BeeBumbly

Ringing in the New Year

2007-01-16T18:01:00.000-08:00

Hello all my faithful readers ...

Hello? are you out there... ok, ok, I haven't posted in awhile... i've been busy.

my most recent adventure had me on a 39-hour, 3-day, life-altering, transformational self-awarness seminar. My life is empty and meaningless - therefore I can do anything with it.... very empowering.

other than that i'm slugging away at the new job. I'm much busier than I anticipated. I don't enjoy working 10 hour days - but it'll be over soon and I can get back to concentrating on my snowboarding skills.

see you on the hills!

bb

Merry Christmas

2006-12-22T15:07:00.000-08:00

and Happy New Year!!!

I hope you all have a great holiday with much rum and cheer.

See you all in the new year.

bb

Yeah Turkey!

2006-12-11T17:11:00.000-08:00

Another successful potluck christmas dinner and gift exchange. What is it now - 7 years in a row?!?

Gift of the evening: tie for 1st place - Wine decanter & stemless glasses vs. Crayola lava lamp

Person stolen from the most: multi tie for 1st: Roggles, Anita, Geoff & Yalila

Best dish: the one my sweetie made: Yam casserole

Best entertainment : faux fire DVD (which turns out to be on a 3 minute loop so we never got to see the fire dwindle or see anyone poke it).

good times, good times.

See you all again next year! And for those of you who missed it - we had a toast in your honor.

New beginnings

2006-11-29T13:19:00.000-08:00

Hello!

All is not forgotten in blogland. Sorry for the lengthy departure, I will endeavour (sp?) to make more consistent contributions.

I've started a new job! I'm now with the number 1 retail yoga wear company! Well, I don't know what their rating is but I think it's #1 :)

Today is day 3. So far so good. I get a great discount and I'm paid way better than my last job.

must run, but don't forget to say hi once in awhile.

BB

#1 company to work for... my ass!

2006-10-27T15:00:00.000-07:00

for those of you who don't already know - i'm no longer with the number 1 company to work for... no, it wasn't a voluntary leave. No, it wasn't for performance reasons. No, I have no idea why i was let go - the best I can come up with is that it came down to a clash of personalities...and since I was the peon it was easier to let me go than address the real issues.

all that being said - i was unable to get any of my personal belongings, including emails, prior to leaving the building. So - i likely don't have your email address.

So - please drop me a line at my new gmail account (my first name and first letter of my last name) so that i can keep in touch with you.

thanks for all your support over the past year!

I just wanna pooh...

2006-10-12T13:36:00.000-07:00

Do any of you ever have dreams about being unable to ... umm..... find a bathroom?

I have dreams from time to time with the recurring theme of not being able to find appropriate washroom facilities when I really need to go. Sometimes the toilet is unattainable - too tall with no ladder to get up there, locked doors, out of service, too big; and sometimes it's not in a condition that allows one to .... um... release - overflowing, broken, door that won't lock, no door; and sometimes it's just such a weird vestibule that I can't figure out how to use it! And always it's a crisis - I have to find it in a hurry.

For some reason, last night there was only one bathroom in the entire mall and it was located in the hair saloon. I really needed to find it (usually it's #1 but this time it was #2). Actually there were 2 'toilets' but one was just being built - it seemed to be working and appeared to have just been used - so I flushed to clear the contents - it flushed fine, but when it filled back up with clean water it overflowed flooding the back of the store! The 'working' bathroom had no door (actually, it was just in the middle of the room!) and was just like the sinks that you get your hair washed in.... you had to sit up real high and ... never mind.

There was a 'Men's' room - it wasn't working either, but Roggles came in (very strange dream) and mocked me for not using it and proceeded to go into the mens room (that one had a door) only to discover that it also did not work, but he made all sorts of bathroom noises just to pretend that he was using it.

All in all - I woke up and didn't really have to go to the bathroom at all let alone with the same urgency that my dream predicted.

What does it all mean?

Camping in the Fall

2006-10-02T12:55:00.000-07:00

I never thought that I'd be saying this - but camping in the fall is fun!

I went camping at Whistler this past weekend and actually had a good time. I was warned about the bitter cold and the potential for rain. It was cold but, luckily for me, dry.

I'm not normally one to willingly put myself into an uncomfortable, miserable situation, but I did it anyway... all to impress my new boy. But the joke's on me because I actually had a good time. I was well prepared for cold, rainy weather. My new sleeping bag was a good investment! I highly recommend bringing a toque.

Would I do it again - sure! But maybe not past Thanksgiving though.

I hope you all have a great turkey dinner this weekend! Happy Thanksgiving!

Fall has arrived!

2006-09-15T16:27:00.000-07:00

It’s official – Fall is here…. They turned on the heat in my building. Now, I know you’re thinking “hmmm, bee bumbly is losing it – all she has to do is turn the little knob on the thermostat…”… and yes, I might be that dense at times – but this is not one of those times. For whatever reason, in the Spring the master heating unit is shut down (saves energy costs I suppose) and it was just fired up again yesterday! YEAH warmth! The next thing you know we'll all be kicking up and jumping into a pile of leaves.

But I only enjoyed my new found warmth for a moment before heading off to my very first yoga class.

I’ll admit that I’m not the most open-minded person – tarot cards, psychics, green tea, yoga – all out of my realm. But the more I hear about the benefits of yoga the more it sounded like I maybe I should give it a try. But the more I hear about it the more I think it’s some sort of cult … during the nap part I was sure they were pumping in some mind-altering gases. We chanted, contorted, rested and breathed as one – and all in candle light. It was quite the experience.

But the class was great and I very much enjoyed myself. I felt super great after the ‘practice’ (that’s what they call it). I will go again. In fact, we should all go… I hear they are continually recruiting new souls…

Yeah Free Parking!

2006-09-11T17:56:00.000-07:00

Did any of you catch my big television debut last wednesday?

I was leaving the West End when a lady and her camera crew (ok, her dad with a giant camera) asked if I wouldn't mind talking to them about my free parking (I was in one of those free 2 hour spots).

The first question she asked was how I felt about free parking. I responded with an exuberent, arms in the air, "YEAH! Free parking!". She asked a few more questions to which I think I had excellent responses ... but all that made it onto the news was my 3 second spot of Yeah! Free parking!

baby steps, first 3 seconds, next 3 minutes....

Elevator Etiquette

2006-08-24T08:55:00.000-07:00

I used to work downtown in the financial ‘district’ downtown. My building was home to stock brokers, financiers, admin to stock brokers and managers of stock brokers.

Prior to that I worked in a garden centre. The ‘head office’ was in the corner of the retail space so I spent my days with blue-collar flower-pickers.

Prior to that I grew up on a dairy farm. I spent my youth putting on gumboots to jump into piles of cow poo and catching flies in a cup on the barn wall and then drowning them in the giant cement sinks.

Now I work for a financial company that is not located downtown. In fact, we’re a hop, skip and a jump from the downtown east side. It’s a social statement.

Earlier this week I had a course to go to that was being hosted downtown. It’s been years since I’ve been in one of those fancy giant glass buildings with 30 floors.

Here’s what I learned this week:
• Farmers (who have little to no education) treat you like an equal by sharing the blood, sweat & tears of their profession.
• Gardeners (who often have degrees in horticulture) treat you like an equal by embracing the glory that is a single blossom and sharing it with you and anyone else who will listen.
• Stock Brokers (who have mid to high levels of education most of the time) don’t always treat you like an equal but always show respect by letting you on and off the elevator first, regardless of the cue. Then they call you to yell at you for miscalculating their commission payment or overcharging them for phone calls that you know they made.
• Bankers (high levels of education) rarely treat you like an equal, keep the rewards to themselves and … the further they work away from down town the more likely they are to push you over to get to the elevator first… sometimes closing the door before you can brush the dust off yourself to get back on.
• If you want to be treated like a lady – go downtown and get into any elevator in one of those big, shiny buildings. If you want true happiness and peace, stop to smell the flowers and then go jump in some fresh poo.

What's a bee to do?

2006-08-09T11:56:00.000-07:00

So – I have a new worker bee in my department who does not report to me. But she’s taking over a few key tasks that were previously in my job description (not that I have a new one or know what I’m supposed to be doing with all my ‘free’ time). The new worker is great, very detail oriented and thorough – both of which I am not. But since my boss doesn’t know what I do on a day-to-day basis I get to train my replacement. Not only am I training her to do the tasks, she looks to me for decisions and guidance – but that’s not in my job description either. She also looks to me to schedule her time, assess priorities and deal with the ‘tough’ questions.

So – I ask my boss for a job review so that I can be “re-graded” and get more money. She basically told me that I’m not promotable – eventually I got her to admit that budgets are tight and that her boss said that I couldn’t have a raise. I responded with: “that’s irrelevant, evaluate the job for what it is, if it belongs in a higher pay grade than make it official and deal with the incumbent issues separately”…. The same advise that we give everyone else facing this situation.

So – I’m managing an employee, I’m taking on tasks that my manager is handing down and am working in total ambiguity as to the future of my role and career at this #1 company.

I guess getting fired from the #1 company to work for won’t look too great on my resume :(

Meanwhile – my department decided that we *need* more documentation (we have none currently) and someone created templates for various situations. I currently have a list of about 22 different pieces of documentation to prepare. Strategic design documents, business process document, business transaction document, measurement design document … the list goes on and on. Each task needs about 4 documents! I’m a yellow – full of bright, wonderful, social energy – documentation is killing the bee!

So that’s my life for the past month. So much for my 4 weeks vacation, it’s all a distant memory now. I am looking forward to Ulti playoffs. My Tuesday team has no chance in hell, but my Thursday team is looking good. Wish me luck!

Tipping Point

2006-07-11T10:11:00.000-07:00

These old bones can't keep up like they used to. Babes 'n Hats - another successful ulti tournament. As Roggles said - you just have to work smarter because you can't expect to keep up the speed and endurance. So I must work on being more clever and strategic rather than speedy and shifty. Hmmm... this may also be a life lesson...

What was really great was that I knew someone on every team! I've finally reached the tipping point and it will only exponentially grow now. I collected rags from someone I knew on each team and tied them to my jersey...I was very colourful :)

But my team, the Daiseys, won the spirit award! A giant bottle of Gin along with some tonic and limes soothed my team as we watched the finals. Heckling is a great part of the finals. You get to sit and drink and watch a bunch of other fools run around in the sun after playing 4 games on Saturday and another 3 on Sunday.

I learned a new game - Fantasy. You pick two players (one guy & one girl) and if they do something great you get a point, if they do something bad you lose a point. If they do something terrible (like drop a pull) you lose 2 points. If one of your players calls a timeout you lose 5 points! I believe at the end of the finals I had 2 points compared to my counterpart who had 8! Those pulls can be tricky some times...hardly worth minus 2...

That was my weekend. I'd talk about Friday night, but most of it is a blur - I thank god that Roggles can drive because I was in no condition Saturday morning to be operating a motor vehicle!

I hope you all got out and enjoyed the sunshine!

same old, same old...

2006-06-20T12:40:00.000-07:00

It's amazing that you can be gone for what seems a significant length of time only to return to the same old routine in the same old style. Everyone is in awe of your 4 week vacation, but it's like no time passed at all in terms of work.

Life at the bank is OK, at least it's better than when I left. But the work is the same except that we got a new girl who's gonna take over a bunch of my work - yeah! and I get to take over a bunch of my bosses work - boooooo.

It's funny how easy it is to form relationships while you are vacationing. All the normal pretense is put aside because you know you only have such a short time to maximize the experience. You can make lifelong friends (or week long) in a day yet it takes months or even years to make a casual friend at home. It would be great if we could be on vacation all the time, never putting up the barriers that prevent us from feeling with our whole heart and connecting with others. People aren't so scary if you just give them a chance and take the time to figure out what you want in your own life and what you don't.

Go Germany Go!

Time to leave paradise

2006-05-27T17:11:00.000-07:00

Cabarete is grand! and I hate to leave her... but Houston calls. I have to go, I'm leaving on a jet plane, don't know when I'll be back again.

Unfortunately, my 10 seater jet plane leaves at 7am so I have to get up at 5am!

