Journey & Adventure

Friday Night - Prom Night .  The Boy’s prom was Friday night.   I might be bias but I think he looked pretty handsome in his tuxedo and his girlfriend looked cute too.  The pictures will follow when J converts them from .raw to .jpeg for me.   At this point, overall details of the evening have not been forthcoming, but I assume he had a good time. Friday Night - Home Depot.   After we dropped the couple off at their “before” party, we were off to the unhappiest place on earth (for me) to pick up deck supplies – Home Depot.   There is something about this store that gives me the overwhelming urge to flip out every single time I go there.   Friday night was no exception.  What I was hoping would be a quick trip turned into 2.5 hours of sheer pain.  Of course the supplies we needed were on a top shelf and the 79 year old “associate” and his 18 year old sidekick had to perform 1 hour of safety proced...

Tonight is my son’s Prom.   It’s hard to believe, but 28 years ago tonight was also my first Prom and my first date with J.   Who knew that 28 years later, I’d still be with him.  It’s shocking actually.  Why?  Well, I didn’t really like him much at the time.  He was an ass - outspoken and rude.   The only reason I agreed to go to the Prom with J was that he had a car.  Shallow I know, but it sure beat the other option of getting “dropped off” by my parents and waiting for my date to get dropped off by his.   Turns out, being a giant ass was just part of the charade to get me to notice him.   Don’t get me wrong, he’s still an ass, but on a slightly less offensive and irritating scale…most of the time… Anyhow, I will be leaving work early in order to make sure my son has dealt with the minor details of the evening.   He’s not one for the details, i.e. picking ...

I just finished reading skimming the worst book in the history of books.  It was even worse than most Canadian history books.  Half way through the book – the history of the fur trade in Canada was starting to look VERY appealing to me.   The description provided by Amazon was intriguing, so I thought I would give it a “go”.  Never ever have I bothered to check the page count of a book.  This is one mistake I will never make again.  It was 912 pages of mind numbing boredom.  Lesson learned:  just because it says “paperback” doesn’t mean it’s guaranteed to be an easy read.  I should mention that it wasn’t a standard paperback either – it measured 8.5 x 11 – it was HUGE!  Which means those 912 pages contained a lot of crap. I’ve never given up on finishing a book I’ve started – unless you can count “Darwin’s – Origin of the Species”, but I don’t count that one since it was WAAAAYY beyond my lev...

Here we are…it’s Wednesday again and I’m just now getting around to a weekend recap. I know it’s old news now, but it was a busy gardening weekend.  Between Friday and Saturday, we hauled 5 truckloads of mulch and then proceeded to shovel it into our gardens on Sunday.  It was a lot of work upfront, but believe me – it cuts down on the weeding work later on.  Here’s a few photos of our back gardens.  Never mind the shirtless man in photo 3 – that’s J (reading while he waters the garden). Next weekend – the deck finally gets finished.  We are adding lattice to the unfinished portion around the bottom to enclose the mass of weeds that grown under there. After the lattice is completed, it will be my turn to stain the entire upper and lower deck.   This will probably take a couple of weekends because there is so much of it, but it will look great when we are finished – just in time for our Rum Punch ...

This week, I am participating in "Shutter Love Tuesday", which is being hosted by the lovely ladies @ The Trendy Treehouse . This week's theme is Nature...

As mentioned a few weeks ago, I’ve launched my own line of handmade jewelry – Flamingo Tongue Designs .  In order to get the word out about my new creative venture, I’m hosting my very first giveaway.   The winner will receive their choice of one of the following items (for details of each item, visit the website): Blueberry Hill Necklace Genuine Sea Glass Earrings - Amber and White  New Jade and Tourmaline "Figure 8" Necklace Cook Book - "Food to Dive For" (compiled by yours truly and friends) Here are the rules: You need to be a follower; You need to visit Flamingo Tongue Designs ; Take a look around; Leave me a comment on this post as to which item is your favorite. A winner will randomly be selected on Wednesday, June 2 nd .    As an added bonus, if anyone is interested in purchasing an item fr...

It’s a long weekend in Canada. The technical name of the holiday is Victoria Day, which is in celebrated in honor of Queen Victoria’s birthday…I think. I’m not a diehard Canadian, so my perception of actual facts might be slightly skewed.  Anyhow, for the less refined, you can refer to it as May 2-4 (as in a case of beer – 24 bottles or cans). Pay attention - this is a fact you should file away for that day when Trivial Pursuit once again becomes a craze.  May 24th is the unofficial start to summer here in Canada – cottagers head “up north” to open up their cottages for the season, boaters take to the Great Lakes, gardeners believe the risk of frost has passed start planting their gardens, campers will schlep their camping gear and pitch their tents for first camping excursion of the season and with all that - beer season officially arrives.  Now, before you get concerned for my well being, rest assured that beer season never actually ends in Canada, ...

“What a difference a day can make” or so the saying goes…  Monday I was miserable, Tuesday merely grumpy, so by today one would think I should be only slightly irritated and by tomorrow, I should be moving on down the road to happiness and by Friday, I should be farting rainbows.   Yeah for Friday!  Coincidence?  I think not. But alas, today is not Friday.  It’s Wednesday – middle of the week - not as great as Thursday, but not as bad a Tuesday - Hump Day.  Simply put, Wednesday is a boring day… For me, Wednesday means: Only 2 more sleeps until Friday arrives; Crappy night of television – there is nothing on television Wednesday nights; Tonight - pizza for dinner; Lack of motivation to exercise.  I typically run out of steam mid-week and this week is no exception; What does Wednesday mean for you?

