random thoughts

I got one of those new fangled $10 dollar bills in my change today.
They are just weird looking!

Have been really busy lately and haven't been blogging lately. Did you notice?
Well, I hope to be back to my normal bloggy self soon.

Random day

It was an interesting day.

I started the day off following a Tesla Model S to work. I decided I want one now. They are only $80-100K. I will just have to start saving my OT pay.

This morning I had a meeting with a colleague who is trying to get more people hired in our department. When I explained to him how much I do in a week, he's decided to approve 2 new people. While I like the idea of spending less time at work, I won't need to book as much overtime. So much for my new Tesla.

At lunchtime, shopping at WalMart, I saw a guy shoplift a pair of shorts. There wasn't anything I could do about it. But it was a bit of excitement added to an otherwise boring shop at WalMart. Too bad he took off so quick. I was going to ask him if he could steal me a Tesla.

On the way back to the office, I stopped to pick up a pack of smokes for a co-worker in Louisiana. (I'm sending him some Canadian smokes via a colleague who is here this week). While I was in the smoke shop, I saw a guy spend $27 on a pack of cigarillos. $27! On one pack! But he left before I could ask him if he could afford to buy me a Tesla.

Tonight, on the way home, I got stuck in traffic. As the traffic crawled along, and the day turned into night, I realized that this was the first time this season I've left home in the dark, and got home in the dark. It wouldn't have bothered me as much, if I was driving a Tesla.

Tomorrow, I'm buying a lottery ticket.

Random Thoughts

It's been a year since Grandma passed away. I still miss her.

Maple Bacon. Mmmmmmm!

I don't like budget season at work. Too many long nights at the office lately.

I'm not as in love with my laptop as I thought I would be. I'm blaming it on Windows 8. I think my next computer will be an apple. 

I don't watch TV anymore. Between work, Netflix, YouTube and the Internet, the only thing I ever watch on regular TV now is the local news. Surprisingly, I kinda miss all the commercials.

The PNE started this weekend, and I'm trying to find a day to take off of work so I can go. I don't like going on the weekends, because I don't like the huge crowds. But it may be my only option this year.

I cleaned the little filter thingy on my new washing machine. You are supposed to clean it every couple of months. It's been 8 months since we bought the new washer, but I just did it for the first time today. I thought it would be a gross mess. But it wasn't really all that bad.

Random Thoughts

It was hot last night, but started to cool down around 4:00 this morning. Sleeping in was a good thing on a holiday Monday!

Canadian Women's Soccer team played the US team for a spot in the Gold medal game at the Olympics today. They lost 4 to 3. Despite being the underdog, they honestly had a chance. Except that I think they were thwarted by what can only be described as bad officiating. My only hope now is that they win the Bronze, and that the US goes on to get beaten by the French for the Gold.

I only got one email from work today. That wasn't really a good thing, but it was a lot less than I expected.

My old boss called me on the weekend. Offered me a chance to apply for a different position in a company that he's working for. While I'm not sure I'm going to go for it, I haven't totally decided to discount his offer yet. I'm still thinking.

Beautiful weather this weekend. But it was almost too hot for me. 30 - 35!! I'm not used to the heat, especially because now I spend 12-14 hours a day in an air conditioned office. Maybe it was the heat, or maybe it was the insane hours last week, but I had a really hard time relaxing this weekend.

Had fun when my brother and his crew stopped in for a swim today. It's nice to have others enjoy the pool (instead of just me) for a change.

randomness

Didn't take lunch until 1:30 today. Got back to the office at 2:30. You would think the afternoon would go by fast, but the 2 hours between 2:30 and 4:30 were the slowest of all!! At least I got to leave on time for once.

Joking around with 2 of the guys I work with today. One is in Washington state. The other in California. Both are real characters and take pleasure in teasing the heck out of me. I'm happy that I work with people that can make me laugh!

Mmmmmm! Hubby ordered in sushi for dinner. I'm STUFFED!!

iPod is giving me grief lately. In the 3 years I've owned it, it never gave me any issues. But the last 6 months or so, it's been really 'glitchy'. I don't like that. Wondering if I should upgrade, or get an iPad instead??

huh! Sushi makes me thirsty. Gotta go get another glass of water....

Friday the 13th

Things I learned this week:

When you bake bread, and it doesn't turn out, it's usually not a good idea to make bread pudding out of it. Bad bread makes bad bread pudding.