I will miss the sun and the surf. I hear it's plenty hot in Houston though. I certainly won't miss the heat. I welcome the cool evenings (and sometimes summer days) of Vancouver.

Hope you are all well!

coco-nut

2006-05-23T17:15:00.000-07:00

the most amazing thing happened to me today.

The hotel gardner saw me walking towards the beach this morning (I was on my way to breakfast) and he stopped me to ask if I was going to the water. His english is about as good as my spanish so we got nowhere when I said I was going to breakfast.

He told me to wait and then he retrieved a very long pole with a metal hook on the end. He knocked down a coconut for me! Then he took out his machete (no joke) and chopped off one end so it would sit straight and the chopped off the other end so I could access the milk!

So I walked around with this giant coconut beverage feeling like a stupid tourist. But when the locals saw me, their eyes lit up and they asked me where I got it from. I shared the tasty drink and then proceeded to breakfast with my oversized cup. The waiter was very envious and said that he was going to do that as soon as he got home because coconut juice is good for the kidneys. He also offered me a straw. After breakfast I gave him the rest of my coconut juice, he was very happy to take it.

This is the nicest place I think I've ever been to. The dominican people are very friendly and helpful. I hope I will come back here some day. But for now, I have 5 days left!

Fun in the Sun

2006-05-20T19:10:00.000-07:00

Hey there,
It's my last day at the resort, tomorrow I'm off to the next adventure. So far the 5-star all-inclusive has been fun. The wedding (not mine) was great - it was on the beach and random stranger applauded and took pictures. There was even a topless lady asking us to pose for pictures - very strange.

Yes, I'm burnt, but that was expected. It will only get worse as I try my hand at Kiteboarding in Cabarete.

Hope all is well with you!

We're #1!

2006-05-10T09:06:00.000-07:00

Working for the best company in Canada does have its privileges.

I get 5 weeks vacation, flex days, great benefits, fee-free banking, reduced rate loans, increased rate term deposits, a window cubicle, free coffee & hot chocolate, long lunches, a flat screen monitor, a headset for my phone, unlimited blue folders, fitness classes at lunch time.... the list goes on and on.

So - why the change in tune - because I'm only here for 2.5 more days...and Friday we are going through some renovations on our floor so most of the day will be spent packing up our desks and socializing...so really I only have today and tomorrow left (which probably means that I should get some work done!).

Employee Engagement day is coming up - that's the day we all get to give 'them' a piece of our mind via a survey about leaderships, tools to do the job, career development, voice etc. I hope I don't have vacation fog when I come back and only write nice things because I'm still on the beach sipping something rummy from a coconut with a purple umbrella decorating the rim.

Anyway – I’m here to say that life is good and we should be happy for what we have, but not so happy that we can’t see what we could have if we applied ourselves.

4 more days!

2006-05-08T16:05:00.000-07:00

how exciting! of course, half of my readers are headed off to Hawaii for the same week and couldn't care less about my vacation - but I'm going to tell you all about it anyway.

Week 1 - Punta Cana - all inclusive 5 star resort for my friend's wedding. 35 kms of white, sandy beach :)

Week 2 - Cabarete - Windsurfing mecca. Lower brow hotel but breakfast is included so you can't beat that! And it includes 3 days of Kite boarding lessons. My body will likely take its revenge but that's what the beach front resort lounge chairs are for :)

Week 3 - 10 days with the twins - best birth control ever I'm sure! I'm going to hit Austin, San Antonio & Galviston (sp?).

Week 4 - visiting our good friends Mr & Mrs Fyke for a few days... he better take me somewhere fun! What's up those two crazy kids these days anyway?

To everyone out there taking or anticipating an upcoming holiday - have fun and wear lots of sunscreen! Be Safe! If you're not heading out - well...that's too bad... but someone needs to stay home and water the plants and collect the mail.

7 more days

2006-05-03T10:23:00.000-07:00

... in this hell hole I call work.

But the heavens are smiling on me - because my boss is taking next week off so I won't be seeing her for 5 whole weeks! Yipee!

The count down begins....

The power of communication

2006-04-24T17:44:00.000-07:00

I had an important reminder this weekend about how damaging it can be to keep your thoughts to yourself. If you have something to say, just say it.

I had a Tarot Card reading this weekend and she reminded me that so long as you can back up your opinion/comment, the result is rarely bad when you say what you have to say. The alternative is to not be heard or worse, to have decisions being made about something important to you or impacts you that you didn't speak up about.

Communication is also the key to a good relationship. You can't expect people to know what you are feeling or what you need unless you speak up.

So let's all keep communicating!

She also told me that'd I'd have 2 kids by 38 - but she didn't happen to mention if a husband came with them....sigh... and something about commanding my own boat full of money because I don't function well under direct management...

return to the doom and gloom...

2006-04-19T12:29:00.000-07:00

Ok - why do I continue to complain about things without any attempt at changing them?

Because I: a) am lazy b)like my job (but not my environment) c) have a 4 week vacation booked that I have to pay for d) have no savings e) am passive enough to watch myself be totally compromised

I hate where I am and who I've become trying to make it alright.

This is the closest I've come to golden handcuffs. What do you do when the organization is fantastic but your immediate team is terrible?

I can only hope that my constant discipline will result in a nice tidy package a la Snowy Cat...where's the release form, I'll sign it right now... no fuss no muss...

it's all over now

2006-04-11T10:32:00.000-07:00

So, finally the day arrives, the day of my wisdom surgery. What can I say about it- I remember going in and I remember going out, that's about it. Luckily Snowy Cat was there to rescue me and escort me to his car and then home and selflessly stayed with me all day to watch TV and get me Apple Juice. Judy was there too just to make sure that Snowy cat found the pick up location and made it home with me safely...Snowy Cat is a bit of a nervous driver.

Now it's all about the T3's....that's good stuff, no wonder you can get $5 / pill on E Hastings...I'm going to have some left over, I should see if I can fund my vacation a bit...

The swelling is minimal and the bruising is non-existant. I feel that I got off lucky. I'm not back at work yet...I'm glad it's a sort week so I don't have to feel guilty about missing all my important work - Ok, a monkey could (and sometimes does) do my work, but my boss is pressing quite hard for me to come in tomorrow. Given that I seem to be unable to sleep for more than an hour at a time I'm super groggy and pretty much out of it....sure - let me figure out why you are $10,000 over on your salary budget, then let me give myself a big raise and doll out a couple of pink slips while I'm in the system.

Hope everyone is well out there! How am I typing this blog you ask - I'm not in the office and I don't have internet at home - but the new beau brought over his laptop and picked up a great free connection! (well, free for us anyway...)

Happy Birthday to Holly & Rebekah!

2006-04-05T12:29:00.000-07:00

Happy 2nd birthday to the twins. We can celebrate their lives by visiting their blog at http://thenewtexans.blogspot.com/

In other news, it's a gloriously sunny day and I wish I was unemployed with a giant severance package so I could enjoy a few rounds with Snowy Cat.

On the weekend I picked up a couple of travel books for the DR - I can't wait - only 4 more weeks until I leave!!! Then I'll be gone for 4 weeks - 1.5 of which will be spent with the adorable aforementioned twins.

Enjoy the sun!

How to manage difficult employees

2006-03-21T13:18:00.000-08:00

I think my manager took this course last month and is applying some of her training on me.

I realize that I'm likely a difficult employee to manage. But I am also a high producing, high results employees. Every company should be so luck as to have even one of me in each department.

Apparently I'm the only one who thinks that I'm a rock star in the work place ... sigh...

For the first time in my life I got written up. I, excellent performer Queen Bee, got a disciplinary letter. I have never felt more useless and humiliated in my life.

So - you may have gathered from some of my previous posts that my work place is undergoing some changes. One of these changes is a new director (read - VP's right hand man/woman) for my department. One of her big things (our commitments) is documentation. I manage all the salary programs including the annual salary reviews. I’ve designed an electronic tool (someone else built it, but I figured out how it should work based on our business rules) to gather the info and work through about seven other people to get it all done (2200 employees to get info on!).

Then I download the info into a fancy (or not so fancy, it’s just data) excel spreadsheet and give it to the HR Technology people to import into the payroll database. Seems to me, that once I’ve balanced the import data my work is done.

No, turns out it’s not.

There are always exceptions that I have to deal with and then have to get to payroll for entry. But the import has to be done before payroll can enter the exceptions. The HR Technology team is new and doesn’t really know what it is doing so the import took a week rather than a day – so the data didn’t get into the payroll system until the very last possible minute on the day of cut off. But there were still exceptions to be entered into the system by the payroll folks.

Apparently, after the payroll run a couple of entries fell out of the payroll processing – I have no idea why nor do I care, I don’t run payroll, I just make the policies and provide the data. I was now being asked why these things existed. I go to find the paperwork in payroll but it’s not there. Strange, payroll always keeps documentation – where is it?

Nobody cares about that question; the big question on everybody’s mind is why I don’t have the documentation. I’ve never kept payroll documentation before, but apparently I was supposed to keep it this time.

I’ve used up all my free passes. I don’t know if this is step 1 of progressive discipline, maybe, but I don’t think so. I think it was just a way to try to break the trouble(d) employee. Maybe they are trying to make an example of me… I’ll show them… if I was trouble before, just you wait…

You can’t break the Bee!

House of Pain

2006-03-10T12:28:00.000-08:00

I've finally done it. After years of nagging from friends and doctors - I've finally booked my surgery to have my wisdom teeth out.

3 of the 4 wisdoms are impacted. This means that they will never come up properly and are in fact growing sideways and pushing on the rest of my teeth to make a comfy spot for themselves. Total cost: $1500 (luckily for me my company benefit plan will cover most of it).

So, mid-April I will visit the House of Pain (otherwise known as the Oral Surgery Clinic). Snowy P Cat has kindly agreed to pick me up - but I think it's to break up the boredom of on-line poker and golf and for the laughs of me being under the influence rather than kindness.

Am I nervous you ask? Nope - I'm absolutely terrified. These stories of people who can go back to work the next day?!? Who are these droids?!??!!? This is an unlikely scenario for me I'm afraid.

When I had my two bicuspid teeth out before getting braces I was out for days! The specialist said that I would likely have 'healing issues' because I was so fair skinned. I don't know if I understand the skin-pain correlation, but he was totally correct - I had issues with my lack of healing. Let's also not forget that on a scale of 1-10 with 10 being totally tolerant, I have a pain tolerance of -3 :(

Wish me luck! And a happy birthday for this weekend!

Bathroom snitch

2006-03-03T11:46:00.000-08:00

I've been complaining about my job a lot lately. Apparently, in true bee bumbly style, I’ve been voicing my opinion to too many people. Well, actually - I think the problem is that I've been vocal to or near the wrong people. I'm really not very politically savvy.

Apparently - someone overheard me in the bathroom complaining about a recent termination here at work. I'm quite sure that I didn't have said conversation in the bathroom - but nonetheless, it got back to my manager - actually it was my manager's manager. So I got called into her office to have a little 'talk'.

All in all, the talk went very well and I think I managed to convince her that the comments were taken out of context and did not reflect my present state of mind. We both agreed that idle gossip carries no weight and should generally be ignored.

So – either someone I’ve confided in has tattled or someone overheard something, made up some details and then went running to my VP.

To make matters more interesting – I just found out that someone else in my department had a similar ‘talk’ which was triggered by a complaint from someone in the bathroom!

So – what have I learned?
1. People at work are not my friends, I shouldn’t confide in them
2. Our bathroom is bugged

whodunit?

2006-02-22T17:55:00.000-08:00

You are all far more clever than I...you would have had it solve way sooner than me!

1. It was an inside job
2. It was the perennial practical joker
3. There was an accomplice
4. Both were women

Valentine's Day secret admirer

2006-02-16T10:46:00.000-08:00

So, I get into work on Tuesday to find a little bag of Valentine’s Day candies on my chair....there's a note attached:

You're hot like coffee - wanna join me for breakfast?

Who could this be? I inquire around, no body owns up to it. I figure it's a joke since no one else has one so I email the entire HR division with the following:

"Some kind soul thinks I’m right up there with coffee. They’ve invited me to breakfast (who could turn that down?)… but where or where has he/she gone?
Please don’t leave me standing on the empire state building by myself….waiting….longing….with gurgling tummy….
I’ll be in the kitchen preparing my oatmeal…..just in case….."

