TGI(my)F

Yes, in my world it's Friday. No, I'm not in denial that it's only Thursday - I get Fridays off in July. Every weekend a three-day weekend. And this week has been exceptionally short since I took Monday off. Due to the overtime I put in working on the golf tournament, I ended up with an extra vacation day, which needed to be used by August 31, (vacation time re-sets September 1). And since I'm away the first two weeks of August, this week made the most sense. Boy, I love my job: lots of time off and I actually enjoy being at work too.

I've spent the last week or so, finalizing last minute trip details. Just to give you some background: last June Colin and I attended a timeshare presentation, with the guaranteed promise of a free trip to Vegas. So what's a few hours of our life for that. Nothing! Initially we were just going to take the few day trip, but since I have vacation time that needs to be used , we have extended our stay in Vegas, and are also hopping over to Southern California.

Anyways, about a month again the company booking our Vegas trip offered us an upgrade - that didn't appeal to us. Since we were already extending our trip, it made no sense to shell out the extra cash. We'll just stay in a cheap motel off the strip and move onto the strip for our final day/night, but then...

Last week we were offered a buy out: our taxes back, plus an extra $300USD. So we checked hotel rates and flights down - long story short, we took the buy out. It's probably costing the company more to send us to Vegas, since we didn't take the upgrade. They're most likely saving money by buying us out.

We are now leaving Vancouver at a reasonable hour - not 10 PM; and get to stay on the strip the entire time - the Tropicana.

So we'll be in Vegas for four days, planning to gamble (well, duh...); rent a car and check out Hoover Dam, and maybe a bit more of Arizona; catch Jerry Seinfeld at Cesar's Palace; and definitely enjoy the bright lights and nightlife.

Then we're hopping over to Orange County - visiting Disneyland, and possibly Knotts and/or Universal too...

In short, I can't wait.

Tomorrow I am going down to Tulalip, Washington with one (possibly two) of my co-workers, to check out the sweet shopping situation at the outlet mall there.

Happy Friday... Err, I mean Thursday...

Movies

Since I've seen an unfounded number of movies since the beginning of the summer movie season, I thought I'd post a list of what I've seen, and what I want to see.

So, within a span of 6 weeks I have seen:

Spiderman 3
Shrek 3
Pirates 3
Ocean's 13
Surf's Up
Knocked Up
Evan Almighty
Blades of Glory

I really should think about pitching a tent at Richmond Centre 6...

And what's coming up...
This week: Ratatouille and Sicko. Next week: Transformers. The week after that: Harry Potter. The end of July: The Simpsons.

And nothing to do with movies, but something I'm looking forward to seeing: it just so happens that Jerry Seinfeld is performing in Vegas the same time Colin and I are down there, so we bought tickets to go see him perform. I can't wait.

School's Out

Well it is for the students at least. But things are slowing down at work. Even though I have lots of summer projects there is a notable change in pace, Summer has definitely arrived.

Starting July I will only be working 4-day weeks until mid-August, thanks to long-weekends, a no-Friday July and vacation.

Right now our vacation consists of 3 days in Vegas at the beginning of August - it'll be nice and scorching hot - just the way I like it. I have been working on the details of a California trip, but now the Yukon and Okanagan have been thrown into the mix. I figure since we're in Nevada we may as well pop over to Cali for a week. That would be ideal for me. But Colin doesn't seem to be sold on time in Disneyland...

So that's my life right now - trying figure out our vacation. My dance classes are wrapping up at the end of the month (next week) until September. And then we only have a month before the October show - yikes. I will definitely have to practice over the summer.

Here's hoping the summer weather gets going. It's the end of June and I've only been able to sit outside 4 or 5 times. It's driving me nuts.

The Calm AFTER the Storm

Well my crazy week was techincally over Wednesday night - I worked about a 16-hour day, and made it home just before 11PM. Of course, I can never just go right to sleep, so I watched TV til about 1 AM.