When you honestly forget how old you are, it can actually be a good thing. I found out that I'm a year younger than I thought I was!

You can try and impress the big wigs at work, but no matter what you say, they will only remember the other girl in the department who brought homemade cookies for them. Mind you, they were really good cookies.

Friday the 13th is not a good day to take your car in for servicing. They will find all kinds of things wrong with it.

Enjoy the weekend!!

If I had a Twitter Account

If I had a twitter account, here is what I would have tweeted the last few days...

The Keg Steakhouse, good company, and good wine. Can't beat that for a fun night out!

Office politics! So many bad things happening in the office today. If I just keep my head down, and look like I'm working, maybe I won't get dragged into all the mess.

After missing out on the hype around Harry Potter and Twighlight, I decided to dive into The Hunger Games.

Wendy's Chocolate Frosties. Mmmmmm!

The Hunger Games has me totally hooked!

One winter of lazing around + one day out in the garden = a whole bunch of sore muscles!

Two Thirds of the way through the trilogy. Still hooked!

Damn you, BookBuddy! My favourite app decided to quit working after the latest upgrade. Sometimes, I don't like technology.

It's snowing! Spring starts tomorrow, and it's snowing!

Is it wrong to be thinking of excuses to go home early so I can finish the last book of the Hunger Games?

Random Thoughts

Is it wrong to eat a chocolate bar at the same time you are watching a 600 lb person on TV trying to lose weight?

Bad weather = bad commute. There is just no way around it.

My neice wants to donate her hair to kids with cancer. I want to do that with her, but I don't think they'll take hair with grey in it. Besides, I don't have the patience to grow it long anymore. I'm going to try. But I'll likely ending up donating money instead.

Tried to find a King Cake for the office this week. Not one bakery in New Orleans would deliver to Canada. And every bakery I called in Vancouver just thought I was nuts. I guess I'll just get doughnuts instead.

In a land long long ago...

Do you ever hear words today, and realize that they have a different meaning now than what they used to have? Staying just in the IT or technology area, here are just a few of the ones I came up with...

Windows -- panes of glass in your house that allow you to look outside.

Vista -- what you saw when you looked out your windows.

Outlook -- A point of view; an expectation of the future; a place of interest on the highway; etc.

Excel -- to be really good at something.

Hard Drive -- when you tried to drive from Vancouver to Calgary in one day on the hottest day in July, in the 1970 Pontiac with no air-conditioning, with 2 adults, 3 bored-out-of-their-mind kids, and Aunt Bessie in the back seat, who needed to stop for a pee-break every 100 miles.

Mouse -- rodents; vermin. Dead ones are sometimes found in pool skimmers. It's the reason your mother kept the cat even though it vomited on the carpet, and shed all over the place. Cartoon version was known as Mickey.

Tweet -- the sound a birdie makes.

Twitter -- one half of a term used to describe how you felt when the cute boy down the block paid attention to you (as in twitterpated)

Weekend update

It's been a busy week, and I haven't posted for a long time. So, I thought I would just give you the highlights of the week...

- That saying, "You can't teach an old dog new tricks"... well, exactly how old do you have to be before you are considered an "old dog"? Because I'm 45, and let me tell you.... being in a training class for 3 days is a LOT of work! I learned a lot of new tricks this week, and my brain is fried as a result. Fried! Like so fried, that I go to the grocery store to pick up groceries, and I specifically put something in the cart because I have a $1.00 off coupon, and I pay for the stuff, and come home, and it isn't until I'm unpacking the groceries, that I realize the coupon is still in my pocket. Sheesh!

- I'm so used to working from home, and being by myself a lot, that I actually get exhausted being in the office, and having to make small talk with everyone. It's very draining to look happy and excited to see everyone, even if you are truly happy and excited to see everyone.

- Charlie Sheen is ranting and raving and having a very public meltdown the last couple of weeks. Or so I've heard. While in the office, a bunch of people did mention it. Apparently, it's all over Facebook, Twitter, TV, etc. Me? I haven't heard too much about it all. Sometimes, it's nice to be as 'unplugged' as I am, and then I don't get sucked into hearing about things I don't care about. Like Charlie Sheen.

- The burgers on the Ferry, are great. The poutine... not so much.

- Found a great little ebook conversion program online and got a bunch of free ebooks from a coworker. This alone was worth the trip to the office this week.

