Sunday, November 30 @ 9:26 PM
I need more walls ]So ... I bought another painting last night at the art auction.
And this morning as I admired at my painting, I realized that my mother was coming over and I didn't want her to know about the art auction or the painting because every time I do she says "I guess you should stop going to art auctions so you don't buy any more paintings" and .. well, I don't want to stop. So since I haven't gotten around to putting any of my other paintings up yet (a.k.a I haven't "unpacked" yet
So it all seemed good, my mother arrived, we chatted, she admired my red walls and I successfully avoided the real reason why I slept in until noon (We didn't get back from the auction until 2:30). I left my mother alone for thirty seconds in my living room so I could brush my teeth and returned to find her leafing through the paintings. In a matter of seconds she found the new one and pulled it out. At which point I knew I was busted, so through a mouthful of toothpaste I told her about the auction and the painting and how my friends had put a request on it for me (yay friends!) and how it was now mine and how I loved it.
And her response was ..
"I guess you should stop going to art auctions so you don't buy any more paintings."
*It amuses me greatly that Brad, who moved into his new place only three weeks ago, actually is completely unpacked, with pictures up and everything, while I, who moved into my "new" place five months ago only got my shelves put up a week ago and have hung less than 1/3 of my pictures. At least he practices what he preaches.
@ 8:59 PM
cute ]I can't say that this lines up with my view of men, but it did make me laugh:
"For all those men who believe that there's no reason to buy the cow when you can get the milk free, nowadays 80% of women are against marriage, as they have wised up to the fact that for 8 oz. of sausage it's not worth buying the entire pig."
[Borrowed from halfwitted]
Saturday, November 29 @ 12:19 PM
tracy almighty ]Where do all these crazy people come from?!?
I just had a very weird encounter. I was coming around the corner of a building, looking for a parking spot when I see this car start pulling through a parking spot. Thinking that she was leaving, (and that once she was gone I would have a nice pull-through parking spot) I stopped and gave the universal little "go ahead" wave. After a few seconds, she pulled ahead and I pulled through into the spot that had been behind her. I parked my car, got out and started walking to the store when I heard this voice behind me.
"EXCUSE ME, I WAS GOING TO PARK THERE."
I turned around to see the same woman in her car.
"You were going to park ... here?" (pointing to my car)
"NO. I WAS GOING TO PARK WHERE I WAS."
Dumbfounded, all I could think of to say was "Sorry."
Completely puzzled, I continued on my way to the store thinking, If you were going to stay there, why did you move? After much thought, the only conclusion I can possibly think of is that somehow she took my little "Go ahead" gesture as a "GET OUT OF MY WAY!" gesture. But even still, I'm not a very imposing person, and I was in my car, quite a bit back from her, so I don't think I could have come across as aggressive in that sense. I just can't figure out why she thought I would be "forcing" her out of the spot or why she would move. A simple, "turn off the car and get out" would have easily signaled to me that she was parking, and not leaving.
I had no idea I had so much power.
My only comfort is that as I was walking into the store, a man who had seen the whole thing gave me a sympathetic smile, and a shrug of the shoulders, confirming that it wasn't just me who thought the whole thing was a little odd.
People are strange.
Wednesday, November 26 @ 4:16 PM
TFM ]I'm sure you are all aware of the acronym RTFM.
Well, as part of our new responsibilities we have to create these monstrous guides that are somewhat of a pain to maintain and full of all sorts of the jargon that we normally go out of our way to purposefully avoid in our documentation. But it's a requirement, so we do it, but we're not overly happy about it.
Today, I realized the acronym for the guide is TFM. How apropos.
Sunday, November 23 @ 9:10 PM
i get drunk quickly these days ]Today started out as one of those days ...
I accidentally turned off my alarm clock when I got up to feed the cats this morning, so I was an hour late getting to my mom's house and two hours late getting to my brother's place. By then he was hungry so we stopped off and got lunch before hopping on the streetcar to go down to the National Trade Centre for the Gourmet Food and Wine Expo ...
... which, not so conveniently, wasn't actually at the National Trade Centre, but was instead at the Metro Toronto Convention Centre, a fact that took us a while to determine since we only knew where it wasn't, not where it was and no-one seemed to be answering their phones today.
We finally found the phone number for the MTCC and confirmed that we did want to be there instead of where we were, but streetcars don't run to the Ex as often in the winter, so we had a little bit of a wait before we could hop on a streetcar back to the MTCC and the Wine and Food Expo.