Gotta love Murphy's Law: I told Colin that I wouldn't be able to go to the Police concert on Wednesday if he got tickets - well he got tickets. He didn't know that I knew the concert didn't start till 9PM, and that I would be at UBC till at least 10... So I missed out on that moment in pop culture... In the end I'm glad Colin was able to go because he had been on about it for months.

Today is my birthday. The last stop on the 20-something line. It's strange to think I will be 30 next year (even though that's what generally comes after 29). I remember when 30 seemed so old, and now, not so much. Anyways, it's only as old as you feel. And I don't feel old, at all.

And Yet Again...

I think you know how this blog entry starts... I can't believe it's be so long since I've last written; I can't believe how busy I've been, blah, blah, blah... But it's all true - especially the busy part. Busy at work, busy in life...

The last two weekends were spent in Whistler, making up for lost time, I suppose. The last time I made it up there was March '06. Last weekend Colin and I spent the May 2-4 at his parents' place. We decided to bring the cats up - and they loved it. Well, Wellington didn't enjoy the ride up, but he certainly enjoyed the rest of the weekend. They seemed pretty bummed to back in Vancouver, so I think we will have to take them back up again some time soon.

We just arrived back from our second Whistler trip a couple of hours ago... This time we went with Andrew and Lisa and stayed at their place. Some of their friends, whom we didn't know, also came up for the weekend. It was fun times, playing lots of board games, mini pool, and, of course, drinking.

With the CHS Golf Tournament coming up on Wednesday, I think this will be my craziest week yet. As much as I am enjoying working on this event, I'm glad it's almost over, and am looking forward to moving on to new projects, including my summer task list, which I think will take me till December.

Colin and I are off to Las Vegas August 1st. Not sure what other vacation plans lay ahead, but for now it's Sin City. I'm hoping to add the land of Sun and Surf to our visit, but I'm not doing the best job of convincing Colin...

It looks like I will be doing a Tahitian dance in the October show; I have also signed up to do a couple of Maori dances - good for the stomach, thigh, and back muscles!

I turn 29 this week. Yikes! The Vancouver Giants won the Memorial Cup! Yeah! I ate to much junk this weekend and now feel like crap... Yuck!

Faster than the Speed of Light

I think last week was the fastest yet. By the time Friday evening rolled around I swore it was only Wednesday afternoon. I have never been in a position/job that has been so busy, but I love it. And, if today is any indicator, the long weekend will be here before I know it.

And that is good and bad. Good, because as much as I love my job, I need a 3-day weekend, a chance to breath and slow down for 5 minutes. On the other hand, I have no clue what I'm doing - next weekend's set though - the somewhat annual May trip to Whistler.

This past weekend was a lot of fun. Friday night I felt like I was back in university: Colin and I headed out to a party, but not until 10 PM. We met up with Colin's fraternity brothers, and saw some faces we hadn't seen in years. We felt like we were back in the Sig house, hanging out in a crowded stairwell, drinks in hand... it was great.

On Saturday we saw Blades of Glory. It was actually really funny. The best Will Ferrell comedy since Old School.

Salmon & Prawns vs. Book Club

Before heading over to the North Shore this evening for Book Club, I decided to drop in and visit a bit more with my rellies from England.

My parents are hosting a family dinner this evening, but I decided to pass since I loved this month's book choice (The Birth House by Ami McKay), and was looking forward to discussing it.

Of course, the second I walked in the house I eyed the salmon, prawns, Grandpa's homemade eclairs, and the giant, succulent California strawberries... Dilemma!

In the end, I have decided to stay. So now I am just waiting for the green light to dive into the big, juicy prawns...

I Haven't Fallen Off the Face of the Earth...

Wow, it has been a long time since I wrote my last blog entry. But that is my life lately - busy, busy, busy. For the last three weeks I have woken up Monday morning, and then, before I know it, it's already Friday afternoon. Apart from quickly checking emails and Facebook, I haven't spent much time on the computer at all. In fact, I think this is the first time in a couple of weeks that I've actually spent any time on it.

Last week was interesting - in the same day I found out that I owe the government money (first time ever), but Colin got a whopping refund, so it isn't that bad; and I got summoned for jury duty.

