Christmas Lights Shenanigans

The work day flew by and it's about to get very busy 'round the office as the re-newals and re-hires for January begin. Which is good. Being busy makes the day go by faster.

I'm very happy because I got to pick up my new glasses tonight. YAY! Both pairs are great but the one pair is just awesome. They look great on me and I'm thrilled. The fact that I can see better is awesome too. Like right now. This means my eyes won't be so tired which hopefully will mean that I won't be as tired either.

So I had a fun evening tonight. It started with Stephanee asking me yesterday "Do you want to drive around and see some Christmas lights". I decided that sounded good so off we went this evening. Before she left to pick me up, Steph said "I'm just printing off the maps". Awesome. She gets here and as we're heading out to grab my glasses, she says "I printed off the maps, highlighted the maps...and then forgot the maps at home". LOL.

You know what that means. That's right. It's the "Steph and Sarah drive quasi aimlessly through suburbia" show!!!!!

First stop: Taffy Lane in Orleans. Since this street is almost bright enough to see from space, it shouldn't have been too hard to find. Not quite. There is quite the lack of street signs in Orleans. We ended up pulling into a parking lot and reading the map. Turns out, we were about 8 blocks from our destination. Awesome. Away we went. The street was awesome! Steph got the bright idea to get out and walk along the street, which made taking photos better but it's also -11 out, without the windchill. We did half the street before giving up and returning to the warmth of the car. Ahhhh. We drove the rest of the street and one of the other little side streets and then it was off to our next destination.

Here's some of the lights from Taffy Lane:

Barrhaven, in the opposite end of the city from Orleans. Our landmarks this time? One location is "Off Woodroff, then off Tierry". Found this one by accident. After driving around and aimlessly for a bit, we're driving a long a crescent and Steph asks "turn left or keep going". I voted for "keep going" which worked out well as street #2 was on the right around the bend. It was a cute little street. Not as well lit up as Taffy Lane, but still nice.

Ok, onto stop #3 with the directions of "There's a Tim Horton's on the corner". Seriously!??!? After going the wrong way at the Tim's and driving past the same park 3 times, Steph decides to try the other side of the Tim's and we hit gold. We found the house. It's one where the lights are set to music and the home owner broadcasts the music on a low frequency so that you can hear the music through your car radio. It was pretty darn cool and well worth the risk of getting lost in Suburbian hell. LOL.

I'm pretty sure we're the only ones who can turn looking at Christmas lights into an adventure. But it sure was fun :)

Good Night!

Sarah

"It's Not That Quiet In My Head"

Did you know that today's date is a palindrome? It's the same forwards and backwards: 2.10.2012. Kind of cool eh?

My mind if all over the place tonight and I'm on the restless side. There's a million things on my mind. And I can't articulate any of them. A line from Finger Eleven's song "Whatever Doesn't Kill Me" springs to mind. It says:

"Don't mistake the silences
There's so much I haven't said
It's not that quiet in my head
But I can't even tell you that"

Yeah. That's how I feel. As a direct result, I've been quieter and introverted and neither is overly normal for me. People are starting to notice. Which I don't like. Because then they ask questions and then I have to plaster on a fake smile and pretend that all is right with my world and so forth. And trust me, faking it is exhausting. It's mentally draining. It's not that any one thing is wrong, it's just that I have a lot of things that I'm thinking about right now. Some good. Some bad. Some are downright insane but they're there for entertainment's sake. I just need to process.

I had a bit of a depressing lunch break today too so that didn't help. Everyone was talking about their plans for the long weekend, since it's Thanksgiving here on Monday. My plans for this weekend....clean my apartment, do laundry and fix my fall wreath so I can hang it on my door. That's. it. Oh and I have to decide if I want to do a roast chicken or a roast beef or a ham for my dinner on Monday. Metro has prime rib on sale this week so that might just be an option. I'm used to going it alone for Thanksgiving. It really is no big deal. I've been doing it for 15 years. And I did get to go home last year and went to the fall fair with my parents, which was awesome. We got slightly sun burnt watching the heavy horse show. How insane is that?

But yes, I'm back on my own this year, which really is fine. Like I said, I'm used to it. I've adapted. Developed my own traditions (which reminds me, I need to pick up some wine....). I just hit a little low today listening to everyone else. I think I was just jealous that they have something to be excited about and I don't. That's all. Do I miss my family? Of course I do. But just because I'm not there with them in person, doesn't mean that they're not with me. Took me several years on my own to figure that one out. I'm glad I did.

I think it's time to give my mind a break. After all, I have french in the morning. I can't begin to tell you how thrilled I am about that one. Le sigh.

Good Night!

Sarah

Horses at the Rockton Fall Fair last year.