- Watched the Earthquake and Tsunami coverage from Japan this weekend. No words to describe the devastation and what they are going through. But, I am reminded how things would be here if the "big one" hit the west coast. I looked it up... our house is 300 feet above sea level, so a Tsunami would likely not hit our house. But, earthquake damage would. These are not pleasant thoughts. Need to get my earthquake kit in order soon! Seismophobia. The fear of earthquakes. That's me right now.

F R I D A Y Update

It’s Friday today!

F is for FEVER – Four days with a Fever (off and on), chills, cough, and Flu like symptoms. Although today, I am Finally starting to Feel a little better.

R is for RRSP – Yes, it’s that time of the year again. The RRSP deadline is at the end of the month, and I still haven’t decided if we have enough to contribute this month, or if I even want to.

I is for IDIOTS – My new boss is an idiot. I came to that realization a few days ago. It’s made it a lot easier to deal with him lately. I just keep reminding myself he doesn’t know any better. It helps. Not much, but a little.

D is for DALLAS – my coworkers in the Dallas office have a long weekend this weekend. President’s Day or something like that. I’m jealous. I want a long weekend, and don’t want to wait until Easter to get one!

A is for A – my husband. He’s had a busy week at work, and had to put up with me being sick at home. Not fun. But he did send me flowers on Monday (*yeah!*)

Y is for YEAH!! – it’s the weekend soon!!

numbers

It's all about numbers for me. I guess that's why I became an accountant. I love numbers. Statistics, and all that boring stuff!

I've closed 1011 tickets at work since Feb 2009. Doesn't sound like a lot, but it is. It works out to over 40 tickets a month. That's around 2 tickets every working day. So really, it is a lot.

I currently have 21 tickets in my queue at work. I really should be working instead of blogging.

The carnations that hubby bought for me 12 days ago, are still here. They are slowly dying, and I did weed out the bad ones. But the remaining 10 still smell nice!

I love my Kobo eReader. You gotta love a device that tells you are 67% through the latest book you are reading!

2 million. That's the amount that we would have to win in the lotto for us to more than comfortably retire right now. I did the math. It sounds like a lot of money... but I included all the bling that goes with winning the lottery. You know... new cars, new house, new toys, etc. etc.

9 hrs, 30 minutes. That's the amount of time that I will have to spend on the ferry this month for work. That only includes ferry sailing time. That does not include waiting at the terminal or unloading and loading time. I wish I didn't have to, but it's the price I pay for a job that allows me to work from home the majority of the time.

On August 2, 2020, I will be 20,000 days old. And unless we win the lottery, I'll probably still be working.

There are 319 days until Christmas.

random thoughts

Ordering books online at Kobo.ca is a dangerous thing.

Kirstie Alley turned 60 this year. She doesn't look 60, does she? Know what she did for her birthday? She went shopping with John Travolta. I'm totally jealous.

Work has been pissing me off lately. I love my job. I hate my job.

Where do new words come from? Hubby came home yesterday asking if I had heard anyone use the word "sketchy". You know... to describe something that isn't quite right.
"He looked kind of sketchy", or
"I feel a little sketchy today"
Dictionary.com defines sketchy as 1: Not thorough or detailed. 2: (of a picture) resembling a sketch; consisting of outline without much detail.
Urbandictionary.com describes it as being 1: Someone or something that just isn't right.
When or why does the meaning of word get changed? Who authorized this? And why wasn't I notified?

Where were you when Oprah announced her big secret on Monday that she had a half-sister? I was yakking on the phone with my girlfriend. I found out later on that night, while watching the news on TV. Reminds me of the time that OJ was being chased in that white Bronco. I was out shopping or something. I didn't turn on the TV all day, or even the next day. I went out for dinner with friends the following night, and everyone was talking about it. I didn't have a clue what was going on. Hate it when that happens.

Hello 2011

My first post of 2011, and I got nothing!
It's been a quiet start to the New Year. I've had a migraine since New Year's Eve, and haven't been feeling well. I'm doing better now, but still feel like I was hit by a truck. Meanwhile, A has stopped smoking (yet again), and while he is doing good, he is somewhat grumpy around the edges lately.
So, life has been quiet. Lots of reading (me) and video games (him). And not much of anything else. We are both back to work today, so life will get back into a normal routine soon enough.

Happy New Year!

Christmas recap

It's really hard going back to work after being off for more than 10 days in a row! One -- it's hard to get up in the morning. Two -- it's hard to sit still for 8 hours during the day. I just want to go shopping!