I was at a job for two years that I despised, and would have given anything to miss a day of work. Now that I'm at a job I absolutely love, I get summoned. The worst thing about this summons is the timing - it is the day before a major event in which I am one of the main planners. And anyone who has ever planned an event knows the day before the event is just as crazy and important as the actual event day. I don't have too many options though: I talked to the Sheriff and he told me to write a mushy, heartfelt letter as to why missing work on those days would affect me. Now I have to wait and see and hope my letter moves them enough that I get out of jury duty.

Tuesday was a much better day: I went to my first (and sadly last) Canucks game this season. I had a blast, even though we gave up a 2-0 lead. So frustrating. We were sitting beside a couple from Medicine Hat, who were extremely good friends of the Lindens. After talking with them though, we both got the feeling that they actually were the Lindens...

I didn't watch the game on Thursday: I figured if they won our Saturday night would be planned; and if they didn't win I wanted Tuesday night to be my last memory of the season. Plus I had my dance class that night, and I only have 8 weeks left till we break for summer, and have a show the first weekend of October, so I need all the practice I can get. I'm glad I went. Everyone was in a giggly mood, and we worked on our Tahitian dance, so I got an extremely good workout.

On Friday evening I went out for coffee with Lisa, Andrew, Darcy, Tina, Jen Wong, and Warren. And last night Colin did our usual movie and sushi night. We saw Spiderman 3. It was pretty good, but maybe too many villains for one movie. I thought Thomas Haden Church was awesome as the Sandman. But I've always been a fan of his, back to his days on Wings.

This morning I went out for brunch with family visiting from England. And tonight I'm off to Book Club.

Where in the World...

Check out the places I've visited - idea stolen from Lisa's blog...



create your own visited country map
or check our Venice travel guide




create your own personalized map of Canada
or check out ourVancouver travel guide



create your own personalized map of the USA
or check out ourCalifornia travel guide

Four for Four

At the beginning of round one I said the Canucks would win in 6. I then went on to offer my predictions for each game: and so far I've been right each time. And no, I'm not typing this after the fact, I do have witnesses to my predictions.

So, I had a feeling the Nucks would win the first, loose the second, and take both games 3 and 4 in the Big D. But this is where I hope I'm wrong: Canucks are going to loose tomorrow evening, and wrap up the series on Saturday night, back in Dallas.

Obviously I hope I'm wrong because, like every other Canucks fan, I want Vancouver to win tomorrow, taking the series on home ice. Of course the Canucks never do anything the easy way, do they.

A Good Mix of Business and Laziness

Well, this weekend was a lot less hectic, and very enjoyable. I was exhausted after work on Friday and was quite content to stay in with Colin and watch the game at home.

I tried my best to sleep in Saturday morning, but Wellington would have none of that. I did some housework and read a lot of my book: The Birth House by Ami McKay. I absolutely love this novel, and I highly recommend it. It reminds me of Fall On Your Knees by Anne Marie MacDonald, another wonderful read.

Saturday evening Colin and I went over to Lisa and Andrew's for Die's good-bye party. Sad thing was we were the last to leave, and were home by 11:30 PM!. I think everyone had a long, exhausting week, and Friday night and Saturday day weren't enough to recover.

Today Colin and I went to the Superstore. I don't think I've ever seen it so busy. It was somewhat stressful trying to get around. Navigating my cart was a real challenge.

Afterwards we went to Ken's (Chris and Lica's son) second birthday party. It's hard going to a two year old's birthday when you are virtually the only guests with no offspring. We stuck around for a bit, and caught up with Dave Stroud and Dustin, the only other kidless guests.

Andrew and Jen came over for dinner and to watch the hockey game. That game was a great finish to the weekend.

A Busy, Busy Weekend...

And it isn't quite over yet. But I am wondering how much can really happen over the next 10 hours, or so.

As of Thursday, at 4:30 PM, my weekend looked like this: Spend Friday hanging out with Chantal; Saturday night with Colin; Easter dinner at my Parents'; Monday night hanging out with Colin...

