It's A Wonderful Life

So I'm thinking that the Christmas spirit might have found me.

After a very productive morning, I braved the cold to do some more Christmas shopping. And it was fucking cold out. Still is. It was the stupid wind. Cut right through you. It was so bad that when I topped at Mark's to look for a gift, I ended up buying myself new, warm mittens because my gloves weren't keeping my hands warm enough.

Anyhow, I was in Canadian Tire and I took a tour though the Christmas decoration section. It was so beautiful. Shiney and sparklie and it made me smile. I also caught myself humming "It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas" as I wandered the isles. They have some pretty cool lights now. I have to admit that I'm still not a fan of the LED lights. The old school ones are prettier and the colours are better but some of the new ones are interesting and fun.

After Canadian Tire, I bought a wonderful fruitcake from the Lions Club. It's a dark one. My favourite. My mother is quite the fan of fruitcake too, so maybe I'll see if I can hold off eating it and just take it home with me at Christmas and share it with her.

Now I'm at home, resting and relaxing and watching "It's a Wonderful Life". The original one, in black and white. I'd forgotten how long this movie is though. But it means that I must be getting in the Christmas spirit. I'm even thinking about decorating. I didn't put up my tree last year. Didn't really decorate either. I got to visit my family at Christmas so I figure that I don't need a tree here. But I think I might put mine up for me this year. We'll see.

Back to the movie for a minute. Watching this old movie reminded me of a family friend, Mr. B. Today was a very special day for him. He turned 100 years old today. Amazing. Simply amazing. I can only imagine all the things he's seen and experienced over the last century. He lived through 2 world wars (and fought in the 2nd one), lived through the great depression and the cold war. He saw the development of cars, television and computers, not to mention cell phones and the internet. I can't fathom it. All the people he's met, all the memories he's made. It just blows my mind. I wish him nothing but the best and I hope he has many more happy and healthy years ahead of him.

I'm going to sign off and go and see if George Bailey can sort things out and see if Clarence can get his wings.

Good Night!

Sarah

Christmas at home 2 years ago.

You Know It's Friday When...

I'm sure we're all guilty of it. You're tired or distracted and get into an elevator and then you stare blankly at the buttons, trying to remember why you're in there and where you're going.

This afternoon, when I pushed the elevator button, 2 elevators showed up at once, which is really rare. So I opted to get into the one that had less people in it. In fact, it just had one woman in it. I looked at the buttons to select my floor, and realized that none of them were lit up. So I looked at the women. She was totally oblivious, reading her phone. Ok then.

I hit my floor and away we went. I got off the elevator on my floor and the woman started to follow me, then she looked up and said "Is this the ground floor". Gee lady, what the hell do you think. I was already around the corner and half way down the hall by now, trying not to laugh out loud. I heard her mumble something that sounded a lot like "damn". LOL. I know. It was a Friday afternoon. It's been a long week and a long day so it's understandable. But geez people, try to pay a little bit of attention when you're in public.

Thankfully there weren't any strange people on the bus tonight. However, when I was buying my bus pass at the ticket place this evening, so guy butted infront of the lady in the next line to ask the ticket agent where the nearest Home Depot is. Huh? Why are you asking a bus ticket counter agent where the Home Depot is? Also, why was it so important that you had to jump the line to ask. And guess what? There isn't a Home Depot anywhere in the area so he was was shit out of luck.

Good Night!

Sarah

Part of the "ruins" at the McKenzie King Estate in Gatineau Park

Bus Adventures, Part 1

I take the bus a lot. In fact, I take it a minimum of 10 times a week (twice a day, Monday-Friday). For the most part, the ride is rather uneventful. And if you take the bus a lot, you get used to seeing certain people. Like the woman who's on my bus in the morning quite frequently. She's almost always chewing gum...with her mouth open. Always.

Anyhow, the ride is usually pretty un-eventful but every now and then, you get a unique character on the bus. That happened on the ride home this evening and unfortunately, it happened to me.

Near the back door of the accordion buses, there is a 3 bench seat. Each of the 3 seats is segmented off so it's clear that there are 3 seats. I was sitting by myself in the seat on the left. About 3 stops after mine, a man gets on and comes and sits beside me. Rather than sitting in the far right seat, he sits in the middle of the 2 unoccupied seats, which means that he's actually sitting on the metal part rather than the seat. Ok, whatever. As the bus starts to move and hits bumps and stuff, the man keeps falling over and of course, he keeps falling towards me. I try to ignore him.

I'm listening to my iPod and had just finished sending an email on my phone so I was now just going through my in-box when the man leans over, looks at me, then my phone and says "What's the temperature out?". Thankfully, my iPod was on low enough that I actually heard him. I look up and just say "I have no idea" and then go back to reading my emails. He thinks about my answer for about 45seconds then looks at me again and said "Sorry. I guess I shouldn't have asked."