Nothing. I eat my oatmeal by myself.

Then I get a call that there is something for me to pick up at the front desk. I go down to the lobby and pick up another similar package with another note.

Then I go for lunch and upon my return there is another package with a note on my desk!

Then, around 3pm the mail guy comes up and special delivers a 4th package and note!

Who's doing this?!!?

At first I thought it was a joke, but nobody was laughing that I could see, so then I thought that maybe it was the new boy that I'm seeing. But the nature of the notes really didn't fit his profile. I was completely baffled!

By now the entire department is involved and by the 4th delivery all the ladies are gathered around my desk working on their theory of who done it.

Here are the notes:

#2: You must have invented the power button because you really know how to turn me on
#3: I'm crazy about you like glue. Let's stick together.
#4: Some bunny loves you. Let's make like rabbits.

Ok - this clearly is an inside job. The best practical joker on my floor vehemently denies it.

So I go home Tuesday night for my Valentine’s dinner – and totally grill my new boy who denies having any knowledge of the gifts. I continue to grill him until I’m totally satisfied that he had nothing to do with it….and frankly, I’m glad because the notes are funny but in poor taste from a potential new boyfriend.

So, it’s Wednesday night and I still have no idea who did this. But when I find out, they had better watch out… I will retaliate!

I used to hate Valentine's day

2006-02-14T17:10:00.000-08:00

But now I don't.

Happy Valentine's Day everyone!!!

........ insert picture of cartoon heart & cupid with arrows flying around the heart here......

I see lights?!?

2006-02-10T18:00:00.000-08:00

So far for 2006, I've worked 42 hours of overtime. it's currently Friday at 6pm, I get off at 4:30pm....

I get an extra week's holiday (35 hours) to account for the fact that I don't get paid for nor time in lieu of my overtime worked....

I think I'm getting screwed and it's only the beginning of February!

But at least I see some light - I think the tunnel is ending...YEAH!! A couple more weeks and I should be in the clear, never to work another minute of overtime until December.

I love Spring! Bring it on!

Work sucks

2006-02-02T14:01:00.000-08:00

Things have been a little crazy here lately - two HR departments are being amalgamated into one. You'd think that this would be our speciality ... but it's not. there is no transition plan and people have been uprooted into new roles with no appreciation for the work that they want to be doing.... and no plan for the work that was being done and now is not.

So some people don't react well under that kind of ambiguity and pressure - I am one of them. And so is one of my close colleagues.... he was fired today.

I can't think of a place I hate more right now.

Why I don't vote

2006-01-18T13:25:00.000-08:00

I find myself completely uninterested in any remotely political conversation. When people start talking about politics I totally tune out. It's terrible, I know this!

In the past I've pretended to know what's going on, even added a huffy comment about the NDP. I've even proclaimed who I've voted for to hide my shame of being a non-voter.

I'm here to come clean. I never have, and maybe never will, vote. I don't even have much of a preference. I have a negatively physical reaction to the NDP, I don't like the look of that Harper guy (I find him totally creepy), I don't like the ridiculous antics of the Green party - so what does that leave? A liberal vote? I don't think so!

But I do enjoy a good competition! So I will be at whomever's household is holding the election party in by best red, white, and blue and green outfit. And cheer when the other cheer and ohmigosh when the others ohmigosh.

Please don't mock me.

Resolution time

2006-01-13T17:33:00.000-08:00

Yup, time to make good on your resolution to get active.

Winter Hat League starts up next month. Sign up now!

www.vul.bc.ca

Certainly this rain will subside and there will be great, green fields to support our love of the frisbee... if not- it's $25 to get out of the house once a week for brunch with a bunch of new friends.

Chronicles of A Small Town (CAST)

2005-12-29T15:38:00.000-08:00

Hello Again! Welcome back, I hope you had a very merry holiday.

I have returned from my small town vacation - what a time I had! But more on that in other posts...life in a small town is very different from my life in Vancouver.

I'm sure you want to hear all about my Christmas activities.

My annual potluck, gift exchange party was another huge success. Thank you everyone for coming and making it great as usual. My mom helped out this year - she thinks you are all very...um...interesting. Daniel - she thought you were a sharp dresser. Snowycat - she thought you were very well behaved and was glad that you didn't break or spill anything :)

After that we went to visit my dad and brother - not necessarily in that order. We exchanged gifts with my brother - as usual, I carried in an armful of gifts in return for one red envelope. It'll be $50 well spent at Marks Work Warehouse for me this year!

Then off to my dad's for the night (my mom went elsewhere). My dad loves the surprise of christmas. He loves it so much, he'd never open the gifts if that were socially possible. He likes them to sit under the tree. Luckily - Ruby, his lady friend, insisted that we open our gifts. Little did she know that earlier in the evening, before she got home, my dad already had me write out my own cheque...so I only had a gift from her - but it was a great gift of warmth (knit slippers and scarf, not matching).

Then off into the snowstorm ... East I was headed with my mom. Unfortunately, the only snow I saw was while I was driving. The entire week I was visiting there wasn't a drop of snow, in fact, even the stuff that was there melted before the week's end. But that's no matter - it doesn't take white stuff to make a good christmas.

Luckily, to make up for the lack of gift opening this year I bought myself some new snowshoes.

Now where's that great ski season I've heard so much about?

Happy Holidays

2005-12-16T14:59:00.000-08:00

I'm signing off for a bit - off to visit the folks for a mind numbing week.

I hope all my loyal readers have a great holiday and eat way too much turkey!

BB

I like to do stuff.

2005-12-07T18:26:00.000-08:00

I like to do stuff. And I used to like to do stuff that included exercise and sweat but now I just do lazy, random stuff usually while consuming mass amounts of calories. Glenn's blog made me reflect on the past quarter.

Since Ulti finished I haven’t climbed, ran, hit or rallied anything in 3.5 months! I’m a blob! I’m the heaviest I’ve ever been! Move over Kristie…. But I like to do stuff. I’m active – meaning that I’m not home much. Let’s evaluate how I’m spending my time:

I eat out 95% of my dinners and 50% of my lunches. I skip breakfast 5 out of 7 days / week.
I go to a friend’s place 2 out of the 5 weeks nights and 1 weekend night
I go dancing 1 out of the 2 weekend nights
I go for the occasional walk around the beach, sometimes even to Granville Island (Ok, I only did that once and it was last weekend and I bought a pound of cheese on the way home because I passed Les Amis du Fromage).
I have a friend over 2 nights/week.
I snowboard once / week and maybe one weekend day too
I pay a monthly donation of $20 to Fitness World and haven’t been since March.

I’m beginning to see why I’m still renting as well as putting on weight….

Every Thursday I spend 45 minutes in an Ab, Butt & Thighs class – but we all know that once a week isn’t enough to keep us fit.

I used to play some sport or another 3-4 nights / week and make almost all my meals. Of course, I wasn’t single at those times so there was someone to get away from/make meals with/for.

Of course, at first I could blame it on the accident – I really wasn’t able to do any of the things that I normally did. It didn’t take long to get out of the habit of doing quality stuff. Some activities still bother me, but that’s what the chiropractor is for :)

Is this the making for a New Year’s resolution? Will I actually get my butt in gear (pardon the pun) and get fit? Bets anyone?

Time for new material

2005-12-02T16:12:00.000-08:00

...but I don't have any. It's December already! What happened to November?!? I must have slept through most of it because I certainly have 2 or 3 weeks of extra work on my desk.

I used to love December as it was the beginning of great fun and holiday spirit. But now it just marks the beginning of the busiest 3 months of my working year.

Sigh :( I'd better be off, I have marvelous works to create in Excel.

2005-11-23T10:10:00.000-08:00

It's hard to believe that we would pay $1.17 / liter of fuel. But we have and will again if need be. We can't be with out our vehicles - or at least some of us can't. To make matter worse, I drive a horrible gas guzzling beast. I go around the block and have to put another $5 in it... but never more that $25 at a time (you never know when the price will drop). It's one of those domestic monsters where the fuel indicator is ungracious on the empty side (if it's on the E line you're about to call BCAA because you are out of gas) and overly generous on the full side (it goes way over the F line - which I haven't seen in quite some time). I love my car but hate the expense of it all.

Back at the farm, fuel seems to be cheaper - I guess they don't have the same taxes imposed in the Valley. So, with gas on 'sale' (it was 10 cents cheaper than Vtown) I filled up. It's been so long since I've done this I felt a little uncomfortable staring at the pump. So I move my gaze to my shoes... then to the nozzle...then off to the road...will it ever fill up?!? How long does this take?

I merrily go about my business for the next couple of days as the novelty of cheap gas wears off.

Suddenly, last night I look down at my fuel gauge - it's on the line! Oh No!!!! How could this have happened? Ahhh, I won't even make it to work in the morning, I'm sure of it. I’m screwed! Ahhh, I hate my car!

But once again, I'm going in the out door - it's just been so long, that I didn't even notice that it was the Full line not the Empty line! I just saw that it was on a line. Crisis averted!

Sometimes I wonder how I make it through the day.

Rafting

2005-11-21T08:51:00.000-08:00

My family suffers from mangled metaphors & clashing clichés....

My brother calls pharmacare Farmer care and assumes that my dad is eligible because he's a retired farmer. He also says: "It's a cash 21 situation!"???

I had dinner with my Dad and brother yesterday and he used the term: rift raft.

it had me confused - the illness is starting to show signs in me! I say riffraff but I don't know if that's correct or not. Which is it?!?!?!

Help!

Let it snow, let it snow

2005-11-10T08:48:00.000-08:00

If I knew how to post a picture you'd be looking at the awesome conditions at Whistler.

But I don't so I'll just tell you about it - 62 cm of fresh snow and another 20-40 to come in the next 2 days.

Got my board all waxed up - thanks to Cptn Kirk! - and I'm ready to go.

Now if only I had a car that would get me up there ......

Another one bites the dust

2005-11-08T08:51:00.000-08:00

I know I’ve offered up a few dating stories lately which may make me sound like I can’t commit – but truth be told, there has been one particular fellow that has truly held my attention for the past couple of months. The weird dates I’ve been going on were a result of the speed dating thing that I tried (which does not offer a very favorable ROI) and I felt that I should at least meet each of the fellows that I matched to…but that took some time.

Meanwhile, I’ve been seeing a great guy from Lavalife. It’s been about 1.5 months but given our schedules, we’ve only been on about 6 or 7 dates. We are still at the scheduled dates phase and not yet at the ‘hanging out’, call whenever, plan weekends together stage. But I thought we were making progress to that...I just had to get the excess cleared from my life (which I finalized this past weekend) and then I was ready and willing to move forward with my new man. Turning a new leaf so to speak… I really like this guy and that doesn’t happen too often.

Turns out he had a different timeline and found my ‘avoidance’ suspicious and flakey (who wouldn’t?). So, after telling me how great I am Friday night, Monday morning I get into work and find the break up email in my inbox. Apparently I’m not of “sound heart and mind” J But honestly – email?!? Email is acceptable after one or two dates – not after several dates and movie nights.

Oh well – do I really want to be with a guy with such poor communication skills that he can’t even call me to break up with me?!? Am I so scary that I don’t deserve face-to-face discussion? NO! well maybe, but he doesn’t know that about me yet….

I once found a t-shirt in Whistler that I wish I bought it said:
“Boys are stupid. Throw rocks!”

So to you KayakandDog – I throw a giant rock!

Uncle Gilman

2005-11-02T10:12:00.000-08:00

Dating these days is quite an adventure. People do their research!

It never occurred to me to do an internet search on someone I was about to go out with. And it doubly never occurred to me to check out their website if their email suggests that they have one.

So this has happened a couple of times - I get questions about my cats. "What cats?" I ask.

You may recall the bowling date - it was a double date and after bowling we went out for some appies and drinks and the two guys kept going on about cats - I thought they were a bit weird.

So, a follow up date occurs last night...one-on-one. Somewhere in the middle of the conversation he tells me that my picture on the internet is really unflattering and I'm much prettier than it suggests. "What picture?" I ask. "You know, the one of you and your uncle" he says. "Huh?"

Turns out that Snowy Cat has some photo's on his website and there is one of Gilman and I holding the cats on their birthday.