This is what my weekend turned into: Thalia called me after work on Thursday, so we went out for dinner and rented a movie.

I had a relatively lazy Friday morning, and then spent the afternoon with Chantal. My Friday night was quiet.

Saturday day I ended up on the set of Schism, my brother's movie he's shooting for his final project for his film program at BCIT. It was quite a fun and interesting experience. Saturday night Colin and I hung out, had some dinner, and watched Sideways, for the third time. I love that movie.

Gavin called us Saturday night, inviting us over for Easter Brunch. So Sunday morning we headed over to Jess and Gavin's. enjoyed a tasty Easter breakfast, an Easter egg, then grabbed the basketball and the dog, and walked down to Kits Beach. Unfortunately there no hoops up, so we just sat around, chatted, and enjoyed the Spring view. After that Colin and I rushed home, caught the end of the Canucks game - it was strange watching a game that really had no bearing on anything -, fixed ourselves up, and headed over to my parents for Easter dinner.

This morning I rolled out of bed at 8am to be back on set. I am acting as a stand in today... And that's what I'm doing currently...

My Visual DNA

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When Life is Putting Me Down... I need to get the hell out of Downtown...

Here I am again with not that much to say. Work has been very busy, very insane; but the good kind of busy and insane that you get a rush from. Other than that, life has generally been quiet.
On Tuesday I went out to dinner with my ex-manager. One of the [very] few good things about PB. Last night Thalia and I went to Kerrisdale for a sushi dinner and then rented Stranger Than Fiction. An enjoyable flick; I recommend it.

Today truly was a good Friday: I had a lazy morning. I woke up several times between 6:30 and 9:30. By 9:30 I realized I wasn't going back to sleep so I lay in bed reading - I finished Shopaholic Ties the Knot. Now I have only three books on the go: Children of Men; The Birth House; and Enemy Women.

I headed downtown around 1PM for lunch, and a mani/pedi with Chantal. We enjoyed one of the first gorgeous days of the year by walking around Yaletown and along the waterfront. I felt a little out of sorts among all the trendy, beautiful people, and was happy to return to the other side of False Creek... whatever that means...

When I got home I was feeling somewhat agitated. And when I feel agitated, I clean. I decided to do the laundry, including washing the duvet and pillow shams; put away clean laundry; do the dishes; and clean the bathroom, including scrubbing the tile grout with bleach and a toothbrush... man I was in a pissy mood...

Hmm...

Well, after a week off for Spring Break it was back to work Monday. To be honest, I have been feeling disoriented this week: I had just got back into work mode, and then came a week holiday. Now, I am not complaining about my week off, but I was just getting into the swing of things, and now I feel like I'm back to square one, and on top of that, I've been super tired this week, so I'm glad tomorrow is Friday.

I finally met my newborn niece - well she's actually nine weeks old now, but is very adorable. And I hadn't seen my nephew since Christmas - I can't believe how much he's changed. He can carry on with a conversation, and was talking a mile a minute last night.

I have found a new addiction: facebook. I keep thinking that it's starting to get old, then I unearth someone (or someone finds me) whom I haven't seen/talked to in ages. And I quite accidentally stumbled across a group for my Polynesian dance group... which is where I am heading now.

Aloha.
Why life is good: Canucks clinched a playoff spot; it hasn't rained in a couple of days; tomorrow is Friday.

The Vancouver Canucks

Throughout the season I have written snippets here and there regarding the Canucks, but I haven't offered an overall opinion on this season, and since it's almost over, it's probably about time.

First, my rant: If there is one thing I cannot stand it's a Canucks fan (myself excluded, of course), let me explain. We must be the whinniest, pessimistic, negative bunch of fans in the entire league. Why do I say that? Well, for starters, the Canucks are the winningest team (in the NHL) since Christmas; Bobby Lou set a new Canuck record, and currently holds the most Goalie wins this season; we are currently first in our division, third in the Western Conference, and fifth overall - winning the President's Trophy could actually happen; yet the fans (and the media, who are worse than the fans) complain. For example, Naslund hasn't been scoring. Who really gives a (rhymes with Canuck) if Naslund hasn't been scoring, everyone else has.