What?? He didn't say it in a rude or sarcastic tone or anything so I really have no idea where he was going with that. I just replied with "no problem." I think pulled out my book and started reading. Strange man looks at me again and then leans back in the seat, stretches out his legs and rests his hands on his chest, as if he was at home on the couch. And he was still sitting in the middle of the 2 seats.

Thankfully strange man got off the bus shortly there after and my book and I were left in peace.
When I see someone with ear phones in, I don't get a sudden urge to talk to them. Ditto for people reading a book or paper or playing on their phone. It's kind of the universal signal for "leave me alone". It's not that I'm being anti-social, it's just that usually I'm either not awake yet and need to listen to some loud rock music to wake me the hell up, or I'm coming home from work and am listening to loud rock music as a way of dealing with my day so that I don't snap and terrorize everyone on the bus.

Some people I tell ya.

Good Night!

Sarah

I don't have a bus photo, so I'm using a train.

Let's Talk About: Flu Shots!

I managed to make it through my 2nd last french class (of this session) today with only minimal confusion, so that was a nice change of pace. Just 1 more class to go. I think I'm going to have to re-read my notes and such every week or so to ensure that I don't forget anything along the way.

This afternoon I went and got my flu shot. Other than my arm being a little on the sore side when I move around a lot, I feel perfectly fine. As I knew I would seeing as this is the 12th year now that I've got the shot.

I am definitely a big supporter of the flu shot. I think everyone should get it. When I lived in Calgary, I was volunteering with seniors and getting the shot was mandatory in order to keep working with them. The flu is very dangerous to the elderly as well as babies and anyone with a weak immune system. I hear a lot of people say that they don't need the flu shot because they don't get sick. Good for you. It doesn't mean that you don't have the virus. You can carry the virus and in turn pass it along to others without actually getting sick. You can feel fine but end up giving the flu to the nice old lady you sit next to on the bus.

And for the love of god, you CANNOT GET THE FLU FROM THE FLU SHOT!!! The vaccine does not contain the live virus. It's dead. It can't make you sick. You can have a reaction to the vaccine that presents with similar flu-like symptoms, but it's not the flu. And if you're already sick and just haven't developed a full blown flu or cold yet, the shot isn't going to stop that from happening.

In this day and age, with so much medical research being done and such wonderful advancements being made, it's hard to believe that the flu still exists and that there is still a need for the flu shot. Or the flu nasal spray if you really hate needles. But when you stop to think about how many billions of dollars the drug companies make every year from the sale of cold and flu remedies, you can see why it's not quite so surprises that science hasn't been able to eliminate the flu (or the common cold yet).

Other than not wanting to pass the virus onto anyone else, why would I want to get the shot? Well...back in my first year of University, I got the flu. The Sydney flu to be exact since that was the name of the strain going around that year. My god was I sick. For an entire week, that damn flu knocked me on my ass. Never again do I want to get that sick. So the next year, I got a flu shot. And the year after and so forth and I've never been that sick since. In fact, I've never had the flu again. I've had colds, sinusitis and a broncular infection once, but no flu. If the world health people predicted the flu strain correctly, the vaccine is 70-90% effective. I like those odds. And seriously, who actually likes being sick? I certainly don't.

Here's a link to the Government of Ontario's Health site on the flu:  http://health.gov.on.ca/en/public/programs/publichealth/flu/about_flu.aspx
And here is a link to Health Canada's website with info on vaccine safety (all, not just the flu): http://www.healthycanadians.gc.ca/health-sante/medicine-medicament/misconception-eng.php

Ok, that's it for me and my soapbox tonight. My book awaits :)

Good Night!

Sarah

Photo my parents took in Alaska

French - How I Loathe Thee

I am not an idiot. Ok, well most of the time I'm not an idiot. Judging by how badly I just did on my french homework, an argument can be made to the contrary. Even after re-reading my notes I still couldn't get it. The fact that the teacher hadn't covered this off in class yet might have something to do with it. I have a vague recollection of him mentioning something in the last 10 minutes of class that kind of hinted towards what we needed to know for our homework assignment but that's all.

Just to make sure I hadn't blacked out or something during our last class, I contacted my co-worker who's in class with me and she confirmed what I'd been lead to believe. No, we didn't cover it in class. Now I don't feel quite as much of an idiot. It's nice to have someone to confirm that you're not as stupid as you feel.

What pisses me off is that our teacher is assuming that we'll know this. Some of the answers I was able to figure out based on some deductive reasoning but the rest? No fucking idea. If the teacher would have just taken the time to clearly explain how/when/why each one is used, I'd be able to understand what's going on. But he didn't and now I'm just confused and frustrated. Nuts to that. I'm giving up on the french and reading my book. It's much more entertaining.