I fell like I've been eating for 6 days straight. On Christmas Eve, we had a big dinner at my Mom's. On Christmas Day, it was turkey dinner at A's Aunt's house. On Boxing Day, it was brunch at the brother-in-law's. The 27th we went to a movie and had popcorn and chocolate for lunch. On the 28th, I cooked a stuffed turkey breast for the two of us. And then, yesterday (the 29th) we had another turkey dinner at my Mom's house. We are not used to eating such large meals so often. So, I've decided not to cook for the next couple of days. We can just 'pick' our way through the leftovers in the fridge for a few days.

We got snow yesterday!

Just a dusting of the white stuff. It started around 7 in the morning, but was done by about Noon. It's melted off the roads now, but we still have some in the back yard. The weather now is clear, sunny and cold... about -5* C. It's supposed to stay that way until next week. It's really too nice to sit here trying to work!

We watched a couple of movies the last few days. We went to see "True Grit" with Jeff Bridges at the theatre. Good movie! Westerns usually aren't my cup of tea, but Jeff Bridges' performance in this movie is worth seeing. I actually kind of enjoyed it. I never saw the original one with John Wayne, but I've heard that this version is actually better.

The other movie was "Inception" with Leonardo DiCaprio. It was kind of like "The Matrix" meets "Batman Begins". The movie was directed by Christopher Nolan (the same one who did Batman), and there were no less than 3 actors in this movie that also appeared in the Batman movie. It was definitely a mind-bender kind of movie (like the Matrix was), so it appealed to me. I didn't have high hopes for it after reading some of the reviews on the net. But, I like Nolan's style, I loved the Batman movie, and this one did not disappoint either. The only issue... there were so many twists and turns that I will probably have to watch it again to appreciate the whole storyline. But, that won't be a problem. The movie is ours on DVD, thanks to Santa!

I really don't like this period of time between Christmas and New Year's. It's kind of 'limbo land' for me. The hustle and bustle of the holidays is over with. There are no more presents to be unwrapped. No more places or people to visit. There is nothing good on TV. The radio no longer plays 24/7 Christmas music (ok... I know some of you think this is a good thing... but not me!). And the anticipation of a "fresh start", or starting everything new, isn't going to happen for a few more days yet. I guess I'll just have to kick back with a good book! Which won't be too hard. Hubby spoiled me this year with a lot of good books. I'm already 1/3 of the way through the 3rd "Dragon" book (The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet's Nest), and have 4 more books waiting to be devoured.

playing catch up on blogging...

Wow, it’s been a busy few days. I can’t believe it’s already Wednesday, and I haven’t even blogged yet! Here are a few things that I’ve been up to since last week…

Auntie’s funeral was on Friday. I didn’t travel up to the interior for the funeral, opting rather, to stay home. But, apparently there were a lot of people there, and the service was really nice.

2 more magazines, and a box of frozen cookie "pucks" arrived this week. Compliments of my inability to say “No” when it comes to school fundraising programs.

I took my sister, and 2 of her kids out for Dim Sum. We had a really good time, and the food was great.

We spent time this weekend, rummaging through our Christmas decorations, and decorating the house. I took a box of old decorations to the Thrift Store to get rid of some of them. We still have to decorate the tree, but we are getting a REAL tree this year, so we won't pick that up until next week.

We picked up another 4 or 5 Christmas gifts this Sunday, so now we are almost done. I have a few odds and ends to pick up now, and all the wrapping to do, but I have it under control, and (best of all) under budget.

My Mom and Dad came for a quick visit one night. We had the house all decorated by then, so we were able to “show it off”.

A quick trip to my chiropractor one afternoon meant I was in the neighbourhood, and stopped at my favourite tea shoppe. Turns out… the guy that owns the tea store was going to shut down at the end of the year. But, now his son has decided to carry on the family business. *woohoo*!! I’ll miss Jitendar when I go and visit the store, but at least I’ll still be able to get my favourite tea!

We have another busy week / weekend ahead of us... but I'll blog when I can. I hope everyone is enjoying the build up to Christmas. I, for one, love the Christmas caroles in the stores, the decorations everywhere, the lights, and the radio stations that play Christmas songs 100% of the time. Someone pass the eggnog! Cheers!

randomness

It was US Thanksgiving yesterday. Happy Thanksgiving to all my American friends, even though I'm a day late! But, in my defense, US Thanksgiving is not such a big deal up here. All it means for me, is that I have to work the early shift (I started at 6:00am the last 2 days), and that 60% of my customers are out of the office. And Michael's has some huge sales on. But, there are no Black Friday sales, and no huge lineups anywhere, and no turkey dinner to be found.