LOL!!!

Stranger in a familiar land...

2005-10-24T16:17:00.000-07:00

Every 3 or 4 months I get together with a group of old co-workers (we used to work together, they are not old). We go for Dim Sum. I love Dim Sum! I've missed every one of the events in the past 12 months.

So I made a special effort to ensure that I was there this past Sunday. I even arrived early!

Ms Mak (Asian) made the reservation. I told them this and they seated me in a rather unsightly table in the corner...hmmm...strange I thought. The reservation was for 6 but she put me at a table for 4 so they quickly had to rearranged the table and squeezed in another 2 chairs. I could see that this was going to be a cozy affair especially since there was no lazy susan in the middle of the table.

Mona (Asian) arrives next. I don't really know Mona well and haven't seen her in over a year - she looks different than I remember. And so do I apparently. I saw her looking around for her party.

"Valerie?"
" um....not quite"
"Oh, I thought it was you, sorry. They told me the foreigner was already here."

Ms Mak arrives and we immediately get a better table with a lazy susan.

When is a deal a deal?

2005-10-22T14:28:00.000-07:00

As you know, I’ve been trying to sell my car. I haven’t had much success which I can only attribute to the outrageous price of fuel….and maybe my complete laziness in getting it advertised.

In June I get an interested buyer in Calgary who’s looking into it for his dad who lives in Moosejaw. We negotiate a price, I send him pictures that the lovely Nutmilk took for me and he liaises with his dad.

Finally, at the end of August, I get a call from the dad. He’s very interested but has some concerns about the accident that I had in 1998. I can’t find the old ICBC papers but assure him that the paint job is perfect and I get lots of compliments on the car. He is then concerned about the interior, the tires, the roof and the trunk liner. We have long conversations on the phone which are usually him asking me to confirm that the car is in good shape and me responding with “I absolutely guarantee that the car is in fantastic condition”.

Eventually, he says that his Uncle is passing through town and wants to give it a look-over. Fine with me! Uncle comes to my workplace and looks at the car. He kicks the tires and looks under the hood. He doesn’t want to take it for a test drive because he doesn’t know the area – even after I suggest that I could navigate. His final assessment: “the paint doesn’t match”.

For those that have seen my car, the paint is very deceiving. It’s pearlized and changes colour with the light. This is the beauty (and expense) of it.

I end up taking the car to a GM body shop to get an unbiased opinion on the paint job (they said that it’s a perfect match) and have the dad call GM (he was concerned that if they called him he wouldn’t know if it was just one of my friends or not) to hear what they had to say. He’s still concerned and wants the ICBC papers and wants me to look into how and when to get it shipped to Moosejaw.

By now it’s late September and I’ve lost my patience. We’ve been talking about this deal since June!!!! I tell him that I’m super busy at work and can’t go to ICBC to get the details of the accident. By early October I tell the son that I have another interested buyer and will consider their offer since his dad doesn’t seem to be able to commit to a sale.

Suddenly the dad calls me and is ready to talk business. We make a deal on Oct 14th and he’s going to transfer the $$ into my account on the 18th and I’ll take the car to the shipping place the following day. I give him my account numbers.

Monday, October 17th, first day of a week off. Life is good. I’m going car shopping! I find what I want without too much hassle. I decide to sleep on it and test drive a couple of vehicles on Tuesday. Tuesday, October 18th – day of the deal. I pick a car and put a $1000 deposit on it subject to my financing and a mechanical review. I’m sooooo excited. It’s exactly the kind of car I wanted. I won’t have to ask Kirk to drive to Whistler all the time nor Cindy to Cypress. I love to drive and I’m tired of being a passenger J

Tuesday, October 18th – 4:30pm – I’m sitting on my balcony thinking about how lucky I’ve been lately. Great new apartment, great job, sold my car, found a new one. Things are really falling into place.

Tuesday, October 18th – 5:30 pm – phone rings – it’s the dad.
BB: Hi, how’s it going?
MD (moosejaw dad): Oh, not too good.
BB: Huh?
MD: I had to have my furnace looked at because the price of heating went up 40% here. I can’t afford that. My house is 80 years old and my furnace is 25 years old.
BB: Uh huh
MD: That’s a big increase for an old pensioner like me.
BB: Uh huh
MD: It’s shot. I have to get a new one. It’s $5,000.
BB: Uh huh
MD: So I can’t buy your car.
BB: What? I don’t understand. We had a deal, you can’t back out of it now!
MD: what do you want me to do? Freeze? I have to heat my house and I can’t afford both. I’m just an old pensioner you know.
BB: your furnace is 25 years old and it’s a surprise that you have to replace it. You haven’t been saving up to have it fixed? None of this is my concern. We have a deal, you promised to put the money into my account today.
MD: well, I can’t keep that promise.
BB: but I’ve made other arrangements counting on this.
MD: well that was stupid of you. I would never do anything until the money was in my account.
BB: No, what was stupid of me was to assume you were a man of your word and that a deal is a deal.
MD: well I am
BB: no you aren’t. You have no integrity. If you were in this province you’d be in a lot of trouble right now.
MD: well, there’s nothing I can do about it. I don’t have the money to do both. I’m going to the bank tomorrow.
BB: OK, call me tomorrow when you’re ready to transfer the money.
MD: I’m just an old pensioner, they’re not going to lend me any money.
BB: I don’t believe this. After all that you’ve put me through. All the time I’ve taken to assure you that you are buying a great car. I took time off work to get an independent opinion on the paint just so you could feel confident that you are getting your money’s worth.
MD: Well, you wouldn’t give me details of the accident so what am I supposed to feel. Besides, the black book value of the car is only $11,000.
BB: That’s it. Call me when you have money.
MD: I really want the car, but I can’t do it right now. I’m sorry I’ve upset you.
BB: I don’t think you want to do anything but waste people’s time and it’s certain that you haven’t given an ounce of consideration to me. Good bye!

Who does that?!? Who makes a deal and then re-negs at the last minute?!? People with no integrity, that’s who. I was so mad that I could spit. I took a long walk along the beach dominating the sand and leaves with my giant feet. What a sight I must have been.

Last night I confirmed that the other buyer is also unable to buy the car because he lives in Seattle and the boarder makes it a huge and expensive hassle to import a car.

I still have the car on deposit but I’m going to have to give it up…no sense in having 2 cars. That makes me very sad.

Lesson learned: get agreements in writing and a deposit if possible.

So much for my week off - I spend 2 days looking for a new car, 2 days being sick after the failed deal and one day just feeling sorry for myself. But 2 good things did happen to me: I had a second date with a really cool guy and I got to see a Giants game with Snowy Cat (where I also got to explain a rule to the sideline coach on my left...much to Snowy Cat's surprise).

Tomorrow will be a better day.... I can feel it.

Bowling

2005-10-12T17:53:00.000-07:00

I went bowling last night for a double date - what a riot!

5 pins, balls that fit in the palm of your hand, self-scoring, Top 40 in the background. Fantastic!

I highly recommend bowling to anyone looking for a good time. Apparently, you can bowl in your socks so you don't even have to rent the stinky shoes.

What's that? Oh, my score? um...it's a stupid game and score isn't relevant.

Canadian Holidays

2005-10-07T09:53:00.000-07:00

Happy Thanksgiving everyone!

I hope you all have some Turkey dinner plans for this weekend. Don't forget to wear the elastic waistband pants.

this game is stupid...

2005-09-30T15:53:00.000-07:00

I usually reserve this statement for the 11th hole and then Snowy Cat has to leave a chocolate trail to the 18th hole to get me to finish the game.

But I've found a new game I love to hate - Poker.

What a stupid game.

What the hell am I supposed to do with an unsuited 10 3?!? or worse, my most common hand last night was 6 3 unsuited! All in all - I was taken to the cleaners, I'm glad we play for small stakes. I had one had that was a winner and I folded before I even saw the flop. But it made me feel better to see Roggles fold a 7 2 only to get a flop / river that would have given him a full house.

I loose it all on 2 pair against 3-of-a-kind...soooo close...

And to rub it in just a bit more is Gilman who takes an ETERNITY to make a decision about a check play! Gilman - man I love you but I don't think I can play with you without a strict time cap and a hot poker to enforce it.

Enjoy my money while you have it - I'll be back and you won't be so lucky!

Boring Blog

2005-09-28T17:44:00.000-07:00

Ok, you're all tired of stopping by and not seeing a new post.

stay tuned - there may be interesting information soon :)

In other news - my housewarming is around the corner - mid October perhaps? Mark it in your calendar, you won't want to miss it.

In case anyone was wondering - I visited my mom last week and she is doing great! She severed her Achilles Tendon earlier this summer but is now walking somewhat normally again and up to her old tricks...I have a freezer full of Rice Krispie squares & turkey borscht to prove it. She'll be moving next month - wish her luck!

Women do stupid things...

2005-09-13T08:51:00.000-07:00

and I did a variety of stupid things this weekend.

1. Attend the VUL year end party in pointy toed, high heeled shoes with no nylons. Very stupid.

At some point we left the party to go find a club - we walked there. I should have taken one of our guests up on his offer to piggyback me - but I thought he was kidding. By the time we got there I had a huge blister on my big toe which made me walk kinda funny.

Eventually, I was just sitting at a big table all by myself in deep contemplation - I have to pee, but that would require me getting up and negotiating the crowd. Careful steps required. But my feet hurt - I'll just wait a few more minutes. Everybody with us thought I was being anti-social. ME! of all people! I'm a bee - I buzz around whether you want me to or not!

2. Try to keep up with seasoned drinkers at a different party on Saturday night.

I, Bee Bumbly, of sound mind, solemnly vow to never, ever drink more than one shot of tequila per night.

Unfortunately, the second party that we had planned had to be had without us because my night was completely over by 11:30. Roggles - I vaguely recall that we chatted on the phone. If I made any promises or admissions - not of them are valid in court, I was not of sound mind or stomach at that point. But K and I are sorry for changing your and C's night.

3. I made an appointment with my local spa at 10am on Sunday morning to get my eyebrows thinned.

This is a stupid thing for 2 reasons - a. 10 am on a Sunday when I know I have several parties to go to Saturday night is not attainable; b. any hair removal is incredibly painful.

So Sunday morning I wake up with 1 hour before I have to leave for my appointment. I'd cancel but they charge you 1/2 the cost - there's no way I'm paying for services that I didn't receive! (that's the thrifty bee talking.) I got myself into this mess, I'm going to get myself out. Pure will power will make me feel well enough to go out. Hardly! So I purged the remainder of my stomach contents, had a gallon of water, tried (unsuccessfully) to clean myself up and wandered out the door. I was still in my pj's, just threw a t-shirt over. I'm thankful that the spa was within walking distance because there was no way I could drive. I meandered down the street - I took up the entire sidewalk. I likely reeked of booze. I arrive at the spa with water all over myself because I missed my mouth a few times (I took my water bottle with me to keep myself somewhat hydrated), my hair completely dishevelled and stinking of alcohol. They were happy to see me.

The pain of the eyebrow threading (they use sewing thread to rip out the hair - it's better than waxing for those with such sensitive skin as myself - but it hurts like an SOB!) - made me forget the pain of my stomach and I managed to breeze though the first treatment with tears streaming down my face. Then I had to go to another room for the dying. Turns out that hair dye near the eyes stings...a lot! So - more tears but I get through it.

So - my outfit is scary, my hair is half in a pony tail and half hanging out, I can't walk straight and my eyebrows look like some kind of gothic tribute. I was a very, scary sight. Perfect time to go to the beach.

Fresh air will make me feel better. I end up being there for about 1.5 hours because I can't get up. I'm just passed out on the grass.

Maybe it's not that women do stupid things, I'm sure there are some very reasonable, realistic women out there....I'm just not one of them and I do stupid things from time to time.

Another new home

2005-09-07T14:12:00.000-07:00

I'm all moved in. My new apartment is great. I know, I know...you've heard it all before. But this time it really is great. No smelly dogs, no old crazy guy, no for sale sign. Just to be sure I stay for awhile I signed a 1 year lease.

My new neighbourhood is great - right in the heart of Kits action. Fireworks from my balcony for sure! I have so much room I can throw a dance party .... although my downstairs neighbours may not approve, I'll have to invite them.