There are only 2 classes left in this semester. I can do this. I can get through this. I'm thinking at this point, it might be easier to hire one of my co-workers to tutor me. Seriously. They've been speaking french all their lives. They learnt grammar and spelling so they should be able to explain it. And maybe explain the how, when and why too. A couple of our colleagues have looked through our french books and they just start laughing and then wish us good luck and walk away muttering about it not being "real" french. I think I'm doomed.

The only bright side to this seems to be that my use of numbers in french has improved and I'm getting better at asking questions in french. Still can't spell in french to save my life but we'll take it one hurdle at a time here. 

Good Night!

Sarah

Unsuspecting Life Lessons

So I had an interesting day today. It got off to a rough start when the nice people on the radio said that it had snowed overnight. Well crap. I was seriously tempted to just turn off the alarm clock, crawl back under the covers and just hibernate until April. But I figured that wouldn't go over very well in the long run, so I got up. I will admit that the first thing I did was look out the window to see if the radio people had lied to me. Sadly, they hadn't.  This resulted in me digging furiously through my closet for my boots about 2 minutes before I needed to be out the door. I found them! Which meant that I made it to work with warm, dry feet and I didn't fall on my ass in the process. So that was good.

I managed to finish a project at work that I've been working on for almost the whole month. That was super awesome, especially since I've got a new, bigger one to work on now. D'oh! I guess that's just the way it works. They've very different projects too, so I guess my brain will appreciate the change of pace.

Some other crap happened along the way but it dawned on me that it's not worth getting into. In the greater scheme of things, it doesn't matter. Once I was home from work. Facebook provided me with a little shinning beacon in the dark. That happens from time to time. Kind of like when my brother suddenly says something profound. You don't see it coming, but when it happens, it stops you dead in your tracks. LOL. Anyhow...a friend posted a quote from actor and musician Will Smith. It said:

"Don't chase people. Be yourself, do your own thing and work hard. The right people - the ones who really belong in your life - will come to you. And stay"

That's so incredibly true. And perhaps why I've been a little "meh" lately. I haven't been doing my own thing. I've been letting myself get way to caught up in other stuff and other people. And the worst part is that none of it matters one fucking bit. I need to focus on me and just ignore the rest. I have some truly wonderful people in my life. They belong and they've stayed with me for a very long time. They're the ones that are important. They're the ones who matter. I need to focus on that.

And I need to finish my book! It's gotten really, really good. It's been hard to put it down. In fact, I read through dinner. I had to keep putting my book down so I could cut my meat. LOL. I think I'm going to get ready for bed and go curl up with my book and finish the sucker. No worries, I have the next one in the series so I can keep going. I may have to pick up the 3rd one (or 4th) before I head home for Christmas ;)

LOL!  Good Night!

Sarah

Stepping stones - Century Gardens, Calgary AB.

Who knew that blogging could be so Therapeutic?

Wow. 4,026 page views. Incredible. My random ramblings have been viewed 4.026 times. That still blows my mind. I can't believe it. I can't believe that this is post number 129 either. I guess I've been blogging for almost 4 months now. That's pretty cool. And I've blogged every night except for one..the night of the Hallowe'en party. That's a pretty good track record. And to tell you the truth, I think it's helped me a lot. My mind is quieter. I do lie in bed thinking about the day quite so much anymore. I think I'm a little less stressed (well, some days). I think being able to sit here and write what's on my mind and just leave it here on the screen is helping me to deal with things.  Which then allows me to walk away with a clearer head. Who knew that blogging could be so therapeutic?

I had a good day today. I was productive, which means I started to see results in my cleaning/re-organizing/getting rid of crap I don't need/use quest, which in turn made me feel better. My back is a little pissed at me as I managed to stain it at some point but oh well! A little pain in the pursuit of progress isn't so bad. The trick will be carry this momentum through the week with me. If I do little bits and little areas each night, I'll be in awesome form by next weekend. It's all the little bits that seem to add up. Like emptying out and organizing the bathroom closet, then kitchen cupboard, my pantry shelf, dresser etc...I'm also thinking about re-arranging the livingroom but that can wait.

My parents finally got their computer fixed today. They've been having an issue for 2 years now with it so dad enlisted the help of a "computer geek" friend of his to come over and help. Now I don't have to listen to them complain about it anymore and hopefully this now means that they can buy books online and update the library on my mom's Kobo. Now if they'd only get their act together and give me a decent Christmas list to work with....Sigh. Same for my brother and his wife. I think I'm getting them all coal :) Christmas is only 1 month away.

I'm really looking forward to going home this year. I'm happy about going home every year, but I'm usually somewhat apprehensive about it too. But so far this year, that apprehension isn't there. I'm just really looking forward to going home, spending time with my family and getting to relax for a bit. It's not some warm sunny beach in some tropical paradise, but in my world, it's pretty damn close.

I think it's time to turn in. I've got a full week ahead of me so sleep is a good idea.

Good Night!

Sarah

View from the observation deck on Sulpher Mt. in Banff, AB