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Speaking of Black Friday, there was a poll done on the news the other night... How many people take advantage of 1 day sales? The answer was about 30% of people say they do. Which begs the question... Why? If only 30% of shoppers go to a 1 day sale, why have them? Personally, I prefer to just shop around. I find that highly advertised sales have too many restrictions. So, you go expecting to get a good deal on something, only to realize that the item you truly want isn't even on sale.

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Yesterday, we got about 4 inches of snow! This capped off a week of sub zero temperatures... record breaking cold for this time of year. Today, it's above freezing, raining, and the snow is melting fast. This definitely feels more normal.

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Picture of A's niece and nephew. I think it's a really good picture of the kids. They look so darn cute!

Saturday Recap

Just a few things that kept my brain busy this week...

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I can't believe Bristol Palin beat out Brandy on Dancing With the Stars! It's obvious that there is a large group of people out there voting for her, and that's the only reason she's still there. But, she's not the best dancer. And to think she's made it to the top 3 is ludicrous. So, what does that say about the intelligence of the people who are voting? It tells me that they don't care. It tells the world that just because you are popular, you can win. Not that you are the best, or work the hardest, or deserve it. Actually, I think it will be a shame if she wins. She obvious she doesn't think she should be there anymore than anyone else, yet there are people out there who seem oblivious and keep voting to keep her on. I feel sorry for her. I stopped watching American Idol, because I couldn't deal with talented people getting voted off in place of "the popular choice". I think I'm going to have to stop watching Dancing now too.

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I had a big blow up with two of the guys I work with. It's over now. One actually apologized to me at the end. But, it's left a bitter taste in my mouth, and questioning whether I want to continue to work for this company or not. We have a new boss coming on board in early December, so I'll just wait until then to decide if jumping ship is the right thing to do. One of my co-workers jumped already. He's leaving at the end of the month, and not for a better job. He doesn't actually have anything to go to yet. But, he's had enough. It says something about the management of a company when a good employee leaves for no other reason than they can't take it anymore.

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I spent a fortune this week. From getting new snow tires for my car, to having to purchase a new ink cartridge for the printer (why are those things so damn expensive!). It's going to put a cramp in my Christmas shopping this weekend. But, having said that, I have a pretty good idea what I'm getting most people on my list for Christmas. It's just a matter of going out to find it. I've even purchased a few presents already.

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random thoughts

Bristol Palin made it another week on Dancing with the Stars? Really?

There seems to be a hiccup in the mood of the people I work with lately. I find that it usually happens around this time of year. The period of time between the Halloween sugar rush, and the somberness of Rememberance Day. Maybe that's the explanation. Maybe everyone is just suffering from sugar withdrawal. But, it does seem that the prima-dona's in my department are extra b*tchy lately (and I'm not talking about the girls!). I find that things usually get better nearer the end of November. It's almost like the Christmas spirit kicks in then, and people's moods get better. But in the meantime, I'm having difficulties ignoring the comments that are floating around in email lately. I have a departmental meeting this afternoon, and I'm going to have to put a clothespin on my tongue to ensure I don't say anything that I will regret later. mmmm.... Maybe I'm the one suffering from sugar withdrawal?

Bristol Palin is still on Dancing with the Stars? Come on!! Really??

A few days ago, a man in a wheelchair helped to stop a thief in a convenience store in Vancouver. The guy's name is Larry Skopnik. He wrestled the would-be theif to the ground, while 3 able bodied guys stood around watching. The video has been all over the news and internet lately. My favourite quote from the guy was... "You don't get anything done just sitting around!". This coming from a man in a wheelchair!

Bristol Palin? Did NOT get voted off of Dancing with the Stars? Really?

November is the time of Christmas Craft Fairs. I've been to one already last weekend. And I have 2 to attend this weekend. My girlfriend is selling her jewerly at one, so I am going to go just to support her. But, I probably would go anyways. I love craft fairs. I usually find all kinds of things to buy for others, and myself. And I get so inspired by everyone's creativity!

Dancing with the Stars is rigged. It has to be. Bristol Palin in the final four? Come on!