So, stay tuned for another housewarming party - likely the end of September.

And I think I've sold my car...finally. I'll know for sure early next week...some guy in Moosejaw wants to buy it and ship it by train....crazy!

How many steps does it take?

2005-08-19T12:31:00.000-07:00

There are 12 steps to stop drinking.
8 steps to an average flight of stairs between floors
6 steps to get some $$ approved for your 2006 salary budget

But it takes a bijillion steps to walk across Canada. Annually, my work organizes a 'get active' campaign. Last year you got prizes for doing stuff - anything really. If I wasn't so busy doing stuff I would have entered and received $$ for my regular lifestyle. But you had to fill out a form - it reeked of effort.

But this year's campaign is simply to wear a pedometer and record your results. Some how I was made captain of this adventure. So as in perfect form - I delegated out all the boring administrative tasks and took on the official role of cheerleader.

But it takes a shitload of steps to get across Canada. Turns out my average lifestyle isn't nearly as active as I believed it to be. To be healthy, 10,000 is recommended. To have a team of 15 get across Canada, you need to average 14,000 steps. My last few days - average steps: 4500.

Time to get movin'! People wanted me on their team because I'm so 'active'...I'm a total disappointment! Turns out that the people who care about weight and diet and exercise have a routine of walking or exercising regularly. I don't do this. I'm just fit by luck!

It's like those people who had to study in high school - when they got to university they were much better off than those who didn't need to study in high school.

New goal: 10,000 step average during week and 15,000 on the weekend

wish me luck!

Blogger spam

2005-08-15T14:23:00.000-07:00

Can you believe it?!? My last message has a comment that is actually a spam advertising message. And I'm so inept at this interweb business - I can't get it off or block the commenter! Nor can I respond to their blog with a nasty message about wasting people's time.

Is nothing sacred?!?

Terror on Maple Street

2005-08-09T10:33:00.000-07:00

I knew the time would come. It's all come down to this moment. It's me versus him. My odds don't look good and the clock is ticking down to the deadline.

The air is icy at this ungodly hour. It's time. No more phaffing...no more excuses....no more mr nice guy. My heart is pounding! My palms are sweaty. My reaction time just isn't what it used to be. When did I become such a coward? He's clearly got me beat.

It's time for the cage.

I'm such a fool - I had my chance but let it slip away. Curiosity has killed in the past, but all I wanted was an easy transition....this was not to be. A quick sniff and he knew I was up to no good.

And so the chase began. Outside, inside, under the side table, over the couch, out the window, back inside. I'm sweating profusely now...I'm never going to catch him, he's too quick....and clever. He's got defenses I'd only read about. Where did this hotstility come from? I wasn't prepared.

Round two...I'm wiser now, at least for a moment. I've blocked all the exits and pressure my opposer to leave his hiding spot and make a break for the bedroom - but no, the door is solidly closed. Ha Ha! He looks left, he looks right...there is no escape...but wait! He sees it...the bathroom door. He makes a run for it, I let him go in...he's exactly where I want him.

This is my house! He will not have his way with me, I'm in charge! With ski gloves firmly in place and jeans covering my delicate legs I enter, closing the door behind me. There's no way out. I try, once again, to plead for an easy end to this terror. But he'd have none of it! 'It's do or die' I'm sure I heard him hiss...all right, have it your way. I lunged from the left, he shimmied away beind the toilet, I daringly reach behind to give him a little shove - this is all it took. Aha! You're in the wide open now! Gottcha!

The fur's a flyin'! Screams can be heard down the hall I'm sure. It was a struggle to get him into the cage, but finally, I got it. Cat food & water everywhere. My task is complete. Maxx is contained.

I'm still a little traumatized from the whole incident. But I'm getting better. I meant no harm, if only he didn't fight back. It was all for the greater good. A little therapy and I'll be fine.

Maxx, I hope you're happy now that you're back with your family. I'll miss you.

Don't judge a cat by the colour of his fur

2005-08-04T16:58:00.000-07:00

"I like orange cats" - a quote from a friend about my newest home addition, Max the Cat.

Max is Kaper's cat - actually, more accurately, Kaper's husband's cat. Max is physco. He's a very innocent-looking orange tabby cat but don't be deceived, he's lean and mean.

Kaper and family are moving to Houston, they left this morning - I will miss them very much. But Max has to take a later flight...so, being the great friend that I am, I offer to take care of Max and take him to the airport on Monday. After I agreed to do all this, Kaper filled me in on a few of the responsibilities & things to know associated with this little adventure.
1. Don't let Max outside. This means keeping all my doors and windows shut...which makes my usually pleasantly cool apartment stinkin' hot!
2. Max hyperventilates in the car. This is the strangest thing. It looks like he's hissing at you but no sound is coming out. I think this is what a feline possession would look like
3. Max is crazy - but I already knew this. Don't touch his tail or approach him head on.
4. Max's flight is Monday morning and has to be at the airport by 5am!
5. I have to pay for Max's flight when I drop him off.
6. Monday is my day off.
7. Max likes to eat plants

I'm frightened of the cat. We have stare down contests and he always wins. I have to close and lock my bedroom door at night to sleep. At some point around 4:30am Monday morning I have to figure out how to get Max into the travel cage. Wish me luck. He's already lost one claw in my thumb when I tried to grab a plant that he was chewing on.

Not all orange cats are fun and fuzzy. Max is mean and hard...he's like Don in orange fur.

More good news!

2005-07-22T16:01:00.000-07:00

I have a home...again!

I found a lovely 2nd floor apartment in the heart of Kits. It is about 1.5x bigger than my current hovel and it has a nice big deck (well, big for Kits anyway). And, if I stand on my tippy-toes, I have a great view of the ocean & the North Shore mountains.

This makes 5 moves in 2 years - but I signed a year lease so I should be staying put for at least the next 12 months :)

Things are lookin' up!

Big Day!

2005-07-18T20:05:00.000-07:00

Does everyone remember that fateful day 21.5 months ago? No?!? That's OK.

I do. It was the day I got my braces on. What I distinctly recall was the preceding month of agony and the successive months of torture.

I'm very proud to announce that today is the day that the braces came off!

I've discovered that the only thing worse than getting braces installed is having them removed. Have you ever had the dentist crack a tooth? or have local freezing when they pull a tooth? Having the brackets torn off my teeth felt a lot like that.

Then there was the scraping. Have you ever had your neck cracked? It's no worse than having your back cracked but the simple location of the neck bones being behind the ears amplify the cracking sound 10 fold...like the Slayer's fateful day in 1977 when Spike found her on the subway. Does anybody remember Gilman cleaning the cement off Carol Anne's pots? That's sorta what it's like to have the dental adhesive scraped off your teeth. Like they are inside my head running their nails down a chalkboard.

But the worst of it all.... the icing on the cake.... is a small gap that has developed between my front tooth and the bicuspid. At this point in the game I was willing to live with it. Small price to pay for 21.5 months of torture. But my orthodontist won't even entertain the thought. So, they pulled, wired, elasticized and pulled some more to wire it together in hopes that maybe in the 2 hours that I'd be in their office the gap would close.

No such luck :(

So, of the 24 brackets, 5 remain on my bottom teeth. But that's OK. I had enough of the removal process anyway. So tomorrow I go back for my retainer and to get the final pieces removed! YEAH!!!!

So, what now you ask? Good question. I have a funky, wavy wire permanently glued to the inside of my upper and lower front teeth to prevent them from going all wonky again. Then I have custom made, custom coloured retainers to be worn at night time only. (yeah to purple, sparkly things)

Fortuantely, the braces came offer earlier than expected, unfortuantely, my payment schedule is independent of my tooth progress.

How was your weekend?

2005-07-11T18:25:00.000-07:00

I decided to play in the Babes 'n Hats ulti tourney.

This is a great opportunity to play with some different people and learn some new tricks. And to run like you've never run before!

Saturday: 4 games with an hour break between the first set of two.
Sunday: 3 games with an hour break after the first game.

My team made it into the finals! We had a great team, but apparently not great enough to beat the Orange team. The final game is played in front of all the loosers of the previous games. They know they are the loosers and spend the entire time heckling and call out for hammers. I was told this would be fun...but it was only stressful....now, in front of 100 people, I'm going to show my lack of conditioning and stamina :( Everybody is going to see me stand around in the end zone waiting for my 'moment to strike' (which don't come all that often).

Anyway - today, I can barely stand. My legs are soooo tired and just about every muscle hurts.

So - lesson of the weekend - do lots of stretching and don't sign up for 2 day tournaments.

Spoke too soon...

2005-07-04T10:50:00.000-07:00

Nicely posted on my apartment door for all to see was my "Notice to End Tenancy" last Thursday.

Anybody free Aug 31st to help me move? It's a Wednesday...

Sigh

Long time, no blog

2005-06-29T18:52:00.000-07:00

Not that I have anything new to say today...

Happy Canada Day!

No eviction notice yet...but the home inspector came last week - I think the deal is as good as signed, sealed & delivered. My apartment has been sold. I tried to buy the one above me - imagine, 431 sq feet of my very own living space! - but someone else had already put an offer on it.

Have a great weekend everybody.

BeeB

Women Woe's

2005-06-09T12:27:00.000-07:00

How is it that my Tuesday Ultimate team, which has 7 rostered women, has the entire roster of women show up to almost every game and my Thursday Ultimate team, which has 6 rostered women, can barely avoid defaulting every game due to lack of gender?

Is it the night? No- other Thursday teams have so many women that they give up some to help Swarm out!

So, the women of Swarm run their asses off every week. But by the time Tuesday rolls around, I've forgotten all about my Thursday woes and am ready to go for another round of heart pumping fun....only to discover that I'll be benched for more than half the game because 7 women show up.... sigh :(

Here's how I think it should work:

extra players = less field time = more time to rest = more energy to expend on each individual point.

So - a shout out to all the ladies on Swoofs - If you have enough energy to entertain playing 3 points in a row - you're clearly not working hard enough. You should be so tired from the point you just played that you're begging to be relieved.

If not - wear yourself out by running to the liquor store to by ciders for those of us who are working hard.

Parties

2005-05-30T13:15:00.000-07:00

Yesterday, Anita hosted a Pampered Chef party. It's an event where one lady invites a stranger into her home to present her wares to a bunch of other ladies. It's kinda like the shopping channel only you can't get up to go to the bathroom in the middle of the sales pitch. There are good eats, wine, games and prizes.

These parties come in all shapes and sizes. As most of you know, I was doing the candle thing for awhile...great way to supplement your income. Some women make their living doing these shows. There are Tupperware parties, sex toy parties, cooking implement parties etc, etc.

Now, I'm not giving up my day job. Ultimately it is much more rewarding and pays much better and I don't have to manage any underlings. But having someone come to your home, bake some goodies, give you some free stuff and personalize your shopping experience is worth considering! What's best is that men never set foot anywhere near this kind of gathering. So you can buy whatever you want without them nagging you about it. And then the stuff comes in about 3 weeks so you can integrate it into the house without them ever knowing about it.

There's even an SPP - spousal protection plan - pay by cheque, cash & credit card so that your husband never knows exactly how much you spent.

I was often a little aghast at some women's attempts at hiding their expenditures from their husbands. Honestly - do you think he stops to think about what you'll say about his new drill purchase? No. Make the purchase and move on. Seems to me it's more work hiding it all than just being up front about it.

Nonetheless - these parties are fun. If anyone knows of one that will bring shoes into my living room - sign me up!

If anyone is interested in a candle party, let me know and I'll organize one :)

Nothing to say

2005-05-17T13:21:00.000-07:00

Is there such a thing as blogger's block? Writer's block for blogging? I've been searching for interesting blog material for months. Since the exit of Don's Dog house, I've got nothing to write about! Yet, somehow, Glenn & Snowycat have loads to say. I suppose I could update you on my lava life experiences...but who wants to hear about that.

So here's my latest thought - the greatness of friends!

I was sitting around on Sunday, too lazy to do anything when a friend called me to see if I wanted to go for a hike. What a great idea. I didn't want to do anything around the house and the gym is out of the question. Sometimes all we need is a friend to encourage us into doing something....anything! It beats sitting around doing nothing or playing on-line poker.

