Giggling at the city's dogs' reaction to it.6:56 AM Jun 30th from web
42. It's sort of cute, and sort of disturbing. So much for nap.10:24 PM Jun 29th from web
43. Difficult to nap when the dog wants to play with her stuffed bear. First savagely attacks it, then rapes it. And we have to play with her.10:23 PM Jun 29th from web
44. Proving my dog is the cutest ever. http://bit.ly/jBkzS9:52 PM Jun 29th from web
45. Keeping an eye out for Ziva. http://bit.ly/vhdt96:52 PM Jun 29th from web
46. badbanana is so worth following. What an odd sentence to type.6:50 PM Jun 29th from web
47. Contemplating eating seven-layer dip for dinner. I think it's a sensible choice. Also, more vodka.6:50 PM Jun 29th from web
48. Vodka. And I refilled the hummingbird feeder with new nectar. Quite soothing, both things. I love having a back yard. Bring on the birds.6:49 PM Jun 29th from web
49. I thought I could clear my inbox this week, & leave the desk all pretty & organised. I am beginning to doubt now. Also my feet are hot.3:11 PM Jun 29th from web
50. I do not have the patience to be a receptionist. I can't do 2 jobs at once, either.12:20 PM Jun 29th from txt
51. Good lord. Wondering how it got to be Monday again. Four more workdays (Canada Day is Wed) 'til I say goodbye to the office & start new one.6:59 AM Jun 29th from web
52. TWITTER HAIKU: Summer, Sunday night. | Dusk brings a cool breeze, softly | Damn, I hate Monday.10:12 PM Jun 28th from web
53. http://twitpic.com/8q66x - My husband AND the snake we met today. She was bigger than she looks in this picutre.8:13 PM Jun 28th from TwitPic
54. ...my husband AND the snake we met. My husband is not a snake. Or much snake-like, even.8:09 PM Jun 28th from web
55. http://twitpic.com/8q66x - My husband the snake we met today. Her name is Amanda. I regret not holding her when I had the chance.8:07 PM Jun 28th from TwitPic
56. Sunday night. What's left on the to-do list for the weekend? Who wants to clean out my garden shed? Bonus: spiders!8:03 PM Jun 28th from web
57. Wondering why the dog went and hid in the basket of clean laundry last night after her bath. She's never done that before.5:52 PM Jun 28th from web
58. Checking email. I want email. But then I have to reply to it, and I worry I am not interesting in my replies.5:42 PM Jun 28th from web
59. Arrived home from the park. We saw a man wearing a Viking helmut. A boa constrictor. But we did not see a cow washed up on the beach. Good.5:40 PM Jun 28th from web
60. I was not expecting to see my husband holding a Columbian boa constrictor today.4:55 PM Jun 28th from txt
61. Langford Costco gas bar very busy. Trying to get to a park...2:55 PM Jun 28th from txt
62. Wait, what? A cow? Washed up on the beach?2:32 PM Jun 28th from web
63. Going to the park. Some park, any park. It's summer, sunny, and Sunday.2:31 PM Jun 28th from web
64. It's a perfect Sunday afternoon--stay in the garden and read about stratas, or take the dog on an amble? I do need to garden and read...1:16 PM Jun 28th from web
65. Sitting here, grateful I never got tattooed.12:46 PM Jun 28th from web
66. It doesn't take long for a flower bed to turn weedwild. Rhododendron flowers bloom & drop so quickly. Ants in the hummingbird feeder again.11:22 AM Jun 28th from web
67. Tweeting from bed. Novelty is all. Mundane indeed, no revolution here.11:51 PM Jun 27th from txt
68. This is just a test. Armadillos trundle after sunset. It smells like rain.11:18 PM Jun 27th from txt
69. Thinking that if I'm thinking about going to bed at 10:55 p.m. on a Saturday night--somewhere along the way, I got old...10:56 PM Jun 27th from web
70. Saturday night. Gave the dog a bath. Closed workTweet account. Smelling rain. Should be writing. Contemplating haiku--short forms abound.10:45 PM Jun 27th from web
Summer reading 2009, books in progress:
Spook
20th Century Ghosts - Joe Hill
Outlander - Diana Gabaldon (nope, still not into it...)