I’m here at work and somewhere in my vicinity “little people” are making noise.  Not dwarfs.  Children-like “little people”.  I’m either losing my mind or someone on a speaker phone has little ones playing in the background.  Next, I’ll be running around whispering “I see dead people”… In less than a month, my son will be finished high school for good.  The next step for him is to find a summer job and then it’s off to college in September.  I’m really worried about his prospects for finding a summer job given the state of the economy and having to compete with so many unemployed candidates. I can’t believe how utterly miserable I am now that I know the Internet Nazi Police are monitoring my internet usage.   Yes, I’m still flogging that issues… I found out today that in a couple of months, my workload will be reduced by approximately 25% – thanks to a corporate reorgani...

I promised details of my Flamingo Tongue Designs giveaway today.  Sorry, there's been a delay... Unfortunately, I totally slacked on the weekend and didn't get it ready and because now I'm at work and can't spend a sufficient amount of time on the Internet because of the Internet Nazis .  I need to postpone it until next week.  I PROMISE - next Monday...for sure... This lack of internet is going to be the end of me...

I found out through the ever-so reliable grapevine this morning that the Internet Nazis are REAL - just like zombies, mermaids and unicorns.  True story – internet usage throughout the entire company is being monitored by “The Man”.   What the hell am I going to do now?  For those that have been reading this blog for sometime know that my only purpose for coming to work is because of the high-speed internet.  Seriously - I don’t actually have enough “work” in a day to keep busy.  I am not what you could call a productive member of the working society.  I surf the Internet for 7 hours out of a day – no more, no less!  I feel so violated.  I am totally freaking out!!! I guess it’s back to finding creative ways to look busy at work - like these or killing time reading e-books (obviously not ones downloaded at work) or writing my memoirs or a screen play.  Ahhh!!! What does that mean for our blo...

It’s been raining for over a week now.  It seriously needs to move on before I need to consider building an Ark and let’s be honest - I don’t have the energy for that sort of undertaking. So, in preparation for the upcoming 40 days and 40 nights of rain, I want the following rain gear and accessories: R ubber Boots (with Dragon Flies) - Sexy, I know! Rain Hat - I love hats! Umbrella - I love the pointy end - never know when you may need a weapon. Rain Coat - I also need a rain coat, but couldn't find any I liked.  I did find this HIDEOUS one, which I thought I would share.  Seriously, if I was to wear this, you could call me Little Red Riding Hood and give me a BROOM!  Can you say UGLY? Rain, rain go away, Come again another day. Little Johnny wants to play; Rain, rain, go to Spain, Never show your face again! (no offense by my bloggy friends located in Spain - CrazyCris...

A few weeks ago, the Dr. ordered some blood tests for me but because they involved fasting for 12 hours, I put it off until this morning.   The lab opened at 8:00 and was packed – with retired people. Why are the retired people the first in line for everything?  Since they don’t have to get up and go to work, one would think they would take the opportunity to relax in the mornings.  No, instead they choose to socialize at the lab.  Go figure… I can guarantee that when I retire, I will not be hanging out at the lab in the mornings.  I figure myself more of a coffee shop sort of person or maybe a mall walker.  Hell, who am I kidding?  I don’t like small talk and certainly don’t enjoy the mall…or exercise… Iron Man 2 was FANTASTIC!  Usually sequels are never as good as the first ones; however Iron Man 2 is the exception.  Robert Downey Jr. is dreamy.  I recommend you go see him it. ...

For the past few months, I've been working on a little project - call it a retirement back-up plan of sorts.   While it's not 100% complete and will never be finalized because of its nature, the time has finally arrived to share it with you.  So without further adieu... I introduce you to Flamingo Tongue Designs -  my very own line of handmade jewelry. www.flamingotongue.com I can also be found on Esty: http://www.etsy.com/shop/Flamingotongue In celebration of my newest venture, I will be holding a giveaway.  Please check back next Monday for complete details.

And then, I'll be dreaming about this... Oh and I should mention - this is my Mother's Day present from my son.  I'll most likely be the one paying, but I guess it's the thought that counts...

I read an article on Yahoo! yesterday.  It was written by Linnda Durre for Forbes.com.  I know, it’s hard to believe, but I do read – World Weekly News and a lot of other true stuff on the internet.  Anyhow, getting back on track.  The topic of the article was “Worst Words to Say at Work”.  The gist of the article was “using these words only weaken you and make you sound noncommittal, undependable and untrustworthy. Here’s the list: "Try" According to the article “try” is considered a weasel word.    Remember what Yoda says to Luke Skywalker in Star Wars: "Do or do not - there is no try." “Whatever" "Whatever" is considered a dismissive insult and a verbal slap in the face.   Maybe “you’re an idiot” is a better choice.  NOTE:  This response is solely my own – use it at your own risk. "Maybe" and "I don't know" Since when is admitting “I don’t ...

I've been neglecting my letter writing of late, so here goes... My Dearest Husband, Soon, we will have been married for 21 years.  If you want to still be married in a year from now, may I suggest that you stop calling me grumpy? Hugs and Kisses S *********************************** My Sweetest Son, I understand that jobs are hard to find for students in this current economy, but you may need to consider selling a kidney because I am tired and poor from footing the bill for your prom expenses. Love, Mom ************************************** Dearest Mother-In-Law, I hope you appreciated the gift I made for your birthday.  I noticed you didn’t say thank you.  I’m assuming that you liked it when you asked for a matching necklace.  Oh and until I get a proper thank you, I’m holding off on buying you a mother’s day present. Yours truly, ...