So - If you're sitting around wishing you had something to do - pick up the phone and call someone. If you're sitting around thinking that you have no friends - there is probably someone in your phone directory thinking the exact same thing.

Satisficing

2005-05-06T09:55:00.000-07:00

Concept: Herbert A. Simon in his Models of Man 1957 -

A Definition of Satisfice
"To accept a choice or judgment as one that is good enough, one that satisfies. According to Herb Simon, who coined the term, the tendency to satisfice shows up in many cognitive tasks such as playing games, solving problems, and making financial decisions where people typically do not or cannot search for the optimal solutions."

A Second Definition of Satisfice
"To obtain an outcome that is good enough. Satisficing action can be contrasted with maximizing action, which seeks the biggest, or with optimizing action, which seeks the best. "In recent decades doubts have arisen about the view that in all rational decision-making the agent seeks the best result. Instead, it is argued, it is often rational to seek to satisfice i.e. to get a good result that is good enough although not necessarily the best."

The Process
"Satisficing" means deciding what constitutes a satisfactory outcome and then looking for ways to achieve it. We stop looking when we have "satsficed." Most often, we look for what's worked for us before. The difficulty here is that there may be even better ways to reach the outcome. Satisficing is not, therefore, choosing the first thing that might work.
However, looking for better ways carries a cost, and a better solution would have to justify the extra costs of finding it. On the other hand, not looking hard enough carries a cost if the project fails to win support from users or sponsors. The decision maker, therefore, has a choice between optimal decisions for an imaginary simplified world or decisions that are "good enough," that satisfice, for a world approximating the complex real one more closely. It's an ongoing empirical process of searching, implementing, and testing.
****************

So, what do you think about this? Is "good enough" good enough? In business circles one of the recent buzz books is "Good to Great" (Jim Collins). The concept is that many companies are good but there are definite differences between a good organization and a great one. It compares the payoffs of a great organization against the good one and there are definitely financial correlations.

Is the effort that we put into finding the "best" solution/resolution worth the outcome?

On the road again...

2005-05-04T17:52:00.000-07:00

Belive it or not, I may have to move again this summer. My fantastic new apartment building in my super great new neighbourhood has been sold and they are making condo's out of it :(

sigh....all I want is a nice place to live without too much hassle - is that too much to ask?

Apparently it is.

What I have learned in the past week

2005-04-26T16:59:00.000-07:00

When you plan for cold and rain and bring only heavy jeans and long sleeved shirts, it will be sunny and hot
you can loose money quickly at the following: Bingo, Keno, Meat Draws & Pull tabs
Trans Ams are not wheelchair friendly
wheelchairs are heavy
leather scratches easily
Bingo is the most infuriating game EVER!
Salmon Arm is the bible belt of the Okanagan
The misspelling of Okanagon comes from the registration of the very first post office when some clerk wrote it down wrong on the operating license
The very first post office in the Okanagan was in Vernon on the O'Keefe Ranch

New Policy

2005-04-13T13:31:00.000-07:00

They’ve asked me to write a policy around appropriate office vernacular.

What do you think of my idea?

Spirit: We are committed to revelling in the tensions – but with that comes responsibility for ensuring that everyone is treated fairly and respectfully.Some employees may be easily offended by strong language used to express your point. We do however, realize the critical importance of being able to accurately express your feelings when communicating with co-workers. Therefore, a list of 18 New and Innovative "TRY SAYING" phrases have been provided so that proper exchange of ideas and information can continue in an effective manner.

Policy: Listening & Trasforming.

1) TRY SAYING: I think you could use more training. INSTEAD OF: You don't know what the f___ you're doing.

2) TRY SAYING: She's an aggressive go-getter. INSTEAD OF: She's a ball-busting b__ch.

3) TRY SAYING: Perhaps I can work late. INSTEAD OF: And when the f___ do you expect me to do this?

4) TRY SAYING: I'm certain that isn't feasible. INSTEAD OF: No f______ way.

5) TRY SAYING: Really? INSTEAD OF: You've got to be sh__ing me!

6) TRY SAYING: Perhaps you should check with... INSTEAD OF: Tell someone who gives a sh__.

7) TRY SAYING: I wasn't involved in the project. INSTEAD OF: It's not my f______ problem.

8) TRY SAYING: That's interesting. INSTEAD OF: What the f___?

9) TRY SAYING: I'm not sure this can be implemented. INSTEAD OF: This sh__ won't work.

10) TRY SAYING: I'll try to schedule that. INSTEAD OF: Why the f____ didn't you tell me sooner?

11) TRY SAYING: He's not familiar with the issues. INSTEAD OF: He's got his head up his a__.

12) TRY SAYING: Excuse me, sir? INSTEAD OF: Eat sh__ and die.

13) TRY SAYING: So you weren't happy with it? INSTEAD OF: Kiss my a__.

14) TRY SAYING: I'm a bit overloaded at the moment. INSTEAD OF: F___ it, I'm on salary.

15) TRY SAYING: I don't think you understand. INSTEAD OF: Shove it up your a__.

16) TRY SAYING: I love a challenge. INSTEAD OF: This job sucks.

17) TRY SAYING: You want me to take care of that? INSTEAD OF: Who the h___ died and made you boss?

18 ) TRY SAYING: He's somewhat insensitive. INSTEAD OF: He's a pr_ck.

Thank You, Human Resources

Riddles

2005-04-08T11:45:00.000-07:00

1. How can you leave a room with two legs and return with six legs?

2. How do we know the deer and the antelope are deaf?

3. Some ducks were walking down a path. There was a duck in front of two ducks, a duck behind two ducks, and a duck between two ducks. How many ducks were there in all?

4. If you had a 5-litre and a 3-litre bowl and access to water. How would you measure exactly 4 litres?

5. On a Christmas tree there were two blue, two red and two white balls. All seemed the same, however in each colour pair there was one ball was heavier. All three lighter balls were the same weight, just like all three heavier balls. Using a pair of scales twice, identify the lighter balls.

6. Liar Paradox (Eubulid or Epimenides Paradox)
About this best-known paradox wrote a great stoical logician Chrysippos from Solov 29 books and philosopher Filetos even died because of it (seeking for its solution was killing).

A familiar Cretan sails to Greece and says to Greek men, who stand on the waterside: "All Cretans are liars." Did he say the truth or did he lie?

A week later, Cretan was sailing there again and said: "All Cretans are liars and all I say is the truth." Although the Greeks ashore hardly found out, what he said the first time, now they were absolutely puzzled.

If somebody says about himself, that he lies, is it truth or lie?

Planning is great...but...

2005-04-05T17:16:00.000-07:00

There are thinkers and there are doers. You need both for this world to survive and especially for organizations to thrive. Can one person do/be both? Absofreakinlutely! Today's world demands it.

So, what happens when you're hired to do some work but get stuck in planning, which is really your talent? We've recently hired someone to manage our HR systems. She's a great planner. She was hired to plan and then to do. So far, she's a great planner. In her defence, we have a planning deficit in my department, we need and value her skills...but we also need to get the work done.

You can create the greatest plan but if there isn't anyone, including yourself, to roll out the plan it's totally useless. System implementations require work to make them happen. Relaying on our 'in-house' IT department is a joke...they've scheduled 100 days for an implementation that should take 10...and in the end, they're not qualified enough to do it so we have to do it ourselves.

Hey - have you ever heard of this - if they don't take the 100 days to do the project we lose them from our allotted IT time. How's that for planning? That's crazy! It's called padding your budget. Always overestimate and then take lengthy holidays on your client's behalf.

Rubber's gotta hit the road my friend! And soon! Who's gonna do the work? Apparently I am at 7pm at night!

grrrr....

I'm hoping for a job change shortly - and then these projects will have no one to work on them...hee hee hee....

wait...

what if they ask me to do the new job and finish up my old projects?!? I'm doomed.

12 hour work days! No thanks!

2005-03-29T19:06:00.000-08:00

Working 12 hours a day is a stupid idea. Maybe if I got a day off in lieu I could understand, even tolerate doing it once in awhile...but out of the goodness of my own heart?!? I don't think so!

I got in at 7:30 this morning and it's currently 7:12pm :(

Why am I working such a long day you ask....let me tell you -it's because of other people's incompetence! Here at unnamed bank - we've been firing HR staff willy nilly without a transition plan which leaves everyone else to pick up the slack. They've clevery disguised it by calling it 'cross-training', this is my development plan, my opportunity to get some experience in another part of HR, be a real team-player. They don't know me very well here. On top of that, I already have a full time job here and that work isn't being given to anyone else for a 'cross-training' experience.

I've had it. I switch!

I need a vacation - I hear it's nice in Paris this time of year....

Trimming the fat...

2005-03-22T12:48:00.000-08:00

Taken from TinFoiled's last blog...it's time to trim the fat.

Most of you know that I'm a Lava Lifer. There are hundreds of people on this system, and they are all looking for either MR/MS Right or MR/MS Right-Now. How can anyone possible meet anyone else with these expectations?!? There's too much pressure!

So...Not to toot my own horn, but I get a smile or two every so often. But the lack of internet access at home means that I only do my 'research' at work. I work in a cubicle for all of the world to see at any given point in time. Just walk on by: "oh look, she's on lava life again"...sigh. So I often just log in to see if there's been any activity and then quickly log off with a vow to check again later to assess the 'talent'. Unfortunately, I don't do this very often.

Except when I'm in a bad mood or feeling very stressed/overwhelmed...which is today. So I logged in and rapidly started triming the fat by removing smiles. Surrey. Honestly?!? What are you thinking? I'm not going to date a Surrey guy with a picture of him and his PitBull who says he likes long walks by the beach and to cuddle by the fire... or perhaps to cuddle under the glow of his grow op lights while his dog keeps guard for the copers...

But I'm sure this leads to terrible karma. I delete guys left, right and centre - this will come back to haunt me, there's no question, I doomed. Doesn't everyone deserve a chance? Did I mention that most of them also have an Intimate Encounters profile? Interesting.

Eggs and Snow

2005-03-15T12:13:00.000-08:00

Why is it that boiled eggs taste nothing like fried eggs? Is there some difference in the chemical composition based on the rate of heat transfer of water vs. olive oil? Whatever it is, boiled eggs suck and fried, over-easy egg w/ham rocks!

A comment on Whistler – the snow is questionable. With four days left on my Edge card, I was forced (and forced my friends) to use a day on Saturday. There was ice, slush, ice, slush and some affectionately named death cookies. Both Miss Chan and I have bruised knees from falling. This is a terrible skiing/snowboarding season.

That aside, I had a great birthday weekend and hopefully so did everybody else.

Ps – the continuing saga of Don:
On March 7th my replacement roommate told Don that she needed to be closer to her boyfriend who lives in Whistler. She moved out the next day. I learned this information in an email I received from Don asking how to change the outdoor light bulbs and where were the extra bulbs.

Peace on Earth

2005-03-09T08:33:00.000-08:00

I can hardly explain the wonderful peacefulness of my new home.

It's like I was buried alive and I've finally been dug out. I can breathe again. No more intrusions, no more dog smell, no more hiding in my 10'x12' room trying avoid my roommate and his dogs... I can have guests over without having to whisper....life is good again.

Ahhhhh.... peace.

To add to the serenity, the giant Catholic Church across the street seems to provide balance to the hectic pace of life. I can actually feel the stress leave me. Every hour spent in my new apartment is an hour of life added back to my existence.

They say you can’t go home again – but you can definitely leave it and then regret it and then find a new one.

March is a glorious month!

2005-03-04T16:26:00.000-08:00

What can I say about the month of March? Not much except that it is the greatest month ever! It introduces Spring, the days get noticeably longer, snow starts to melt in the Okanagan, Easter is near, Leprechauns are not only acceptable but they are encourage to mingle with society (green is the new black) and it reminds everyone that my birthday is coming up.

So, big deal you say?!? Well! I never!

Who else was born this great month? Of course we have the great Ms. Sauer last week. Albert Einstein - 1879, Kurt Russel - 1951, Rob Lowe - 1967, Bruce Willis - 1955, J. S. Bach - 1685, Sir Elton John - 1947, Leonard Nimoy - 1931, Quentin Tarantino - 1963, Vincent van Gogh - 1853 & Rene Descartes - 1596. Impressive list - brains and beauty :)

I anxiously await all the glorious birthday greetings! Don't let modesty hold you back...