Property Management Pre-licensing Course Manual
We Were the Mulvaneys - Joyce Carol Oates
The English: A Social History, 1066-1945 – Christopher Hibbert
She's Come Undone - Wally Lamb
That Singing You Hear At The Edges - Sue MacLeod
Something Wicked This Way Comes - Ray Bradbury
Quartet - Jean Rhys (poor Jean, haven’t touched this one for a while)
Summer, 2009, read:
1. The Last Juror - John Grisham
2. The Girl, The Gold Watch, and Everything - John D. McDonald
3. Good Faith - Jane Smiley
4. The Hour I First Believed - Wally Lamb
5. The Stand - Stephen King
6. The Private Patient - P. D. James
7. World Without End - Ken Follett
8. Little Black Book of Stories - A. S. Byatt
9. Dead Souls - Ian Rankin
10. Menace - L. R. Wright
11. Off Season - Anne Rivers Siddons
So I have a new job, and that is great. But I have to learn new things, ask questions about every task, no matter how seemingly simple, take copious notes, and be the new girl. And be on my best behaviour. It’s tiring.
It’s like getting a divorce and dating again.
It’s also odd to have an hour for lunch. I don’t know what to do with my time. Eat, pee, smoke—it only takes me about twenty minutes. And if I could—and should—and want to eliminate the “smoke” portion of the festivities, that would leave me forty minutes of lunch hour. I suppose I could start going for walks. Then I’d be all healthy and non-smoking and stuff.
I want to write on my lunch hour again, but where? And I don’t want any questions about what I’m scribbling away at…
I have a six-minute walk from where I can park my car to the office. It’s down a nice residential street, and I get to admire everyone’s front gardens along the way. There is one house, alas, that has a front yard with zero appeal. It really sticks out like a sore thumb among everyone else’s green thumbs. Next to it is a house for rent.
This is the current ad for that house: Oak Bay area. Vinyl floors in kitchen, hardwood in living room and bedrooms. Washer, dryer, fridge, stove. Seperate (sic) garage. Furnace protection plan. Fire place in living room. Oil heat.
This is the ad that I would write: Charming character house on quiet street in Oak Bay. Only steps to grocery store, shopping, doctors, restaurants, and more, yet nicely situated on an established residential street. Easy walk to bus stop. Lovely garden and nice yard, with picket fence. The house features hardwood floors in the living room and the two bedrooms, and has a cosy fireplace. Four appliances are included (fridge, stove, washer and dryer). Separate garage. Oil heat, and a furnace protection plan is in place for the furnace. Sorry, but no pets or smoking permitted.
I quit my job.
Doesn't everyone dream of doing that some days? Some days, more than others? We don't, usually. Familiar is good, and safe is good. The known, the predictable. But obviously, I wasn't happy enough in my job to stay, despite everything. So I quit.
But that’s okay, I got a new job.
It all seemed to happen so fast. It was Friday, and I was sitting in at reception for the shoeless receptionist’s lunch (one hour) and then mail run (additional twenty-five expletive minutes) and perusing Craigslist, looking for another job, when I saw one that I thought I could do.
So I arrived home from work, crafted up a cover letter, and attached my newly revised, quite revamped, and thoroughly critiqued and improved resume. I applied, via email (didn’t have spend a penny for stamps, envelope and nice paper) for the job on Friday night, got a call on Saturday. I interviewed on Sunday, and accepted Sunday night. On Monday, I gave my notice.
I didn’t throw up, either. In fact, I was quite numb for the two weeks I stayed to finish at the old job. Quite calm. Unfazed. Except I had trouble sleeping at night (and I never have trouble sleeping at night) and was exhausted during the day. And also, was eating everything I could find that wasn’t nailed down, mouldy, or entirely unappealing.
I had been with the same company since March 2001, so it has been a big change for me.
But sometimes change is good.