Which was very fun BTW. Lots of wines from around the world, along with a few vendors of beers and spirits. Food was a little expensive so we skipped that part of it and used all our tickets on alcohol.
Then we pretty much had to go out for dinner because there was no way I could have driven home at that point. ;)
So while the day started as one of those days, it ended as one of those days.
Saturday, November 22 @ 12:58 PM
halfway there ]I now have a wireless card in my loverly little laptop, but am missing the access point to make the experience complete. And since a little birdie told me that the computer systems of both Best Buy and Future Shop are kaput this afternoon, I have to wait until tomorrow to get my newest toy.
Friday, November 21 @ 9:34 PM
they deserved each other ]I think I just met the stupidest mouse in the world, which is saying alot considering we are talking about a mouse.
As I walked up to the door to my apartment building, I saw one of the neighbourhood cats sitting on the sidewalk, so I decided to take a short detour to say hello. As I got closer I realized it was intently watching something on the sidewalk in front of it, and as I got even closer I realized that, yes, it was a mouse. But it was quite alive and quite unharmed, and the cat was pretty much just watching it. As I stepped closer however, the mouse decided it was time to make a break for it and started to scuttle along the sidewalk, cat in tow.
I caught up to the two of them and picked up the cat so the mouse could make its escape, and what does it do? It stops. The mouse just sits there as the cat tries to wriggle out of my arms. So I blew on the mouse and it continued for another few inches and then stopped again. I bent down to hurry it along a bit more, and had to put the cat back on the ground, but (being a cat) it was distracted by the fact that I was scratching its head, so the mouse was still safe.
And what does the mouse do? It turns around and walks right back under the cat's feet thereby attracting the cat's attention again. The cat only made a feeble attempt at actually catching the mouse, opting instead to just watch it and swat near it every once in a while.
This was repeated two of three more times (me holding the cat and trying to get the mouse to run - without actually touching the mouse 'cause you know how germy they are - and the mouse just turning around and scurrying right back into the cat's grasp) before I finally gave up and bid them good riddance - the mouse for being so dumb, and the cat for not knowing what to do with a mouse when it is under its paws.
Thursday, November 20 @ 7:14 AM
it makes perfect sense ]While trying to figure out the bizarre behaviour of my fish, I came across this "informative" site: The Zebra Danio and its escape response. Who knew that pets could be so very educational?
Tuesday, November 18 @ 7:45 PM
refreshed ]I got inspired by the picture I took at the cottage and decided it was about time to refresh the look of the site a little. Logan was good to me, but she's been up there for a while, and you know how I am with change ;)
Monday, November 17 @ 7:38 PM
soon he may actually be squishy ]Barely an hour has passed and already I have had to fish him out of the filter again.
I think my fish must think it is a salmon. Either that, or the thing keeps getting sucked up by the filter and therefore is freakin' lucky.
(I'm assuming it's the same one because, really, what are the chances of me having two fish that swim into filters?!?)
@ 6:30 PM
and then there was one ... and then two again ]
I shall call him Nemo, and he shall be mine, and he shall be my Nemo.
I came home to find only one of my newest additions swimming in the tank, where before there had been two. And, again, there was a lack of a body, even after a thorough cleaning of the tank, leading me to suspect that I might indeed have a carnivorous fish on the loose.
And to think, if I hadn't cleaned my filter (I was lazy and didn't want to but thought I really should) I never would have found him swimming happily in the filter.
First kittens that like to go in fridges, now fish that like to go in filters ...
@ 7:41 AM
double-boat garage ]Weekends are much, much too short.
We went up to Brad's uncle's cottage this weekend, and although the cottage really was gorgeous, I wish that I had be able to spend more than twenty-four hours there. And that it was warmer. The cottage was right on the water, there were various canoes and other water craft to try out, and the leaves would haveg been gorgeous had they not been covered in a light layer of snow.
So instead, I have decided that tonight will be my "weekend". As soon as I get home, I'm going to change into my comfy clothes, throw up my feet and do absolutely jack-all.
@ 7:30 AM
guess it's finally my turn to address it ]Blogger responds to the whole "Mom Finds Out About Blog" article that has been linked to ad nauseam for the past few days.
My mom found my weblog years ago, but just didn't get into it. The only time she seems to really be interested is when she does something I think is funny - she knows I'll post it, so she wants to make sure I get it "right".