It's better to have a Hen tomorrow....

2005-03-01T12:45:00.000-08:00

than an egg today.

This is what my fortune cookie told me last thursday.

does this make sense to anyone? My asian friend told me that it's better to have the ability to create things (ie. wealth or eggs) in the furture than to have it all now.

Thoughts?

I think it's better to have all my wealth and stuff now than to be hit by a bus tomorrow.

A BIG thanks to Snowy Cat and Cindy-Loo Who helped me a great deal with my move. YEAH!!! NO MORE DON!!!! But now I will have nothing to write about...I may have to discover my inner cleaverness for future blogs.

Stay tuned for a birthday/house-seeing event later in the month.

No more Don!!!

2005-02-13T17:10:00.000-08:00

A quick note for all those keeping tabs on my life...after having 2 potential new friends bail on the prospect of having me for a roommate, I've landed my own apartment.

I'm the proud new tennant of the Maple & 7th neighbourhood. I have secured myself a large-ish one bedroom with a large balcony. Sorry, no BBQ's :(

Next step - moving.

I am very humbled to have to ask this of you twice in less than 6 months - but if any of you have it in you to assist me with my move, that would be most appreciated. I'll likely move on the 26th. More info to come. I'll be renting a truck this time too.

Hope everyone is well! These are exciting times!

Hello!

2005-02-05T13:21:00.000-08:00

Where does the time go? it's been almost three weeks since my accident and I have spent the majority of that time sleeping.

anyway - I'm healing nicely according to my doctor...the noticability of my black eye lessened just in time for the winter white party. Kudos to Snowy Cat for putting on such a great gala.

I don't have much to say - it's time to find a new home. No more crazy roommates, back to tiny bachelor suites. But I must remember my vision - my own home. But I think I'm too spoiled to go back to the tiny apartments and shared accommodation days. Maybe I'll revise my goals and make it a three year plan rather than a two year plan....for the sake of my uppty lifestyle :)

I go back to work full time this week. Last thursday was my first nap-free day! YEAH! I did go to bed at 9pm...but it's all about the small steps.

Yesterday I had a bit of a meltdown...where did all my strength go? I'm totally overwhelmed at work, my personal life is upsidedown these days, and two of my closest friends at work left the company yesterday....any the new friend that I made who was going to be my new roommate told me that she was also looking for a place for herself but didn't want to tell me and now she's found a place :( Back to the drawing board.

2005 has not started out well for me. The rest of the year had better get better! On the upside - Cindy and I have a romantic weekend booked in Feb at a spa on the Island. Bring on the massages !

Red Lights are for stopping...

2005-01-21T13:54:00.000-08:00

But some people don’t know this :(

I was happily sitting in the back seat behind Steve who was driving us all home. First stop: my place. We were all talking and laughing as we drove down Cypress St. We stopped at the red light at Cornwall…awaited it’s turning of green…then proceeded on.

Dead silence. That’s all I remember. I do recall seeing lights out of the corner of my eye. Nothing strange about that, it’s an interection after all. But why do they seem to be coming towards me? And why are they advancing so fast?

BANG!!!! That’s all I heard…and that’s the last I remember for a few seconds.

With all of 2 years under her driving belt, the young lady gets out of her boyfriend’s truck that she had borrowed for the evening in sobs and asks if we’re all right.

“No!! I’m not all right and stop asking me that!”

Everyone got out of the Jeep – everyone except for me that is. I just didn’t know what was going on and knew that I wasn’t able to stand just then. I sat there for a few minutes trying to figure out where I was and what had just happened. Steve eventually coaxed me out of the vehicle so the ambulance drivers could check me out. Which they did and told me to check in with my family doctor the following day.

It’s strange, I was unable to do any more than answer their questions. I couldn’t seem to offer up any additional information…like the fact that my head felt like someone was stabbing me. Then the firetruck arrived. What nice fellows those firemen. They asked if I was OK, I said that I didn’t know. As I was telling him that my head really hurt I put my hand to my head. As I pulled it away we all saw that it was covered with blood. The fireman then went back to the paramedics to have them take another look at me…which they did and promptly took me to St. Pauls.

Now there are some places in our lovely city that you just don’t want to be in, especially alone. The emergency room of St. Pauls is one of them…even in the secret 'fast track' room. My injuries were not critical…I mean, imagine what they see on a day to day basis…I’ve only got a bruised cheek and a small cut in my head. It wasn’t busy but they made me wait an hour anyway, just for effect I think.

Steve and Carolyn eventually found me in a bed in the emergency room. They got to watch as I got a tetanus (sp?) shot and four staples (new fangled stitches) and some x-rays. Eventually I get to go home with no fractures and with a staple remover.

Poor Cindy – it seems I hit her in the mouth – she got a mouthful of curly hair which I think prevented me from cutting my cheek open. Steve has a sore neck and shoulders, as does Cindy. Carla, the other passenger, has bruised knees and a stiff back.

I’m healing nicely according to my doctor. Now that I’m not taking as much Advil I notice the severe pain in my lower back…sitting is a bit of a problem…hopefully it will all go away. But not before my eye goes every shade in the rainbow…it’s currently purple and red and yellow – very attractive.

Steve told me later that the girl said that she didn’t notice the red light because her phone was ringing and she had to answer it.

Lesson of the week: red lights are for stopping and cell phones kill.

A day in the life...

2005-01-10T16:48:00.000-08:00

of bee bumbly...

A note left on the kitchen counter found prior to a day of fun in the snow:

"V, Could you please take down the Christmas decorations. Thanks. Don."

A note left on the kitchen counter prior to a day of fun in the snow:

"Don, could you please not leave me notes like this one. You and I do not share the same affinity for lists. Thanks. V."

It's all downhill from here.
Sigh :(

Still Sick

2005-01-04T14:11:00.000-08:00

Ahhh...being sick sucks... especially when you're sick on a stat holiday! So, to recover my free day off, I've called in sick today...unfortunately, I'm also actually still sick. Sorry for bailing out early on Snow P Cat's birthday festivities. It was good to see the old gang again. I wish the new year's comings and goings didn't have to happen so fast. Seems like we barely have a chance to say hello before we say good bye.

bon voyage!

For those of you not in the know - I gave my notice on New Year's day. How did Don react you may ask...well, like the yellow-bellied, spineless louse that I am, I did it over email. Just couldn't take the interrogation that was bound to follow a face-to-face confrontation. So yes, Don wants to 'talk' about it. We have to set a time to sit in the livingroom to discuss his failures as a house mate. This will be the first time I get to use the livingroom without fear of being kicked out of it since I moved in. Perhaps I'll start with that.

On another happy note - a friend of mine who lives just west of Denman has asked me to housesit for the months of March & April. Perfect! So I'm going to enjoy being homeless for a little while. If any of you know of anyone who needs a roommate for May, let me know.

As seen on a birthday card:

2004-12-29T16:24:00.000-08:00

Picture a black and white, 5o's ish cartoon drawing of two ladies appropriately attired in pill box hats and white gloves talking over tea:

Doris: Beth, do you know what Bob is getting you for your birthday?
Beth: Well, if he follows tradition it'll be a dozen red roses
Doris: My! That's a lovely gift. You don't seem very happy about it.
Beth: It comes with 'expectations' and I'm not sure I want to spend the next three days on my back with my legs in the air.

then, you open the card for the punch line...it's far to racy to print here, go to the comments.

Happy Holidays

2004-12-22T17:51:00.000-08:00

Merry Christmas everyone!

You'll all be happy to hear that my disaster of a christmas party was followed up by an invasion of my privacy and complete disrespect of my personal life. I've had it! If I don't move out soon, I'm going to kill Don and feed his body parts to the dogs. So in the new year I'm going to give my notice.

Thanks so much for all your support over the past year and a half. I feel like a total basket case with no focus and no drive and no confidence. So I'm going to make some changes in my life. Starting with my living situation.

I'm also spending the next two weeks house-sitting in West Vancouver - a nice spot to reflect on the past year and plot my revenge....I mean make some changes.

Next blog - we should all post our New Year's resolutions.

Have a good one everyone!

BB

Kelly's a Star

2004-12-17T08:41:00.000-08:00

Who didn't want Kelly to be the next Apprentice? Kelly, next to Andy, is the greatest. Jen is a whiner and a do-nothing-er...all talk, no action. Fancy schoolin' won't get you everywhere, at some point, rubber has to hit the road!

I only watched the ending - I've got the details taped...I hear Chris Webber bailed on Jen's event - them's the breaks Jen.

Good luck Kelly!

Gentlemen Only...

2004-12-15T17:47:00.000-08:00

Does this phrase offend only me? My guess is that it offends 51% of the population. But if it said, Ladies Only, no one bats an eye. Why is this?

Today, I went to the Vancouver Club to enjoy a lovely afternoon with my collegues eating, exchanging gifts and generally being merry. But how is it that my 'values-driven' organization is a member of a previously gentlemen only exclusive club? Does this fit our value system? I think not! And to top it off, the 'club' has only welcomed women recently...this isn't some stuffy, 1920's club, it survived as a men's only club since 1889...and I can't seem to find out when it started letting women through the door, I heard that it was the mid 80's.

It's such a contradiction - we'll open a bank on the east side, we won't let suspect business owners deposit money, we'll lend money to small, unqualified entrepreneures, we'll win an international award for promoting women....and then we have to get speical permission to have our all-women department christmas lunch at the Vancouver Club.

icing on the cake - I get back to the office and Bell Mobility has a booth in our lobby! What is this, Future Shop? Blasphamous! (sp?)

Answers to Life's mysteries

2004-12-13T09:27:00.000-08:00

1) What can run but never walks, has a mouth but never talks, has a bed but never sleeps, has a head but never weeps?
- River
2) What has four legs in the morning, two legs in the afternoon, and three legs at night?
- Person-yes, but more percisly – a baby on hands and knees, adulthood, a person using a cane for walking.
3) No sooner spoken than broken. What is it?
- Silence-
4) If you break me, I’ll not stop working. If you can touch me, my work is done. If you lose me, you must find me with a ring soon after. What am I?
- Heart
5) What lies in bed, and stands in bed. First white, then red, /the plumper it gets the better the old woman likes it?
- A strawberry
6) There is a thing that nothing is, and yet it has a name. It’s sometimes tall and sometimes short, joins our talks, joins our sports, and plays at every game?
- ?????? – This is the only question that I did not know, I was hopping that somebody would now this one.
7) Feed me and I live. Give me to drink and I die. What am I?
- Fire - Good job Snowy Cat!!!
8) I pass before the sun, yet make no shadow. What am I?
-Wind
9) This is light as a feather, yet no man can hold it for long?
- Breath
10) We are very little creatures; all of us have different features. One of us in glass is set; one of us you’ll find in jet. Another you may see in tin, and a fourth is boxed within. If the fifth you should pursue, it can never fly from you. What are we?
- Vowels
11) Where may you find roads without cars, forests without trees, cities without houses?
- A map
12) I have a hundred legs but cannot stand, a long neck but no head; I ease the maid’s life. What am I?
- A broom
13) Cannot be seen, cannot be felt, cannot be heard, cannot be smelt. It lies behind the stars and beneath the hills. Ends life and kills laughter. What is it?
- Darkness
14) This runs but cannot walk, sometimes sings but never talks. Lacks arm, has hands; lacks a head but has a face. What is it?
- Clock
15) Rewrite this sentence without using the letter “R”. Robert and Richard purchased a German Shepard.
- Bob and Dick bought dog (what the hell is an Alsatian?)

Test of your mind

2004-12-07T08:38:00.000-08:00

Ok, this was sent to me and I have none of the answers...well, actually I stopped reading after #4 (short attention span). Give me your answers and I'll return next week with the correct ones.

1) What can run but never walks, has a mouth but never talks, has a bed but never sleeps, has a head but never weeps?

2) What has four legs in the morning, two legs in the afternoon, and three legs at night?

3) No sooner spoken than broken. What is it?

4) If you break me, I’ll not stop working. If you can touch me, my work is done. If you lose me, you must find me with a ring soon after. What am I?

5) What lies in bed, and stands in bed. First white, then red, /the plumper it gets the better the old woman likes it?