At the beginning of the season we Canucks fans were treading into unfamiliar territory, with half the team dispended and new faces in line-up. We hoped, on an outside chance, we would make the playoffs... short of winning the Stanley Cup I don't think we could have asked for a better season. And I still can't believe we actually have an all-star goalie...

So, it's time (dare I say) to dust off the car flags; mine have some rust or something nasty on them - they have been sitting in the trunk of my car since April 2004...

So quit yer whinning and complaning and get ready for some post-season partying...

Say goodbye to the boo-birds and hello to the Lou-birds...

Spring Break

Now this is something I can get used, Spring Break in the working world. However, I am finding it very hard to just kick back and relax today. I feel guilty, like I'm playing hooky. But, that's not the case. The school is closed, and I have a week off, paid.

I have some things I need to do around the house, so I will try to use my Spring Break to do a Spring Clean. I just picked a copy (book) of How Clean is Your House... I now have Kim and Aggie in my house 24-7, inspiring me to use their tricks for a good, deep clean.

But, I plan to relax too: Sleep in. Watch some daytime TV (not soaps). Go on a much needed, and longed shopping spree.

I didn't really do too much for St. Paddy's Day. Actually, that's not true, I just didn't do a lot of Irish stuff, except wear green (even though the national colour of Ireland is blue, and my in-laws are Orangemen)... March 17th is also Delta Phi Epsilon's Founders' Day.

This year we celebrated 90 years of sisterhood. Every year the Vancouver alumnae association gets together and celebrates with a Founders' Day tea - this year at the Wedgewood. It was scrumptious.

Later that evening Colin and I went to his parents to watch the Canucks shellac the Red Wings, and after went over to the cinema at Richmond Centre to see Premonition; all in all it was a pretty good flick.

Dated

Today, for the first time in my life, I felt dated, even old. This was all thanks to a coversation about Flavor Flav. Let me explain.

After a good workout at Curves, I made the long trek across the street to my tanning salon... shit, just gave away my secret... anyways, while waiting for a bed I was chatting with the receptionist. She couldn't have been much older than 20. In the background, the salon's tv was tuned into The Flavor of Love... the receptionist said I could change the channel if I wanted too. I said I didn't really mind one way or the other.

She then asked me wasn't Flavor Flav in some group a long time ago, and what's up with the clock? Bam! It's like time stood still. For the first time I realized the pop culture I grew up with was becoming unfamiliar territory to those younger than me.

Once I was over the split second shock, I explained to her that Flavor Flav was a part of Public Enemy - again another blank look. And the clock, well that was his thing. Lots of guys, even some girls wore huge, chunky things around their neck backs then. Again, a blank stare.

I don't usually feel old, or mature for that matter, even as I stare down the barrel of the gun to 29. And I live by the age old adage, you are only as old as you feel. But sometimes there are strange reminders out there that you aren't as young as you used to be, no matter how young you look or feel.

WTF?

Why? Why? Why? Why did I wake up this morning to find Vancouver covered in snow? Haven't we been punished enough already with this relentless winter? It's March, time for Spring.

The only positive thing about today's snowfall: my commute was less than ten minutes - it usually takes twenty. I guess all the UBC students decided to stay home today, leaving SW Marine [mostly] to myself.

Back to the Grind

Well after a couple of months off I'm back to work, and back at Crofton. When I graduated 10 years ago, I never really thought I'd go back, especially in a work capacity. But now I find myself working in the Advancement Office as the Events Coordinator, Young Alumnae Relations Officer and Administrative Assistant. Yes, that is my title, believe it or not.

It certainly is interesting returning to CHS, but enough has changed that it doesn't feel too weird. And I don't know if it's because my work situation at Planet Bingo was so horrendous, but working at Crofton is a dream. Granted it's only been two days, but I don't feel like I'm at work. I don't really look at the clock. And everyone is so friendly and welcoming. And I'm having fun.

I hope I have hit the nail on the head with this one.