Friday, November 14 @ 7:55 PM
APW ]I try to write the kinds of stories that draw a picture in your mind, but I've always loved the kind of photographs that speak to you without words. A Picture's Worth goes for the best of both worlds.
Check it out. Make a submission.
You know you wanna.
Thursday, November 13 @ 7:16 AM
not ready for it yet ]Ah, the first snowfall of the season. The wind is howling, the trees are swaying, there's a wind warning in effect and my lights don't seem to want to stay bright.
When's spring coming again?
Wednesday, November 12 @ 7:25 AM
McJob ]It seems that Merriam-Websters current word is McJob. And McDonalds is not happy.
McJob defined as a `slap in the face
Thursday, November 6 @ 4:45 PM
what can you do with a drunken sailor ]The stupidity of some people astounds me. Read the listing, then read the rest of this post. It won't take you long.
Done? Okay. The listing itself is very amusing and almost worth a glance on it's own but it is the winning bidder that really cracks me up. You see, the winning bidder actually submitted a complaint because *FIVE* of the beanies were ... wait for it ... FAKES. And therefore, the seller was a LIAR and is a FEDERAL CRIMINAL.
Aparently she missed when he said "Final Notice and Disclaimer: I know nothing about these stuffed Beanie Babies. I offer no proof of anything." or "Thus no gauruntees!" (which despite the bad spelling is obvious) or "I make no claims on value" or any of his other statements that said he knew nuttin' about them, didn't want to know nuttin' about them and, in summary, didn't give a rat's a** about them.
Tuesday, November 4 @ 7:33 PM
doublespeak ]I find it ironic that several of the questions asked during the Waterloo mayoral debate were about the RIM Park fiasco, when the debate itself is taking place in the RIM Park complex. People are using the exact thing they are against to voice their displeasure about it.
I will be the first to admit that the city messed up in regards to RIM Park. They didn't read the fine print and the taxpayers are ... well, paying for it.
But it is far from the disaster that some people paint it as. It is regularly used for sports, for job fairs, for community events and for events such as the mayoral debates for Waterloo and Kitchener. The one huge drawback that I saw at the beginning was that it was inaccessible to anyone who did not have a car, but they have recently expanded the bus system to that area, so I can't really complain anymore about that.
I'm not saying I would blindly re-elect anyone who was associated with the decision to build RIM Park, but at the same time, I think that maybe it's time to find a new thing to gripe about.
@ 6:20 PM
the book was better ]So my Nuc Med test wasn't nearly as interesting as I thought it would be:
- First of all, the machine makes absolutely no noise at all, so you can't really even tell if it is working or not. A little whirring would have gone a long way in creating the right ambiance.
- Second, there was no gown, just my regular clothes that I walked in wearing. If you are in a hospital, you should look the part.
- Third, you have to lie still for several minutes while the image is being taken, with nothing to look at except some safety caution sticker on the bottom of the machine. This for a machine that you can't even guarantee is working (see point #1)
- Finally, even though I asked really nicely, she wouldn't let me see any of my images!
In summary, definitely not worth the $8 admission price.
All in all, I think I'll have to give this one two stars. I could be a little tougher on it, but they did inject me with radioactive dye, so I have to give them points for that. Even if I didn't glow.
Side note: My coworker actually turned off the lights in the meeting room today to see if I would glow.
@ 5:31 PM
crunch ]I'm convinced that one of my fish ate another one of my fish, because I used to have three of them and now I only have two and I can't for the life of me find the fish body, even after two days, a tank cleaning and a whole lotta lookin.
I was somewhat expecting my lastest three fish to be thinned out, since they are much smaller than the other fish right now and I don't have the most docile of fish to begin with. I just wasn't expecting any of them to disappear completely. Deaths I can handle, disappearances bring back very bad memories of the last time I couldn't find one of my fish (paragraph at the bottom of the post).
Monday, November 3 @ 5:44 PM
very disappointed indeed ]I am very very disappointed right now.
I had to get a test done today and the form said not to eat or drink anything four hours before the exam. Not really a problem, I just had to eat lunch a little early. But of course because today is the first day of work after Halloween, everybody brought in their excess candy and left it on our common table to consume. But they brought it out after I had already passed the four hour mark! (Am I the only one who thinks chocolate in the morning is okay?) So there I was, surrounded by candy, but unable to eat it.
Only it turns out that this hospital has no such "four hour rule", a fact I only found out when I showed up for my test! So I was in fact depriving myself for nothing.