6) There is a thing that nothing is, and yet it has a name. It’s sometimes tall and sometimes short, joins our talks, joins our sports, and plays at every game?

7) Feed me and I live. Give me to drink and I die. What am I?

8) I pass before the sun, yet make no shadow. What am I?

9) This is light as a feather, yet no man can hold it for long?

10) We are very little creatures; all of us have different features. One of us in glass is set; one of us you’ll find in jet. Another you may see in tin, and a fourth is boxed within. If the fifth you should pursue, it can never fly from you. What are we?

11) Where may you find roads without cars, forests without trees, cities without houses?

12) I have a hundred legs but cannot stand, a long neck but no head; I ease the maid’s life. What am I?

13) Cannot be seen, cannot be felt, cannot be heard, cannot be smelt. It lies behind the stars and beneath the hills. Ends life and kills laughter. What is it?

14) This runs but cannot walk, sometimes sings but never talks. Lacks arm, has hands; lacks a head but has a face. What is it?

15) Rewrite this sentence without using the letter “R”. Robert and Richard purchased a German Shepard.

The Goodbye Kiss

2004-11-29T09:40:00.000-08:00

There is something very special, even magical, about the goodbye kiss. It's the meeting of the eyes and that last breath of air that you share before parting ways for some indefinite period of time. You close your eyes and take it all in, savor the moment – for that’s all it is, a moment. A moment of complete intoxication (and occassionally, infatuation) … drunk with the moment you are experiencing…and then, just like that, it’s gone and it’s time to sober up. But it’s not really gone. I don’t know what men do, but I think I can speak for most women when I say that that moment lives with us forever. Ok, I’m being dramatic…maybe not forever, but it tides us over until we get the next hello kiss…which may be a long, long time. Who doesn’t remember that last kiss they shared with the ‘love of their life’ just before you broke up…oops, or maybe just the love of that month…or week :)

The best way to ensure that you don’t make any lasting connections with the woman you are dating is to not give a sincere kiss good bye. Yes, I know, some of you don’t like to be part of the ‘norm’, you hate the ‘you’re supposed to do this’ social grace routine…but honestly, it’s such a small thing that makes her so happy why wouldn’t you do it? (It's right up there with flowers and little notes... but that's another blog.) It doesn’t have to be a big, long, sappy kiss - a kiss on the cheek as you hug goodbye will do the trick. It just has to be sincere. In this case, it’s all about her, not you, and there’s nothing wrong with that.

But I think that maybe you fellows enjoy this moment too...could it be? would you admit it? what do you have to say about that?

Men, I urge you, never miss the opportunity to give your girl a kiss goodbye. Even if she’s sleeping soundly and you have to slip out for the early shift, a little, warm, moist kiss followed by a whisper of something sweet will not go unnoticed. Don’t leave her without making that last connection.

I've got more to say on the topic of kissing...but I'll leave for another read another time.

What are your values?

2004-11-17T18:14:00.000-08:00

So, what's all this nonesense about knowing your values? Honestly!?! How many of you have ever sat down to articulate exactly what your values are. Yes, we all know where we stand on a social issue...but what's the underlying value that invokes that stand?

Being a part of corporate society, I get to participate in 'Values' workshops. And working for a 'Values' driven orgainization it's particularly important to have a handle on what your values are. Ok...turns out almost every one in my department has the family value first. Hmmm... what does it mean that I had integrity first? in fact, I discarded the value of family almost immediately and outwardly laughed at the people in my group who wanted to keep it (obviously sensativity is not one of my skills). But I don't have kids nor a husband so maybe that shifts your priorities. But none of the family people had integrity on their list - they had things like security and creativity. Can't family oriented people have any integrity? Anyway, who cares... what's more concerning is why someone might judge me because I don't have the value of family in my top three.

Searched any on-line dating sites lately? "I want to meet someone with the same values as I have..." "Let's meet, we'll talk about our values". Blech! And these statements are coming from men! When's the last time one of your guy friends said "Let's talk about our values" that's right up there with "let's talk about our feelings". How boring to meet someone with exactly the same thoughts as you. How about a little adventure? a little conflict? some interesting conversation around why I value accountability above family and why I support choice.

Maybe that's my value statement "if you can't stand the heat, get out 'o the kitchen!" I'm gonna say "let's meet and see how we handle disagreements". Ok, Ok, I'm just kidding ... but it's important, if you have no or low communication skills you'll never be able to handle me.... I should put that in my profile.

Anyway - don't talk about 'values', that's boring. Talk about something interesting.

The Great Towel Caper

2004-11-01T14:17:00.000-08:00

Another Don story....

About 3 days after I moved in (late September):

Don: Do you have one of my towels?
V : I don't think so?
Don: And I seem to have one of yours.
V: Hmmm...I just got here and haven't done any laundry yet...so unless you're unpacking boxes for me and stealing my towels, it's unlikely you have one of mine.
Don: Well, i'm not sure, I just know I have a brown towel that doesn't look familiar. I don't think it's mine.
V: OK, maybe it's my mom's...I'll ask.
Don: take a look, it's on the rack.

So i go to the rack...there are about 4 towels bunched up (how do they ever dry?!?)...none of which were mine or my mother's (she was there for a week helping me move..Yeah mom!).

V: No Don, I don't have any of your towels and those ones on the rack are not mine.
Don: hmmm...OK, I guess it'll turn up eventually.

OK...let's fast forward 5 weeks.

V: Yeah! I've finally installed my own towel rack. I can stop hanging my towels on my closet doors.
Don: That's great!

Don goes into the bathroom to investigate. There are now two nicely installed towel holders on the back of the bathroom door.

Don: Oh, do you think one rack will be enough for you or do you need one and a half?
V: huh?
Don: Do you need more towel space?
V: ummm...perhaps, I was thinking that I might get another one to put on the wall. But for now one rack is perfect for me.
Don: Ok...umm...will you be moving this towel from my rack?
V: huh?

Don brings me this orange towel....

V: ummm....isn't that your towel?
Don: Hey! There's my missing towel! It's been hanging there the entire time! I thought it was yours.
V: You don't know what your towels look like?
Don: Well, this one was in the back of the drawer so I guess I grabbed in and forgot about it.
V: hmmm.
Don: this is great! A new towel!

Costumes

2004-10-27T08:47:00.000-07:00

Not much time today....

but this is an urgent issue...

GPC needs a costume! Any helpful ideas? I know there'll be several unhelpful ideas...how about something that is acutally doable in the next few days....

I thought him and Paul should come as a cat....

Howard wants to show you something...

2004-10-14T08:22:00.000-07:00

Howard, the 2 year old Golden Retriever, loves me! He follows me all around the house, brings me my slippers (one at a time) and waits outside the bathroom every morning for me to come out. Very cute.

until today.

I'm not too sure how many of you have ever had to experience me first thing in the morning - basically, it's best not to talk to me until after I've had my shower. This morning, as I stumble out of my room, Don calls out "Hey Verlane, Howard wants to show you something". Blank stare. "What?" "Howard. He wants to show you his sock".

Now... just yesterday Don was telling me how Howard likes to eat socks and then throw them up at four in the morning...is this what he wants me to see? a thrown up sock?!?

"well, not right now, but after your shower, come take a look".
"whatever"

So, I come out of the bathroom after my shower, feeling much better I might add.

"Verlane...Howard wants to show you his sock"
"is this something I'm going to say 'oh gross' to?"
"Probably"
"great"..... "OH GROSS!!!!!!!" "Don, why are you showing me this?!?!?"

yup, it was an aborted tempted digestion of a cotton sport sock. I must admin, Howard looked pretty proud. But why was is still on the floor? Why hadn't it been cleaned up already?

Tonight Don and I are going out for dinner - he wants to welcome me to my new home and neighbourhood by offering Chinese food - this morning he asked if I liked Lemon Chicken (which I do) and then he said he's got the menu all picked out already....I guess I don't get any say...oh well, this should be fun/interesting :)

Tyler....Joanah...Walt....Augie...Rufus...Augie

2004-10-07T13:38:00.000-07:00

And so it continues - these are the considerations in the past couple of days.

I almost had him convinced that Rufus was a good name but he related it to bigger dogs like St Bernards and therefore didn't think it was appropriate. I think Augie is some baseball player's name. I'm very thankful Joanah didn't last long as a name for him....

Justin...Jason...Larry....Walter...Tyler...

2004-10-05T10:34:00.000-07:00

No, not a list of my recent conquests - but rather a list of names for a confused Golden Retreiver.

Shortly before I moved in, one of Don's dogs died. Don was so heartbroken, he went back to the breeder and inquired about adpoting another adult dog. He brought home Justin. But apparently, Justin is too hard of a name to call out in an emergency (ie. dog runs out into traffic) so he decided to start calling him Jason - a name I was not fond of. Jason lasted a few days...But then he decided that the name Jason didn't really go well with Howard (the 2 year old Golden)...so he came up with Larry - which I like. But then, while watching Judging Amy with my mother, he focused on a character called Walter.

Walter.

yes, this I like. And so did Don...at the time. Walter it is. What a great name - Howard & Walter.

But Walter is a two syllable name. Much too much to say in a hurry - imagine the marbles in your mouth as you say Jus...Jas..Lar..Walter! takes entirely too long when there's a truck barreling down on your precious new family addition.

So, now we're on to Tyler - a name I don't endorse. Somehow, this name is easier for Don to say than Walter. And he feels that Howard and Tyler go together better than Howard and Walter. All it does for me is remind me of a good date and then a cheesy email brush off.

I'm pushing for Walter - what's your vote? I'm interested to hear what you have to say about this. It's turning into a heated debate between Don and myself....much like the pile of my boxes in the back entrance way :)

ps - Howard loves me and follows me all around the house. It's very cute. If only I could find that kind of admiration, excitement and commitment in a man.....

The Results are in....

2004-09-27T13:28:00.000-07:00

So, which is the better cleaner? Tilex or Fantastik????

Turns out it's Mr. Clean!

Fantastik just didn't do as good a job at cutting the grease - why is there grease on the walls you might ask....because dogs, like people, are greasy.

The cleaning went amazingly well. Given the level of filth on the walls, I was in awe of the new look. Unfortunatley, my movers, who had not seen the place prior to the cleaning, were less than impressed. But all in all, the move went swimingly! A BIG thanks to all my helpers!!!!!

Don advised me yesterday that I have a great group of friend. He could tell because he thanked them all for all their help (not sure why he was thanking them) and they all responded by looking him square in the eye and said thanks for thanking me.

Did I tell you about the signs? The house is littered with 8.5 x 11 sheets of paper with motivational pharses on them...such as: "I WILL build my church"...."Forgive them for they know not what they do"...."Success is mine"..."RUDY". Don said that he'd take them down for me...but there are so many and they've been up so long that he's totally desensitized to them and doesn't notice the ones he's left up! "Oh look, more signs!" he says. Anyway - we're working on the sign removal plan - along with the clutter removal plan. Apparently one of my movers suggested that a fair compromise would be for him to keep signs on his half of the kitchen and move the rest up to his office. I guess I can live with that.

Altoids

2004-09-24T11:58:00.000-07:00

Have you ever tried one?

They come in these great round tin boxes (can a box be round?) ..OK containter. I've experienced Tangerine Sours and they are super great!

But today, a fellow buzzer introduced me to Citrus sours - what more can a bee ask for?!?!!!

mmmmm, I love lemon!

Changing times

2004-09-23T16:57:00.000-07:00

The time has come, time to pack the boxes and re-locate. Wait a minute, didn't I just do this recently? Good thing bees work with buddies or I'd be a wasp. I'm trading in my 2 cats for 2 giant dogs - what's next?!?

Crazy new flatmate Don will give me endless material to work with. For example - in order to organize a cleaner - he sent me about 7 emails one of which compared the wall cleaning ability of tilex vs fantastik!

time to pack, see you soon.

I like to smile!

2004-09-21T10:53:00.000-07:00

Smiling is fun! It's a lot of bee-buzzing fun!

I like flowers. They are more colourful than the average plant so as to attract bees. Bzzzzz, that makes honey for peanut bzutter sandwiches.

My favourite flowers are daffodils.

No, daisies!

Nice to meet you, everybody.